Friday 12 February 2021
JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW
Hour One
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 1, Block A: Dan Henninger: @DanHenninger, @WSJOpinion; editorial board and Wonder Land column; in re: The New York Times published a an op-ed column calling for a Reality Czar. They think the 74 million who voted for Donald Trump need a Reality Czar, a sort of reality checker, to correct false thinking. As though they’re been reading George Orwell’s 1984as a how-to manual. Thinking that everyone else is wrong and one’s self is correct is a form of insanity. Cynically, this is just another weapon to disc9urage people from associating with Republicans; but I think something strangely psychological is going on: liberals in a sort of mass psychosis holding that half the country is engaged in false thinking.
How one person and his personality could drive to so many into such amass rage. Many didn’t care for Pres Obama but it didn’t evolve into this psychosis/rage. This second impeachment: I think that the Democrats have done well in diminishing Trump’s ______ and deciding to move on. In 2020, the GOP grew by 12 seats; are within 6 of controlling the House. The Democrats are creating a situation where they’ll receive payback. They Stripped Marjorie Taylor of her committee assignments; perhaps he GOP will do that to Ilhan Oman.
Does Biden want all this? I don't think so; but he’s [caved in to teachers’s unions and other matters].
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 1, Block B: Jeff Bliss: @JCBliss, #PacificWatch, in re: California Lt Gov: “Gov Newsom does not deserve to be recalled; it would be shameful for any Democrat to sign the recall petition.” We’re close to the 1.5 million needed signatures; aiming at 2 million [to accommodate any unverified signature]. 1. Do we recall the governor? 2. Whom do we choose to replace him? (A list will be appended.) We have a few Republicans, including John Cox and Kevin Faulkner. The length of the lockdown has extended too far and the economy is in trouble. Newsom is bringing in proxies to campaign in his favor; saying only white supremacists and QAnon believers want the recall. He comes from the Bay Area, which is producing headlines on parents vs school boards- which are changing school names rather than getting the school up and working.
Ezra Klein is from California, liberal elite; but we’re facing almost-overwhelming problems in this state. Disneyland: might or might not open; tens of thousands of jobs gone and huge amounts of income.
High-speed rail: now they’re looking for more money for 171 miles in the Central Valley, the train to nowhere. Way behind schedule and unneeded. Jerry Brown never put the stake through its heart, so it lurches on.
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 1, Block C: Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com; in re: SLS, space launch system (a NASA name), a dcendant if Ares rocket from the Bush adm. A heavy-lift rocket, reuses shuttle engines. Mandated by Congress to do it their way—a used car begun in 2012, intended to have an unmanned mission in 2018. Continuous problems and really embarrassing foul-ups, a static fire test ban needed to be rebuilt. The Senate really did this, micromanaging NASA. Congress never said what the mission was, and demanded NASA spend $3 billion a year, year after year. It'll probably add up to $31 billi0n for one manned flight.
A century from now, what will we see as the driver for the program? Not to get into space, but pork. It's an unmitigated boondoggle, a Potemkin village. Richard Shelby’s memorial, although not only he; although he’s always been in Washington agitating for funds.
Falcon Heavy: a slew of stories in the last week that Congress and White House are getting ready to say goodbye to SLS. Ergo, Falcon Heavy was awarded a contract by NASA to launch; about $1 billi0n. Has two-thirds of SLS power, so it’s good.
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 1, Block D: Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com; in re: The audience’s generous donations are enormously appreciated. FarFarOut is the farthest-out object known in our Solar System. About 250 miles across, and 132 AU from the Sun, 12 billion miles. Its orbit is very eccentric – 175 AU from the Sun at its extreme, then comes in from 27 AUs, which is inside the orbit of Neptune. It may interact with Neptune and get flung out.
Voyager 1 and 2 are beyond the edge of the Solar System, the heliosphere, but maybe not farther than Far Far Out.
Alpha Centauri. Maybe an exoplanet – may have detected the actual light of an exoplanet orbiting Alpha Centauri A. Not a habitable planet, but within the habitable zone.
Then, to Mars: the PRC has achieved orbit, carrying a lander and a rover. The UAE (al Amal) has succeeded this week, also. US lander, Perseverance, will roar through the atmosphere for seven minutes. Aspirations of sovereign powers: Turkey and Saudi Arabia. The new colonialism.
Hour Two
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 2, Block A: Devin Nunes, @DevinNunes, CA-22, Countdown to Socialism,in re: The alarming Time magazine article, “The Secret History of the Shadow Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election.” https://time.com/5936036/secret-2020-election-campaign/
. . . Obama and Zuckerberg initially coined the phrase, “fake news.” See Countdown to Socialismbook. We don’t even know how much money Zuckerberg and FB donated, estimated to be $350 million to $500 million that flowed into the several locations where ballots were harvested.
PODCAST: https://devinnunes.podbean.com
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 2, Block B: Devin Nunes, @DevinNunes, CA-22, Countdown to Socialism,in re: This is the first weekend when I’ll be able to go to my church – no thanks to Governor Newsom who forbad it, but thanks to the Supreme Court ruling.
Can’t rent a Uhaul trailer here because so many people are leaving, Homeless people everywhere, zombie apocalypse. Cities complained, so now they’re sitting along highways all around the state. One guy walked into the middle of the freeway; a driver got out to help—then th guy ran into traffic and was killed. This is bigger than Cuomo-type governance; something else is going on. Kamala Harris is looking at eliminating all her competition.
