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DEI Cronyism And Woke Grifters

DEI Cronyism And Woke Grifters

Authored by Victor Davis Hanson via American Greatness,

When ideology replaces meritocracy or provides immunity…

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22 mins ago

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DEI Cronyism And Woke Grifters

Authored by Victor Davis Hanson via American Greatness,

When ideology replaces meritocracy or provides immunity from the consequences of illegal behavior, systemic mediocrity follows.

Under toxic National Socialism, Stalinism, and Maoism, millions of cronies and grifters mouthed party lines in hopes that their approved ideology would allow them to advance their careers and excuse their lawbreaking.

The same thing has happened with the woke movement and the now-huge Diversity/Equity/Inclusion conglomerate.

Grifters and opportunists mask their selfish agendas under the cloak of neo-Marxist care for the underprivileged or victimized minorities. Meanwhile, they seek to profit illegally as if they were old-fashioned crony capitalists.

During the disastrous COVID-19 lockdown, California governor Gavin Newsom pontificated about leveraging the quarantine to ensure greater equality: “There is opportunity for reimagining a [more] progressive era as it [relates] to capitalism…We see this as an opportunity to reshape the way we do business and how we govern.”

Meanwhile, Newsom did not seem very “progressive” when he was caught in one of California’s most expensive restaurants dining with sidekick lobbyists while violating the very mask and social distancing rules he had mandated for 40 million others.

Newsom also bragged about social equity when he signed a new California law mandating $20 an hour for fast-food workers—while many of his own employees at his various company-controlled eateries made only $16 an hour.

And he allegedly gave a unique exemption from his wage law to one particular bakery/restaurant chain, Panera, whose owner is an old friend and major campaign contributor.

Newsom apparently feels that the more progressively he postures, the less he’ll be called out for his own hypocrisy and self-interested agendas.

In another egregious case, the now-imprisoned felon, Sam Bankman-Fried, may have been the greatest con artist in American history. He siphoned billions of dollars from his cryptocurrency company, destroying the fortunes of thousands when his multi-billion-dollar Ponzi empire collapsed.

How did Sam and his two Stanford law-professor parents manage to accumulate millions of dollars in resort properties and perks without getting caught until after their empire collapsed?

Answer: Sam showered millions of dollars on left-wing politicians to advance their progressive crusades. His parents justified this family giving as a form of “effective altruism.”

That catchy phrase masked the reality that his crusade for social justice was just an incredibly effective get-rich-quick scheme.

The Bankman-Fried family apparently reasoned that their devotion to this woke form of “altruism” would translate into riches for themselves, albeit bankruptcies for investors.

Another example: in Georgia’s Fulton County, District Attorney Fani Willis ran for office, promising to indict supposed right-wing monster Donald Trump.

She raised campaign money on her woke credentials. Often, when challenged, she played the race victim card.

Meanwhile, Willis hired as a special prosecutor her secret paramour, the incompetent Nathan Wade, although he had never tried a single felony or even criminal case.

She and Wade then went on expensive junkets. She claimed that she reimbursed him with cash that was, of course, unverifiable.

Given their woke ideology, both assumed they were entitled to splurge at taxpayers’ expense, offer likely-false testimony under oath, and violate canons of professional behavior for lawyers.

She wasn’t alone in her corruption. After the death of George Floyd, the founders of the left-wing Black Lives Matter movement went on a house-buying rampage. The more corporations filled their coffers with millions, either from guilt or as protection money, the more new homes the directors purchased.

One co-founder, Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a self-described Marxist, splurged by spending $3.2 million in BLM money to buy herself four upscale residences.

And the most radical Democratic members of Congress—the so-called Squad—apparently feel that the more they level accusations of racism, the more they can profit without fearing any consequences for their wrongdoing.

One squad member, Rep. Ilhan Omar, redirected $2.8 million of her office’s allotted government money to her husband’s political consulting company.

Still another member, the radical leftist Rep. Cori Bush, often harangued the country to defund the police. Now the FBI is investigating her for stealthily paying tens of thousands of campaign dollars to her own husband for “security.”

