Authorities investigate reports of migrants trying to buy children to enter the U.S.

This throws a monkey wrench into the whole "they are separating children from their parents" public kvetching by those who were as silent as a whore in church when this sort of thing occurred in the previous administration. As a result, I frankly find it impossible to take such folks seriously.

Nonetheless, there is a possible solution for this potential problem: mandatory DNA screening of any child and purported parent. If the DNA match falls within the acceptable range of familial relations to ascertain probable parentage, then no problem. If however there is no such match, that would be a different matter altogether and the party in question could be taken into firmer custody, fingerprinted, deported, and ultimately lose any future right to legally be in the United States.

Briefly...

Pope gives relics of St. Peter to Orthodox patriarch

St. Peter's bones are still buried in his tomb under the high altar of the basilica. Pope Francis giving a few fragments to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew was an unexpected gesture. Beyond that, I have not had long to ponder this to know what I think about it.

If readers were expecting a knee-jerk reaction of defacto anger and public blustering, I am afraid I will have to disappoint.

Hopefully this gesture will help in the growing ties between the Pope and Ecumenical Patriarch and through the prayers of St. Peter will aid in the restoration of full communion between the Churches.

'Mini AOC' Parody Accounts Are Gone Thanks To Lefties Doxxing And Threatening An 8-Year-Old

This could be enough to push a reasonable person who does not like Donald Trump to vote for him just to spite the sort of pieces of shit who would do this!

Points to Ponder:

They can’t win an argument. They can’t win the votes, not in Europe or Asia or South America or here. The liberal elite has failed to provide prosperity for anyone but themselves. The liberal elite has failed to provide peace for anyone but themselves – you don’t see a lot of them in uniform in Whocaresistan fighting the wars Bill Kristol advocated and Joe Biden voted for. The liberal elite provides only a system of interlocking and self-reinforcing grievances in which you, the Normals, are perpetually the oppressors, yet you’re the only ones being oppressed. No one wants that, except the SJWs who find meaning in fussy social media hate-mobs, so they try to jam their garbage ideology down your throat by threatening to kick you off Twitter, or by making it so you lose your job, or by preventing you from going out and eating tacos in peace, or by calling you all sorts of names ending with -ist and -phobe.

These are not the actions of winners. These are the actions of losers who see their power slipping away and will do anything to keep it.

Anything.

Yes, including violence. [Kurt Schlichter]

Al Yankovic
@alyankovic

I am profoundly sad to hear that after 67 years, MAD Magazine is ceasing publication. I can’t begin to describe the impact it had on me as a young kid – it’s pretty much the reason I turned out weird. Goodbye to one of the all-time greatest American institutions. #ThanksMAD

12:20 AM · Jul 4, 2019

For those who did not know, the occasional Dept post titles I used to use regularly on Rerum Novarum and elsewhere over the years{1} was a shameless ripoff from Mad Magazine. I read it occasionally over the years but was never a subscriber. Nonetheless, I am one of those who were influenced by them and will be sad to see them go.

Note:

{1} And still from time to time do.

The Liberal War On You

It seems safe to project that Seahawks LB Mychal Kendricks will be on the field in 2019

Hoo Boy: Bernie Slides To Single Digits In Iowa, Behind Biden, Harris, And Warren

No Debate: 'America Last' Dems Will Lose to Trump

Some Never Trump Figures Suddenly Discover What Other Republicans Did Years Ago

I am between the positions enunciated above but I shade more away from the morons who think throwing elections to the Democrats is a good idea because #OrangeManBad.

BREAKING: Pelosi Caves, Will Pass Senate Border Bill As AOC Fumes

#CocaineMitch wins again!

AOC: I’m Outraged That Mitch McConnell Killed The House Border Bill I Voted Against!

Briefly...

The previously mentioned planned addition to an old archival weblog{1} was made
yesterday and that weblog was then returned to its prior indefinite suspension in perpetuity.

All things to the contrary notwithstanding.

Note:

{1} Briefly (circa June 24, 2019)

Grading the Seattle Seahawks offseason

IS GOP PULLING EVEN IN MONEY RACE?

Briefly...

In the interest of fairness, I briefly unsuspended an old archival weblog to make a few updates. I have in mind making one more posting to that old site before returning it to indefinite suspension in perpetuity.

Briefly...

When your position on concentration camps is so screwy that you are corrected by the Auschwitz Memorial Museum on Twitter, you might want to sit down and shut the fuck up for a while.

#JustSaying

7-2: SCOTUS Rules “Peace Cross” Can Remain On Public Land

This was an unsurprising 7-2 ruling but nice to see nonetheless!

Reclaiming History From Howard Zinn

Sadly a lot of morons buy this garbage.

Points to Ponder:

So many letters to the editor and comments on the Internet have this…tone of thrilled vindication: these are people who have been vigilantly on the lookout for something to be offended by, and found it…Obviously, some part of us loves feeling 1) right and 2) wronged. But outrage is like a lot of other things that feel good but, over time, devour us from the inside out. Except it’s even more insidious than most vices because we don’t even consciously acknowledge that it’s a pleasure.

We prefer to think of it as a disagreeable but fundamentally healthy reaction to negative stimuli, like pain or nausea, rather than admit that it’s a shameful kick we eagerly indulge again and again…(It is) outrage porn, selected specifically to pander to our impulse to judge and punish, to get us off on righteous indignation. [Tim Kreider]