{"id":98501,"date":"2021-11-21T18:13:24","date_gmt":"2021-11-21T23:13:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/?p=98501"},"modified":"2021-11-21T18:13:31","modified_gmt":"2021-11-21T23:13:31","slug":"the-daily-gouge-archive-friday-november-19th-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thedailygouge.com\/?p=98501","title":{"rendered":"The Daily Gouge Archive, Friday, November 19th, 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s Friday, November 19th, 2021…but before we begin, the Morning Jolt<\/em> recognizes an inauspicious milestone for a wholly-unnecessary event, as he marks…<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Disquieting Anniversary<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

My younger son\u2019s science teacher told him yesterday that it was the two-year anniversary of the first COVID-19 case. That teacher is correct, at least as far as we know<\/span><\/em>, in the sense that the\u00a0South China Morning Post\u00a0reported in March 2020<\/a><\/span><\/em>\u00a0that the Chinese government believed the first known patient was a 55-year-old Hubei province resident, diagnosed on November 17, 2019<\/span><\/em>. Because<\/span><\/em> the Chinese government never shared<\/em><\/span> that information, no one can independently verify it.<\/span> So \u201cPatient Zero\u201d who started the pandemic might<\/span><\/em> have been that 55-year-old Hubei province resident, or it could<\/em><\/span> be someone else, such as the\u00a0three researchers from China\u2019s Wuhan Institute of Virology who became sick enough in November 2019 that they sought hospital care<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0who lost their sense of smell<\/a><\/em><\/span>. But hey, maybe<\/em><\/span>\u00a0(As 46*, all our intelligence agencies and health bureaucrats would have us believe!<\/em>)<\/span> it\u2019s just a big strange coincidence<\/span><\/em>!<\/span>\u00a0Big strange coincidences ALWAYS seem to happen involving the Chinese government<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/em>!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In another WuFlu-related item, Jim Geraghty suggests you…<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Fear Thanksgiving…Unless You\u2019re a Turkey<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“As we start Year Three of the COVID-19 pandemic, a minor<\/span><\/em> rise in cases has a bunch<\/em><\/span> of media voices warning that the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday is a potential disaster<\/span><\/em>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHoliday COVID alarm as cases rise 20 percent,\u201d\u00a0warns\u00a0Axios<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re Having a Holiday Gathering. Are We Nuts?\u201d\u00a0asks the\u00a0New York Times<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPhiladelphia Health Officials Concerned Region Could See New Wave Of COVID-19 Cases As Holidays Approach,\u201d reports\u00a0the Philadelphia CBS affiliate<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

But these warnings and expressions of concern are focusing on the measuring stick of an increase in the daily rate of new\u00a0cases<\/em><\/span>, and as I try to emphasize, over and over again<\/span><\/em>, cases<\/span><\/em> are no longer the most useful measuring stick for the severity and risk of this pandemic<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

COVID-19 and the Delta variant are going to keep<\/span><\/em> jumping around from person to person for the foreseeable future<\/span><\/em>.<\/span> A vaccinated person can still<\/span><\/em> catch COVID-19, and they can still<\/em><\/span> carry it and spread<\/em><\/span> it to others. Vaccination\u2019s primary objective is to prevent you from having a severe reaction to the virus<\/em><\/span> \u2014 up to and including death<\/span><\/em> \u2014 if you do<\/em><\/span> catch it.<\/span> While vaccinated and unvaccinated people carry a comparable \u201cviral load\u201d \u2014 how much of the virus is in their systems \u2014 a recent study indicated that the\u00a0viral load decreased faster for fully vaccinated people with a Delta infection than for unvaccinated people<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>. The less time<\/span><\/em> the virus is in your system, the less likely<\/em><\/span> you are to spread it to someone else.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In the majority of cases<\/em><\/span>, vaccinated<\/em><\/span> people who get exposed to COVID-19 are either asymptomatic or have minor, manageable symptoms<\/span><\/em>. The country has had more than 48 million<\/span><\/em> diagnosed COVID-19 cases by now.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The more useful measuring sticks<\/span><\/em> for the severity of the pandemic are hospitalizations and deaths<\/em><\/span>. COVID-19 hospitalizations<\/em><\/span> are down 1 percent<\/em><\/span> in the past two weeks, and COVID-19 deaths<\/em><\/span> are down 14 percent<\/em><\/span> in the past two weeks.<\/span> Right now<\/span><\/em>, the U.S. has about 49,000 hospital beds<\/span> being used by COVID-19 patients<\/span><\/em>; back in early September<\/em><\/span>, that number was about 95,000<\/span><\/em>. In early January<\/em><\/span>, it was about 1<\/span>25,000<\/span><\/em> on any given day<\/strong><\/span>…”<\/p>\n

