The Obligatory Covington Catholic Kids in #MAGA Hats Harassed Elder Native American 'Vietnam War Veteran' Blog Post

As you may have noticed, I've held off from posting on this story.

I have to admit, the very first short video I saw looked like it could have been the Catholic students harassing the Native American man. But I didn't comment about it. I kept doing my regular reading and tweeting, etc., and then more and more videos became available, and more information became available, and then there was a backlash against the backlash.

It turns out, for one thing, that the so-called Native American "Elder," Nathan Phillips, is not a Vietnam veteran. This Aint' Hell, the military blog, put in official requests to get government confirmation of Phillips' military service. See, "Nathan Phillips – “Vietnam Times” Veteran." Now, though, the Washington Post is correcting its initial story on the controversy, saying in fact that Phillips did not serve in Vietnam.

It's a big deal.

On Twitter:

Oh! 😮 https://t.co/5IZwVQGqv5 pic.twitter.com/XOpU4ionVF

— Alex VanNess (@thealexvanness) January 22, 2019

Does this constitute as "Stolen Valor?" https://t.co/c9CuHhxa7Chttps://t.co/5IZwVQGqv5 pic.twitter.com/pBAz8gvKl1

— Alex VanNess (@thealexvanness) January 22, 2019

According to CNN transcripts, Nathan Phillips stated he was a Vietnam veteran, twice.https://t.co/5r5c1HRRpJ

— Alex VanNess (@thealexvanness) January 22, 2019

Apparently, according to the video of the interview on CNN's website, one of the instances he actually says he's a "Vietnam times veteran."

Don't know about the 2nd instance.

Here's an archived version of the transcripts, in case CNN stealth edits.https://t.co/KCF77b4SHm

— Alex VanNess (@thealexvanness) January 22, 2019

The CNN chyron of the video also shows the alleged quote. pic.twitter.com/68hYWjjshX

— Alex VanNess (@thealexvanness) January 22, 2019

IT’S ALL FAKE NEWS!!

“Correction: Earlier versions of this story incorrectly said that Native American activist Nathan Phillips fought in the Vietnam War. Phillips served in the U.S. Marines from 1972 to 1976 but was never deployed to Vietnam.” https://t.co/0er03FmZco

— 'Sources Say' is Greek for 'Fake News' (@NolteNC) January 22, 2019

LIAR----> It Gets Worse: Far Left Activist Nathan Phillips Told Reporters He Served in Vietnam in 1976 -- US Withdrew in 1973! https://t.co/IW53aHHegt via @gatewaypundit

— Jim Hoft (@gatewaypundit) January 22, 2019

Okay, as you also may know, this story has just dominated Twitter for days, and for me it was overwhelming keeping up with all the different reports and hot takes. Your mileage may vary.

In any case, see Robert Stacy McCain, "Lessons From an Online Lynching (Why #StandWithCovington Is Going Viral)."

And at Reason, Robby Soave did his homework, watching hours of video, to post a smackdown debunking over the weekend. See, "The Media Wildly Mischaracterized That Video of Covington Catholic Students Confronting a Native American Veteran." Also, "If You Still Think Nick Sandmann’s Smile Is Proof of Racism, You’re Seeing What You Want to See.

Neo-Neocon has been doing awesome stuff on this, but see in particular, "The Covington chronicles: on hating the face of a teenage boy." And she's linked by Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit, "NEO: Nathan Phillips and the surprise video."

Although these kind of lynch mob stories aren't new, this whole thing for me has been extremely clarifying. Twitter is a radioactive dump of hatred and lies, and as the site's run by leftists, it won't get better. I don't use any other social media, so I begrudgingly continue to use it, even though it sucks.

And of course no amount of factual truth seems to change minds in our extremely ideologically polarized era. And it's interesting, because I keep hearing people say, "talk to each other; listen to the other side." But talking to each other is only helpful if the "other side" is open to what you have to say. I work with radical leftists. They have their narrative and they don't budge. If you get on the wrong side of them, especially in any official capacity, they can be merciless, even using the power of the state to coerce compliance with the leftist agenda (the school hired lawyers to investigate me for disciplining a black student at one point). It's bad.

Check this leftist's thread for the perpetuation of the left's diabolical narrative, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary:

I've been watching videos all day. I have one thing to say (in a bunch of tweets, so hold on): The videos BACK UP/STRENGTHEN Mr. Nathan Phillips' account of what happened toward the conclusion of the #IndigenousPeoplesMarch on Saturday. They also reveal how it all happened. 1/

— Lisa Sharon Harper (@lisasharper) January 21, 2019

So again, it's been clarifying. If you're a Trump supporter leftists want to destroy you. They literally want to kill you. (See Uncle Shoes on Twitter, for example, a guy who wants to burn down Covington Catholic High School, with all the kids inside.)

More later. (*Sigh.*)

Rachel Notley's NDP Government Launches Stalinist Campaign to Shut Down Rebel Media (VIDEO)

It's shockingly unreal that this kind of stuff is going on in one of the West's great democracies, but that it is calls into question how democratic is Canada under all the far-left governments, at the national and the provincial levels.

This is really stunning.

At the Rebel, "Stand With The Rebel Against Elections Alberta - The Rebel."

Elena Iulia Rotari

At Drunken Stepfather, "Elena Iulia Rotari of the Day."

Alejandra Guilmant in Feminist Shirt

At Drunken Stepfather, "ALEJANDRA GUILMANT TITTIES IN A FEMINIST SHIRT OF THE DAY ."

BONUS: Busty Blonde Babe Jiggles in Her Red Bikini (VIDEO).

How's It Going to Be?

When you don't know me?

It's Third Eye Blind.

No drive time music until February, but I just started singing this song, for some reason, while I was doing the dishes. (*Shrugs.*)

Jennifer Delacruz's MLK Holiday Weather

Nice weather for the holiday.

Here's the fabulous Ms. Jennifer, for ABC News 10 San Diego:

About the Los Angeles Teachers' Strike

At Theo Spark's, "About that 'teacher's strike'..................from Rico."

Susan Sontag, Against Interpretation

At Amazon, Susan Sontag, Against Interpretation: And Other Essays.

