From the Protests at Taksim Square

Here's the Guardian's live blog, "Turkey: Erdoğan clears Taksim Square – live reaction."

And video of the tear gas attacks on protesters, at Blazing Cat Fur, "Now that's a lot of tear gas!"

Background at the New York Times, "Turkish Police and Protesters Clash in Square":

For Mr. Erdogan, the smoldering violence represents his worst political crisis since coming to power a decade ago. It also highlights the kind of class politics that have divided society, with his conservative religious followers strongly supporting his position. But his political base — a majority — has not protected the economy, which is suffering as the currency loses value and the cost of borrowing rises.

Analysts now worry that Mr. Erdogan, instead of finding a way out of the crisis, has only made it worse by hardening divisions among his constituents, and by digging in. Three people have been killed and at least 4,947 injured in the violence.

“The leaders may be searching for a way out of the deadlock,” wrote Melih Asik, a columnist in Milliyet, a centrist newspaper. “However, has inciting one half of the people against the other half ever been a remedy for overcoming such a crisis? If limitless anger does not give way to common sense, Turkey will have a very difficult job ahead.”

Mr. Erdogan, in rally after rally over the weekend, sought to energize the conservative masses who propelled him to power by invoking his personal history as an Islamist leader opposed to the old secular state and its undemocratic nature. His supporters represent a social class that was previously marginalized, and Mr. Erdogan has used his speeches to play on those class resentments.

More at Telegraph UK, "Clashes in Turkey."

Chloe McCardel to Attempt Cuba to Florida Swim Without Shark Cage

She's generating a lot of attention.

See, "Australian Chloe McCardel begins Cuba-Florida swim."

Cries of Racism Following Interracial Cheerios Advertisement

Interracial families are just no big deal. I have one. And incidents of racism are pretty much non-existent in my experience.

But we're talking about the Cheerios ad on YouTube, and, well, you know how that'll work out online. You've got all of the Nazi keyboard commandoes on the attack. And that's not new.

In any case, at AdWeek, "It's 2013, and People Are Still Getting Worked Up About Interracial Couples in Ads Cheerios spot gets cheers and jeers."

Also at London's Daily Mail, "'We are part of the face of America': bi-racial parents of girl in Cheerios ad that sparked torrid racist abuse stand up to tide of hate."

#DBacks and #Dodgers Brawl: Six Ejected After Yasiel Puig and Zack Greinke Beaned by Pitches

I watching the game.

Totally old school.

At LAT, "Dodgers win after head-banger brawl."

Read it at the link.

Also, "Dodgers-Diamondbacks brawl is not some simple head game."

Plus, a video from MLB, and on Twitter.

'Night Stalker' Richard Ramirez Should Have Fried

Or f-king choked, even though California no longer uses the gas chamber.

From the letters to the editor, at the Los Angeles Times, "Letters: Ramirez's non-execution an injustice":

Re "'Night Stalker' lived violently, dies in his hospital bed," June 8.

The fact that serial killer Richard Ramirez was able to die of natural causes while on California's death row shows the injustice of our justice system. His victims suffered. Many died.

Ramirez's living all these years while those he killed laid in graves was wrong. His being able to live off a system because of rights and laws is a slap in the face to everyone he hurt. After all, his victims were not protected like he was.

Ramirez was guilty, and nothing changed that over time. He should have been executed.

George Vreeland Hill
Beverly Hills

I tweeted so much when I first heard the news.

From the killer's Wikipedia page: "At the time of his death, Ramirez had been on death row for more than 23 years, awaiting execution by the state of California."

Edward Snowden's Girlfriend Feels 'Lost and Alone'

This is one of those "Are you f-king kidding me?" moments.

At Telegraph UK, "Edward Snowden's girlfriend Lindsay Mills 'lost and alone' after whistleblower flees to Hong Kong":

The glamorous dancer girlfriend of NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden has revealed her devastation at his decision to go on the run without her.

Lindsay Mills, 28, who described her boyfriend as "E" and her "man of mystery", said: "My world has opened and closed all at once. Leaving me lost at sea without a compass."

Writing on her blog, she said: "As I type this on my tear-streaked keyboard I’m reflecting on all the faces that have graced my path. The ones I laughed with. The ones I’ve held. The one I’ve grown to love the most. And the ones I never got to bid adieu. But sometimes life doesn’t afford proper goodbyes."

On her Facebook page Miss Mills posted a picture of the sun setting over the ocean but did not reveal her whereabouts. There was no sign of her at the rented three bedroom home in Waipahu, Hawaii that the couple had shared for several months, and moved out of on May 1.

In the extensive blog called "L's Journey," Miss Mills, a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art, reveals that the couple once lived in Japan.

They also holidayed in Hong Kong where Mr Snowden fled when he revealed the top secret government documents. Mr Snowden has said he told his girlfriend he was going away for a few weeks on a work trip.

Over the past few years Miss Mills has also posted many scantily clad photographs of herself and videos of her performing. The blog is titled "Adventures of a world-traveling, pole-dancing super hero."

She specialises in pole dancing, partner acrobatics, and aerial dance and worked regularly over the last year with the Waikiki Acrobatic Troupe, a collection of around 30 dancers.

"She specializes in pole dancing."

Of course, and that idiot defected to Hong Kong?

More at the Other McCain, "Hollywood Script: Hipster Geek With Hot Girlfriend Fights ‘Omniscient’ Government."

Lost?

Maybe, although I  doubt she'll be alone very long. Sheesh.

Added: More at London's Daily Mail, "EXCLUSIVE: The beautiful ballerina girlfriend whistleblower Ed Snowden was set to wed before he left her in Hawaii and fled to Hong Kong to leak NSA secrets. Now she says she feels ‘adrift’."

Kaley Cuoco FHM Cover July 2013

Very nice.

See, "The Big Bang Theory's Kaley Cuoco rules the cover of this month's FHM."

Photos at Egotastic!, "Kaley Cuoco is Pure Hotness in FHM Magazine UK July 2013."

Also, FHM Father's Day suggestions, on Twitter.

'He's a Traitor' — Speaker John Boehner Interview with George Stephanopoulos on #Snowden and #NSA Surveillance

Memeorandum has it, "Transcript: Exclusive Interview With House Speaker John Boehner on NSA Leak, Immigration Reform and More."

And a roundup at the Note, "The Note: Edward Snowden Debate: Traitor or Hero?"

Apple Shows Hand for Staying on Top Through Innovation

At IBD, "Apple Shows Off iOS 7, iTunes Radio, Cylinder PC":

Apple (AAPL) on Monday responded to criticism that it isn't innovating enough by unveiling a revamped mobile operating system with a plethora of new features, a radically redesigned desktop computer, and an Internet radio service.

But the largely anticipated news failed to wow investors as shares dipped 0.7%.

At Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, executives shared their latest products with 6,000 software developers in attendance.

The cylindrical Mac Pro desktop for creative professionals is the Apple's boldest design since the short-lived Power Mac G4 Cube more than a decade ago. The black, 9.9-inch tall PC looks like oversized 35-mm film canister. It is one-eighth the volume of the current Mac Pro. It also boasts much faster computing and graphics processing. Assembled in the U.S., the new Mac Pro will be available later this year.

