The Next Breeding Ground for Global Jihad

From Reuel Marc Gerecht, at WSJ (via Google):

When President Obama declared that Syrian dictator Bashar Assad must "step aside" two years ago, many believed that it was only a matter of time before the U.S. intervened on behalf of the rebels battling the regime. Now that seems increasingly out of the question. The growing power of hard-core Islamic radicals among the rebels has made the White House, and many in Congress, look upon the Syrian opposition with little enthusiasm. Instead, Washington focuses on the charade of trying to relieve Assad of his chemical weapons, as if that will have any effect on the civil war.

America ignores the rebels at its peril. Yet on the left and right, anti-interventionists argue against American airstrikes, or any serious military aid, because such assistance would abet al Qaeda-linked jihadists. Perhaps what these anti-interventionists don't realize is that the president and Congress may have already done their part to create the most deadly Islamic movement since the Taliban merged with al Qaeda in the 1990s.

Social order in the Muslim world depends, as it so often does elsewhere, on older men keeping younger men in check. In Afghanistan in the 1990s, the Taliban's medieval mores—a zealously crude form of village Pashtun ethics—gained the high ground because older men and their moderating social structures had been obliterated over three decades by Afghan communists, Soviets and civil war.

Urban culture—the core of Islamic civilization—was wiped out. The elites of the country's primary ethnic groups, who had been based in the bustling, literate, Persian-speaking culture of Kabul, went into exile or became brutal warriors. Heartless men bred by battle embraced Osama bin Laden, a Saudi-born Sunni militant. Bin Laden's vision of jihad against the United States easily melded into the Taliban's localized jihad against Ahmad Shah Masoud, the Sunni Tajik commander who formed the Northern Alliance and kept the Taliban from conquering all of Afghanistan.

To be sure, Syrian Sunni culture is vastly more cosmopolitan and urbanized than Afghan Sunni culture. Syria is where Arab Bedouins first became polished men of arts and letters and transformed Byzantine architecture into a Muslim motif that defined Islamic elegance for centuries. But the shocking satellite photos of a constantly bombarded Aleppo, the center of Sunni Syria since the 10th century, ought to warn us how quickly society can be transformed—no matter how sophisticated.

Though Arab Syrian nationalism is more solid now than when it was born 90 years ago, it isn't nearly as deep as Syrians' Muslim identity. And in times of tumult in the Middle East, Islam—and the ancient divide between Sunnis and Shiites—comes to the fore. Shatter Syria into fragments, and radical Islamists who appeal to a higher calling, just as they did in Afghanistan, are guaranteed to attract young men who yearn for a mission beyond their destroyed towns and villages. There may be as many as 1,000 Sunni rebel groups scattered across Syria, stocked with such fighters.

The Taliban played on tribal sentiments while always appealing to a post-tribal, Muslim conception of state. The Islamist fighters in Syria appear to be following the Taliban's playbook. Loyalty among these men isn't ultimately based on family, tribe, town or even country, but on the supremely fraternal act of holy war.

We don't know what the recuperative power is for Sunni Syrian society. We do know that whatever the power is now, it will be much reduced in six months. If Assad's manpower reserves can hold out for another year and a half or two years, Syrian Sunni society could be beyond help.

In such a Hobbesian world, radical Sunni groups that promise "stability"—of security, home and private property—could win over a popular base that would be very difficult to dislodge. This was how the Taliban were initially welcomed into Pashtun towns that were shellshocked by war...

Continue reading at the top click-through.

eMarketer Report: Americans Spend More Time on Smartphones, Computers, Tablets Than Television

This is interesting.

At WSJ, "In Digital Era, What Does 'Watching TV' Even Mean? Study Suggests More Time Spent on Smartphones, Computers, Tablets Than Television":

We spend a full five hours and 16 minutes a day in front of a screen, and that's without even turning on a television.

So says a statistic from eMarketer, a research firm that focuses on digital media and marketing. It says that for the first time we are devoting more attention each day to smartphones, computers and tablets. All of which points to a big question: What counts as TV-watching today?

We are actually watching more television programming, just from a growing range of devices and platforms, say digital and television executives, as well as academics and statisticians. Traditional TV or cable-network fare is now available online, via streaming services like Netflix or for sale to be watched on mobile phones and tablets.

The report says that adults are watching their televisions slightly less—with a daily intake of four hours and 31 minutes this year, seven minutes less than in 2012.

The increase in mobile devices and the multitasking they allow, plus the trend toward watching TV shows on devices other than televisions, is driving the changes measured in the report, says Clark Fredricksen, a spokesman for eMarketer. The study, which came out in August, is conducted twice annually.

The company says its numbers reflect raw data and studies of consumer media behavior from sources such as companies that measure TV ratings and online traffic, social networking platforms, gadget retailers, software manufacturers and government records.

Although Americans are gravitating toward digital platforms and social networks, "in many cases, what's popular comes from the large entertainment companies," says James Webster, a professor who studies audience measurement and behavior at Northwestern University. He points to a recent video that looks homemade and shows a woman failing badly at the twerking dance move.

After the video exploded on YouTube—it has been viewed more than 13 million times—ABC late night host Jimmy Kimmel announced that his team had produced the short.

Continue reading.

CBS News Issues Devastating Report on #ObamaCare Failure: System Needs 'Heart Transplant'

Jan Crawford reported this morning.

Twitchy has it linked up, "The system worked? Check out the Obamacare website’s ridiculous definition of ‘success’ [pics]."

Database programmer on Obamacare website: "It's not even ready for beta testing for my book." http://t.co/DJU5NakhQC

— Eddie Scarry (@eScarry) October 9, 2013

And here's the video:

The Guardian's Gift to Terrorists

And Glenn Greenwald's gift to terrorists, the f-king traitor.

At London's Daily Mail, "'The Guardian has handed a gift to terrorists', warns MI5 chief: Left-wing paper's Edward Snowden leaks caused 'greatest damage to western security in history' say Whitehall insiders":

A massive cache of stolen top-secret documents published in The Guardian has handed a ‘gift’ to terrorists, the head of MI5 warned last night.

In a blistering attack, Andrew Parker said the publication of confidential files leaked by US fugitive Edward Snowden had caused huge ‘harm’ to the capability of Britain’s intelligence services. Security officials say the exposé amounts to a ‘guide book’, advising terrorists on the best way to avoid detection when plotting an atrocity.

In Whitehall, it is considered to have caused the greatest damage to the Western security apparatus in history. In his first public speech since taking the job earlier this year, Mr Parker said the leaks handed the ‘advantage’ to terrorists and were a ‘gift they need to evade us and strike at will’.

He said there were several thousand Islamist extremists living in the UK who ‘see the British people as a legitimate target’.

The security services were working round the clock to stop the fanatics, but MI5 was now ‘tackling threats on more fronts than ever before’....

Mr Parker said: ‘What we know about the terrorists, and the detail of the capabilities we use against them, together represent our margin of advantage. That margin gives us the prospect of being able to detect their plots and stop them.

‘But that margin is under attack. Reporting from GCHQ is vital to the safety of this country and its citizens.

‘GCHQ intelligence has played a vital role in stopping many of the terrorist plots that MI5 and the police have tackled in the past decade.

‘It causes enormous damage to make public the reach and limits of GCHQ techniques. Such information hands the advantage to the terrorists.

'It is the gift they need to evade us and strike at will. Unfashionable as it might seem, that is why we must keep secrets secret, and why not doing so causes such harm.’

Obama Denies Death and Burial Benefits to Families of 4 Dead Soldiers

Clearly Obama relishes extracting pain from everyday citizens.

Absolutely outrageous.

At the New York Times:

You have to shake your head at the Obama death benefit snit. Beyond the gross immorality of it, it's just plain stupid. #caring

— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) October 9, 2013

Pentagon military and civilian personnel have largely escaped furloughs through legislation signed by President Obama and on orders from the defense secretary. But the death benefits — at least for the families of military personnel killed since Oct. 1, when the government shut down — are not covered by either move.

