Government

Unintended Consequences

A judge in Florida has ruled that, since immigration is covered under Federal law, it is unconstitutional for state and local police to assist Federal authorities in enforcing that law, even to the point that they cannot hand illegal immigrants over to Federal authorities. It also allows the creation of Sanctuary cities:

Consistent with the Court’s Omnibus order on the parties’ cross-motions for summary judgment, Defendants are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED from enforcing the Transport Requirement, Fla. Stat. § 908.104(4), because this statutory provision is preempted by federal immigration law and is therefore unconstitutional.

The unintended part comes here: In light of this ruling, what other laws would be exclusively preempted by Federal law, thus making them outside of local jurisdiction? Gun laws? Marijuana? Drug laws? Considering that Federal law is so broad, this ruling makes virtually every state law and ordinance unconstitutional, while making local and state police virtually powerless.

Perhaps that’s been the plan all along. Seize Federal power, then declare the states to be powerless.

By Divemedic, ago

The Purge Continues

I recently asked “Can you imagine how that would go today?” about a sailor who was brought up on charges for saying he was “on the pussy watch” while serving as the sentry in front of the women’s barracks. Well, now we know. Anyone in the military who is accused of sexual harassment will be summarily discharged, as the military will have civilian oversight that will investigate charges of sexual harassment:

For sexual harassment cases, it also calls for independent trained investigators and the mandatory discharge of those who engage in sexual harassment.

I once had a boss who gave us a sexual harassment class. He summed it up perfectly: “Sexual harassment is whatever the woman says it is.” Of course, he said that back in the 90’s. Today, the accuser will also be one of the LGTBQHRY… mafia. Say anything that a person under your command doesn’t like, and your career is over.

Now that isn’t to say that all claims of sexual harassment are bogus. Some men are pigs who will use rank to get sexual favors. However, the vast majority of sexual harassment complaints are not because of that. The vast majority are for perceived slights that exist more in the mind of the accuser than anywhere else.

This is just another tool that will be used to eliminate those who are politically unreliable from the ranks of the military.

By Divemedic, ago

Gaming the System

The 4th circuit dismissed a gun rights case for those between 18 and 21 because the clock ran out when the plaintiff turned 21. The court says that, since the plaintiff is now 21 and can buy a firearm, the case is dismissed as moot.

Fine. Outlaw abortion. If anyone sues, the case should be dismissed for lack of standing if the plaintiff isn’t pregnant. If the plaintiff *is* pregnant, by the time it gets to the appeals level, cite this case as you file to have the case dismissed as moot.

By Divemedic, ago

Dead Students? Yes

In Baltimore, it is being reported that dead students continued to be enrolled in classes. Why? The answer lies in three letters: FTE, or Full Time Enrollment. Schools get money that is dependent upon how many students are enrolled in the school.

When I was a teacher, I had a student who died in a car accident. Even though I was notified by the Principal of his death, the student continued to be carried on my rolls. Since taking attendance is a legal requirement, I marked him absent. After a week of this, I was contacted by the Principal and she told me that every time I did this, the computer system was calling the mother with an automated message, which stated “Your student was absent from Science class today.” The Principal said, “Do you have any idea how upsetting that is?” I said, “Well, he isn’t here. Maybe we could change the mother’s number in the system, or remove him from classes.” The Principal said “We are working on that. For now, just mark him as present.” I asked her to email those instructions to me. She got angry and refused. I marked him present as I was told.

That continued for a month. As a teacher, you do what you are told, or your contract won’t be renewed for the next school year.

Now the news from Baltimore was far worse than that, in that they carried the dead students for years. However, the difference is one of degree, not of principle. So, I can believe it.

By Divemedic, ago

This week’s COVID update

A couple of things. The cases at the hospital are declining. One of the four hallways that we staffed to handle COVID patients was closed this week because our number of patients fell.

The second, and more interesting to me, piece of information came to me last night. I was having a couple of beers with a some military pilot friends of mine. They were telling me the story of the mandated vaccine. The President declared that, since the Pfizer vaccine was now approved by the FDA, he was mandating that all military members get the vaccine.

