In these polarizing times, it seems little wonder that even federal buildings have turned into political battlefields. In his final weeks in office in late 2020, President Trump signed an executive order establishing classical architecture as the official basis for federal building design— only to have Joe Biden promptly revoke the order upon taking office two months later.
A new exhibit at the National Building Museum wades into the dispute by examining the style of architecture that many observers love to hate. In studying eight modern structures in Washington’s urban core, “Capital Brutalism” attempts to bring context to a style that seems ever-present around the District of Columbia.
The Second Continental Congress met inside Independence Hall beginning in May 1775. It was just a month after shots had been fired at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts, and the Congress was preparing for war. They established a Continental army and elected George Washington as Commander-in-Chief, but the delegates also drafted the Olive Branch Petition and sent it to King George III in hopes of reaching a peaceful resolution. The king refused to hear the petition and declared the American colonies in revolt.
On June 7, 1776, Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee put forth the resolution for independence: “Resolved, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states…” Voting was postponed while some of the delegates worked to convince others to support independence, but a committee of five men was assigned to draft a document of independence: John Adams (MA), Benjamin Franklin (PA), Thomas Jefferson (VA), Roger Sherman (CT), and Robert R. Livingston (NY). Jefferson did most of the work, drafting the document in his lodgings at 7th and Market Street.
On July 2, 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted to adopt Lee’s resolution for independence. This is the day that John Adams thought should be celebrated with “Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.” (John Adams to Abigail Adams, July 3, 1776)
Between July 2 and July 4, Congress argued over every word in Jefferson’s draft of the declaration, making numerous changes. On July 4, Congress voted again – this time to approve the wording of the Declaration of Independence. They didn’t actually sign the document that day. After New York’s delegates received instructions from home to vote for independence (they had initially abstained), the document was sent to Timothy Matlack to be engrossed (handwritten). Fifty of the 56 men signed the engrossed Declaration of Independence inside Independence Hall on August 2, 1776.
It is not enough for conservatives to win elections. If we are going to rescue the country from the grip of the radical Left, we need both a governing agenda and the right people in place, ready to carry this agenda out on Day One of the next conservative Administration.
This is the goal of the 2025 Presidential Transition Project. The project will build on four pillars that will, collectively, pave the way for an effective conservative Administration.
700 dead in a country of 9.3 million people is the equivalent of a terror attack on America in which over 25,000 people were brutally murdered. //
Israel unilaterally withdrew from every last inch of Gaza in 2005, after dismantling the 21 Israeli settlements that had existed in the territory and handing them over to the Palestinian Authority.
The rationale behind Israel’s withdrawal, carried out by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, was the notion of land for peace—that Israel would hand over control of certain territories in exchange for security. The land was handed over. The peace never came.
A bipartisan bill that will advance the development of nuclear energy power plants in the nation was passed by the United States Senate on Tuesday. In an 88-2 vote, the Senate voted to pass the Accelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (ADVANCE) Act, which is part of the Fire Grants and Safety Act (S.8.70), according to a press release from the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW). The ADVANCE Act will now move forward to President Joe Biden’s desk to be signed. //
The Bill only needs to be 2 lines long as expressed by poster #7. However, the ADVANCE Act is 156 pages so I fear what else is in there. That said, the Union of Constrained Anxientists is already attacking it so it must be good for America. //
This wouldn't have anything to do with Bill Gates recent investment, would it?
OBD II fault code P0505 is defined as “Idle Control System Malfunction”, or sometimes as “Idle speed control (ISC) system –malfunction”, and is set when the PCM (Powertrain Control Module) is unable to control, or maintain the engine idling speed at a specified RPM. Note that regardless of slight differences in the wording of various definitions of code P0505, this code always refers to the PCM’s inability to maintain or control the engine idling speed.
P0132 – Heated oxygen sensor (HO2S) / oxgen sensor (O2S) 1, bank 1 -high voltage
Sharing the Good News can often be as simple as scattering seeds. The majority of street evangelism is like that. When I first started doing street evangelism, I quickly realized I only had a window of less than sixty seconds between the lights. Certainly not enough time to to say much, so I started carrying a sign with me.
On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee introduced a resolution “that these united colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent states.” They appointed a Committee of Five to write an announcement explaining the reasons for independence. Thomas Jefferson, who chaired the committee and had established himself as a bold and talented political writer, wrote the first draft.
On June 11, 1776, Jefferson holed up in his Philadelphia boarding house and began to write. He borrowed freely from existing documents like the Virginia Declaration of Rights and incorporated accepted ideals of the Enlightenment. Jefferson later explained that “he was not striving for originality of principal or sentiment.” Instead, he hoped his words served as an “expression of the American mind.” Less than three weeks after he’d begun, he presented his draft to Congress. He was not pleased when Congress “mangled” his composition by cutting and changing much of his carefully chosen wording. He was especially sorry they removed the part blaming King George III for the slave trade, although he knew the time wasn’t right to deal with the issue.
