George Washington University Battleground Poll: 'Not Good News for #Democrats'

At Free Beacon, "GWU Poll: Nation on Wrong Track, ‘Not Good News for Democrats’."

Steven Sotloff Family 'Furious' at Obama Administration's Inaction and Leaks

Louise Mensch tweets the literal bottom line on the New York Times story, "ISIS Says It Killed Steven Sotloff After U.S. Strikes in Northern Iraq."

NYT makes clear #Sotloff family disgusted with #Obama, furious at his inaction and leaks http://t.co/PvIN9SxohT

— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) September 3, 2014

As ever, leftie @NYT tries to bury and hide the #Sotloff family's rage at #Obama - end article http://t.co/PvIN9SxohT #tcot #ISIS

— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) September 3, 2014

Apologies, link is bad. #Sotloff family hates #Obama's inaction and leaks, says @NYT http://t.co/RMUykTheSn

— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) September 3, 2014

Obama's New World Disorder

From VDH, at National Review, "The New World Disorder":

In just the last five or six years the world has been fundamentally transformed. Instead of the old accustomed Western-inspired postwar global order, crafted and ensured by the United States and its European and Japanese partners, there is now mostly chaos, from Ukraine to Syria to the South China Sea. Or, rather, there may be emerging new rules, given that we are still frozen in a Wild West moment, when everyone in the saloon has drawn his six-shooter, paused, and is wondering what happened to the sheriff — and wondering, too, who will be the first to dare start shooting.

The general cause of the unrest is that, fairly or not, the world senses that the United States is tired after its recent interventions, cutting back its defenses, and all but financially insolvent. We might scoff at Neanderthal notions like a loss of deterrence inviting aggression, but Neanderthals do not.

Barack Obama apparently believes that such a retrenchment was both inevitable and to be welcomed. He thought that most U.S. interventions abroad had been either wrong or futile or both; he questioned the world’s status quo and certainly felt, for example, that the widespread persecution of Christians in the Middle East was not nearly as much of a problem as Islamophobia in the West. He came into office believing that Iran, Hamas, and Russia had all been unduly demonized, especially by George W. Bush, and could be reached out to by a sensitive president whose heritage and attitudes might not appear so polarizing.

To Obama, old allies like Britain and Israel either did not need unflinching U.S. support or did not necessarily warrant it. The postwar world that the U.S. had once ensured was no fairer a place than is America at home, and certainly did not justify the vast investment of American time and money — resources that could be far better be spent at home addressing inequality and unfairness. A program of higher taxes, huge budget deficits, and enormous increases in entitlement spending did not have budgetary space for the sort of defense required to keep things calm abroad.

As a result, we now are witnessing a world in transition — a world of regional hegemonies that are filling the vacuum after the abdication of the United States...

More.

Jennifer Garner 'Musical Chairs' for Capital One

Alec Baldwin's out.

Jennifer Garner's in.

A welcomed improvement:

The Murder of Steven Sotloff

From Dexter Filkins, at the New Yorker: "... the ostensible objective of securing an Islamic state is nowhere near as important as killing people."

Obama: 'We Will Not Be Intimidated' by Islamic State (VIDEO)

I'm underwhelmed here.

At LAT, "Obama says U.S. won't be intimidated by Islamic State militants' acts of barbarism."

Apple Denies iCloud Breach in Nude Photo Leak

At WSJ, "Apple Denies iCloud Breach: Tech Giant Says Celebrity Accounts Compromised by 'Very Targeted Attack'."

RELATED: At TechCrunch, "Apple Should Be More Transparent About Security."

Under Armour Signs Smokin' Supermodel Gisele Bundchen

At USA Today, "Gisele Bundchen: Under Armour's $590 Million Woman?"

Marie Harf: #ISIS Acts Like They're 'Operating in the Name of Islam, And That's Just Not True...'

Well, we wouldn't want to accuse Islamic State of representing the true face of Islam, or anything. Might be accuses of "racism," or something.

PolitiChicks on Fox & Friends

Morgan Brittany, Gina Loudon, and Ann-Marie Murrell on yesterday's Fox & Friends.



Their new book is What Women Really Want.

They're trying to sell their spiel as a "new feminism." Good luck with that.

Krauthammer: Obama's 'A Man in Denial, On the Verge of Delusion...'

Once again, from the inimitable Charles Krauthammer:

Devastating Megyn Kelly Segment: Obama Just 'Doesn't Know What to Do...'

Megyn Kelly opens with a breathtaking account of today's news of the Sotloff beheading, and then Brit Hume just eviscerates the president as completely flummoxed that the world didn't cotton to his assumed unique global-healing abilities, as well as Obama's utter cluelessness in the face of international dangers as great as any time during the post-Cold War era

Just devastating:

GRAPHIC VIDEO: #ISIS Beheads American Journalist Steven Sotloff — CAUTION! GRAPHIC BEHEADING!

There are two clips.

At Creeping Sharia, Sotloff makes his statement denouncing the United States and President Obama, "ISIS beheads second American journalist (video)."

And at Bare Naked Islam, an edited video of the beheading, "Second American journalist Steven Sotloff reportedly has been beheaded by the Islamic State (ISIS)."

More at Atlas Shrugs, "“‘I’m back, Obama’: Islamic State’s ‘Jihadi John’ taunts Obama as he beheads second US journalist."

Plus, the background at the Wall Street Journal, "Video Purports to Show Beheading of U.S. Journalist Steven Sotloff."

And from ABC News, at Memeorandum, "Video Appears to Show ISIS Execution of Second American Steven Sotloff."

PREVIOUSLY: "Death of James Foley Demands We Bear Witness, Not Craven Self-Censorship."

Back to School

I'm back to teaching today after the long holiday weekend.

And more and more students are heading back to college.

In any case, more blogging tonight.

Jacob Heilbrunn Reviews Henry Kissinger's World Order

At the National Interest, "Kissinger's Counsel":

WHEN HENRY KISSINGER celebrated his ninetieth birthday in Manhattan’s St. Regis Hotel in June 2013, he attracted an audience of notables, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Valery Giscard D’Estaing, Donald Rumsfeld, James Baker and George Shultz. Kerry called Kissinger America’s “indispensable statesman,” but it was John McCain who, as the Daily Beast reported, electrified the room with his remarks. McCain, who was brutally tortured in what was sardonically known as the Hanoi Hilton, earned widespread respect for courageously refusing to accept an early release from his Vietnamese captors after his father had been promoted to commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

At the party, McCain recounted for the first time the specific circumstances of that refusal. He explained that when Kissinger traveled to Hanoi to conclude the agreement ending the war in 1973, the Vietnamese offered to send McCain home with him. Kissinger declined. McCain said:

He knew my early release would be seen as favoritism to my father and a violation of our code of conduct. By rejecting this last attempt to suborn a dereliction of duty, Henry saved my reputation, my honor, my life, really. . . . So, I salute my friend and benefactor, Henry Kissinger, the classical realist who did so much to make the world safer for his country’s interests, and by so doing safer for the ideals that are its pride and purpose.

It was a poignant moment. On one side was a scion of one of America’s preeminent military families who went on to become a senator championing a hawkish foreign policy that precisely reflects the neoconservative wing of the GOP. On the other was a Jewish refugee who had personally witnessed the descent of his homeland into ideological fanaticism and fled it with his parents to embark upon a new life in the United States, where he became a premier exponent of realist thought in foreign policy and a world-famous statesman. Both were bound together by events that forged a bond between them that was deeper than any differences they may have about America’s role abroad.

