Author: Californiacontrarian

The Gaza pier was one terrific, terrible waste of our taxpayer money by Biden/Harris, but this is not an isolated instance of wasting taxpayer’s money by the Democrats in charge.
Look at what is happening in North Carolina ( from the Epoch Times on 6/26/24):
“The U.S. government has allocated $387 million since 2022 to care for unaccompanied migrant children at a North Carolina school campus that has yet to house a single child.
Illegal immigrant children entering the United States without a parent or guardian have never been placed at the Greensboro campus, which remains unoccupied but operational, according to a government fact sheet updated June 14 and a former employee interviewed by The Epoch Times”
But it gets worse … “Although the 100-acre Greensboro facility is empty of children, hundreds of employees worked 24 hours, seven days a week training and preparing to receive children this spring, the former employee said. The facility includes 31 buildings, an $18 million athletic center, a natatorium, and a 22-acre lake.
“The campus, once a Jewish boarding school, was ready to receive children at the Greensboro Influx Care Facility on March 15, according to an Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) fact sheet.
“The Greensboro facility is the latest of three such sites for unaccompanied minors aged 13 through 17 managed by the ORR, which operates within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), which is a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
“Two other influx care centers are in Texas: Pecos Children’s Center and Dimmit County Children’s Center. None of the Texas facilities currently have children either, according to ORR, which recently closed a fourth facility at Fort Bliss, Texas.”

So let’s get this straight … in anticipation of large numbers of illegal migration children, the Biden/Harris administration spent vast millions of taxpayer dollars on various centers, including the one in North Carolina. But these centers were never operational, most likely because these children were directly released into the U.S. … where and to whom??
Hmmm!

8/3/24
www.californiacontrarian.com

Once again the Democrats, specifically Joe Biden and his inflation, is taking its toll on those who can least afford it.
From the San Diego Union on 7/1/24 Tribune by Kristin Taketa:
“More than 6,400 students enrolled in San Diego Unified this past school year were considered homeless — and that number is likely an undercount. Homelessness takes different forms, and it could mean students and their families are living in a shelter, in a vehicle or doubled up in somebody else’s home.”

How many these 6,400 are children of illegal immigrants? Although I read and then reread the newspaper article more than once, I can find no mention of the legal/illegal status of these families/children. Then I emailed the article’s author and asked her that specific question … after more than a month, still no response!
Is this problem an offshoot of Joe Biden’s open border policy or Joe Biden’s inflation? Either way how does President Biden or the Democratic California governor, Gavin Newsom, propose that this problem be solved? … all is quiet on this western front!

San Diego school board Trustee Richard Barrera thinks that schools have a responsibility to help students whose families who are experiencing homelessness in particular, because schools are often the most stable place in a student’s life, Barrera further said, “School staff may be better able to help families because they have developed trust with families that other government agencies may not share.”
“And it’s critical for schools to address poverty issues such as homelessness, because they often prevent students from being able to attend school at all.
“The issue of homelessness is obviously something that is growing in San Diego, and schools can’t simply bury their heads in the sand and not pay attention to the issues that students are dealing with outside of school,” Barrera said.

I do not have a problem with providing some form of protected shelter for these children so that they can attend school, but the question has to do with who is paying for the expected expenses of these children/families? To my way of thinking, it should be the federal government or the state government, and not the local school districts.

8/2/24
www.californiacontrarian.com

As we are all painfully aware our recent and still present out-of-control inflation has caused the price of most everything to go up significantly … food, gasoline, transportation, and, yes, home prices and consequently homeownership has become a pipe dream for many.
From CNN.com:
“The dream of homeownership feels out of reach for many American families.
The vast majority (86%) of current renters in the United States say they would like to buy a home — but can’t afford one, according to a CNN poll conducted by SSRS released Monday, 7/29/24.
Among those same renters who can’t afford to buy a home right now, 54% think it’s unlikely they’ll ever be able to, the poll found.”
And to make matters worse, in order to try to stem inflation there has been an increase in interest rates which makes home ownership further out of reach for many.
Again from CNN.com:
“Younger people especially are having trouble buying a home right now. The CNN poll found that 90% of renters younger than 45 say they’d like to buy but can’t afford it, compared with 79% of those age 45 and above.
Not surprisingly, younger Americans are more hopeful that situation will change.
Most adults (53%) younger than 45 who want to buy but can’t afford it believe it’s at least somewhat likely they’ll eventually be able to buy a home. That’s compared with just 32% of those 45 and older.
Among renters who want to buy but can’t afford it, 40% say the biggest barrier is saving for a down payment, according to the CNN poll.
Nearly a third (31%) say the biggest obstacle to buying a home is high interest rates. Just 17% say the inability to qualify for a mortgage is the biggest hurdle.”
So there you have it … inability to save for a down payment because high inflation is eating into any possible saving, and high interest rates … both ravages of Biden/Harris’ inflation.
Thank you, Joe/Kamala!