Prince Philip Stokes Debate on Older Drivers

This is really good, at the New York Times (two), and an extra hilarious tweet below:

The crash, involving as it did a famously headstrong and famously old royal, occasioned much discussion about whether Britain should clamp down on older people driving. https://t.co/Uq5BGiv0nw

— New York Times World (@nytimesworld) January 18, 2019

Two days after Prince Philip was involved in a car crash that injured two women and sparked a debate on older drivers in Britain, he was photographed driving without a seatbelt https://t.co/E3f7bQCjTh

— New York Times World (@nytimesworld) January 20, 2019

Journalists: "Brexit will monopolize the front pages for weeks!"
Prince Phillip: "Hold my beer...” pic.twitter.com/5oIq7oWosK

— Ross Baines Art (@RossBainesArt) January 18, 2019

John Ogbu, Black American Students in An Affluent Suburb

At Amazon, John U. Ogbu, Black American Students in An Affluent Suburb: A Study of Academic Disengagement.

Jayde Nicole Wet T-Shirt

At Drunken Stepfather, "Jayde Nicole Wet T-Shirt Nipples of the Day."

She's pretty amazing!

As MLK Foresaw, U.S. Racism's Been Largely Overcome

From the great Jeff Jacoby, at the Boston Globe:

.@Jeff_Jacoby: As MLK foresaw, racism in America has been largely overcome https://t.co/KJR7G4eO1S

— The Boston Globe (@BostonGlobe) January 18, 2019

“I have no despair about the future,” wrote the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in his 1963 “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” “I have no fear about the outcome of our struggle in Birmingham. . . . We will reach the goal of freedom in Birmingham and all over the nation, because the goal of America is freedom.”

He was right.

It is a commonplace that racism is America’s original sin. Hardly a day goes by without attention being focused on instances of the racial injustice, friction, and double standards that can still be found in this nation. Open the morning paper or watch cable news, and there will be something to remind you of the country’s racial tensions — from controversy over flying the Confederate flag to NFL players protesting police brutality, from accusations of voter suppression in Georgia to an Iowa congressman defending “white nationalism.” It isn’t surprising that when Americans are asked in opinion polls whether race relations are getting better, many of them — sometimes most of them — gloomily reply that racism is still a major problem.

But it isn’t. It is only a minor problem now, one that has grown steadily less toxic and less entrenched. King predicted confidently that America would surmount its benighted racial past, and his confidence was not misplaced. Though his own life was cut short by a racist assassin, he foresaw that racism would lose its grip on American life.

“We’ve got some difficult days ahead, but . . . I’ve been to the mountaintop,” King said in his final speech. “I’ve looked over, and I’ve seen the Promised Land.” He knew that American racism would wither away. Fifty-one years later, it mostly has.

Consider some of the data on changing American values...

Keep reading.

Martin Luther King, Jr., Why We Can't Wait

At Amazon, Martin Luther King, Jr., Why We Can't Wait (Signet Classics).

Leo Tolstoy, The Death of Ivan Ilyich

At Amazon, Leo Tolstoy, The Death of Ivan Ilyich.

Where Have You Gone, Martin Luther King, Jr.?

A great video, featuring Jason Riley, at Prager University:

More on Idiot Instagram Influencer Caroline Calloway

Following-up from yesterday, "The Case of Caroline Calloway and the Influencer Economy."

See Robert Stacy McCain, at the Other McCain, "Caroline Calloway and the ‘Creativity Workshop’ Influencer Tour From Hell."

Caroline Calloway and the ‘Creativity Workshop’ Influencer Tour From Hell https://t.co/tk3evITb8W

h/t @Ceilidhann (and @FlyingDog beer) pic.twitter.com/jjM6gmGcdn

— The Patriarch Tree (@PatriarchTree) January 17, 2019

Miss Calloway is 27 now. She’s no longer the fresh-faced girl posting #adventuregram photos and spending Daddy’s money on an extended vacation “studying art history” in Cambridge. She’s got hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers but has yet to succeed in monetizing her “brand” because she’s unwilling to do any actual work.

Like, you land a $500,000 book contact — half a million dollars! — at age 24, and you can’t deliver the manuscript? Why? Because you were too busy “studying art history” and hanging out with Oscar? Or was it because you realized that your shallow life wasn’t really interesting enough to merit a “memoir”? But if somebody’s willing to pay you $500,000 for it, maybe you could fake it? For $500,000 I could write all kinds of wild stuff, maybe even the True Story of the Kentucky Fried Chicken Robbery, although otherwise I’d have to invoke my Fifth Amendment rights on advice of my Samoan lawyer...

RTWT.

Can Dems Keep a 'Big Tent' in 2020?

Nah.

It's going to be a two year clown show at this point.

At McClathcy, "Democratic leaders fret: Can we keep our big tent in 2020?"

So @katieglueck and I talked to a bunch of county chairs from areas Democrats flipped in '18, to see what they think the party needs to do to win in 2020: Energize the base, show statesmanship, and ...

“People want to have a selfie with candidates”https://t.co/D3x8HoFeS7

— Alex Roarty (@Alex_Roarty) January 17, 2019

Sarah Snyder Bikini Shots

At Drunken Stepfather, "SARAH FUCKING SNYDER BIKINI SLUT OF THE DAY."

The Case of Caroline Calloway and the Influencer Economy

Every semester I have students read this Cal Newport op-ed at the New York Times, "Quit Social Media. Your Career May Depend on It."

When I announce this as required first week's readings I usually see a few frowns and long faces, and one semester a student challenged me about the article, saying that people make money as "influencers," or some such thing.

The influencer thing was new to me at the time, but I got it. Nowadays it's a big thing.

I really like Sally Fitzgibbons, for example, but she's so into the product promotions, she never even likes a tweet from a follower. (I like interaction. I've had likes from television stars [Angie Harmon, for example] and lots of interaction with hot sports media and television personalities [like Liz Habib, who's the local Fox 11 sports anchor and a smokin' hottie].)

In any case, you can see why I'm not so sold on the "influencer economy." And after reading this bombshell from Kayleigh Donaldson, it's case closed.

See, "The Empty Mason Jar of the Influencer Economy: The Case of Caroline Calloway and her Creativity Workshop Tour."

