Gavin Newsom’s Mark of the Beast

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark…
Revelation 13:16-17

Tried buying food or getting your “retail therapy” out of the way lately? Tried it without a mask?

We were warned

Its ironic that the very same churches (the Dispensational ones) that were warning us about the end of the Age, Jesus was coming back any minute so be ready, and beware the “Mark of the Beast;” the very same ones that claimed they were warning us about a time when unless you were willing to accept the Mark—which also meant you were automatically going to Hell, not passing Go, and not collecting $200; thanks Hal Lindsey—are amongst the churches that shutdown when told to do so. Like all the others, they obeyed blindly and threw-in with all the rest.

A time of persecution which they were warning us about for decades is upon us, and they all ignored their own warnings and threw in with the government. They complied without so much as a whimper when told to shutdown because they were nonessential. According to their interpretation of the above passage, other groups that didn’t heed Dispensationalism and rejected Lindsey’s warnings were expected to be duped but these guys kept saying they knew better. Per Dispensationalism, martyrdom was better than receiving the Mark; at least until their 501 (c)(3) status was on the line. On this dry run for the Apocalypse, these guys folded like a bunch of cheap suits. Talk about epic failure. Apparently, 501 (c)(3) trumps Scripture every time.

If your church closed who’d notice?

There is a cause and effect relationship to closing churches and the rioting, burning neighborhoods, toppling statues, and despair of citizens on both coasts.

Since the 1980’s I have defined revival—which all evangelical churches claim they want—as: “when the church is culturally relevant.” The opposite is “if they put a padlock on your church’s door, would anybody notice?

Well I guess we have our answer now.

Hey church, the government declared you irrelevant and nonessential, locked the doors, and nobody noticed. What does that say about your ministry? Oh, and you were ok with it too. Shame, Shame, Shame.

In my recent travels, I did meet one pastor in Idaho that refused to close his doors, the only one in his State by the way, and he was willing to go to jail to defend the right of his folks to worship. He said the police showed-up, he stated his case and the police not only left that day but left him alone, period. Too bad he’s the exception and not the rule. The fact that he lives in an open carry state—a behavior which he participates in every day—probably helped too.

Universal compliance without enforcement

Now in California and other places where Democrats reign unchallenged, you cannot buy or sell unless you bear the mark of the State. While the directive says there are exceptions for medical and a few other reasons, the practical effect is that no business establishment is willing to acknowledge that any exceptions or personal liberty exists. They are too afraid of prosecution by the State. Besides the lady at the salsa bar yesterday that was denied entry, there is a media account of the police being called to a Wal-Mart because a guy couldn’t get his four-year-old to wear said mask.

The children were reportedly not wearing masks and the three refused to leave. That’s when police were called to escort them out of the store.

VIDEO: Family Kicked Out Of Turlock Walmart For Not Wearing Masks

Thankfully, some localities and their police forces have said they will not ticket or arrest anyone for violating the mask order but this seems to be the exception as only areas with Republican officeholders are taking such positions; albeit generously wrapped in lots of weasel words.

Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones released a statement Friday encouraging the public to wear masks but will have his deputies focus on education instead of enforcement.

No mask, no problem? Here’s why police across the region are not enforcing the mask mandate

Local officials across California balk at Newsom face mask order, say they won’t enforce it.

State sells oppression as only way to happiness

Meanwhile, the government is trying a “full court press” media campaign to pursue doubters to comply.

Arnold Schwarzenegger and three other former California governors joined Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday in a video campaign promoting the use of face coverings to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Wilson, Davis, Schwarzenegger And Brown Join Gov. Newsom To Urge Use Of Masks

Meanwhile in America…

Folks I’ve been on vacation for the last three weeks, two of which were spent in the United States. (For purposes of this post: Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.) This last week back in California has been a train wreck.

In the United States, I didn’t encounter anyone wearing a mask except occasionally as part of their working with the public. I saw no people voluntarily wearing a mask until a week into our trip when we got to Missoula, Montana. There we saw a few hippy-type folks muzzled-up. Missoula is only one of four counties in Montana that went for Hillary in 2016. My conclusion is that only Liberals–who are frightened to death or of death—wore masks just because. These guys are genuinely scared but everyone else was behaving like regular people. Oh, Missoula is known as Berkeley at 3,000 feet.

Gavin is Coming for you Barbara

In contrast, the despair and oppression hanging over California is palpable. People here think the current situation is “normal” or all that there. Such a pessimistic view is B.S.

Folks there is no metric, measure, trigger, or whatever you want to call it that will cause the mask requirement in California to be rescinded. It is here to stay until the Governor decides that we don’t need it. Newsom has just over two years remaining in his first term so don’t expect things to change anytime soon.

In case you didn’t hear, Emperor Newsom now has the total authority to decide which counties are not in compliance with his unilateral edicts. Thanks to our one party rule in this state, he can withhold state money from them whenever he feels the urge. Yep, its in the freshly signed budget.

Under Budget Deal, Gov. Newsom Has Power To Pull Funding From Counties That Disregard COVID-19 Rules.

But Newsom warned that counties that don’t comply with their virus containment plans will pay the price.

“I just did a budget deal with the California legislature,” Newsom said. “Two and a half billion dollars is conditioned on counties meeting their criteria under the emergency declaration related to COVID-19.”

Newsom added, “If they decide even though the numbers are going up ‘we’ve got this, we’re going to dismiss these new rules and regulations,’ We’re going to attach some considerations and consequences to that. There’s simply two and a half billion dollars in that budget that simply will not flow to those counties that do that.”

