With Glenn Beck by the Temple's Walls

From Barry Rubin, "Glenn Beck’s program in Israel went off without a hitch."

Gotta Love Those Ukrainian Protesters

At The Other McCain, "Not All Feminists Are Ugly and Humorless."

If the video gets pulled, check: "Naked Protest in front of the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Kiev, Ukraine."

And the headline at Instapundit: "NSFW: The Ukraine Girls Really Knock Me Out. They leave the West behind."

Apple's Deep Bench

See Wall Street Journal, "Apple Has Deep Bench":

There are few chief executives who are as closely identified with a company as Steve Jobs has been with Apple Inc. Now that he is stepping down as chief executive— although he will be chairman—it will largely be up to his deputies to make sure that the company continues to stay ahead of the competition with trend-setting products and services that impress consumers.

Since Mr. Jobs returned to Apple in 1997 after being ousted in 1985 from the company he founded, he has brought the company back from the brink of bankruptcy, revived its Macintosh computer business and played an unusually important role in the introduction of ground-breaking products like the iPod, iPhone and iPad.

As CEO, he provided a charismatic persona and sharp instinct for knowing what consumers want. But his bench is considered a strong management team that has largely stayed out of the limelight until now.

Continue reading.

RELATED: At New York Times, "Without Its Master of Design, Apple Will Face Challenges."

Libya Could Be Unstable For a Long Time

Lively discussion from Jeremy Scahill, on Morning Joe.

China Backs Libya Rebels

Just now they're backing the rebels?

At Reuters, "China turns to Libya rebels, urges "stable transition'."

China urged a "stable transition of power" in Libya and said on Wednesday it is in contact with the rebel National Transitional Council, the clearest sign yet that Beijing has effectively shifted recognition to forces poised to defeat Muammar Gaddafi.

Obama Vindicated on Libya?

An "In the Arenda" debate, at Politico.

Here's Soren Dayton:

I think that the whole "lead from behind" argument on Libya is a bit of a red herring. The U.S., along with allies and a UN resolution, enforced a no-fly zone. Clearly, getting rid of Qadhafi was the right thing to do. However, the process left quite a lot to be desired. There is already talk of much less support for the next UN resolution because the military activities went well beyond the scope of the UN resolution. It will be much harder to get the next resolution.

At the same time domestically, Obama clearly violated the War Powers Act, something he claimed earlier to hold dear. He showed himself a hypocrite while aligning much of the GOP against the intervention. However, Congress showed its utter incompetence in not claiming some degree of authority over the situation.

Actually, I like John Yoo's take on the war, although I wasn't so gung ho on it myself. See, "We Don't Need U.N. Approval to Save Libyan Lives." But also from Smitty at TOM, "Who Should Be Embarrassed, Mr. Yoo?"

Allen West on Libya, Egypt, etc.

Via Legal Insurrection:

Libya's Limitless Potential, for Good or Evil

From Victor Davis Hanson, at National Review:

The U.S. is in no mood to follow up our military intervention with a postbellum reconstruction program, and we have no idea which factions among the rebels will assume power, or even the nature of the various special interests. So, until the dust settles, no one quite knows whether this is 1917 Russia, 1979 Iran, 2003 Iraq, or 2011 Egypt and Tunisia, or a little of everything.

But RTWT.

Sources: Michelle Obama Spending $10 Million in Taxpayer Money on Vacations

At London's Daily Mail, "Expensive massages, top shelf vodka and five-star hotels: First Lady accused of spending $10m in public money on her vacations" (via Memeorandum).

Image Credit: The People's Cube.

Baby Tossed From Parking Structure Dies: Mother Sonia Hermosillo, Charged With Attempted Murder, Got Parking Validation After Alleged Crime

At LAT, "Baby dropped from parking structure dies."

Also, "Mom got parking validated after baby allegedly dropped from garage," and "Mother suspected of throwing baby from garage was 'calm, stoic,' police say."

Hurricane Irene

At Miami Herald, "Bahamas taking a battering from Cat 3 Hurricane Irene," and USA Today, "Powerful Hurricane Irene menaces Bahamas." Also at New York Times, "Hurricane Irene Gains Strength as It Batters the Bahamas."

Journalists 'Captive' at Rixos Hotel in Tripoli

A live blog at Telegraph UK, "Libya live: British journalists 'captive' in Tripoli hotel."

Parrots in Irvine

I didn't have my camera. But I was out with the whole family last night and we stopped at 7-11 for refreshments. My wife and oldest boy went in and I waited with my youngest in the Jeep. Next thing I know I see this woman walk out of the 24-Hour Fitness across the parking lot and she comes over near us with her mouth just gaping. She looked like she was talking to herself and I didn't see a phone or a headset. I said to my son, "What is that lady doing?" We had the music on loud so I couldn't hear anything outside. But then I looked over at the wild olive trees and I saw them. Wild parrots were munching away. I've never seen them before. Indeed, I didn't even know we had them. So checking online, the O.C. Register has this, from 2006, "Parrots prosper in Orange County":

Parrots might be gravely endangered in their native rain forests, but not in Orange County, where they've taken up residence in large flocks, attracting both love and hate from people who share their space.

There's a mystery attached to the birds' presence. No one is exactly sure how they got here. One popular theory is that their ancestors escaped from commercial bird importers, surviving because they were wild birds that knew how to forage for food. Another is simply that they migrated north from rain forests in Central and South America.

Large flocks exist in Orange, Santa Ana, Tustin and elsewhere in the county. Some flocks can number hundreds of birds. They generally eat fruit and nuts of exotic plants that, like themselves, have been imported from tropical climates.