Last week, Congress quickly passed the Pay Our Military Act to ensure that active-duty soldiers and civilian support staff members were paid for their work. Over the weekend, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the Pentagon concluded that most of its 400,000 civilian employees were covered by the bill.

Some House Republicans have suggested, without citing specific language in the bill, that it also covered death benefits. “The intent of Congress was to permit D.O.D. to honor all payment and allowances to service members,” Representative Duncan Hunter, Republican of California, said in a letter to Mr. Hagel.

“The department’s decision to not make these payments is a matter of choice,” he added. “And until a correction is made to the law, it is up to you to make the appropriate judgment based on a more correct interpretation.”

The House Appropriations Committee is moving to get a bill to the floor to reinstate the benefits as early as Wednesday.

“Frankly, I think it’s disgraceful that they’re withholding these benefits,” Speaker John A. Boehner said in a brief news conference Tuesday afternoon. “But again tomorrow, the House is going to act specifically on this and I hope the president will sign it.”

#ObamaCare on #SNL

I don't watch SNL that much, for obvious reasons. But I thought they did a pretty good job mocking the Abominable Care Act last weekend, and picked up by CNN yesterday:



More at WSJ, "Software, Design Defects Cripple Health-Care Website: Government Acknowledges It Needs to Fix Design and Software Problems."

Janis Joplin, Sensational

From Kayla Yandoli, at BuzzFeed, "17 Sensational Live Performances By Janis Joplin."

Elizabeth Smart Shares Kidnapping Story '100 Percent' in New Book

At LAT, "Elizabeth Smart tells her story in new memoir."



Also at London's Daily Mail, "'He used me to act out his sick Adam and Eve fantasies': Elizabeth Smart reveals her full horror of being her captor's sex toy and slave in bombshell memoir."

'Clock is Ticking' — China Warns U.S. Over Budget Showdown

And like it's going to do any good.

At the Independent UK, "Get your fiscal house in order: China warns US as superpower expresses concern for $1.3tn of investments":

China, the biggest foreign creditor of the United States, has waded into the American budget crisis, warning Congress that it must resolve the political impasse over the debt ceiling without further delay.

The Chinese Vice Foreign Minister, Zhu Guangyao, told America’s deadlocked politicians on Monday that “the clock is ticking” and called on them to approve an extension of the national borrowing limit before the federal government is projected to run out of cash on 17 October.

“We ask that the United States earnestly takes steps to resolve in a timely way the political issues around the debt ceiling and prevent a US debt default to ensure the safety of Chinese investments in the United States,” Mr Zhu told reporters in Beijing. “This is the United States’ responsibility,” he added.

The American government entered its seventh day of shutdown on Monday, following the failure of Congress to approve the national budget a week ago. And there was little sign of progress on the still more crucial issue of the fast-approaching “debt ceiling” deadline.

Continue reading.

Johnny Carson's Second Wife Kept Secret Apartment with 'Shrine' to NFL Legend Frank Gifford

He broke into her apartment to get proof of her adultery and was devastated at what he found. He broke down in tears, according to his attorney in a new memoir.

See London's Daily Mail, "Johnny Carson confirmed his second wife's affair after he broke into her secret Manhattan apartment to discover a 'shrine' to NFL legend Frank Gifford says his one-time attorney and confidant":

The one-time lawyer and closest confidant of legendary 'Tonight Show' host Johnny Carson has revealed the moment the notoriously mercurial star broke down in tears when he discovered his wife was allegedly cheating on him.

Having been roped into breaking and entering the secret Manhattan apartment of Joanne Copeland, Carson's second wife, attorney Henry Bushkin and the entertainer discovered a virtual shrine of photographs to pro-footballer Frank Gifford - confirming Carson's greatest fears.

As Carson began to weep, Bushkin, who was aged only 27 during the clandestine 1970 raid recalls that the multi-millionaire television host's raincoat had fallen open to reveal a .38 revolver in a holster on his hip...

RTWT.

Daniel Mitchell on the Debt Ceiling

He's a good man.



Also at the New York Times, "Senate Leaders Mull Raising Debt Ceiling in Challenge to House."

Texas Teacher Cristy Nicole Deweese Outed as Playboy 'Coed of the Month'

Well, it was awhile back. No worries, right?

Actually not.

At London's Daily Mail, "Parents' outrage after high school Spanish teacher, 21, revealed as Playboy model."

Government Shutdown Gives Skateboarders New Life in Washington

This reminds me of the infamous "Skateboarding is not a crime" stickers back in the 1980s, when cities passed all kinds of laws prohibiting skating in public.

At WSJ:

Skateboarders score in shutdown; With D.C. plazas empty, the banned sport is suddenly on http://t.co/HAJ73E0KHb
— Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 7, 2013

Mika Brzezinski: Ted Cruz Doesn't Love This Country

At Legal Insurrection, "Mika Brzezinski No. 1 on list of MSM losing it over gov’t scale-back."

And at Free Beacon, "Mika: Ted Cruz, Like-Minded Republicans Don’t Love America."

Senator Ted Cruz on 'The Kelly File'

At Fox News, "Megyn Kelly Asks Ted Cruz: What's It Like to Be the Most Hated Man in America?"

#PresidentStompyFoot

A total riot.

At Twitchy, "#PresidentStompyFoot: Obama’s shutdown snit fits inspire another ‘nails it’ hashtag."

Ah! A very accurate hashtag describing the shallow, narcissistic, petty, petulant child @BarackObama #PresidentStompyFoot

— prophet of doom (@QuisUtDeus7) October 5, 2013

A Tale of Two Mannings: 0-5 and 5-0

At USA Today, "Giants say Eli Manning is trying too hard to save team's season":

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Eli Manning has long been a fourth-quarter fortress of calm and clutch playmaking.

But not Sunday, not during a season that kept crumbling with Manning's three interceptions on consecutive drives against the type of pressure the two-time Super Bowl MVP has typically ignored in big games.

The quarterback nicknamed "Easy" has been pressing too hard to lift his wounded team, coach Tom Coughlin conceded after a crushing, 36-21 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles that buried the Giants' season.

For a while Sunday, Manning was the reason the Giants showed signs of life. He threw a pair of third-quarter touchdowns to receiver Rueben Randle. The second putting the Giants up 21-19 late in the quarter.

But then Manning and his team came unraveled. With the Giants winning two Super Bowl championships among the past six, neither players nor fans are used to failure on this scale: The Giants are 0-5 for the first time in a non-strike season since 1979.

Manning became the first quarterback since Daunte Culpepper in 2005 to throw 12 picks in first five games.

Also, "Tom Coughlin: Blame me, not Eli Manning, for 0-5 start."

And here's the other Manning. Boy, what a game, "Peyton, Broncos outduel Cowboys thanks to Romo INT."

Obama Loves Him Some Terrorist Rendition

Well, it's not "extraordinary rendition," but it's still rendition, and Uncle Barry campaigned against it.

But he's embraced it now, the hypocritical asshole.

At WaPo, "Al-Qaeda suspect’s capture represents rare ‘rendition’ by U.S. military":

The capture of an alleged al-Qaeda operative outside his home by Special Operations forces in Tripoli on Saturday and his secret removal from Libya was a rare instance of U.S. military involvement in “rendition,” the practice of grabbing terrorism suspects to face trial without an extradition proceeding and long the province of the CIA or the FBI.

U.S. officials hailed the capture of Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, who was wanted in connection with the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, as an intelligence coup that will disrupt efforts by al-Qaeda to strengthen its franchise in North Africa.

Keep reading.

And at WSJ, "Americans at War in Africa":

Al-Libi ought to be an intelligence gold mine if the Obama Administration is willing to extract it. U.S. officials are saying he is likely to be tried eventually in U.S. criminal court. But for now he is probably on a U.S. Navy vessel, where he can be interrogated safe from American civilian due process.

