Fourth of July Accident: Investigation Under Way in Simi Valley Fireworks Explosion

Check the link for the video.

FIREWORKS UPDATE: 36 people were injured in Simi Valley Fourth of July accident http://t.co/73P02R7uVA

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) July 5, 2013

And at the Los Angeles Times, "Police probe fireworks accident; 36 treated at hospitals."

#Snowden Offered Asylum by Venezuela and Nicaragua

At Telegraph UK, "Venezuela and Nicaragua offer Edward Snowden asylum."

And at the Los Angeles Times:

Venezuela, Nicaragua open their doors to NSA leaker Snowden http://t.co/goIgSInvOs

— L.A. Times World (@latimesworld) July 6, 2013

And on Twitter, folks giving Snowden advice: take lots of toilet paper.

Morsi's Ouster Fuels Debate About U.S. Middle East Policy

Actually, we've been having a debate on Middle East policy since this presidential amateur took office.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Morsi's ouster fuels debate on U.S. policy on the Mideast":

Egyptians smarter than Americans Re OBAMA pic.twitter.com/pqOIyjrxfQ

— LeahR (@LeahR77) July 2, 2013

WASHINGTON — The military overthrow of the democratically elected government in Egypt, for decades America's most important Arab ally, has rekindled a fierce debate about whether the Obama administration's Mideast policy has been too passive and ineffective.

President Obama declared that U.S. allegiance was to "democratic principles" after Egypt's military ousted President Mohamed Morsi on Wednesday, but critics charge that the White House made only halfhearted attempts to steer Morsi's increasingly authoritarian government toward democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights.

"They've been late, and slow, and not taken these problems seriously," Michele Dunne, a former State Department official and administration advisor on Egypt who now heads the nonpartisan Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, said Friday.

Obama repeatedly failed "to use leverage to ensure that Egyptian authorities adhere to democratic principles," the Project on Middle East Democracy, an advocacy group in Washington, said in a statement.

The critics, who include Democratic foreign policy stalwarts as well as Republicans, say the upheaval in Egypt, on top of the administration's inability to stem the civil war in Syria or persuade Iran to curb its nuclear program, adds a blot to Obama's foreign policy record.

They blame, in part, Obama's desire to reduce America's overseas commitments after a decade of war, along with his apparent effort to pull back from a leadership position in favor of a more supporting role in the Middle East.

Administration officials say in their defense that Washington has limited influence in Egypt's domestic affairs and that visible efforts to apply U.S. pressure can backfire. They say they have dealt with key political players but have often kept their diplomacy quiet to avoid inflaming Egypt's polarized political environment.

After President Hosni Mubarak was toppled in an "Arab Spring" uprising in February 2011, the White House tried to encourage a transition to democracy. In national elections in June 2012, Morsi won 52% of the presidential vote and his party — the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood — won 48% in parliamentary elections.

Morsi cooperated with Obama in working out a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in November, and White House aides hoped for a relationship with Cairo that could be a model for other Islamist-dominated countries. The chief focus was security cooperation, including joint counter-terrorism operations and support for Egypt's peace treaty with Israel.

Critics now say the U.S. focus on security meant the White House was unwilling to push back when Egypt's military abused human rights, including ordering military trials for 10,000 civilians accused in connection with the 2011 protests, and when the Morsi government began trying to monopolize power.

More at the link.

Italian Model Claudia Romani Sports Patriotic Bikini for Independence Day

The pull of America's soft power.

At London's Daily Mail, "Flying the flag! Italian model Claudia Romani strips to a star-spangled bikini to soak up the sun on Independence Day."

She's on Twitter as well.

Troops Open Fire on Morsi Supporters

At the Los Angeles Times, "Egypt unrest: Troops open fire on ex-President Morsi's supporters." And from the photo caption there, "The body of a supporter of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi lies on the ground after he was shot dead during clashes in Cairo."

And at the New York Times, "Video Shows Shooting of Protester in Egypt."

Photo here.

That dude is f-ked up.

More, "Egypt Protests Turn Increasingly Violent."

Earlier, "Egypt Launches Post-Coup Crackdown."

Added: ColorMeRed on Twitter warns to be cautious about MSM accounts of the violence, and posts this video to show that Muslim Brotherhood cadres may be killing anti-Morsi protesters.

