Category: Uncategorized

If Al Queda or any other militant group were responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans, then I would anticipate a harsh reaction from the U.S. citizenry. A precisely placed drone attack here and another there could go a long way to convincing those killers of U.S. citizens to reformulate their plan. 

So far, so good!

Now consider another entity that is responsible for killing tens of thousands of Americans this year. Here I am referring to the Mexican drug cartels who are responsible for the fentanyl coming across our southern border, and it is this fentanyl which is killing Americans. No one is disputing this! … and no one is doing anything about this. Here I am specifically referring to our “ denying there is a problem” President and Vice President.

To me, the Mexican drug cartels are truly terrorists in a real sense that they are wantonly responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans … and since they are terrorists, they should be eliminated. 

Eliminated … How?

Follow my thinking here: After one week of warning the cartels, if fentanyl continues to be smuggled across our southern border, then using drones, bomb the crap out of them! Kill as many Mexican drug cartel members as is possible, and continue to do so until the fentanyl smuggling stops.

Will this be considered cruel and unusual punishment by those that know best? … Undoubtedly, but someone has to step up and do something!

However, on  Oct. 7, President Joe Biden signed a long-awaited policy tightening the rules for the CIA and Pentagon to conduct drone strikes outside of traditional war zones. The new policy requires the president’s approval before a lethal drone strike or commando raid can be launched.

The policy focuses on countries that are not conventional war zones, including Somalia, Yemen and Afghanistan, but where the United States continues to carry out counterterrorism strikes. It signals that the U.S. will limit drone strikes, which have been criticized for killing civilians. However, it allows the president to waive certain requirements of the new policy at his discretion.

So far, no longer so good, as this puts the onus of decision making in the hands of Joe Biden, who has been notoriously wrong in the past when it has come to foreign policy. Either he is unaware of the deaths due to the fentanyl being smuggled across our southern border, or he doesn’t care!

10/26/22

Just when I thought that the CDC had reached its nadir in terms of respect, the advisory board is acting in an amazingly incredulous fashion by adding a Covid vaccination to the long-standing and previously trustworthy list of vaccines for school children.

Before the Covid debacle, I had previously thought that the CDC, including its advisory board would have to be pretty smart individuals, but when the advisory board just unanimously voted to recommend that Covid-19 shots be added to the child immunization schedule, I was forced to change my way of thinking.

How many things are wrong with this bonehead decision? Where do I start?? 

First of all, a Covid-19 shot is not actually a vaccine. A “vaccine” by its traditional definition is something that is given to prevent a disease. For example, the polio vaccine is given to prevent polio … however the “Covid vaccine” does not prevent Covid. One might ask if a “so-called vaccine” for X, does not prevent X, why would the CDC Advisory Board recommend adding it to the list of recommended child immunizations? Dr. Marty Makary of John’s Hopkins noted that for schoolchildren, there’s no evidence to show a reduction in disease in that age range because of Covid shots.

Second: There are already at least eleven states with laws on the books which, in essence, prevent a “Covid vaccine” to be mandated for children. This will inevitably lead to lawsuits and stays in states which do not have such laws preventing vaccine mandates for children. At this point, the courts have put holds on all vaccine mandates, except those for health care workers, and there is every reason to believe that the same thing will happen for vaccine mandates for children.

Third: This latest unanimous dictum by the CDC Advisory panel will only hurt when it comes to the public following the present childhood immunization schedules. In other words, if this Covid shot recommendation is thought to be ludicrous, what’s to prevent John Q. Public from extrapolating to a conclusion that all of the other CDC mandates on vaccinations are likewise ludicrous? As Dr. Makary stated, 

“it threatens the credibility of MMR and polio and many of the other vaccines for which it’s taken 50 years to build public trust.”

Fourth: Those standard well-established vaccines have been shown to have a minimum of side-effects. The “Covid vaccine” has no such track record. Who knows what sort of bad things could come from the Covid shot as we get four, five, or ten years down the line? … The answer is, “Nobody knows!”

