The Vermont Department of Public Services conducted a poll and a series of focus groups over the summer regarding state energy policy, specifically support for or opposition to using more renewable energy. They just released the 87-page report on what they found out.

DPS poll/focus groups will be spun the other way, but this is what people said.

Vermonters Weigh In: Public Opinion on Renewable Energy, and the results are interesting. Here’s what the data actually points to, and how it will be spun to say the opposite.

The most striking and unsurprising finding from the polling is that the factors Vermonters find very or somewhat important in an electricity source are, first and foremost, “affordability” (98%) followed closely by “reliability” (97%). Coming in third was “Impacts on natural resources like forests, rivers, and wildlife” (91%). When asked to pick just one factor as the most important, “affordability” blew away the competition at 29%. “Reducing carbon emissions” took on larger importance at 19%, and “reliability” came in a close third at 17%.

Some of the factors that didn’t score so well in the generally important/most important questions: “Whether the source is renewable” 79%/8%, supporting jobs and economic development 91%/4%, and source produced in state 60%/1%.

So, to summarize, the kind of energy policy most Vermonters are looking for is affordable, reliable, and with the least possible amount of impact on our natural environment, such as forests, rivers, and wildlife. We don’t particularly care so much if it’s renewable, reduces carbon emissions, or is produced in state – albeit those attributes might be considered nice.

Needless to say (or maybe it needs to be said), this is the exact opposite of the state energy policy our elected lawmakers are imposing upon us, which is moving more and more into high-cost, less reliable, intermittent non-baseload wind and solar power that requires acres and acres of precious natural ridgeline and pasture lands, displacing natural habitats and, especially in the case of wind, threatening endangered species.

Now, for those who do express favor for renewable energy, it’s easy to virtue signal support for it in theory, but the real question – one happily asked by the pollsters – is how much would you be willing to pay extra for said renewable power? And, according to the poll, Vermonters say not much, and most preferably nothing at all.

Again, this sentiment is so far removed from the multi-billion-dollar price tag of the Global Warming Solutions Act one has to ask why do we keep electing the people we keep electing. But I digress.

Asked, “How much more would you be willing to pay [per month] for electricity if it meant that all of Vermont’s power came from renewable or low-carbon sources?” 31% of Vermonters said “nothing.” 17% refused to answer, which probably means they just didn’t want to sound like a skinflint in front of the pollster. 24% said somewhere between $1 and $25, 16% said somewhere between $26 and $50, and just 12% said they would pay more than $50 per month, which probably indicates they were just showing off for the pollster. If actually presented with an annual renewable energy fee in excess of $600 on their electric bill, I bet a big chunk of that 12% would freak out, and not in a happy way. But I admit I speculate.

In the focus group sessions, where they conducted what looks like a crash course in Vermont energy policies sandwiched between before and after surveys to track changes in opinions based on learned information, there was an interesting revelation on this topic. Although the “after” survey showed a very modest drop in the number of people unwilling to pay anything from 18% to 15%, the overall dollar amount people were willing to pay dropped off sharply. “The median amount among participants who were willing to pay something actually went down compared to these participants’ initial responses, from $30 to $25.” (P.43)

Of note: what I don’t like about the way they asked this question is there is a huge difference between $1 and $25 a month — that’s $12 to $300 a year; very different – but these folks were statistically grouped together. Other surveys that have asked a similar question find that those willing to pay more for a “green” alternative tap out at about $10 a year. So, this overly wide net is certainly skewing the report’s conclusion of what the true median of what people would be willing to pay actually is. I do not think very many people, let alone 24%, would sign up to pay an extra $300 a year for electricity given a choice.

But even skewed up this much, these numbers will not come close to covering the bill for the energy mandates that exist in the Global Warming Solutions Act. So, if we are asking the question, are Vermonters prepared to pick up the tab for the energy policies our elected leaders have signed us up for, the answer would be no. Absolutely not.

Here’s where the spin begins…. The report claims on page 16, “Renewable sources were most popular with Vermont residents. Solar led the way in terms of strong support (62%)….” There are problems with that statement, but it’s the spin you’re most likely to hear.

First problem: the ONLY options the respondents were asked about were renewable, except for nuclear. There were no options listed for the most affordable, reliable options with the smallest geographic footprint: fossil fuels.

A more accurate and truthful way of gaging public opinion would be to show respondents a full range of options, fossil and renewable, along with a true cost per kilowatt, a reliability score (baseload or not), a landscape/wildlife impact score, carbon emissions per kilowatt, and a renewability score, (for fun I’d add a “relies on components made with child/slave labor” from countries with traditionally marginalized populations” category, time and space permitting), and let them pick.

Additionally, the pollsters dishonestly put their thumb on the scale regarding the true cost of renewable electricity. On page 19 they explain (or rather explain away), “As acknowledged in the policy brief and the focus groups, the cost of electricity is a bit of a moving target. Historically, fossil fuels have been the most affordable option, but that is changing as state and federal policies create incentives for renewables and the increasing supply of renewables brings down their price in the market.”

“Incentives,” by which they mean taxpayer and/or ratepayer-funded subsidies, do not lower the actual cost of renewable energy; they just shift part of that cost onto someone else. Usually, someone down the income scale, which also flies in the face of what Vermonters surveyed say they want as part of our energy policy — equity. “Many focus group participants who were concerned about the cost of electricity cited concern for their lower-income neighbors, many of whom are struggling with rising costs for many other goods and services.” (P. 10) If that’s the case, aptly labeled “wealthfare” programs like net metering and subsidies for solar panels are not for you!

And last point I’ll make here, the report says on page 28, “Most participants preferred to place solar panels on existing residential and commercial buildings, or in parking lots or other spaces that were already developed. There was much less interest in solar in natural areas,” and “Similarly, we heard push back on wind, and offshore wind in particular, concerning impacts on wildlife.” This is, again, contrary to the energy policy vision our so-called representatives are putting forward in our names, which is pushing us toward large-scale, industrial wind and solar.

So, when you inevitably hear the spin that a poll of 700 Vermonters concluded that solid majorities want to get our energy from renewable wind and solar sources, do know that that comes with some mighty big “ifs.” If it costs the same or less than fossil-based sources, if it’s reliable baseload power, if it doesn’t have a large impact on natural resources and animal habitats, and if isn’t reliant on regressive taxes or fees to make it “affordable.” This is a roundabout way of saying, no, we don’t actually want an energy policy primarily based on renewable sources, at least not with the current technology.

 

Rob Roper is a freelance writer with 20 years of experience in Vermont politics, including three years of service as chair of the Vermont Republican Party and nine years as President of the Ethan Allen Institute, Vermont’s free-market think tank. He is also a regular contributor to VermontGrok.

The post Vermonters Really Don’t Support State Energy Policy appeared first on Granite Grok.

To all those who are sending in memes, thank you!  Keep them coming please, as it helps me gather weaponry to fight the Left.  Please do share this post, and if you share an individual meme, consider mentioning you saw it on the Grok!

Speaking of, from this week, Monday Edition and Wednesday Edition.  Also check out my first Israel-focused meme & commentary post.  Unfortunately not going to be the last, I’m sure.

 

*** Warning, a few possibly off-color ones, in case tender eyes are about ***

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

REPORT: Congress Members Make Strategic War Stock Moves Before Israel-Hamas Conflict * 100PercentFedUp.com * by Danielle

 

 

 

Mark this well – a first – a day I agree with Barackus.  “At some point, you’ve made enough money”.

 

 

The day he became a good Commie.

Exposing the Real Che Guevara: And the Useful Idiots Who Idolize Him

 

 

 

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

 

There is an Arabic expression that I first learned about in Brigitte Gabriel’s book Because They Hate.  A Christian survivor of the Lebanon war, in her opinion alive only because of Israel’s incursion into southern Lebanon to stop attacks from there, she cites this phrase:

FIRST SATURDAY, THEN SUNDAY

As in, “First the Saturday people – Jews; then the Sunday people – Christians”.  Remember, Islam is a supremacist religion whose goal is an Islamic world.  Not by voluntary conversion, but by terror and force, and anyone not not converted is now a dhimmi, a second-class citizen paying jizya – protection money – to Muslims.  Coexistence, like the Left’s supremacist ambitions, is not on their menu.

So yes, I certainly understand the sentiment in this meme.  But understand – if the Muslims win there, they will be in high morale as they come for the Christians next.

Allahu Akbar is Why Muslims Kill – Daniel Greenfield / Sultan Knish articles

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

 

Understand – to the Left, anyone to the Right of Stalin is a terrorist and enemy.  Prepare accordingly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While we’re at it can we send the Socialists who want it here to, say, Cuba or Venezuela?

 

 

 

 

 

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

PSA – PSA – PSA – PSA – PSA

 

 

 

Millions of unvetted fighting age men, with no women or children, here in the US.  Across Europe too.  Start getting very watchful of your surroundings.  And while this video is about the UK, this is IMHO doubtless a similar situation here in the US.

 

UK CITIZENS – IT’S COMING – 1M MIGRANTS ARE GETTING READY

 

 

And IMHO – law enforcement should start cross-checking seized military-grade weapons (and yes, there are here in America) against DoD inventories of what was sent to Ukraine or left in Afghanistan.  They’ll show up here, sooner or later.  And they’ll likely have allies:

 

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyone smell a false-flag event coming, done with a .50 cal or similar?

