Authored by Janice Hisle via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

A Texas federal judge has ordered Southwest Airlines to reinstate Charlene Carter, the flight attendant who made headlines after a jury ruled that she was unlawfully fired for expressing pro-life views and for criticizing her union.

In a decision filed on Dec. 5, five months after a jury decided in Carter’s favor, Judge Brantley Starr remarked, “Bags fly free with Southwest. But free speech didn’t fly at all with Southwest in this case.”

Starr granted Carter $300,000 in compensatory and punitive damages from Southwest; $300,000 in compensatory and punitive damages from the flight attendants’ union, Transport Workers Union of America Local 556; $150,000 in back pay, and $60,180.82 in prejudgment interest.

Although the jury voted that Carter deserved more than $5 million, laws and rules limit the amount that can be awarded in such cases.

Is this the hill that leftists have chosen to die on?

Progressives and SJWs claim that there is no LGBT grooming agenda aimed at underage children, but all the evidence suggests otherwise. 

Project Veritas has released another discomforting hidden camera interview that essentially dashes any arguments that leftists have in defense of LGBT propaganda in schools, with blatant sexualization of kids being used in Chicago.

Joseph Bruno, Dean of Students at the Francis W. Parker School in Chicago, is caught on camera bragging about inviting representatives from a local LGBT Health Center to the school to talk to students ages 14-18 during pride month. 

He admits that the students were given sex toys to “play with” while teaching the kids about “queer sex”.  Bruno appears excessively excited while talking about the event, and suggests that it’s a “cool part of his job” ostensibly because he doesn’t have to worry about oversight.

The school also engages in drag queen story hour events for very young children. 

While the Parker School is a private school, the Dean hints that parents are not specifically notified of these LGBT sex education events and neither are the trustees.

While drag queen events have been caught on numerous occasions crossing the line of what is legal in terms of child exposure and sexualization, the classes described by Bruno enter a whole other realm of grooming. 

Is it really “bigoted” or “extreme” to argue that this is unacceptable behavior to expose children to in schools?  Can’t we all agree to “leave those kids alone” until they are competent adults?  

Authored by Darlene McCormick Sanchez via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Loudoun County School Board members voted to fire embattled superintendent Scott Ziegler after a special grand jury report said he lied about a rape committed by a transgender student.

The board voted unanimously on Dec. 6 to fire Ziegler without cause, the Virginia school district’s spokesman, Wayde Byard, told The Epoch Times.

The move came after a special grand jury in Loudoun County released a 91-page report on Dec. 5 condemning Ziegler and other school officials for displaying a “stunning lack of openness” about the incidents.

The grand jury, made up of randomly selected Loudoun County residents, said Ziegler lied when he said there were no records of assault occurring in school bathrooms.

ABC7News reported on Dec. 7 that Ziegler will receive 12 months of severance pay per his contract. Byard did not confirm to The Epoch Times whether a severance package had been promised.

The Virginia school district made national headlines last year after a father accused the district at a board meeting of covering up his 15-year-old daughter’s rape by a skirt-wearing biological boy.

While he was speaking, the man was tackled by police, knocked to the ground, dragged out, and charged with disorderly conduct.

After the incident, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin asked the state’s attorney general, Jason Miyares, to conduct a full investigation into the school district following accusations a transgender student sexually assaulted two different girls.

The 15-year-old victim’s family and officials said a “gender-fluid” boy sexually assaulted her on May 28, 2021 at Stone Bridge High School in the girls’ restroom.

Five months later, the same transgender student was accused of assaulting a second female student on Oct. 6, 2021, at Broad Run High School, after the district transferred him there.

In that incident, the transgender student was accused of forcing a female student into an empty classroom, holding her against her will, and touching her inappropriately.

In October of 2021, a Virginia judge found the transgender student guilty of sexual assault charges involving the 15-year-old.

The following month, the transgender student pleaded no contest to sexual battery in the second incident. He was sentenced to probation at a residential treatment facility until his 18th birthday in June 2024.

As part of the sentence, he was ordered to register as a sex offender, but a judge reversed that decision.

In their report, the special grand jury said Ziegler denied the first sexual assault during a school board meeting in June 2021.

At the meeting, according to the report, a board member asked Ziegler, “Do we have assaults in our bathrooms or in our locker rooms, regularly? I would hope not but I’d like clarification.”

The superintendent responded that there were no records of assault occurring in the school bathrooms, the report said.

Another witness testified the superintendent’s statement was a “bald-faced lie.” In response to that testimony, the grand jury wrote in the report, “We agree.”