THE COMITY they displayed at the birthday gala is especially striking in the context of the contemporary Republican Party, where the principles that Kissinger has espoused over the past seven decades have not simply been abandoned. Again and again, they have been denounced as antithetical to American values. And this denunciation has come from both the left and the right...

Keep reading.

The book is out on September 9th. Order it here.

Mayor Eric Garcetti Calls for $13.25 Minimum Wage in Los Angeles

The dude's a closet Marxist.

At LAT, "Garcetti calls for boosting minimum wage to $13.25 after three years."

Britain Ready to Take Fight to Jihadists, Warns David Cameron

At the Telegraph UK, "UK could join American air strikes in Iraq and Syria, warns David Cameron":

The Prime Minister said he would use a Nato meeting to review whether “military measures” were needed against the “barbaric” extremists of Isil.

David Cameron has raised the prospect of Britain joining American air strikes in Iraq and Syria, stating that he is prepared to “act immediately” without first informing MPs if national security is threatened.

The Prime Minister said he would use a Nato meeting this week to review whether “military measures” were needed against the “barbaric” extremists of Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

He used a House of Commons statement to set out a series of measures to protect Britain from the thousands of European citizens who have travelled to Iraq and Syria and want to “wreak havoc on our country”.

However, there were fears on Monday that the plans could unravel after Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, threatened to block a key plank of the new anti-terrorism laws amid concerns that they infringe on human rights.

Mr Cameron was also accused of delaying measures to ban British citizens from returning to Britain if they have travelled to Iraq and Syria to fight alongside Isil terrorists.

In his statement, Mr Cameron announced plans to give the police powers to temporarily seize passports at the border if people are thought to be travelling to Iraq or Syria.

He also said the Government will push through laws to either force terrorist suspects to relocate from their home towns or create “exclusion zones” where they are not allowed to travel.

More.

British Jihad Preacher Anjem Choudary on #CNN: 'There's Nothing Called a Radical or Moderate Form of Islam...'

Oops. Anjem Choudary not sticking to the accepted leftist talking points on Islam.

The idiot Brian Seltzer tries to get Choudary back on point, "Wait! Wait! You're warping the religion!"

Actually, he's not. Leftists are warping the religion. Anjem Choudary's telling the truth.

And of course, Choudary did a sound check "jokingly" blurting out "9/11, 7/7, 3/11" and so forth, the dates of the big attacks against the West, in New York and Washington, London and Madrid. Just a sound check, of course. Seltzer gets his big indignation on, but in the end remains as clueless as ever.



HAT TIP: Blazing Cat Fur, "A CNN host let a Muslim cleric speak freely. What he said about journalism, terrorism and sharia law in America left the host speechless."

FBI Joins Hunt for Hackers Who Leaked Nude Photos of Hollywood Celebrities Online

Well, Hollywood's in the tank for the Dems, so it's no wonder the FBI stepped right up with an investigation.

At LAT, "FBI joins hunt for hacker who leaked nude photos of actresses."

RELATED: At BuzzFeed, "Those Jennifer Lawrence Pictures Aren’t Scandalous."

Angels Cautious Heading Into September Pennant Race

At LAT, "Angels remain cautious despite five-game lead going into pennant race":

The Angels players held their fantasy football league draft after Sunday's game, which means two things: The NFL season is about to begin and so are the baseball pennant races.

The Angels will enter their race with a five-game head start after completing a four-game sweep of the Oakland Athletics with an 8-1 rout Sunday. But a big lead, even in September, doesn't guarantee anything. Just ask catcher Chris Iannetta, who played on a Colorado Rockies team that once made up a five-game deficit in the final 10 games of the season to reach the playoffs.

"It can swing like that," he said. "There's a lot of baseball left. There's one month, but there's many games."

And Iannetta isn't the only one preaching caution.

"We've got a long way to go. I know a lot of people are counting down. Not us," said Manager Mike Scioscia.

Added outfielder Mike Trout: "We can't get too excited yet."

Maybe. But it's hard to imagine how the Angels could be in a better position entering the home stretch. Especially when you consider where they were just three weeks ago.

When the Angels woke on Aug. 11, they were four games behind Oakland in the American League West and had just lost starting pitcher Tyler Skaggs to Tommy John surgery. But the next day they started a streak that featured them winning 15 of 19 games, turning that four-game deficit into a five-game lead, the team's largest division lead since 2009.

The sweep of the A's also gave the Angels six straight wins and a baseball-best 83-53 record after 136 games, matching the franchise record. The last time they did that was 2008, when the team went on to win 100 games.

Add it all up and … well, it means absolutely nothing, Iannetta warned.

"It can go the other way just as fast," he said. "You could find yourself 10 games back. It could be that bad. You just have to keep it in perspective and say, 'You know what? We've got to keep going. We've got to keep grinding it out.'"

The Angels did that and more against Oakland's Scott Kazmir on Sunday, scoring six times in the second inning when Kazmir walked four batters — including two with the bases loaded. Erick Aybar contributed a run-scoring single to the rally, running his hitting streak to a career-best 16 games, while Trout knocked in two runs.

Obama Delivers Populist, Campaign-Style Speech on Labor Day, Launching Drive to Hold Senate

Well, campaigning's the only thing he knows how to do, and the November results will show that he's not even very good at that anymore.

At LAT, "Obama tries to rekindle hope in Labor Day speech."

Labor Day Rule 5

Happy Labor Day!

Here's Wombat-socho's Rule 5 roundup from yesterday, at the Other McCain, "Rule 5 Sunday: Labor Day Weekend Lovelies."

At Althouse, "'Celebrities, make it harder for hackers to get nude pics of you from your computer by not putting nude pics of yourself on the computer'..."

And Blackmailers Don't Shoot, "You Won’t Find Nude Pictures of Jennifer Lawrence Here."

More at the Nug, "Jessica Kylie aka Miss Rabbit!"

Also, at 90 Miles From Tyranny, "Hot Pick of the Late Night."

And see Proof Positive, "Friday Night Babe: Viviana Greco."

At Doubletroubletwo, "Boobies ... Enjoy ;-)."

Crazy Uncle Bubba has "A Hot Placeholder."

At Drunken Stepfather, "Hacked-tackular."

Odie has "Playing Poker ~OR~ Rule 5 Woodsterman Style."

Knuckledraggin', "CAMEL TOE!!!"

At Instapundit, "YOUR DAILY MEMO from the Thought Police. Also the Junior Anti-Sex League."

At Pirate's Cove, "If All You See……is an evil plastic water bottle and several evil beer bottles causing seas to rise and temperatures to scorch, you might just be a Warmist (HUGE BREASTS!)"

In a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World has the "Friday Pinup."

More at Daley Gator, "DALEYGATOR DALEYBABE TARA BOOHER."

And Dana Pico, "Rule 5 Blogging: The Яussians are coming, the Яussians are coming!"

Still more from Wine, Women and Politics, "Babe of the day."

Also at Randy's Roundtable, "Thursday Nite Tart...Kaley Cuoco."

At Soylent, "Your Morning Coffee Creamer."

And at EBL, "Burning Man 2014 Rule 5."