Finally, there is nothing in this CDC advisory that mentions prior Covid infections. Here at least one has to admit that at least the CDC is consistent in that none of their prior Covid recommendations have mentioned or even alluded to natural immunity from a prior Covid infection. Although certainly not impossible, it is highly unlikely that someone will get Covid more than once. Come on, CDC, get your act together!

While I do not have any young children, if I did, I would be totally against any recommendation that they receive any initial vaccine for Covid, or any further Covid boosters.

11/25/22

This morning within a space of thirty minutes I read two different articles, both of which questioned the safety of the Covid vaccines. The response from some to what I am going to say will be along the lines of … “Conspiracy theories, they’re everywhere. Just ignore them and they will go away!”

Yes, admittedly conspiracy theories are often ubiquitous, but what grabbed my attention about these two pieces was that they were from different sides of the globe, and they separately looked at two different, although potentially related, Covid vaccine issues.

First, from Epoch News out of Canada:

“An Alberta doctor is calling on the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) to look into what he says is a significant jump in doctors’ “sudden deaths” following the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines beginning in December 2020.

“I am now providing you an update with information about 80 young Canadian doctors who died suddenly or unexpectedly since the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines,” wrote Dr. William Makis, a nuclear medicine physician and a former clinical academic colleague at the Department of Radiology at the University of Alberta, in a letter to CMA on Oct. 15.

In addition, he shared his analysis of the death rate of different age groups, starting with all doctors under age 50, who he found “died at almost twice the rate in 2021 (and will be the same in 2022) compared to 2019 and 2020.”

“All doctors under age 40 died at a rate 5-fold higher in 2022 compared to 2019, or 2020 (the average for the 2019/2020 period is 1.5 deaths/year, in 2022 there were 8 deaths so far, so > 5-fold),” he said.

“All doctors under age 30 died at a rate 8-fold higher in 2022 compared to 2019, or 2020 (the average for the 2019/2020 period is 0.5 deaths/year, in 2022 there were 4 deaths so far, so 8-fold).”

Now granted, these numbers are small, I have never before heard of Dr. Makis, and I have not seen his actual data. However, what I find curious is the response of the CMA (Canadian Medical Association):

In response to Makis’s letter, the CMA told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement on Oct. 17 that the association is concerned with “misinformation and conspiracy theories” spreading online about the recent deaths of physicians across Canada.

“The CMA continues to encourage all Canadians to be up to date with all their vaccines to prevent serious health issues,” Lewis, a spokesperson for the CMA added.

The second concerning set of data is from Japan (also from Epoch News):

“Researchers in Japan analyzed deaths caused by myocarditis, a form of heart inflammation, where the myocarditis set in within 28 days of vaccination. Thirty-eight deaths fit the definition, about half of which were diagnosed by autopsy and or biopsy, with the others being determined through tools such as blood tests and electrocardiogram.

Researchers then took the vaccinated mortality rate and compared it with the death from myocarditis rate from the general population before the pandemic, in the years 2017 to 2019.

“Using the disclosed data by the Japanese government, we observed increased myocarditis mortality rate ratio in the SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated population compared with general population during three years pre-COVID-19 pandemic era, especially in young adults,” the researchers, Dr. Sintaroo Watanabe of the Japan Marine United Corporation and Dr. Rokuro Hama of the Japan Institute of Pharmacovigilance, said. SARS-CoV-2 is a name for the virus that causes COVID-19.

‘However, not only in young adults, but also in the middle aged (40s) and in the elderly and overall vaccinated, increased risk of myocarditis death is associated with vaccination.

‘Based on the results of this study, it is necessary to inform public about [sic] that the risk of serious myocarditis including death may be far more serious than the risk reported before and that it occurs not only in young persons but also in elderly,’ they said.”

I not aware of whether or not Japan has the equivalent of the CMA, but I have not seen a response to this study that implies “misinformation” or “conspiracy.” Could it be that there is no equivalent Japanese word to the English “misinformation” or “conspiracy?” … or could it be that Japan is actually interested in looking into data that does not fit a preconceived mold?

10/24/22

As is my pattern on Sunday, I pay tribute to someone who we can all look up to and admire. Javeno Mclean is such an individual.

