Today’s read is from Craig Shirley. He’s a Ronald Reagan biographer and presidential historian having written six books on Reagan. He has also written The New York Times bestseller, “December, 1941” and just published the companion book, “April, 1945” to wide acclaim. Here’s an excerpt:
Shall we compare and contrast Ronald Reagan’s address to the nation after the Challenger disaster, when seven brave American astronauts perished in a terrible accident, with Joe Biden’s scratchy, partisan and shrill comments following the the shooting in Uvalde,Texas?
Reagan’s speech was soothing and melodic. It achieved its goal, by unifying the nation.
Contrast this with Biden, whose remarks were peppered with personal references.
For years, there has been a debate about putting Reagan on Mount Rushmore, or the dime.
Joe Biden will likely end up in the dust bin of history, it’s there where mediocre presidents reside — permanently.
1) How many incidents of shootings have there been at schools in America this year?
2) And how many ‘mass school shootings’ have there been here in 2022?
The answer to #1 has been all over the news in recent days. It’s 27.
As for #2, you might be surprised to learn the answer is 1. The only mass school shooting in the United States this year took place in Uvalde when 19 children and two teachers were murdered.
Let’s clear. ALL school shootings are horrific. But this issue which has been overly politicized needs to be put in perspective.
Robby Soave, a senior editor at Reason has published a finding that everyone else in the media is unaware of or ignoring because it doesn’t fit their gun control template.
According to Soave:
The problem here is that three very differently defined terms are being used somewhat incautiously and interchangeably: school shooting, mass shooting, and mass school shooting. Uvalde was a mass school shooting; the 26 previous tragedies at schools this year were not.
The difference is significant. Education Week, which tracks all school shootings defines them as incidents in which a person other than the suspect suffers a bullet wound on school property. Many of the 26 previous shootings involved disputes between students in parking lots, or after athletic events, and all of them resulted in one or zero deaths. These deaths are still incredibly tragic, of course. But they are fundamentally unlike what happened in Uvalde.
Uvalde is a mass school shooting. This is defined in different ways too: an incident in which at least four people (some counters make it three) are shot and/or killed
A stricter tally of mass school shootings, conducted by criminologists for Scientific American, only includes incidents where the shootings resulted in at least four deaths. Using their criteria, the number of mass school shootings in the U.S. since the year 1966 is 13. These crimes claimed the lives of 146 people in total.
Obviously, 13 incidents in the last 56 years is a very different statistic than 27 incidents in the last few months.
President Travels to Site of School Shooting, Hearing a Plea: ‘Do Something’
Columnist David Harsanyi says such a plea is problematic. Here’s an excerpt from his column:
The Trouble With Do-Somethingism on Guns
By David Harsanyi a senior editor at The Federalist
Before we even knew how the killer of 19 children and two adults at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, had obtained his guns, Sen. Chris Murphy was engaging in his customary performative emotionalism on the Senate floor, literally begging Republicans to “compromise.”
Compromise on what exactly? Murphy has never once offered a single proposal that would have deterred any of these mass shooters. Literally minutes after his routine, Murphy was asked about the obvious mental illness prevalent among most of these shooters. “Spare me the bulls— about mental illness,” the Connecticut senator responded.
Whether America is more prone to mental illness or not, these incidents are almost exclusively perpetrated by young men who have exhibited serious antisocial behavior. All of them break a slew of existing laws. All of them have either obtained guns illegally, or legally before having any criminal record. In many, if not most, cases, the shooter is already on the cops’ radar because he has threatened others or written insane, violent manifestos. In a study of mass shootings from 2008 to 2017, the Secret Service found that “100 percent of perpetrators showed concerning behaviors, and in 77 percent of shootings, at least one person — most often a peer — knew about their plan.”
Senate Democrats were busy dunking on Republicans for failing to support bills that have absolutely zero to do with mass shootings.
Meanwhile, Republicans will have to deal with a barrage of preposterous smears. “There is no such thing as being ‘pro-life’ while supporting laws that let children be shot in their schools, elders in grocery stores, worshippers in their houses of faith, survivors by abusers, or anyone in a crowded place,” Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.
Unlike Ocasio-Cortez, who champions laws that empower people to terminate the lives of the viable unborn, I don’t know of a single Republican who supports the gunning down of elementary school children.
Indeed, law-abiding Americans have no obligation to take ownership of a madman’s actions. Nor is there any reason for them to surrender their right to self-defense so that Chris Murphy, who, evidenced in many of his comments, is only interested in incrementally limiting gun ownership. That’s his right, of course. He should try to repeal the Second Amendment. Until then, however, Democrats interested in genuine compromise may want to offer realistic, productive and germane ideas, rather than using another horrific tragedy to dunk on their political opponents.
