Drew Barrymore!

Now she's someone I've been neglecting!

Call Me, Call Me Any Anytime...

Long Tuesday. Teaching all day, plus I'll be getting an update from Human Resources on my division's ideological wars. So until I get caught up on the news, enjoy "Call Me":

Pamela Geller Getting Death Threats

This is real, unfortunately.

I oppose the Muslim Brotherhood, their proxies, and Islamic supremacists like CAIR, ISNA, ICNA, MAS, and MPAC, who are actively working to subvert the constitution and, as it is put in a Brotherhood internal captured document, work toward "eliminating and destroying western civilization from within" -- with millions contributed by the Saudis and the State department.

Why mainstream media would host these avowed enemies of the state is beyond reason.

It is now a steady stream of threats, intimidation and violent screeds.

Pamela's posted some of the threatening e-mails.

It's really come to this. Terrorism hitting home. Truth. It's a dangerous thing.

Sharia Compliant Terrorist Funding

"And apparently this is just the tip of the iceberg."

At Jawa Report, citing Blazing Cat Fur.

'Are You Stacy McCain?'

So asks the dude behind Political Math, who bumped into The Other McCain at Salt Lake City, where Robert had a brief layover on the way to Alaska. Yep, it's another blogging junket for the one and only R.S. McCain. I'm still waiting for someone to come up and ask me, "Hey, are you Rockin' Doc D. at American Power?" Ha! That'll be the greatest!

In any case, check out the post. Blog burnout creeps up on all of us once in a while, but Robert shows how to beat it back with enthusiasm and humor.

Do You Fear a Muslim Backlash?

Read all about it at Blazing Cat Fur:

The only "Backlash" occuring in Canada is the Jihad being waged by Muslim Terrorists. Until the lying Imams who spread Islamic hate and their enthusiastic followers are exposed and rooted out by Muslims themselves I will not trust a word uttered by the "muslim community".

Camilla Belle Overnight

I'm a little burned out for some heavy duty analysis. (So is Charles Johnson, obviously.) The folks over at The Other McCain have been firing on all cylinders, however. So head over there after enjoying this clip of the beautiful Camilla Belle:

**********

And be sure to visit some of other friends of American Power:

* Another Black Conservative.

* American Perspective.

* Astute Bloggers (Honorary).

* Blazing Cat Fur.

* Bob Belvedere.

* Cold Fury.

* Classical Liberal.

* Daley Gator.

* Fausta.

* Left Coast Rebel.

* Mind Numbed Robot.

* Not a Sheep.

* Paco Enterprises.

* Panhandle Perspective.

* Political Byline.

* POWIP.

* Proof Positive.

* The Other McCain.

* Reaganite Republican (Honorary).

* Right Klik (Honorary).

* Saberpoint (Honorary).

* Serr8d (Honorary).

* Snooper's Report (Honorary).

* Stormbringer.

* Theo Spark.

* TrogloPundit.

* Washington Rebel.

* WyBlog.

BONUS: Don't forget Instapundit.

And drop your link in the comments to be added to the weekly roundups!

By Any Measure, Glenn Beck's 'Restoring Honor' Rally Was Huge

Dueling crowd estimates for Saturday's huge event in D.C.

From the obviously very perturbed Adam Serwer, "Was the Glenn Beck rally turnout really that impressive?" (Via Memeorandum.)

But contrast to Charlie Martin, "You Can See November From The Washington Monument," Doug Ross, "Glenn Beck's Rally: How Many Were Really There?", and Mike Opelka, "Just How Large Was the Attendance At Beck’s ‘Restoring Honor’ Rally?"

Also, at Doc Zero, "The Honor of a Great People."

No matter the size, actually. It musta been one hella event. Pics courtesy of Midnight Blue, "We Too Shall Overcome – Restoring Honor, Washington DC":

Total Costs of Iraq War Less Than Obama-Democrats' Economic Porkulus Package

At Fox News, "CBO: Eight Years of Iraq War Cost Less Than Stimulus Act":

As President Obama prepares to tie a bow on U.S. combat operations in Iraq, Congressional Budget Office numbers show that the total cost
of the eight-year war was less than the stimulus bill passed by the Democratic-led Congress in 2009.

According to CBO numbers in its Budget and Economic Outlook published this month, the cost of Operation Iraqi Freedom was $709 billion for military and related activities, including training of Iraqi forces and diplomatic operations.

The projected cost of the stimulus, which passed in February 2009, and is expected to have a shelf life of two years, was $862 billion.

