Well, the running actually looks kinda fun, and take a good look, because who knows how long this will continue? Leftists are ramping up their protests.
From the other day, "Animal Rights Activists Poured Artificial Blood Over Themselves in Pamplona, Spain (VIDEO)."
It's PETA, "RUNNING OF THE BULLS - PAMPLONA - BULL FIGHT PROTEST - PETA."
And via Euronews:
Thursday, July 7, 2016
Emily Ratajkowski Poses for Harper's Bazaar
At London's Daily Mail, "Emily Ratajkowski poses NAKED atop a horse for Harper's Bazaar."
BONUS: Flashback, "EMILY RATAJKOWSKI WET SHOWER TOPLESS OUTTAKES."
BONUS: Flashback, "EMILY RATAJKOWSKI WET SHOWER TOPLESS OUTTAKES."
Muslim Immigration to the West Threatens Women (VIDEO)
It's Ayaan Hirsi Ali, for Prager University.
And her recent book, Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now.
And her recent book, Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now.
Kim Strassel Talks About The Intimidation Game
A great interview, at the Daily Signal.
And here's her book, The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech.
And here's her book, The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech.
Devin Brugman Shares Bikini Photos from Greek Vaction on Instagram
Looks like a fan account.
And she should have fans, dang!
And from yesterday, "Natasha Oakley Speaks Out."
And she should have fans, dang!
Devin Brugman puts on a busty display in sexy triangle bikini https://t.co/ZgCLK3csy7
— Devin Brugman Daily (@DevBrugmanDaily) July 6, 2016
And from yesterday, "Natasha Oakley Speaks Out."
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Deal of the Day: Dremel 3-Tool Craft & Hobby Maker Kit [BUMPED]
At Amazon, Dremel 2290 3-Tool Craft & Hobby Maker Kit with 200-Series Rotary Tool, Engraver & Butane Soldering Torch.
Plus, Save on Building Supplies.
And, Home & Kitchen Markdowns - Kitchen & Dining - 50% Off or More.
Also, from Heather Mac Donald, The War on Cops: How the New Attack on Law and Order Makes Everyone Less Safe.
Harry Stein, No Matter What...They'll Call This Book Racist: How our Fear of Talking Honestly About Race Hurts Us All.
David Limbaugh, The Great Destroyer: Barack Obama's War on the Republic.
And Patrick Garry, Conservatism Redefined: A Creed for the Poor and Disadvantaged.
BONUS: Kim Strassel, The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech.
Plus, Save on Building Supplies.
And, Home & Kitchen Markdowns - Kitchen & Dining - 50% Off or More.
Also, from Heather Mac Donald, The War on Cops: How the New Attack on Law and Order Makes Everyone Less Safe.
Harry Stein, No Matter What...They'll Call This Book Racist: How our Fear of Talking Honestly About Race Hurts Us All.
David Limbaugh, The Great Destroyer: Barack Obama's War on the Republic.
And Patrick Garry, Conservatism Redefined: A Creed for the Poor and Disadvantaged.
BONUS: Kim Strassel, The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech.
Update on Alton Sterling Shooting
The Daily Beast has a very graphic video of the shooting, via Memeorandum, "New Video Emerges of Alton Sterling Being Killed by Baton Rouge Police."
Obviously, information is scarce, but like with the death of Eric Garner in New York, the police can sometimes be seriously fucked up. While there's no "epidemic" of police killings of "unarmed black men," I'm upset with a lot of these deaths, and I can see how they fuel the leftist assault against law enforcement.
And I don't care if the guy Alton Sterling was a convicted molester, or whatever people are saying. The video sure looks like excessive force. You can see the man start to bleed out at the clip. He was shot right in the chest, so no doubt he didn't last long.
Police work is a nasty, ugly line of business. I used to hate cops when I was a kid, because they hassled me and profiled me. But I don't hate them so much anymore. I distrust them with my liberty, but I do know that most of them are decent individuals who mean well, and often are placed in unwinnable circumstances.
In any case, here's Bob Owens at Bearing Arms, "Most of What You’re Reading About Alton Sterling is Written byy Idiots" (via Memeorandum):
If the investigation, which is now going to be run through Washington, reveals that Sterling was reaching for, or holding, his weapon, it's most likely his killing would be justified. But see Owens' post for the last analysis on that point.
Now, see Sarah Kendzior, your classic progressive intellectual (who nevertheless is quite good at her reporting):
Scroll through her feed for more.
Previously, "Alton Sterling Shot by Police After Scuffle Outside Convenience Store in Baton Rouge (VIDEO)."
Obviously, information is scarce, but like with the death of Eric Garner in New York, the police can sometimes be seriously fucked up. While there's no "epidemic" of police killings of "unarmed black men," I'm upset with a lot of these deaths, and I can see how they fuel the leftist assault against law enforcement.
And I don't care if the guy Alton Sterling was a convicted molester, or whatever people are saying. The video sure looks like excessive force. You can see the man start to bleed out at the clip. He was shot right in the chest, so no doubt he didn't last long.
Police work is a nasty, ugly line of business. I used to hate cops when I was a kid, because they hassled me and profiled me. But I don't hate them so much anymore. I distrust them with my liberty, but I do know that most of them are decent individuals who mean well, and often are placed in unwinnable circumstances.
In any case, here's Bob Owens at Bearing Arms, "Most of What You’re Reading About Alton Sterling is Written byy Idiots" (via Memeorandum):
Here’s what really happened, based upon what we actually know.More.
* Police were called to a Baton Rouge (Louisiana) convenience store on a “man with a gun” call.These are the only real facts that we know.
* Officers made contact with Alton Sterling at the convenience store because he matched the description provided by the caller.
* Officers had a conversation that led to a confrontation with Alton Sterling. We do not know the details of this conversation.
* A person in a nearby car began (badly) recording with a low-quality cell phone camera just as officers stepped back and fired a taser at Alston Sterling.
* You can distinctly hear the crackle of the X26 taser. It fires a second time. Alton Sterling is unmoved by either taser attempt.
* Up until this point, Sterling has been passively non-compliant, at least while on camera.
* An officer tackles Alton Sterling, and once Sterling is on the ground he starts actively resisting officers.
* The officer who fired the taser is able to secure Sterling’s left arm with great difficulty, and pins it under his legs.
* The other officer, the one who tackled Sterling, is attempting to control Sterling’s right arm, but it is out of camera view behind the bumper of the car.
* The officer who tackled Alston Sterling yells “He’s got a gun!” Sterling is seen still actively resisting. We still cannot see Alton Sterling’s right arm as the tackling officer fights to control him.
* The officer who had twice tasered Sterling draws his handgun to retention. He presumably issues the warning to Alton Sterling face to face: “Hey bra! You f*cking move, I swear to God.”
* Two shots are fired, and the cell phone video loses focus and goes back inside the car.
* Several other shots are heard.
If the investigation, which is now going to be run through Washington, reveals that Sterling was reaching for, or holding, his weapon, it's most likely his killing would be justified. But see Owens' post for the last analysis on that point.
Now, see Sarah Kendzior, your classic progressive intellectual (who nevertheless is quite good at her reporting):
My piece from May on real "Ferguson effect": police who murder are not punished but rewarded https://t.co/0xDe4xPiE1 pic.twitter.com/4KzWqBJMdo
— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) July 6, 2016
Scroll through her feed for more.
Previously, "Alton Sterling Shot by Police After Scuffle Outside Convenience Store in Baton Rouge (VIDEO)."
Follow-Up on Michelle Fields Interview with Steve Malzberg
First page of Michelle Field's book (Barons of the Beltway: Inside the Princely World of Our Washington Elite — and How to Overthrow Them), where she alleges Corey Lewandowski nearly pulled her to the ground at the Donald Trump event. She flatly denied making the allegation in the book when called out by Steve Malzberg on Newsmax, and then she quit the interview. But it's right there. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's a liar. And that's a bald-faced lie.
Sad.
Here's the initial report, "Michelle Fields Abruptly Ends Interview When Called Out by Steve Malzberg on Corey Lewandowsk Lies (VIDEO)."
Sad.
Here's the initial report, "Michelle Fields Abruptly Ends Interview When Called Out by Steve Malzberg on Corey Lewandowsk Lies (VIDEO)."
J. Kael Weston, The Mirror Test
Obama's going to leave 8,400 troops in Afghanistan, which is about the most decent thing he's done all year.
More on that later.
Meanwhile, here's J. Kael Weston's new book, The Mirror Test: America at War in Iraq and Afghanistan.
More on that later.
