The economy looks like a homeless camp after a hurricane, and all Democrats can do is point and shout, “look, abortion!” I’ve already pegged that as little more than a desperate get-out-the-vote strategy for low-info Lefties, though it may not be working.

Related: To Dems’ Democracy’ Does Not Mean What They Want You to Think It Means

At least a few Republican candidates the Democrats backed with millions in primaries (‘cuz they thought they’d be easier to beat) are tied or polling better than their Democrat opponents. Primary meddling appears to have failed. Killing babies as a right isn’t fairing too well as a strategy. How about saving “The Democracy”?

Democrats can’t shut up about it and how that’s what they are doing, but we’ve got bad news. America disagrees.

The Daily Signal, in a report fact-checking Biden’s latest Teleprompter-read-passed off as presidential wisdom, had some unpleasant news for the political Left. While many Americans are concerned about “The Democracy,” Democrats and the Media are viewed as more significant threats to it than Republicans.

 

A recent New York Times/Siena College poll found that 71% of Americans believed democracy faced some risk and that only 28% believed their votes would be properly counted. However, the Times story characterized the concern as “remarkably apathetic” compared to concerns about economic issues.

But, the poll found about one-third, or 33%, viewed Democrats as a threat to democracy, while fewer, 28%, think Republicans are a threat. Also, 59% of respondents said the mainstream media was a threat to democracy. …

Overwhelmingly, 81% of those who think democracy is in danger believe it can be saved by existing laws and institutions without the need to go outside the law.

 

In a nutshell, the corporate media represents a substantial threat, followed by Democrats – and a supermajority of those polled believe existing law can pull us off the ledge. Not a single thing Democrats want to hear or have planned fits with the results of that poll. Quite the opposite.

Once achieved, their version of Democracy will have as little Democracy in it as possible and a good deal of lawlessness. I won’t go so far as to say people are beginning to see that. Survival demands that you abandon boutique political tangents and focus on the basics. The Left’s gloomy economic cloud has obscured almost any other issue that might otherwise move the needle for many Americans.

Even pro-abortion Democrats need to get by, and people have, are, or are worried about falling behind. You can pretend to blame the pandemic or Putin, but when it comes to the electorate, it’s what you have done TO me lately.

The Left has done a lot, none of it good, and inherited or not, possession is nine-tenths, as they say.

The US economy is in shambles, with fresh storms lined up on the horizon, many directly resulting from things about which Democrats like to brag.

The election is in five days, so if their version of Democracy isn’t holding water, what have Democrats got left on which to run? Sexualizing children instead of educating them?

 

 

 

The post NYT Poll: Democrats and the Media are a Bigger Threat to “The Democracy™” Than Republicans appeared first on Granite Grok.

It is midnight, and the clock has chimed. It is the end of the fairy tale for Maggie Hassan. She has been playing the role of United States Senator from New Hampshire for the last six years, but we all knew it wasn’t real.

If you get Maggie alone at Dunkin Donuts or Market Basket, you might hear her admit she has been in over her head.

The loser in this scenario is the people of the Granite State. We have been lacking representation in the upper chamber.

If you were to take Hassan’s advertising at face value, you would think she is a one-woman storm in D.C. and the rising star of the Democrat Party. The problem is we see through the lies, and those lies will be her ultimate downfall. Maggie Hassan has a credibility issue. It has been front and center since she started running ads in the Fall of 2021. The fact an incumbent senator started running ads a year before the election showed she knew she was in trouble of losing her seat. One and done for Maggie.

The ads that are like fingernails on a chalkboard for me are her frequent use of her challenged child and the attack ads against Bolduc featuring lies about abortion and social security. These showed how shallow she and her accomplishments have been. Criticizing the use of someone’s challenged child may be difficult, but she ran them and should be called out for them. Everyone has empathy for any family that is faced with raising a child with physical or mental challenges but running those ads ad nauseam is playing on people’s emotions. These filled the void where if she had significant accomplishments, they would have been highlighted in these spots.

The fact that she did not pull the negative ads about Bolduc’s stands on abortion and social security after they had been fact-checked and proven wrong speaks directly to her character. It was sad and sickening to see these ads day after they were proven false and discussed during debates and criticized across the board, yet they continued. The people of New Hampshire deserve better and will get it next Tuesday.

It is not all Hassan’s fault. The voters of New Hampshire have to take a piece of the blame. They got caught up in the liberal assault of the thousands of people who left Massachusetts for a better life in the Granite State. Unfortunately, these migrants brought their inherent beliefs and could not resist voting Democrat. That movement gave us our current group of representatives. Hassan, Pappas, and Kuster all took advantage of these voters. Kuster may be the only one to survive next Tuesday, and that is because of the concentrated cities of Nashua and Concord.

Maggie will lose next Tuesday because she deserves to lose to a better person. She will lose her seat to a man who has given most of his life in service to America because he loves his country and what she can be. He is not a politician, but a patriot, and that is what we can use more of in Washington. Don Bolduc will become our Junior Senator representing New Hampshire. Sharon and I welcomed him to our home when he ran in 2000, and we could not be more proud to congratulate him on his successful campaign. As the General says, losing is not an option.

The post Senator Hassan Will be Mrs. Hassan in January appeared first on Granite Grok.

So far, I’ve posted twice of his campaign finance filings – the first on the lack thereof, which seemed to spur him on to get himself caught up (the second one). His official NH campaign filings are in those posts. However, it still left questions as the aggregated “financial story” of his campaign is easily summarized by this:

Campaign to Date:

Total Revenues:            $5,750.00
Total Expenditures:   $20,903.67

Now, how he wishes to spend his money is his business (well, ours as well) and that gap of $15,153.67 still has to be accounted for.  Will that show up in later filings?  I hope so – and it should be done. It’s called integrity.  Hey, your personal finances can be a train wreck – but that’s YOUR business.  Sorta.

The intersection, however, of personal and “campaign/governmental” finances is that debt.  Look, I knew very few people that haven’t put themselves onto the thin edge because of job loss, overall economy, and (let’s be honest here) sheer stupid mistakes. Integrity there is paying it all back no matter how much it hurts. Been there, done that, especially when the Daycare biz that TMEW and I had back at the turn of the century. We had to close it VERY suddenly when she fell ill – but it all got paid back to our vendors (and some were patient to a fault) instead of stiffing them via bankruptcy.

But that was before I got involved in politics. Once I did, on our town’s Budget Committee, it is still clear that I was one of the few that constantly yammered that the monies we were about to appropriate for expenditures by taxing our fellow townfolk more than absolutely necessary.  After all, it wasn’t our money to spend (although others believed I was wrong)!

However, excessive personal debt can be manipulated, at times, and done a number of times, which should be something that voters should know about. Sometimes it can be a drag and sometimes a nothing burger. But one thing is clear – transparency is the gold standard that should be held by any politician whether it helps them or hurts them. We’ve all seen campaigns that have piled up massive amounts of debt that then leave unsuspecting vendors high and dry for months, years, or forever. A past debt history isn’t exactly comforting:

Yes, the following was sent to me. To see all the pages, hover over the page and the navigation bar will appear at the top.

Tim McGough Doc - Oct 4, 2022 - 10-36 AM

As always, you read, you reflect upon, and you decide on how you should spend your vote. And yes, I’ve sat on this for a while deciding whether to use it or not.

And a word to candidates – don’t promise anything that you know you won’t honor.  We have too many readers that are willing to drop a dime on you to us (heh!  Does anyone still remember what that phrase references??) – and we will generally use it.

And doesn’t Baby Huey look so “Presidential” in that picture? He certainly “GAVE it to us during the Pandemic”, didn’t he?  And if you are questioning yourself about that, let me know and I can do a ‘recap post on it.

Oh, lest I forget – some of the money, $2500 to be exact, by which McGough was “supported” was from the Granite PAC.  You know, that specialty Political Action Committee that was formed to support Chris Sununu in another run for Governor – but has been turned into a “Revenge PAC” by going after good Conservative Republicans that stood up to His Excellency.

 

The post Tim McGough – Perhaps a Tough Fighter, Not So Much on “Financially” appeared first on Granite Grok.

When lefty green meanies issue mea culpa’s, it makes for good blogging, but I always remain skeptical. Take Michael Moore, for example. Planet of the Humans made it clear that neither wind nor solar was viable or capable. A fool’s errand, yet the Left has tripled down on the agenda. So, what’s the point?

Related: Michael Moore’s New Documentary: Green Energy is a Scam and We’re All Fools (Video Added)

Why admit that something you’ve advocated for decades does not or cannot deliver as advertised if no one on your side intends to listen?

Harvard researchers said wind turbines warm the planet, while the BBC reported that they are destroying mother earth. Removing meat from our diets won’t do anything, and many of the insects they’d like us to eat are toxic to humans. Solar is land-intensive and bad on both ends, and you can’t even make the damn things without burning coal. Electric vehicles are also an environmental nightmare, and now this from Greenpeace?

 

[T]he report found that many of these plastics were being accepted into processing plants where they were not recycled, but instead disposed of by some other means. Other plastics landed in China where they were dumped or burned, in turn causing harm to the environment, as Tierney noted.

“They preached it to children, mandated it for adults,” Tierney said, “and bludgeoned municipalities and virtue-signaling corporations into wasting vast sums—probably hundreds of billions of dollars worldwide—on an enterprise that has been harmful to the environment as well as to humanity.”

 

This recycling fraud is not new to our readers, and there are many reasons why it’s counter-productive to the narrative.

 

It’s been documented and reported for close to two decades. Look it up. The energy wasted to clean recyclables before you ‘recycle them?’ The energy needed to recycle into a reusable form for glass, cardboard, and paper, and metal is carbon intensive. Trucks, facilities, power, people, and process, all consume more energy than just burying the stuff in the ground. Which is where it came from, if not in that form.

 

Having Greenpeace admit that recycling is virtue-signaling makes me smile just a little bit. They’ve publicly recognized that it is a scam. We’re offshoring the problem, and the result is worse than if we didn’t do it. So?

Related: Quick Reminder About Just How Bad Wind Power is for the Planet

When can we expect Greenpeace to admit that electric vehicles and most of the wind/solar/green energy agenda are the same problems on steroids? We’re not just offshoring it. We’re enriching enemies of the environment at the same time while undermining our ability to be a leader in well-managed stewardship.

We are encouraging human trafficking and child labor.

We are polluting the world over there to pretend it’s not polluted here, and what do we get in return?

A weak, powerless America that can’t do much to improve the world’s problems, and by that, I mean producing what it needs with less waste. The United States and free-market capitalism could and would find ways to use fossil fuels more efficiently and in ways better for the air, land, and water. We’d solve the problems with the best minds from around the world who come here for a one-of-its-kind freedom from government meddling that inspires opportunity and innovation.

And that’s the other thing the Left is looking to ruin.

Democrats want to rule a debt-riddled Democratic-Socialist “republic” that can’t do much of anything for itself, let alone anyone else or the planet. And a world without America leading it is a planet in decline.

How ironic is it that the green dream is responsible for laying us so low, and the result will be a dirtier, more violent planet than the one we had before the Left cut our knees out from under us?

But hey, Greenpeace has realized recycling is bad.

Baby steps, right?

 

 

HT | Human Events

The post Greenpeace Admits That Recycling Doesn’t Work and is Probably Worse for “The Environment™” appeared first on Granite Grok.

I have told Gen. Don Bolduc that his campaigning is FAR better than the last election cycle. Last night, he took it to a new level – complete domination.  Maggi Hassan’s scowl said it all.

And Eviscerated is the word.

At each question, Bolduc had a ready quip that came from yet another plane/angle of attack for which she could only muster a shopworn pre-packaged answer while he continued to do the ‘non-political thing of saying “what, no answer to the question….again”?

He was remarkedly well prepared – off the cuff to boot. His numbers and facts flowed smoothly, and she couldn’t keep up. I’d call her responses “lame,” but I’d be accused of being “partisan” (well, if the shoe fits…heh!).

Gen. Bolduc has clearly adapted his Green Beret / Special Forces experience and leadership to the “war of politics.” And we can see that money isn’t always the determinate factor in a win/lose situation.

Hassan’s decision to not do public town halls and earlier debates were disastrous. Given the late date of last night’s debate, I wonder how many of the “undecideds” just made up their minds – and how many “squishy Democrats” just went “Hmmm.”

I’m betting that if someone does a snap poll, his NEW one-point advantage is going to grow.

The post The Word That Comes to Mind after Watching Maggie “The Red” Hassan Try to Debate Don Bolduc appeared first on Granite Grok.

The advent of social media has also profoundly changed all professions related to political communication, empowering candidates of all factions to express their personalities freely, independently, at a pace governed by a maddening algorithm that from time to time seems to decide what content to show, and what target audience to address.

In an age dominated by a general crisis of values, people all over the world seem to be constantly searching for footholds, for reference points to cling to and to entrust their remaining hopes for a better future, for a peaceful and possibly trauma-free future.

Some find refuge in the sports faith, which for some time now has partially replaced religious fervor in certain parts of the world, while others find solace in the new, winning business model built by some companies, whose activities increasingly revolve around people and their needs, but also their ability to leave a tangible mark on the world even through a conscious purchasing choice.

Voters’ hearts

But what is the winning formula for attracting voters’ votes and establishing an authentic, genuine relationship of trust capable of going beyond mere electoral dynamics?

Any possible answer to this question will necessarily have to include references to communication, to electoral marketing, to that very fine discipline that consists, in a nutshell, in knowing how to build the image of a serious and credible politician, with quality content, capable of igniting crowds and capturing their attention in a matter of moments, even if only with a gesture, a glance, or a simple phrase thrown in by chance.

Political communication, nowadays, must in fact be based on perception, on all that information that voters perceive in the circles they frequent, in newspapers and on television, and on candidate’s social media.

The winning politician is precisely the one who is able to work effectively on all that is perceived by people, either directly or indirectly, then transforming this mass of information into engaging content that is able to stimulate people’s enthusiasm and intellectual vivacity, in addition, of course, to their desire to vote for that particular candidate.

At this complex historical juncture, those involved in political communication will have to pay increasing attention to the content to be thrown to the voters, being very careful not to mix it with sterile eloquence that never leads to anything concrete.

Sterile content, in politics, is any content that refers back to ideological considerations and has almost nothing to do with people’s practical lives. In some nations, faced with the advance of right-wing political forces (in some cases even far from moderate positions), the opponents have been unable to propose any quality content, any political project based on concreteness, persisting in the repetition of old slogans and ideological content that have proved perfectly useless.

Indeed, we are in an extremely peculiar phase in which people, after the terrible two-year period of Covid-19, have basically rediscovered their practical consciousness, suddenly becoming allergic to all those ideological and evanescent contents that carry with them no concrete consequences for their daily lives.

Proper planning

All this also has inevitable repercussions in the way they communicate online, especially on social media. In planning their content for online communication, policymakers should therefore give top priority to the topics that are most closely relevant to people, to anything that can quickly lead them to the resolution of a problem.

It is no coincidence that among the most popular content, on social media and websites, are precisely practical guides, reviews, in short, all content that contains precise and well-delineated information, without the slightest ambiguity.

The success of this kind of content can be easily observed on online gambling portals, which for some time now have begun to devote some sections of their sites to reviews on the different games, guides for players and useful advice on the gaming experiences offered by the platform, which include exciting casino games such as poker and blackjack, but also the electrifying ways of playing related to the redemption of free spins and welcome bonuses, which are usually very rich even for those who sign up for the first time. The guides and reviews, like the Jackpot City review, are always focused on maximum practicality, and help every player to acclimatize to the platform and get off to the best start in their immersion in online fun.

Even in the age of social media, content will always remain the undisputed lord of the web.

 

The post How Political Communication Changes in the Post-Digital World appeared first on Granite Grok.

Autumn leaves are ablaze with their colors,

New Hampshire is awaiting its fate,

The Groksters will be there, and have promised to bare

Any deviance at the polls, November 8th.

 

Although Repubs have been holding both Houses,

Overconfidence can sometimes backfire.

The Dems are so woke, it’s become a bad joke,

But we might still go up in the pyre.

 

Skip and Steve have got the details worked out

For Legislature, Executive Council, and all,

With blessings and graces for the three federal races.

Too bad Ol’ Maxwell had to throw in the towel.

 

Lily Tang didn’t quite make the finals,

The Baxter Brothers fell short on the coast,

LaPlante, Fenton, and Huff, made respectable puff,

But Leavitt, Burns, and Don Bolduc won the most.

 

While the Sun King remains on his throne,

Holding scepter and orb, in a trance,

Will the wave really be red?  if not, we’re near dead.

Next Tuesday’s our very last chance.

 

Who gave Em Ewe Ar the right to pick questions?

The debates were pretty close to a farce,

It’s sad when the mandate, for each intelligent candidate,

Is just not to fall on your arse.

 

Do you know that We-the-People-dot-org

Supplies a handout with good write-in names?

Much Granite was involved; Grinnell made The Resolve

An idea that may win national fame!

