Merv's Politically Incorrect Audio Blog

I don't even get why these things need to be hidden (who's behind the research or if it started at the institute). It's not like an accident is going to ruin anything. For example, the oil companies that have caused ecological disasters are still around and doing quite well. I dunno, maybe the US just doesn't want a black eye. Although, I suppose if there's any owning up to "we fucked up", the international fallout could be disastrous in terms of court filings, boycotts of US products, etc, etc. Maybe that's why most on both sides of the isle are keeping their mouth shut.

 

Is there a new development in the "funding gain-of-function research" story that I have missed? I'm not seeing anything prominent on CNN or Fox.

Gain of function is a difficult thing to classify. In any fundamental molecular biology research, you basically have to induce point mutations to understand how, say, receptor-agonist binding dynamics works. Sometimes you get a gain of function, sometimes you get a loss of function, it's incidental.

If you are working on a virus and want to understand exactly how it binds to a cell, you have to induce mutations in the binding protein. Does this count as gain of function research? It really doesn't, even if you do end up with a gain.

Real gain of function research, with the express purpose of increasing virulence is carried out quite differently. Even if the end results are the same.

But in the absence of any new information, I'm really just rambling......

 

The only thing I know of was a Project Veritas info dump of some DARPA documents, I didn’t read that but I think this summarizes the jist of it:

https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/jan/12/marine-researcher-covid-19-virus-made-chinese-lab-/

Take with a grain of salt because Washington Times but unfortunately that’s become par for the course with any media source these days.

 

Thanks. Yeah, big grain of salt, pending the scientific credentials of Major Joseph P Murphy, and whether there is any hard evidence supporting his theory.

 

I don't understand why people who want to discredit the public health authorities don't make some of the much easier cases, like for instance that a lot of them lied about masks early in the pandemic for no good reason.

Well, actually, I do understand. Communist schemes are just more exciting, and also maybe basing that case around masks is uncomfortable for people who think wearing masks is for pansies or whatever. It's still an easier case though!

 

My issue with Senator Paul is how he is doing the grilling. It seems all for show for political donations, not for the truth. I wish he was like his father, but that is too wishful thinking for me.

Ewwww, Moonies!!!!!!!!

 

See:

• https://theintercept.com/2022/01/12/covid-origins-fauci-redacted-emails/
• https://republicans-oversight.house...ds/2022/01/Letter-Re.-Feb-1-Emails-011122.pdf

My takeaways are that the most recent update shows that (1) we were lied to by our government overlords, who were seeking to control the narrative early on for motives other than "following the science" and (2) for some reason no Democrats seem interested in investigating this corruption.

 

Yeah, I'm not seeing any smoking gun there, even in the worst possible interpretation. It's a pretty standard scientific discussion on how to package a paper for publication.

 

I can't wait for Desantis in 2024 to finalize the GOP main goal: Be the Big Government with a middle finger to boot.

 

Yea, he will be playing the Trump FU part but I bet his actual platform/interests are the standard neoconservative boilerplate:

• tax cuts (a bone to the middle class, but 1% and corps. get the real benefit)
• support for small business (which in practice means, almost nothing, but tax cuts)
• a strong defense, the China dragon and the Russian bear being called out (so even MORE $ to the military industrial complex)
• possibly a bone to real issues, like some symbolic regulation of Big Tech Media, with the details of the bill actually giving them MORE of what they want
• Jobs, which in practice will be nothing but MORE tax cuts and symbolic legislation , like opening a 400 job woke plant in the rust belt, that will mean nothing in the long run (it will be closed in 10 years).
• Will they actually do something to turn around the woke rot in schools/military/government/businesses? No, but they will talk about it alot before the elections. Once in office they will tell the FBI and other agencies to cool the parents-as-domestic-terroist bullshit, but those agencies will just bide their time.
• tax cuts and deregulation
• deregulation and tax cuts
• totalitarian masks and tax cuts
• tax cuts and totalitarians vaccines
• ten gallon hats, wide open range, "freedom! freedom! freedom!" and tax cuts
• there something else...what is it...oh yea, TAX CUTS!

The more I think about it, the more I can't wait to not vote for Desantis.

 

Due to the $600.00 reporting on third-party payment apps, I been getting requests to send checks for payments with certain sellers that I been dealing with (mostly within the Pipe Tobacco world of things).

I had to cut a check for my father earlier since he doesn't do any online payments (fine by me).

 

If only DeSantis wasn’t a total enigma and had some kind of record he could run on so we could see what he was like.

I don’t think he’d primary Trump even though Trump has so much baggage almost anyone would be more likely to do better. If Biden and/or Harris are the candidates though it probably won’t matter.

Any administration coming in will have gargantuan (and probably impossible) tasks facing them like:

• De-wokifying the military so it’s focus is operational capability rather than kumbayas. Take a look at China’s military preparedness compared to what Austin has been doing.
• The economy has been depleted of manufacturing capacity, strategically there needs to be an ability to make things if imports are disrupted.
• Doing something about DAs coming into office who let blue cities be destroyed through the auspices of “bail reform”, etc. Though I guess this is better addressed by getting rid of PACs whose sole purpose is to get around individual campaign contributions limits rather than targeting one malignant person.
• Break up teachers unions and make schools provide an education that lets kids compete in the global economy rather than just being indoctrinated into social justice activism and watching meaningful jobs go to h1b visa holders.
• Doing something about the influence of Black Rock and ESGs.
• The destabilization of the family, the outcome for kids raised in single family homes is appalling. If you want to address racial inequity here’s your smoking gun.
• etc.

The list is basically endless, we got here through decades of social rot, no single person (and certainly not a buffoon like Trump) or administration can cure it and I’m not even sure it’s possible at this point. We’d need a huge turn around from the current apathy of the general public into one where people care not just about the present but how things can be better for future generations even if it means harder times now.

 

He isn't an enigma, he been the governor of my state for over three years and will easily win reelection this year with over $70 mil in his PAC (which is very non-heard of in FL).

Some of the things he did in FL which I believe he will so if he becomes president:

• More taxes: Signed off on legal Online Sales Tax where half that revenue is help reducing the corporate rent tax aka corporate welfare paid by Floridians.
• $100 Billion State Budgets, highest as ever been but the revenue keeps growing and thus they keep on spending.
• One Size Fits All Approach: Trying to have local cities/counties have less say on how they manage their stuff, where the Legislature + the Executive Branch (DeSantis) knows what is best for you and all decided on party lines. Even some of the conservatives counties are getting sick of tired of the big government GOP in our capital.
• Hit hard on culture issues, while you open up your wallet: Keep getting hit with spam emails of "The Left is Woke, Donate to my campaign." There is a reason the whole FL business class, rich conservatives, and people from all over the US gave DeSantis stupid amount of money for his reelection campaign.
  
• Lets solve problems with more laws: Police have tons of powers in FL, why keep passing more laws that benefit them? Oh wait, Police Unions in FL give tons to the FL GOP.
• Make the Legislature his slave: Unlike the Rick Scott years, DeSantis is super popular that more/less he gets what he wants from the FL Legislature. Super dangerous because no Exec branch should be given what they demand. This is a complete 180 from 20 years ago when the FL Gov office was one of the weakest in the nation, to prevent the "King" situation.

Of course it is political suicide here in FL. People (mostly middle age voters and older) LOVE DeSantis, but they love Trump more. If the GOP was super smart, they will win 2024 easy if they get DeSantis the golden ticket. However, people are scared shit by Trump, hence everyone is flying to South Florida to kick the ring (and get people to open their wallets for their campaigns in other states).

State/City issue, this isn't something the Federal government can get involved. Good luck getting rid of PACs, freedom of speech.

I believe all unions needs to be broken up. GOP at least here in FL love to talk stories of life is better with no unions, but the Police/Firemen unions gives millions to the GOP here in FL. Shit, break them up too.

When government gets involved, they somehow make it worse...

Like this, but my terrible solution is to greatly reduce welfare or get rid of the federal government role of it.

Not happening, it is no longer We but I. You aren't getting any apathy of folks in my backyard. As we say in FL: If you can't afford to live here due to crap wages, leave the state.

 

We're diametrically opposed on most of this stuff but without getting into the weeds on political stances, the presidency just doesn't have this much power (and shouldn't). If you can get a big enough majority in Congress a really skillful administration that could deftly steer policy and prevent defections might be able to chip away at a couple of these, but I somehow doubt that is DeSantis for Republicans. Probably the biggest thing any President can do at this point is what Trump did, push as many judges to the courts as possible and get lucky enough to appoint a few Justices

 

@haywood , I like the list. That said I think @YMO is right, DeSantis is a "neoconservative" , a tax-cuts-for-corp-donors Big Government Republican who (like all of them) plays the libertarian/populist for the little guy Republican when a microphone is in front of him.. Your first three points would be more in line with the now almost completely extinct "conservative Democrat", as GOP inc. never had the stomach for such things, and were in truth too "liberal" in any case. The last three are cultural issues that short of a real leader and/or real 1 party rule, as purr1n points out, are actually not amenable to policy inputs. Politics follows culture, not the other way around.

GOP inc. and it's half of "the swamp" are all in on the status quo, and will (because they will win the next couple of election cycles it looks like) simply tweak it. Democrats, to their credit, actually (at times) have vision, just not a vision I'm interested in as a non libertarian, non "neo-conservative", non GOP inc. conservative.

edit: @haywood , check out:

https://news.gallup.com/poll/316223/fewer-say-important-parents-married.aspx

Turns out today (as opposed to a mere 15 years ago) most self identified "conservatives" are not with you on what a family should be, how it effects children, etc. I would say "crazy is it not" but that's where the culture is now, and reality just does not seem to have much influence. Why would reality matter, as most people think TV and internet is reality The idea that policy, in a libertarian/individualist state such as ours, is going to have real influence on the culture is delusional, but it is the only thing certain type of conservatives have been talking about for years. This points to the real contradiction in American style "conservativism", it has in fact nothing to conserve other than liberal individualism...

 

This is a further example that it doesn't really matter - there isn't a significant difference between the parties on fiscal issues (they both spend like crazy) and neither group has the balls (or political willpower) to do what's necessary. So they both piss around with their "galvanize the base" issues that don't really accomplish needed change.

They are the epitome of the "arguing over the fabric on the deck chairs..." cliché.

 

The solution:

 

Agree that societal rot needs to be addressed and politics is not the answer. However, how do you fix en masse stupidity that's more or less at the root of all of these things? Isn't this just society rising (or sinking) to it's appropriate level? Not that I'm saying we let society fall apart just b/c that's the way it goes but we can fix "things", we can't fix "you", and I legitimately have no idea how we are going to start improving society when politicians are so cheap. Not the persons themselves, but the actions they can take and the laws they can pass.

My politically incorrect contribution for today:
Was talking to some of my contacts in some more authoritarian countries not too long ago. They said they saw on the news that blah blah blah bad things happen a lot in blah blah blah bad parts of America. They then 100% dead serious in kind of a knee jerk manner asked me this - why doesn't the US gov just go in and clean up all the bad parts and "shitholes" of America? You guys are living in the greatest country with all the power and money but you let this crap drag your society down. It's what our country would do blah blah blah. While I don't believe in authoritarian government etc at all for any developed or modern society or wants to stay / remain a developed modern society, it did make me think - is there actually a fair and effective way to cut people off if they're a large net negative on society?