Meanwhile, here's J. Kael Weston's new book, The Mirror Test: America at War in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hillary Clinton Expanding College Plan to Offer 'Free' Tuition to Millions
"Free" college.
She's really feeling the Bern on this one.
Remember, Sanders' full program, education plus universal health care, etc., was pegged at more than $18 trillion over ten years.
Let's hope Crooked Hilary doesn't go that far, sheesh.
At WSJ (via Memeorandum):
"Debt-free."
What difference does it make? It's going to be a massive taxpayer-funded boondoggle either way.
And to be clear, I support free community college education. It was free back in the 1970s in California, and it was designed as affordable for everyone. But even that's going to be hard to finance in this day and age. I'd like to see more affordability, more federal grants, and so forth. But no doubt it's going to cost a lot. Young people are being deceived if they think they're going to get a 100 percent free ride. It ain't going to happen.
Keep reading.
She's really feeling the Bern on this one.
Remember, Sanders' full program, education plus universal health care, etc., was pegged at more than $18 trillion over ten years.
Let's hope Crooked Hilary doesn't go that far, sheesh.
At WSJ (via Memeorandum):
In a bid to win over rival Bernie Sanders and his supporters, Democrat Hillary Clinton is expanding her college plan to offer free tuition to millions of families, a modified version of what Mr. Sanders pushed during his presidential campaign and a major concession."Tuition-free."
The new plan will offer free tuition at public schools to students in families earning up to $85,000 a year at first, with that threshold increasing to $125,000 by 2021.
Mr. Sanders welcomed the plan as “a revolutionary step forward.”
Speaking to reporters, he applauded her move as “very, very significant” and said the new plan combines the best of both candidates’ ideas. But he continued to hold off an endorsement for Mrs. Clinton, who has the Democratic nomination in hand. “This is one issue—there are other issues,” he said.
Throughout their primary campaign, Mrs. Clinton argued that her college affordability plan was superior. Her proposal guaranteed that families wouldn’t have to borrow money to attend college, but insisted that students and their parents contribute what they could afford. She described this as a way to make sure everybody had “skin in the game.”
In a statement, Mrs. Clinton sidestepped the political imperatives in revising her plan and continued to talk about her policy in terms of “debt-free” college, as opposed to Mr. Sanders’s more sweeping vision of “tuition-free” school.
“American families are drowning in debt caused by ever-rising college costs and it is imperative that the next president put forward a bold plan to make debt-free college available to all,” she said.
It is not clear how many additional families would get free tuition under the modified version compared with the original Clinton plan. The campaign also didn’t say how much the new version would cost or how she would pay for it...
"Debt-free."
What difference does it make? It's going to be a massive taxpayer-funded boondoggle either way.
And to be clear, I support free community college education. It was free back in the 1970s in California, and it was designed as affordable for everyone. But even that's going to be hard to finance in this day and age. I'd like to see more affordability, more federal grants, and so forth. But no doubt it's going to cost a lot. Young people are being deceived if they think they're going to get a 100 percent free ride. It ain't going to happen.
Keep reading.
Italian Coast Guard and Navy Intercept 4,500 Refugees During Operations in the Mediterranean (VIDEO)
They should pick up these "refugees" and dump them in Germany, and the chancellor's office.
Via Ruptly:
Via Ruptly:
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair Responds to Chilcot Inquiry Report (VIDEO)
As promised, following-up from earlier, "U.K. Chilcot Report Offers Devastating Critique of Tony Blair and the Iraq War," and "FLASHBACK: Tony Blair Testimony Before the Chilcot Inquiry in 2010 (VIDEO)."
Plus, updates at Telegraph UK, "Chilcot report: Tony Blair takes 'full responsibility' for Iraq war as Jeremy Corbyn 'apologises sincerely on behalf' of Labour party":
Plus, updates at Telegraph UK, "Chilcot report: Tony Blair takes 'full responsibility' for Iraq war as Jeremy Corbyn 'apologises sincerely on behalf' of Labour party":
“The decision to go to war in Iraq and remove Saddam Hussein from power in a coalition of over 40 countries led by the USA, was the hardest, most momentous, most agonising decision I took in 10 years as British prime minister.The full video is here, "[Full speech] Tony Blair speaks after publication of Chilcot report."
“For that decision today I accept full responsibility, without exception and without excuse. I recognise the division felt by many in our country over the war and in particular I feel deeply and sincerely – in a way that no words can properly convey – the grief and suffering of those who lost ones they loved in Iraq, whether the members of our armed forces, the armed forces of other nations, or Iraqis.
“The intelligence assessments made at the time of going to war turned out to be wrong. The aftermath turned out to be more hostile, protracted and bloody than ever we imagined. The coalition planned for one set of ground facts and encountered another, and a nation whose people we wanted to set free and secure from the evil of Saddam, became instead victim to sectarian terrorism.
“For all of this I express more sorrow, regret and apology than you may ever know or can believe.”
Charles Krauthammer: Hillary Clinton's a 'Non-Criminal Liar'
That's the conclusion from listening to FBI Director Comey's remarks yesterday, says Dr. K.
Watch, from Fox News' Special Report, "The political ramifications of the FBI's Clinton decision."
Also at the video: Kirsten Powers and Mercedes Schlapp.
Watch, from Fox News' Special Report, "The political ramifications of the FBI's Clinton decision."
Also at the video: Kirsten Powers and Mercedes Schlapp.
FLASHBACK: Tony Blair Testimony Before the Chilcot Inquiry in 2010 (VIDEO)
Following-up from earlier, "U.K. Chilcot Report Offers Devastating Critique of Tony Blair and the Iraq War."
It turns out Tony Blair gave a public speech today, and he apparently got choked up. I'll look for the video clip shortly and update.
Meanwhile, here's his initial testimony to the committee of inquiry, at ODN, "The day Tony Blair gave evidence to the Iraq war inquiry."
It turns out Tony Blair gave a public speech today, and he apparently got choked up. I'll look for the video clip shortly and update.
Meanwhile, here's his initial testimony to the committee of inquiry, at ODN, "The day Tony Blair gave evidence to the Iraq war inquiry."
Natasha Oakley Speaks Out
She's one of the A Bikini A Day ladies.
The other is the mind-blowing Devin Brugman.
At Harper's Bazaar:
More, at London's Daily Mail, "Wish you were here! Natasha Oakley and Devin Brugman continue their envy-inducing holiday in Greece and show off their incredible curves in sexy swimwear."
The other is the mind-blowing Devin Brugman.
At Harper's Bazaar:
Natasha Oakley Speaks Out About Body Shamers https://t.co/l27QnJ5h9S pic.twitter.com/7jVqTVzSl0
— Harper's Bazaar (@harpersbazaarus) July 5, 2016
More, at London's Daily Mail, "Wish you were here! Natasha Oakley and Devin Brugman continue their envy-inducing holiday in Greece and show off their incredible curves in sexy swimwear."
Three Sylmar High School Baseball Players Enlisted in the Army
A great story.
One of those little nuggets of news that rekindle your faith in the goodness of America.
Remember, we're constantly bombarded with how terrible we are by the left. When I see a story like this, of young people resisting the left's nihilist culture, I want to shout it from the rooftops.
At LAT, "'Go Army' more than a motto for Sylmar High baseball players":
One of those little nuggets of news that rekindle your faith in the goodness of America.
Remember, we're constantly bombarded with how terrible we are by the left. When I see a story like this, of young people resisting the left's nihilist culture, I want to shout it from the rooftops.
At LAT, "'Go Army' more than a motto for Sylmar High baseball players":
Mario Xavier Cruz, Robert Jaime and Erick Aleman. Coached by Ray Rivera. 'I've always wanted to serve my country' https://t.co/6pfoJYIh3Z
— Angel Rodriguez (@ajrod) July 1, 2016
When Mario Xavier Cruz and Robert Jaime, baseball teammates at Sylmar High, look up into the sky on the Fourth of July and see fireworks bursting in the air, their thoughts may turn emotional.Keep reading.
Jaime leaves July 11 for Army boot camp at Fort Jackson, S.C. Cruz leaves the same day for Fort Sill, Okla.
Another Sylmar teammate, Erick Aleman, left June 20 for boot camp at Fort Benning, Ga.
“I’m very proud,” Sylmar baseball coach Ray Rivera said. “Three players off one team.”
Rivera doesn’t act like an Army drill sergeant — though his preseason conditioning sessions are pretty tough and he’s got an Army haircut. But the coach does offer a clear message to any player who shows up.
“I tell them everything we do here is geared for preparing you for life,” he said.
And the players agree that baseball has helped prepare them for Army life.
“Playing baseball really influenced me to join,” Aleman, a pitcher, said in an email before he left. “Baseball gave me the personal courage and confidence to join. The skills that I learned, I will use throughout my military career and life.”
Said Cruz: “Baseball takes a lot of discipline and you have to be mentally tough.”
Aleman was first to sign up, then he started talking to Cruz and Jaime. Soon, they were all in.
“I’ve always wanted to serve my country,” said Jaime, an all-East Valley League catcher who batted .437 and also starred as a wrestler. “I always looked up to soldiers and saw how much respect they got.”
Rivera, who has been Sylmar's coach for 14 seasons, had other players join the military but never this many from one team.
“All three of them could have gone to college,” he said...
Brazil Ramps Up Security Before Rio Olympics (VIDEO)
My wife was saying last night that she wouldn't go.
And you can see why!
Watch, at CBS News This Morning, "Rio police battle security crisis as Olympics loom."
That's an excellent report. Brazil's deploying twice as many police and security personnel than Britain did for the London games in 2012.
And you can see why!
Watch, at CBS News This Morning, "Rio police battle security crisis as Olympics loom."
That's an excellent report. Brazil's deploying twice as many police and security personnel than Britain did for the London games in 2012.
Theresa May Once Called the Tories the 'Nasty Party' (VIDEO)
Interesting.
Watch, at the Telegraph UK, "Theresa May in 90 Seconds: Who is the woman bidding to be the next Prime Minister?"
And ICYMI, "Theresa May Wins First Round of Conservative Party Leadership Vote."
Watch, at the Telegraph UK, "Theresa May in 90 Seconds: Who is the woman bidding to be the next Prime Minister?"
And ICYMI, "Theresa May Wins First Round of Conservative Party Leadership Vote."
Alton Sterling Shot by Police After Scuffle Outside Convenience Store in Baton Rouge (VIDEO)
This story's trending on all the morning news programs, and at Memeorandum, "Video captures white Baton Rouge police officer fatally shooting a black man, sparking outrage."
Alos at USA Today, "Protests break out after Baton Rouge police fatally shoot man."
More, at the Baton Rouge Advocate, "Baton Rouge NAACP leader calls for police chief to resign after Alton Sterling shooting."
And watch, at ABC News:
Alos at USA Today, "Protests break out after Baton Rouge police fatally shoot man."
More, at the Baton Rouge Advocate, "Baton Rouge NAACP leader calls for police chief to resign after Alton Sterling shooting."
And watch, at ABC News:
Kid at Basketball Camp Falls to the Floor After Seeing Stephen Curry (VIDEO)
This is fantastic!
At AP, "Basketball camper drops to floor after meeting Steph Curry."
And watch, at the Warriors' Twitter feed, "Some lucky basketball campers got the surprise of a lifetime."
At AP, "Basketball camper drops to floor after meeting Steph Curry."
And watch, at the Warriors' Twitter feed, "Some lucky basketball campers got the surprise of a lifetime."
German Leftist Selin Gören Lied to Police About Being Raped by Islamic Refugees
Because she didn't want to "encourage racism."
Seems like this kind of thing's becoming pretty common over there.
Now she's apologized.
At Jihad Watch, "Germany: Leftist pol raped by Muslim migrants, lied to police to avoid encouraging racism":
Seems like this kind of thing's becoming pretty common over there.
Now she's apologized.
At Jihad Watch, "Germany: Leftist pol raped by Muslim migrants, lied to police to avoid encouraging racism":
“She now says people must never ‘twist the truth’ even if it is politically expedient to do so.” If the Left in the aggregate took her advice, it would have to close up shop. Lying because it is politically expedient is the hallmark of the Left’s approach to the Muslim migrant inundation, and to the jihad threat in general.Keep reading.
Kelly Brook: 'It's Not Me, It's You'
Seen just now on Twitter:
She's full-figured, man!
We are Trending!!!!!!! Thanks everyone keep watching #INMIY 😘😘😘 pic.twitter.com/fdLbMmoIKO
— Kelly Brook (@IAMKELLYBROOK) June 30, 2016
@IAMKELLYBROOK This show is awesome, its a must watch a WOW kelly still has it! #INMIY pic.twitter.com/ER3SBNAVB4
— daniel scrafton (@danielScrafton9) June 30, 2016
London Nights @steamandrye ❤️ pic.twitter.com/W3ZrbePoi6
— Kelly Brook (@IAMKELLYBROOK) July 1, 2016
She's full-figured, man!
17-Year-Old Loses Right Hand in Long Beach in Yet Another Preventable Fireworks Tragedy
I've been posting on these horrific mishaps all weekend, preventable tragedies.
At the Long Beach Press-Telegram, "Boy, 17, loses hand in Central Long Beach fireworks accident."
Parents.
Where were the parents of all the kids, now maimed from parental negligence?
At the Long Beach Press-Telegram, "Boy, 17, loses hand in Central Long Beach fireworks accident."
Parents.
Where were the parents of all the kids, now maimed from parental negligence?
Lissy from Manchester
It's Lissy Cunningham, featured for Rule 5 on August 12 last year.
At Page 3, "Lissy from Manchester is a total knockout in this sexy topless shoot."
At Page 3, "Lissy from Manchester is a total knockout in this sexy topless shoot."
U.K. Chilcot Report Offers Devastating Critique of Tony Blair and the Iraq War
I'm just reading, soaking this in.
And of course folks have long known where I stand. Indeed, the Iraq war's the main reason I started blogging. (See, "The Iraq War and Stubborn Myths," and "Judith Miller, 'I took America to war in Iraq. It was all me...'")
At the Telegraph UK, "Chilcot report: 2003 Iraq war was 'unnecessary', invasion was not 'last resort' and Saddam Hussein was 'no imminent threat'."
And at the Guardian UK, "Chilcot report live: Blair says report clears him of 'bad faith' but Iraq inquiry says he exaggerated case for war."
Also, at London's Daily Mail, "BREAKING NEWS: Chilcot's damning verdict on Blair's Iraq War: 'WMD threat was NOT justified', military action 'was NOT a last resort' and invasion was based on 'flawed intelligence'."
And at the Wall Street Journal, "U.K.’s Long-Awaited Chilcot Report into Iraq War Criticizes Legal Basis for Invasion":
Fascinating politics of this. See how the report damages the "neoliberal" Blairite faction of the U.K. Labour Party, and then strengthens the neo-communst Corbyn partisans? It's almost too pat. And of course we'd never be having a vigorous debate in the U.S. on the origins of the war --- a relitigation of the war, in the parlance --- because Hillary Clinton, the Democrat Party nominee, was one of the war's biggest boosters in the Senate in 2002.
I love it!
Expect updates on this throughout the day. Leftists want a criminal indictment for Tony Blair. It's freakin' amazing. Oh, the vindictive hatred is just seething. The issue's a classic polarizer of our times.
And of course folks have long known where I stand. Indeed, the Iraq war's the main reason I started blogging. (See, "The Iraq War and Stubborn Myths," and "Judith Miller, 'I took America to war in Iraq. It was all me...'")
At the Telegraph UK, "Chilcot report: 2003 Iraq war was 'unnecessary', invasion was not 'last resort' and Saddam Hussein was 'no imminent threat'."
And at the Guardian UK, "Chilcot report live: Blair says report clears him of 'bad faith' but Iraq inquiry says he exaggerated case for war."
Also, at London's Daily Mail, "BREAKING NEWS: Chilcot's damning verdict on Blair's Iraq War: 'WMD threat was NOT justified', military action 'was NOT a last resort' and invasion was based on 'flawed intelligence'."
And at the Wall Street Journal, "U.K.’s Long-Awaited Chilcot Report into Iraq War Criticizes Legal Basis for Invasion":
LONDON—The U.K. government under former Prime Minister Tony Blair urged Parliament to vote in favor of joining the Iraq war when the legal basis for U.K. military action was “far from satisfactory,” according to the findings of a high-profile inquiry into Britain’s involvement in the war.More.
The roughly 6,000-page report released Wednesday, which comes seven years after the inquiry was launched, also said policy on Iraq was made on the basis of flawed intelligence and assessments, according to John Chilcot, the retired civil servant who led the inquiry.
The assessments “were not challenged, and they should have been,” Mr. Chilcot said.
The long-awaited report is the culmination of the inquiry launched in 2009 by the then-governing Labour Party to address public criticism of the case made for the war and preparation for reconstruction in Iraq, among other issues.
The report also said that planning and preparation for Iraq after Saddam Hussein was deposed were “wholly inadequate.”
