Behind the Scenes with Lada Kravchenko (VIDEO)

Following-up from May, "Playboy Playmate Lada Kravchenko May 2017 (VIDEO)."

Watch, at Playboy's YouTube channel, "Behind the Scenes with May Playmate Lada Kravchenko."

Trump the Traditionalist

From arch neocon Elliott Abrams, at Foreign Affairs, "Trump the Traditionalist: A Surprisingly Standard Foreign Policy":

Imagine two U.S. foreign policy analysts plucked from their Washington think tanks and marooned on desert islands, one just before Donald Trump announced his presidential candidacy and the other just before the 2016 election itself. After the election, both are told that the Republican candidate won and are asked to predict the new administration’s foreign policy. Whose predictions would have been more accurate?

At times this spring, the second analyst’s forecasts would have been on the money. Having followed the bitter election, he or she would have foretold the nature of the transition and the early weeks of the new administration as a logical continuation of the campaign. The starkly nationalist rhetoric of Trump’s inaugural address; the president’s unpredictable tweets; the departure of Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, after only 25 days in office; and a whole host of other developments solidified many professionals’ sense that Trump would break dramatically with long-standing traditions and with recent policy. As the months passed, however, the analyst’s predictions would have been increasingly off base as the administration’s foreign policy became more conventional.

Meanwhile, the other desert-island refugee, who would have missed Trump’s surprising ascent and the bizarre campaign that followed, would likely have predicted that no matter who won the GOP nomination and despite any idiosyncrasies that emerged during election season, the realities of governing and of leading in a complex world would ultimately produce a fairly familiar Republican approach to foreign policy. And on balance, this analyst would have been right.

The Trump administration has been in office for less than six months, and most jobs below the cabinet level still remain unfilled, so one must tread carefully when making judgments about its approach or predictions about its future. But it is already clear that this is not a revolutionary administration. The broad lines of its policy fit easily within those of the last few decades. Trump might not be a conventional president, but so far, his foreign policy has been remarkably unremarkable.

A BREITBART PRESIDENCY?

This is a far cry from what many observers expected (and what some continue to worry about): a radical departure from tradition and the emergence of what might be called a Bannonite administration, after Steve Bannon, the populist-nationalist provocateur who chaired Trump’s campaign and was later named his chief White House strategist. Before joining the Trump team, Bannon had led Breitbart News, the online publishing company that he described as “the platform for the alt-right” and that regularly railed against “globalists” in the foreign policy establishment...

Keep reading.

Young Japanese People Are Not Having Sex

That's not good, heh.

At the Independent U.K., "Nearly half of Japanese people are entering their 30s without any sexual experience, leaving the country facing a steep population decline":

The country is facing a steep population decline as a growing number of youngsters abstain from sex and avoid romantic relationships.

Some men claimed they "find women scary" as a poll found that 43 per cent of people aged 18 to 34 from the island nation say they are virgins.

One woman, when asked why they think 64 per cent of people in the same age group are not in relationships, said she thought men "cannot be bothered" to ask the opposite sex on dates because it was easier to watch internet porn.

The number of births dropped below one million in Japan for the first time last year, according to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

Japan's National Institute of Population and Social Security Research predicts that the country's current population of 127 million will decline by nearly 40 million by 2065.

The fertility crisis has left politicians scratching their heads as to why youngsters are not having more sex...

Plus, more from Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit, "IT’S A TRICK QUESTION: THEY’RE NOT COMING FROM ANYWHERE. Question: Where do Japanese babies come from?":

Who knew how prescient the Vapors were in 1980, when they warned, “No sex, no drug, no wine, no women?”

Democrats Continue to Beat a Dead Horse

Following-up, "Donald Trump, Jr., Email Allegedly Specifies Tie to Moscow in Effort to 'Incriminate Hillary'."