 

 

 

 

 

This isn’t just related to Israel, though this is especially bad.  Understand the Left’s mindset – read Evan Sayet’s incredible transcript about Regurgitating the Apple and his quest to understand why liberals think the way they do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

Pick of the Post:

 

Picked because I LOLed.

 

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

Palate Cleansers:

 

—

—

 

>>>>>=====<<<<<

 

And don’t forget… come back Monday for another edition.  Same Meme Time.  Same Meme channel.

 

The post Friday Meme Overflow-Overfloow appeared first on Granite Grok.

The Party of Unity, Civility, and Equity – the self-proclaimed anti-discrimination advocates – has a messaging conflict. North Carolina Republicans just overrode their Dem Governor’s veto of a bill that required election boards to include members of both political parties.

The Left’s ideological purity test just took a shot to the soft bits, and they are screaming mad.

 

The bill, SB 749, made material changes to the state’s election law by establishing bipartisan election boards, according to The Hill.

The bill would take control of election boards away from the governor’s party and put them under the control of a group split equally between Democrats and Republicans. This, Cooper claims, will create gridlock when deciding early-voting locations and certifying results.

 

I am always amused when a Democrat decries top-down control, claiming it interferes with local governance. Listen as Democrat Ray Cooper whines.

 

“The legislative takeover of state and local elections boards could doom our state’s elections to gridlock and severely limit early voting. It also creates a grave risk that Republican legislators or courts would be empowered to change the results of an election if they don’t like the winner,” he wrote in a Sept. 28 statement.

“That’s a serious threat to our democracy, particularly after the nation just saw a presidential candidate try to strongarm state officials into reversing his losing election results. Courts have already ruled the ideas in this bill unconstitutional, and voters overwhelmingly said no when the legislature tried to change the constitution,” Cooper exclaimed.

 

I’m not clear on all the details in SB 749, and to be honest, I was trying to find more not Israel/Hamas content before we turned into GazaGrok, but if we’re only talking about locals picking local Republicans and Democrats to serve on local election boards to oversee local elections, how exactly is that “taking control”?

How different is it from licensure or state regs for police, fire, or other professional positions? The State does that and more without batting an eye as the Political Left leads the charge.

The obvious answer is this. Democrats cheat, and if Republicans are allowed to observe by force of law, it is more difficult. And that, to the Left, is a  threat to Democracy.

 

 

The post Dems Are Mad as Hell – New State Law Requires Election Boards to Be Half Democrat, Half Republican. appeared first on Granite Grok.

It’s simple.  Supply vs Demand, with the Government artificially manipulating the marketplace because it controls the third leg of the housing marketplace – interest rates.

The Monthly Cost of Buying vs. Renting a House in America

With home prices and mortgage rates both rising, the U.S., has witnessed the biggest numerical gap in cost between owning a home and renting in over 50 years. Americans, however, have seen similar scenarios sine the 1980s.

 

Look at that note for 1981 – I was just starting my career at that time with Honeywell Information Systems/Wang Labs, and I had friends that were buying their first homes at that time. I also had friends who had owned their homes for a few years at that time. The latter were exulting in how much in valuation their homes were gaining and the low-interest rates under which they had bought their homes. The former were gritting their teeth and willing to take that HIGH risk (some had 16, 17% rates) just to get out of their apartments or had moved from other parts of the country and HAD to get a home for their families betting that the bank rates would go down and they could refinance.

Me? We bought a starter home at a decent price after that spike, and we sold that house in MA just after the top of that price spike and bought our current “starter” home here in NH (to which we never “upgraded,” mostly because of our “inertia”) as the market was still rising (I was offered more than $30,000 for it two weeks after we moved in by some random driver who stopped and asked).

We rode out the 2006 bubble as we watched our valuation go up and then sink (just not below what we had paid for it).

While the CRA was later faulted for being the driver behind it (forcing banks to lend to people, often without income verification, who couldn’t afford the monthlies and lost those homes), this time, it is simply the rates. Supply is down because of land use restrictions, to a point, but also increased rates. Both have lessened the supply of available houses, but the latter is more influential, IMHO, than the former.

After all, my home has gone up over $200,000 in two years (a STARTER home!); I would have a good cushion to use towards a larger home IF I wanted. But WHY would I want to double (if not more) my mortgage rate in doing so? Spend more for larger, yes; spending more artificially for not much larger? That would be silly, right? Why give up a 3-percenter for a 7 or 8-percenter. That math don’t hunt for me.

This bubble? Not only are the Fed rates killing the housing markets, but we’ve already seen what they have done to some large banks by rendering their holding worthless (holding notes too low in comparison to the current rates).

 

(H/T: Visual Capitalist)

The post Housing Costs vs Renting appeared first on Granite Grok.

Last month, on September 11, which is as important a day to America as December 7, President Joe Biden released $6 Billion in frozen assets for Iran in exchange for five American hostages held by the evil empire of Iran. Biden bought the freedom of these Americans for $1.2 Billion each and established the market price for hostages in the future.

He bragged about what a great deal he negotiated with Iran. Iran was negotiating with Biden in the front of the tent while training and funding Hamas in the back of the tent. Think about the good laugh the Iranians had that night while dreaming about the seventy virgins. They laughed at the weak and feckless Biden and the weakened America under Biden’s watch. They conned Joe, Blinken, and probably Kerry too out of $6 Billion. The naive Americans believed the money could only be used for humanitarian purposes. Iran considers killing and abducting more Americans precisely what they have done with Hamas.

Joe Biden is soft on Iran and has reversed all of the rigid restraints Donald Trump placed on the desert paradise. Trump had put the shackles on Iran’s nuclear program and oil production. Biden has put over $50 Billion in Iran’s war chest via oil sales alone. They used this money to equip, train, and support Hamas terrorists to invade Israel. On Tuesday, Biden addressed the nation and the world in a midafternoon speech claiming we will support Israel in whatever it has to do to retaliate, but never mentioned Iran in his address. He fears Iran, and they own this poor excuse for a President. The world has always looked to America and our President for direction when a crisis has risen its head. They have gotten nothing from the White House, leading to confusion and fear. That is what we have with Joe Biden. It is sad.

Iran is one of our four significant adversaries or threats in the world. The others being Russia, China, and North Korea. Russia has our attention directed at Europe with the conflict in Ukraine. We have already sent $billions in supplies and aid to assist Ukraine in its battle for sovereignty. China has marked the calendar in 2027 for Taiwan to either rejoin China voluntarily or be taken by force. North Korea has been testing ICBM missiles for years now with the potential to reach our West Coast. Iran has used Hamas to invade Israel, knowing full well that America will be all in to protect Israel. Whether planned or not, these four foes have now stretched the United States in four directions. Our military and economy cannot be effective on all four fronts.

For some reason, this Administration is not prepared to admit Iran’s role in invading Israel. Everyone from Biden to KJP is extremely cautious to avoid mentioning the word Iran. The specific reason is unknown, but our fear is what we have been concerned about since Biden took office: who owns or controls Biden, and how deep are their claws? We have to identify the players in this macabre drama. We are putting naval resources into the Mediterranean, but these are wasted resources until we know where to apply the pressure. Biden has to step up, call out, and point the finger at Iran, and let’s get to work putting this conflict down. We cannot afford to let this escalate to include other countries in the fray. The next 24-36 hours are critical for our President. I fear he is not up to the challenge.

 

The post Iran Played Biden Like A Stradivarius appeared first on Granite Grok.

This may be an ICYMI, but the cultural battlefield being what it is, it seems appropriate to revisit or, in the event this is new to our pages, share it. The clip is short but makes a critical point we’ve visited more than once. The Left’s agenda is once again riddled with hypocrisy.

The so-called cultural latest thing (boys can be girls, etc.) continues to suffer as a result of its own ardent advocates. The people who have been railing endlessly about stereotypes are quick to abandon that hill to die on a different one, even if it means bulldozing the previous mound (or, to be surgically accurate, removing some).

A parallel example to the one below is drag queens. Transvestites, with or without augmentation, parade about like sex objects in garish clothing and clown-like makeup, contrary to every convention women have worked decades to change. But if you refuse to celebrate that, you’re the bigot. While, at the same time, being a bigot if you expect a real woman to dress or behave like your average Drag Queen.

Here’s the clip.

 

 

 

The post Not So Pretty in Pink – Contradictions in the Culture War appeared first on Granite Grok.

Public schools have been indoctrinating our children, and it is our tax dollars that are making this possible. Our own money is being used by those who hate us against us and our children. You know that. You know about the library problem. But did you know this?

American Library Association president, Emily Drabinski, says libraries and public schools need to be ‘sites of socialist organizing.’ Yes, that Emily Durbanski.

Reformatted, emphasis mine.

The American Library Association (ALA) president said Sept. 2 at the Socialism 2023 Conference in Chicago that libraries and public schools need to be sites of socialist organizing. Emily Drabinski [a self-proclaimed Marxist -Skip], who also is an associate professor at Queens College, got in line at the microphone and introduced herself as a librarian during the question-and-answer part of a session called “Freedom to Learn: Black And Asian American Solidarity Against Attacks on Antiracist Education,” according to undercover journalist Karlyn Borysenko.