"This is the future of the Pro desktop," marketing chief Phil Schiller said. "This is a machine unlike anything we've ever made both inside and out."

More at that top link

And Apple's iOS7 page is here. The new Mac Pro is here. And the "keynote" page is here.

And some responses, at GigaOM, "Much iOS 7 design inspiration came from others but Apple elegantly puts it all together."

Also at TechCrunch, "Design, And Insecurity, Is Back At Apple," and at the Verge, "The design of iOS 7: simply confusing." (Via Techmeme.)

#Snowden. Hero or Traitor?

It's complicated, but I'm more on the traitor side.

At USA Today, "Is Snowden a traitor or a public servant?"

How you view Edward Snowden probably has a lot to do with how much you care about the threat of terrorism and how much you care about online privacy.

Hero? Traitor? Or someone in between?

How you view Edward Snowden, who exposed two sweeping U.S. online surveillance programs, probably has a lot to do with which you fear more — terrorist bombers or government snoopers.

Snowden's admission that he was the one who'd released evidence of the top-secret programs — one of the most sensational leaks of classified material in U.S. history — expanded an already blistering debate over the clash between national security and online privacy.

With Snowden's assistance, The Guardian and The Washington Post have recently published a series of top-secret documents detailing the government surveillance programs. One gathers hundreds of millions of U.S. phone records while searching for possible links to suspected terrorists abroad; the second allows the government to tap into U.S. Internet companies' data to detect suspicious behavior that begins overseas.

Who is Ed Snowden? That depends on who's asking.

From Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg, whom Henry Kissinger called "the most dangerous man in America," to Wikileaks dumper Bradley Manning, on trial accused of high crimes, Americans' views of their whistle-blowers always have depended on their own personal politics.

"We've seen this again and again," said Stephen Kohn, director of the National Whistleblowers Center and a lawyer who has defended whistle-blowers.

He said public support for a whistle-blower usually is tied more to a political issue — the Vietnam War, in Ellsberg's case — than to the rights of whistle-blowers or the issue of whistle-blowing.

Kohn said some people who might support Snowden's actions in principle are so concerned about terrorism "they'll say, at the end of the day, you can't have civil servants or contractors acting in this way." Those primarily worried about online privacy are more sympathetic.

Well, I can relate to principle, although Snowden's a tool of the left --- and those people have been harming U.S. security since long before the war on terror. Screw 'em.

PREVIOUSLY: "Lt. Col. Ralph Peters: 'Bring Back the Death Penalty' for Traitors Like Edward Snowden."

Global Warming Plateau

See Yid With Lid, "NY Times: It's Not Getting Warmer, We Don't Know Why, But We SWEAR It's Going to Get Warmer Soon."

And Weasel Zippers, "NY Times Admits “Plateau” In Global Warming Over Last 15 Years…":

Al Gore hardest hit.

More from Tom Nelson, "Nice timing, Robert: Even as the New York Times acknowledges a puzzling "warming plateau", Redford tries to convince us that "Climate change is happening fast...Our weather is out of whack"."

Angry Leftists Defend Homosexual Parenting

Following up on my earlier entry, "Homosexual Parenting Harms Children."

It turns out the Gaystapo thugs swarmed the Los Angeles Times with angry letters.

See, "LETTERS ON LETTERS: Marriage and families":

Rebecca S. Hertsgaard of Palm Springs took personal offense at the letter:

"I am deeply offended at this fallacious argument regarding gay parenting and the fact that someone would believe that a child needs both a mother and a father, something gay parenting is unable to provide.

"A woman's 'role' in a marriage? A man's 'role'? Besides apparently ignoring the fact that many children are born without benefit of their parents being either married or together, Graham also apparently still believes the arcane notion that fathers can't provide 'softness' and mothers can't provide 'protection.' I raised my children alone for many years, and they thrived.

"I'm just outraged. And I'm not even gay."

More angry idiots at the link.

IMAGE CREDIT: iOTW, "Government Redefinition of Marriage is Not Inevitable."

Russia Weighs Asylum for #NSA Traitor Edward Snowden

The Guardian reports, "NSA leaks: Russia 'would consider' Edward Snowden asylum claim – live."

And Althouse has the Drudge juxtaposition, "Drudge at his best: "Wanna Come to Russia?'" (At Memeorandum.)

There's something very Cold War-ish about all of this.

PREVIOUSLY: "Lt. Col. Ralph Peters: 'Bring Back the Death Penalty' for Traitors Like Edward Snowden."

'That's just how it is for progressives. They want what they want, when they want it, and if you dare to protest their use of your money — then they’ll really make you pay...'

A fabulous essay, at the House of Eratosthenes, "Progressives: I’m Taking Your Ball and Going Home."

Caroline Glick at 2013 Jerusalem Post Conference

At BCF, "Caroline Glick Let's Fly at the 2013 Jerusalem Post Conference."

Baby Sea Lion Jumps Aboard Boat, Changes Sailor's Life

It's J.R. Gilkinson, off the coast of Newport Beach. The little sea lion made the most thrilling experience of his life.

At the New York Post, "Puppy love: Baby sea lion snuggles up with boater."

Julie Borowski on #NSA Surveillance

She's great:

2013 World Freestyle Round-Up Championships

Via Jim Goodrich on Facebook:

The website is here.

Lt. Col. Ralph Peters: 'Bring Back the Death Penalty' for Traitors Like Edward Snowden

Strong words:

Big Brother Really Is Watching Us

From Sen. Rand Paul, at the Wall Street Journal, "Monitoring hundreds of millions of phone records is an extraordinary invasion of privacy":

When Americans expressed outrage last week over the seizure and surveillance of Verizon's client data by the National Security Agency, President Obama responded: "In the abstract, you can complain about Big Brother . . . but when you actually look at the details, I think we've struck the right balance."

How many records did the NSA seize from Verizon? Hundreds of millions. We are now learning about more potential mass data collections by the government from other communications and online companies. These are the "details," and few Americans consider this approach "balanced," though many rightly consider it Orwellian.

These activities violate the Fourth Amendment, which says warrants must be specific—"particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized." And what is the government doing with these records? The president assures us that the government is simply monitoring the origin and length of phone calls, not eavesdropping on their contents. Is this administration seriously asking us to trust the same government that admittedly targets political dissidents through the Internal Revenue Service and journalists through the Justice Department?

No one objects to balancing security against liberty. No one objects to seeking warrants for targeted monitoring based on probable cause. We've always done this.

What is objectionable is a system in which government has unlimited and privileged access to the details of our private affairs, and citizens are simply supposed to trust that there won't be any abuse of power. This is an absurd expectation. Americans should trust the National Security Agency as much as they do the IRS and Justice Department.

Monitoring the records of as many as a billion phone calls, as some news reports have suggested, is no modest invasion of privacy. It is an extraordinary invasion of privacy. We fought a revolution over issues like generalized warrants, where soldiers would go from house to house, searching anything they liked. Our lives are now so digitized that the government going from computer to computer or phone to phone is the modern equivalent of the same type of tyranny that our Founders rebelled against...

