When Progressives Wax ‘Poetic’ About ‘Religious Bigotry’ …

September 26, 2018June 9, 2018 Steve MacDonald

The Masterpiece Cakeshop ruling continues to bear fruit. David French, writing at National Review Online, has provided several pieces that emphasize the upside of the decision, here, here, and here.

One important point that is a gift that should keep on giving is a quote from the Decision written by Justice Kennedy.

To describe a man’s faith as “one of the most despicable pieces of rhetoric that people can use” is to disparage his religion in at least two distinct ways: by describing it as despicable, and also by characterizing it as merely rhetorical — something insubstantial and even insincere.

New York Times “Runs Out Of Words” to Describe May Jobs Numbers

September 26, 2018June 2, 2018 Steve MacDonald

I couldn’t tell you if the cable networks or the alphabets are in on this but The New York Times offered up a glowing report of May’s job’s numbers the same day I wrote this. So here’s the credit where it is due.

The real question in analyzing the May jobs numbers released Friday is whether there are enough synonyms for “good” in an online thesaurus to describe them adequately.

“It’s for the Children!” – except when it is all about an adult

September 26, 2018April 3, 2013 Skip

The Left’s second most rallying cry (and generally the lie most likely to be rolled out as a club) is “It’s for the children!” as if that is supposed to stop all debate by shaming their opposition (with the undertone of “what, you hate kids? Don’t much like puppies or Mom’s apple pie either, do you?). When drawn out of the Progressive quiver, it’s one purpose is to stifle and stop debate, for that is what Progressives want. In their hands, the intent is to use it like a steamroller. Lots and lots of issues have seen this used over and over – because it works, mostly. Children are precious – especially when they can be used as pawns.

Except when they get in the way of an adult’s politically correct ideology – which, pretty much, cares not a whit for real youngsters:

A federal civil rights complaint has been filed against the Salt Lake City School Board after a principal booted a Cub Scout pack from an elementary school.

About 30 young boys were told they could no longer meet at Mountain View Elementary School because the Boy Scout’s ban on gay members in leaders conflicted with the school district’s anti-bias policy.

The ban drew the ire of Michael Clara, a school board member and lifetime Boy Scout. Clara filed the federal complaint on behalf of two Latino parents.

“I believe it is an assault on the founding principles of our country for school officials to attempt to exclude a voice no less legitimate than its own from public school participation,” Clara tells me. “A marketplace of ideas devoid of competitive viewpoints engenders an insidious society of conformity, contrary to the fundamental precepts of our Constitution.”

Read more

How About a Little Bias?

September 26, 2018March 15, 2013 Steve MacDonald

Much of the media bais that occures is subtle. From choosing what stories to cover and what to ignore to how issues, ideas, and people are framed in context, word choice and tone convey connotation, intentional or not, to the reader. Here’s a classic example from Yahoo! News. Claudine Zap, writing for The Lookout – … Read more

An Open Letter to Foster’s Daily Democrat (Updated and Bumped)

September 26, 2018March 12, 2013 Steve MacDonald

letter to the editor [Update: I was just informed that the day after this post originally went up Foster’s Daily Democrat decided to publish Dan Davis’ letter. We take no credit. I’m sure it was just waiting in the slush pile for a space to open up and the timing is coincidental. We do appreciate Foster’s making room on their pages for Dan’s side of that debate and hope it is a trend that will continue on other topics and issues of importance to Granite Staters.]

Original post

The following is a letter from Dan Davis of Kensington to Foster’s Daily Democrat, in defense of Free Staters and the Free State project. According to Dan and NH Seacoast Liberty (where I picked this letter up at Dan’s request), Foster’s has refused to publish it despite publishing editorials critical of the movement.

We think Foster’s can do whatever the hell it wants including being like most other print news outlets that use editorials and letters to the editor to advance their left leaning preferences in ways they might try to hide in their news and other reporting. But in doing so they should expect to be called out for any obvious biased, one-sided, or misleading reporting, especially when they do it in their letters section.

Mr. Davis has done exactly that.

As a lifelong NH resident, I am disappointed with recent Foster’s editorials which incorrectly demonize the Free State Project. The paper continually mischaracterizes the FSP as a monolithic force, whose members are conspiring to “take over NH.”

Media Fact ‘Checkers’

September 26, 2018September 27, 2012 Steve MacDonald

H/T To Patriot Post (patriotpost.us)

NH AG to Challenge Judge Lewis Decision On Domicile

September 26, 2018September 27, 2012 Steve MacDonald

I confess I am surprised. The New Hampshire Attorney General will appeal the decision earlier this week, that would have suspended the new voter registration requirements for Domicile to vote in New Hampshire.

