VICTOR DAVIS HANSON ON DEMOCRATS: Living with daily delusions and shrieking at Trump demons raging in their collective heads is no way to run a country.

THEY HAVEN'T RUINED EVERYTHING -- yet.

But they will if not stopped.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "To our enemies and those who mean to do us harm, you can run but you’ll only die tired."

"WE DON'T HAVE A POLITICAL VIOLENCE PROBLEM IN AMERICA. We have a Left-wing political violence problem in America."

The Left denies it, of course.

WHEN IS THEFT NOT THEFT? The New York Times is here to tell you.

I APPROVE THIS MESSAGE: There are many ways to provide public order if the state won’t.

In fact I've recommended them for years.

SUSAN VASS (FORMERLY AMMO GRRRLL) is back to tell us what we already know: All cats are basically Americans!

SPRING LEAVES 2026, Week 8 (+ 1 day): I took these photos on Saturday to make sure I'd have plenty of time to prepare them for posting yesterday, which is now today. Here's the final week of Spring Leaves 2026, starting with the usuals:

Everything is much greener now (although 'autocorrect' has enhanced it) as the leaves are filling out from their barely visible buds last week.

The trees across the road from our driveway have almost completely filled in and the iris beneath them are growing and flowering furiously.

All of the flowerbeds have come alive and are growing furiously, so much we can hardly keep up. Here are some.

Finally ... summer has begun.

FARSI IS NOT AN OPTION: Is it time to stop speaking 'English'?

Some history.

AMERICANS LOST the Virginia redistricting fight with stupid tactics — and we seem to be making the same mistake with Iran.

PRIVACY, FOR ME PERSONALLY: The thing I'll miss the most (when the data centers come to town).

And more generally, heritage, the lifestyles, traditions, achievements, beliefs, etc., that are part of the history of those of us who have lived rurally or in small towns across the nation, many for generations.

WHOSE STUFF IS IT, ANYWAY? John Deere to pay $99 million in monumental right-to-repair settlement.

Now do cars. It's not your car without ‘the digital tools required for the maintenance, diagnosis, and repair’ it. Even if you pay cash, it's only leased.

I may never use them personally, but I'd sure like to have them available so I (or my mechanic) can turn off or disable all the health, safety, and 'let us help you drive' software that pollutes my driving experience.

FROM THE SHADOW'S WORLD WAYBACK MACHINE (June 19, 2020): So much has NOT changed....

Remember this?

And this?

A nation of equal poverty.

In only six (6!) years, technology has made great strides. Culturally and spiritually, however, we've regressed.

THEN 'SHE' iS SAFE: Transgender Rep. Sarah McBride [D-DE] claims Trump ‘only fires women’.

EAST VILLAGERS are regretting their overwhelming vote for Zohran Mamdani.

They believe they voted for him to f*ck up other people's back yards. That's how communism is supposed to work....

JUST DO IT -- IT'S BRILLIANT! Here’s how Trump can nuke Virginia’s new gerrymandered map.

I lived there long enough to know what a fetid swamp northern Virginia is. Give it back to the DC swamp creatures.

And confine it there; Another forty miles of border wall would be a nice addition....

IT HAS BEFORE: Democrats fear this 'October Surprise' will cost them the Senate in the mid-term elections.

But it's a double-edged sword; the Republicans have lost as well.

SPEEDING TO A DEGREE: Does a college credential signify ... anything?

As a now-retired engineering PhD, except in very narrow instances, the answer is "NOT REALLY". At the Bachelor's degree level, it probably won't hurt. Master's degree, only if you're seeking particular (usually STEM skills) training. And I can think of only three reasons to get a PhD, the first being that it's a box to check to get thatjob you really want (college professor, for example); the second is just for the hell of it (to prove to yourself that you can do it). The latter was my reason. The third -- and worst -- is the 'Dr. Jill' reason: I wanna be called 'Doctor'.

Post-PhD I spent the remainder (~25 years) of my working life in engineering and rarely, if ever, had to call on that added expertise of a PhD. And I must note that the two years spent not truly employed cost me roughly $80,000 in lost income (not including tuition and fees) over that 25-year working lifetime. In 1980 dollars. I don't even want to think of what that would be in 2026 dollars.

WHITE COATS AND IRON LUNGS: It's long, but of particular interest to me since I had polio the year before the Salk vaccine was released (in 1954).

The post isn't so much about polio, it's more about technology, moral capital, earned trust, assumed authority, and its misuse by our 'expert' class.

That said, read it all. Trust me, it's worth serious thought.

COGNITIVE ATROPHY IS A THING: Concern grows that Artifical Iintelligence is damaging users’ cognitive abilities. That strikes me as a pretty common sense observation which I've noted a number of times recently.