Mind-boggling, really. (*SMH.*)

For the full story in excruciating detail, here is my piece on @pajiba on Caroline Calloway, her brief creativity workshop & the hollowness of "authenticity" as a brand.https://t.co/GxezF5WytL

— Kayleigh Donaldson (@Ceilidhann) January 14, 2019

Nina Agdal Takes It Off

At Drunken Stepfather, "NINA AGDAL NAKED OF THE DAY."

And at the Sun U.K., "Supermodel Nina Agdal shows off sensational figure as she poses in white bikini."

Supermodel Nina Agdal shows off sensational figure as she poses in white bikini https://t.co/jjv0iq5lpe

— The Sun (@TheSun) January 15, 2019

Still more at the New York Post, "Nina Agdal says she wouldn’t date Jack Brinkley-Cook if he were broke."

BONUS: Nina Agdal Topless.

Caroline Vreeland Bikini Photos

At Drunken Stepfather, "CAROLINE VREELAND MASSIVE TITS SUCKING IT IN OF THE DAY.

Kevin Powers, A Shout in the Ruins

At Amazon, Kevin Powers, A Shout in the Ruins.

Mesha Maren, Sugar Run

At Amazon, Mesha Maren, Sugar Run: A Novel.

Barry Meier, Pain Killer

At Amazon, Barry Meier, Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic.

Sophie Mackintosh, The Water Cure

At Amazon, Sophie Mackintosh, The Water Cure: A Novel.

Helen Flanagan in Yellow Bikini

At Taxi Driver:

Helen Flanagan Yellow Bikini Pokies - https://t.co/BZ4v5arcKh - pic.twitter.com/bLXJW1caUa

— Taxi Driver (@TaxiDriverMovie) January 9, 2019

Diarmaid MacCulloch, Thomas Cromwell

At Amazon, Diarmaid MacCulloch, Thomas Cromwell: A Revolutionary Life.

'This is Communism'

It is.

See David Horowitz on Twitter:

This is communism. I suspect Eleanor had something to do with this. The American idea of rights is limits to government power, freedom for the individual. https://t.co/NGbWg2t6zT

— David Horowitz (@horowitz39) January 12, 2019

Myla Dalbesio Up Close with Flamingos (VIDEO)

At Sports Illustrated Swimsuit:

Democrats Look to Clamp Down Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (VIDEO)

Norms? What norms?

Well, she didn't get an assignment to the Ways and Means Committee, but she won't stop shaking things up on the Hill.

Wait 'till next year. If she backs primary challenges against centrist Democrat incumbents, you know she's going all out to overturn the entire centrist-seniority system in the House.

At Politico, "Exasperated Democrats try to rein in Ocasio-Cortez: The effort is part carrot, part stick. But it's far from clear the anti-establishment political novice can be made to play ball":

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is already making enemies in the House Democratic Caucus — and some of its members are mounting an operation to bring the anti-establishment, democratic socialist with 2.2 million Twitter followers into the fold.

The effort, described by nearly 20 lawmakers and aides, is part carrot, part stick: Some lawmakers with ties to Ocasio-Cortez are hoping to coax her into using her star power to unite Democrats and turn her fire on Republicans. Others simultaneously warn Ocasio-Cortez is destined for a lonely, ineffectual career in Congress if she continues to treat her own party as the enemy.

“I’m sure Ms. Cortez means well, but there’s almost an outstanding rule: Don’t attack your own people,” said Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.). “We just don’t need sniping in our Democratic Caucus.”

Incumbent Democrats are most annoyed by Ocasio-Cortez’s threat to back primary opponents against members of their ranks she deems too moderate. But their frustration goes beyond that: Democratic leaders are upset that she railed against their new set of House rules on Twitter the first week of the new Congress. Rank and file are peeved that there’s a grassroots movement to try to win her a top committee post they feel she doesn’t deserve.

Even some progressives who admire AOC, as she’s nicknamed, told POLITICO that they worry she’s not using her notoriety effectively.

“She needs to decide: Does she want to be an effective legislator or just continue being a Twitter star?” said one House Democrat who’s in lockstep with Ocasio Cortez’s ideology. “There’s a difference between being an activist and a lawmaker in Congress.”

It’s an open question whether Ocasio-Cortez can be checked. She’s barely been in Congress a week and is better known than almost any other House member other than Nancy Pelosi and John Lewis. A media throng follows her every move, and she can command a national audience practically at will.

None of that came playing by the usual rules: Indeed, Ocasio-Cortez’s willingness to take on her party establishment with unconventional guerrilla tactics is what got her here. It’s earned her icon status on the progressive left, it’s where the 29-year-old freshman derives her power — and, by every indication, it’s how she thinks she can pull the Democratic Party in her direction.

The Freedom Caucus didn’t win many popularity contests in Congress the past four years, but it’s hard to dispute the hard-liners’ success dragging the GOP to the right.

Still, fellow Democrats are giving it their best, or planning to in the near future.

So far, most of them have kept their criticism of Ocasio-Cortez private, fearful she’ll sic her massive following on them by firing off a tweet. But a few are engaging with her in the hopes she’ll opt for a different M.O., especially when it comes to trying to take out Democrats in primaries.

Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) is playing a key role. Like Ocasio-Cortez, Velázquez knocked off a longtime Democratic incumbent to win her seat, and they share Puerto Rican roots.

In private conversations with Ocasio-Cortez over the past few months, Velázquez counseled Ocasio-Cortez against targeting her Democratic colleagues in future elections. The two had a “long, long conversation” about the dynamics of Congress and Washington, and how there shouldn’t be a “litmus test” for every district, Velázquez said in a recent interview.

After she defeated Democratic incumbent Joe Crowley in shocking fashion last year, Ocasio-Cortez supported primary challengers to Democratic Reps. Stephanie Murphy of Florida, William Lacy Clay of Missouri and Mike Capuano of Massachusetts.

Only Capuano lost. But Velázquez told Ocasio-Cortez she should think twice in the future before backing primaries against her colleagues. Murphy, the first Vietnamese woman elected to Congress, represents a swing district and could lose her seat if she’s forced to move left in a primary, Velázquez said during the talk...

Sunday Cartoons

At Flopping Aces, "Sunday Funnies."