Newsom to counties: Contain the virus or lose funding

Other thoughts unmasked

Oh, thanks to the mask mandate, the wife and I have retained the services of a realtor and are actively looking to get out of California. We’ve had enough of the nonsense. Thankfully, California’s litigious Attorney General keeps a list of recommended states conservatives should consider moving to because California officials are not allowed to travel there.

I think it should be up to individuals whether they wish to participate in wearing a mask. Liberty used to be the American way.

Oh, and as reported here while I was on vacation, protestors involved in Some Black Lives Matter are immune from Covid-19. Here’s the scientific proof that we’re Really Right.

No evidence that Black Lives Matter protests have led to a spike in coronavirus cases, research says.

Gorditos: No Mas

Did I do it again or did I do it again????? I reviewed this overpriced restaurant giving it a 1.7 out of 5. Everything was all kinds of bad here, from the tables and chairs still stacked up, to the absence of a menu, to food quality. The phony looking hanging sign inside displaying their name didn’t exactly inspire confidence.

Well I went by the joint a week ago, and it was dark inside, at 12:30 mind you, heart of lunch time. Actually, there was a man working inside, he identified himself as the alarm installer. But no workers to be found, not really a surprise. I walked by the place again today, and they are permanently closed, I guess when there is a pandemic and folks aren’t allowed to leave their homes, overpriced, poor quality food is not the answer. Who knew?

Oh, check out their Yelp reviews, looks like they were universally bad.

So yes, they are permanently closed. Johnnie Does claims another scalp, (no offense to The Chief is intended by this remark). I have done more damage to poor/bad businesses in a few short months than The Chief has ever done. And frankly he needs to change his name, it’s very offensive, maybe indigenous blogger would be a better fit?

Just remember restaurants, Johnnie Does is always lurking about. You can try to hide, but if he gains entry, he can elevate you to the next level, or he can shut you down. Side Burn BBQ and Gordito’s have been shut down by Johnnie Does.

Keep your head on a swivel.

Johnnie Does

Johnnie Does Rubio’s Concluding “it’s a Waste”

Bloggers note: Johnnie Does is apparently channeling his inner James Carville as he was so hot, he almost spontaneously combusted because of his lunch visit. Below is his account.

I visited Rubio’s on Bruceville Road on Friday 6/7 for lunch. Rubio’s is a chain, known for their fish tacos. The menu is a little pricy but that’s ok as they are known for quality. They operate as a fast-casual place, meaning you order at the counter, take a place at a table, and the food is brought to you.

I ordered a bacon and shrimp burrito. It comes with rice, beans, the aforementioned (great word by the way) shrimp and bacon as well as guacamole, which I declined. As the Blog Father can attest, I never order sour cream or guacamole as I am severely allergic. Yes, as in it could kill me; apparently, I had a health episode as a kid and have never touched it since. I even say no guacamole or sour cream even when the entrée doesn’t come with it just to make a point of my major food allergy. To continue, I placed my order and found an empty table. It was filthy, not with food remnants, but dirt and grime. Wasn’t this place closed for 11 weeks?

Continuing onward; I waited for about 20 minutes. I don’t mind waiting because I would rather that my food be fresh and made to order as opposed to a fast food, quick serve place where they have it precooked. As the lady brought the burrito out, I had a feeling something was wrong; especially when a side of guacamole in a small cup was accompanying it. She set the burrito down in front of me, to which I inquired… “is that guacamole?” pointing to the top of the burrito at a green, ¼ inch thick coating. She responded affirmative. I told her I am deathly allergic and asked for it to be left off. She said they would remake it, but only after checking my order ticket. I knew there was a problem here…. customer is allegedly always right, why the checking of the ticket?

So, the young lady promised to have it re-made After a 10-minute wait (again not a big deal), she came right back to the table… with the exact same burrito just face down. The same guacamole conveniently located now on the downside. When I pointed that out, the young lady apologized saying they would make it a third time…. funny she said third because it was never re-made.

Look, I know kitchens are reluctant to remake or scrape off, margins are thin as it is, but when a food allergy is involved… it was their error.

I declined a third attempt as I have a schedule to keep at work, one must earn a living you know. She told me it would take her 1 minute. Again, I declined. It was 1:22 and my lunch is over at 1:30. She insisted. I kept saying I have to get to work, let’s just refund the transaction, I never blamed her. She said she didn’t want me to leave without food, it’s a nice gesture but it was too late. I told her I had to go. She said, let me write your name down and come back later to a free entrée…. keep in mind I already paid for one that was never made correctly. I told her I would not likely be back for dinner, to which she offered just come to the counter your name will be written down whenever you want, like some sort of will call. When I declined, (let’s face it, Johnnie used to be a common name) I don’t want some other jamoke to grab a free entrée because they are a namesake.

This is when it got odd, they would not refund me my money. I used a valid credit card; it should have been easy. She kept insisting on this will call thing, which I was not interested in. I was told no refunds, but I could charge back my credit purchase. Funny, this is likely due to places of business being “protected” when charges are under $25. This means the business does not lose the revenue, yet I am made full.

Rubio’s, I will never visit your weak-kneed establishment again. Twitter followers pin this and retweet as I am in disbelief. They may have messed up on my order, but to re-serve it face down knowing someone could potentially get very sick and/or die from a food allergy is a wild move. To add, seems like your location has several cockroaches there, and I am not talking about just your kitchen, I’m talking about in your bathrooms.

Gross.

Avoid.

