May 12, 2025

MICHAEL WALSH: American Caesar.

Best of all, the current resurgence of religiosity among young men means the Pope can both catch the wave and steer it. The entirely predictable collapse of “fourth wave” feminism from licentious hedonism to vengeful litigiousness has led to widespread unhappiness among Western women as they finally realize they cannot have it all, that traditional sex (not “gender”) roles are traditional for a very good reason. This will inevitably lead them to follow their men back into something larger and more fulfilling than the empty promises of a cubicle, meaningless sex, zero domestic skills, and the possession of multiple cats which have been on offer since the 1970s.

For all its faults (and I take a deep dive into them in Rage), the Church has survived from its own fraught early history including the break from Judaism and the wrangling over doctrine, to its adoption by empire, to its preservation of Greco-Roman civilization throughout the so-called Dark Ages as modern Europe was forming, to the glories of 18th- and 19th-century European high culture, and hopefully through its post-World War II nadir to emerge more Catholic, and catholic, than ever.

May Robert Francis Prevost, the Chicago-born Cubs fan, polyglot missionary, dual American-Peruvian citizen, and now Leo LIV, pontifex maximus — “bridge builder” — seize the moment. It does us well to remember that that was Julius Caesar’s title as well.

Read the whole thing.

UPDATE: Will Tax Complexity Force Pope Leo To Renounce His U.S. Citizenship?

Posted at 1:00 pm by Ed Driscoll 65

IT’S COMPLICATED: Russia’s Plans Are Bigger Than Conflict With the West or Camaraderie With China. “When it comes to Russia’s relationship with China, economic and strategic cooperation has visibly intensified but falls short of a ‘partnership’ or ‘overreliance,’ despite frequent claims in Western media. Indeed, there is an asymmetry in the economic relationships that is forecast to increase. In 2023, China-Russia trade jumped to $250 billion, compared to a meager $147 billion in 2021. But there is a lot of noise coming in the other direction too, which signals Putin’s long term game plan to derisk from China. Russian businesses have been quick to voice their concerns over Moscow’s increasing economic ties with China, and remain distrustful of China’s intentions.”

Posted at 12:42 pm by Stephen Green 54

CHRISTIAN TOTO: Celebrities: Trump Will Destroy the World!

Robert De Niro warns Donald Trump ‘will destroy the world’

Robert De Niro played the “Trump could destroy the world” card prior to Election Day with little to show for it. More recently, George Clooney had to walk Patti LuPone away from the ideological ledge when she wondered if the country could survive a second Trump term.

Clooney, ever the patriot*, told the Broadway star to hold out hope.

Rosie O’Donnell deserves some credit for putting her money where her mouth is when it comes to Trump. She literally left the country, picking a hotbed of antisemtism as her new home – Ireland. The 62-year-old has kept up her anti-Trump rhetoric, warning the president’s tariffs would be “disastrous to the world.”

“Sopranos” alum Joe Pantoliano described the world as “on fire” due to President Trump. He didn’t share specifics, nor did he explain how Trump had anything to do with the Ukraine war, October 7 or academia’s violent upsurge during the Biden years.

From The Matrix’s IMDB trivia page, regarding the character “Cypher,” depicted by Pantoliano:

Agent Smith refers to Cypher as Mr. Reagan during their meeting. This makes him the only character in the movie besides Neo to be identified by both their Matrix identity and their real world “handle” identity.

* * * * * * * *

Along with the many other Christian parallels in this movie, the character Cypher is a reflection of Judas Iscariot in the New Testament. Judas was one of the twelve apostles that Jesus chose to minister in his name, but, in a tragic turn of events, Judas denied his perfect knowledge of the Savior by betraying Him in exchange for thirty pieces of silver. Cypher likewise betrays Morpheus and the entire cause of Zion in exchange for the vanities of the Matrix.

* * * * * * * *

Cypher, whose last name is Reagan, wants to be “important, like an actor,” a wink to President Ronald Reagan. A reference to this is that in the same conversation, Cypher says that he doesn’t want to “remember anything”. President Reagan was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Every Republican is Hitler (and/or Judas) and will destroy the world, before the new Republican who is Hitler and will destroy the world comes along.

In 2020, Hollywood was fine when the world came twice came to to an end: As the Babylon Bee joked in April of 2020, “Inspiring: Celebrities Spell Out ‘We’re All In This Together’ With Their Yachts.” And then a couple of months later, the studios issued supportive press releases during the summer riots, when businesses were being looted and cities set alight. But having lost wide swatches of their audiences to first streaming, and then the pandemic’s disruption to the audience’s regular moviegoing habit, shouldn’t the industry be dealing with the end of its own world? As Toto begins his piece, “The era of the movie star ended some time ago, assuming your last name isn’t Cruise.”

Related:

Posted at 12:00 pm by Ed Driscoll 104

THE NEW SPACE RACE IN TECHNICOLOR AND PANAVISION:

Indications are that Starship Flight 9 might take place as soon as May 20.

Posted at 11:40 am by Stephen Green 37

THIS IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF CORY DOCTOROW’S “ENSHITTIFICATION”

“The worse, the better,” as one dedicated lefty put it.