On July 2, 1776, Congress voted to declare independence. Two days later, it ratified the text of the Declaration. John Dunlap, official printer to Congress, worked through the night to set the Declaration in type and print approximately 200 copies. These copies, known as the Dunlap Broadsides, were sent to various committees, assemblies, and commanders of the Continental troops. The Dunlap Broadsides weren’t signed, but John Hancock’s name appears in large type at the bottom. One copy crossed the Atlantic, reaching King George III months later. The official British response scolded the “misguided Americans” and “their extravagant and inadmissable Claim of Independency”.
In Congress, July 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
There are many reasons. I love the principles upon which it was founded. I love the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution — the words themselves and the ideas enshrined in them.
I love that the men who authored those documents valued liberty and recognized the perils of concentrated power enough to attempt to guard against them in a way that, while imperfect, has enabled millions of people to thrive and prosper, while enjoying a degree of freedom previously unknown.
I love that we elect our leaders — as imperfect (and frustrating) a process as that often is.
I love that millions of people have made a point to come HERE because of the opportunities this country holds.
I love that we have a beautiful country full of wonders both natural and man-made and we can travel about it freely.
I love that American ingenuity has led to a wide array of discoveries, inventions and innovations.
I love that you and I can see things totally differently and express that freely.
I’m well aware that our country is far from perfect. I don’t agree with everything we’ve ever done as a nation. I know there’s more than ample room for improvement. But — I guess I see it sort of like many of us regard a family member — imperfect, flawed, but beautiful and beloved. //
JSobieski
5 hours ago
"We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of earth"
Abraham Lincoln, 1862
These words have reasonated in America throughout its history, and they remain true today.
Just add this where you need the page to go to the next one (the text "page 1" will be on page 1 and the text "page 2" will be on the second page).
First page (this will be on page n.1)
<div style="break-after:page"></div>Second page (This will be on page n.2)
the official "Biden-Harris HQ" account, which I'm now convinced is run by White House pool boy Andrew Bates, went after Donald Trump over something called "Project 2025." What exactly is that? It's a transition proposal created by the Heritage Foundation and other conservative groups that includes reclassifying thousands of partisan federal employees so they can be replaced by the incoming executive.
Biden-Harris HQ @BidenHQ
·
CNN: Project 2025 is a playbook for what the first days of a second Trump administration would look like. They want to dismantle the administrative state and give more power to the executive branch. That would include sending agencies like the Department of Justice after his… Show more
5:10 PM · Jul 3, 2024 //
Officials and staffers who are so vapid that they don't even know that the "administrative state" is under the direct authority of the executive branch. In other words, "Project 2025" is just the president being the president. Nowhere in the U.S. Constitution is there mention of an all-powerful, untouchable "administrative state" that stands alone as another branch of government. To even suggest that is totalitarian, and the phrase itself is usually derogatory.
Not to the Biden campaign, though. They are embracing the "administrative state" because they believe they have a right to control the country even when they lose elections. Who you vote for doesn't matter. All that matters is some overpaid, underworked career "expert" in some agency somewhere. Think about how ridiculous that is. It's supposedly "authoritarian" to reform the administrative state through constitutionally-appropriated executive power, but it's not authoritarian for an administrative state to wield unaccountable power over Americans. //
ConservativeInMinnesota
21 minutes ago
The fact that Project 2025 is being called out already means that it scares the deep state. That means the Heritage Foundation is doing something right with it and deserves our support.
The Associated Press @AP
Biden at 81: Sharp and focused but sometimes confused and forgetful https://apnews.com/article/biden-age-election-debate-trump-7c366fda83a697265d9ecc77e8a32fd1?utm_campaign=TrueAnthem&utm_medium=AP&utm_source=Twitter
12:32 AM · Jul 4, 2024
Charles West @CharlemagneWest
·
Replying to @AP
AP in 2024: accurate and fair but sometimes partisan and shoddy.
8:43 PM · Jul 3, 2024
KJSpeed
2 hours ago
Baghdad Bob bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat
and he laid his fork-ed tongue at the ground by AP's feet.
Dtiffster Ars Praefectus
8y
3,075
Subscriptor
expand...As has been pointed out by others they have gotten cheaper on an absolute basis inflation adjusted as well. And there isn't much competition that is cheaper than them on an absolute basis, and all of it with only a fraction of their capacity. You got Electron at 200/300 kg for SSO/LEO for 8.5 mil, PSLV for 1.6/3.2 tonnes SSO/LEO for 18 mil, Vega C at 1.45 tonnes SSO for 37 (very subsidized) mil euro, and GSLV for 2.5/3/6 tonnes GTO/SSO/LEO for 47 mil. F9 does that with a droneship landing 5.4/12/18+ tonnes GTO/SSO/LEO for 69.5 mil. If all you need is exactly the performance of one of those rockets for one payload, then yes they are cheaper. And that is true for some payloads, but not for a substantial amount of the market. Otherwise those rockets would be out launching SpaceX right now, right? And rocket lab wouldn't be building neutron, right? Sounds like you are the one falling victim to hater math.
