Michelle Fields on Red Eye Debating Immigration and Polygamy

This is a bit too libertarian-ish for me, but funny nevertheless.

European Union Diktats Forcing Energy Rationing in Great Britain

Bad karma from all the cowardly political correctness, no doubt.

At London's Daily Mail, "Electricity to be rationed: Power cuts in 2 years unless industry cuts back, warns regulator."

Britain could face a return to Seventies-style power rationing to prevent blackouts.

The disturbing news came amid warnings that the country may not be producing enough energy to keep the lights on by 2015.

Offices and factories could be ‘bribed’ to close for up to four hours a day during the winter to prevent households losing power.

Energy regulator Ofgem said the country faced an ‘unprecedented challenge’ as coal-fired plants are closed by European Union diktats on the environment.

Well, frankly, Obama's war on fossil fuels promises to put America on the fast lane to British-style rationing. Perish the thought, I know. But it's happening.

South Africa Prepares for Mandela's Passing

At WSJ, "Flowers, Cards, Hope Pile Up for Mandela":

JOHANNESBURG—The life of Nelson Mandela appeared to hang in the balance Thursday morning, as family members visited the Pretoria hospital where he was undergoing treatment and neighbors from his rural ancestral town prepared for the passing of South Africa's former president.

"Yes, tata's situation is critical…he doesn't look good," Mr. Mandela's oldest living daughter, Pumla Makaziwe Mandela, said in an interview Thursday on South African state television, using the local term of respect for an older person.

"But I think that for us as his children and grandchildren we still have this hope because you know when we talk to him he will flutter, trying to open his eyes and will open his eyes, when you touch him he still responds," she said.

On Thursday, President Jacob Zuma paid his second visit to the hospital in less than 24 hours in order to confer with Mr. Mandela's doctors. In a statement, Mr. Zuma said he was informed by the medical team that Mr. Mandela's condition "has improved during the course of the night. He remains critical but is now stable."

Late Wednesday, Mr. Zuma canceled plans to attend an infrastructure-investment conference in neighboring Mozambique, after conferring with Mr. Mandela's doctors at the Pretoria hospital where he was admitted June 8 to treat a lung infection.

Mr. Zuma's spokesman, Mac Maharaj, wouldn't confirm news reports that Mr. Mandela is on life support, or say whether Mr. Zuma planned to visit him again on Thursday.

Mr. Mandela, a revered champion of peace and racial equality who became South Africa's first black, freely elected president in 1994, has been hospitalized four times since December and suffered a string of respiratory ailments stretching back to the tuberculosis he contracted during 27 years in prison for opposing South Africa's former white-minority government.

Dozens of reporters and satellite trucks have converged outside the Mediclinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria. They track every visit by family members and government officials—and capture the hopes and memories of well-wishers who have left a mounting pile of flowers, cards and balloons outside the hospital's gates.

Continue reading.

Britney Spears Animated GIF Album Covers

At BuzzFeed, "Every Britney Spears Album Cover As An Animated GIF."

Obama Visits Senegal

He always visits the slave houses. Why that's a priority, well, that's only explicable from the Obama-leftist self-demonology of perpetual apology for America's alleged past sins.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Obama begins Africa tour, visits Senegal slave house":

DAKAR, Senegal — President Obama arrived in this corner of West Africa to deliver messages about civil society and good governance, democracy and development. Senegal's message to him was simpler: Welcome home.

The greeting was plastered on signs and T-shirts wherever Obama went Thursday during his first full day of a weeklong, three-country trip to Africa. Although Obama was born and largely raised in Hawaii, his father was born and is buried in Kenya, and on this day Senegal treated the president as one of its own. Lampposts were covered with signs reading, "Welcome home, Mr. President." The greeting, and Obama's likeness, appeared everywhere. Crowds of people danced and waved.

Obama seemed to claim Senegal too, shaking hands and posing for pictures, but also acknowledging the dark history of slavery the country shares with the United States.

The president and his family visited a small slave house on Goree Island off the coast of Dakar, the nation's capital, where it is said men, women and children were traded, sorted, shackled and weighed before being sent across the Atlantic to the Americas.

The president stared pensively out the "door of no return," described as the exit for those boarding slave ships, while spending about half an hour in the two-story salmon-colored house filled with dark holding cells.

"Obviously, for an African American — and an African American president — to be able to visit this site, I think, gives me even greater motivation in terms of the defense of human rights around the world," Obama said afterward.

