Welcome back to the Stove Top weekly newsletter. As usual, each edition has a few brief stories and finishes with a mix of interesting links, hot takes, and good reads.

Enjoy.

Believe In Something

Following a close but decisive loss in 2012, the Republicans in 2013 released the Growth and Opportunity Project, now infamously known as the RNC Autopsy. The main prescription? To be lighter on immigration. It made sense. The country’s demographics were (and still are) changing quickly. If the Republicans wanted to win, they would need to attract more minorities.

11 years later and the Republicans have done literally the exact opposite of what they once advocated for. Instead of lightening up on immigration, they are now hawkish to the point of psychosis. The main reason, of course, is the Orange Man himself.

Whatever you want to say about Trump, nobody can deny that he has fundamentally reshaped the party in his image. Was that because the facts on the ground changed? Maybe, but since when has that ever motivated conservatives to do anything? Was that because he is more in sync with the will of the people than any other Republican politician? Probably, but at the start of his 2016 campaign his approval rating among Republicans was a mere 35%, and it’s not like his anti-immigration proclivities were a secret. So then, what?

The reason Trump has been able to change the Republican party so distinctly is because he really believes what he’s saying. The man truly thinks that immigrants are destroying us. That level of conviction is impossible to fake, and is not something you often see. It draws people in. It makes them think, “shit, maybe he’s right”. Next thing you know, suddenly even the Democrats are border tough guys.

It’s why when Trump supporters talk about Trump, they often talk about how he’s not like the other politicians. He feels “real”. Like one of them, even though he’s a billionaire. The left interprets this as deplorable racists recognizing one of their own, but in reality, it’s just regular people appreciating a politician who doesn’t talk like a used car salesman. Bernie Sanders has a similar appeal. Whether you love him or think he’s batshit crazy, you can’t deny that he has genuine conviction in his beliefs.

There is great power in actually believing in something. As a politician, it turns you from someone merely trying to guess which way the wind is blowing into someone able to control the wind. The people whose names you remember didn’t just regurgitate what they thought you wanted to hear. They got you to believe in what they believed. Trump, whether you like it or not, is in this category. Just look at his gain with minority voters, even though he is constantly labeled as extremely racist:

He achieved that game without bending over backward for them. In other words, he didn’t go to the minority voters, he brought the minority voters to him.

In contrast, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis are disgustingly fake, and it’s a large part of why they are so unlikeable. Anybody with half a brain knows they don’t believe a word of the bullshit they are spewing. Thus, they inspire no devotion. They have no aura. Nobody cares about what they have to say. And then they wonder why they can’t gain ground on Trump. I’ll tell you why. Trump has true fans who spread his gospel to anybody who’ll listen. Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis don’t.

In other words, Trumpism is a thing because Trump is willing to stand on business. Haleyism and DeSantisism aren’t a thing because nobody knows what the hell they even believe in.

Merits of the ban aside, this is why the Trump flip-flop on TikTok is so disappointing. Everyone knows he’s anti-TikTok. He started this whole ban TikTok movement. So to see him flip positions after a meeting with Jeff Yass, a man who has billions of dollars tied up in ByteDance, makes him just like…everybody else. Even his “Truths” now reek of fakeness:

This is dangerous territory for Trump. If he loses his aura of authenticity, he will no longer be a crook fighting for what he believes is best for the people; he’ll just be a crook fighting for himself.

Canada Speech Law

I’ve written before about how “child’s safety” is used as a cover to sneak in draconian policies. It’s now happening again in Canada.

Officially, the bill is supposed to protect children by requiring social media platforms to remove posts that may be harmful to kids, like child pornography and suicide encouragement, within 24 hours. Ok, fine. But Prime Minister Trudeau also wants to use the bill to crack down on “hate speech”. Specifically, he wants to make it so a judge can send you to prison for life for “advocating genocide”.

Naturally, the question then becomes what classifies as “advocating genocide”. For example, is it genocide to think that transgederism shouldn’t exist? What about homosexuality? What about taking Israel’s side? What about “From the River to the Sea”? What about IVF?

Your guess is as good as mine. But that’s a feature, not a bug. Vagueness leaves it up to the judges, which really means it is in Trudeau's hands.

I really don’t see any other way to interpret this than an Orwellian power grab. Unfortunately, that’s on brand for Trudeau.

Extras

• mRNA vaccines are an absolute medical marvel.

• Did DEI kill the CHIPS Act?

• Boeing now has to deal with a criminal inquiry.

• Your car is tracking your driving habits and sending the data to insurance companies, who then use it to raise your premium. Insane.

• Airbnb is banning indoor security cameras. I have no idea what took them so long.

• Friendly reminder that DNA evidence can be easily manipulated.

• If AI is as good as I think it’s going to be, it’s time to start thinking about what a UBI program would look like.

• Government spending is like lifestyle creep. Once it goes up, it’s very hard to bring it back down.

• The Haitian PM resigned. What an absolute loser.

• The Dutch are going the way of Big Brother.

• I don’t agree with everything this guy says, but the point about constantly engaging with and refining your opinions is important.

• JPMorgan’s AI cash flow software cut human work by almost 90%.

• Get rid of legacy admissions.

• Inflation is being a little trickier to defeat than previously expected.

• The Houthis might have a hypersonic missile.

• Trump tried to sow some dissent inside China. Wouldn’t mind some more of this, to be honest.

• Humanoid robots could be ready to fight as early as 2030.

• Hamas is now offering to exchange the hostages for up to 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.

Until next time, ✌️

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