The U.S. deficit for fiscal year 2010 is expected to be $1.3 trillion, according to CBO. That compares to a 2007 deficit of $160.7 billion and a 2008 deficit of $458.6 billion, according to data provided by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

In 2007 and 2008, the deficit as a percentage of gross domestic product was 1.2 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively.

More at the link.

And how's that "stimulus" working out? Well, the worst is yet to come.

Image Credit: Michelle Malkin, "Flashback: Taxpayer-designed porkulus signs."

Orange County No Longer Nixon Country — It's Tea Party Country!

Hey. Wow.

The New York Times discovers The O.C.!

Yeah, we actually have diversity down here, and there's still a whole lot of patriotism left. But NYT is watching and waiting, hoping for that demographic tide to topple the county's GOP hegemony:

Orange remains a Republican county, at least relatively: an influx of immigrants certainly does not equate to automatic Democratic gains, here or anywhere else across the country. Many Vietnamese immigrants are socially conservative and run for office as Republicans. Until the increased identification of the Republican Party with tough measures on immigration in recent years, Latino voters were also clearly in play for Republicans. Most elected officials in Orange County are Republicans.

But the political texture of this county, which is larger in population than Nevada or Iowa, is changing, and many officials say it is only a matter of time before many Republican officeholders get swept out with the tide.

Well, it ain't happening any time soon, not if local tea party action is any indication:

From Palin Derangement to Acknowledging Left-Wing Sexism — Now That's Progress!

This line from Anna Holmes and Rebecca Traister captures a lot:

We progressives discount her references to the women’s movement — not to mention her validity as a candidate — by looking down on her as a dim, opportunistic, mean-girl prom queen, all spunk and no policy muscle.

That's fine. Funny though is how much these two can't stand the fact that a conservative woman is redefining feminism away from the left's culture of death. Holmes and Traister prattle on about "reproductive rights" and how Sarah Palin's intent is to roll back progress for women. This is such patent mendacity it's almost obscene. I can't take women seriously --- leftist women, or any others for that matter --- who insist that the ability to abort a pregnancy is the sine qua non of women's progress. And as much as I hate abortion, I've never argued for a 100 percent ban on it. There's so much caricature in discussions of conservative positions on the left --- seriously, I keep seeing so much of it of late (Markos Moultisas is getting to me, I guess). But what's good about the article, is the full-blown acknowledgement that Democrats are sexist. Yep, that's really the thesis here, for example:

... the sad truth is that Democrats often prefer their women fulfilling similarly diminutive models for behavior. Consider how Hillary Clinton has been treated, at times, by those in her own party: Democratic leaders never really celebrated Mrs. Clinton’s nation-altering place in history as the first female candidate to get so close to a major party’s presidential nomination. Indeed, she is most appreciated when she plays well with others in the Senate or the State Department; when she behaves like a fierce competitor, she is compared to Glenn Close’s bunny-boiling virago from “Fatal Attraction.”

If folks can remember all the vicious attacks on blogs like HillBuzz and the Pumas, well, it's clear that it's not women's progress that these people want, but lock-step ideological compliance. Kill more babies. Rob more taxpayers. Appease more Islamists. I could go on. It's all so strange sometimes. What drives that kind of hatred? I get it, but not always.

Reason.TV — 'What We Saw at the Glenn Beck Rally in DC'

It's an interesting video. I love the woman at about 2:25 minutes who reacts to the notion of "African-Americans" — "I'm not African. I'm American, black American." My thoughts precisely. She's a registered independent as well. Lots of folks are fed up with two-party politics as usual. In any case, be sure to read Glenn Reynolds' comments on the religious theme of the event. I can comment on that more when I listen to Glenn Beck's speech, but I agree with Glenn that you can't transform the tea party (small-government) movement into a religious one:

Leftists Search Desperately for 'Racists' at Restoring Honor Rally

William Jacobson has been covering this angle, and he notes:

Think Progress tried really, really hard to cover the Restoring Honor rally with photographers and videographers. I don't think it is a stretch to think that Think Progress was hoping beyond hope that it would find a sign or something else that would permit it to portray the rally as racist.

And Robert Stacy McCain has been getting good laughs out of the left's efforts to smear tea partiers as "racist." Turns out Rachel Maddow apparently found evidence of "racism" in one of the event's program guides, which "advised visitors to stick to the touristy parts of town." But it turns out the program guide was written by a Democrat, Bruce Majors, who's been a major contributor to Democratic candidates, including Howard Dean and John Kerry. And checking over at Charles Johnson's Twitter page, these dolts are working overtime to find "racist" posters at the rally and indications of "tea party racism" in Google searches. Google searches? And here's the brilliant analysis: "Here's a scary thought: It's easier to be a racist in America today than it's been in quite some time." Yeah, okay. Desperate much?

