There will often be a pause in discussing breaking news that is not fully vetted here on Virtual Mirage. I bring things to the High Table when it’s time. Or I try to.
When it first broke, I thought that the Trump Administration was trolling the turd at the Atlantic Monthly on Signal. I’ve trolled the enemy before, so I know how it’s done. It seems that was not the case, and the Trump administration was caught in yet another media imbroglio: aides using the Signal app to discuss sensitive matters, accused of skirting federal record-keeping laws. (In the meantime, I’ve been pointing out for two decades how top federal officials and their staff have long been using text messaging, aliases, personal servers, and other methods to circumvent record-keeping requirements and Freedom of Information law.)
Anyway, the newest accusations are sparking outrage on both sides. But they’re just the latest act in a tiresome play—one where “the news,” now often little more than propaganda tools and gossip rags for both political sides and the money interests backing them, amplifies selective scandals while glossing over a history of similar, often graver, breaches that drew scant ire and fewer consequences from the same players now stoking the flames.
I’m not suggesting the answer lies in all such scandals receiving similar coverage in the news media. I’m suggesting that the news media get back to reporting news that impacts the general public rather than what the players in Washington, D.C., and their supporters want us to consume.
(h/t Sharyl Attkisson) In August 2019, the DOJ Inspector General’s report, “Report of Investigation of Former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey’s Disclosure of Sensitive Investigative Information and Handling of Certain Memoranda,” found that Comey, fired by Trump in May 2017, wrongly took FBI memos about their interactions and kept them in his possession. Several documents contained classified info—“Secret” and “Confidential”—including anti-Trump material. The IG noted that Comey even shared these with his lawyers, and one of the documents was purposefully leaked to The New York Times to hurt then-President Trump.
The DOJ IG referred Comey for prosecution—a momentous referral that was downplayed in the news—but Comey avoided charges when the DOJ declined to bring them in August 2019, citing insufficient evidence of ill intent. (I hope if I ever commit a bad crime, I can convince prosecutors to forget about it all by telling them I meant no harm.)
Anyway, the Comey revelations flickered, then faded—a minor blip for the propaganda machine compared to today’s Signal frenzy.
Then, there was Hillary Clinton’s saga. As Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013, she improperly ran sensitive and classified State Department business through her private email server, violating explicit security rules and record-keeping laws.
The FBI’s July 2016 probe into Clinton’s actions found 110 emails with classified data—some “Top Secret”—on that unsecured system. FBI Director Comey’s July 5, 2016, statement about the breach warned that “hostile actors,” possibly Russia, might have accessed the material.
Yet, as The New York Times reported on July 6, 2016, Comey deemed Clinton’s behavior “extremely careless” but not criminal, and the DOJ followed suit, deciding to file no charges. ‘After all, she meant no harm,’ they said. Backed by deep-pocketed allies.
Joe Biden’s turn came in February 2023.
Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report in February of 2023 revealed that Biden, post-Senate and vice presidency (ending January 2017), improperly kept classified documents at his Wilmington, Delaware, home and the Penn Biden Center. Marked up to “Top Secret,” these documents covered military and foreign policy.
Exposed in late 2022 and early 2023 in several revelations of caches, they triggered a review. But Hur concluded, as quoted, “no criminal charges are warranted,” citing that the Biden folks had supposedly cooperated with the investigation. Not surprisingly, Biden’s DOJ agreed, and the story—despite its weight—pretty much vanished from the headlines, a non-issue for the political interests swaying the narratives. After all, Biden meant no harm.
Mike Pence, Trump’s vice president from 2017 to 2021, fits the pattern, too. NBC News reported on February 10, 2023, that classified documents from his tenure turned up at his Indiana home in January 2023. Pence handed them over, and by June 2023, the DOJ declined prosecution of him, too. After all, he surely meant no harm. The whole matter barely made waves.