Al-Libi ought to be brought to Guantanamo as an illegal enemy combatant and tried by military commission. But it apparently offends the Obama Administration's political sensibilities less to keep captured killers on board a ship for weeks instead. That's also how the Administration dealt with Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame, a Somali member of al Qaeda who was captured in April 2011 and kept incommunicado at sea for some two months. Secret prison, anyone?

The benefit of capturing such men, as opposed to firing a missile from a drone, is to gain intelligence to stop future attacks. The Obama Administration has captured very few al Qaeda operatives and as a result we know less than we should about the ways that al Qaeda is decentralizing and expanding in Africa. Let's hope it doesn't offer al-Libi a Miranda warning.

The benefit of capturing such men, as opposed to firing a missile from a drone, is to gain intelligence to stop future attacks. The Obama Administration has captured very few al Qaeda operatives and as a result we know less than we should about the ways that al Qaeda is decentralizing and expanding in Africa. Let's hope it doesn't offer al-Libi a Miranda warning.

Yeah, well, let's hope not. We've still got idiot Eric Holder pulling a lot of strings in the Oval Office, the goddamned traitor.

Sen. Tom Coburn: U.S. Won't Default on Debt Ceiling Impasse

At Memeorandum, "Tom Coburn: No default if ceiling stays."



Also at WaPo, "Rand Paul: It’s ‘irresponsible’ of Obama to talk about default."

Shutdown Stalemate Week Two

At WSJ, "Boehner Ties Deal to Talks on Debt: Speaker Won't Propose End to Standoff Unless Democrats Agree to Broader Deficit Negotiations":

WASHINGTON—The government shutdown enters its second week with the two parties still bitterly divided and Republicans increasingly tying the fight to a fast-approaching deadline to avoid a default on U.S. debt.

House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) said Sunday he wouldn't bring up bills to fully reopen the government or increase the country's borrowing limit unless Democrats agree to broader talks aimed at trimming the deficit. The speaker insisted he couldn't muster enough votes to pass either one without the concessions.

"The votes are not in the House to pass a clean debt limit, and the president is risking default by not having a conversation with us," Mr. Boehner told ABC in his first interview since the shutdown began. "I'm not going to raise the debt limit without a serious conversation about dealing with problems that are driving the debt up."

The fight to this point has centered on Republican demands to delay or dismantle parts of the 2010 health-care law in exchange for funding the government. Now, by pairing the standoffs over funding the government and raising the debt ceiling, the speaker is trying to force President Barack Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) to agree to GOP priorities on deficits and federal spending in return for movement on both. The two Democrats have repeatedly rejected GOP attempts to use the mid-October deadline to increase the debt limit as a bargaining chip.

White House officials responded to Mr. Boehner's comments in a series of Twitter messages. Deputy press secretary Josh Earnest said Republicans "don't have to give up anything. Just pay nation's bills on time, no strings attached." Mr. Reid challenged Mr. Boehner's view that he lacks the votes to pass a government-funding bill without Republican priorities.

"I think he does," Mr. Reid said via Twitter. "Let the House vote, and we'll find out."

Mr. Boehner faces two challenges from inside his party. Centrist Republicans, eager to fully reopen the government and avoid a default, have already reached across the aisle to explore possible solutions, while conservatives are threatening to turn their back on the speaker if a broader deficit-reduction deal doesn't include changes or delays to the new health-care law.

The tough talk from Mr. Boehner is as much about preserving his leverage with Democrats as it is about keeping Republicans unified. A group of House Republicans—members say there are 15 or more—have expressed frustration with the shutdown and urged party leaders to put the episode behind them. But the bloc has bypassed opportunities to vote against Mr. Boehner, raising questions about whether it would break with party leaders.

Continue reading.

Astonishing Visual Record of the Ku Klux Klan

Bizarre.

At London's Daily Mail, "Under the hood: Astonishing glimpse into secretive rituals and mundane home life of Ku Klux Klan members in the 21st Century."

Annie Lennox Slams 'Overtly Sexualized' Women's Pop 'Pornography'

From Annie Lennox, on Facebook:

I have to say that I'm disturbed and dismayed by the recent spate of overtly sexualised performances and videos. You know the ones I'm talking about. It seems obvious that certain record companies are peddling highly styled pornography with musical accompaniment. As if the tidal wave of sexualised imagery wasn't already bombarding impressionable young girls enough..I believe in freedom of speech and expression, but the market forces don't give a toss about the notion of boundaries. As long as there's booty to make money out of, it will be bought and sold. It's depressing to see how these performers are so eager to push this new level of low.Their assumption seems to be that misogyny- utilised and displayed through oneself is totally fine, as long as you are the one creating it. As if it's all justified by how many millions of dollars and U tube hits you get from behaving like pimp and prostitute at the same time. It's a glorified and monetized form of self harm.

She's especially talking about Miley Cyrus and Rihanna, apparently.

More at London's Daily Mail, "Annie Lennox takes aim at Miley Cyrus and Rihanna as she launches attack over 'pornographic' music videos."

As I was saying earlier, I watched Miley on SNL last night and thought it wasn't too bad. However, I've never watched the "Wrecking Ball" video until just now, which is pretty much all gratuitous nudity.

Meh. I'd much prefer to see Katy Perry nude on a wrecking ball like that, lol.

Sunday Cartoons

At Flopping Aces, "Sunday Funnies."



Also at Randy's Roundtable, "Friday Nite Funnies," and Reaganite Republican, "Reaganite's SUNDAY FUNNIES."

Cartoon Credit: Nate Beeler.

Judge Jeanine Pirro Worried About America's Social Breakdown and Lawlessness

Yet again a must-watch segment from Judge Jeanine.

She concludes: "Now I'm a tough New Yorker, but even I'm worried. And if I'm worried, you should be worried."

Miley Cyrus on #SNL

I watched it.

She was pretty good.

And like I always say, she and her handlers are marketing geniuses. It's working out for her way past the obligatory 15 minutes.

At LAT, "Miley Cyrus can't stop on 'SNL'."

And at Twitchy, "SNL viewers agree: Miley Cyrus should keep the hot Michele Bachmann look."

The Boehner/Bachmann spoof is here, "SNL Miley Cyrus Parody - "We Did Stop (The Government)" ft. John Boehner and Michele Bachmann."

#SpiteHouse

OMG this is delectable!

At Twitchy, "#SpiteHouse: President Stompy Foot sparks new name for White House [Photoshops]."

'Welcome to Ted Cruz's Thunderdome'

Ben Shapiro takes down MoDo, at Big Journalism.

And here's the senator on CNN this morning:



More here, "Cruz: Obamacare is hurting millions."

Speaker John Boehner on 'This Week with George Stephanopoulos'

At ABC News, "‘This Week’ Transcript: House Speaker John Boehner." (Via Memeorandum.)



Also from the Speaker's Office, "Boehner on ABC This Week: Democrats’ Refusal to Negotiate Putting Our Country At Risk."

Pasadena's Cliff's Bookstore Closes: Was One of the Many That Once Lined East Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena

These are changing times.

I'm always a little surprised to see independent book sellers these days. I'd never been to Cliff's, although I've made trips to Vroman's Books right there on Colorado Blvd.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Pasadena's Cliff's Books closes up shop":

Bookstores thrived in the Playhouse district in the late 1990s. Vroman's, Super Crown, Borders, Barnes & Noble and four used book stores all made their home along a few blocks of Colorado. Today, only Vroman's, Barnes & Noble and one used book store remain.

Not only is it a tough market for booksellers, the Playhouse district has gentrified in the last decade, making it harder for quirky stores like Cliff's to compete with increasing numbers of big box stores. "Mom and pop stores are going out; you got franchise businesses coming in," said Don Cotten, manager at Angels School Supply, just a couple of doors down from Cliff's.

To Fix Education, Look to the Past

From Joanne Lipman, at WSJ, "Why Tough Teachers Get Good Results":

I had a teacher once who called his students "idiots" when they screwed up. He was our orchestra conductor, a fierce Ukrainian immigrant named Jerry Kupchynsky, and when someone played out of tune, he would stop the entire group to yell, "Who eez deaf in first violins!?" He made us rehearse until our fingers almost bled. He corrected our wayward hands and arms by poking at us with a pencil.