Wake up and smell the totalitarianism,\u00a0<\/strong>America.\u00a0 Then again, as this meme from Balls Cotton suggests…<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Now, here’s The Gouge<\/em>!<\/strong><\/p>\n

First up, FOX<\/em> reports…<\/strong><\/p>\n

NPR is slammed over story highlighting ‘disappointment’ over Boston electing Asian woman mayor<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/h1>\n

NPR deemed Wu’s win a ‘letdown’ for some after she defeated African-American candidates<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“…“Michelle Wu, an Asian American, is the first woman and first person of color elected to lead the city. While many are hailing it as a turning point, others see it as more of a disappointment that the three Black candidates couldn’t even come close<\/em><\/span>,” NPR tweeted. <\/span>It deleted the tweet after online criticism<\/span><\/em>, although the thrust of the story remained the same<\/span><\/em>.<\/strong><\/span>“<\/p>\n

Which helps explain, as The Washington Free Beacon<\/em>\u00a0via White House Dossier<\/em> reports,\u00a0<\/strong>support for Democrats is slipping with Asian-American voters<\/em><\/span><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Speaking of the impact of inherent, institutional racism, NRO<\/em>‘s Charlie Cooke records…<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Collapse of Kamala Harris<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h1>\n

You hate to see it<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“…At CNN this week, Donna Brazile\u00a0suggested<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>\u00a0that the White House should keep \u201cthe vice president on the road almost constantly\u201d \u2014 which sounded like an eminently pragmatic way of ensuring that Harris remains safely out of the way<\/em><\/span> until I realized that Brazile was envisioning Harris using those trips to\u00a0talk<\/span>\u00a0<\/em>to American voters. Harris, Brazile added, \u201cis a wonderful<\/span><\/em> messenger.\u201d<\/span> But is she?\u00a0Really<\/em><\/span>?<\/span> Think back over Harris\u2019s entire career. Can you find a\u00a0single<\/em><\/span>\u00a0utterance of hers that has so much as\u00a0approached<\/em><\/span>\u00a0being compelling or worthwhile?<\/span> I doubt it. Harris is not<\/em><\/span> interesting, she\u2019s not<\/em><\/span> substantive, she\u2019s not<\/em><\/span> provocative, or<\/em><\/span> innovative, or<\/em><\/span> wry.<\/span> She\u2019s not<\/em><\/span> funny. She\u2019s not<\/em><\/span> amiable.<\/span> She\u2019s not accomplished or persuasive or adroit<\/span><\/em>. She\u2019s a heedless, cowardly, cackling cipher \u2014 an insipid, itinerant woolgatherer, whose first instinct in any situation is to resort to\u00a0farcical platitudes<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/span>\u00a0or to\u00a0suggest wanly<\/a><\/em><\/span>\u00a0that we should all have a \u201cconversation about that.\u201d<\/span> Were she to be cast in a kids\u2019 movie, it would not be as the hero, but as the ghastly mid-level bureaucrat who sends the hero\u2019s dog to the pound<\/em><\/span> halfway through the second act. All in all, there is no reason for anyone to be shocked by Harris\u2019s failure, because there was no reason to anticipate that she\u2019d end up as anything else<\/em><\/span>.<\/span> Presidential campaigns start off as vanity exercises in which overpaid marketing teams present their candidate as their candidate wishes ideally to be seen. When Harris was such a candidate, she gained 3 percent support<\/em><\/span> in the polls.<\/span> What, exactly<\/em><\/span>, did her team think was going to happen when she was forced into the real<\/em><\/span> world?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