“I just want to say thank you for bringing up libraries and classroom libraries, but also school libraries of all kinds, public libraries, and high educational libraries that have been under attack in similar ways. I think your point that public education needs to be a site of socialist organizing. I  think libraries really do too … I haven’t seen that working in libraries. But I think there’s real opportunity here to both connect with happening in public education, what’s happening in libraries, but also we need some help in the libraries. We need to be on the agenda of socialist organizing.”

Only a few folks have been going after their city and town Public Libraries even as the Government schools have been highly scrutinized.

Do YOU look to see what your money is paying for, not only for library books, movies, records, et al, but also WHO is coming to speak using your library to forward! that message?

Politicians have been catching on and in some cases stepping in to stop the Left from trying to turn our children into sexbots (with the Progressive philosophies to boot), but there is a huge loophole. Teachers don’t have to proselytize in their classrooms anymore – just bring them to museums and libraries for their Daily Dose of DoublePlusUngoodness from the purple-haired-nose ringed-tattoo festered High Priests and Priestesses all too willing to lay your children down on their altar knowing full well that you haven’t caught on…yet.

Consider this just yet another warning.

 

HT | Instapundit

 

The post First, We Caught Public Schools Indoctrinating Our Children, And Now … appeared first on Granite Grok.

There is much speculation about Iran providing weapons and material support to Hamas. Or is there? Iran’s Mullahs proudly finance the “resistance” against Israel. They send them weapons. Fund their activity. But not this time? Seriously?

That’s the vibe we get from Grand Pubah Ali Khamenei of the Iranian Order of Water Buffaloes. He is beside himself with pride and glee. They deserve to be killed. And if you try to resist, he promises it will get worse for Israel.

How exactly does he know that?

 

The ayatollah dismissed criticism that Hamas slaughtered hundreds of innocent people, claiming their “innocence” was merely a creation of the “Global Arrogance” and its media. He threatened the Israelis with even worse consequences if they retaliate against the terrorists he supports.

“The rulers and decision-makers of the Zionist regime and their supporters should know that these actions will bring a greater disaster upon them, and the Palestinian people, with a firmer determination, will slap their hideous faces harder in response to these crimes,” Khamenei fumed.

 

Greater disaster. Harder face slaps (before or after beheading?). But you are not involved?

 

“Of course, we praise the minds and efforts of the Palestinian youth and the resourceful and intelligent Palestinian designers and are proud of them,” he burbled while denouncing allegations of Iranian involvement as “nonsense.”

 

This is all the work of Palestinian Yutes, most of whom live in fear and poverty, no doubt unable to afford food and clothing but still well-armed and well-fed and very militia in appearance. Did they trade in jihadi merit badges for missiles? Seems unlikely.

Then there’s the decades of chatter coming from Terahn about wiping out Isreal, blah blah blah.

No, I’m sure you were washing your hair or rearranging your turban drawer, a look of shock on your face as the news broke.

Biden will buy it. He already has, with American tax dollars.

 

The post Ayatollah Khamenei: We Didn’t Help Hamas But if Isreal Resists Things Will Get Worse appeared first on Granite Grok.

On Oct 5, 2023, while driving by the Kensington School marquee, I noticed one side of the public-paid-for-sign that said, “Indigenous Peoples Day No School Oct 9.” The other side of the public-paid-for-sign said, “Teacher in Service No School Oct 6.”

I asked myself, what happened to the federal holiday of Columbus Day?

Columbus Day was established in 1892 by President Benjamin Harrison in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Italian explorer’s discovery of the New World (who never set foot in today’s Continental USA) and in the wake of the horrific lynching and mob violence perpetrated on the Italian immigrant community of New Orleans the year before. The Ku Klux Klan also used tactics to denigrate Christopher Columbus and suppress the holiday.

Columbus Day is to acknowledge Columbus’ contributions to the Age of Discovery, as well as the increasingly important contributions of Italian immigrants to the great American experience. It was the catalyst that initiated over 500 years of immigration to the Americas by people from every corner of the Earth – all of whom were seeking a better life for their families.

The Dartmouth Review (examining the historical Columbus) came to this conclusion: It is a mistake to conflate Columbus with the atrocities of colonialism that succeeded his voyages. Columbus Day should neither be a moment of absolute praise nor condemnation but an opportunity to appreciate mutual discoveries between Europeans and Indians, learn from mistakes that were made and celebrate moments of coexistence.

To satisfy my curiosity, I called and spoke with Kensington Superintendent Becky Bruel. We had a very thoughtful conversation. She explained SAU 16 Official School Calendar no longer mentions/ cancels Columbus Day. I informed her that the Indigenous Peoples celebration on the calendar is based on a proclamation, not a federal holiday.

I requested her consideration for the following option: to please put Columbus Day on at least one side of the two-sided sign. To be more inclusive and respectful of the federal holiday and of those celebrating their Italian heritage like me. She informed me that was a fair question and would consider it.

Later, on the 5th, I received a phone call from Mr. Andriski, SAU 16 Asst. Superintendent. He informed me that the change to cancel Columbus Day was done nearly two years ago by all the local school boards via a vote.

Oct 9, – NO sign change – Now the law of Unintended Consequences.

Canceling Columbus opens the door to cancel any selected federal holidays, along with the vast historical learning experiences of our children, simply at the direction of our local school boards and SAU 16. Who and what is next … Independence Day – Martin Luther King?  School Boards spotlighted on full display the hypocrisy of SAU 16’s- diversity, equity, and inclusion theory and mantra, camouflaged as an act of social justice. You would think with the continuing loss/ downgrading of local educational ranking and the increasing tax burden on local citizens, there are other more pressing issues to attack.

Kensington School board members swore an oath to the NH and US Constitution. They have no authority to change it or cancel the recognition of federal holidays. Indigenous People Day was never approved by the State Legislature in an RSA or otherwise. The school gets local tax as well as federal funding. This additionally binds your legal requirements to follow the law and not discriminate! You are accountable to the citizens first – not SAU16. (See NH Title XXV Holidays – section 288:1)

Charles A. Griffin of Portsmouth is a retired attorney who has served on the Portsmouth School Board and City Council. Quote July 2022- seacoast online. Those who have researched Columbus using unbiased historical documents and information do not bring a bias viewpoint to this important debate. Those who have some sort of political bias grounded in Christian bigotry have a different outcome that they would like to force upon schools and communities.

It is with great sadness I am afraid some of the politics of hate are behind the continued attempts to attack and defame Columbus, and Christianity today appears to be alive in Kensington and SAU16.

Kensington school board members: Allison Roy, Joshua Gould, and Stefanie Smith

I am requesting you convene and act on the following as soon as possible.

1. Confirms the Kensington Elementary School curriculum teaches and celebrates Columbus.
2. Kensington School board votes to restore the Columbus Day federal holiday back to the official Kensington public school, as well as the SAU16 calendar.

I requested the Kensington School board (Oct 11, meeting) to advise me of their decision or intention to honor this request ASAP.

Additionally, I request you write The Dept of Edu. Commissioner Frank Edelblut (frank.edelblut@doe.nh.gov) and our local school boards and legislators get involved and hold people accountable. We, the citizens, must also do our civic duty, attend meetings, and run for school board positions.

 

The post Kensington & SAU 16 – The Law of Unintended Consequences appeared first on Granite Grok.

When I lived in California, the gun control lobby was very powerful. And very aggressive. I listened very intently to their arguments as to why I should be denied my Second Amendment rights, but they never really made any sense.

Worse, they had no understanding nor concern regarding the Second Amendment itself. Nor did they know anything about its history. Its purpose. Or the reason real-world people wrote it.

The folks advocating the taking of my guns seemed to be people with no real-world experience. They were mostly the wealthy. The sheltered. People are blind to things like hunger, crime, or the need for self-defense.

And oh my – they saw themselves as Heroes. They felt that if they could get the Government to take away my guns, somehow that elevated them to a morally virtuous plateau because THEY would be making the world a safe place.

TURNS OUT Israel had the same folks running their government. “You don’t need guns in Israel; the Government will protect you,” and the Government of Israel confiscated all weapons from its citizens.

On October 7th, 2023, KFAR AZA was a quiet, peaceful community.

It was a place where moms and dads gave birth to smiling, happy children. It was a place where those kids played on the community playground or soccer on the grass in front of their homes.

It was a place where moms and dads knew their kids were safe when they sent them out to play. It was a place where moms and dads went off to work, knowing their children were going to be there to greet them at the end of the day.

It was a place where neighbors talked to neighbors and shared community problems and solutions.

t was a place where hope and love abounded. On October 8th, 2023, KFAR AZA died.

By eyewitness accounts and captured videotape, some 70 plus animals dressed in black, faces covered, and yelling Allah Akbar went house to house thru KFAR AZA, executing everyone and anyone.

They shot moms in front of dads.

They shot dads in front of moms.

And they BEHEADED 40 INFANTS AS THEY LAY IN THEIR CRIBS TO THE ANGUISH of the moms and dads who had cuddled with their children the nite before.

“Help me!” the young son cried out to his mom as the executioners levied death on both of their lives.

