Monday, October 26, 2026

Dems Using "Decoy Ballot Trick" In AK Senate Election? More WSJ Editorial Bunkum To Assist Trump In Electoral Mischief

 The Wall Street Journal's editors, tired of blaming Dems for super high prices and lacking the balls to expose an orange traitor, have found a new target for their ire.  These weasels are now taking Traitor Trump's side in a lawsuit recently filed to block the AK Senate electoral result - IF the Reepos don't win. In their weekend Journal editorial,   Exposing ‘Decoy Dan’ in Alaska, they go all in attacking Dems for "whining about a lawsuit exposing their dirty ballot trick."

The nattering nabobs of negativity squeal:

"Democrats pulled a dirty trick by enlisting a decoy, Daniel J. Sullivan, to run against Republican Alaska Sen. Dan S. Sullivan. Now they are indignant that the Trump Administration on Thursday filed a lawsuit that calls attention to their subterfuge. Please spare us the lectures about election interference.

The Justice Department lawsuit seeks to block certification of Alaska’s Senate election results if they “may be impacted by voter confusion.” “Daniel J. Sullivan’s presence on the ballot threatens to mislead Alaskan citizens who want to vote for Senator Sullivan,” the lawsuit says. That’s the Democratic hope."

One can hardly believe these asswits would go after this political coincidence - painting it as some kind of nefarious plot - when they've said nothing - not word one - about Vivek Ramaswamy’s vile campaign ad featuring his opponent (Amy Acton’s) mother. That hag actually lived with her 12 year old daughter’s rapist, and has now sought to accuse Amy Acton (D- candidate for OH governor)  of lying.

In the ad, Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, calls her “a liar.” Arthur and her daughter have not had contact since 1978, when Arthur’s second husband, Cledith Arthur, was indicted and charged with raping his 12-year-old stepdaughter. Acton and her brother were removed from the couple’s home because of the threat of continued abuse.

And the Journal's hypocrite editors said not one word about it?  Well, probably because the WSJ editors prefer to continue to suck Traitor Trump's ass.   As we read in the (regular, main page) WSJ piece from Friday ('Trump Praises Ohio Ad Featuring Deomcrat's Estranged Mother', p. A3) wherein we read:

"President Trump defended an attack ad against Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton that featured her elderly, estranged mother, calling it 'very powerful'.  Also accusing Republicans who condemned the spot as playing into Democrats' hands."

As for the vicious little turd Vivek Ramaswamy, his campaign "plans to spend $4 million airing the ad", despite the bipartisan denunciations it has received, including from Ohio’s Republican governor, Mike DeWine.

The Journal article goes on:

"Trump's remarks came a day after Vice President JD Vance also defended the ad. He criticized fellow Republicans for 'whining' about the video saying that 'politics is  tough business'."

Really? Then can we not also say the WSJ editors are also whining about the Dems in Alaska  - by using a conspiracy meme to claim the Ds are "facilitating the entry of another Dan Sullivan into the Senate race".  Even if real -  as Vance said, 'politics is  tough business'" - so why not get over it?. Besides, where is your outrage at the Ramaswamy maggots running a vile ad featuring a video of a woman who stood by her 12-year-old daughter's rapist even after the slime was indicted. So in other words, pussy grabber Trump is fine with supporting an ad which features the supporter of a child rapist.

Back to the WSJ editor's claim that the presence of Daniel J. Sullivan is a Democratic dirty trick.  Can we say horse shit here?  Daniel J. Sullivan, who lives in the tiny fishing community of Petersburg, has always said he is running of his own accord. But given the stakes are high, and Republicans worry that voters will get confused and accidentally vote for the wrong Sullivan, they’ve been trying to get Daniel J.  thrown off the ballot for months. 

The lawsuit went all the way to the Alaska Supreme Court, but Republicans lost. Got that WSJ nattering nabobs? The REEPS LOST!  Besides, why are you fools so worried when even a low IQ person can tell the difference between a D and and an R, and an I - behind a name on a ballot.