The report also noted that Stone Bridge High School principal Tim Flynn failed to mention the first sexual assault in an email to the school community on the day it happened. Ziegler signed off on the email, the report indicated.

Ziegler said at the time he misunderstood the question from the board member.

He said that he had interpreted the question to be about whether the school had records of assaults happening in restrooms involving transgender and gender-fluid students, according to the report.

The report said there were several “decision points” for senior school administrators—up to and including the superintendent—to be “transparent” and step in and alter the sequence of events leading up to the second sexual assault on Oct. 6.

“They failed at every juncture,” the report said.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Monday announced that the Florida Disaster Fund has raised $59.2 million for Hurricane Ian emergency relief, after claiming that the Biden administration denied funding assistance.

$25 million came from the state of Florida, while donors provided $35.2 million, DeSantis’ office said in a press release. The state funds will be used to acquire building materials, while donations will enable “verified nonprofit organizations to conduct critical temporary repairs on homes damaged by Hurricane Ian,” according to the press release, and reported by the Daily Caller.

With the support of First Lady @CaseyDeSantis, the Florida Disaster Fund has raised more than $59 million, and her announcement of $10.2 million for 17 non-profits to help meet the needs of Floridians with building supplies, food, and shelter will continue to help those in need. https://t.co/9GXy79kWvN

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) December 6, 2022

The disaster funding will also address “unmet needs such as transportation, food assistance, housing aid, clothing, and household goods,” according to the release.

“We are providing building materials and supporting nonprofit organizations to provide repairs so impacted residents can move back into their own homes,” said DeSantis, adding “Floridians are resilient, and the state stands by them every step of the way as they continue their recovery.

Biden admin denied?

On Monday, DeSantis said that Florida was denied $25 million in emergency funds by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

(Perhaps Florida should change its name to Ukraine?)

Following the FEMA denial, DeSantis said “we’re not going to take no for an answer,” adding “we want to cut bureaucracy.”

“We’re not just gonna sit there and take no for an answer […] We’re gonna figure out what we can do […] We wanna cut through bureaucracy.” pic.twitter.com/NmgwV9RGnc

— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) December 5, 2022

According to the Caller:

FEMA denied the request because of its “limited authority” and “our inability to confirm that authorizing this policy expansion would achieve the intended outcomes for disaster survivors,” the agency said in a letter to Kevin Guthrie, Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management. 

The agency has provided $3.3 billion in federal support to Florida and households for Hurricane Ian relief, according to a Monday press release.

FEMA and the White House both did not immediately respond to requests for comment by the Daily Caller. Gov. DeSantis’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment as well.

The Florida Disaster Fund – spearheaded by First Lady Casey DeSantis is the state’s private fund, which was established to provide financial assistance to communities throughout the state during emergencies.

Authored by Naveen Anthrapully via The Epoch Times,

The Texas legislature has subpoenaed investment firm BlackRock, together with its subsidiaries and affiliate entities in the state, for documents related to the institution’s promotion of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policies.

The subpoena was issued by the Texas Senate Committee on State Affairs last month and asks the sergeant-at-arms for the committee or any peace officer of the state to summon BlackRock and associated entities to appear before the committee on Dec. 15. The summoned entities are expected to produce for committee inspection “books, papers, documents, or other tangible things in the said corporation’s possession, custody, or control” which are related to “ESG factors” or “ESG integration practices,” the subpoena stated.

“The reason the committee is requesting the production of documents is to evaluate the investment practices of a financial services firm with a presence in Texas and how those practices affect the state’s public pensions,” it said.

In a statement to Fox, Texas Republican state Sen. Bryan Hughes, chairman of the committee on state affairs, said that the subpoenaed documents are necessary to “uncover” the extent to which investment entities like BlackRock have been “playing politics using Texans’ hard-earned money.”

Back in August, the committee sent letters to BlackRock, as well as other investment firms like State Street, Vanguard, and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), to provide documents related to their ESG decision-making.

Hughes said that while each firm has produced documents, some have submitted “more than others.” But when it comes to BlackRock, the firm has “refused” to submit documents it deems as confidential or internal.

As a result, the committee had to issue a subpoena to BlackRock. “They have a legal duty to put their investors’ interests first, and we intend to make sure they do,” Hughes added.

The Epoch Times has reached out to BlackRock.

What’s ESG?

ESG investing advocates stakeholder capitalism instead of the conventional shareholder variant. Proponents of the ideology argue that traditional investments focus merely on maximizing profits, whereas stakeholder-centric ESG investing takes into consideration social advocacy, environment, and other progressive ideals which they claim will benefit society, and the company, in the long run.

