Author: Californiacontrarian

Yesterday I watched video of part of a commencement address at Benedictine College in Atchison, KS. FYI: Benedictine College is a small (just over 2000 students), rural (located on bluffs overlooking the Missouri River, northwest of Kansas City, Missouri), Catholic college.

The commencement speaker was Harrison Butker, who is the kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs. One might ask why Harrison Butker who is but a kicker. Why not get a big star to give this address?

Well the answer is probably twofold. First, Harrison Butker is a very good speaker, and second he is a Catholic. He does not just proclaim to be Catholic, but speaks and acts like a real Catholic … this in contradistinction to Joe Biden who says that he is Catholic, but acts otherwise.

Harrison Butker not only talks the talk, but walks the walk … again contradistinction to the pseudo-Catholic in the White House. He gave his views on women becoming wives and mothers. He came right out and called abortion evil, called DEI misguided, and called homosexuality wrong. It was a good speech, and without question he wrote it himself. He didn’t first check to see which way the wind was blowing or what the polls were indicating.

Of course the left attacked him for his speech. However, despite his speech receiving major backlash from liberals and far-left feminists, Butker’s jersey is in high demand among fans on the NFL’s website and others. 

What about the graduating students at Benedictine College? … the group to whom this commencement speech was directed?

From The Loop by Benedictine graduating senior, Shelby Bland:

 “Benedictine College is unapologetically Catholic. This shouldn’t be a shock to anyone who has spent at least 30 seconds looking at their website or Instagram. There has never been any attempt to hide or shy away from our identity. Rather, the college is proud to nurture traditional Catholic values.

As a young woman and a Benedictine student, I am proud of my college for its unashamed faith. It is a haven for young people, like me, who have not always felt accepted for what we believe and who often have to defend our views. 

Knowing this about my school, it didn’t come as a surprise to me when Benedictine asked Harrison Butker, an outspoken traditional Catholic, to give the commencement speech at this year’s graduation.”

She subsequently gave the speech a good review.

If you are interested in hearing a good commencement address, I suggest that you listen to Harrison Butker speaking from his heart.

In many ways it was better than what I often hear on Sunday. Perhaps Harrison Butker missed his calling!

5/18/24

One of the individuals that I have mixed feelings about is the Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson. He appeared to cave to the Democrats when the latest bill concerning the arming of Ukraine came across his desk. As you might recall there was nothing in that bill that mentioned our southern border, despite his prior protestations about that issue. Some may have referred to this as “the art of compromise,” although MTG and others, including myself, thought otherwise.

However, on 5/13, Speaker Johnson attended the Trump trial in NYC and afterwards reflected on how this Democrat inspired pseudo-trial might just boomeranging on them Dems. Reflecting on his travels across the country, Mr. Johnson conveyed widespread public discontent with the trial, “I’ve been in 102 cities in over half the states in the last few months, and I can tell you that no matter where we are around the country, I’ve been doing large events,” he said. “People from all walks of life come to these events, and they are concerned about this. They are disgusted about this. They are fed up. They’ve had enough because they see what’s happening.”

Now, not everyone would agree with Speaker Johnson’s “across the country” observation. For instance, I have an acquaintance who is an over-the-top leftist, a true MSNBC-aholic! Hopefully, this Trump pseudo-trial will boomerang on him and his leftist cohorts. Perhaps down the road he will be able to consider the consequences of what is happening in NYC. As both he and MSNBC are afflicted with Trump Derangement Syndrome, it is likely that this potential boomerang will never affect them directly. However, crucial is whether or not Independents recognize what this trial is actually all about … and if they do, then this Dem  inspired pseudo-trial will boomerang on them just as Speaker Johnson has said.

5/17/24

Whereas most of my friends are conservative, the other day I was seated next to a progressive acquaintance at a group breakfast. Now this gentleman, let’s arbitrarily call him, Donald, is a nice enough retired older guy, who is politically far to the left. I have sat next to him before and we get along fine as long as we do not discuss politics. When I asked him what he did on most days to fill his time, he shrugged and said that he watched a lot of television. It was only later that I discovered that he and his wife watch a lot of MSNBC, and here I mean that they watch MSNBC throughout the entire day.

At some point the conversation at the table shifted to the conflict in Gaza. Notably I did not initiate this conversation, but Donald immediately chimed in. What I found very interesting was that I was more pro-Israel when it came to the Israel-Hamas conflict, than Donald, despite the fact the he is Jewish! When I mentioned that I was pro-Netanyahu, he was shocked as he was over-the-top anti-Netanyahu. He thought that the bombing should stop as  “all the continued bombing was going to do was to make the children of Gaza anti-Jewish for the rest of their lives.” When I pointed out that these young children had already been indoctrinated to hate all Jews, he just quickly skipped to the next topic, which was that Netanyahu was only in power because of hardline right wingers in Israel.

At one point he seemed a bit conflicted because there was continued rockets being fired from Gaza and aimed at Beersheba, where he had friends or relatives.

I found it especially interesting that he never mentioned the twelve-hundred or so Israelis that were ambushed and killed back on October 7th. When I alluded to this, he quickly moved on. Likewise when I mentioned the hostages that Hamas refused to turnover, it was like he never heard me.

On my drive home I thought, “A Jewish guy not supporting Israel. Did MSNBC cause this oxymoron?”

5/16/24

By this time most of you are aware that for quite a while I have been a big fan of Ivermectin for Covid … even before I took it for Covid.

I am also a lover of music, and after I listened to an interview with oncology surgeon, Dr. Kathleen Ruddy on Epoch’s American Thought Leaders, I was reminded of the song, Sounds of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel. 

“Hello darkness, my old friend

I’ve come to talk with you again

Because a vision softly creeping

Left its seeds while I was sleeping

And the vision that was planted in my brain

Still remains

Within the sound of silence”

The interview with Dr. Ruddy was about the potential use of my old friend, Ivermectin in treating cancer. If you have thirty minutes or so to spare, I would strongly recommend listening to this interview.

In the interview Dr. Ruddy describes what happened to three separate cancer patients who began, almost serendipitously, to take Ivermectin. These three patients each had advanced cancer. One prostate cancer; one esophageal cancer; one pelvic cancer. While I am not suggesting that the three remarkable documented recoveries in each of these patients should suddenly change the present treatment for cancer, I am suggesting that the use of Ivermectin might indeed find a place in the treatment of various cancers.

I can hear many of you saying that perhaps a study could be done using Ivermectin as an adjunct to the other present accepted different modes of cancer treatment. 

To put things into perspective, no pharmaceutical company is going to be interested in studying a drug that literally costs about ten cents per tablet, and so a randomized controlled trial will never be possible. 

After some encouragement from Dr. Ruddy an observational multi-centered study has been started using ivermectin and historical controls. FYI: an observational study is one like the well known Framingham Study, the results of which are ongoing. As pointed out by Dr. Ruddy many cancer patients do not live long enough for comparisons after five years of Ivermectin versus no Ivermectin, and thus an observational study with historical controls is the only feasible way to examine for results.

Likewise after being used extensively in Africa for river blindness Ivermectin has a stellar safety record.

I know that if I develop metastatic cancer, I will go back and listen to Simon and Garfunkel’s Sound of Silence:

“Hello Ivermectin, my old fiend!

I’ve came to talk with you again”

5/15./24

Talking about, mandating, and then actually implementing EV truck usage epitomizes  the basic difference between midbrain thinkers (liberals) and frontal lobe thinkers (conservatives). On one hand we have those who are trying to minimize the adverse health effects of gasoline powered trucks, but without a well thought-out workable practical plan. On the other side we have those who think logically, and are basically saying that a rush-rush mandate to push EV trucks is not only not practical, but at the same time is also is not doable.

From Epoch:

“Freight movement continues to represent a significant share of local air pollution, increasing the risk of asthma, heart disease, hospitalization, and other adverse health outcomes for the millions of Americans, especially overburdened communities, who live and work near highways, ports, railyards, warehouses, and other freight routes,” the EPA states.

Likewise, the American Lung Association estimates that transitioning to zero-emission trucks could result in $735 billion in public health benefits by 2050.”

Meanwhile on the other side:

Taki Darakos, the vice president of vehicle maintenance and fleet service at PITT OHIO, raised concerns about the high costs involved in electrifying fleets.

The upfront costs of zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) “are much higher than their diesel equivalent, making it difficult for fleets to embrace electrification until they see meaningful year-over-year upfront purchase price declines.”

The company incorporated some EVs in its fleet, and Mr. Darakos said: “Increased vehicle weight from the batteries reduced our payload and limited our usage of haul. These limitations have impacted the company’s timeline on how and when to transition to ZEV.”

The American Transportation Research Institute estimated that electrifying the entire vehicle fleet in the United States will consume 40 percent of the United States’ existing electricity generation while requiring a 14 percent overall increase in energy generation.

“Yet our aging grid can hardly meet current demands,“ Mr. Darakos said. ”In California, where rolling blackouts and brownouts are not uncommon, utilities would need to generate an additional 57 percent beyond their current output to support an electric vehicle fleet.”

He pointed out that a truck driver can refuel a new diesel truck within 15 minutes for a journey of up to 1,200 miles. However, charging an EV truck for two hours provides a range of only about 200 miles.

Transitioning conventional truck fleets to electric vehicles (EVs) pushes up annual operational costs, which subsequently increases economic inflation, according to a recent report from transportation and logistics firm Ryder.

Florida-based Ryder analyzed the potential cost of transportation if internal combustion engine trucks are converted to EVs. There is a 5 percent cost increase for light-duty EVs and a 94–114 percent increase for heavy-duty trucks, the May 8 report states. For a fleet of 25 mixed vehicles—light-, medium-, and heavy-duty trucks—costs surge by 56–67 percent.

As transportation costs have a direct bearing on the price of goods sold in markets across the country, Ryder estimates such increases to eventually add about 0.5–1 percent to overall price inflation in the economy.

Certainly helping people breathe easier is a commendable goal. How to get there is another issue all together. Mandating the use of EV trucks without first addressing the practical aspects of this issue is foolhardy.

5/14/24

I saw an interesting world map recently. Although I have always been interested in geography, this world map had a twist. It was a world map which was color-coded for the incidence per 100K population of cancer rates in those less than fifty. Granted that while many different variables might affect this rate in different parts of the world, I was struck by a few things on this map (see below).

First: look at the extremely high incidence of cancer in those less than fifty in Australia and New Zealand, followed by the high incidence in the U.S., France, Italy and Portugal.

Second: look at the low incidence in most of central Africa as well as a few countries in Central America.

In a similar but not identical light … from People:

“North Carolina State University (NCSU) has launched an investigation after elevated levels of cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were detected in a campus building. 

The investigation has now led to numerous alumni reporting health conditions that they claim may be linked to Poe Hall. 

Over 150 people have reported cases of cancer or other serious illnesses to WRAL in Raleigh, North Carolina. The local outlet has been collecting health data from current and former students and employees since the university’s investigation was launched.

These cases have not been officially linked to Poe Hall and cannot be considered a “cancer cluster,” which is “the occurrence of a greater than expected number of cancer cases among a group of people in a defined geographic area over a specific time period,” according to the National Cancer Institute.”

Here we have two completely different situations, each with a statistical grouping that seems to be outside of random. Now while there is no proof for what I am going to say, these two separate unrelated situations got me thinking … “could either one or both of these statistical anomalies be be related to the Covid vaccine?”

The expected response to my query would be that since the Covid vaccines were used throughout the world, the vaccine cannot be responsible for the difference in young cancer rates per 100K population  in adjacent countries … e.g. between the US and Mexico. 

To that I would answer that despite the fact that San DIego and Tijuana are within a few miles of each other, the batches of vaccine used in these areas were not from the same distributor. Those batches used in the US were from a federal distributor while those batches used in Mexico were from a totally different distributor. Could it be that not all batches of vaccine are the same, especially when side effects are concerned?

Similarly, although at this point, PCBs seem to be the leading suspected cause for these alarming cancer stats in younger individuals who attended NCSU, to me it seems unusual that this increased incidence is just now showing up over forty years after Poe Hall was built. Is it likely or unlikely that these NCSU students were all vaccinated from the same batch of vaccine?

Hmmm!

5/13/24

On Sunday I write about individuals that we can all admire. Today I am writing about the youngest individual in my long list of Sunday honorees.

Kevin Ellis Jr. is only nine years old and lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

From CBS News:

About a month ago Matt Busbice, the 42-year-old owner of sporting goods store BuckFeather in Baton Rouge, Louisiana was awakened 

in the early morning by a fire alarm going off inside his condo complex. So, Busbice shot out of bed and raced down the stairs only to discover there was no fire. But he was awake now, so even though he was wearing mismatched clothes and was disheveled, he decided to go out for a cup of coffee.

As he was about to enter the coffee shop, he remembered he hadn’t done his morning prayer. So as the security camera shows, Busbice stepped to the corner of the patio to pray.

“And I started to slowly open my eyes, and there’s a kid coming at me, about my height,” Busbice said.

The boy had his fist clenched, so Busbice prepared for a confrontation. But instead, the boy opened his fist to reveal a $1 bill.

“And I go, ‘What?'” Busbice said.

“‘If you’re homeless, here’s a dollar,'” 9-year-old Kelvin Ellis Jr. recalls telling Busbice. “…I always wanted to help a homeless person, and I finally had the opportunity.” Ellis says he had just gotten the dollar for good grades. It was the only money he had to his name. 

“I haven’t had that much faith in humanity in a very long time,” Busbice said. He was so touched, he invited Ellis in for a snack and then connected with Ellis’ father, who was next door, and promised to stay in touch.

As a result of his kindness, Busbice rewarded Kevin Ellis Jr.  a shopping spree — 40 seconds to pick out whatever he wanted in BuckFeather, including a new bike. Ellis says it was great, but definitely not what he wanted to get for his dollar.

“Joy, because I helped someone,” Ellis said. “Give something away, and you feel like you’ve got a lot of things from it.”

Now even though Kevin Ellis Jr. is only nine, I would guess he’s got a bright future. Kudos to his parents who obviously had taught him about what is really important in life.

5/12/24

As many of us are aware President Biden often does things dependent on polls and will prostitute himself to get votes. For example he put on hold his restrictions on Menthol cigarettes … out of principle? … oh no-no, he did this because Blacks are the main consumer of Menthol cigarettes, and he does not want to antagonize Black voters before the coming election.

Likewise, even after the Supreme Court ruled that his initial college loan forgiveness program was not legal, he is back with round 2 of a similar program. … out of principle? … oh no-no. He is obviously attempting to buy the votes of these young indebted individuals. 

As the election gets closer is there something else on which he could prostitute himself?

From CV NEWS FEED // 

“According to a new poll, a majority of voters in seven hotly-contested battleground states oppose the Biden administration’s proposed regulations on traditional gas-powered vehicles.

CRC Research conducted the poll on behalf of the 85 Fund, a nonprofit that supports conservative causes. 

National Review reported Thursday that 57% of the poll’s respondents “somewhat or strongly opposed” the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) “tailpipe emissions regulation imposing stricter standards on gasoline-powered vehicles.”

Thirty-seven percent “strongly oppose” the controversial policy, National Review added:

Less than a third of respondents, or 31 percent, strongly or somewhat support the tailpipe regulation, with 10 percent strongly supportive. 

These results came in response to a question that posed arguments from proponents and opponents of the regulation.

“The poll surveyed 2,800 registered voters in mid-April. Its respondents were equally distributed throughout the swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

The poll also found that 57% of its respondents “strongly or somewhat oppose paying more for cars and trucks and having fewer options if it means promoting climate emissions goals,” National Review stated.

The poll found that Democrats stand alone in favor of “paying more for cars for the sake of climate goals,” according to National Review. Both Republicans and independents oppose this so-called ‘trade-off.’”

 Most of us who are paying close attention to this November election realize that these swing states will be the key, and furthermore the independents, especially in these states will be critical in deciding who the winner will be.

Now with only six months to go before the Presidential election … Is it only a matter of time before JB caves on his EV mandates?

5/11/24

By now I am used to it, and we should all be used to it. What am I talking about? … Joe Biden’s gaslighting! When he says X, and the general public knows that X is not true, who does JB think he is fooling? 

In the wide-ranging interview on May 8, the president was provided with various facts about the current economic landscape, from real (inflation-adjusted) income being down since January 2021 to housing costs doubling over the past three years.

JB’s response … The American people are “personally in good shape” and the United States has “the strongest economy in the world,” President Joe Biden told CNN host Erin Burnett in a rare sit-down interview touting his administration’s economic record.

The American  people are “personally in good shape.”

Who’s foolin’ who?

The annual inflation rate was 1.4 percent in January 2021 and peaked at 9.1 percent in June 2022. Cumulatively, the consumer price index (CPI) has climbed by approximately 19 percent over the past three years. The CPI rose to a hotter-than-expected 3.5 percent last month and is expected to remain unchanged when the next inflation report is released next week.

“They have the money to spend,” President Biden said in response to Ms. Burnett’s reporting that grocery prices are up by 30 percent.

Who’s foolin’ who?

“It’s also true right now, Mr. President, that voters, by a wide margin, trust Trump more on the economy. They say that in polls,” the CNN host said. The same ABC News–Ipsos poll reported that more Americans trust former President Trump to handle the economy and inflation than President Biden.

In March, a CBS News–YouGov poll showed that 65 percent of respondents thought the economy was “good” under President Trump, while 28 percent said it was “bad”; 38 percent of U.S. voters say the current economy is “good,” and 59 percent believe it is “bad.”

Even though I no longer drink Coke, I heard that a 12oz bottle of Diet Coke costs $3.50 at 7-11. How does that match up to Biden’s fantasy-world where he never has to actually buy anything? 

I guess that we will see who’s foolin’ who in November!

5/10/24

If you haven’t yet been acquainted with a  transgender issue confronting some family member or friend, odds are that it is just a matter of time, as the  transgender issue is a hot topic just about everywhere. What is the best thing to do for these gender confused children and adolescents?  As best I can tell up to this point there has been no scientific study examining this subject … that is until just recently.

From Epoch Health:

In April, England  published the Cass Review, “most comprehensive summary on transgender-youth medicine,” psychologist Erica Anderson, who identifies as transgender and has a doctorate in clinical psychology, told The Epoch Times.

The review was chaired by Dr. Hilary Cass, British honorary physician, consultant in pediatric disability, and former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

The Cass Review is based on the work of 237 papers, including 214 studies, 21 guidelines, and two position statements, which covered data of over 113,000 children and young people. The authors also analyzed anonymized data from over 3,700 children diagnosed with gender dysphoria, survey responses from professionals, and numerous interviews and testimonies from stakeholders of the issue.

Additionally, Dr. Cass also interviewed numerous transgender youths, adults, parents of these children, advocacy groups, psychologists, pediatricians, and related clinicians, both British and international, though the number of interviewees was undisclosed. She also wanted to do a follow-up with 9,000 patients referred to England’s Tavistock Centre, but that could not be done due to the lack of cooperation from all but one adult clinic.

The Cass Review is not about “rolling back on people’s rights to healthcare,” Dr. Cass wrote in the review’s foreword. “It is about what the healthcare approach should be.”

The review stated that there is insufficient evidence to demonstrate the long-term benefits of medicalizing children who want to identify as a different gender. Instead, the review recommends focusing on psychotherapy. In addition the review found insufficient and inconclusive evidence demonstrating the effectiveness and benefits of gender reassignment treatments for children. Additionally, many of these children are on the autism spectrum and share mental comorbidities often overshadowed by the medicalization model.

Dr. Cass hence advised cautionary psychological interventions, while also leaving room for children to explore their identities.

The review presented the following findings and recommendations:

1. Psychotherapy Is Recommended

There is evidence that psychotherapy can help address mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety, common among transgender youths, and hormone interventions often overshadow these therapies. The review highlighted that psychotherapy is not the same as conversion therapy, as it is not about changing a child’s perception of who they are but exploring the cause of their concerns and experiences and helping alleviate distress.

2. Partial Social Transitioning Is Preferred

The systematic reviews did not show clear evidence of the positive or negative effects social transitioning has on mental health. Social transition generally refers to a person making only social changes, including altering hair and clothing and changing names and pronouns, instead of medical changes to live as a different gender.

While it is unknown whether social transitioning contributes to gender dysphoria, the review authors speculated that a partial transition may be more advantageous and offer greater flexibility to help children explore and express their gender identities.

3. Hormonal Treatments Not Recommended Except Under Research Conditions

Effectiveness and risks: The review showed no significant improvements in gender dysphoria symptoms or body satisfaction from medicalization. While some reports showed short-term improvement in mood when patients began hormonal treatment, the magnitude of such improvement was small.

Hormonal treatment, which refers to the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, is not recommended for minors due to the permanence of its effects. 

As a consequence of the Cass Review, England may be the third country to withdraw from a “gender-affirming” treatment pathway due to recommendations from this long-awaited report. (Finland and Sweden made similar changes in 2023.)

In closing, if someone relates that a physician said, “would you rather have a dead daughter or a live son,” caution is advised before acting on such a threatening obviously guilt ridden statement. Notably, the Cass Review did not support the claim that hormonal treatment reduced the risk of suicide.

5/9/24