From Epoch Bright:

Javeno Mclean, 37, who calls himself an “exercise specialist,” is the owner of J7 Community Health Center in Blackley, Manchester, England.

Born in Jamaica, Javeno used to be a professional cricket player. A few years ago, during his prime, he went to India where he had the opportunity to train the squad because their designated trainer had suffered a knee injury. It was in this role that Javeno realized he gained more satisfaction from helping others.

After a few years passed, he retired from cricket and decided that he wanted to help people get into shape.

In the early stages of his fitness career, Javeno worked for the Manchester City Council. However, he wanted to do something on his own, and thus started his gym.

“I wanted a facility that would be full of energy and have exercises that were attractive for the whole family,” he told Cambridge News. “I wanted this to be a gym where people could exercise and find something that works for them. I wanted a place where my mom or aunty or grandma could come and feel the love.”

Javeno offers his help for free, as he believes that taking payment from people who require his help the most “dilutes his intentions,” and makes his message for empowerment weaker.

“I have trained people with disabilities, with cancer, the elderly all for free for 21 years,” he said. “I’ve never taken a penny. I believe if I really want to help and change not just my community, but the world, I must do it from the purest part of my soul – and there isn’t a bank down there.”

Thus far I have not been able to find the equivalent to Javeno Mclean elsewhere although I would guess that somewhere, some such person exists.

10/23/22

This piece was published by me  on June 10, 2020. I thought that now it is  interesting because of what is occurring with the questions concerning the esteemed Dr. Fauci

10/23/22

This is an Election Year

This blog will be a keeper. One that you will want to look at a year or two from now, so bookmark it for easy reference. (Be advised that this is written with 20/20 hindsight!)

Dear President Trump:

This may be the first time that I will lead with a criticism of you. Here I am referring to your handling of the Wuhan virus epidemic in the U.S.A. I will need to preface this by saying that if this were not an election year (2020), and the Democrats were not crazy anti-Trump, perhaps rational thinking and cooperation might have prevailed. Nonetheless, as Harry Truman once said, ”The buck stops here!” . . . with you.

Your initial mistake was to apparently place all of your trust in the tea leaves of Dr. Fauci, who I am sure is a nice old guy, but who has been way off on a lot of his forecasts. From the very beginning this should have required critical input from both esteemed physicians as well as esteemed economists. Now I am sure that you did seek advice from economists, but to the best of my knowledge, you did not emphasize the economic importance of what was going to occur. . . . Big mistake, as once you put on the Fauci galoshes, there was no way to get gracefully out of them without stepping in puddles. From the beginning, I think that you put too much reliance on the medical side of the coin – the coin on which no one could predict the outcome. Was this coronavirus different from past viral illnesses. No one knew! Dr. Fauci obviously did not know!

At some point should you, President Trump, have stepped up and given Fauci the boot? I say, “Yes,” but I remember that this is an election year.

From then on the blame was spread out to many, as in governors, who have relied on the ouija boards of numerous directors of “public health” in their respective states. These various M.P.H.s either apparently did not understand or just plain ignored not only the economic consequences of their decisions, but also the social consequences of their isolation lockdown diktats (suicides, spousal abuse, child abuse, etc.)! 

Speaking of children . . . can anybody tell me why they are not back to school? Children are back to school in Denmark, Austria, Norway, Finland, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, etc, but not in the U.S. !

Should you have searched for and found someone with some clout, who would say, “the kids need to back to school?” “Yes, but I remember that this is an election year!

When the virus comes back for its encore this winter, there will be no vaccine and no semblance of any herd immunity, as it is almost impossible to get from lockdown into the herd! Hopefully Dr. Fauci will be just a distant memory, and the nation can allow the virus to run its course. No more “flattening the curve,” and most importantly, the November, 2020 election will be over, and You, Sir, can start to think for yourself.