Long story short, Alaskan voters will see "Dan S. Sullivan" identified as a "registered Republican" and "incumbent" on their ballots, while "Daniel J. Sullivan Jr." will not have a party affiliation. 

Former House Rep. Mary Peltola is the actual Democratic candidate.

At the end of the day the WSJ editorial is just another rhetorical 'storm in a teacup' done at the behest of bowing and scraping to their orange Overseer Trump.  So Murdock's Morons aren't exposing anything except their own partisan B.S., so desperate are they to keep Trump's power unchecked so he can demolish what's left of this country.

See Also:

Why Legal Experts See the Justice Dept.’s Alaska Election Challenge as Dubious - The New York Times

Excerpt:

The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit pre-emptively challenging the certification of Alaska’s Senate election if the Republican candidate narrowly loses. But election law specialists said the litigation lacked any legitimate legal basis.

“It is one of the weakest election lawsuits I’ve ever seen,” said Richard H. Pildes, a New York University law professor who specializes in election issues. “It should have no realistic chance of success in the courts.”

Nevertheless, the lawsuit raised alarms as President Trump has sought to undermine confidence in the election when polls indicate that Republicans are likely to suffer sweeping losses, with control of Congress hanging in the balance. Mr. Trump tried to overturn his loss of the 2020 election, culminating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.

The litigation centers on an oddity in the four-candidate ballot. The incumbent Republican senator, Dan Sullivan, is being challenged not only by the Democrats’ nominee, former Representative Mary Peltola, but also by a novice candidate with almost the same name: Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.

Voters could mistakenly vote for the other Mr. Sullivan instead of the senator. The lawsuit seeks a judicial order blocking the state from certifying the results if Senator Sullivan loses to Ms. Peltola, but would have won had he received votes cast for the other Mr. Sullivan.

No obvious legal authority supports a pre-emptive effort to block the certification of Alaska’s Senate election if the Republican incumbent narrowly loses.

Add:

Opinion | Despicable Doesn’t Begin to Cover It - The New York Times

Excerpt:

By now, you almost certainly know the story. Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, posted an ad featuring a malicious attack on Amy Acton, Ramaswamy’s Democratic opponent. The ad starred Acton’s own mother, a woman named Donna Arthur.

The family story here is evil. Arthur married a man named Cledith Arthur, who became Acton’s stepfather. Cledith Arthur was indicted when Acton was 12 for raping her. He fled the jurisdiction rather than face charges.

Donna lost custody of her children and — as Charles Hilu at National Review reported — she has her own criminal history. She was convicted of theft by deception in the 1990s and accused of animal neglect in 2021.

It’s hard to imagine a more cruel and evil act than raping a child. There is no betrayal greater than the betrayal of a child by a parent. And then Ramaswamy compounded that betrayal by wielding that evil mother as a weapon against her own daughter.

Long ago we learned that there is no bottom for MAGA, and there is still no bottom to this scandal. If Ramaswamy had a molecule of decency, he would take the ad down and apologize. Instead, he attacked Acton. “It is an ad from our campaign,” 


Mensa Double Circle Geometry Problem

 


ABCD is a line segment that passes through the centers of two unequal and non-intersecting circles. AB is the diameter of the smaller circle, and CD is the diameter of the larger circle. (Refer to diagram).

Two rays extend from A that are:

1) tangent to the larger circle on opposite sides, and

2) tangent to circle X1 which is inside the smaller circle and touches it at point B.

Likewise two rays extend from A that are:

1) tangent to the smaller circle on opposite sides, and

2) tangent to circle X2 that is inside the larger circle and touches it at point C.


Given this information prove that X1 = X2


Friday, October 23, 2026

High Costs In Housing Market? According To WSJ You Can Blame Immigration Raids

 

Immigrant workers are concentrated in lowest paying construction jobs- because Americans don't want them.

