Author: Californiacontrarian

From the beginning of the vaccine mandates, I thought, “what if they’re wrong? Is it possible that it could turn out that there are some significant side-effects from the Covid vaccine? 

I further thought, perhaps I am just a living example of the old Elvis song, Suspicious Minds.

However, I just read something quite bothersome about potential problems from the vaccine written by Angus Dalgleish who is an expert in immunology and Professor of Oncology at St George’s Hospital Medical School, London.

She said, “I have previously reported on my concern about the rise in stable cancer relapses that I have witnessed in my melanoma clinic.

… the only thing I found they had in common was to have had a recent booster mRNA COVID vaccine. I phoned around my colleagues not only in the UK but also in Australia to check their experience. In no case did they deny such a link. Indeed, they were equally alarmed at the association between booster vaccines and relapse that they too were witnessing, as well an increase in new cancers, particularly in those below 50 years old. In addition to melanoma these colleagues were also very concerned about a sudden big increase in young patients with colorectal cancer.

She continued, “Recently the American Cancer Society (ACS) has warned of a surge in new cancer cases in the United States this last year of over 2 million, with many of these cases occurring in younger patients. Indeed, the chief scientific officer of the ACS, William Dahat, announced in addition that cancers were presenting with more aggressive disease and larger tumours at the time of diagnosis, especially in younger patients.”

“The Lancet also published an article before Christmas reporting excess deaths post COVID pandemic to be up by 11–15 per cent over than expected for under-25s and for between 25–49 year olds. This is in fact the pattern found in many countries that have looked at the data. Germany for example has reported excess deaths rising from 7 per cent in 2020 to 24 per cent in 2023.

What makes this all the more surprising is that negative deaths should be the norm after a pandemic as you cannot die twice!

Now back to Elvis’s song, Suspicious Minds, the first line of which is

“We’re caught in a trap.”  

To me this line encompasses the big dilemma for all of those government agencies that played prominent roles in vaccine mandates. They are indeed caught in a trap, because if the mandates are the cause, 

they cannot truly investigate the reason why death rates and aggressive cancers are increasing,

2/12/24

Back on 6/29/23 in a landmark judgment, the US Supreme Court ruled the race-based admissions at Harvard College and the University of North Carolina as illegal. The 6-3 ruling dominated by a conservative supermajority effectively puts a closure to a decades-long effort to diversify higher education … but does it?

Recently a four-person committee of professors at Dartmouth went about reevaluating the use of test scores (SAT or ACT) in deciding who gets admitted to college.

From the New York Times:

“Three Dartmouth economists and a sociologist then dug into the numbers. … One of their main findings did not surprise them: Test scores were a better predictor than high school grades — or student essays and teacher recommendations — of how well students would fare at Dartmouth. The evidence of this relationship is large and growing.”

To me this is not a surprise as some high schools are known to have inflated grades, and with essays, how can anyone be sure who actually wrote them.

Again from the NYT:

“A second finding was more surprising. During the pandemic, Dartmouth switched to a test-optional policy, in which applicants could choose whether to submit their SAT and ACT scores. And this policy was harming lower-income applicants in a specific way.

The researchers were able to analyze the test scores even of students who had not submitted them to Dartmouth. (Colleges can see the scores after the admissions process is finished.) Many lower-income students, it turned out, had made a strategic mistake.

“They withheld test scores that would have helped them get into Dartmouth. They wrongly believed that their scores were too low, when in truth the admissions office would have judged the scores to be a sign that students had overcome a difficult environment and could thrive at Dartmouth.

“That finding, as much as any other, led to Dartmouth’s announcement this morning. ‘Our goal at Dartmouth is academic excellence in the service of training the broadest swath of future leaders,’ said Siam Beilock, the new President of Dartmouth, ‘I’m convinced by the data that this will help us do that.’

“It’s worth acknowledging a crucial part of this story. Dartmouth admits disadvantaged students who have scores that are lower on average than those of privileged students. The college doesn’t apologize for that. Students from poor neighborhoods or troubled high schools have effectively been running with wind in their face. They are not competing fairly with affluent teenagers.”

