The $130 billion train that couldn’t

California’s High Speed Rail is only the latest blue-state infrastructure failure - Joel Kotkin and Wendell Cox

In the annals of stupid and poorly run schemes, the California High-Speed Rail project ranks among the worst...

• When voters approved $9 billion for the plan in 2008, the California High-Speed Rail Authority estimated that it would cost $33 billion and start running by 2020 – and that was just for the San Joaquin Valley portion. 
• The cost has since ballooned to $130 billion, and no stretch is operational...

Governing Magazine, not exactly a voice for reduced public spending, traced this cost explosion to

•  “uncoordinated planning” that 
• ignored basic construction logistics 
• and bent to the knee to please political factions...

AM Fruitcake

 

History for July 23

History for July 23 - On-This-Day.com

Karl Menninger 1893

• 1715 - The first lighthouse in America was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts.
• 1829 - William Burt patented the typographer, which was the first typewriter.
• 1904 - The ice cream cone was invented by Charles E. Menches during the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, MO.
• 1952 - Egyptian military officers led by Gamal Abdel Nasser overthrew King Farouk I.
• 1958 - The submarine Nautilus departed from Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, under orders to conduct "Operation Sunshine." The mission was to be the first vessel to cross the north pole by ship.

Blue States Slash Medicaid for Illegal Immigrants | Blaze Media

Blue States Slash Medicaid for Illegal Immigrants | Blaze Media: 

States will be ending their programs for illegal immigrants, saving millions. Since around 2020, Washington, D.C., and seven states have opened their health care programs to illegal aliens. However, since President Trump's administration began, some states have abruptly changed their policy positions. According to the Associated Press, California, Illinois, and Minnesota, all heavily Democrat-run states, have announced that they will be scaling back or ending their Medicaid programs for illegal aliens.

The way we were-----What Happened to the Lost Colony at Roanoke ? How Did a Whole Village Di...

🔴OSHKOSH 2025 LIVE: Warbirds, Aerobatics & More! | Opening Day Airshow

Instapundit - DON’T LET’S BE BEASTLY TO THE GERMANS, EH?

Instapundit - Andy Ngo @MrAndyNgo · 11h Canada is dealing with a surge in thousands of cases of measles, far surpassing the U.S. raw numbers despite having a much smaller population.

• UPDATE (FROM GLENN): Blame an unpopular, powerless minority for government-caused problems? Where have I heard that before? - Ed Driscoll

Global study links early smartphone ownership with poorer mental health in young adults

Owning a smartphone before age 13 is associated with poorer mental health and well-being in early adulthood, according to a global study of more than 100,000 young people. - Taylor & Francis

• Published today in the Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, the study found that 18- to 24-year-olds who had received their first smartphone at age 12 or younger were more likely to report suicidal thoughts, aggression, detachment from reality, poorer emotional regulation, and low self-worth.
• The data also shows evidence that these effects of smartphone ownership at an early age are in large part associated with early social media access and higher risks of cyberbullying, disrupted sleep, and poor family relationships by adulthood...

The civil rights crisis at Cornell demands federal action * WorldNetDaily * by Jovan Tripkovic, Real Clear Wire

The civil rights crisis at Cornell demands federal action * WorldNetDaily * by Jovan Tripkovic, Real Clear Wire: 

At Cornell, identity politics is a governing principle, deeply embedded in the institution itself. Cornell's new president, Michael Kotlikoff, recently claimed that his institution is committed to merit-based decisions in all of its processes; however, public university policy and internal documents suggest otherwise. They also suggest that Kotlikoff has overseen the civil rights violations, going back to his time as Provost. The America First Policy Institute has filed a formal civil rights complaint against Cornell University for engaging in a deeply embedded, systemic pattern of discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices. AFPI is urging several federal agencies, including the Departments of Justice and Education, to thoroughly investigate whether Cornell University is violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and even the False Claims Act.

What Gives Flint the Right To Auction Off Cars Doing Donuts?

The line between real and fake is gone and people are loving it.

Here are 10 viral clips where AI meets absolute madness:  - Pearl AI@heypearlai

We're cooked!