And you've got plenty of their commerical (i.e. non starlink) missions use a pretty substantial amount of F9 and FHs capabilities. They've launches F9 with expended boosters and FHs with expended center cores many times in the last few years. Most of the GTO birds are bigger than GSLV can handle, and F9 can handle most upper birth GTO sats to synchronous and the smaller lower birth GTO to supersynchronous that Ariane V used to handle for a fraction of what customers used to pay for the ride share without a hassle. Crew and Cargo dragon missions obviously need SpaceXs vehicles and use about 2/3 of the F9s capacity.
And although we haven't yet got substantially better rockets on the market yet, SpaceX has driven competitors to try. An Atlas V 551 used to cost 250+ mil, and DIVH over 600 mil. The top of the line Vulcan with 6 boosters which is roughly on par with DIVH is being sold for 200ish mil. There are a whole mess of at least partially reusable rockets that are only going to exist because of SpaceX. Fanboy math or not the market is working and it's thanks to SpaceX spurring innovation. Hate all you want, things are going swimmingly, and notice that it is not launch customers that are complaining about SpaceX.
Edit: forgot Alpha at 630/1030 kg SSO/LEO for 17.5 mil, which is again too small to eat many launches. //
expand...We've seen reporting recently that SpaceX appears to execute a Starlink launch for an internal cost of about $20M. That suggests they could offer ASDS launches profitably for $30M and RTLS launches for even less. If they were doing that, who the hell would invest in Stoke Space or Rocket Lab or any company not backed by Jeff Bezos? //
You'd think they had promised to make launch free at this point. They're 17% lower per-launch than they were just seven years ago and well below half of what the industry norm was prior to their entrance on the market.
If the laureates understood the difference between academic theory and policy practice, they would not have issued their silly letter. //
About the best thing that Trump can say in favor of his economic policies is that they are opposed by a group of Nobel economists.
This Fourth of July, Americans should take the opportunity to reeducate themselves on the fundamental principles of our Constitution. //
Our government was formed by an alliance of some of the most brilliant political thinkers in history, who, for some providential reason, all happened to live in the same generation and the same nation. It’s our failure to remember and understand their wisdom — rather than some defect in the timeless truths they espoused — that explains much of the struggles of our contemporary age. Familiarizing ourselves with our Constitution and its most illustrious interpreters in The Federalist Papers will do much to restore our political sanity. This Independence Day, you have your homework.
‘If this unprecedented prosecution is to proceed, it must be conducted by someone duly authorized to do so by the American people,’ Thomas wrote.
“Inside Out 2” is a very safe film, and that is frankly its greatest flaw. As with many of Disney’s mistakes, it comes down to rank cowardice in the face of creative, financial, and political risk. Making a late sequel to the most critically acclaimed Pixar film of the past decade is not a difficult decision, nor is it dangerous to make a movie about the importance of expressing emotions in our modern therapy-obsessed culture.
It may forgo some of the superficial trappings of “wokeness,” but it pulls too many punches and falls short of the first film. It’s already a faster-paced film, tuning heavily to the hyperkinetic sensibilities of the TikTok generation being faster than they were a decade ago. In a film landscape that has already made the creatively bankrupt live-action “Lion King” remake into one of the highest-grossing films of all time, it is a shame that “Inside Out 2’s” box office success rewards Disney for being safer and less risky.
The problem is out of control. No one knows how many separate crimes there are, including the Department of Justice. Researchers have tried counting, with one 2019 effort identifying at least 5,199 statutory crimes. Regulatory crimes are orders of magnitude greater, with estimates of the number of regulatory crimes ranging from 100,000 to 300,000 separate offenses.
This is inconsistent with basic ideas of self-government and the intentions of those who framed the Constitution. Laws with criminal consequences should be carefully considered by the legislative branch, not pushed through by unelected bureaucrats who are not accountable to the people. //
Congress can seize the opportunity and pass some simple and commonsense reforms that would further reduce the power of the administrative state and its appetite for passing criminal laws.
Congress should begin by requiring the executive agencies to simply catalog their regulations that have criminal consequences. After all, if a federal agency does not know if something is a criminal offense, how can the people be expected to? If a “mens rea” requirement is not already in the law, Congress should make all criminal regulations have a “willful” requirement to prevent citizens from being prosecuted for actions they did not even know they took. For new laws, agencies should be required to state the applicable mental state.