The Patriot Post® · Wednesday Short Cuts

Insight: “The only proper purpose of a government is to protect man’s rights, which means: to protect him from physical violence. A proper government is only a policeman, acting as an agent of man’s self-defense, and, as such, may only resort to force only against those who start the use of force.” —Ayn Rand (1905-1982)

Observations: “Just as it would be irrational to predict that the United States will never again be hit by a major hurricane, it is also irrational to predict the federal government can continue borrowing money year after year and not face a debt crisis. But the difference between a major hurricane and the impending debt crisis is that the latter is indisputably man-made.” —Terence Jeffrey

For the record: “There’s no such thing as a lone wolf. … That was a phrase invented by the last administration to make Americans stupid.” —White House aide Sebastian Gorka

The BIG Lie: “Politics had absolutely nothing to do with [our canceling ‘Last Man Standing’].” —ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey

Braying Jackass: “You’ve got two bullies chiding each other with outrageous comments — and it doesn’t help the situation in terms of trying to resolve something that has to be resolved peacefully. … The question is: Does [Trump] get so frustrated with the North Korean leader — who’s yelling every other day — that he feels that somehow the North Korean leader is attacking his manhood?” — Leon Panetta

Alpha Jackass: “For some the word Trump is becoming a modern day swastika.” —Daily Beast columnist Dean Obeidallah

And last… “Google has a pair of leftist goggles on at all times. Its users shouldn’t have blinders on about it. Every search result should be scanned for algorithmic bias. After all, a company that will rip its own employee to shreds for defending its hiring practices on the basis of science and data will do anything to defend its leftist politics.” —Ben Shapiro