Teaching Hatred and Profanity in Wisconsin

At Michelle's, "Photo gallery: What Big Labor protesters are teaching kids (language warning)."

And this one below from Gateway Pundit, "Hey-Hey, Ho-Ho, This Is What Thugocracy Looks Like – More Leftist Hate at Madison Rally":

Andrew Breitbart Speaks in Madison

At Instapundit, "ANDREW BREITBART AT THE MADISON TEA PARTY RALLY TODAY":

I'll be updating with Breitbart's speech, and more ...

Doctors Writing 'Doctor's Notes' for Wisconsin Protesters Who Missed Work

Ann Althouse will be updating:

I went down to the demonstration, to get today's share of abuse, and I've got lots of new photos and video from today's demonstration/counter-demonstration, including video of the Tea Party group, audio of Andrew Breitbart speaking, my encounter with the Dane County police who strictly narrowed the entrance to the Tea Party section, and a group of doctors who offering to write doctor's notes for people who'd missed work.

And Michelle's got killer coverage, "Badger State Battle: Unions vs. Tea Party in Wisconsin; Runaway Dems could be AWOL “for weeks;” recall campaigns launched; nine anti-Walker protesters arrested; fake doctors’ notes for fake sick teachers (VIDEO)":

Majority of Americans Against Public Employee Unions

Here's this from CBS News, "Lawmaker: Gov's plan has torn Wisconsin apart" (via Memeorandum). State Senator Jon Erpenbach is cited there, and he's at this AP clip:

Gov. Scott Walker is destroying neither the unions nor the state of Wisconsin. We're in tough economic times, but there's more to the union backlash. It's also the thuggery and authoritarianism that's central to the progressives' political agenda. Gov. Walker nailed it yesterday when he said that by fleeing the state, Democrat state senators had broken their vows to the people and the public good. From President Obama on down, progressives have excoriated Gov. Walker, often using the exact same Hitler comparison the leftist media exploited to marginalize the tea parties.

This is unconscionable, as Rep. Michele Bachmann warned. We're at the tipping point in American politics, and the backlash is growing. A new survey has the numbers: "Clarus Research Group: Clarus Poll: 64% of voters oppose government employee unions":

WASHINGTON -- As President Obama has joined the political battle in Wisconsin that pits Republican Gov. Scott Walker against public employee unions, a nationwide Clarus Poll finds that a substantial majority of Americans believe government employees should not be able to belong to labor unions. In the Clarus Poll, sixty-four percent of voters polled said government employees should not be represented by unions. Twenty-nine percent of voters said government employees should be represented by labor unions that bargain for higher pay, benefits and pensions.

The full pdf is here: "CLARUS POLL: 64% OF VOTERS OPPOSE GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE UNIONS WISCONSIN FIGHT SPOTLIGHTS ISSUE."

It's interesting that even MFM outlets are getting the message. At Los Angeles Times, "Unions Losing Their Grip in Stronghold":

The bill proposed in Wisconsin to remove collective bargaining rights from government workers is similar to measures advancing in other Rust Belt states. Such battles are part of a nationwide backlash.

The pampered nature of public employees is obviously not helping their cause. See Astute Bloggers, "TEACHERS IN WISCONSIN MAKE MORE THAN TWICE THE PER CAPITA INCOME OF THEIR FELLOW WISCONSINITES." And Jennifer Rubin responds to the left's attacks on Gov. Walker, "Who's been overreaching?":

Walker's proposal to limit collective bargaining rights of public employees is bold but hardly original. Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels did the same thing. A similar effort is underway in Tennessee.

I would suggest it is not Walker who has gone too far, but public employee unions who for years have ruled the roost in many blue states. The voters sent a signal last November not only to Washington, but to Madison, Lansing, Columbus and elsewhere. We're going to see whether their will, or the ambitions of union leaders, prevails.

See also, Phil Boehmke, "Wisconsin Madness as Seen by the ‘Little People’."

Okay, a little roundup of today's developments:

Ann Althouse warns against outside activist seizing the spotlight in Wisconsin: "There's a Tea Party rally in Wisconsin today — pro-Scott Walker — and I'm a bit wary," and "'Keep our protest CIVIL/Don't become Incited/THE NATION IS WATCHING/And so are our children!'."

Well, let's hope she's not too prescient: "Bloggers For Peace Flotilla Arrived In Madison…SITUATION TENSE…UPDATE: Thousands of Walker’s Supporters Are Here!"

And from Glenn Reynolds: "READER BOB WIRKA SENDS THIS PICTURE from the Madison Tea Party rally in support of Gov. Walker."

RELATED: At Big Government, "'Winning the Future' Means Winning in Madison."

Expect updates ...

What's at Stake in Wisconsin's Budget Battle

From John Fund, at WSJ, "Who's in charge of our political system—voters or unions?":

This week President Obama was roundly criticized, even by many of his allies, for submitting a federal budget that actually increases our already crushing deficit. But that didn't stop him Thursday from jumping into Wisconsin's titanic budget battle. He accused the new Republican governor, Scott Walker, of launching an "assault" on unions with his emergency legislation aimed at cutting the state budget.

The real assault this week was led by Organizing for America, the successor to President's Obama's 2008 campaign organization. It helped fill buses of protesters who flooded the state capital of Madison and ran 15 phone banks urging people to call state legislators ....

The labor laws that Wisconsin unions are so bitterly defending were popular during an era of industrialization and centralization. But the labor organizations they protect have become much less popular, as the declining membership of many private-sector unions attests. Moreover, it's become abundantly clear that too many government workers enjoy wages, benefits and pensions that are out of line with the rest of the economy.

Mr. Walker's argument—that public workers shouldn't be living high off the hog at the expense of taxpayers—is being made in other states facing budget crises. But the left observed the impact of the tea party last year and seems determined to unleash a more aggressive version of its own by teaming up with union allies. Organizing for America is already coordinating protests against proposed reforms in Ohio, Michigan and Missouri.

It's thuggery.

Be sure to read Michelle's essay, "Apocalypse Now: Wisconsin vs. Big Labor."

And the best coverage overall is at Althouse. She's literally all over it.

A Watershed Moment for Public-Sector Unions

At New York Times:

In the half century since Wisconsin became the first state to give its public workers the right to bargain collectively, government employee unions have mushroomed in size and power — so much so that they now account for more than half of the nation’s union members.