Also at Pat Dollard's, FWIW, "WATCH: Muslim Brotherhood Shoots at Civilians So Cops Will Be Blamed."

And see the Heritage Foundation, "Q&A on Egypt: James Carafano."

3:50pm PST: At London's Daily Mail, "Egypt in chaos: 10 dead as protesters marching on barracks where ousted president Morsi is held are met by tanks on 'Friday of rage'."

4:08pm PST: At the New York Times, "Social Media Updates on Clashes in Cairo."

And from revolutionary socialist Tarek Shalaby:

Chants for Sisi at Hilton Ramses hotel - the frontline of the clashes. This is a sorry sight. #Tahrir

— Tarek Shalaby (@tarekshalaby) July 5, 2013

Left #Tahrir. MB have substantial bird shots on them, but there are weapons on both sides and no presence of army or police to stop. #June30

— Tarek Shalaby (@tarekshalaby) July 5, 2013

And from CNN's Ben Wedeman:

Must watch Video: Morsi supporters threatening terrorism, Christians, Sisi, etc., etc., etc. http://t.co/20nco1GvM6 #Egypt #30June #June30

— benwedeman (@bencnn) July 5, 2013

'We're All Afraid of the Truth...'

The inimitable Pat Condell calls out British cowardice and the far-left fascists crushing speech in the U.K. The EDL are not the problem.

Via Atlas Shrugs and Blazing Cat Fur.

More on #Angels' Walk-Off Win Over Cardinals

Here's last night's report, "#Angels Beat #Cardinals in Spectacular 6-5 Walk-Off Win on 4th of July."

After the game my wife was saying, "We need to make this a family 4th of July tradition." Everybody had a blast. My wife was so fired up when Josh Hamilton tied the game with his monstrous 9th-inning home run. And Erick Aybar's walk off single was spectacular. My oldest son said he was going to be bummed if the Angels lost, so he was ecstatic, "That was a memorable game. I just wanted them to win."

I was having fun win or lose, but I'll tell you, that was a fabulous conclusion to a great night. We got there right at 6:00pm and missed the Star Spangled Banner. Turns out they do the full field-sized American flag. And there was a Condor Squadron flyover as well, which we happened to see while standing in line out in front of the Big A.

More at USA Today, "Angels heat up in ninth to overcome Cardinals."

And watch it here, "Aybar's walk-off single." And, "Hamilton's game-tying homer."

Pridefest: Seattle Gay Rights Thugs Attack Christian Street Preacher

Because progs are all about tolerance, or something.

Via Dana Loesch, "Video Reportedly Shows NOH8 Attack At Seattle Pridefest."

And at Twitchy, "Christian street preachers assaulted at gay pride festival in Seattle [video]."

Vicious mofos.

Sports Illustrated's 50 Greatest Swimsuit Models

Here's Christie Brinkley at #9, but troll around at SI's YouTube page for more. Kate Upton comes in at #3, and Elle MacPherson tops the rankings, FWIW.

Brinkley gets an African elephant rutting at the clip.

More at London's Daily Mail, "Puppy love! Christie Brinkley cuddles up to an adorable pup as she crowned a 'pet hero' at philanthropy event," and "Still loves her jazz hands! Ageless Christie Brinkley, 59, shows off her youthful side as she lights up Broadway Beacon Awards."

Also, "Model memories! Ageless veteran supermodels Christie Brinkley, 59, and Brooke Shields, 48, reprise their quirky 'famous pose' from 1987."

Dozens Injured in Simi Valley Fireworks Explosion

At the Los Angeles Times, "Simi fireworks accident tied to early detonation."

Authorities on Friday said they believe at least one pyrotechnic device prematurely detonated in its mortar during a Fourth of July celebration in Simi Valley on Thursday night, causing a chain reaction that tipped over other pyrotechnics and launched them into the crowd of spectators.

The major fireworks malfunction at Rancho Santa Susana Community Park at 9:20 p.m. injured at least 28 people, who suffered minor to severe injuries. An estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people were gathered to watch the professional fireworks display.

Simi Valley police Cmdr. Blair Summey said that after the early detonation, a group of live canisters fell over like "dominoes." One or more of them fired into the crowd of spectators, the closest of whom were about 800 feet away.