VIDEO: Bill Whittle at Defending the American Dream Summit — #Dream14

The one and only Bill Whittle, at AFP's Dream Summit this weekend:

Legacy Media: The Lost Decade In Six Charts

Interesting.

At the Monday Note, "Ten years. That’s how far away in the past the Google IPO lies. Ten years of explosive growth for the digital world, ten gruesome years for legacy media. Here is the lost decade, revisited in charts and numbers."

Oh, That's Mary Winstead!

I'm trying to remember who this lady is, so I check Wikipedia, and it turns out that Mary Elizabeth Winstead is "Gwen," the dreamy little welcome girl in the 2005 Disney movie "Sky High." I've watched it many times with my kid. She ends up being a bad lady after all, a nemesis to "Will," the shy little goofball who inherits his parents' superhuman powers.

I embedded Ms. Winstead at the post last night, although I didn't make the connection.

Also at Twitchy, "Mary Elizabeth Winstead ‘can only imagine the creepy effort’ that went into nude photo leak."

Evolution of Propaganda: How #ISIS Uses Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp, SoundCloud, and More

When I read articles like this, it's like you're supposed to be surprised that terrorists use modern social media to get their message out. It's 2014 for crying out loud. What else would these murderers be using?

At the New York Times, "ISIS Displaying a Deft Command of Varied Media."

New College Board Guidelines Forcing High Schools to 'Teach U.S. History From a Leftist Perspective...'

From Stanley Kurtz, at National Review, "How the College Board Politicized U.S. History":

The College Board, the private company that produces the SAT test and the various Advanced Placement (AP) exams, has kicked off a national controversy by issuing a new and unprecedentedly detailed “Framework” for its AP U.S. History exam. This Framework will effectively force American high schools to teach U.S. history from a leftist perspective. The College Board disclaims political intent, insisting that the new Framework provides a “balanced” guide that merely helps to streamline the AP U.S. History course while enhancing teacher flexibility. Not only the Framework itself, but the history of its development suggests that a balanced presentation of the American story was not the College Board’s goal.

The origins of the new AP U.S. History framework are closely tied to a movement of left-leaning historians that aims to “internationalize” the teaching of American history. The goal is to “end American history as we have known it” by substituting a more “transnational” narrative for the traditional account.

This movement’s goals are clearly political, and include the promotion of an American foreign policy that eschews the unilateral use of force. The movement to “internationalize” the U.S. History curriculum also seeks to produce a generation of Americans more amendable to working through the United Nations and various left-leaning “non-governmental organizations” (NGOs) on issues like the environment and nuclear proliferation. A willingness to use foreign law to interpret the U.S. Constitution is likewise encouraged.

The College Board formed a close alliance with this movement to internationalize the teaching of American history just prior to initiating its redesign of the AP U.S. History exam. Key figures in that alliance are now in charge of the AP U.S. History redesign process, including the committee charged with writing the new AP U.S. History exam. The new AP U.S. History Framework clearly shows the imprint of the movement to de-nationalize American history. Before I trace the rise of this movement and its ties to the College Board, let’s have a closer look at its goals...

Well, you can see where this is going, but keep reading.

HAT TIP: Instapundit.

Jesus, Self-Defense, and Teaching Your Kids to Use Deadly Force

An interesting piece, from Doug Giles, at Clash Daily.

Cloud Storage Hacked in Jennifer Lawrence Nude Photo Leak

Following-up from yesterday, "Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton Nude Photos Leaked Online."

Here's CNET's Dan Ackerman, from CBS "This Morning":

'Wage Theft' Claims: The Latest Left-Wing Scam to Bilk Employers — Happy Labor Day!

You'd think that overtime laws were just invented yesterday. In fact we've had overtime laws since the New Deal of the 1930s, and no doubt employees have long made claims against bosses for unfair pay practices.

But all of a sudden we're now hearing about the scourge of "wage theft," as if employers just discovered that they can "steal" workers' overtime earnings to bulk up profits, or something.

At the New York Times, "More Workers Are Claiming ‘Wage Theft’":

MIRA LOMA, Calif. — Week after week, Guadalupe Rangel worked seven days straight, sometimes 11 hours a day, unloading dining room sets, trampolines, television stands and other imports from Asia that would soon be shipped to Walmart stores.

Even though he often clocked 70 hours a week at the Schneider warehouse here, he was never paid time-and-a-half overtime, he said. And now, having joined a lawsuit involving hundreds of warehouse workers, Mr. Rangel stands to receive more than $20,000 in back pay as part of a recent $21 million legal settlement with Schneider, a national trucking company.

“Sometimes I’d work 60, even 90 days in a row,” said Mr. Rangel, a soft-spoken immigrant from Mexico. “They never paid overtime.”

The lawsuit is part of a flood of recent cases — brought in California and across the nation — that accuse employers of violating minimum wage and overtime laws, erasing work hours and wrongfully taking employees’ tips. Worker advocates call these practices “wage theft,” insisting it has become far too prevalent.

Some federal and state officials agree. They assert that more companies are violating wage laws than ever before, pointing to the record number of enforcement actions they have pursued. They complain that more employers — perhaps motivated by fierce competition or a desire for higher profits — are flouting wage laws.

Many business groups counter that government officials have drummed up a flurry of wage enforcement actions, largely to score points with union allies. If anything, employers have become more scrupulous in complying with wage laws, the groups say, in response to the much publicized lawsuits about so-called off-the-clock work that were filed against Walmart and other large companies a decade ago.

Here in California, a federal appeals court ruled last week that FedEx had in effect committed wage theft by insisting that its drivers were independent contractors rather than employees. FedEx orders many drivers to work 10 hours a day, but does not pay them overtime, which is required only for employees. FedEx said it planned to appeal.

Julie Su, the state labor commissioner, recently ordered a janitorial company in Fremont to pay $332,675 in back pay and penalties to 41 workers who cleaned 17 supermarkets. She found that the company forced employees to sign blank time sheets, which it then used to record inaccurate, minimal hours of work....

Here's the bottom line:

Business groups note that the lawsuits against McDonald’s have been coordinated with the fast-food workers’ movement demanding a $15 wage. “This is a classic special-interest campaign by labor unions,” said Stephen J. Caldeira, president of the International Franchise Association. In legal papers, McDonald’s denied any liability in Ms. Salazar’s case, and the Oakland franchisee insisted that Ms. Salazar had failed to establish illegal actions by the restaurant.

Lee Schreter, co-chairwoman of the wage and hour practice group at Littler Mendelson, a law firm that represents employers, said wage theft was not increasing, adding that many companies had become more vigilant about compliance. But that has not stopped lawyers from bringing wage theft complaints because of the potential payoff, Ms. Schreter said. “These are opportunistic lawsuits,” she said...

Yep, totally opportunistic leftist labor scam

More.

75th Anniversary of Start of World War Two

Nazi Germany invaded Poland 75 years ago today.

At the Tampa Bay Times, "75 years ago today: the start of World War II:

Today marks the 75th anniversary of Germany's invasion of Poland, thus beginning the start of World War II. By the end of the war in 1945, more than 50 million, and by some count millions more, soldiers and civilians had died. The atrocities of the Holocaust stand sorely at the center of the tragedy of the war.

Also at Time, "World War II Erupts: Haunting Color Photos from 1939 Poland."

Also, at Deutsche Welle, and interview with British historian Anthony Beevor, "'Moral choice explains fascination with WWII'."

