Friday, September 25, 2020

One of Peggy Hall's pals: about half a bubble off plumb

     You remember Peggy Hall, right? She's the New Agey Saddleback College adult education instructor and YouTuber who is on an anti-mask crusade. See "Brainwashing, eh?" (7-4-20).
     Well, she's in the news again owing to a conversation she had a week ago with one of her pals, a gun-toting OC doctor:

O.C. doctor waves gun in anti-mask video, says concealed weapons are better protection 
—LA Times 
Former(?) Saddleback College adult ed
instructor Peggy Hall — anti-masker
     A local physician caused a stir last week when he appeared in a video waving a handgun and saying he’d rather people carry concealed weapons than wear face masks to guard against the coronavirus. 
     Dr. Jeff Barke, a Newport Beach family medicine physician who serves as board chairman of a charter school in the city of Orange, has been a vocal opponent of mask wearing and has appeared at rallies to reopen schools and businesses. 
     In a video interview recorded Sept. 16, Barke is featured in a virtual sit-down talk with Peggy Hall, a devout anti-masker who started the mask-opposition website the Healthy American in May
     In the 38-minute split-screen conversation — which Barke posted on his website, “Rx For Liberty,” and on YouTube, but which has since been removed — the pair discuss their views on mask wearing (and shaming), police protests and a “spiritual battle” being waged in America. 
     About 25 minutes into the interview, Barke describes treating COVID-19 patients with the controversial antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine, a treatment regimen touted by President Trump that has drawn criticism from at least one scientific study published by the medical journal Lancet. At that point, he pulls out a 9-millimeter handgun. 
Sig Sauer P365
     
“I live in Orange County, so I carry this wherever I go,” he says, identifying the weapon as a Sig Sauer P365 and touting his training as an Orange County sheriff’s reserve deputy. “This is what I carry when I’m out in public to protect others and protect the public. 
     “I’d rather see somebody carrying a concealed [weapon] than masking up,” the physician continues
     “I think that’s better for the public than anything.” 
     Institutions and officials with whom Barke has associated in the past wasted no time backing away from the physician’s statements and claims, including Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, to which Barke has claimed having admitting privileges. 
     In a Sept. 18 statement made via Twitter, Hoag Hospital officials admonished what they called “radical” views expressed by Barke regarding the coronavirus, mask wearing and use of hydroxychloroquine. The statement indicated the physician was not an employee of the Newport Beach facility and did not hold admitting privileges there. 
     Officials further indicated the facility actively promotes masking and other CDC recommendations. 
     Orange County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Michelle Steel — who appointed Barke in March 2019 to serve on the board’s Emergency Medical Care Committee responsible for reviewing ambulance services and first-aid practices — on Thursday distanced herself from the video and the physician’s mask-wearing stance
     “I believe he exercised poor judgment in showing a weapon like that in one of his videos,” Steel said in a media briefing. “I don’t agree with Dr. Barke’s comments about wearing masks. This board doesn’t agree with those comments.” 
     Steel endorsed and supported the physician in his 2006 run for the Los Alamitos Unified School Board, where he served until 2018 and has had close associations with his wife, Mari, who serves as vice president on the Orange County Board of Education. 
Board of Supes Chair
Michelle Steel: Barke booster
     
In May 2019, Steel recommended Barke for a seat on the Rossmoor Community Services District, a community council for his unincorporated Orange County neighborhood, praising him as a “bright and innovative thinker and a team player.” 
     Sgt. Dennis Breckner of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, where Barke has served as a reserve deputy since 2011, said volunteers often receive concealed weapons permits from the department when they sign up. 
     “In general, we’d issue a [concealed-carry permit] to a reserve deputy because it’s likely they could run into a situation where they’d need to exercise either some defense or some powers,” Breckner said. 
     Barke currently serves as board chair for Orange County Classical Academy, a new public charter school that barely won approval from the Orange Unified School District Board of Education and opened Aug. 20. 
     It’s unclear whether Barke carries a concealed weapon with him on the school campus. He declined Thursday to comment on the video or its repercussions. 
     Breckner said he had no problem with a concealed-carry permit holder bringing a weapon onto a school campus. 
     “My personal opinion is, if my kids are going to a private school and I’m a person who’s morally and ethically sound, and a guy with an AK-47 starts blasting away at kids, it would sure be nice for that concealed weapon guy to put one in his head,” he said. 
     A more definitive statement on the importance of face masks as protection during a pandemic came from CDC Director Robert Redfield on Sept. 16 — the same day Barke recorded his interview with Hall — who declared before a U.S. Senate panel face masks are “the most powerful public health tool we have.” 
     “We have clear scientific evidence they work, and they are our best defense,” Redfield said. “I may even go so far as to say this face mask is more guaranteed to protect me against COVID than when I take a COVID vaccine.”

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

She is the AOC of the Republican..... outlandish.

BTW did you hear that a "certain group" is planning to file a lawsuit after the recent Ginsburg event at your college? Apparently some students or employees(?) complained about--and felt offended--being invited to join the "IVC Voter Empowerment Viewing Events"featuring AOC's film--an event allegedly designed to covertly promote the Democrat agenda to support Biden--a violation of Ed Code 7054. Obviously not all students or employees(?) in your district are democrats. I guess there will be more lawsuits to come as your district allows infiltration of crazy political ideologies.