From Wesley Pruden, at the Washington Times, "Another dead horse, another beating":

We’re finally getting somewhere. Dead horses are useless to most folks, but Democrats, rendering plants and certain newspapers are determined to follow the stink.
The latest scoop by the intrepid horse-hunters of The New York Times has led to a meeting by Donald Trump with Russians who were said to have savory secrets about Hillary Clinton for sale. This was at a meeting during what the newspaper called “an inflection point” in the late, lamented presidential campaign of 2016.

Too bad for the crack scoop artists of The New York Times, it wasn’t actually Donald Trump, but Donald Trump Jr., who manages the family real-estate interests, and what they talked about was American adoptions of Russian babies and a Miss Universe Contest, a franchise owned by the Trump interests, for Moscow. Whether they discussed shoe and bra sizes of contestants, whether the Russians promised contestants with the perfect 38-24-36 measurements so prized by beauty-contest judges, The New York Times did not say. Perhaps the newspaper is saving that for further scoops in the coming days.

It’s not clear what The New York Times was looking for in this particular dead-horse account, perhaps proof that Mr. Trump had sent a campaign team bearing a hollowed-out watermelon with microfilmed specifications for the next generation of the H-Bomb inside. After months of huffing, puffing and promising the real goods, we still haven’t seen a smoking gun, or whatever cliche we’re using this month to describe the evidence that would overturn the election results, cancel the Gorsuch appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court, and install Hillary Clinton in the White House at last. Or something like that.

In the Times account, it was “unclear whether the Russian lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, actually produced the promised compromising information about Mrs. Clinton.” But with smoke like that — a Russian spy named “Natalia” with an unpronounceable surname is all John le Carre would need to spin a dark tale of intrigue, with or without microfilm in a hollowed-out watermelon. Who needs fire?

*****

So far, the story was another of the nothingburgers served up as appetizers for the promised porterhouse about Russian collusion with Donald Trump, senior not junior, for so long expected from the magpie media. For the record, the account noted that the president’s lawyers said, “The president was not aware of and did not attend the meeting.” But if any reader wanted to think he had, that was OK by the newspaper. If it wasn’t true, it could have been.

Still more.

Hailey Clauson in Sumba Island (VIDEO)

Via Sports Illustrated Swimsuit.

Donald Trump, Jr., Email Allegedly Specifies Tie to Moscow in Effort to 'Incriminate Hillary'

It's still a nothing-burger to me, but everybody's over the moon about this latest development, so here you go.

At NYT, "Russian Dirt on Clinton? 'I Love It,' Donald Trump Jr. Said." (Safe link.)

But see Joel Pollack, at Breitbart, "Donald Trump Jr. Releases 'Russia Email' Chain":

The Times reported the existence of the introductory email on Monday evening, though it had not seen the email, did not possess the email, did not verify the email, and relied on second-hand descriptions from “three people with knowledge of the email,” presumably from the intelligence community or from one of the intelligence committees in Congress.

(On Tuesday morning, it proclaimed: “The Times now has the email to Donald Trump Jr. offering Russian aid to ‘incriminate Hillary’,” after Donald Trump, Jr. had made the email available to the general public.)

Donald Trump, Jr. accompanied the release of the email chain with a statement in which he stated that he thought the lawyer had “Political Opposition Research” on Clinton, and that the meeting had taken place “before the current Russian fever was in vogue.” He reiterated that the lawyer “had no information to provide and wanted to talk about adoption policy and the Magnitsky Act.” He did not comment on the publicist’s statement that the information was “part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.”

The email does not refer to any cooperation, coordination or collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.

Honesty, it's not much.

I don't blog about Russia that much because it's a faux scandal created by the faux news media and perpetuated by faux political experts.

Everything's fake. It's the one time in my life in which I don't really enjoy following politics. I haven't watched television news in weeks. I read my books and click around for memes on Twitter, as well as reading a few so-called "hard news" stories on my iPhone apps.

In any case, more at Memeorandum, "Russian Government Sought to Aid Trump's Candidacy, According to Email."

Emmanuel Macron Pushed Brusquely to the Front of G20 Group Photo, So He Could Stand Next to President Trump (VIDEO)

You know, this one story puts the lie to all the leftist media establishment hit pieces claiming how the U.S. was weakened and belittled at the G20 summit (because of President Trump).