PODCAST: https://devinnunes.podbean.com
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 2, Block C: Gene Marks, @genemarks @Guardian #SmallBusinessAmerica @Guardian, Philadelphia Inquirer, and at TheHill; in re: Work Opportunity Credit – can get up to $9,600 per employee whom you hire this year, if s/he’s been out of work for more than 9 (?) months. The $15/hr minimum wage: a good thing because we’ll learn how to do this successfully, make investments in technologies that the owner should have done long ago. Robotics, self-service kiosks, in restaurants. Govt money for small bz and minority-owned bz: it’s going begging. $30 bil targetted at this, grants available through Small Business Adm; some of the money is going unspent , partly because minority owners aren’t stepping up, not sure what factors. Talk to bankers and find this money.
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 2, Block D: Gene Marks, @genemarks @Guardian #SmallBusinessAmerica @Guardian, Philadelphia Inquirer, and at TheHill; in re: Small businesses start at home: the founders of megatgech corporations had entrepreneurial and supportive parents and family help. . . . An unprecedented amount of wealth has accrued nationally, and savings are at a high. Many smart people anticipate a boom by the end of 2021. Big corporations: you can't deny what the pharma industry has done by picking itself up and developing vaccines. FB, Amazon, FedEx, and many many others have special grants and programs for small businesses. In New York, we want everyone to come back, complain about the traffic, and generate hustle and bustle.
Hour Three
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 3, Block A: Michael E Vlahos: @JHUWorldCrisis, #newamericancivilwar; Johns Hopkins; in re: “Tyranny, like Hell, is not easily conquered”—Thomas Paine. Quoted by Mr Raskin. The Democrats believe that they’re saving the country fromthe Devil. Those who can stage a show trial are orchestrating their legitimacy majesty, and power. A fantastic national performance, goal to beat down to submission their former rivals—to transform them into raw evil. Punished collectively; abnegation and redemption to let them back in to the political process. Asserts the power and legitimacy of the [theatrical ] power to reduce their opponents in a way that keeps h party on power for as long as possible. The essence of the show trial is to stage an event overwhelming in its dramatic staging to overwhelm the electorate and reduce the “traitors” into long-term submission.
In the 1850s, the US was splitting in parts, like today. The Democrats were the bastions of the peculiar institution named slavery. They felt [history] moving against them. Only safe way was to make slavery a national institution, govt-anointed. Dred Scott decision. Instead, it rekindled the voters to greater opposition to slavery. John Brown was painted as a domestic terrorist; his hanging was to warn the North—which dug in heels; this was the last straw. Same thing happened in France and Russia.
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 3, Block B: Michael E Vlahos: @JHUWorldCrisis, #newamericancivilwar;; Johns Hopkins; in re: Show trial has three phases. 1. Theatrical ritual. 2 . The prosecutor is the judge. 3. Anyone attached to the opponent party is intimidated, cowed.
None of these is happening: Democrats are weak not because they are intrinsically, but because they've pursued a losing strategy. Vanity, narcissism. Working against themselves; have created a dynamic in which the enemy – GOP—are incentivized to fight back. This is how show trials always fail. Also, the unprecedented event of stripping a Congresswoman of her committee assignments. Tragic. Not only a strategy of inevitable defeat, but they're locked in to it. Persecuting “extremists,” making a new Patriot Act – the more violent they become, the stronger the resistance. We believe ourselves to be rational; all wrong: everyone deep down is driven by the passions of their emotions, of who they are and must be.
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 3, Block C: Francis Rose,@FRoseDC, Host of @GovMattersTV @ ABC7News & WJLA 24/7 News. Washington D.C., in re: Solar Winds, the huge hack. Brigadier General: “We need an overall investigation!” Many believe the Russian govt is behind the attack, Senators Warner and Rubio want one person in the Executive Branch to oversee the investigation. Part of any breach of this size: there may be others we don't know about, Russians Chinese, Iranians, North Koreans, Chinese, perhaps the US —all are real pros at this. Govt stopped trying defend the perimeter; now, “zero trust”—anyone wanting to access info must prove his credentials to do so. OPM Act. A76s, forms to get a security clearance. Are we asking the right questions? C4ISRnet. A cyber hack:trying to disable something or cause something bad to happen (damage a water system, for example). Cyberespionage: same as traditional; one nati0n-state trying to get info about another nation-state. Certainly, China is an imminent threat.
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 3, Block D: Veronique de Rugy, @veroderugy, @Mercatus ;Mercatus Center, in re: Continuing Washington tale: $1.9 trillion. Always with lobbyists. The airline industry: $42 billion to transportation and workers; also, more funding for US airlines and contractors. In h pandemic, people still worried about air ravel (despite superb air filtering eqpt). American is threatening to lay off 30,00 employees – whom they don't need because of reduced passengers numbers; govt is offering ten times what’s actually needed. Bailouts are for shareholders and executives. This is the third bailout in less than a year. Were there a time when no bailout appeared, what would happen? Either layoffs, or bankruptcy: bankruptcy means restructuring. And, if an airline disappeared, another would replace it. GOP Democrats, Populists—everyone—no matter who’s in power: airlines, and Boeing, keep getting bailed out. Sen Toomey is unhappy about this. For some reason people think it's normal to bail them out. Will this happen again—say, in autumn of 2021: more bailouts? I think so. Airlines keep threatening to lay off the same 30,000 people.
Hour Four
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 4, Block A: Inferno: The True Story of a B-17 Gunner's Heroism and the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History, by Joe Pappalardo
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 4, Block B: Inferno: The True Story of a B-17 Gunner's Heroism and the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History, by Joe Pappalardo
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 4, Block C: Inferno: The True Story of a B-17 Gunner's Heroism and the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History, by Joe Pappalardo
Friday 12 February 2021 / Hour 4, Block D: Inferno: The True Story of a B-17 Gunner's Heroism and the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History, by Joe Pappalardo
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