So is this a good idea? It is fair to view affluent and less affluent college applicants differently?

My answers … “Yes!” and “Yes!”

This is clearly not race based as it affects those applicants of all races, white, black, or brown.

Hopefully the rest of the woke colleges and universities will soon realize the error of their ways and reinstitute the SAT & ACT in helping determine who is admitted.

2/10/24

What I read this morning thoroughly amazed me. Indeed quite a dichotomy!

This headline from the New York Post:

“Special Counsel Determines Biden Is Too Old to Charge for Mishandling Classified Information”

“Special Counsel Robert Hur has declined to charge President Joe Biden for willfully retaining, disclosing and grossly mishandling a number of classified documents as a private citizen — taking them from his time in the U.S. Senate and after he left the vice presidency in early 2017. He had no declassification authority in either position and shared information with his ghostwriter. 

Citing Biden’s age and memory, the report states a jury would not find him guilty.”

Okay, let me get this straight. 

Because of his age and poor memory, Joe Biden is not going to be charged for mishandling classified information … but yet it is okay for him to run again as the Democratic nominee for President. If elected he will again be handling confidential information despite his advanced age and poor memory. Quite a dichotomy!

To me the other interesting part of this … does it now becomes more 

likely that the charges against Trump will be dropped if he feigns forgetfulness?

2/9/

Typically I read Jeff Childers’ Coffee and Covid every morning. Moreover,  because I not only find him to be entertaining but also agree with most everything he says, I often read him before I read anything else in the morning. However, on 2/7/24 o found myself disagreeing with his opinion on something from ABC-7 Chicago: “Mental health: California county becomes 1st in US to declare loneliness as public health emergency.

He seemed to be mainly ridiculing the all Democrat San Mateo Board of Supervisors because they were both Democrats and San Mateo County is in California. However, I was disappointed because other than mocking this Northern California county board, he had nothing to say about the ‘L’ word, “loneliness.”

Is loneliness a problem in the US? If so how big a problem? 

If someone is a lawyer, like Jeff Childers, who interacts with multiple different people on most days, then loneliness is probably not much of a problem. Likewise, if someone is married and has a wife and children to go home to every evening like Mr. Childers does, then being alone at night could well be a blessing. Similarly, since most lonely individuals are not middle-aged extroverts, like the Coffee and Covid author, maybe keeping an open mind on this issue would be beneficial.

Personally, I am basically a conservative extrovert, but do recognize that loneliness is a major issue, especially in older individuals whose friends and spouse may have died, and who live not close to their family.

While I rarely agree with Democrats, perhaps the San Mateo Board of Supervisors is on to something with reference to the ‘L’ word.

2/8/24

I remember two dances back when I was younger. I really liked The Stroll, and in fact can still do it. The Limbo, on the other hand, is a different story. It wasn’t really a dance, per se, but it did have a song by the same name. As perhaps you can recall the catch phrase of the song was, “How low can you go.”

Recently I opined on the disastrous financial situation in the state of California, but the financial situation in many of California’s big cities is equally worrisome, and getting worse … how low can they go? While the state of California has some options to alleviate its deficit, the large cities do not have the same options. 

From a recent piece by Allysia Finley in the WSJ:

As awful as the budget outlook is in Sacramento, it may be worse for cities across the state, which have few options other than to cut essential services or raise taxes. 

The city manager in Sacramento recently suggested patching a $50 million budget gap by taking longer to fix potholes and broken street lights.

San Diego projects a $172 million budget shortfall. ‘Without a new major ongoing revenue source, significant budget cuts to programs and services will be needed to address the city’s structural budget deficit,’ a Dec. 5 budget report stated.

Los Angeles City Administrator Matthew W. Szabo recently warned of a $400 million deficit owing to rising labor costs and lower-than-expected tax revenue. ‘The identification of new revenue sources is one strategy that the City must embrace in order to become more resilient,’ Mr. Szabo wrote in a Jan. 19 report to the City Council.