8/1/24
californiacontrarian

Last week when I referred to “incompetence” in those who are supposed to be in charge, I was told by a reader that I shouldn’t be so harsh as all humans make mistakes.
However on 7/29/24 I read two seemingly unrelated stories that on further reflection summarize the incompetence of those who are supposedly in charge of our government. For the second time I want to emphasize the word “incompetence.”
The first incredible piece of news was an ABC interview of the local Butler, PA SWAT team. The spokesman for the SWAT team said that they had no communication with Secret Service prior to the attempted assassination of Donald Trump. They were supposed to meet them upon arrival and it never happened.
Hmmm!
The second story from PJ Media:
“More than three-fourths of all personal income tax from American taxpayers will go directly toward paying off the interest on our massive and ever-burgeoning national debt. FAIRtax reported the sobering data on July 20, explaining, “Interest Payments on U.S. National Debt Will Shatter $1,140,000,000,000 This Year – Eating 76% of All Income Taxes Collected.” Yet politicians from both parties only increase instead of restricting government spending. We are headed for a national financial catastrophe of epic proportions.”
From Twitter:
Peter St Onge, Ph.D has an excellent 3:47 video going into the details of why this is a cruel joke on the American people. And also on Twitter … Elon Musk: ‘America is headed for bankruptcy fyi.’

So there you have it! 76% of taxes paid by Americans are going to service our debt. What do we get for the other 34%? … an incompetent, or worse, Secret Service that failed to communicate with the local Butler, PA SWAT team!
OMG!
Hmmm!

7/31/24
californiacontrarian

Right now the liberal Main Stream Media (MSM) is somehow trying to dispute that Kamala Harris was ever the “Border Czar” despite multiple past referrals to her as such in/on the same MSM.
Now although she was never formally designated as the EV Czar, perhaps those of us who prefer the freedom of choosing what kind of car we want to purchase and drive should shift our focus to “Kamala, the EV Czar.”
From The Washington Free Beacon:
“During her 2020 presidential campaign, Harris vowed to implement climate policies ensuring 50 percent of all new passenger vehicles sold are EVs by 2030 and 100 percent are EVs by 2035, an archived copy of her campaign website shows. She also backed a mandate requiring all new vehicle purchases for corporate fleets, transportation networks, and heavy-duty vehicles be electric by 2030.
Months after she announced in January 2019 that she would run for president, Harris also cosponsored the so-called Zero-Emission Vehicles Act, a bill that was later modified to include language mandating 43 percent of car sales are electric by 2027 and 100 percent are electric by 2035.”

Granted that while it is unlikely that I will be around by 2035 and it is also extremely unlikely that I will be driving in 2035, I still want the freedom to drive the type of car that I desire, and that is only one reason the I will not vote for the “Kamala, the EV Czar.” Apparently I am not alone.

A poll conducted earlier this month by Remington Research Group on behalf of the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, which opposes EV mandates, found that 59 percent or more of likely voters in Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin oppose bans on gas-powered cars in their states, which will likely determine the winner of the election.
Larger majorities in those states reported that a candidate’s position on stopping bans on new gas cars would be an important factor in their vote.
“This new polling underscores what we have been hearing from the American people of all political stripes for months—that they do not want the government banning gas cars, mandating electric vehicles or imposing regulations that restrict access to the types of cars that best meet a family’s needs and budget,” American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers president Chet Thompson said at the time.

Soon the MSM will be denying that Kamala was ever gung-ho on EV mandates … reminiscent of what those in charge were doing in George Orwell’s “1984.”
7/30/24
www.californiacontrarian.com

Do individuals in positions of authority have an obligation to admit when they have been wrong? Ideally speaking the answer should be ‘yes,’ but as we all are aware, this happens very rarely. Take for example Janet Yellen telling us that inflation was only going to be temporary! Because she is the Secretary of the Treasury, we would have expected that she would know what she is talking about. However, she could not have been further off base as inflation continues, now many years later. Did Janet Yellen ever apologize or recant her wildly wrong prediction about inflation? … Err, not that I am aware of!
So again back to my original question … Do individuals in positions of authority have an obligation to admit when they have been wrong?
My answer would be, “yes, if they are honest.”
And this gets me to J.D. Vance and his criticisms of Donald Trump many years ago. Vance called himself a “never-Trump guy” in 2016, but his perception of Trump transformed and he endorsed the Republican nominee for president in 2020. The vice presidential nominee issued a formal apology in 2021 for his previous statement about Trump.
Are you listening, Janet Yellen?! … A formal apology!
I think that J.D. Vance is an honest guy and I think he is a good choice. Pollster Frank Luntz appears to agree, but for a different reason. He said on 7/28/24 that former President Donald Trump’s selection of Republican Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his vice presidential candidate could be crucial to winning the election.
From the Daily Caller:
Trump picked Vance as his running mate, and has stressed the senator’s dedication to “fight for the worker.” Luntz, on “Inside Politics,” said Vance appeals to “paycheck to paycheck voters,” who he described as “the most important segment of the population” for the election.
“J.D. Vance comes from the background that Trump’s focusing on, so he’s credible. And he’s got the language because this is how he grew up,” Luntz said. “To me, the most important segment of the population, the one that makes or breaks, are these paycheck to paycheck voters, people who have jobs, they’ve been working, they may not be college graduates and they’re struggling. And it represents one-fourth of the American electorate. Normally, they vote Democrat over Republican by about two to one. Trump brought it to three to two, even closer. That segment, if they break for Harris, she’s the next president. If Trump can keep them, he’s the next president.”
“J.D. Vance appeals to them because … it’s who he was. It’s not a segment we talk about. It’s not a segment we see. I get them in focus groups because I go out to these states, but they are really suffering,” he continued. “The economy is not doing well for them. These are not shareholders, these are not people who have a cushion. If they get fired or one check doesn’t work, they could lose their homes, they could lose their cars. And we are very sympathetic towards them as a country. Watch, because I think that’s going to be the focus going forward.”

It seems to me that while Kamala Harris will appeal to those without a paycheck and to the coastal elites, I agree with Luntz that J.D.Vance will appeal to those living from paycheck to paycheck.

7/29/24
californiacontrarian.com

On Sundays I talk about individuals who deserve our praise and respect. The following is from upworthy.com

Shariya Small was a fourteen year old who delivered triplets in a hospital in Indiana, and her nurse Katrina Mullen took note. Small’s babies were premature, born at just 26 weeks, when the average gestation for triplets is 33 weeks, according to ReproductiveFacts.org. Due to their early birth, the babies, Serenitee, Samari and Sarayah, had to stay in the NICU at Community Hospital North in Indianapolis for more than five months, according to Today.com.
During their time in the NICU, Mullen noticed the young mom visited her babies alone, not appearing to have much of a support system. “She’d be there alone for days at a time sitting at her babies’ bedside,” Mullen told Today.com.
Eventually, Mullen gave Small her phone number before the babies were discharged from the hospital. It quickly became apparent that Small did not have a support system, as she called Mullen often asking for advice. Out of concern, the nurse went to visit Small an hour away, where she was living with a family member.
The condition of the home was concerning enough, but Mullen became even more worried when she saw how thin Small’s son Samari was. It turns out he had to be admitted to the hospital, which prompted a visit from Child Protective Services, who determined that Small and her three infants would need to enter foster care. She gave the social worker Mullen’s information and things began to fall into place.

To make a long story short Shariya Small was adopted by Katrina Mullen, and thus Katrina Mullen became an instant grandma to three toddlers.
To make this story even better, Shariya finished high school and is now in college studying sociology.