Heard only over the closing credits, “Hymn to the Fallen” could very well have been a piece like “Summon the Heroes,” written separate from the film as a lasting tribute. Very little of the film’s thematic material is used, and only at the very beginning of the six-minute piece. An Angelic chorus lifts the music to great heights before a silent drum cadence brings it to a close. This is Williams’ way of rewarding the audience for making it to the end of such a gut-wrenching film. “Hymn to the Fallen” is one of the reasons the score to Saving Private Ryan is an instant classic and certainly one of his best in recent years. —Jeff Commings, John Williams Fan Network
The “Hymn to The Fallen” is one of John Williams’ most astounding pieces. The simple tune carries the weight of all who died in the war. From the snare solo in the beginning, the theme begins softly, with a beautiful choral part. The music is never too sad or depressing. Even when the tension builds, the tears that are yanked from your eyes come not from the sadness of the piece, but from its profound beauty. One of the most glorious parts of the track is the brass’ interpretation of the theme. It rises up in dignity, and dies back down, letting way for another, stronger rendition of the theme, once again with the theme. The entire orchestra swells in a majestic, grandiose rendition, building up to the soaring climax, and sweeping down back to the calm. A lonely clarinet/bassoon duet leads into the conclusion, with the snare drum growing only to fade back. —Frank Lehman, John Williams Fan Network
For the third year in a row, CBS is marking Memorial Day by inviting musicians of all abilities and ages across the country to honor our fallen soldiers by playing Taps during the National Moment of Remembrance at 3 p.m. local time.
Who can participate?
Anyone who can sound Taps. You can find the sheet music here. We recommend playing in the key of B flat, if possible.
When should I sound Taps?
On Memorial Day, Monday, May 30 at 3 p.m. in your local time zone.
Where should I play Taps?
Participants have played from a wide variety of locations – their own porches or lawns, cemeteries and monuments, mountain tops, workplaces and more. We encourage you to play wherever feels most comfortable and meaningful to you.
Should I record myself sounding Taps?
Yes — we plan to show some of your videos on the CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell. You can use any phone with a video camera, and hold the phone horizontally.Record the whole performance. If neighbors or friends come to listen, get a shot of them too, with their permission.
How do I share my video with CBS?
Share your video and reason for playing on social media using the hashtag #CBSTaps. We will be browsing public posts with that hashtag on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
What should I do if I hear Taps?
Traditionally, when people hear Taps, they respond by standing, facing the music and placing their hands over their hearts.
THERE ARE THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF FOOD BLOGS, BUT ONLY ONE CULINARY NO-NO!
The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the importance of the National School Lunch Program for millions of children who rely on school meals. During the darkest days of the pandemic when businesses closed, people lost their jobs, and millions of Americans turned to food banks to feed their families, school meals remained a consistent source of quality nutrition.
My Administration is dedicated to nutrition, food security, and ensuring that school meals are accessible to all children. This includes a commitment to providing safe, healthy meals free of charge to children, especially as the pandemic continues to compromise the food and nutrition security of our most vulnerable students. FROM A PROCLAMATION BY PRESIDENT BIDEN ON NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH WEEK, OCTOBER 2021
Today, Biden has issued an ultimatum on school meal programs.
K-12 schools must allow boys into girls’ private areas to obtain federal funds for lunches, breakfasts, and snacks, the Biden administration announced this month. A U.S. Department of Education spokesman told The Federalist the Biden administration’s press releases from several agencies announcing this policy will be followed by formal rulemaking in June.
“It seems to be playing politics with feeding poor kids, which is really unfortunate,” John Elcesser, executive director of the Indiana Non-Public Education Association said.
Before many schools shut down in response to Covid-19, the National School Lunch Program fed nearly 30 million kids every school day, in approximately 100,000 public and private schools and residential care facilities.
Under this new demand, establishments that accept any federal food funding, including food stamps, must also allow males who claim to be female to access female private spaces, such as showers, bathrooms, and sleeping areas. Such organizations must also follow protocols such as requiring staff to use inaccurate pronouns to describe transgender people and allowing male staff to dress as women while on the job.
What is it with bullies and people’s lunch money? That’s what every American should be asking after Joe Biden played the quintessential bully trope of threatening to take federal lunch money from any K-12 school or district that doesn’t let boys use girls’ bathrooms.
Unity. Or else.
The money at stake over Biden’s Rainbow Mafia agenda is for the lunches provided to lower-income kids, which doesn’t seem to match the usual Democrat talking points about “fair share.” It is, however, exactly what a bully would say, and just in time for “Pride Month” to boot.
Plain and simple, the president’s policy is evil and cruel.
This Just In... From Franklin, WI 