And reading AP's major report on the event this morning we find this at the lede:

Conservative commentator Glenn Beck and tea party champion Sarah Palin appealed Saturday to a vast, predominantly white crowd on the National Mall to help restore traditional American values and honor Martin Luther King's message. Civil rights leaders who accused the group of hijacking King's legacy held their own rally and march.

Civil rights leaders? Well, the writers neglected to mention Alveda King, the niece of the slain civil rights leader, until the very last paragraph of the article.

Perhaps the reporters might have spent a bit more time on the ground, talking with actual tea partiers in attendance. It looks like folks are having a little problem with the tiresome "tea party racism" meme. My good friend Skye at Midnight Blue was on the scene, with reports here and here:

The AP article does note that the event signaled a "show of strength" for the movement. And that's exactly what's giving radical leftists fits of apoplexy.

See also, "Martin Luther King would have been Proud of the Restoring Honor rally."

And "Beck, Palin, Faith, Hope, and Charity" (via Memeorandum).

Added: Linked at Instapundit!

President Barack Obama Claims Credit on Iraq War

For all of the socialism and Islamist-appeasement of this administration, the one thing that has bothered me the most about this president (and candidate in 2007-08) is his screechingly perverse antiwar ideology and opportunism. Barack Obama was the most antiwar Senator in Congress throughout 2007 and in 2008 he tried to play both sides of the fence: After opposing the surge he then turned around and hailed its success, while insisting once more that the war was wrong. As noted in his New York Times op-ed in July 14, 2008, "My Plan for Iraq":

In the 18 months since President Bush announced the surge, our troops have performed heroically in bringing down the level of violence. New tactics have protected the Iraqi population, and the Sunni tribes have rejected Al Qaeda — greatly weakening its effectiveness.

But the same factors that led me to oppose the surge still hold true. The strain on our military has grown, the situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated and we’ve spent nearly $200 billion more in Iraq than we had budgeted. Iraq’s leaders have failed to invest tens of billions of dollars in oil revenues in rebuilding their own country, and they have not reached the political accommodation that was the stated purpose of the surge.

I do not hate this president. But he brings deep shame to the role of Commander-in-Chief. And that shame is seen one more time with this weekend's White House announcement on the end of U.S. combat operations in Iraq. IMHO, Obama just lies when he claims to be upholding the "sacred trust" of our fighting men and women. It takes more than winning an election to win that trust -- you have to earn it. That said, folks may have different emotions than I do. But I think we can agree that getting the Democrats out of power in 2010 and 2012 will begin the process of restoring American power in the world. I cringe at the thought of this sick ACORN-sleazeball presidential interloper directing the force and capabilities of the U.S. abroad. But time heals all wounds, and the electorate is rumbling:

UPDATE: Also Blogging ...

* American Glob, "Let Me Be Clear: Obama Deserves ZERO Credit For Iraq."

* Cold Fury, "Obama singlehandedly wins Iraq war, comes home victorious, pats wonderful self on back."

* Ed Morrissey, "Obama: Iraq begins and ends with I, I, I."

* Sister Toldjah, "Obama: “Iraq was all about me”."

Cassadee Pope

Of Hey Monday:

She's a sweetie:

David Beamer, Father of Flight 93 Hero Todd Beamer, Condemns Ground Zero Victory Mosque

Via Weasel Zippers:

Alveda King, Niece of Martin Luther King Jr., Speaks on Anniversary of 'I Have a Dream' Speech

This is going to explode leftist heads like a nuclear detonation.

At Gateway Pundit, "CROWD ROARS at Restoring Honor Rally as MLK’s Niece Alveda King Declares: “I Too Have a Dream!” (Video)."

And at ABC News, "Alveda King Speaks at Glenn Beck's DC Rally":

On the 47th anniversary of her uncle's historic "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, politician and activist Alveda King has joined conservative commentator Glenn Beck at the same spot to bring people together in paying tribute to America's soldiers and "restoring honor" to America.

King, the niece of civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr. and daughter of his brother activist A. D. King, is currently the director of African-American outreach at the pro-life group Priests for Life and has recently stepped into the spotlight after several appearances on Beck's radio program.