Johnnie Does

Riots Aint Quiet

Thankfully, Covid-19 has decided to stand with Black Lives Matterexcept unborn blacks or black Republicans—and agreed to allow congregating in Democrat led political districts without worry of spreading the Corona virus. This truce has allowed protestors to pillage and burn black and minority owned businesses.

It seems that black folks are angry about having to social distance, shelter in place, and watch too much cable news or maybe they were looking for an excuse to let off some steam against the oppression of Democrats where they live and help themselves to a new television or pair of Nike sneakers in the process. Anyway, if Dems rule a particular city or state, the police have been told to stand-down and watch as their local elected officials stand (or kneel) with law breakers that are protesting the actions of a few rouge officers in another state run by Democrats.

This whole thing is a farce. It is a George Soros type operation that is paid for and coordinated by a few troublemakers bent on stirring up the masses just before the November election. This is an independent expenditure on behalf of Joe Biden intended to get the blacks back on the Democrat reservation just in time to mobilize their votes. Sorry folks but I have zero sympathy for these protestors.

I’m sorry that the arrest of Mr. George Floyd resulted in his death but last I checked, the police that were involved were being dealt with by local authorities and President Trump ordered the Feds to investigate as well.

Any way you want to calculate it, most blacks are victimized by other blacks. Whether abortion, robberies, homicides, assaults, etc. most blacks are doing it to their own community. Some white cops get filmed on a bystander’s cell phone restraining Mr. Floyd and suddenly we have nationwide protests. This is not a proportional response.

As stated many times before on this blog, if black lives really mattered, these protestors would be at Planned Parenthood every day protesting until the abortion facilities built to eliminate them—minorities and poor people—were all closed. The truth is that BLM is about creating social and societal unrest. It is just a Marxist tool to control people and further a political agenda.

Folks, when you close churches nationwide, don’t feign surprise when evil breaks out. Actions have consequences. I find it funny that the ones supporting the closure of churches for the last three months are now pretending surprise when evil is freely practiced on the streets. People in these communities are sheltering in place now for safety. They have traded fear of one disease (a virus) for fear of another (sin).

If you break the law, you should fear the consequences whether you wear a badge or not. If you smash windows and steal stuff, or beat up strangers, you have become the very thing that you claimed you were protesting. The Liberal response is to remove the consequences and not enforce the law. The solution is the opposite; namely, enforce that law regardless of race, occupation, or social status.

Folks, I’m all for review and reform of our laws—especially in the areas of immigration and criminal justice—but relaxing the consequences for either the cops or the protestors is not the proper framework to begin such an examination.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and likewise, fear of the Lord is the beginning of justice too.

Tom Cruz, War of the Worlds, and Covid-19

Yep, I just put several pieces of pop culture together in a way that makes sense to our current situation. Here’s the explanation and it’s so simple that even many low information folks—oh, I mean those that binge watch 24/7 cable news or listen to streaming music all day—can understand.

Please note that there are spoilers here for War of the Worlds so if you don’t know the ending, turn back now.

Whether in its more recent rendition with a voiceover from Morgan Freeman or the original radio play by H.G. Wells, its not the men but the microbes that defeat the alien invaders. Freeman’s voiceover can be summed up as this, men have inhabited this planet for a long time and as germs have mutated, our bodies have responded by strengthening our immune systems to cope with the hostile environment encountered in world that we live in.

Please note that I’m not really a Keeper Of Odd Knowledge (K.O.O.K.) but I just watched the show over the weekend for the first time, from start to finish. When I read an article linked by Joe Miller today, the connection was obvious.

The article is an explanation of herd immunity which scientists know exists in the current Covid-19 pandemic but heretofore lacked a good way of understanding. Many, including me, sensed there was herd immunity at work but where we erred was in thinking that you had to be infected and recover from Covid-19 to be immune. Well guess what? That assumption is wrong.

On the one hand, this virus seems to be extremely contagious and transmissible. On the other hand, it appears to have been around for a while, possibly in December, and didn’t kill too many people until super-spreading events in March.

On the one hand, the virus seems to kill a lot of vulnerable people for several weeks. But then it peaks after six weeks or so and nearly disappears a month or so later. We’ve seen the same curve in every country, almost as if it hits a brick wall and then runs out of steam.

But why is that the case? Most antibody tests show no more than 10%-15% of the population contain antibodies in a given area – 25% in the most extreme case of New York City. Why would the virus not continue cutting through the population like butter, as it did the first number of people who contracted the virus? The theory of a more ubiquitous cross-immunity from other coronaviruses would answer those questions and explain that invisible brick wall.

A theory of partial immunity, at least from helper T cells (if not killer T cells) could also explain why, on the one hand, once the virus gets into prisons, most test positive for it, but on the other hand, nearly all of them seem asymptomatic. The outcome of prisons as a fully confined and defined population could be a harbinger of what would theoretically happen if the entire world were exposed to the virus after it had already targeted the most vulnerable population. It’s possible that upwards of 95% would be asymptomatic, just like we are seeing in prisons.

Perhaps, it could also explain why there appears to be a massive gap in severity of the virus in Asia vs. Western countries. Asian countries are regularly exposed to coronaviruses.

BOMBSHELL STUDY: Could Half the Uninfected Population Already Be Partially Immune?

In almost every context we’ve seen the epidemic grow, turn around and die away — almost like clockwork. Different countries have had different lockdown policies, and yet what we’ve observed is almost a uniform pattern of behavior which is highly consistent with the SIR model. To me that suggests that much of the driving force here was due to the build-up of immunity.”