The president doesn't care about human rights. He cares about power. If touting his so called commitment to human rights helps him push his apology agenda (and statist agenda), then he'll say he cares about human rights. Frankly, America's standing in the world right now is as low as it's been --- if not lower --- than any time since President Carter was in office. Watching interviews on the news yesterday people said that because Obama's black they were excited to see him. It's not that he represents America, or that America has been at the forefront of freedom promotion since the mid-20th century, it's that the president is black. That's a sad, sad commentary on where things stand in the world. It's basically affirmative action in public diplomacy. And it's not good, for the world community nor for American foreign policy.

Tea Party 'Threat' on Hannity Live

Dana Loesch and Kirsten Powers on Hannity's last night:

BACKGROUND: "One of Four Obama Supporters Sees Tea Party as Biggest Threat to National Security."

Obama Says He Won't Bargain for Return of 'Hacker'

At the Wall Street Journal, "Ecuadorean Disarray Clouds Snowden Bid":

Disarray within the Ecuadorean government over the role of WikiLeaks' Julian Assange in Edward Snowden's asylum bid is complicating the outcome, according to diplomatic correspondence that appears to shed light on the mixed signals from Quito over the American fugitive's fate.

Mr. Assange—the antisecrecy-group founder who for the past year has been sheltered inside Ecuador's London embassy—wrote to Ecuadorean officials Monday that he hoped his role in the Snowden matter hadn't embarrassed the government, according to an internal Ecuadorean diplomatic correspondence obtained by Spanish-language broadcaster Univision Networks and reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

But in the note, Mr. Assange also offered public-relations advice to top Ecuadorean officials about how to handle the crisis. Mr. Assange's earlier efforts on Mr. Snowden's behalf had prompted one diplomat to caution that Mr. Assange could be perceived as "running the show" in Ecuador.

In addition, it was an Ecuadorean diplomat who has said he is close with Mr. Assange—Fidel Narvaez, the consul at Ecuador's London embassy—who issued a controversial temporary travel document intended for Mr. Snowden, according to another of the Ecuadorean diplomatic correspondences.

WikiLeaks and Mr. Assange didn't immediately respond to requests for comment late Thursday. Representatives for Ecuador's foreign ministry declined to comment on the authenticity of the correspondences.

Several representatives at Ecuador's mission in London also declined to comment and said Mr. Narvaez was out of the office and unavailable to comment. He didn't respond to an email seeking comment.


Mr. Snowden has been charged by U.S. authorities with theft of government property and willful communication of classified communications intelligence information. On Sunday, Mr. Snowden arrived in Moscow, according to WikiLeaks, after spending several weeks in Hong Kong after he admittedly leaked details of U.S. National Security Agency intelligence-gathering programs.

Russian officials have said he remains in the transit zone of Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport, and have said he should move along. The question now is where Mr. Snowden—stripped of his U.S. passport and apparently without an Ecuadorean travel document—can go.

The validity of any Ecuadorean travel document, or "safe pass," has been the subject of intense speculation this week. Mr. Assange said this week Ecuador issued such a document to Mr. Snowden and Ecuadorean officials haven't denied it exists. But officials have said that such a safe conduct pass, if it is in Mr. Snowden's possession, isn't valid.

On Tuesday, Alexis Mera, the legal adviser to Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa, was sent a correspondence from an address bearing Mr. Narvaez's name. "Dear Alexis," read the note, which included a copy of an Ecuadorean safe-conduct pass issued in Mr. Snowden's name, "I am responding to your request."

Another email from the same account, dated Wednesday and addressed to the legal adviser as well as to a presidential spokesman, said: "I trust you received the requested document yesterday." Mr. Narvaez was in Moscow at the time, according to the message.

But by then, Ecuadorean officials were publicly disputing that Mr. Snowden had been given such travel papers—a position voiced most strenuously by Mr. Correa on Thursday. Even if such a document existed, the president said, "the person who issued it will be totally without authority and [the document] would have no validity."

Snowden's pretty screwed over right now, obviously. It's not fun holing up in an airport, and as folks were saying on Fox News' All-Stars, especially so at Moscow's airport.

In any case, more at the link.

Record Temperatures in Southern California

It's expected to hit 129 degrees in Death Valley today, 119 in Palm Springs, and 105 in Victorville.

At KABC-TV Los Angeles, "Southland sizzles under summer heat wave":

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Summer is here and Southern California is sizzling under a heat wave with temperatures reaching 100 degrees in many areas.

In the Santa Clarita Valley, the mercury passed 90 even before noon. Temperatures were expected to reach high 80s for Los Angeles and Orange counties, high 90s for the Inland Empire and Valleys, mid 80s for the local mountains and the low 100s for the High Desert communities.

Large swaths of the Southland will remain under an excessive heat warning until Sunday night.

Residents are urged to avoid outdoor activities if possible and stay hydrated. People who were out and about said they were trying to get things done quickly and get inside to a cool place.

"It's going to be staying at home with the air conditioner and not going out as much as you can," said Tiffany Friddle of Palmdale.

There's a news video at the clip, which incidentally features Gunny Lee Ermey of "Full Metal Jacket."

And click on the station's weather page, here.

Ecuador Defends Its Surveillance Programs

I guess Rosie Gray was getting too hot for Ecuadorean officials with her reporting on the country's surveillance programs.

At BuzzFeed, "Ecuador Defends Domestic Surveillance."

And, "Exclusive: Documents Illuminate Ecuador’s Spying Practices."

just a few hours after Ecuador threatened BuzzFeed, someone has had Scribd take down the docs published in my story http://t.co/R6QsPnDnrl

— Rosie Gray (@RosieGray) June 28, 2013

Free Speech Dies in UK: Robert Spencer, Pamela Geller Banned from Entering

From Roger Kimball, at Pajamas Media:

Geller and Spencer are denied entry to the UK. Quoth a government spokesman: individuals whose presence “is not conducive to the public good” may be denied entry by the Home secretary. He explained: “We condemn all those whose behaviours and views run counter to our shared values and will not stand for extremism in any form.”

That pretty much covers the waterfront, doesn’t it? Disagree with me and I’ll have you named an enemy of the state.

Entertain views that conflict with the dominant left-wing narrative, and I’ll see to it that you are branded a hatemonger and are ostracized (or worse). Say or write something I don’t like, and I’ll pretend you did something criminal. I’ll deliberately confuse the expression of opinion and criminal behavior, so that the expression of opinion blends seamlessly into criminal behavior.

George Orwell anatomized this technique in 1984. Joseph Stalin pioneered it “on the ground” in the Soviet Union. It’s all part of what Anthony Trollope wrote in his great, dark novel The Way We Live Now.

Lee Rigby is hacked to death by Muslim fanatics. That’s an instance of what former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith insisted we call “anti-Islamic activity.” Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer say and write things the timid, politically correct bureaucrats who run Britain don’t like, and they’re declared pariahs.

Continue reading.

Lil' Wayne: Flag Stomping Coward

ZoNation, via Theo Spark:

Alex Baldwin is One Angry Cracka!

Well, after all the "creepy ass cracka" jokes on Twitter, now here's this...

At Twitchy, "Alec Baldwin threatens ‘toxic little queen’ reporter in epic Twitter rant."

My wife and I attend a funeral to pay our respects to an old friend, and some toxic Brit writes this fucking trash http://t.co/eoHfGGjD46
— ABFoundation (@ABFalecbaldwin) June 28, 2013

I saw this earlier while trolling London's Daily Mail, "Alec Baldwin's pregnant wife Hilaria TWEETS about Rachael Ray and anniversary gifts during James Gandolfini's funeral."

UPDATE: Baldwin's page is not loading on Twitter, perhaps having been taken down: http://twitter.com/ABFalecbaldwin

MORE: From Selena Zito:

And just like that (again) Alec Baldwin twitter account deletes His Twitter account https://t.co/oYGUZKA7fg

— SalenaZito (@SalenaZitoTrib) June 28, 2013

MORE:

Oh, Alec Baldwin. Haven't you learned? You can delete, but you can't hide. @ABFalecbaldwin http://t.co/gqcikPFcew

— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) June 28, 2013

MT @bendreyfuss: The Daily Mail took George Stark’s name off the @ABFalecbaldwin story & replaced the byline http://t.co/1oG9OCMKdn

— Michelle Fields (@MichelleFields) June 28, 2013

Gwyneth Paltrow in 'Thanks for Sharing'

She takes really good care of herself, so it's no surprise folks are making a big deal out of "Pepper Potts" stripping down in the trailer for her upcoming film, "Thanks for Sharing."

At the Los Angeles Times, "Gwyneth Paltrow strips in 'Thanks for Sharing' trailer."

And at London's Daily Mail, "Hotter than ever! Gwyneth Paltrow, 40, strips to racy lingerie in new trailer for sex addiction movie Thanks For Sharing."

Glenn Greenwald's 'Hairy Jocks' Porn Business

Well, well, well.

When you dig down, virtually all these prominent homosexual intellectuals have some sordid background as "RawMuscleGlutes" or "Hairy Jocks" pornography mofos.

And now it's Greenwald's turn for the depraved deep background to emerge, if he we didn't think he was depraved enough already.

At the New York Daily News, "Glenn Greenwald, journalist who broke Edward Snowden story, was once lawyer sued over porn business."