"These things were coming through low. They were skipping along the ground," Summey said. "Some of these projectiles, they were exploding as they were coming out of the canisters."

Also at NBC News Los Angeles, "Fireworks company issues statement regarding Simi Valley show, 'deeply regrets that people were injured'."

'Restore the Fourth' Rallies

From epic hypocrite Kevin Gosztola at Firedoglake, "Thomas Drake at ‘Restore the Fourth’ Rally: ‘We the People Do Not Consent to the Surveillance State’. "

And the Guardian on Twitter:

NSA surveillance: protesters stage Restore the Fourth rallies across US: http://t.co/LRasJxKCsJ

— The Guardian (@guardian) July 5, 2013

Red State Pulls Sexist Sarah Palin Photoshop — Editor Ben Howe Apologizes for Over-the-Top 'Snark' Response

Here's the post, updated, "Palin’s Third-Party Solution is Part of the Problem."

And at Twitchy, "RedState editor Ben Howe apologizes for mishandling photoshopped Sarah Palin image."

Sorry to everyone I snarked at for asking me to change the photo & to @SarahPalinUSA, didn't know it was fake. Peter is updating it today.
— Ben Howe (@BenHowe) July 4, 2013

But read the whole thing at Twitchy. Howe disagrees the photo (Photoshop) was sexist. He's only apologizing for his response to critics. Thus, it's a partial apology, since he doesn't apologize for the lousy blog post itself.

Still, he's restoring the necessary degree of credibility. I don't really know him or else I would've let loose on Twitter myself. And props to Team Twitchy for running with this story, even a day or so late. It's hard coming down on folks on your own side. But it's needed, nevertheless.

And kudos to Josh Painter for sticking to his guns and helping to make this right.

Background here, "Erick Erickson's Red State Posts Sexist Photoshop of Sarah Palin," and "Red State Stays Classy on Sarah Palin Photoshop."

Egypt Launches Post-Coup Crackdown

At WSJ, "Egypt Military Launches Crackdown: Army Reasserts Authority, Arresting Islamist Leaders and Installing New President":

CAIRO—Egypt's military reclaimed its role as the country's dominant political force as it installed a new president and pressed for the arrests of Islamist leaders it had forced from power, deepening international concern for the stability and democratic future of the largest country in the Arab world.

A day after the army seized on antigovernment protests to overthrow President Mohammed Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president, a dozen fighter jets buzzed downtown Cairo with trails of red, white and black smoke, the colors of the Egyptian flag.

As the military sounded a victorious chord, Mr. Morsi and some top Muslim Brotherhood allies were already in police custody and the Islamist organization was reviving its longtime role as an opposition force, organizing large-scale nationwide protests for Friday.

The military's sudden recalibration of political forces followed an outpouring of popular discontent with Mr. Morsi and the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party. An array of voices backed those protests, among them a contingent of re-emergent loyalists to Hosni Mubarak, who was ousted by a popular revolution—with military support—over two years ago.

Some of those former Mubarak loyalists have re-emerged to take new roles in the transition ahead, according to people close to discussions between the military and anti-Morsi activists.

That transition—and a new era of potential turmoil—kicked off on Thursday with the swearing-in of military-appointed president Adly Mansour, a judge who had been named head of the Supreme Constitutional Court on Monday. Mr. Mansour took two oaths on Thursday morning: The first made him chief justice and the second elevated him to the presidency. Mr. Mansour is to remain president until new elections are held, at an unspecified date, according to the military's transition plan. The military has also suspended Egypt's new constitution, which was drafted by the Muslim Brotherhood-dominated Constituent Assembly and signed into law by Mr. Morsi in December, after a national referendum.

In a sign of this week's reversal of fortunes, Egypt's acting attorney general on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Muslim Brotherhood supreme leader Mohamed Badie and his deputy, Khairat al Shater, according to Mena, the state news agency. The two are wanted on charges of inciting the killing of eight protesters in front of the Brotherhood's headquarters in Cairo.

Continue reading.

And at LAT, "Egypt military cracks down on Muslim Brotherhood."

#Angels Beat #Cardinals in Spectacular 6-5 Walk-Off Win on 4th of July

It was looking to be a wonderfully pleasurable evening even with the likelihood of a St. Louis victory.

The Angels entered the bottom of the 9th down 5-3 against the Cardinals, and I told my oldest son that it was pretty much over. I was just digging the vibe and anticipating the fireworks show. And then the phenomenal started happening. Albert Pujols lined a single, and he was followed with a booming home-run by Josh Hamilton to tie the game 5-5. Alberto Callaspo and Hank Conger then each popped up for the first and second outs. But then Howie Kendrick and Mark Trumbo both singled and Kendrick was driven home by a crazy Erick Aybar who kept running to second base, to be shortly swarmed as the Angels' bench cleared to celebrate the walk-off win.

Needless to say, the crowd was going wild. Folks might remember that the Angels have the "rally monkey," who last night was doing some Gangnam style moves to get the crowd fired up. It was totally hilarious. The billboard played a mashup of Ferris Bueller with fan-shots while the crowd waited for fireworks. My wife was bumping my fist repeatedly, clapping and saying, "Good job, honey," so happy that I'd gotten tickets to the game.

It was a memorable night, for sure.

In any case, here's Bill Shaikin's report at the Los Angels Times, "Josh Hamilton's homer sets up Angels' walk-off win over Cardinals."

And on Twitter:

.@lamblock #Angels rally in ninth inning to defeat Cardinals http://t.co/YVcUAn7wzQ #Cardinals #MLB #Baseball #RallyMonkey
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) July 5, 2013

Fireworks earlier tonight after #Angels dramatic come-from-behind win. #4thofJuly pic.twitter.com/vmSiG4vGc0
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) July 5, 2013

'Hateriot's Day'

Leave it to Gawker to win this year's award for the most disgusting anti-American attack on the Fourth of July: "Hatetriot's Day: July 4th Is America's Crappiest Holiday."

The author is Ken Layne, on Twitter here.

And asshole editor John Cook's only-slightly joking tweet is here. And also at Memeorandum.

Layne's blather is easily debunked, but why bother? Millions of Americans couldn't care less about reading such self-loathing progressive bull. For me, it's mostly worth it just to take note. "Liberals" are less than 25 percent of the population, and hardcore leftists probably half of that. But for some reason this kind of rancid garbage gets regurgitated into the mainstream precincts, especially the schools. So it pays to keep tabs on dangerous fools like this who troll for traffic and demonic lulz. They are true dirtbag scum and decent folks should never miss a chance to expose them for all their disgusting toxic effluence and rot.

Added: Read this at Weasel Zippers for just really all that's necessary to rebut idiots like Ken Layne, "Cuban Defector [Dodgers' Yasiel] Puig Celebrates His First Fourth of July."

#Cardinals at #Angels Tonight at Anaheim Stadium

I'm taking the family to a 4th of July baseball extravaganza tonight. (There will be fireworks!)

The St. Louis Cards are in Anaheim, losing Tuesday night 5-1, but winning last night in a 12-2 blowout.

Interestingly, Albert Pujols hasn't put on much of show since his old team's been in town, the first time he's faced St. Louis since joining the Angels.

More here, "Angels' Albert Pujols to face old friends, new foe: the Cardinals":

You can take the slugger out of St. Louis — the Angels did, prying Albert Pujols from America's heartland with a 10-year, $240-million deal before the 2012 season — but you can't take St. Louis out of the slugger.

Pujols keeps his home in St. Louis, his charitable foundation is based there, and though he's a year and a half removed from a Cardinals career in which he won three most-valuable-player awards and World Series titles in 2006 and 2011, his fingerprints are all over a team that has thrived in his absence.

"If you watch the Cardinals play, they really go about it right; they're very aggressive and they compete," said Tony La Russa, who managed Pujols for all 11 years in St. Louis. "For this generation of Cardinals, the most important player to help that transition from what they used to be to what they are now is Albert, because they learned how to play the game from him.

"He had such a strong mentoring relationship with the position players. Yadier Molina is like a brother to him. Albert had an effect on David Freese, Matt Holliday, Jon Jay. They wanted to work like Albert, compete like Albert, be a teammate like Albert."

This week, they want to beat Albert.

Pujols, 33, will be a Cardinals opponent for the first time Tuesday night when St. Louis, which fell one win short of the World Series in 2012 and is second in the National League Central with a 49-32 record this season, opens a three-game series at Angel Stadium.

