THE MORNING RANT: A Little Bit of Good News

How about a few “good news” stories regarding the political battles we’re fighting?

Illinois Town Nixes Solar Boondoggle

Americans who want reliable and affordable energy are starting to realize that boutique electricity sources such as solar and wind are neither reliable nor affordable.

Illinois Town Nixes Solar Boondoggle [CFACT – 3/11/2023]

In a stunning setback for solar, the City of Pontiac, Illinois has scuttled plans to construct a solar energy project that would transform a vacant lot in town into a shiny solar desert.

At an emotional Feb. 13 hearing before the City of Pontiac Planning and Zoning Board, city officials denied the application of Bundleflower Solar LLC to rezone the property so that as many as 5,568 photovoltaic solar panels could be installed there.

The dramatic turnaround shows what can happen when citizens are well informed about how harmful solar (and wind) projects are, and then mobilize to stop deep-pocketed renewable-energy developers from ruining their communities.

Local politics is controlled by those who show up, be it at the polls or at the civic meetings where decisions are made.

Good job, Pontiac.

Denying Municipalities the Authority to Deny Freedom

Being a refugee from a deep blue city in a deep red state, I have experienced the passion that progressives have for outlawing freedom with whatever levers of power they have. If municipal-level communists control just a city, or a county, or a school board, they’ll seek to ban a vast array of freedoms. Given the power, they will deny you gas stoves, plastic grocery bags, or even control of your own thermostat.

I’m glad to see conservatives punching back, and getting over their 20th century worship of “local rule” as being a sacred conservative principal.

Tennessee Law Prevents Local Bans On Natural Gas Stoves [The Tennessean – 3/22/2023]

Republican Gov. Bill Lee has signed legislation that says local governments can't ban gas stoves, even though no current city in Tennessee is currently pursuing such actions.

Under the legislation Lee approved last week, local governments cannot regulate the "type of source of energy" delivered to customers for utility service connection or appliances. The legislation went into effect immediately after receiving strong support inside the GOP-dominated Tennessee Statehouse.

It’s that easy.

Protecting Citizens From Pro-Criminal District Attorneys

Along the same lines as the story directly above, Georgia lawmakers are fed up with pro-crime District Attorneys permitting a reign of terror against law abiding citizens.

Georgia Bill is Latest GOP Effort Targeting Prosecutors [AP – 3/27/2023]

A new Georgia commission to discipline and remove wayward prosecutors would be the latest move nationwide to ratchet up oversight on what Republicans see as “woke prosecutors” who aren’t doing enough to fight crime.

The Georgia House voted 97-77 on Monday for Senate Bill 92 to create the commission. The Senate later sent the measure to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp for his signature or veto.

I have been very critical of Gov. Kemp on occasion, but the word in political circles is that he will sign this bill. Good for him. He deserves conservative praise if he takes action that leads to removal of District Attorneys who won’t incarcerate violate criminals.

“That’s the whole point of this bill, is to restore public safety in places where you have rogue district attorneys who simply are not doing their job,” said Georgia Republican Rep. Houston Gaines of Athens.

As much as many of us don’t care if major American cities collapse from their own poor voting habits, cities such as Atlanta and Austin are the seats of government for their states. Citizens from around the state oftentimes have to be in those cities for official business. The state has an obligation to protect all of its citizens from crime, even if the residents of certain counties have voted to become criminal sanctuaries.

Molly Ivins’ Old Lefty Publication Is Shutting Down

How is an alternative left-wing periodical supposed to compete against big city daily newspapers when every big city paper is full of “news” stories that are just radical, left-wing propaganda. There is not a “further left” niche for an alternative paper to occupy.

Texas Observer, Legendary Crusading Liberal Magazine, is Closing and Laying Off Its Staff [Texas Tribune – 3/26/2023]

The 68-year-old progressive publication, which published Ronnie Dugger, Molly Ivins and Kaye Northcott, hit financial troubles and wasn’t able to broaden its audience, board members said.

The decision marks an end to 68 years of publication, starting with its founding in 1954 by Ronnie Dugger and including a six-year period under the helm of the legendary Molly Ivins from 1970 to 1976. The magazine, in its first few decades, represented the liberal wing of the once-conservative Democratic Party.

“Our reader base and our donor base is aging out,” Frump said. “There’s a nostalgia for Molly Ivins and Ann Richards and their era, and that’s a lot of what still drives the Observer. We weren’t able to build a bridge to the younger, progressive generation. I think the legacy is worth fighting for, but I do understand why the board feels the way it does.”

When I was growing up in the ‘70s and ‘80s, the parents of very good friends of mine were quite liberal, and they subscribed to the Texas Observer. To their delight (because my parents were Republican) I’d often read the Observer when hanging out at their house. Its hard-core, left-wing advocacy was fascinating to me, especially in contrast to our daily newspaper, which still had plenty of journalists who strived for objectivity and neutral reporting, despite the paper’s liberal bias.

I’ve occasionally pondered how modern newspapers are now as cartoonishly left-wing as the Observer was back then, so there really is no need for a publication like the Observer any longer.

In a way, the Texas Observer ultimately won the battle it was fighting, considering that the legacy media and the Democrat Party now fully embrace the agenda of Ronnie Dugger and Molly Ivins.

[UPDATED]

It’s not dead yet.

Texas Observer Will Continue Publishing After Staff Crowdfunds More Than $300,000

The Observer still faces significant obstacles to its survival, however. Board members have acknowledged that they allowed the budget, which reached $2.1 million last year, to grow beyond what was sustainable.

The Texas Observer’s readers are a fading group of old lefties with framed pictures of Ann Richards on their walls. It can’t afford to keep putting out a print publication, but its geriatric readership won’t switch to online. $300k won’t buy it much time.

[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]

posted by Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM

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