Merry Christmas!

Have the best day imaginable.
Wherever you may be, or whatever situation you find yourself in.

Penny symbolic of useless government

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for November 19, 2025)

Where do you stand on the penny issue? Are you pro-penny, anti-penny, or do you not care one way or the other? Did you even know there was a "penny issue"?

On November 12, 2025, the US Mint stopped issuing pennies; it minted its final one-cent coin. Maybe.

Some people are upset by this development; others think it's long past due.

The problem with pennies is two-fold: due to the devaluation of the dollar ("inflation"), each penny costs over three cents to make and distribute. In addition, the rampant creation of inflated US dollars by the Federal Reserve- which I consider the largest counterfeiting operation in world history- has made them useless. Other than psychologically, I suppose.

The monetary loss with nickels is even worse, costing nearly eleven cents for each five-cent piece, so they may be next on the chopping block. Public reaction to the end of pennies could determine the fate of nickels.

There might be a catch, though. The penny's cancellation was by executive order, and it could take an act of Congress to make it stick. A later president could decide to start issuing pennies again. Perhaps they could make them out of plastic next time, if that turns out to be cheap enough. It would fit right in with the devaluation of the rest of the money through reckless printing, stimulus checks, and tariff bribes.

Pennies have been fake since 1982 anyway. That's the year they stopped making them out of copper and switched to cheap zinc plated with a thin copper glaze so the fraud wouldn't be obvious. It didn't keep the cost down enough. If you've ever found one of these zinc pennies in the dirt, you may have noticed how easily they corrode away into nothing. This is symbolic of what always happens when governments control money.

How will you survive without being able to pay to the exact cent? Businesses may have to round prices to the nearest nickel. It would be easy if not for sales tax meddling with the math. As if we need another good argument for eliminating sales tax, as a step toward getting rid of all taxes. If this could be the result, I would be in favor of eliminating the one-cent coin. Even better, if there were a way to separate money and state, smaller denominations of money, like the penny, might become relevant again. It's worth a shot.

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Building the Empire

Trump wants to empower the Empire, but he's only authorizing more surface vessels. For all I know (and I don't care enough to research it), he may be authorizing a few new atmospheric craft, as well, but BORING...

If he's not building TIE fighters, Star Destroyers, and a Death Star, is he really accomplishing anything for the Empire?

He might as well be issuing "new and improved" atlatls.

If you're going to build the Empire, then go all in and build the Empire. The Mandalorians and other rebels are waiting.

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Stay (at least) skeptical of Rulers

You are right to be skeptical of anything government (or associated institutions) tells you. 

This doesn't mean you'll always be right, but it means you'll be less likely to fall for harmful propaganda.

Anything which is (or is made) political is probably wrong. If you mix politics with anything, you destroy everything but the politics. You are left with politics and nothing else. There may be a kernel of truth in there somewhere, but you need to find it before you act. Especially if doing what you're told gives government more power in some way- you won't get it back.

I know there are those who value acting now over analyzing the situation. They are free to do what they think is best.

I know, too, there are times you have to jump if someone yells "Tiger!" 

Those times are less common than the fearmongers would have you believe. I have rarely regretted hesitating before doing what government (or "they") demanded I do immediately. At the moment, I can't think of even one time I regretted it. Often, I ended up not doing it at all, much to my future peace of mind. Unlike what the cartoon above claims, it often takes much longer than 6 months, but I can be patient.

As has been said, today's conspiracy theories often become tomorrow's "Well, yeah, that was true, but..." Then it's "history" instead of a conspiracy theory.

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Do I accept "The Data"?

I make fun of government supremacists for demanding data they have no intention of believing, but what about me? Am I going to be convinced by data from the anti-liberty side?

No.

I already know this, so I don't ask for data. If it is offered, I'm probably not going to pay attention to it or change my mind because of it.

The problem is that I don't believe data when it is mixed with politics. Two reasons. Remember, Politics makes people stupid, AND politics destroys anything it gets mixed with. Data is not immune.

