#StandYourGroundConservatives! — May 25th Solidarity Blogburst Stands Up to Brett Kimberlin and the Left's Intimidation Network

#StandYourGroundConservatives is the hashtag I created some time back when Michelle Malkin put out the call for patriots to stand their ground against the Color of Change intimidation campaign targeting free-market conservatives and business organizations who've been working with them. And boy, folks are really standing up and holding firm against the left's radical program of harassment, threats, and criminal intimidation.

Here's the screencap for the lead stories at this morning's Memeorandum. I'm just logging on so I'm kinda blown away! There's been some buzz that Patterico had a big exposé in the works, and it's up now. See: "Convicted Bomber Brett Kimberlin, Neal Rauhauser, Ron Brynaert, and Their Campaign of Political Terrorism."

And Michelle has updated her big post from the other day, "Free speech blogburst: Show solidarity for targeted conservative bloggers; Update: It’s Everybody Blog About Brett Kimberlin Day; Donation fund for targets." And also at Michelle's, "Letter from an Indiana reader about Brett Kimberlin."

See also this outstanding editorial from Mark Tapscott at the Washinton Examiner, "How to kill the First Amendment" (via Memeorandum).

Plus, at The Other McCain, "The Kimberlin Files (Revise Title)." Also at Aaron Worthing's, "If You Are Coming Here for the First Time Today."

And here's this frrom Mandy Nagy, "Flashback: Progressives Embrace Convicted Terrorist."

Brooke Baldwin Didn't Take Tony Perkins 'to the Woodshed'

No, but a guy can dream, in any case.

Here's the headline at Mediaite, "CNN’s Brooke Baldwin Takes Tony Perkins to the Woodshed: ‘Why Do Homosexuals Bother You So Much?’" (via Memeorandum).

And watch the clip:

As much as I like Ms. Baldwin, her line of questioning's in fact ugly and pernicious, for it assumes that people who favor preserving traditional marriage dislike gays. Tony Perkins is a very genteel man and I know he's sincere when he says he has no problem with gay people. And in fact, he stays on point quite effectively despite Ms. Baldwin's illogical questioning.

One of the biggest lies on the left is that conservatives are "haters." Frankly, calling people "bigots" and "racists," etc., is all they have, as folks have been saying for a long time. I think it's good that Mr. Perkins stands his ground. I'm sure he's been attacked mercilessly by the left, as have others who've spoken out on the issues. What I don't like --- who I don't like --- are the radical progressives who demonize and attempt to destroy people on the basis of political differences. The Prop. 8 mobs literally targeted people who gave money to the campaign. They were outed, their businesses boycotted, they were spat on in public and physically threatened. And then progressives put up a website with Google maps of the initiatives supporters.  It was all about intimidation. That's what I don't like and that's what and who I fight against. Folks can be as homosexual as they choose, but don't come after me and call me a bigot or a "homophobe" because I believe that marriage is best defined as between one man and one woman.

S.E. Cupp on 'The View'

Via Jawa Report.

She's visibly shaken with this incident. It's no joke when I say it's hard out there. It really is.

PREVIOUSLY: "Celebrity Fantasy? Hustler's Obscene Misogynist Attack on S.E. Cupp."

BONUS: Cassandra at Villainous Company linked also: "Malum in Se."

EXTRA: From Audrey Ference at The L Magazine, "It's Not Cool to Photoshop a Dick into a Woman's Mouth, Even if You Disagree With Her Ideas."

CSU Chancellor Charles Reed to Retire

Well, I guess now's as good a time as any.

See the Los Angeles Times, "Cal State Chancellor Charles B. Reed to retire":

California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed announced Thursday that he is retiring after 14 years of leading one of the largest public university systems in the nation through a tumultuous period of cutbacks, spiraling tuition and controversy over executive pay.

Officials said that Reed, 70, had been contemplating retirement for some time but wanted to oversee the search for new presidents, which is nearly compete, at seven of the system's 23 campuses.

In a message to employees, Reed praised the university, its mission and staff.

"Out of all of the many experiences I have had, what I have enjoyed the most about my time in California is working with so many bright and talented individuals," Reed said. "Some of my favorite moments as chancellor were those I spent learning about the leading-edge research and teaching innovations of our faculty members; the incredible dedication of our staff; and the against-all-odds success stories of our students."

Among his endeavors, Reed launched a broad effort to recruit and retain Latino, African American, Native American, Asian Pacific Islander, veterans and other underserved students.

He also collaborated with the California Department of Education and the state Board of Education to create a program to assess the readiness of 11th-graders for college-level English and math.

University of California President Mark G. Yudof, with whom Reed has frequently lobbied and commiserated over declining state funding, called Reed a dynamic and innovative leader.

"The chancellor has been an effective and reliable ally in the fight to keep alive for future generations of Californians the promise of an affordable, top quality education," Yudof said in a statement.

A. Robert Linscheid, chairman of the Board of Trustees, said Reed has had to make difficult decisions under tremendous pressure.

"Charlie has persevered through the worst budget crisis in the history of California and has had to deal with deep budget cuts to the CSU," Linscheid said in a statement. "He has a deep desire to do what is best for students."

He has a thankless job, notwithstanding the kinds words from the other administrators. Frankly, the whole lot of them are overpaid, and I doubt they have a clue of what's really going on in the trenches.

That said, the striking communists all up in solidarity at the campus protests are a laugh riot.

See my entry from last year: "'Down With Capitalist Education!' — California Faculty Association Strikes at Cal State Dominguez Hills."

The President and the Democrats Have a Problem

Well, they have quite a few of them, but Michelle's first talking about White House Press Secretary Jay Carney and the gaping spaces in his response to Wendell Goler of Fox News on the president's previous support for #OWS.

It's excellent:

Government Spending Has Never Been Higher Than During the Obama Administration (Not Counting World War II)

See Doug Ross, "Double Whammy: Investors Business Daily Pimp-Slaps Rex Nutting's Pravda-Style Propaganda Piece at MarketWatch":

Yesterday, James Pethokoukis of the American Enterprise Institute delivered a major-league rhetorical beat-down to some Obama drone named Rex Nutting. MarketWatch had somehow allowed Nutting to publish one of the more preposterous press releases from David Axelrod ever seen on a business news site.

The gist of the story is this. Obama is running from his spending record, using manipulated statistics to assign his block-buster "shovel-ready" Stimulus package to... wait for it... George W. Bush. Did Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and George W. Bush pass the Stimulus package? Obamacare? Cash-for-Clunkers? Green energy scams like Solyndra, First Solar, Solar Trust, etc.? So the Obama campaign is busy churning out propaganda that disavows all the work he took credit for in 2009 and Nutting simply regurgitates it, like a good little Marxist.

No human being in world history has deficit-spent like Barack Obama. And everyone knows it, including Rex "Leni Riefenstahl" Nutting.

Today, it's Investor's Business Daily's turn to pimp-slap Nutting. One simple chart is all it takes.

Continue reading at the post.

Mother in Shock Over Teen Daughter's Plot to Murder Her

I don't know.

Perhaps the lady's daughter had gotten too hard to handle --- and the kid was obviously running with a rough crowd.

See the Los Angeles Times, "Mother shocked by daughter's alleged murder plot against her":

HESPERIA — Worried that her daughter may be on drugs, or worse, Angelica Aquirre did what any parent of a rebellious 13-year-old might do. She cracked down, set a curfew and thought about moving closer to her family in Mexico.

Now a distraught Aquirre is left wondering whether she was too harsh. Her daughter on Wednesday was in a juvenile detention facility in Apple Valley, accused of hatching a murder plot with two of her middle school friends.

The target: her mother.

"I don't know what to say. I just can't believe it," Aquirre said, weeping as she sat at a kitchen table in the family's tiny mobile home, a framed picture of Jesus on the wall.

Aquirre said she was in bed asleep early Tuesday morning when two attackers, strangers, broke into the trailer and began pummeling her.

"I thought they were robbing me," she said in Spanish. "Then I saw my daughter was missing."

Aquirre called police to report her daughter missing, but omitted the attack, according to police. By late Tuesday, detectives with the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department reached a disturbing conclusion: They believed her daughter had plotted the attack with two friends at Ranchero Middle School, a 14-year-old boy and 14-year-old girl.

"She just said that her daughter was gone, that she'd run away with two other kids," sheriff's spokeswoman Susan Rose said.

About 6:30 a.m., after her daughter had been found, the mother realized the gravity of what had happened and reported that "kids tried to kill her," Rose said.

"There were three different means of attack," she said, declining to elaborate because the incident remains under investigation. "We don't really know the motive. We just believe it was more in line with the curfew and friends."

Because all three suspects are juveniles, their names have not been released by sheriff's officials. The Times is keeping the name of the daughter confidential.

The dad's a long-haul trucker who's rarely ever home, so no doubt that has a lot to do with it. Families need a strong father in the household to set boundaries and keep things in line. This lady wasn't even a single mom, and she still almost wound up dead.

Crazy Injun Elizabeth Warren Stonewalls Questions About Supposed Cherokee Ancestry

I personally think she's lost her marbles, so forget political correctness. I'm mocking her for all it's worth.

See the report at Breitbart, "Elizabeth Warren Stonewalls Reporter on Why She Claimed Minority Status":

Appearing in Brookline, Massachusetts for a Senate campaign event, Elizabeth Warren stonewalled questions about her supposed Cherokee ancestry. She has maintained that she does have Cherokee ancestry despite all evidence to the contrary.

This was her first public appearance in a week. She was accosted by a reporter, and consistently attempted to redirect the questioner to another topic.

Plus, a new poll out from Suffolk University finds that voters don't care so much about Warren's claims to Native American ancestry --- and who can blame them, get f-ked over in this Obama depression. See Politico, "Poll: Elizabeth Warren unscathed by Cherokee flap."

But frankly, I'm just really getting a kick out of the progressives who're blowing this off as some made up conspiracy. Nothing to see here, move along. For example, from the comments at No More Mister Nice Blog:

It's not a controversy - the claim, as yet unverified to both as to whither or no she actually made the claim and the claim itself, dates back five generations. Statistically anyone whose family has lived here that long has a splash of "Indian" blood. No doubt Scott Brown, blue-blood "American Royalty" that he is, has a splash of "Indian" blood.'

And I'm having a debate with the proprietor there, Steve M., who's attempting to ridicule me as a "birther" for calling out the left on Barack Obama's Kenyan birth. As I've said repeatedly, it's not so much that Obama was born in Kenya. It's that the Obamas enthusiastically campaigned on Barack's "Kenyan birth" in the 2007 Democrat primaries. If Barack wasn't born in Kenya, and he and Michelle campaigned on the claim that he was, that makes them liars. Conservatives have been all over this, but the Democrat-Media-Complex won't touch it. See: "Obama Gets Pass on Kenya from Democrat-Media-Complex."

Obama's Economic Attacks Could Backfire

At the New York Times, "Strategy on Rival’s Career Holds Pitfalls for President":

Last week, a few dozen hedge fund and investment executives arrived at the Park Avenue home of Hamilton E. James, president of the private equity firm Blackstone. Each had paid $35,800 to spend two hours at a fund-raiser with President Obama, but the timing proved awkward: A few hours earlier, Mr. Obama’s campaign had begun a blistering attack on Mitt Romney’s career in private equity, the same business in which Mr. James has earned his many millions.

“Campaigns do what campaigns have to do,” Mr. James later told friends. But not everyone was as forgiving. “People were incredulous,” said one person who attended the dinner. “They could have waited a week.”

Debates over how much to blame — and regulate — Wall Street have stoked tensions between Democrats and the financial industry ever since Mr. Obama took office amid a financial crisis. But now Mr. Obama is leveraging his bully pulpit and advertising dollars to argue that Mr. Romney’s career as a successful financial executive exhibited values that are not those of a good president.

In doing so, he has not only drawn criticism from allies like Steven L. Rattner, the investor and former adviser on the auto industry, and Cory A. Booker, the mayor of Newark and a favorite of New York’s hedge fund world. Mr. Obama may also be testing a bond first formed by Bill Clinton, who persuaded much of his party’s elite that Democrats could be both populist and friendly to Wall Street.

“I think the consensus, such as it was, has badly eroded under the pressure of events,” said William Galston, a former Clinton adviser who is now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. “The depth, the severity, and the length of the Great Recession have exacerbated strains within the country and within the Democratic coalition.”

For some Democrats, the line Mr. Obama is trying to walk — between asserting that Mr. Romney’s career at Bain Capital does not support his claim to be a job creator, and criticizing the private equity industry as a whole, between his acknowledgments of the vital role in the economy played by big investors and the scorching attack ads aired by his campaign — is a perilous one.

At stake are not only a political and policy relationship Democrats have nurtured over decades with the financial services industry, but the millions of dollars in campaign cash that have come with it. Already this year, securities and investment firms have given Republicans 59 percent of their donations, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, the party’s highest share since the center began tabulating campaign money. Mr. Obama has raised millions of dollars on Wall Street, but far less than he did four years ago.

It is one of the most delicate topics within the party these days. Two Democrats with close ties to Wall Street, Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand of New York, declined to comment on Wednesday. Other lobbyists, donors and industry executives declined to speak for the record, saying they did not want to highlight internal divisions and debates.

There's also this big debate today on fiscal policy. Lonely Con has that: "Obama Flat Out Lied About His Spending." (Via Memeorandum.)

Rashad Richey, Georgia Democrat Party Political Director, Launches Libel Suit to Squelch Blogger Andre Walker of Georgia Politics Unfiltered

I saw this first at WSB-TV Atlanta, "Georgia Democrats' director record comes to light."

And here are Andre Walker's key posts, via Bates Line:

* "Georgia Democrats Say No Comment to Political Director Rashad Richey's Recidivism."

* "Democratic Party Political Director Assaulted Girlfriend & Kicked In Her Front Door."

* "GA Federation of Democratic Women Prez Tried Keeping Woman Abuser Out of Jail."

* "The MSM Reports on Rashad Richey the Recidivist."

And yesterday at Walker's blog, "Good Trouble vs. Bad Trouble."

But see Bryan at Legal Insurrection, "Is conservative blogger in Georgia another victim of “lawfare”?"

While the conservative blogosphere is focused on Brett Kimberlin, there is another instance of possible “lawfare” which deserves attention.

Roughly three weeks ago a lawsuit alleging defamation against a conservative blogger was filed in the Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia.

The claim was brought by Georgia Democratic Party Political Director, Rashad Richey, against conservative blogger Andre Walker of Georgia Politics Unfiltered, as well as a number of other named and unnamed Defendants.

In Richey’s complaint, a number of points were cited as evidence of libel and libel per se. Both of these categories fall under the legal umbrella of defamation. The complaint referenced, among other things, blog posts where Walker wrote that Richey had a “history of making poor personal decisions,” that he was a “criminal,” and a “jailbird.”

Walker has answered the complaint saying not only that this lawsuit is without merit, but also that it is an exercise of frivolity, actionable under the Georgia Abusive Litigation Act.

Walker further asserts that the statements at issue were made in the exercise of Walker’s “right of free speech under the Constitutions of Georgia and the United States of America…” and that truth is an absolute defense to a defamation claim.  News reports have publicized Richey’s history of run-ins with the law.

Additionally, Richey likely will be considered a “public figure” under the law, requiring him to prove actual malice.