One quick note: The articel suggests that the ruling had no affect on the Voter ID law, but I would take issue with that. On paper the ID law is not affected, but if domicile does not matter, then Voter ID does not do everything it is intended to do. The point of Voter ID is to ensure that the person voting is the person they claim to be; a legal, eligible voter, and state resident of the precinct in which they are voting. If it makes no difference where you are from, then all the ID law does is affirm that the out of state voter stealing New Hampshire votes is who they say they are. I have called it a blow to Voter ID law because I believe it is. And I’m not alone.

To quote Secretary of State Bill Gardner, who apparently supports the Domicile law as passed…

“You can be a resident of many places but with domicile, you are establishing one unique place as your home to the exclusion of all others,” Gardner said. “If you establish domicile here, it means something, it means you have certain rights and responsibilities.”

Classroom Political Bias in Merrimack New Hampshire

September 26, 2018September 18, 2012 Steve MacDonald

It’s not the first time that reports have reached my ears of obvious political bias in the classrooms of the Merrimack School System. Tales of Middle School English teachers using their classrooms to promote the “science” of global warming we’re not uncommon, and while annoying not prevalent enough to demand action. The most recent circumstance … Read more

Concord Monitor Takes a Stand – When It’s A Republican

September 26, 2018May 20, 2012 Steve MacDonald

We’ve been reporting the theft of services by an SEIU Union Chapter VP and NH DES employee Richard de Seve for months as we struggle with the Department of Environmental Services and the State’s IT department, and their resistance to part with data, in response to our Right to Know Requests about state employees using … Read more

BLESS those Concord truth-tellers! Media stupidity/bias in NH on display!

September 26, 2018March 11, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Here's where to get the truth about happenings in New Hampshire's state government

New Hampshire Liberal Media Bias in Action

(We conservatives and libertarians have long known that the “lamestream media” has a statist, leftward bent. Reasons? Collective “groupthink,” a need to please-and-entertain, government-dependent (and therefore Democrat-oriented) urban readerships, journalism schools peddling and enforcing statist propaganda…they all share blame for the lies. And it always seems to appear most obviously where they claim “neutrality”. Ohhhh yeah….like CNN, MSNBC, the New York Times, the Washington Post. “Neutral.” Filled with lies, of course. And it happens right here in New Hampshire, where you’d they know better (our population is far more politically astute than most, and thus it’s harder to get by with “story-telling” masquerading as fact). Two articles from two newspapers today illustrate the problem….)

Concord Monitor’s Editorial Shell Games

September 26, 2018May 3, 2011 Rick Olson

“For a moment, at least, a nation united” the headline informs in the Concord Monitor. The monitor editorial continues on reflecting on the losses born out of 9/11, on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq and how our lives have changed since, all of which is very stoic and reflective. But leave it to those … Read more

Houghton Hears A Who

September 26, 2018September 13, 2010 Steve MacDonald

I’m reading Kimberly Houghton’s front page press on Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s remarks at the Nashua Steak Out and it’s missing something. It is missing dimension. It’s missing well, some facts.

Houghton seems to be obsessed with the term illegal immigrants, inserting it in reference to some of the things the County Sheriff noted as unconventional, when in fact he was referring to the general population of his jail, not just the illegal population.

Arpaio explained that they switched to pink underwear becasue nobody steals it. With the white underwear, when you let them out, you’d find them wearing three or four pair at a time–stealing the taxpayers money. No one steals the pink underwear. But Houghton writes it as if only the illegals are involved, and is he actually taking away their underwear altogether? We have no way to know.

Arpaio said illegal immigrants must be punished by taking away privileges such as white underwear, coffee and R-rated movies. Acknowledging his title as “America’s toughest sheriff,” Arpaio said he is fair.

He is more fair than she is, but you are left with her (or her editors) "interesting" perspective unless you were there and most of the UL’s readers were not.

Behind The Curtain

September 26, 2018July 20, 2010 Steve MacDonald

No, we are not surprised to hear that a cabal of media elites (defenders of the ruling class) has been working to co-opt the message and suppress public discourse they do not approve of. From The Daily Caller Watching this all at home were members of Journolist, a listserv comprised of several hundred liberal … Read more

Carol Is Still Batting .980

September 26, 2018July 2, 2010 Steve MacDonald

Carol “98%” Shea Porter surprised several people when she offered to co-sponsor HR 1207, the Audit the Fed Resolution. The bill, sponsored by Republican Ron Paul would require an audit of the not so independent “independent” central bank.

The hobgoblins who run the Fed were not interested in an audit for obvious reasons. As the manipulators of monetary policy they were and are responsible for trying to manage the boom bust cycle or more appropriately (and more likely) causing it. But they were still part of the government, so for Carol to step up and make even a token gesture was unexpected.

Or was it?

The Bikini Burqa Bloviators

September 26, 2018June 26, 2010 Steve MacDonald

Democrats think that a bikini hula-hoop contest as part of a political fundraiser is insulting and demeaning to women. This after a private fundraiser being held for the Stephen campaign announced the addition–which the Stephen campaign refused to support, and which resulted in them refusing any money raised whether the bikinis were there or not. … Read more