Sincerely,

The California Contrarian

P.S. ( to President Trump):

Don’t screw it up! You should have the 2020 election in the bag, especially after this complete chaos with the riots that the various Democratic mayors and governors seemingly cannot control. Do not intervene until they come crawling, otherwise the Dems will find a way to vilify anything that you do. I would never advise you to stop tweeting, but I would suggest that you keep them toned down. At this time is no reason to further inflame the situation. Let them hang themselves.

Remember . . . this is an election year!

6/10/20

Most of us are familiar with the Fifth Amendment, but how many of us are familiar with Fourth Amendment? Back in the day the Founding Fathers were very concerned with government intrusion. Under the rule of the British king in colonial America breaking into the homes of political opponents and depriving them of their possessions was a common practice.

From Legal Information Institute:

Amendment IV

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

The Fourth Amendment is very pertinent in light of the recent DOJ’s raid on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home. Everyone with a modicum of intelligence realizes that this was a political stunt with the warrant signed by an anti-Trump judge. This raid appears to be just part of the politicalization of the DOJ and was addressed by Harmeet  Dhillon in a piece on Imprimus:

“For over 180 years after the Founding, the Supreme Court applied the Fourth Amendment protection to places and things, and this meant that dwellings were given a heightened sense of protection against government intrusion. The Supreme Court has reiterated that “the physical entry of the home is the chief evil against which the Fourth Amendment is directed.”

Hmmm! 

The other part of the Fourth Amendment has to do with the specificity of the place to be searched and the things to be seized. The FBI apparently searched everywhere including bringing along a professional safe cracker  to break into Trump’s new private safe  … it was empty! Furthermore the agents went through Melania Trump’s underwear drawers! Hmmm! Recall that the Fourth Amendment specifies places to be searched.

I think that it can be safely stated that the Mår-a-Lago raid did not comply with the spirit of the Fourth Amendment. Moreover, the issue is now whether or not Biden’s DOJ still thinks the Fourth Amendment needs to be adhered to! 

10/22/22

They’re doing it again. Perhaps better said … they are trying to do it again. Over and over and over again Democratic politicians, especially in California, do things which inevitably harm the little guy. The high gas tax in California is a prime example. Who is primarily effected by this high tax? Obviously, it is those that need to drive longer distances to get to work every day … those who by necessity are forced to live far from their place of employment because they cannot afford to live near to where they work. In other words it effects those at the lower rungs on the economic ladder the most. Does the high California gas tax effect those who drive electric cars?  … No, and which economic group can afford an EV? Nuff said.

The latest example of this is a case argued before the Supreme Court on 10/11/22. The case is National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) v. Ross, court file 21-468. Respondent Karen Ross is secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture. The NPPC, the petitioner, describes itself as an agricultural organization representing the interests of the $26 billion-per-year U.S. pork industry.

The case has to do with the legality of California Proposition 12, the Farm Animal Confinement Initiative, which was approved by state voters in 2018. Basically what Prop 12 says is that in order to sell pork in California, the pork producer must abide by the standards that were established in 2008 by California voters, namely Proposition 2, the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act. Prop2 outlawed “gestation crates” for pregnant pigs, cages for egg-laying hens, and veal crates for calves. However, the measure didn’t forbid the sale of food that comes from animals confined in prohibited ways, and this led to the passage of Prop 12 in 2018.

Since California imports 99.9 percent of its pork, the nuts and bolts of this case involves the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. However, to me it involves a Common Sense Clause. If pork producers throughout the U.S. in order to sell pork in California, are forced to abide by the egregious standards set by Prop 2, then the price of pork in California will by necessity go up. Furthermore it will probably go up quite a bit. The same things will hold true for eggs. Which economic class in California will then no longer be able to afford pork? Those that drive EVs will still be able to afford and eat pork, as well as those who can work from home. 

If the SCOTUS sides with  Karen Ross of the State of California, those same individuals who are suffering the most because of California’s gas tax, will be eating fewer eggs and will no longer eating any pork.

I know, I know, Prop2 and Prop 12 were passed by the California voters, most of whom will reflexively shed a tear when shown a sad pig or hen. In some ways I guess I feel a bit sorry for the crowded pigs and hens, but I   will feel a lot sorrier for those who can no longer afford to eat pork or eggs. If the elites wish to eat only pork and eggs produced under stringent and more expensive conditions, so be it. However, do not mandate your “morally superior standards” on the hoi-polloi. 

