Changed

Is "A Christmas Carol" by Dickens one of your Christmas traditions? Watching the animated Disney version starring Jim Carrey is one of my favorites.

There are a number of different productions. But the foundational text is the same, a story written by Charles Dickens and published in 1843. 

Set in London during the Victorian age, the cranky main character is the self-centered Scrooge. He's persuaded late in life (by ghosts) to give up his selfishness for a joyful life of loving others. 

To get more out of it than ever before, you might want to take the short course Hillsdale College makes available:

Foreign aid 2

 (cont'd from yesterday's post)

Reports are coming that Millennium Challenge Corporation, an agency of the U.S. government, doesn't entirely "respect" the values of native peoples as much as they claim. 

MCC agreed last September to give Sierra Leone (image) $480 million so long as they comply with "rigorous standards for good governance, fighting corruption and respecting democratic rights." All these seem consistent with the agency's mission to reduce poverty.

 

But it's "common knowledge among nongovernmental organizations" in the country that MCC is now quietly threatening to withhold the money unless Sierra Leone . . loosens its abortion policy. What does abortion have to do with economic growth?

They deny it, of course, because that would go against its mission and stated "core values." But it would be consistent with the politics of the current administration. And it would be neo-colonialism.

from Life News

Foreign aid 1

A lot of nations in the world don't have the blessings we take for granted ("Blind to it") in America. Just one of them is the strength of our economy and its abundance of wealth. We'd like to see the whole world more prosperous, with every material need satisfied. 

So that's how "foreign aid" is justified and how Americans generally see it. 

Maybe you wonder how it works. Some of it goes through Millennium Challenge Corporation, which the U.S. congress initiated in 2004. Here's why it exists: "MCC’s mission is to reduce poverty through economic growth."

Their core values sound truly great: creativity, teamwork, high standards, measurement of outcomes, accountability, respect, and more. 

How much does this agency give away? Here's a list of 52 nations it has helped through what they call "compacts," five-year agreements about what the poorer nation will receive from us if they agree to certain requirements.

Some examples: Uganda $45 million, Peru $36 million, Nepal $500 million, Mongolia $350 million, Indonesia $600 million, Niger $443 million. 

(cont'd tomorrow)

Self-censors

A survey was taken of over six thousand faculty across 55 colleges and universities across the U.S. to see how they feel about expressing themselves in that environment.

You probably know that the vast majority of university professors are left-wing and donate to those political causes, so they must feel pretty secure to speak freely, right? Of course, non-leftist faculty may be afraid to speak their minds, but that's a very small number. 

So the number of those who fear speaking up must be small, right? On the contrary, many are afraid they will pay a price if they say what they believe (image).

Key findings in this survey by Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE): 

35% of faculty say they recently toned down their writing for fear of controversy 

27% of faculty feel unable to speak freely for fear of how students, administrators, or other faculty would respond

 23% of faculty worry about losing their jobs because someone misunderstands something they have said or done

NPR funding $

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

If National Public Radio is more concerned with its elitist goals than with reporting true information, is it right to fund it with taxpayer money? Do we want our own money going there when it's biased in favor of only about half the country?

NPR defended itself when it claimed that just a mere 1% of its funding comes from government. But that's inaccurate when you look at the money trail. This article illuminates the complexity of their government funding:

"NPR may receive little direct federal funding, but a good deal of its budget comprises federal funds that flow to it indirectly by federal law." If you're interested in the complicated details, go here to see how that works.

Personally, I don't want my taxes going to NPR. There's an inherent problem when my taxes go to a news source committed to a point of view I don't support.

from The Hill

What's important?

National Public Radio (NPR) proudly announced its new CEO last January. Katherine Maher is an experienced executive who has "tackled the issues around reliable and accessible information for all."

"Reliable" ? Well, not exactly . . not if you really need to know the reality about a situation. True information is not her goal in leading this news-gathering organization. She says:

"I think our reverence for the truth might have become a bit of a distraction that is preventing us from finding consensus and getting things done."

So her goal for NPR is to get everybody to agree, presumably with their point of view. She probably has nothing against true information . . but only if it helps them get more important things done.

Americans don't trust news media, as Jeff Bezos said.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Robot dog

Boston Dynamics says that they: "Discover practical robotics solutions designed to tackle today's and tomorrow's toughest automation challenges"

They've created a robot dog, about 70 pounds and 3' high, named "Spot."

DEI effect 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Yesterday's video made the point that construction projects are not the government's purview ("the range or limit of authority, competence"). Its DEI policies impede accomplishment, but that's just a small part of the damage DEI does in government or any organization.

What's the effect of the movement on people? Instead of preventing racial bias against people of color (POC), its supposed goal, it raises suspicion and interpersonal conflict. By that thinking, every person of the white race is guilty of racism and every POC is a victim.

It should be obvious that thinking that way is unhealthy for everyone. Now there's even a university study to show it. Its conclusion: "while purporting to combat bias, some anti-oppressive DEI narratives can engender a hostile attribution bias and heighten racial suspicion, prejudicial attitudes, authoritarian policing . . "

If you worry that DEI is too entrenched in the federal government to root out, here is a plan to do just that, proposed to the incoming administration by a credible source.

from Stream

DEI effect

When the federal government wanted to put a huge amount of money into high-speed internet access for all Americans, they first chose satellite-based Starlink to do it, but then as you know withdrew that decision. They chose instead to lay fiber optic cable.

But three years later, this video says "not a single project is underway." In spite of all that money pushed toward this goal, no one has been connected yet.

 

Why? "Government officials are obsessed with giving broadband to the right people. Any company that wants funds to build broadband has to hire certain people." Companies that could do the work are so bound with restrictions that they walk away from the opportunity.

Who are the "right people?" DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) policies will define that, and they're all over the government. Allowing government to pick the "right" people, "certain" people, is inherently dangerous. We shouldn't be doing that. And it's just one reason why the government is bad at building things (the point of the video).

(cont'd tomorrow)

Notre Dame

A magnificent icon of medieval Christianity which was consecrated in Paris over 800 years ago, Notre Dame Cathedral went up in flames in April of 2019. Two thirds of the roof burned, including its central wooden spire.

Today it is restored. Heads of state and celebrities came from all around the world to its grand re-opening last Saturday, and masses resumed on Sunday.

When I saw it in October of 2018, it was dark inside. Grime from the centuries and soot from the fire have been cleaned up. Now it seems filled with light, a return to its original character according to the French president. The man he appointed in charge of the project (costing about $737 million) expects it to last another 800 years. 

Craftsmen were found to restore arches and gargoyles. One of the carpenters said “I felt so much recognition to those who came before us, the architects and carpenters of the past. We rebuilt it, but they imagined it.”

Trans suit

In October of 2023, a surgeon decided not to publish the results of her own study on puberty blockers. The problem? It didn't support her gender transition therapies. The study found that blockers did not improve the mental health of children with gender distress.

Author J.K. Rowling, publicly opposed to transgenderism, tweeted about this surgeon's irrational decision to withhold the study's findings:

"We must not publish a study that says we're harming children because people who say we're harming children will use the study as evidence that we're harming children, which might make it difficult for us to continue harming children."

As it turns out, this surgeon is now being sued by a former patient of hers. The patient, a girl, was given puberty blockers at the age of 12, then received testosterone at the age of 13 and a double mastectomy at the age of 14. At the current age of 20, she now wants to de-transition.

Maybe this madness is starting to end.

Free debate 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

C.S. Lewis was a proponent of civil liberty, for much the same reason that I am: who is to say that one person (or some group) will make better decisions for your life than you? Who is so superior that we should trust them to run our lives for us?

He's talking about oppressive government, socialism/dictatorship - power seized by "a small, highly disciplined group of people  . . I do not think any group good enough to have such power. They are men of like passions with ourselves."

image of King James VI of Scotland

"For every Government consists of mere men."  Think of some past European monarchs who claimed a "divine right" to their throne, their rule over other men and women. No one thinks today that they were superior beings. They were at least as flawed as me and you.

The traditional American way is the way of free and civil debate, grounded in personal virtue and a conscience trained by churches that teach the Bible. Note to my global readers - as you may know, this is less and less a description of today's America.

Free debate?

While my laptop is freed of a virus, enjoy this re-post from 2018:

 "Free debate" will not continue to be the American way if Christianity loses much more of its influence and moral authority in American society. 

There's a movement in the U.S. to replace the traditional American way with more coercive government. Voluntary virtue and faith are widely derided today. As they lose public support, something else will have to suppress bad behavior for society's sake - and that something else will be the government. 

China's government sets itself in that role of moral authority. As the enemy of religion, it destroys churches, captures believers, forcibly changes speech - until the religion submits itself to the rule of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party). 

At the very beginning of America, John Adams said: "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people." This founding father of America knew that it would work only for a people whose Christian faith was their primary influence.

Bonhoeffer

If you would like to see a movie in theaters this week, I recommend to you the true story of a Christian hero living during World War II. 