Folks, as stated in this space previously, we should fear neither men nor microbes but only Almighty God. I’m not worried about Covid-19. The time and place of my death was appointed before the world began; all I can do is keep pressing on until my time is up. I suggest that you do likewise.

Why is Victoria’s Secret Struggling?

By Chief

Victoria’s Secret is a women’s fashion company that has faced struggling sales and financial issues over the last year and a half, in fact they were even sold to a private equity company, only to have the buyer pull out of the deal. I am going to examine just how these problems began arising and what is being done to fix them.

Investing in a company like Victoria’s Secret should be a no-brainer, right? Most of their products are made using unpaid/sparsely paid jail labor and sold for a very large markup. Typically, if you sell a few items you have paid for the cost of the entire box and everything after that is profit. Items sold at VS are sold at very high margins, with the only expenses being rent and employee salaries. Add to that the long line of supermodels and stars who wear/market their products. Their annual fashion show gets millions upon millions of viewers. So why did the stock crater, profitability dry out, and cause 55% of VS to be sold to a private buyer?

The answer is complex and frankly I am not sure the company can dig itself out of the hole they created themselves.

Pink has VS seeing red

It seems like it started in 2002 when they opened VS Pink stores, aimed at the 15-22-year-old demographic. It used to be a brand for mature, older women who would buy a special something for themselves, and for their partner. It was sexy, unique, and basically you wore it in the bedroom for a little bit, or when you were feeling yourself (feeling good, head out of the gutter) or as a surprise for your man. This opening of Pink caused a sea change in the company’s philosophy and likely caused outright shock for anyone who has a daughter, fathers especially. Pink caters directly too college/high school students, but it’s not just the pajama’s, thong underwear, etc. that was shocking, it was the horrendously cheap quality. A hallmark of VS used to be an unmatched quality product.

In addition to poor-to-average quality products, Pink delineated the brand, in another way. VS used to be iconic with models/the bedroom, they began selling workout attire, perfume, swimwear, and regular clothing, similar to Abercrombie and Fitch. The phrase “I went to VS”, went from wow, am I in for a fun night, to……well she probably got some cheap underwear or a bath bomb. If you’re a company selling sex/smut/etc. you want to keep that identity, they threw it away.

Another thing, Victoria’s Secret didn’t keep up with changing times. This resulted in erosion of the brand’s perception. Back then if a girl was not skinny or didn’t have the right body type, her friends didn’t care, they bought the product anyway. Now girls tend to protest companies that do not foster inclusion. VS went all in on girls who were a size 0, basically very skinny, and had the perfect body type, think very toned and the perfect breasts and butt. This works for a while, but stories began to trickle out of VS associates telling certain girls “we don’t sell anything for your body type here” and not stocking sizes over a medium will get you killed in the social media environment we live in today. Think herd mentality (or Yelp), if you get treated wrong at a store, then you tell your friends. Often this results in a high likely hood they will boycott as well.

I spoke to several women about this issue ranging in ages from 18-55 and they all were very down on VS, I have included responses below.

Their products are cheaply made crap, the underwear rips after being washed about 4 times.

I wanted to get sized for a bra, they only had a guy working on the sales floor, he was more than eager to help…creepy!

VS isn’t for me, they market to supermodels…I like my body, VS wants me to hate it.

VS is for college kids, I am not longer in college, I found a new brand.

I’m not a skinny girl, VS has nothing for me…too bad because bigger women have sex too ya know.

I used to shop their religiously, then I realized at 30 I was double the age of the average VS Pink customer…. I found a new brand.

Not every girl looks like Kate Upton or Megan Fox. It creates a dangerous stereotype of perfect women, also it creates a culture of men not wanting to be seen with/date bigger women.

(Editor’s Note: who is Kate Upton? This is the first I’ve heard mentioned about Megan Fox since she quit the Transformers franchise over a decade ago. Guess Chief likes his squaws on the young side.)

Megan Fox Transformers (2007)

Note: every single woman I spoke with was done with the company and would not come back. When I asked their preferred brand, the answers ran the gamut; Aerie, was the number one choice. Most folks these days are intensely brand loyal and will not return if they have a bad experience or interaction.

The stock of VS parent L Brands has gone from about $100 to about $12 over the span of 18 months, most of this pre-pandemic. VS was actually sold (55%) of it to a private equity group Sycamore Partner, they are famous for buying distressed clothing assets and trying to turn them around. Sycamore backed out of the deal about a month ago. When private equity (think Mitt Romney, Warren Buffett, Carl Icahn etc.) want no part of you, it’s a sinking ship. VS is and continues to be a major drag on L Brands earnings. (L Brands also owns high growth brand Bath and Body Works). Problem is they have no buyer so they must do something to re-image the brand. I am not sure what the future will look like, but they announced they were closing 25% of their stores today. Ask how that strategy worked for Circuit City, Sear’s, Pier One, and a host of others. I think VS is circling the drain, problem is management likely doesn’t see the dark hole, they think there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

The Chief

PS I spoke to a former girlfriend who works for law firm Lowe, Ballem & Lynch, a direct competitor of Dewey, Screwem & Howe, the latter being a friend of the blog. Anyhow the ex had this to say about VS. I used to shop there, I won’t anymore, the Pink store is 90% high school and college age girls, and I am not one anymore. As far as the flagship VS stores, they carry nice stuff but it’s very overpriced, and all the photos are of perfect bodied models. They also manipulate their sizing, I wear a size small at most places, at VS the medium was too small and sometimes the large felt just right? It made me feel very self-conscious and questioned my motives of being a customer of theirs. I shop at Aerie (American Eagle Brand) and they cater to all women, we all have unique bodies and I just feel more comfortable. It doesn’t help CEO of L-Brands Les Wexler (the founder by the way) was linked to Jeffrey Epstein and his underage girls…. I have a hard time supporting someone like that.