Woke and DEI activists may not necessarily be any more innately mediocre, corrupt, or conniving than other politicians and activists.

But they seem so, because they loudly broadcast that they are for “diversity,” “equity,” and “inclusion”—and thus assume themselves to be exempt from all scrutiny and free to profit in any way they please.

The woke/DEI project is enticing thousands of shysters, careerists, and mediocrities, all keen to enrich themselves on the premise that they are noble fighters for social justice who deserve immunity from any scrutiny.

How odd it is that America is wasting billions of dollars hiring DEI czars and electing woke politicians who so often accuse others of a multitude of sins, largely as a way of enriching themselves, hiding their own culpability, and making a mockery of the law.

Tyler Durden Thu, 04/11/2024 - 16:20

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Bankrupt essential retailer closing more stores across nation

The huge retailer continues closing its stores in bankruptcy.

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April 10, 2024

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Underperforming stores and chronic retail theft have led brick-and-mortar retailers since the Covid pandemic to close stores to ease financial distress.

Target  (TGT)  in October 2023 closed nine stores in four states because of theft and organized retail crime after Walgreens in early 2022 and 2021 closed seven stores in San Francisco because of crime.

Related: Las Vegas Strip casino signs iconic singer for longer residency

Walmart  (WMT)  in 2023 closed 24 stores in 14 states and Washington, D.C., blaming underperformance and theft as central reasons for the closures. The retail giant decided to close a Walmart and a Walmart Neighborhood Market in the San Diego area on Feb. 9 after failed lease negotiations.

Retailers liquidate and disappear after bankruptcy filings

Retailers Christmas Tree Shops, Tuesday Morning and Bed Bath & Beyond all filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, liquidated and closed all of their stores in 2023.

The latest retailer to completely fail is discount store 99 Cents Only, which on April 4 said it would liquidate and close all 371 of its stores in California, Texas, Arizona and Nevada. The company subsequently filed for Chapter 11 protection on April 7.

Rite Aid, however, has been closing hundreds of stores as a result of its bankruptcy filing. 

Rite Aid on Oct. 15, 2023, filed for Chapter 11 protection facing strong competition from CVS  (CVS) , Walgreens Boots Alliance  (WBA) , Walmart  (WMT) , Costco COST, Amazon  (AMZN)  and newcomer Mark Cuban CostPlus Drug Co. The company, which listed $3.3 billon in debt, also felt financial pressure from a civil lawsuit filed against it by the Department of Justice in March 2023 alleging that its pharmacists inappropriately filled opioid prescriptions, contributing to the opioid epidemic.

The bankruptcy filing provides an automatic stay of any further legal action in the lawsuit. The company plans to negotiate a less expensive settlement, which could have amounted to over $1 billion without the bankruptcy filing.

The drugstore chain initially filed a motion to reject store leases and close 154 stores on Oct. 17, and in November and December filed notices to reject 55 more stores for a total of 209.  In late December and early January, it sought another 45 closures.

Rite Aid hasn't stopped at 254 closures as it has sought to close another 55 stores since Feb. 27.

A woman browses through what items remain on near empty shelves at a Rite Aid store in Alhambra, Calif., on Oct. 18, 2023, which closed shortly afterward. (Photo by Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

FREDERIC J. BROWN/Getty Images

Rite Aid closes more stores

Rite Aid in April filed three separate notices with the bankruptcy court seeking to close 53 more stores across the nation and another notice in February to close two stores.

The Philadelphia-based drugstore chain filed notices on April 2 to close 30 stores, April 3 to close six locations and April 9 to close 17 stores. The lion's share of closures are in California with 18 of the stores set to be closed. The closure list included 13 in New York, 12 in Pennsylvania, three in New Jersey, two in Michigan, two in Ohio, and one each in Maryland, Massachusetts and Virginia.

The company had also filed a notice to close stores located in Michigan and Ohio on Feb. 27 for a total of 55 closures in 2024 to bring its total amount of store closures to 309 of the 2,100 stores that were open when it filed for bankruptcy in October.

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Geraniol attenuates oxidative stress and cognitive impairment in mouse aging model

“Our data demonstrated, for the first time, the antioxidant activity of geraniol and its function to attenuate brain hippocampus injury induced in vivo…

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April 10, 2024

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“Our data demonstrated, for the first time, the antioxidant activity of geraniol and its function to attenuate brain hippocampus injury induced in vivo by D-galactose.”

Credit: 2024 Rajendran et al.

“Our data demonstrated, for the first time, the antioxidant activity of geraniol and its function to attenuate brain hippocampus injury induced in vivo by D-galactose.”

BUFFALO, NY- April 10, 2024 – A new research paper was published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as “Aging (Albany NY)” and “Aging-US” by Web of Science) Volume 16, Issue 6, entitled, “Geraniol attenuates oxidative stress and neuroinflammation-mediated cognitive impairment in D galactose-induced mouse aging model.”

D-galactose (D-gal) administration was proven to induce cognitive impairment and aging in rodents’ models. Geraniol (GNL) belongs to the acyclic isoprenoid monoterpenes. GNL reduces inflammation by changing important signaling pathways and cytokines, and thus it is plausible to be used as a medicine for treating disorders linked to inflammation. In this new study, researchers Peramaiyan Rajendran, Fatma J. Al-Saeedi, Rebai Ben Ammar, Basem M. Abdallah, Enas M. Ali, Najla Khaled Al Abdulsalam, Sujatha Tejavat, Duaa Althumairy, Vishnu Priya Veeraraghavan, Sarah Abdulaziz Alamer, Gamal M. Bekhet, and Emad A. Ahmed from King Faisal University, Kuwait University, Center of Biotechnology of Borj-Cedria, Saveetha University, Alexandria University, and Assiut University examined the therapeutic effects of GNL on D-gal-induced oxidative stress and neuroinflammation-mediated memory loss in mice. 

“Life expectancy in the 21st century is rising, resulting in more age-related illnesses, such as memory impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. In this study, GNL was studied for its protective effect on D-gal-induced aging in mice.”

The study was conducted using six groups of mice (6 mice per group). The first group received normal saline, then D-gal (150 mg/wt) dissolved in normal saline solution (0.9%, w/v) was given orally for 9 weeks to the second group. In the III group, from the second week until the 10th week, mice were treated orally (without anesthesia) with D-gal (150 mg/kg body wt) and GNL weekly twice (40 mg/kg body wt) four hours later. Mice in Group IV were treated with GNL from the second week up until the end of the experiment. For comparison of young versus elderly mice, 4 month old (Group V) and 16-month-old (Group VI) control mice were used. 

“We evaluated the changes in antioxidant levels, PI3K/Akt levels, and Nrf2 levels. We also examined how D-gal and GNL treated pathological aging changes.”

Administration of GNL induced a significant increase in spatial learning and memory with spontaneously altered behavior. Enhancing anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and activating PI3K/Akt were the mechanisms that mediated this effect. Further, GNL treatment upregulated Nrf2 and HO-1 to reduce oxidative stress and apoptosis. This was confirmed using 99mTc-HMPAO brain flow gamma bioassays. 

“Thus, our data suggested GNL as a promising agent for treating neuroinflammation-induced cognitive impairment.”

 

Read the full paper: DOI: https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.205677 

Corresponding Authors: Peramaiyan Rajendran, Fatma J. Al-Saeedi

Corresponding Emails: prajendran@kfu.edu.sa, fatma.alsaeedi@ku.edu.kw 

Keywords: D-galactose, geraniol, cognitive disorder, Nrf2, 99mTc-HMPAO, apoptosis

Click here to sign up for free Altmetric alerts about this article.

 

About Aging:

Aging publishes research papers in all fields of aging research including but not limited, aging from yeast to mammals, cellular senescence, age-related diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s diseases and their prevention and treatment, anti-aging strategies and drug development and especially the role of signal transduction pathways such as mTOR in aging and potential approaches to modulate these signaling pathways to extend lifespan. The journal aims to promote treatment of age-related diseases by slowing down aging, validation of anti-aging drugs by treating age-related diseases, prevention of cancer by inhibiting aging. Cancer and COVID-19 are age-related diseases.