Made by Hollywood professionals, it's not directly based on Erik Metaxas' well-known biography of the man, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. But he's promoting the movie because:

"This is the kind of film you hope someone will make, but they never do. It’s a miracle that it exists. So the fact that it’s not based on my book makes no difference to me. It’s a brilliant film about Bonhoeffer, and I’m simply amazed it exists and want everyone to see it."

New media 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Like the Washington Post says, "It's a grim time to be a member of the news media." Read that as, "old media." TV and newspapers may say that they investigate, that they do fact-checking, but most of us have found their claims of truthful neutrality unconvincing.

Yes, most of us. According to this recent Gallup Poll, 69% of Americans have little or no trust in the old mass media.

"Old media" tells us that social media is unreliable and X (Twitter) is failing, but as of last August X users had grown 22% over the previous year. In a Pew Research report, 54% of U.S. adults get news from social media often or sometimes (image).

Elon Musk says, "You are the new media."

New media

Legacy media is in decline (see Jeff Bezos' opinion about his Washington Post). Since the election on November 5, both MSNBC and CNN have lost about half their audience. Newspapers in general speak to only half of the audience they had back in 2000.

Newsweek says "traditional media's institutional collapse" came from "a growing sense among Americans that the media cannot be trusted to tell them the news they believe is fair," plus a failing business model.

It's not just one side of the political landscape which doesn't trust big media. "It actually transcends party," says one pollster. "Young people in particular are very distrusting of the media."

So where do people, especially young people, go for their news? Podcasts are popular. Joe Rogan's conversation with the president-elect had 40 million views. And what does Joe say? "X is the most reliable and most popular news source in the world."

 

from Newsweek 

(cont'd tomorrow) 

Season 5

It's been fun--mostly--so far to watch seasons 1-4 of The Chosen. But it wasn't all miracles and good times when Jesus Christ walked the earth, and everyone knows it's going to get intense.

Season 5 will focus on Holy Week, the events that led up to the crucifixion of Jesus by the Roman Empire. Just a few days after crowds welcomed Him to Jerusalem (Palm Sunday), Jewish elite cooperated with Rome to have Him killed. And of course there's the infamous betrayal.

Episodes will open in theaters next March, with free streaming to follow.

A one-minute teaser was released this week.

 

from USA Today

Thanksgiving

Just in case your teachers never told you how Thanksgiving started in America, this re-post is a short summary of the story. Share it with someone who never heard it:

President Abraham Lincoln started a regular, recurrent, scheduled Thanksgiving holiday in America. It formalized the American tradition of observing a day to thank God for blessings, started in the earliest days.

Colonists sailed on "Mayflower" to the New World ("Plimoth") in December (December!) of 1620, and about half of them died that first winter (the rest were very, very uncomfortable).  

But the next summer was productive, and the remaining 40 pilgrims plus 90 Indians enjoyed a three-day autumn feast together.  Here's one of the first-person accounts of that feast, taken from a letter: 

"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. . . [A]mongst our recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us . . their greatest king Massasoit, with some 90 men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted . . . [B]y the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty."  (from The Book of Thanksgiving by Paul Dickson)

If you have all the food and water and warmth you need today (some really don't), and more besides, be thankful!

Dinner cost 2024

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

That big 2022 spike in the cost of Thanksgiving dinner (yesterday's post) didn't continue, thankfully. Last year the cost declined a bit, and this year the cost declined a bit more. The Farm Bureau makes the point, however, that we're still paying more than we ever paid any time before 2022 (image).

 

How these average prices impact us has been figured out in a practical way by economist Gale Pooley. He compares average prices to average wages paid to workers at the time.

 

It's a good measure of what these prices actually mean to people at the time of the survey. He calls this measure of what it costs the "time price," meaning the amount of time an average worker would have to work to purchase this dinner.

Average wage in 1986 was $8.96 per hour, so a wage earner then paid for their 1986 dinner with about 3.2 hours of work. Today in 2024 the average wage is $30.48 per hour. So an average wage earner pays for that dinner today with about 1.9 hours of work.

In general terms, Americans are finding it more affordable to pay for that dinner than we did thirty-eight years ago. How did that happen? Innovation and improvement in agriculture, transport, manufacturing, all the businesses that touch our dinner in some way.

from Doomslayer

Dinner cost

American Farm Bureau surveys the cost of a typical Thanksgiving dinner prepared for ten guests every year. (Go here for the list of items; somehow they neglected green bean casserole.) Here is the history of that cost (image) since 2005:

These prices are not adjusted for inflation, so it's just the raw dollars' cost from each year's survey. You can see the inflation we all know has been happening since the pandemic started in 2020. Prices were almost flat from 2011 til 2020, a long time. The highest costs ever in the survey occurred two years ago.

