Matt Yglesias Achieves Peak Dumbassery

How about $150.00 an hour?

Sounds stupid?

Not to Matt Yglesias.

At Instapundit, "OH, I THINK WE’RE NOWHERE NEAR PEAK YGLESIAS: ‘Hitting the crack pipe?’ Matt Yglesias achieves peak dumbassery with this take on minimum wage."

Girls as Young as 9-Years-Old Seeking Vaginal Surgery in Britain

Girls are getting ideas about their private parts from social media and pornography. Pornography! At 9-year-old!

My dad used to have Playboy magazines lying around when was a kid. I remember laughing when I looked at the "boobies." And I don't think I owned a bona fide porno magazine until I was 15-years-old (and lost my virginity a short time thereafter, heh).

So I'm not too pleased about this development, to say the least. But this is the culture today, so degraded.

At the Telegraph U.K., "Vagina surgery ‘sought by girls as young as nine’ because of pornography, doctors reveal" (via Memeorandum).

U.S. Risks Escalation in the Middle East

I'm not that worried about it. I'd say the paleocon obsession with isolationism is bad for American vital interests.

And I'm pleased by Trump's foreign policy approach thus far, as it's not tied down to alt-right dogmas (to the everlasting condemnation of the alt-right idiots).

At the Los Angeles Times, "'The closer we get, the more complex it gets.' White House struggles on strategy as Islamic State nears defeat in Iraq and Syria":

With American-backed ground forces poised to recapture Mosul in Iraq and Raqqah in Syria, Islamic State’s de facto capitals, U.S. commanders are confident they soon will vanquish the militant group from its self-declared caliphate after three years of fighting.

But the White House has yet to define strategy for the next step in the struggle to restore stability in the region, including key decisions about safe zones, reconstruction, nascent governance, easing sectarian tensions and commitment of U.S. troops.

Nor has the Trump administration set policy for how it will confront forces from Iran and Russia, the two outside powers that arguably gained the most in the bitter conflict — and that now are hoping to collect the spoils and expand their influence.

Iran, in particular, is pushing to secure a land corridor from its western border across Iraq and Syria and up to Lebanon, where it supports Hezbollah militants, giving it a far larger foothold in the turbulent region.

“Right now everyone is positioned” for routing Islamic State “without having the rules of the road,” said Michael Yaffe, a former State Department envoy for the Middle East who is now vice president of the Middle East and Africa center at the U.S. Institute of Peace. “That’s a dangerous situation.”

The risk of a broader confrontation was clear in recent weeks when a U.S. F/A-18 shot down a Syrian fighter jet for the first time in the multi-sided six-year war, provoking an angry response from Russia, which supports Syrian President Bashar Assad.

U.S. warplanes also destroyed two Iranian-made drone aircraft, although it’s not clear who was flying them. The Pentagon said all the attacks were in self-defense as the aircraft approached or fired on American forces or U.S.-backed Syrian fighters.

“What I worry about is the muddled mess scenario,” said Ilan Goldenberg, a former senior State Department official who now heads the Middle East program at the nonpartisan Center for a New American Security. “When you start shooting down planes and running into each other, it quickly goes up the escalation ladder.”

The clashes occurred in eastern Syria, where Russian-backed Syrian and Iranian forces are pushing against U.S. special operations forces and U.S.-backed Syrian opposition fighters trying to break Islamic State’s hold on the Euphrates River valley south of Raqqah and into Iraq.

Except for a few towns, Islamic State still controls the remote area, and U.S. officials fear the militants could regroup there and plan future attacks. Many of the group’s leaders and operatives have taken shelter in Dair Alzour province...

Still more.

Nicole Scherzinger Shows Off Her Fabulous Figure

At London's Daily Mail, "Bikini-clad Nicole Scherzinger shows off her fabulous figure as she plays in the sand and takes a dip in the sea on a sun-drenched holiday in Mykonos: he jetted into Mykonos on Saturday for a sun-soaked holiday with friends. And Nicole Scherzinger looks like she's having a whale of a time on the Greek island as she posed on a beach in a multi-coloured bikini."

J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy

This book's been out for over a year and it's still not available in paperback. Last I checked it was still on the New York Times bestseller list, so the publisher's going to milk it while it's hot.

Well, more power to Mr. Vance. He's going to be financially set for some time.

At Amazon, J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis.

Sean McMeekin, The Russian Origins of the First World War

At Amazon, Sean McMeekin, The Russian Origins of the First World War.

The Sleazy, Alcohol-Fueled Environment of 'Bachelor in Paradise'

Alcohol was flowing freely on the set, with producers hoping to liberate their cast members, and drum up some excitement (any kind of excitement, apparently, as ratings are the ultimate ratio).

At LAT, "Alcohol, sex and consent: Add TV cameras and the 'Bachelor in Paradise' party gets complicated":

Before the cameras even started rolling, Chad Johnson was drunk. Not tipsy; hammered. By the time production on “Bachelor in Paradise” kicked off at 11 a.m. in Sayulita, Mexico, the reality star had already taken seven shots of Jack Daniel’s whiskey and downed a whole bottle of wine.