But the legislative push by Wisconsin’s new governor, Scott Walker, a Republican, to slash the collective bargaining rights of his state’s public employees could prove a watershed for public-sector unions, perhaps signaling the beginning of a decline in their power — both at the bargaining table and in politics.

Three-fourths of the states allow collective bargaining by some or all of state or local government employees. And labor’s friends and foes alike agree that if the Wisconsin legislation passes, it will create momentum for similar bills in Ohio, Indiana and other states.

“These kinds of high-profile public-employee battles have enormous stakes,” said Benjamin Sachs, a professor of labor law at Harvard. “We’re still feeling the consequences of President Reagan confronting the union in the air controllers’ strike. For anyone interested in union rights, the fight in Wisconsin couldn’t be more important.”

From Florida to California, many political leaders are seeking to cut the wages and benefits of public-sector workers to help balance strained budgets.

But Mr. Walker is going far beyond that, seeking to definitively curb the power of government unions in his state. He sees public-employee unions as a bane to the taxpayer because they demand — and often win — generous health and pension plans that help push up taxes and drive budget deficits higher.

To end that cycle, he wants to restrict the unions to bargaining over just one topic, base wages, while eliminating their ability to deal over health care, working hours and vacations. Moreover, he wants to require unions to win an employee election every year to continue representing workers.

RTWT.

Clearly, organized labor understands the stakes, and progressives have met the challenge with some of the most despicable thuggery in generations. And at the clip above, Gov. Walker's press conference is followed by a segment from MSNBC's Ed Schultz show. Folks obviously know the MSNBC line, but notice how they're rooting for the AWOL Democrat state senators to "hold out" as long as they can to prevent legislative passage. It's almost like something from Egyptian state-run media.

Ronald Reagan Greatest President, New Gallup Poll Finds

Amazing: "Americans Say Reagan Is the Greatest U.S. President" (via Memeorandum).

'They Should Spellcheck the Hell Out of Their Signs'

That was Althouse yesterday, "Is anybody going to apologize for laughing at "Teabonics" — the misspellings on Tea Party signs? I mean, this is a demonstration for unionized teachers. They should spellcheck the hell out of their signs."

I think the sheer stupidity of the protesters magnified Ann's radar. At the photo below, from today's protests, the man's holding an anti-Scott Walker sign likening the Wisconsin governor to Joseph Stalin, but he spells SCOTT STALIN with the runic SS insignia of the Nazi Schutzstaffel. Ann's got video as well. The guy justifies this by arguing that he's throwing all of history's dictators into a "melting pot." And no doubt Governor Walker's right up there:

And here, Ann notes, "I asked the woman if by "Dread Scott" — evoking the Dred Scott case — she meant to suggest a connection between Scott Walker and the era of slavery. She said "Of course."

And lots more from Grant Jones, "Obama/Democrat's 'New Civility'" and Instapundit.

Plus, at Marooned in Marin, "Obama Astroturfers Behind Uncivil Protests In Wisconsin; Counter Protest Planned for Saturday," and Gateway Pundit, "Join Andrew Breitbart, Herman Cain & Jim Hoft at Wisconsin Freedom Rally to Support Scott Walker Saturday."

Michele Bachmann: 'This is Outrageous, Beyond Conscionable'

Jeff Poor has the full report at Daily Caller.

Rep. Bachmann hammers both the derelict Wisconsin public unions and the Obama-Democrat-OFA thugs now raping the democracy:

“They have the support of the White House, but I don’t believe they have the support of the people of Wisconsin,” Bachmann said. “Remember what we’re talking about. These are public servants. They serve the people of Wisconsin. In Greece, for instance, we saw beneficiaries of government checks who took to the streets because the retirement age was going to be raised from 61 to 63. In this instance, [Fox Business Network host] Eric Bolling was on earlier, showing this is simply a contribution being asked to pay for part of their health insurance, not even the full part that the private sector counterparts pay for, and part of their pension. This is something that happens every day in the private sector. So now we are at the tipping point. This debate needed to come. It’s good that it came. What’s shocking is that the White House is weighing in, taking sides, and bringing in a campaign apparatus to set this up.

Plus, at Hot Air, "Video: Union activist demands Walker “come to the table” on CNN, but …"

PREVIOUSLY: "Socialist Public Employees Call for Revolution in Wisconsin."

Socialist Public Employees Call for Revolution in Wisconsin

These folks are from International Socialist Organization, revolutionary Trotskyites committed to global anti-capitalist struggle. What's fascinating is how the lady speaks about how "all of our members" are up every morning organizing for the dictatorship of the proletariat. That's amazing, since I thought we only had imaginary communists in America:

So with that, here's a roundup of reports that you won't be seeing in the Democrat-Media-Industrial-Complex.

First, check Ed Morrissey, "WSJ: Unions about power, not democracy." There's good commentary and a link to "Athens in Mad Town, at the Wall Street Journal:

For Americans who don't think the welfare state riots of France or Greece can happen here, we recommend a look at the union and Democratic Party spectacle now unfolding in Wisconsin ...

The battle of Mad Town is a seminal showdown over whether government union power can be tamed, and overall government reined in. The alternative is higher taxes until the middle class is picked clean and the U.S. economy is no longer competitive. Voters said in November that they want reform, and Mr. Walker is trying to deliver. We hope Republicans hold firm, and that the people of Wisconsin understand that this battle is ultimately about their right to self-government.

There's also a wonderful background report from Stephen Hayes, at Weekly Standard, "Scott Walker vs. Public Sector Unions." The proposed reforms are moderate and Wisconsin public employee benefit contributions would be smaller than the national average. But get this:

... beyond the thousands of protesters in Madison, several hundred protesters even showed up at Walker’s personal home in Wauwatosa to register their displeasure with his leadership (and, perhaps, intimidate his family).

It's thuggery. Michelle has more, "Apocalypse Now: Wisconsin vs. Big Labor; Plus: More out-of-state union recruiting & another teacher speaks up for Walker; police order for AWOL Dems." The entire essay's a gem, and that's not even mentioning the fabulous updates. More on those later. Plus, John Hawkins reports that Speaker John Boehner's house is also being targeted by progressive terrorists: "Call The Civility Police: Liberal Threats and Violence Surge."