Continue reading.

And listen to the video after about 6 minutes especially. Hannity shows a bunch of clips featuring President Transparency's complete 180 degree spin on surveillance, wiretapping, the war on terror. You name it. This president is an epic liar and hypocrite.

Majority of Americans Supports Government Programs to Track Terrorists, Even at Risk of Privacy

At Pew Research, "Majority Views NSA Phone Tracking as Acceptable Anti-terror Tactic: Public Says Investigate Terrorism, Even IF It Intrudes on Privacy."

I don't have that big a problem with it. I'm just amazed that Obama expanded the program rather than wind it down, like he promised during the campaign. And there's a political fallout, that's what's going to be better for liberty. That said, I can appreciate the libertarian arguments. It's simply a matter of tradeoffs to me, and I'm willing to lean toward greater security.

Charles Krauthammer has more:

More at Memeorandum.

Europeans Demand Answers on Obama Administration's Secret Intelligence-Gathering Programs

Wow, the story keeps getting bigger and more complicated.

From the Guardian's lede tomorrow morning, "Obama pressured over NSA snooping as US senator denounces 'act of treason'":

Barack Obama was facing a mounting domestic and international backlash against US surveillance operations on Monday as the administration struggled to contain one of the most explosive national security leaks in US history.

Political opinion in the US was split with some members of Congress calling for the immediate extradition from Hong Kong of the whistleblower, Edward Snowden. But other senior politicians in both main parties questioned whether US surveillance practices had gone too far.

Dianne Feinstein, chairman of the national intelligence committee, has ordered the NSA to review how it limits the exposure of Americans to government surveillance. But she made clear her disapproval of Snowden. "What he did was an act of treason," she said.

Officials in European capitals demanded immediate answers from their US counterparts and denounced the practice of secretly gathering digital information on Europeans as unacceptable, illegal and a serious violation of basic rights. The NSA, meanwhile, has referred Snowden to the Justice Department, and said that it was assessing the damage caused by the disclosures.

Daniel Ellsberg, the former military analyst who revealed secrets of the Vietnam war through the Pentagon Papers in 1971, described Snowden's leak as even more important and perhaps the most significant leak in American history.

Yeah, and the idiot Ellsberg compares the U.S. to East Germany's "Stasi" regime. A nice touch from a traitor.

Change! Democrats Now Support Warrantless Eavesdropping by Two-Thirds Majority, Up by Nearly 30 Percent Since Bush/Hitler!

Again, you gotta love this.

At Pew:

64% of Dems now say NSA surveillance program acceptable; 36% said that when Bush was president pewrsr.ch/19ikCJS twitter.com/pewresearch/st…
— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) June 10, 2013

Hypocrisy! MT @pewresearch 64% of Dems now say NSA surveillance program acceptable; 36% said that when Bush was pres. pewrsr.ch/19ikCJS
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 10, 2013

Well, folks gotta work out that cognitive dissonance somehow. What better way than to say, "Hey, trust us, our guy won't threaten freedom!"

Also at Commentary, "Obama’s Fans Try to Change the Subject."

Freakin' hypocrites. These people disgust me.

Holly Madison Goes For Saturday Morning Run in Sporty Pink Crop Top and Tiny Grey Athletic Shorts

Hey, she looks good too!

At London's Daily Mail, "Working off those pregnancy pounds in style! Holly Madison goes for a jog in cleavage-baring crop top and tiny shorts."

TPM's Josh Marshall Gets Hammered for 'Lining Up to Defend Obama Admin Surveillance...'

This just tickles the hell out of me.

Dear Leader's utter hypocrisy is causing crazy fits of apoplexy across the leftist fever swamps.

Instapundit posted this the other day, "HEY, RUBE! Americans Are Outraged Because in Voting for Obama, They Thought They Were Rejecting Bush." (Be sure to click through to the Daily Kos post at the link; the comments are gold!)

And now I see some interesting nuggets about Josh Marshall on Twitter:

Must say: pretty disappointed with former Lefty warriors against Bush Admin surveillance lining up to defend Obama Admin surveillance.
— Tom Belknap (@dragonflyeye) June 10, 2013

@dragonflyeye Who? I'm not seeing it on my end. But then again, maybe I stopped reading those people a while ago.
— Joseph A. Henderson (@josephenderson) June 10, 2013

@josephenderson In particular, Josh Marshall. Who I admit I'm ambivalent about as a commenter. Greenwald is now the enemy.
— Tom Belknap (@dragonflyeye) June 10, 2013

Yeah, I trolled through Marshall's Twitter feed. He's got two blog posts on Snowden, "Wow. Just Wow," and "What’s the Deal with Hong Kong?"

And he's getting called out by TPM regulars, "One of Many Dissenting Voices":

A threshold has been crossed while the public slept. Some light is finally being shined on the practices of our security apparatus. Maybe now, as the memory of Bin Laden fades, we are entering the first time since 9/11 when we can have a reasonable public conversation about the privacy interests of our people and what must be sacrificed in order to preserve the rights we cherish. It kills me to see people I respect, opinion leaders like yourself, collectively shrug at the revelations of these last several days.

Well, "shrugging" is how partisan hacks like Marshall protect "The One."

But read the whole thing. The perturbed reader hammers Marshall for questioning "Snowden as a messenger" rather than focusing on "the materials he has provided..."

Yeah, well, those materials aren't going over so well for President Transparency. But don't blame me. I voted for the other guy --- both times!

The Beach is Better in September

That's one thing I used to love about UCSB — classes didn't start until the end of September, which of course meant that school didn't cut into the prime beach time.

And right now, in June, it's more like this:

Bar Refaeli Stands Up for Transgender Pissing Rights!

She's an idiot.

I swear, some of the most beautiful people have absolutely no brains.

At the Times of Israel, "Give pee a chance: Refaeli stands up for gays … at a urinal."

Also at the Blaze, "THE ODD PHOTO SUPERMODEL BAR REFAELI SENT OUT TO SHOW SUPPORT FOR TRANSGENDER RIGHTS." Check the comments:

What about my right to privacy? I forgot, the gays and transsexuals have the power to DO WHATEVER THEY WANT. No need for privacy. Would you allow men into a bathroom with women? Why not? They would let a gay man – WHO IS sexually attracted to men – to stand beside a straight man at a urinal. Insane.

Hey, it's all the about teh gays.

PREVIOUSLY: "Government Redefinition of Marriage is Not Inevitable."

Government Redefinition of Marriage is Not Inevitable

Well, you wouldn't know it from the latest L.A. Times poll, "58% of California voters now favor gay marriage."

There's video at the link. Dan Schnur, Director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC, indicates that the shift in support of homosexual marriage is both "generational" and "attitudinal."

Perhaps, although a lot remains to be seen, not the least of which is this month's Supreme Court ruling on Prop. 8 and DOMA.

Some polling finds the public seeing homosexual marriage as "inevitable," at Pew Research last week, for example. But the Heritage Foundation throws water on that meme. See, "On Marriage, Inevitability Is a Choice We Can Reject":

Marriage is founded on the anthropological truth that men and women are different and complementary, the biological fact that the union of a man and woman also creates new life, and the social reality that children need a mom and a dad.