In response, Mr. Blair defended his decision to take military action, saying he did what he thought was the right thing and that the inquiry didn’t find otherwise.
“The report should lay to rest allegations of bad faith, lies or deceit,” he said in a statement. “Whether people agree or disagree with my decision to take military action against Saddam Hussein; I took it in good faith and in what I believed to be the best interests of the country.”
Some 179 British military personnel died in the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, which Mr. Blair at the time justified with assertions that the regime had weapons of mass destruction—a claim that turned out to be false.
Britain’s role in the 2003 Iraq invasion continues to shape the British public’s appetite for military involvement in foreign wars and comes as the U.K. reassesses its role in the world following the vote to leave the European Union...
Fascinating politics of this. See how the report damages the "neoliberal" Blairite faction of the U.K. Labour Party, and then strengthens the neo-communst Corbyn partisans? It's almost too pat. And of course we'd never be having a vigorous debate in the U.S. on the origins of the war --- a relitigation of the war, in the parlance --- because Hillary Clinton, the Democrat Party nominee, was one of the war's biggest boosters in the Senate in 2002.
I love it!
Expect updates on this throughout the day. Leftists want a criminal indictment for Tony Blair. It's freakin' amazing. Oh, the vindictive hatred is just seething. The issue's a classic polarizer of our times.
Animal Rights Activists Poured Artificial Blood Over Themselves in Pamplona, Spain (VIDEO)
You know, after posting all the bullfighting videos over the years, I'm very sympathetic to this protest.
It's not just about killing the animals, which I don't oppose in terms of food production, etc. It's should we be making a sport out of it, a full spectacle which is obviously barbaric in some respects? Frankly, I've been to bull fights in Mexico, and it feels like you're at any other sporting event. But then, you kill the animal.
In any case, something to think about.
Watch, at Euronews, "Pamplona: Topless protesters pour fake blood over themselves prior to bull run."
It's not just about killing the animals, which I don't oppose in terms of food production, etc. It's should we be making a sport out of it, a full spectacle which is obviously barbaric in some respects? Frankly, I've been to bull fights in Mexico, and it feels like you're at any other sporting event. But then, you kill the animal.
In any case, something to think about.
Watch, at Euronews, "Pamplona: Topless protesters pour fake blood over themselves prior to bull run."
Tuesday, July 5, 2016
Ellen Meiksins Wood
I'm reading Ellen Meiksins Wood's, Democracy Against Capitalism: Renewing Historical Materialism.
I picked up a copy at Vroman's Bookstore in Pasadena a couple of weekends ago (when I was at the Politicon convention).
She's also the author of The Pristine Culture of Capitalism: A Historical Essay on Old Regimes and Modern States, a topic of longtime interest to me in political science. One of my favorite books from graduate school is Perry Anderson's, Lineages of the Absolutist State.
Anderson defined Marxist historical-sociology and the state-building approach in political science. The work of Meiksins Wood is very closely related in terms of establishing historical change as a site of theoretical contestation. I enjoy reading this stuff.
Also from Meiksins Wood, The Retreat From Class: A New True Socialism.
I picked up a copy at Vroman's Bookstore in Pasadena a couple of weekends ago (when I was at the Politicon convention).
She's also the author of The Pristine Culture of Capitalism: A Historical Essay on Old Regimes and Modern States, a topic of longtime interest to me in political science. One of my favorite books from graduate school is Perry Anderson's, Lineages of the Absolutist State.
Anderson defined Marxist historical-sociology and the state-building approach in political science. The work of Meiksins Wood is very closely related in terms of establishing historical change as a site of theoretical contestation. I enjoy reading this stuff.
Also from Meiksins Wood, The Retreat From Class: A New True Socialism.
Texas Teenager Rowdy Radford Loses Leg and Fingers in Homemade 'Sparkler Bomb' Explosion
He may be blind as well. Folks are waiting for those eye-patches to come off.
Watch, at USA Today, "Sparkler explosion gravely injures teen."
And London's Daily Mail, "Texas teenager, 15, loses his leg and fingers and could go blind after 'bomb' made from 180 sparklers explodes in his hand."
Previously, "9-Year-Old Girl Loses Left Hand in Illegal Fireworks Explosion in Compton."
Watch, at USA Today, "Sparkler explosion gravely injures teen."
And London's Daily Mail, "Texas teenager, 15, loses his leg and fingers and could go blind after 'bomb' made from 180 sparklers explodes in his hand."
Previously, "9-Year-Old Girl Loses Left Hand in Illegal Fireworks Explosion in Compton."
Hillary Clinton and President Obama Campaign Together for the First Time!
Heh.
Ima leave this right here:
Ima leave this right here:
President Obama Makes First Appearance at Hillary Clinton Campaign Event. pic.twitter.com/YoDaO8ZOV1
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) July 5, 2016
Revolutionary Reading [BUMPED]
I posted Bernard Bailyn's The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution the other day.
But see also, Gordon Wood, The Radicalism of the American Revolution.
Plus, Empire of Liberty: A History of the Early Republic, 1789-1815.
Also, Ron Chernow, Washington: A Life.
And, by Noble E. Cunningham, Jr., In Pursuit of Reason: The Life of Thomas Jefferson.
Gary Wills, Inventing America: Jefferson's Declaration of Independence.
More, from Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848.
BONUS: From Dana Loesch, Flyover Nation: You Can't Run a Country You've Never Been To.
But see also, Gordon Wood, The Radicalism of the American Revolution.
Plus, Empire of Liberty: A History of the Early Republic, 1789-1815.
Also, Ron Chernow, Washington: A Life.
And, by Noble E. Cunningham, Jr., In Pursuit of Reason: The Life of Thomas Jefferson.
Gary Wills, Inventing America: Jefferson's Declaration of Independence.
More, from Daniel Walker Howe, What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848.
BONUS: From Dana Loesch, Flyover Nation: You Can't Run a Country You've Never Been To.
Theresa May Wins First Round of Conservative Party Leadership Vote
I thought I liked her, until I found out that she praised Islamic sharia.
See the Telegraph UK, "Theresa May hails ‘benefits’ of Sharia as inquiry set up into ‘misuse’ of Islamic law."
That's a terrifying statement, actually. And to think, David Cameron was shamelessly politically correct as well. Won't be much of improvement on the Tory front-bench then.
And she's not well like among the "Leave" partisans, it turns out:
In any case, back to the Telegraph, "Conservative leadership election: Theresa May wins more than half of MPs' votes as Liam Fox is knocked out of race."
See the Telegraph UK, "Theresa May hails ‘benefits’ of Sharia as inquiry set up into ‘misuse’ of Islamic law."
That's a terrifying statement, actually. And to think, David Cameron was shamelessly politically correct as well. Won't be much of improvement on the Tory front-bench then.
And she's not well like among the "Leave" partisans, it turns out:
Bet this won't get reported on BBC, the British ppl would finish the Tories. They will never be in government again. pic.twitter.com/5PfzhDYeia
— Denise (@LittleMissFoxyy) July 5, 2016
@LouiseMensch May would be worst decision. Need to ensure PM is a leave candidate and a strong one at that.
— Laura Katherine' (@LauraK2610) July 5, 2016
Whoever the Leave nominee is will have all of our FULLEST backing against Theresa May https://t.co/AA0Oict82Y
— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) July 5, 2016
In any case, back to the Telegraph, "Conservative leadership election: Theresa May wins more than half of MPs' votes as Liam Fox is knocked out of race."
Islamic State Shifts Tactics
Islamic State, as it loses territory, boosts more traditional suicide terror attacks (rather than more classic insurgency initiatives).
I've been blogging most of these Ramadan attacks, although I missed the gruesome hacking attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
It's bad.
At WSJ, "Islamic State Extends Reach as It Suffers Defeats":
Great graphics at the link.
I've been blogging most of these Ramadan attacks, although I missed the gruesome hacking attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
It's bad.
At WSJ, "Islamic State Extends Reach as It Suffers Defeats":
Islamic State Extends Reach as It Suffers Defeats https://t.co/GecqdgHt5b
— WSJ World News (@WSJworld) July 5, 2016
During a rare spate of attacks in Jordan recently, Western officials in the capital Amman intercepted messages from Islamic State leaders urging supporters to spread terror at home rather than join militants across the border in Syria.Keep reading.
That call, which was sent to all the group’s affiliates, and a similar appeal in a public speech by an Islamic State spokesman were followed by attacks outside the boundaries of its self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq. In the past week, supporters with suspected or confirmed ties to Islamic State have launched deadly strikes in Turkey, Iraq and Bangladesh.