 

Wooing Dems is essential this time,

Dear Repubs, please get that through your head.

I say let your doubts fester, Go down to Manchester,

And hug Blues so hard they turn Red.

 

 

The post Ode to the Men of Granite Grok appeared first on Granite Grok.

A recent guest on Tucker Carlson’s show asked a fascinating question: Why don’t we have affirmative action in the NBA, or the NFL, or the NHL, or MLB, or other professional sports leagues?

The answer, of course, is that we want to see the best people performing in those leagues. If we tried affirmative action there, we would see massive protests from spectators, and probably even from people who don’t care about sports at all.

So the idea that we don’t want to see the best people performing in fields like science, engineering, medicine, law, politics, the military, and so on — all of which are more critical to society than sports could ever be — beggars the imagination. But that’s the underlying idea behind affirmative action.

However, there is a way to achieve the stated goals of affirmative action, without relying on racism.

There are two central assumptions that are used to justify affirmative action. First, certain racial groups are less likely to be prepared for certain positions: college student, medical student, military officer, and so on. Second, we would like to see people who, through no fault of their own, lack the skills or abilities needed to attain these positions, get into them anyway.

As dubious as these assumptions may be, let’s grant them.

The simplest color-blind way to react to these assumptions would be lotteries.

That is, suppose Harvard would like to have a certain percentage of students who don’t come from privileged families. It could set aside a certain number of seats in each class, let students who meet some absolute minimum requirements apply for those seats (without revealing any information about race), and then select them by lot.

If the first assumption above is actually true, we would see more students from certain racial groups winning those seats.

Note that this approach wouldn’t target particular racial groups at all, but would naturally mirror the distribution of underprivileged but deserving students by race within society as a whole. You can’t get more diverse than that.

Note also that this approach is self-correcting. That is, as a group moves out of the under-privileged category — as its members move into the middle and upper classes — it gets fewer of these seats. No one has to go back and adjust parameters, or ask admissions officers to make subjective decisions.

This isn’t rocket science. It’s just being careful about words. If you want to help under-privileged people, then what you do is identify those people, and give them a leg up, without regard to race.

What you don’t do is use race as a proxy for privilege — or anything else. Because treating people differently on the basis of race — as MLK put it, judging someone by the color of his skin, rather than by the content of his character — is the definition of racism. And trying to combat racism by engaging in it is like . . . well, like trying to combat inflation by printing more money.

 

 

The post What Government Should Learn from Sports, Part 2 appeared first on Granite Grok.

Constitutional Question #1 on New Hampshire’s November 8 general election ballot is simple housekeeping to eliminate an obsolete position.

Stories of problems with the Register of Probate system are fairly well known. It has been reported that a lady was elected and re-elected as the Register of Probate in one of our counties, although she was confined to a residence in a nursing home at the time. And it has also been reported that at least one part-time probate judge, supposedly overseen by the Register of Probate, looted some estates within his purview and, when about to be caught, fled the jurisdiction to avoid prosecution.

Although the Register of Probate may have originally been designed to exercise some oversight over our probate judges, the state courts were reorganized in 2011, and substantially all duties of the Registers of Probate were transferred to the clerks of the circuit court in its newly created probate division, saving the taxpayers an estimated $1 Million per year.

The only remaining duty of the Register of Probate is to make sure that documentation of probate matters with potential historical significance are preserved in the state’s archives- but that function is actually already handled by the clerks in the probate division of the circuit courts.

So, at the present time, the Register of Probate position is an anachronism- the holder of that office, who is elected for a 2-year term, is paid $100 per year but has no physical office, no staff, no telephone, and, in short, absolutely no duties.

The adoption of this constitutional amendment is supported by the judiciary and is long overdue.

The constitutional office of Register of Probate has become obsolete, and references to it should be removed from the cherished document that determines the structure and operation of the government of our state. Constitutional Question #1 would accomplish this.

A “Yes” vote on the question is long overdue.

 

 

Editors note: Norm Silber is the prime sponsor of the Amendment.

The post Constitutional Amendment: Question One on the Nov 8th NH Ballot, Explained appeared first on Granite Grok.

Today I read an article in The Atlantic titled Let’s Declare a Pandemic Amnesty by Emily Oster. Central to the piece is a plea to let bygones be bygones, forgive and forget because everyone involved in the pandemic response was working in everybody’s best interests.

We want to thank Ted Ropple for this Op-Ed Please direct yours to Editor@GraniteGrok.com.

I use that stuff to fertilize the garden.

“Everybody’s best interests” did not drive the pandemic response. Lust for power and control of people’s lives did, combined with the usual looting of the public treasury. Lockdowns, masking, social distancing and all the rest, culminating in the largest fraud of all, vaccination.

Related: Is Anyone Interested in Offering Amnesty to COVID Tyrants?

None of these mandates would stop the spread, and there was plenty of evidence at hand supporting that assertion very early on if you were willing to read and listen to actual doctors and scientists. The disease does not significantly affect healthy adults and children, least of all. This has been established across the world. Instead of protecting the vulnerable, our ersatz leaders decided to take a shot at controlling everyone.

The Great Barrington Declaration was published in October 2020 and not only detailed an effective, science-based response to the pandemic but also predicted the physical and mental health problems we are facing now caused by our elected and unelected rulers who chose to invoke a very peculiar brand of scientism, where their facts and edicts were unassailable. The media, including The Atlantic, were their willing partners and enforcers.

Mask up, shut up, and get vaccinated. Then get boosted. Again. Again! Where are we now? The fifth shot? The vaccine that went from “if you get it, you won’t catch the disease” to “Well, you’ll still catch it, but it won’t be as bad, and you won’t spread it” to, finally, “We never tested to see if the vaccination stopped the spread, and you’ll probably catch it more than once.”

And now that it’s the vaccinated who are continuously coming down with the virus. Ask the CDC Director, Rochelle Walensky. She’s had the whole vaccination series and boosters, coupled with Paxlovid, and has tested positive three, maybe four times. Or has it been more? So much for the Pandemic of the Unvaccinated and the “Winter of Severe Illness and Death,” eh, Joe?

Dig into the data, and you’ll find there’s a much more horrible side to the mRNA vaccination story. It’s starting to leak out around the edges, and I’m guessing it won’t be long until it’s allowed to be discussed in this country. Deaths are up significantly within the cohorts that should not be dying- people in the prime of their life. I had never heard of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS) until the mRNA vaccines were deployed.

They locked down our businesses, destroying many. Jobs and careers were lost and damaged by politically-driven policies and mandates. The world economy has been broken in ways that will take years to repair, if repairable at all. The United States economy has been shoved into an inflationary spiral due to the unnecessary injection of money, all under the guise of fighting the pandemic, but in reality, enriching the ruling class across the Western world and continuing the destruction of the middle class.

Worst of all is the toll that these policies have had on our children. Locked down and socially isolated in the most formative years of their lives, and for what? We knew at the pandemic’s onset that this disease was shucked off like a common cold by the average child. But lockdowns were enacted, primarily at the behest of that major donor class- teachers’ unions. We are now seeing the damage done not only in drastically lower testing scores, but also in major increases in mental health issues among students.

Adding insult to injury, many states have been put into the position by the CDC to require their children to submit to the mRNA vaccine before they’ll be allowed to attend school. Why exactly was this recommendation made? Again, children are not seriously affected by the bug, and it’s a proven fact that the vaccine doesn’t prevent transmission. The only possible reason left that I can see is to not interrupt the revenue stream for Pfizer and Moderna and to extend the liability protections they currently enjoy.

I can only surmise that the powers that be and their accomplices in the media are feeling the tremors preceding the election next week, and this missive is just a trial balloon to gauge reactions.

Here’s a reaction: Never forget and never forgive any person responsible for creating and enforcing the policies and mandates in response to the late pandemic. They were contemptible actions and warranted removal from elected office or appointed bureaucratic office at a minimum. Remove these people from the public sphere. Criminal and civil charges need to be filed, tried, and adjudicated. Prisons need new inmates, and those enriched by the pandemic should be stripped of their ill-gotten gains.

Let bygones be bygones; forgive and forget?

I think not.

The post Op-Ed: Pandemic Amnesty? Seriously?  appeared first on Granite Grok.

The speech that Joe Biden delivered on Monday afternoon angered me beyond belief. I try to stay level-headed as I analyze and write about a specific event or topic, but Joe Biden has pushed me beyond the limits. I am pissed.

Upset at the situation but more upset that the American people put this aging buffoon in the White House.