Lots more at Instapundit.

And don't forget: "Friday, May 25th Is “Everybody Blog About Brett Kimberlin Day”."

'Just One Minute' for Murdered Israeli Olympic Athletes

From the Office of Danny Ayalon, Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister:

Hat Tip: Theo Spark.

Iran Renews Call for Israel's 'Annihilation'

An interview with Dennis Prager:

Background at the Times of Israel, "PM says Iran’s chief of staff vowed Sunday to eliminate Israel."

Crossroads GPS: 'Basketball'

Via Objective Conservative:

Will.i.am's Helicopter Spews 3/4 Ton of Carbon 'Pollutants' En Route to Oxford Climate Change Debate

The dude flew 286 miles in a private helicopter, touching down at Oxford's University Parks, and then rode an "environmentally-conscious bike" over to the Radcliffe Observatory in a lame attempt to avoid looking like a bigger hypocrite than Al Gore.

See London's Daily Mail, "Oh the irony! The Voice judge Will.i.am turns up to climate change debate... in a huge gas-guzzling helicopter."

 And at Telegraph UK, "Will.I.Am attends climate change talk in helicoper" (via Memeorandum):

Musician Will.I.Am has been criticised for arriving at a climate change debate in a private helicopter, producing the same amount of CO2 most people do in a month.

I don't see video of the helicopter landing, but the Black Eyed Peas star tweeted the flight: "Taking off in the hip.hop.copter...i loved tauton...great people..."

Celebrity Fantasy? Hustler's Obscene Misogynist Attack on S.E. Cupp

I'm shocked, and I don't shock easily. But progressives keep finding news ways to dig down deeper.

At The Blaze, "Fake Explicit Image of S.E. Cupp Reportedly Appears in Hustler (Graphic)."

And see "S.E. Cupp, Hustler and the Left's Ongoing War on Conservative Women" (via Memeornadum).

More at Ironic Surrealism, "The Left’s Obscene Misogynistic War On Conservative Women Continues… [Graphic]."

PHOTO CREDIT: Wikimedia Commons.

And keep up with developments on Twitter, with Mandy Nagy and Michelle Malkin.

Plus, at Twitchy, "Weaponized misogyny: Hustler punishes S.E. Cupp for pro-life views with explicit fake image."

Blogburst! Conservatives Stand Up Against Left's Criminal Harassment Network

This story is gaining Olympic-level velocity --- wow!

I want to keep Aaron Worthing front and center here, since his story has helped launch a movement: "Everyone Blog About Brett Kimberlin Day?"

Also, Linkmaster Smith notes that Chris Muir picks up the story at "Day by Day": "Shout Out to Muir @daybydaycartoon."

Michelle Malkin gives a huge push to the movement, "Free speech blogburst: Show solidarity for targeted conservative bloggers." And Goldfish and Clowns posts a Gold Medal roundup: "Silence Screams Louder Than Words."

Finally, check Ladd Ehlinger: "What Did Barbara Streisand Know ... And When Did She Know It?" (Via Memeorandum.)

I'm no longer attempting to link everyone. I've been doing that for the last few days and by now it's impossible to aggregate everyone. I will add Zilla of the Resistance here, "Violent Convicted Terrorist Bomber Given Million$ by Progressives Now Terrorizes Bloggers."

And keep up with developments at Instapundit.

Who Is Brett Kimberlin?

See Lee Stranahan, "Friday, May 25th Is “Everybody Blog About Brett Kimberlin Day”."

More at Aaron Worthing's (via Memeorandum).

I'll have another roundup later.

GOP Butt Plugs Have Progressives Masturbating

I'm not kidding.

See NewsBusters, "The Newest Low in GOP Mockery: Comparing Them to Anal Sex Toys":

Liberals keep finding new ways to demonstrate their civility and class. NYU graduate student Matthew Epler fashioned polling data for the Republican candidates during the 2012 primary into sex toys called butt plugs – for a telecommunications class. He decided to market his creations, which met with the winking approval of left-wing outlets.

The plugs represent the polling data of Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Mitt Romney, rotated around a 3D axis.

Epler has decided to market what he calls “Grand Old Party” butt plugs. Epler’s brainchild doesn’t sell cheap – the whole set costs $350, while individual pieces sell for $45-65.

Progressives were literally eating this stuff up.

The Frisky has more: "If the GOP Candidates Were Sex Toys, This Is What They’d Look Like."

Hunter Rogers Interview on Fox News: 'I Wanted to Laugh'

At London's Daily Mail, "'I wanted to laugh': Student whose teacher said he could be arrested for criticizing Obama speak outs."

Lou Dobbs Mystified by Apparent 'Taboo' on Barack Obama's 'Kenyan Birth'

For me, it's not whether Obama was born in Kenya. The question is why was he so excited to trumpet his purported African origins. Mark Steyn and others have destroyed progressives on this ("The Great Barry"), and of course it is a taboo to discuss it --- for fear of being smeared as a "birther." But too many people are asking questions (see WND, for example, "Arizona Flooded by Emails on Obama Eligibility"). I think Obama should be at least forced to explain it, his fascination with exploiting his Kenyan origins.

 And see Joseph Farah, "I'm with Lou Dobbs":

Fox Business anchor Lou Dobbs says he’s mystified by an apparent “taboo” Republicans and the national media have as they continue to bury any question or news story probing the eligibility of Barack Obama to be president of the United States.

I’m with Lou Dobbs.

Last Friday night, on “Lou Dobbs Tonight” on the Fox Business Network, the veteran broadcaster was having a political discussion with National Research founder Adam Geller.

“Let me ask you a question,” Dobbs said to Geller. “Why aren’t the Republicans talking about what was all over Drudge, which is from 1991 to 2007, a publisher’s document talking about him being born in Kenya? I mean, there’s like a taboo about it. How did this wall come up around that?”

He was referring to a WND story linked by the Drudge Report showing that Obama apparently never objected to being depicted as Kenya-born by his own publishers and literary agents – right up through 2007....

Dobbs has shown great courage and independence in raising this issue for years. He probably left CNN under pressure because of his persistence in raising it.

PREVIOUSLY: "Associated Press Declared Obama 'Kenyan-Born' in Report on 2004 U.S. Senate Race From Illinois - UPDATED!"

Regulators to Investigate Facebook IPO

Could be insider trading.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Facebook IPO flop drawing increased scrutiny."

Plus, at the Wall Street Journal, "Investors Pummel Facebook: Stock Falls 11% in First Full Day of Trading; Complaints of Too Many Shares":

Criticism of the Facebook Inc. FB -8.90% stock deal grew as the shares dropped below their offering price in their first full day of trading Monday, wiping $11.5 billion off the social network's market value.

The company, its investment bankers and the Nasdaq Stock Market came under fire for failing to ensure a smooth debut for one of the most anticipated deals in recent memory. Facebook shares, which began trading Friday at $38 and managed to add just 23 cents by the end of that day, fell 11% Monday to $34.03.

The selloff came partly because some investors who were allotted more Facebook shares than they expected moved to pare their holdings, said people familiar with the matter. Retail, or individual, investors usually are allocated up to 20% of the total shares allotted in an IPO, but in Facebook's case, retail allocation was around 25%, the people said.

Days before the initial public offering, Facebook, whose executives played an active role in the IPO process, according to people familiar with the matter, increased both the price and the number of shares being offered. As a result, many retail investors weren't hungry for more shares once trading began, according to the people.

A representative for Facebook declined to comment. The company raised $16 billion in the offering.

George Brady, a 66-year-old recruiter in North Carolina, bought 1,000 shares of Facebook a few minutes after it opened for trading Friday. He said by Monday morning, he sold his holding, taking a $2,770 loss.

