March 28, 2025

I’VE BEEN IN FAVOR OF MOVING FEDERAL AGENCIES OUT OF THE CAPITAL DISTRICT FOR A LONG TIME. Jamie Raskin’s snit-fit only makes it better.

Flashback: “A few decades ago, Washington was a sleepy town, famously mocked by JFK for being a combination of “northern charm and southern efficiency.” You could dine at the fanciest restaurants on a senior civil servant’s salary, real estate prices were reasonable, and the cultural life was, well, pretty lifeless. This is what we should aspire to for D.C.’s future. . . . The nation’s capital shouldn’t be a place of extravagance and vibrancy, because those are basically byproducts of graft. It should be boring.”

Posted at 4:47 pm by Glenn Reynolds 15

A D.C. CIRCUIT WIN FOR TRUMP IN ABILITY TO FIRE FEDERAL OFFICIALS. Thread:

Posted at 4:45 pm by Glenn Reynolds 19

LEFTIST GETS MUGGED BY REALITY: OMG! Jon Stewart SPEECHLESS As He Gets MUCH-Needed Lesson on How USELESS Gov. Programs Really ARE (Watch).

What’s next for establishment left pundits?

To be fair, this might a bit too far for Krugman. Embracing the libertarian-themed philosophy of Thomas Sowell would require him to jettison the more collectivist economic ideas of his earlier crush on the right, Richard Nixon.

Posted at 4:30 pm by Ed Driscoll 31

SUSTAINABILITY: CA lost 173K private jobs, added 181K government, largely part-time jobs.

California has lost 173,000 fully private sector jobs since January 2023, offset by a gain of 181,100 largely part-time government and government-supported jobs.

Thirty-eight percent of these new government and government-supported jobs are from elderly or disabled individuals using state funds to pay household members and others minimum wage for part-time care and assistance.

The report also found that while hourly wages are up, average hours worked are down, suggesting employers are cutting hours to reduce labor costs, such as those imposed by the state’s sector-based minimum wages.

According to the new report from the California Center for Jobs and the Economy, a project of the California Business Roundtable pro-business association, “California’s job growth has been dominated by government and government dependent jobs in Healthcare & Social Assistance.”

Fewer taxpayers and more taxpayer-supported jobs aren’t a winning formula. At the very least, they indicate California’s economy isn’t the dynamic tech paradise Newsom likes to claim.

Posted at 3:52 pm by Stephen Green 33

FLORIDA MAN FRIDAY [VIP]: Chilling With a Beer in his Stolen Ambulance. “It’s time for your much-needed break from the serious news, and this week we have our first stolen ambulance story in ages, so without further ado, let us begin as we always do with… The Most Florida Man Story Ever (This Week).”

Posted at 3:21 pm by Stephen Green 0

MOST CORRUPT ADMINISTRATION IN HISTORY:

Where is Congress to zero out this theft?

Posted at 2:50 pm by Stephen Green 178

OH, TO BE IN ENGLAND: Britain becomes only G7 country unable to make new steel.

British Steel has announced plans to close its two blast furnaces in Scunthorpe, making Britain the only G7 country unable to manufacture its own steel.

Jingye, the Chinese steel group that owns the plant, blamed Donald Trump as it announced plans to shut key operations, putting up to 2,700 jobs at risk. It said the “imposition of tariffs” had made the blast furnaces and steel making operations “no longer financially sustainable”. The closures signal the end of steel production in the UK after more than 150 years.

Mr Trump has imposed 25pc tariffs on steel and aluminium imports to the US that came into effect earlier this month.

It’s okay though, because Britain will soon not be able to make oil and gas, either: Just Stop Oil Just Stopped Oil in Great Britain.

To end this post on a happier note, Keir Starmer has at least ended all violence in England: Owning a ninja sword in UK will soon be illegal amid surge in knife crime.

Posted at 2:35 pm by Ed Driscoll 217

8.2-MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE STRIKES BURMA:

An 8.2-magnitude earthquake has struck Myanmar, causing widespread damage across the region including 800 miles (1,300km) away in Bangkok, where an unfinished 30-storey skyscraper collapsed after the tremor.

The earthquake was initially registered as 7.7 magnitude but was later upgraded to 8.2, making it the worst earthquake to hit Myanmar since 1946. State television confirmed the deaths of 144 people, with a further 732 injured.

The earthquake was so powerful that footage shows water tipping out of swimming pools atop high-rise buildings in the Thai capital. Both the Thai Prime Minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and Myanmar’s military junta have declared a state of emergency after the quake.