Blogger note: For the record Wexler did step aside.

Covid-19 Grab-bag of Stories

Photo-05/16/2020 residents of Virginia flocking to beaches in violation of their governor’s order that they can only fish or jog.

I wish to tweak a saying quoted often here so it reads, “Lie, damn lies, computer models, and statistics.” This applies not just to Covid-19 but to every other catastrophe of the imagination including population explosion, climate change—formerly global cooling and/or warming depending on which decade and paperback prophet of doom is quoted—rising sea levels, rainforest depletion, fossil fuel depletion, viability of socialism, and just about everything else that leftists have popularized over the years.

High on my list of news recently is the fact that Gavin Newsom is being dragged kicking and screaming, like a spoiled little girl throwing a tantrum, into allowing California into opening despite his wishes. As we have been demanding, the Orange Man has taken up our cause stating that churches are essential. Last week the Justice Department told California to reopen churches and so did the CDC. Look we know the CDC didn’t want it to happen but since Trump is their boss and churches elsewhere are opening anyway, Trump got the CDC to move churches toward the front of the line and issue guidelines for doing so. Frankly, the CDC guidelines sound way too much like those from Tennessee but at least Trump got the ball rolling.

Further irony can be found that my church declined to participate in the statewide protest to hold services on May 31st—not wishing to disobey the civil magistrate—but Newsom will likely be forced to open all churches by then anyway. Look for mandatory and reduced attendance and social distancing to be required when California rolls-out the rules tomorrow. Basically, we will get services without worship and people will be allowed to congregate. Many of the masses will claim victory but without the sacraments is it truly worship—I think not. You will find that we are still a long way from singing, greeting, weddings, funerals, and “regular” resumption of church life.

Folks, I can think of nothing worse in the current climate than dying right now. Denying a Christian burial in such times as these is a curse. That most churches never protested such is a sad commentary on the weakness of the faith in our country. Ditto for weddings.

Anyway, here are news stories that you may have missed.

Sacramento Bee attacks Newsom.

“If we move through Phase Two, that’s roughly 70 percent of the economy. That may sound significant, but modifications are real restrictions in terms of commerce, and the biggest restriction of course is customer confidence,” Newsom said at a press conference last week.

He expanded on that claim during Tuesday’s press conference, when he said that 21 sectors of the state’s economy were now able to operate.

“You go industry by industry, sectors that never closed, construction and the like. And each one of those categories, you add them all up, you’re now north of 70 percent,” Newsom said.

Fact check: Is Gavin Newsom right that 70 percent of California’s economy is reopening?

But is it fair to say 70 percent of the state’s $3 trillion-a-year economy is reopening now? Sung Won Sohn, a business economist at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, questioned Newsom’s analysis.

Take the restaurant industry, for example. Sohn said the restaurants where he lives are open for takeout, but their business probably is off 90 percent. The same with car dealers, another major segment of the economy.

“I don’t know what he’s talking about,” said Thornberg, founder of Beacon Economics and a business forecaster at UC Riverside.

Thornberg said that there is no way to fact-check the statement because it was an empty one.

However, there was good news because of the shelter at home order as deaths in other areas are down significantly.

The pandemic is having a positive impact on California’s highways. The California Highway Patrol says the number of crashes and DUIs have dropped significantly in the past two months.

The agency says the number of crashes is down 75% from March 19 through April 30, compared to the same time last year. There was also an 88% drop in the number of deaths on the road and a 62% decrease in the number of crash-related injuries.

CHP Traffic Data Shows Crashes Are Down 75%, DUI Arrests Down 42% Since March

Oh, Newsom is not the only governor leading from behind. In Virginia, the governor there has declared that since so many disobeyed him last weekend, he will bless their behavior, specifically at the beach.

Under Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s eased coronavirus restrictions in effect Friday, the state’s oceanfront was relegated to fishing and exercise only, and social distancing was required.

But that didn’t keep crowds away from Virginia Beach over the weekend as temperatures reached the high 70s. Sunbathers took to the sand, bikers peddled along the bustling boardwalk and newly reopened gift shops were crowded with customers buying hermit crabs and snow cones, The Virginian-Pilot reported.

Northam ditches coronavirus restrictions for Virginia Beach after weekend sees crowds defy his orders

Following the weekend crowds, Northam announced during a press conference Monday that Virginia Beach would be allowed to reopen May 22 at the start of Memorial Day weekend, which normally kicks off the coast’s busy summer tourism season.

OK, here’s a sampling of stories that focus on the lies of Covid-19 in terms of deaths and other myths.

Will Newsom Really Cut State Worker Salaries by 10 Percent?

Scott Adams of Dilbert fame wrote many years ago that, “There is a right way, a wrong way, and the weasel way.” Often the way of the politician and the weasel are indistinguishable.

Newsom Moves the Goal Posts Again

Recently, our embattled monarch, Gavin Newsom, has been moving the goalposts of reopening California businesses in reaction to all the pushback that he has received. Barack Obama called this style of leadership, “Leading from behind.” Newsom is being forced to let California resume operations not because he wants to but because the revenue is falling frighteningly short of projections and the natives are getting restless. (Oh, and for the first time in 22 years, Republicans just picked up a House seat in last week’s special election.)