Even if authoritarianism "works", it is unethical. So that's a hard "no" for me. Data that justifies slavery is meaningless to me.

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Governments have no right to keep or bear arms

No government should be allowed to possess any weapons it prohibits the people from possessing.

No, that doesn't mean you and I should own nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons. It means governments shouldn't be allowed to have them. 

They've demonstrated quite clearly that they can't be trusted with them.

Governments have no rights, because rights are individual and governments are collectives. This means governments can't have the right to keep and bear arms. Nor to decide what arms others own and carry.

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"That data doesn't count because it doesn't agree with me!"

Browsing through the jungle of Leftist X posts, I realize there are a lot of very vocal people who really, really hate guns and anyone who owns them (maybe with the bizarre exception of government thugs, who they seem to trust completely on this one issue).

In fact, since X screwed up their setting where "For you" is the default instead of "Following", it's the only thing I see until I switch back to "Following".

Admittedly, that may be a function of the Al Gore Rhythm feeding me things that will get me to engage, rather than a true reflection of percentages. But I know it makes me feel like "They" ARE coming to take my guns. Or, "they" are encouraging armed government goons and other political criminals to take my guns, since few have the guts to do so in person. This radicalizes me a bit.

Of course, a lot of the most vocal anti-gun bigots are in other countries. Others are professional activists against your liberty, no matter the specific topic. So, zero credibility, but loads of very loud opinion.

These nasties frequently demand data to show that they are wrong, but they pre-reject any data they are presented with. It never changes.

In fact, I had been in a discussion with one for a couple of days, and she kept demanding I show her the data that would prove she was wrong, and trying to taunt me with made-up quotes of me expressing my inability to do so. 

I finally posted this outside that conversation, as a setup:

If someone won't show you the data you demand, it's not because it doesn't exist, it's because no one is going to do your work for you only to have you say, "That doesn't count". Anti-gun bigots- I'm looking at YOU. And you *know* that's what you do every time.

Then, I gave her a link to an X account (associated with John R. Lott, Jr.) that does nothing but present exactly the kind of data she'd been demanding all along. And I waited.

Guess what her reaction was. 

If you were to guess she made up a quote to express what she hallucinated I was thinking, pretended I had been desperately looking for anything to support my point, and then said the source was unreliable, you'd be right. 

I replied by sharing the post I'd made predicting her reaction and said I'd nailed it.

Then I walked away. I wasted more time on her than I should have, but I knew how it was going to go long before she did it- the first time she demanded data. This ain't my first rodeo.

I hope this is a vocal ignorant, unethical minority, and not a general attitude. 

I do see people in other countries posting: "Americans- NEVER give up your guns because you don't want to be in our position", so I know those bigots don't speak for everyone. But there are too many of them. And they are loud and bold and filled with hate.

These people can scream “It’s the guns!” all day long. That doesn’t change reality and make it true. It just makes them stubborn and obnoxious.

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Rob Reiner...

The murder of Rob Reiner and his wife- apparently killed by their son- is horrible.

I liked some of Reiner's movies; most I haven't seen. I can enjoy movies, but I am NOT a "film guy". If you're trying to be clever or artsy with your movie, I'm probably not impressed. If your film has a message other than "Liberty!", ditto. If the movie is entertaining and enjoyable and isn't hitting me over the head with a dumb, forced message, I would probably like it, even if I haven't seen it.

Any murder is tragic.

I also don't care even a little what Trump said about him after he died. At least, he didn't celebrate. If someone had spent the past decade publicly hating you as an individual (and possibly even working with the Deep State to imprison you), you have every reason to not care what happens to him. 

I feel as though Rob Reiner wasted the last decade of his life on TDS, but this doesn't mean he "deserved" his fate. He didn't. No one does.

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Reject kings of all political stripes

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for November 12, 2025)

Well, that didn't take long.

A few short weeks ago, people who largely represented one political faction were protesting for "No Kings". Then, too many of those from the very same faction in New York City did a flip-flop and voted for a man who promises to act exactly like a king.