Flanked by two of the most inept members of his cabinet, which is a difficult statement to make. This is a cabinet that includes Mayorkas and Buttigieg. It takes effort to be worse than that duo, but Yellen and Granholm will not allow anyone to be worse than them. They are the bottom of the stinking barrel. One is still trying to figure out what transitory is, and the other cannot stop laughing when asked what she is doing to bring down fuel costs. These two do not have a clue; worse, they do not give a damn about America or Americans.

Biden exposed himself as not having a clue about capitalism or the damage he has done to the energy sector of America. When he said in the debate that he wanted to end the fossil fuel industry, did he really think he would get them to react to his every demand? Why should they invest a dime in leases or permits if the President, ignorant of all aspects of business and energy, wants them out of business? He compares today’s profits with last year when America was still shut down. Nobody was driving in 2021, so there was no demand for gasoline. There is now, thus, the profits, Joe. Do I need to type slower for you, or maybe you need Yellen or Granholm to explain it all to you? As if either could.

The oil company profits are a windfall of war. That may be his most ridiculous statement ever, and that is going some. He is now going to blame oil company profits on the Ukraine war. Sorry, but what an idiot. In a time of war, companies have a responsibility to act in the best interest of their country. Joe, we are not at war. We are at the mercy of feckless, ignorant and incapable leadership led by you and your administration. It is your failings to blame, not the oil companies or Putin’s war in Ukraine. So Joe, the Capitalist, will levy a tax on the oil company’s profits. Good luck, and see you in court.

This speech was an embarrassment, and it was an exposure to the weakness of our President. He does not understand how the business world works or the government’s role in that process. Yellen and Granholm stood like two statues. What is their purpose anyway? Biden acts as if the oil companies are an arm of the government. He has promised their elimination, and now he expects them to perform at his pleasure. They should collectively give Biden the middle finger. He doomed them. Now they can play a part in bringing him down, and I think they hope he falls hard.

 

 

The post Joe Biden: “I’m a Capitalist “ appeared first on Granite Grok.

As promised in the last Monday Memes, I have an overflow. My meme cup runneth over.  Almost certain about a Friday Overflow-Overflow.  We’ll see.

Now, let the mayhem, mockery, and ridicule resume:

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

 

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

 

 

 

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

 

 

I’ve looked at the NatGeo site and can’t find this cover.  IMHO it’s a fake… but the message is still spot-on.  And this is definitely real:

 

(Image source)

 

https://granitegrok.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Muslim-Demographics_360p.mp4

 

There IS a great replacement, and there IS a move to eliminate the white race.  Just seen today:

One in six people living in England and Wales were born outside UK, census reveals | Census | The Guardian

 

 

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

 

 

 

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

 

 

I recall seeing tweets like “Get the shot or get shot” and – paraphrased from memory, so inexact – “Children of anti-vax parents need to be held down and Jabbed while their parents are forced to watch their descendants being made to surrender to the power of the vaccine”.

I’ve had people I know personally tell me that soldiers should come to my house and force me to have it at gunpoint.  I’ve had relatives (e.g., my Holocaust-generation cousin, and my older sister) tell me, a person with two master’s degrees and a last-time-it-was-measured IQ north of 150, that I’m an idiot for refusing it.  I’ve had people who know the kind of engineering work that I do tell me I don’t understand science.  I have read articles proposing interventions, like drug addict interventions, on family members who refused The Jab.  (Come to think of it, I seem to remember early on, my Covidian wife talking to her Pfizer wh*re BFF that they needed to do an intervention on me.)

Forgive?  Not just NO, but NO to the power of F*CK YOU.

 

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

 

 

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

 

 

I still know people who “Trust the science” and who think the government is trustworthy.  Yes, we have a crisis of trust in our country.  Too much trust.

A Crisis of Trust – Urban Scoop

 

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

 

 

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

 

 

On a trip to Europe some years ago I heard a couple at the next table over, talking in English, to the effect that Americans are so stupid because we only know one language.  I leaned over and stage-whispered “That’s because, in America, I can drive for two whole days and still be in America”.

The look on their faces…

 

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

 

 

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

Pick of the post:

 

 

Ten-ring hit!

 

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

 

Palate cleansers:

 

 

 

 

The post Meme Overflow appeared first on Granite Grok.

It is no secret that the American people have lost faith in their government. A recent poll showed that only 19% of Americans trust the government to do what is right “most of the time” or ” always.”

This is a stunningly low number, and it is clear that the American people need their government to regain their trust. But how can this number change? It’s certainly not as easy as it is at Play Amo NZ online casino. How can the President gain the trust of the American people? 

Here are just a few of the things that a President can do. 

The President should be more transparent

The American people want to know what their government is doing, and they want to know that their government is being honest with them. The President can start by being more open about what the government is doing and why. 

The President should be more responsive

The President can be more responsive to the needs of the American people. The American people feel like their government is not listening to them. The President can show the American people that he is listening to their concerns by acting on them. 

The President should be more inclusive

The President can show that he is willing to work with people from all sides of the political spectrum. The American people want to see their President working with people from both parties to get things done. They want to see their President reaching out to people with different viewpoints and trying to find common ground. 

The President should be willing to make tough choices

The American people want their President to be a leader, and leaders have to make tough choices. The President can show the American people that he is willing to make the tough choices that are necessary to get the country on the right track. 

The President should be committed to his people

The President can demonstrate that he is committed to the American people. The American people want to see their President working hard on their behalf. The President can show the American people that he is committed to their welfare by working hard to improve the economy, create jobs, and improve the quality of life for all Americans.

Who were the Presidents the US citizens trusted the most and why?

Out of the 46 Presidents the United States has had very few made up to this list. In fact, the list consists of four people. These are the presidents who were trusted because they were seen as honest and sincere. And they probably had almost all the qualifications mentioned above. But one of the main reasons is that they each have led the country through difficult times and have made decisions that have benefited the American people. 

The presidents that US citizens have trusted the most are George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy. These presidents were seen as good leaders who could get things done.

George Washington was the first president of the United States and is considered the “Father of His Country.” He was a general during the American Revolution and was instrumental in leading the Continental Army to victory. He also presided over the Constitutional Convention and was the first to sign the Constitution. 

Abraham Lincoln is considered one of the greatest presidents in US history. He was president during the Civil War and he issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves in the rebel states. 

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the 32nd president of the United States and was in office during the Great Depression and World War II. He is best known for his “New Deal” program, which helped to bring the US out of the Great Depression. 

John F. Kennedy was the 35th president of the United States. He started the Peace Corps, and his “New Frontier” program helped to bring about social and economic reforms. 

The post What Do Americans Expect from Their President? appeared first on Granite Grok.

The impending diesel shortage is the latest side-effect of politically pie-eyed progressive energy policy. With just a few weeks’ supply left and no apparent effort to address it, the nation could come to a screeching halt around or just after Thanksgiving but in the northeast, we have a bigger problem.

Related: Winter is Coming: Is It Time for New England to “Pay” the Green Energy Piper?

We use Diesel to generate electricity.

 

“The problem has been years in the making as baseload generation has been shut down in New England. The coal plants were shut down then the oil plants, then many of the nuclear plants. In the recent past, we had fuel diversity in our electric generation which is not available today. Las Januray there were many days where 25% of the electricity produced in New England came from fiesel fuel.”

 

 

I can confidently say I’ve already done what Kevin suggests, but that’s me (and many of our readers). What about everyone else? And what about the future? Short of a dramatic change in energy priorities in New Hampshire, New England, and the Nation, this problem is not going away. And the Dems are all in on eliminating or banning fossil fuels can’t do without.

Related: Northeast Activists Still Working to Ensure We All Freeze to Death

Long Time Coming

Billions, if not trillions, have been wasted by our “leaders” on energy strategies that are incompatible with living in New England (or anywhere it gets cold). Projects to which they still cling for the misdirected federal dollars they get to brag about in press releases for the faux-green street cred. But reality has another legacy in store. People could die if there’s no heating, fuel, or electricity in January. They probably will die. And it behooves us to ask. Was that the point?

I’ve suggested as much in the past. It is no coincidence that the folks looking to cull the masses are advocates for energy solutions that lead to people dying in the cold. Not just on the street but in their own homes. The only other plausible explanation is that they are complete f**king idiots.

In either case, the electorate’s response should be to use their vote to cull the ranks of those in or aspiring to the elected office of anyone who supports the green-only energy future. And not just because it’s not green. Relying on it means there is no future for many and an uncomfortable one for the rest of us.

Not to worry, the “complete f**king idiots” won’t be cold, but you will.

 

“In the recent past, we had fuel diversity in our electric generation, which is not available today.”

 

We need that, and the only way to claw back from this brink is Net Zero Democrats and their idiot ideas, and look, there’s an election next week.