• The line between real and fake is gone and people are loving it.
• Here are 10 viral clips where AI meets absolute madness:

1. Just dropped 1,000 kg of hate

Lunch video-----We Don't Want No Stinkin' Antarctic Ice

Noon-toon

 

'Illegal Alien Monster': Trump sounds off after U.S. Border Patrol agent shot in face by illegal alien serial criminal * WorldNetDaily * by Joe Kovacs

'Illegal Alien Monster': Trump sounds off after U.S. Border Patrol agent shot in face by illegal alien serial criminal * WorldNetDaily * by Joe Kovacs: 

An off-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent is hospitalized after being shot in the face Saturday night by an illegal alien with a deportation order who re-entered the U.S. during Joe Biden's presidential term. The Department of Homeland Security released video of the suspected robbery that turned into an exchange of gunfire. One of the alleged perpetrators, Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez of the Dominican Republic, was reportedly wounded.

Interesting!

 

Rod D. Martin - 🚨 The headlines about Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, now law, are all about tax cuts, deficits, and Elon.

But here are 10 MASSIVE wins that have nothing to do with that, and will change life for every American — from the border to babies. - Jayne Friedman - Rod D. Martin -  

2/ $150 Billion for the Border

Trump just secured the largest immigration enforcement funding in U.S. history:

— $46.5B for the Wall

— $45B for ICE detention

— $14.4B for deportation ops

— $13.5B for state & local cooperation

ICE is now bigger than the Russian military!

3/ Fixing America’s Broken Air Traffic Control

— $12.5B for a total ATC overhaul

— Replacing 1970s tech (floppy disks, copper wire, rotary phones!)

— New radar, fiber optics, near-miss prevention tech

— Better training for air traffic controllers

Fewer delays, safer skies.

4/ “Trump Accounts” for Every Newborn

Every baby born 2025–2028 gets:

— $1,000 in a pre-funded account

— Tax-deferred growth

— Use for school, a home, or a business

— Accessible at 18, fully available at 25

A future fund, not a welfare trap.

5/ Defunding Planned Parenthood...

Remember this??!!

 

How U.S. Universities Helped China Build Its Weather Warfare Program - Jared Gould

For decades, weather modification sat on the fringe of science, dismissed by the government and shrugged off by the public with a familiar refrain: “The government wouldn’t do that.”

• But it did, and it still does. 

And worse, American colleges and universities helped give China the tools to do it themselves.
Today, China operates the world’s largest weather modification program. 

• It employs more than 37,000 personnel, regularly deploying rockets and aircraft to seed clouds, and has a growing research apparatus dedicated to climate control. 
• In 2020, China’s State Council announced a dramatic expansion of the program, aiming to cover over two million square miles by 2025—that’s larger than India...

#1 This day 1970-----[They Long To Be] Close To You

Trump Sparks Outrage With AI-Generated Video Showing Obama Arrested and Jailed

Remember when we were told "8647" was just a bunch of pebbles, "Get over it!":

But this cute video is outrageous??!!

Changing their tune?

 

How the 'deep state' funnels YOUR money to radical groups | Blaze Media

How the 'deep state' funnels YOUR money to radical groups | Blaze Media: 

“You get Congress to allocate a whole bunch blindly, usually through these organizations. An insane allotment to government agencies,” Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck says, singling out the United States Agency for International Development and Department of State.

“The USAID money that was doled out to foreign recipients in 2023 alone, $4.17 billion,” Glenn explains. “The money is then moved from State and USAID to other trusted organizations like the National Endowment for Democracy (NED).”

Report: Instead of replacing outdated air traffic control systems, Pete Buttigieg's DOT spent $80 BILLION on DEI grants | Not the Bee

Yes, Pete "Booty Juice," as his boss called him, instead of throwing money into new equipment to replace old air traffic control systems, spent $80 billion on about 400 DEI grants. - Cardinal Pritchard

This was kinda what we expected from Pete Buttigieg's DOT.

• Programs such as 'Justice40' ended up shelling out 55% of around $150 billion in infrastructure investments to 'disadvantaged communities,' pursuant to an executive order Biden signed to 'advance equitable outcomes.'
• Biden's $1.2 trillion infrastructure law in 2021 provided much of the funding, but some Democrats were critical of the outcomes — including a $5 billion equity effort to build 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations that resulted in just seven being built by June 2024...

AM Fruitcake