During his election night victory speech, New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said, "We will prove that there is no problem too large for government to solve, and no concern too small for it to care about." This is real-world king-level stuff. His supporters didn't notice the contradiction within themselves, but were thrilled at the prospect.

Politics makes people stupid.

Apparently, those voters aren't opposed to kings at all. They just don't like Donald Trump being the president. Who knew? All of us did.

I'm on the side of "No Kings", without exception. I'm not only against kings and queens, I am opposed to the existence of presidents, prime ministers, Congress, governors, mayors, burgermeisters, and government bureaucrats. I am against anyone who rules over or governs others. If they do so in an authoritarian or tyrannical way, so much the worse, but this isn't necessary for them to earn my opposition. It doesn't matter who holds the political position; I am against the position existing and being held or used by anyone.

Still, I can't deny that some people are worse than others. The more they seek to run the lives of others, and the more power they seek for themselves or government, the worse they are. The more they micromanage rather than giving people a chance to solve their own problems for themselves, the more authoritarian they become.

Mamdani will prove something, for sure. "No problem too large for government to solve" is a call for limitless government power; "no concern too small for it to care about" is a promise to meddle in every private corner of your life. This is a pledge to be a tyrant of the worst kind. Yet, his victims cheered.

Will they ever be self-aware enough to realize what they've done to themselves? I doubt it. They'll blame the opposition political faction when things go badly under their new authoritarian tyrant. This is what voters normally do. The next time they have a chance, they will vote for another wanna-be king or queen and feel smug about doing so. Just watch. It's as predictable as the phases of the Moon.

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Committed to Liberty

It's hard to find people who are committed to liberty.

Take "gun rights" people, for example. 

Too many of them are fine with other natural human rights being violated- as long as it doesn't affect them. You'll find many of them who support prohibition, "immigration" control, or cops. The number of them who are flaming statists astounds and disappoints me.

A lot of them even approve of background checks, the NFA, and government keeping "certain people" from exercising their right to own and carry weapons. I guess, as long as they have theirs, it doesn't bother them too much if government violates the rights of others.

Gun stores may be the worst offenders, since I suspect many of them like the fact that government is protecting their market share by regulating the crap out of guns, in clear defiance of the Constitution. I think it's some sort of "teacher's pet" power trip. They feel special, since they have a "license"... never mind it's for something no one can rightfully require a license for.

It's not any better with other liberty-oriented topics. Most people love what they love, but everyone else is out of luck. No support.

I do my best to surround myself- at least online- with people who do better. I'm happy to report that it works.

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Religious rights

Everyone has the right to practice their religion- or lack thereof.

Your right to practice your religion can't include a "right" to violate others. Not even if your religion requires it.

No one has the right to murder people over religion. Not because you believe your religion encourages or requires it, or because you don't like their religion.

If your religion actually does require or encourage you to kill people over religion, your religion is disease-spreading sewage oozing across the planet.

No one has the right to murder others, or to violate their life, liberty, or property in any way. Rights don't work like that. If your religion tells you otherwise, your religion is wrong. 

You might still be a good person, but it's in spite of your religion, not because of it.

And, if you imagine I'm singling out any one group, you'd be mistaken.

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Relationship Rules- town level

Our Relationship Rules:

