Nightmare on Martha’s Vineyard

 

Based on MSNBC’s recent special, “Martha’s Vineyard v. DeSantis,” even award-winning documentarians cannot produce a propaganda film about Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “political stunt” of sending illegals to this wealthy liberal redoubt without the residents coming across as clueless, entitled douchebags.

The documentary is the celluloid equivalent of stepping on a rake and having the rake hit you in the face.

I will dispense with correcting the usual immigration lies scattered throughout the documentary. (No, the Venezuelans did not enter our country “legally”; and no, Venezuela’s economic disaster isn’t something that happened to them — they did it to themselves. Can’t wait to have these Aristotles voting here.)

I’m more interested in the prodigious entitlement of the Martha’s Vineyarders.

The documentary begins with a bunch of New Englanders bustling around a dock, and a ruddy-faced woman holding up a fish for a picture (the closest liberals ever get to the working class). She is then introduced as Lisa Belcastro, director, Harbor Homes Shelter.

Belcastro: “So I get a call at around 4 o’clock and I was like ‘What? We have about 50 Venezuelans in the parking lot? And I … why? What do you mean?'”

Her befuddlement was echoed by Geany Rolanti of Martha’s Vineyard Community Services, who said, “I saw them walking across from the high school to the bus stop. I was confused. I was confused. Because, I was like, how did you get here?”

Wouldn’t it be great to live in a place where the sight of unkempt third worlders is confusing? Not too long ago, that was America. But by now, there aren’t many towns left where it would be considered unusual.

I envy their utter obliviousness to what’s happening in the rest of the country.

The Biden administration has dumped nearly 4 million illegals on the United States in the past three years alone. Martha’s Vineyard — which voted 80% for Biden — got 49 of ’em and immediately called the police. Within 36 hours, the National Guard had removed the unsightly newcomers.

Could we put Martha’s Vineyard in charge of border security?

Venezuelan illegal: “They didn’t know what to do with us. We arrived unexpectedly.”

Unexpectedly! Whereas the hundreds of thousands of illegals showing up in other people’s towns were totally expected!

No, I’m sorry. That’s incorrect. Biden has been furtively sending planeloads of illegals on late-night “ghost flights” to U.S. airports with absolutely no advance warning, no resources and no right of refusal. Even in response to Freedom of Information Act requests, the Department of Homeland Security redacts the names of the luckless cities. Martha’s Vineyard: 80% for Biden.

The Democratic sheriff in San Antonio, Texas, Javier Salazar, perhaps hoping for an invitation to the Vineyard someday, is all over the documentary, making hilariously obtuse comments based on his expertise of having the 49 Venezuelans pass through his town first.

“If I want to make a point by inconveniencing not just the people I’m dumping, but inconveniencing the people I’m going to dump them on, that’s a perfect place to do it.”

Imagine the cheek of DeSantis inconveniencing Martha’s Vineyard! Salazar should be the keynote speaker at the next Democratic National Convention to elaborate on this point: Do NOT inconvenience the rich!

How did this nitwit get elected anywhere, much less in Texas? Oh, I see: San Antonio: 67% Hispanic, who vote about 70% for “D,” no matter what. (You’re definitely going to win the Hispanic vote, Republicans. Just keep trying!)

Most bizarrely, Salazar demanded to know, “What business is it, quite frankly, of the governor of Florida or anybody in Florida, what’s going on in my county?” The sheriff seems sublimely unaware that illegal immigration is affecting the whole country, not just his county.

Weirdly, Salazar — so proprietary about “what’s going on in [his] county” — flew to Massachusetts to oversee the illegals’ new accommodations after they got booted off the island.

Singing their praises, he talked about what great housekeepers they were. “They cleaned the barracks from top to bottom.”

Any engineers or surgeons in there, or are the rich still clamoring for more maids?

In a total coup, the documentary producers somehow got a living, walking, hectoring exemplar of “Karen” to participate in the documentary! Rachel Self, Martha’s Vineyard resident and immigration lawyer, keeps popping up, screeching about “crimes,” “victims,” “survivors,” “grooming” (isn’t that word a hate crime?), and people being “kidnapped.” I said, salad dressing on the SIDE!