ESG investing is one of the main reasons why many companies have drastically evolved in recent times. When previously businesses followed customer demand, nowadays they have mostly pivoted toward alternate goals and sacrificed profits for “green” and politically correct objectives.

Action Against BlackRock, ESG Investing Perils

BlackRock has been facing a series of actions from state authorities over its ESG investing practices. On Dec. 1, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis announced that his state will begin pulling out $2 billion in assets from the investment firm.

The state intends to completely divest its investments from BlackRock and relocate them to other fund management firms beginning next year.

In October, Missouri announced plans to remove $500 million worth of pension fund investments in BlackRock.

Earlier, Louisiana had announced a pending removal of $794 million from the company, while Utah and Arkansas declared their intentions to remove $100 million and $125 million, respectively.

In a recent interview with Breitbart, Missouri Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick equated ESG with leftist activism and pointed out that people’s money is being used by money managers to advance political and social causes that might not even be in the investors’ financial interests.

“ESG is just the latest acronym to describe what people want them to believe for good, well-intentioned advocacy [when] it’s really just political advocacy for things that the Democrats cannot get passed through the democratic process, and they’re using your money to do it,” he said.

President Biden on Wednesday renewed a push to ban so-called ‘assault weapons’ during remarks at the 10th Annual National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence.

While discussing his meetings with the families of Sandy Hook Elementary School victims, Biden said he was able to get “the most significant gun law passed in 30 years,” but that it was not enough.

“…Our work continues to limit the number of bullets that can be in a cartridge, the type of weapon that can be purchased and sold, the attempt to ban assault weapons, a whole range of things that are just common sense, just simple common sense,” he said. “But you know, we did it before, you may remember, in the nineties we did it…And guess what, it worked. The number of violent mass murders reduced were significant, a lot of people’s lives were saved. You know, we can do it again.”

President Joe Biden renews vows to secure a ban on assault weapons at a national vigil for victims of gun violence, as he turns up the heat on U.S. lawmakers https://t.co/l99MSDHuiQ pic.twitter.com/fxtfDpRwfe

— Reuters (@Reuters) December 8, 2022

Biden was referring to a 1994 ‘assault weapons ban’ authored by then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (C), who was a congressman from Brooklyn. Schumer argued that the banned rifles were not made for hunting or target practice – but instead “they are made simply to kill as many people, people, people as possible. As fast as possible.”

The impact of the assault weapons prohibition was mixed.

The federal assault weapons ban was originally in effect between 1994 and 2004 as part of former President Clinton’s crime bill. Since its expiration, Democrats have been actively pushing for the ban to be reinstated. –Fox News

A top GOP Senator, however, says Democrats’ gun-grabbing ambitions may fall to the wayside.

“I don’t think that’s on the table,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) in a Wednesday statement to Fox News in response to a question about whether he thinks the assault weapon ban will gain any traction.

Seemingly confirming Cornyn’s comment was Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who told Fox News that the Senate “has a lot on our plate,” when asked about the last-minute gun bill – noting that as of today, there are “probably not 60 votes” for the bill – meaning Democrats are unlikely to find 10 GOP senators willing to break a filibuster to allow the law to pass.

On Wednesday Blumenthal joined fellow Democrat Dick Durbin of Illinois and the anti-gun March Fourth Coalition, to host a press conference aimed at urging the Senate to pass an assault weapons ban in the lame-duck session.

As if a million merger arbs suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.

Just before 2pm ET, the US Federal Trade Commission confirmed earlier rumors when it announced that it had voted 3-1 to sue to block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of gaming giant Activision Blizzard, saying the tie-up between the Xbox maker and popular gaming publisher would harm competition in the gaming market.

The commission voted to proceed with the complaint, which will be filed in its in-house court Thursday, in a closed-door meeting, said two BBG sources.

The full statement is below:

FTC Seeks to Block Microsoft Corp.’s Acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Inc.

Agency alleges that maker of Xbox would gain control of top video game franchises, enabling it to harm competition in high-performance gaming consoles and subscription services by denying or degrading rivals’ access to its popular content

The Federal Trade Commission is seeking to block technology giant Microsoft Corp. from acquiring leading video game developer Activision Blizzard, Inc. and its blockbuster gaming franchises such as Call of Duty, alleging that the $69 billion deal, Microsoft’s largest ever and the largest ever in the video gaming industry, would enable Microsoft to suppress competitors to its Xbox gaming consoles and its rapidly growing subscription content and cloud-gaming business.