Stop them! Dad!” screamed the young daughter as she took her last breath.

Stop them, how?

Mom had no weapon to stop them.

No gun to save the life of the child she bore in her womb for the nine months God ordained the child to grow inside her life-giving womb.

Stop them? How?

Dad has no gun -no bullets–to give the Allah Akbar animal his due before the dad’s heart stops its last beat.

I am a dad. I don’t know if I had a gun in those circumstances if I could have stopped the executioners. But I do know I would have tried, just as I think every dad in KFAR AZA wanted to try.

I can think of no greater pain than to be one of the dads of KFAR AZA and know that I could not even try to save my family.

To those who are intent on taking my guns- of denying me the Second Amendment- I say, “No, and Hell No.” I guess even more than that, I say KFAR AZA.

Please, God – those poor moms and dads deserve better.

As do the 40 beheaded babies.

May they rest tonight in your loving arms.

 

The post Kfar Aza: Tell Those Who Want My Guns To Explain 40 Beheaded Infants appeared first on Granite Grok.

They have been under attack by the surrounding Arab countries since the 1948 creation of the State of Israel, but Jews have been under attack for centuries as a people. Most notably under the Third Reich with Adolph Hitler’s genocide of them (the Holocaust).

“Never Again” became their rallying cry – and deservedly so. And they brought that mentality with them upon their creation, defeating every attempt to conquer them by their “neighbors.” Each time, sometimes by discipline and sometimes with luck (or, many Christians would avow, “By the Hand of God” as His Chosen people).

It is clear that history repeats itself, but this is no farce. This recent attempt by Hamas, the Islamist terror group that controls Gaza, is where the latest terrorist attacks originate. Their watchword is “Palestine will be free from the river to the sea.” That would be the River Jordan westward to the Red Sea, meaning the State of Israel would be wiped out.

Judenrein. And no, I’m afraid I have to disagree that it means a democratically organized and run country that would simply “replace” Israel with no recriminations meted out.

THAT notion was dispelled by the killing, maiming, and kidnapping of civilians, Hamas’s primary goal, instead of fighting a war against a military force.

Victor Davis Hanson, who has gravitas far beyond that which I could ever hope for myself, says it plainly:

Here we are 78 years after the end of the Holocaust and once agains thuggish killers dressed in black are pulling Jewish elderly, women, and children out of their homes and executing them, and then throwing their bodies into the street. But in 1945 we were fighting the SS…

— Victor Davis Hanson (@VDHanson) October 7, 2023

Here we are 78 years after the end of the Holocaust and once agains thuggish killers dressed in black are pulling Jewish elderly, women, and children out of their homes and executing them, and then throwing their bodies into the street. But in 1945 we were fighting the SS murderers, now we are sending millions in subsidies to their modern Hamas killer squad counterparts. We the American people should demand not one more American cent to these Gestapo and SS killers.

See my earlier post about Democrat cities and what they have wrought to set the stage for my feelings on this. But I bet you know from the title of this post.

Voters in Democrat cities have brought ruination upon themselves – educationally, criminally, politically, and financially. Hamas, however, deliberately brought murder, terrorism, and rape to innocent people. Yes, there were other nationalities (thus far, I hear 11 Americans dead). 1948, 1956, 1967, 1973, 1982 were states-on-states military actions. “Intifada’ actions (1987, 1993, 2000, 2006, and since) have been done primarily by the PLO, Hamas, Fatah, and Hezbollah – both are proxy groups/terrorists funded by Iran in the West Bank and Gaza (and Lebanon).

Frankly, I can’t muster much compassion against those who kill civilians and then dance around and celebrate. These people are WORSE than mere barbarians – they are out to continue The Holocaust, in my eyes. I’ve heard the story of a young naked Israel woman paraded around in Gaza after having horrible atrocities meted out to her. Israel is well within their rights to counter-attack and meet out retribution against one and all involved in this.

Savages, by their actions, deserve no mercy. In the past, Israel has stopped their actions well before wiping out all vestiges of those who are really Evil. Evil is the only word that describes their actions. And their words.

I’ve watched some videos of the IDF retaliations against the “civilian embedded” military centers – good. Every single last one of them should suffer similar fates. Evil cannot be allowed to be sustained and allowed to regroup and revive itself. Evil needs to be eradicated.

And there are those on the American Left who are constantly harping that “Hate Has No Home Here” concerning the Left’s generated racism movements. Yet, they certainly aren’t shouting that at the terrorists that have already taken over 1,200 civilians and the hundreds kidnapped.

Reduce the West Bank to rubble.

 

“When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons. Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.” -Golda Meir, Prime Minister of Israel

And in return to their own words, can we maybe, just maybe, think the same about the Democrat Socialists of America who are applauding the Hamas terrorist actions? “The NYC-DSA is revealing itself for what it truly is: an antisemitic stain on the soul of America’s largest city.”

True Jew haters. They decry it of others but give themselves a pass.

 

 

HT | Instapundit

The post Make The Hamas Induced Palestinian Rubble BOUNCE appeared first on Granite Grok.

Lindsey Graham does not always get it right. Graham often angers the Right by making comments that do not align with Conservative thinking. But when Graham gets passionate about Israel and the attempts by certain factions of the world that want to take her down, you can usually take his comments to the bank-they are gold.

The same happened this Monday when Senator Graham went off on the Squad for their Pro-Palestine-Anti-Israel remarks. He also criticized the Biden Administration for its laissez-faire attitude towards Iran.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., held nothing back in a Monday Fox News appearance in which he called members of the congressional “Squad” a “disgrace to the United States Congress” for “siding with terrorists.”

“To the Biden administration, your appeasement policy towards Iran is not working. To the ‘Squad,’ shut the hell up. You’re emboldening the enemy. You’re a disgrace to the United States Congress,” the senator said. “You’re siding with terrorists over a democracy called Israel. You’ve lost your perspective here. I’m confident most Democrats don’t agree with the Squad.” 

This battle between Israel and Hamas will not be pretty. War never is, but this is not a typical conflict. Hamas from Gaza and Hezbollah terrorists coming South from Lebanon are barbaric. These non-humans are committing unconscionable acts against the Israeli people. They are beheading babies. They are dragging people from their homes, and in some cases, when the residents may be immobile, they light the houses on fire and burn them to death. They are raping women and young girls before taking them hostage and dragging them through the streets back to Gaza. These are not the acts of trained military personnel. These are the acts of animals, and when animals act out in such a way, you put them down.

I think Graham was too easy on the President and Squad. Biden has been silent for 72 hours with nothing on his schedule. Don’t tell me this man is fit for office. I don’t care what party he is from; he is our President, and it is time for him to be President or get out of the way. We must hear him say that the International community will get out of Israel’s way and let them answer her attackers. We must listen to him condemn Iran for supporting these actions against Israel. No talk of a cease-fire, Mr President. Grab the microphone and tell the world that whatever direction Netanyahu chooses, we will stand by him. 

The Squad is a disgusting group of immature adolescents that deserve condemnation by every one of their constituents. They have embarrassed themselves and Congress, and their faces should never see a camera in the future.

To those ignorant college students protesting in universities like Harvard, grow up and educate yourselves on what is happening in Israel and which country is on the moral side of history.

No, Gaza, Hamas, and Hezbollah all deserve whatever fate Israel sees fit doling out. Thousands of Israeli Reserves have been called to active duty. The retaliation by Israel may seem slow, but when it begins, few will have witnessed the scope of the attack, and when Israel is satisfied that Gaza has been neutralized, let them move into Iran and put them down, too.

 

The post Hamas Deserves No Sympathy For The Price They Will Pay appeared first on Granite Grok.

We have an event coming up on October 28th, and there is some confusion I’d like to clear up. This is a ‘Grok event; the 603 Alliance is only helping plan and execute the Event. The Event’s sole purpose, besides fun, is to raise money to pay staff to run and grow GraniteGrok.com.

GraniteGrok is at a point where it cannot grow influence, reach, or content without full-time staff.  The funds raised will pay that staff to complete projects, do reporting, engage local activists and groups, moderate comments and content, and work with vendors to update the site and add new features that improve the reader experience.

We need to raise at least 60,000.00 dollars a year, which will pay me as a full-time employee, working seven days a week, 365 days a year. We are at 45% of our first-year goal but have a way to go.

We hope the event will raise awareness and inspire attendees to subscribe as monthly donors or commit to a donation to help us reach our goal, but this is not required to attend.

The cost of the ticket ($35) or a vendor table ($25) is to cover Event expenses: food, drink, staging, equipment, and entertainment. Diane Bitter is contacting groups about getting a table on our behalf.

We aren’t paying any speakers or organizers; they are all volunteering their time. Corey was very excited, by the way, as were others, to speak and support us at no cost.

If we cover the event costs and have money left over from ticket sales and tables, any balance will go directly toward our fundraising goal.

I apologize if none of that was clear, and I’ll take a moment to add one more point. If we cannot raise the money, GraniteGrok will likely “change” in the wrong direction. We will have less content, engagement, influence, improvement, or impact.

Some folks might like the idea of a diminished ‘Grok, but I suspect most of them would be Democrats or RINOs. More reason than ever to continue to push back on the establishment in all its forms, but we need your help.