And at Theo's, "Cartoon Roundup..."

And at Legal Insurrection, "Branco Cartoon – That Was Then."

Danielle Gersh's Sunday Forecast

Here's the fabulous Ms. Danielle, "Increasing cloud cover and colder temperatures expected Sunday before several storms move into the Southland this week..."

PG&E Prepares for Bankruptcy

This is big! At LAT, "PG&E may notify its employees this week of potential bankruptcy."

PG&E Corp., facing billions of dollars in wildfire liabilities, may notify employees as soon as Monday that it’s preparing a potential bankruptcy filing. https://t.co/jaJeXCBUX8

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) January 13, 2019

Bella Thorne Promotes 'F*** Me' Lip Stain (VIDEO)

She's still crazy, heh.

Bella Thorne dons red latex bikini to promote her new 'F*** Me Firetruck' lip stain https://t.co/eppzcXTPIa

— Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) January 13, 2019

Rams Bring Back Football Glory Days to Los Angeles

It's Bill Plaschke, at LAT, "Rams’ glory days, and a city’s Super Bowl dreams, return in win over Dallas Cowboys":

Rams reintroduce roaring Coliseum to winning playoff football https://t.co/WQ8616JFM3

— Bill Plaschke (@BillPlaschke) January 13, 2019

After more than two decades of midwinter silence, a city’s football soul came alive again, cutting through the winter chill with a roar that shook the Coliseum down to its soggy ankles.

The Rams are 60 minutes from a Super Bowl.

In only their third season back, the city’s prodigal football sons brought winning playoff football home again, delighting awed witnesses with a frenetic, fireworks-blasting feast.

The Rams are one win from a Super Bowl.

In the greatest, latest football game played around here in many seasons, the Rams spent more than three hours on a soggy field Saturday giving thousands of yellow flag-waving fans a refresher course in January greatness.

This is what a playoff victory looks like. This is how a team survives football’s toughest tournament. This is how the Super Bowl becomes close enough to touch.

“This,” tackle Rob Havenstein said, “was electric.”

This was the Rams’ 30-22 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in a divisional playoff game that sent them to the NFC championship game next week in one of two places.

If the New Orleans Saints defeat the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, the Rams will take their toughness to the Big Easy. If the Eagles win, the conference title game will be back in the Coliseum, and won’t that be a hoot?

The winner of that championship game goes to the Super Bowl. Of course that’s how this works, but it never hurts to remind everyone because it’s been a while.

No matter who they play next week, I’m picking the Rams because, as a crowd delightfully dominated by the locals Saturday night, they are once again the Rams.

“That’s a big-time win for us,” coach Sean McVay said. “It’s a step in the right direction.”

With a soggy field underneath them from the day’s early rains, with lingering smoke above their helmets from the midgame pyrotechnics, the Rams appeared in the Coliseum as if ghosts from the recent past.

They gained 459 total yards. They rushed for 273 of those yards. They didn’t commit a turnover. They barely made any mistakes. And they held the Cowboys’ great Ezekiel Elliott to 47 yards rushing.

“Our focus was to shut him down,” said Ndamukong Suh, who didn’t need to say anything else.

This was the team that started the season 11-1, not the team that finished it 2-2.

This was the Jared Goff who dominated defenses early, not the one who struggled late. He completed only 15 of 28 passes for 186 yards but managed the game to near perfection.

“This week was a big game, but next week will be a big game as well,” the ever-circumspect quarterback said...

More.

And from former L.A.T. sports reporter Lindsey Thiry, not at ESPN:

Jared Goff and the Rams will play for a trip to the Super Bowl. pic.twitter.com/gMHeuSLuRm

— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 13, 2019

Aaron Donald celebrates with his kids. pic.twitter.com/LBRJbSf4Pq

— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 13, 2019

Jared Goff hollers out, “Fat back!” as CJ Anderson meets with the media. pic.twitter.com/6c35R92GoJ

— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 13, 2019

“This ain’t shit. We still got one more. Got to keep winning,” — Todd Gurley. pic.twitter.com/RMtTojHET8

— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 13, 2019

Jan. 12, 2017: 30-head-old Sean McVay becomes youngest head coach hired in modern NFL history.
Jan. 12, 2019: 32-year-old McVay becomes youngest head coach to win a playoff game in NFL history, per Elias Sports Bureau. https://t.co/R7yLNgCeYw pic.twitter.com/3HWfv6j35P

— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 13, 2019

It was Super Bowl or bust from the start. Now the Rams are one win away. https://t.co/qgxrv02Pyw

— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 13, 2019

Ben Winters, Golden State

Well, this one ought to be really interesting.

At Amazon, Ben Winters, Golden State.

From award-winning, New York Times bestselling novelist Ben H. Winters comes a mind-bending novel set in a world governed by absolute truth, where lies are as dangerous as murder.

In a strange alternate society that values law and truth above all else, Laszlo Ratesic is a nineteen-year veteran of the Speculative Service. He lives in the Golden State, a nation standing where California once did, a place where like-minded Americans retreated after the erosion of truth and the spread of lies made public life and governance impossible.

In the Golden State, knowingly contradicting the truth is the greatest crime--and stopping those crimes is Laz's job. In its service, he is one of the few individuals permitted to harbor untruths, to "speculate" on what might have happened.

But the Golden State is less a paradise than its name might suggest. To monitor, verify, and enforce the truth requires a veritable panopticon of surveillance and recording. And when those in control of the facts twist them for nefarious means, the Speculators are the only ones with the power to fight back.

Evelyn Taft's Sunday Forecast

The fabulous Ms. Evelyn is back!

At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

Jenna Dewan for Women's Health Magazine (PHOTOS)

This is from last year, but it's nice.

At TMZ, "JENNA DEWAN: NAKED & NOT AFRAID OF HER NEW SINGLE LIFE --- Roaming Hottie Goes Fully Nude for Women's Health Magazine (PHOTOS)."

Jenna Dewan Goes Fully Nude for Women's Health https://t.co/RRu5a6ZAtV

— TMZ (@TMZ) July 28, 2018

Amber Heard on the Street

At Taxi Driver, "Amber Heard Rock Hard Pokies on the Street."

Lilly Rose Depp

She's just a sweet little thing.

