WendyMcElroy.com

From Jonathan Turley: The Circular Firing Squad: Staffers at CNN and CBS Denounce Efforts to Restore Balance.

From Sunny Skyz: Missing Teen Found In Snowstorm Thanks To A Trooper And His K-9. A missing 15-year-old boy with autism was safely located in Maryland thanks to the determined efforts of local police and a state trooper’s highly trained K-9 partner during a dangerous winter storm.

Big Picture Economics. From Zero Hedge:: A Panicking Oracle Plans To Raise Up To $50 Billion, As Its Stock And Bonds Crater. Suddenly the unthinkable is becoming all too possible... AND 'Out Of Stock': As Lunar New Year Looms, AsiaPac Dip-Buyers Emerge In Gold. "I came to buy because the price of gold dropped today..." From USA Watchdog: "Never Seen Risk Like This Before In My Career", Ed Dowd Warns. " This is going to be a global contagion... It will be a liquidity crisis..."

From the Guardian: Blanche Declares DOJ's Review of Epstein Case 'Over'. Democrats, survivors dispute comments, demand more Epstein client disclosures. [Ed: DOJ seems to have retracted these photos.] From the Guardian: Epstein lawyers discussed possibility of cooperation with prosecutors days before his death, files reveal. [Ed: is this a reason for his death, which I believe was an assassination?]

From Naked Capitalism: Corruption on a Breathtaking Level’: Report Details Massive Foreign Investment in Trump Crypto Firm. [Ed: and I thought Trump's plans for Gaza (Board of Peace) were awful...] From antiwar: Not a Trump Anomaly: The Board of Peace and America’s Crisis-Driven Power Plays.

From Oil Price: Oil Prices Tumble 5% Amid Signs Of US-Iran De-escalation. President Trump suggested Iran is engaged in serious talks, dampening fears of military escalation... [Ed: I hope this is accurate. I've been worried about the prospect of war.]

From Wired: 23 Ways You’re Already Living in the Chinese Century. The robotics explosion. The energy revolution. The cultural takeover. It’s everything you wanted for the United States—but done better in China.

From YouTube: Stray Dog Runs After Woman's Car. [Ed: charming video.]

Israel-Gaza-Iran. From +972 Magazine: How Netanyahu is sabotaging phase two of the Gaza ceasefire [Ed: this is SOP for Netanyahu. He agrees on the surface and acts to sabotage.]

Iran. From TRT World: Israel wants US to attack Iran, but Trump favours tough diplomacy: report AND Iran to hold joint naval drills with China, Russia amid rising US tensions. The drills come as tensions have escalated between Tehran and Washington in recent weeks. From Spiked: This ayatollah fanclub heaps shame on London. As Iranians fight for freedom, people in London praise their theocratic murderers.[Ed: by Brendan O'Neill.]

From Jonathan Turley: The Windy City: Chicago Mayor Johnson Puts “ICE on Notice” … of Meaningless Gesture. [Ed: in essence, he is threatening to use police against ICE but his executive order is a directive to the CPD to document any alleged violations.]

ICE. From the Post Millennial: Hakeem Jeffries calls to unmask ICE agents as Antifa releases hit lists of federal officers AND Biden-appointed judge rejects effort to halt Trump admin’s immigration operation in Minnesota. Judge Katherin Menendez said that there is “no precedent for a court to micromanage such decisions.” From L.A. Magazine: LAPD Will NOT Enforce the California ICE Mask Ban. The mask ban will not be in effect due to safety concerns for federal agents and officers [Ed: interesting. The police chief is overruling Newsom.]

Costa Rica. From Al Jazeera: Laura Fernandez declares victory in Costa Rica’s presidential election. Right-wing candidate’s closest challenger concedes defeat as partial results showed her on verge of winning the presidency. From the Guardian: Fernández wins Costa Rican presidency, steering Latin America further right. Rightwing populist elected in landslide after promising to crack down on rising violence linked to cocaine trade

From AmazingPandPH: Man Let His Dog Outside After A Massive Snowstorm, And What He Caught On Camera Is Priceless

From FOX News: Trump considers settling massive $10B IRS lawsuit, donating proceeds to charity. President mentions American Cancer Society as potential recipient while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One

Ukraine-Russia. From Simplicius: Ukraine Suffers Unprecedented Nationwide Blackouts as Grid Teeters on Edge. From Son of the New American Revolution: More Ukrainian Cowbell From a Delusional British Colonel From Intellinews: Ukraine faces mounting IMF repayment pressure as February deadline looms

From Wall St. Apes: The fraud being exposed in California is INSANE

From the Libertarian Institute: In the Killing of Alex Pretti, Only Libertarians Get it

[b]From I Love Dogs and Puppies:] Two Shelter Dogs Hugged Behind Kennel Bars, And A Photo Changed Everything

From Zero Hedge: War Drums In Gulf: US Armada Arrives As Saudi Arabia, UAE Deny Airspace Access. Tehran responds to Trump, who says "time is running out"... [Ed: I have said it before, and with a heavy heart, I think war is becoming inevitable.]