We’d love to see you, meet you, and hang out with you at the Londonderry Fish and Game Club on October 28th from 1-4 p.m. (We are raffling off a Ruger 10-22 if that’s any incentive, so please bring some cash to buy raffle tickets).

If any of this is still confusing, please email me at steve@granitegrok.com.

We hope you can help us reach the next level by purchasing a ticket and joining us on October 28th or donating via the ticketing platform or – if you prefer, our GiveSendGo page.

And thank you again to all our readers and supporters. I hope I’ve cleared up any confusion.

 

Support Independent Media – Please Scan the QR Code or Use the embedded form to get your tickets to Groktoberfest!

DonorboxEventWidget.embed({container: 'donorboxEmbed',embedFormSlug: 'https://donorbox.org/embed_event/504084'});

 

 

The post Some Clarity: Groktoberfest is About Funding GraniteGrok to Pay Full-Time Staff to Get us To The Next Level! appeared first on Granite Grok.

In a world where narratives are crafted and pushed upon people who just want to live their lives in peace, we suddenly find these recently divided United States uniting around the cries to “stand with Israel.”

Of course, there are the requisite looping videos of atrocities dutifully paraded across our screens intended to stoke the necessary righteous indignation desired by the powers that be to manufacture more consent to advance the “war on terror,” as if that’s even winnable. Ironic, too, coming from a media known to build an industry from the axiom “if it bleeds, it leads.” To wit, the war on drugs has left us with more drugs and addicts; the war on poverty finds us more impoverished than ever; the war on racism seems to have only created more of it. Whoever is waging these wars apparently sucks at winning them. One has to wonder why.

Despite years of being encouraged to sympathize with Israel’s plight in the Middle East, where they were attacked by five neighboring Arab nations the first day they declared statehood, there are always two sides to every story. As a Christian, I take God at his word that “those who bless Israel will be blessed,” however, that blessing doesn’t extend to violating His other commandments, including loving one’s enemies and using discernment.

Rather than believe everything my attractive and articulate television personalities tell me, I’ve lived long enough to learn we need to question everything, including what appears to be an obviously unjust attack on Israel.

The first question is: how did Hamas manage to slip past the most advanced intelligence group in the world despite warnings from Egypt and elsewhere they were about to be invaded? Footage of para-gliders and motorcyclists reveals the method chosen by the poorly funded and poorly equipped terrorists who managed to basically walk through a front door normally secured by drones, cameras, armed guards, wired fencing, and checkpoints with impunity. Some reports from within Israel state the IDF took 3-6 hours to respond when they can do so in 30-45 minutes.

Call me crazy, but these facts seem to mirror what happened on September 11th, 2001. We were told a small band of relatively unskilled men from the Middle East had managed to outwit the other most advanced intelligence community in the world. Also, having been warned from within and without of an imminent attack, they commandeered advanced aircraft, despite recorded aviation incompetence, took over gigantic planes, and flew them into American skyscrapers and the Pentagon.

Upon further review, we learned the maneuver to crash a plane into the Pentagon required the same suspension of the laws of physics as Lee Oswald’s magic bullet. The cameras around the Pentagon must have also been installed by the same company that equipped Epstein’s jail cell, as they somehow managed not to capture a plane hitting the building. Of course, this was overcome by the plane’s inability to leave any fuselage as evidence. Oh well. We later learned the culprits, supposedly devout Muslims, were seen partying and drinking in Las Vegas, some were on known watch lists, and Saudi Arabia even threatened to sue the United States for implicating their citizens, who not only didn’t die in the attack but still walked the streets of Saudi Arabia? Somehow, that never made the news cycle.

Out of those ashes came a group of over 1,000 architects and engineers who, to this day, question the official narrative that the Twin Towers, literally built to withstand impacts from airliners, failed and collapsed upon themselves, strangely reminiscent of controlled demolition. I’m neither an architect nor an engineer. I am, however, willing to listen to those who are and tell us something isn’t adding up.

As for the slow response time by the IDF, it reminds one of the similarly sluggish response from the American Air Force who we are told was positioned to deal with such an event within minutes, yet were inconveniently detained that day by an offshore exercise where they were war-gaming…wait for it…a scenario where planes were hijacked over America. This incredible coincidence gave the planes enough time to fulfill their mission while giving our military the plausible deniability it needed to explain their incompetence. Oops!

Last night, Jesse Waters on Fox News harangued the public with the necessary vitriol aimed at the “animals” who did this. Meanwhile video of a young woman being kidnapped played in a constant loop as he interviewed a despondent boyfriend and a former special ops expert, giving us their take on the attacks. His outrage may be valid, as well as theirs. However, combined with the video barrage, it still acts as propaganda. No time for questions – it’s time for vengeance was the message. Never mind the apparent incompetence of the IDF and Mossad; we need to turn Gaza into a parking lot. Really? The only solution to the murder of innocents is to murder more innocents. Why does this dehumanizing logic sound familiar?

If you still weren’t convinced, then you needed to be told about the babies that were beheaded. If this is true, and it may be, it is absolutely horrific. However, I am struck by the hypocrisy of the Biden administration, which champions killing defenseless American babies in the womb, suddenly championing those a few months older and in another country. Excuse me if I question the change of heart, but I am again reminded of a similar story used to gin up outrage. You may recall the “killing of the babies in incubators” girl from the Gulf War. We later learned that was a lie and she was a niece of one of the warmongers; however, it served its purpose.

Turning to the complaints from those who support Palestine in this, we are told Israel is an apartheid state. Is it? If so, why does Israel allow Palestinians to have seats in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset? Why does Israel allow them to hold positions such as doctors and lawyers, yet Lebanon, an Arabian ally, will not? How was Donald Trump able to broker a peace deal between Israel and several of its previously hostile neighbors?

Just when you quit worrying about climate change, pandemics, the war in Ukraine, and your latent racist tendencies, you now have a new and super-righteous cause upon which to focus your patriotic and even global duty. Don’t ask questions, idiots, you wouldn’t want to be un-American when we need you to support the latest thing, would you?

 

The post The Israeli “War” Needs To Be Questioned appeared first on Granite Grok.

Every Sunday, the UL’s Landrigan does a “State House Dome” wrap-up. As I scanned through the column, the word “domicile” caught my eye. No, Landrigan didn’t use it extemporarily on his own; he was quoting Dem Minority Leader Matt Wilhelm’s own words.

He was irate that Republican NH House Rep Merner didn’t resign immediately didn’t after moving out of his district.

Do you know what thought immediately went through my mind (such as it is lately)?  Reformatted, emphasis mine:

Dems try to revive bills

Wilhelm and other Democratic activists have not hidden their disgust that it took Attorney General John Formella’s office months to inform Rep. Merner that he was not legally living in his district and had to resign. “We need a fair debate and a fair vote,” said Wilhelm, who vowed to try to bring back bills that died because Merner took part in the votes. Wilhelm wrote Formella last week that legislation may be necessary to ensure state prosecutors take prompt action on these matters.

“A 20-week gap between admission of wrongful domicile + communication to the House is unacceptable. Credible info regarding member qualifications must be promptly and confidentially communicated to the Legislative Ethics Committee to ensure the NH Constitution is upheld,” Wilhelm posted on X.

Wait…WHAT? Domicile? Did I read that right? That one’s domicile is the place at which someone considers, above all other locations, to be their residence/home. You know, the same word that Democrats for DECADES have tried to spin/redefine/denigrate concerning a person’s VOTING address?

As GraniteGrok has shown in the past (Again, RIP Ed Naile), Democrats downplay, at every turn, the importance of that word.

Here is Wilhelm making a HUGE deal about Merner voting from and carrying out his duties in the NH House to the point of throwing out all of the votes on bills in which Merner participated. ALL bills.

Can we do the same for ANY voting incident on legislation or offices in which someone else WAS living at a wrong or fraudulent address? After all, if 400 Reps vote on a bill, that is a lot of people. So is a legislative or executive office by a given District. Wilhelm just gave us the ultimate definition – he’s a Democrat, and we’re supposed to take Democrats for face value, right? In the spirit of collegiality, for UNITY!, aren’t we supposed to take them at their word? Amiright? Isn’t he absolutely right?

The meaning of a word should be precise within a given context (excluding the fact, for now, that many words can be “overloaded” by which their definition is also by context: “I lead from the front”; “Lead sinkers are not allowed on Squam Lake”) ALL the time. Voting, as Wilhelm, would be a single context.

So your address is EXTREMELY important to Democrats nowadays? This ought to be fun going forward, linking arms with those who never wanted to stand with us before!

Nice to know that Matt has now obviated any further court cases concerning this matter. No longer will Democrats be contesting that domicile can be as flexible as they want it to be and as a given situation requires that benefits them.

 

The post Did NH House Minority Leader Matt Wilhelm Let The ‘Domicile’ Cat Out of the Bag? appeared first on Granite Grok.

As I said in Wednesday’s Meme Overflow, I’m getting enough on Israel – memes and articles plus my desire to add my own comments and references / breaking news – and stuff that’s related – that I’m pulling them out into a standalone post thread.   I figure that not everyone is as interested as I am in the situation concerning Israel and to maintain readership of the memes, it’s time to separate them out.