Caroline Wozniacki Ousts Maria Sharapova at U.S. Open

At the New York Times, "Upsets Persist at U.S. Open as Caroline Wozniacki Ousts Maria Sharapova."

I think this describes it! @usopen pic.twitter.com/3tjWbJ2ztu

— Caroline Wozniacki (@CaroWozniacki) August 31, 2014

Belgian Women Pour Fake Blood in Airport to Protest #Israel Arms Transport

Well, at least it was fake blood.

Sheesh.

At the Times of Israel.

Belgian women pour fake blood in airport to protest Israel arms transport http://t.co/dv9VkmUALv

— TOI Jewish Times (@TOIJewishTimes) September 1, 2014

Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton Nude Photos Leaked Online

Actually, a bunch of celebrities had their nude photos leaked.

At Variety, "Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton, Ariana Grande Among Celebrities Exposed in Massive Nude Photo Leak."

And at BuzzFeed, "Jennifer Lawrence, Ariana Grande, Kate Upton, More Celebs Have Alleged Nude Photos Leak In Massive Hack."

Actress Mary Winstead, whose photos were also leaked, is not pleased:

To those of you looking at photos I took with my husband years ago in the privacy of our home, hope you feel great about yourselves.

— Mary E. Winstead (@M_E_Winstead) August 31, 2014

#Angels Sweep #Athletics to Take 5-Game Lead in AL West

At the Los Angeles Times, "Angels complete four-game sweep of A's with 8-1 victory."

It feels great if you're an Angels fan, but man, this has been an astonishing collapse for the Athletics.

Sounds like team meeting going on right now in #Athletics clubhouse.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

This is a pretty long closed-door meeting.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Melvin says team should be embarrassed. He feels bad for fans. #Athletics

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Melvin held meeting to impart that to team. Cuts session with reporters short after blasting team's performance past three games.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Kazmir says #Athletics disappointed in selves. "This is not who we are."

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Donaldson: "Something had to be said. ..this is a wakeup call. This is the time of year to be playing our best and we're playing our worst."

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Kazmir questions Gerry Davis' professionalism with strike zone today, says he was hitting his spots every time with nothing to show for it.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Kazmir says Davis made "cry baby face" at #Athletics dugout last night, A's lodged complaint and Davis was reprimanded.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Norris says #Athletics cant piss away season after getting such good opportunity. "We have to figure it out."

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

#Athletics Drumbeat: Melvin airs team out; more on Kazmir/strike zone/Gerry Davis weirdness: http://t.co/7Hx4XOScB2

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Bob Melvin: "That was embarrassing. The last 3 days the worst I've seen. #Athletics

— John Hickey (@JHickey3) August 31, 2014

#Athletics Derek Norris: "We've got to figure it out. Frustration, anger, disappointment, embarrassment all added up today."

— John Hickey (@JHickey3) August 31, 2014

#Athletics Brandon Moss on mgr Bob Melvin's closed-door meeting: "he's as tired of watching it as were are of doing it."

— John Hickey (@JHickey3) August 31, 2014

NBC's Richard Engel: Military Commanders, Former Officials 'Apoplectic' Over Obama's National Security Failures

Engel has been hitting the White House hard, but this report just rips the administration. And the Ryan Crocker interview at the segment helps bring down the hammer:

Asian-Bashing #Dems and Doormat Minorities Who Enable Them

ICYMI, from Michelle Malkin, a great piece.

Professor Charli Carpenter Boycotts #APSA for Placing an 'Undue Burden' on Her 'Gender-Conscious' Work-Life Balance

Boy, this might as well be a parody of the life of a far-left politically correct academic, except that it's not a parody. Behold this "brave" statement of "gender consciousness" from Professor Charli Carpenter, at the hate-site Lawyers, Guns and Money, "Why I Am Not at APSA This Labor Day":

I’m boycotting my professional organization for scheduling a conference so as to inhibit work-life-balance and pose an undue burden on parents in the profession, especially mothers. I’m boycotting APSA because they have done this year by year over the protest of their members. What began as an irreconcilable personal conflict for a parent of grade schoolers and partner to a dual-career spouse – what began, that is, as a simple work-life balance choice – has turned over the years into a political statement that I’ll continue to make until APSA’s policy changes.

I’m not saying APSA is an inherently family-unfriendly organization....

So starting when my daughter was 8, my husband and I decided to try a new system: alternating APSAs. Each year, one or the other of us would go from now on, and one would stay. This idea made sense in theory, but in practice it put strain on our family’s carefully cultivated and gender-conscious balance between work and family life, as we each navigated life on the two-body tenure track striving for equity both in child-rearing and career opportunities...

Oh brother. The drama is excruciating.

Wouldn't want to upset that "carefully cultivated and gender-conscious balance between work and family life." No siree!

Besides, child-rearing equity is important!

A little late for National Offend a Feminist Week, but Charli's "work-life balance" rants are precious, heh.

IMAGE CREDIT: Serr8d's Cutting Edge.

Professor Daniel Drezner Speaks at Another Controversial Conference Panel — #APSA2014

Dan Drezner is Professor of International Politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.

Folks will recall that Drezner's blog was one of the first I used to read on a regular basis, over a decade ago. He quit the blog recently when Foreign Policy moved to a weekly column format for its online writers, and now Drezner's set up shop at the Washington Post as a contributor.

But Drezner's also known for his questionable ethics and intelligence when it comes to conference participation. Earlier this year he appeared on a panel with Holocaust denier William Lind, who has been described by Michael Goldfarb as a "paleoconservative Jew-baiter extraordinaire."

@mattduss @dandrezner try taking your lumps like a man and apologizing for elevating a holocaust denier—you did that, not anybody else.
— Michael Goldfarb (@thegoldfarb) July 3, 2014

Here's the report on the controversial event from Alana Goodman, "Antiwar Conference Featured Panelist Who Spoke at Holocaust Denial Conference."

So, with that kind of disgusting conference participation, one might expect Professor Drezner to be more choosy in aligning himself with enemies of Israel. (One might be even more likely to think so, as Drezner is himself Jewish.)

But no. It turns out Drezner spoke this weekend at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, at a panel called "Navigating a Career in International Relations." Well, "navigating" an IR career these days apparently means getting on the good side of the most vile anti-Israel academics in the field, Professors Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer, authors of the widely condemned book, The Israel Lobby.

At the APSA website, here's the panelist lineup for "Navigating a Career in International Relations":

Date: Saturday, Aug 30, 2014, 4:30 PM-6:00 PM

Location: Only those registered for the meeting can see room assignments. If you have registered, login to see rooms. Subject to change. Check the Final Program at the conference.

Co-sponsored by 18 International Security-33

Chair(s):

Leslie Vinjamuri
University of London, SOAS

Participant(s):

Helen V. Milner
Princeton University
Helen V. Milner
Princeton University
John J. Mearsheimer
University of Chicago
Daniel W. Drezner
Tufts University
Stephen M. Walt
Harvard University
Colin H. Kahl
Georgetown University
Jennifer M. Lind
Dartmouth College

Drezner, of course, is well-versed in the controversies surrounding Walt and Mearsheimer's The Israel Lobby. Indeed, back in 2005, he offered a robust defense of the embattled authors, going so far to argue that "Walt and Mearsheimer should not be criticized as anti-Semites, because that's patently false."

Really? "Patently false."

Well, the widely respected Anti-Defamation League, which describes itself as "the nation's premier civil rights/human relations agency", would beg to differ. Here's this ADL response to Walt and Mearsheimer at the website, from 2006, "A Review of Mearsheimer and Walt's "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy" -- An Anti-Jewish Screed in Scholarly Guise."

And then there's the authoritative response from political scientist Eliot Cohen, who is the Robert E. Osgood Professor of Strategic Studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at John Hopkins University, at the Washington Post, in 2006, "Yes, It's Anti-Semitic."

I could go on listing eminent, reputable voices who have slammed The Israel Lobby for precisely what it is: hatred and bigotry.

But hey, nowadays hate and bigotry are apparently resume enhancers in the political science discipline.

In 2011, Professor Walt spoke at the far-left Code Pink's Move Over AIPAC! Summit, where attendees bestowed honors on the late White House correspondent Helen Thomas, whose later years where mired in controversy over vile comments she made, caught on tape, attacking Israel and suggesting that the Jews should "move back to Europe." Professor Mearsheimer, as well, has done little to clear his name of anti-Semitic aspersions, going so far as writing a book-jacket blurb for vicious Israel-basher Gilad Atzmon, who the ADL describes as:

... an outspoken and prolific promoter of classic anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about Jewish control over American foreign policy, and has written that Jews have a plan for world domination. He has trafficked in anti-Semitic canards such as the notion that Jews are responsible for the death of Jesus.

And here's Jeffrey Goldberg's dramatic headline on Mearsheimer, at the Atlantic, "John Mearsheimer Endorses a Hitler Apologist and Holocaust Revisionist." And see Commentary, "Mearsheimer’s Anti-Semitism Scandal." [Added: Don't miss Alan Dershowitz as well, at the New Republic, "Why are John Mearsheimer and Richard Falk Endorsing a Blatantly Anti-Semitic Book?"]

Drezner is no doubt aware of all the latest controversies surrounding Walt and Mearsheimer, although he obviously remains untroubled and unconcerned with his own reputation. It'd be one thing if Drezner had appeared on a panel to debate Walt and Mearsheimer on some topical issue in international politics (Obama's bumbling foreign policy; Israel's third Gaza war). But Drezner's appeared at a professional development panel, and thus gave a disciplinary imprimatur to the views of Walt and Mearsheimer.

I called him out on Twitter yesterday:

.@DanDrezner Well, hope you were spared the anti-Semitic tropes and slurs of Walt and Mearsheimer. Not spared: your honor. #TheIsraelLobby
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 31, 2014

In all, a sad statement on the state of the field: Israel-hatred as a career-booster in political science.

Revolt Against the Brassieres

At Barnorama, "Join The Fight Against Bras, Today!"

Plus, elsewhere it's Rule 5 Sunday, at Pirate's Cove, for example, "Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup," and "If All You See……is CO2 infused beer killing the climate, you might just be a Warmist."

And at 90 Miles from Tyranny, "Morning Mistress."

Also, from last Sunday at the Other McCain, "Rule 5 Sunday: Peaches En Regalia."

BONUS FLASHBACK: "#NOAFW – Exclusive: Feminists Attempt to Brainwash Kate Upton."

Check back here for more regular babe blogging updates.

Joan Rivers on Life Support

It's all so unreal, as she just performed on Thursday night.

But by Friday, she was rushed to Cedars Sinai.

At London's Daily Mail, "Joan Rivers' celebrity friends take to Twitter to pray for her recovery as her family face agonizing decision over whether or not to turn off life support machine."

And on Twitter:

Remains on life support... http://t.co/Ea6GSCmvGQ

— DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) August 31, 2014

JOAN NEEDS MIRACLE http://t.co/0GzPzfLdXO

— DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) August 31, 2014

Yes, Indeed, Let's Be Mindful of What 'the Left has already accomplished...'

Demonic hate-troll Walter James Casper tweets:

#TheSixtiesCNN reminds me how much the Left has already accomplished, how much further we have to go, and the likelihood of our success.

— W. James Casper (@repsac3) August 31, 2014

Oh, and we have "further to go"?

Right. We certainly wouldn't want to waste any time destroying the rest of the moral and strategic order that's taken decent society decades to build. The 1960's saw the rise of the most "destructive generation," and pity the next generations of Americans, who will live in greater danger and less prosperity than those who came before.

But according to vile Utopian assholes like Walter James Casper III, all of this is progress.

More at Instapundit, "A FACEBOOK FRIEND WHO’S TOO MODEST TO WANT CREDIT HERE POSTED THIS...":

Let’s accept, arguendo, that the outgoing DIA chief is right, and that we are now in an era of danger similar to the mid-1930s. How did we get here? It’s worth looking back into the mists of time — an entire year, to Labor Day weekend 2013. What had not happened then? It’s quite a list, actually: the Chinese ADIZ, the Russian annexation of Crimea, the rise of ISIS, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the fall of Mosul, the end of Hungarian liberal democracy, the Central American refugee crisis, the Egyptian-UAE attacks on Libya, the extermination of Iraqi Christians, the Yazidi genocide, the scramble to revise NATO’s eastern-frontier defenses, the Kristallnacht-style pogroms in European cities, the reemergence of mainstream anti-Semitism, the third (or fourth, perhaps) American war in Iraq, racial riots in middle America, et cetera and ad nauseam.

All that was in the future just one year ago.

What is happening now is basically America’s version of “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The President of the United States — supported to an exceptional extent by an electorate both uncomprehending and untrusting of the outside world — is Clarence the Angel, and he’s showing us what the world would be like if we’d never been born, Unsurprisingly, Bedford Falls is now Pottersville, and it’s a terrible place. Unfortunately we do not get to revert to the tolerable if modest status quo at the end of the lesson: George Bailey will eventually have to shell the town and retake it street by street from Old Man Potter’s Spetsnaz.

But the larger point here is not what’s happening, because what’s happening is obvious. Things are falling apart. The point is how fast it’s come. It takes the blood and labor of generations to build a general peace, and that peace is sustained by two pillars: a common moral vision, and force majeure. We spent a quarter-century chipping away at the latter, and finally discarded the former, and now that peace is gone. All this was the work of decades.

Look back, again, to Labor Day weekend 2013, and understand one thing: its undoing was the work of mere months.

Coco Crisp Scratched from #Athletics Starting Lineup for Second Day in a Row

Per Susan Slusser, on Twitter.

And Slusser at SF Gate, "A’s acquire Adam Dunn from White Sox."

The A's are in a slumpin' funk.

Donaldson says if he had answers for why offense struggling, "we wouldn't be struggling."

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Asked about confidence level, outlook going into final month of season, Donaldson said, "I don't know. We'll see."

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Donaldson said of recent team struggles, "Pretty much everything's been said. Everyone sees it." Team morale? "I think it's pretty obvious."

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

A couple of people have asked if the A's sound defeated. No, they sound like a mix of pissed and frustrated. Exactly as you would expect.

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

Bad News for Al Gore: Arctic Sea Ice Growing Thicker and Larger (GRAPHS)

At London's Daily Mail, "Myth of arctic meltdown: Stunning satellite images show summer ice cap is thicker and covers 1.7million square kilometres MORE than 2 years ago...despite Al Gore's prediction it would be ICE-FREE by now."

Also at WUWT, "‘The Arctic sea ice spiral of death seems to have reversed’."

Al Gore is such an ass.

More from Debra Saunders, at the San Francisco Chronicle, "Al Gore suit against Al Jazeera the height of hypocrisy."

Brutal Rise of Islamic State Turns Old Enemies Into New Friends

At WSJ, "Nations Long at Loggerheads, Such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, Find Common Ground in Bid to Curb Extremists":

In the brutal calculation of Middle East politics, the baseline for friendship has always been simple: The enemy of my enemy is my friend.

By that standard, the Islamic State extremist group is creating friendships aplenty. An odd set of bedfellows or potential bedfellows, transcending geographical, ideological and alliance bounds, is emerging from the ranks of those threatened by what many see as the most dangerous militant movement in a generation.

Shiite Muslim Iran and Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia, for instance, have been bitter foes since at least 1979, when the Iranian revolutionary government of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini hoped to inspire similar revolutions in the Sunni world. But both countries now fear Islamic State's armed radical Islamist movement, which seeks to usurp their own claimed leadership of the Muslim world.

That led Iran and Saudi Arabia to independently back the same candidate to lead Iraq, in a push for a new government that might unite Sunnis and Shiites to battle Islamic State. This week, Iranian and Saudi diplomats held a rare meeting to consult.

Turkey has long distrusted and worked against ethnic Kurds, especially a violent splinter group known as the PKK that operates out of the mountainous environs of northern Iraq. But the Turks looked the other way when Syrian Kurdish militias affiliated with the PKK played a starring role in the rescue from Islamic State fighters of thousands of Yazidis stranded on a mountainside.

Russia and the U.S. are at loggerheads in Ukraine and elsewhere, including the Middle East. But they agree that the sort of violent Islam practiced by Islamic State, which now controls large swaths of Iraq and Syria, endangers the global order in which both countries compete for influence.

Islamic State even has had a falling out with al Qaeda, the group that spawned it. Al Qaeda's official Syrian branch, known as the Nusra Front, is outflanked and mocked by Islamic State. So Nusra has joined the fight against Islamic State, clashing violently on the battlefields of Syria.

These countries and movements may be at odds over nearly everything else, but nothing focuses the mind like a mortal threat, say some analysts and former top security officials. Given not only Islamic State's savagery but its potential to overthrow regimes and spill over borders, they all seem to agree on only one thing: It needs to be stopped.

Lacking a coalition of the willing, the Obama administration should muster up a sort of alliance of the unwilling, these analysts argue. Whether that is possible, and whether the U.S. has the guile and clout to unite such disparate forces—either formally, or more likely in a combination of overt, covert and arm's-length arrangements—is an open question.

"It has to be patched together, somewhat ad hoc, with maybe some sort of informal and even clandestine agreements on who does what," says Zbigniew Brzezinski, a former U.S. national-security adviser.

More at that top link.

The Macan, Porsche's New 'Speed-Hunting' SUV

I've loved these cars ever since I was a little kid.

Some day. Some day.

At LAT, "The Macan, Porsche's New 'Speed-Hunting' SUV":

Pay no mind to the Porsche Macan's 18 cubic feet of cargo room, its capacity to carry five adults comfortably and its commanding view of the road. With 340 horsepower and reflexes that would make Catwoman jealous, the Macan S never got the memo that it's not a sports car. Porsche's speed-hunting pedigree shows in every corner of this all-new small SUV.

The Macan is the smaller sibling to the Cayenne, the German marque's original SUV, which sent Porsche purists into fits when it was introduced a decade ago but reaped huge profits in the U.S. and globally.

The company is hoping for similar success with the Macan, which is Indonesian for "tiger." For sale now, it's Porsche's play for the burgeoning compact crossover segment — one of the fastest-growing areas of the luxury vehicle market, fueled by wealthy empty-nesters, first-time luxury buyers and professional women.

More.

How Erin Andrews Stays So Fit

At Health Magazine, "Erin Andrews: On Staying Energized, Working Out, and Being Outspoken."

The September issue of @goodhealth is available today! pic.twitter.com/BbdSvjrpM8

— Erin Andrews (@ErinAndrews) August 15, 2014

Poland on Edge as Russia Carves Up Ukraine

So I guess I'm not the only one making World War II analogies in light of Russian aggression in Ukraine. If anyone would know the consequences of appeasement, it'd be the Poles.

At the Times of Israel, "Poland on edge 75 years after Hitler and Stalin carved it up":

Memories of World War II have been bubbling to the surface since Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in March.

WARSAW (AFP) — Poland marks the 75th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II Monday with one eye on Russia, which invaded it during the war and is now throwing its weight around in neighboring Ukraine.

From the very first German shells fired at a Polish fort in Gdansk in the early hours of September 1, 1939, to the final days in 1945, Poland suffered some of the worst horrors of the war, chief among them the extermination of most of its Jewish population by the Nazis.

Nearly six million Poles, or about 17 percent of the population — including around three million Jews — died in the conflict.

Memories of the era have been bubbling to the surface since Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in March, and a fierce conflict began in the country’s east.

“To use military force against one’s neighbors, to annex their territory, to prevent them from freely choosing their place in the world — this provides a worrying reminder of the dark chapters of Europe’s 20th-century history,” Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski said in a newspaper opinion piece ahead of the anniversary.

Polish historian Andrzej Friszke meanwhile recalled the infamous Munich agreement that Britain and France signed with Nazi Germany in 1938, allowing it to annex swathes of Czechoslovakia in a failed bid to avert war...

More.

Coco Crisp Scratched from Starting Lineup for Tonight's #Angels-#Athletics Game

Via Susan Slusser, at the San Francisco Chronicle:

#Athletics Drumbeat: Crisp, Doolittle, Jaso updates: Melvin on the possibility of more "small ball." http://t.co/sIXEQvst3j

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) August 31, 2014

And here's the video from last night's game:



PREVIOUSLY: "#Angels Beat #Athletics 4-0 in Spectacular Rivaly Match at Anaheim Stadium."

High Expectations, New Traditions for #USC Football

Fresno State faces the Trojans at the Coliseum, starting in a couple of minutes.

At the Los Angeles Times, "USC's Steve Sarkisian hopes fans can embrace break with tradition":

There is a certain traditional look to USC football.

Traveler, the white horse, races down the sidelines during home games, right past the iconic USC song girls. The Trojans marching band performs "Fight On" after every USC first down. And fans need a program to identify the Trojans because they are the only players in major college football who have never had names on the back of their jerseys.

But change will be obvious the first time USC has the ball Saturday when the Trojans open the season against Fresno State at the Coliseum.

New Coach Steve Sarkisian has hit the fast-forward button on USC's offense.

Get ready for no huddles. For a quarterback mainly in the shotgun formation. Coaches relaying signs to players like baseball third-base coaches. Sideline staff holding giant cards featuring NFL team helmets, colors and various patterns and symbols.

ere is a certain traditional look to USC football.

Traveler, the white horse, races down the sidelines during home games, right past the iconic USC song girls. The Trojans marching band performs "Fight On" after every USC first down. And fans need a program to identify the Trojans because they are the only players in major college football who have never had names on the back of their jerseys.

But change will be obvious the first time USC has the ball Saturday when the Trojans open the season against Fresno State at the Coliseum.

New Coach Steve Sarkisian has hit the fast-forward button on USC's offense.

Get ready for no huddles. For a quarterback mainly in the shotgun formation. Coaches relaying signs to players like baseball third-base coaches. Sideline staff holding giant cards featuring NFL team helmets, colors and various patterns and symbols.

More.

First NFL Homosexual Michael Sam Cut by Rams

Heh.

You gotta love it, at Bleacher Report, "Michael Sam Cut by Rams: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction."

Plus, on Twitter:

Pro-tip: if you set up a ball player as the next Jackie Robinson, make sure he plays well, first. #MichaelSam

— Aaron Worthing (@AaronWorthing) August 30, 2014

#MichaelSam liberals once again proving it's not really about "equality" or "football abilities". They demand special treatment. #whatajoke

— Beanfrompa (@BeanfromPa) August 30, 2014

Michael Sam, the first openly gay player selected in the NFL draft, was cut Saturday by the St. Louis Rams http://t.co/WJqEzfoJLO

— Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) August 30, 2014

Hot Anais Zanotta Bikini Pics

At Barnorama, "Anais Zanotti Shows Off Her Love For France In A Hot Bikini." (Via Linkiest.)

Anais Zanotti + French Bikini = Amazing!! http://t.co/M8WOGjfPYx pic.twitter.com/eDh1WIkXmB

— WTF Facts (@WTFfactx) August 30, 2014

John Kerry's Demand for 'Global Coalition' Signals Cowardice, Weakness, and Appeasement

It's almost like a bad joke, although sadly this is for real.

The headline of Secretary Kerry's op-ed at the New York Times says it all: "To Defeat Terror, We Need the World's Help: John Kerry: The Threat of ISIS Demands a Global Coalition." (Via Memeorandum.)

Kerry proclaims the need for "a broad coalition" nearly a half a dozen times. And he tries to lend authority to his case by calling on the memory of "the first President George Bush and Secretary of State James A. Baker III," who raised a truly broad international coalition behind 500,000 American troops to evict Saddam Hussein from Kuwait in 1991. The U.S. today would be lucky to get 500 "special advisers" in Iraq to coordinate the precipitous withdrawal of all American diplomatic and humanitarian personnel.

Kerry's essay is the modern equivalent of the "peace in our time" diplomacy of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain in 1938. It's a statement of avoidance-at-all-costs foreign policy that is the hallmark of the Obama presidency.

Pamela Geller has more, "Hiding From Behind: “Global coalition needed to stop Islamic State”":

More weakness and cowardice from the jihad sympathizer in the White House.

In the wake of Obama’s catastrophic failure in Iraq and Syria, the Obama administration is laying off on everyone else. The “Junior Varsity” team has conquered whole swaths of the Middle East and there is no stopping them. At least not while Hussein is in the White House.

Obama’s Secretary of State John Kerry, a NY Times editorial, which I am sure the Islamic State reads every morning over the pile up of heads and corpses,  is a “global coalition using political, humanitarian, economic, law enforcement and intelligence tools to support military force.” Obama has no global coalition. He has alienated every ally we had. Unlike George Bush who had a “Coalition of the Willing” of 48 countries.

This is just another embarrassing example of Obama’s impotence. The rise of the Islamic State is a direct result of Obama’s foreign policy — the disengagement and dismantling American influence and power in the Middle East and the world. The spread of jihad is the symptom of a vacuum. Whenever jihad wins, it is only by default: by the moral failure of those who evade the fact that there can be no compromise on basic principles (paraphrasing Ayn Rand).

We have the military, cultural, and moral superiority to defeat jihad. We choose not to. A global coalition needs a leader. Has anyone called Stephen Harper?

And don't miss Tom Maguire, "Save It For The Funny Papers, Or, The Long Slow Flip-Flop Into Light."

(Via Memeorandum.)

BONUS: Fox News reports, "Kerry: The Threat of ISIS Demands a Global Coalition."

The Science is Settled and You're Racist

Andrew Klavan is hilarious.

Andrea Tantaros Tells the Leftist Speech Nazis to Get Bent

At Twitchy, "Andrea Tantaros: I will not apologize for criticizing radical Islamic jihadism."

I will not apologize for speaking the truth about radical Islamic jihadism. Period.

— Andrea Tantaros (@AndreaTantaros) August 30, 2014

I sent that along to a couple of leftist Nazis. These are disgusting people and Ms. Tantaros towers over them in moral clarity, to say nothing of intelligence.

.@pcheung630 Yo, Andrea Tantaros told you and your leftist speech censors to take a hike: https://t.co/ADaQdCy8RG cc. @MMFA #Outnumbered

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 30, 2014

.@joannarothkopf Miss, Andrea Tantaros won't be apologizing to speech Nazis like you: https://t.co/ADaQdCy8RG Nor should she. Get a clue.

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 30, 2014

Terrorist Attack 'Highly Likely' in Britain

It's Kabuki theater.

Here's British Home Secretary Theresa May making her announcement on the elevated threat level in the U.K.:

The UK terror threat level has been raised to severe, meaning that a terrorist attack is "highly likely".

Theresa May, the Home Secretary, stressed that there was no information to suggest an attack was imminent.

She said the decision was taken as a result of the involvement of British fighters in the conflicts in Iraq and Syria.

It is the first time the threat level has been at “severe” since 2011 when it was reduced to “substantial”.

PREVIOUSLY: "'Severe' Terror Threat in Britain Amid Increasing Fears of U.K. Jihadists."

George Galloway Beaten Up — Left With Smashed Jaw

At Blazing Cat Fur:

The notoriously anti-Israel and anti-West Member of Parliament George Galloway has reportedly been beaten up on a London street tonight, with one news outlet reporting that Galloway has suffered a broken jaw at the hands of his attacker.

And Instapundit snarks, "COULDN’T HAPPEN TO A NICER GUY..."

Emma Kuziara Naughty Striptease

At Egotastic!, "Emma K. Poses for Sexy Photoshoot."

'Severe' Terror Threat in Britain Amid Increasing Fears of U.K. Jihadists

I think we're reaching the "overblown" phase of the latest threat about now.

That's not to say there isn't one. Only that while David Cameron continues to thread the multicultural needle, and President Obama admits he's got no strategy to defeat the terrorists, the opportunistic mass media has decided this is a good time to pump up the dangers of global jihad.

We'll probably die of political correctness first.

At BCF, "UK terror threat level raised to "Multicultural" - Jihadist attack now 'highly likely'."

And at Telegraph UK, "Britain facing 'greatest terrorist threat' in history":

David Cameron warns that Isil have made 'specific' threats against Britain as the terror threat level is raised.

Britain faces the “greatest and deepest” terror threat in the country’s history, David Cameron warned as he pledged emergency measures to tackle extremists.

The UK threat level was raised to “severe” — its second highest — meaning that a terrorist attack is “highly likely” in light of the growing danger from British jihadists returning from Iraq and Syria.

The Prime Minister said that the risk posed by Isil (the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) will last for “decades” and raised the prospect of an expanding terrorist nation “on the shores of the Mediterranean”.

He disclosed that Isil had made “specific” threats against the UK and did not rule out military action to tackle the growing problem.

More than 500 Britons are believed to have gone to Iraq and Syria and at least half have returned, with some feared to be planning attacks here. One major plot has been foiled.

The warning came as it emerged that a laptop seized from Isil in Syria contained research on how to make a biological bomb and religious justification to use it against civilians.

On Monday, Mr Cameron will unveil a number of “uncompromising” measures to help tackle British jihadists and fill the “gaps in our armoury”.

They will include stopping British fanatics from travelling to or returning from the war zones by making it easier to seize their passports.

#Angels Beat #Athletics 4-0 in Spectacular Rivaly Match at Anaheim Stadium

I mentioned the playoff atmosphere in my post yesterday before the game, "Angels-Athletics Rivalry Has 'Playoff Feel'."

And there were no disappointments.

Mike DiGiovanna reports, at the Los Angeles Times, "Angels get A's for effort in 4-0 victory":

Ball squirted out of Coco Crisp's glove and over the wall. It's a 2-run HR for Iannetta for 2-0 #Angels lead, but what an effort by Crisp.

— Mike DiGiovanna (@MikeDiGiovanna) August 30, 2014

That was #Angels C Chris Iannetta's first HR since May 25 vs. #Royals.

— Mike DiGiovanna (@MikeDiGiovanna) August 30, 2014

Oakland center fielder Coco Crisp risked serious injury when he crashed into the wall in a gallant effort to rob Angels catcher Chris Iannetta of a two-run home run in the fifth inning Friday night.

Angels left fielder Josh Hamilton hurled his body into foul territory to make a superb diving catch of Alberto Callaspo's fifth-inning popup with two on, to which center fielder Mike Trout responded: "That's what I'm talking about, baby!"

Trout raced into the left-center-field gap and caught Stephen Vogt's drive before slamming into the wall to save a run in the fourth. And Angels ace Jered Weaver pumped his fist violently and screamed an obscenity into the air after getting Josh Reddick to fly to left with the bases loaded to end the sixth.

What the Angels-Athletics rivalry might lack in name-brand recognition or a decades-old history of bitterness, it is making up for in on-field intensity.

Emotions ran high again Friday night, as Weaver gave up three hits in seven shutout innings to lead the Angels to a 4-0 victory before an energized crowd of 41,177 in Angel Stadium...

More.

In an all-around phenomenal game, the Coco Crisp effort to snag Iannetta's home run was particularly dramatic.

I picked up tickets yesterday afternoon, so our seats were way up on the top level, almost all the way down the third base line. From my angle, the center-field fence was parallel with my view. I was talking to my son and not paying close attention when Iannetta came up to bat, but I saw him get some good wood on the ball and was wondering if it was going to go out of the yard. And then here come the outfielders to try to make a play. It took me a second to remember that Crisp was playing center, but as soon as he went up I knew, and he slammed into the wall hard. It looked like he robbed Iannetta of the homer, but we were too far away to see the ball pop out of the glove. And then Crisp jumped up and clutched his abdomen, finally doubling over in pain. I saw an usher or groundsman behind the center-field wall go over and pick up a ball, so I thought then that Crisp wasn't able to hold on. But the scoreboard hadn't recording the home run, and I didn't see the umpire signal the score. Pretty intense baseball, that's for sure. And so different watching it at the park than on television.

In any case, here's the Athletics home page with the video, "Crisp exits after crash into wall on stellar effort."

VIDEO: Review of #ISIS Social Media Messaging Reveals Intent to Sneak Across U.S.-Mexico Border

At Fox News, "Online posts show ISIS eyeing Mexican border, says law enforcement bulletin."

Also, from Brandon Darby, at Breitbart, "EXCLUSIVE: BREITBART TEXAS VERIFIES ISIS BORDER THREAT WITH LEAKED DOC."

And picked up at local CBS News Los Angeles:

Angels-Athletics Rivalry Has 'Playoff Feel'

I'm heading out in a few minutes for Game 2 of the Labor Day weekend series between the Angels and Athletics at the Big A.

The Los Angeles Times reports, "Angels-Athletics is becoming a real rivalry."

This four-game series with #Athletics and #Angels is really setting up nicely for some great drama this weekend. Playoff feel

— Sean Cunningham (@News10Sean) August 29, 2014

Putin Denies Russia Sent Troops Into #Ukraine

More on the story out of Russia, at LAT, "Putin denies invading Ukraine, warns West 'not to mess with us'."

PREVIOUSLY: "Putin Lashes Out at Kiev."

Eiza Gonzalez

At WWTDD, "Eiza Gonzalez Is No Miley Cyrus."

The Concept of Western World Order in Crisis

A magisterial essay, from Henry Kissinger, at WSJ, "Henry Kissinger on the Assembly of a New World Order."

Dr. Kissinger has a new book coming out as well, World Order.

Homosexual Daniel Ashley Pierce Violently Disowned by Family During Profanity-Laced 'Intervention'

Huffington Post has the story, via Memeorandum, "WATCH: Family Has Horrifying, Violent Reaction To Son's Coming Out As Gay (GRAPHIC CONTENT)."

"How not to react" is right.

BMW X5 Security Plus Bullet-Proof Car

A little out of my price range, although I could sure use one.

At WSJ, "BMW Unveils Bulletproof Car: Moscow Plays Host to Launch of Cars That Can Withstand AK-47 Fire."

Putin Lashes Out at Kiev

At the Wall Street Journal, "Putin Lashes Out at Ukraine Over Failure of Talks: Comments Come as Ukraine Says It Wants to Join NATO":

MOSCOW—Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday accused Kiev and its allies of backing peace talks only as a smoke screen to continue military operations, sidestepping allegations that Russia is funneling troops into eastern Ukraine to fight alongside separatist rebels.

Hopes for a diplomatic solution to the crisis have dimmed significantly in recent days. Putin's claims came as Ukraine's government proposed repealing a law banning membership in military blocs and moving toward joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which Russia considers a threat to its interests.

"The Ukrainian authorities must be forced to substantively start talks" with separatists in the east on greater autonomy, Mr. Putin told a youth forum in northwest Russia. He didn't specify how that would happen, but he blasted the West for allowing Kiev to continue fighting.

"You know what our partners' position boils down to?... 'yes, we must sit down at the negotiating table, but we need to let the Ukrainian government shoot a bit first,'" he said. "But that's not working. That has to be recognized."

Moscow has long called for Kiev to stop its military operation unconditionally, but previous cease-fires have fallen apart almost as soon as they were announced amid allegations from both sides of violations. Ukraine has said it is open to a truce but only if it is observed by both sides.

NATO said Thursday that more than 1,000 Russian soldiers are fighting in Ukraine in an incursion that appeared to be aimed at preventing Kiev from defeating the separatists on the battlefield.

Mr. Putin didn't specifically address the allegations from Kiev and the West, which other Russian officials denied. He said only that border violations by troops have happened on both sides and are a "technical" matter.

In unusually harsh language, Mr. Putin compared Ukrainian forces' tactics to those used by the Nazis in their invasion of Russia. "Sadly, it reminds me of World War II, when German fascist forces surrounded our cities, like Leningrad, and shelled population centers and their residents," he said. Kiev has denied those allegations.

Keeping up his defiance, Mr. Putin said that Russia wasn't involved in major conflicts, but would be ready to repel aggression. "Russia's partners...should understand it's best not to mess with us," he said.

Ukraine's proposal wasn't discussed at a Friday meeting of NATO ambassadors called to discuss the crisis, though the alliance's chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said NATO would "fully respect" any decision by Ukraine to try to join the alliance.

Ukraine had been seeking NATO membership under its previous pro-Western government in 2005, but the subsequent pro-Russian leadership passed the law banning bloc membership in 2010.