Today Newsom redefined the requirements for opening California counties for business. Please note the science has not changed since last week, only the politics.

The changes eliminate requirements that a county have zero deaths and no more than one case per 10,000 residents over 14 days.

Gov. Newsom: Sports, Haircuts Could Be Coming Back Sooner As California Relaxes Some Reopening Criteria

Johnnie Does nailed this very point on our blog a few days ago.

Newsom estimated 53 of 58 counties could meet the new criteria.

Twenty-four counties in mostly rural Northern California had already been cleared to move faster under the old standards.

Folks, in part, you have Elon Musk to thank for this change not you local county supervisor. Elon has embarrassed the crap of out of the unelected bureaucrats and made sure the whole nation knew what horse’s asses the Alameda County Health guy is and by extension, Newsom as well.

Alameda County is allowing Tesla to restart, while the vast majority of other businesses in the county must remain closed.

Coronavirus Crisis: Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Alameda County reach deal for Fremont plant reopening

Oh, lastly, we get this little nugget about Sacramento County.

“In all the hospitals in the county, there are a total of 15 people with COVID, so that’s an example of how the epidemiological data has gone down,”
–Dr. Peter Beilenson, Director of Sacramento County’s Department of Health Services

Sacramento County Meets New Criteria To Relax Stay-At-Home Order, Will Submit To State For Approval

OK, so now even the densest amongst us learn we’ve been sheltering in place for two months for no reason; 15 people hospitalized in the whole county. WTF?

State Worker Pay-cut

As a “good” Democrat, Newsom is promising that State workers will feel the pain of California’s economic shortfall as well but will they really? Will Newsom really cut State worker wages by ten percent?

The better question, is ten percent of what? What state workers make now or what they will make in the new fiscal year starting July first? Or something else?

First remember that a government budget cut has nothing to do with current expenditures. A cut is measured in terms of what fiscal planners wanted to spend next year versus what they actually got. For example if the boat patrol agency wanted to increase spending by ten percent and the legislature and governor gave then six percent, in budget language, the boat patrol agency had a four percent budget cut even though in real dollars they were given six percent more than last year.

Given the above, exactly what budget cut is the governor talking about? The only thing you know right off is that it wouldn’t really be as simple as paying workers 90 percent of what they got this year. Thus, we need to invoke the weasel way of budgeting. Only by invoking weasel logic can you divine the likely way Newsom gets to claim his ten percent salary cut without actually having to cut ten percent.

Given the above, how does he get to ten percent?

Here’s my best guess based on what I know combined with some early trial balloons for accounting gimmicks. Look for the plan to include these four points:

The following is based on SEIU contracts which cover over 90,000 State employees; other unions will vary.

First, the promised pay raise of 2.5 percent is gone.

Also, the promised healthcare stipend of $260 per month may go away also. It was set to start in the new fiscal year beginning July 1.

The CERBT may be suspended to backfill a cut in pay so workers won’t feel the pain as much. (Remember, weasel way.)

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration could offer some relief from potential pay cuts for state workers by temporarily eliminating one of the paycheck deductions workers see each month, according to an Association of California State Supervisors web post.

Newsom this week proposed reducing state workers’ pay by 10 percent on Thursday in a budget that aims to reckon with a projected $54 billion deficit.

To soften blow of state worker pay cuts, California might suspend $2,600 health deductions

Most state employees pay roughly $2,600 per year toward the benefit, although the amount varies by salary and bargaining unit, according to a State Controller’s Office report. Public safety workers, who typically retire earlier than other employees, pay much more.

The deduction shows up as “CERBT” on state worker pay checks, which stands for California Employers’ Retiree Benefit Trust Fund.

Back in 2016, the CERBT fund was implemented as a way to deal with unfunded liabilities related to healthcare of retirees.

The retiree health care contributions are intended to pay down an unfunded $74 billion liability that the state faces.

SEIU Local 1000 contract deal includes delayed raise, $2,500 signing bonus

The CERBT fund was capped at 3.5 percent of employee wages per the contract between SEIU and the State.

SEIU Contract

Other unions may have different arrangements with the State.

Oh, and look for a hiring freeze or similar gimmick.

Lastly, buried somewhere in the agreement will be something that backfills the money at some point in the future, either in the form of employee retirement being calculated on the basis of no cuts or something similar. Somehow, I think Gavin will make the unions whole at some point in the future or else…

Covid-19 Myths v Reality

Like most things in life, what you think you know about Covid-19 is probably a lie…if all you know about it is from cable news sources.

Very few places have a problem with this virus

  • Did you know that 30 counties in the United States account for 55 percent of all Covid-19 deaths and 1,996 counties had zero or one death?
  • 10 percent of counties account for 95 percent of all deaths.
  • Half of all counties in the US have zero deaths.

As of May 11, for example, 10 states accounted for almost 70% of all U.S. cases and nearly 75% of all deaths (but only 52% of the population).

Together, New York and New Jersey alone account for 35% of all cases and 44% of total COVID-19 deaths, though only 9% of the U.S. population.
These state-level figures do not, however, adequately describe the concentrated nature of the spread of COVID-19.

The 30 counties with the most COVID-19 cases, for example, account for 48% of all the cases in the U.S. and 55% of all deaths, three to four times greater than their 15% share of the U.S. population.

That is, just 1% of all counties, representing 15% of the U.S. population, are responsible for almost half of the country’s COVID-19 cases and more than half of the deaths.

Of those 30 counties, 24 are in the Northeast corridor between Philadelphia and Boston, the passageway served by a commuter railway system that runs through Manhattan.

Overall, only about 10% of all counties contain 95% of all the COVID-19 deaths, even though they account for 64% of the population.

Just as important, 50% of all counties (with 10% of the U.S. population) have zero COVID-19 deaths as of May 11. In fact, 63% of all counties (with 15% of the population) have no more than one COVID-19 death each.

1% of Counties Home to Half of COVID-19 Cases, Over Half of Deaths

One Size Fits All Is Stupid

Why is our approach to the virus the same for all people, when the virus itself is so overwhelmingly biased toward a defined group of people?

Understanding that this virus only kills the elderly and sick in statistically significant numbers does not diminish their lives or even the seriousness of the virus. This understanding magnifies the need for a strategy that lets out healthier and younger people keeping the country running while shielding the vulnerable population until the virus burns out.

According to Minnesota’s health department, 99.24% of all statewide COVID-19 deaths have occurred either in long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes, or among people with significant underlying health conditions, with the overwhelming majority (78%) of decedents in the former category. That would mean just three individuals who died of COVID-19 in Minnesota were outside a nursing home and had no underlying condition. That is a 0.05% fatality rate just out of the known cases, and we’ve seen from serology tests that the true number of cases is exponentially greater than the number who tested positive. This fact should change our entire approach to the virus.

Horowitz: The young and the healthy are not dying from COVID-19. Here’s why that’s vitally important

Lies, Damn Lies, and Fake Statistics

I have spectacular news to share with you. Amid all the death, doom, and gloom resulting from the coronavirus, we can now celebrate the fact that the virus has cured all other forms of death. Nobody dies from other causes of death anymore. At least that is what we are seeing in some states that are so eager to use the virus as a pretext to crush our liberties.

Horowitz: This is the most blatant example of inflated COVID-19 death stats yet

Approximately 2.8 million people die every year, which means roughly 470,000 will die over a 2-month period. Given that it’s very likely 5%-10% of the country have the virus, but very few die from it as a percentage of those infected – nearly zero among younger people – how many of those typical deaths are now being coded as COVID? This is particularly concerning when we see states report a few random deaths among younger people. While anomalous death from the coronavirus is certainly possible in younger people, this raises serious questions about the accuracy of any existing recorded deaths for those particularly young.

We saw this play out in April when Ventura County, California, coded the death of a 37-year-old who overdosed on fentanyl as a COVID-19 death.

Nearly 70,000 are dying every year from drug overdoses, particularly young adults. How many of these respiratory deaths will easily be coded as the coronavirus so long as they test positive?

There was much commotion when Georgia officials announced the death of a 22-year-old in Columbus, but the local coroner absolutely disputes that assertion. The 22-year-old new mother tragically died four days after giving birth, but Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan believes she died from a complication stemming from the C-section. “The E.M.S. personnel and myself pretty much came to the same conclusion,” Bryan said. “I personally don’t believe she died from the virus.”

Nowhere is this more of a concern than in nursing homes, where we are seeing more than 50% of the recorded deaths and where many of them are being added retroactively. Naturally, roughly 25% of the annual 2.8 million national fatalities occur in senior care facilities, and many have already tested positive for the virus, but didn’t necessarily die from it. But per CDC guidance, it must be counted as a COVID-19 death.

Face Masks are Bad for You

While this is a no brainer for me, most folks think masks are good. The reality is that masks are a placebo. For those in Rio Linda, a placebo is more for the psychological benefit to the patient than for any physiological effect. Wearing a mask is just as effective at preventing Covid-19 as wearing a breast cancer ribbon is at preventing you from getting this type of cancer. As we documented here previously, even the renowned Dr. Fauci said as much a few months ago.

With the advent of the so-called COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen a number of medical practices that have little or no scientific support as regards reducing the spread of this infection. One of these measures is the wearing of facial masks, either a surgical-type mask, bandana or N95 respirator mask.

Neurosurgeon: Face Masks Pose Serious Risks to the Healthy

Now that we have established that there is no scientific evidence necessitating the wearing of a face mask for prevention, are there dangers to wearing a face mask, especially for long periods? Several studies have indeed found significant problems with wearing such a mask. This can vary from headaches, to increased airway resistance, carbon dioxide accumulation, to hypoxia, all the way to serious life-threatening complications.

There is a difference between the N95 respirator mask and the surgical mask (cloth or paper mask) in terms of side effects. The N95 mask, which filters out 95% of particles with a median diameter >0.3 µm2, because it impairs respiratory exchange (breathing) to a greater degree than a soft mask, and is more often associated with headaches. In one such study, researchers surveyed 212 healthcare workers (47 males and 165 females) asking about presence of headaches with N95 mask use, duration of the headaches, type of headaches and if the person had preexisting headaches.

They found that about a third of the workers developed headaches with use of the mask, most had preexisting headaches that were worsened by the mask wearing, and 60% required pain medications for relief. As to the cause of the headaches, while straps and pressure from the mask could be causative, the bulk of the evidence points toward hypoxia and/or hypercapnia as the cause. That is, a reduction in blood oxygenation (hypoxia) or an elevation in blood C02 (hypercapnia). It is known that the N95 mask, if worn for hours, can reduce blood oxygenation as much as 20%, which can lead to a loss of consciousness…

CDC Has Two Sets of Books on Covid-19

The CDC’s count of Covid-19 deaths is half of the John Hopkins count for the same period; of course since “if it bleeds, it leads” the media will use the high score.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday updated their coronavirus tracking numbers, leading to confusion on social media about two websites within the organization that show vastly different death tolls.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) website for the coronavirus lists the total deaths from COVID-19 – the disease caused by the virus – as 37,308 in the United States. That’s a much lower number than what has been reported in the media or by other coronavirus trackers. For example, the Johns Hopkins University coronavirus tracker, lists the number of COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. at 65,645.