But the survey was started long before 2005. When it began back in 1986, the raw cost of the dinner was $28.74. Since then the cost has risen to $58.08, a rise of 102% in 38 years.

What is the real impact on us? In tomorrow's post we'll see the way an economist has figured that out.

from Doomslayer

(cont'd tomorrow)

No turkey czar 2

Remember 2020? We were deep into the covid pandemic. Thanksgiving was different because we couldn't get together.

This re-post from four years ago is a good reminder that we easily obtain our holiday dinner turkey due to the "invisible hand" of the U.S. free market, not due to a bureaucratic Turkey Czar.

My niece invited the extended family to her apartment for Thanksgiving this year. She created a  Facebook event called "A Very 2020 Thanksgiving." Then she cancelled it because our governor's covid restrictions forbid multiple household gatherings. Yes, a very 2020 Thanksgiving.

My household had no turkey. But if you did, I think I know how you got it. You didn't order it special from a local shop or farm. You put it in your cart on a normal trip to the grocery store. You knew there would be plenty of reasonably priced turkeys for all who wanted one.

Thousands of people made that happen:

"Poultry farmers, of course, but also the feed distributors, and the truckers who brought it to the farm, not to mention the architect who designed the hatchery, the workmen who built it, and the technicians who keep it running. The bird had to be slaughtered and defeathered and inspected and transported and unloaded and wrapped and priced and displayed. The people who accomplished those tasks were supported in turn by armies of other people accomplishing other tasks — from refining the gasoline that fueled the trucks to manufacturing the plastic in which the meat was packaged."

There is no turkey czar with a master plan, issuing orders, forcing these workers to cooperate. But they do cooperate. They made thousands of smart decisions independently. Why? To create an income and take care of their loved ones. 

"Free human beings freely interact, and the result is an array of goods and services more immense than the human mind can comprehend. No dictator, no bureaucracy, no supercomputer plans it in advance." 

Adam Smith called it the "invisible hand" of the free marketplace.

from the Boston Globe

Old media 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Bezos wants to face reality, as he says, to "swallow" what he knows is a "bitter pill" to journalists, the fact that "Most people believe the media is biased." The only surprise to most of us in America is that it took so long for big corporate media to figure that out.

While their endorsements used to carry weight with American voters, now, he says, they carry no weight. Worst of all, they "create a perception of bias" (a true perception in my humble opinion.) "The Washington Post and the New York Times win prizes, but increasingly we talk only to a certain elite."

Who does he think did influence voters in our election on November 5? 

"Many people are turning to off-the-cuff podcasts, inaccurate social media posts and other unverified news sources, which can quickly spread misinformation and deepen divisions."

"Misinformation" is what the left wing party calls news/opinion that doesn't come from them. The elite still are super confident that they are superior and deserve unquestioned status. 

from Washington Post

Old media

Legacy media has been around for many years and includes some well-known names such as Washington Post and New York Times along with television broadcast news programs. Owned by huge corporations and billionaires, they carry huge political influence . . or did.

Jeff Bezos (photo), founder of Amazon, bought the Washington Post for $250 million in 2013. This year he shocked its fans when he announced that the Post would not endorse a political candidate for president of the U.S., an end to its long tradition. 

 

Editors, writers and readers were angry that the newspaper would not take the side of the left wing party, as in the past. Two hundred thousand subscribers cancelled.

Why did he do it? The Post ran his explanation: "The Hard Truth: Americans Don't Trust the News Media."

In recent surveys, media and journalists are nearly at the bottom of the list of professions Americans trust, he says. "But in this year’s Gallup poll, we have managed to fall below Congress. Our profession is now the least trusted of all. Something we are doing is clearly not working."

(cont'd tomorrow)

"Just politics!"

Some people claimed during the campaign that the president-elect is "literally Hitler." The current president said that the man is a fascist and a threat to democracy. But last week he gave him happy congratulations and a "Welcome back" to the White House.

A radio host feels confused. "What happened to fascist?" Did he believe those accusations?

Back in 2006, journalist Leslie Stahl reminded the incoming Speaker of the House that she had said terrible things about the opposing party's candidates. She asked, "How will you be able to work with him after saying those things??"

Said the Speaker, "Oh that's just politics. I'm sure he understands."

Alarming, emotional, exaggerated attacks are not to be taken seriously. Even the politician who says these things often does not actually believe them, but just says them for effect. Any connection to genuine truth could be a coincidence.

As usual, you'll have to think for yourself.

Boeing's DEI died

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Boeing's new CEO knew he would have to solve problems when he took the job last August. 

What is the basic goal of the company? Right in the middle of their big troubles (yesterday's post), he focuses them on asking the most important question: "Does this help us build airplanes?" Because that is what they have to do really well.

So, the CEO cancelled their DEI program. According to one insider, "everyone who has had to build things knows that what really drives value is integrity, hard work, and technical expertise." DEI was a distraction, a dilution of focus. It divided their employees--it did not unify them.

"The best culture directly promotes values and results, not identity groups . . . Hiring on merit while truly caring for people, regardless of arbitrary one-dimensional identity- or affinity-group labels, is the way to go. After all, people do not want to be beneficiaries of bias any more than they want to be victims of it."

from City Journal

Boeing problems

Aerospace company Boeing is the largest in that sector, with a workforce of over 170,000. Their new CEO as of August has multiple problems to solve, including a huge backlog of of $500 billion. A two-month strike by machinists just ended this month.

Quality and safety failures have damaged its hundred-year reputation. Their spacecraft Starliner carried astronauts to the ISS for the first time last June, but NASA judged it unsafe to return those astronauts, so it came back to Earth empty.

Last January a panel broke away from a Boeing airplane at 16,000 feet shortly after the Alaska Airlines commercial flight took off. No one was seriously hurt, though the plane (photo) also lost a cushion from the seat immediately next to the blown-out section of fuselage😮

(cont'd tomorrow)

NYC hopes

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

New York's mayor has hope for positive change because of last week's election, like most American voters do. 

When he reached out to the current administration for help, he found only deaf ears--no help came for his city's immigration crisis. But now he's optimistic that his concerns will be heard and some of his ideas put into effect:

“I am willing to sit down with this administration like I tried to sit down with the previous administration in my 10 trips to Washington to say: we have a problem that is overrunning our cities.” 

 

Not in favor of mass deportation, he does hope for 1) federal money to help finance NYC's  support of immigrants, 2)  more secure border policies including background checks, and 3) sending some immigrants to less populated locations.

“When I talked about public safety in 2021, it was ignored. When I talked about migrants and asylum seekers in 2023, it was ignored.” He doesn't like being ignored. 

A similar story applies to the Teamsters Union who for many years were loyal supporters of the now-left-wing party. They feel ignored. But the union president found an open, responsive welcome when he wished to speak to the political party convention of our president-elect.

from Politico

NYC pays 2

 (cont'd from yesterday's post)

Migrants being housed in New York City hotels (photo) may receive pre-paid credit cards to buy food and baby supplies, a pilot program begun last March funded by the city through a controversial no-bid contract with a finance company which profits in some way.

 

They say that it saves the city millions of dollars, compared to their former policy of giving boxed meals (which received some complaints about the quality). The cards must be re-loaded every week at a value of about $350, for a monthly dole of about $1400. Recipients promise to use the cards only for authorized purchases.

Mayor Adams is ending the program at this year's end, going back to boxed meals. About $3.4 million was the total cost of this program to the city.

from CBS

NYC pays 1

New York City supports foreign-born immigrants who came across U.S. borders without legal authority. For their convenience, "benefits for undocumented immigrants" are published here.

Over 70,000 immigrants have been temporarily put up in Manhattan at the former Roosevelt Hotel, now called "the New York City arrival center," by the city since 2021. "They have no idea what's going on, they were just given a bus ticket or plane ticket."

It's unsustainable for the city, according to the Migrant Affairs Commissioner in this local video report. Mayor Eric Adams has been to Washington D.C. ten times to plead for help in managing what he deems a crisis. He says they are out of room, out of money.

 

(cont'd tomorrow)

Criminals here

Venezuela (image) has released convicted criminals to work with intelligence officers to infiltrate the U.S. Their mission is to track down former officials or military from their own country and "neutralize" them. 

 

Why would their government order such a thing? They know that at least some of these individuals may soon come before American border control and could be in a position to reveal secrets. "[T]he Maduro regime may fear some Venezuelans may trade information to avoid removal" from the U.S.

How does Venezuela know this? Because of our election results. Our incoming president taking office in January promises to deport illegal immigrants.

The story is based on a leaked U.S. Customs and Border Control field report. Over half a million Venezuelan immigrants have come across our borders since early 2020.

from Breitbart