For decades, social science has shown that children tend to do best when reared by their married mother and father. Government recognizes marriage because it is an institution that benefits society in a way that no other relationship does.

Marriage is society’s least restrictive means to ensure the well-being of future citizens. It protects children by incentivizing adults to commit to each other and take responsibility for their children.

All the polls in the world cannot undo the truth about marriage. But they can obscure the truth and make it less likely that men and women commit to each other permanently and exclusively. This in turn reduces the odds that children will know the love and care of their married mothers and fathers.

Whatever pollsters and pundits may tell us about “inevitability,” the only way to guarantee a political loss is to sit idly by. We should frame our message, strengthen coalitions, devise strategies, and bear witness.

Yes, bear witness, like this:

I think the Gaystapo’s weakness is simple: start talking about them.

Do the job the media won’t do, and start taking an interest in the lies that are spread in gay magazines, newspapers, and via social media. Start pointing out the “Gaystapo” leaders in your community who take to stages to make hateful speeches that rev crowds up against Christians and conservatives. Here in Chicago, the key Gaystapo figure is a man named Art Johnston who owns Sidetrack the Video Bar…and he constantly is holding some event in the bar that degenerates into a two-minutes-hate against religious people and conservatives. It’s all deliberate and is what Johnston and others in the Gaystapo call “activism”. Really, it’s just spreading hate and creating colorful “enemies” for gays to lash out at…so that they will then donate to Johnston’s Equality Illinois organization, which is just another tool of the institutional Left that makes itself sound more appealing by calling itself “Equality Illinois”. A better name for the thing would be “We Spread Hate But Aren’t Called Out On It Because We Are Gay”. I guess “Equality Illinois” fit more easily on bumper stickers.

The Gaystapo hate sunlight and they shrink and wither when they’re actually talked about. The thing is, so many conservatives and Christians avoid talking about anything gay that these guys are then left to do whatever they please unchallenged. That’s such a mistake. Frankly, the only reason these guys have so much power is because it’s all been ceded to them by conservatives who just don’t want to be caught discussing the gay community at all (for fear of being called homophobes if they do).

I think the best way to bring the Gaystapo down is to start holding them to their own rules…which ironically enough is one of the Alinsky Methods that the Gaystapo uses on conservatives all the time. Equality Illinois, for instance, claims it is for equality in Illinois for everyone. So, why do almost all Equality Illinois events held in Sidetrack the Video Bar include speeches and other stunts that rev the crowds up to shout hateful things about Christians and conservatives? Why does any Equality Illinois event include screaming and yelling about “getting” the “enemies of the gay community”? Shouldn’t an organization with such a lovey-dovey sounding name avoid hating anyone or labeling anyone on Earth “an enemy”?

Hypocrisy, I guess, is ultimately the Gaystapo’s Achilles’ heel...

I think the “gay community” does the world a very bad service by not taking a zero tolerance approach to things like NAMBLA because there remains the Daddy/Son fetish amongst some gay guys, where older men want to be with very young guys. A lot of these guys were molested when they were young…and when they get older they want to inflict this onto little boys to continue the cycle of abuse. Muslim men are actually really big into this because Islam encourages the abuse of young boys…and when those boys grow up they expect to be able to abuse boys sexually, too, since that’s what they did when they were little. It’s just beyond sick.

The Gaystapo prevents anyone from calling people out for horrific behavior, though. When it comes to sex, anything is supposed to be permissible in gay culture. The Gaystapo certainly gives the impression that “anything goes”…especially in bars that have “secret” rooms or private “play party” nights where admission is charged and things aren’t open to the public. Most of the leather bars in Chicago have these sorts of events…and a lot of times you have to know someone who is a member of that fetish club to get into the event.

It’s all sick. And the people involved in this are seriously messed up. These are the crazy uncles in the attic of the gay community…but unfortunately a lot of them seem to be very rich and influential because the Gaystapo lets them do as they please. i don’t know if you watch the tee-vee show “True Blood” on HBO, but last season the plot revolved around “The Vampire Authority” that was trying to mainstream and present a more normalized face for vampires to the world…and they were opposed by the Sanguinista faction of vampires, which wanted to be deviant and feed openly on humans and generally do all the things that people were scared vampires really liked to do.

In the gay community, you mostly see the mainstreamers…but you must know that the true deviants like the NAMBLA crowd still exist and no effort at all is made to stamp these guys out. They’re just kept in the basement or in the shadows, and the Gaystapo runs interference or creates distractions so you don’t think about what’s going on. There are secret fetish and sex clubs in Chicago like “The Hell Fire Club” or “Windy City Watersports” or whatever where all sorts of bizarre things go on…and bars like Jackhammer, Touche, and Cell Block have those secret rooms where different “clubs” hold their private events and get up to all sorts of things that would probably make your eyes melt out of your face if you read about them.

That’s all part of the “dark side of the rainbow” that no one’s supposed to talk about during “pride month” in June.

Exactly.

Just keep bearing witness to the hatred and horrors of this movement. It's just not normal.

'Serendipity'

An Honor Society lyrics video, with the cameraman strolling down the boardwalk at Venice Beach.

A live clip is here.

Also at Venice Beach, from April, "The Sperminator."

Left-Winger Andrew Hacker Slams Common Core

Hacker, with Claudia Dreifus, says tea partiers have it right on Common Core. See, "Who’s Minding the Schools?":

By definition, America has never had a national education policy; this has indeed contributed to our country’s ambivalence on the subject. As it stands, the Common Core is currently getting hit mainly from the right. Tea Party-like groups have been gaining traction in opposition to the program, arguing that it is another intrusion into the lives of ordinary Americans by a faceless elite. While we don’t often agree with the Tea Party, we’ve concluded that there’s more than a grain of truth to their concerns.

The anxiety that drives this criticism comes from the fact that a radical curriculum — one that has the potential to affect more than 50 million children and their parents — was introduced with hardly any public discussion. Americans know more about the events in Benghazi than they do about the Common Core.

RTWT.

And maybe there is some bipartisan push back. See my earlier piece, "The So-Called 'Bipartisan Backlash' Against Common Core."

Nikki Finke Still Standing Despite Report of Her Firing

A wonderfully dishy piece from David Carr, at the New York Times, "Despite Report of Her Firing, Nikki Finke Is Still Standing."

#Snowden's High Stakes Gamble

It's going to be an interesting news day.

This Snowden cat is almost too perfect the anti-government foil. But we'll see.

At the Guardian UK, "Edward Snowden's choice of Hong Kong as haven is a high-stakes gamble."

Edward Snowden's choice of Hong Kong as a haven from where to leak intelligence documents and to unmask himself as a whistleblower rests on calculations on the territory's press freedom safeguards and its extradition treaty with the US. It is a high-stakes gamble.

Just before sovereignty over Hong Kong passed from Britain to China in 1997, the US signed a new extradition treaty with the semi-autonomous territory. Under that treaty, both parties agree to hand over fugitives from each other's criminal justice systems, but either side has the right of refusal in the case of political offences.