Mr. Brady said he tried not to purchase the shares in the first place, but was unable to withdraw his order on his Charles Schwab account, calling the situation "ridiculous." Technical problems on the Nasdaq Stock Market prevented some investors from confirming their trades or trade cancellations.

"I was stuck for six hours trying to figure out whether I owned this dog or not," said Mr. Brady. He said he has been in touch with Schwab. Schwab didn't return a call requesting comment.

Facebook's offering, one of the biggest U.S. IPOs, was supposed to burnish the reputations of Morgan Stanley, MS +0.91% the deal's lead banker, as an underwriter, and Nasdaq OMX Group Inc. NDAQ -2.02% as the listing exchange of choice for hot technology companies.

"This has been a train wreck," said one hedge fund manager, whose fund also decided to sell some of its shares Monday. He said his fund was allotted 500,000 more Facebook shares than he expected.

BONUS: From Henry Blodgett, at Business Insider, "EXCLUSIVE: Here's The Inside Story of What Happened on the Facebook IPO" (via Techmeme).

Animal Planet 'Monster Week'

My young son turned on "Animal Planet" last night and we've been hooked.

Here's the homepage: "MONSTER WEEK: Episode Guide."

Black Religious Leaders Slam NAACP Homosexual Agenda: Folks Weep at 'Horrors of this Holocaust'

At Charisma News, "Black Leaders Decry NAACP Endorsement of Homosexual Agenda" (via Memeorandum):

Alveda C. King is among the growing number of African-American leaders speaking out about President Obama’s endorsement of same-sex marriage.

Specifically, the niece of Martin Luther King Jr. is joining black spiritual leaders in decrying the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP’s, move to give a nod to gay marriage in the United States.

The NAACP released a resolution on May 19 supporting marriage equality. At a meeting of the 103-year old civil rights group’s board of directors, the organization voted to support marriage equality as a continuation of its historic commitment to equal protection under the law.

In recent years the NAACP has taken public positions against state and federal efforts to ban the rights and privileges for LGBT citizens, including strong opposition to Proposition 8 in California, the Defense of Marriage Act and, most recently, North Carolina’s Amendment 1, which changed the state constitution’s to prohibit same sex marriage.

“Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law. The NAACP’s support for marriage equality is deeply rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and equal protection of all people,” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, president and CEO of the NAACP.

“Neither my great-grandfather, an NAACP founder, my grandfather Dr. Martin Luther King Sr., an NAACP leader, my father Rev. A. D. Williams King, nor my uncle Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. embraced the homosexual agenda that the current NAACP is attempting to label as a civil rights agenda,” says King, founder of King for America and Pastoral Associate for Priests for Life.

“In the 21st century, the anti-traditional marriage community is in league with the anti-life community, and together with the NAACP and other sympathizers, they are seeking a world where homosexual marriage and abortion will supposedly set the captives free.”

Exactly.

And keep reading for that "horrors of this holocaust" quote.

New NBC/Wall Street Journal Poll: Obama, Romney Locked in Tight Race for the Presidency

At the Wall Street Journal, "Obama, Romney Toe to Toe: Poll Finds Economy Hurts President, but Rival Has Concerns" (via Google):

Voters remain deeply pessimistic about the nation's future and uncertain of President Barack Obama's ability to set the economy on the right course, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll that found Mr. Obama locked in a tight race with Mitt Romney.

The president tops the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, 47% to 43%, when Americans are asked their choice today for president, a lead little changed from last month and within the poll's margin of error.

But the poll found much to stir concern within the burgeoning Obama re-election campaign. Despite signs of economic recovery, nearly half of Americans said the country is at the start of a long-term decline. Americans by a sizable plurality said Mr. Obama's approach has worsened the nation's budget deficit and health-care problems, and increased its partisan divide.

After emerging last month as the all-but-certain Republican nominee, Mr. Romney is consolidating support among conservatives, the poll found, and much of the public is open to the idea that his business background would help him improve the economy.

His supporters express more enthusiasm about the election than do Mr. Obama's.

But the former Massachusetts governor faces his own challenges. He has yet to engender deep confidence in his economic policies, the core of his campaign pitch. Three-quarters of respondents said they were only somewhat confident or not confident at all that Mr. Romney had the right ideas to improve the economy. And nearly three in 10 said electing a Mormon president would cause them or their neighbors concern, including one-quarter of independents.

In all, the poll of 1,000 Americans found abundant signs of a hardening of opinion toward both Mr. Obama and his GOP rival as both camps and the new breed of independent "super" political action committees prepare to spend upward of $2 billion competing for a dwindling slice of undecided voters in a handful of states.

"Never before will so much money be spent by so many to persuade so few," said Democratic pollster Peter Hart, who directed the poll along with Republican Bill McInturff.

The poll found a striking symmetry in the pessimism Americans express about whether either candidate can nudge the country in the right direction.

Asked to weigh their faith in the men, around a third of respondents expressed confidence that Mr. Obama would bring the right kind of change, with a nearly equal share saying the same of Mr. Romney. But large majorities said the two would bring either no change or the wrong kind of change, reflecting a general lack of optimism about the election's outcome.

Based on the poll and other data, Mr. Hart put Mr. Obama's chances of re-election in November at "no better than 50/50."

Incumbents win, Mr. Hart said, "when voters are buoyant with the economic times." At this point, he said, Mr. Obama "is in the Twilight Zone—neither safe nor gone," while signs that the public sees an economic upturn "have yet to appear."

See also First Read, "NBC/WSJ poll: Obama, Romney locked in tight contest." (Via Memeorandum.)

And Allahpundit notes this about the poll's sample:

Last month’s WSJ poll had it 43D/39R/14I if you included leaners. The new poll: 44D/36R/16I. The spread between Democrats and Republicans has increased by four points since April — and yet O’s lead over Romney has shrunk by two points. Hmmmm.

Actually, most polls have oversampled Democrats and still found Obama to be struggling, especially on the economy. Indeed, WSJ's sweet spot is the electorate's favorable views of Romney's Bain experience, especially for improving the economy and handling the nation's debt.

That said, the bottom line for me is that as much as any election in recent history, the campaigns are going to matter enormously --- the messaging and the mobilization especially. And on both those counts the Democrats are not holding up too well.

Note William Jacobson's post from this morning, "For the first time in my adult life I believe Romney might beat Obama":

Why now?

Because Team Obama is proving itself to be too smart by half, and too incompetent by three-quarters.

And on mobilization, see Gerald Seib, "As in 2004, energizing the base a key to victory."

RELATED: The background on that video at top, from Politico, "Exclusive: RNC slams Obama campaign for Cory Booker 'cover-up'."

Brett Kimberlin Death Threats Against Robert Stacy McCain?

I don't know, actually.

Robert Stacy McCain wrote yesterday that the police had been notified about the suspicious behavior of Brett Kimberlin, so my first thought was that Robert and his family were in physical danger. See: "Never Doubt That God Answers Prayer."

Kimberlin is a convicted terrorist bomber, so you can't be too careful under the circumstances. As of yesterday, Robert has been blogging from an undisclosed location, and he has updated this morning: "Brett Kimberlin Saga Takes a Bizarre Turn, Forcing Me to Leave Maryland""

My own encounter with Kimberlin’s attempted intimidation appears typical of his modus operandi, which students of psychology recognize as the habitual behavior of a deviant sociopath: Attempting to distract from his own malevolent actions by accusing his targeted enemies of doing to him what he is doing to them – and to many others. Several sources to whom I have spoken in recent days, who for obvious reasons wish to remain anonymous, have expressed suspicion that Kimberlin is doing this not only to hide his criminal past, but also in a misguided attempt to conceal his current malicious (and perhaps felonious) activities.