Her immediate response to 49 illegals on the Vineyard was to call the chief of police to report a kidnapping.

— A governor sending 49 illegals to Martha’s Vineyard: KIDNAPPING.

— Homeland Security Director Alejandro Mayorkas dumping millions of illegals on towns throughout America (not Martha’s Vineyard): a Democratic hero!

— Ms. Self loading illegals onto a bus and personally ushering them off the island: Good Samaritan … and I’d like to speak to the manager!

Perhaps realizing that their blind hysteria about 49 illegals sounded a little Trumpy, the Vineyardites kept making excuses for their rush to get the illegals off the island.

First, they bragged about how wildly “diverse” Martha’s Vineyard is. Did you know the year-round population is one-quarter Brazilian?

That’s not true, at least according to any liberal’s definition of “diverse.” Only 0.19% of the population moved from abroad. Eighty-six percent of the year-rounders are American-born U.S. citizens. The median household income (off-season) is $74,000 — and $1 billion during summer — compared to $57,000 in Florida and $68,000 in Texas.

Next, the put-upon residents kept insisting that they bent over backward to help their beloved Venezuelans — “my 49 people,” as Self put it.

Massachusetts State Rep. Dylan Fernandes: “I hopped in and started blowing up air mattresses.”

You’re right, Dylan. No one could have done more.

Belcastro: “People wanted to help. People wanted to give. People wanted to donate.”

Yeah — donate to the buses to get them the hell off the island.

Rolanti: “They got hugs, they got kisses, they got clothing, they got food, we did everything we could, but unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of resources. … We have a lot of people who need food, who need shelter.”

Luckily, no one else in the entire country needs food or shelter. Only Martha’s Vineyard.

Fernandes: “It’s a very small island.”

Yes, small, but somehow big enough accommodate an extra 180,000 people during the summer — unlike the hundreds of towns and cities in less well-connected parts of the country that have been compelled to accommodate 4 million illegals just in the last three years.

I’ll let Karen write the epitaph to this column, as she seems so eager to do for the country.

“Martha’s Vineyard,” Self said, “has a year-round population of 17,000 people total, so 49 people for us being dropped here was the equivalent of 24,000 people being dropped in downtown Manhattan. That is not my America.”

See? Clueless. In the last year, more than 113,000 illegals have been “dropped” on New York City, with no end in sight.

That’s not our America, either.

GOP Warns Americans to ‘Brace for Impact’ As Caravan Carrying Thousands of Illegals Heads for the Border

 

As President Joe Biden’s southern border crisis continues to spiral out of control, Republicans are warning of a massive caravan carrying thousands of illegal migrants that is heading toward the U.S.-Mexico border. 

According to the Associated Press, at this time, approximately 7,000 illegal aliens are on the caravan— up from 5,000 earlier this week. One of the organizers said the migrants are traveling from Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, and Venezuela. 

This will make the largest caravan since last summer. However, it marks a fraction of the numbers Border Patrol agents will encounter over a month. 

More details on the caravans from Fox News Digital: 

Caravans have been a regular feature at the border in recent years, heading to the border in both the Trump and Biden administrations. They often break up on their way to the border, with migrants either seeking relief in Mexico or moving to the U.S. border to seek entry in smaller groups. But the images of the enormous numbers of people heading to the border offer a snapshot of how many have surged into the U.S. under the Biden administration.

Republicans are blaming the latest surge in immigrants storming the U.S. border on the Biden Administration as the country grapples with a historic crisis. 

One of the first things Biden did when he entered office was dismantle Trump-era policies that kept encounters at the southern border at ease. 

In response to the thousands illegally crossing the border, wreaking havoc on the nation, the Biden Administration said that it would restore asylum pathways that were demolished under former President Trump. 

Biden has claimed he will implement “consequences for illegal entry,” however, that has yet to deter migrants from coming into the U.S. as numbers at the border are expected to rise again in the coming weeks. 

House Homeland Security Counterterrorism Subcommittee Chairman August Pfluger admitted that caravans know that there are “no consequences for illegal entry into the U.S.” 

“The President’s policies have incentivized millions of illegal crossings, and I am extremely concerned about the heightened risk of terrorism due to the wide-open southern border. President Biden must enforce our existing laws to secure the border, disincentivize illegal migration flows, and safeguard our national security,” he told Fox News Digital. 

The Biden Administration requested Congress to pass a $14 billion legislation to “fix” the crisis at the border, which would allow for the increased use of expedited removal of those in the country illegally and hire more Border Patrol agents. 

“The Biden administration has rolled out the welcome mat for migrants heading to the U.S., allowing for eight million to illegally cross under his watch so far,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said. “Now thousands more have set foot toward our country because, according to the caravan’s leader, ‘Biden has lost control of the border.'”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX.) is also warning about the millions of illegal aliens making their way to the U.S. amid a terrorist war in the Middle East. 

“With the radical Islamic terrorism sweeping the Middle East, border security is now more important than ever. Just last year, 736 people on the terrorist watch list tried to get into our country — and those are just the ones we know about,” Cruz said. “The Biden Border Crisis is threatening Americans, and this caravan is just the latest disaster in the long list of Biden’s failures.”

Minnesota is hated because…

 “everything is dingy, dirty, flat, and boring, and the people only seem interested in beer, hiking, and the cold. They don’t want to make friends with anyone they haven’t known since grade school, and whenever you do talk to them, they try and convince you that Minnesota is an amazing place and everything they have is the best in the country.” (In all honesty, when I visited him, I had to agree with the guy; people in Minnesota seem a bit standoffish and the state really is kind of unpleasant place, even to visit.) He hasn’t had a chance to make any friends out there, and according to him, it’s truly baffling why anyone would want to live in a place like that. He described it as an “American Siberia filled with barbarian people living on the edge of a world they know nothing of”. I get that he’s used to the grandeur and history of in his words “the great cities of the East” (I.E. New York City, D.C., Savannah, etc.), and it must have been quite a cultural shock fo him, but why do most outsiders from other parts of the country dislike Minnesota so much, and want to leave as soon as possible? Seems like the #1 complaint was the cold though. I’ve been here since summer of 2017 and I’m from a much warmer and tropical place. The dirty and dingy complaint I assume has to do with the fact that most houses and apartment buildings are old, most small towns look like they haven’t remodeled since the 70’s. To be fair, you get that vibe also in Wisconsin and the Dakotas so it must be a northern Midwest problem, not just MN. And for dirty, the only time that I can say it’s dirty is late in the winter when the snow banks are high and all the road dirty and crap just piles on. Also once it starts warming up and thawing it’s dirty and muddy for about 2 months.

Flat and boring? That’s subjective. I love the outdoors here and I do think they’re beautiful. Cold? Oh yeah but it’s not hard to adapt. People don’t wanna make friends they haven’t known for life? I think that’s a small town thing and even if you’re in Minneapolis, you don’t really get the big city vibes unless you’re living down town.

For me, I like it up here but I don’t love it. It is cold but that doesn’t bother me. I hate the dirty snow and mud late in the winter, I hate daylight savings making my winter days painfully short, and I also hate that it’s hard to meet people (to be fair it’s hard making friends as an adult anyways). I love summer time up here because there’s always something to do. Plenty of bike trails, great food and breweries and no shortage of outdoor activities. Summer here is awesome, but only if you’re into that stuff.

It really depends what people are used to and what they like. If someone loves the offerings of big city life on the coast, then Minneapolis even isn’t going to be enough for them. There is a significant limiting effect compared to the coasts. Minnesotans, generally speaking, do love their outdoors time, people who grow up in metroplexes appreciate other things. Living far up north, I most definitely disagree with the assessment of it being flat, dirty and dingy. it definitely could be boring for a lot of people (but not for me which is why I came back after college). I personally hate being in cities. The crowds, the sounds, the smells, the traffic. No thank you. But some people love that busy energy, especially younger people. It’s all about what you are used to and what you like and appreciate. Our weather is not something just anyone can learn to love.

On the social front, much of MN is pretty insular, it’s true. A lot of people unfortunately don’t travel and learn about their country or their world, and so as far as they are concerned everything there is that matters is in their tiny corner of MN. Which is a shame. Honestly, living in Redneckville, I don’t have a lot in common with locals though my family has been here for eternity and they all know me. I have more in common with the types of people who move here because they want to live here but to be fair, they aren’t very open to meeting with locals, either. Or including them in their activities or groups. They have their own preconceived notions of what a local is and want nothing to do with them. So, that street goes both ways. Both sides need to be open to learning about the other.

Would You Rather Be Governed by Totalitarians or by Fools?

 

Washington, D.C., is the major problem in America today. That city is destroying the country because it is providing absolutely no leadership morally, fiscally, politically, or in any other measure true leaders need. A brief description of that cesspool follows, and, of course, it has spread its tentacles throughout the nation.

We have two political parties. One is a totalitarian party. The Democratic Party consists entirely of people who crave power, who want to control you, dominate your life, who simply believe that government is the source of all wisdom and authority, and that they are the ultimate possessors of the former and thus should have all of the latter. The Democratic Party is pure evil. There is no such thing as a “good Democrat,” not in political office. That is a contradiction of terms, an oxymoron. People who believe in murdering unborn babies, mutilating children for the pleasure of sexual perverts, who lie incessantly about things such as climate change and COVID vaccines, who allow men to be “women” and visa-versa; racists who permit crime to run rampant in their streets and let countless possible terrorists freely into the country to threaten the people they are sworn to protect and serve; degenerates who enact policies that are causing countless millions of Americans to struggle financially and live on the edge of poverty due to higher fuel, food, and housing costs, and who ultimately want to tell everyone what kind of vehicle they can drive or food they can eat—such people are not “good” by any definition of that word except their own warped, subjective standard. And they crave total power to enact the agenda and measures above, forcing you to submit. The only “freedom” Democrats believe in is what they will ALLOW you to have, and, of course, that is not “freedom” at all, as I can tell you from living in China. While its official name is “Democratic Party,” its true name is “Totalitarian Party,” because that, not democracy, is what they believe in.

On the other side of the aisle, there is the goofball Republican Party. We have come to facetiously call that party the “Stupid Party,” and the last week’s activities in Washington, D.C., is a perfect example of why. I wasn’t disappointed that Kevin McCarthy was removed as speaker of the House. But neither am I surprised at the current bungling, in-fighting, spite, and downright—stupidity—of the Republicans in the House as they flounder in trying to elect another speaker. The Totalitarian Party, in true totalitarian fashion, has voted 100 percent against any candidate (Jim Jordan especially) that the Republicans have tried to elect. But, of course, the Democrats couldn’t stop the Republicans from electing whoever they wanted to, if the Republicans would vote in solidarity. But the Republicans don’t do that. In one sense, that is not a bad thing; debate is good and healthy, something the Democrats never allow any more. But the perception of bumbling stupidity is NOT a good thing, and that is the major perception Republicans are now leaving with the American people.

I don’t believe every Republican in Congress is a fool. I think there are some good, decent, moral people in the Republican Party, even in Washington, D.C., who truly want to do the right thing for the American people, and defend the natural rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that our Founders wrote a Constitution to protect. There are some non-fools in the Republican Party. Give me a few minutes and I might even be able to name one or two for you.
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But that small group—whoever they are—certainly does not constitute the majority of the Republican Party. The Ronna McDaniels, Mitch McConnells, Lindsey Grahams, Mitt Romneys, Nikki Haleys, and other such Swamp Creatures Of Their Ilk are far, far too numerous, and continue to lead the party to defeat after disaster after futile, bungling failure. The Republican Party is simply not good at “government,” and that is not altogether a bad thing, either. We don’t want too much of that stuff. Government is ALL the Totalitarian Party wants, and they intend to put it before you and cram it down your throat. The Republicans don’t even know what is on their plate.

So, this leads me to the question in the title of this column: would you rather be governed by totalitarians or by fools? Sadly, that seems to be our only choice at the moment. Given a choice between those two, I will take fools over murderers any day of the week. Totalitarianism gives us no freedom. Stupidity is not a good thing, but unfortunately, true freedom does give people the right to be ignorant and act foolishly. Such is the cost of freedom—as long as it lasts.

The answer to this conundrum is in proper education. As Thomas Jefferson wrote, “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.” Because the American education system is totally in the toilet now, that “state of civilization” Mr. Jefferson spoke of is about to disappear. Barbarism, almost by definition, demands totalitarianism to control it. The Democrats know that, which is exactly why they are doing everything they can to turn barbarians loose in the country.
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We can only vote for the people who run for office. And, in recent decades, the Republicans who have been on the ballot have tended to be…fools. They have succumbed to The Swamp. We need to find God-fearing, truly educated, intelligent, decent, moral, and courageous people to run for political office. We need those Americans in the majority in Washington, D.C. and state governments. I don’t know how to find them. But that’s what we need.

Otherwise, we will be governed either by totalitarians or by fools.

Why I started collecting videogames to defeat depression

 

I calmed down a bit and actually made some goals…instead of collecting every game out there…I’m collecting all NES/SNES/N64 games…both CIB and loose with a manual. It’s still a pretty crazy goal but…it’s easier then buying every game for every system.

But to dig into it…it’s a mix of nostalgia and obsession. I need something to focus and obsess on. If I don’t have something…I tend to get unfocused and just…end up in a not good place. I’m struggling with depression…so to have something to keep my mind off of my dark thoughts is useful. Gives me a goal to keep getting out of bed, keep struggling through the days, just so I can complete my collection and finally be satisfied. Of course I also play games…gaming helps my depression A LOT. It sucks me into another world…so much better then my own. I can forget my troubles for a few hours a day. Or I can make my own character and live my life how I always wanted. Older games can put me back to my childhood as well…when I was happier…

That’s the focus of my game room…making into something that resembles my childhood. So I can step into my game room, shut the door behind me and just get sucked back in time. I’ve done a lot of thinking into this. I’m filling it with toys and stuff from my childhood (not just video game related stuff), the furniture in that room is going to be from the era, the TV is going to be a CRT, the carpet is going to be arcade carpeting (which glows in black light), going to have glow in the dark stars up on the ceiling…heck I’m even going so far as to only play 80s music in there via cassettes and an old boom box (since I can’t rely on any local station to just play 80s music).

It’s fun. There’s a thrill when you get a really good deal, or find a really rare game in a $2 bin at a flea market or a thrift store. Your collection is more than just a bunch of games; it’s a collection of bundles that you bought with stories behind them. I think a lot of collectors are really collecting memories- like games they loved or really wanted. That’s definitely a big part of it.

There are a lot of collectors that go nuts cleaning their games but I like the character. I love finding old receipts or a handwritten note in a game with cheat codes, combos, etc or something, or to see a sticker from some towns local video rental store that’s been out of business for a decade. I like to leave those old Kmart stickers or sharpied names on there. I don’t know, maybe I’m weird with this one.

Also, most people have an arrangement to some console. When you collect and you have games for every console, it puts a smile on pretty much anyone’s face. People want to play those games, which makes picking up something like Mario Party or Fuzion Frenzy that much more fun.

Lastly, there’s nothing like a big, physical, expensive collection. Personally, I only buy games if I’m getting a deal. Every dollar I put in is at least doubled and grows over time. It feels good looking at a bookshelf filled with money. And it looks cool, too

There is something about the NES that first got me into video games, I like the look of the system, I like the music, I like the memories, I like the games, I like how they look displayed. There was a certain magic to it, and nostalgia plays a huge part. I do have Nostalgia for other systems, but nothing like the NES…not when it comes down to it. I played NES from like 7-12, which was basically the core of my childhood, in many ways, it’s the thing i did MOST in my childhood from like 1987-1992 or so. Playing NES helps me revisit many of these times, but I do enjoy it also. Many of these good times are with people who are no longer living, and it helps me remember them, b/c NES Was such a huge part of my childhood there.

I think collections are better when they are rarer, higher quality, more organized, and have some type of goal or theme in mind, they look better as a set or idea as a whole. I’d rather have a more well rounded NES collection than a bunch of other stuff, having less space space and a limited budget helps to force this aspect.

This is just my thinking though. I look at massive collections of tons of consoles and it doesn’t do anything for me. Do I enjoy them? Sure. But I don’t want to collect for them. I also know my tendencies, and they can get out of control if not kept in check with rules, i.e. too much stuff, too much money spent, etc.

I also collect vintage cameras, vinyl, and books, these collections started in my youth or from stuff from my family