Read it all at the link. Greenwald was supposedly getting 50 percent profits in a porno outfit called "Hairy Jocks," in which he had a personal, ah, hands on role in creative content.

More at London's Daily Mail, "Journalist who helped Edward Snowden expose the NSA scandal was previously sued by business partner over running of 'Hairy Jocks' porn business."

This is great!

I've been waiting for a Glenn Greenwald "RawMusclesGlutes" moment. This is gold! Gold, I tell you!

ADDED: From Robert Stacy McCain, "Glenn Greenwald Is a Ridiculous Joke (And Alas, the Internet Never Forgets)."

“DomMascHry31”? Really? I always figured @ggreenwald as more the "SmoothLooseBottom" type ... http://t.co/lZ1zf5SOs9 #tcot
— Robert Stacy McCain (@rsmccain) June 27, 2013

Hoot! Life of Julia, Amnesty Applicant

This is great, at Twitchy, "Kevin Sorbo highlights spoof of Obama administration composite woman: ‘Life of Julia, Amnesty Applicant’."

At the comments, "Sadly, it's not a spoof. It's a road map."

And at the Center for Immigration Studies, here.

Senate Passes Immigration Reform

Laura Ingraham tweeted Sen. Jeff Sessions' "courageous" opposition to this shamnesty clusterf-k, seen at the clip.

And at NYT, "Immigration Overhaul Passes in Senate: 68-32 Vote Sends Bill to House, Where Odds Are Longer." (Via Memeorandum.)

More video here and here.

And more news at Memeorandum.

I can't imagine Speaker Boehner would even contemplating violating the Hastert bill on this, and somewhere earlier on Twitter I read that he's not even planning to bring the Senate bill to a vote in the House.

Other measures are planned, though, so it's never a good idea to rest easy. Folks should call their congressional representatives to make sure these people know how much grassroots opposition is out there. #StopAmnesty.

Added: I just saw this on Twitter, at National Review, "Comprehensive Rejection: House Republicans give the Senate’s immigration bill short shrift."

#TrayvonMartin Supporters Keepin' it Classy on Twitter

At Weasel Zippers, "Trayvon Martin Supporters Threaten To Kill Zimmerman, Random White People…"

These mf act like #Zimmerman really ain't did shit wrong. R.i.p. #TrayvonMartin ima pop me a mf #Creepycracker walkin by my house
— Vonni Versace (@Dat_Nigga_Vonni) June 27, 2013

Now there's more at the Blaze, "‘IF ZIMMERMAN GET OFF, IMA GO KILL A WHITE BOY’: TRAYVON MARTIN SUPPORTERS MAKE SHOCKING THREATS AHEAD OF VERDICT."

Aaron Hernandez Denied Bail

At TMZ, "AARON HERNANDEZ: Stuck in the Slammer - BAIL DENIED."

The dude's a mofo gang-banging former NFL tight end. Who knew?

Yesterday: Aaron Hernandez brandishing a Glock handgun for a selfie iPhone pic http://t.co/dsKeJGOopk pic.twitter.com/Ene9YROtkh

— TMZ (@TMZ) June 27, 2013

Also at SI, "Aaron Hernandez denied bail, will remain in jail."

After #DOMA Ruling, Much Work to Be Done for Statutory Rape Equality

You can't make this up, on Twitter:

#DOMA's defeat is a remarkable win for LGBT rights, but Kate's story shows that there is much work to be done for equality #FreeKate

— Eventivist (@Eventivist) June 26, 2013

Or as Robert Stacy McCain frequently notes, "Bad causes attract bad supporters." See, "#FreeKate’s Mom: ‘I Will NOT Have Anyone Ruin This for Family!!!!’" And, "The #FreeKate Criminal Caucus."

Also, "Just Like Mandela: Has Banging Jailbait Become the New Civil Disobedience?", and especially, "Perverts, Degenerates and Sociopaths."

This is the progressive left's homosexual equality program in a nutshell. Society's been monumentally hoodwinked by Godless postmodern depravity and licentiousness.

Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Reinstates Caveman Blogger's First Amendment Challenge

At the Institute for Justice, "Free Speech Victory."

The decision reverses a previous ruling by a federal district judge that had dismissed Cooksey’s case, reasoning that advice is not protected speech and hence Cooksey had suffered no injury to his First Amendment rights.

“This decision will help ensure that the courthouse doors remain open to speakers whose rights are threatened by overreaching government” said Institute for Justice Senior Attorney Jeff Rowes. “In America, citizens don’t have to wait until they are fined or thrown in jail before they are allowed to challenge government action that chills their speech.”

The dude dispenses "paleo-style" dietary advice on his blog.

Amazing what's threatening to the permanent political class, via Instapundit.