These are not accusations I make; rather, these are crucial elements of a newsworthy story that I am attempting to report. Kimberlin seems to be determined to prevent me – or anyone else – from reporting this story. In order to continue reporting it, without jeopardizing the safety of my family and other innocent people, I have been compelled to leave Maryland. Many people have responded to my appeal for prayer and financial assistance in this difficult crisis, but it is important to emphasize that this story is not about me.

Continue reading at the link. And be sure to hit Robert's tip jar --- I just did.

My previous entries are here: "Criminal Attacks on Conservative Bloggers: Update on Brett Kimberlin Intimidation Network," and "Convicted Terrorist Brett Kimberlin and the Left's Political (and Criminal) Intimidation Network."

And don't forget Aaron Worthing!

Aaron has been the primary target of these latest Kimberlin attacks, and he has an update: "“The More You Tighten Your Grip”: Brett Kimberlin’s Latest Petition For a Peace Order."

And Patterico weighs in on the latest developments:

Kimberlin and his crew have relentlessly harassed Aaron, me, and others over the course of the last several months. It is not harassment for us to tell the world what happened to us. It could happen to any of you. His supporters have outed or threatened to out commenters to this very site. They talk about wives, children, and fathers of bloggers and commenters. They ceaselessly abuse everyone they can who speaks the truth about Kimberlin’s past.

Ultimately, this is a free speech issue. Kimberlin and his group of thugs have done their level best to attack everyone in the blogosphere who wrote anything negative about him. Now the blogosphere is starting to wake up, and there are so many critics he can’t possibly intimidate them all.

But you can see he’s still trying.

So with that, here's a roundup of others blogging:

* An Ex-Con's Views, "We Are All Victims of Brett Kimberlin."

* Blazing Cat Fur, "Brett Kimberlin - Lunatic."

* Bob Belvedere, "ALERT: Stacy McCain And Family Forced To Flee Threats."

* Common American Journal, "Robert Stacy McCain and his family flee for safety. Credible threats from leftist terrorist and convicted felon Brett Kimberlin."

* Darleen Click, "RS McCain – undisclosed location."

* Film Ladd, "Politics Unusual: Stacy McCain Flees Home; Social Media Gate Breaks All the Rules."

* Gator Doug, "Funny thing about God and prayers."

* Glenn Reynolds, "BRETT KIMBERLIN UPDATE..."

* Israel Matzav, "OMG: Blogger threatened by terrorist."

* Kathy Shaidle, "Gee, this sounds SO familiar… if only I could put my finger on it…."

* Lady Liberty, "Babs Streisand and “Activist Funding”."

* Lonely Conservative, "Stacy McCain and Family Leave Town After Threats from Domestic Terrorist."

* Small Dead Animals, "The Tolerant Left."

* Sundries Shack, "Clearing the Browser Tabs – Go Help a Brother Out Who Needs Your Back-Up."

* That Mr. G. Guy, "#DangerousDoofus #BrettKimberlin Threatens Another Conservative Blogger."

* Truth Before Dishonor, "Brad Friedman and Speedway Bomber Brett Kimberlin: Practitioners of the Stalking and Thuggery They Claim to Decry."

*****

I think that's it for now.

My previous link roundup is here.

Add your latest link in the comments if you're blogging, and I'll update.

Obama Defends Attacks on Romney's Record at Bain

See the New York Times, "Facing Criticism, Obama Defends Ads Attacking Romney’s Record at Bain Capital" (via Memeorandum).

IMAGE CREDIT: The People's Cube.

Behind Obama's Bain-Bashing

FWIW, from Beth Reinhard at National Journal, "Why Obama Is Doubling Down on Bain Capital Attacks Against Romney":

Why is President Obama’s reelection campaign doubling down on its attacks on Mitt Romney’s business record at Bain Capital, despite blowback from some supporters? Because they might work.

While many voters recall an image of "hope" and "change" from Obama’s successful 2008 campaign, he ran as many negative ads as GOP Sen. John McCain of Arizona—and sometimes more. The message in those 2008 ads wasn’t so different from the anti-Romney theme today: The Republican nominee favors the wealthy at the expense of the struggling middle class. Voters bought it.

Lessons from two other campaigns also illuminate Obama’s strategy in going after Romney’s record at Bain Capital. In President Bush’s 2004 reelection campaign, the military record and foreign-policy experience of Democratic nominee Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts was nullified with strident criticism of his Vietnam service and changing position on the war in Iraq. Similarly, Obama is trying to take one of Romney’s greatest assets in an economy-focused campaign—his business success—and turn it into a liability.

The other race shaping the 2012 campaign is Romney’s defeat at the hands of Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy in 1994. The Indiana paper company that was the subject of the anti-Romney attack on Monday, Ampad, marked a turning point in that year's Massachusetts Senate race. After Bain bought the company in 1992 and used it to acquire a paper factory, workers were laid off and then rehired at lower wages and benefits. The company ultimately went bankrupt, yet Bain made millions. Ads about the saga helped Kennedy leap over Romney in the polls.

“Obama is absolutely doing the right thing," said longtime Democratic strategist Bob Shrum, who helped run Kennedy’s campaign. “This is a very powerful issue. I saw its power in 1994. Romney was unprepared to deal with it well then, and he’s unprepared to deal with it well now."

More at that top link.

Actually, I think Reinhard's a little too in the tank for O.

But if these scurrilous attacks deflect attention from the Democrat's failed record on the economy, perhaps she's got a point.

Either way, see my earlier report, "'Big Bain Backfire'."

Associated Press Declared Obama 'Kenyan-Born' in Report on 2004 U.S. Senate Race From Illinois - UPDATED!

UPDATE: Yid With Lid sends this along: "BREAKING- 2004 AP "Keynan-Born Obama" Phrase NOT From Associated Press."

Associated Press didn't not run the headline, just the main body of the story that ran in the Sunday Standard.

Either way, the fact remains the Obamas were only too happy to push the "Kenyan-born" meme. There are so many angles of duplicity now it's ridiculous.

**********

I just personally find this amazing, utterly amazing.

Recall that in 2007 the Obamas were campaigning for the Democrat nomination and touting Barack's Kenyan ancestry. So here's this news out that in 2004 AP was pumping up Obama as "Kenyan-born" in its reporting on the U.S. Senate race for Illinois. Maggie's Notebook has the report: "2004 Headline: Kenyan-born Obama Set for US Senate."

And see "INS Doc Found: U.S. Certificate Issued to One East African-Born Child of U.S. Citizen in 1961!" (via Radio Patriot).

This is frankly WND territory, for example, "Lou Dobbs Mystified by Obama-Birth 'Taboo'." But as reported widely among conservatives, it's clear that the Obamas were eager to tout Barack's Kenyan heritage right up to the 2008 presidential race. But as the story broke last week, the Democrat-Media-Complex was quick to attack the new "birther" controversy, and the explanation quickly became that a mistake was made with the initial press release reported by Breitbart the other day. Thus, the Daily Caller asks: "If Obama’s false claim of Kenyan birth was just a fact-checking error, why did it take over 15 years to fact-check it?"

But as I reported earlier, there's been too many rookie mistakes made by those on the professional left. It's going to add up and some of the stories will be too big even for the subdued Mitt Romney to avoid. We're reaching a breaking point for the Democrats. I'm more confident than ever that Barack's going to be blown out of the water in November.

See also: "Obama's Lit Agency Used 'Born in Kenya' Bio Until 2007."

IMAGE CREDIT: The Looking Spoon, "Obama's World Famous Kenyan Spaghetti Maker."

Commemorating 100 Years of Marine Corps Aviation

Via Theo Spark:

'Big Bain Backfire'

The Obama-Democrats are taking hits left and right.