Islamic State is increasingly reverting to less expensive but spectacular guerrilla maneuvers, calling on supporters to launch assaults while its costly makeshift army faces retention problems and casualties, Western officials said. It is expanding its global scope, inspiring groups and individuals spread across several continents, even though they may have different agendas and operational methods.
The frequency of attacks outside Syria and Iraq has increased in tandem with battlefield and territorial setbacks that have deprived the militants of key sources of income such as oil. The group’s shift in tactics has been prompted by those territorial losses, U.S. officials and security advisers say...
Great graphics at the link.
Father Accidentally Kills 14-Year-Old Son at Florida Gun Range (VIDEO)
So sad.
But the father refused to tow the depraved leftist gun control line.
At London's Daily Mail, "'The gun didn't kill my son. I did': Distraught father blames his 'operating error' for accidentally shooting dead his boy, 14, at the 'world's safest gun range'."
And watch, at Fox News 13 Tampa Bay:
But the father refused to tow the depraved leftist gun control line.
At London's Daily Mail, "'The gun didn't kill my son. I did': Distraught father blames his 'operating error' for accidentally shooting dead his boy, 14, at the 'world's safest gun range'."
And watch, at Fox News 13 Tampa Bay:
Beverly Hills Accused of Running Homeless Man Out of Town with Private Security
And the guy was apparently well liked.
At LAT:
At LAT:
Have Beverly Hills “greenshirts” run a homeless man out of town? https://t.co/Kiw300hMR5 pic.twitter.com/9N0mps7UGA
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) July 5, 2016
George Saville slept on a cot in a downtown homeless shelter. In the morning, he would catch the bus to Beverly Hills.
There, Saville’s wit and wide knowledge of news, entertainment and sports drew a circle of admirers, including a half-dozen people who took their morning coffee at Urth Caffe.
The cafe owners supported him. Sports stars such as Lamar Odom and Jason Kidd stopped by for daily tidbits of information. Arab royals from the Beverly Wilshire Hotel asked him to pose in their selfies, Saville’s supporters said.
“He’s smart; he has historical references,” said Maria Belknap, a business manager and Urth patron. “He knows the L.A. Times and New York Times inside and out and he can talk about everything.”
“At best he is charming, at worst he is harmless,” said television host Larry King, who eats breakfast nearby and has slipped him cash on occasion. “Every community has a panhandler, and Beverly Hills is not so far above it.”
City officials, however, call Saville an opportunist and “aggressive panhandler” and considered drawing up a “shame list” to pressure cafe owners to stop catering to him.
After a run-in with a city-funded private patrol, known to locals as “greenshirts,” Saville was charged with two misdemeanors and ordered to stay away from the restaurant. Saville’s friends call the charges bogus and merely a ploy to drive the 57-year-old homeless man out of town.
“What you’ve mounted is an extrajudicial squad of greenshirts [who] are there to clear the streets of undesirables,” David Lyle, president of a television and digital content producers association, told the Beverly Hills human rights commission in May.
At a separate hearing, James Latta, the city’s human services administrator, countered that, “if it’s someone that wanted our help and needed help, we’ve got it for him. But this individual doesn’t want it.”
Saville’s clash with officials raises questions about how far cities can go to clear public spaces of indigents — and what obligation, if any, homeless people have to accept services and shelter...
Yasiel Puig Rocks Red, White, and Blue Cleats for Fourth of July at Dodger Stadium (VIDEO)
That's cool.
And that's announcer Vin Scully at the clip. This is his last season calling games for the Dodgers, and it's bittersweet, especially since Sports Net L.A.'s the only local network (not Cox Cable, Time Warner, etc.).
And that's announcer Vin Scully at the clip. This is his last season calling games for the Dodgers, and it's bittersweet, especially since Sports Net L.A.'s the only local network (not Cox Cable, Time Warner, etc.).
#TrumpGirlsBreakTheInternet Is Still Going Viral (VIDEO)
Actually, I think they're a little late, but it's a cool video.
At the New York Post, "These sexy Trump supporters are going viral."
And still a few stalwart Trump babes posting selfies:
At the New York Post, "These sexy Trump supporters are going viral."
And still a few stalwart Trump babes posting selfies:
#WomenForTrump #MAGA #Americanasfuck #trumpgirlsbreaktheinternet pic.twitter.com/MduFpxI1xT
— 3/75thRangers4Trump (@cdubhulksmash) July 4, 2016
The #4thOfJuly party doesn't stop! #America #women4trump #maga #students4trump #trumpgirlsbreaktheinternet #Retweet pic.twitter.com/pIxai4zVuE
— Trump Hotties (@hottiesfortrump) July 4, 2016
#IndependenceDay #trumpgirlsbreaktheinternet #maga pic.twitter.com/eBPaUhAfwH
— Bernie v Trump 2016 (@BernieTrump2O16) July 5, 2016
Happy 4th of July! #trumpgirlsbreaktheinternet #babesfortrump #maga pic.twitter.com/Sh897VcK8i
— Bernie v Trump 2016 (@BernieTrump2O16) July 5, 2016
@BabesForTrump #americanasfuck #trumpgirlsbreaktheinternet pic.twitter.com/Q1M2D27yyE
— 3/75thRangers4Trump (@cdubhulksmash) July 5, 2016
F.B.I. Will Not Seek Charges in Hillary Clinton Email Probe (VIDEO)
No one should be surprised. I certainly wasn't expecting any charges.
The fix is in. And it's been in. This is the Clintons we're talking about.
Watch, at CNN, "FBI Director: No charges appropriate in Clinton case."
And at WSJ, "FBI Won’t Recommend Criminal Charges Against Hillary Clinton Over Private Email Use":
Also at Instapundit, "THE FIX WAS IN ALL ALONG: Comey: Despite Mishandling of Classified Info, Risk That She Was Hacked, FBI Won’t Recommend Prosecuting Hillary."
The fix is in. And it's been in. This is the Clintons we're talking about.
Watch, at CNN, "FBI Director: No charges appropriate in Clinton case."
And at WSJ, "FBI Won’t Recommend Criminal Charges Against Hillary Clinton Over Private Email Use":
FBI Director James Comey said Tuesday that Hillary Clinton was “extremely careless” in handling classified information while secretary of state and added scores of emails on her personal server contained highly classified information—but he said the FBI won’t recommend criminal charges against the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee...Keep reading.
Also at Instapundit, "THE FIX WAS IN ALL ALONG: Comey: Despite Mishandling of Classified Info, Risk That She Was Hacked, FBI Won’t Recommend Prosecuting Hillary."
Model Hailey Clauson Hot Dog Eating (VIDEO)
Heh.
'Tis the season.
Via Sports Illustrated:
BONUS: "Hailey Clauson In Nothing But Body Paint - Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2015 (VIDEO)."
'Tis the season.
Via Sports Illustrated:
BONUS: "Hailey Clauson In Nothing But Body Paint - Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2015 (VIDEO)."
Immigration is the Key
From Professor Michael Curtis, at the New English Review:
The Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin once said, “There are decades when nothing happens, and there are weeks when decades happen.” He might have been talking of the UK in June 2016 with the events connected with the referendum on June 23, 2016 on British membership of or Brexit, exit, from the European Union.Keep reading.
Britain has innumerable problems concerning its membership of the EU and the issues of freedom of movement of goods, capital, services, and people, and about the right of EU citizens to live and work in any EU state. Yet, whether voiced openly or not, at the heart of the events is the widespread public concern about the increasing immigration into the country.
Those events resemble a film noir or a Shakespearean play, say Julius Caesar, with its political turmoil, its incorrect assumptions and unexpected outcome of the referendum, its undisguised ambitions not made of sterner stuff, its intrigues and betrayals of leading political figures supposed to be friends and allies.
Among the star events in this continuing serio-comical drama are the resignation of David Cameron as Prime Minister, the turmoil for leadership of the Conservative Party, the resignation of Nigel Farage, from his position as leader of the anti-immigrant party UKIP (UK Independence Party), and the stubbornness of Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labour Party in refusing to heed the sizable vote of his parliamentary colleagues calling on him to resign.
Yet, all interested in the present U.S. presidential election should take account of the British events and possible parallel between the two counties. There is a distinct resemblance regarding pertinent issues and popular anxieties. Similar factors are said to trouble citizens: the impact of globalization; the free trade economy; the decline in jobs and wages; the weakening of national dignity and esteem.
In both countries a considerable part of the electorate appears disgruntled, antagonistic to established power institutions, and concerned with what they regard as a decline in the status and popularity of their country. If the disgruntled in the UK want to throw off the shackles of the supposed tyranny of the European Union and the detached bureaucracy in Brussels, supporters of Donald Trump want to end the tyranny of established authorities in Washington, D.C.