• You can own property only as long as you use it the way I say. You won't build anything I don't want, and you have to get my permission to build anything at all or operate a business on it. And I may not give that permission. Also, you'd better keep your landscaping up to my standards.
• You can't rent a room to strangers unless you pay me for permission.
• You aren't allowed to open a business to make money unless you get my permission and pay me.
• I'll decide how you dispose of your trash and who is allowed to haul it away for you (unless you just toss it in the street, apparently). And if you throw trash away that I want you to send to a possibly fake recycling business, instead, I may punish you.
• You'll only use the kind of bags I allow you to use when carrying your purchased goods home.
• I'll decide what kind of noise I'll allow, and how loud it can be. You have to be quiet, but I can be loud enough to burst your eardrums, if I want. I may play favorites, too. My friends will be allowed to bother you all night long with noise, as long as they are my friends.
• You'll have to trim your trees for my convenience. Even if it makes them ugly or kills them. And there will be some trees I won't allow you to have growing on your property, if I decide they are invasive. Even if the trees I plant are just as invasive and harmful. The rules apply to you, not me!
• You have to pay me for everything you do. For everything you own. It's only right because I'll claim I provide you with "services"- which I'll claim monopoly power over. You don't want to be a slacker who doesn't pay for the services I provide, do you?
• One of those services is my gang of hired guns. More than I could possibly need, but as a show of force to keep you in line. Also, to indoctrinate children into believing in "Officer Friendly".
• If your child misses "too many" days at my indoctrination camp, I may rob you or put you in a cage until you change your wicked ways.
• You can only have as many pets as I say. You can only have the kind of pets I allow. And, since I don't know anything about animals or pets, the rules I decide on may not make any sense, but you can't complain or get me to change my mind. My power to control you matters more than anything else.

Your loving companion,

City Hall

Here are the federal relationship rules, and the state relationship rules.
Government is government, to a large extent. Many of these rules are imposed and enforced by multiple governments. All evil.
There's a lot of overlap. It's probably impossible to list all the rules every governing body dreams up, and fortunately, the local government doesn't inflict all these rules on those who live here. And, the specific rules they care about enforcing seem to change with the winds. 

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If you don't speak to your cat about 'nip...

Who will? 

This is your cat.

This is your cat on catnip.

Any questions?

Yes, that's the cat I call MommyCat, who is the source of all the kittens I keep feeding, sheltering, and trying (and failing) to save. She almost always looks grouchy, but not when she's relaxing in her catnip patch.

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Kitten rescue fund

Relationship rules- State level

Our Relationship Rules:

• You will not trade with others unless you pay me for my permission first, or you'll get locked in a cage. For some things, like alcohol and guns, you'll have to beg and pay me twice. (Because I don't like you having access to them, but I'm afraid you might throw me out if I flat out deny them to you.) And getting my permission means you'll let me nose through all your papers and harass your customers anytime I feel like it. You'll thank me for it.
  
  
• You aren't allowed to hire any help unless you pay them what I say. Or I'll destroy your livelihood and lock you in a cage
  
  
• Your car belongs to me, as demonstrated by the plate I'll force you to rent and affix to it, and you can only use it as long as I say you can.
  
  
• You won't travel faster in your car than some arbitrary speed I've decided on, or I'll stop, molest, and rob you. I might decide to lock you in a cage or kill you if I get scared. The same goes for wearing a seat belt.
  
  
• You must at all times carry the identification card I'll rent you, and you will not use your vehicle without it.
  
  
• You have to insure your car to my standards, and carry proof that you've done so, through those I've made arrangements with, or I'll take it from you. With violence if you resist.
  
  
• Your house and land will remain my property forever, which you can keep using only as long as you pay a yearly ransom. Your money is also mine, for you to use only as long as you continue to hand a percentage of it to me.
  
  
• You will hand your children over to my employees to be indoctrinated into believing I am good and necessary for survival. You will, of course, have to pay an excessive fee for this "service" or I'll take your property to sell to someone more compliant. I may also take "your" children and give them to someone else to raise. You must pretend I am educating the children.
  
  
• If I don't feel like others have strict enough rules against you owning, carrying, and using weapons of defense, I'll impose my own additional rules. You'll only defend yourself from others with my permission, which you'll never quite be sure of having. And, if you do, I'll steal your weapon and lock you in a cage, only letting you out if you can prove you didn't really mean it. 
  
  
• You are never allowed to use weapons against me, no matter how abusive or threatening you believe I have become. Or I will kill you or lock you in a cage.
  
  
• Certain plants can only be grown, sold, or consumed if I say so, and if I can find a way to get you to pay me. Otherwise, I'll lock you in a cage.
  
  
• You can only play games using money as a way of keeping score if I say so. And if I'm getting a piece of the action, obviously.
  
  
• I can make up any new rule at any time. I'll decide which rules I will enforce, and when.
  
  
• If you cross some imaginary line, any or all of these rules may change because you're now in a relationship with someone else.
  
  

This is kind of a joke, and kind of not.

I still like the format of the other list better.

There's a lot of overlap between the state's relationship rules and the federal rules. Some of the above could be added to the federal rules- and probably should be.

Here are the local rules.

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"Let me see your governing permit"

Any time someone tries to govern me, I feel like asking to see their governing permit. Of course, they can't because they don't have one.

"Do you have a permit to govern? Have you paid me all the required fees? If not, you're in violation."

Their "job" isn't evidence of a permit, or that they don't need one. A v*te or a "law" doesn't confer the required permission.

If they foolishly tried to use the Constitution, I'd point out that whatever they are trying to do isn't listed there, and thus, they don't have a permit for that. If hunting licenses were in any way legitimate, and they aren't, it would be like showing me a duck stamp to justify hunting bear.

I think a governing permit would require an annual renewal fee of twice the cost, to me, of the governing, including a fee for bureaucratic inconvenience and wasted time. 

Such a permit could be revoked at any time due to the appearance of abuse or the permit holder's attitude, with no refund of permit fees. Upon revocation, all tools of governance must be surrendered to me, to be disposed of as I see fit. Guns, badges, bank accounts, vehicles, offices, records/computers, phones... all handed over immediately. If they refuse to comply, the violators are declaring themselves domestic terrorists.

In reality, this is much too charitable.

But, of course, there can never be any such thing as a permit for something no one has any right to do, and no way to require a permit for things that are a natural human right.

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You don't want to be government's pet

(My Eastern New Mexico News column for November 5, 2025)

The SNAP crisis has shown a flaw in encouraging people to become dependent on government for anything essential. If you allow yourself to become dependent on government, it will own you.

Why would you do this to yourself? To your family?

This isn't only about food, but about a job, your personal safety, health care, or anything else you expect government to provide. Being dependent on government- something you have no real control over, and which relies on a steady stream of stolen money- is a terrible idea.

Pure self-sufficiency is impossible, but it should remain a guiding principle. It's preferable to not be a burden on others, but to be able to help them when you can. You can't do this if you are too dependent on someone else for your basic needs.

When you're dependent, the best case is that you'll be treated like a pampered pet. You may be taken care of, but you're not in control of your life or your destiny. You may be fed what someone else wants you to eat, and you may get neutered. Literally and figuratively.

The worst case is that you'll be treated like a slave. You aren't in control of your own life, but are under the control of people who don't care what happens to you. They may feed you as long as it serves their purposes and they can use you, but they don't care what happens to you if those purposes change. You're not important to them. You're fooling yourself if you believe you are; if you believe they really care more about you than about their power over you.

If you become dependent on someone else, you've given them the power to hurt you. All they have to do is withhold whatever you've come to rely on and use your anguish as a bargaining chip. Congratulations, you are now a political pawn to be used by political criminals to get whatever they want.

If you decide to riot or steal because of the situation, you've played right into their hands by doing what they were hoping you'd do. They might have said they don't want you to do these things, but they are lying. Your disruptive behavior gives them the excuses they've been hoping for.

I don't want you to put yourself in this position. Do what you can to cut the chains of dependence.

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The anger correlation

I’ve often heard Leftists claim that everyone to the Right of them is only "that way" because they are full of hate and anger (or are ignorant), but in my experience, that’s just not accurate. Or, at least not exclusive to one side.

I do believe, based on a lifetime of observation, that statism of any variety makes a person visibly less happy. It may be a function of going deeper in one extreme direction; those nearer the average may be happier. The people I know who are on the Right haven't been moving further Right, and are generally happier unless someone brings up one of their bonnet bees ("immigration", for example). 

And everyone is ignorant of most of reality, even if we prefer to believe otherwise.

I know one person who is exceedingly w0ke (although she'd deny it and claim it's not about politics), and she hates everything and almost everyone. The more angry she becomes, the further Left she seems to drift, or the further Left she gets, the more angry she becomes- it's hard to tell which way it goes. 

She’s very angry at the world. She only likes movies that depict torture and gruesome murder... or Marvel superhero movies. She only likes angry, screaming "music". She has no room for other opinions on anything, and no matter what you bring up that you like, she has to tell you how much she hates it.

I've mentioned her before. I care what happens to her, but it's hard to have a conversation anymore, because she's getting more w0ke and more angry. Any conversation with her devolves into her expressing hatred toward someone or something after just a few minutes- not towards me, because I know what not to say, but it's ridiculous. I don't know if it's because she believes the world isn't going her way anymore (if it ever did), or just the stress of her job. Or if it's a result of taking herself much too seriously. She's just the most extreme example I personally know of, but there are others.

I would think she's an outlier if I weren't seeing the same thing in so many other places, from so many other people. I know another person (basically non-political) who believes anger "works" for her, and who is proud of it. Of course, there are those on the Right who obsess over the specific things that make them angry. And, I see online libertarians who wallow in anger, too. Usually, it's when they try to mix "Right" or "Left" into their libertarianism, but some genuinely seem to enjoy hating. 

What is going on here? Is there a pandemic of hate and anger? Where will this lead? It doesn't seem like it's going to turn out well.

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Government does NOT create rights

Claiming that rights are created by government and its “laws” is like claiming gravity is created by physics textbooks. That doesn't stop statists from making this claim. I've encountered two of them (example 1, example 2) making similar claims within the past few hours.

They really want government to be a god!

Then they'll respond that gravity exists whether textbooks exist or not. I think this is an attempt at the "rights are a human/mental construct" argument. Which, as you can see, doesn't really mean anything, since anything in the Universe (including gravity) can be dismissed as a mental construct that consciousness has created, if you really want to go that route. It changes nothing about how things work.

If they can believe government, or its legislation and documents, are the source of rights, then anything government does can be justified. And this seems to be their biggest desire: to justify something that is a violation of human rights but which aligns with their preferences. Both the Right and the Left play this game.

It can be anti-gun rules, "immigration", cospucking, censorship, prohibition, or any other Big Government policy. If rights come from government, government can change those rights on a whim, to empower itself to do whatever it wants to do. And the Constitution is obviously no barrier.

"Rights come from government" means the mafia makes the rules it decides apply to you, so who do you think those rules will favor? Same with government because government is a mafia.

If rights come from government, there are no rights. In which case, I'll still behave toward you as though there are, and if you try to govern me (which you have no right to do), I will destroy you, and your complaints will fade into the void.

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Government is crime, not corruption

It's not corruption; it's government working EXACTLY as designed.

Government = crime = government = crime = government = crime = ...[infinity]

Not all crime is government crime, but all (political) government is crime- real crime: archation.
And all crime is the application of the political means (like government uses) rather than the economic means, so trying to make a meaningful difference is splitting hairs.

There;s no exception for government you like or policies you agree with. If it's a good idea, there are better (ethical) ways of doing it outside of government.

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Is "The Jerk" a Christmas movie?

This guy, parked on the street in front of the library during the Clovis, NM Christmas parade, is a jerk.

My little group of four tried to stand behind his vehicle (between it and another vehicle), and he said, "We're going to have a lot of people here. You can't stand here. You have to move."

We moved. It's not worth having some ignorant jerk shoot you for being where he doesn't want you to be, but he is a jerk.

We (and he) were on the crowded street. In a public place, Not on his property. We were not going to crowd him more than anyone else. We were no threat to him. But he decided to be a jerk. I noticed later that he didn't have any more (or fewer) people there than any other spot, plus it looked like the jerk had given up trying to assert his counterfeit property rights over the side of Main Street.

And here we are.

UPDATE:

Apparently, other people encountered this jerk as well, including a 14-year-old male he shoved out of the way. I've seen several reports from others who were there. Eventually, he's going to confront or shove the wrong person, and then be shocked at the consequences he reaps.