From Pupvine: Arizona Pup Facing Final Countdown Surprises Everyone When His Story Reaches The Right Person

From Politico: The Legal Fallout in Minnesota Has Only Just Begun. The deadly clashes with ICE are likely to undermine law enforcement across the country. [Ed: unfortunately, this is likely to be accompanied by a stiffening of law enforcement.]

From Remix News: Spanish Nationalists Furious: Socialist PM Sánchez Decrees Amnesty For 500K Illegals, Skirts Parliament. Vox leader Santiago Abascal accused Sánchez of "hating the Spanish people" and wanting to "replace them"...

From Spiked: NATO is now a zombie institution. The Western military alliance lacks all meaning, purpose and cohesion – and not just thanks to Trump. [Ed: abolish it. Or let it die of shame and neglect. NATO's role in the war in Ukraine has been horrendous.]

From the Post Millennial: Protesters swarm Tim Walz's office after he signals willingness to work with Trump. AND Frey says Minneapolis won't comply with federal immigration law after Homan meeting. [Ed: a split between Walz and Frey?]

From Lew Rockwell: How The GOP Appropriators Bushwhacked The DOGE Boys.

Minneapolis. From Red State: Revealed: Training Materials and Communications for Minneapolis Anti-ICE protestors. [Ed: recommended.] From the Western Journal: Trump Says Walz Has Agreed to Fully Cooperate with Feds Amid Crime Crackdown in Minnesota. [Ed: I'll believe it when I see it.] From Politico: In 'Extraordinary' Move, Judge Orders ICE Chief Into Court. 'The court's patience is at an end,' he writes, referring to Todd Lyons' agency. From the Hill: Paul calls on leaders of ICE, Border Protection and Immigration Services to testify before Senate. [Ed: Rand Paul, that is.]

From I Love My Dog So Much: Woman Scoops Up An Abandoned Puppy And Puts Her In A Shopping Bag.

From the Tech Buzz: Microsoft Hands FBI BitLocker Keys, Breaking Encryption Wall. Microsoft gave FBI encryption keys under warrant, sparking privacy backlash. [Ed: making it more difficult for other big tech to resist similar demands.] From PC Mag: Lawsuit Alleges That WhatsApp Has No End-to-End Encryption

From Brownstone Institute: Government-Controlled Digital ID is Not the Optional Convenience It Is Being Sold As. The UK government has pledged to introduce a digital ID system for all UK citizens and legal residents by the end of the current Parliament (so no later than 2029).

From International Man: "The Bank Was Saved, and the People Were Ruined."

All Things Climate. From Just the News: Al Gore’s ‘Inconvenient Truth’ turns 20, and critics say biggest disaster is its failed predictions. Twenty years ago "An Inconvenient Truth" received a standing ovation at the Sundance Film Festival. Though it was full of predictions that never came to pass, it was a key catalyst of the climate activist movement. From Politico: So long, Paris: US officially leaves landmark climate pact. President Donald Trump has formally removed the U.S. from the historic agreement that aims to limit global warming. From Front Page Magazine: How China Sold America the Wind Turbine Scam.. "The idea has been repeated so often that it eventually stopped sounding like a policy proposal and began to sound like a moral duty."

From Moneywise: Younger Americans don't think Social Security will exist when they retire. How Gen Z can prepare for retirement, now. Americans under 30 were nearly eight times more likely than today’s retirees to say they support reducing Social Security benefits to fix the program's finances. [Ed: they are correct to assume SS will not be there for them.]

From Politico.EU: These 9 cities want to host Europe’s customs cops. Everything you need to know about the race to host the planned EU Customs Agency. [Ed: everything in this article is news to me and, so, fascinating.]

From Pet Buzz: Police officer risks it all to rescue his K9 during a violent tornado.