Monday, July 4, 2016
9-Year-Old Girl Loses Left Hand in Illegal Fireworks Explosion in Compton
She lost some fingers on her right hand too.
God, this is horrible!
Watch, at ABC News 7 Los Angeles, "9-YEAR-OLD GIRL LOSES HAND, FINGERS IN COMPTON FIREWORK EXPLOSION."
God, this is horrible!
Watch, at ABC News 7 Los Angeles, "9-YEAR-OLD GIRL LOSES HAND, FINGERS IN COMPTON FIREWORK EXPLOSION."
Suicide Bombers Attack Across Saudi Arabia, Including Holy Site of Medina (VIDEO)
My god!
It's never ending terror jihad!
At the Washington Post, "Three suicide attacks in Saudi Arabia extend global wave of bombings and a bloody week":
And at CNN:
It's never ending terror jihad!
At the Washington Post, "Three suicide attacks in Saudi Arabia extend global wave of bombings and a bloody week":
BEIRUT — Suicide bombers suspected of links to the Islamic State struck for the fourth time in less than a week on Monday, targeting three locations in Saudi Arabia in an extension of what appeared to be a coordinated campaign of worldwide bombings coinciding with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.Keep reading.
Initial reports suggested there were relatively few casualties in the attacks at a U.S. consulate, a mosque frequented by Shiite worshippers and a security center in one of Islam’s holiest sites, the historic city of Medina. Security officials told news agencies that two security guards died in the Medina attack.
The attacks nonetheless offered further evidence that in the three years since it declared the existence of its so-called caliphate, the Islamic State has developed the capacity to strike at will at the time of its choosing in diverse locations around the world...
And at CNN:
Nigel Farage Resigns as Leader of U.K. Independence Party (VIDEO)
From Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit, "NIGEL FARAGE RESIGNS AS HEAD OF UK INDEPENDENCE PARTY."
I'm not linking, but they're absolutely tipsy at the news over at the far-left Guardian UK.
I'm not linking, but they're absolutely tipsy at the news over at the far-left Guardian UK.
Bella Hadid White Sheer Crop Top in Manhattan
At Egotastic!:
Bella Hadid absolutely kills me, in the way I prefer to be killed. Wicked hot young model busty body perennially on some kind of exhibitionist display. Sometimes it's revealing photoshoots, or beach candids, or other times she's just in some fashionable outfit that cost more than my rent but shows off her incredibly boobtastic female form in absolutely hot spotlight.More at the click-through.
The Enduring Legacy of George Washington
From Salena Zito, at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, "Independence and the enduring legacy of George Washington":
Zito's a patriot herself.
What drives a man to service, leadership, sacrifice, greatness? Whatever it is, Washington possessed it, and every American has benefited.At great piece.
Zito's a patriot herself.
Washington took stock: half his men were wounded, some drunk the gun powder soaked & most of the livestock was dead https://t.co/EfMtYiDFlX
— SalenaZito (@SalenaZitoTrib) July 4, 2016
Independence & the Enduring Legacy of George Washington | RealClearPolitics https://t.co/EfMtYiDFlX
— SalenaZito (@SalenaZitoTrib) July 4, 2016
How the Global Elite Weaponized Immigration
At Blazing Cat Fur, "Using migrants to push multiculturalism has been a disaster":
Freedom of movement ought to be one of the cornerstones of an open, liberal society. The freedom, that is, not just to seek refuge, but to search for a better life elsewhere, to pursue one’s dreams and ambitions in territories far from one’s birthplace.More.
Yet if the commitment to free movement is to be more than a shallow, feelgood posture, we need to recognise, in the here and now of a 21st-century Britain, that immigration troubles and discomfits people. Indeed, it appears as a socially disorienting force, overturning the everyday rituals, customs and other unspoken components that make up a community’s way of life. ‘I feel we are losing our country’, ran the pre-referendum refrain.
So why does immigration appear as a profound threat to the way of life of so many? The answer is to be found not in immigration itself, but in the context in which immigration has assumed, almost inadvertently, a quasi-missionary role – the context, that is, of a Britain that no longer knows what it is, or what it is for.
This is not the cry of the everyman, who feels he is losing his cultural moorings; it is principally the angst of Britain’s ruling elite, which feels it has already lost its cultural moorings. The historical sources of British national identity – Empire, Unionism and, latterly, the Second World War and the Cold War – and the moral confidence that flowed from them, have long since dried up.
National traditions, canons, values are now experienced by Britain’s elite not as the substance of Britishness, but as dead weights around modern Britain’s neck – to be cast off, dumped. And the political elite’s wilful estrangement from its own traditions has transformed the role of immigration, and, crucially, diminished the significance and meaning of national borders...
Why the World Is Rebelling Against 'Experts'
From Joel Kotkin, at the Daily Beast, "An unconventional, sometimes incoherent, resistance arises to the elites who keep explaining why changes that hurt the middle class are actually for its own good":
RTWT.The Great Rebellion is on and where it leads nobody knows.Why the World Is Rebelling Against 'Experts' (Joel Kotkin / The Daily Beast) https://t.co/7BpR09XZUk https://t.co/y0xRnWkw4n
— memeorandum (@memeorandum) July 4, 2016
Its expressions range from Brexit to the Trump phenomena and includes neo-nationalist and unconventional insurgent movement around the world. It shares no single leader, party or ideology. Its very incoherence, combined with the blindness of its elite opposition, has made it hard for the established parties across what’s left of the democratic world to contain it.
What holds the rebels together is a single idea: the rejection of the neo-liberal crony capitalist order that has arisen since the fall of the Soviet Union. For two decades, this new ruling class could boast of great successes: rising living standards, limited warfare, rapid technological change and an optimism about the future spread of liberal democracy. Now, that’s all fading or failing.
Living standards are stagnating, vicious wars raging, poverty-stricken migrants pouring across borders and class chasms growing. Amidst this, the crony capitalists and their bureaucratic allies have only grown more arrogant and demanding. But the failures of those who occupy what Lenin called “the commanding heights” are obvious to most of the citizens on whose behalf they claim to speak and act.
The Great Rebellion draws on five disparate and sometimes contradictory causes that find common ground in frustration with the steady bureaucratic erosion of democratic self-governance: class resentment, racial concerns, geographic disparities, nationalism, cultural identity. Each of these strains appeals to different constituencies, but together they are creating a political Molotov cocktail...
Leftist 'Anti-Fascist' Yvette Felarca Caught on Video Attacking Peaceful Protester in Sacramento (VIDEO)
The most gobsmacking thing is that she's a junior high school teacher in Berkeley!
Shouldn't be surprised, I guess. We've got enclaves in this country that've been literally taken over by the forces of global anti-Americanism. It's pretty bad.
I saw the raw video last week after the rioting, but CBS News 5 San Francisco covered it on the local news. And at the Los Angeles Times, "Bay Area school threatened after teacher clashes with neo-Nazis at state Capitol."
Previously, "'No Free Speech for Fascists!' — Leftist Extremists Launched Violent Attack at Sacramento Rally (VIDEO)."
Shouldn't be surprised, I guess. We've got enclaves in this country that've been literally taken over by the forces of global anti-Americanism. It's pretty bad.
I saw the raw video last week after the rioting, but CBS News 5 San Francisco covered it on the local news. And at the Los Angeles Times, "Bay Area school threatened after teacher clashes with neo-Nazis at state Capitol."
Here's Sacramento Police refusing their oath to protect the Constitution
— Jared Wyand (@JaredWyand) June 28, 2016
Call their Internal Affairs (916) 808-2290 pic.twitter.com/SqpubPvFyA
Previously, "'No Free Speech for Fascists!' — Leftist Extremists Launched Violent Attack at Sacramento Rally (VIDEO)."
Taylor Swift Bikini Shots
Looks like she had breast augmentation surgery. I saw something about that earlier, but here's your proof.
At London's Daily Mail, "PICTURE EXCLUSIVE: Tom loves Taylor... and he's got the T-shirt! Hiddleston declares his devotion to Swift with a tattoo and vest in her name as the couple frolic in the sea with their A-list friends."
At London's Daily Mail, "PICTURE EXCLUSIVE: Tom loves Taylor... and he's got the T-shirt! Hiddleston declares his devotion to Swift with a tattoo and vest in her name as the couple frolic in the sea with their A-list friends."