And what did Joe Biden think?<\/span> Whatever it was, the gamble clearly did not come off. Were Biden more popular \u2014 and more alive \u2014 the disesteem in which his vice president is held might serve as a mere inconvenience.<\/span> \u201cAh well,\u201d he might think, \u201cat least she\u2019s not a\u00a0threat<\/em>.\u201d But Joe Biden is not<\/em><\/span> popular \u2014 and he\u2019s not obviously alive, either \u2014 which makes his having chosen such a dud of an heir apparent\u00a0a \u201cbig f***ing deal<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0Absent a Nixon-Agnew-style cataclysm, the next cast of Democratic primary voters is going to have to choose one of three excruciating courses for 2024: (1) ask an 82-year-old Joe Biden to run for the White House again; (2) ask Kamala Harris to step in and take the reins; or (3) rip the party apart with a vigorously contested primary that, given the long lead-times that mark American politics, would last in one form or another for the lion\u2019s share of Joe Biden\u2019s post-midterm presidency.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

You hate to see it.<\/strong><\/span>“<\/p>\n

The only thing better than watching the Dimocratic Party rip itself apart in an orgy of self-inflicted wounds…<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

…would be having hot, buttered popcorn on hand while we enjoy the show.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Next, courtesy of\u00a0The Corner<\/em>, Jim Geraghty highlights the hypocrisy of dealing with Beijing as anything but a tyrannical totalitarian terrorists, as a…\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tennis Association CEO States \u2018I Have a Hard Time Believing that Peng Shuai Actually Wrote the E-mail We Received<\/span><\/a>.\u2019<\/span><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“Earlier today,\u00a0Chinese state-run media ran stories purportedly quoting missing Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>, who recently accused former vice premier Zhang Gaoli of coercing her into sex<\/span><\/em>. (Background here<\/a><\/span><\/em>.)<\/span> In the alleged released statement, Peng retracted her accusation of sexual assault, said, \u201cI\u2019ve just been resting at home and everything is fine,\u201d and asked the Women\u2019s Tennis Association to not publish any further news about her without verification from her.<\/span> To say the released statement is unconvincing<\/em><\/span> is an understatement<\/em><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

…<\/span>The fact that we have not seen<\/em><\/span> Peng Shuai on camera is particularly unnerving<\/span><\/em>; it is quite possible that for making her sexual coercion accusation public, the Chinese government or allies of Zhang Gaoli have abducted her and are detaining her, or, God forbid, something even worse has happened to her.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Who is willing to play along with this demonic charade? And who is willing to stand up to this?<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

And should a country like\u00a0this<\/em><\/span>\u00a0be hosting the Winter Olympics in a few months?<\/strong><\/span>“<\/p>\n

As if this same country being responsible, either inadvertently or deliberately…perhaps in collusion with Dimocrats looking to take Trump down by any means…for loosing the WuFlu upon the world, not sounding the alarm and then covering up its culpability was not enough.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Moving on, here’s a octet of specially selected stories certain to interest inquiring Conservative minds:<\/strong><\/p>\n