Honestly, if things continue to go the way they're going, they'll be hit with the biggest presidential blowout since 1964. President Johnson was elected in his own right that year with 61.1 percent of the popular vote and the Democrats controlled the 89th Congress, starting in 1965, with a 295 to 140 majority in the House and a 65 to 35 seat majority in the Senate. Sure, that sounds miraculous, but with this economy and the circular firing squad of the Democrat Party's professional left, 2012 could at least beat the 1980 election, when Republican Ronald Reagan took 50.7 percent of the popular vote compared to 41 percent for incumbent Jimmy Carter (third party candidate John Anderson ran as an independent, taking 6.6 percent of the vote). Reagan in 1980 also took the Electoral College 489 to Carter's 49 .

It's still early, but if mainstream Democrat-Media-Complex outlets like ABC News start turning on the administration, things can't be looking good. See, "Obama Campaign Does Damage Control After Dems Question Anti-Bain Strategy" (via Memeorandum):

Chief Obama strategist David Axelrod today publicly rebuked Booker, a popular and high-profile surrogate for the campaign, saying he was “just wrong”....

Republicans have been gleeful with the apparent divide among Democrats over the portrayal of Romney’s Bain days.  The Romney campaign produced a web video – “Big Bain Backfire” – highlighting the comments, while the Republican National Committee purchased ads on Twitter to play up the Booker flap.

Here's the Romney ad:

More at Memeorandum.

Whoa! Bar Refaeli Tops Maxim's 2012 Hot 100!

Maxim did quite a number with this project.

Bar Refaeli is here.

But see it all: "2012 Hot 100."

And at the Los Angeles Times, "Bar Refaeli tops Maxim hot list; her secrets to sexiness helped."

Trayvon Martin Fight Club Video

Blazing Cat Fur reports, "Trayvon at the fight club..."

Blazing has the video on LiveLeak.

YouTube pulled the clip, but here's another. Trayvon Martin is said to be wearing the striped shirt and white cap:


And check the report at The Last Refuge: "Trayvon’s Fight Club – The Inconvenient Truth."

Plus, from Doctor Zero, at Human Events, "The Zimmerman case disintegrates: Beating people up because they looked at you funny is wrong":

The release of evidence in George Zimmerman’s murder trial quickly made a mockery of his second-degree murder charges, and threw a further layer of shame upon media and political opportunists who misrepresented a tragic, but fairly straightforward, case of lethal force employed in self-defense.

It is remarkable to take stock of this evidence and realize that it supports every single aspect of Zimmerman’s statement to the police.  His injuries are consistent with his account of physical assault by Trayvon Martin.  Martin’s gunshot wound occurred at the very short range described by Zimmerman, demolishing fantasies about a racist mall-cop wannabe stalking and murdering an innocent black kid for no reason...

Continue reading.

Suicide Bomber Kills Scores at Yemen Military Parade — On Cue, Los Angeles Times Warns Against Mission Creep in Arabian Peninsula

Well, it was almost 100, so I'm putting the number of killed in the scores. The Los Angeles Times says dozens, but who's counting?

See: "Suicide bomber kills dozens of soldiers in Yemen."

And the Times goes after the Obama administration for escalating the terror war in Yemen? I must be dreaming. From the editors, "Mission creep in Yemen":

As the United States finally begins to wind down its military presence in Afghanistan, is the Obama administration poised to replicate that intervention in Yemen? The administration insists it has no such plans, but it has been evident for months that it regards the Yemen-based group Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula as the most dangerous incubator of terrorist plots directed at America. And it is acting on that conviction.

This week The Times reported that U.S. special operations troops, which were withdrawn from Yemen last year amid political turmoil in that country, have returned and are providing technical assistance to Yemeni forces. Meanwhile, at least 18 U.S. military and drone strikes have been reported against Islamist targets in Yemen since early March, a significant upsurge, and the CIA is active there....

Given the experience of the U.S. in Afghanistan, where a mission to dislodge Al Qaeda and the Taliban morphed into a decade-long exercise in counterinsurgency and nation-building, it is hardly alarmist to worry that similar mission creep might occur in Yemen, especially as the U.S. becomes more invested in the Hadi government. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula isn't the only threat to the new regime. Islamic militants have established an "emirate" in southern Yemen.

No one should belittle the danger posed by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. There is clearly a need for intelligence operations such as the one that thwarted a conspiracy to construct a potentially undetectable bomb in the month before the anniversary of Osama bin Laden's death. What President Obama — or Mitt Romney, if he is elected in November — must avoid is the sort of expansive intervention that has enmeshed this country in Afghanistan.

Right.

No one should belittle the danger, but let's not be too hasty to fight the terrorists on their home ground!

You'd think the country elected John McCain, or something. Sheesh.

Bain Capitalism 101

At the Wall Street Journal, "How does a rapacious company get repeat business?":

Watching Obama campaign ads or MSNBC, one could easily come to the conclusion that Bain Capital makes money by destroying the companies it owns. So for voters unsure about the business that Mitt Romney founded but still reluctant to trust the financial analysis offered by community organizers, some perspective might be helpful.

The basic Obama-liberal critique goes like this: Bain buys a company, loads it with debt and then sucks out cash before foisting the wounded business upon an unsuspecting buyer or a bankruptcy court. In the risk-taking world of private equity such a scenario can certainly happen, and it's true that Bain likes management fees and dividends as much as the next partnership.

But then how to explain the history of Bain Capital? Mr. Romney started the business in 1984. The company has since bought and sold many businesses and executed thousands of financing transactions....

Learning about Bain successes like Staples or Gartner or Steel Dynamics confirms the logical conclusion that Bain had to be creating value along the way—for investors, for lenders, and that means for workers too.

This is going to be a topic to watch. The left's hypocrisy on the economy is astounding, but the Democrat-Media-Complex will give the administration a pass --- well, excluding some genuinely decent reporters like Ashleigh Banfield who slammed Obama shill Ben LaBolt for that advertising hit piece posted above. That said, Romney's going to need to make the case for the virtues of the free market and the power of private equity to vitalize and invigorate the business sector. I was watching Kim Strassel on yesterday's Journal Editorial Report and that was her argument. The Democrat attacks on the wealthy --- like the Ricketts group --- are purely political and frankly demonic. But to counter this the Romney campaign has to be quick on the air with the corrective messaging. They have to remember that they're running against the media too.

Joshua Micah Marshall: Talking Points Memo 'Is Not a Website'

This is an interesting report, from Nieman Journalism Lab, "When is a website not a website? For Talking Points Memo, the turning point was in 2012":

As of late March, mobile — smartphones and tablets — accounted for 19 percent of TPM traffic. By early May, when I sat down with Marshall in his New York office, mobile traffic to TPM had passed the 20 percent mark.

“I don’t have much doubt that that number will be 30 or 40 percent in the next year or two,” Marshall said. “My only question is at what point tablets overtake smartphones.”

So what does this realization mean, from a practical standpoint, for TPM?

“More than anything else we had to shift our own thinking, because that was constraining with how you do things on mobile,” Marshall said. “Realizing that TPM is not a website — it’s a bundle of knowledge and expertise and ongoing coverage that exists inherently on no particular platform, and we are consitently trying to find ways to make it adaptable on as many platforms as possible.”

But the rethinking process also means rejecting the idea that TPM content can be one-size-fits-all, which deputy publisher Callie Schweitzer calls “a game-changer for all publishers.”

“We’re giving a lot of thought to three different kinds of consumption: Active consumption being at the desktop, on-the-go consumption being on your mobile phone, and passive consumption being in your bed, on your tablet, something like that,” Schweitzer said. “For me, it’s literally about the physical way you’re doing it. You can certainly actively consume at all of those different places but when you’re reclining, looking at a beautiful visual on an iPad, it’s very different than being on a mobile phone or sitting at a desktop.”

