Breakfast For The Brain Weekend Edition

Have a great weekend Deplorables!

China’s Ultimate Goal Is To Control American Culture, And Companies Should Resist It

Via The Federalist

If we let the Chinese government set limits on what we can say or do, if we give up our freedom for short-term financial gain, we will lose our ability to create the best products.

If ESPN thought shutting down on-air discussion about China and Hong Kong would please its Chinese master and protect the commercial interests of itself and its corporate parent Disney, it’s dead wrong. What China wants is not simply to police a few words on social media or on air. It wants to control American culture, period.

American culture’s global dominance and influence has long been the envy of the Chinese authorities. People around the world may not all like America’s policies, but most seem to have an insatiable appetite for McDonald’s, Taylor Swift, the NBA, and Hollywood movies, regardless of race, ethnicity, and cultural backgrounds.

Chinese leaders closely studied America’s ascent to a global superpower, and they believe America’s cultural influence is a key ingredient to the country’s success. China wants to emulate America’s success, albeit with Chinese characteristics. Former Chinese President Hu Jintao said, “The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation will definitely be accompanied by the thriving of Chinese culture.”

Current Chinese President Xi’s “China dream” is not only about expanding China’s economic and military influence globally, but also about cultural dominance — influencing and shaping other countries and their citizens’ views about China, and pushing a widespread acceptance of the Chinese political and economic model.

China Is Spending Big on ‘Soft Power’

Since coming to power, Xi has doubled down on investing in China’s soft power, “a measure of a country’s international attractiveness and its ability to influence other countries and publics.” China has built hundreds of Confucius Institutes around the world and puts national resources behind its vast domestic entertainment industry, hoping it will produce exportable content that gives “a good Chinese narrative and better communicate[s] China’s messages to the world” (Xi Jinping, 2014).

Read the entire article HERE.

Elizabeth Warren Touts Plan to Address ‘Environmental Racism’

Via Breitbart

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Wednesday unveiled her plan to address “environmental injustice” and “environmental racism,” which includes a $1 trillion investment into minority communities affected by “industrial pollution.”

Warren argues that “justice” plays a massive role in properly addressing the climate change “crisis,” citing studies that suggest that black and Hispanic families are disproportionately affected by air pollution caused by white people:

A more recent study found that while whites largely cause air pollution, Blacks and Latinxs are more likely to breathe it in. Unsurprisingly, these groups also experience higher rates of childhood asthma. And many more low-income and minority communities are exposed to toxins in their water – including lead and chemicals from industrial and agricultural run-off.

Warren calls this phenomenon “environmental racism” and concludes that “environmental injustice is the result of decades of discrimination and environmental racism compounding in communities that have been overlooked for too long.”

She previewed her plan in a video clip featuring far-left “Squad” member Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI).

Read the entire article HERE.

Atlanta Braves Suffer Catastrophic Defeat After Kowtowing to the Left on Tomahawk Chop

Via PJ Media

The Atlanta Braves long ago retired Chief Noc-a-Homa, who used to emerge from a teepee in the outfield stands and do a dance every time a Braves player hit a home run, but they’re still not out of hot water with the Left for daring to persist in bearing the name Braves at all. And the Braves are duly contrite: they showed in their just-concluded National League Division Series that they’re ready to play ball with the Left and do whatever Leftists command them to do. More than one person is saying that’s why they got blown out by the Cardinals in the deciding game of that Series, 13-1.

It all started with an earnest Cardinals pitcher, Ryan Helsley, who, like Elizabeth Warren, hails from Oklahoma, and also like Warren, claims to be Native American. Unlike Warren, Helsley isn’t running for president and he isn’t trying to become a tenured professor at Harvard, so he has no need to pander to the prevailing identity politics of the Left, and his claim is almost certainly true. As a Native American, he is deeply offended by the Braves’ “tomahawk chop,” with which Braves fans serenade opposing players. Apparently under the impression that the tomahawk chop was an anthropological treatise, Helsley complained: “I think it’s a misrepresentation of the Cherokee people or Native Americans in general. Just depicts them in this kind of caveman-type people way who aren’t intellectual. They are a lot more than that.”

The young intellectual didn’t address the possibility that the whole thing might be in good fun. There is no fun, no joy, no humor on the Left these days, as the Ayatollah Khomeini remarked of another totalitarian imperative, Islam, back in the days when Henry Aaron was making Chief Noc-a-Homa dance practically every night. “There can be no fun or joy in anything serious,” said Khomeini, and today’s Left was listening.