7/28/24

The following is part of my attempt to provide my readers with some interesting medical updates.
Today the topic is Dengue Fever. Perhaps, one might ask, “Why, as isn’t Dengue something that occurs only in tropical or subtropical locales?”
I had always thought that this mosquito transmitted illness basically occurred in only certain locales in the Americas … notably in South America and Central America. But then the other day, I read something which surprised me.
From the Epoch Health:
“Nearly 250 people have been infected with dengue fever, a virus spread by mosquitoes, in three northeastern U.S. states, according to data provided by federal health officials.
So far this year, New York state has reported 143 cases, and New Jersey has reported 41 cases, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data released last week. Massachusetts has also reported 59 cases.The only other U.S. state with locally transmitted cases so far this year is Florida, with nine cases. Puerto Rico has reported more than 1,700 dengue cases this year, CDC data show.
“Dengue, which is sometimes referred to as ‘breakbone fever,’ is caused by a virus transmitted by a type of infected Aedes species mosquito’s bite.
Symptoms usually start between four and 10 days after being bitten by a dengue-infected mosquito, according to the Mayo Clinic. It generally causes a high fever of 104 degrees Fahrenheit and can include several other symptoms.
That includes muscle, bone, or joint pain, vomiting, nausea, pain behind the eyes, swollen glands, and a rash. In some cases, the symptoms can become life-threatening in what is known as “severe dengue,” dengue hemorrhagic fever, or dengue shock syndrome, according to the Mayo Clinic website.”

Could it be that Dengue has become more frequent in some parts of the U.S. because of the increased numbers of individuals now in the U.S. from South and Central America?
Health officials say some people can experience no signs or just minimal symptoms of a dengue infection. Nonetheless, these people carry the Dengue virus and thus when they are bitten by a mosquito, this same mosquito can then transmit the Dengue virus to someone else …etcetera, etcetera.
Hmmm!

7/27/24

At this point perhaps a rhetorical question … but will Kamala Harris actually be the Democrat’s nominee for President? To me it appears that her honeymoon period is already not going well even though it has just started. Ergo, this leads me to suspect that she may not be the nominee. In fact there are multiple reasons why I have this suspicion.
First off why would Joe Biden immediately endorse her after he was forced out and “decided”to no longer seek the nomination? Basically, it appeared to me as well as to many others that after the “border czar” kerfuffle, that he did not give her any further responsibilities, which was a sign that he didn’t think highly of her. Could it be that Joe was p.o.-ed that many Dems were turning against him, and endorsed Kamala as a form of sweet revenge, knowing that she cannot beat Trump.
Second, at this point Obama has not come out with an endorsement of her. Could it be that he also feels that she cannot beat Trump. Is Michelle waiting in the wings?
Third, many of the new polls show that she is not doing well on multiple fronts. One would think that because she is now honeymooning, that she should have a bump in the polls. But that is not happening, and as the American people discover how far left her views are, her polling will only get worse.

Furthermore on 7/24 in a 220-196 vote, the House passed H. Res. 1371 introduced by House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) with the support of all present Republican lawmakers — plus six Democrats seeking to look tough on the border amid Democrat disarray and an illegal alien crisis thanks to their own party’s policies.
To me these six are in essence saying that they cannot win re-election with Kamala on the ticket. I predict in the next few weeks prior to the Dems convention that there will be more concerns about the harm that might come to other Dems on the ballot if Kamala is at the top.
In general, I have not spoken to a single Republican that is not confident that Trump will thoroughly defeat Kamala. The Dems are well aware of what the new polls are showing.
So again I ask, “will Kamala Harris actually be the Democrat’s nominee for President?”
Hmmm!
7/26/24
californiacontrarian

Once again as I often do, let’s start out with “let’s be clear.”
Right now since we are in the Kamala honeymoon period, let’s be clear that we should be announcing that Kamala Harris is a San Francisco radical leftist. According to GovTrac, her Senate voting record is more liberal than Bernie Sanders, the Democratic Socialist from Vermont.
What are some of her actual policies?
In the past she has called the 16-24 age group … “stupid,” while at the same time advocating that sixteen year olds be allowed to vote.
She wants to decriminalize the illegal crossing of our border, while advocating for legal representation and health care for illegals. These opinions while being the “border czar” and yet never getting close to the actual border!
She was all-in for cancelling the Keystone Pipeline, and was also all-in when it came to cancelling offshore drilling and fracking! Kamala, where is our energy going to come from?
Likewise she is all-in for EV-school buses even though they have been proven to be unreliable and expensive.
I could go on about her wanting to ban plastic straws and the consumption of red meat, but at this point, I think that everyone gets the idea.
To me when someone says that no logical person could be this far off base, Kamala Harris immediately pops into my head.
As far as foreign policy is concerned the fact that she chose to speak to a sorority instead of attending Netanyahu’s speech to a joint session of Congress says it all.
Let’s be clear … Kamala Harris is a left wing nut-job!

7/25/24
californiacontrarian