I've noticed some folks have been reading American Power on their mobile devices. If you haven't yet, but are thinking about it, here's the mobile URL: http://americanpowerblog.blogspot.com/?m=1. Looking at that link, most of the photos and embedded videos are showing up just fine. So bookmark the blog on your devices and you'll be good to go.

P.S. While I don't agree politically with Josh Marshall, I think they're doing a pretty good job over there --- and you may have noticed that I use their videos a lot.

Gay Marriage Bigots Attack 16-Year Old North Carolina Conservative Madeleine McAulay

This super intelligent young lady made a great YouTube vlog and the progressive bigots came after her like the devil himself.

See: "re: Vulgar Comments from “Controversies of Gay Marriage”."

She's a good young lady!

And see Fox News Charlotte: "Political Prodigy."

How Much Does the Average American Know About Obama's Autobiography?

This is a great clip.

These are man and woman interviews in the street, and some of these folks seem predisposed towards liking Obama. I love the dude who says, "Whoa. That's deep."

And I suspect Reaganite will enjoy this segment.

Laura Ingraham Slams Left's Double Standards on New York Times Ricketts-Romney Hit Piece

This is really good. Ingraham's on fire.

Via NewsBusters, "Laura Ingraham Schools George Stephanopoulos: 'Did Obama Give That Money Back to Bill Maher?'"

And more here, "George Will and Laura Ingraham Slam NYT for Rev. Wright Romney Super PAC Piece."

Jessica Rafalowski Swimsuit Hottie!

I mentioned Jessica Rafalowski the other day.

She's on Twitter as well.

NewsBusted: Elizabeth Warren Under Fire for False Claims of Native American Status

Via NewsBusters:

Aesha Mohammadzai Rebuilding Her Life in America After Being Horribly Disfigured in Afghanistan

CNN reports, "Saving Aesha":

Since arriving in America less than two years ago, she’s lived in three cities. She’s been showcased like a star and protected like a fragile child. She’s been passed around by well-meaning strangers, embraced by a team of women. And she’s gone after a family of her own.

Back and forth she goes, flying forward, reaching skyward.

How the Mormon Church Shaped Mitt Romney

Here's the big biography piece at the New York Times yesterday, "Romney’s Faith, Silent but Deep."

Ann Althouse calls this fascinating: "'Mitt and Ann Romney’s marriage is strong because they believe they will live together in an eternal afterlife...'"

But Joel Pollak isn't fascinated at all, at Big Journalism, "NY Times Ignored Obama's Wright, Focuses on Romney's Mormon Faith."

And pro-Romney blogger Jennifer Rubin goes after the Times, "The Mormon obsession":

The piece is a troubling, and in many cases a bizarre, attempt to picture Romney as “The Mormon candidate,” a standard that would repel most Americans if applied to another faith.

Word.

Protesters Flood Streets of Chicago Chanting 'Eat the Rich, Smash the State'

Via Glenn Reynolds:

#OCCUPYSELFPARODY: “Eat The Rich And Smash The State.” Remember, these are the folks for whom Elizabeth Warren was claiming intellectual parentage.

[VIDEO PULLED]

Bee Gees' Robin Gibb Dies at 62

An obituary at the New York Times, "Robin Gibb, a Bee Gee With a Taciturn Manner, Dies at 62":

Robin Gibb, one of the three singing brothers of the Bee Gees, the long-running Anglo-Australian pop group whose chirping falsettos and hook-laden disco hits like “Jive Talkin’ ” and “You Should Be Dancing” shot them to worldwide fame in the 1970s, died on Sunday in London. He was 62 and lived in Thame, Oxfordshire, England.

The cause was complications of cancer and intestinal surgery, his family said in a statement.

Mr. Gibb had been hospitalized for intestinal problems several times in the last two years. Cancer had spread from his colon to his liver, and in the weeks before his death he contracted pneumonia and for a while was in a coma.

Mr. Gibb was the second Bee Gee and third Gibb brother to die. His fraternal twin and fellow Bee Gee, Maurice Gibb, died of complications of a twisted intestine in 2003 at 53. The youngest brother, Andy, who had a successful solo career, was 30 when he died of heart failure, in 1988.

With brilliant smiles, polished funk and adenoidal close harmonies, the Bee Gees — Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb — were disco’s ambassadors to Middle America in the mid to late 1970s, embodying the peacocked look of the time in their open-chested leisure suits and gold medallions.

They sold well over 100 million albums and had six consecutive No. 1 singles from 1977 to 1979. They were also inextricably tied to the disco era’s defining movie, “Saturday Night Fever,” a showcase for their music that included the hit “Stayin’ Alive,” its propulsive beat in step with the strut of the film’s star, John Travolta.

But the group, whose first record came out in 1963, had a history that preceded its disco hits, starting with upbeat ditties inspired by the Everly Brothers and the Beatles, then with lachrymose ballads like “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart.”

Barry, the oldest brother, was the dominant Bee Gee for most of the group’s existence. But the lead singer for many of the early hits was Robin, whose breaking voice, gaunt frame and gloomy eyes were well suited to convey adolescent fragility. “I Started a Joke” (with the second line, “Which started the whole world crying”), “I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You,” “Massachusetts” and other heavy-hearted songs dripping with strings brought the Bee Gees to the top of the charts as one of the British Invasion’s most musically conservative groups.

“While other guys, like Ray Davies of the Kinks, were writing about social problems, we were writing about emotions,” Robin Gibb told a British newspaper last year. “They were something boys didn’t write about then because it was seen as a bit soft. But people love songs that melt your heart.”

More at the link.

I was in high school when the Bee Gees were tops in the pops. I think my older sister was more into them than I was, but you couldn't not like the Bee Gees. They were so crucial a cultural force.

William Jacobson has more, "Robin Gibb, R.I.P.":

This one hurts. I grew up knowing so many of the Bee Gees early songs by heart.

Cathy McMorris Rodgers Fights Left's War on Women, Is Rising Force in Politics

At Newsmax, "'War on Women' Catapults McMorris Rodgers into Spotlight."

The report mentions a recent Daily Kos hit piece suggesting that McMorris Rodgers needs to be "taken out." See, "Matthews Rattles Lying Mouthpiece McMorris Rodgers":

I find Congresswoman McMorris Rodgers particularly annoying. I think she's just about the biggest sellout to women there is. I hope she gets more effective challanges as time goes on. Would love to see some dirt dug up that takes her out of the picture. I really hate this.

"Particularly annoying" because she's obviously particularly effective in debunking the left's lies. So she's being targeted. No surprise. The left can't win on the merits so the mount the politics of personal destruction and intimidation.

Kudos to McMorris Rodgers for standing her ground.

L.A. Metro Bus Driver Fatally Shot by Passenger in West Hollywood

This is an awful story.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Metro bus driver shot, killed in West Hollywood."

And see the video report from KABC 7 Los Angeles, "Metro bus driver shot dead by passenger in West Hollywood."

That's So Gay-ven!

Hey, she says she's happy living her life in freedom:

'I'm living my PERSONAL life the way I'm happiest," the 26-year-old tweeted to her 350,000 followers.

See London's Daily Mail, "Setting the record straight: Raven-Symoné takes to her Twitter to address gay rumours."

Angels' Mike Scioscia Could Be On the Way Out at Anaheim

He's had a long run.

See the reports, at Chicago Tribune, "Scioscia no longer all powerful with Angels."

And at the Los Angeles Times, "Is this the dawning of the end of the Age of Mike Scioscia?":

No one anticipated the Angels would coax the superstar first baseman away from the only team he had ever known, from the fans that had adored him. Yet the Angels swooped in, signed him to the richest contract in franchise history and set sail for October.

Then the season started. Soon after, so did the defeats, the dissension, and the dismissals.

Albert Pujols, meet Mo Vaughn.

This could be 1999 all over again. By the time the debacle of Vaughn's debut season was over, the players had staged a mutiny and the ownership had cleaned house.

The Angels hired Mike Scioscia the next year, the start of the most successful run in franchise history. However, after Tuesday's firing of his close friend and hitting coach Mickey Hatcher, you wonder if that run might be coming to an end.

Angels owner Arte Moreno cleaned house in the front office last winter. Scioscia remained, but the big chill between him and new General Manager Jerry Dipoto might make coexistence a tenuous proposition.

When Scioscia met with the media before Wednesday's game, he held a red fungo bat so tightly he almost squeezed it into sawdust. He spoke tersely, letting everyone know that firing Hatcher was not his idea.

"We respect the job the general manager has to do," Scioscia said.

I've been expecting this for a while. Like I said, it's been a long run. And there's been no World Series championship since 2002. That kind of drought is embarrassing, considering how much Moreno's invested in this team. I doubt his patience lasts much longer.

PHOTO CREDIT: Wikimedia Commons.

Ethics Condemnation Follows Elizabeth Warren's 'Pow Wow Chow' Cookbook Revelations

This should be a huge story, but the left's corrupt Democrat-Media-Complex refuses to report factually and honestly.

See the report from Michael Patrick Leahy, at Big Government, "Will Harvard Law School Condemn Elizabeth Warren for Pow Wow Chow Plagiarism?"

Following the links takes us to Jack Marshall's essay, at Ethics Alarms, "The Significance of “Pow Wow Chow”."

There is mostly bad ethics news for Elizabeth Warren fans from the re-discovery of the 1984 cookbook she contributed to called “Pow Wow Chow,” but some good news too. The good news is that the 28 year-old cook book, edited by her cousin and listing the current Harvard professor and Democratic Senate contender as a contributor named “Elizabeth Warren, Cherokee,” shows that Warren didn’t just concoct her claims of Cherokee heritage to achieve minority status to help her get faculty jobs through university diversity hiring policies. Oh, she intentionally employed her dubious heritage credentials to get that edge, no doubt about it. But the cookbook shows that though she was only 1/32 Native American by the most generous calculations and was assuming that lineage on the basis of hearsay alone, Elizabeth Warren really had convinced herself that she is a Cherokee, and probably believes it to this day. Hence her obsession with being able to call herself a Native American appears less opportunistic and more, well, nuts....

In fact, it looks like a severe case of Sixties Liberal Delusion Syndrome, also known as Billy Jack Disease. Warren talks and writes like a stereotype campus liberal, and like her Sixties campus forbears, she must have figured out in early adulthood that kinship with oppressed minorities is the antidote to white guilt and the ticket to a perpetual state of self-righteousness and victimization. If my diagnosis is correct,  Warren’s lockstep liberal mindset seized upon her family lore about American Indian heritage, and installed it as a cornerstone of her self-image as a foe of the capitalist, white-dominated American power structure. I am sorry I doubted her; I now think it is likely that she has long thought of herself as a true Cherokee. True, I think that is ridiculous; I think extending that attenuated minority identification into a resume enhancement, allowing her to displace more deserving candidates, is indefensible; and I think her obsession calls her judgement and stability into question. But at least she wasn’t lying. About that.

Continue reading.

It appears the Warren plagiarized her cookbook recipes. And in so doing she's in violation of Harvard's own institutional policies on academic honesty: "Elizabeth Warren Violated Harvard's Rules on Plagiarism."

By now though, Harvard University has become one of the most academically corrupt institutions in American higher education --- the case of Stephen Walt alone testifies to that. So with no expectation that Harvard will take any action against Warren --- a call for resignation is at least warranted --- it'll be up to the patriots in conservative new media to continue hammering away on this case, putting pressure on the old-media outlets to finally report fully and accurately on this story.

More at Breitbart.

IMAGE CREDIT: Sultan Knish, "All Things to All People."

Chicago Newlywed Beth Alberts Rebukes Anti-Capitalist Protesters at NATO Summit: 'Let's Get Out of Here!'

Reports indicate she was "horrified" at the sight of the anti-capitalist pigs.

See London's Daily Mail, "Stop Occupying my wedding! Moment furious bride was caught up in anti-Nato protests as city goes into lock down for march today."

I'll Have Another Wins 137th Preakness Stakes

I'd swear this is the perfect horse race. I'll Have Another just hangs back about 3 or 4 lengths and pours it on around the final stretch for photo finish.

Man, I love horse racing.

See the New York Times, "Another Thriller, and More Believers."

And from Bill Dwyre, at the Los Angeles Times, "I'll Have Another has two legs up on history":

After a victory in the Preakness, the Santa Anita Derby winner has a chance to end a 34-year Triple Crown drought for horse racing. And his trainer might be a star in New York.

BALTIMORE -- The amazing story moved up to incredible. I'll Have Another ran true to his name.

On a Saturday that brought blue skies, perfect temperatures and a record crowd of 121,309 here at venerable Pimlico racetrack, the horse who has never been favored in a race and has been mostly under-appreciated by the public, even the racing public, won the 137th Preakness.

Now, it is I'll Have Another who will take a shot at history. The last horse to win the Triple Crown was Affirmed in 1978. There have been only 11, going back to Sir Barton in 1919. The last horse to win the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness was Big Brown in 2008, and he was mysteriously pulled up in the Belmont.

The story of I'll Have Another is becoming familiar, and it's about time. Owner J. Paul Reddam keynoted that quite simply afterward.

"He hasn't had the most respect," Reddam said.

Amazingly, the Kentucky Derby winner paid $8.40, $3.80 and $2.80. That's mostly because Bob Baffert's Bodemeister had the short odds in the field, as he did in the Derby.

But as in the Derby, I'll Have Another was not interested in anything less than the whole cookie, and when he ran down Baffert's speed demon once again and won by a neck, the people with reason to see him as less than Triple Crown quality were left without argument.

Reddam said, "I think there was a common feeling … that the horse won the Derby because he had a perfect trip. If he didn't get the perfect trip, he wouldn't have won…[Today] he shows he is the real deal."

Dennis O'Neill, who identified I'll Have Another for Reddam to purchase, said, "Going into today, I thought this horse was a really, really good horse going in. After today, he's proven to be a great horse."

Reddam made the purchase for $35,000, chump change for a well-bred thoroughbred. Reddam delivered him to his main trainer, Dennis' brother, Doug, who has not only trained this horse to perfection, but become a rock star in the process.

More on the horse's background here: "I'll Have Another Wins Kentucky Derby in Spectacular Come-From-Behind Upset."

'Refuel' — BMW, the Ultimate Driving Machine

I just saw this ad yesterday and loved it!

See the BMW Blog, "Video Ad: BMW 5 Series Refuel reintroduces the “Ultimate Driving Machine” slogan."

Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi Dies: Convicted Lockerbie Bomber Jerked Off the West

Really, Muammar Gaddafi was the supreme jerk, and he got what was coming to him.

And Al-Megrahi should have died a broken, incarcerated man, not a man living in freedom thumbing his nose at the West.

See the New York Times, "Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, Convicted in 1988 Lockerbie Bombing, Dies at 60" (via Memeorandum).

And see Michael Rubin a couple of weeks ago at Commentary, "Lockerbie Terrorist Again Near Death?":

When Megrahi eventually does die, the families of Lockerbie victims can go to sleep knowing a man responsible for the deaths of their loved ones is no longer among his own friends and families. That he has lived in relative freedom, however, means he will die not only as a terrorist, but also as the poster boy for Western fecklessness.

Also at PJ Media, "Freeing the Lockerbie Killer in the Name of ‘Compassion’."