Beijing, which gave its consent for Hong Kong to sign the agreement, also has a right of veto if it believes the surrender of a fugitive would harm the "defence, foreign affairs or essential public interest or policy'' of the People's Republic of China. In short, the treaty makes Snowden's fate a matter of political expediency not just in Hong Kong but in Beijing.

Yeah, and the dude's in high demand stateside. See, "Edward Snowden: Republicans call for NSA whistleblower to be extradited."

Check all the links at Memeorandum as well.

More here throughout the day.

Death Toll Climbs in Santa Monica Shooting Massacre

At the Los Angeles Times, "Santa Monica shootings: Death toll rises as fifth victim dies."

Also, "Santa Monica shooting: Police still trying to reach gunman's kin," and "Santa Monica shootings: Students and staff struggle to cope."

Here's ABC News with the suspect's photo:

#SMC UPDATE: Santa Monica PD have released a photo of the suspected gunman, 23-year-old John Zawahri twitter.com/ABC7/status/34…

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 9, 2013

Sunday Cartoons

At Flopping Aces, "Sunday Funnies."

Also at Paco's Enterprises, "Sunday Funnies." And Reaganite, "Power Couple of the Year Wow Paparazzi~."

More at Theo's, "Day by Day."

CARTOON CREDIT: Legal Insurrection, "Branco Cartoon – Cruz Control."

Here's Some Alice Goodwin Rule 5 to Take Your Mind Off #NSA Surveillance

At Zoo Magazine, "Alice Goodwin new & naughty shoot and Rihanna's Rude Archive!"

And at Egotastic!, "Alice Goodwin in Lingerie for a Boobtastic Shoot."

More at Pirate's Cove, "Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup," and "If All You See……is unsustainable fishing because slight increases of CO2 means that life won’t reproduce, you might just be a Warmist."

Also at Proof Positive, "Best of the Web* Linkaround," and "Friday Night Babe: Lauren Holly!"

More at Bob Belvedere's, "Lindsey Anne Strutt." And "Rule 5 News."

Plus at 90Ninety Miles From Tyranny, "Late Night Ladies."

And Randy's Roundtable, "Thursday Nite Tart (on Friday)...Chloe Pridham."

Check Guns and Bikinis as well, "Anne Vyalitsyna and Exotic Model."

See Odie's too, "Being Blonde ~OR~ Rule 5 Woodsterman Style."

From Wirecutter, "Your Good Morning Girl."

Still more at the Last Tradition, "Rule 5 Sunday – The Return of Diana Dors, British Blonde Bombshell of 1950 and 1960s."

And from Conservative Hideout, "Girls and Guns, and did I Mention Links? June 5, 2013."

Plus, from Dana Pico, "Rule 5 Blogging: Glamour Girls."

Now at Daley Gator, "DaleyGator DaleyBabe Ming Na."

Don't forget Evil Blogger Lady, "Bocce Ball Rule 5."

And Theo Spark, "Bedtime Totty..."

Leaking Secrets Empowers Terrorists

From former attorney general Michael Mukasey, at WSJ, "The NSA's surveillance program doesn't do damage. Revealing it does":

Once again, the tanks-have-rolled left and the black-helicopters right have joined together in howls of protest. They were set off by last week's revelations that the U.S. government has been collecting data that disclose the fact, but not the content, of electronic communications within the country, as well as some content data outside the U.S. that does not focus on American citizens. Once again, the outrage of the left-right coalition is misdirected.

Libertarian Republicans and liberal—progressive, if you prefer—Democrats see the specter of George Orwell's "1984" in what they claim is pervasive and unlawful government spying. These same groups summoned "1984" in 2001 after passage of the Patriot Act, in 2008 after renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, and many times in between and since.

Regrettably, those best positioned to defend such surveillance programs are least likely to do so out of obvious security concerns. Without getting into detail here, intelligence agencies, with court authorization, have been collecting data in an effort that is neither pervasive nor unlawful. As to the data culled within the U.S., the purpose is to permit analysts to map relationships between and among Islamist fanatics.

For example, it would be helpful to know who communicated with the Tsarnaev brothers, who those people were in touch with, and whether there are overlapping circles that would reveal others bent on killing and maiming Americans—sort of a terrorist Venn diagram. Once these relationships are disclosed, information can be developed that would allow a court to give permission to monitor the content of communications.

As to monitoring content abroad, the utility is obvious. At least one conspiracy—headed by Najibullah Zazi and intended to maim and kill New York City subway riders—was disclosed through such monitoring and headed off. Zazi, arrested in 2009, pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.

Because intelligence does not arrive in orderly chronological ranks, and getting useful data is an incremental process that often requires matching information gathered in the past with more current data, storing the information is essential. But, say the critics, information in the hands of "the government" can be misused—just look at the IRS. The IRS, as it happens, has a history of misusing information for political purposes. To be sure, there have been transgressions within intelligence agencies, but these have involved the pursuit of an intelligence mission, not a political objective.

Consider also that in a post-9/11 world all of those agencies live in dread of a similar attack. That ghastly prospect itself provides incentive for analysts to focus on the intelligence task at hand and not on political or recreational use of information. And the number of analysts with access to the information is not terribly large. The total number of analysts in the intelligence community, though certainly classified, appears to be a few thousand, with those focusing on terrorism likely a limited subset.

Given the nature of the data being collected and the relatively small number and awful responsibility of those who do the collecting, the claims of pervasive spying, even if sincere, appear not merely exaggerated, but downright irrational. Indeed, psychiatry has a term for the misplaced belief that the patient is the focus of the attention of others: delusions of reference.

Some wallow in the idea that they are being watched, their civil liberties endangered, simply because a handful of electrons they generated were among the vast billions being reviewed in a high-stakes antiterrorism effort. Of course, many are motivated politically or ideologically to oppose robust intelligence-gathering aimed at fending off Islamist terrorism. Criticism from that quarter can be left to lie where it fell.

More at the link.

And sure. All well and good. Just don't hold back on calling out President Dronekiller at the biggest f-king hypocrite. See: "Obama Administration Surveillance Regime: Most Breathtaking Violations of Civil Liberties in U.S. History."

Glenn Greenwald on 'This Week with George Stephanopoulos'

I've been finishing up my semester grading today, but following news developments on Twitter.

The Guardian broke the story of the NSA leaker, as readers are no doubt aware, "Edward Snowden: the whistleblower behind the NSA surveillance revelations." (At Memeorandum.)

At the clip below, the interview was apparently taped before the Snowden story went live, or thereabouts, because Greenwald doesn't discuss the leaker, and in fact implies that there are others.

I'll have more on this. There's a big split between the hardline civil libertarians and the national security hawks. And the ideological lines are blurring in a lot of interesting ways. I lean more toward the Wall Street Journal position I cited the other day, although it's the piling on of Obama administration scandals, along with the hypocrisy, that's my issue with all of this. And frankly, I just can't stand this president and enjoy watching him squirm. Screw 'em.

"If a background singer had not contributed her ferocious “rape, murder — it’s just a shot away” to “Gimme Shelter,” would it have even become a hit?..."