The Wall Street Journal's main news section is definitely more reliable than its Op-Ed pages, especially the slanted (toward Trump) editorials.  Case in point the Journal article 'Immigration Raids Hit Housing Market' (Oct. 19, p. A2) which should be reading material for all who feel priced out of owning a home. As the piece notes:

"The summer surge in federal immigration raids is hitting the housing market, pushing up labor costs and freezing projects.  Nearly two-thirds of builders said immigration enforcement is hitting their labor force, up from 23% in March and 13% a year ago, according to a September John Burns Research and Consulting survey."

 According to Scott Brannock, president of Jacksonville-based Tidewater Homes and the Northeast Florida Builders Association:

"We're almost dead in the water because our workforce is gone.  We have national builders who are missing projections, losing hundreds of thousands of dollars because they have slabs sitting on the ground and no one to frame."

This, of course, is a mirror image of what's transpiring in the home health care and nursing home business, as the deportation frenzy has targeted over 330,000 Haitians to be sent back to that ruined nation.  E.g.

by Heather Digby Parton | September 4, 2026 - 5:06am | permalink

Many of the Haitians having worked as nurses in U.S. hospitals as well as nursing home assistants throughout the U.S. especially in Florida, and home health aides for seniors.  Now, they may soon be gone leaving a labor vacuum that will be difficult to fill - given most Americans will not do the task of senior care for $13/hr.

While these reckless deportations have hollowed out critical labor in the health-senior care market, the amped up immigration raids and deportation threats have done the same to the housing market.  As the Journal piece goes on to note:

"The shortages come as the country tries to drive down sky high housing costs that have trapped millions of Americans out of home ownership.  Immigration trades have primarily hit trades such as roofers, painters and framers."

The graphic below shows the share of immigrant workers by construction trade from 2024.


 Given those proportions only a certified fool would believe American workers could or would take up the slack. Yet one beholds an imp like Matthew O'Brien - Executive Director of the Federation for American immigration Reform - baldly claiming in the same WSJ piece:

"It's an absurd contention that we should stop deporting immigration lawbreakers simply because construction companies want to employ them."

Reinforcing the nonsense from immigration enforcement advocates who claim "deportations will drive down housing costs by removing competition for housing."  Making one wonder on what alternate Earth these goobers inhabit. I mean how do you reduce housing costs by deporting the most available labor (the 'lawbreaker' epithet mostly in Stephen Miller's eyes) that creates new housing? Oh yeah, they have an answer: 

"the builders should hire American workers."

Oh, brilliant idea there. And you seriously believe Americans are going to work for the same rates?  They ought to ask David Hacker - owner of subcontractor Construction Specialties of North Florida (who also appears in the piece). Mr. Hacker "has seen a 70 percent reduction of crews available for certain jobs, forcing the leftover crews to double their rates to recruit new workers."  

He himself now having to start a new campaign by "offering significant cash bonuses".

And who pray tell, WHO do these immigration enforcement fools think is going to pay for the extra increase in construction labor? The builders? Dream on! The higher rates, costs will be passed on in terms of the new home costs. Think $800,00 for each new home - instead of $400,000.  As Josh Putnal, owner of a siding subcontractor  in Jacksonville put it:

"There's no one lining up to do a lot of these jobs."

Got that, immigrant enforcement zealots?  And that means no 'Muricans lining up to do those jobs either.  It didn't have to be this way had the immigration raids not been scaled up. As the Journal notes:

"Last year, immigration arrests had only limited impact on the home-building industry, other than select pockets of the country - such as South Texas.  That changed this summer as the Trump administration scaled up immigration arrests to record levels."

So just as in the case of health care, once the millions of immigrants from a dozen nations lost their temporary protected status, we can expect housing construction to first to crater - then explode - thanks to much higher labor costs. The predictable result is that housing (and rentals) will now inflate beyond the means of anyone but the wealthy to afford them.

further inflate beyond the ability of anyone but the wealthiest to access them.

See Also:

Two-thirds of contractors say ICE raids are making it harder for them to build houses | The Independent

And:

 So If All The Undocumented Are Deported WHO Is Going To Do Their Jobs? Just Asking!

And:

What Deporting Haitian Immigrants Means For Older Adults And Caregivers

Excerpt:

President Trump’s decision to revoke what’s known as Temporary Protective Status for immigrants from a dozen countries will severely damage health and long-term care in the US. More than 1 million people are at risk of being deported as a result of the move, including 350,000 from Haiti, many of whom work in health and long-term care.

Trump cancelled TPS at the end of July, after the Supreme Court refused to block efforts to stop the move. And the Administration has begun deportations.

But even those still in the US have lost their work permits—and their jobs. While they remain in immigration limbo, they cannot work to support their families and many have been fired from jobs they’ve had for years. That, in turn, has worsened an already severe shortage of health and long-term care workers, including nurses, aides, and technicians.

And:

ICE agents are seen chasing farmworkers through a field in Oxnard, Cal... | ice | TikTok

And:

Florida builders say fear of ICE raids is driving up costs | TRD Miami Roundtable

And:

ECONOMIC COLLAPSE WARNING SIGNS ARE GETTING BAD | The Kyle Kulinski Show


Thursday, October 22, 2026

Solutions To Simultaneous Equations (Review of Algebra II Conclusion)

 1) Solve the system below by substitution:

3x - y = 4

5x + 2y = 3

Solution:

Re- arrange top eqn.: y = 3x – 4

Substitute for y in 2nd: 5x + 2 (3x -4) = 3

Þ

5x + 6x – 8 = 3

11x =   11

x = 1

5(1) + 2y = 3

2y = 3 – 5 = -2  

y = -2/2 = -1

x= 1,  y  = -1 

2)Solve the linear system below graphically and by determinants:

2x - y = 10

5x + 2y = 7

Graphically:

By inspection: x = 3,   y = - 4

By Determinants: For main (D)


a1 =2, b1 = -1, c1 = 10

a2 = 5, b2 = 2, c2 = 7

So:



=  2(2) - 5(-1) = 4 + 5 = 9

Then x =  


=  10(2) - 7(-1)/  2(2) - 2(-1) = 27/9 =  3


Then y =  

 =   2(7) - 5(10) / 2 (2)- 5- (-1) = -36/ 9 = -4

x = 3, y = -4 

3) Solve the system below by substitution and by determinants:

4x - y = 5

3x + 2y = 12

By substitution:

Rewrite top eqn.   y =  4x  - 5

Substitute for y in 2nd:

3x + 2(4x - 5) = 12

3x +  8x - 10 = 12

11x = 10 + 12 = 22

x = 22/ 11 = 2

Solve for y using x:

3(2) + 2y  = 12

6 +  2y = 12

2y =  12 - 6 = 6

y = 6/2 = 3

 x = 2, y = 3

By Determinants: For main (D):

a1 =4, b1 = -1, c1 = 5

a2 = 3, b2 = 2, c2 = 12

So:




Then: D = (4) (2) - (3)(-1) = 8 +3 = 11

Then:



Substituting: x = 

=  (5)(2)) - (12)(-1) / 11

=  10 + 12/ 11  =  22/ 11  = 2

And:




Substituting:  y =



=  (4)(12)) - (3)(5) / 11

= (48 - 15)/ 11 = 33/ 11  = 3

x = 2, y = 3  


4) Solve the pair of equations below graphically, by substitution and using determinants:

2x – 3y = 8,  

3x + y = 1

Graphically:



x =  1,  y = -2

By substitution:

Make y subject of lower eqn.

y = 1 - 3x

Substitute for y in top eqn.

2x - 3(1 - 3x) = 8

Þ

2x - 3 + 9x  = 8

11x = 11

x = 1

y = 1 - 3x = 1 - 3(1)= 1 - 3 = -2

x = 1, y = -2

By Determinants: For main (D):

a1 =2, b1 = -3, c1 = 8

a2 = 3, b2 = 1, c2 = 1

Þ

Then: D = (2) (1) - (3)(-3) = 2 +9 = 11

Then:

Substituting determinant values: x =

= (8) (1) - (1)(-3) / 11

= 8 - (-3) / 11 =  11/11 = 1

And:

Substituting determinant values:  y =

= (2) (1) - (3)(8) / 11

= (2 - 24)/ 11 =  -22/11 = -2

x = 1, y = -2 

WSJ's Kessler Puzzles Over How U.S. Became Such An Uncivil Nation - Does He REALLY Need An Explanation?

 

Civility died when Trump entered the political landscape
                         Andy Kessler: Clueless as to real source of incivility

America’s descent into chaos and depravity was foretold 10 years ago at a press conference. Donald Trump, who had just been nominated for president at the 2016 Republican National Convention, issued an invitation for one of America’s foes to hack the emails of Hillary Clinton, -  Heather Digby Parton, 'Putin Has Trump Right Where He Wants Him', Permalink


In his recent (Oct. 18) WSJ Op-ed ('Have Some Manners, People', p. A16) columnist Andy Kessler asks:

"Is politeness dead? Being polite has been replaced by the incivility of narcissism. People who worry only about themselves: ME, ME, ME.  

....We're overloaded with hate and vitriol. How does this end? How did we get here?'"

Frankly, it's incomprehensible how Kessler can even ask such questions, given I already described the downfall of American civility some 8 years earlier, e.g.

Brane Space: What Happened To Civility? TRUMP!

So why hasn't our WSJ wordsmith processed that apart from nibbling around the edges, i.e.

"Decorum at the top is sorely lacking. Too many are emulating Donald Trump."

And that's the best you've got? No references to how he said (in an Access Hollywood clip) he could 'grab 'em by the pussy', or his mocking a handicapped NY Times reporter?


 Or how this lump of fecal barbarism has incessantly shouted profanities and lies - as well as invitations to get violent - at countless rallies? Including one in which Trump told a Vegas crowd he'd like to punch a demonstrator in the face, then reminisced about earlier days when they'd be carried out on stretchers. 

Can he even see the headlines outside the reactionary Right media orbit? E.g.


No, I don't suppose he can - or won't. Indeed, from the time this orange fungal turd entered U.S. politics, we've seen nothing but chaos, upheaval, national division, racism and hate. But Kessler spends nine tenths of his column on the incivility of others, devoting barely a sentence to Trump's obvious outrages ushering in "America's descent into chaos and depravity". As Heather Digby Parton wrote in a recent Permalink post.  

Kessler then goes on to society's preference for violence, scribbling:

"Society has changed. Our young generation is filled with Luigi Mangione lovers. Students cheer the murder and rape of Nova Festival concertgoers. Eleven jurors thought a woman who murdered her children should be let off and too many people think this is normal."

Well, uh, yeah, but all that's on Trump and his depravity era too. He basically gave violence his stamp of approval. Too many people across the country thought it was normal when Trump said he could shoot somebody on 5th avenue and people would still vote for him. Or when he invited MAGAs at his sundry rallies to beat up protesters.

Or when he barked last year that 6 Dem officeholders "committed seditious behavior punishable by death."

They included:

  • Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) — Former CIA analyst and Iraq War veteran
  • Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) — Former astronaut and Navy veteran
  • Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) — Army veteran
  • Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) — Air Force veteran
  • Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-N.H.)
  • Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.) — Navy veteran

What was their seditious 'crime'? Citing the section in the Military's Uniform Code of Justice regarding the right for service men and women to refuse an unlawful order.

So when Kessler complains about these extreme reactions nd behavior he isn't fully processing how they've been with us since Trump's many violent 2016 rallies. 

Then there was Trump's outburst when he invited Iran to 'take out' LA and San Diego, i.e.

Why isn't Kessler paying attention to Trump's chronic actions and words as an agent of chaos and malignancy which amounts to a pestilence and has finally numbed much of the nation. The fact is none of Kessler's examples of malign speech or behavior don't hold a candle to the orange traitor's outrages and ongoing transgressions - especially as a convicted felon.

Does he think it's normal for an American President to warn the nation "will burn" if his party (protecting him from any accountability) doesn't win an election? See:

Trump warns America will burn if Republicans lose this election

Kessler ends by writing:

"I'm not pining for a return to the Victorian era, just some politeness and decency that includes respect and nailing a spike into today's rampant narcissism."

Then, Andy, you should at least be pining for an end to the Trump occupation - preferably removal through the 25th amendment.  Basically, the toxicity eroding the nation's civility won't be gone until Trump is, given he's the source of 99 percent of it.

Alas, Kessler's column isn't the only episode of soft-soaping Trump's evil reign of anti-American influence. We see a similar avoidance of reality in John J. Miller's review of a book by Alan Sepinwall on Rod Serling (WSJ, Oct. 17-18, p. C7).  Near the end of the review Miller writes: 

"Serling wouldn't have approved of President Trump. Mr. Sepinwall even indulges in a reference to Hitler. Perhaps he should review the lesson of 'Four O'Clock, a fourth season episode in which a political fanatic denounces people he considers evil and suffers a comeuppance."

But Miller would actually be better served (and enlightened) by reviewing the lesson of the classic Twilight Zone episode about Adolf Hitler returning entitled "He's Alive" (Season 4, Episode 4), 

The story follows an American neo-Nazi (played by Dennis Hopper) who is mentored by the ghostly apparition of Hitler. The end of the episode noting whenever hate, division and racism reign, Hitler "returns” in that country,  via his despicable ideology.  

As for Miller's citation of the episode 'Four O'Clock' it's a big snoozer about a nut case. As one reviewer described it: 

"There is essentially no story here, just a series of interactions driving home the point that the main character is obsessed with his “mission”. It’s 25 minutes of the viewer going “Yeah, we get it”

Maybe Miller and Kessler need a lesson in selective avoidance of reality. Or, perhaps just getting over the fear of a senile, batshit wannabe tyrant.

See Also:

Clashes Darken Rally in South Carolina as Trump Seeks to Boost Darline Graham - The New York Times

And:

In Trump’s Diplomacy, Insults Are a One-Way Street. Ukraine Is the Latest Example. - The New York Times

Excerpt:

The latest rift with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine serves as a reminder that President Trump readily lashes out at other world leaders, only to grow outraged if they fight back. The rules of the road when it comes to President Trump’s relations with foreign leaders are clear: He may trash you. But woe unto you if you whack back.

No one knows that better than President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who has been through this particular diplomatic wringer more than once

And:

Brane Space: Trump Regrets Political Violence? Don't Freaking Make Me Laugh!

And:

And:

by Robert Becker | February 16, 2025 - 6:12am | permalink

Early on, DJ Trump perceived his talents more suited to play the truculent Lord of Misrule than plausible presidential prospect. Or competent campaigner. Or rational leader. Or trustworthy man. From Birtherism on, Trump gleefully stalked the opposition as a calculated agent of disorder. That’s why today’s scorched earth, “everything is rigged” demolition derby presents nothing new. De-legitimizing rivals, polls, the media, and his own disloyal party, even trustworthy national vote counting, replicates his opening bad faith gambit. Does he now think more fact-free recklessness, let alone again seeding criminal, post-election violence, attracts undecided voters?

» article continues...

And:

by Connie Peck | September 25, 2026 - 4:46am | permalink

In a highly aggressive 40-minute speech to the United Nations General Assembly on September 22, President Donald Trump once again issued ominous threats to Iran, saying: “I have a very big decision to make. Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world? Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill or destroy people or countries again? Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations?”

He implied that his “very big decision” would come after the midterms, suggesting that Iran is waiting to make a deal until then and, if one isn’t forthcoming, then he would choose annihilation.

» article continues...

And:

Did Trump Just Threaten to Annihilate Iran From the UN Podium?