A truly excellent book for background:

The Palestinian Delusion: The Catastrophic History of the Middle East Peace Process

 

WHEN WILL IT END?

Only War – Daniel Greenfield / Sultan Knish articles

RTWT.  Wars and conflicts only end when one side is totally defeated.

Israel, like America, doesn’t win wars anymore. It has operations. It takes out terrorist leaders and occasionally terrorist cells. And then it goes home. But when home is within a stone’s throw of where monsters live, then there’s no way to go home. Home is where the monsters are.

A war ends with victory. The destruction of the enemy. The Islamic terrorists have been waging a war meant to end in victory since Israel was reborn. Unless Israel fights to win, it will be lost.

Another voice rhyming:

Minds Of A Feather: Time for a clean slate (italics replaced by underlining):

It is time for Israel to wipe the slate clean, take back all of the land it granted to Palestinians in the name of a peace that will never happen, and tell the remaining Palestinians that they are no longer welcome in the State of Israel.  If they wish to stay, then they may stay.  But no longer as citizens with the right to vote (which was always granted to Palestinians who lived in Israel – look it up for yourself).  And if they wish to leave, Israel should provide them safe conduct to its borders.

Finally, I will say that Hamas needs to be wiped off the face of the earth along with their most vocal supporters, whether they claim to be “civilians” or not.  Those who offer support to Hamas, whether it be by fighting with arms or hiding Hamas insurgents are as guilty as those members of Hamas who started this war.  None of them have clean hands, and those with unclean hands can not be permitted to exist within the borders of Israel.

True Justice For Israel Is Executing All Members Of Hamas (thefederalist.com)

How Does Israel Fight Savages Who Want to Die? Oblige Them – PJ Media

 

(Link to AZQuotes per their policy)

 

The good general has another quote:

If you are going to use military force, then you ought to use overwhelming military force. Use too much and deliberately use too much; you’ll save lives, not only your own, but the enemy’s too.

Curtis LeMay

Or make the price they pay in other ways so high they don’t want to pay it:

How American Soldiers Used Pig’s Blood and Corpses to Fight Muslim Terrorism | Frontpage Mag (bolding added):

General Pershing however wrote in his autobiography that, “These Juramentado attacks were materially reduced in number by a practice that the Mohamedans held in abhorrence. The bodies were publicly buried in the same grave with a dead pig. It was not pleasant to have to take such measures, but the prospect of going to hell instead of heaven sometimes deterred the would-be assassins.”

(I remember one terror attack in Israel had a woman putting pieces of pork – gotten from where in Israel? – into a dead terrorist’s mouth as she cited this exact thing: a Muslim touched by pork cannot get into paradise.)

One of the issues is that the Arabs know that they can count on the “world community” to jump in and pressure Israel to stop before they’ve really been defeated.  We’re seeing it already from multiple sources, including The Potato (bolding added; link on “a truce may be made for ten years if necessary” also added):

For Hamas to be asking for a truce on Monday evening Gaza time, it must have had an extremely bad Sunday and Monday. For Islamic law only allows for a truce if Muslims are weak and need to gather strength to fight later more effectively, or if they’re fighting non-Muslims whom they think may accept Islam. “If Muslims are weak, a truce may be made for ten years if necessary, for the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) made a truce with the Quraysh for that long, as is related by Abu Dawud…Interests that justify making a truce are such things as Muslim weakness because of lack of numbers or materiel, or the hope of an enemy becoming Muslim…” (‘Umdat al-Salik, o9.16). This idea is founded on the Qur’an itself: “So do not falter and cry out for peace when you have the upper hand…” (47:35).

Western authorities never, ever demonstrate even the slightest understanding of this point, but this means that when a jihad group asks for a truce, it is admitting that it is losing and needs time to recover. The last thing that its non-Muslim foe should do at that point is actually grant it a truce. What it should do instead is press on toward final victory.

This has happened numerous times in the past: Israel makes headway against the jihadis, they ask for a truce, and the American government pressures the Israelis into accepting. The Netanyahu government should stand firm against all such pressure from the Biden regime. It should understand Hamas’ interest in a truce as a declaration of weakness, and destroy this evil organization’s power to terrorize innocent people once and for all.

I remember a cartoon from years ago where one person asked another “What does ‘cease fire’ mean in Arabic”?  The answer? |RELOAD”.

And while I agree with total defeat for Hamas, this – plus the now-discussed broader look at Iran, while IMHO absolutely justified – is a very fine needle to thread:

How Neocons Could Sleep-Walk Us Into World War III – PJ Media

But total victory is the only option.  There’s a reason why, after the shock of the second Punic War and the Roman’s astonishment at how fast the Carthaginians managed to re-arm after what the Romans thought was a crushing defeat in the first one (never mind a treaty that the Carthaginians interpreted differently than the Romans), they went for the whole enchilada after the third one:

 

 

Will Israel Do What it Takes to Secure Peace? | Frontpage Mag

One of the moral lessons we learned from bombing Dresden, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki, is that war is not just about vanquishing the enemy. It is also about inflicting generational damage. Future generations are deterred from enacting a war of vengeance at a much later time or, just as importantly, of repeating the errors of their predecessors. The collective memory of Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Dresden is an important reason why other nations will think twice about starting a war with the United States.

But in being merciful to the cruel, the world ends up being cruel to the merciful.  Consider that, even until just recently, Israel continued to warn Gaza residents with texts, emails, leaflets, and their for-this-purpose developed micro-munitions that gave a Thump! warning that a building was about to be targeted.

No other military in the world takes steps like this to try to minimize civilian casualties.

 

British Colonel: “IDF is most moral army in the history of warfare”

 

 

 

THE ISLAMIC MENTALITY

 

 

Understand something about Hamas and its view of Israel / Jews (links in the original, bolding added):

In July 2005, Mahmoud al-Zahar, the most senior Hamas member in Gaza, stated that his organization would “definitely not” be prepared for long-term coexistence with Israel, even if the Jewish state were to agree to return to the borders it had in 1967 — i.e., before Israel had repelled the invading armies of Egypt, Syria, and Jordan and taken control of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. “It [coexistence] can be a temporary solution, for a maximum of 5 to 10 years,” said al-Zahar. “But in the end Palestine must return to become Muslim, and in the long term Israel will disappear from the face of the earth.”

Note well that the Hamas Charter contains this:

“We do not leave any part of the Palestinian’s land, under any circumstances, conditions or pressure, as long as the occupation remains. Hamas refuses any alternative which is not the whole liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea.” (New Charter 2017, Article 19)

Which exactly reflects the Law of Reconquest in the Koran: that any land once controlled by Islam must be retaken (bolding added):

Bin Laden opened his videotaped statement with this sentence: “Let the whole world know that we shall never accept that the tragedy of Andalusia would be repeated in Palestine. We cannot accept that Palestine will become Jewish.” The “tragedy of Andalusia” refers to the conquering in 1492 of the Muslim Kingdom of Granada by the Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. It was a central moment in the Islamic empire’s quest for political and military power: Muslim expansion was not just checked; it was reversed.

From later in the article above (“Hamas and its view of Israel”):

“We do not and will not recognize a state called Israel. Israel has no right to any inch of Palestinian land. This is an important issue. Our position stems from our religious convictions. This is a holy land. It is not the property of the Palestinians or the Arabs. This land is the property of all Muslims in all parts of the world.”

…

After his organization had launched some 150 missiles against Israel during one particular week in mid-May 2007, Hamas official Nizhar Riyah declared that “Hamas is determined to wipe Israel off the map and replace it with the state of Palestine.” He vowed to persevere “until the last Jew is expelled” from “all of Palestine.”

An organization dedicated to your entire annihilation.  Sounds like “coexistence” to me.  Not.

 

 

And on their use of human shields – who, if they are killed in the service of jihad, are guaranteed instant paradise (links in the original):

Many of the rockets that Hamas (and Hezbollah) fired into Israel were launched from civilian areas, making it impossible for Israel to retaliate without causing civilian casualties; the terror groups then exploited those casualties for propaganda purposes. This has been standard procedure for both Hamas and Hezbollah in every military conflict they have ever had with Israel. In many cases, these organizations deliberately plant civilians, including children and the elderly, in locations likely to be targeted by the Israeli military — so as to manufacture atrocities. (Hamas’ willingness and even eagerness to use such “human shields” was articulated in 2008 by its interior minister, Fathi Hamad: “For the Palestinian people, death has become an industry, at which women excel, and so do all the people living on this land. The elderly excel at this, and so do the mujahideen and the children. This is why they have formed human shields of the women, the children, the elderly, and the mujahideen, in order to challenge the Zionist bombing machine. It is as if they were saying to the Zionist enemy: ‘We desire death like you desire life.’”)

And:

Ahead of airstrikes against targets belonging to the terror groups, and out of a desire to minimize civilian casualties, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) has been sending warning messages to the residents of the Gaza Strip urging them to evacuate areas that are about to be targeted in strikes. In response to these messages, media outlets operated by Hamas and PIJ have been instructing residents of the Gaza Strip not to heed these warnings and not to share them or forward them to others.

There’s only one reason to tell people not to leave.  You want more dead bodies to show off.