Aging is indexed by PubMed/Medline (abbreviated as “Aging (Albany NY)”), PubMed Central, Web of Science: Science Citation Index Expanded (abbreviated as “Aging‐US” and listed in the Cell Biology and Geriatrics & Gerontology categories), Scopus (abbreviated as “Aging” and listed in the Cell Biology and Aging categories), Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS Previews, EMBASE, META (Chan Zuckerberg Initiative) (2018-2022), and Dimensions (Digital Science).

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Journal

Aging-US

DOI

10.18632/aging.205677

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Animals

Article Title

Geraniol attenuates oxidative stress and neuroinflammation-mediated cognitive impairment in D galactose-induced mouse aging model

Article Publication Date

20-Mar-2024

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Trendy sneaker company receives a dire Nasdaq warning

The trendy label seems to have lost its luster with a once-enthusiastic consumer base.

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April 10, 2024

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It seems like almost every day you check on the newest business headlines, a new company is either liquidating, filing for bankruptcy protection, getting delisting warnings, or somehow spiraling into what seems like a hopeless death of despair. 

This is thanks in part to the continued Covid consolidation, whereby brands at anything less than their best performance over the past year have been forced to fold under the immense pressure of current market conditions. 

Related: Kroger launches trendy new brand Costco doesn't have

As Covid forced — or expedited — seemingly unnatural migration patterns, many previously high-foot traffic metropolitan areas were largely abandoned for months or even years on end. High rents in these places were no longer justifiable, and a lack of incoming revenue forced many stores to shutter suddenly and ask for help. 

To be sure, some retailers thrived during this period of consolidation. Giants like Walmart  (WMT) , Target  (TGT) , and Amazon  (AMZN)  rapidly gobbled up smaller competition and it now seems like every plaza has at least one of the five largest retailers in the U.S. 

Other retailers like TJ Maxx, thrived as consumers finally returned to stores seeking deals and off-mall accessibility. So while retailers like Macy's  (M)  shuttered and crumbled, TJX was happy to sell some of its overstock labels for a fraction of the price.

Popular sneaker label gets a warning

One such company that thrived before the pandemic was Allbirds  (BIRD) , a smaller brand that built comfortable shoes made of sustainable materials best suited for walking and commuting.

The entrance of Allbirds seen from Hayes St. in San Francisco, Calif.

San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images/Getty Images

A darling during the late 2010s when almost everybody went into the office every day, Allbirds catered to the crowd who wanted to look presentable at work but feel good in their feet -- and good about what they were doing for the planet. Allbirds' best-selling shoe, the Runners, are made from either wool or sustainable eucalyptus with cushioned midsoles for the perfect all-day temperature and support. They start at $98. 

But Allbirds has struggled with declining sales and profit in recent years, as upscale and presentable commuters are no longer in vogue and shoppers instead opt for comfort over everything else, as is the case with Crocs  (CROX)  and Birkenstock. 

The company tried to make a pivot to other activewear, as with women's leggings but soon found out that was a slippery slope with incumbents like Lululemon  (LULU)  ready to eat any newcomers' lunch — sustainable or not. 

So in April, Allbirds received a noncompliance warning from Nasdaq, where it is currently listed and trades for under $1. Since the stock has traded below $1 for over 30 days, Nasdaq warned Allbirds it must get its stock price up — or be at risk of being delisted from the exchange. 

It has 180 days, or until September 30, to make that change. In order to avoid delisting, it must trade for above $1 for at least 10 business days straight. 

Allbirds said it "will consider actions," to take in order to avoid delisting, "but no decisions about a response have been made at this time."

Earlier in 2024, Allbirds said it will shutter between 10-15 brick-and-mortar locations in the U.S., but it still expects revenue to decline 25% or more in the fiscal year. 

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