Shocking national security breaches of the recent past
For all the hand-wringing in the news media over supposed national security breaches, we should recall the case of Democrat Dianne Feinstein, who chaired the Senate Intelligence Committee from 2009 to 2015. In 2018, it was revealed that for nearly 20 years, including while she headed the Intel Committee, a staffer who doubled as her driver and liaison to the Asian-American community was a Chinese spy reporting to China’s Ministry of State Security via the San Francisco Consulate.
We only later learned that the FBI had briefed Feinstein on this fact in 2013. She fired the aide, but no charges followed. The FBI kept mum on Feinstein’s dirty little secret as she held an important position of power and sway over intel community matters. There were no pesky FBI leaks that have so frequently been used against Donald Trump.
However, after Feinstein had an open dispute with the CIA and unilaterally released a transcript of damning testimony related to the politically-motivated “Russia, Russia, Russia’“ probe of Trump in January 2018, someone mysteriously leaked the story about her Chinese driver to Politico.
Then there’s Rep. Eric Swalwell, a Democrat and member of the House Intelligence Committee since 2015. In 2020, Axios revealed that from 2011 to 2015, Christine Fang, a Chinese operative, cozied up to Swalwell, raising funds for his 2014 campaign and placing an intern in his office.
The FBI warned Swalwell in 2015. he reportedly cut ties, and the scandal quickly faded.
Add the case of the Awan Brothers to the roster. From 2004 to 2017, these Pakistani-American IT staffers worked for dozens of House Democrats, including Rep. Debbie Wasserman, with access to sensitive congressional systems.
In 2017, the House Inspector General (IG) found shocking security breaches, saying that the Awans had engaged in “numerous violations of House security policies,” including unauthorized access to Democrats’ servers, funneling data to an external server, and accessing the Congressional accounts from Pakistan.
During the same period, Wasserman was heading up the Democratic National Committee (DNC), and the DNC computer system was reportedly broken into. The DNC blamed the Russians but wouldn’t give the FBI access to investigate, fueling speculation that Wasserman’s tech hire, Imran Awan, might have been involved. However, she defended him.
Imran Awan was arrested on July 25, 2017, at Dulles Airport on bank fraud charges, but prosecutors shocked the Inspector General and others who had investigated the case by deciding there was “no evidence” of illegal activity regarding the Awan’s unauthorized access to high-ranking Democrats’ computer systems. The Department of Justice declined to pursue related charges, fueling speculation of a cover-up. Democrats didn’t seem to mind that their computers had been accessed. The Awans denied any wrongdoing.
Go back to Sandy Berger, Bill Clinton’s National Security Adviser from 1997 to 2001. In April of 2005, The Washington Post reported that Berger pleaded guilty in the case of stealing classified documents he saw as damning to the Clinton administration from the National Archives in 2003, smuggling them out in his socks.
Berger pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, paid a $50,000 fine, and received a three-year security clearance ban—no jail time. The media barely shrugged.
The Signal Flap.
Trump aides allegedly used the app for internal talks, possibly touching on sensitive topics, though the Trump administration insists nothing was classified.
Fueled by partisan donors and pundits, the outrage machine kicked into high gear. Yet, absent hard evidence of breaches, this scandal is relatively tame next to Comey’s leaks that ended up in the news press as part of political warfare, Clinton’s server that the Russians may have accessed, Biden’s stashes that were accessible to who knows how many people, Pence’s papers, Chinese spy connections to critical Democrats, allegations against the Awans, or Berger’s socks.
The big, sordid picture
Besides the selective pearl-clutching, I see a more significant issue.
The news has become a megaphone for political and special interests and their backers to push propaganda and gossip. They use the press to debate what is little more than the political interests inside baseball, while real issues rot in the dugout.
An example implicating the Republican side includes Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s March 22 jab at Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who is confined to a wheelchair. She publicly referred to him as “Governor Hot Wheels.” (She says she was criticizing him for using all kinds of transportation to send illegal immigrants from Texas to big cities throughout America.)