At the New York Times, "The Voice Behind Mick (and Others)":

SAN FRANCISCO — Imagine if there was no “sock it to me” at the end of “Respect.” Think about “Like a Prayer” without the choir or “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ ” without its big “ma ma se, ma ma sa, ma ma coo sa” finish.

If a background singer had not contributed her ferocious “rape, murder — it’s just a shot away” to “Gimme Shelter,” would it have even become a hit?

“When you start listening for us, honey, we’re everywhere,” said Lisa Fischer, a vocalist who, at 54, is the music industry’s reigning backup queen. “Ev-ery-where!” she warbled jubilantly before detonating a smile and breaking into the giggles.

Ms. Fischer, who lives in New York when she is not on the road, was grabbing a bite at the Four Seasons here after a performance with the Rolling Stones. She has been singing with the band since 1989, and her “Gimme Shelter” duets with Mick Jagger are now a highlight for many fans. Her other gigs have been just as impressive. In concerts or recording studios, she has backed up Tina Turner, Luther Vandross, Chaka Khan, Sting, Dolly Parton, Beyoncé, Alicia Keys and Aretha Franklin, just to name a few.

But Ms. Fischer, alluringly plump with short black hair and a nose piercing, does not fit the background-singer stereotype. If you’re singing backup, you’re supposed to hunger nonstop for one thing: the move center stage. Performing lead is the prized position. A backup singer? Just another belter in a black dress.

Ms. Fischer had a hit of her own. She won a Grammy in 1992 for her first single, “How Can I Ease the Pain,” beating out none other than Ms. Franklin. But she never completed a second record, in large part because she decided that the heat of the spotlight wasn’t for her. Backup singing was her calling.

“I reject the notion that the job you excel at is somehow not enough to aspire to, that there has to be something more,” Ms. Fischer explained, speaking with her eyes closed, as she tends to do. “I love supporting other artists.”

She continued: “I guess it came down to not letting other people decide what was right for me. Everyone’s needs are unique. My happy is different from your happy.”

More at the link.

Norway Tests Naval Strike Missile

At London's Daily Mail, "Caught on camera: The explosive moment Norwegian navy blew up its OWN ship to test new long-range missile."

"The 'consent' that is truly at stake here is the consent of the governed, for which Americans once fought a revolution..."

Wow!

Robert Stacy McCain's posted an epic update on the left's monstrous Kaitlyn Hunt statutory rape controversy.

See, "She Blinded Me With Pseudo-Science."

Great work.

Don't miss a word of it, at the link.

Judge Jeanine: 'Our Founding Fathers Wouldn't Even Recognize the America of Today...'

She's become perhaps the most incisive voice in the country, warning week after week against the grave threats to our liberties --- and to our very democracy.

More at Nice Deb, "Jeanine Pirro: ‘America Truly Is Unrecognizable’ (Video)."

'Beyond Orwellian'

Image via the Rhetorican.

And at Jammie Wearing Fools, "ACLU on Obama’s NSA Snooping on Verizon Customers: ‘It Is Beyond Orwellian’."

PRISM and Boundless Informant

At Atlas Shrugs:

Former Department of Justice senior lawyer J. Christian Adams says: "Prism more catastrophic than #Benghazi #AP #IRS #FastandFurious #Blackpanthers combined. Not supposed to happen in USA." "Nothing federal government has EVER done is more destructive of 4th amendment constitutional liberty than was #Prism." This is incendiary.

And more from Glenn Greenwald (who else?), at the Guardian UK, "Boundless Informant: the NSA's secret tool to track global surveillance data" (via Memeorandum):

The National Security Agency has developed a powerful tool for recording and analysing where its intelligence comes from, raising questions about its repeated assurances to Congress that it cannot keep track of all the surveillance it performs on American communications.

The Guardian has acquired top-secret documents about the NSA datamining tool, called Boundless Informant, that details and even maps by country the voluminous amount of information it collects from computer and telephone networks.

The focus of the internal NSA tool is on counting and categorizing the records of communications, known as metadata, rather than the content of an email or instant message.

The Boundless Informant documents show the agency collecting almost 3 billion pieces of intelligence from US computer networks over a 30-day period ending in March 2013. One document says it is designed to give NSA officials answers to questions like, "What type of coverage do we have on country X" in "near real-time by asking the SIGINT [signals intelligence] infrastructure."

An NSA factsheet about the program, acquired by the Guardian, says: "The tool allows users to select a country on a map and view the metadata volume and select details about the collections against that country."

Under the heading "Sample use cases", the factsheet also states the tool shows information including: "How many records (and what type) are collected against a particular country."

A snapshot of the Boundless Informant data, contained in a top secret NSA "global heat map" seen by the Guardian, shows that in March 2013 the agency collected 97bn pieces of intelligence from computer networks worldwide.


Iran was the country where the largest amount of intelligence was gathered, with more than 14bn reports in that period, followed by 13.5bn from Pakistan. Jordan, one of America's closest Arab allies, came third with 12.7bn, Egypt fourth with 7.6bn and India fifth with 6.3bn.

The heatmap gives each nation a color code based on how extensively it is subjected to NSA surveillance. The color scheme ranges from green (least subjected to surveillance) through yellow and orange to red (most surveillance).

The disclosure of the internal Boundless Informant system comes amid a struggle between the NSA and its overseers in the Senate over whether it can track the intelligence it collects on American communications. The NSA's position is that it is not technologically feasible to do so.

At a hearing of the Senate intelligence committee In March this year, Democratic senator Ron Wyden asked James Clapper, the director of national intelligence: "Does the NSA collect any type of data at all on millions or hundreds of millions of Americans?"

"No sir," replied Clapper.

Judith Emmel, an NSA spokeswoman, told the Guardian in a response to the latest disclosures: "NSA has consistently reported – including to Congress – that we do not have the ability to determine with certainty the identity or location of all communicants within a given communication. That remains the case."

Plus, from Ed Morrissey, "Guardian: PRISM “collection directly from the servers”." (At Memeorandum).

With San Onofre Closure, Southern Californians Facing Tight Energy Supplies

Here's a report at Market Watch, "Southern California worried about summer demand."

We need more nuclear energy, actually.

I tweeted earlier:

Will there be deaths from heat exposure this summer, maybe rolling blackouts? Thanks leftists. #SanOnofre latimes.com/business/la-fi…
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 8, 2013

More here, "San Onofre nuclear power plant to be closed permanently," and "A long cooling-off period for San Onofre nuclear plant."

Behind the International Bilderberg Group

At Telegraph UK, "Bilderberg Group? No conspiracy, just the most influential group in the world":

Conspiracy theorists claim it is a shadow world government. Former leading members tell the Telegraph it was the most useful meeting they ever went to and it was crucial in forming the European Union. Today, the Bilderberg Group meets in Britain.

Also at Independent UK, "A Watford welcome for the Bilderberg group - the world’s most powerful club."

And here's the search for "Bilderberg" at Infowars.

It's interesting, to say the least.

The Wikipedia page is here.

'The Thrill of It All'

Byran Ferry and Roxy Music:

The sky is dark
The wind is cold
The night is young
Before it's old and grey
We will know
The thrill of it all

The time has come
It's getting late
It's now or never
Don't hesitate or stall
When I call
Don't spoil
The thrill of it all

And before you go to sleep at night
Preying shadows, do they ask you why?
And in the morning through the afternoon
Do you wonder where you're going to?

