American University Faculty Resolution Rejects 'Trigger Warnings'

An island of sanity in a sea of pure leftist madness.

At Truth Revolt, "Faculty at American University Firmly Reject ‘Trigger Warnings’."

And at Volokh, "American University faculty resolution on freedom of expression (and, in particular, trigger warnings)."

Waking Up with Abigail Ratchford

Yes, wouldn't that be lovely?

At Zoo Today:

Anne Hathaway Talks About Working Alongside Robert De Niro (VIDEO)

At ABC News, "Anne Hathaway on Her New Film 'Intern'."

RELATED: At the Hollywood Reporter, "Robert De Niro Reportedly Storms Out of 'Negative' U.K. Magazine Interview," and at the Guardian UK, "Robert De Niro walks out of Radio Times interview."

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CEO Martin Winterkorn Resigns as Volkswagen Rushes to Stem Growing Scandal (VIDEO)

At WSJ, "Volkswagen Races to Stem Growing Scandal":

BERLIN— Volkswagen AG raced Wednesday to contain the widening scandal threatening Germany’s most important company, ousting its chief executive and pledging to prosecute those involved in a scheme to cheat U.S. auto-pollution tests.

CEO Martin Winterkorn’s resignation follows a calamitous few days after Friday’s disclosure by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that Europe’s biggest auto maker employed software on some VW and Audi diesel-powered cars to manipulate the results of routine emissions tests.

The crisis threatens to spill beyond the auto maker to the broader German economy. Wolfsburg-based Volkswagen is as much institution as corporation at home, with nearly 300,000 employees, 29 plants across the country and deep ties to the government—Lower Saxony owns 20% of VW.

The company’s next CEO faces a daunting task of cleaning up the scandal—the scope of which remains unclear—and keeping its sales expansion on track. Volkswagen hasn’t yet said it knows who was responsible or how many employees were involved.

On Tuesday, Volkswagen disclosed that as many as 11 million cars contained software alleged to have duped emissions tests and were possibly subject to a global recall. The company issued a profit warning and disclosed a €6.5 billion ($7.27 billion) charge to earnings to cover the costs of addressing the matter.

In a statement following Wednesday’s meeting of the company’s top shareholders and labor representatives, Mr. Winterkorn said he would “accept responsibility” for the “irregularities that have been found in diesel engines” and tendered his resignation to the supervisory board.

“I am shocked by the events of the past few days,” he said. “Above all, I am stunned that misconduct on such a scale was possible in the Volkswagen Group.”

The executive committee of the supervisory board thanked Mr. Winterkorn for his contributions to the company and said the CEO had “no knowledge of manipulation of the emissions data.”

The committee said it would seek prosecution of any Volkswagen employees involved in the affair, and it would establish a special investigative committee to uncover what had happened and who was responsible.

The board subcommittee said it would present by Friday’s scheduled supervisory board meeting names of candidates to succeed Mr. Winterkorn, but didn’t disclose any...

Continue reading.

PETA Sues on Behalf of Monkey for Copyright Ownership

From David Post, at Volokh, "I’d be smiling, too, if I owned the copyright to this photograph."

More, "Monkey wants copyright and cash from ‘monkey selfies,’ PETA lawsuit says."

And see, "This Selfie May Set a Legal Precedent."

Well, it's a great picture. But do animals have property rights?

Monkey in monkey selfie deserves rights to photo, PETA says http://t.co/eeNPymST4r pic.twitter.com/Z2h5D5unKN

— TIME.com (@TIME) September 23, 2015

Order Canon's New EOS M3 Mirrorless Camera

Out today, at Amazon, Save Up to $120 Off the New Canon EOS M3 Mirrorless Camera.

Jackie Johnson's First Day of Fall Forecast

At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

Pope Francis Canonizes Father Junípero Serra

The background's at the Washington Post, "Pope Francis is about to make Junipero Serra a saint during a historic canonization today." (At Memeorandum.)

And at the Los Angeles Times, "Pope Francis canonizes Father Junipero Serra, saying he defended Native Americans."



PHOTO: Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, c/o Wikimedia Commons.

'Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me'

It's Elton John, at the Rock in Rio festival in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

Conservative Catholics Fear Pope Francis Has Abandoned Core Teachings of the Church (VIDEO)

He's a freakin' leftist, way outside the mainstream of American politics, to say nothing of the conservative laity.

At the Wall Street Journal, "Conservative Catholics in U.S. Greet Pope Francis With Unease":

ARLINGTON, Va.— Jacquelyn Dupuy attends Mass every Sunday, as well as several days during the week. She gives daily lessons on the catechism to her two young children. And on the first date with her now-husband, she quizzed him about his views on abortion.

But she won’t be among the throngs crossing the Potomac River to see the pope during his time in Washington, D.C., this week. Because of her deep faith, she says, Ms. Dupuy is troubled by Pope Francis’ relaxed disposition when it comes to controversial topics such as homosexuality, contraception and divorce.

“I’m not exactly sure where he stands on issues that are really important to me,” says Ms. Dupuy, a 37-year-old stay-at-home mother. “I feel there is a disconnect. He seems to be saying things that contradict church teaching.”

Ms. Dupuy’s apprehension illustrates some of the broader anxieties about the pope among a key cohort of American Catholics: the conservative faithful who have provided a strong and energetic base for the church over the last three decades.

For them, some of the major issues behind Pope Francis’ world-wide acclaim—his conciliatory approach to gay people, for instance—have instead been a cause for dismay. Like Ms. Dupuy, many fear the pope is blurring the lines around seminal teachings and creating confusion about what it means to be Catholic.

“Conservatives worry about the way he seems to have turned from the culture war over issues like abortion and homosexual marriage,” says Robert Royal, president of the conservative Faith and Reason Institute in Washington, D.C. “The image that gets transmitted is that these are not ‘Francis issues’—that he’s more interested in income inequality, the gap between rich and poor, the environment,” adds Mr. Royal, who belongs to the Catholic diocese here.

“It’s high time that he said, ‘here’s the church’s teaching and we will not change on these issues,’ ” says Patrick O’Neill, a father of three who attends another church in the diocese, Holy Trinity in Gainesville, and says he “humbly disagree(s)” with the pope on his decision to discuss allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Communion.

Rev. Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, wouldn’t comment on specific criticisms about the pope. “It can be hard for some people to understand the pope’s positions,” he said. “But we trust that, if people listen and watch carefully what the pope says and does, everybody is going to be reassured that the pope is leading the church the right way. He’s applying the Gospel to today’s world.”

Keep reading.

United in Hate

I just went back and reread Jamie Glazov's chapter on Cuba's totalitarian regime, in United in Hate: The Left's Romance with Tyranny and Terror, mainly in light of the Pope's visit with Fidel last week.

It's essential reading.

Man Faces 11 Years in Prison If Convicted of Punching 78-Year-Old Over Nutella Samples

Nutella samples?

Well that wasn't too smart.

KTLA's got a report, at Memeorandum.

And watch, at CBS News, "78-Year-Old Man Punched In Face Over Nutella Waffle Samples Recounts Ordeal."

Don Henley: Donald Trump is 'Over the Line'

Don Henley's one of my favorite rockers, but don't let his comments on Donald Trump fool you: You'd be hard pressed to find anyone more hardcore on the protection of property rights, so Don Henley actually coming at Donald Trump from the right.

Watch, "Don Henley: Trump went over fine line between pride and arrogance."

And buy Henley's new country music CD, at Amazon, "Cass Country."

Majority of Americans Reject Pope Francis' Position on 'Climate Change'

It's a 56 percent majority, in fact.

At Bloomberg, "America Loves Pope Francis, But Not His Stance on Climate Change: Bloomberg Poll."

Meanwhile, the Democrat-controlled Senate is pushing a big climate change bill, because priorities!

At PuffHo, "Senate Democrats Stage Major Climate Change Push."

Say It Ain't So! Baseball Legend Yogi Berra Has Died

What a guy.

See the obituary at the New York Times, "Yogi Berra, Hall of Fame Catcher for the Yankees, Dies at 90."

Ann Coulter Broke My Heart

Well, Ann Coulter's not going to break my heart, because I can't take her that seriously.

She's got a shtick.

But see Sarah Rumpf, at the Daily Beast, "As a young conservative, Ann Coulter was one of my heroes. And then she went off the deep end."

And Coulter's book from 2012, Demonic: How the Liberal Mob Is Endangering America. It's good!

Steven Crowder Strips Down to His BVD's for Grand Rapids Feminist Film Festival (VIDEO)

All in good fun, my friends.

You've got to be a happy warrior out there to keep your sanity.

Watch, at Five Feet of Fury, "Steven Crowder goes to feminist film festival, strips down to his shorts (video)."

Bill and Hillary Clinton Paid at Least $1.6 Million for Speeches to Drug Companies

Well, nice work if you can get it.

At Free Beacon, "Clintons Paid at Least $1.6M for Speeches to Drug Companies."

Florida Suspect Fidel Lopez Charged in 'Rough Sex' Murder

Yeah, "rough sex" so rough that the guy ripped the living shit out this woman when she screamed her ex-husband's name in the middle of it. The demon Lopez disemboweled her.

At the Other McCain, "Florida Woman Disemboweled During Tequila-Fueled ‘Rough Sex’ Rage."