(1). NRO<\/em> reports a recent poll indicates less than a year into his first term nearly ha<\/strong>lf of voters are questioning\u00a0nearly hafl of voters are questioning 46*’s mental fitness<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/span>.\u00a0 The other half are either profiting from his Socialist policies or as insensate as he is.\u00a0 As the Morning Jolt<\/em> observed:<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Since becoming president, Biden\u2019s public comments have grown stranger and more meandering even by his usual standards. He has odd angry outbursts \u2014\u00a0\u201cThat was four or five days ago<\/span>!\u201d\u00a0He holds to a light schedule, almost never does nighttime events, hasn\u2019t sat down for an extended on-camera interview with any major journalist, and is\u00a0spending as much time as possible at his Delaware home<\/a><\/span><\/span>. He keeps\u00a0insisting that he was never briefed on his options in Afghanistan<\/a><\/span>, even as his military advisers have testified before Congress that he was.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Joe Biden has been in the public eye for decades; we know what is normal for this man. He\u2019s not the same guy he was when he was vice president.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>Biden turns 79 on Saturday. He pledged to release the results of a complete checkup earlier this year, but that checkup hasn\u2019t occurred yet<\/span><\/em>.<\/strong>“<\/p>\n

(2). Townhall.com<\/em>‘s\u00a0Katie Pavlich offers an update on the alleged whipping of Haitians illegally entering the country by Border Patrol agents on horseback<\/a><\/span><\/em>.\u00a0 Apparently, the DHS \u201cinitially referred the investigation to DHS\u2019s Office of Inspector General (OIG). The OIG declined to investigate and referred the matter back to CBP\u2019s Office of Professional Responsibility.\u201d And, as Jim Geraghty noted, “the Office of Professional Responsibility is still working on it, two months later, even though DHS secretary Alejandro Mayorkas pledged to Congress that the investigation would be completed in \u201cdays, not weeks.\u201d”<\/strong><\/p>\n

(3). In an abject act of moral cowardice, the Journal<\/em> reports\u00a0Catholic bishops have dropped their effort to ban communion for politicians who support abortions<\/em><\/span><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

(4). NRO<\/em> reports the 46* clown car can chalk up another unenviable achievement, as the lax border enforcement<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/a> which has enabled\u00a0Mexican drug cartels to smuggle record breaking amounts of fentanyl-laced meth, heroin, and fake prescription pills into the country coupled with its continued, counterproductive COVID restrictions have led to a record-breaking number of drug overdose deaths<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 Let’s go<\/span><\/em>, Brandon!!!<\/strong><\/p>\n

(5).\u00a0Judge Bruce Schroeder banned MSNBC and NBC staff from the Rittenhouse trial<\/em><\/span><\/a> following a police report one of their “journalists” ran a red light while attempting to follow the bus transporting jury members.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0James J. Morrison told officers he was a news producer employed by MSDNC<\/em>, and had been instructed by a superior in New York to follow the bus and photograph the jurors.<\/strong><\/p>\n

(6). Kevin Williamson details 46*’s patent prevarication behind his phony gas-price investigation<\/u><\/span><\/a><\/em>, while reminding us Biden has always<\/span><\/em> been a complete<\/span><\/em> stranger to the truth:<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Biden peddles outrageous lies for political purposes<\/span> and has for the whole of his very long career<\/span>. Remember his claim that Mitt Romney intended to put African Americans \u201cback in chains\u201d? That\u2019s typical<\/span> Joe Biden poison.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The man doesn\u2019t give a fig for the facts<\/span> of the cas<\/em>e.<\/strong>“<\/p>\n

Or the reality of anything else.\u00a0 Not to mention the\u00a0l<\/u>ongstanding lie his wife and daughter were killed by a drunk driver<\/u><\/em><\/span><\/a>, or his demonstrably false story of a long-dead Amtrak conductor speaking to him from beyond the grave<\/u><\/em><\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 Which begs the question why<\/em><\/span>, in the best tradition of Cal Thomas’s fond remembrance of Teddy “Kopechne Killer” Kennedy, the likes of Brit Hume and Tucker Carlson continue<\/em><\/span> to characterize The Groper as if he’s Sheriff Bart in Blazing Saddles<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n