Every word I use
Each crumpled page
Strange ideas
Mature with age
Like leaves
When autumn falls
Turn gold
Then they hit the ground

Every time I hear
The latest sound
It's pure whiskey
Reeling round and around
My brain
Oh and all oh that jive
It's driving me wild
The dizzy spin I'm in

Everywhere I look
I see your face
I hear your name
All over the place
Hey girl
Though you're gone
Still I recall
The thrill of it all

You might as well know what is right for you
And make the most of what you like to do
For all the pleasure that's surrounding you
Should compensate for all you're going through

So if you're feeling fraught
With mental strain
Too much thinking's got you down again
Well let your senses skip
Stay hip
Keep cool
To the thrill of it all

When you try too much
You lose control
Pressure rises
And so I'm told
Something's got to give
High life ecstasy
You might as well live

I can't see
I can't speak
I couldn't take more than another week
Without you, oh no
So I will drink my fill
Till the thrill is you

Oh the thrill of it all
Oh the thrill of it all
No I won't forget
The thrill of it all

No no no no no no no...

Suspect Had 1,300 Rounds of Ammo During Santa Monica Shooting Rampage

More details coming out.

At LAT, "Santa Monica shooting was premeditated, police say."

#SMC UPDATE: Surveillance photo shows suspect entering Santa Monica College library twitter.com/ABC7/status/34…

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 8, 2013

SMPD Sgt. Richard Lewis estimates suspect fired at least 70 rounds inside the #SMC library

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 8, 2013

SMPD Sgt. Richard Lewis about suspect -- "He heavily armed himself and was ready for battle"

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 8, 2013

SHOOTING UPDATE #SMC -- Police Chief uses "execute" to describe gunman killing one woman on street. He had "multiple" magazines. @lanow

— Andrew Blankstein (@anblanx) June 8, 2013

Looks like #santamonica shooter ain't a bitter clinger. Has #muslim name.fireandreamitchell.com/2013/06/08/joh…

— Carol Greenberg (@LadyImpactOhio) June 8, 2013

What do we know about John Zawahri, the Santa Monica shooting suspect? lat.ms/19TdClD

— LA Times City Beat (@LATimescitybeat) June 8, 2013

China's Xi Jinping is Maoist Ideological Hardliner

Well, I'm sure he'll hit it off with our Dear Leader then.

At LAT, "China's Xi Jinping appears more Maoist than reformer so far":

At a Politburo meeting in April, Xi announced an effort to reeducate party cadres, using language that harked back to Mao's "rectification" campaigns of the 1940s when he was consolidating power at his revolutionary base in Yanan.

Trying to boost morale in the military, Xi decreed all generals and officers above the rank of lieutenant colonel must do stints of at least 15 days as rank-and-file soldiers. Mao used almost exactly the same tactic in 1958.

In public speeches, Xi tends to elevate the Communist Party above the nation and even above the Chinese people. He's tried to clamp down on criticism of Mao.

"To completely negate Mao Tse-tung would lead to the demise of the Chinese Communist Party and to great chaos in China," Xi told a high-level forum in January, according to an article last month in Study Times, an official publication of the Central Party School in Beijing.

Just to show that he is not Mikhail S. Gorbachev, Xi blames the collapse of the Soviet Union on wavering from Communist convictions.

"It's a profound lesson for us. To dismiss the history of the Soviet Union and the Soviet Communist Party, to dismiss Lenin and Stalin, and to dismiss everything else is to engage in historic nihilism, and it confuses our thoughts and undermines the party's organizations on all levels," he said in another unpublished speech from December that was widely leaked.

Xi's predecessor for the last decade, Hu Jintao, was a bland figure. But political analysts believe he may have been more inclined toward political reform.

"Xi Jinping is very good at public relations, much better than Hu, who acted like a robot," said Willy Lam, a political analyst based in Hong Kong. "But ideologically he is really a Maoist, who wants to maintain tight control over the party and the military and to put a freeze on Western values."

Nobody expects Xi to reverse the opening of China's economy and, in fact, many are predicting reforms this year to loosen the grip of state-owned enterprises. But unlike Hu, he rarely speaks about rule of law.

Tighter controls were in evidence June 4, a sensitive day marking the anniversary of the crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators at Tiananmen Square in 1989. To much ridicule, censors deleted all references to the anniversary on the Chinese Internet — including a doctored photograph of yellow rubber ducks marching like tanks toward the square. Hong Kong journalists were detained briefly and prevented from filming the daily ceremony for the raising of the Chinese flag.

Authorities made sure no commemorations took place, rounding up activists and putting others under house arrest.

Boy, that sounds familiar. No doubt Xi's even getting a few pointers from President Dronekiller.

Original Footage of Allied D-Day Invasion of Nazi-Occupied France, June 6th, 1944

This is amazing.

At at about 3:35 footage shows soldiers falling as troops hit the beach in Normandy, and toward the end of the clip there's excellent aerial footage of Allied planes taking out enemy aircraft and Nazi ordnance depots going up.

Fascinating.

Rush Limbaugh: 'We Are in the Midst of a Coup Taking Place...'

Wow, that's dramatic.

At WND, "Limbaugh: 'We are in the midst of a coup'."

Obama Caves to 'Murky' Demands of Presidential Power

Well, it's not like it was hard or anything.

O' just loves him some presidential power. What better way to leverage his Marxist-Gramscian program?

At Telegraph UK, "Not superhuman Barack Obama, just a very naughty boy":

The American leader’s snooping shows he has given in to the murky demands of presidential power

Via Instapundit.

Tech Companies, Bristling, Concede to Federal Surveillance Program

Well, they're denying any "concessions," actually.

But see NYT, "Tech Companies Concede to Surveillance Program":

SAN FRANCISCO — When government officials came to Silicon Valley to demand easier ways for the world’s largest Internet companies to turn over user data as part of a secret surveillance program, the companies bristled. In the end, though, many cooperated at least a bit.

Twitter declined to make it easier for the government. But other companies were more compliant, according to people briefed on the negotiations. They opened discussions with national security officials about developing technical methods to more efficiently and securely share the personal data of foreign users in response to lawful government requests. And in some cases, they changed their computer systems to do so.

The negotiations shed a light on how Internet companies, increasingly at the center of people’s personal lives, interact with the spy agencies that look to their vast trove of information — e-mails, videos, online chats, photos and search queries — for intelligence. They illustrate how intricately the government and tech companies work together, and the depth of their behind-the-scenes transactions.

Two cheers for Twitter, jeez. At least somebody's standing up for consumer privacy.

More:

The companies that negotiated with the government include Google, which owns YouTube; Microsoft, which owns Hotmail and Skype; Yahoo; Facebook; AOL; Apple; and Paltalk, according to one of the people briefed on the discussions. The companies were legally required to share the data under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. People briefed on the discussions spoke on the condition of anonymity because they are prohibited by law from discussing the content of FISA requests or even acknowledging their existence.

Continue reading.