The headlines became filled with accounts of Crockett’s remarks, outrage, and demands for apologies and censure. All for an issue that likely matters not at all to the average American.
It raises crucial questions: What news that is more impactful to the average American is getting crowded out by this political tit-for-tat? Who benefits from the news being filled with the same few stories of outrage that often qualify as little more than seedy gossip? The political class and their funders, not the public.
Today, if you tune into the cable news channels or online sources, you’ll see a homogenous blend of the same few stories with little actual news: Signal, Crockett, Trump, repeat.
Yes, these stories warrant a mention. We should report Signal, note Crockett’s quip, and update as facts emerge. But when they drown out so much else, they’re less news and more of a scripted distraction, ultimately pushed by special interests to keep us busy listening to both sides debating their scandals.
It’s hard not to conclude that the news has become something other than it. It’s often no longer about informing. It’s a propaganda tool manipulated by political insiders and their backers. Thousands of stories that affect Americans languish while we’re spoon-fed the ones they wish for us to debate.
Until the news refocuses on a mission of informing the public, the media are just pawns in scandal-driven political play.
Cars?
Economic Comparison
These head-to-heads are never fair. They’re only interesting. As a subset of the United States, California is not required to fund a military (except in concert with 49 other states and territories) or do many things a nation-state must do. California is a donor state (for all you haters) after all is said and done. It gives the US Treasury more than it takes from it, to be distributed among recipient states. California and its residents and businesses paid $692 billion in taxes to the federal government in 2022 and received $609 billion in federal funding. As the population flees California, that may change.
Research
(Wall Street Journal) (The article is behind a paywall.) AI accelerates Alzheimer’s research: “At the Oxford Drug Discovery Institute, artificial intelligence and knowledge graphs are transforming the search for Alzheimer’s treatments. Researchers recently used these tools to analyze 54 immune-related genes from a genome-wide study. Work that once took weeks is now completed in days:
The Oxford Drug Discovery Institute’s biologists worked with Graphwise to customize a large-scale knowledge graph of their life sciences research information. The process, they said, helped the institute’s biologists speed up the time it took to evaluate 54 genes from a few weeks to a few days and is helping them identify biomarkers that may be linked to the genes.
This AI-powered system accelerates target identification and helps trace the origin of findings, boosting transparency.”
Bullet Points:
** Ah, the training memories. Ship attacks on an old LST underway. It’s a very short, fast rope down, and they’d be sitting ducks in actual conditions. Still, the training is valuable.
** CDRSAL: We will continue to back the play of our European allies and remain the largest troop contributing nation, but Europe must be at their own front. They must be the first in their fight. They must hold the line before asking North America to come back their play.
** Why do women leave men and their families? There are different reasons, but what does the research show?
** BRM Reported – Indonesia is importing workers from Gaza. “A first group of 100 Gazans is set to fly to Indonesia for work as part of a pilot program to encourage the voluntary migration of Palestinians from the Strip, according to a Hebrew media report Wednesday.” They’re not at all the same kind of Muslims, and maybe it will be ok in minimal numbers, but in the main, if I were Indonesia, I’d say not only no but Hell No. The Germans imported a million military age Muslim males from savage countries, and now they have an existential threat living among them. I’m not conflating Germany and Indonesia, but it’s very much the same sort of situation.
** An interesting discussion of marriage economics – when you decide to attach yourself to the “old ball and chain.”
** Peterson discusses grievance groups. It’s a very short clip, but he makes good sense. Being angry about things that you can’t change (being a man, woman, or of a particular race or blend of races) and clinging to that instead of creating value is very destructive. It’s useful for people who wish to use you, but it harms the individual.
** The only Hallmark Movie Plot: A girl goes back to her hometown at Christmas time and discovers her old flame is the town’s mechanic. Through discussions with the city’s chatty Kathy’s, she finds out he is helping out with the children’s Christmas play and sings to sick kids in the children’s hospital. They reignite their love, and he invites her for coffee and some cookies he made from scratch. She decides to quit her big job in the city and open a flower shop back home like she always planned.
