Insight: “Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.” —C. S. Lewis

“It’s seems so odd that the media holds Ron DeSantis personally responsible for a surge in COVID cases in Florida in the summer but feel no need to mention a rapid 50% case decline in the fall, doesn’t it?” —Buck Sexton

“You probably tell yourself you wouldn’t have helped the Nazis, the Bolsheviks or the Khmer Rouge. You like to think you’re wise to those who would manipulate you. Are you? If you’re asked to exclude your fellow citizens from your place of business unless they’re vaccinated, will you do it? If you are asked to fire employees who have had COVID or who have concerns about the vaccines, will you do it? If you are told that you’ll lose your medical license unless you perform abortions, will you do it? If you are asked by the FBI to turn in names of people you think disagree with you politically, will you do it? You’ve been told that millions of your countrymen — your friends, neighbors and co-workers — are ‘white supremacists’ and ‘domestic terrorists.’ Do you believe it? Because if you do believe that, what won’t you do if asked? You have a choice to make. Are you going to be a willing pawn in propaganda campaigns conducted by powermongers, who will come for you, too, eventually, as they always do? Or will you think for yourself, defend free inquiry, demand the truth and help keep this country free? What kind of person are you, really?” —Laura Hollis

Friendly fire I: “I cannot accept our economy, or basically our society, moving towards an entitlement mentality.” —Democrat Senator Joe Manchin

Friendly fire II: “Senator Sinema said publicly more than two months ago, before Senate passage of the bipartisan infrastructure bill, that she would not support a bill costing $3.5 trillion. In August, she shared detailed concerns and priorities, including dollar figures, directly with Senate Majority Leader Schumer and the White House. Claims that the Senator has not detailed her views to President Biden and Senator Schumer are false.” —statement from Democrat Kyrsten Sinema’s office

Friendly fire III: “I do think it would be helpful for the president to be more engaged.” —Democrat Congressman Daniel Kildee

Friendly fire IV: “[The president] needs to get more involved.” —Democrat Congressman Henry Cuellar

Friendly fire V: “What is it that the president wants? Nobody can even answer that question.” —Democrat Congresswoman Debbie Dingell

Grand delusions: “Paid leave is infrastructure. Childcare is infrastructure. Health care is infrastructure. Climate action is infrastructure. Affordable housing is infrastructure. It’s time to pass the Build Back Better Act and deliver on each of these critical priorities.” —Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (“And it all costs ‘zero.’” —Tom Bevan)

The BIG Lie: “THERE IS NO BRUTAL FISCAL REALITY THE NATION FACES; IT IS ENTIRELY MADE UP! ON THE OTHER HAND THE EARTH IS GOING TO WARM PAST THE THRESHOLD ITS EVER REACHED WHILE SUPPORTING HUMAN LIFE SO THATS KIND OF A BRUTAL REALITY WE FACE.” —MSNBC’s Chris Hayes

Spin doctor: “Not only is debt not bad, it’s actually in current circumstances affirmatively good. As the world’s reserve currency, [we] have a moral obligation to do what we can to help power a global economic recovery from Covid and lead the way on climate investment.” —Chris Hayes

Flip-flop: “A government shutdown means Americans won’t get the services they depend on. Federal workers won’t get their paychecks. People’s livelihoods will be upended as the pandemic rages on. But none of this matters to Republicans. They care only about power. Never about people.” —former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, September 27, 2021 | “Which party will voters blame for the shutdown? The last three federal government shutdowns occurred during divided government. Now, Republicans run it all. How can one party not be able to keep the government open? If it shuts, it will be on the heads of the GOP.” —Robert Reich, January 18, 2018

Non compos mentis: “On behalf of the United States of America, I would like to extend our congratulations to the people of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the country celebrates its National Day on October 1.” —Secretary of State Antony Blinken

Big Tech oligarchy: “YouTube’s curbing of anti-vaccine content is a strong first step. But this doesn’t mark the end of our fight against deadly misinformation. These policies must be enforced. And we must keep pushing for other companies to follow suit. What do you say, @amazon and @Facebook?” —House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff

And last… “In what world does the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff speak to people writing books while he’s still serving in office? We’ve come a long way from the days of Dwight David Eisenhower, who wrote a resignation letter the day before D-Day just in case it failed. Now that’s what honor looks like.” —Gary Bauer