Clint Eastwood Continues to Make Great Films

And Robert DeNiro doesn't, according to Betsy Sharkey, at the Los Angeles Times, "Brad Pitt is a model for aging actors":

So what is to be done as the years tick by?

For the bible on how to do it right, there is no place else to start but with Clint Eastwood, who at 83 is turning out to be the best closer in Hollywood history. He keeps making great movies — directing, starring and collecting awards. A screen version of "Jersey Boys" is rumored, so apparently Eastwood's ambition — and energy — isn't dimming.

Robert Redford is another. He hasn't had Eastwood's consistent success behind the camera since the Oscar for his 1980 directing debut, "Ordinary People." But like his brilliant "Quiz Show" in 1994, the actor-director commits to projects he loves and stories he believes are important to tell. Not a Focker in the bunch. About to turn 77, his acting is getting a serious second wind too in J.C. Chandor's new film, "All Is Lost." The role was a risk, Redford goes solo, alone in a boat with nothing but his intellect and the elements. The camera — notably — in someone else's hands.

Whether by choice or circumstance, Warren Beatty, 76, hasn't starred in a film since the 2001 bomb "Town & Country." It may be nothing more than adopting the Jack Nicholson approach — leave the work behind and spend the days playing elder statesman. After a series of great performances, "About Schmidt" in 2002 when he was 65 and 2006's "The Departed" when he was 69, the 76-year-old Nicholson has drifted into the forgettable.

For Michael Douglas, 68, the right role was on television. His recent glittery turn as Liberace in "Behind the Candelabra" was his best performance in years. It's not so much TV but surprising us. Tom Hanks, most memorable in the last 15 years for giving voice to "Toy Story's" Woody, tried out Broadway this year — "Lucky Guy" got him a Tony nod. Bill Murray completely changed his acting persona at 53 with "Lost in Translation." Suddenly the funny goof was introspective, edgy in a new way.

But that sort of sea change is rare. Douglas is up next in "Last Vegas," an old-boys buddy comedy with Robert De Niro, 69, and Morgan Freeman, 76. Are old guy buddy comedies becoming Hollywood's version of retirement living? Nicholson had a room with a view alongside Freeman in 2007's "The Bucket List." Last year, Al Pacino, 73, Alan Arkin, 79, and Christopher Walken, 70, got together as aging mobsters for "Stand Up Guys."

Sadly, the book on what not to do is being written by De Niro. One of our greatest working actors has lost himself in crummy, mindless comedy. I honestly believe the Oscar nod for "Silver Linings Playbook's" crusty dad was a part of the academy's positive reinforcement program so he wouldn't do another Fockers film. Because if you look closely, the distance between the dads is mostly the pedigree of the movie.

RTWT for the discussion of Brad Pitt.

I watched "Trouble With the Curve" yesterday, an enjoyable film, if not all out excellent.

Either way, Clint Eastwood has aged well in the movies.

Netroots Nation 2013 Obsessed With Michelle Malkin #NN13

Wow, just saw the buzz on Twitter.

See Twitchy, "Netroots Nation struggles to counter ‘Michelle Malkin effect’."

Well, it seems like NetrootsNation invokes @michellemalkin at every panel event I attend #nn13 @watchdogorg

— Tori Richards (@NewsWriter2) June 22, 2013

Hooters Girls of Orange County

Some nice ladies:

And some West Coast Hooters here, "2013 Girls of the Month."

Pilot and Wing Walker Dead in Ohio Air Show Crash

At the Columbus Dispatch, "Two die in plane crash at air show near Dayton."

Graphic footage, with moment of impact, here: "Horrific Plane Crash Dayton Air Show."

Monkey Attacks Texas Cop During Traffic Stop

Protective little guy.

At Death and Taxes, "Carnival monkey bites police officer during routine traffic stop."

Sarah Palin With Eric Bolling on Fox News

I'm really glad she's back at the network.

Netroots Exploits Emerging Technologies to Block the 'Corporate-Funded, Right-Wing Assault' on Americans

From Francesca Chambers, at Red Alert Politics, "Lefty activists at Netroots concede the Right is killing it on Twitter."

The photo's of a woman attending the panel on "Fighting Together to Block the Right-Wing Agenda":

Labor unions, women’s rights organizations, environmental watchdogs, voting rights groups and activists across the progressive movement must work together to withstand the corporate-funded, right-wing assault on all of our rights.

Sounds like a plan.

Here's Glenn Greenwald on the Espionage Charges Against Edward Snowden

As always, readers should know that few people can out anti-American Glenn Greenwald's anti-Americanism. I just love his tenacity for beating back against the bear, and right now, Barack Obama is the biggest bear in the woods.

See, "On the Espionage Act charges against Edward Snowden." (At Mediagazer.)