The Road to Orbit
A tough day for European spaceflight: Isar Aerospace’s Spectrum rocket fell back to Earth seconds after launch. The journey to orbit is never easy! It happened on 3/31/25, not on April 1.
Identify the Aircraft
1
April 1 entry – but an actual aircraft.
Parting Shot
End
Signalgate reminds me of how I need to work harder in despising political opportunists and the media. I think I’m getting closer with the needed depth of disgust I have with both, and judges, but my work isn’t complete. The good thing is the amount of daily garbage in the news helps in reaching my goal.
When I think of the journalists at work today (and this extends to the Fox propaganda machine as well), I am struck by their smug condescension and superiority. I can recall when the goal was to report the news and to determine where the truth was in a story. Today, they work hard to make the news and be the story rather than merely reporting on it.
.
It is mystifying why a US District Court Judge (trial judge) is able to make sweeping rulings on national policy rather than simply ruling on the case and parties to the case that have come before them. There is no Constitutional basis for this, and the Supreme Court remains silent.
Larry, you must be quite old if you can remember the goal was to inform.
I remember an 8th grade journalism class. One particular example was a two full pages article from when Lincoln was shot.
The article droned on and on about the minutia surrounding that event. Cleverly inserted were biased leads opining that something important might happen.
Then, on the 2nd page, at the bottom, only a few para before the end, the reader was informed that the president had been shot.
The article read like a whodunit without knowing what, in fact, had been done.
These many decades later, that classroom project stands as a monument to subjectivity over objectivity. Media simply cannot be trusted.
Rick, I’m a relic. A dinosaur. A fossil.
Maybe…but STILL firing on all cylinders.
But as a 3 cyl Chevy Sprint…
More like an old knucklehead Harley Davidson.
All this Judicial Branch reaching into the Executive Branch’s area and exerting control is a slow motion coup, can they get a way with it is the question.
Is the Supreme Court sitting back and waiting to see how this turns out?
I think that the Supreme Court (no matter how reluctant) will be forced to rule on the scope of authority granted to a district court judge.
If they don’t, or won’t rule on it….
What, it’s that undefined therefore requires SCOTUS robes to clarify? Levin went thru it last week…seemed pretty straightforward to me; these lowest level rung judges do not have the authority to waltz into the Oval Office/Executive Branch and interfere while advocating for illegal criminals who have no rights in our country.
IDA-
1. Rockwell XFV-12
Yes – and it’s quite a beast.
Is that extra ram induction cowling over the engine there?
https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/rockwell-nr-356-sea-control-ship-scs-v-stol-fighter-xfv-12a.2081/
Identify the Aircraft: Rockwell XFV-12
It’s crazy that MSM has capacity for one, maybe two subjects at a time. As if intentional. Nah, that can’t be it.
But fear and loathing are always front page news.
They all read from the same script. Why do I need some overpaid talking head to explain to me what POTUS said (for example) when I can hear it for myself. I like Levin in small doses, take EVERYTHING Tarlov (in even smaller doses) says as a poke the dog lie despite it appearing she believes what she says as one of the mentally possessed, and never listen to the MSM as they hyperventilate on 1st World Problems as if those were the most important thing evah…while getting all the facts upside down and inside out. Otherwise, I use the media for weird entertainment value. (I did enjoy Mike Rosen here in Denver – measured and informative and actually learned a thing or two from him. Then it was (is?) Prager, varied important subject matter…but he’s recovering from a bad fall so may never get back on the radio…which is sad.)
Somebody feel free to correct me.
Does referring to your wife as “The Old Lady” endear her to you, or you to her?
I think it’s destructive to the relationship.
not a correction, but …
the first time I noticed this was back in ’54 as I was being inducted/introduced to both the “airplane spotters guild” and “ham radio nuts” (quite a bit of overlap there) in Westchester county (NY) as part of the recruitment for the Army which we’d be looking forward to in another five years.