Because, he figured: Why not? He’d agreed to go on the third season of the spinoff of ABC’s “The Bachelor” because it seemed like a paid vacation, replete with bikini-clad women, a private beach and an open bar. Also, alcohol loosened him up — he wanted to be liked by his new cast mates, and when he drank, he felt like he was instantly funnier.

“Plus, when you’re filming the show, you have this adrenaline pump of being on TV, so you can drink more and are still capable of walking and talking,” Johnson, 29, explained. “There are points of time on the show where you’re still conscious, where in the real world, you would have been asleep somewhere 10 hours earlier.”

But no one on the production team put Johnson to bed. Instead, he passed out on the sand, as crabs crawled over his face. The next morning, he learned he engaged in an aggressive make-out session with one female cast member and hurled insults at another who was born with only one full arm. He was also told he’d soiled himself during his sleep.

Johnson’s behavior that night had consequences: Within hours, host Chris Harrison was dispatched to tell him he was no longer welcome on the show.

*****

Heavy drinking is not uncommon on the “Bachelor” shows, with contestants sometimes becoming so intoxicated that they see the extent of their behavior only when it eventually airs on national television. Often, drunken antics are played for humor — there’s usually that one person who gets so sloshed at the “Bachelor” mansion on night one that they do something embarrassing in front of their potential husband or wife. But for the first time in the franchise's 15-year history, an incident fueled by on-set drinking has led to both public scrutiny and reports of internal policy changes regarding alcohol and sexual behavior.

On June 4, the first day of filming on “Paradise’s” fourth season at the Playa Escondida resort, a male and female contestant got drunk and had an encounter in the pool that the male said in a televised interview involved a sexual act.

At first, the incident seemed par for the course in “Paradise.” Contestants regularly get frisky in the open and have sex in bedrooms without doors — though the footage rarely shows anything too raunchy.

A couple of days later, though, the two contestants were pulled aside and told that two producers had filed third-party complaints with Warner Bros., the production company that produces the ABC show, related to the pool encounter. The entire cast was flown back to the U.S. On June 11, Warner Bros. released a statement announcing production had been suspended while it investigated claims of alleged misconduct.

The female contestant, Corinne Olympios, hired a high-profile Hollywood lawyer, Marty Singer, and issued her own statement. “Although I have little memory of that night,” the 24-year-old said, “something bad obviously took place.” The male contestant, 30-year-old DeMario Jackson, retained his own counsel and told his side of the story, including a detailed description of what he says was a consensual encounter, in a televised interview on E! News earlier this week.

On June 20, Warner Bros. announced that its internal investigation did not “support any charge of misconduct” or show that the “safety of any cast member was ever in jeopardy.” Production resumed last weekend with what Warner Bros. described as “certain changes to the show’s policies” to enhance participants’ safety.

Warner Bros. declined to elaborate on those changes, but on Tuesday, TMZ reported that the show had instituted a slew of new rules: Contestants must adhere to a two-drink-per-hour maximum, and before initiating sex, they must check with a producer tasked with making sure both parties are able to give consent.

Olympios said in a statement to The Times on Thursday that she was “happy” about the changes on the show. In the statement, she said her legal team had completed its investigation to her “satisfaction” and that she had no complaints about the production...

Keep reading.

Émile Zola, Germinal

*BUMPED.*

At Amazon, Émile Zola, Germinal (Penguin Classics).

Jennifer Delacruz's Mild Holiday Forecast

Once again we've got a video of the news highlights at ABC News 10 San Diego. Ms. Jennifer's weather report starts at 5:05 minutes. If you scroll back to the beginning, there's coverage of the San Diego impeachment march and the counter protest. We've got activists protesting all over the country this weekend, a sign of a vigorous healthy democracy, not the totalitarian regime leftists have been warning about since last November.

In any case, here's Ms. Jennifer:

ICYMI: Lidia Yuknavitch, The Book of Joan

This book looks really good.

At Amazon, Lidia Yuknavitch, The Book of Joan: A Novel.

Juliana Barr, Peace Came in the Form of a Woman

At Amazon, Juliana Barr, Peace Came in the Form of a Woman: Indians and Spaniards in the Texas Borderlands.

Omar El Akkad, American War

*BUMPED.*

I've got this one on order.

Remember, purchases through my Amazon links help fuel my book reading addiction at no additional cost to yourself, and your support is greatly appreciated.

I'm having a lot of fun!

At Amazon, Omar El Akkad, American War: A Novel.

Elizabeth A. Fenn, Encounters at the Heart of the World

At Amazon, Elizabeth A. Fenn, Encounters at the Heart of the World: A History of the Mandan People.

Today's Deals

Thanks for your support, as always.

And shop, at Amazon, Today's Deals.

Here, Straw Propeller Gourmet Foods - Natural Gourmet Oatmeal, Blueberry Blitz, 3.0 Ounce (Pack of 12).