BONUS: "Actress Ruby Rose and new girlfriend Harley Gusman frolic in the sea at Taylor Swift's party," and "Karlie Kloss stuns in red bikini at BFF Taylor Swift’s beachfront home."Tom Hiddleston declares his love for Taylor Swift with 'tattoo' and a t-shirt https://t.co/gC5gXzeoXu pic.twitter.com/AGjXzEL1EL— Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) July 4, 2016
Hey Ungrateful Leftists, Catch a Flight to Cuba, LOL!
Michelle Malkin cracks me up.
She's got an Independence Day video, at the link.
I think conservatives took over the #AmericaWasNeverGreat hashtag, lol.
She's got an Independence Day video, at the link.
I think conservatives took over the #AmericaWasNeverGreat hashtag, lol.
To the #AmericaWasNeverGreat ingrates: It's our day to tell you to SIT DOWN==> https://t.co/GRYH1xmaST #IndependenceDay— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) July 4, 2016
Celebrate 4th of July with Super Model Nina Agdal (VIDEO)
She's a fine Danish babe, and honorary American!
Via Sports Illustrated:
Via Sports Illustrated:
Our Eternal War for Independence
From Daniel Geenfield, at FrontPage Magazine, "We are a nation of rebels":
How will you celebrate the Fourth of July?
With fireworks and parades, hamburgers and hot dogs, sweating bands playing Sousa marches and parades down Main Street? Will you remember the men who fell in the first war and all the following wars that were fought to preserve our political and personal independence from foreign and domestic tyrannies? Will you consider what you might have done in the days when revolution was in the air?
Those are all good things. They remind us to celebrate and what it is we are celebrating.
I sat on the warm grass beneath the shade of a spreading fig tree listening to a band run through a repertoire of everything from Yankee Doodle Dandy to Over There. An elderly disabled veteran with a flag listened intently to the orchestra and a small child clambered awkwardly up a tree as his father worriedly urged him to climb down. It could have been a scene from any century. The Fourth is timeless.
It is timeless because it is still going on. The War of Independence went on underneath that fig tree, it continues on in your town, your city and in your community on this day and on every day.
Independence Day is a commemoration, but it is not a mere commemoration. The struggle is not over.
America became America out of a hatred of powerful central government. The War of Independence was not a battle between two countries. America’s Founding Fathers started out as Englishmen who wanted to preserve their rights from a distant and out of touch government.
The War of Independence was a civil war between those who wanted a strong central government and those who wanted to govern themselves. The fundamental breach between these two worldviews led to the creation of an independent nation dedicated to the preservation of independence. This independence was not mere political independence. It was personal independence.
America as a separate nation did not yet exist. Even the Constitution that embodies its purpose was a decade, a war, a failed experiment in government and many bitter debates away.
Nations come and go. Political unions are created and dissolved. There are nations today named Egypt and Greece that have little in common with the historical entities that once bore those names. The Declaration to which those remarkable men pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honor was not for a flag, which then still bore the Union Jack, or for the invention of yet another administrative body, but for the rights of peoples, nations and individuals to be free to exercise their personal and political rights.
The war for these things was fought, but it has not ended. It began then, but it continues today.
It is not a war against King George III. It is the ongoing struggle between the people and those who would govern them that is at the heart of our independence.
There are two visions of how men are meant to live today, just as there were in 1776. Revolutions and wars may occasionally clarify these visions, but they do not permanently resolve them. New governments are quick to adopt old tyrannies. Freedom is a popular rallying cry for rebels. But few rebels wish to be rebelled against. That is what made America unique. That is what still does.
We were not meant to be a society of sinecures for public servants. We did not come into being to be ruled by bureaucrats. Our birth of freedom was not meant to give way to the repression of a vast incomprehensible body of regulations administered by an elite political class in Washington D.C.
Americans are rebels. And if we are not rebels, then we are not Americans.
We are not a nation founded by men and women who followed the rules. It is not our capacity for obedience that makes us true Americans, but our capacity for disobedience.
The Declaration of Independence was a document of rebellion by a band of rebels. “Damned rebels” as the big government monarchists saw them. The men who signed it pledged their lives because they expected to be executed for treason. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were acts of rebellion against the entire order across what was then seen as the civilized world.
American greatness came about because we were willing to break the rules. It was only when we began following the rules, when as a nation we made the maintenance of the international order into our notion of the greatest good and when as individuals we accepted the endless expansion of government as a national ideal that we ceased to be great.
When we think of great Americans, from Thomas Jefferson to the Wright Brothers, from Andrew Jackson to Daniel Boone, from Theodore Roosevelt to today’s true patriots, we think of “damned rebels” who broke the rules, who did what should have been impossible and thumbed their noses at the establishments of the day. American greatness is embodied in individual initiative. That is why the Declaration of Independence places at the center of its striving, Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.
It was for these individualistic ends of freedom that government had to be derived from the consent of the governed, that a war was fought that changed the world and it is these ends that we must celebrate.
Rebellion does not always mean muskets and cannon. Long before the War of Independence, we had become a nation of rebels who explored the wild realms of forests and streams, who forged cities out of savage lands, who argued philosophy and sought a higher purpose for their strivings, who refused to bow to their betters out of an accident of birth. And at our best, we are still rebels today.
When we dissent from the system, we rebel. When we refuse to conform, when we think differently, when we choose to live our own lives instead of living according to the dictates of our political rulers and pop culture arbiters, then we are celebrating the spirit of freedom that animates the Fourth.
When we defy the government, when we speak out against Obama and the rest of our privileged ruling class, when we demand the right to govern ourselves, when we fight to hold government accountable, when we question what we are told and the need to be told anything at all, then we are keeping that old spirit of rebellion alive. We are still fighting for our independence from government every day and every year that we choose to live as free people. That is the glorious burden of freedom.
Freedom is not handed to us. It is not secured for us by politicians. Like the Founding Fathers, we are made free by our fight for freedom. Preserving their legacy cannot be meaningfully recreated through any means other than the committed struggle for the same ideals.
This Fourth of July, celebrate by continuing to be a rebel, question and challenge the left’s worship of government. And don’t stop on the Fifth or in July. Or in any year or any decade or any century.
We here at the David Horowitz Freedom Center and at Front Page Magazine don’t.
Our family of writers, activists and commentators, and that includes you, inspired by David’s courageous spirit continue to question authority, challenge government and fight for the independence of the individual against the tyrannies of the radical left and Islamic theocracy, every day, week and month of the year.
And we welcome you to our revolution.
Evelyn Taft's Fourth of July Weather
Ms. Evelyn's back!
Man, she took something like six months off for maternity. She's a smokin' hot lady.
At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:
FLASHBACK: "Evelyn Taft, Political Scientist."
Man, she took something like six months off for maternity. She's a smokin' hot lady.
At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:
FLASHBACK: "Evelyn Taft, Political Scientist."
Islamic State Uses Ramadan for New Terrorist Attacks
Following-up from yesterday, "Baghdad Car Bombing is Third Mass Attack in Days (VIDEO)."
As the Muslim holy month of Ramadan approached, ISIS told jihadists that it was a good time to kill people https://t.co/N37QItAn96
— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 3, 2016
Sunday, July 3, 2016
Baghdad Car Bombing is Third Mass Attack in Days (VIDEO)
It's a daily thing now.
Daily, and on an apocalyptic scale.
At NYT, "More Than 140 Dead in Terror Assault Claimed by ISIS":
Daily, and on an apocalyptic scale.
At NYT, "More Than 140 Dead in Terror Assault Claimed by ISIS":
BAGHDAD — As celebrations for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan stretched past midnight into Sunday in central Baghdad, where Iraqis had gathered to eat, shop and just be together, a minivan packed with explosives blew up and killed at least 143 people — the third mass slaughter across three countries in less than a week.Keep reading.
The attack was the deadliest in Baghdad in years — at least since 2009 — and was among the worst Iraq has faced since the American invasion of 2003. The bombing came barely a week after Iraqi security forces, backed by American airstrikes, celebrated the liberation of Falluja from the Islamic State, which almost immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Even as fires still blazed Sunday morning at the bombing site, Iraq’s machinery of grief was fully in motion: Hospitals tried to identify charred bodies, workers sorted through the rubble searching for more victims, and the first coffins were on their way to the holy city of Najaf and its vast cemetery, always expanding, where Iraq’s Shiites bury their dead. By Sunday evening, a worker at the cemetery said more than 70 bodies had arrived, and many more were expected on Monday.
Less than two days earlier, two police officers and 20 hostages, many of them foreigners, were killed after gunmen invaded a restaurant in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The Islamic State claimed to be behind that attack. In Turkey, the authorities blamed the Islamic State for a coordinated suicide attack on Istanbul’s main airport that killed more than 40 people, although the terrorist group has not claimed responsibility.