Posted at 10:58 am by Stephen Green 117

PUBLIC SERVICE: Fed-up AOC constituents in Bronx, Queens mock absentee ‘rock star’ who’s never in the district: ‘This woman has done nothing.’

Frustration with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has reached a breaking point on her home turf, with fed up Queens and Bronx constituents telling The Post they’re sick and tired of being second fiddle to the jet-setting socialist’s primary focus — herself.

Her district offices in the Bronx and Queens offer little to justify the $1.9 million the congresswoman gets to run them — one is only open a single weekday and the other is closed on Fridays, with phones that go unanswered and constituents urged to discuss their problems “by appointment only.”

AOC’s town halls used to be monthly events – now are only held once in a blue moon, there’s virtually no way to get in a question, and sometimes she only phones in and doesn’t bother coming in person, galled constituents said.

“This woman has done nothing for the community she was once again elected to serve,” said Lauro Vazquez of Woodside, Queens.

So stop electing her.

Posted at 10:38 am by Stephen Green 145

YES, BUT THEY WOULD HAVE DONE MUCH BETTER EXCEPT FOR ALL OF THE HOARDERS, WRECKERS, KULAKS AND UZBEKS IN THE BUSINESS WORLD:

Especially the Uzbeks:

Fortunately, those who fail can take solace in the bottom of a Strelnokoff Bottle:

Flashback: Remembering 3CP-1.

Posted at 10:14 am by Ed Driscoll 44

THE GREAT NANNY RAID THAT WASN’T: WaPo’s ICE Hysteria: All Panic, No Nannies. “Remember that even neurotic crazy people are the heroes of their own story — and that the Washington Post is happy to lend them a cape.”

Posted at 10:09 am by Stephen Green 71

STORIES THAT HELP REPUBLICANS AREN’T NEWS:

Posted at 9:54 am by Stephen Green 194

HMM: Democratic senator says GOP is trying to woo Fetterman.

Arizona Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego said Republicans are trying to pull John Fetterman to the right and argued Democrats should keep the Pennsylvania senator in their corner as he faces mounting questions over his health and shifting political persona.

“There needs to be space for Fetterman and for other senators in our caucus,” he said in an interview Saturday. “He still is a senator that fights for working-class people. We may not be 100 percent in agreement a lot of times in a lot of areas, but we don’t have to be.”

While some Democrats have distanced themselves from Fetterman, top Republicans have rallied around him in the wake of news reports that his current and former staffers are concerned about his mental and physical health. Several GOP senators, including Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Dave McCormick (R-Pa.), have come to Fetterman’s defense on social media.

“The radical left is smearing him with dishonest, vicious attacks because he’s pro-Israel and they only want reliable anti-Israel politicians,” Cotton said.

Asked if Republicans are trying to tug Fetterman to the GOP, Gallego said “of course.”

Except for Israel and the occasional show vote Trump nominee who was going to be confirmed regardless, Fetterman is a reliably lefty Democrat. I’m not sure if he’s woo-able or whether he could fit in at all.

Related: Republicans Trying to Woo Senator Fetterman To Join the GOP Are Wasting Their Time.

Posted at 9:36 am by Stephen Green 98

KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEFING: My Favorite Thing About Trump Being President Is All the Trump Stuff. “It’s stunning to watch the tug of war between what Trump and his administration are doing in the real world and the alternative reality that the Democrats and the media are shrieking about. They so desperately want President Trump to fail that they’re hoping that the country falls apart.”

Posted at 9:05 am by Stephen Green 60

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO “EVERYONE GETS THEIR DAY IN COURT?” OH, RIGHT — DEMOCRATS:

Posted at 8:56 am by Stephen Green 53

DECOUPLING:

Two possible takeaways from this one.

The first is that the “Stores will have empty shelves!” scare stories from last month might not amount to much. The other is that China very much — desperately? — needs to keep the export machine working overtime, even if they have to eat a substantial fraction of the tariffs. Maybe Beijing is kicking in? Or maybe US importers are counting on the super-high tariffs being temporary. Who knows.

Again, we’re early into this process and predictions are probably a fool’s game.

Posted at 8:34 am by Stephen Green 119

THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO IN THE REAR VIEW MIRROR:  Behold the last exam that I will ever have to grade (as well as the last of the insanely meticulous charts I make when grading exams).   I figure I’ve done several thousands of these over the last 35 years.  By the end of today, I should have this one scored, all the exams tallied, and the grades recorded.

All five of the more conservative law professors who signed up for “phased retirement” are now finished at USD.  For the past several years, USD hasn’t exactly been the world’s most hospitable place.  On the other hand, for many years, this was the best job in the world, so I guess it all evens out.

Once I’m done with the book I’ve been working on, I plan to get a job with a think tank.  I also plan to stay on as a Commissioner at the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (assuming it continues to exist).  Oh … and since I haven’t had a full day off (Christmas included) since 2019, I think I’ll take Memorial Day off to clean out my closets.  Maybe.

Posted at 7:59 am by Gail Heriot 65