Da Techguy's (no longer backup) Blog

A long time ago before anyone ever thought of a Truck Convoy in Canada to protect people’s rights a Senator by the name of Harry Reid decided to break the norms of the institution for short term political gain. When it happened Mitch McConnell gave him this warning:

Those word proved prophetic as the GOP responded in kind that Donald Trump put three justices on the Supreme Court and Mitch McConnell pushed through judges at a record pace.

In other words Democrats didn’t realize that the power which they craved to push their agenda might be used against them, and paid the price.

And that brings us to this tweet by congresswoman Illan Omar concerning the tactics being used by journalists against donors to the Canadian Trucker Convoy:

I fail to see why any journalist felt the need to report on a shop owner making such a insignificant donation rather than to get them harassed. It’s unconscionable and journalists need to do better. https://t.co/oF7WIoS1jp

— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 16, 2022

As a member of the squad her embrace of a reasonable position on personal liberty caused a lot of surprise on the right and suggests the analogy of a broken clock being right twice a day.

Me I think it’s something completely different.

Ilhan Omar has proven to be a good friend and protector of both radical Islam and some of the more violent movements we have seen lately in this country. She understands that there are plenty of people in the US and around the world who are fellow travelers in that circle who provide comfort and support for what she and her allies are doing.

What would happen if suddenly the light of day was shined on those who have been financing it? Both on a grand level and on a smaller one? I suspect it would not go well for them.

Freedom of association is a basic freedom and people should support it but my money says Omar is a lot less interested in supporting that basic freedom then she is in making sure that abuses against that freedom are not used against those who have supported and abetted her allies. She may not give a damn about those Canadian Truckers or their friends but I’ll bet she sure doesn’t want a precedent that will be used against her.

I suspect she’s learned the lesson of Harry Reid’s foolishness well.

One of the things that has caught a lot of people by surprise is how quickly the folks on the left have turned totalitarian.

For years whenever such traits were hinted at the denials and the dismissals were swift and sure.

But now it’s all in the open and this stuff is being defended and treated as if it’s noble.

I may be wrong but I find it highly unlikely that all of these people have suddenly turned. It’s much more likely that this was what they were into forever and just didn’t have the power to openly do it.

This is why these folks should not be let anywhere near power.

Do you disagree? Discuss

There is one thing about what’s going on in Canada that doesn’t make sense to me.

Unlike the US system where elections are scheduled for specific intervals without interruption in Canada there is a parliamentary system which means that the opposition can call for a vote of “No confidence” in the government which would mean an election.

If Trudeau’s handling of the crisis is as unpopular as polls indicate and the crackdowns as egregious as they seem I can’t understand why the opposition has not made such a motion?

It may be they figure there is more capital to me made from Trudeau making an ass of himself but it might be something worse. It might be there are enough people in the Canadian government who like the idea of crackdowns.

I hope I’m wrong but I suspect that is the case.

Back in my youth when there was such a thing as sane Democrats Tip O’Neill the congressman and later speaker of the house from Massachusetts was famous for two specific phrases:

1. All Politics is local
2. I’ve always known how to count

These two principles are basic. One must make sure you are keeping the local voter happy and be sure to know if you have to votes before advancing any position.

The sudden about face by Democrats both locally and nationally on COVID restrictions reflect both of these realities.

The anger on the local level, particularly at school boards reflect a real problem for the left. Once conservatives are engaged locally all of their attempts to mold society become placed in danger and awakes voters to the dangers of their policies. The longer these restrictions go on, the more danger they are to the media/left.

But even more importantly are the poll numbers. Tip always maintained the most important thing a pol needed to know was how to count and while matchmakes are not encouraged in schools where Democrats are in charge, if you want to win elections without theft or sometimes even with them, you have to make the numbers close enough so they are within the margin of fraud.

2022 looks like a liberal disaster. Moving the COVID goalposts is the Democrats best shot of nudging the numbers back into a range where their problems might still be critical but not insoluable.

Tip would approve.