Archive for May 17, 2022

A Black woman for the GOP

Posted: May 17, 2022 by chrisharper in politics
Tags: ,

By Christopher Harper

Today’s GOP primary here in Pennsylvania, particularly in the U.S. Senate race, underlines the unpredictability of the state’s Republican Party.

Seven candidates are vying for the ability to replace Pat Toomey, a significant disappointment for many Republicans.

David McCormick, a former hedge-fund executive, has millions of dollars to spend, but his close ties to China make him unpalatable even though he has been at or near the top of the polls. Moreover, his connections are mainly to New Jersey rather than Pennsylvania.

Mehmet Oz, a surgeon and a television talk show host, has the support of President Trump. But Oz’s past statements in support of abortion and other liberal issues have offended many conservatives in the state.

As a result, Kathy Barnette, a former soldier and Fox News analyst, has gained traction in recent weeks.

This trio stands atop the polls in what has become one of the most expensive and dirtiest campaigns in Pennsylvania’s history.

Barnette has been the recent target of such attacks, including her tweets about Islam and gays.

“My phone is blowing up with people who never call who are asking who they should vote for,” said Doug McLinko, a Bradford County commissioner and local Republican Party official in northern Pennsylvania.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, McLinko said he has rarely seen as much confusion and indecision among conservatives. “Spending all this money to attack each other isn’t helpful because it has confused the voters,” he said. “I’ve never seen such a mess.”

If successful, Barnette would be the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Senate as a Republican. During the campaign, she has questioned the commitment of her better-funded rivals on abortion and other conservative causes.

 “I am the byproduct of a rape,” she said in one debate, as she criticized Oz for past support of abortion. “My mother was 11 years old when I was conceived. My father was 21. I was not just a lump of cells.”

Barnette said she was raised on a pig farm in Alabama that lacked running water.

In her book, Nothing to Lose, Everything to Gain: Being Black and Conservative in America, Barnette argues that liberal policies have failed the Black community. 

I think Republicans need someone different to set the party apart from the Democrats. A Black woman from a hardscrabble background might make a powerful candidate against the Democrats, who depend heavily on the Black communities in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. 

Club for Growth Action, a conservative super PAC, has endorsed Barnette and placed an order for $2 million in advertising in support of her. Barnette, who lost a bid to join U.S. House of Representatives in 2020, also won the backing of the Susan B. Anthony List, a pro-life group.

Conventional wisdom argues that a Black female Republican will have difficulty beating the likely Democrat John Fetterman, the state’s lieutenant governor. But Fetterman suffered a stroke over the weekend and may not be as formidable as many experts think. 

I don’t think conventional wisdom and experts work much anymore. As a result, I plan to vote for Barnette. I think she might be just the right candidate to keep the seat in Republican hands. 

DaTechGuy’s 3rd Law of Media Outrage NBA Playoffs Mass shooting Edition

Posted: May 17, 2022 by datechguy in nba, Sports

The NBA has been very fortunate in their playoffs this year in a couple of respects.

Very exciting games (well except for the closeout game of Dallas vs Phoenix) , Very exciting storylines (The rise of the Celtics, the fall of Kyrie and Harden, the return of Golden State), and the two players most likely remind folks of the league’s dirty dealings with China (Lebron & Freedom) not in the picture, one because his team didn’t make the playoffs (itself an interesting story) and the other because he was immediately released after being traded and blacklisted.

All of this has been fortunate for them to keep the narrative on track but the thing that has really worked out the best for them has been DaTechGuy’s 3rd Law of Media Outrage which states:

The MSM’s elevation and continued classification of any story as Nationally Newsworthy rather than only of local interest is in direct correlation to said story’s current ability to affirm any current Democrat/Liberal/Media meme/talking point, particularly on the subject of race or sexuality.

Now unless you live under a rock you know that there was a mass shooting in Buffalo last week that the left has done it’s best to exploit politically to the point where Joe Biden (well whoever is running Joe Biden) has decided it’s worthwhile for the President to visit the city this week.

Now ask yourself this question.

Let’s say you have a national event , Say an NBA playoff closeout game, and lets say this event is of particular interest even beyond the fanbase of the two teams involved because:

  • It involves the defending champions (Milwaukee)
  • It involves one of the most storied franchises in the history of the game (Boston Celtics)
  • It’s a close out game, where Milwaukee can advance to the Conference Finals with a win & the Celtics need a win to force a game seven
  • It follows one of the most memorable last minute comebacks (Milwaukee’s game five win in Boston) in NBA playoff history

Now lets say just after the game ends with Boston winning on the road and forcing game seven there is a mass shooting at the arena where 17 people are wounded and fans leaving the stadium are literally running for their lives

You just might think that 17 people shot exiting an NBA stadium just might make the national news, that is if you were unaware of DaTechGuy’s 3rd law of media outrage. Because if you were then you would know that Fox would cover it:

“Everybody started running,” witness Brittany Bergstrom, who was at a nearby restaurant, told FOX 6 in Milwaukee. “There was a stampede, people running over the shrubs, hats shoes on the ground, drinks spilled everywhere.”

She said her boyfriend pulled her behind a brick wall, “and if he wouldn’t have this outcome would be a lot different. And that’s all I know and everybody took off running and I just kept running.” 

What I was really interested in wasn’t the lack of National News coverage which I expected to be non-existent, but the degree that NBA fans, who followed the series, were aware of it. Surely such fans would have heard about this on social media or on sports media coverage.

So when I went to work on Sunday I asked people who were following game seven about the shooting.

Not a single person I talked to had even heard of it!

Like I said the NBA has been very fortunate this year when it comes to their playoffs. They were most fortunate that the Celtics won game seven because with a curfew in effect it would have been impossible to hide the reason why in the coverage of a game 3 in Milwaukee vs the Heat

Closing thought: I wonder how much the idea of having to play the next series in a free fire zone affected the defending Champion Bucks, who had already won two games at the Garden in Boston in this series when they were playing game seven? It’s one thing for betting on sports to affect a series but having to bet your life, I suspect that’s bigger.

Closing thought Number 2. Not only did the last GOP mayor of Milwaukee leave office in 1908 but there have been three times as many Socialist mayors of Milwaukee in the 20th century (3) then there were Republican Mayors (1).