10/21/22

The next Covid booster is available, and I am going to assume that further boosters will be available in the future. The question for some individuals now, and in the future will be: “should I get the booster?” or “should my kids get the booster?” For some the question is not at all problematic … “of course I will be getting this booster, and the next, and the next!” Likewise for others the question does not really involve any actual decision making … “since I never got any of the initial Covid shots, no way would I ever consider a Covid booster.” The individuals in these two aforementioned groups have already bought the farm one way or the other, and there is really no decision to be made.

However, there are some other different groups in which there is an actual decision to be made:

First: If you have already had Covid, should you get a booster? 

(For me the decision here is simple … I have already had Covid, and for me this decision is easy … ‘No,’ I will not be getting the booster.)

Second: A separate group is made up of those who have had the initial series of the two vaccines, and even perhaps a single booster.

If the vaccine booster had no possible adverse effects, then I suppose the answer would be … “sure, why not.” However, that is not the case as there are potential significant adverse effects, and here I am not talking about having a sore arm. Granted the odds of having a serious side-effect are small, however, some of the more severe side-effects can be life changing, and there is no ‘do over!’

I just read a long detailed article from Epoch Health entitled:

“Spike Protein From Infection and Vaccines Contributing to Autoimmune Diseases, Studies Suggest”

The key points in this long and complicated article are as follows:

Since the rollout of the COVID-19 mRNA and DNA injections, reports of many autoimmune conditions have either suddenly appeared, or relapsed, often with worsened symptoms.

Autoimmunity is a health condition where the body’s immune system becomes confused and unable to differentiate between self and non-self and attacks its own tissues.

In the case of COVID-19 and its vaccines, many studies since the start of the pandemic have shown that the spike protein shares similarities with human proteins both in its structure and in its basic chemical sequence.

This means the spike protein can increase the risk of developing autoimmunity and implies that the mRNA and DNA vaccines, which cause the body to make large amounts of spike protein, would do the same.

A recent study found the spike protein shares similarities with 34 different human proteins in amino acid sequences in sets of sixes. These include proteins found in the thyroid, brain, nose, ear, skin, muscles, heart, blood, nerves, joints, intestines, and many more.

So to me the initial question becomes, “At this point in time, is there any reason to add more spike proteins to anyone’s body?” 

To my way of thinking, the answer in general,  is an unequivocal …. “No!”

10/20/22

Let me first remind everyone of a 1962 song by the Crystals called “He’s a Rebel.” For those of you who do not remember the lyrics to this song … or perhaps, more likely were not yet born in 1962, this is how it starts:

“See the way he walks down the street

Watch the way he shuffles his feet

My, he holds his head up high

When he goes walking by, he’s my guy”

Immediately I thought of this song when I read an interview of Dr. Pierre Kory. Dr. Kory was truly a rebel during Covid. As the song says: “he holds his head up high; he’s my kind of guy!”

At this point you might ask, “why is Pierre Kory my kind of guy?” In general he is my kind of guy because of his feelings on the use of Ivermectin in Covid. 

The following is from the Epoch Times:

In his book, “The War on Ivermectin: The Medicine That Saved Millions and Could Have Ended the COVID Pandemic,” Dr. Pierre Kory details the history of ivermectin and the how and why behind Big Pharma’s suppression of this drug when it was found to work against COVID-19.

In this interview he details the results of a huge Ivermectin study from Brazil.

“While there are many individual success stories out there, one that Kory believes best illustrates the power of ivermectin against COVID is that of Itajai, Brazil, a city of 220,000 people. In June 2020, they implemented a prophylaxis program using ivermectin. The program was advertised throughout local media, and people were encouraged to participate and take ivermectin four times a month, on days 1, 2, 15 and 16.