 

 

 

The post That Diesel Shortage Is a Bigger Problem for New England Than Idled Trucks … We Use it To Generate Electricity appeared first on Granite Grok.

Everyone keeps asking about the Citizens for Belknap’s steering committee: who are these people and why the secrecy? Let’s say Citizens for Belknap is successful in getting their candidates elected by gaslighting “the Gunstock issue.” They’ll take another victory lap in the Daily Sun, but does it end there?

We want to thank Anonymous Conservative for this Op-Ed  – Please direct yours to Editor@GraniteGrok.com.

While they had everyone focused on Gunstock and the nursing home, did anyone take notice of the bigger issues they didn’t really mention, like Parental Rights, Workforce housing, Right-To-Work, Second Amendment Rights, or abortion?  How about the poor economy and the inflation that Democrats created?

Think for a moment, if Citizens for Belknap PAC becomes a powerful influencer, proving they can take down strong conservative candidates, what will they expect in return from those Republicans they favored? Anyone watching this election now knows how their tactics can sink the political career of those in their sights. We’ve already seen one candidate (Creteau-Miller) try to separate herself from Citizens for Belknap PAC endorsement and denounce them…only to quickly flip-flop as if it never happened due to real Democrats attacking her on social media. Other candidates have actually donated to their cause.

The “hidden” committee pulling the strings now has the perfect scenario to push their “hidden” agenda — and who better to do it than the very candidates they are helping to get elected including 17 Democrats and a bunch of Republican moderates now hard and fast aligned with CfB. Notice they didn’t endorse ANY conservatives. Not a one. Those that survived this Democrat PAC’s Primary Election onslaught is going after them again in their Voter Guide (RED Xs).

So, Belknap County Republicans – what do you think about that?

Right now we don’t know if any of these endorsed candidates will obey their Master once in Concord, but one thing is for certain, you’ll know which ones don’t—they’ll be the ones labeled as “Extremist” in the next election cycle.

It’s what they do.

By all means, vote responsibly—that includes doing your own research (verify before you trust).

 

The post Op-Ed: Why Does the Dem-Run Citizens for Belknap PAC Shroud Its Steering Committee with Secrecy? appeared first on Granite Grok.

I was a registered Democrat until 2019. I became independent after Congresswoman Ann Kuster made a call to ABC/Good Morning America to block female news reporter Amy Robach’s interview with Owen Labrie from airing.

I knew what that interview contained, and so, I believe, did Amanda Grady Sexton, who was a Dem Caucus rep and on Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s re-election committee.

The program didn’t air, and two weeks later, the same attorneys who had sued St Paul’s School in the wake of the highly sensationalized criminal trial of Owen Labrie and who had been introduced by Concord Police, to the State’s witness, Chessy Prout, settled a class action #MeToo lawsuit against Dartmouth College for $14 million. Times Up Legal Defense Fund and the National Women’s Law Center put up the PR money for the Dartmouth suit. The NHCADSV were beneficiaries of the settlement.

A few months later, professor David Bucci, who had been named 31 times in the Rapuano & Does v Dartmouth suit, committed suicide. He had been accused of knowing of sexual misconduct in his department and not reporting it. He claimed he didn’t know, but Dartmouth wouldn’t allow him to speak for himself. He was a victim of the #MeToo legal strategy. His 10-year-old daughter spoke at his funeral.

Congresswoman Ann Kuster had spoken up in support of the anonymity of the Jane Does, the plaintiffs. Some of those Jane Does were solicited. They got $75K a piece. The attorneys got $4.9 million. The NHCADSV received an estimated $2.865 million. Nothing changed for the better at Dartmouth. The following year Maha Hasan Alshawi went on hunger strike for three weeks while students signed a petition begging for due process and for Dartmouth to look into her alleged sexual assault.

Congresswoman Ann Kuster and the NHCADSV were silent. Another female student committed suicide after sexual assault. I met another female student who told me that an intruder had climbed into her and her roommate’s dorm threatening to rape them. The Title IX office at Dartmouth did nothing. So much for the promise of funds from that settlement going towards better training and resources for Title IX and sexual assault. It was a lie.

Congresswoman Ann Kuster doesn’t care about sexual assault. If she did, she wouldn’t have stood up against women who testified that they had been gang raped under the influence of Rohypnol. She was a lobbyist for the drug maker and was lobbying for the drug not to become a class-A drug.

In June 2016, Congresswoman Ann Kuster stated, “We are all Emily Doe,” after reading the victim impact statement from the People v Brock Turner trial. That statement was apparently created by Michele Dauber, a Dem Caucus rep in Silicon Valley, not Chanel Miller, the real Emily Doe. Campus Rape and MeToo narratives were political, harming both accusers and accused. They used women, gave them narratives to help Dem female reps get elected. Chessy Prout was recruited, and so was Amber Heard. Facts never mattered. Lives were endangered in favor of a sensationalist narrative to help the likes of Maggie Hassan and Ann Kuster get elected.

How lucky was Senator Maggie Hassan that she appointed Attorney General Joseph Foster, who declined to prosecute sexual misconduct cover-ups at her husband’s school, Phillips Exeter Academy? Or that the DCYF admitted that it might have deleted records of sexual assault at the school and to have a media block out – Courtesy of help from her friend Amanda Grady Sexton on Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s re-election committee or her husband Adam Sexton at WMUR? Or from Debra Altschiller at HAVEN and her husband, Howard Altschiller, at the New Hampshire Press Association?

New Hampshire has received millions in federal grants to research/tackle domestic & sexual violence since 2014. How much went towards election campaigns under the guise of social justice? NHCADSV’s site is hosted by No More, a project of Neo Philanthropy – “The organization and similar left-of-center groups that engage in “nonpartisan” voter registration have received criticism for appearing to favor the registration of voters exceptionally likely to vote for Democratic candidates. “ (Influence Watch).

Congresswoman Ann Kuster and Senator Maggie Hassan had help from Emily’s List to get elected. Emily’s List backs Democratic female candidates who are pro-choice. For all the backing that Kuster and Hassan have had, what did they actually do once they got elected to make the ratification of Roe v Wade as a top priority? Precisely nothing.

What is the point of any federal grants to the State of New Hampshire unless there is accountability for corruption within the State’s agencies – the very ones who receive grants and are supposed to look after the interests of children and women?

I’m pro-choice but I’m also pro-democracy. A functioning democracy can only exist when public officials hold themselves and each other accountable for violating laws such as the right to free speech which Kuster has demonstrated she doesn’t believe in via her actions to block ABC, which arguably contributed to the suicide of Professor David Bucci; such as the independence of the New Hampshire judiciary which AG Joseph Foster demonstrated doesn’t exist when it comes to cover-ups of police crimes or sexual misconduct that could implicate Maggie Hassan.

New Hampshire must do better. Voting for a woman just because she’s a woman isn’t a reason. Voting for a Democrat just because she’s a Democrat isn’t a reason. Vote for people who stand up to be counted, who take agency for wrongdoing, and who will respect the constitutional rights of constituents, unlike these two who have used women to get elected but have not really done anything for them.

Claire Best Hawley
Moltonborough

 

Claire Best is a film and television agent with a background in documentary filmmaking. She has long advocated for women’s, minorities, and disability rights. The sensationalism of the New Hampshire v Owen Labrie trial led her to uncover the politics and abuse of public funds behind it.

The post Why a Vote for Ann Kuster or Maggie Hassan Is a Vote for Rape Apologists and a Vote against Women’s Rights appeared first on Granite Grok.

Every time I see a Maggie Hassan commercial, my stomach turns. I have researched each and every one. Some are lies. Some are damned lies. But each one seems to say that she is “fighting” for New Hampshire citizens—for our values and way of life. I am a California refugee so maybe I just don’t understand how what she is doing could (in any universe) be seen as fighting for New Hampshire.

To me, she has unlocked the Gate and turned loose the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Here is what those Four Horsemen look like:

1. WINTER BLACKOUTS: I wrote two articles documenting what Maggie Hassan has done—along with her “buddies, Elizabeth Warren, Markey, and the “sky is falling” ruling class of New England—to eliminate our ability to generate electricity. She and her buddies have blocked hydroelectric power from Canada; forced the shuttering of any and all fossil fuel generation plants; shut down the Vermont nuclear station; prevented the construction of the planned second nuclear reactor at Seabrook.

Moreover, her buddies in New York have blocked any and all natural Gas pipelines from Pennsylvania’s Appalachian and Marcellus shale natural gas basins(where we could have tapped into enough natural gas to fully fuel all our electrical needs).