Read the entire article HERE.

Californians Learning That Solar Panels Don’t Work in Blackouts

Via Bloomberg

Californians have embraced rooftop solar panels more than anyone in the U.S., but many are learning the hard way the systems won’t keep the lights on during blackouts.

That’s because most panels are designed to supply power to the grid — not directly to houses. During the heat of the day, solar systems can crank out more juice than a home can handle. Conversely, they don’t produce power at all at night.

So systems are tied into the grid, and the vast majority aren’t working this week as PG&E Corp. cuts power to much of Northern California to prevent wildfires.

The only way for most solar panels to work during a blackout is pairing them with batteries. That market is just starting to take off. Sunrun Inc., the largest U.S. rooftop solar company, said hundreds of its customers are making it through the blackouts with batteries.

Read the entire article HERE.

What Happened To This Trump Supporter At The Minneapolis Rally Perfectly Captures The Left In 2020

Via Townhall

Okay—we all know the Left hates Trump, but they may hate his supporters even more. The president’s rally in Minneapolis was dotted with left-wing thugs who harassed and assaulted Trump supporters because having a view that isn’t to the left of Lenin is intolerable to these clowns. We’re all Nazis in the eyes of these people. They’ve become totally unhinged by the 2016 election and this incident last night toward one Trump supporter, who was being interviewed by Vice News, perfectly captures how extreme liberals have become: he was spat on.

The supporter, Dave Carlson, wasn’t angry. He took it in stride. The host was visibly shocked by the action. Another man is seen apologizing for the incident. Another individual, while not a supporter of the president, also came up to Carlson to say what happened to him was not appropriate, but added that his MAGA hat was also “disrespectful as f**k.”

Read the entire article HERE.

O’Rourke: No Tax Breaks for Catholic, Conservative Protestant Churches That Oppose Same-sex “Marriage”

Via The New American

When the push for homosexual “marriage” began in the late 1990s, word was, from the “LGBTQ Community,” that permitting homosexuals to “marry” won’t hurt anyone.

The Alphabet People lied. And so did their backers.

Last night, Beto O’Rourke, the only Democratic candidate known to have published vivid, bloody fantasies about murdering children in an automobile rampage, said that any churches that refuse to perform the fake nuptials must lose their tax exemption.

That’s a long way from “gay marriage” won’t hurt anyone.

The Threat

O’Rourke said he’ll attack the First Amendment rights of the vast majority of Americans and the churches they attend at last night’s CNN LGBTQ Town Hall.

Don Lemon, the homosexual CNN talker now embroiled in a sex assault lawsuit, asked the Big Question:

Asked Lemon, “Congressman, I want to ask you a question…. This is from your LGBTQ plan, and here’s what you write. This is a quote. Freedom of religion is a fundamental right but it should not be used to discriminate. Do you think religious institutions, like colleges, churches, charities, should they lose their tax-exempt status if they oppose same-sex marriage?”

“Yes,” replied O’Rourke to the frightening applause of the crowd.

There can be no reward, no benefit, no tax break for anyone or any institution, any organization in America that denies the full human rights and the full civil rights of every single one of us. And so as president, we’re going to make that a priority and we are going to stop those who are infringing upon the human rights of our fellow Americans.

In other words, O’Rourke will go to war against the Catholic Church and other conservative Christian churches. Get with the program, or you’ll be punished — severely.

Read the entire article HERE.

Democratic Party Now Selling Official Riot Supplies

Via The Babylon Bee (Satire)

U.S.—The official web store of the Democratic Party announced a slew of new products Thursday geared toward helping left-leaning voters incite riots and mob people they disagree with in public places.

The Democratic National Committee proudly announced the varied offerings, including pitchforks, medieval torches, throwing rocks, and more.

“When they go low, we mob them in the streets,” said a DNC representative. “And now you can do that with official Democrat gear: high-quality pitchforks perfect for storming Republicans in restaurants, torches you can use to burn down conservatives’ homes, and rocks to chuck at pretty much anyone to the right of you.”

Democrats promised a new selection of gear will be added to the shop every week, from homemade explosive devices to spears, and even a miniature trebuchet for launching yourself to tackle any Republican official you see enjoying a quiet meal.

“For all your civil discussion needs, make sure to check out the official Democrat store often,” the rep added.

Check out all of the Bee’s hilarious takes on politics and culture HERE.

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