At Drunken Stepfather, "Lily Rose Depp in a Bra of the Day."

And at Too Fab, "Lily-Rose Depp Goes Topless, Poses with Pam Anderson and Talks 'Twilight' with Kristen Stewart."

Cormac McCarthy, The Road

*BUMPED.*

A truly astonishing novel, better than Blood Meridian even.

At Amazon, Cormac McCarthy, The Road.

Today's Deals

*BUMPED.*

At Amazon, Save on our top deals every day.

See especially, Garden of Life Multivitamin for Men - Vitamin Code Men's Raw Whole Food Vitamin Supplement with Probiotics, Vegetarian, 240 Capsules, and Garden of Life Multivitamin for Women - Vitamin Code 50 & Wiser Women's Raw Whole Food Vitamin Supplement with Probiotics, Vegetarian, 240 Capsules.

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Also, Smith & Wesson SWA24S 7.1in Stainless Steel Folding Knife with 3.1in Clip Point Serrated Blade and Aluminum Handle for Outdoor Tactical Survival and Everyday Carry.

And, Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey Protein Powder, Double Rich Chocolate, 5 Pound.

More here, Horny Goat Weed Herbal Complex Extract for Men & Women - Ginseng, 100% Maca Root Tongkat Ali Powder - 60 1000mg Optimum Dosage Capsules | Energy, Stamina...by Natures Design.

More, Toshiba Vinyl Record Player Turntable: 12” 3-Speed Bluetooth Turntables - Stereo Shelf Speakers, Encoder.

BONUS: William Styron, Sophie's Choice.

How the Pursuit of Fame is Warping American Society

A really good piece, from John Hawkins, at Pajamas, "The Fame Trap: How the Pursuit of Fame Is Warping American Society":

The Fame Trap: How the Pursuit of Fame Is Warping American Society https://t.co/RP3y1NHyFJ #Lifestyle via @pjmedia_com

— John Hawkins (@johnhawkinsrwn) January 8, 2019

“In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” – Andy Warhol

Fame used to be quite the rare commodity if only because there were fewer ways to become famous in the first place. Radio really started to take off in the 1920s, half of all American families acquired a TV in 1955, and the internet only started to be widely used in the early '90s. Facebook came along in 2004, YouTube in 2005, and Twitter in 2006. In 1991, there were 90 adult magazines in America. Today, there are millions of porn websites. The first UFC was in 1993. Amazon sells roughly 15 million regular books per year and another 22 million on Kindle. Amazon did not exist in 1993.

Because of the vast number of websites on the internet looking for something to cover, the almost inexhaustible number of large niches out there, and the nature of social media, fame seems closer than ever for most people and for that reason, more people than ever seem to be seeking it.

We have reality TV shows, where unstable, explosive people are put together and the rest of us “oooh and aaah” at the crazy things they do. Are you good at a video game? Well, there are plenty of people like you with hundreds of thousands of followers on Twitch and YouTube. Some people even go pro. There are also more than a few attractive women putting up pictures of themselves on Instagram looking sexy and getting contributions towards, well, whatever it is they do on Patreon. YouTube also has plenty of personalities making big bucks playing a role. Some of the numbers are just staggering.

WHAT GIRLS THINK ON THEIR FIRST PERIOD: 4.9 million views

I only ate LUNCHABLES for 24 hours: 2.5 million views

LOGAN PAUL - WHY 2018 WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT YEAR OF MY LIFE: 5.7 million views

RATING YOUTUBER APOLOGY VIDEOS 12 million views

Incidentally, the #1 channel on YouTube, PewDiePie, has 80 million subscribers. That’s greater than the population of the entire United States in 1900.

Of course, when you are talking about micro-doses of fame, they’re even easier to get.

Go scream at Ted Cruz and his wife while they’re having dinner and you can guarantee that tens of millions of people will see it. Tell a sad story about how someone didn’t tip you or a fast-food worker was mean to you and you can make headlines all over the country. Say something witty or maybe even not all that witty and if it catches the eye of someone famous and he retweets it, you may get tens of thousands of new followers and hundreds of thousands of likes. Candace Owens’ entire career on the Right is built on the fact that Kanye West liked what she was tweeting. And there are more than a few people with 50,000+ followers because Donald Trump retweeted them. Get enough Instagram or Twitter followers and you get treated like you’re important. Are you famous if you have 50,000 or 100,000 people following you on some social network? Not really, but the level of validation must feel like it. Then, there’s Joe and Jill Average's Facebook page. Here’s the best selfie they took out by the lake. It only took them 17 tries to get that shot. Here they are on a trip to Las Vegas, beside a pretty girl, making a goofy face at a statue.

You might argue that once you’re getting down to this level, people are chasing validation more than fame, but it’s not that different. They’re creating a brand that they hope will get as many people as possible to respond positively to them instead of showing their real life.

Of course, that’s not the only way we change our lives for fame. Those of us who have been around the internet for a while can remember when trolling was considered something unusual done by misanthropes living in their moms’ basements. Today, trolling is commonplace and is done by everyone from the president of the United States on down. Why? Because if you want that fame and attention, one of the best ways to get it is to find a popular post and post something that will irritate most of the people reading it. Then you’ll get lots of hate and aggravate lots of people, but you also may get new followers along with lots of likes and shares.

Not every person chasing that fame is inauthentic, bad or doing something wrong; nor is fame in and of itself a bad thing. But, what is chasing that fame turning us into as a society? What happens when hundreds of millions of people are looking to feel special for a little while as the likes, follows, and shares roll in or alternately, among the more dedicated, looking for a way to get their name in the news?

How many women do you think grew up dreaming of dressing in lingerie and offering lewds on Patreon to entice horny losers to give them money? How many people are wasting their lives on social media? I ask that as I just noticed a reply from someone on Twitter who has done 134K tweets with only 2,868 followers. What could she have done with that time if she had applied it to something meaningful in her life? That applies to what most of us are doing on social media. How much of Twitter is just people being deliberately cruel to other people or saying crazy things to get likes, shares and followers? 25 percent? 40 percent? 50 percent?

Keep reading.