Now let's go to Ann Althouse, "I went down to the demonstration this morning... just now..." She'll be uploading, so check back over there. And check the succinctly awesome William Jacobson's essay, "Gadsden Flag Bad, Egypt Flag Good." And I couldn't agree more, "Obama Acted Stupidly In Picking Sides Against The Taxpayers."

I'll have updates this afternoon. Michele Bachmann is speaking with Megyn Kelly as this post goes live. She says: "This is outrageous... now we are at the tipping point."

RELATED: From Doug Ross, "Top 15 Photos From the Wisconsin Hate Rallies You'll Never See in Legacy Media."

Conservatives Don't Need to Cheat or Break the Law to Win the War of Ideas.

This is from the Heritage Foundation, discussing David Rivkin, lead attorney in the multi-state lawsuit challenging Obamacare, "Lead Lawyer Challenging Obamacare Under Cyber Attack." Rivkin's come under a vicious denial-of-service attack from hacktivists in the WikiLeaks mold. As we've seen around here, communists and progressives (and faux-conservative pedophiles) can't win in the realm of ideas, so they resort to thuggery and intimidation.

More on this later ...

Julie Henderson: 'The Strangest Thing You Have to Do Is Bodypainting'

Oh boy!

Readers will no doubt be anxiously awaiting the full-length clips:

CNN Refuses to Cave to Media Matters' Ongoing Crusade to Blacklist the Right

Great piece from John Nolte, at Big Journalism:

Something strange happened today. Something, in fact, I never thought was possible. I not only gained some respect for a cable news network not named FOX, but I have, of all organizations, the George Soros-funded, 501(c)(3) Media Matters to thank for it. In Media Matters never-ending crusade to purify the news into their unholy Leftist vision, we here at the Bigs all knew that once our very own Dana Loesch was hired by CNN as a political contributor, that Soros’ minions would then set out to do what they always do, and that’s find a way to convince CNN to drop her. We didn’t know how they would go about it, we just knew that they would. Because attempting to blacklist conservatives off the air is their specialty.

RTWT.

CPAC Boots GOProud

Specifically, new ACU President Al Cardenas has announced that CPAC will screen sponsoring groups for next year's event. See David Weigel, "CPAC Will Prohibit Pro-Gay Marriage, Anti-DADT Sponsors in 2012." Also, at Towleroad, "CPAC Chair Al Cardenas: GOProud Can Come to CPAC, But They Must Drop Support for All Gay Rights Measures":

Says Cardenas:

"It's got nothing to do with your orientation. It's got to do with the principles that you advocate. There are a number of gays in America who don't advocate gays in the military issue or gay marriage. And so they'll fit within the tent of what we stand for...It's not that easy. It's complicated. But we'll do our best to be inclusive while at the same time adhering to the principles that Ronald Reagan dreamed about and we've been following."

Personally, I'm glad. And perhaps they'll screen pro-pedophile conservatives as well. A number of folks were practically tongue-bathing Alex Knepper, but hey, lots of political correctness is raging on the right these days, so what the heck. Wouldn't want to offend supporters of CHILF-lusting Bieber fans.

Wisconsin Protests and Progressive Civility

Behold the new age civil discourse in Wisconsin, c/o Althouse, "After all those efforts to paint Tea Partiers as using violent images and rhetoric, these pictures from Madison have got to hurt":

Photos at the link.

Plus, lots more at Memeorandum, especially: "DNC playing role in Wisconsin protests." And lots of coverage at Michelles, "Watch Wisconsin, Part III: A state government employee speaks; Madison schools, plus 7 other districts shut down a second day; Michael Moore says Wisconsin is the “new Cairo;” Dems boycott legis. debate."

Robert Spencer Slams Michael Ghouse on Hannity's

I watched this the other night.

Via Atlas Shrugs and NewsReal, "Robert Spencer Frustrates Muslim Brotherhood Apologist on Hannity":

And from the comments at Atlas:

Shawna said...

Can you say SMACK DOOOOOOOOWN?? Dayum. Robert Spencer brought the heat. And stayed calm while the other dude spun out of control and got all tied up in knots. I LOVE IT!!

Race Minstrels? My Reply to Chauncey DeVega

I read Chauncey DeVega's sick racist screed earlier: "Black History Month is Herman Cain Playing the Race Minstrel for CPAC." The piece is puerile yet vicious, and while it's tempting to ignore such rants as typical race-baiting of the progressive left, there was something that went above and beyond in this case. Disparaging Herman Cain as a "monkey in the window" is the kind of language one might expect from KKK members in the 1960s. But here this is coming from an author who's bio shows a body of publications in some of the left's most prominent progressive outlets. Thus, DeVega's racism is a perfect window into the deep disturbing psychologies of the Obama-Democrat cult of racial exploitation. It's a spectacle, and the critical reaction has been quite forceful. See David Weigel, for example, "Herman Cain Shall Overcome."

What's especially noteworthy to me is how DeVega's attacks form a broadside against the entire black conservative establishment. Herman Cain was the immediate target, but he served as the initial race "mascot" for DeVega's slurs against the whole GOP infrastructure. The piece was so provocative even Alternet thought a disclaimer was warranted in introducing DeVega's follow up, "On Chauncey DeVega's Herman Cain Post." I doubt this was the editors' intentions, but I appreciate the acknowledgment that a racist screed of this magnitude has nevertheless evinced little outrage on the left:

We understand that some are offended by DeVega's choice of words. We note, however, that most of the consternation generated by DeVega's post has come from right-wing supporters of Cain who have focused on the language of his post and not the substance of his claim that Cain lends cover to reactionary right-wing forces.

One of most widely understood aspects of Obama-era poltics is the left's endless resort to the race card as the last hope of any kind of political viability. Perhaps it serves as a dog whistle to racial victimologists on the left, but progressive racism hasn't served Democrats well over the last couple years. So you'd think Alternet would repudiate its own author. Instead they've doubled-down, as Confederate Yankee snarks: "Alternet Doubles Down on Bigoted Accusation that Black Conservatives are Race Traitors."

The entire concept of a group owing fealty to a specific political party due to their genetic makeup is entirely offensive to any thinking person, but that is precisely the argument Chauncey DeVega made earlier this week, and one that leftist web site AlterNet and its writer continue to support.