The trouble is, taxpayers in La La Land are as maxed out as those in the rest of California. San Francisco faces a nearly $800 million deficit despite having imposed several new taxes in recent years, including one on the gross receipts of businesses whose highest-paid manager earns more than 100 times the median compensation of its San Francisco-based employees.”

The deficits in these cities is getting deeper, and question is similar to that in The Limbo … How low can they can go?”

2/7/24

I awoke this morning thinking about pendulums. Later in the morning I realized that thinking about pendulums is a strange thing to think about … or is it? Pendulums are nature’s way to bring things back back towards the center, and in everyday life pendulum-like action is a way of bringing rationality back toward the center.

In baseball and football many teams start off saying that the goal is to make it to the World Series or to the Super Bowl, but a few weeks into the season, this changes to “making the playoffs,” as rationality-pendulum kicks in.

Today my pendulum question involves Electric Vehicles. When is the EV-rationality pendulum going to kick in? Right now those on the left are mandating that all vehicles need to be electric by the year, XXXX. Anyone who thinks rationally knows that these prospective dates for all EVs  are going to be impossible to achieve, and I think that we are starting to see the beginnings of a pendulum swing.

From IssuesInsights:

“The latest indication is the sharp drop in prices for used EVs.

A report from iSeeCars.com, a search engine for auto buyers, found that the average price for all cars declined 5% in 2023 compared with 2022.

But the resale price EVs plunged 33%.

“Even with this dramatic decline in prices, it took 40% longer to sell an EV in 2023 than it did the year before. Used gas-powered cars, in contrast, sold 10% faster than they did in 2022.

“This combination of lower prices and slower sales suggests EVs have hit a market demand threshold that will be difficult to break through,” said Karl Brauer, iSeeCars executive analyst.

“But it’s not just the used EV market that is cratering. iSeeCars found the same trends with new EV sales. The time it took to get an EV off a dealer’s lot more than doubled in 2023. It now takes roughly three times as long to see an EV than a conventional car, despite price cuts and Biden’s huge EV tax credit.”

Hertz scaled back its plans to add more EVs to its rental fleet, citing high repair costs and declining resale value. German-based rental car company Sixt said it’s phasing out Tesla rentals from its fleets because of reduced resale value.

“So, let’s sum up: New EVs aren’t selling, despite massive government subsidies. Used EVs aren’t selling. People who own EVs often give up on them and switch back to gas-powered cars.”

To me this is the beginning of the pendulum swinging. How far and how long will it take for this EV-pendulum to swing back towards rationality?

I think it depends on the next election. If the Republicans win, rationality will resurface and the pendulum swing will accelerate. If the Dems win, the elites will continue to override the will of the people, and the present pendulum swing will be aborted.

2/6/24

I recently came across something sent to me by Carl DeMaio who is running for State Assembly here in California. He is trying to get a Voter I.D.proposition on the next ballot. I have always liked DeMaio’s ideas, and thus thought that it would be appropriate to copy what he recently sent to me. 

From Carl DeMaio:

“Have you been watching what’s happening at our border? I have several alarming facts to share with you on how bad the situation is:

• Millions of illegal immigrants flowing in every year.  Here in San Diego County, CBP has released over 75,000 illegal immigrants on to San Diego county streets since September and we have no idea where they are now!

• Most of the illegal immigrants coming across are military-aged men and have not been vetted on their past criminal history

• Over 200 terrorist watch list suspects have been detained since January 1, 2023 – and who knows how many others are crossing without detection!

There is a crisis at the border. Politicians from BOTH political parties have failed us!

That’s why this week I will be unveiling a California Border Security Initiative and demanding action on three emergency actions:

1. Deploy the California National Guard immediately to the border as Texas has done.

2. Immediately repeal the California Sanctuary State law that allows criminals to remain in the US without deportation

3. Repeal the recently-approved welfare programs for illegal immigrants for free taxpayer-funded heath insurance and free legal services

I am also redoubling our campaign efforts to qualify and pass my proposal for a California Voter ID Law!  