For a politician who tried to convince Americans to elect him based on repeated pledges of unprecedented transparency and specific vows to protect "noble" and "patriotic" whistleblowers, is this unparalleled assault on those who enable investigative journalism remotely defensible? Recall that the New Yorker's Jane Mayer said recently that this oppressive climate created by the Obama presidency has brought investigative journalism to a "standstill", while James Goodale, the General Counsel for the New York Times during its battles with the Nixon administration, wrote last month in that paper that "President Obama will surely pass President Richard Nixon as the worst president ever on issues of national security and press freedom." Read what Mayer and Goodale wrote and ask yourself: is the Obama administration's threat to the news-gathering process not a serious crisis at this point?

Few people - likely including Snowden himself - would contest that his actions constitute some sort of breach of the law. He made his choice based on basic theories of civil disobedience: that those who control the law have become corrupt, that the law in this case (by concealing the actions of government officials in building this massive spying apparatus in secret) is a tool of injustice, and that he felt compelled to act in violation of it in order to expose these official bad acts and enable debate and reform.

But that's a far cry from charging Snowden, who just turned 30 yesterday, with multiple felonies under the Espionage Act that will send him to prison for decades if not life upon conviction. In what conceivable sense are Snowden's actions "espionage"? He could have - but chose not - sold the information he had to a foreign intelligence service for vast sums of money, or covertly passed it to one of America's enemies, or worked at the direction of a foreign government. That is espionage. He did none of those things.

What he did instead was give up his life of career stability and economic prosperity, living with his long-time girlfriend in Hawaii, in order to inform his fellow citizens (both in America and around the world) of what the US government and its allies are doing to them and their privacy. He did that by very carefully selecting which documents he thought should be disclosed and concealed, then gave them to a newspaper with a team of editors and journalists and repeatedly insisted that journalistic judgments be exercised about which of those documents should be published in the public interest and which should be withheld.

That's what every single whistleblower and source for investigative journalism, in every case, does - by definition. In what conceivable sense does that merit felony charges under the Espionage Act?

That post is chock full of other interesting links, but you'll have to RTWT, and take your time perusing through them.

Greenwald's sounding the tocsin on this administration. Whether he's right about the gravity of danger to American liberty remains to be seen.

Corker #Amnesty Amendment Gives Secretary of Homeland Security Power to Waive Deportation of Illegal Aliens

William Jacboson has been doing some homework on the Senate's immigration bill. This is interesting, to say the least, "Loophole in Gang of 8 bill gives Napolitano wide discretion to allow almost anyone to stay in U.S."

And see Twitchy, "‘Child abusers get amnesty’: Sen. Vitter reads 1,170-page amendment to find out what’s in it."

Americans Worked Less, Watched More TV in 2012

Shoot, I blogged a lot in 2012. But I'm watching more TV this year.

But check WSJ:

With the economy struggling to find its footing, Americans spent less time at work last year and found more time for leisure activities such as watching television, a new government survey finds.

The average American aged 15 or older spent three hours, 32 minutes a day doing work-related activities last year, according to the American Time Use Survey released by the Labor Department on Thursday. That is down from 2011, when time spent on work jumped from three hours and 30 minutes to three hours and 34 minutes. While such changes may not seem big, average yearly changes in time spent on different activities tend to be small, and even minor changes are significant.

The survey, which has been conducted annually since 2003 and includes both employed and unemployed persons, suggests America's sluggish recovery continues to hamper workers. While the U.S. unemployment rate fell last year from 8.3% to 7.8%—it is now at 7.6%—other trends are likely holding down average hours spent at work. The number of part-time workers was higher in 2012 than the year before, for example.

"The recovery has basically been a recovery for a tiny fraction of the population," said Geoffrey Godbey, professor emeritus at Pennsylvania State University and co-author of "Time For Life: The Surprising Ways Americans Use Their Time." "What you're seeing is people who might want more work but aren't getting it," he said.

Meanwhile, the share of the population working or looking for a job dropped to 63.6% at the end of last year, compared with 64% in December 2011. That number, known as the labor force participation rate, has been falling as a result of a combination of discouraged workers dropping out of the workforce and baby boomers retiring.

The aging of America's population means fewer people are working and more retirees are at home watching TV, Mr. Godbey said. At the same time, women have become a larger share of America's labor force, but tend to work fewer hours than men do. And there's a growing informal economy, he said, that might not be captured by government surveys.

I'd work more if I could.

Watching television's nice though, and blogging, so what the heck?

More at the link.

Death of Christine Calderon Recalls Hollywood's Crime-Ridden Past

I'm not up there often, but I noticed that things were much cleaner and more upscale when I was covering some of the protests up there about three years ago or so.

But this piece at LAT puts the recent murder of Christine Calderon by homeless scum in perspective.

