Sunday Smiles

David Strom 2:30 PM | April 28, 2024
@midnightmitch

First things first: I haven't shot a dog or a goat, and I don't expect I ever will. 

It's hard to say to what extent Kristi Noem's revelation that she shot a puppy in a gravel pit will harm her political prospects, but there is a plausible explanation for why she put it out there. 

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First, construction workers saw her doing it, so the story was sure to surface in the heat of a presidential race. Best to get it out early and let the controversy die down. 

Second, Noem was likely trying to communicate that she is tough as nails and will do unpleasant but necessary things. 

I am not the type who would be good at necessary but difficult things unless pushed to the edge. I am a softy—so much so that my wife likes to joke that I am not the "strong, silent type" but instead the "weak and effusive type." I can't contradict that assessment. 

One of Tony Soprano's most famous lines came in an episode where everybody whined around him; he exclaimed, "Whatever happened to Gary Cooper." Ironically, he was talking with his therapist. 

Noem is perhaps presenting herself as Gary Cooper, strong enough to do what is necessary. 

The problem is that killing her puppy wasn't necessary, at least in the eyes of most people. Find a new home, or don't use her to hunt. 

Old Yeller was a tragedy; we all cried instead of cheering. 

Of course, Noem's odd and seemingly cruel story may not be relevant to her potential to be a good president, but it certainly takes the shine off her political armor. 

People love dogs. All dogs go to heaven and all that. 

Ron DeSantis had a bit of fun at her expense, so sly that somebody not in the know wouldn't have caught it, but devastating if you get the joke. I have no idea what Governor DeSantis thinks of Governor Noem, but you have to admit that this zinger stings. 

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Essentia was adopted immediately. Zing! Whether you love or hate Noem, this was funny. 


Switching gears...

Last night, I attended a dinner at the Minnesota Family Council, where Seth Dillon, the CEO of the Babylon Bee, spoke. The event was lovely, and Seth's message was crystal clear: we all must have the courage to speak the truth, regardless of the consequences. 

As you may recall, the Bee was kicked off Twitter for saying the simplest of things: Rachel Levine is a man. 

The tweet that got them booted was only a few words long, but Twitter went nuts and accused them of "hateful conduct." It spoke a truth that few others would. 

Twitter offered to reinstate the Bee if it did only two things: delete the tweet and check a box admitting it was hateful content. 

They refused, and Twitter banned them. The tweet was not hateful, and Dillon would not say it was. 

Simple. Honest. True. And dangerous to the establishment. 

The Bee lost a lot of revenue when it was kicked off Twitter, threatening the company. But they stood by their principles and won in the end. 

Elon Musk bought Twitter because of the Babylon Bee's ban. Seriously. 

This is the power of speaking the truth. It can move mountains.

We are trying to do that in our own way here at Hot Air and Townhall Media: speak the truth as best we can. As with the Bee, we face incredible pressure to stay silent on issues the Establishment cares about. 

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In the Establishment's eyes, it is fine to pose as a conservative as long as we stick to safe topics. But if we challenge the essential Narrative™, they censor and demonetize us. 

Their message is that you face consequences for telling the truth. Stay in your lane. You can be a Mitt Romney but not a Tom Cotton or Ted Cruz. 

Or else we will strangle you. 

That's why we keep plugging our VIP member program. It is what keeps us in the game. We provide most of our content for free because we want to reach as many people as possible with our message, and we have a paywall because we need the money. Ninety percent of advertisers go through brokers that shut us out as politically "unsafe," and it costs us big time to speak the truth. 

We won't stop doing so, but we need your help. 

I asked my bosses for a special discount code for Sunday Smiles readers, and they agreed. If you use the code SMILE, we will give you 50% off your subscription. Of course, you will get access to all our VIP content, but the shows are the best part of the deal. Ed is superb. 

But honestly, I don't think you need a reason to subscribe beyond supporting truth and freedom. Enjoy the benefits, but subscribe because you want to help save our culture and country. 

The barbarians are inside the gate. Help us fight them.

Now, on to the smiles!

 








Off to South Dakota...









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BEST OF THE BABYLON BEE!

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Best of the Rest, with lots of puppies this week

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Is this Kristi's Dog?

Bonus video:


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