Iran. From The Dissident: Meet The Single, Shady Source Behind Time Magazine’s Claim That Iran Killed 30,000 Protestors. [Ed: dubious, indeed. I also detest the growing tendency to use information from 'unnamed sources'.]

From Vanessa Beeley Substack: The Trump 'Board of Peace' excludes Palestine and Resistance states while drawing in the BRICS contingent. Trump is moving forward with the US dominion project at lightning speed - will the Empire overreach and crash or succeed in trapping the world into a Technate from which there is no escape? [Ed: I expect Trump wants a global--meaning mostly Western--agency that can compete with the U.N. but be more influenced by the U.S.]

From Teslarati: Robotaxi rides in Austin with no Safety Monitor. [Ed: in other words, the only person in the car is the passenger.]

Minneapolis. From Jonathan Turley: Clickbait: How a Five-Year-Old Boy Become the Latest Prop in Post-Truth Politics AND Trump Administration Wins Appeal of ICE Injunction in Minnesota. [Ed: both Turley articles are recommended reads.]

Precious Metal. From USA Watchdog: Failure to Deliver Gold & Silver Calamity Coming – Bill Holter. [Ed: I rarely post about gold or silver because such a post could be interpreted as a recommendation to buy...and I never give financial advice. But there is important movement in the markets...and that's, well, news.]

From Purina Hall of Fame: Raya

From Law & Liberty: The Constitution's Check on Warmaking. Critics of Nicolás Maduro's capture would be on much stronger footing if they were originalists.

Trade Deals. From the Washington Times: India and EU clinch the 'mother of all deals' in a historic free trade agreement. After nearly two decades of negotiations... From CBC: No plans for China free trade deal, Carney says as Trump fixates on Canada. [Ed: says this after Trump threatens a 100% tariff on all Canadian imports.]

From the Organic Prepper: The Prepper’s Dictionary: The Jargon and Acronyms You Need to Know. [Ed: some of the terms are new to me, and I'm familiar with this topic.]

The Fed Meets Today. From CBS News: Federal Reserve meets Wednesday for its first interest rate decision of 2026. Here's what to expect. [Ed: that's Wednesday as in TODAY!] From Yahoo Finance: Live coverage: Federal Reserve set to hold interest rates steady in first policy meeting of 2026

From Sunny Skyz: This Animal Shelter Has No... Animals — They’re Being Adopted Too Fast

BREAKING. From Politico: Trump, Bondi statements fuel legal case against Minnesota surge. At a hearing Monday, a judge focused on a letter the attorney general sent to Gov. Tim Walz that appeared to set conditions on winding down Operation Metro Surge.

Funding Bill. From Reason: Congress Is Aiming To Avoid Another Shutdown by Spending More on Almost Everything. The bill includes $1 million for new elevators at New York City's Metropolitan Opera, among other wasteful earmarks. [Ed: so much for Trump's much heralded campaign to cut waste.] From the Post Millennial: Long Island Dems side with House GOP to pass DHS, ICE funding bill. From Reason: Democrats Plan To Block DHS Funding After Minnesota Killing. Republicans Should Join Them. Senators should demand accountability for federal agents who hurt Americans—and demand the removal of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino.

From Doog Lovers: Dog Survives Texas Flood After Being Found Alive in a Washing Machine

Monetary Stuff. From Monetary Metals: Gold And Silver Hit New Highs—Here’s What Eventually Stops The Rally From Zero Hedge: Egon von Greyerz On The Hidden Crisis Behind Silver's Price Surge. [Ed: a must read.] From the Epoch Times: What Broke Trade Was The Fiat Dollar. The postwar trading order is taking on an entirely new shape... We can put brackets around the old one, like a tombstone: 1944–2025... From Daniel LaCalle: De-Dollarization? Gold Over Debt - The End Of The Keynesian Paper Promise Mirage. ...what we are currently experiencing globally is not “de?dollarization,” but a broad loss of confidence in developed economies’ fiat currencies and sovereign debt...

Minneapolis. From the Hill: Trump Shifts Tone on Walz After 'Very Good Call'. President also sends border czar Tom Homan to oversee ICE operations in Minnesota. [Ed: Trump needs this situation to go away. The entire country needs it.] From FOX News: Trump has 'very good' call with Jacob Frey as he pulls Bovino, sends Homan to Minn. [Ed: I sincerely hope the disastrous 'protests' have ruined the careers of all politicians involved.] From Zero Hedge: "Did The White House Just Blink?" Border Patrol Boss 'Demoted' As Minneapolis Mayor Says Feds Are Leaving. “The president agreed the present situation can’t continue...”