See, "Fatal stabbing a reminder of gussied-up Tinseltown's darker past":

The death of Christine Calderon left the Hollywood tourist district stunned and on Friday prompted Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck and Mayor-elect Eric Garcetti to call for increased patrols, including by horse-mounted units.

We "don't want to lose any of the ground that's been gained in Hollywood," Beck said. "What we don't want is for this tragedy to go unrecognized."

Hollywood's transformation over the last decade or so has been dramatic. The once-glamorous district had been in steep decline for decades, bottoming out in the 1990s when crime reached new highs and many of the old theaters that once dominated the boulevard closed down.

The Hollywood & Highland complex where Calderon was found stabbed — an imposing shopping center that includes the theater where the Oscars take place each year — was the first of several mega-developments that transformed the area. The most recent is the luxury W Hotel development at the iconic corner of Hollywood and Vine.

These days, tourists dominate during the day. After the sun sets, Hollywood's nightclub scene kicks into high gear.

Few argue with how much Hollywood has changed. But those who live and work in the area said there are gritty remnants, with a sizable homeless population and plenty of opportunities for petty crime.


Despite its makeover, crime remains a daily occurrence in Hollywood, according to a Times analysis. Recent weeks show no unusual increases, but thefts are common in high-traffic areas and more than 300 major violent crimes were reported in the neighborhood over the last six months.

Adjusted for population, its violent crime rate ranked 30th and its property crime rate 33rd among more than 200 neighborhoods policed by the LAPD or the L.A. County Sheriff's Department.

"You get some of everything here," said Dylan Watson, assistant manager of the American Eagle store at Hollywood & Highland. "Nothing is really surprising."

It's not uncommon, he said, for someone to approach him during a smoke break outside of the store and ask for cigarettes. If he refuses, he said, the response is often aggression.

"They always seem like they want to fight," he said. "Some of them are clearly crazy."

The First Music Video Shot Atop the Empire State Building

Well, the lines were down the block when I tried to go up there with my kid in 2007, so no surprise no bands have been able to get up there.

Just kidding.

Anyway, at the New York Times, "Video: Yeah Yeah Yeahs Perform Atop Empire State Building":

In its 82-year history, the top of the Empire State Building has been the site of countless family outings, marriage proposals and, of course, one very memorable date gone awry. But as near as we can tell, it had never been the site of an indie rock performance, not a preapproved one anyway.

Then one windy night in April, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the New York trio led by the glittering dervish singer Karen O, positioned themselves on the observation deck 86 floors up. Brian Chase had his drum kit, Nick Zinner his guitar. From 2 a.m. until just past sunrise, they performed one of their latest songs, as a crew of just two dozen watched.

The group was recording the video for “Despair,” the second single off their new album, “Mosquito.” For logistical and creative reasons, the shoot was a well-kept secret. It began with a sort of cinematic preparty in a nearby Irish pub and ended with a helicopter buzzing the skyline. A clip is above; the full video will premiere on Monday on Noisey, Vice.com’s online music channel.

It’s the first music video shot atop the Empire State Building. And to hear Anthony E. Malkin, the president of Malkin Holdings, operator of the Empire State Building, tell it, it’s about time. “The way I look at it is, why hadn’t this been done before?” he said. “Credit to them for having the gumption to ask.”

More at the link.

L.A. Times Pooh-Poohs Border Security

See, "Border Surge Proposal Has Many Skeptics":

BISBEE, Ariz. — When George Joyal saw a group of people who appeared to have crossed the border illegally sneak by his land recently, his first call was to the Border Patrol.

Joyal, 67, a retired U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer, gave the agent his location, then hurried outside with the cellphone to his backyard and made himself visible to a border surveillance camera perched atop a tower half a mile away.

"I see you," the agent said.

Moments later, Border Patrol agents zoomed up in a cloud of dust to detain the group. Joyal said there's no need for Congress to spend billions beefing up border patrol.

"I don't see that as giving us more security," Joyal says. "It's impossible to be 100% secure. Just how safe are you going to get and at what price?"

The Senate appears ready to approve immigration legislation next week providing a $30-billion boost in security along the U.S.-Mexico border, doubling the number of Border Patrol agents, but some experts and border residents like Joyal are skeptical that the buildup would pay off — even those who supported similar surges in the past.

The Border Patrol already has more than 20,000 agents. Last fiscal year, border-related agencies received about $18 billion in funding — more than the FBI, Secret Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, Marshals Service and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives combined.

In Arizona, the federal government has spent billions fortifying the border with fencing, drones and more than 5,100 Border Patrol staff. It has paid off, with border apprehensions all along the border down to an all-time low of 356,873 last year, compared with 1.6 million in 2000.

Joyal said federal authorities needed to better manage staff they already had by moving agents from northern checkpoints closer to the border and relying less on fencing.

"We don't need more people," he said. "We need the proper employment of resources."