With one more addition from a previous article:

Lastly, the [IDF-discovered Hamas] manual emphasizes that when the homes of Palestinian civilians are destroyed, Hamas benefits in terms of propaganda and world opinion: “The destruction of civilian homes: This increases the hatred of the citizens towards the attackers [the IDF] and increases their gathering [support] around the city defenders [i.e., Hamas].”

Hence my term CAMERA FODDER.

 

 

It’s a RELIGOUS WAR.  And has been since Mohammed.  History matters:

This is Not About Israel, It’s About Islam (jihadwatch.org)

The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS

Sword and Scimitar: Fourteen Centuries of War between Islam and the West

Defenders of the West: The Christian Heroes Who Stood Against Islam

Concluding, let’s recall that beheading is an ancient thing, not done today.  Right?  Right?  These next links have extraordinarily-gruesome videos – NOT for the faint-hearted so warning warning warning!  But it highlights the Koranic doctrine of “Strike at their necks”:

BEHEADERS-IN-TRAINING: Muslim children’s division (barenakedislam.com)

Before you consider going hiking in a Muslim country like Morocco…..watch this. (WARNING: Very graphic) (barenakedislam.com)

Remember, this is done in modern times by Muslims to infidels.  To terrorize.  (I remember some American Muslim being interviewed years ago, and he said “It’s a command from Allah to terrorize the infidel”.)  And it’s in the Koran itself:

Beheading in Islam – Political Islam

When you hear of beheading, do you assume that Islam is involved? Beheading is an integral part of Islam. Mohammed repeatedly ordered people beheaded and the Koran even includes beheading. Beheading is threatened to settle arguments about Islam. Men were threatened with beheading if they did not become a Muslim. Beheading is mentioned nine times in the Hadith of Bukhari, once in the Koran and 41 times in the Sira. Beheading is recommended and common in the doctrine of Islam.

 

MORE ON INTERSECTIONALITY / LEFTIST SUPPORT

 

 

One of the great mysteries to me is the support by gays of a religion that, in Islamic / Sharia run societies, throws them bound and gagged from rooftops, or crushes them under walls pulled onto them.

 

 

Beating your wife is approved in Islam:

ANOTHER ISLAMIC ‘SCHOLAR’ confirms that wife-beating in Islam is an approved disciplinary practice (barenakedislam.com)

The same for feminists who rush to embrace Islamic migration.  How’s that mass migration – particularly from Islamic areas – worked out for countries that have done it?

The truth about the Swedish rape crisis. (substack.com)

Iraqi migrant arrested for rape of 11-year-old Greek girl (rmx.news)

Just a couple of examples from many nations’ experience with mass migration.  Also see Tommy Robinson’s series The Rape of Britain.  (Very disturbing image and story at this link about a woman feeling the full force of Islamic / migrant diversity – be warned.)  But “progressives” are natural allies with Islam – they’re both authoritarian, missionary, and expansionist.  And will remain allies until the possibility that Western Civilization itself falls… any takers on who wins between the Left and Islam?

Terry Glavin: As Israeli innocents are hunted and murdered, certain Canadian ‘progressives’ celebrate | National Post

But there’s another question that has never been properly answered in all the years since the Six-Day War of 1967. That’s when the Jews of Israel committed an unpardonable offence against Euro-American high society decorum: they refused to remain merely the plucky kibbutzim of folk songs and maudlin caricature. Instead, Israelis defended themselves against a war of encirclement and beat the stuffing out of Egypt, Jordan and Syria in less than a week.

Israelis will never be forgiven for that.  Jews are supposed to be servile, and just lay down and die.  Except the lessons of the Shoah, and other events even more recently, highlighted the need for strength.

 

 

 

Nor will founded-to-be-Socialist Israel be forgiven for its act of apostasy in rejecting key elements of Socialism to become a free-market / capitalist powerhouse.  A Start-Up Nation, even.

Funny how the SJWs love identity politics… except for:

 

 

 

PALLYWOOD

Deception is foundational in Islam in the jihad against the infidel.

Taqiyya: Deception and Lying in Islam (thereligionofpeace.com)

Deception in Islam: Taqiyya, Tawriya, Kitman and Muruna – Trevor Loudon’s New Zeal Blog

Consider these two videos by the founder of Political Islam (links only):

Bill Warner, PhD: Sacred Deception — Taqiyya – YouTube

Bill Warner, PhD: Deception in Political Islam – YouTube

As I addressed in a prior meme post’s section on Gaza being an “open air prison”, I noted the plenty found in its markets.  Here’s another example:

 

 

Wow that sure looks like desperation and crisis.  Not.  More on the utterly horrific conditions in Gaza:

Gaza Strip’s Arabs enjoy spin classes, fine dining, private beaches, theme parks, luxury hotels | JTF

Funny how an “open air concentration camp” has obesity being one of the primary health issues, specifically among women.  And last time I knew Auschwitz et al had no plastic surgery industry:

In Gaza, demand grows for a plastic surgeon’s services (yahoo.com)

Remember that all the casualty figures come straight from Hamas-controlled ministries.  You think they are totally impartial?  But wait, there’s more!  A very famous picture – widely circulated – gives an example of a cruel Israeli soldier stepping on a child and it sure does look bad:

 

 

And while it’s a bit of military trivia to note that the boots are not IDF issue, the fact that the guy is holding an AK47 – definitely NOT IDF issue – is more telling.  As is this broader picture:

 

 

People calmly watching some street theater – I believe in Bangladesh.  But presented as an actual event – repurposing with selective editing and all.  Like this:

Ridiculous Pallywood of the Day – Israellycool

And:

 

 

Pallywood is famous for recycling too:

 

 

 

But the creme de la creme of Pallywood, IMHO, is this image.

 

 

Which, after some investigation, is actually a screen capture from one of the Final Destination movies.  For more on Pallywood see this piece:

The 2019 Pallywood Oscars – Israellycool

And this report:

 

Pallywood

 

 

It’s my opinion that one of the reasons such deception is so widely accepted is the racism of so many of the elites in thinking that “little brown people” couldn’t possibly be so deceptive and shrewd to fool the uber-educated, uber-elite set.

 

TERROR COMING HERE?

War in Israel: Mayor, NYPD warn of potential lone wolf attacks in aftermath of Hamas-led massacre | amNewYork (amny.com)

Ben Bergquam: Border Patrol Confirms Significant Numbers Of Syrians And Pakistanis Pouring Into Arizona (VIDEO) | The Gateway Pundit | by David Greyson

Thousands of ‘special interest aliens’ from Middle East countries stopped at southern border since 2021: data | Fox News

Thousands of “special interest aliens” from numerous countries, including the Middle East, have been arrested by Border Patrol agents while attempting to cross the U.S. southern border illegally over the last two years, according to internal Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data leaked to Fox News.

…

That data, confirmed by multiple CBP sources and reflects apprehensions between ports of entry between October 2021 and October 2023, shows that agents encountered 6,386 nationals from Afghanistan in that period as well as 3,153 from Egypt, 659 from Iran and 538 from Syria.

Agents also encountered 13,624 from Uzbekistan, 30,830 from Turkey, 1,613 from Pakistan, 164 from Lebanon, 185 from Jordan, 139 from Yemen, 123 from Iraq and 15,594 from Mauritania. The data does not include information on how many of those migrants were removed or who were released into the U.S. with a court date.

I’ve read reports – doing some searching – of Syrians attempting to cross the border as far back as 2015.  Likely before. Hamas Raping and Killing Women – by Michael Yon (substack.com)

Meanwhile uncategorized Arabs flow through Darien every hour. Including “Palestinians” I personally encounter.

Others might join in too if things kick off here in a serious way:

BLM Grassroots Aligns Itself with Palestinian Terrorist Group, Advocates for DECOLONIZATION of America | The Gateway Pundit | by Jim Hᴏft

I just saw a video on Telegram by a black guy talking about how they’re going to “get rid of” all the colonizers.  And if spicy time does start, we’d better do what’s necessary to win.  Or else.

Savages | Frontpage Mag

Savages and decadent civilizations have no firm concept of right and wrong. Everything is subjectively opportunistic and there can be scenarios in which raping a woman, killing her and then posting a photo of her body to social media so her family can see is actually right.

That is why civilization has to defeat savagery, without equivocation, apologies or sympathy, not only to win, but to revive its own soul. Negotiations and laws of war are for peer civilization. Savages offer nothing and so are owed nothing. They keep no agreements except when it suits them. Their word is worthless and their morality is non-existent.

A civilization that does not understand all this will learn it the hard way.

 

GIVING SUPPORT TO ISRAEL

You can’t go wrong with a donation here:

Connections Israel

I’ve contributed to them for almost 20 years.  And please share this post – and the following ones – far and wide.  There’s a lot of info here, that many people don’t know.

 

A CONCLUDING THOUGHT FOR THIS POST

As I noted above, Hamas wants dead bodies and destroyed cities, all the better for camera fodder.  The lives of their people mean nothing.

But as Israel has turned off power and water to Gaza – a dual-edged blade; effective militarily but a disaster-in-the-making PR wise – understand that the leadership and Hamas soldiers likely have stocks and food and water.  Their people don’t… and now, understand this to your core, THEY DO NOT CARE.