Two CDC Websites Give Vastly Different Coronavirus Death Tolls

Conclusion

Most of what you’ve been told about Covid-19 is untrue or severely distorted. Most of the information is geared to get you to trade your freedom for security. This is always a losing proposition for the masses. Covid-19 is mostly lies, damn lies, and bogus statistics. Covid-19 is no longer a public health issue, just another political tool that folks can use to transform the United States into a country where the masses serve the elites. Our founders called this tyranny, but you think its security.

Troll on the News

By Troll

Quarantine cannot and will not stop me from trolling…well maybe when the police forcibly remove my camp from under a local overpass, but anyways here we go!!!!!!

Christy Smith concedes special election to Mike Garcia:

Instead of preparing for a new job in congress, Democratic Assemblymember Christy Smith is going back to work in Sacramento. Her political opponent, former Navy pilot Mike Garcia, is poised to be the first Republican to flip a Democratic House seat in California since 1998.

Democrat Christy Smith Concedes, Republican Mike Garcia Captures Historic Win For GOP In Katie Hill’s Former District
Garcia unmasked as winner

There you have it folks two good old American names facing off for a congressional seat. I for one was shocked when I found Smith listed her occupation as “Assemblyman” and Garcia as Navy Fighter Pilot…I figured with names like those, they worked at a local diner. Congrats to Garcia for winning, but I’m very disappointed in Smith for conceding early. Reports said a local ACE Hardware got an online pick up order from “LA DEM PARTY” for a chisel drill bit, to be used to ensure Smith’s victory. Problem for the Democrat Party is they hired Jorge “The Drunken Jedi” Riley to pick the drill bit up, and sadly he saw an open watering hole on his trek and as is his custom, his car stopped automatically. Riley never made it to ACE and as a result, the following day Smith cancelled, notice the state and national party are still holding out hope Riley finds the ACE as they have not given up yet.

Lamar Alexander (R-TN) doesn’t want the Senate to re-convene due to Corona concerns: Good lord this clown was Governor when The Troll was birthed in Knoxville, TN, the best state in America. By the way, little trivia…. Did you know Tennessee’s state flag, the 3 stars….what do they represent? Tennessee was the third state to join the Confederacy.

Tennessee flag shaped like the state

But now back to Alexander……. You dumb dumb, you really need to take a dirt nap. So you force folks who work at Wally World, grocery stores, pharmacies, slaughter houses, and auto makers forced to make ventilators…yet this jackhole doesn’t want to report to work because he is scared of the ‘rona? Folks are barely clinging to what possessions they own, let alone guns and religion, trying to make ends meet, and you refuse to take a pay cut or even show up to work! Yeah, this clown is getting a full salary while sheltering in place instead of doing his job. He’s just more swamp trash that needs to be taken to the local landfill. Other folks are scared of this disease too you low life, seriously you can’t retire soon enough for my liking. During a cursory look at your work history, you love suppin’ at the public trough…congrats; while us working folks pay your salary, you refuse to come out of your ivory tower. I hate to break it to you, but under the Constitution, a document I doubt you have ever read, says your job is essential. You are a check on the President and Judiciary you moron. Classless scum you are.

Deandre Baker and Quinton Dunbar (NFL) arrested in Florida for armed robbery: Ummm, well I have to blame Trump for this, it has to be his fault right? Seriously like shouldn’t the NFL be practicing right now? Dunbar is charged with 4 counts of various armed robbery offenses, Baker with 8, both have refused to turn themselves in; however, both have hired attorneys who claim their client is innocent.

Two NFL players — including a 2019 1st round draft pick — have been accused of armed robbery and arrest warrants have been issued, TMZ Sports has learned.

Law enforcement confirms NY Giants cornerback Deandre Baker (the 30th overall pick in 2019) is facing 4 charges of armed robbery and 4 charges of aggravated assault with a firearm.

Seattle Seahawks corner Quinton Dunbar is facing 4 counts of armed robbery.

NFL PLAYERS ACCUSED OF ARMED ROBBERY… Arrest Warrants Issued
Felonies by the dozen

Well my god it’s a miracle…if neither of them did the deed, then who did? I cannot believe these two young men find themselves in such a tough spot; even with a police report saying “they dun’ it.” Their attorneys find themselves in the unique position of defending clients who claim they didn’t do it and actually have enough money to pay them…at least for now. Baker was a first round pick in 2019, so he is likely to forfeit about 30 million, since NFL contracts are not guaranteed, but he is still dumb as hell. Like I said, I blame all of this on the lockdown, and because both are black, it must be Trump’s fault. Don’t believe me? Apparently, many a governor is studying why this disease affects blacks more than whites…your honor I submit this as exhibit 1000 to impeach Trump. Between this, Russia, Ukraine, the sexual assaults, and Covid-19 deaths, something has to be done, just ignore the party of compassion when they encourage confiscating semi-automatic weapons and yet continually threaten to shoot the Orange Man.

We will be back soon for more trolling, got to move camp as the local PD has just shown up. But I will leave you with a new flame for Troll. Yes, Aniston is too old, and at 50 the baby making days are over, as far as Hope Hicks goes she has not responded to my hourly Twitter direct messages, so I present to you, Paige Spiranac, a great women’s golfer who let’s just say I would love to lay up on her hills.

The Troll