Bisbee Mayor Adriana Zavala Badal says most people in town think there are already too many border agents.

"You feel like you're always being looked at and watched. It's a nuisance," she said.

She still can't get used to the Border Patrol helicopters that hover overhead.

"You feel like you're in a war zone. It's noisy," she said, and "that's just with one helicopter."

Well, hey, they keep coming.

At the video, a secret camera shows drug smugglers coming over the border, although that $4.8 million figure sounds a little astronomical.

The border's not secure.

This is all pro-amnesty baloney. Even the Wall Street Journal's got the fever. See, "The Border Security Ruse."

Kim Kardashian Gives Birth in Designer Heels?

Crazy.

At Gossip Cop, "CLAIM: Kim Kardashian Gave Birth in Heels and Full Makeup, Now Getting Tummy Tuck":

Kim Kardashian appears on the cover of Star this week, with the tabloid lazily portraying her as a “Delivery Room DIVA!” because it doesn’t have any actual details about the reality TV queen giving birth last weekend.

The magazine, most recently seen embarrassing itself with a 100 percent FALSE story about Kanye West cheating on Kardashian with a model, now pretends to have insight into her “outrageous antics” during and after the arrival of her baby daughter.

Motorcycle Couriers Catch Falling 2-Year-Old in China

At London's Daily Mail, "Heart-stopping moment 2-year-old Chinese girl falls from a fifth-floor window and is caught by passers-by."

Bruce Springsteen Dedicates 'Born to Run' to James Gandolfini

At LAT:

Actor James Gandolfini had long been a big fan of Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, and the feeling was mutual, in particular for guitarist Steve Van Zandt, who worked closely with Gandolfini on “The Sopranos” in his role as mob lieutenant Silvio Dante.

So it was no surprise when Springsteen, Van Zandt and company played “Born to Run” Thursday night at their concert in Coventry, England, and dedicated it to Gandolfini, who died Wednesday of a heart attack at age 51 while vacationing in Rome.

Not just the song, but the entire album, which the E Streeters played in its entirety in the middle of their three-hour show.

More at the link.

The clip's apparently from last month.

Gandolfini Fat-Shaming

Hey, he was a big man who died young.

I can see where people are coming from, but see Althouse, "Gandolfini’s death prompts rampant fat-shaming'."

Chicago's 'Gaystapo' Bullies Attack the Catholic Church

At HillBuzz, "How the Left Uses Gays to Dismantle, Undermine, and Toxify the Catholic Church…the Gaystapo in Action in Chicago!"

PREVIOUSLY: "Government Redefinition of Marriage is Not Inevitable."

Prosecutors Charge Edward Snowden With Violations of Espionage Act and Theft of Government Property

At the Guardian UK, "US files criminal charges against NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden."

And see Mandy Nagy, at Legal Insurrection, "NSA Leaker Edward Snowden Charged with Espionage and Other Offenses — Updated: Complaint Added."

The United States of America No Longer Exists

From Diana West, "No Constitution, No Borders, No USA":

At what point does it become clear that we no longer inhabit America?

When we “Press 2,” not “1,” for English?

When a national Social Security Number syncs an electronic identity that the government hospital provided us at birth to track us till death?

When borders are no more, but the Surveillance State always knows where we are?

Ours is the age of dislocation before realization: The United States of America no longer exists. Why? How? The answer is simple, tragic and outrageous: Government officials, elected and unelected, with precious exceptions, no longer preserve, protect and defend the U.S. Constitution. Instead, they do whatever it takes to beat it, flout it and ignore it. Worse, We, the People, let them.

This can’t go on. Otherwise our-country-’tis-of-thee becomes a melody to be forgotten, a mirage of a tradition more storybook than real every day. Nowhere is this more the case, of course, than in Washington, D.C., where absolute unaccountability corrupts absolutely, where echoing down the cool, white marble halls of power, hollow men and women trample sovereignty and citizenship in a pathway to American betrayal. And I haven’t even gotten to Congress, busy “reforming” the illegal-alien crisis they antiseptically refer to as “immigration,” while considering passage of a $940 billion “farm bill,” 80 percent of which will fund food stamps. These two laws alone can institutionalize the lawlessness of the land and make countless more Americans wards of the state.

Meanwhile, there is in Washington a faceless power-mongery that lives and works in the shadows. City by city, rural state by rural state, its mechanisms of “immigration,” “refugee resettlement” and socialist government programs overwhelm a near-impotent citizenry with alien cultures, religions, languages and traditions.

There is no “melting pot” out there, nor is there even residual belief in one – particularly not on the part of the State. Most of our new peoples will never embrace American constitutional virtues en masse to perpetuate them because their own sponsor, their own lifeline, is the mega-state that brought them here and supports them.

Wow.

Continue reading.

HAT TIP: Blazing Cat Fur.