Today, he'd be fired. But when he died a few years ago, he was celebrated: Forty years' worth of former students and colleagues flew back to my New Jersey hometown from every corner of the country, old instruments in tow, to play a concert in his memory. I was among them, toting my long-neglected viola. When the curtain rose on our concert that day, we had formed a symphony orchestra the size of the New York Philharmonic.

I was stunned by the outpouring for the gruff old teacher we knew as Mr. K. But I was equally struck by the success of his former students. Some were musicians, but most had distinguished themselves in other fields, like law, academia and medicine. Research tells us that there is a positive correlation between music education and academic achievement. But that alone didn't explain the belated surge of gratitude for a teacher who basically tortured us through adolescence.

We're in the midst of a national wave of self-recrimination over the U.S. education system. Every day there is hand-wringing over our students falling behind the rest of the world. Fifteen-year-olds in the U.S. trail students in 12 other nations in science and 17 in math, bested by their counterparts not just in Asia but in Finland, Estonia and the Netherlands, too. An entire industry of books and consultants has grown up that capitalizes on our collective fear that American education is inadequate and asks what American educators are doing wrong.

I would ask a different question. What did Mr. K do right? What can we learn from a teacher whose methods fly in the face of everything we think we know about education today, but who was undeniably effective?

Continue reading.

I was born too late.

And sadly, I won't be able to retire too soon. I'm cracking up at some of my colleagues at work who are just now noticing how horribly they've been affected by ever-encroaching leftism and political correctness.

Diana West: "The Rebuttal: Defending 'American Betrayal' from the Book-Burners"

Diana's publishing her response to the attacks from the David Horowtiz/Ronald Radosh cabal, and I'm happy to announce that she's been gracious enough to include one of my essays in her compilation.

At Diana's blog, "FLASH: Now Available! The Rebuttal: Defending American Betrayal from the Book-Burners."

Click to RTWT at the link, although here's the list of patriots she's included:

I have published both my rebuttal, which originally appeared in three parts at Breitbart News, and a selection of these essays written in my behalf in a new book, The Rebuttal: Defending American Betrayal from the Book-Burners. Authors include Andrew Bostom, Vladimir Bukovsky, Donald Douglas, Edward Cline, M. Stanton Evans, Ruth King, Clare M. Lopez, Ned May, R.S. McCain, Takuan Seiyo, Cindy Simpson, David Solway, John L. Work and more.

And check Amazon, "The Rebuttal: Defending 'American Betrayal' from the Book-Burners."

(In Kindle here.)

And ICYMI, see the astonishing essay right now, "BUKOVSKY & STROILOV ON AMERICAN BETRAYAL."

In Georgia, Urging Republicans to Stand Strong

At NYT, "Conservative Georgia District Urges G.O.P. to Keep Up the Fight":

FORT OGLETHORPE, Ga. — Just down the road from where Union troops suffered their worst defeat of the Civil War, Jeff Epperson sang the praises of his congressman, Representative Tom Graves, whose Defund Obamacare Act set the table for the partial government shutdown.

Even though business has been slow at Mr. Epperson’s sword and knife shop since tourists stopped visiting the historic Chickamauga battlefield, which closed on Tuesday because of the furlough of federal workers in the shutdown, he said the only thing that would weaken his support for Mr. Graves would be if the congressman caved in now. In that case, he might vote for a more conservative choice in the next Republican primary.

“If he backs off, then I would say absolutely I’d be inclined to look for someone else,” said Mr. Epperson, whose store flew a Don’t Tread on Me flag.

The Republican insistence in the House on tying financing of the federal government to dismantling the Affordable Care Act is being driven by a deeply conservative caucus from places like Mr. Graves’s 14th Congressional District, newly created by Georgia’s Republican-controlled Legislature.

Even as Republican elders warn that the party is risking a voter backlash that could cost it in future elections, interviews here indicate that hard-liners like Mr. Graves have more to fear, if they waver, from a potential challenger to their right.

Mr. Graves, 43, won 73 percent of the vote in November in a district that is 85 percent white and has a 16.6 percent college graduation rate. A journey through the district, which stretches from the exurbs of Atlanta to the northwest mountains on the Tennessee border, found many voters who, even if they were unfamiliar with Mr. Graves’s biography, strongly supported him.

“He represents the people,” said Tim Ferguson, a forklift operator who was waiting for a haircut at Paul’s Barber Shop in Calhoun. “He’s not going to commit political suicide by backing down.”

Voters here viewed the Washington stalemate just as Mr. Graves and many of his party members in Congress portray it: a tale of Republicans who have repeatedly shown a willingness to compromise, while Democrats petulantly refuse to meet halfway.

“Obama should not be so dogmatic,” said Julia Welch, 82, who runs an antiques store in Dallas, the seat of Paulding County. “He wants his way and no other.”

Jon Tripcony, a surveyor in Dallas, recalled a photograph of Republican leaders in shirt sleeves facing empty seats across a table. The photo, which Mr. Graves posted on Twitter, was staged to dramatize Republicans’ call for Democrats to discuss a budget passed by the House. It may have been dismissed as a publicity stunt by much of the news media, which noted that House Republicans repeatedly refused to join a conference on a budget the Senate passed earlier. But in northwest Georgia it was taken at face value.

“There was not one single Democrat,” Mr. Tripcony said. “They’re just spoiled little kids. I don’t get it.”

Mr. Ferguson, 48, said House conservatives should not shrink from the next fiscal deadline, raising the debt ceiling, even if it means defaulting on government bonds, a prospect that economists overwhelmingly say would bring down catastrophe.

“If it has to happen for the American people to get what’s best, defunding Obamacare, so be it,” Mr. Ferguson said. “Our credit rating’s going to go down, but it went down before. Did the apocalypse come?”

The number of hard-line House conservatives is estimated from two dozen to as many as the 80 who signed a letter to Speaker John A. Boehner demanding that he tie financing the government to defunding the Affordable Care Act, which he had initially ruled out. Their politics are shaped less by the national picture for Republicans, who have lost five of the last six popular votes for president, than by the demographics of districts like this one that were drawn by conservative legislatures after the 2010 census to ensure safe Republican seats.

That the president, who lost Mr. Graves’s district by 49 percentage points last November, is unpopular was no surprise. But the level of animosity from some was acute. He was compared to a tyrant preparing to end constitutional democracy, as in Germany in the 1930s. Peggy Newsome, 73, who was picking up bags of groceries at the Paulding County Helping Hands food bank, said, “Everything he’s put his hands on, he’s screwed up.”

Shoot, Ima move to Georgia. Damn, them thar's some conservative voters.

U.S. Navy SEALs Stage Raid on Shabab Militants in Somalia

Just in on Twitter:

#BREAKING: U.S. Navy SEALs raid al-Shabab leader's Somalia home in response to Nairobi attack: http://t.co/QCrUTAJaIl

— Washington Post (@washingtonpost) October 5, 2013

Also at NYT, "U.S. Says Navy SEALs Stage Raid on Somali Militants." (Via Memeorandum.)

'Gravity' — Between Earth and Heaven

A.O. Scott reviews "Gravity," at the New York Times:

“Life in space is impossible.” That stark statement of scientific fact is one of the first things to appear on screen in “Gravity,” but before long, it is contradicted, or at least complicated. As our eyes (from behind 3-D glasses) adjust to the vast darkness, illuminated by streaks of sunlight refracted through the Earth’s atmosphere, we detect movement that is recognizably human and hear familiar voices. Those tiny figures bouncing around on that floating contraption — it looks like a mobile suspended from a child’s bedroom ceiling — are people. Scientists. Astronauts. Movie stars. (Sandra Bullock and George Clooney in spacesuits, as Mission Specialist Ryan Stone and Mission Commander Matt Kowalski; Ed Harris, unseen and unnamed, as “Houston” down below).

The defiance of impossibility is this movie’s theme and its reason for being. But the main challenge facing the director, Alfonso Cuarón (who wrote the script with his son Jonás), is not visualizing the unimaginable so much as overcoming the audience’s assumption that we’ve seen it all before. After more than 50 years, space travel has lost some of its luster, and movies are partly to blame for our jadedness. It has been a long time since a filmmaker conjured the awe of “2001: A Space Odyssey” or the terror of “Alien” or captured afresh the spooky wonder of a trip outside our native atmosphere.

Continue reading.

Melissa Debling for Zoo Today

Here's the lovely lady on Twitter.

Also at Zoo Magazine.

Joseph Stalin's Comeback

Actually, I don't think he's "poised" for a comeback. Shoot, he's rehabilitated for all practical purposes. It's just a matter of the continued raising of the proletariat's "revolutionary consciousness." The Democrat Party class warfare agenda is doing that right here at home.

More on that later.

Meanwhile, at WSJ, "Statue of Limitations Runs Out for Keeping Stalin Off His Pedestal: Hometown to Resurrect Bronze of Dictator, Move It to Museum; Mugs, T-Shirts, Vodka":

GORI, Georgia—Under cover of darkness here three years ago, municipal workers tore down a giant statue of this ramshackle town's most famous son: Joseph Stalin.

The 20-foot-high bronze sculpture of the former Soviet dictator, which stood on a 30-foot pedestal in Gori's central square for six decades, was dumped face down in an abandoned airfield 13 miles away. Georgia's government said the statue would be "consigned to the dustbin of history" and permanently removed from public display.

Now, "Uncle Joe" is poised for a controversial comeback.

Local officials this summer won approval from a Tbilisi court to resurrect the bronze ode to the man of steel, after petitioning Georgia's new government, which favors healing ruptured ties with Russia. The decision will see the statue restored on the grounds of Gori's Stalin Museum in time for his birthday on Dec. 21. The move has rekindled a decadeslong debate about the legacy of a man whose name has become synonymous with institutionalized brutality and oppression.

Many people are horrified in Georgia, a former Soviet state turned U.S. ally that boasts one of the world's only avenues named after George W. Bush. President Mikhail Saakashvili said the decision was "an unimaginably barbaric anti-Georgian, anti-national, anti-state act," that would place Georgia "in international isolation." But the former dictator's resurrection has been welcomed by many other Georgians and cheered in his hometown, where the Stalinist cult of personality remains intact.

Continue reading.

"Uncle Joe's" cult of personality.

Kinda like "Uncle Barry's" cult of personality. Lots of people cheer this stuff, otherwise you'd never see a return to respectability of one of the 20th century's most brutal mass murderers.

Never say "it couldn't happen here." It's already happening with the Democrat Party's statist-totalitarian agenda.

Kenya Identifies Terrorists in #Westgate Massacre (VIDEO)

At BCF, "Nairobi terrorists named as police confirm 'White Widow' not among them."

And LAT, "Four gunmen named in attack on mall in Kenya."

Veterans Resist Closure of Memorials

At Maggie's Notebook, "Ongoing UPDATES – PHOTOS: Bikers Escort WW II Veterans – Moving Barricades: Facebook Shutdown State Biker Pages."

And Legal Insurrection, "Battle of the Barrycades – Vets storm Vietnam Memorial, U.S Park Police called in."

Heading to WWII Memorial. Word is the gate is wired shut. "We're going to tear that damn thing down!" H. Obland, vet pic.twitter.com/mIASWbrFA3

— Elias Johnson (@ejohnsonNEWS) October 5, 2013

Via Memeorandum.

Dee Gordon Was Safe at Second in #Dodgers' Game 2 Loss in #NLDS

I don't care, really. But I been yanking the chains of some Braves fans on Twitter. They insist Dee Gordon was out.

Actually, it could have gone either way.

See, "Dee Gordon stolen base attempt looms large in Dodgers' loss."

Got a lot of great GIFs out of it, in any case. See, "Dee Gordon called out on controversial stolen base attempt."

Plus, more Dodgers news at LAT, "Dodgers' Dee Gordon insists he was safe on stolen base attempt." And, "Splitting is a headache for the Dodgers."

We Want the Airwaves

Ramones.

Let's rock tonight, well alright...

Enjoy...

Is Baseball Still the National Pastime?

From the Letters to the Editor, at the New York Times:

To the Editor:

Jonathan Mahler, in “Is the Game Over?” (Sunday Review, Sept. 29), seems to confuse the status of Major League Baseball with the standing of the game of baseball in American society.

While he correctly observes that professional baseball is enjoying good times even as television ratings fall far behind professional and collegiate football and basketball, he doesn’t mention more important barometers of baseball’s continuing vitality and popularity among the American people.

These include the millions of boys and girls who join thousands of youth, scholastic, collegiate and American Legion baseball teams, along with the men and women who play baseball and softball in industrial and semiprofessional urban and rural leagues, and the continuing interest in the history and cultural meaning of baseball, as measured by the sale of baseball books, the popularity of baseball films like “The Natural” and “Field of Dreams,” and the public’s continuing fascination with the origins of the sport.

Major League Baseball may indeed rank a poor third to football and basketball in television ratings, but the game remains the national pastime because it resonates more deeply in the country’s soul than any other sport.

GEORGE B. KIRSCH
Hackensack, N.J., Sept. 29, 2013

The writer is the author of “Baseball and Cricket: The Creation of American Team Sports: 1838-72” and “Baseball in Blue and Gray: The National Pastime During the Civil War.”

More at the link.

Cal Worthington, 1920-2013

You know, I've been posting all these obituaries, but frankly I've felt guilty for not posting on Cal Worthington. I drive by his dealership nearly every day. And as kid I used to crack up at his "Go see Cal" television commercials. Who didn't?

At the Los Angeles Times, "Cal Worthington dies at 92; car dealer known for wacky 'dog Spot' ads'."

Strip Search After DUI Arrest?

Well, this is probably more shocking than NSA surveillance, although actually less invasive in the end.

At WJLA News 7 Washington D.C., "Dana Holmes sues Illinois police, alleges humiliating strip search."

'Your kids will meditate in school...'

I used to jokingly play this song back in the days when California was about to reelect Governor Jerry Brown to another term as the state's chief executive. But I don't think I've been seriously reminded of Moonbeam's supreme kookiness until yesterday, with his signing of the idiotic and disgusting bill allowing more than two parents to claim custody of children.

See the Los Angeles Times, "Brown signs bill to allow children more than two legal parents."

Megyn Kelly Returns to Fox News

She was on O'Reilly's on Thursday. Her new primetime debut is scheduled for next week.

A great lady.

Samantha Lewthwaite Spells Out Her Need to Murder Disbelievers and Incites Others

At Blazing Cat Fur, "The White Widow's 'Jihadi children'."

Sarah Michelle Gellar

She's returned to network television.

LEAKS REVEAL: Obama Preparing to Destroy the Separation of Powers

At Director Blue.

Mountain Lion P-22

A great story, at the Los Angeles Times, "Scientists track cougar's wild nightlife above Hollywood."

#Dodgers Lose Game 2 of #NLDS

At LAT, "Dodgers come up short, again and again, in 4-3 loss to Braves":

Say Hey! We have ourselves a series. http://t.co/VDl2a8Brjv #NLDS pic.twitter.com/uF2NDrU6Ch

— MLB (@MLB) October 5, 2013

One day after almost everything went right for the Dodgers, precious little did.

They received a strong outing from Zack Greinke and Hanley Ramirez had three extra-base hits, but otherwise little fell into place Friday in their 4-3 loss in Game 2 of their National League division series with the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field.

The Atlanta victory evened the best-of-five series at a game apiece. Game 3 is scheduled Sunday at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers could never come up with the big hit Friday, bouncing into three key double plays. And then there were the seven runners left on base and managerial decisions by Don Mattingly that largely seemed to backfire.

Greinke pitched well, but left trailing 2-1 after six innings.

The Braves wanted to turn this series into a battle of bullpens, and despite giving up a two-run homer to Ramirez in the eighth, their bullpen was the difference.

Here's an inning-by-inning recap of Game 2...

Continue reading.

Santa Ana Winds Warning

It was very windy today.

At one point, around 2:00pm, the 5 Freeway nearly came to a stop as leaves from roadside trees were shaken down onto the highway.

At LAT, "Santa Ana winds: Red flag warnings issued across Southland," and "Santa Ana winds batter Southern California; fire danger high."

Teen Predator Kaitlyn Hunt Accepts Plea Deal

From the Palm Beach Sun-Sentinel, "Kate Hunt accepts plea deal from state."

The Sun-Sentinel report continues the "innocent little Kate" propaganda.



And also at the Other McCain, "Thug Family Values: Kaitlyn Hunt Plea Deal Prompts Bitter Rant by Her Father."

Plus, "Kaitlyn Hunt’s Father Threatens Violence: ‘F–king Beat Him Till He Can’t Function’," and "When ‘Balanced’ Journalism Is Bad."

Võ Nguyên Giáp,1911–2013

A very significant historical personality.

An obituary at the New York Times, "Gen. Võ Nguyên Giáp, Who Ousted U.S. From Vietnam, Is Dead":

Vo Nguyen Giap, the relentless and charismatic North Vietnamese general whose campaigns drove both France and the United States out of Vietnam, died on Friday in Hanoi. He was believed to be 102.

The death was reported by several Vietnamese news organizations, including the respected Tuoi Tre Online, which said he had died in an army hospital.

General Giap was among the last survivors of a generation of Communist revolutionaries who in the decades after World War II freed Vietnam of colonial rule and fought a superpower to a stalemate. In his later years, he was a living reminder of a war that was mostly old history to the Vietnamese, many of whom were born after it had ended.

But he had not faded away. He was regarded as an elder statesman whose hard-line views had softened with the cessation of the war that unified Vietnam. He supported economic reform and closer relations with the United States while publicly warning of the spread of Chinese influence and the environmental costs of industrialization.

To his American adversaries, however, from the early 1960s to the mid-1970s, he was perhaps second only to his mentor, Ho Chi Minh, as the face of a tenacious, implacable enemy. And to historians, his willingness to sustain staggering losses against superior American firepower was a large reason the war dragged on as long as it did, costing more than 2.5 million lives — 58,000 of them American — sapping the United States Treasury and Washington’s political will to fight, and bitterly dividing the country in an argument about America’s role in the world that still echoes today.

An "implacable enemy."

Well, perhaps he was in the 1960s. The Democrat Party today would be hugging the dude, talking about global Communism's threat to America reflects some terrible --- terrible! --- "misunderstanding."

More at that top link.

Vicious Obama #Democrats and Risks of #Shutdown

The Dems want this shutdown and they'll spare no pain to enforce it.

Here's the lead story at Memeorandum right now, from WSJ, "White House's Hard Line on Shutdown, Debt Ceiling Has Risks Attached":

The two quotes from Washington today that all Americans should be aware of. pic.twitter.com/MAYDzNOR1Q

— Kathleen McKinley (@KatMcKinley) October 4, 2013

President Barack Obama is sticking to his stance that he won't negotiate with Republicans over the government shutdown or the higher-stakes fight over the federal debt ceiling.

The question, for Republicans and White House allies alike: How long will that resolve last?

Mr. Obama spoke Thursday at a construction company just outside Washington and held fast to his view that Republicans must not attach conditions to bills that underpin the functioning of government.

"There is one way out," he said: Republicans must relent and reopen the government.

White House officials believe they have the upper hand, citing evidence that some Republicans are buckling under public pressure. Mr. Obama invited the four congressional leaders to the Oval Office Wednesday, and despite the show of engagement made no concessions, according to people familiar with the meeting.

House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) left the White House and said Mr. Obama "reiterated one more time tonight that he will not negotiate."

Terry Holt, a longtime Republican strategist, said Mr. Obama's strategy rests on a cold-eyed calculation that Republicans are the ones with the most to lose. "As long as the president thinks his poll numbers are going to be good, I don't expect the government to reopen," he said.

Said a senior administration official: "We are winning...It doesn't really matter to us" how long the shutdown lasts "because what matters is the end result."

White House allies, however, say a long shutdown could make the White House's position less tenable. Mr. Obama is the most visible symbol of the U.S. government, they say, and will inevitably share in the blame as hardships mount and people weary of the infighting.

Already, the shutdown has produced images of inconvenience, lost pay, and disruptions in wedding and vacation plans. The Republican National Committee has offered to cover the cost of keeping open the World War II memorial for the next month after a group of veterans toured the site even though it was closed due to the shutdown.

"To the extent that any blame washes onto the Democrats and the president, it's going to be from the sense that this town is just completely dysfunctional and it's everybody's fault," said Matt Bennett, senior vice president of Third Way, a center-left think tank.

Brendan Buck, a spokesman for Mr. Boehner, said: "Ultimately, politics in Washington is a reflection of the president's leadership. People expect their president to be the grown-up in the room, and he's not even in the room."

Mr. Obama said Thursday people should resist the impulse to blame both sides equally.

Also at Legal Insurrection, "Democrats trapped by their seething hatred of Tea Party."

Scores Die as Migrant Ship Capsizes Near Italy's Shore

At the New York Times, "Migrants Die as Burning Boat Capsizes Off Italy":

ROME — Having floated for at least two days in the choppy Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe, a rickety trawler overstuffed with African migrants fleeing war and poverty was nearing a Sicilian island, not even a quarter-mile away. But it was still dark and no one had yet spotted them. So to signal their position, someone set a match to a blanket.

But rather than sending a signal, the fire brought tragedy when flames from the burning blanket ignited gasoline. Nearly 500 people are estimated to have been on board — including children — and the blaze created a panic that capsized the boat. So close to reaching land, the migrants were now tossed into the sea. Many could not swim.

The accident, which occurred before dawn on Thursday within easy eyesight of the island of Lampedusa, is one of the worst in recent memory in the Mediterranean: at least 111 people were reported dead, with up to 250 still missing. At least 150 others survived, and Italy’s Coast Guard was continuing to search for more survivors.

The grisly deaths again underscored the dangerous, desperate efforts by many migrants from Africa and the Middle East to reach Europe by sea, while also renewing criticism of European immigration policy. Immigration is a politically volatile issue in Europe, so much so that Greece recently completed a nearly eight-mile fence blocking its border with Turkey, an attempt to shut down a major land migration route.

But some experts say that making it harder to slip into Europe by land has only pushed many migrants to try the more perilous route by sea. With conflicts raging in the Middle East and Africa, the number of asylum seekers and migrants arriving by boat in Spain and Italy has spiked this year. According to statistics released by Save the Children, 21,780 migrants reached Italy during the first nine months of this year, including 4,000 children.

Lampedusa, an Italian island barely 70 miles from northern Africa, has become a gateway to Europe for migrants. In some seasons, boats filled with migrants and asylum seekers arrive almost daily.

Pope Francis, who visited the island in July to draw attention to the plight of migrants, expressed sadness and outrage over Thursday’s fatal accident.

“The word disgrace comes to me,” the pope said during an audience, calling for prayers on behalf of the dead and their families. “Let us unite our efforts so that similar tragedies do not happen again. Only a decided collaboration among all can help to stop them.”

For Italy, the flow of migrants across the Mediterranean has become an enormous operational and humanitarian challenge. Italian Coast Guard boats are sent almost daily on dangerous rescue missions. Migrants assume huge risks to reach Europe and pay thousands of dollars to smugglers and middlemen, often in Turkey, Egypt and Libya. The smugglers load people onto a large boat for a trip into Italian waters. There, the migrants are usually transferred to smaller boats, some barely seaworthy, and left to float in the current. Then the smugglers flee back to Africa.

It was unclear if the migrants in Thursday’s accident were delivered by smugglers and then transferred to a smaller boat, or if they made the entire journey from Libya in the same trawler. It did seem clear, though, that they were completely unprepared.

Plus, "Italy Suspends Search for Shipwreck Victims."

Woman Killed in Capitol Hill Chase Was Fixated on President Obama

Well, support for Obama is a mental health issue, but this certainly is extreme.

At LAT, "Woman shot in D.C. chase had fixation on President Obama":

WASHINGTON -- The woman shot to death after a police chase from the White House to Capitol Hill had been suffering from mental health issues, according to federal law enforcement officials, including postpartum depression after her daughter was born and a troubling fixation on President Obama.

Miriam Carey’s declining mental stability, the sources said, developed into a belief that the president was “controlling" her life, which may explain why she appeared Thursday afternoon next to the White House and then led Secret Service agents and Washington police on a two-mile, three-minute chase down Pennsylvania Avenue. Along the way, two officers were injured.

"She thought that the president had her apartment under surveillance," Rep.  Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, told the Los Angeles Times. "That must have prompted her trip to Washington and her attempt to visit the White House."

Carey’s sister, Amy, told CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Friday, "We will never know what Miriam was thinking in those last hours before she died. We can only speculate."

She said her sister experienced postpartum depression "with psychosis … which came along with treatment and medication and counseling…. She had her challenges as a new parent. I am a parent. I have two children. … There was nothing out of the ordinary.  She didn’t appear to be unstable."

But Amy Carey also asked, "Was there some other way that she could have been helped so it didn’t end tragically?”

McCaul said, however, that the police "didn’t really have much of a choice, given the way she was driving."

"At the time, they don’t know who she is, what her motivation is," he said. "When I talk to the FBI or Secret Service, they’re just amazed that she could drive at 80 mph down Pennsylvania Avenue and not hit a car…. When you’re traveling like that, and you’re erratic … there’s plenty of pedestrians that could be killed.

"Plus, the threat to the White House raises the stakes. And then this car was seen around the Capitol grounds. That raises the stakes even higher."

Also at Expose Liberals, "Miriam Carey Facebook page and profile."

And from yesterday at Twitchy, "Reports: All shots fired by police; Pathetic lefties continue to blame NRA and Tea Party."

Plus, "But of course! Actress Nancy Lee Grahn uses Capitol shooting to smear House GOP," and "Vile haters wish Ted Cruz and Tea Partiers were shot during the Capitol Hill lockdown."

Lying Democrat Liar Chad Henderson Not 'Enrolled' in #ObamaCare

Ezra Klein and company have been once again outed as ridiculous clowns with their latest #ObamaCare cheerleading. It turns out Wonkblog-ger Sarah Kliff spent the day yesterday touting a guy named Chad Henderson as perhaps the only person to actually get through the online #ObamaCare exchanges to buy health insurance.

I found one!! Meet Chad Henderson, who has in fact bought health insurance on the federal marketplace. http://t.co/HOoxbcOsAL
— Sarah Kliff (@sarahkliff) October 3, 2013

Seriously. It's like her first orgasm.

This idiot Henderson's become a celebrity overnight, although as always with the leftist-Democrat-state media, it's all a lie.

First of all, the idiot's an OFA activist and local Democrat Party club leader. See Ed Morrissey, "What a coincidence: Single ObamaCare success story is … OFA volunteer."

And now today it turns out that the dude's dad was interviewed saying that Chad in fact hadn't enrolled in a healthcare program yesterday. It was all a scam.

See Twitchy, "MSM enablers promote lying liar’s Obamacare fable, fail to issue corrections."

Ms. Kliff has updated:

And so the saga continues: Spoke with Chad Henderson again, confirms he hasn't bought coverage, argues he didn't lie. http://t.co/dylVMmhXl1
— Sarah Kliff (@sarahkliff) October 4, 2013

Check Memeorandum for more.

And note that Henderson did in fact lie:

enrolled in #Obamacare just now! Looking forward to having affordable healthcare for the first time! @newschannelnine @WRCB @TimesFreePress

— Chad Henderson (@ChadHenderson) October 1, 2013

Heidi Klum Blast From the Past

She's a frisky lady.

Blast from the past: Remember this shoot 4 @VictoriasSecret w the amazing Dominique Issermann! pic.twitter.com/eQaMn6GpXC

— Heidi Klum (@heidiklum) October 4, 2013

Clayton Kershaw Strikes Out 12 in NLDS Opener in Atlanta

I watched baseball last night, and then hit the sack early.

The Dodgers cruised to an easy win over the Braves, surprisingly easy. I hope they do it again today.

At LAT, "Dodgers' ace trumps Braves in postseason opener, 6-1":

Feat of Clay: Kershaw guides @Dodgers to commanding Game 1 win in Atlanta. http://t.co/zQvWcfYEgo #NLDS pic.twitter.com/wHJUUoS1p5

— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2013

ATLANTA — If Clayton Kershaw continues to pitch the way he did Thursday night, the long-term contract to which the Dodgers intend to sign him this winter could cost them even more than they expect.

That's fine with minority owner Magic Johnson, who was at Turner Field to watch Kershaw overcome early control problems to lead the Dodgers to a 6-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of their best-of-five National League division series.

"We already know we have to give him a lot of money," Johnson said. "What's a few more zeros?"

Backed by five runs in the first four innings, Kershaw earned his first career playoff victory by limiting the Braves to a run and three hits over seven innings.

His 12 strikeouts were the most by a Dodgers pitcher in a postseason game since Sandy Koufax struck out 15 New York Yankees in Game 1 of the 1963 World Series.

The most incredible aspect of the performance was that Kershaw couldn't throw the ball where he wanted.

"It was more fastball command than anything," Kershaw said.

He threw 19 pitches in the first inning, which included a 10-pitch at-bat by Justin Upton. He threw 77 pitches through four innings and 91 through five. He walked three batters.

"That was our game plan," Braves Manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "Make him pitch a little bit. When you look up and you see 77 pitches in the fourth inning, you feel like you have a chance. But he is what he is. He turned it up the next three or four innings and we didn't really get good swings at him."

Once Kershaw gained a feel for his curveball in the fifth inning, the Braves were finished.

Kershaw struck out nine of the last 11 batters he faced, including six in a row in one stretch.

"As soon as we got on the same page and figured out the off-speed pitch, that was the ticket," catcher A.J. Ellis said. "Those fifth, sixth and seventh innings, he rolled through and got all those strikeouts. That was amazing."

Also at AJC, "Kershaw strikes out 12 as Braves, Medlen lose Game 1."

Tom Clancy, 1947-2013

He was just 66 years old.

At the New York Times, "Tom Clancy, Best-Selling Master of Military Thrillers, Dies at 66":

Mr. Clancy’s debut book, “The Hunt for Red October,” was frequently cited as one of the greatest genre novels ever written. With the book’s publication in 1984, Mr. Clancy introduced a new kind of potboiler: an espionage thriller dense with technical details about weaponry, submarines and intelligence agencies.

It found an eager readership. More than 100 million copies of his novels are in print, and a remarkable 17 have reached No. 1 on the New York Times’s best-seller list, including “Threat Vector,” released last December. Prolific until his death, Mr. Clancy had been awaiting publication of his next book, “Command Authority,” set for Dec. 3.

The impact of his books has been felt far beyond the publishing world. Some were adapted by Hollywood and became blockbusters starring Harrison Ford, Alec Baldwin and Ben Affleck as Mr. Clancy’s hero protagonist, Jack Ryan. Mr. Clancy arranged for his thrillers to be turned into video games that were so realistic, the military licensed them for training. And on television, fast-paced espionage using high-tech tools in the Clancy mold found a place in popular shows like “24” and “Homeland.”

I read a few of Clancy's works, but nothing compared to "The Hunt for Red October."

First saw the news of his death yesterday on Twitter. I was a little shocked.

Britney Spears' 'Work Bitch' Video

I'm always down for some Britney.

At London's Daily Mail, "Hit me baby one more time! Britney Spears dons leather underwear as she wields a whip in racy bondage-inspired new video for Work B****."

