Ripple

A water drop and ripples

Is the NCAA an indicator of the breaking of the dam of reality on COVID?

By Justin Katz | January 10, 2022 |

This is encouraging and long overdue: As ESPN reports, the NCAA’s COVID-19 Medical Advisory Group updated its definition of “fully vaccinated” to account for various new vaccinations, boosters, and immunity factors. “Fully vaccinated individuals now include those within two months of receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, five months of receiving the Pfizer vaccine series…

A water drop and ripples

We can hope for (but not count on) the COVID shutdowns’ being the end of teachers unions.

By Justin Katz | January 10, 2022 |

Many of us sure do hope that Lindsey Burke is onto something, here: The only way out of this mess is to free families from the clutches of the teachers’ unions. Funding students directly would empower families to access educational alternatives. The good news is that the unions’ political games could further the movement to…

A water drop and ripples

New business starts can be a sign of an unhealthy economy.

By Justin Katz | January 10, 2022 |

I’ve long speculated that Rhode Islanders start businesses at a healthy clip because the economy isn’t producing work at the level of hours and/or pay that they want.  That is why the Ocean State sees a lot of businesses struggle when they start formalizing things.  All the business stuff is too complicated, especially when the folks…

A water drop and ripples

Snowball fighting should be legislators’ first priority!

By Justin Katz | January 7, 2022 |

Did you know only eight Rhode Island communities have laws against the menace of snowball fighting?!?! Charlestown Glocester Jamestown Newport North Kingstown Warwick West Warwick Woonsocket Over the recent years of the pandemic, the Rhode Island General Assembly has proven its concern for the big issues, like banning the release of balloons into the air…

A water drop and ripples

Do media organizations not know what they’re giving up, or do they think it’s worth it?

By Justin Katz | January 7, 2022 |

Writing for Heritage, Tim Murtaugh laments the continued credibility drain from the mainstream media: It’s obvious that the media’s hatred for Donald Trump colored nearly everything they wrote or said during his presidency. But one hoped that after he left the White House, the media might recover a little objectivity. Sadly, a review of 2021…

A water drop and ripples

It always comes down to confiscation, doesn’t it?

By Justin Katz | January 7, 2022 |

Via Instapundit comes a telling story out of Washington University in St. Louis: Student leaders at Washington University in St. Louis want school officials to evict the “disproportionately wealthy and white” men in campus fraternities and give their buildings to “historically marginalized” groups. Writing in Student Life for himself and almost 50 leaders of WashU student organizations,…

A water drop and ripples

The activists have a solid career path, now.

By Justin Katz | January 6, 2022 |

Years ago, a regular commenter on Anchor Rising who was obviously (let’s say) a dissenting voice around here commented more than once that college conservatives had a ready career path if they wanted to get into politics or media.  The comment always struck me as delusional, but… whatever. Nowadays, retired college professor Mark Bauerlein observes that…

A water drop and ripples

Don’t forget the other layer of hospitalization and death “with” versus “from” COVID.

By Justin Katz | January 6, 2022 |

When I conveyed the state Department of Health’s findings on the question of whether people were in the hospital because of COVID or merely while happening to test positive for it, one word in particular seemed worthy of a mental note for subsequent consideration (emphasis added): According to Wendelken, “someone who goes to the hospital…

A water drop and ripples

Are there any traditions around our newest national political holiday, yet?

By Justin Katz | January 6, 2022 |

I actually just saw a Rhode Island politician proclaiming on social media that we must “never forget” January 6.  The dogged fixation on that day is one of the most-obvious attempts at political narrative building in the past year. But if we’re going to have a new national political holiday, we’re going to have to…

A water drop and ripples

Refusal to report on such things has to be a deliberate narrative decision.

By Justin Katz | January 5, 2022 |

Noting that ballot harvesting is illegal in Georgia, Glenn Reynolds quotes from a Just the News story about a government investigation into a major campaign in violation of that law during the 2020 election cycle: Georgia authorities have launched an investigation into an allegation of systematic ballot harvesting during the state’s 2020 general election and subsequent…