Anonymous said...

Sort of like when Michael Reagan appeared at the college last year...

Anonymous said...

I also heard about this from a colleague. Apparently a student or employee tweeted this after the event, looking for a lawyer to represent them. Then some lawyers or law firms responded. Probably “ambulance chasers”...

Anonymous said...

Great. Glenn's legacy. Our college screens award-winning documentary that has been screened at campuses across the country and the very presence of it - plus an open invitation - offends. Talk about snowflakes.

Anonymous said...

8:59 the thing is you have a new president now-this is no longer Glenn's era. If no one sued before, then whose fault was it?

With regard to Peggy Hall, our colleagues should not make rash judgments as we are exposing our district to lawsuits for slander. Comparing her with AOC is like comparing apples to oranges. Let's forget about partisanship for now. Before you judge her, please watch her video.
https://www.facebook.com/peggy.hall1/videos/10221047577051984/?d=n

Anonymous said...

Thank you for sharing the FB link of P.Hall. Setting aside partisanship as you stated, her statements do make a lot of sense especially with regard to how mainstream media and how some faculty members irresponsibly tweets or retweets information without verifying facts-regardless of whether you're a democrat or a republican. If Trump "do" tweet unverified facts, why go down to his level? Please accept my two cents.

Roy Bauer said...

Peggy Hall advocates Americans' refusing to wear masks to protect from transmission of the virus. That's dangerous and irresponsible. Defending her is stupid. Get a >fuckin' clue.
Are you accusing "faculty" of irresponsible actions? Exactly who? Exactly what?

Anonymous said...

Hi Professor. Sadly truth hurts when it doesn’t fit your narrative and you call us snowflakes. We are not K-12 students and what you are doing at IVC is so biased and insulting. We believe our colleges are losing students and will lose more not because of the “pandemic” but because we are getting tired of professors trying to brainwash students with their political agenda. When professors invite students to read their political blogs and tweets or joke about Trump during class hours no matter how discreet or covert they try to do it, please remember that you cannot undo what you say especially when you are on Zoom. Students are recording you or they are surrounded by family members and friends who can hear you. Also, please be aware that not all “Chinese” students are anti Trump just because they originally came from China. So please stop pretending that you sympathize with Chinese and Black students while pushing your political agenda. If you are all about equity, inclusion and freedom of speech, we challenge all of you to advocate for students who are non-democrat or nonpartisan. How about including Candace Owens’ photo in your “Election Events” side by side with AOC’s photo? Her book just came out less than two weeks ago and it is now a bestseller: https://www.amazon.com/Blackout-America-Second-Democrat-Plantation/dp/1982133279/ref=sr_1_2?crid=X7SZ6C3LJ6X0&dchild=1&keywords=candace+owens+blackout&qid=1601163352&sprefix=candace+owens%2Caps%2C241&sr=8-2 I (one of “them”) am a black student. How about sharing this video during your “Election Events.” This is what being black is all about and “all lives matter” to us. https://youtu.be/0cUQqPxw3hc

Roy Bauer said...

5:38, you refer to what I am "doing" at IVC that is "so biased and insulting." Are you referring to this blog? I'm sure that I have never mentioned this blog to any of my students this semester. Not once. Not in lecture, not in conference. Are you referring to expressions of political opinion? Well, again, I have expressed no political opinion in my courses this semester, though I might do so if and when we discuss something that relates to politics/society. But, unlike you, I won't just be opining; I'll do what you seem not to do, and that is to offer evidence and arguments.
Just who is "brainwashing" students at IVC and how? Be specific. Explain. Illustrate. Don't just make vague accusations. You embarrass yourself.
With regard to Chinese students: I do not recall expressing any opinion about the views of Chinese students, in class or anywhere else. I am not pretending to sympathize with anyone. I have views, though I seldom express them even on this blog. I'm much more comfortable presenting reliable information. (Show me where I've expressed a strong political view, say, in the last month on this blog.)
You seem to think that I am a partisan for the Democratic party. No, I am not a Democrat, and I have never been a Democrat, but I do recognize that we only have two genuine choices (for President) on the ballot, and I much prefer Mr. Biden to Mr. Trump, despite my low estimation of the fellow. (That was the situation back in 2016 as well when I supported Hillary Clinton.)
Oh brave "anonymous," you simply don't know what you're talking about. If you want my respect, conjoin your accusations with evidence, arguments, specifics. Vague, unsupported accusations are for the merest of knuckle-draggers.

Anonymous said...

Hi Professor. We are referring to the professor who called us snowflakes..was that you? Please don't be upset. We didn't mention you as one of the professors. Do you think that students in our situation will have the audacity to call our professors out without worrying about our grades? Thank you.

Roy Bauer said...

8:17, you grossly underestimate our professionalism. No, I did not call anyone a "snowflake," but I am the chief writer/editor of this blog and I am professor at this college. My criticisms stand. Do better.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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