Quick Read

Logos for the RI Democratic Party and Democratic Women's Caucus

The RI Democratic Party relies on a probably-unconstitutional law to silence Democratic women.

By Justin Katz | October 14, 2021 |

Controversial Rhode Island Democratic Party Senior Advisor Kate Coyne-McCoy sent a letter to the Rhode Island Democratic Women’s Caucus advising the group that it is using the word “democratic” in its name illegally, reports Steve Ahlquist on UpriseRI. In a surprisingly sloppy letter full of misspelled words, Coyne-McCoy refers generally to Rhode Island General Law Chapter…

Whiteboard harassment of Ramona Bessinger

Where is the support for Bessinger and her cause?

By Justin Katz | October 14, 2021 |

William Jacobson reports on Legal Insurrection that while Providence middle school teacher was at an inquiry alleging that she had permitted some students out of her classroom during a practice lockdown, students wrote threatening notes on her classroom’s whiteboard and tweeted pictures at them.  One of the images showed a student at the board, but Jacobson speculates…

Infectious bronchitis virus

Long natural immunity is important to recognize, even in its caveats.

By Justin Katz | October 13, 2021 |

The damage that public health authorities have done to their credibility by refusing to demonstrate due acknowledgment of naturally acquired immunity to COVID-19 has been immense.  Perhaps they’re ideologically motivated, but it might be as simple as believing that the risks of vaccination are low enough and its effectiveness high enough that the clarity and…

David Teniers' Village Revel with Aristocratic Couple

The rabble must recognize friend and foe.

By Justin Katz | October 13, 2021 |

Michael Morse is pledging never again to vote for the lesser of two evils. On the whole, his “Saturday morning soapbox,” as he calls it, resonates very strongly with me, although I disagree with his pledge for prudential reasons — most significantly because it’s really very, very easy for activists and the news media to…

Joe Biden "We will not forget"

The innocent must beware of Biden’s threat never to forgive or forget.

By Justin Katz | October 12, 2021 |

Catching up on podcast listening over the weekend, I was reminded of Joe Biden’s declaration (video) after the terrorist attack on Kabul airport while his administration was struggling in its shamefully botched retreat from Afghanistan: To those who carried out this attack, as well as anyone who wishes America harm, know this: We will not…

Kari MacRae TikTok video

A Hanover math and business teacher was fired for not adhering to the state religion.

By Justin Katz | October 12, 2021 |

Last week, a post in this space juxtaposed Roger Williams University’s requirement that new hires model woke values in their off-campus lives with a federal ruling that Catholic schools cannot have a similar requirement for their employees and their values.  This week, Jeff Reynolds brings news on Legal Insurrection that a teacher of math and business…

Policeman

A fundamental point must be made about low police recruitment in RI.

By Justin Katz | October 11, 2021 |

Laura Damon provides some of the reasons, in a Newport Daily News article, why police departments on Aquidneck Island may be having a hard time finding police officers: This year, calls for applications to join the Newport Police Department yielded a significantly lower turnout than years past. … “First of all, we have a lot of highly…

Gavel with a speech bubble

Courts don’t settle science; they settle the law, and they’re settling it against the rights of the people.

By Justin Katz | October 11, 2021 |

This is an ominous development, reported by Jack Phillips for The Epoch Times: A federal judge on Oct. 8 denied a request to block Michigan State University’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate on the basis of natural immunity. An employee at the school, Jeanna Norris, filed a lawsuit against the mandate and asked a judge to intervene on…

Classroom scene in The Mortal Storm

The mortal storm swells in the West, again.

By Justin Katz | October 11, 2021 |

Looking to cross a movie off my never-shrinking “to watch” list, last night — preferably with something inspiring and relevant to the holiday — I watched The Mortal Storm.  Perhaps in counterintuitive ways, it fit the evening well.  Indeed, this may be a movie for our times. Released in 1940, as Nazi Germany made its way across…

Reporters taking notes

UPDATED: The RI news media would rather throw shade at John DePetro than inform Rhode Islanders.

By Justin Katz | October 9, 2021 |

Understanding that not everybody has a degree in journalism, let’s try a quick quiz. You’re a journalist with a mainstream news organization covering the Ocean State. A protest outside the governor’s house sees some modest action when two participants are arrested. One local freelance journalist captured the entire thing on camera and the video on his…