What Hassan has done is eliminate the ability of New Hampshire to generate enough electricity to meet the needs of its businesses, homes, and infrastructure. And, most importantly, done nothing to replace what she eliminated. Eversource says it is working on increasing solar and wind but admits that such projects have only just begun and won’t help for years if not decades.

Because of the Jones Act, we can’t even import LNG by sea because the Jones act requires us to use American-flagged ships to transport American LNG from one American port to another. Rather we must go on the “spot” market and compete with the entire world for what we need.

As a result, the head of Eversource announced just a few days ago—in an open and urgent letter to President Joe Biden—explained the dire emergency we face in New England. He warned that “Rolling Blackouts” are in our future unless immediate action is taken. The head of ISO New England – the operator of the power grid in New England – joined in that warning.

Sooooo? —Maggie Hassan is “fighting” for us? Rolling Blackouts are a familiar experience in California. Simply put, the lights will go out in entire sections of New Hampshire. Maybe it’s one hour. Maybe two. Maybe four. Maybe it’s half of Nashua; maybe it’s all of Nashua. And when the power comes back on…well, those “power surge” plugs—they don’t work.

2. EMPTY DIESEL TANKS: The Democrats – you know them well: Joe Biden, Maggie Hassan, Chris Pappas, Anne Kuster, and all the others running for State Rep and State Senate – have promised us two things for decades: “Elect us” they say and we will destroy the Fossil Fuel industry and allow unlimited abortion right up to the moment of delivery (and in some cases beyond).

They have aggressively pursued both. Their efforts to eliminate — thru heavy taxation, regulation (elimination of pipelines like Keystone XL), and thru increasing the royalty charges – oil production has been successful beyond their wildest hopes.

But, they did not focus their hatred of fossil fuels on just production. The real “killer” for people like you and me — you know, people that don’t want to freeze in the winter nor starve to death – is their attack on the oil refinery business. Over the past 50 years, they have shut down refinery after refinery. Today, the number of refineries is a small fraction of what we used to have back in the 1960s.

Moreover, no new refineries have been built since 1976. The last refinery — a small one — was built in North Dakota. The refineries we have are old and tired. They break down a lot. They go offline.

“Build new ones,” you say.

Not a chance in hell says the oil industry.

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth says he does not expect another refinery to be built in the USA — ever. Why? Because the policies of the Federal Government are so restrictive that he says he cannot justify financially investing billions of his shareholders’ money on a project that will take ten years to build to produce fossil fuels that the Democrat Elites say they don’t want.

The result: Not only will we not have electricity, but we are running out of Diesel fuel. Several major oil industry spokesmen have issued urgent warnings—we are down to a 15 day supply of diesel. So are the states south of us to and including Georgia. Reports are coming in daily all over the East coast—no diesel at Gas stations. Supply terminals reporting — no diesel to deliver.

When the Biden administration was asked what are they doing about it they responded by saying that we need to help our European allies who are paying top dollar for diesel. THEY ARE SAYING THAT THE PLAN IS TO SEND SCARCE DIESEL, REFINED IN THE USA, TO EUROPE BECAUSE THEY ARE PAYING A HIGHER PRICE THAN WE ARE.

Airplanes need diesel. Trains need diesel. Farm tractors and many cars, pickups, and construction vehicles all need diesel. Everything you buy—gas for your car; heating oil; food; clothes appliances; fertilizer; you name it; — all get to you using diesel.

No diesel means a shutdown of everything. Does limited diesel mean sky-high per gallon prices—10 $; 12$: 15$ ????

Hassan is fighting for New Hampshire? Has she even mentioned electricity or diesel in any one of her campaign ads?

3. FERTILIZER; FARM ANIMALS; CHICKEN FEED: When Hassan and her buddies declared war on Fossil fuel, they also declared war on a whole lot of items that they say cause Global warming. I have listed three items just as examples:

Fertilizer: to make fertilizer, you need natural gas. Natural gas supplies nitrogen thru ammonia which they refine. The whole process involves fossil fuels and produces methane. Moreover, they claim that the nitrogen we put down in our cornfields somehow is a pollutant. The Hassan crowd could not stand to allow such a “horrible” thing. They swung into action with taxes, regulations, and outright bans. They were quite successful: fertilizer prices have skyrocketed. Farmers throughout the USA have either eliminated crops or reduced crops because the price is now prohibitive. We as a country are at this moment living off last year’s harvest. Next year, we will live off a vastly reduced harvest with no relief in sight. Food prices-as a result-are predicted to skyrocket. Some say 10%; others say as much as 65%. And that is on top of what has already happened.

FARM ANIMALS: In California, I had a lot of farmers as clients. They were constantly calling me to help deal with the regulations on cows, poultry, sheep, etc. Nancy Pelosi. Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsome, and all the environmentalists that funded them wanted the farm animals gone. The claim: is that these farm animals emit methane.

One of the laws that I dealt with required all cows to have a methane collection device hooked up to both their mouth and their rear. Each cow had to have a registration number and a meter that various inspectors could monitor. It was really strange to see a cow outfitted with such devices.

Under the recent “inflation reduction Act” methane gas is heavily taxed under a cap and trade system. Not sure how you measure it from a cow or a chicken but most of the farmers I knew are out of business.

CHICKEN FEED: I throw this one in here just because it has an immediate impact on me. I take it real personal as do my chickens. Hassan and her buddies want to ban all backyard chickens, turkeys, etc. There are all kinds of regulations they have proposed or are pending – most of which would outlaw anyone from owning or raising them. The immediate effort is to raise the price of chicken feed. I used to pay as little as 12 dollars a bag for the good stuff. Now it costs 22 dollars. And it is really hard to locate.

SO WAIT—LET’S SEE—NO ELECTRICITY THIS WINTER; NO DIESEL; NO FERTILIZER OR FARM ANIMALS-IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE MAGGIE HASSAN IS DOING TO FIGHT FOR US?

WEREN’T THERE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE? OH YEAH, HEAR THE HOOVES A’COMING:

SHE WANTS TO TERRORIZE YOUR KIDS BY PLACING A FEDERAL “COP” IN EACH NEW HAMPSHIRE SCHOOL.

Consider this proposal by the Joe Biden/Maggie Hassan Federal Dept of Education:

TITLE IX RULE CHANGES: Presently pending for public comment, the Federal Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights, has put forth proposed rules changes to TITLE IX. TITLE IX was passed in 1972 to root out racial discrimination in public schools. It was an extremely well-drafted and well-received set of laws that have been, at least in my eyes, very effective in accomplishing its goal.

One of the things it did was to aggressively attack racial discrimination but it did so within the framework of respecting the Constitutional Rights of Due Process.

Any lawyer will tell you that your Right to Due Process is one of the most important Rights you have. It means that police cannot interrogate you against your will. It means you have the right to know what the charges are against you; who is claiming to be the complaining party regarding your crime; who are the witnesses who will testify. It means you have a right to an attorney. A right to cross-examine the witnesses. It means that you have the right to a fair trial presided over by an impartial judge who is someone other than the arresting officer or the prosecutor.

Under the proposed rule changes, all such notions of due process are gutted. Under the proposed rules, each school — elementary, secondary, postsecondary, even private (anyone who receives any federal money) must appoint a TITLE IX COORDINATOR.

This coordinator wears all the important hats: He/she is the investigator; the arresting officer; the prosecutor; and HOLY SMOKES, THE JUDGE.

No written complaint is made to the coordinator by the victim. The complaint can be oral and kept confidential to protect the victim’s privacy. The coordinator can also receive complaints from people other than the victim. The coordinator can proceed even if the victim says nothing happened.

All teachers, employees, and students must report to the coordinator any suspicious conduct or facts whether they think a violation has occurred or not.

The coordinator’s reach is far and wide.

He/she has power over all school activities and any activity that affects school activities. For example, two students say something to each other after school while playing a video game. Someone gets offended and says “I cannot do my school work because of what those boys said.”

The coordinator has the authority to proceed.

The coordinator has the power then, upon receiving a complaint, to investigate by interviewing witnesses, and alleged perpetrators, review school records, and medical records and consult experts. He/she also has the power to appoint at taxpayer expense a lawyer to help the victim, and a medical team to provide supportive care. And can adjust the “victims” school work to alleviate the problems created by these two boys.

If the coordinator determines that enough “evidence” (and the coordinator is the sole judge of what is evidence and what is sufficient) is received, he/she can bring charges against the student, teacher, or employee.

And to whom is a complaint made? Why, to the Coordinator of course. The coordinator is also the Judge who determines if a violation has occurred and what punishment is to be administered.