The morse code for “Old Lady” was two letters (OL— .-..) as opposed spelling it out with all seven and it was usually prefixed with (– -.– my); just shorthand; no diminution intended.
They were working Montana oil fields.
*
My assumption is that they are bikers, thus the slang.
– Kle.
I married MRSLL when she was 20, so the term “old lady” never came into daily use, but I have used the term “old ball and chain” as an endearment. My youngest daughter referred to her as the “wicked witch” (as in from Snow White and Sleeping Beauty) when she was growing up, and I was the “handsome prince.” Now, 44 years later, I can report that such mischief didn’t end things.
Never used the term despite others using it like some endearing term. Found it condescending. Dad would agree.
“Still, the training is valuable.”
Do they shoot at you during the training to show you how vulnerable you are?
I see the operators and the air crew going down in flames before the rope is dropped.
If they make it over the ship.
I thought it was “heave to and prepare to be boarded for inspection” practice,
In which case, there’s a notional Burke, or Super Sea Cobra, or Super Hornet
or something nearby to keep the targets honest. Just a guess, though.
– Kle.
In training, yes, usually partially frozen paint balls – that hurt when they hit – or simunition, which can be fired from a firearm and it prints on the target too.
Hallmark: you forgot to mention that not only the protagonists, but also
the entire town is rich, with no visible means of support – it’s like Stepford
Canada.
*
Grievance groups: I’ve been saying it for years now. Life is more than a dating
app, and the proper way to introduce yourself to a stranger is not with demented
code-language encyclopaedically describing your long list of kinks. Nothing wrong
with kinks (well, mostly) but if you think they define you, you’ve got problems.
– Kle.
TO BE CLEAR…NOT admitting I know anything about the subject matter, may lose my frayed man-card!!!…but….”What are you doing here”…this encapsulates LL’s theory…which is true: Engineer Cracks the Hallmark Code: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=CNG0rmF8elc
I wonder if DJT will order the unsealing of all the records of the LightBringer( you know-Bummy)?
He didn’t do it during 45. I suspect that he’ll let sleeping dogs lie.
Pedal to the Metal…forward motion at all costs, the rest will fall by the irrelevant wayside they deserve. The rest are circling the Wobbly-Wheeled Swamp Wagons to protect themselves — Pelosi should be in prison for Insider Trading, along with a pile of other cheaters. But that is not the focus, fixing America is paramount…matters more than jailing a bunch of scumbags…well…for now anyway…might happen as a byproduct of SISU MAGA ™.
👍
It looks like those records could all be “leaked”, for a fee of course. What a horrible joke, we suffer thru 8 years of a slimy president we know and will never know anything about.
8 years of a Pres we know nothing about. I don’t know what sealing involves but it looks like the records could be “leaked” like everything else. That would be a lot of justice.
in re “High Table”
I find that my OL (and her elder sister) accept the veracity of the “news” as it’s presented (whichever medium) and engaging in discussion (moreso with my SIL) is only worth entertainment-time (yes!! I’m baaad!)
there is little to no question that my SIL (very nominally Jewish), in my mind, would have applauded von Hindenburg’s appointment of Adolf at the end of Jan ’33 had she learned of it through her favorite medium for such news (radio, newspaper, womens’ club) and railed against it had she read of it elsewhere.
as I grow older (and less mobile) I watch this sea of lemmings surge to and fro mobilized by the amplified whisperings of the least intelligent; only problem I have is that they vote.
They vote and they serve on juries “of your peers.” They don’t even need to fog a mirror to vote.
The Ramsey Clip was hilarious…but informative. Note to self: A romantic all-expense paid trip to Branson – with all manner of Shows and – of course – funnel cake – might just take care of a few things on the marital list…could even rent a nice sportscar and drive there…yeah, that’s the ticket.