The military, being the efficient government agency it is, doesn’t have enough of the Pfizer vaccine for the military to get vaccinated. So they solved it by forcing the military to get the Moderna vaccine. You know, the one that isn’t approved.

By Divemedic, ago

Thoughts on J6 trials

The government is dragging its feet and burying the defense attorneys in evidence. The idea is to delay trials and force plea deals. At least one judge is concerned about the right to a speedy trial. One of the things that really bug me about these articles is how they always mention that the J6 protesters entered the Capitol in a “military stack” formation, because they held on to each other to avoid being separated as they entered.

You know who else travels in a military stack formation?

Oh shit. Kindergarten commandos in a military stack formation.

One couple from Central Florida has been languishing in jail while awaiting trial.

All of this is being done to arm twist the defendants into accepting plea deals. The people involved have already spent more time in jail awaiting trial than they would have by pleading guilty. In fact, this guy just accepted a plea deal, and he will still be sitting in jail until late January. The crime he plead guilty to carries a maximum of six months in jail. Kelly agreed to a deal pleading guilty to one count of parading and demonstrating inside the Capitol, and will likely be released with time served and a fine.

According to the article, the government claims that Kelly broke a window to break into what he thought was the White House. There are a few problems with this. First, if he thought he was breaking into the White House, there is no way that he could be guilty of conspiring to interrupt the count of the electoral college votes. Second, he didn’t break a window to enter. Here is the picture provided by the DOJ, showing him walking in through the door:

On top of that, he wasn’t too interested in doing anything like hunting for Senators. He was more interested in taking pictures and texting.

This entire thing is bullshit.

Side note: Be careful when out shooting. Do not take pictures. The government will use that to make it seem as though you are training to be a member of the militia Delta force.

By Divemedic, ago

Rats

The rats are fleeing the sinking ship that is the US economy. The regional Presidents of the Fed, who affect the economy far more than POTUS does, are busy dumping US dollar denominated securities ahead of the Fed’s expected decision to taper off on buying bonds and securities. This policy saw the Fed propping up Wall Street by purchasing stocks, bonds, and securities using dollars that they were creating out of thin air. Worse, they were purchasing those items from their own personal accounts.

This policy of using money created out of thin air has artificially propped up stock prices for years. It has also apparently been lucrative for the officials at the Fed. Now that this policy is coming to an end, the market will take a hit.

Now the officials at the Fed have decided to come clean and get out, coincidentally at the same time the Fed is to stop buying. I have a friend who is an executive at a large New York bank. He is prohibited from doing this, and his stock purchases are watched closely by the SEC to prevent insider trading to the point where he doesn’t bother because the bureaucratic hoops are too onerous. The people in the government are apparently exempt. (Yes, I know the Fed is an NGO, but that is smoke and mirrors)

I only have a few assets still in the market. A 401K, and a couple of stocks that pay dividends at the end of the quarter. I am waiting until the dividends pay out, then those stocks are gone as well. I’ve held them for over a year, so I only pay the long term capital gains rate on the profits.

By Divemedic, ago

Biden cutting off COVID medication to southern states

The Biden Administration, through the Federal Department of Health and Human Services, has cut off the shipment of monoclonal antibodies to Texas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Louisiana and Alabama because of a claimed shortage. The federal government and mainstream media are promoting the restriction as “staving off shortages” due to “dwindling supplies.”

However, you will note that all seven of the states have Republican governors. One of those, Florida, is the governor that Biden threatened just last week. If you remember, he made the statement:

If they’ll not help, if these governors won’t help us beat the pandemic, I’ll use my power as president to get them out of the way.

Make no mistake, Joe Biden and the rest of his administration is at war with the citizens of this country. This decision WILL kill people. This is every bit as despicable as providing small pox infected blankets. This is a deliberate attack against the citizens of the southern US.

If it’s administered within ten days of the initial infection, the treatment can reduce the need to hospitalize a COVID patient by 70 percent, according to medical experts. Governor Desantis has been recommending the treatment since August. My mother and brother both received the treatment and recovered fully with only minor symptoms.

Now the President is using medicine to conduct biological warfare against the south. The first civil war started over much less.

By Divemedic, ago