"I am attending this rally to help reclaim America," she told "Good Morning America's" Ron Claiborne today from Capitol Hill. "I'm joining Glenn to talk about faith, hope, charity, honor. Those are things that America needs to reclaim. Our children need to remember to love each other how to honor each other, their parents, God and their neighbors. I agree with Glenn on all of those principles. So that's why I'm here. For me it's principles over politics."

King, who served as a Democrat in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1979 to 1981, was a keynote speaker at today's non-partisan rally, which also featured speeches from Beck and Sarah Palin.

Throughout her career King has courted controversy as an advocate for the pro-life movement. After having two abortions herself, King began speaking publicly, often at college campuses, about abortion issues. In 1996 she publicly condemned her aunt Coretta Scott King's support of abortion rights.

Earlier this month King grabbed headlines when she equated gay marriage with genocide.

"It is statistically proven that the strongest institution that guarantees procreation and continuity of the generations is marriage between one man and one woman," King said at an Atlanta rally. "We don't want genocide. We don't want to destroy the sacred institution of marriage."

King brushed off criticism that Beck was dishonoring her uncle's legacy by hosting a rally on the anniversary of his most famous speech, stating that the rally is about faith, honor and love, principles that her family has supported.

"My daddy, Rev. A.D. King, my granddaddy, Martin Luther King, Senior -- we are a family of faith, hope and love. And that's why I'm here today," King said. "Glenn says there is one human race, I agree with him. We are not here to divide. I'm about unity. That's why I'm here, and I want to honor my uncle today."

While speaking in front of tens of thousands today in DC, King said that she hopes that white privilege will become human privilege and that America will soon repent of the sin of racism and return itself to honor.

Related: The low-ball crowd estimates are coming in, "Glenn Beck Rally Attracts Estimated 87,000" (via Memeorandum). But see Glenn Reynolds, who reports much larger turnout.

Nation's Capital 'Jammed With Freedom Loving Patriots'

Tweets Amanda Carpenter:

More photos at Instapundit and Weasel Zippers. Michelle will be linking pics throughout the day, and she has this:

We’re hearing a lot about people criticizing the timing of the event, calling it insensitive for having the rally on the anniversary of Dr. King’s speech — but since most of this criticism is coming from people who are calling critics of the ground zero area mosque over-sensitive, let’s move on.

And heads continue to explode at the audacity of Glenn Beck and thousands of patriots marching to rescue liberty and the civil rights legacy. All Steve Benen can do is screech: "hate-filled demagoguery."

Plus, at ABC News, "Sarah Palin at Glenn Beck's Rally: 'Dr. King Would Be So Proud'."

Obama Pisses on Remains of the Fallen: Administration Drops Military Commission in USS Cole Bomber Trial

KICKIN' AND SCREAMIN' has the big picture, "BLOOMBERG AND OBAMA RUB SALT IN AMERICA’S WOUNDS."

But check Andrew McCarthy, former Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, "Obama Administration Halts Commission Trial Against Cole Bomber":

It’s a sleepy Friday in late August, the president is on another vacation, Congress is out of town, no one is paying much attention. What better time for the Obama administration to pull the plug, once again, on military commissions? This time, it has halted the case of top al-Qaeda operative Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who was to be prosecuted by a military court for the Cole bombing. The Washington Post report is here, and Jen Rubin has thoughts at Contentions.

None of this is terribly surprising. Prosecuting the Cole case by military commission sticks in the Left’s craw because it shows the incoherence of the Obama/Holder position. They want to treat the war like a crime and endow our enemies with all the rights and advantages of civilian courts; yet, they went military in the Cole case, despite the fact that there is a pending Justice Department civilian indictment addressing that attack. There can be only one explanation for that: they are afraid the case against Nashiri is weak and might not hold up under (slightly) more exacting civilian court due process. That is, the Obama/Holder position is not principled — for all their “rule of law” malarkey, they are willing to go where they have the best chance to win. But there were no military commissions when the Cole was bombed, so what is the basis for trying it militarily? Answer: the 9/11 attacks and the ensuing war . . . except the Left doesn’t accept that it’s a war and the administration wants to prosecute the 9/11 plotters in civilian court. None of it makes any sense.

See also Newsmax, "USS Cole Bomber May Get Civilian Trial." And don't miss AoSHQ, "Obama administration shelves prosecution of alleged USS Cole bomber."

Summer Reading

Here's some of the books I'm savoring (Geller, Thompson); rereading (9/11 Commission); just starting (Emerson, Gwynne); or finishing up (Markos Moulitsas, on whom I'll have more):