Amazon parrots found here include endangered red-crowned parrots, lilac-crowned parrots, red-lored parrots, white-fronted parrots, yellow-headed parrots and blue-fronted parrots. They can be distinguished by stocky bodies and short, squared tails. Mitred parakeets are also common here.

More from Oscar Gonzales.

P.S. My smarty-pants oldest son comes back and I say, "Hey, check out those parrots!" And he says, "I saw them. They escaped from PETCO."

More Cuts Likely to California Higher Education

At LAT, "State colleges, universities may need to make more budget cuts":

Students starting the school year at California Community Colleges this week will pay higher fees and have fewer courses from which to choose. At California State University campuses, students will find their classes packed, fewer library books available and the ranks of part-time faculty thinned.

That dismal picture could worsen if the state's financial problems force colleges and universities to make additional budget cuts mid-year, leaders of the systems said Monday during a conference call with reporters.

As it is, the state's 112 community colleges will offer 5% fewer classes this fall, Chancellor Jack Scott said. Based on projected annual demand, an estimated 670,000 students who otherwise would enroll in at least one class will not be served, he added.

Community college students, whose fees already have risen to $36 per unit for this school year from $26 last year, are likely to face a further increase if state revenue doesn't meet projections. State funding to the two-year colleges was reduced $400 million for this year. Further cuts would trigger an additional $10 per unit fee increase for spring 2012.

Continue reading.

I think it was $10 to go to community college back in 1979. That's when the state still promised a basically free college education to all those who could benefit.

Rebels Prepare for Libya Transition

At WaPo, "Libyan opposition leaders prepare for transition":

BENGHAZI, Libya — With rebel fighters celebrating in the streets of Tripoli on Tuesday, opposition leaders in this eastern Libyan city now face tough questions about how they will guide the country through what is expected to be a tumultuous transition.

Some observers have begun to question whether the rebels — ostensibly led by the Benghazi-based Transitional National Council — are up to the task of restarting a failed economy after six months of war, restoring peace, and assuring Libyans and foreign benefactors that they are capable of leading the country.

The rebels have been plagued by infighting almost from the moment they first rose to challenge Col. Moammar Gaddafi, and the friction has not subsided despite celebrations on Tuesday as rebel fighters stormed the leader’s compound in Tripoli.

The top rebel commander was assassinated last month in a case that remains unsolved, but that has spurred furious accusations among various rebel factions. When an investigation of the killing bogged down, rebel council chief Mustafa Abdul Jalil dismissed his cabinet.

Concerns about the rebel leadership deepened on Tuesday after Gaddafi’s most influential son, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, appeared in public despite rebel claims that he had been captured.

“The Transitional National Council is not without its problems,” said Geoff Porter, an analyst with North Africa Risk Consulting. “Its decision-making process is unpredictable and far from transparent. . . .This suggests that future dealings with the council are going to be prickly, challenging and uneven.”

That doesn't sound so hot. More at that top link.

Also at LAT, "Kadafi vows victory or 'martyrdom' in Libyan uprising," and NYT, "Qaddafi Defiant After Rebel Takeover." But see Chicago Tribune, "Rebels overrun Gaddafi HQ, say he's 'finished'."

'Under Pressure'

Well, I'm back to my weekday commute and tuning into The Sound LA regularly. And that's good. I had Foster the People on the brain there for a while.

Anyway, this should hold readers over until tonight when I'm back home and can blog. That Queen concert is something else, by the way, and David Bowie's live version is below. Until then...

Debbie Wasserman-Schultz Heckled Off the Stage at Iowa State Fair

Oh, this is the best!

At The Other McCain, "Debbie’s Very Bad Day in Iowa":

RTWT.

Great coverage from R.S. McCain in Iowa. The dude couldn't get all that stuff posted at the time.

Courageous Trannies

Kathy Shaidle has some Canadian transsexual sick fuck losers she's dealing with. See: "The tyranny of trannies: even their failures, they insist, are ‘courageous’."

I posted on this previously, with reference to my (anti-)American pro-gay, possibly pro-pedo hate blogging ASFL W. James Casper: "'Trannies are pretty much at the bottom of any “courage” measurement system, somewhere below wedding planner and used car salesman'."

RELATED: The LULZ write themselves with these freaks. See, "'Asshole of the Day'," and "W. James Casper: 'I Was in the Pool!!'"

Steven Givler: The Ignorance of the New York Times

A fresh entry from my good friend, "The New York Times - Ignorance Times Twelve."

It's excellent. Steven puts the good word in for community college professors, people like myself, who the ASFL progressives like to disparage mercilessly. Pfftt. "Elite" pricks.

Libya: Key Role Played by Britain in Fall of Tripoli

Beats sharing an aircraft carrier with other mid-ranking powers, I guess.

At Telegraph UK:

The key role played by Britain in equipping and advising Libya’s rebel fighters for their final push on Tripoli was becoming clear last night as Col Muammar Gaddafi’s remaining forces staged a last stand around his bunker.

For weeks, military and intelligence officers have been helping the rebels plan their co-ordinated attack on the capital, and Whitehall sources have disclosed that the RAF stepped up raids on Tripoli on Saturday morning in a pre-arranged plan to pave the way for the rebel advance.

MI6 officers based in the rebel stronghold of Benghazi had honed battle plans drawn up by Libya’s Transitional National Council (TNC) which were agreed 10 weeks ago.
The constantly-updated tactical advice provided by British experts to the rebel leaders centred on the need to spark a fresh uprising within Tripoli that could be used as the cue for fighters to advance on the city.

But when it finally came, the speed with which it achieved its goal took everyone, including the rebels, by surprise.

Pretty cool.

Keep reading.

RELATED: At Legal Insurrection, "Uh oh, Saif al-Islam free and talking."