Many of the victims in Baghdad on Sunday were children; the explosives detonated near a three-story complex of restaurants and stores where families were celebrating the end of the school year, residents said...
Sen. John McCain on Islamic State: 'What we need to do is go to Raqqa and kill them...' (VIDEO)
It's pretty straightforward, and McCain's just the latest in a long line of folks who've said the same thing.
But oh my goodness, it's "Islamophobia" to call this radical Islam. Actually killing jihadists "harms" the fight against "violent extremism," or some such bullshit.
Watch, at CBS Face the Nation, "McCain on ISIS: 'What we need to do is go to Raqqa and kill them'."
But oh my goodness, it's "Islamophobia" to call this radical Islam. Actually killing jihadists "harms" the fight against "violent extremism," or some such bullshit.
Watch, at CBS Face the Nation, "McCain on ISIS: 'What we need to do is go to Raqqa and kill them'."
Deal of the Day: GreenWorks 19-Inch Cordless Lawn Mower
At Amazon, GreenWorks 25223 G-MAX 40V Li-Ion 19-Inch Cordless Lawn Mower w/ (1) 4Ah (1) 2Ah Batteries & Charger.
More, Lawn and Garden Promotions: Save on Pest Control Products.
Also, Patio, Lawn & Garden : Patio Furniture & Accessories - 25% Off or More.
Plus, Save Up to 20% in Books.
And, Jonathan Harris, The Lost World of Byzantium.
Norman F. Cantor, The Civilization of the Middle Ages: A Completely Revised and Expanded Edition of Medieval History.
More, from Victor Davis Hanson, Who Killed Homer: The Demise of Classical Education and the Recovery of Greek Wisdom.
BONUS: Kim Strassel, The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech.
More, Lawn and Garden Promotions: Save on Pest Control Products.
Also, Patio, Lawn & Garden : Patio Furniture & Accessories - 25% Off or More.
Plus, Save Up to 20% in Books.
And, Jonathan Harris, The Lost World of Byzantium.
Norman F. Cantor, The Civilization of the Middle Ages: A Completely Revised and Expanded Edition of Medieval History.
More, from Victor Davis Hanson, Who Killed Homer: The Demise of Classical Education and the Recovery of Greek Wisdom.
BONUS: Kim Strassel, The Intimidation Game: How the Left Is Silencing Free Speech.
Sunday Cartoons
At Flopping Aces, "Sunday Funnies."
And at Proof Positive, "Our Fumbling Fathers," and Theo Spark's, "Cartoon Roundup..."
Cartoon Credit: Legal Insurrection, "Branco Cartoon – Itchy & Scratchy."
And at Proof Positive, "Our Fumbling Fathers," and Theo Spark's, "Cartoon Roundup..."
Cartoon Credit: Legal Insurrection, "Branco Cartoon – Itchy & Scratchy."
Great White Shark Attacks from Behind (VIDEO)
Tonight's the last night of Shark Week.
Previously, "Alien Sharks: Close Encounters (VIDEO)," and "More Alien Sharks (VIDEO)."
Previously, "Alien Sharks: Close Encounters (VIDEO)," and "More Alien Sharks (VIDEO)."
The Myth of Cosmopolitanism
It's Ross Douthat, at the New York Times.
Not bad:
Not bad:
The myth of cosmopolitanism: Ross Douthat on the global elite, a tribe like any other. https://t.co/lOveYA0SJT pic.twitter.com/Hxb7oRur23
— NYT Opinion (@nytopinion) July 3, 2016
@DouthatNYT Douthat on the Global Elite Tribe. https://t.co/psSE3KwKpQ pic.twitter.com/SxRxEIvzK0
— Instapundit.com (@instapundit) July 3, 2016
"But no less than Brexit-voting Cornish villagers, our global citizens think and act as members of a tribe." https://t.co/HApwkMxmY6
— (((Mark Krikorian))) (@MarkSKrikorian) July 3, 2016
"more genuine cosmopolitanism in Rudyard Kipling & TE Lawrence & Richard Francis Burton than in 100 Davos sessions"https://t.co/HApwkMxmY6
— (((Mark Krikorian))) (@MarkSKrikorian) July 3, 2016
When all my friends are sharing an article on the dangers of tribalism I feel I should share it too... Oh, wait https://t.co/d9B1Vb7Bu5
— Walter Olson (@walterolson) July 3, 2016
This overstates and simplifies, as op-eds tend to do, but there's a lot of truth in here. https://t.co/tYYnAUrj6F
— Andrew Exum (@ExumAM) July 3, 2016
Articulates what I've always thought: liberal "global citizens" live in a bubble that is only superficially diverse. https://t.co/1Y8qtcSGfa
— Derek Hopper (@derekmhopper) July 3, 2016
Kristen Keogh's July 3rd Forecast
It's cool beach weather with patchy fog.
I'm not planning any big July 4th outings. I might head over to Irvine's Heritage Park fireworks show, but I think my wife just wants to lay low this year, so we'll see.
Here's Kristen:
I'm not planning any big July 4th outings. I might head over to Irvine's Heritage Park fireworks show, but I think my wife just wants to lay low this year, so we'll see.
Here's Kristen:
Lindsey Pelas Tiny Bikini Rule 5 for Fourth of July (PHOTOS)
She's great!
More in Instagram.
BONUS: At London's Daily Mail, "Fitness star with natural 30H breasts (and 3.5 million Instagram followers) details the downsides of being so busty, from fashion fails to awkward 'boob sweat'."
🙂☀️ pic.twitter.com/Pn8fn8pu4p
— Lindsey Pelas (@LindseyPelas) July 1, 2016
Every beach day is a scene from Baywatch....
— Lindsey Pelas (@LindseyPelas) June 29, 2016
And I'm 100% okay with it. ☀️😋🌴
👙@twentysauce pic.twitter.com/WGfGU0CThy
More in Instagram.
BONUS: At London's Daily Mail, "Fitness star with natural 30H breasts (and 3.5 million Instagram followers) details the downsides of being so busty, from fashion fails to awkward 'boob sweat'."
Saturday, July 2, 2016
Joshua Clover, The New Era of Uprisings
We teach just lower-division courses at community college, but I'm about to get an entry-level "Diversity, Ethnicity, and Inclusion" course into the curriculum approval pipeline. Santa Monica City College offers a pretty hip course commensurately, so there's that. All I have to do is make sure that such a course is transferable to UC/CSU as measured by the CCC Chancellor's Office, so we'll see.
In any case, if y'all are wondering why I'm reading all these far-left tomes, my abiding watchword (or "watch-phrase") is "Know Your Enemies," but frankly, I need to help pull my department into the 21st century vis-Ã -vis all the hipster "intersectional" literature, heh.
It's fun at least.
Here's Joshua Clover, at Amazon, Riot. Strike. Riot: The New Era of Uprisings.
In any case, if y'all are wondering why I'm reading all these far-left tomes, my abiding watchword (or "watch-phrase") is "Know Your Enemies," but frankly, I need to help pull my department into the 21st century vis-Ã -vis all the hipster "intersectional" literature, heh.
It's fun at least.
Here's Joshua Clover, at Amazon, Riot. Strike. Riot: The New Era of Uprisings.
Red Sox's David Ortiz Hits Home Run No. 522, Passing Ted Williams on All-Time List (VIDEO)
It was awesome, although he hit it against my Angels, unfortunately.
The Halos are 19 and a half games back in the AL West. Probably one of their worst seasons ever.
Here's the Ortiz homer. He's 41 years-old and still smashing the ball like it's nothing.
The Halos are 19 and a half games back in the AL West. Probably one of their worst seasons ever.
Here's the Ortiz homer. He's 41 years-old and still smashing the ball like it's nothing.
Patriotic Bikini Hotties
A roundup, at Egotastic, "Patriotic Bikini Hotties and Other Fine Things to Ogle."
And of course the annual posting of the fabulous Angie Harmon:
And of course the annual posting of the fabulous Angie Harmon:
'You've got the music in you...'
I had this song on the brain the other day for some reason, and then it came on the satellite radio out of nowhere.
The New Radicals, "You Get What You Give."
The New Radicals, "You Get What You Give."
Health insurance, rip-off lying
FDA, big bankers buying
Fake computer crashes dining
Cloning while they're multiplying
Fashion shoots with Beck and Hanson,
Courtney Love and Marilyn Manson
You're all fakes , run to your mansions
Come around, we'll kick your ass in...
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