As long as the border is not secure, and as long as our voter lists are not properly maintained, we need to require Voter ID! It is just common sense!”

Anyway, like I said, I mostly agree with what Carl DeMaio says, and I agree with him on this.

Will any of the above things happen here in California? … No, not until hell freezes over, and with global warming, probably even longer!

2/5/24

As I do every Sunday, today I am writing about a true hero. Today it is Jimmie Sinatra.

From Epoch Bright:

Jimmie Sinatra grew up in Lakewood, Ohio, and bought a house with his wife in the area in 1995. That same year, he invested in his first snowblower. Soon, he upgraded to a Craftsman snowblower that he can walk behind and has been maintaining the prized apparatus ever since.

Why is Jimmie Sinatra an unknown hero? … well for years he has been clearing snow from his neighbor’s sidewalks.

Initially, only his immediate neighbors knew that he was helping clear snow for the neighborhood, and those living further down the street had no idea about it. However, over the years, a couple of people have noticed his handiwork and have asked if he could clear their driveways, too.

At 81-year Jimmie Sinatra has been clearing snowy sidewalks in his neighborhood for over 20 years. He refuses to accept cash donations, insisting he loves the snow and helping his neighbors. Now he is helping 34 neighbors!

“I don’t ask for money, I don’t ask for anything, I just do it to help the neighbors,” Mr. Sinatra said. “It’s something for me to do. I enjoy it, that’s all. I enjoy helping people.”

At the age of 81, Mr. Sinatra has his own health problems. In May 2023 he was diagnosed with stage four chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emphysema in both lungs. He has trouble breathing so he wears a scarf to keep warm and carries an inhaler when he leaves the house to clear snow.”

The picture of him on Epoch Bright shows him dressed warmly while using his snow blower. What I noticed the most about that picture was his portable nasal oxygen!.

Jimmie Sinatra … a true hero!

2/4/24

As I have stated before I think there was something fishy about what occurred in and around the Capital on Jan 6. … Increased security was turned down! Hundreds of undercover agents in the crowd! Doors being opened as if to invite people in!

However, what I just read makes the situation even worse for those who were charged with various infractions.

It’s my understanding that in a fair trial, the accused has to be tried by a jury of his peers. If the jury pool is predominantly made up of individuals who have diametrically opposed political views compared to a defendant, does this satisfy the requirement about being judged by one’s peers? In general, I do not think that jurors should be asked about their political affiliation or who they voted for in the last election. However, here I am concerned with the jury pool in general. The results of a survey of potential Washington D.C.  jury pool participants was just released and the findings are deeply disturbing.

Is there a reason to think that the jury pool is biased against these Jan 6 defendants in the first place? 

An analysis published on Jan. 5 by the Associated Press shows that 1,241 people have been charged so far for their participation in the protests, which took place at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Of those, 905 have been convicted, 768 have been sentenced, and 322 are pending. Only one has been acquitted.

So far, over half of the defendants chose to have a judge decide their case rather than face a jury of Washington residents.

Of the 74 defendants who opted for a bench trial, 72 were convicted.

With the overwhelming number of guilty verdicts is it possible that the jury pool is a biased group even before they enter the courtroom?

Perhaps a survey could be taken. … sounds like a good idea, and so a survey was done.

(For the sake of clarity Edward Jacob “Jake” Lang, a Jan. 6 defendant from Newburgh, New York, who has been incarcerated in the D.C. jail for three years without a trial, is the one who commissioned the survey. It was paid for through donations to the January 6th Legal Fund to support Jan. 6 defendants.)

A survey (pdf) conducted by Triton Polling and Research between Jan. 1-8 and obtained exclusively by The Epoch Times reveals an extreme level of bias among potential jurors living in Washington toward anyone who participated in the protests at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

For those of you who wish to read about the results of this survey in detail, I need to refer you to the Epoch Times article on 1/25/24 by Patricia Tolson. 