But Ramsey was funny with the “You’re treating this like a joint venture merger.” hahaha (Ps. Why the hay do these two have $205K in debt on $240K of income?)
***
Opening Pic- Half of America feels like that…so does ‘Bob’, the only utility worker in the hole while the ‘takers’ and ‘officials’ stand around watching.
I can’t speak to their debt, but it’s not difficult for two people (dinks—double income, no kids) working in the North Dakota oil fields to earn $240K. If you’re willing to work extra shifts in arduous and dangerous conditions, you can drag in that much by yourself if you’re able-bodied. Debt – when a really nice Ford Raptor (F-150) will run you $135K out the door is like falling off a log.
.
Ramsey is a feather merchant, and I was never one, so I can’t speak to that, but I agree with him on debt and managing it with a meat cleaver when possible. Nothing destroys your life more quickly. Ramsey is right on “the most important decision in your life is whom you will marry.” A lot of people criticize him on investment strategies – ok, then find your own way forward. But he’s a sharp guy, lost it all, learned his lesson and fixed things. We all stumble. Finding our way back is a test of courage and fortitude. Life is a marathon, not a sprint.
PS – I paid cash for my Raptor.
Good points.
Just saw a new Raptor a weekend neighbor was driving, MrsPaulM looked it up $45K…which surprised me and didn’t sound right but doubtful this guy, who turned in his lifted fully loaded new-ish F250, would put out $135K, but that sounds more like it for the top model, similar to what the Top Gear Boyz were driving, heavily modified of course.
I did a quick search – The Ford F-150 Raptor, a high-performance off-road truck, has a base price starting around $80,535 and can go up to $111,550 depending on the trim and options, with the Raptor R starting at $111,550. 10% sales tax adds $11,000, $5,000 registration, and start bolting on all the cool stuff and you’re easily at $135K out the door. Go to the Ford website and “Build my Raptor” – they don’t add the tax on for you but as WSF will assure you, they’ll have a lot more added to the bottom line by the time you roll out of the showroom. I have no idea what the annual insurance cost would be on a new Raptor for a good driver, but it has to be around $5K.
.
They’re great trucks. I love my Raptor. I can’t imagine financing $100K+ on a quarter ton pick up even if it does have a wicked powerful engine and a great suspension.
They offer 10 year finance packages to get the monthly payment down.
The problem with young men who earn $185K a year working on an oil rig is that they can be talked into the most wicked looking truck on the lot and there are lenders who will offer them an easy payment plan.
Dad would say if a young man went into the oil fields, worked for ten years and didn’t blow it all on the weekend or on fancy pickups, they’d be set for life.
—-
Ask me why I hate auto manufacturers and dealers…2025 base price “starting at $80k” then goes up from there plus, as you point out, all manner of dealer “stuff”. Clicked on 2024, $78k bp. Turns put MrsPaulM was looking at used ones.
“California is a donor state”
In today’s economy, that $83B is well worth the price of forced secession.
Not all costs are measured by accountants.
Cars?
There are two basic types of buyers. Least common, need buyers. They don’t like/care about cars but need transportation. Most common, want buyers. They are ‘treating’ themselves.
The manufacturer starts with basics, drive train and body. The profit comes from add-ons. Electronic crap that costs little but can be sold for lots because want buyers will pay for it.
Think Apple watch vs Timex.
Cynical car salespeople know almost all car deals come down to “bore and stroke”. How much out of my pocket to drive away and how much out of my pocket every month to keep driving it? Cherry on top, will people laugh at me, or will they envy me?
Cynical salespeople also know there are two customers in most deals. The lender and the mutt. Most of the back and forth, “let me talk to my manger”, that people hate, involves structuring a deal that a lender will buy. In other words, finding someone stupid enough to lend you money.
“The news has become a megaphone for political and special interests and their backers to push propaganda and gossip. They use the press to debate what is little more than the political interests inside baseball, while real issues rot in the dugout.”
Yes. Agitprop Satans.
See their billionaire bran trust on the Charles.