In any case, here's Mark Zuckerberg, "I want to respond personally to the outrageous press reports about PRISM..." And from Larry Page and David Drummond, at Google, "What the ...?"

Interesting. They're all crying about more "transparency." Right. Like they're transparent themselves in consumer data mining. You get what you give.

I'll have more on this...

Amanda Bynes Gets Offer From Playboy Magazine

Well, it was for a radio gig.

But still. Look at the way that girl is dressing these days.

At ONTD, "This is an Amanda Bynes Post."

Long hair don't caretwitpic.com/cnhlbk
— Amanda Bynes (@AmandaBynes) May 2, 2013

'Night Stalker' Richard Ramirez Held Southern California Captive

The headline is no exaggeration.

At LAT, "'Night Stalker' held Southern California captive in 1985."

And a video at CNN, "'Night Stalker' serial killer dies at age 53."

The Perp-Whisperer: Inspirational Speaker Dyana Valentine Sends Love to Mass Murderer in Santa Monica Shooting Rampage

Unreal exchange on Twitter this afternoon.

It's Dyana Valentine, who calls herself an "oracle," a "Finder and Creator of SuperConditions for Greatness."

Well, I guess this mass murderer was just another "great guy."

.@dyanavalentine Love to the shooter? How about to law enforcement trying to keep people safe? Jeez... #SantaMonicaCollege
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 7, 2013

.@dyanavalentine Wondering though, for you, there's no difference between the shooter and his victims? They're equivalent and love-needing?
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 7, 2013

Some of the responses:

@dyanavalentine @ampowerblog LOVE TO THE SHOOTER? Are you serious? Lady wake the fuck up!

— Jesse Moody (@TheJesseMoody) June 7, 2013

.@dyanavalentine @ampowerblog How about Hitler, does he get love? Mao? Lenin? Pol Pot? Satan? #insane

— Dan Donaldson (@_donaldson) June 7, 2013

@dyanavalentine @ampowerblogmaybe you wouldn't be sending love if shooter blew your stupid head off, eh?

— NedL (@NCL387) June 8, 2013

@dyanavalentine @ampowerblog So you have the discrimination of a mosquito and the depth of a puppy. So evolved! I bet you hate this, lover!

— Jon A. Hartz, Sr. (@JonAHartzSr) June 8, 2013

Alan Dershowitz: 'We're hearing lot of lies about what's going on – a lot of lies...'

Dershowitz calls Glenn Greenwald a liar, via Legal Insurrection and Memeorandum:

Al Nusra Front Raises Al Qaeda's Black Flag in Aleppo

At Weasel Zippers, "Al Nusra Front Takes Syrian Rebel Flag Down, Raises Al Qaeda’s Black Flag In Aleppo…"

Hey Let's Keep Giving Them Aid -->Al Nusra Front Takes Syrian Rebel Flag Down, Raises Al Qaeda’s Black Flag... shar.es/wz7Do

— I Yam What I Yam (@Nvr4Get91101) June 7, 2013

Shooting at Santa Monica Community College

Man, these shootings keep coming closer to home.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Three wounded during shooting in Santa Monica."

Also at KABC-TV Los Angeles, "Santa Monica College on lockdown after alleged shooting":

President Barack Obama was en route to Santa Monica to attend a Democratic National Committee fundraising event. The Secret Service has also been notified...

Developing...

More:

Secret Service says Santa Monica College shooting not impacting President @barackobama's visit nearby bit.ly/13imBHO
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 7, 2013

.@rsmccain Breaking here: is.gd/0xqfYx The fundraising must go on!
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) June 7, 2013

BREAKING PHOTO:SWAT on scene near Santa Monica College campus after reported shooting - @the_corsair twitter.com/NewsBreaker/st… MT @newsbreaker
— ColorMeRed (@ColorMeRed) June 7, 2013

PHOTO: Officers in gear heading to Santa Monica College twitter.com/ABC7/status/34…
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 7, 2013

I'm sure Santa Monica shooter is a straight, conservative, Christian NRA, TP, Vet. Must be a transplant, though. Aren't they barred in Ca?
— Jo Anne moretti (@JoAnneMoretti) June 7, 2013

PHOTO: Students on lockdown at Santa Monica College (via @aizoz) twitter.com/ABC7/status/34…
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 7, 2013

Vine videos here:

Multiple People Shot At Santa Monica College buzzfeed.com/jtes/multiple-…
— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) June 7, 2013

Alleged gunman in #SantaMonicaCollege shooting set fire to nearby home, carjacked vehicles, law enforcement sources say....
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) June 7, 2013

7 dead -- including gunman -- in rampage that ended at Santa Monica College: lat.ms/19QnP2j Another person in custody.
— LA Times City Beat (@LATimescitybeat) June 8, 2013

#SMC UPDATE: 2 dead at Yorkshire1 dead Cloverfield/Pico2 dead 19th/Pearl1 died at UCLA1 suspect killed1 person of interest in custody
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 7, 2013

#SMC UPDATE: --4 VICTIMS DEAD (down from 6 victims the SMPD original reported) --POLICE: GUNMAN ACTED ALONE --SEVERAL WOUNDED, 1 CRITICAL

— L.A. Times: L.A. Now (@LANow) June 8, 2013

Yep, 'Clean as a whistle...'

Oh my goodness what a meltdown!

Via National Review, "Chris Matthews Swoons: Obama Has ‘Never Done Anything Wrong in His Life’."

Kate Upton On Set of 'The Other Woman' in West Hampton

Well, she's still got a lot of shelf life.

At Egotastic!, "Kate Upton Bouncing Flouncing Boobtastic on Film Set!"

'Obama's on TV Again, Lying...'

From the Other McCain, "Obama Keeps Lying; Reporters Don’t Care":

Frankly, I don’t know which pisses me off more: Obama’s shameless dishonesty or the White House press corps’ evident indifference to truth. The Obama presidency has been one big lie all along, and by now there is not an honest or intelligent person who believes a word he says, and you might think that White House reporters would be so thoroughly fed up with his reeking bullshit, they would call him on it.

Continue reading.

IMAGE CREDIT: Desiree Paquette.

'The scope of these surveillance programs is amazing...'

That's Wolf Blitzer's opening comment during this panel segment:

For me, just watching Obama squirm is more than worth it. More at the New York Times, "Obama Calls Surveillance Programs Legal and Limited." (At Memeorandum.)

Body Paint Behind the Scenes

Well, the SI Swimsuit edition popped up just now on my recommended Twitter follows, so here you go:

More here: "Anne V Body Paint - 2013 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Video."

Some Kate Upton Amid the Chaos!

Via Twitter:

'Folks Are Sweating Back There Right Now...'

I was watching this.

From Katie Pavlich, at Townhall, "Friday Fun: Obama Calls Staffers 'People' After They Forget His Speech, Staffer Trips."

Chaos in the Federal Government

I love this angle, from O'Reilly's talking points memo last night:

EDL Leader Tommy Robinson Makes American Debut on the O'Reilly Factor

At Blazing Cat Fur.

Also, "'Stop being weak': EDL leader Tommy Robinson in vicious war of words with Gutless Tony Blair."