The “Respondent” has no right to an attorney—unless the coordinator allows it. The Respondent has no right to cross-examine witnesses — the coordinator does the cross-examination and limits questions to the victim that he/she determines are relevant.

The coordinator then determines punishment: RE-EDUCATION CAMP: suspension; expulsion; criminal referral. The real punishment however is the public shame brought down on the student— even applied to first graders and pre-school (yes that is right in the rules changes).

AND WHAT IS THE LAW THAT THE COORDINATOR IS NOW ENFORCING: the proposed rule changes include a new set of laws to deal with “sex discrimination”. The rule change explanation makes it clear that the changes are primarily intended to focus on the “gender“ identity discrimination against transgender or transitioning kids. The old law prohibited discrimination based upon sex. The new laws say that this is insufficient to focus on the problem (if a boy thinks he is a girl trapped inside a boy’s body, what good is it to say that boys and girls must be treated equally).

The new law is that Title IX prohibits “sex-based harassment” which “subjectively and objectively” creates a hostile environment impairing the victim’s right to fully participate in a school-related activity.

So — a varsity football player, during practice, calls one of his teammates a name commonly used to refer to cats. A “transitioning” boy-to-girl student walking by hears it and gets upset. She files an oral complaint with the TITLE IX COORDINATOR. The complaining party says that she/he cannot do her homework because she is so upset by the comment.

The TITLE IX COORDINATOR INTEROGATES- one by one- the entire football squad and the coaches. The coordinator then files charges against the offending varsity player as well as against the entire football team for not reporting the incident and against the entire group of coaches for not reporting the incident.

THE TITLE IX COORDINATOR THEN ORDERS THAT THOSE CHARGED ATTEND A “TRIAL” IN WHICH THE TITLE IX COORDINATOR IS THE JUDGE; NO WITNESSES ARE CALLED AND NO EVIDENCE IS GIVEN BY THE PROSECUTION (WHO IS THE TITLE IX COORDINATOR.) HE/SHE FINDS THEM GUILTY. HE ORDERS THEM ALL TO ATTEND COUNSELING WHERE THEY ARE INSTRUCTED ON THE TRANSGENDER IDEOLOGY.

FURTHER THE TITLE IX COORDINATOR CALLS FOR A SCHOOL-WIDE CONFERENCE WHERE THE INCIDENT IS USED TO “INSTRUCT” (TERRORIZE) THE STUDENT BODY AND THE TEACHERS INTO THE NEED TO SURRENDER TO A POLICE STATE WHEREIN ALL TEACHERS, ALL EMPLOYEES, ALL STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO REPORT ON THEIR FELLOW TEACHERS, EMPLOYEES, STUDENTS ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS.

AND WHERE ALL STUDENTS ARE CLEARLY INSTRUCTED THAT THE TRANSGENDER RELIGION/IDEOLOGY NOW REIGNS SUPREME AND ANY ASSERTION BY A BOY THAT HE IS A BOY OR ANY ASSERTION BY A GIRL THAT SHE IS A GIRL WILL RESULT IN CHARGES, AND PUBLIC HUMILIATION.

How about a second example: the same transitioning from a boy to a girl runs into the girls’ bathroom? He/she exposes his/her genitals to a young lady who wants to be a young lady. The latter objects to the intrusion of her privacy and orders the boy/girl to leave the girls’ bathroom and “take that disgusting thing with you” ( referring to the boy part of the boy who wants to be a girl).

Both file a complaint with the TITLE IX COORDINATOR. He/she decides the problem is that the girl who wants to be a girl is harassing the boy who wants to be a girl and files charges against her. After all, he/she is the cop, the prosecutor, and the judge. He has that power.

“Hold on”, you say.” Won’t the New Hampshire state government prevent this?”

Doubtful. Right in the rule changes, the federal government asserts its right to PRE-EMPTION: IF THERE EXISTS A FEDERAL LAW AND A STATE LAW ON THE SAME SUBJECT, AND THEY CONFLICT, THE FEDERAL LAW PREVAILS.

What about my school board? Won’t they find a way to protect my kids?

Seriously? Have you seen who has been elected to the school boards? They are all frothing at the mouth to enforce these new rules.

Where did this set of rule changes come from?

Beats me. The people who authored it are not elected. I don’t know their names. Do you? They are career bureaucrats – never elected- who love the idea of making a law that imposes their viewpoint on you.

Seems like we got rid of that back in the late 1700s. Damn. I guess it did not work.

Sooo—as I started out—Maggie Hassan and all her Democratic buddies in Washington and here in New Hampshire ( Kuster, Pappas, and all those pesky State House and Senate Democrats) envision a world of hurt for all of us.

It is a world they designed, they planned and they are executing.

They are quite proud of the world they are creating and don’t give a hang who suffers.

I wish I could say that we could reverse what they have done just by voting against them out.

Sorry—but what they have done will not go away so easily. Maybe it will never go away—that’s how much they want to hurt us.

HASSAN AND HER DEMOCRATIC BUDDIES HAVE UNLEASHED THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE.

Grab the ones you love and hunker down. The world is going to become a place of misery and suffering. Too late to stop it.

Little time left to pray…so start now and make it good.

God bless!

The post Maggie Hassan Fighting For … Winter Blackouts, Empty Diesel, Sky High Fertilizer, and a Federal “Cop” in Every School appeared first on Granite Grok.

Dear reader/voter – I’m reaching out to you to clear the air. Your state rep for Center Harbor and New Hampton, Tom Ploszaj, needs and, in my opinion, deserves your vote. Tom has done nothing but try to do what is right.

We want to thank Holly Willoughby for this op-ed – send yours to Editor@granitegrok.com

I want you to know that as someone who has stood with both Tom and Bob Giuda in front of the new Hampton park and ride waving flags and signs that Tom Ploszaj is one of the most genuine people I have ever met in my lifetime. I know he has stood with some of you while you have unloaded your trash at the town dump and asked your opinions on what you feel needs to be done. What does your gut tell you? Mine tells me He wants nothing more than to speak for the people.

If you check Toms’s website at tomploszaj.com, you will find that he is very interested in your opinions. I have counted, he has asked for the thoughts of his constituents over 40 times during these last two years of office. You will also find that Tom keeps you updated on the legislature and how he is voting for you.

He wants to represent you and not one party.

If you have heard some of the rumors recently, I can assure you that they are not true. I am also sure that if Bob Giuda wasn’t under the weather that he would come out in support of Tom Ploszaj, who is a good constitutional representative who wants what’s right.

I want to convey the fact that the flack coming from the Gunstock fiasco is nothing more than his opponents trying to take advantage of an unfortunate situation and label Tom in a certain way.

I implore you that if you don’t believe me, please do your own research or reach out directly to Tom and ask him yourself. I know he will be happy to talk to you.

 

 

The post Center Harbor and New Hampton Rep. Tom Ploszaj Deserves Your Vote appeared first on Granite Grok.

School Boards are responsible for all of it but many school board members just have no clue. I’m betting that 97% of them (or thereabouts) have never read the NH Statutes (RSAs) that the NH Legislature has passed that govern their responsibilities and actions.

Fewer, I bet, have read all of the NH Dept of Education  Rules/regulations that also hold sway over them. Unfortunately, many are what I call “captured” – their NHSBA “initial training” includes words to the effect of “Trust your professionals” with the unstated bits being “and don’t worry about that pesky Law stuff.” The problem is, they should and HAVE to – they get sued otherwise, like over Policy JBAB (“Transgender Students and Nonconforming”) for one inglorious example.

So, what does HB1137 layout for School Board members? Making it explicitly clear what we can hold them responsible for doing (and notice this sentence structure – WE hold THEM to account and not the other way around). While it was voted to go to Interim Study in the last session, it will be coming back (emphasis mine in parts):

HB 1137 – AS INTRODUCED
2022 SESSION

22-2078
10/11

HOUSE BILL   1137
AN ACT             relative to the duty of school boards to provide education.
SPONSORS:     Rep. Cordelli, Carr. 4; Rep. Litchfield, Rock. 11; Rep. Johnson, Belk. 3; Rep. Pauer, Hills. 26; Rep. Moffett, Merr. 9; Rep. A. Lekas, Hills. 37; Rep. Piemonte, Rock. 4; Rep. Layon, Rock. 6; Sen. Giuda, Dist 2; Sen. Reagan, Dist 17

COMMITTEE:  Education
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
ANALYSIS

This bill states the duties and responsibilities of elected school boards and allows school boards to contract with any private school approved by the school board as a school tuition program.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

<snip>

HB 1137 – AS INTRODUCED

22-2078
10/11

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two
AN ACT      relative to the duty of school boards to provide education.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 School Boards; Duty to Provide Education. Amend RSA 189:1-a to read as follows:

189:1-a Duty to Provide Education.