"It's a little different because I'm usually rooting for them," said Pujols, who has been slowed by knee and foot injuries and is hitting .249 with 13 home runs and 49 runs batted in. "Now, I'm going to be rooting against them for three days."

More at the link.

Plus, "Mark Trumbo's web gem could change perception of Angels slugger." Video here, "Trumbo dives to start an amazing double play."

More blogging late tonight or in the morning. Either way, I'll be on Twitter until then.

85 Percent 'Very' Proud to Be American

At Gallup, "Most in U.S. Still Proud to Be an American: But 71% say the signers of the declaration would be disappointed":

PRINCETON, NJ -- As the United States celebrates Independence Day, most of its adult residents continue to say they are proud to be an American, including 57% who are extremely proud and 28% who are very proud. This high level of pride in being an American has varied only moderately over the past 12 years since the question was first asked, but has been lower since 2005 than it was in the years prior.

The latest results are from a June 1-4 Gallup survey. An additional 10% say they are moderately proud to be an American, leaving 3% who say they are "only a little proud" and 1% who say they are "not at all proud."

Read the whole thing.

I think the signers would be pleased with America today, but would be horrified with this president. Barack Hussein's a stain on an otherwise bountiful gift we are enjoying today, and the Obama interregnum will be seen as a low point in the expansion of American freedom. The results are already coming in, and patriots are gearing up to overthrow the socialist usurpers. 2014 can't come soon enough.

More on this as we go along.

Independence Day Rule 5

Here's the Other McCain, "Rule 5 Sunday: Taylor Swift, We Hardly Knew Ye."

I'm not sure there's a lot of fresh Rule 5 blogging on the 4th of July, although Bob Belvedere's Chloe Vevrier roundup deserves another look. See, "Rule 5 Saturday."

Also at 90 Miles From Tyranny, "Happy Independence Day! (Freedom From Tyranny Day)."

And at Wirecutter's, "Still Cebrating."

At Randy's Roundtable, "Happy 4th of July: Enjoy it while it is still possible."

Also, from Ron Russell, "Cutie Babes from Guns and Bikinis."

More from Doug Ross, "Satan, the Great Deceiver and Prince of Lies, reaffirms that he is in no way associated with the Democrat Party."

And at Pirate's Cove, "If All You See……are the wonderful colors of the United States Flag, you might just be an American Patriot."

Still more at Reaganite, "Stunning Athina Pikraki Chosen to Represent Greece at 'Miss World 2013'."

And at Gator Doug's, "DaleyGator DaleyBabe Talita Correa."

At Drunken Stepfather, "THE BEST FOURTH OF JULY PICS FOR AMERICA OF THE DAY."

Dana Pico has more, "Rule 5 Blogging: Glamour Girls."

And from Proof Positive, "Sex in Advertising."

Plus, at EBL, "Egyptian Freedom Rule 5."

And Soylent has "Soylent Fourth of July."

Finally, at Egotastic!, "Happy Birthday, America! We Celebrate with Red, White, and Blue Bikinis."

I know I'm missing some folks, so if you're not included, drop your links and I'll update ASAP.

Happy 4th of July!

BATHING SUIT BABE CREDIT: Theo Spark.

Our Government in Action: State Department Denies John Kerry Yachting During Egyptian Coup

Look, it's 4th of July. Why not just say Secretary Kerry is staying in contact with all the relevant personnel and be done with it? It's not like he's going fly to Cairo and calm the waters, or anything. But in line with this administration's MO, it's lying liars all the way.

At Twitchy, "Twitter user: ‘Kerry sailed right by me yesterday on the Nantucket sound’ [photo]; Update: Boston Herald confirms Kerry is on Nantucket."

Also, "Cavalcade of conflicting info: Where in the world was John Kerry as Egypt lurched into chaos?" And at the Blaze, "CBS PRODUCER REFUSES TO RETRACT JOHN KERRY YACHT STORY — AND THERE’S A VIDEO THAT COULD HELP HIS CASE."

UPDATE: The dude Sam Hodges pulled his tweet, most likely due to Democrat harassment on Twitter. But the Boston Herald has this, "Kerry vacationing on Nantucket amid Egypt turmoil."

Statue of Liberty Reopens for Independence Day

It was closed for repairs after Hurricane Sandy.

At LAT, "Statue of Liberty reopens for a New York kind of Independence Day."