Obama: Petty, Petulant, and Puerile

From Nile Gardiner, at Telegraph UK, "US government shutdown: Barack Obama looks like a bitter, petty and partisan president":

Cursing political opponents will do Obama no good and smacks of arrogance and desperation from a White House that has lost its grip on reality. The legacy of President Obama will be the relentless rise of big government and a large expansion of government dependency, the strangling of economic freedom, a huge increase in the national debt, and the implementation of hated health care reforms that carry with them a $1.85 trillion price tag. The Obama presidency will also be remembered for its bitter partisanship, and its relentless vilification of political opponents, emanating from an administration that would rather engage with a terrorist sponsoring regime in the Middle East than talk to elected US lawmakers three miles down the road.

RTWT.

S.E. Cupp Loves Her Some Ted Cruz

A hero of the Senate.

Alyssa Miller

For Esquire.

Glitchy #Democrats

Democrat scumbag losers destroying the country.



PREVIOUSLY: "'Glitches' Mar #ObamaCare Rollout."

State Governments Reduced to Lying About #ObamaCare Rollout

Maeve Reston tweets, "MAJOR!"

MAJOR: 5 million hits at Calif's Obamacare exchange? Nope. CA officials are RETRACTING that. Real number: 645,000 http://t.co/fYiiO5tslX
— Maeve Reston (@MaeveReston) October 3, 2013

And more great news for the idiot Dems at London's Daily Mail, "EXCLUSIVE: Less than 1 per cent of Web visitors are signing up for Obamacare on some state health exchange websites."

Charges Dropped Against One Suspect in New York Biker Road Rage Beating

At the New York Post, "DA: Bike assault thug ‘won’t be charged at this time’."

Background here, "Bikers terrorize a family in a high-speed chase on the West Side Highway."

More at Metro, "Police make headway in bike gang assault investigation." And, "Lawrence biker paralyzed in New York road rage incident."

And video at ABC News, "Bikers Attack Driver After Accident: Caught on Tape."

#HeartlessHarry

At Free Beacon, "Reid: ‘Why Would We Want to’ Help One Kid With Cancer?":

DANA BASH: But if you can help one child who has cancer, why wouldn’t you do it?

HARRY REID: Why would we want to do that? I have 1,100 people at Nellis Air Force base that are sitting home. They have a few problems of their own. This is — to have someone of your intelligence to suggest such a thing maybe means you’re irresponsible and reckless –

BASH: I’m just asking a question.

And from the GOP conference, #HeartlessHarry.

Shadow Speaker Jim DeMint

An excellent behind-the-scenes look at the grassroots influence on the GOP congressional agenda.

At Business Week, "Jim DeMint, Congressional Republicans' Shadow Speaker":

When most Americans look at Washington, they see a broken Congress, riven by partisanship and lurching from crisis to crisis. While the hostility between Republicans and Democrats is indeed severe, it isn’t the real reason the engine of government keeps seizing up. What’s causing the malfunction is a battle within the GOP over how to return the party to its former glory after two consecutive losses to Obama and setbacks in the House and Senate. It’s a fight that pits uncompromising, Heritage-style conservatives against more cautious Republican elders. What makes it so contentious is that both sides have radically different—and mutually exclusive—ideas about how to move forward.

This struggle heats up each time a major budget deadline approaches, and two huge ones loom in the days ahead: There’s the Sept. 30 government funding deadline and then, sometime in late October, the Department of the Treasury will reach the limit of its borrowing capacity and default unless Congress raises the debt ceiling. In crises precipitated by similar deadlines, Republican leaders have always managed to keep their party together—or at least keep it from coming apart.

That will be much harder this time. While Boehner and the GOP leadership want mainly to navigate safe passage through the budget deadlines, DeMint and his cohort see the deadlines as crucial tests of party resolve and a key to the Republican resurgence they envision. DeMint views the impulse to avoid confrontation as the root of Republican woes: Only by engineering grand clashes and then standing resolutely on the side of small government can Republicans win this existential struggle.

“If I were speaker, I’d tell the president, ‘Mr. President, we funded the government, but we’re not going to fund your bill,’ ” says DeMint, who likes to make his point by acting out imagined confrontations. “ ‘We are not going to give in—one month, two months, three months. We are never going to give in. It’s just that important.’ And if the president wants to put the country through that to save a law that isn’t ready to go, well, then that’s a battle we have to have.”

When DeMint quit the Senate mid-term, it came as something of a shock in Washington, because a high-profile senator is presumed to have more power than a think tank president. There was plenty of snickering that he was cashing in: Heritage paid his predecessor more than $1 million last year. (The group won’t comment on DeMint’s salary.)

DeMint says he was just fed up. When he was first elected to Congress in 1998, insurrection wasn’t his goal. “I came to Washington as a businessman,” he says, “served six years in the House as a team player. Didn’t cause trouble. I was a policy nerd, introduced Social Security reform, tax reforms, all kinds of health-care reforms.” In 2005 he moved up to the Senate, where he began to lose patience with what he viewed as his party’s lack of commitment to first principles. “We had a lot of people who were great pretenders, talked real big about being conservatives,” he says. “But behind closed doors, they were driving the ball in the opposite direction.”

Continue reading.

Barry-cades Hurting Democrats

William Jacobson's covering the WWII memorial shutdown, "WWII and Lincoln Memorial Barricade Showdowns – Live Updates."

@SenatorReid Wrong, jerkoff. It's yours and Obama's. Own it, you evil little man
— JWF (@JammieWF) October 2, 2013

Even Clinton didn't cut off veterans care and barricade unstaffed memorials in the hopes of creating pain. Democrats are curbstomping vets.

— Rep. Steve Stockman (@SteveWorks4You) October 2, 2013

More, "Obama Orders WWII Memorial Blocked."

Obama Orders WWII Memorial Blocked

He's ruthless.

At Twitchy, "Barry-cades confirmed: Park Service says Obama admin ordered closure of World War II Memorial."

Republicans More Insulated Against Backlash

From Ronald Brownstein, at National Journal:

Resolving the serial showdowns over the federal budget and debt ceiling may be more difficult now than during the last shutdown under Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich because so many more House Republicans today represent safely GOP districts, a National Journal analysis has found.

This suggests that even if a public backlash develops against a shutdown or potential government default, Republican members may be far more insulated against those gales than their counterparts were during the two shutdowns in the winter of 1995 and 1996. Today's GOP legislators, for the same reason, also may be less sensitive to shifts in public attitudes that could threaten their party's national image or standing in more closely contested parts of the country.

Comparing today's 232-seat Republican majority with the 236 seats Republicans ultimately held after special elections and party switches from 1995-96 underscores the extent to which GOP legislators have succeeded in fortifying themselves into homogeneously conservative districts. On every measure, Republicans today represent constituencies that lean more lopsidedly toward their party.

On average, Clinton in 1992 won 46.6 percent of the two-party presidential vote in the districts held by congressional Republicans during the 104th Congress from 1995-96. (That two-party calculation excludes the share carried by Ross Perot in his independent bid that year.) President Obama last year carried only an average of 40.4 percent of the two-party presidential vote in the districts held by the current Republican majority.

Back in 1995, 79 House Republicans represented districts that backed Clinton in the previous presidential election; just 17 House Republicans now represent districts that Obama won. Fewer Republicans now hold districts that fall into an even broader definition of competitiveness:  In 1992, Republican President George H.W. Bush won 55 percent or less of the two-party presidential vote in 141 of the 236 House Republican districts. Now, only 71 House Republicans, roughly half as many, represent districts where 2012 nominee Mitt Romney won only 55 percent or less.

All of this means that the personal electoral incentives for most House Republicans would encourage more—not less—confrontation as the standoffs proceed, notes Gary C. Jacobson, an expert on Congress at the University of California (San Diego). "The electoral threat of them angering anybody outside of their base is pretty low," he says.

Republicans should stay firm, although I'm inclined to agree with Laura Ingraham.

Countdown to Cave-In

It's only a matter of time 'till Republicans cave, argues Laura Ingraham, on yesterday morning's Fox & Friends: