Sociologist writing for TIME Magazine caricatures First Baptist Church, Dallas, Texas, but doesn't interview a single actual member of the church

 Attending the event in person allowed me to appreciate how central Trump remains to white evangelicalism. ...

Standing in line 2.5 hours before the event, I chatted with a group of five elderly women who all came together. All were committed churchgoers in the Dallas area, but none were members at First Baptist. ...

There was Bill, a repairman who had taken public transportation to get to First Baptist. He was not a member either, but had always been a huge fan of Trump and was eager to see him in person. ...

And there was Carlos. Like Bill, Carlos was visiting First Baptist from elsewhere in the city along with a friend. ...

Trump’s appeal Sunday morning extends far beyond the First Baptist faithful. Evangelical visitors from around the city had come to cheer for their President. They were convinced he’d been treated unfairly. And they pined to see him back in office. ...

For the vast majority of white evangelicals in the U.S., like those visiting First Baptist Dallas on Sunday, Trump is still their warrior. ... over two-thirds of white evangelicals felt the 2020 election had been stolen from Trump.

More.

This guy should get out more and document the adulation directed at Democrats visiting America's black churches and insinuate in a column about how 92% of the nation's blacks voted for Joe Biden in 2020 because they're duped by religion or something.

Christmas cheer is being able to regift the bad thing the Easter bunny left you

 

Biden promised to shut down the virus, now says there's no federal solution

 Which is even more odd since he has mandated vaccines for the employees of large companies.

The guy is obviously too old upstairs for the job.

Story.

"There is no federal solution. This gets solved at the state level," Biden responded, before mentioning another Republican governor.

 

John Tamny remains as confused as a thinker and as obtuse as a writer as he has ever been

John Tamny has made some progress, however.

He now admits that some of his views are "fringe".

Which is amusing, since we've known that since Russell Kirk demonstrated long ago how the libertarians have always been "chirping sectarians".

A case in point of the continuing confusion:

Tamny expresses fawning admiration for George Will's latest collection of his columns, which opens asserting the priority of the study of history.

But Tamny later avers without the slightest awareness of self-contradiction that "The talented people, the unequal people, have a tendency to run from the present and past."

Nostalgia is "dangerous".

Do make up your mind for once, John.

The seemingly interminable review is here.

Tennessee is the latest state to report a massive backlog of COVID-19 deaths, over 2,000 yesterday, badly skewing the curve

 Tennessee joins Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas in the last three months making big backfills, distorting the graphs we try to make.

Because our better selves are optimists, we're musing today that COVID-19 will soon be a thing of the past, along with Donald Trump, his warp speed vaccines, and that clown Joe Biden

Christmas wishes do come true. You only have to believe.

US Army's Walter Reed Army Institute of Research near Silver Spring, MD, announces single shot Spike Ferritin Nanoparticle COVID-19 vaccine

 Phase 1 human trials have been completed on non-vaccinated, never infected individuals, with Phases 2 and 3 forthcoming on vaccinated or previously sick people. 

From the story:

Within weeks, scientists at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research expect to announce that they have developed a vaccine that is effective against COVID-19 and all its variants, even Omicron, as well as previous SARS-origin viruses that have killed millions of people worldwide. 

Merry Christmas.

FDA finally grants emergency use authorization to Pfizer's Paxlovid, a protease inhibitor which may dramatically reduce hospitalizations for people diagnosed with COVID-19

 From the story:

The U.S. has purchased 10 million courses of Pfizer’s treatment, Paxlovid, in a $5 billion deal. President Joe Biden said in November that his administration is working to ensure that the treatments are free and accessible. Biden said last month that delivery would start by the New Year and continue through 2022.  

Merry Christmas.

Another woke general crawls out from under his retirement rock, wants FOX News banned from all US military bases

 Paul D. Eaton, here.

Hillary supporter, critic of Bush 43's Iraq War.

Michael Anton doesn't have a clue about the immense value of the periphery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Taiwan is "peripheral" to our interests, Michael Anton says over and over again, here.

Well then, so is Hawaii.

Keep thinking like that and eventually Catalina Island becomes peripheral, too.

If you want to legitimize China's nine-dash line, something he never mentions, giving up Taiwan is the fastest way to do it. 

There is MUCH more at stake than Taiwan's relative freedom and independence. All of southeast Asia is at risk if China retakes Taiwan.

The answer isn't to accept the fact, as Anton does, that our Navy is rotten to the core and unable to defend Taiwan. The answer is to reform the Navy before it's too late.

If the Chicoms kill all our woke Navy in a battle over Taiwan, that wouldn't be the start we want, but it would be a start to the reform we most need.

CEO of Pfizer partner BioNTech says the boostered "are likely to transmit" COVID-19

 "We must be aware that even triple-vaccinated are likely to transmit the disease…It is obvious we are far from 95 per cent effectiveness that we obtained against the initial virus," Ugur Sahin told the French daily Le Monde in an interview published on Monday.

More.

Out: pandemic transmission from breakthrough cases . . . In: pandemic transmission from booster breakthrough cases

 

BREAKING: FLOOR TRADER WEARS MASK TO PREVENT INFECTION FROM COMPUTER VIRUS

 

LOL government lapdog AXIOS, where the Omicron variant is so grave the variant page hasn't been updated IN TWELVE DAYS

 Will must be on vacation.

So far in 26% fully-vaccinated South Africa, Omicron is turning out to be a giant nothing burger

 The seven day average of daily new deaths was 20 on Nov 24th when Omicron was first identified.

As of Dec 19th, it's 30.

Big whoop.

No supply chain issues observed this morning at Sam's Club

 The place was brimming with everything I usually buy and need.

LOL Trump brags about the same vaccines which are failing spectacularly in Canada in Dallas, gets unenthusiastic response

A good sign.

Mediaite LOVES Trump now!

... kudos to the former president for not pussy-footing around in answering, and receiving the smattering of boos with some grace and laughter.

LOL Ontario, Canada, where breakthrough cases outnumber un-vaccinated cases by 3.7 to 1: Maybe now you understand why the US CDC decided in May not to count breakthroughs

Amazing candor from The Great White North.

Climate update for KGRR: November 2021

 Climate Update for KGRR: November 2021

Max T 65, Mean 66 since 1892

Min T 18, Mean 17

Avg T 38.5, Mean 39.1

Rain 2.22, Mean 2.83

Snow 9.7, Mean 6.3

HDD 789, Mean 771

CDD 0, Mean 0

Boringly normal.

Your US Navy's idea of the crack team needed for the next Hunt For The Red October