On the appropriate days, they set up tents and centers where people could get the drug, and the entire program was carefully logged in an electronic database. In all, 159,000 Brazilians participated, of those 113,000 elected to take the ivermectin. Kory and eight coauthors published a paper on the results in March 2022:

The 113,000 [who took the ivermectin] were older, sicker, fatter. Way more cardiovascular disease and diabetes. And, obviously, they were probably more worried about the impacts on their health.

So, when you look at that comparison, I mean, there are massive negative confounders. But despite those confounders, even when you didn’t propensity match, there were insanely positive benefits in the ivermectin group.

They died much less, I think it was 70% lower risk of dying, 68% lower risk of hospitalization and 50% lower risk of getting COVID. And that was in the sickest of the sick in that city. Then, when we did propensity matching, matching them for age and other things, it was even greater.

Just another Ivermectin success story that has been hidden from the public. … 113,000 patients! Who has been instrumental in keeping these Ivermectin success stories hidden? To Dr. Kory the answer is obvious … the pharmaceutical industry. Why? … Money!

Since the Covid story is just about over, Dr. Kory is now working on Ivermectin to treat “long Covid,” and vaccine injuries.

For long-haulers and the COVID jab injured, Kory typically starts patients out at 0.3 mg per kilo of bodyweight once a day. For most, that dose works well. It’s still unclear how long people need to stay on this daily dose. Oftentimes, when they try to cut back, symptoms return, which suggests they still have spike protein in their bodies. Fortunately, the safety profile of ivermectin, even for long-term use, is very good.

Without belaboring a dead horse … I know, I know a very poor mixed metaphor … can anybody explain to me why the use of Ivermectin, a drug with an excellent safety profile, was condemned by the medical community during Covid?

And furthermore, will the use of Ivermectin be discouraged to treat long haulers? Most likely, Ivermectin will be again castigated and condemned as soon as the pharmaceutical industry comes up with a new expensive drug to treat long Covid and vaccine induced injuries.

10/19/22

A few days ago I devoted an entire piece to the disaster(s) that Fentanyl is causing in the U.S. After it was published, someone asked about whether or not there was a plan to combat this nationwide problem. As best I can tell, the answer is a resounding “No!”

Any plan would have to involve a series of stepwise small steps as this problem is not going to vanish on its own.

First off, obviously, in order to fight an enemy, that enemy has to be recognized. Hard as it is to believe, I have not heard one iota from our President that actually states that there is a fentanyl problem. If he is not aware that outside of the White House and the Delaware Beach there is a fentanyl problem, then perhaps someone can clue him in.

In California on 10/12/22, California Attorney General Rob Bonta released information on the fentanyl situation in the state and what the California Department of Justice is doing to fix the problem. While Rob Bonita did not mention the elephant in the room, he did acknowledge publicly that there is a fentanyl problem in California. 

The elephant in the room?? This leads me to the next step in combatting this fentanyl epidemic. Locally, here in California, as well as nationally someone has to come out and say the obvious … “it’s the border, stupid; the fentanyl problem is a direct byproduct of our open border policy.” 

Surprisingly, Bonita’s press release did not mention illegal immigration or the border crisis, although it is obvious to anyone with a modicum of common sense, that all or at least the a vast majority of illegal fentanyl is coming into the U.S from across our southern border.

According to The San Diego Tribune, during the initial nine months of this fiscal year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection gathered more than 5,000 pounds of the drug at various locations and exercises in Imperial and San Diego counties, which is around 60% of the entire volume of the drug confiscated by border authorities across the country. The current thought is that the volume confiscated is dwarfed by the amount that gets through.

The second step in combatting the fentanyl crisis would be closing the border. President Biden and DHS Secretary Mayorkas are more concerned with the phantom whipping of migrants than with the fentanyl that is coming across the border (from Yahoo: DHS Secretary Mayorkas Was Informed ‘Whipping’ Incident Was Bogus Hours Before He Condemned Border Patrol Agents).

Since JB, VP Harris, and Mayorkas will not take the second step and admit that the porous border is a problem, any possible resolution will not be occurring in the foreseeable future.

May I suggest that if one has a family member or a friend die from fentanyl, he/she should send a personal note to President Biden thanking him for doing …

NOTHING!

10/18/22