Reading that line about lewd photos offered for money on Patreon, I just noticed that Bridget Phetasy's deleted her Twitter account. (She's still on Patreon, though.) I thought her breast photos were kind of weird, actually, and I certainly didn't think she was conservative, although a lot of folks on Twitter did.

In any case, I've posted 174 thousand tweets on that stupid website, although I'd argue that I've also been able to do "something meaningful" in my life, heh. In 2018, for example, I posted just 1,578 blog posts at American Power (check the sidebar). I spent much more time reading than ever, and I've been more involved as a father and a husband. Besides, as I mentioned the other day, I'm looking to spend less time on the Twitter hate-dump in 2019. All the best people are being deplatformed, and more and more I see people complaining that it's all hate all the time.

So, it's not quantity but quality. Thanks for tuning in folks. I'll still be on Twitter, because I use it as a news feed. But I'm not too worried about "validation," since it's mostly narcissists and haters on the platform nowadays anyway. (There are still some real good people using Twitter, of course, but the cost/benefit analysis is hard to justify anymore, FWIW.)

See Helen Pluckrose, for a case in point:

People are so nasty. I don't understand it. I very strongly disagree with many people and actively dislike a smaller number of people but the sheer level of seemingly casual vitriol coming at me on a daily basis now is very dispiriting. It challenges my humanism.

— Helen Pluckrose (@HPluckrose) January 9, 2019

It's like they conceptualise the world as made up of good and evil people and have accepted this as normal and adjusted to it so they can just say hateful things to and about the bad people without it being a big deal. Some people are just evil and I am one of them.

— Helen Pluckrose (@HPluckrose) January 9, 2019

If I thought there were a significant number of people in this world who were as ill-motivated and dishonest as these people who have never talked to me seemingly casually assume I am, I'd be in complete despair and horror all the time.

— Helen Pluckrose (@HPluckrose) January 9, 2019

I think there are terrible people but that most people mean well even if they are horribly wrong & doing much harm. I cld only imagine myself saying the things people say to me daily to another human being if I'd spent much time listening & trying & failing to get through to them

— Helen Pluckrose (@HPluckrose) January 9, 2019

I will just have to learn to shrug them off and focus on the people who can connect with me and have conversations.

— Helen Pluckrose (@HPluckrose) January 9, 2019

Well, now people are being kind and encouraging and I suddenly feel much better. Kindness is the best part of humanity. And now I shall go to bed. Goodnight, tweeps.

— Helen Pluckrose (@HPluckrose) January 9, 2019

Jennifer Lopez for Harper's Bazaar (PHOTOS)

At Drunken Stepfather, "JENNIFER LOPEZ SLUTTY FOR HARPERS BAZAAR OF THE DAY."

And on Twitter:

“For me, the relationship journey has been very up and down. But it didn’t have to do with anybody else…it was about me figuring out me.” —@JLohttps://t.co/9nfO5zFDRC

— Harper's Bazaar (@harpersbazaarus) January 9, 2019

"The thing about people, women especially, is that you can have 12 people telling you you’re amazing, but that one person kind of putting you down, that’s the voice that sticks in your head." —Read @JLo's full interview for BAZAAR’s February issue here: https://t.co/8PZ9UkP9qm pic.twitter.com/PNTvzDG4Q6

— Harper's Bazaar (@harpersbazaarus) January 9, 2019

"I don’t have everything figured out, and everything isn’t perfect. But I feel very proud that with all the things I’ve gone through in my personal life, I’m still optimistic and hopeful." —Read @JLo's full interview for BAZAAR’s February issue: https://t.co/8PZ9UkP9qm pic.twitter.com/OqneDUrItH

— Harper's Bazaar (@harpersbazaarus) January 9, 2019

"From early on in my career, I felt like people wanted to put me in a box…I felt very confined by that because I knew I was going to do different things." —Read @JLo's full interview for BAZAAR’s February issue here: https://t.co/8PZ9UkP9qm pic.twitter.com/774Umq7cwb

— Harper's Bazaar (@harpersbazaarus) January 9, 2019

💥 Light it up in 2019 💥

Cover Story: https://t.co/aPHRprlsOW pic.twitter.com/6Esu8YyvaD

— Jennifer Lopez (@JLo) January 9, 2019

Jennifer Delacruz's Midweek Forecast

Here's the lovely Ms. Jennifer, for ABC News 10 San Diego:

Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi Become Instant Memes with Democrat Response to President Trump's Border Wall Address (VIDEO)

Robert Stacy McCain has the analysis, "Schumer and Pelosi Own the Shutdown Even as They Try to Blame Trump."

And at Instapundit, "STEPHEN GREEN: “The content of the speech reminds me of Bill Clinton, in that it’s smartly triangulated and far more reasonable than his critics tried to make you expect.”

It really was instant meme town last night --- Schumer and Pelosi looked terrible!

The meme's were practically writing themselves! See Twitchy:

‘Chuck and Nancy already look like a meme’: Democrat response is an optics fail https://t.co/fCPEPm1OSN

— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) January 9, 2019

Emily Miller had some of the best tweets analyzing the optics (although not included at Twitchy):

TV tip for Schumer and Pelosi - When on a two shot, look at the person talking, not at the camera. Gives impression of hostage tape.

— Emily Miller (@EmilyMiller) January 9, 2019

I’m sure Chuck and Nancy have been on TV as much as I have. How do they not know to look at the speaker ?

— Emily Miller (@EmilyMiller) January 9, 2019

2. The other TV tip reason Chuck and Nancy seemed weird to viewers is they were both reading along the TelePrompTer as the other spoke. They weren’t reacting to the other’s message. Thus the dead in the eyes appearance.

— Emily Miller (@EmilyMiller) January 9, 2019

And here's the full video, for the lolz:

Eminem's Daughter Hailie Scott Posts Bikini Photo on Instagram

At People:

Eminem's Daughter Hailie, 23, Shares Sexy Bikini Pic from New Year's Vacation https://t.co/NO3PByWQZL

— People (@people) January 4, 2019

Also, at GCeleb, "Eminem’s Daughter Does The Instagram Bikini Thing Too."