I. It shall be the duty of the school board to provide, at district expense, elementary and secondary education to all pupils who reside in the district until such time as the pupil has acquired a high school diploma or has reached age 21, whichever occurs first; provided, that the board may exclude specific pupils for gross misconduct or for neglect or refusal to conform to the reasonable rules of the school, and further provided that this section shall not apply to pupils who have been exempted from school attendance in accordance with RSA 193:5.

II. Elected school boards shall be responsible for approving and overseeing the structure, content, accountability, advocacy, and delivery of instruction in each school operated and governed in its district. To support flexibility in implementing diverse educational approaches, school boards shall establish, in each school operated and governed in its district, instructional policies that establish instructional goals based upon available information about the knowledge and skills pupils will need in the future. To accomplish these ends, the school board shall be responsible for:

(a) The curricula, online instructional programs and applications, and courses taught.
(b) Textbook approvals.
(c) Adoption of any educational standards that meet or exceed state minimum standards following a public hearing.
(d) Evidence-based and measurable methods for assessing student performance in grade spans 3-5 and 6-8 in school years in which a statewide assessment is not given to meet the requirements of RSA 193-C.

III. Elected school boards shall:

(a) Develop, implement, and assess district policies which shall be voted on by the board in public session.
(b) Conduct all meetings of the board and board-established committees in public pursuant to RSA 91-A , the right-to-know law.
(c) Conform to standards of ethical behavior.
(d) Approve the proposed district annual budget.
(e) Conduct annual performance reviews of the district superintendent as an employee of the board.
(f) Conduct contract negotiations.
(g) Provide an opportunity for public comment for board members.
(h) Promote parental engagement and participation by:

(1) Encouraging public attendance at board meetings and providing for public input at multiple times during board meetings on agenda items or other nonagenda items of community interest with sufficient time for comments from the public.
(2) Developing and implementing policies to promote parental engagement with the board and teachers related to student achievement, progress, and involvement with classroom and at home learning.
(3) Developing and implementing a policy to allow classroom visitations.

(i) Promote transparency by:

(1) Voting on all contracts, acceptance of gifts and grants, and approvals of any new or updated curriculum in public.
(2) Posting manifest invoices on a regular basis on the district website.
(3) Posting all curriculum and competencies on the district website.
(4) Developing and implement a policy providing an opportunity for parents to review the selection of printed or digital textbooks and reading lists, instructional materials, and the academic curriculum used by classes in the district.
(5) Posting all professional development and workshop topics on the district web site.
(6) Posting and maintaining student enrollment, student achievement, and per pupil costs for a 5-year period on the district website or providing a link to that information on the department of education’s website.

(j) Conduct an annual end-of-year parental survey with the results to be posted on the district web site. The survey shall include satisfaction regarding:

(1) School safety.
(2) Parental and student engagement, support and responsiveness.
(3) Learning environment.
(4) Student support in academics and counseling.
(5) Student classroom experience.
(6) Overall satisfaction.

IV. Elected school boards shall be responsible for establishing the structure, accountability, advocacy, and delivery of instruction in each school operated and governed in its district. To accomplish this end, and to support flexibility in implementing diverse educational approaches, school boards shall establish, in each school operated and governed in its district, instructional policies that establish instructional goals based upon available information about the knowledge and skills pupils will need in the future.

[III.] V. School boards shall adopt a teacher performance evaluation system, with the involvement of teachers and principals, for use in the school district. A school board may consider any resources it deems reasonable and appropriate, including any resources that may be provided by the state department of education. In this paragraph, “teacher” shall have the same meaning as in RSA 189:14-a, V.

[IV.] VI. Pursuant to RSA 193:3, VI, a school board may execute a contract with any [approved nonsectarian] private school approved by the school board as a school tuition program as defined in RSA 193:3, VII to provide for the education of a child who resides in the school district, and may raise and appropriate money for the purposes of the contract, if the school district does not have a public school at the pupil’s grade level and the school board decides it is in the best interest of the pupil.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 30 days after its passage.

I reached out to NH State Rep Glenn Cordelli to ask him why this bill was entered (and I do think it is needed as many, if not most, SB members haven’t a clue what they really are supposed to be about (reformatted, emphasis mine):

Very simple reasons for my submitting the bill. It is time for conversations about the role and duties of local school boards.

We all saw what happened at some board meetings around the state and country. School board members are supposed to be elected representatives of the people but in some cases, members seems to forget that fact.

Many school boards think that they report to the superintendent when in fact it is the other way around.

Transparency and accountability were key pieces of what I tried to include in the bill. School boards should, in my opinion, be [explicitly] responsible for the curriculum and approval of textbooks, too.

The Department of Education is now doing annual surveys and the 2021 survey contained several troubling response – 31% of families responded that their school did not value their opinion. When asked if the school board was responsive to the needs and concerns of families, only 52% responded positively.

That means a large minority of parents, 48%, would be negatively. The reason is simple – go to a School Board meeting and try to ask them questions!  While *I* can get some questions answered, I’m generally getting the “Easter Island stone-faced Moa Statue” treatment.  Time after time, I see frustrated parents go up to the podium, having never dared to attend such a meeting before, only to be treated like recalcitrant children with SB members just giving them a silent stare in return.

Yet, they keep saying they want involved parents – just not with them. That has to stop – they are not “School Board members”, they are our elected representatives and should be accountable to the voters at ALL times.

The post HB1137 – No, School Boards Are Not Just for Creating Policies and Budgets – They Own the Whole Dang Thing! appeared first on Granite Grok.

Most of us understand that the accumulation of “weather” over time represents the climate. We know from experience that forecasting the weather is an imperfect science and that predicting it accurately in future decades or centuries seems implausible. That hasn’t stopped them from trying.

And there’s nothing wrong with that if others are allowed to challenge and debate the results, but that’s not how this game has been played. Political partisans have hijacked the weather, and anyone who disagrees with them is labeled a denier.

Yes, climate change is real. It’s just not created by humans. That’s a line from this excellent piece by Martin Armstrong, who outlines how climate has always changed and how it has changed human beings and their civilizations on earth.

Significant shifts in cultural dominance align with solar maximums and minimums.

The earth has experienced wild temperature swings that last from decades to centuries. Eras warmer (with more atmospheric CO2) than the solar maximum that just ended and those colder than the solar minimum we have recently entered (we hope).

There is no way to know for sure, but the climate is changing, but the true deniers are those who refuse to accept our climate past because it contradicts the political narratives in which they’ve invested regarding its future. A form of mass psychosis that Armstrong rightly compares to abuses by ancient faith leaders.

 

This is one of the oldest methods to brainwash a population known to ancient history. The high priests had discovered the cycle of the heavens. They would pretend to turn the sun dark, for they managed to calculate the cycles when an eclipse would take place. They would call the people together and tell them what they will do, and they watched the moon block out the sun and believed that the high priest could control the heavens. Today, astrology really comes from the Babylonians who conducted a massive correlation study to predict the future.

There is a cycle to everything. The climate ALWAYS changes, and there are warming periods and cooling periods. These charlatans are no different than the Babylonian high priests pretending to block the sun with the moon on their command.

 

Martin Armstrong also introduces us to “the Beaufort Gyre, a massive wind-driven current in the Arctic Ocean that actually has far more influence over sea ice than anything we can throw into the atmosphere. The Beaufort Gyre has been regulating climate and sea ice formation for millennia. Recently, however, something has changed; it is not something that would create global warming but threatens a new Ice Age.”

What causes that oscillation is unclear to me, but we’ve covered a lot of actual climate science that adds to the suspicion that the next few decades could be increasingly cold.

 

Recently discovered long-term oscillations of the solar background magnetic field associated with double dynamo waves generated in inner and outer layers of the Sun indicate that the solar activity is heading in the next three decades (2019–2055) to a Modern grand minimum similar to Maunder one.

 

While this is happening, Cult leaders are working overtime to ensure abundant fossil fuels are untapped and too expensive, and when people freeze to death, they’ll blame climate change. But the only climate people can change is the political one that lead us to where we are today. A matter of life and death for more than a few of us, but unlike the climate, it is something we can change.

Stop voting for Democrats and, if possible, their climate cult-water-carrying RINO friends. We’re already looking down the barrel of what letting them off the leash for too long looks like here in New England. And a hard lesson it may well be.

We’d best learn from it now. We’re due for a cold spell, and the science is lining up to give us one.

 

 

HT | Armstrong Economics

The post CLIMATE CHANGE IS REAL… It is Just Not Created by Humans. appeared first on Granite Grok.