Cities Church Invasion. From Townhall: New Horrifying Details About the Leftist Mob Invasion of Cities Church Come Out From Christian Post: First Amendment doesn’t protect protests that disrupt church services, civil liberties org. says. [Ed: org. in question is FIRE, the libertarian-friendly Foundation for Individual Rights in Education.]

From Politico: ICE Shootings Are Freaking Out the GOP. They’re Afraid to Tell Trump.

Signal Chats. From Red State: Anti-ICE Signal Chats: Walz Administration Implicated, Foreign Funding Revealed. [Ed: I hope this does not result in a gov. crackdown on Signal.] From NBC News: The FBI is investigating Minnesota Signal chats tracking ICE, Patel says. FBI Director Kash Patel made the statement after right-wing media figures said they joined the chats and claimed participants were obstructing law enforcement.

From Jonathan Turley: Maryland Jury Rules Walmart Liable For Selling Shotgun Used In Employee Suicide. The jury awarded approximately $2.5 million in economic damages and $8 million in non-economic damages...

From Spiked Online: Islamists have been given a veto over public life. The banning of a UKIP march to appease Islamist hotheads is a scandal. [Ed: UKIP=the UK Independence Party. the March would have had the theme of "Christianity is true. Islam is BS']

From Zero Hedge: 'Enough Of Washington's Orders' - Venezuela's Interim President Tells Populace. Behind scenes it's something different: rapidly liberalizing the economy, rewriting laws for foreign investment...

From ESPN: Invictus Games: Dogs who heal wounded warriors.

From Politico.EU: Europe can’t defend itself without the US, NATO’s Rutte warns. The EU should stop dreaming of creating a European pillar for NATO and continue to build ties with the U.S. despite Trump, the alliance secretary-general said. AND EU Parliament delays decision to unfreeze US trade deal. Lawmakers are divided on whether to play hardball with Washington or to ratify the deal to smooth trade relations.

From Reason: What Mamdani Gets Wrong About the NYC Nurses Strike: State Regulations, Not Greed, Are the Problem

TikTok. From Tech Crunch: TikTok Alternative 'Skylight' Soars To 380K+ Users After TikTok US Deal Finalized. From BBC: TikTok's New US Owner Explains Massive Outage. Outage blamed on US data center power failure disrupting feeds

Ukraine-Russia. From Andrew Korybko:Lavrov Exposed The Europeans' Plot To Subvert Trump's Ukrainian Peace Plan. “Trump’s idea, which we discussed and supported in Anchorage, has been categorically rejected by that elite European group.” [Ed: a bit surprising that this comes from Lavrov. A must read.] From Gilbert Doctorow: “News of the Week” on Rossiya 1 that you have not yet read in Western media. AND On the Abu Dhabi talks and on continuing Russian oil production in Venezuela.

From Daily Paws: How These 2-Legged Dogs Inspire Humans Learning to Live With Amputations. During their weekly visits to a Philadelphia-area rehab hospital, Cyrus, Lucky, and Deuce show what's possible.

From Moon of Alabama: Why Is Trump Causing His Own Downfall? The White House seems to do everything possible to help the Republicans to lose their majorities in the midterm elections. [Ed: I've had the same question. Trump usually does not misstep as badly as he is doing over and over in Minneapolis.]

From Blogspot: Television Turns 100.

From I Love My Dog So Much: Grandpa Receives A Puppy To Cheer Him On After Surgery

From the Libertarian Institute: When Dollars Become Weapons: How mBridge Became the Alternative to American Financial Power.

Gaza. From antiwar: ‘Chairman Trump’ and a Dystopian Vision for Gaza Without Gazans. [Ed: I expect the world will just look the other way...that is, the parts of the world that are not actively involved in the new Gaza.] From Human Events: Israel recovers body of last Gaza hostage, clearing path for next phase of Trump peace plan.

From FOX Business: Co-buying is rewriting homeownership, and romance is no longer required. NerdWallet expert says trend reflects shift from 'old fashioned' ways as median first-time buyer age hits record 40.

I have been down with a flu that I thought I'd shaken. The blog will be up and running at full volume as soon as I am.

Bad as it is financially for the federal government to be saddled with the runaway costs of “entitlement” programs, it is far worse for the society as a whole to be saddled with millions of people with the “entitlement” mentality and all the social problems that go with it.--Thomas Sowell