In a complaint issued today, the FTC pointed to Microsoft’s record of acquiring and using valuable gaming content to suppress competition from rival consoles, including its acquisition of ZeniMax, parent company of Bethesda Softworks (a well-known game developer). Microsoft decided to make several of Bethesda’s titles including Starfield and Redfall Microsoft exclusives despite assurances it had given to European antitrust authorities that it had no incentive to withhold games from rival consoles.

“Microsoft has already shown that it can and will withhold content from its gaming rivals,” said Holly Vedova, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. “Today we seek to stop Microsoft from gaining control over a leading independent game studio and using it to harm competition in multiple dynamic and fast-growing gaming markets.”

Microsoft’s Xbox Series S and Series X are one of only two types of high performance video game consoles. Importantly, Microsoft also offers a leading video game content subscription service called Xbox Game Pass, as well as a cutting-edge cloud-based video game streaming service, according to the complaint.

Activision is one of only a very small number of top video game developers in the world that create and publish high-quality video games for multiple devices, including video game consoles, PCs, and mobile devices. It produces some of the most iconic and popular video game titles, including Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch, and has a combined 154 million monthly active users around the world, according to the FTC’s complaint. Activision currently has a strategy of offering its games on many devices regardless of producer.

But that could change if the deal is allowed to proceed. With control over Activision’s blockbuster franchises, Microsoft would have both the means and motive to harm competition by manipulating Activision’s pricing, degrading Activision’s game quality or player experience on rival consoles and gaming services, changing the terms and timing of access to Activision’s content, or withholding content from competitors entirely, resulting in harm to consumers.

The Commission vote to issue the complaint was 3-1, with Commissioner Christine S. Wilson voting no. A copy of the administrative complaint will be available shortly.

Having limped lower in recent weeks below where it had been trading around $80, already a wide discount to the $95 MSFT purchase price, ATVI stock slumped 2.5% to $74…

… while MSFT stock dropped about $2 from session highs some 2% higher on the session, to trade up just 0.9%.

The drop in MSFT promptly hammered the Nasdaq and sent shockwaves across the entire market, pushing spoos down more than 25 points to near session lows around 3950 having traded at session highs of 3975 just moments earlier.

An update to the Climate Prediction Center’s official 8-14 day outlook for pre-Christmas forecasts more than two-thirds of the Lower 48 will be colder than average, with near-normal temperatures for the Mid-Atlantic and above-average temperatures for the Northeast. 

NOAA’s temperature outlook forecasts the West, Southwest, and Midwest, as well as parts of the Southeast (excluding coastal areas), will experience below-average temperatures between Dec.15-21. The forecast was issued on Dec. 7. As for the Mid-Atlantic, temperatures are expected to be around average, while temperatures in the Northeast will be above average. 

Lower 48 average temperatures are currently well above average. On Wednesday, the national average was 10 degrees above a 30-year mean, though forecasts show a cold pattern will begin at the end of this week and push temperatures down well below average through Dec. 21. 

Heating demand is expected to rise ahead of Christmas. 

Houston-based energy firm Criterion Research pointed out on Nov. 23, “The United States has officially flipped over to withdrawal season.” 

US natural gas futures bid yesterday after falling more than 27% since late November after weather forecasts for the US switched from cold to warm. Cold weather is finally on the way, which could put a bid under NatGas. 

As for the Northeast, The Washington Post said, “The Mid-Atlantic and Northeast still appear on track to turn more wintry during the second half of the month. As Christmas approaches, if you’re rooting for snow, waiting is often the hardest part.” 

Authored by Mike Shedlock via MishTalk.com,

Hello Pentagon, what do you think of Biden’s new and costly green mandates for weapons?

Thanks to president Biden, The Pentagon Marches Off to Climate War.

“As the U.S. military faces strained budgets and growing threats, climate will be a costly new priority in national defense. The People’s Liberation Army must be dumbfounded by its good luck.”https://t.co/Uau7nwOaHw via @WSJ

— Gwendolyn Johnson (@TrixieIvy4) December 8, 2022

A little-noticed rule-making proposed by the Department of Defense, NASA and the General Services Administration last month would require federal contractors to disclose and reduce their CO2 emissions as well as climate financial risks. The rule would cover 5,766 contractors that have received at least $7.5 million from the feds in the prior year.

For example, weapons manufacturers would have to quantify and disclose the amount of CO2 generated from their own facilities; manufacturers that produce steel, computer chips and motors used in their weapons; propellants and fuel; and even munition storage areas. It’s unclear if CO2 emissions will influence procurement decisions.

Large contractors would also have to publish an annual climate disclosure and develop “science-based targets” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in alignment with the goals of the 2015 Paris agreement. That means contractors will have to aim to zero out emissions and possibly require their contractors to do so.