An air traffic control tower collapsed at Naypyidaw International Airport, killing all staff who were on duty, Burmese media said.

The US Geological Survey estimates that thousands of deaths are likely. It has issued a red alert for deaths and damage, warning: “High casualties and extensive damage are probable, with the disaster likely widespread”.

* * * * * * * *

The 8.2-magnitude earthquake struck central Myanmar, around 10 miles (16km) from Mandalay, on Friday at a depth of 6.2 miles (10km). The quake was followed by a powerful 6.4 magnitude aftershock.

Widespread destruction has been reported across Myanmar. Mandalay’s Ava Bridge collapsed into the Irrawaddy River after the quake, and buildings and temples lie in ruins.

Sam Cook, lecturer in Crisis and Disaster Management at Aston University, said: “My main concern is the scale of impact on the 5.3 million people living in rural areas of this geopolitically isolated country – particularly in the historically significant and densely populated former northern capital.”

Some terrifying moments were captured on video:

Posted at 2:22 pm by Ed Driscoll 86

GOODER AND HARDER, CALIFORNIA: 75 Days After the Palisades Fire, Only Four Building Permits Have Been Issued.

The Pacific Palisades fire burned more than 6,800 structures, both homes and businesses. Clearly, the rebuilding process is going to take a while for many families even if insurance covers the losses. What should not take a long time are permits for people who lost everything to get started. Indeed, Mayor Karen Bass vowed to streamline the process and made a big show when the first permit was issued.

The first permit was issued March 5, less than two months after the Palisades fire destroyed or seriously damaged more than 6,000 homes in Pacific Palisades and surrounding areas.

“We want this to be happening on your lot, too,” said Mayor Karen Bass at a news conference in the Palisades on Friday.

Bass and L.A. County leaders have pledged to streamline permitting procedures for property owners who want to rebuild.

The home which got the first approval was mostly intact and just needed repairs. The second approval went to a home that had been completely rebuilt a year before the fire. The owner just resubmitted the same blueprints for a rebuild. None of these approvals should have taken a week. They were no brainers.

And yet, more than two months after the Palisades Fire was put out, only four permits for rebuilding have been issued.

Unexpectedly:

Posted at 1:35 pm by Ed Driscoll 139

THE ISRAELI WOMAN WHO SPEAKS TO THE ARAB WORLD:

She may be little known within her native Israel, but to millions across the Arab world, Idit Bar is a familiar face and a formidable voice.

A scholar of Islam, fluent Arabic speaker, and unrelenting advocate for the Israeli narrative, Bar has emerged as a singular figure in the public diplomacy battlefield—appearing on hostile Arabic-language TV networks and social media platforms to challenge decades of entrenched hatred and misinformation about Israel.

“Without knowledge of Arabic, we’re like blind people in the dark,” Bar says. Since the October 7 massacre, she has been filling a glaring void in Israel’s public diplomacy. Appearing live on major Arab outlets—often facing former intelligence officials or leading editors—she articulates Israel’s case with clarity and conviction, fearlessly confronting narratives rooted in deep historical bias and modern-day incitement.

Bar does not enter these arenas unprepared. “They bring seasoned, sophisticated speakers with impressive credentials—former generals, diplomats. I come armed with facts,” she says. “Because I speak Arabic fluently, they can’t confuse me. I know their culture, their history and their references. That makes me more dangerous to them than an IDF soldier.”

* * * * * * * *

She is the only Israeli woman who appears regularly on Arabic media platforms. “People say I’m brave. But what choice do I have? Should I sit back while they lie about us?”

It’s a safe bet how the Economist would answer that question:

Posted at 1:22 pm by Ed Driscoll 73

I KEEP POINTING THIS OUT: Trump isn’t seizing power, he’s just using power that leftists thought was reserved to them:

President Donald Trump is using every tool he has to challenge woke practices in America — and he has a lot of them.

Notably, none of the mechanisms that the president is using were put in place by conservatives for leverage against progressive institutions.

No, Trump is simply availing himself of the vast federal apparatus created by liberals on the assumption that an ever-more powerful and extensive federal government was synonymous with righteousness.

Now that someone is in charge who doesn’t agree with them and who is willing to use all the influence that the progressive state affords him, they are vulnerable to the centralized power that they’ve eagerly built up over decades.

Expanding the federal government has been a progressive priority since the time of Woodrow Wilson, and now its tentacles — via federal funding and a skein of rules — reach into practically every corner of American life.

Yep. And nearly everything he does — nearly every “presidential power” a president can exercise — is actually power that Congress has delegated to the president.

Posted at 12:58 pm by Glenn Reynolds 55