Also, Save on Kitchen and Dining Items.

More, KIND Breakfast Bars, Peanut Butter, Gluten Free, 1.8 Ounce, 32 Count.

And, Savings in Sports Cycling Helmets.

Still more, Shop Tennis Rackets.

And, Gourmet Coffee Beans from Honduras (Medium Dark Roast), for Coffee Lovers with Discriminating Taste - Wake Up to Great Aroma and Mellow Chocolaty ... Aroma Bravo Coffee and Tea.

BONUS: Victor Davis Hanson, A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War.

Holly Williams Reports from Raqqa, Syria (VIDEO)

For CBS "Face the Nation":



Also, at the New York Post, "A series of car bombs rocked the Syrian capital, killing at least eight people and wounding a dozen more."

Nina Agdal Uncovered for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2017 (VIDEO)

As always, she remains one of my favorites.

President Trump Tweets Photoshopped Video of Him Wrestling 'CNN' to the Ground

He's the ultimate troll.

And boy does this piss off the leftist establishment, lol.

Watch, "#FraudNewsCNN #FNN."

Also at the New York Times, via Memeorandum, "Trump Tweets a Video of Him Wrestling ‘CNN’ to the Ground."

Seen on Twitter, ".@AnaNavarro on Trump CNN tweet: “It is an incitement to violence. He is going to get somebody killed in the media”."

Nah.

It's hilarious.

More at Twitchy, "CNN responds to that ‘Trump punches out CNN’ video."

Jennifer Delacruz's Mild Sunny Forecast

For some reason, ABC News 10 posted most of their evening newscast to YouTube. Ms. Jennifer's near the end of the clip, at 10:40 minutes. However, if you scroll back a minute or two, there's a great little segment on the Oceanside 4th of July parade, which was held today. I love the patriotic stuff. There's almost nothing that makes me more happy, considering the youth anti-American culture that seems to be taking over these days.

In any case, here's the lovely Ms. Jennifer in that fantastic tight black dress:

Silicon Valley Women Open-Up About Sexual Harassment

Leftist tech progressives are the biggest hypocrites.

At NYT, "Silicon Valley Women, in Cultural Shift, Frankly Describe Sexual Harassment":

Their stories came out slowly, even hesitantly, at first. Then in a rush.

One female entrepreneur recounted how she had been propositioned by a Silicon Valley venture capitalist while seeking a job with him, which she did not land after rebuffing him. Another showed the increasingly suggestive messages she had received from a start-up investor. And one chief executive described how she had faced numerous sexist comments from an investor while raising money for her online community website.

What happened afterward was often just as disturbing, the women told The New York Times. Many times, the investors’ firms and colleagues ignored or played down what had happened when the situations were brought to their attention. Saying anything, the women were warned, might lead to ostracism.

Now some of these female entrepreneurs have decided to take that risk. More than two dozen women in the technology start-up industry spoke to The Times in recent days about being sexually harassed. Ten of them named the investors involved, often providing corroborating messages and emails, and pointed to high-profile venture capitalists such as Chris Sacca of Lowercase Capital and Dave McClure of 500 Startups.

The disclosures came after the tech news site The Information reported that female entrepreneurs had been preyed upon by a venture capitalist, Justin Caldbeck of Binary Capital. The new accounts underscore how sexual harassment in the tech start-up ecosystem goes beyond one firm and is pervasive and ingrained. Now their speaking out suggests a cultural shift in Silicon Valley, where such predatory behavior had often been murmured about but rarely exposed.

The tech industry has long suffered a gender imbalance, with companies such as Google and Facebook acknowledging how few women were in their ranks. Some female engineers have started to speak out on the issue, including a former Uber engineer who detailed a pattern of sexual harassment at the company, setting off internal investigations that spurred the resignation in June of Uber’s chief executive, Travis Kalanick.

Most recently, the revelations about Mr. Caldbeck of Binary Capital have triggered an outcry. The investor has been accused of sexually harassing entrepreneurs while he worked at three different venture firms in the past seven years, often in meetings in which the women were presenting their companies to him.

Several of Silicon Valley’s top venture capitalists and technologists, including Reid Hoffman, a founder of LinkedIn, condemned Mr. Caldbeck’s behavior last week and called for investors to sign a “decency pledge.” Binary has since collapsed, with Mr. Caldbeck leaving the firm and investors pulling money out of its funds.

The chain of events has emboldened more women to talk publicly about the treatment they said they had endured from tech investors...

Keep reading.

Page 3 Model Danielle Sellers in Titillating Pool Photoshoot

At London's Daily Mail, "Glamour model Danielle Sellers goes completely topless in titillating pool photoshoot.... as she 'prepares to cause a stir by entering Love Island'."

And at the Sun U.K., "WET AND WILD - Love Island’s new girl Danielle Sellers poses topless for sexy photoshoot in a pool: The raunchiest contestant ever will be making her way onto our screens and ruffling feathers in the house."