Actually, it's a joke. None of those countries at the conference --- not one --- could manage effectively without close economic, military, and diplomatic relations with the U.S.

At the Telegraph U.K, "Emmanuel Macron 'did not breach protocol by pushing to front of G20,' say the French":

Emmanuel Macron was merely following protocol when he elbowed his way to the front of G20 leaders to stand beside Donald Trump for a group photograph, French media claimed on Sunday.

Le Parisien newspaper said: “As shown in a video by the British daily, The Telegraph, the president of the [French] Republic treated himself to a little stroll before taking his place beside his American counterpart.”

Initially placed towards the back of the group for the “family photograph” of leaders attending the Hamburg summit, Mr Macron is shown in the footage pushing to the front.

After surprising Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, as he jostled past him, Mr Macron paused briefly to embrace the Norwegian premier, Erna Soldberg, on both cheeks.

“All this [happened] as Angela Merkel looked on, astonished or even annoyed,” Le Parisien reported.

The newspaper, reputed for its accurate and fair coverage, commented: “Despite condemnation by some media, especially the British, who considered that the French president moved of his own accord to be closer to Donald Trump, in reality the placement follows a strict diplomatic rule.”

You don't "elbow your way" to the front unless you're scared someone else is going to be photographed next to the President of the U.S. and you're not. Good on Macron. His actions show he's not as hare-brained as I'd thought.

Also at American Thinker, "French president Macron pushed his way to stand next to President Trump at G-20 group photo."

Anna Faris Bikini Pics

At Drunken Stepfather, "ANNA FARIS LOOKING GOOD IN A BIKINI OF THE DAY."

Emily Ratajkowski for Harper's Bazaar Australia: 'My boobs are too big...'

Heh.

And who's complaining?!

Here, "EMILY RATAJKOWSKI IS OUR AUGUST COVER STAR":

She ... addressed backlash she has garnered, including her now-famous topless selfie with Kim Kardashian and her unapologetic belief that being sexual and being a feminist are not mutually exclusive. "There's this thing that happens to me: 'Oh, she's too sexy'," she says. "It's like an anti-woman thing, that people don't want to work with me because my boobs are too big. What's wrong with boobs? They're a beautiful feminine thing that needs to be celebrated. Like, who cares? They are great big, they are great small. Why should that be an issue?"

Here, a sneak peek at the August issue before it goes on sale Monday, August 3rd...

Click through for the photos.

Hat Tip: WWTDD, "Emily Ratajkowski Boobs Prevent Her From Getting Work."

Hannah Jeter Revealing Mexico Shoot (VIDEO)

Via Sports Illustrated Swimsuit:

Hal McRae Ain't Buying 'Your Wussy Modern Sliding Rules...'

Heh.

This is great, on Twitter, "Super B-Day to Hal McRae, who isn't buying your wussy modern sliding rules."

Happy B-Day, brother.

Ellie Goulding Italian Bikini Vacation

At London's Daily Mail, "Good as Gould-ing: Ellie showcases her athletic figure in skimpy black two-piece as she smooches her boyfriend Caspar Jopling on a boat in Capri."

And at WWTDD, "Ellie Goulding Italian Bikini Vacay and Stuff Around the Web."

Jackie Johnson's Very Warm Forecast

We're going to have slightly lower temperatures, but if you're inland, it won't be that much relief.

It's July folks. Wonderful weather if you're down by the beach or out at the pool. Otherwise, stay inside and pump your air conditioning.

Here's the lovely Ms. Jackie, who debuted her baby bump for tonight's forecast.

Trump's Alt-Right, White Nationalist Speech in Poland

Gawd, I'd completely forgotten about Amanda Marcotte!

She blocked me on Twitter years ago, and since she's had no recent meltdowns, she's totally escaped my mind (phew!).

But here she is, gurgling back up from the demonic depths, at Salon (wouldn't you know it?), "Trump’s alt-right Poland speech: Time to call his white nationalist rhetoric what it is." (Safe link.)

Actually, I think Vox beat her to this meme, but at least she's clinging to the ideological hatred, heh.

Today's Deals

At Amazon, Gold Box Deals.

See, especially, Onkyo TX-RZ610 7.2 Channel Network A/V Receiver.

Also, Shop American Flags.

And, Cutter Backwoods Insect Repellent (Aerosol) (HG-26283) (Twin Pack) (11 oz.).

Plus, Shop Camping Equipment.

Here, AmazonBasics Apple Certified Lightning to USB Cable - 6 Feet (1.8 Meters), White.

More, Shop Kitchen & Housewares.

Still more, Haribo Gummi Candy, Original Gold-Bears, 5-Ounce Bags (Pack of 12).

BONUS: Ernst Jünger, Storm of Steel.

Eugene B. Sledge, With the Old Breed

*BUMPED.*

At Amazon, E.B. Sledge, With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa.

Sharyl Attkisson, The Smear

*BUMPED.*

At Amazon, Sharyl Attkisson, The Smear: How Shady Political Operatives and Fake News Control What You See, What You Think, and How You Vote.

Mia Kang Leaves Nothing to the Imagination in Mexico (VIDEO)

Watch, "Mia Kang's 'Vajazzle' Leaves Nothing To The Imagination in Mexico - Sports Illustrated Swimsuit."

California Democrats Plunge Into 'Civil War'

Heh.

I love this.

It was bound to happen sooner or later.

At Politico, "In the wake of Donald Trump's election, progressives are demanding the party move more aggressively on a variety of issues":

LOS ANGELES — Long-standing tensions between the Democratic Party’s moderate and liberal wings have ignited in California, where progressive activists are redirecting their anger over Donald Trump and congressional Republicans toward Democratic leaders at home.

Stoked by a contested race for state Democratic Party chair and the failure of a single-payer health care bill, activists are staging protests at the capitol. Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon reported receiving death threats after shelving the health care legislation late last month, and security was tightened at the statehouse after activists disrupted a floor session last week.

The rancor, a spillover from the contentious Democratic presidential primary last year, is aggravating divisions in a state regarded nationally as a lodestar for the liberal cause. Establishment Democrats fear the rhetoric and appetite for new spending could go too far, jeopardizing the party’s across-the-board dominance of state politics.

All of it has taken on new significance as California embraces its role as the focal point of the anti-Trump resistance.

“We’re on the same team,” said Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer, chairman of the Assembly’s progressive caucus. “We should not be fighting one another. We should argue with one another. … It should not devolve into something where it could tear the party apart.”

California established itself as a fortress of the opposition immediately after Trump’s election, with Democrats advancing high-profile legislation to defy the new president on climate change and immigration.

But progressives who have long agitated for more spending on social services and for stricter environmental and campaign finance rules believed that they might seize the post-Trump moment for other causes, too. Despite victories on a range of issues here in recent years, liberal activists have fallen short in other areas, unsettling progressives across the country who view California as a state in which they should be racking up wins...

This is especially interesting since Governor Brown has tacked to the hard left, positioning himself as the progressive left's main antagonist to President Trump, especially on, ahem, "climate change." See, "As Trump Steps Back, Jerry Brown Talks Climate Change in China," and "Jerry Brown Announces a Climate Summit Meeting in California."

The revolution inevitable eats its own. Governor Brown can't stop the anarcho-communist hoards agitating for the revolution.

Linda Sarsour Denies Call to Take 'Vaginas Away' From Brigitte Gabriel and Ayaan Ali Hirsi

I saw folks retweeting this Legal Insurrection post last night, "Linda Sarsour’s Little Lie about her vile attack on Ayaan Hirsi Ali is a Big Deal."

Sarsour's vile. Extremely nasty.




She published an op-ed yesterday at WaPo, "Islamophobes are attacking me because I’m their worst nightmare."

I responded on Twitter, here and here.

See also, Lee Smith, at the Tablet, "Linda Sarsour’s Jihad."