And, at the Mirror U.K.:

Eminem's daughter Hailie Scott Mathers is an Instagram sensation https://t.co/2qy6S7Rbey pic.twitter.com/PX7pO6Pm6T

— Mirror Celeb (@MirrorCeleb) January 4, 2019

Yellow Vest Update

Clarie Berlinski rattled off a long thread last night on the violence of the yellow vest protesters.

They're anarcho-nihilists, basically, and Berlinski's mad because she thinks Macron's a pussy, he's caving to the street scum, and his political cowardice will strengthen the "far right." So, she calls for more authoritarian responses to the protests as a way to prevent "real" right-wing authoritarians from coming to power.

@threadreaderapp , would you please unroll this? Thank you very much for being a good bot.

— Claire Berlinski (@ClaireBerlinski) January 8, 2019

Hello you can read it here: Thread by @ClaireBerlinski: "I agree completely with @NTenzer when he says that violence is consubstantial with this movement. It's not the word I wo […]" https://t.co/zwj2JwOKf9
Share this if you think it's interesting. 🤖

— Thread Reader App (@threadreaderapp) January 8, 2019

And some of the things that have been happening this last weekend, although given Ms. Claire's animated exasperation, I doubt media reports can replace being on the ground in Paris and watching local media coverage in real time:

At the Local (France), "VIDEO: Protesters attack French ministry with forklift truck."

More:

Yellow vests: France to crack down on unsanctioned protests https://t.co/ACOI7GLrUz

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) January 7, 2019

7 January 2019

Christophe Dettinger: Boxer surrenders after clash with riot police in Paris

PHOTO: A former professional boxer who was filmed at the weekend punching a police officer on a bridge in Paris during a "yellow vest"... https://t.co/yKwxeUvfhC

— Maria Battles (@maria_battles) January 8, 2019

Facebook, Twitter Work With Conservatives to Manage Political Speech on Their Platforms

This is interesting.

If you're wondering why @CNN's Thought Police commissar @oliverdarcy is throwing a tantrum today, it involves this WSJ article. https://t.co/yE0qL3luW7

— The Patriarch Tree (@PatriarchTree) January 8, 2019

What in the world? Ali Akbar isn't exactly a traditional conservative activist. He's aligned with fringe pro-Trump voices on the right. Why is @jack seeking advice from him? https://t.co/lrQxNMiG3m

— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) January 8, 2019

I worked for McCain in 2008 and also as a high level Convention staffer working as a liaison between Secret Service and the campaign.

Cofounded the Tea Party movement.

Over 150 mainstream conservative groups have sponsored my events.

Oliver Darcy is trying to deplatform me. pic.twitter.com/ZCOcbFWp3S

— Ali Alexander (@ali) January 8, 2019

A Year of Shunning and Lawsuits at a Canadian University

It's Lindsay Shepherd, at Quillette, "Thoughtcrime and Punishment."

Her story is familiar, but I hadn't heard about her being shunned in her last semester or so of graduate school, which would violate all kinds of civil rights regulations if professors did this on my campus:

New @QuilletteM
Lindsay Shepherd @NewWorldHominin describes her excommunication at @Laurier after she blew the whistle on Nathan Rambukkana and the diversity-enforcement officials who convened her star chamber https://t.co/5BB8wUR6RA

— Jonathan Kay (@jonkay) January 8, 2019

...in another one of my courses, our last three classes (which were to consist of graduate student presentations) were nominally “cancelled.” In fact, they went on behind closed doors: The professor changed the program structure, so that students could invite whoever they wanted to attend their own class presentations—which effectively meant that every other student in the class attended everyone else’s presentations, with me being excluded from all of them. This was a way of shunning me—singling me out so that I would miss the opportunity to learn from and discuss the presentations of my colleagues...

RTWT.

George Packer, The Unwinding

At Amazon, George Packer, The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America.

Jennifer Delacruz's Tuesday Forecast

It's been mild this week, thankfully. I was freezing last week out in Yucca Valley, sheesh.

Here's the lovely Ms. Jennifer with today's forecast.

Taylor Swift at the Golden Globe After-Party (PHOTOS)

She's nice.

Taylor Swift Bustier And More Cleavagy Than Ever? Yes Please! https://t.co/XL6nsXB3z3 #TaylorSwift #GoldenGlobes pic.twitter.com/6HKDJsU7qw

— Popoholic (@Popoholic) January 8, 2019

Bikini Roundup

At Egotastic!, "Weekend Bikini Roundup: Ridiculously Sexy Model Bods in Beautiful Bikinis to Start the Year."

Izabel Goulart is unbelievably hot, dang!

Barbara Palvin Starts the Year (VIDEO)

At Sports Illustrated Swimsuit:

Federico Finchelstein, From Fascism to Populism in History

Hmm, this looks worth a look.

At Amazon, Federico Finchelstein, From Fascism to Populism in History.

Mark Lilla, The Shipwrecked Mind

Following up, "How to Write About the Right."

At Amazon, Mark Lilla, The Shipwrecked Mind: On Political Reaction.

Megan Parry's Monday Forecast

At ABC News 10 San Diego:

How to Write About the Right

Leftists will always characterize and attack the new populist-nationalist right as racist and xenophobic. That's a given. It's political correctness on steroids and the left's given assumption is one of the very fault-lines of the new politics of identity across the world.

For me, when someone calls me racist I blow it off and throw it back in their faces. Play by the left's rules. They hate that and it confounds and flusters them.

In any case, Professor Mark Lilla had a nice piece at the New York Review in December, "Two Roads for the New French Right." It elicited the typical Pavlovian attacks from the left. See, "How to Write About the Right: An Exchange."

Two Roads for the New French Right | by Mark Lilla | The New York Review of Books https://t.co/fIXJZ1mL1x

— Josh Kraushaar (@HotlineJosh) December 20, 2018

Mark Lilla: the Left is always accusing the Right, and their defenders (including me), of being nativist, and they are totally wrong. Now let me tell you about The Great Replacement that is going on in Europe. https://t.co/sbgn6Djaee

— Cas Mudde 📢 (@CasMudde) January 4, 2019

And Lilla's response:

Writing about the political right has never been harder. Different kinds of right-wing ideologies and political formations are proliferating and shaking liberal governments around the world, as Greil Marcus points out. This makes it difficult to keep track of all the developments, distinguish them, and establish the connections between them. At the same time, liberal and left forces that want to resist these developments are increasingly hostile to learning anything that does not conform to their settled ideas about the right. A misplaced wokeness works like Ambien, dulling our curiosity and willingness to engage, and thrusting us into an intellectual twilight where the only thing we see is the familiar specter of white supremacy...