What follows are the more egregious results of this survey.

Of the 422 “jury eligible residents” surveyed, 27.5 percent describe Jan. 6 protestors as “insurrectionists.” Others describe them as “criminals” (13 percent), “domestic terrorists” (14.9 percent), or “traitors” (11.6 percent).

The overwhelming majority also “strongly” (75 percent) or “somewhat agree” (14.4 percent) that former President Donald Trump is to blame for what happened, and 76.6 percent “strongly agree” that Mr. Trump’s supporters are racists.

Asked if they thought Jan. 6 was “an act of terrorism,” 63.6 percent said they “strongly agree.” Just 8 percent said they “strongly disagree.”

After informing survey participants that “the penalty for insurrection, treason, or committing an act of domestic terrorism is life imprisonment or death,” 26.9 percent said they “strongly agree” and 21.1 percent said they “somewhat agree” that those penalties would “be a fair punishment for anyone who participated in any of the events of January 6.”

“Regardless of what they did,” participants were asked if “anyone who participated in the events at the Capitol on January 6 should serve prison time.” Most (51.4 percent) said they “strongly agree” and 17.4 percent said they “somewhat agree.”

Most (68.6 percent) say Jan. 6 protesters should be “punished to the fullest extent of the law to prevent anything like this from happening again” and that “America is a safer place with them in prison” (40.1 percent).

Wow!!

Double Wow!!!!

No wonder the conviction rates are so one-sided. From my perspective, there is no way that any of these lemmings who were enticed to go into the Capitol can possibly get anywhere close to a “fair”trial. Actually the fact that Government prosecutors and judges insist there is no evidence to prove that they can’t get a fair trial in Washington is shameful!

Hopefully those who are already in jail because they were convicted by these “impartial” juries can use this survey to get their guilty verdicts overturned. For those who will not be successful and will remain in jail, hopefully President Trump will pardon them all.

2/3/24

The state of California seems to be circling the drain. Why do I say that? … actually there are multiple reasons why I am led to this conclusion.

First: California’s deficit is immense.

From California’s Legislative Budget Office:

California Faces a $68 Billion Deficit. Largely as a result of a severe revenue decline in 2022‑23, the state faces a serious budget deficit. Specifically, under the state’s current law and policy, we estimate the Legislature will need to solve a budget problem of $68 billion in the upcoming budget process.

Second, businesses are leaving California in droves, and Sacramento is either unaware of what’s happening or has chosen to ignore it.

– Chief Executive Magazine reports annually on the Best and Worst States for Business. Predictably, in their Best and Worst of 2023, California is ranked number #50 – again.

CEOs have solidified opinions about the welcoming top states, their assessment of the worst has ossified: No. 47 New Jersey, No. 48 Illinois, No. 49 New York and No. 50 California remain the same as in the 2022 survey.

What should be obvious is that when businesses leave, the employees go with them. These employees not only pay state income taxes, but also property taxes. This paying of taxes then cascades down to sales taxes, and so what looks initially to be the innocent movement of a small company turns into a big megillah as taxes are the revenue source for the state.

In addition, individuals, not affiliated with businesses are also leaving the state. Although the reasons are multi factorial, high taxes are high on the list. I personally know four individuals who have fled California for other locales (Florida, Missouri, Colorado, Nevada, and Tennessee). These individuals are all in one of the higher tax brackets, poof! … they are gone!

More than half of states have cut tax rates in the last two years, according to the Tax Foundation. This has set off big regional competitions. Colorado, for instance, adopted a 4.4 percent top rate on income, and Arizona slashed its rate to 2.5 percent, leapfrogging the rate cut to 5 percent that Utah adopted five years ago.

California’s income tax rate has been 13.3% for a decade, but effective January 1, 2024, the new top rate is an eye-watering 14.4%, Forbes reports.

Are you getting the picture? Sacramento certainly isn’t, and consequently the  circling of the fiscal disaster drain just continues!

2/2/24