Will Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies have to redesign weapons systems and aircraft to be powered by lithium-ion batteries? China mines and processes the critical minerals used in batteries and other green technologies that will be required to meet these “science-based targets.”

The proposed rule would also apply to non-defense contractors, including pharmaceutical, shipping and tech companies, though it curiously exempts universities, nonprofit research institutions and state and local governments.

No, that isn’t the Onion, I am quoting. It’s the Wall Street Journal. 

Well, that’s OK. 

It will add to inflation and bigger budgets. Who doesn’t want that? 

Besides, I expect an announcement soon that President Biden got Russia, China, and North Korea, to agree to the same rules so they are fair across the board. 

Hoot of the Day

Universities Exempt!

That is my hoot of the day.

— Mike “Mish” Shedlock (@MishGEA) December 8, 2022

Lead Question Answered

Hello Pentagon, what do you think of Biden’s new and costly green mandates for weapons?

Yes, the Pentagon loves it. Astute observation.

Q: Why?
A: Much bigger budgets and they will either ignore the targets or lie about meeting them.

— Mike “Mish” Shedlock (@MishGEA) December 8, 2022

Yes, the Pentagon loves it. Astute observation.

Q: Why?
A: They will get much bigger budgets but will either ignore the climate targets or lie about meeting them.

*  *  *

Like these reports? I hope so, and if you do, please Subscribe to MishTalk Email Alerts.

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

The House Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday narrowly voted down a bill that would audit the tens of billions of dollars that Congress has approved to spend on the war in Ukraine. The bill was rejected by the Democrat-led panel in a vote of 26 to 22. The legislation was introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and a small group of Republicans who oppose US aid to Ukraine, but it received strong support from more hawkish Republicans.

Republican Reps. Thomas Massie (KY), Matt Gaetz (FL), Barry Moore (AL), and Andrew Clyde (GA) cosponsored Greene’s bill. Greene has said that she will reintroduce the measure in the next Congress when Republicans have a majority in the House. “It’s official the Democrats have voted NO to transparency for the American people for an Audit for Ukraine,” Greene wrote on Twitter after the vote. “But we take over in January! This audit will happen!”

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), who is expected to head the House Foreign Affairs Committee in the next Congress, has come out in favor of the audit bill. “The era of writing blank checks is over,” McCaul said, according to The Washington Post.

McCaul has been critical of the Biden administration for not sending longer-range weapons to Ukraine and wants to encourage Ukrainian strikes on Crimea despite the risk of escalation. But he represents the mainstream Republicans who want to keep arming Ukraine but agree there should be more oversight.

Democrats have been critical of the growing Republican calls for more oversight of the Ukraine aid. Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), the head of the House Armed Services Committee, even dismissed the concerns as “Russian propaganda” and said the calls from Republicans to increase oversight “makes me a little crazy.”

Meanwhile also on Tuesday night, Congress unveiled the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), worth $858 billion, $45 billion more than what President Biden requested for the military spending bill. The House is expected to vote on the legislation this week, and it could be brought to the floor as soon as Thursday. Once the House approves the bill, it will be sent to the Senate, then to President Biden’s desk for his signature.

Biden’s initial defense budget request: $813 billion
House Armed Services Committee version: $839 billion
Senate Armed Services Committee version: $847 billion
Final version, just released: $859 billion

Oddly, this one budgetary process always seems to go in the same direction

— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) December 7, 2022

The massive $858 billion bill represents an 8% increase from the 2022 NDAA, which was also larger than what Biden requested. The $858 billion includes $817 billion for the Pentagon, and the remaining funds go toward military spending for other departments.

Notable amendments packed into the NDAA include $10 billion in military aid for Taiwan that will be dispersed over five years. The aid is in the form of Foreign Military Financing, a State Department program that gives foreign governments funds to purchase US-made military equipment.

The NDAA also includes $800 million in the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, a program that allows the US government to purchase weapons for Ukraine. But the vast majority of spending on the Ukraine war will come through emergency funding, and the White House is hoping Congress approves a new $37.7 billion tranche of Ukraine aid during the lame-duck period.

Rep. Gerry Connolly was one of the Democrats who shut down @RepMTG’s resolution to audit the 80 billion+ taxpayer dollars flowing into the pockets of Ukrainian warlords.

“I support transparency and accountability,” Connolly claimed, “but not now.” pic.twitter.com/pkrPbU9vQY

— Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) December 7, 2022

The NDAA includes $11.5 billion in new investments for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, a program to build up in the Asia Pacific to confront China. The Pentagon has identified China as its main focus, and the NDAA includes investment in new technology research and development that US military leaders say is meant to counter Beijing.