Keep reading.

Julia Roberts Rebuffs Politics on the Red Carpet

Good for her.

She looked spectacular, and I didn't watch the show. I hate the leftist politics. It should be about the art, not the leftist virtue signalling.

(See "Moral Preening, Identity Politics Win Big at Golden Globes.")

#Homecoming star and #GoldenGlobes nominee Julia Roberts says she doesn't have a speech prepared https://t.co/BbwbPst27A pic.twitter.com/gLAIQQGH9w

— Variety (@Variety) January 7, 2019

Julia Roberts does not age. EVER. #GoldenGlobes pic.twitter.com/FN6uxdWHH6

— Amy Kaplan (@PhotoAmy33) January 7, 2019

Julia Roberts, wearing the pants #GoldenGlobes pic.twitter.com/mRlFi5yVBn

— Vanessa Friedman (@VVFriedman) January 7, 2019

Anne Claire Bousquet.

At Drunken Stepfather, "ANNE-CLAIRE BOUSQUET SAYS SHE’S A MODEL, SO HERE ARE HER TITS OF THE DAY."

(More photos: "Anne-Claire Bousquet shot in the French Riviera, in Le Pradet, France by Guillaume Gaubert.")

BONUS: "GOLDEN GLOBES ROUNDUP OF THE DAY."

Brazil's Primal Scream for Freedom

From Mary Anastasia O'Grady, at WSJ, "Brazil's Primal Scream":

‘Socialism just didn’t work out around here.’ Brazil wants to try something new, writes @MaryAnastasiaOG https://t.co/TQ6IhZ1aDH

— MaryAnastasiaO'Grady (@MaryAnastasiaOG) January 7, 2019

In the days after Jair Bolsonaro won the October runoff contest to become president-elect of Brazil, I received some notable mail from supporters offended by the negative media coverage of their choice for a new chief executive.

A letter from a man in São Paulo, who described himself as “a gay person,” read: For the “first time in my life I voted [with conviction] . . . on both the first and the second round. I woke up 6AM on two cold Sundays happily doing it. I voted for Bolsonaro emotionally and with gratitude in my heart.”

Behind the emotion there was reason. This is “the first time a government [will provide] freedom of market and freedom of choice to us. . . . By that I mean understanding that’s what people want and realizing that’s what will drive the economic direction in this new administration.”

On Tuesday the center-right Mr. Bolsonaro became Brazil’s 36th president. As I read inauguration coverage here in the south of the country I wondered if the new president grasps the soaring expectations he has created. Brazil has let go a primal scream for freedom.

Mr. Bolsonaro’s critics claim that his “right wing” views, shaped by his experience in the military, will put Brazil’s liberal democracy at risk. In the lead-up to the vote, this media hysteria reached a fevered pitch.

It hasn’t diminished. But it has lost its force, in part because it has exposed the bias of the chattering classes, at home and abroad. Brazilians rightly ask where these champions of democracy were when the Workers’ Party governments of former Presidents Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva and Dilma Rousseff were financing the Cuban military dictatorship and its satellite Venezuela.

Brazil’s institutions have matured in the 30-plus years since the end of its own military government. This has been a democratic process, driven by civil society’s thirst for pluralism, tolerance and self-government.

The judiciary and federal law enforcement are increasingly independent. Proof of progress is the federal investigation dubbed Operation Car Wash, which exposed the corruption of a range of powerful business executives and high-ranking politicians in a landmark bribery case. So blind was Lady Justice that even the popular Mr. da Silva couldn’t escape responsibility for his role in the scheme. He’s now in jail.

The same institutions are more than likely to check a power-hungry president on the right. It won’t take as long either. The establishment fawned over Lula. Mr. Bolsonaro will be on a short leash.

The legitimate concern is whether the new president can deliver on his promises to better protect human life and to shrink a monster state that devours dreams.

The São Paulo letter-writer put it bluntly: “Socialism just didn’t work out around here.” Another letter came from a man in Europe who had emigrated seven years ago because Brazil was a dead end.

Still more.

Danielle Gersh's Weekend Forecast

Here's the lovely Ms. Danielle from last night. We had some storm and flood warnings for early this morning.

The Virtue of Nationalism

Yoram Hazony's book is available at Amazon, The Virtue of Nationalism.

And at Prager University:

The Character That Matters

I really like Roger Kimball, although sometimes American Greatness grates.

In any case, an excellent piece.

RTWT:

Further thoughts about the "character issue" @theamgreatness https://t.co/nOTNQO0oLA

— Roger Kimball (@rogerkimball) January 5, 2019

Democrats Best Hope

In my classes, I argued throughout 2018 that Joe Biden would be a formidable, if not the best, challenger to President Trump in 2020. That's the case Biden's himself is making.

He's smart. Old. But smart.

And we'll see if he runs. That more than just about any of the identity politics candidates will it interesting.

At NYT:

Joe Biden has indicated that he is leaning toward running for president in 2020 and will likely make a decision within the next 2 weeks, according to Democrats who have spoken to him https://t.co/qa8pPc0YHI

— The New York Times (@nytimes) January 6, 2019

Crazy Backflips

Seen earlier:

I can’t do this!
pic.twitter.com/TWe4ziZzKq

— MagaGary (@magagary687) January 6, 2019

Tucker Carlson's Populist-Nationalist Monologue Draws Response (VIDEO)

Abby Hunstman and Conor Friedersdorf were among some of the prominent responses. Video below:

The View's Abby Huntsman Defends Tucker Carlson's Private 'Heart of Gold' After Pay Equality Comments https://t.co/xmlOASVSiA

— People (@people) January 5, 2019

Conservatives ought to be angry when the right’s television hosts mislead the audience. https://t.co/sEee9hA2Fr

— Conor Friedersdorf (@conor64) January 6, 2019

R.O. Kwon, The Incendiaries

This one looks worth a try.

At Amazon, R.O. Kwon, The Incendiaries: A Novel.