Every dead child, every starved person, every person dead from thirst or exposure is a weapon against Israel.  Ever soul lost is, in the Islamic way of thinking, a soldier killed in action against the most-hated infidels of all, Jews.  Thus these dead – to them – have been blessed with martyrdom.

Understand your enemy.  Understand what motives them.  Understand how they think.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The post Israel: Memes and Commentary appeared first on Granite Grok.

It’s not enough any longer for some on the Left to simply jail their political opponents. Now it’s assassinations. See how fast this is moving? And NOTHING will happen to CIA Director “General” Michael Hayden.

If the shoe were on the other foot if a former Trump official had said something similar about a Democrat Senator, for example, FBI SWAT teams would already have kicked down his doors, broken his windows, and arrested him and everyone in his family.

America is a POLICE STATE.

 

Former CIA Director Michael Hayden calls for the assassination of Sen. Tuberville because the senator is performing desperately needed oversight of the U.S. Military. Hayden, a renowned civil liberties violator, promoted the Biden laptop coverup and the Russia collusion scam. pic.twitter.com/MpwOSxJkPj

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) October 10, 2023

The post Former CIA Director Calls For Assassination Of Republican Senator appeared first on Granite Grok.

I requested that the Nashua Library move the picture book “Grandad’s Pride“, which features an image of half-naked men wearing bondage gear, to the parenting shelf where small kids won’t have access to it without a parent’s permission. My request was denied.

Related: Book Promoted by Nashua Library to Small Kids Features Bondage Gear

In her response, Director Jennifer McCormack says:

The illustration that you have questioned is an accurate representation of the kinds of people and costumes seen at a Pride festival and the text of the book focuses on the community’s collaboration on a local celebration and a family’s love for Grandad.

She believes that because men are parading around half-naked in gear that demonstrates their sexual fetishes at Pride events then that makes it appropriate to portray such attire in a picture book for small kids.

This summer men paraded completely naked at Pride events in Seattle and Toronto. Will we be seeing images portraying naked men in picture books at the library as well? Where is the line for what is appropriate for children? Haven’t we already crossed it?

A few years ago a topless woman marched in the Nashua Pride Parade. There have also been sexualized performances by drag performers in the Nashua Pride Drag Show in a public park. With adults celebrating their sexuality, you never know who is going to show up wearing something offensive or doing something offensive and that is why many parents of small children don’t bring them to Pride events because they want to protect them from adult behavior they are not ready for. Why should those same parents have their small kids exposed to adult themes in picture books at the library? The library is betraying these parents’ trust.

After I submitted my request to have the book moved, an even more horrific fact came out about the book. On X/Twitter it was pointed out that the book shows Grandad’s trunk containing sunglasses from the movie “Lolita” next to a paper labeled “MAP” and a Polaroid camera.

Lolita is a famous fictional story about a man who has a consensual sexual relationship with a 12-year-old girl. MAP stands for “Minor Attracted Persons,” in other words pedophiles. Polaroid cameras were used to make child porn back when having film developed risked exposing the photographer to prosecution. The juxtaposition of these items is obviously promoting pedophilia. The “LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE” message in the trunk shows that the author believes that pedophilia is just another sexual orientation in the LGBTQIA+ rainbow.

Will the Nashua Library director and the trustees finally notice that this book is not appropriate for kids? They all seem to be under the spell of Queer Theory pushed by the American Library Association and I have no idea what will wake them up.

 

The post Nashua Library Doubles Down on Promoting Bondage to Kids appeared first on Granite Grok.

I’d say this is something you don’t hear every day, but a more accurate description is something you’ve only heard once. At least one provincial world leader stepped up to a microphone and apologized for the rampant discrimination during the “pandemic.”

On October 12th, 2022, exactly one year ago today, Danielle Smith, having recently won the job as Alberta’s premier, apologized for the vaccine apartheid imposed on those who chose not to get the COVID-19 injection.

And she seems genuine here, and it is encouraging, especially as we watch tyrants eager to scratch that totalitarian itch.

I’ve included the tweet making the rounds (with or without clarification of the original date of the remarks) and a news report from a year ago.

They are brief enough that you should watch both. The latter includes the predictable blowback from minority groups who are (to paraphrase their point) discriminated against regularly.

It is worth noting that in a rare moment in history, COVID discrimination was genuinely blind. It made no difference your age, race, faith, gender, ideological inclination, or occupation. Being uncomfortable with that one vaccine, daring to question ‘The Man” – once a right of passage for the up-and-coming Left – you were branded a denier and systemically punished.

If not for the efforts of people in all those groups working together to claw back our health freedoms, we’d have adopted the Islamic practice of dhimmitude, required to wear yellow or perhaps simply lacking the approved “passport” or “papers” that would permit us access to everyday goods and services.

People too soon forget how awful things were or may have gotten and how quickly many in power, including judges and the courts, abandoned their oaths to protect natural rights and uphold the constitution crafted to prevent the government from infringing upon them.

Perhaps Oct 12th should be Danielle Smith Day.

 

First Major World Politician Apologizes To the Unvaccinated: ‘You Were Right, We Were Wrong’

Danielle Smith, the premier of Alberta, Canada, is the first major elected politician in the world to issue a heartfelt apology to the unvaccinated for crimes perpetrated against their… pic.twitter.com/l0Tf0MyKRU

— DiedSuddenly (@DiedSuddenly_) October 10, 2023

 

 

 

HT | X, The Conversation, and Global News CA

The post A Year Ago Today One World Leader Apologized for COVID Discrimination appeared first on Granite Grok.

The takeaway here isn’t that “it’s for the kids.” We hear that every time a school budget comes up or another teacher union contract comes due. It is that IT is for the Union. Period. Full Stop.

Baltimore City is facing a devastating reality as the latest round of state test scores are released. Project Baltimore analyzed the results and found a shocking number of Baltimore City schools where not a single student is doing math at grade level. “We’re not living up to our potential,” said Jovani Patterson, a Baltimore resident who made headlines in January 2022, when he filed a lawsuit against Baltimore City Schools. The suit claims the district is failing to educate students and, in the process, misusing taxpayer funds. “We, the taxpayer, are funding our own demise,” Patterson said at the time.

…The Maryland State Department of Education recently released the 2022 state test results known as MCAP, Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program. Baltimore City’s math scores were the lowest in the state. Just 7 percent of third through eighth graders tested proficient in math, which means 93 percent could not do math at grade level.

 

You would think that with the resources a major city can bring to bear to help their “precious children,”(yes, a DEMOCRAT-run city, mind you) the results could be better but across 150 schools  – that 7% proficiency rate for math is GREAT compared to this.

 

Project Baltimore found, in 23 Baltimore City schools, there were zero students who tested proficient in math. Not a single student…Among the list of 23 schools, there are 10 high schools, eight elementary schools, three Middle/High schools and two Elementary/Middle schools.

Think of it – 12 years of schooling by the Government in union-owned schools and NOT A SINGLE STUDENT is at grade level. Yet, these unions keep demanding more and more money.

FOR WHAT??  NOTHING!  Who is defending all those kids???  Where is the SHAME on the part of the teachers, on the unions, of the School Boards?

Oh but not ALL is lost – 20 more had at 1 or 2 students that were proficient. But JUST 1 or 2:

…And it’s important to note, another 20 Baltimore City Schools had just one or two students test proficient in math.

• Baltimore City Schools with just 1 or 2 students proficient in Math
• Bluford Drew Jemison STEM Academy West
• Carver Vocational-Technical High
• ConneXions: A Community Based Arts School
• Dickey Hill Elementary/Middle
• Digital Harbor High School
• Dr. Bernard Harris, Sr., Elementary
• Edmondson-Westside High
• Eutaw-Marshburn Elementary
• Frederick Elementary
• Gwynns Falls Elementary
• Lillie May Carroll Jackson School
• Mergenthaler Vocational-Technical High
• National Academy Foundation
• Patterson High
• Reginald F. Lewis High
• Robert W. Coleman Elementary
• Sinclair Lane Elementary
• Stadium School
• Tench Tilghman Elementary/Middle
• Westport Academy

The response (sans the mostly ever-present “Gimme more, gimme more, gimme more!”) – was the usual moronic “we’ll do better” platitude:

Governor Moore’s office did not respond. But City Schools did send Project Baltimore a statement with steps it’s taking to improve math scores, including professional development for teachers, summer learning and an extended learning period at the end of the day.

The statement said in part, “We’re confident these instructional strategies will help us regain the momentum and progress we experienced before the pandemic.”

Sorry, the Baltimore schools were incompetent before the Wu Flu – they HAD no “momentum.” That’s what the clueless, having nothing else to say, give out to the plebes, HOPING that someone might take them seriously.

Professional Development? That’s “the reason”? So ALL those teachers, in all those schools, who went through 12 years of public/Government schools, then 4 more at a college or university, CAN’T teach math? And a few sessions of “Professional Development” lessons (on yet, I bet, the “newest, latest math Fad) is going to unwind decades of utter failure?

But I’m willing to bet that each and every kid knows all the “preferred pronouns” mandated by the Social Emotional Learning ever thought of.

 

HT | Fox 5 News

 

The post From The Annals of Public Education In Democrat Owned Cities appeared first on Granite Grok.