In my original post, I referred to Herman Cain and other black conservatives as "race minstrels" and "mascots" for the White conservative imagination. I stand by this observation.

DeVega's vivid bigotry is his own cross to bear. what is less clear is why Alternet is tolerant of such myopic rhetoric.

Confederate Yankee block quotes the precise passage that convinced me to respond to DeVega. I'm not only one of those "other black conservatives," but I stood with both Hermain Cain and Allen West at CPAC. The opportunity to do so was the high point of the conference.

At this point I'm simply in contempt. No doubt DeVega speaks volumes for progressives, given the left's silence in light of these allegations. And the reason is obvious: People like Herman Cain, Allen West and myself stand for conservative principles. We demand both equal opportunity and equal respect. We want a country that values individual initiative and guarantees that people of all backgrounds can pursue their dreams of happiness to the best of their abilities. The nation's founders laid the vision. Herman Cain, Allen West and others are living it. The question for me is how any confident, intelligent and morally upstanding black American could possibly endorse that kind of outrageous racist sentiment in this day and age. Perhaps it's just retail race-card politics. But when folks like DeVega demonstrate an encyclopedic knowledge of Jim Crow stereotypes and attack rhetoric, it's quite revealing of the extent that America has not yet overcome. Progressives are holding this country back. It's the color of your skin that matters, whether you identify with and belong to group consciousness organizations, rather than identify with American individualism and liberty. It's pretty easy for me to choose up sides. The patriotic thing is to stand with those who fight to destroy racial classes and hierarchies. Indeed, the pathologies espoused by the likes of DeVega are beyond revolting, but un-American. I reject the poltics of the progressive plantation, and I join in might with other upstanding blacks working for a better future.

More from Matt Welch, "Onward and Upward with Racial Tolerance" (via Mememorandum).

Obama's Egypt Debacle

A great piece, from Niall Ferguson, at Newsweek, "Obama's Egypt and Foreign Policy Failures":

President Obama in front of the Sphinx during a tour of the Great Pyramids of Giza following his Cairo speech in June 2009.

“The statesman can only wait and listen until he hears the footsteps of God resounding through events; then he must jump up and grasp the hem of His coat, that is all.” Thus Otto von Bismarck, the great Prussian statesman who united Germany and thereby reshaped Europe’s balance of power nearly a century and a half ago.

Last week, for the second time in his presidency, Barack Obama heard those footsteps, jumped up to grasp a historic opportunity … and missed it completely.

In Bismarck’s case it was not so much God’s coattails he caught as the revolutionary wave of mid-19th-century German nationalism. And he did more than catch it; he managed to surf it in a direction of his own choosing. The wave Obama just missed—again—is the revolutionary wave of Middle Eastern democracy. It has surged through the region twice since he was elected: once in Iran in the summer of 2009, the second time right across North Africa, from Tunisia all the way down the Red Sea to Yemen. But the swell has been biggest in Egypt, the Middle East’s most populous country.

In each case, the president faced stark alternatives. He could try to catch the wave, Bismarck style, by lending his support to the youthful revolutionaries and trying to ride it in a direction advantageous to American interests. Or he could do nothing and let the forces of reaction prevail. In the case of Iran, he did nothing, and the thugs of the Islamic Republic ruthlessly crushed the demonstrations. This time around, in Egypt, it was worse. He did both—some days exhorting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to leave, other days drawing back and recommending an “orderly transition.”

The result has been a foreign-policy debacle. The president has alienated everybody: not only Mubarak’s cronies in the military, but also the youthful crowds in the streets of Cairo. Whoever ultimately wins, Obama loses. And the alienation doesn’t end there. America’s two closest friends in the region—Israel and Saudi Arabia—are both disgusted. The Saudis, who dread all manifestations of revolution, are appalled at Washington’s failure to resolutely prop up Mubarak. The Israelis, meanwhile, are dismayed by the administration’s apparent cluelessness.

Last week, while other commentators ran around Cairo’s Tahrir Square, hyperventilating about what they saw as an Arab 1989, I flew to Tel Aviv for the annual Herzliya security conference. The consensus among the assembled experts on the Middle East? A colossal failure of American foreign policy.

More at the link.

And yes, a colossal failure. Maybe Kevin Robbins will get a clue and just STFU.

Dana Loesch Speaks on New Media at CPAC

I'm pleased to find the video. Dana was passionate. At the conclusion, I stood to ask a question of the panel, but the event was out of time. Tabitha Hale and others spoke first, and there were some mixed messages that could have been clarified. But as a stand alone speech, this was very effective:

Committee to Draft Donald Trump in 2012

Draft Trump 2012 sent me the press release, and it's also at Daily Caller, "Will the Donald trade Mar-a-Lago for the White House? New ‘Draft Trump’ committee launches for 2012."

Trump's appearance at CPAC was amazing, as I reported at the time, "Donald Trump Disses Ron Paul!" But he made some foreign policy comments the other day that were disturbing. See Gateway Pundit, "You’re Fired!… Donald Trump Says America’s “Longest War” Was a Mistake (Video)."

He should run, though. He might shake up the race and entrepreneurial background could have a beneficial influence some of the other candidates.

Alex Knepper Contacts My College in Campaign of Workplace Harassment

I have not spoken to or communicated with Alex Knepper since last Saturday night. As I reported earlier, I called out Knepper as he crashed the bloggers' lounge at CPAC. It turns out that a woman named Amy Miller came to Knepper's defense on Twitter yesterday. It got heated. Miller blocked me by the end of the exchange. And she may have sent tweets to Knepper, and here's one of his replies:

Somehow Knepper's gotten the idea that he's being "cyberstalked."

Today he e-mailed my department chairman with a long and desperate rant, I'm told, alleging cyberstalking by me and David Swindle, Editor of NewsReal Blog. And once again, while I have not received a copy of the complaint, it's been indicated that outside contacts of this nature constitute threats to freedom of speech and are simply intolerable. Frankly, this is what leftists do. They can't defend themselves in the public realm, so they launch campaigns of workplace intimidation. This happened with David Hillman of The Swash Zone, E.D. Kain of Ordinary Gentlemen, RepRacist3 of AmericanNihilist, and now Knepper, who was formerly a premiere blogger at faux-conservative David Frum's website.

That said, Knepper's complaint was apparently so unhinged that it raised questions of campus safety. I notified my division dean, and I sent Alex Knepper a request for a copy of the e-mail. Here's the exchange, in personal off-campus communications:

Alex:

Please send me a copy of the e-mail you sent to my department chair. Send it to me directly.

You are making false allegations of "cyber stalking". On the contrary, by contacting my college you have launched a campaign of workplace intimidation that threatens my First Amendment rights, my safety, and the safety of the students, staff, faculty, and administration at my college.

Send the e-mail directly to me. I will respond to your allegations. And if necessary I'll take appropriate legal action.

Donald

*****

apkkib@aol.com to me
show details 3:23 PM (34 minutes ago)

Donald,

If you swear to me today that you will never contact me again, never write another post about me in your entire life, and remove all posts about me that you have written on your blog, I will cease my attempts at working through your employer to make you leave me alone.

It is absolutely preposterous to claim that a private e-mail sent to your department head threatens your First Amendment rights or the safety of you or your students. This is clearly an attempt to intimidate me out of taking the action necessary to stop you and your NewsRealBlog colleagues' cyberstalking of me.

I am under no legal or moral obligation to show you anything that I sent. You know what your actions are, and if you have done nothing illegal or unethical, then you should have nothing to worry about. Right?

Again: if you vow to never write another word about me, and to remove the posts that you have previously written, I will cease my actions. If not, I have no choice but to take this route. I feel like I have no other way to make you leave me and those I care about (including my mother, who you also made a remark about) alone.

Alex

PS -- It's not legal to take pictures of other people without their permission and post them to the Internet. Just sayin'.

*****

Alex:

I blog as a private citizen and you're facing legal consequences if you continue to contact my college. You are not the first to do so. The attorneys for the college have already been involved. What happens between you and me is a private matter. The college wants nothing to do with what I do as a blogger and citizen journalist, and the college has no power to compel me to stop reporting on you or anyone else. On the other hand, YOU are engaged in workplace harassment and intimidation. The administration will have you investigated and charged if you continue to harass me, the faculty, staff or students, and I will personally file a cease and desist order with the police. Security precautions with respect to you are being taken on campus at this time, so this is very serious.

All communications are to be with me. And you should educate yourself on the law. You have no expectation of privacy in a public place, and no permission is required to photograph you or publish your pictures.

So, again deal with me directly. And either way, if you persist in any attempt to threaten my employment or quash my First Amendment rights you will subject yourself to legal action.

Donald

******

This isn't about your politics. This doesn't have anything to do with your so-called "journalism" or your politics. We agree on more issues than we disagree on; why would this be about your blogging? This isn't about "reporting." No...this is about your continued harassment of me -- libeling me as a "pedophile," making nasty comments about my mother, calling my friends "pedophile conservatives," posting my Facebook pictures and correspondence without my permission, taking secret photographs of me and posting them on your blog (legal or not, it's incredibly disturbing, given your voyeur fetish, which you admitted to on your blog), publicly confronting and intimidating me (and earning the scorn of several of the other bloggers there). This is ongoing, and it has to stop.

Your legal threats are baseless and are meant only to further intimidate me. You know as well as I do that it is utterly preposterous to claim that I, living 3,000 miles away from you, pose any threat to anyone on your campus for reporting your harassment of me. And speaking of needing to be educated on the law: your 1st Amendment rights end when it comes to libel, Douglas: there is an actual legal and psychiatric definition of 'pedophilia,' and I do not meet the criteria. You have objectively libeled me, and continue to do so -- and I have received an offer from a DC-area lawyer to file suit. It's a slam-dunk case.

This doesn't need to escalate. I am willing to agree right here, right now to never utter another word about you in my entire life if you are willing to do the same. Vow to never write another word about me, and I will never contact you, your employer, or your affiliates ever again.

Alex

*****

Alex

My college has indeed taken action, risk preventative and police/security services, to protect against your threats to the safety of the institution. Your e-mail to my department chairman was desperate and hysterical. It goes to your state of mind and has resulted in a heightened state of alert on campus. DO NOT DISCOUNT MY WARNINGS. Your distance is irrelevant. You could hop and plane and obtain a weapon in California. That is the possible contingency. You are disturbed. You pose a risk to others. And you will cease and desist from involving my place of employment, which is workplace harassment. Be prepared for legal consequences if you ignore these warnings. And if you're proceeding with a libel suit, then have your attorneys contact me directly. You are attempting to suppress legitimate speech, and your frivolous claims are of personal nature, against me, not my public place of employment. This is a campaign of harassment with a deleterious public effect. You are now infringing on the lawful function of a public California college and you must stop.

Donald

David Horowitz Outs Jihadist Suhail Khan at CPAC

From Robert Spencer, at FrontPage Magazine:

[Editor’s note: Below is Robert Spencer's analysis of the recent debate between David Horowitz and Suhail Khan on Hannity -- which Spencer shows successfully smoked out Khan as an Islamic supremacist. See also Frank Gaffney's memorandum for members of the board of directors of the American Conservative Union about Khan. Gaffney has also written previous pieces on Frontpagemag.com exposing Grover Norquist's and Suhail Khan's troubling connections. Paul Sperry has produced a recent Frontpage piece as well: Who is Suhail Khan?]

A sidelight, but a momentous one, of this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) was the ongoing controversy over the connections of CPAC Board members Grover Norquist and Suhail Khan to the Muslim Brotherhood. David Horowitz detailed many of the troubling connections between Khan and the Brotherhood during his CPAC address; when challenged directly about this, Khan declared flatly: “There is no Muslim Brotherhood in the United States.” Sean Hannity had both Horowitz and Khan on his radio show Monday for a contentious half-hour of charge and counter-charge that often generated more heat than light; however, when the dust settled it was clear that Khan had not answered many of Horowitz’s most serious charges – and that CPAC, and the conservative movement in general, have a formidable problem in the Islamic supremacists and Islamic supremacist enablers in their midst.

RTWT at the link.

Reactions to Lara Logan's Sexual Assault in Egypt

If the crime is rape, expect the most obscene responses to it, from both left and right. I frankly was horrified by the story, and needed more information. But that wasn't the case for many others. Jeffrey Goldberg offers this:

Nir Rosen, the far-left journalist who joked about the sexual assault on Lara Logan, has company: Debbie Schlussel, the extreme right-wing commentator. Rosen calls for the elimination of Israel, and is a pro-Hamas Hezbollah apologist; Schlussel is a racist anti-Muslim commentator. They come from radically different places on the political spectrum, and yet they share a common inhumanity.

And from Jim Geraghty, Rosen's been fired: "NYU Accepts Rosen’s Resignation." To which Ron Kampeas responds: "What about Debbie Schlussel?"

And despite the fact of Rosen's extreme left views, Markos Moultisas tweets: "Nothing like rape to really bring out the worst in conservatism."

Anyway, my friend Dave in Boca left a comment yesterday:

I am/was a State Dept FSO trained as an Arabist and lived in four Arab countries. I’ve visited Egypt several dozen times both as a USG diplomat and afterwards as a Political Risk Analyst for Amoco, the largest foreign corporation in Egypt. What happened to Lara is absolutely inexcusable, but the photo shows her heading into the crowd without a shawl or scarf, the bare minimum a woman must wear in order not to be considered a prostitute when she walks in the streets of Cairo. TV snaps of Christiane Amanpour show her wearing a shawl/scarf when she was in a public street situation. Americans are notoriously [indeed all Brit Empire Anglos seem to be] very disrespectful or ignorant of foreign customs, just as a matter of course. Strange as it may seem to us Americans, Lara may have been perceived by the animals who attacked her as disrespecting Egyptian customs, flaunting a feminist agenda, or even taunting them by wearing inappropriate [to their eyes] apparel in a public situation. That’s the way the minds of these medieval males work.

RELATED: From Howard Kurtz, "Lara Logan's Egypt Nightmare" (via Memeorandum).

And at The Other McCain, "Paging Jill Filopovic."

Blogging Teacher Natalie Munroe Defends Critical Comments About Students

The AP story is here: "Embattled teacher: Blog spoke truth about pupils." Some cached blog posts are here: "CB East teacher suspended for blog investigation." And a sample, "A Big Problem Today":

My students are out of control. They are rude, disengaged, lazy whiners. They curse, discuss drugs, talk back, argue for grades, complain about everything, fancy themselves entitled to whatever they desire, and are just generally annoying.

Well, yeah. The problem is that as teachers we sign up to deal with that, and hopefully role-model better attitudes. That said, it's hard out there.

See as well, at WPVI-TV Philadelphia, "CB East teacher defends blog posts."

Plus, Monroe's got a report at the blog: "Bloggate - Day 1: The Scandal Begins":

See, what I'd done was written a casual blog. I talked about everything--such exciting topics as our trip to Sesame Place, my favorite (and least favorite) restaurants, my work experiences, the diaper genie. I had 9 followers--2 of whom were my husband and myself, the other 7 were friends. When I started it, my goal was to write 1-3 times a week, though I didn't usually have time to do it that much. I ended up writing 84 blogs between 8/9/09 and 11/25/10. (I remember that, at one point, my track of blogging was about equal with my gym-going, but my gym-going eventually surpassed my blog track. I went there religiously at least 3 times a week until my morning sickness started...) I slowed down at the end, writing only about 10 blogs between June and November. I was too busy with being pregnant, teaching a new curriculum, and being harassed at school to write anything between November and February.

Hillary Clinton in Harper's Bazaar

The Public Relations Office at Hearst Magazines sent me its new piece from Harper's Bazaar, "Hillary Clinton: Myth and Reality." It's an interesting interview, for example:

She seems resigned to gender being an issue in politics. "Being a serious candidate for president as a woman brought out all the stuff that still exists about that," she says. "Some of it was personal, some of it was gender based, and you kind of accept it. I think that if you live long enough, you realize that so much of what happens in life is out of your control, but how you respond to it is in your control. That's what I try to remember."

And while I'm on this, Clinton's State Department has release an action memo today, "Internet Rights and Wrongs: Choices & Challenges in a Networked World."

Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2011: Get Ready for Rule 5 Power-Blogging!

I'm behind on Rule 5 blogging, but things are looking up with the new Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition:

More at American Perspective and Maggie's Notebook.

And maybe I can start getting some major linkage from R.S. McCain.

Michelle Obama, Daughters Receive Foreign Gifts

Culture of corruption.

At US News, "Michelle Obama Received $244,000 in Foreign Gifts":

The first lady has more in gifts from foreign nations than any other government official.

And at National Post, "Sasha and Malia Obama must give up $7,000 gift from Saudi Arabia."

CBS Reporter Lara Logan Sexually Assaulted During Egypt Protests — UPDATE! Debbie Schlussel Alleges Logan Had it Coming!!

At NYT, "CBS: Lara Logan Suffered ‘Brutal’ Attack in Cairo":

Lara Logan, the distinguished CBS News correspondent, was attacked and sexually assaulted by a mob in Cairo on Feb. 11, the day that the Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was forced from power, the network news division said in a statement Tuesday.

After the mob surrounded her, Ms. Logan “suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault and beating before being saved by a group of women and an estimated 20 Egyptian soldiers,” the network said.

Ms. Logan and a camera crew, along with an unknown number of security staff members, were covering the celebrations in Tahrir Square in central Cairo, where untold thousands of people had gathered. CBS said the group that enveloped Ms. Logan, “a dangerous element” within the larger crowd, numbered more than two hundred people “whipped into a frenzy.” She was separated from the crew and then attacked.

After being rescued, “she reconnected with the CBS team, returned to her hotel and returned to the United States on the first flight the next morning. She is currently in the hospital recovering,” the network said.

Also at Hot Air, "Horrendous: CBS reporter brutally sexually assaulted during Cairo protests."

*****

UPDATE: This is beneath contempt, from Debbie Schlussel:

Hey, sounds like the threats I get from American Muslims on a regular basis. Now you know what it’s like, Lara.

There will be no further comment from CBS News and Correspondent Logan and her family respectfully request privacy at this time.

I just love it when the people of the profession of “the public’s right to know” suddenly want “privacy.” Tell it to your next interview subject, Lara. Of course CBS has no further comment. Wouldn’t wanna impugn the “peacefullness” of “Religion of Peace” animals, would we? Now, if they were Christians or Jews, well, then there would be comments galore.

So sad, too bad, Lara. No one told her to go there. She knew the risks. And she should have known what Islam is all about. Now she knows. Or so we’d hope. But in the case of the media vis-a-vis Islam, that’s a hope that’s generally unanswered.

This never happened to her or any other mainstream media reporter when Mubarak was allowed to treat his country of savages in the only way they can be controlled.

Now that’s all gone. How fitting that Lara Logan was “liberated” by Muslims in Liberation Square while she was gushing over the other part of the “liberation.”

Hope you’re enjoying the revolution, Lara! Alhamdilllullah [praise allah].

Look, it's a riveting story, but in cases like this, more information is usually forthcoming. I don't read Debbie Schlussel, in any case. She's widely reviled around the conservasphere, for issues I'm only vaguely familiar with. But even in the absence of more information on exactly what took place, it's just vile to attack Lara Logan for deserving it since she chose to cover the protests for CBS. No doubt Islam has its savages, and I'm hardly the biggest bleeding heart for Muslim rabble, but to take this further as a defense of Mubarak's police state is also pretty twisted.

Atlas Shrugged

Freedom Works showed a couple of clips from Atlas Shrugged, Part I, at the "Blog Bash" last Thursday. The movie's website is here. Some will say a film can't do justice to an epic of this scale, but considering that War and Peace is probably faster reading, perhaps a movie version will be a welcomed diversion. Besides, the cinematography looks fabulous:

Why Fret? Sarah Palin Will Win GOP Nomination and She'll Beat Obama!

Nate Silver says Republicans are fretting over "the quality of their slate of presidential candidates for 2012." Perhaps, although not Jedediah Bila:

The GOP Shakeout After CPAC

I think CPAC encouraged a bit more speculation on the shape of the GOP primaries than is warranted at this point. No major prospective candidate has announced yet, although Herman Cain is making some headway among grassroots activists. There's a new poll out of the Granite State, and the subtitle's most telling: "Romney Holds Big Lead In Primary Poll: Survey Shows Most Likely Voters Still Undecided" (via Memeorandum). But don't tell that to the conservative base, according to Jennifer Rubin, for example: "Romney was big CPAC loser." And there's also this, from Frank Gaffney, "Conservative Crossroads: Return to Reagan Coalition Roots or Lose in 2012":

To all outward appearances, the just-concluded Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) was a huge success. It was attended by a large, boisterous crowd, a substantial part of which was student-age – a promising indicator of the movement’s appeal to the coming generation. A number of luminaries, including several prospective presidential candidates, addressed enthusiastic audiences clearly invigorated by last November’s successes at the polls.

CPAC’s apparent vigor, however, obscured the fact that the conservative movement is at a crossroads: Will it continue to be comprised of, and appeal to, all three elements of Ronald Reagan’s winning coalition – fiscal discipline, traditional family and other social values and a national security approach rooted in the philosophy of “peace through strength”? Or will it be reduced to a libertarian-dominated, small-government agenda which ignores or repudiates Reagan’s conservative values and robust defense platforms?

Upon the answer rests not only the future of this vital movement, but of America. For, if conservatives get this strategic question wrong, they not only are unlikely to enjoy the support of the electorate come 2012. They will not deserve that support.

Unfortunately, the evidence that libertarian impulses were ascendant at CPAC was not only to be found in the straw poll victory of their exemplar, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas. It was also apparent in who was, and who was not, participating as sponsors of the conference and/or some of its events.

The former included GOProud, Muslims for America and the so-called “Conservative Inclusion Coalition” – organizations that, in the name of “inclusiveness,” are insinuating into the conservative movement individuals and initiatives that are divisive and anathema to many who hew to Ronald Reagan’s beliefs and policies. Such sponsors include: aggressive promoters of the anti-family and pro-homosexual agenda; advocates for gambling, open borders, amnesty for illegal aliens and legalization of addictive drugs; champions of gutting the defense budget and immediately withdrawing from Afghanistan and Iraq; and people associated with Muslim Brotherhood front organizations and agendas. For example, at a panel sponsored by said Conservative Inclusion Coalition, a panelist even expressed enthusiasm for reaching out to the Nation of Islam, Louis Farakhan’s notoriously anti-semitic and increasingly radical Islamist organization.

I'd bet folks can see where Gaffney's going with this, but RTWT in any case. It's not likely Ron Paul will do any better this time around than he did in 2008, but if the larger libertarian isolationist agenda gains traction in the primaries Mitt Romney's support could tail off. So too for Sarah Palin. She's definitely in the Reagan mold, and she's destined to win a few primary contests, although not necessarily Iowa or New Hampshire. More on that at Politico, "Key 2012 early states cool to Palin."

And after that, who knows? Mitch Daniels or Haley Barbour --- or Chris Christie? Maybe Ann Coulter's got some inside game, but I'm not betting on Christie either. It's like I said above: It's way early still. Let's see some candidates throw their hats in the ring. Stuff will start to sort out a bit more by then.

Robert Stacy McCain Video Ambushed at CPAC!

This is pretty freaky, actually. It's been what, almost three months since Robert's "You buy the ticket, you take the ride" comment regarding the Julian Assange rape allegations. And Tommy Christopher's been waiting up late at night, every night, for this very moment! See, "Conservative Blogger RS ‘The Other’ McCain Apologizes for Rape Remarks."

And here's Robert's post, "I Didn’t Rape Tommy Christopher":

You wouldn’t know that, given the way he has obsessively hounded me over a single blog post I wrote in December when Julian Assange was arrested. Recognizing that my attempts to clarify were a violation of the First Law of Holes, I posted my mea culpa, dropped the subject and moved on, but Tommy remains fixated. He even brought his Mediaite camera into the smoking area at CPAC to do an “ambush” interview.

More at the link.

Strange fixation. But then, CPAC had a lot of strangeness, come to think of it.

Alex Knepper Creepy-Crawls CPAC

Some folks might recall last year's epic Alex Knepper takedown at NewsReal Blog: "David Frum and His Pro-Pedophile Protege Alex Knepper." I wasn't involved in the investigation, although knowing Alex Knepper, I did write about it at the time. And recall a couple of weeks ago I had a Facebook exchange with Knepper. The pro-pedophile faux-conservative lashed out, calling me a "malicious cunt." He deleted the thread, but by then I'd saved it. Months later, Knepper's still blaming others for an alleged smear campaign that destroyed his reputation. No doubt he's got psychiatric issues, but that's for medical professionals to sort out. Be that as it may, I can report that Knepper is one creepy dude in person. David Swindle, Editor of NewsReal Blog, informed me that Knepper was making the rounds at CPAC. I didn't think much of it, but on Saturday night I saw the pro-pedo man-boy monster up in the bloggers' lounge, and I called him out: "Hey Knepper, are you going to call me a mendacious asshole, or something?" I was actually looking for "malicious cunt" but it escaped me temporarily. But no matter. Knepper erupted into a genuine fit of horror upon seeing me. He screamed, "No ... no way!" And I said to him, "Shake my hand, Alex." But he pulled back, waving me off, "No ... no way. Get away from me. NOOOOO!! Just get away from me." And I said once more, "C'mon, shake my hand, Knepper." And then I looked at his face. He seemed, well, in that moment, a victim, which is disturbing, considering his imminent predations. I wanted to spit on him, at the least. But I walked back out of the lounge to get some refreshments. It all seemed strange, even funny; and then outside the lounge, a fellow pulled me aside and thanked me for confronting Knepper, saying "That guy is a sh*thole."

That said, I wasn't thrilled that Knepper'd parked himself in the bloggers' lounge. He's a creepy crawler, and I didn't care to be around him. My camera settings were screwed up the whole conference (my bad), but here's a blurry shot of Knepper scowling at me not long after our confrontation. And shortly after that he sat down right in front of me. I couldn't believe it, actually. And I wasn't comfortable. My camera was sitting on the table. I tilted it up a bit a clicked a picture. He was with a group of friends who had sat down near the bloggers seated next to me. Notice my laptop at the picture below, at left. Sitting there is Steven Ertelt of LifeNews.com. Next to Steven, partially obscured is Dana Loesch. And sitting next to her, talking on a cell phone, is Regis Giles, of "Girls Just Want to Have Guns" and younger sister to Hannah Giles. (Regis Giles' CPAC interview is here). Chris Loesch, husband to Dana, is seated at the end of the table. Jeff Dunetz of Yid With Lid is standing at right, with his left arm raised. Alex Knepper's back is to me in the foreground. Out of view is Tania Gail, who was seated next to me.

By this time I wasn't feeling well --- and it was time to go, in any case. No need to say anything more. If folks had known of Alex Knepper, I doubt they'd have wanted to hang with a guy who's publically declared his lust for "chilfs" ("children I'd like to f**k").

I'd have preferred to wind things down on a lighter note, but I suppose something like this was bound to happen sooner or later.

RELATED: "Axis of Pedophilia: Former Conservative David Frum Protests 'Vicious, Invasive and Outrageous' Bullying While Cutting Loose Pervy Protégé Alex Knepper."

Think Progress Fails Video Ambush of Fox News Reporter Jesse Watters

I saw Jesse Watters a couple of times during the conference, but didn't have a chance to speak to him. And I'm just seeing this now, at any rate. From Red State, "Fox reporter embarrasses Think Progress dolt at CPAC." It's really too good:

Rosaleen Tallon at CPAC Ground Zero Mosque Premiere

Okay, some of those in attendance were devastated at the emotional power of the presentations . Folks were weeping. It was quite an event. I'm going to be posting each of the videos individually, so check back later. Here's Rosaleen Tallon, the first speaker after Pamella Geller's introduction. Do yourself a favor and grab a cup of coffee. Powerful stuff:

RELATED: From last night, "CPAC and the Muslim Brotherhood."

Robert Stacy McCain at CPAC!

What would CPAC blogging be without Robert Stacy McCain, the epic schmoozer of the conference?

J.C. Penney's Black Hat Search Scheme on Google

I'd call it a search strategy, but J.C. Penney denies any knowledge of this Google link-bait scheme. Either way, read the whole thing, at NYT, "Search Optimization and Its Dirty Secrets":

Does the collective wisdom of the Web really say that Penney has the most essential site when it comes to dresses? And bedding? And area rugs? And dozens of other words and phrases?

The New York Times asked an expert in online search, Doug Pierce of Blue Fountain Media in New York, to study this question, as well as Penney’s astoundingly strong search-term performance in recent months. What he found suggests that the digital age’s most mundane act, the Google search, often represents layer upon layer of intrigue. And the intrigue starts in the sprawling, subterranean world of “black hat” optimization, the dark art of raising the profile of a Web site with methods that Google considers tantamount to cheating.

Despite the cowboy outlaw connotations, black-hat services are not illegal, but trafficking in them risks the wrath of Google. The company draws a pretty thick line between techniques it considers deceptive and “white hat” approaches, which are offered by hundreds of consulting firms and are legitimate ways to increase a site’s visibility. Penney’s results were derived from methods on the wrong side of that line, says Mr. Pierce. He described the optimization as the most ambitious attempt to game Google’s search results that he has ever seen.

“Actually, it’s the most ambitious attempt I’ve ever heard of,” he said. “This whole thing just blew me away. Especially for such a major brand. You’d think they would have people around them that would know better.”

And check Robert Stacy McCain's post, linking this to blog optimization: "Stupid Google Tricks."

Democrats Spin Victory Out of CPAC

That's Haley Barbour below, during his speech at the Marriott Ballroom. I wasn't really listening all that closely, since it was hard to hear the speeches from the bloggers' lounge. I'm personally not betting on him to be a force in the GOP primaries. Barbour can raise the dough but his attractivness as a national candidate remains to be seen. We could say that about a lot of the Republican presidential hopefuls, and progressives are banking on that.

RELATED: At The Hill, "Democrats Claim Political Victory From CPAC" (via Memeorandum):

Democrats and President Obama gathered the most momentum from this past weekend's gathering of conservative activists, the party claimed Monday.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) sought to spin the now-concluded Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in their own favor, releasing a web video framing the Republicans who spoke at CPAC -- including a number of possible presidential candidates -- as focused on issues from the past.

"The biggest winners coming out of CPAC were Democrats and the president, as it is clear, based on the presentations there, that Republicans have no message and nothing to offer the public accept re-fighting the political and legislative battles - battles they have already lost," DNC communications director Brad Woodhouse wrote in an email about the new video.

More at the link and CNN: