Some Democrats Starting to Get Queasy About Hillary Clinton

I am loving this campaign, heh. Loving it!

At Politico, "Hillary Clinton's primary quagmire":

Hours before the West Virginia polls closed Tuesday, Hillary Clinton’s top fundraisers got a memo from campaign manager Robby Mook. The message: Even if Bernie runs the table in the remaining states, he still can’t win.

It’s a well-known point by now, but it’s still one Mook needed to make as Clinton sputters toward the finish line, loaded down with the baggage of recent losses in Indiana and West Virginia and the prospect of a few more losses still to come.

This wasn’t the way the Democratic primary was supposed to end. Clinton may have turned her focus to presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump, but at the same time her campaign is forced to continue fighting a rear-guard action against Bernie Sanders, who shows no sign of surrender.

After going dark on television for several weeks, the former secretary of state is suddenly investing in television advertisements in Kentucky — a state that should have been in her wheelhouse. Deep into the primary schedule, Clinton is forced to reckon with almost weekly results highlighting her relative weaknesses with white men and young voters, and she’s only gradually been able to increase her swing state travel. All the while, Trump sharpens his day-to-day critiques of her.

Some Democrats are now growing uneasy over a rocky finish that has Clinton spending resources and political capital so late in the process.

“The defeat in Indiana I was just horrified at, frankly,” said former Democratic National Committee chairman Don Fowler, a Clinton backer, echoing others who say that for the moment it’s more of an annoyance than a deep concern about the candidate. “The longer Bernie stays in, and the longer he is not mathematically out of the process, the weaker we’re going to seem to be."

Clinton is still on track to pass the threshold to clinch the nomination at some point in June using a combination of pledged delegates and superdelegates, and her lead among pledged delegates remains above 275. That makes it extremely difficult for Sanders to catch up to her unless he can win over a large number of the party elites who vote regardless of their state’s decision. Yet the Clinton campaign, cognizant of the need to show respect to Sanders’ legion of devoted supporters, is unable to initiate the call to unite behind her candidacy...

More.

Interview with Kim R. Holmes (VIDEO)

Following-up from yesterday, "Should Be at Top of the Bestseller Lists: Kim R. Holmes, The Closing of the Liberal Mind."

Holmes discusses his book, The Closing of the Liberal Mind: How Groupthink and Intolerance Define the Left.

Here Are Four Things #NeverTrump Doesn't Get

I love this essay, from Anthony Scaramucci, at WSJ, "The Entrepreneur’s Case for Trump":

Principled conservatives fail to understand the benefit of putting a right-leaning entrepreneur in the White House: https://t.co/sSFVN48o9O

— Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) May 16, 2016

Here are four things that the movement from the right to stop Donald Trump is missing:

• He has empathy. Mr. Trump is both a beneficiary and victim of the soundbite generation. He has leveraged social media to run a thrifty campaign, but critics have also latched onto one-liners rather than examine the whole of his record. You couldn’t find one person who knows Donald Trump who thinks he’s a racist. While his stance on immigration has often been expressed in brutish terms, the substance of his message—securing America’s borders and pausing the Syrian refugee program—is not crazy. Mr. Trump’s empathy, when voters see it properly expressed, will lead to victory in November and to policies fortified by longstanding conservative values.

• He is a pragmatic entrepreneur. What elitists misinterpret as uneven principles, entrepreneurs understand as adaptability. Whether you like or dislike Mr. Trump personally, you have to respect the business empire and brand he has built. He has always demonstrated an ability to take punches and get up off the mat while others without his fortitude and ingenuity would have crumbled. Most of his critics have never dared to step into the entrepreneurial arena where there exists the potential of embarrassing defeat. Mr. Trump would be the greatest pragmatist and deal maker Washington has ever seen.

• He is a team builder. I have spent several hours over the past few weeks with Mr. Trump, and I came away with the feeling he has the analytical depth to excel at the job of the presidency. Mr. Trump has put his ego aside to reinforce Corey Lewandowski’s formidable campaign team with a talented group of people: Gov. Chris Christie, Sen. Scott Brown, Paul Manafort, Rick Wiley and Steven Mnuchin, to name a few. Mr. Trump has shown a willingness to welcome Republican establishment figures into his coalition. The establishment should be constructive in return. If he were elected president, like any smart entrepreneur Mr. Trump would continue to surround himself with brilliant people.

• He can win. Pundits cherry-pick polls to suit their narrative, but the reality is that Mr. Trump is already in a good position even before turning his full attention to Hillary Clinton. Skeptics point to a recent CNN poll showing her with a double-digit lead, but a Rasmussen poll showing Mr. Trump leading by two points gets less attention. The electoral map is ultimately all that matters, and a Quinnipiac University poll released May 10 showed the two candidates basically in a dead heat in three crucial swing states. All of the momentum in the general election will swing to Mr. Trump, but establishment Republicans had better realize abstention would in effect be a vote to put Hillary Clinton in the White House...

RTWT.

Denise Schaefer Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Casting Call 2017 (VIDEO)

Nice.

3 Dumb Ideas Progressives Have About Donald Trump (VIDEO)

It's Van Jones, heh.

He's just about the only leftist I've heard who's not in denial about the threat from the Notorious DJT.

Watch, on Facebook, "The only thing that can offset a "strongman" is a strong movement. WE CAN work together to make sure a Donald Trump White House is never a reality — Van Jones."

Here're the myths leftists need to reject:

Trump will self-destruct.
He’s bad on policy, so he will lose.
Demographics will save us.

Heh.

I love it.

Jackie Johnson's More Morning Clouds Forecast

Via CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

Julianna Goldman Reports on #NeverTrump Republicans' Push for Independent Challenger to Donald Trump (VIDEO)

Basically, it's mostly a bunch of BS.

Via CBS This Morning:

Should Be at Top of the Bestseller Lists: Kim R. Holmes, The Closing of the Liberal Mind

I'm still plugging this book.

It's great!

At Amazon, The Closing of the Liberal Mind.

Deal of the Day: Intex Metal Frame Pool Set

Almost summertime!

At Amazon, Intex 12ft X 30in Metal Frame Pool Set.

Also, Up to 50% Off Timberland Men's Shoes.

And, Eneloop Rechargeable Battery Set With a Charger.

More, from Katie Pavlich, Assault and Flattery: The Truth About the Left and Their War on Women.

Plus, from Mark Landler, Alter Egos: Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and the Twilight Struggle Over American Power.

Peter Schweizer, Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich.

BONUS: Stanley A. Renshon, High Hopes: The Clinton Presidency and the Politics of Ambition.

Daryl Hall Tells SJWs to 'Shut the F*ck Up' (VIDEO)

I can't go for that, heh.

At Heat Street, "Daryl Hall to SJW Nutjobs: You’re ‘Out of Touch’ on Cultural Appropriaton."

Among White Men, Donald Trump Leads Hillary Clinton by Over 30 Points in Battleground States

Heh.

This is going to be great!

At Brookings:

In swing states, Donald Trump leads Hillary Clinton by over 30 points among white men: https://t.co/DZ5kPUaqkj pic.twitter.com/snY3YYcqaq

— Brookings (@BrookingsInst) May 16, 2016

B-25 Bomber Refurbished and Air-Worthy Again (VIDEO)

This great!

Can you believe it, but this is the only B-25 remaining today.

At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

Merciless: Little Is Off Limits as Donald Trump Plans Attacks on Hillary Clinton

This is going to be the freakin' best campaign ever. The Democrats are wiggin', heh.

At NYT (via Memeorandum):

Donald J. Trump plans to throw Bill Clinton’s infidelities in Hillary Clinton’s face on live television during the presidential debates this fall, questioning whether she enabled his behavior and sought to discredit the women involved.

Mr. Trump will try to hold her accountable for security lapses at the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya, and for the death of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens there.

And he intends to portray Mrs. Clinton as fundamentally corrupt, invoking everything from her cattle futures trades in the late 1970s to the federal investigation into her email practices as secretary of state.

Drawing on psychological warfare tactics that Mr. Trump used to defeat “Lyin’ Ted” Cruz, “Little Marco” Rubio and “Low-Energy” Jeb Bush in the Republican primaries, the Trump campaign is mapping out character attacks on the Clintons to try to increase their negative poll ratings and bait them into making political mistakes, according to interviews with Mr. Trump and his advisers.

Another goal is to win over skeptical Republicans, since nothing unites the party quite like castigating the Clintons. Attacking them could also deflect attention from Mr. Trump’s vulnerabilities, such as his treatment of women, some Trump allies say.

For Mrs. Clinton, the coming battle is something of a paradox. She has decades of experience and qualifications, but it may not be merit that wins her the presidency — it may be how she handles the humiliations inflicted by Mr. Trump...

OMG, I can't wait!

This is going to be absolutely delectable, heh.

Keep reading.

Bill Kristol, Renegade Jew

Man, David Horowitz really goes after Bill Kristol here. He just eviscerates him.

It's personal.

At Big Government, "Bill Kristol: Republican Spoiler, Renegade Jew."

Obama's Title IX Power Grab Inflames the Culture Wars

It's actually sickening.

The country's barreling toward civil war.

At Politico, "Obama transgender edict incites the right":

Obama's transgender student directive inflames culture wars https://t.co/xm388aMhoo | Getty pic.twitter.com/yZZTexyFD4

— POLITICO (@politico) May 16, 2016

While the Obama administration’s directive on bathroom access for transgender students was praised by supporters as a historic moment for civil rights, the sweeping new rules have re-energized the right — and a top lawmaker in Texas even argues that Donald Trump can use the issue as a springboard to the White House.

The right has been consistently losing culture-war fights in the courts during the Obama era, most significantly in the Supreme Court case last year that legalized gay marriage. Now, conservative governors, state officials, education advocates and parent groups have extra motivation to unify in their revolt against a federal intervention directed by a president they loathe that will affect every public school in the nation.

“I believe it is the biggest issue facing families and schools in America since prayer was taken out of public schools,” Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick declared Friday, mere hours after the Obama administration’s letter was released.

The departments of Education and Justice wrote to public school districts across America on Friday, spelling out in specific terms President Barack Obama’s interpretation that transgender students are afforded sweeping civil rights protections under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in educational programs and activities. That includes allowing transgender students access to bathrooms, locker rooms and other school facilities that align with their gender identity — a position that social conservatives find deeply offensive.

“With this guidance, the Education and Justice departments are making it crystal clear what schools’ obligations to transgender students are under federal law,” said James Esseks, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender & HIV Project. “It’s about time schools understand that transgender students are fully protected.”

As it has done in its legal standoff with North Carolina over that state’s law blocking protections for gay and transgender individuals, the administration threatened Friday to withhold federal education dollars from schools, districts or states that fail to heed the order. But since the administration’s directive amounts to guidance and not a legal requirement, the debate is far from settled. In fact, the real fight has only just begun, and both sides are digging in for what promises to be a long, nasty and emotional struggle of politics, policy and law — one that appears poised to ultimately land before the Supreme Court...

Keep reading.

Hillary's Weakness as a Candidate

Man, just listening to Cankles squawking on the campaign trail is enough to make you turn off the TV.

She's a terrible candidate!

At WaPo, "Even supporters agree: Clinton has weaknesses as a candidate. What can she do?":

Hillary Clinton’s declining personal image, ongoing battle to break free of the challenge from Sen. Bernie Sanders and struggle to adapt to an anti-establishment mood among voters this year have become caution signs for her campaign and the focus of new efforts to fortify her position as she prepares for a bruising general election.

More than a dozen Clinton ­allies identified weaknesses in her candidacy that may erode her prospects of defeating Donald Trump, including poor showings with young women, untrustworthiness, unlikability and a lackluster style on the stump. Supporters also worry that she is a conventional candidate in an unconventional election in which voters clearly favor renegades.

“I bring it down to one thing and one thing only, and that is likability,” said Peter Hart, a Democratic pollster who has conducted a series of focus groups for the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

To counter these challenges, Clinton is relying primarily on the prospect that her likely Republican opponent’s weaknesses are even greater. But advisers also are working to soften her stiff public image by highlighting her compassion and to combat perceptions about trustworthiness and authenticity by playing up her problem-solving abilities.

“Hillary Clinton is in a stronger position than Donald Trump, but it will be competitive,” said Joel Benenson, Clinton’s senior strategist and pollster. “All these races are.”

None of these Democrats said they expected Clinton to lose — but many said she could. For the most part, it is her qualities as a candidate that keep her allies up at night, not her fitness to be president, which they categorically do not question. They also lament how exposed these flaws have become during a long primary contest against Sanders, who has profited from suspicion and dislike of Clinton among ranks she now must win over.

Although Clinton has never trailed Sanders in the delegate count and is all but assured of securing the nomination in June, she is widely expected to lose more Democratic primaries this month, which could amplify her weaknesses...

Keep reading.

I'm ready to roll in the general election, heh.

How Donald Trump Convinced the Republican Party to Revolve Around Him

At the Guardian UK, "Seemingly overnight and without much effort, majority of GOP congressmen endorse or have come to accept the presumptive nominee as the face of the party":

Donald Trump was every bit the buyer ready to walk off the lot if he couldn’t be shown a bargain.

“Does it have to be unified?” he said last Sunday, musing aloud about the need for the Republican party to come together behind his candidacy for president. “I’m very different than everybody else, perhaps, that’s ever run for office. I actually don’t think so.”

Was the author of the Art of the Deal bluffing? It does not matter now, because in the last week Trump has gotten what he professed not necessarily to want: substantial party backing for his presidential candidacy.

A series of meetings between Trump and congressional leaders in Washington on Thursday turned out to be a victory lap for the candidate. His success with House speaker Paul Ryan, previously billed as his most powerful adversary, was typical. Ryan went from being “just not ready” to back Trump one week to “totally committed to working together” the next.

Or, in Trump’s words on Twitter on Thursday afternoon: “Great day in DC with @SpeakerRyan and Republican leadership. Things working out really well!”

The Republican coalescence around Trump is indeed working out really well, for the candidate at least. By the Guardian’s latest count, 45 of 54 Republican senators either support Trump wholeheartedly or have pledged to support the nominee. Only three senators have said they will not back Trump.

Senator Susan Collins, a moderate from Maine, is one of six senators in a third category: wait-and-see. In a statement to the Guardian on Friday, she said she expects to support the Republican nominee, “but I do want to see what Donald Trump does from here on out”, including whether he will dispense with “gratuitous personal insults” and “clearly outline for us what his vision of America is beyond a slogan”.

Collins said she would not make a decision until the national convention in July.

In the House of Representatives, the break towards Trump has not been quite so clean. Some members clung to “#NeverTrump” sympathies even after his run on the Hill. Republican governors presiding over states where Trump’s name is mud with moderates, such as Charlie Baker of Massachusetts, or with important constituencies, such as Susana Martinez of New Mexico, likewise have withheld their support.

A significant opposition remains among the party’s passé ruling class and current donor class. Both former presidents Bush have said they will sit out the 2016 campaign, as has former presidential candidate Jeb Bush. The 2012 nominee, Mitt Romney, said on Wednesday that Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns was “disqualifying”. Important mega-donors including Paul Singer and the brothers Koch have not visibly moved to back Trump.

But many Republican senators who once expressed misgivings about Trump have set those feelings aside, as a rallying cry goes up to join forces in an attempt to defeat the likely Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton...

Still more.

Kendall Jenner Leads the Glamour at Cannes Afterparty

She takes a lot of flak, but I think she's a fine lady.

At London's Daily Mail, "Kendall Jenner draws attention in navy wrap dress as she leads the glamour at star-studded afterparty during Cannes Film Festival."

American Law Institute Transforms the Criminal Definition of Sexual Assault

From Stuart Taylor, Jr., at RCP, "Legal Group Weighs Radical Expansion of Sex Crimes":

My Real Clear Politics piece, "Legal Group Weighs Radical Expansion of Sex Crimes": https://t.co/ngV67KEAO2

— Stuart Taylor (@staylor5448) May 14, 2016

Imagine the following case: Two recent college grads meet in a bar, talk, begin kissing, and go to her apartment. After a little more talking, they resume kissing there. He undresses her and initiates sexual intercourse. She neither objects nor resists. He leaves, and they have no further contact. A month later, she files a criminal complaint with police, complaining that this was rape because she never expressed verbal consent and was physically passive.

Under the law as it has been from time immemorial, the woman's complaint would be rejected because her failure to say no or resist would be considered consent.

But under proposals that will be put to a vote on May 17 at the annual meeting of the American Law Institute, the nation's most prestigious drafter of model laws, the man could be charged with of a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Under the letter of the proposed new law, his defense -- "she never said no, or stop, or I don't want this, and she never tried to push me away" -- would not save him from being convicted and imprisoned even if the jury and judge believed him.

These proposals, by a powerful faction of the American Law Institute, are deeply offensive to prominent civil libertarians, feminists, scholars and practicing lawyers, and have provoked a controversy that has deeply divided the ALI.

The proposals have also alarmed the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL), which assailed them in a March 2016 statement as "an unconstitutional shifting of the burden of proof requiring the accused to prove that consent was affirmatively given."

The battle within the ALI matters because the radical new proposals would be a giant step toward states prosecuting and imprisoning people for sexual activities that they had reason to believe were consensual.

This comes after more than five years of the Obama administration effectively ordering U.S. colleges and universities to use guilt-presuming procedures to expel scores of young men for similar conduct and a wide range of other sexual activities...

Keep reading.

Deal of the Day: Hayward Variable-Speed Pool Pumps

At Amazon, Hayward SP2302VSP Max-Flo VS Variable-Speed Pool Pump Energy Star Certified, and Hayward SP3400VSP EcoStar VS Variable-Speed Pool Pump Energy Star Certified.

More, Save on Hayward Variable-Speed Pool Pumps.

Also, BLACK AND DECKER LST136W 40V Max Lithium String Trimmer.

Plus, Save on Sawyer Outdoor Products. And, Sawyer Products Premium Permethrin Clothing Insect Repellent Trigger Spray.

Still more, Up to 40% Off Merrell Shoes. And, Merrell Men's Realm Lace.

Now, from Edward Lucas, Cyberphobia: Identity, Trust, Security and the Internet.

Fred Kaplan, Dark Territory: The Secret History of Cyber War.

Adam Segal, The Hacked World Order: How Nations Fight, Trade, Maneuver, and Manipulate in the Digital Age.

BONUS: Henry Kissinger, World Order.

Should Women Vote?

At Heat Street, "Should Women Vote? Vox Day vs. Louise Mensch: ‘Conservative Feminism’."

Vox Day doesn't think women should vote in a representative democracy. Read our feminism debate https://t.co/j0aUsK0HTO

— Heat Street (@heatstreet) May 14, 2016

The Most Important Words Ever Written Are the Ten Commandments (VIDEO)

Following-up, "America, and All That It Stands For, Is In Jeopardy."

Here's Dennis Prager's new book, at Amazon, The Ten Commandments: Still the Best Moral Code.

The most important words ever written are the Ten Commandments. These words changed the world when they were first presented at Mt. Sinai to Israelites, and they are changing it now. They are the foundation stones of Western Civilization.

Given their staggering importance, you would think that all societies, and certainly our educational and religious institutions, would be intent on studying them closely. Sadly, this is not the case. Our schools ignore them and our churches and synagogues take them for granted. But here's a simple test: Who among us can even name all of the Ten Commandments? And even among those who can name them, how many can explain them in a way that makes sense to the modern eye and ear?

If you are a person of faith, this book will strengthen it; if you are agnostic it will force you to rethink your doubts; if you're atheist, it will test your convictions...

More.

America, and All That It Stands For, Is In Jeopardy

From Dennis Prager, at IBD, "A Dark Time In America":

Prager: "Every distinctive value on which America was founded is in jeopardy." https://t.co/NXGIJlvlBY #tcot #tlot

— IBDeditorials (@IBDeditorials) May 14, 2016

We may soon know if Donald Trump will be the Republican presidential candidate. And, barring unforeseeable events, it is certain that Hillary Clinton will be the Democratic nominee. Those are two reasons — of many, unfortunately — why, other than the first years of the Civil War, when the survival of the United States as one country was in jeopardy, there has never been a darker time in American history.

The various major wars — the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I and II, and the Korean and Vietnam wars — were worse in terms of American lives lost.

The Great Depression was worse in economic terms.

There were more riots during the Vietnam War era.

But at no other time has there been as much pessimism — valid pessimism, moreover — about America’s future as there is today.

Among the reasons are:

Every distinctive value on which America was founded is in jeopardy.

According to a Pew Research Center study, more and more young Americans do not believe in freedom of speech for what they deem hate speech. Forty percent of respondents ages 18 to 34 agreed that offensive statements should be outlawed.

According to a series of Harvard University polls, about 47% of Americans ages 18 to 29 believe that food, shelter and health care “are a right that government should provide to those unable to afford them.” That means that nearly half our young believe they have a legitimate claim on the labor and earnings of others for life’s basic necessities.

More than half of 18- to 29-year-old Americans do not support capitalism, the source of the prosperity they enjoy, and the only economic system that has ever lifted mass numbers of people out of poverty.

When young Americans see pictures of the Founding Fathers, they do not see the great men that most Americans have seen throughout American history; they see white males who were affluent (now derisively labeled “privileged”) and owned slaves.

The belief that certain fundamental rights are God-based — a view held by every American founder and nearly all Americans throughout its history — is reviled outside of conservative religious circles, and held by fewer and fewer Americans today.

The view that male and female are distinctive identities — one of the few unquestioned foundational views of every society in history — is being obliterated. Simply saying that one believes (all things being equal) a child does best starting out life with a married father and mother will ensure they’ll be considered a “hater.”

The ideas that America should be a melting pot, or that all Americans should identify as American, are now unutterable in educated company. In fact, many college campuses do not have an American flag on their campus because some students regard it as offensive and representational of imperialism and capitalism.

In addition, virtually every major institution is in decay or disarray...

Still more.

Deal of the Day: Burgess Propane Insect Fogger

At Amazon, Burgess 1443 Propane Insect Fogger for Fast and Effective Mosquito Control in Your Yard.

Also, Fire HD 6 Kids Edition Tablet, 6" HD Display, Wi-Fi, 8 GB, Blue Kid-Proof Case.

And, Must-Read Kindle Best Sellers.

More, by Bret Stephens, America in Retreat: The New Isolationism and the Coming Global Disorder.

Also, from Andrew J. Bacevich, The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism.

Plus, Michael Mandelbaum, Mission Failure: America and the World in the Post-Cold War Era.

BONUS: Dick and Liz Cheney, Exceptional: Why the World Needs a Powerful America.

Hailey Clauson GQ Swimsuit Shoot (VIDEO)

She's pretty much the "It Girl" of the moment, and for good reason.

Watch, at GQ, "Hailey Clauson Shows You What Really Happens on a GQ Swimsuit Shoot."

She's on the cover with Rob Gronkowski.

Maggie Rawlins Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Casting Call 2017 (VIDEO)

Via SI:

Claremont McKenna Professor Jack Pitney Discusses Possible Donald Trump VP Picks (VIDEO)

I used Professor Pitney's textbook for about 5 years, but it was discontinued by the publisher. He's a patriot. I really liked the book, but perhaps its pro-American tilt is out place for our leftist times, especially on college campuses.

In any case, via CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

The Marxist Roots of 'Gender Neutral Restrooms'

From Cristina Laila, "Transgender Bathrooms Are Not About Equality, But About Marxism":

Gender neutral bathrooms have nothing to do with equality, but everything to do with Marxism. We must reject it. Blurring gender lines is the last step for tyranny to accelerate as it quickly erodes our Western values. Women and children have always been protected when fighting for the homeland. If we reach a point where the majority believe that gender is a social construct, then what will the men protect? What will be worth fighting for if not for your family and your future?

Ivanka Trump: My Dad Has 'Elevated' Political Dialogue (VIDEO)

She's such a sweetie.

And by elevated, I suspect she means her dad's put more issues into play, neutralizing the demonic forces of leftist political correctness.

Via Telegraph UK:

Jackie Johnson's Warming Weather Forecast

This weather's just about right. I love it, heh.

Via CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

Wendy's Restaurants to Install Self-Serve Kiosks in Response to Minimum Wage 'Social Justice' Movement

It's the wave of the future.

Wendy's is just on the leading edge.

Thousands of workers will lose their jobs.

At IBD, "Wendy's Serves Up Kiosks as Wages Rise, Hits Fast-Food Group":

Wendy’s (WEN) said that self-service ordering kiosks will be made available across its 6,000-plus restaurants in the second half of the year as minimum wage hikes and a tight labor market push up wages.

It will be up to franchisees whether to deploy the labor-saving technology, but Wendy’s President Todd Penegor did note that some franchise locations have been raising prices to offset wage hikes.

McDonald’s (MCD) has been testing self-service kiosks. But Wendy’s, which has been vocal about embracing labor-saving technology, is launching the biggest potential expansion.

Wendy’s Penegor said company-operated stores, only about 10% of the total, are seeing wage inflation of 5% to 6%, driven both by the minimum wage and some by the need to offer a competitive wage “to access good labor.”

It’s not surprising that some franchisees might face more of a labor-cost squeeze than company restaurants. All 258 Wendy’s restaurants in California, where the minimum wage rose to $10 an hour this year and will gradually rise to $15, are franchise-operated. Likewise, about 75% of 200-plus restaurants in New York are run by franchisees. New York’s fast-food industry wage rose to $10.50 in New York City and $9.75 in the rest of the state at the start of 2016, also on the way to $15.

Wendy’s plans to cut company-owned stores to just 5% of the total.

Still, Penegor said that increased customer counts more than price hikes drove the chain’s 3.6% same-store sales increase in the first quarter.

Although profit exceeded Wall Street estimates, Wendy’s shares dived nearly 9% Wednesday because of weak second-quarter sales.

“We are seeing a bit of a softer overall category in April” relative to the past two quarters, Penegor said on an earnings call, implying more of an industrywide trend than an issue specific to Wendy’s...

More.

Also at the Cleveland Plain-Dealer, "Self-serve kiosks could be coming to a Wendy's near you."

Honeywell HT-900 TurboForce Fan

A best-seller, in time for the summer season, at Amazon, Honeywell HT-900 TurboForce Fan: Aerodynamic TurboForce® design for maximum air movement.

Plus, Quest Nutrition Protein Bar, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, 21g Protein, 2.1oz Bar, 12 Count.

And, KIND Bars, Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt, Gluten Free, 1.4 Ounce Bars, 12 Count.

More, Nature Valley Sweet And Salty Almond Snack Bars, 19.7-Ounce.

Also, DxO ONE 20.2MP Digital Connected Camera for iPhone and iPad.

BONUS: by Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul.

Ta-Nehisi Coates Cancels Purchase of $2.1 Million Brooklyn Brownstone After Storm of Criticism

Well, I'm just all torn up about this, lol.

At Heat Street, "Poverty Expert Ta-Nehisi Coates Bails on Newly-Purchased $2.1 Million Home After Media Attention":

Ta-Nehisi Coates, the award-winning journalist and author specializing in racial justice and black poverty, has cancelled plans to move into the posh Brooklyn brownstone he recently purchased for $2.1 million, citing personal safety concerns amid a storm of unwanted media attention.

Ta-Nehisi Coates, the award-winning journalist and author specializing in racial justice and black poverty, has cancelled plans to move into the posh Brooklyn brownstone he recently purchased for $2.1 million, citing personal safety concerns amid a storm of unwanted media attention.

The New York Post was first to report on the purchase, which was conducted through a limited-liability corporation established by Coates and his wife in an effort to conceal their identity.

Coates has become a prominent thought-leader in part due to the success of his 2015 memoir, “Between the World and Me,” a letter to his son about the history of racial injustice in America. It was one of the most discussed books in the country among university faculty members and New York Times subscribers, and won the National Book Award for non-fiction.

Coates, who used the proceeds from the successful memoir to finance the purchase of the brownstone in the Prospect-Leffert Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn, expressed dismay at having to abandon his dream home...

More.

Following the links takes us to Coates' piece at the Atlantic, "On Homecomings."

He's dealing, quite badly, with fame. Worried about his safety? I expect he's making enough money now to move into a gate-guarded, high-security development. It might not be back home, down in the neighborhood, but at least he won't have to worry about people waiting for him on his stoop. Regular people have bigger problems, which is ironic for a writer who demonizes Americans as irreversibly stained by racism. Some karmic justice there, heh.

Lt. Col. Ralph Peters Slams Obama's Upcoming Visit to Hiroshima (VIDEO)

Following-up from the other day, "Obama to Visit Hiroshima; Talk of Atomic Bomb Apology Stirs Controversy (VIDEO)."

I don't watch Fox Business Channel very much, which made me realize right now that I don't see Ralph Peters on the main Fox News network much anymore. I guess he's been relegated to the business channel after calling the president a "total pussy." Sadly, PC intolerance infects even the so-called conservatives at Rupert Murdoch's crib.

Watch:

Bella Thorne in Los Angeles (PHOTOS)

At Egotastic!, "Bella Thorne Red Hot and Low Cut Filming."

Previous Bella Thorne blogging here.

Dana Loesch Goes Off on Kayleigh McEnany (VIDEO)

I really like Dana, but I'm not happy that the entire conservative movement is at war with one another over Donald Trump's nomination.

It is what it is though. I'm just trying to keep my head above water and my dignity intact.

Here's Dana forthcoming book, at Amazon, Flyover Nation: You Can't Run a Country You've Never Been To.

I don't really know this lady Kayleigh McEnany. I think I saw her one time on one of the cable news programs. But Dana's gotten into it with her, and Ms. McEnany's supporters on Twitter started going after Dana, even defaming her. Dana wrote about it here, "On Zealous Hypocrisy."

More from Katie Pavlich, "Dana Loesch Torches Trump Mouth Piece Kayleigh McEnany."

Also, from Ben Howe, "WOW: Dana Loesch Obliterates CNN Trumpkin Kayleigh McEnany (VIDEO)."

And Leon Wolf, "Let’s Talk About Kayleigh McEnany’s Boobs."

Still more, at Breitbart, "Dana Loesch: I've Seen Firsthand the Horror of Kayleigh McEnany's Condition but I Did Nothing Wrong."

Here's the video that started it all, and it's actually pretty funny:

Increasingly Timely: Dana Loesch's New Book, Flyover Nation: You Can't Run a Country You've Never Been To

With its transgender "dear colleague" letter released today, the Obama administration has upped the stakes in "The New American Civil War" and dissed everyday citizens across the country. The administration's dragged the nation's schools more ferociously into the culture wars than's been seen in quite some time.

Dana Loesch's new book looks absolutely prescient in that respect. I can't wait to read it!

Available June 21st.

At Amazon, Flyover Nation: You Can't Run a Country You've Never Been To.

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Also, by Ibram X. Kendi, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America.

And Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness.

Plus, from Ta-Nehisi Coates, Between the World and Me.

BONUS: James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time.

Port Neches-Groves Superintendent Dr. Rodney Cavness Says Obama's Transgender 'Dear Colleague' Letter Is Going in the Shredder — #TNACW

Heh.

The New American Civil War is on!

At KBMT 12 News Beaumont, Texas, "PN-G ISD Superintendent on Obama admin's transgender letter: It's going in the paper shredder":

PORT NECHES - Port Neches-Groves Superintendent Dr. Rodney Cavness on Thursday slammed the Obama administration's expected letter which is set to tell districts to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms of their choosing.

The letter, first reported by the New York Times, will reportedly be delivered to every public school in the country -- including those in Southeast Texas.

The letter reportedly will warn school and district leaders if they do not allow transgender students to use the bathroom for whichever gender they identify, the schools may run the risk of lawsuits or lose funding.

The Times reported the letter would not have the force of law, but it would be signed by officials with the Department of Justice and the Department of Education.

Dr. Cavness did not mince words when telling 12News anchor Kevin Steele:

"I got news for President Barack Obama. He ain't my President and he can't tell me what to do. That letter (to be released to all public schools tomorrow) is going straight to the paper shredder. I have 5 daughters myself and I have 2,500 girls in my protection. Their moms and dads expect me to protect them. And that is what I am going to do. Now I don't want them bullied... but there are accommodations that can be made short of this. He (President Obama) is destroying the very fiber of this country. He is not a leader. He is a failure."

When asked if there was fear about molestation of children at the core of the superintendent's concerns, Cavness said he did not feel that way.

"I would say about molesters -- 99.9% (in the bathroom) certainly aren't."

The subject of transgender students and school bathrooms has become a hot topic in recent days...

OMG LOL! That's what I'm talkin' about, heh!

Here's my previous entry, "Obama Administration to Force Schools to Establish Co-Ed Restrooms and Locker Rooms."

And at Memeorandum.

Donald Trump Disavows Former Butler Who Allegedly Called for Obama to Be Killed

This is, of course, from David Corn, the far-left smear merchant who runs a cottage industry of character assassination against Republican presidential candidates. Who can forget the "47 percent" attack video that was the beginning of the end for Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.

At Mother Jones, via Memeorandum, "On Facebook, Trump's Longtime Butler Calls for Obama to Be Killed."

And at the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, "Trump campaign disavows former butler for saying Obama should be killed."

Obama Administration to Force Schools to Establish Co-Ed Restrooms and Locker Rooms

These aren't "gender neutral" accommodations. They're "co-ed," since immutable differences between boys and girls (and men and women) aren't changing. So if a so-called "transgender" (actually "gender dysphoric") individual insists they're the opposite gender to to their birth sex, the administration's going to force school districts across the country to toe the line.

Hey, it's a brave new world out there.

At the New York Times, "U.S. Directs Public Schools to Allow Transgender Access to Restrooms":

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is planning to issue a sweeping directive telling every public school district in the country to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms that match their gender identity.

A letter to school districts will go out Friday, adding to a highly charged debate over transgender rights in the middle of the administration’s legal fight with North Carolina over the issue. The declaration — signed by Justice and Education department officials — will describe what schools should do to ensure that none of their students are discriminated against.

It does not have the force of law, but it contains an implicit threat: Schools that do not abide by the Obama administration’s interpretation of the law could face lawsuits or a loss of federal aid.

The move is certain to draw fresh criticism, particularly from Republicans, that the federal government is wading into local matters and imposing its own values on communities across the country that may not agree. It represents the latest example of the Obama administration using a combination of policies, lawsuits and public statements to change the civil rights landscape for gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender people.

After supporting the rights of gay people to marry, allowing them to serve openly in the military and prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating against them, the administration is wading into the battle over bathrooms and siding with transgender people.

“No student should ever have to go through the experience of feeling unwelcome at school or on a college campus,” John B. King Jr., the secretary of the Department of Education, said in a statement. “We must ensure that our young people know that whoever they are or wherever they come from, they have the opportunity to get a great education in an environment free from discrimination, harassment and violence.”

Courts have not settled the question of whether the nation’s sex discrimination laws apply in matters of gender identity. But administration officials, emboldened by a federal appeals court ruling in Virginia last month, think they have the upper hand. This week, the Justice Department and North Carolina sued each other over a state law that restricts access to bathrooms, locker rooms and changing rooms. The letter to school districts had been in the works for months, Justice Department officials said.

“A school may not require transgender students to use facilities inconsistent with their gender identity or to use individual-user facilities when other students are not required to do so,” according to the letter, a copy of which was provided to The New York Times.

A school’s obligation under federal law “to ensure nondiscrimination on the basis of sex requires schools to provide transgender students equal access to educational programs and activities even in circumstances in which other students, parents, or community members raise objections or concerns,” the letter states. “As is consistently recognized in civil rights cases, the desire to accommodate others’ discomfort cannot justify a policy that singles out and disadvantages a particular class of students.”

As soon as a child’s parent or legal guardian asserts a gender identity for the student that “differs from previous representations or records,” the letter says, the child is to be treated accordingly — without any requirement for a medical diagnosis or birth certificate to be produced. It says that schools may — but are not required to — provide other restroom and locker room options to students who seek “additional privacy” for whatever reason...

Well, what a relief!

And it'll be hilarious when at schools across the country students request "additional privacy" in mass, to the extent that they leave the entire locker room to the gender dysphoric students.

We're all fucked up these days.

And oh boy, Republicans are going to have a field day with this in the general election. It's going to be the nationalization of the Houston LBGT referendum clusterfuck.

Via Memeorandum.

ICYMI: Robert J. Gordon, The Rise and Fall of American Growth

Following-up on my previous entry, "Do We Really Need to Save Capitalism?"

Rana Foroohar argues the financial system no longer serves the economic interests of average Americans. See, Makers and Takers: The Rise of Finance and the Fall of American Business.

But as I argued, it's the collapse of economic growth, and the collapse of the leftist (previously "liberal") consensus to pursue pro-growth policies (rather than identity politics), that explains increasing inequality and the decline in public support for "capitalism."

I posted on Robert Gordon's new book on Saturday, "Professor Robert J. Gordon, The Rise and Fall of American Growth."

Here's the Amazon link, The Rise and Fall of American Growth: The U.S. Standard of Living since the Civil War.

And from the blurb:

In the century after the Civil War, an economic revolution improved the American standard of living in ways previously unimaginable. Electric lighting, indoor plumbing, home appliances, motor vehicles, air travel, air conditioning, and television transformed households and workplaces. With medical advances, life expectancy between 1870 and 1970 grew from forty-five to seventy-two years. Weaving together a vivid narrative, historical anecdotes, and economic analysis, The Rise and Fall of American Growth provides an in-depth account of this momentous era. But has that era of unprecedented growth come to an end?

Gordon challenges the view that economic growth can or will continue unabated, and he demonstrates that the life-altering scale of innovations between 1870 and 1970 can't be repeated. He contends that the nation's productivity growth, which has already slowed to a crawl, will be further held back by the vexing headwinds of rising inequality, stagnating education, an aging population, and the rising debt of college students and the federal government. Gordon warns that the younger generation may be the first in American history that fails to exceed their parents' standard of living, and that rather than depend on the great advances of the past, we must find new solutions to overcome the challenges facing us.

The key is productivity growth. It's been slowing down since the 1970s. Its robust restoration is the key to reviving living standards. I'd like to see more popular discussion of that, in contrast to all the pathetic leftist hand-wringing about "super capitalism" and "financialization," blah, blah.

Do We Really Need to Save Capitalism?

Rana Foroohar seems to think so, at Time, "American Capitalism’s Great Crisis":

This week's @TIME cover: American Capitalism’s Great Crisis https://t.co/fJ3Y5Hxgz2 via @RanaForoohar pic.twitter.com/ttvrFfKkvh

— TIMEPolitics (@TIMEPolitics) May 12, 2016

This explains Bernie and Trump: https://t.co/j9yQZOwbjs

— Rana Foroohar (@RanaForoohar) May 12, 2016

A couple of weeks ago, a poll conducted by the Harvard Institute of Politics found something startling: only 19% of Americans ages 18 to 29 identified themselves as “capitalists.” In the richest and most market-oriented country in the world, only 42% of that group said they “supported capitalism.” The numbers were higher among older people; still, only 26% considered themselves capitalists. A little over half supported the system as a whole.

This represents more than just millennials not minding the label “socialist” or disaffected middle-aged Americans tiring of an anemic recovery. This is a majority of citizens being uncomfortable with the country’s economic foundation—a system that over hundreds of years turned a fledgling society of farmers and prospectors into the most prosperous nation in human history. To be sure, polls measure feelings, not hard market data. But public sentiment reflects day-to-day economic reality. And the data (more on that later) shows Americans have plenty of concrete reasons to question their system.

This crisis of faith has had no more severe expression than the 2016 presidential campaign, which has turned on the questions of who, exactly, the system is working for and against, as well as why eight years and several trillions of dollars of stimulus on from the financial crisis, the economy is still growing so slowly. All the candidates have prescriptions: Sanders talks of breaking up big banks; Trump says hedge funders should pay higher taxes; Clinton wants to strengthen existing financial regulation. In Congress, Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan remains committed to less regulation.

All of them are missing the point. America’s economic problems go far beyond rich bankers, too-big-to-fail financial institutions, hedge-fund billionaires, offshore tax avoidance or any particular outrage of the moment. In fact, each of these is symptomatic of a more nefarious condition that threatens, in equal measure, the very well-off and the very poor, the red and the blue. The U.S. system of market capitalism itself is broken. That problem, and what to do about it, is at the center of my book Makers and Takers: The Rise of Finance and the Fall of American Business, a three-year research and reporting effort from which this piece is adapted.

To understand how we got here, you have to understand the relationship between capital markets—meaning the financial system—and businesses. From the creation of a unified national bond and banking system in the U.S. in the late 1790s to the early 1970s, finance took individual and corporate savings and funneled them into productive enterprises, creating new jobs, new wealth and, ultimately, economic growth. Of course, there were plenty of blips along the way (most memorably the speculation leading up to the Great Depression, which was later curbed by regulation). But for the most part, finance—which today includes everything from banks and hedge funds to mutual funds, insurance firms, trading houses and such—essentially served business. It was a vital organ but not, for the most part, the central one.

Over the past few decades, finance has turned away from this traditional role. Academic research shows that only a fraction of all the money washing around the financial markets these days actually makes it to Main Street businesses. “The intermediation of household savings for productive investment in the business sector—the textbook description of the financial sector—constitutes only a minor share of the business of banking today,” according to academics Oscar Jorda, Alan Taylor and Moritz Schularick, who’ve studied the issue in detail. By their estimates and others, around 15% of capital coming from financial institutions today is used to fund business investments, whereas it would have been the majority of what banks did earlier in the 20th century.

“The trend varies slightly country by country, but the broad direction is clear,” says Adair Turner, a former British banking regulator and now chairman of the Institute for New Economic Thinking, a think tank backed by George Soros, among others. “Across all advanced economies, and the United States and the U.K. in particular, the role of the capital markets and the banking sector in funding new investment is decreasing.” Most of the money in the system is being used for lending against existing assets such as housing, stocks and bonds.

To get a sense of the size of this shift, consider that the financial sector now represents around 7% of the U.S. economy, up from about 4% in 1980. Despite currently taking around 25% of all corporate profits, it creates a mere 4% of all jobs. Trouble is, research by numerous academics as well as institutions like the Bank for International Settlements and the International Monetary Fund shows that when finance gets that big, it starts to suck the economic air out of the room. In fact, finance starts having this adverse effect when it’s only half the size that it currently is in the U.S. Thanks to these changes, our economy is gradually becoming “a zero-sum game between financial wealth holders and the rest of America,” says former Goldman Sachs banker Wallace Turbeville, who runs a multiyear project on the rise of finance at the New York City—based nonprofit Demos.

It’s not just an American problem, either. Most of the world’s leading market economies are grappling with aspects of the same disease. Globally, free-market capitalism is coming under fire, as countries across Europe question its merits and emerging markets like Brazil, China and Singapore run their own forms of state-directed capitalism. An ideologically broad range of financiers and elite business managers—Warren Buffett, BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Vanguard’s John Bogle, McKinsey’s Dominic Barton, Allianz’s Mohamed El-Erian and others—have started to speak out publicly about the need for a new and more inclusive type of capitalism, one that also helps businesses make better long-term decisions rather than focusing only on the next quarter. The Pope has become a vocal critic of modern market capitalism, lambasting the “idolatry of money and the dictatorship of an impersonal economy” in which “man is reduced to one of his needs alone: consumption.”

During my 23 years in business and economic journalism, I’ve long wondered why our market system doesn’t serve companies, workers and consumers better than it does. For some time now, finance has been thought by most to be at the very top of the economic hierarchy, the most aspirational part of an advanced service economy that graduated from agriculture and manufacturing. But research shows just how the unintended consequences of this misguided belief have endangered the very system America has prided itself on exporting around the world.

America’s economic illness has a name: financialization. It’s an academic term for the trend by which Wall Street and its methods have come to reign supreme in America, permeating not just the financial industry but also much of American business. It includes everything from the growth in size and scope of finance and financial activity in the economy; to the rise of debt-fueled speculation over productive lending; to the ascendancy of shareholder value as the sole model for corporate governance; to the proliferation of risky, selfish thinking in both the private and public sectors; to the increasing political power of financiers and the CEOs they enrich; to the way in which a “markets know best” ideology remains the status quo. Financialization is a big, unfriendly word with broad, disconcerting implications.

University of Michigan professor Gerald Davis, one of the pre-eminent scholars of the trend, likens financialization to a “Copernican revolution” in which business has reoriented its orbit around the financial sector. This revolution is often blamed on bankers. But it was facilitated by shifts in public policy, from both sides of the aisle, and crafted by the government leaders, policymakers and regulators entrusted with keeping markets operating smoothly.

This is: "Economics for Dummy Leftists."

All the sources and experts cited are leftists. They hate capitalism, a term invented by Karl Marx to demonize free market economics.

The trend Faroohar is describing here is simply change. Markets and finance are changing, and innovation and concentration in the finance sector isn't a cause of growing inequality or the public despair over sluggishness.

What's harming the average worker, and preventing more regular people from improving their income and wealth, is stagnating GDP. The economy is growing at 0.5 percent. No wonder the titans of finance are the only ones who're better off. There's no rising tide to lift all boats. The Obama administration's obsessed with the phony campus rape crisis and gender neutral restrooms. Democrats don't care about improving the economic prospects of average Americans. Now that's depressing. And what's more depressing is how economically illiterate all these hacks are, from the so-called financial journalists quick to blame the "system" to the idiot Millennials who wouldn't know a production possibilities frontier if it hit them upside the head.

Keep reading, FWIW.

'American' identity is 'the most blatant microaggression...'

At Campus Reform.

College campuses are the most fervid hotbeds of leftist radicalism. From antiwar ideology, deconstruction, to Israel apartheid (now "anti-Zionism"), America's campuses have long been the breeding grounds of postmodern leftist hatred. Soon enough, the regressive bilge leaks into the mainstream culture.

Just being American is racist nowadays. I'm sure there'll be a "modern family" style television show on racist microaggressions soon enough.

#UVA #student calls ‘American’ identity ‘the most blatant microaggression’: https://t.co/PdeL2DKA9c pic.twitter.com/8fx52Qqq1V

— Campus Reform (@campusreform) May 11, 2016

Finished: Kim R. Holmes, The Closing of the Liberal Mind

I finished The Closing of the Liberal Mind over the weekend.

The book's a quick read, but it's heavyweight in its implications. I'll be keeping my copy next to my bedside for a ready reference, and for periodic review. Especially good are Holmes' theory chapters, on the ideology of classical liberalism, and particularly on postmodern leftism and leftist authoritarianism. I can't recommend these enough, mainly because these chapters represent the best, most concise recent writings on the nature of the contemporary radical left, and the threat leftism poses to the American political and cultural order.

I have two quibbles: One, I was perturbed by Holmes' discussion of Dylann Roof, and especially how he mistakenly characterized Roof as a "white supremacist" who represents the "intolerance and bigotry" of "the right." Holmes writes that the 2015 Charleston attack "shows that a violent strain of racial hatred still exists on the far right in America." As readers may recall, I showed here that Roof isn't on the right. In fact, Roof's an "emo-prog" leftist, and frankly, the photo of Roof burning the American flag should have been enough evidence to figure that out without all of this about the "far right," a discussion which draws on leftist and MSM tropes seeking to demonize conservatives. I'll speak to Holmes about this personally if I meet him, perhaps at a book signing or something.

Two, Holmes provides a powerful explanation of why leftists are not liberals, offering a definition of what we normally refer to as "progressives" as "postmodern leftists." This is really perfect terminology, and easy to use. The problem is that Holmes, after offering these terms, in fact doesn't use them consistently himself. I didn't count, but Holmes used the term "progressive liberals" more than other other combination of terminology, which was frustrating because the whole point of his chapter 2, "The Rise of the Postmodern Left," was to reclaim "liberalism" for the classic meaning of the word as a political orientation favoring limits on government power, free exchange of ideas, free enterprise economics, and tolerance of political and religious differences. I was basically furrowing my brows throughout the book whenever Holmes abandoned his defined terminology and relapsed back into talking about postmodern radical leftists as "progressive liberals."

That's about it. As noted, I particularly enjoyed the book's parsimoniousness. It's largely a pleasure to read, and I had a couple of "aha" moments as well, always a good indicator of scholarly success.

In any case, I definitely recommend the book to my readers. It's a must-have item for your library.

Check it out at Amazon, The Closing of the Liberal Mind: How Groupthink and Intolerance Define the Left.

How Marriage Influences Male Economic Success (VIDEO)

Here's Brad Wilcox, for Prager University.



And check out his study, "For Richer, For Poorer: How Family Structures Economic Success in America."

Here Comes the Anti-Trump Summer of Hate

From the inimitable Zombie, at Pajamas, "Inside the Anti-Trump Circus: Here Comes the Summer of Hate — Protest Outside Donald Trump's Appearance at the California Republican Convention, April 29, 2016."

Conservative Leader Rona Ambrose Hugged by Prime Minister Trudeau After Her Speech on Fort McMurray (VIDEO)

At the CBC, "Fort McMurray wildfire: Justin Trudeau to survey damage on Friday."

And watch, "Ambrose hugged by Trudeau after speech."

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory Defends State's So-Called 'Bathroom Bill' (VIDEO)

Watch, at CNN, "North Carolina governor defends bathroom law."

And at the Charlotte Observer, "Feds enter HB2 case against North Carolina with solid record of victories: But so-called Title VII lawsuits can take years to resolve."

BONUS: From Kelsey Harkness, at the Daily Signal, "51 Families Sue Over Illinois High School’s Transgender Bathroom Policy."

The culture war's really coming to a head. Frankly, the GOP should run on culture issues and turn the left's moral degeneracy into a national referendum. We could see Houston writ large.

Pew Research Center: America's Shrinking Middle Class

At Pew:

Who is "middle income" and "upper income" in 2014? https://t.co/jz76pj9h6y https://t.co/drKOo36oGw

— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) May 12, 2016

And at the Los Angeles Times:

From coast to coast, middle-class communities are shrinking https://t.co/wgdlO2qKj4 pic.twitter.com/Oh3aAzBqpA

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) May 12, 2016

Well, the Democrats promised hope and change. Folks are a bit tuckered out on the hope amid all this change.

Sheldon Adelson Thinks Donald Trump 'will be good for Israel...'

I think so too.

At the New York Times:

Sheldon Adelson, the casino magnate, says he thinks Donald Trump “will be good for Israel.” https://t.co/5mYHQWskcr pic.twitter.com/ipicOvsCbn

— NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) May 6, 2016

Brittny Ward

She's a sweetie!

💋 pic.twitter.com/J0EIoi8h8w

— Brittny Ward (@brittnyward) April 11, 2016

More, "Jenson Button’s latest model Brittny Ward shows off her impressive bodywork: Playboy bunny gets steamy in exclusive Sun photoshoot."

General Michael Hayden: The Terrorist Threat Today vs. September 11 (VIDEO)

Via the American Enterprise Institution:

Jackie Johnson's Morning Clouds, Afternoon Sunshine Forecast

Today was a "typically sunny" day, but it's going to warm up through the weekend.

Via CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

Assignment America: A Look at What Makes Texas Texas

At the New York Times.

Thank goodness some Americans are determined to preserve their heritage and values.

What makes Texas Texas https://t.co/jfY813VjmC pic.twitter.com/iyo61lciLh

— The New York Times (@nytimes) May 7, 2016

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BONUS: Richard Overy, Why the Allies Won.

Obama to Visit Hiroshima; Talk of Atomic Bomb Apology Stirs Controversy (VIDEO)

I swear if Obama utters even the slightest inkling of an apology I think I'll just die.

The White House denied suggestions that O would apologize, but I'm not buying it.

At USA Today, "Obama to visit Hiroshima to promote nuke-free world."

CNN's Sara Murray Reports on Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll (VIDEO)

Following up, "Donald Trump Running Neck-and-Neck with Hillary Clinton in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania."

Medieval Reenactor Brings Down Drone with Spear (VIDEO)

Heh.

This is pretty good.

Donald Trump Running Neck-and-Neck with Hillary Clinton in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania

This is freakin' awesome, heh.

At Quinnipiac, "CLINTON-TRUMP CLOSE IN FLORIDA, OHIO, PENNSYLVANIA,QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY SWING STATE POLL FINDS."

And hey, the white working class voters the Democrats have consistently demonized? They're not loving Hillary at all:

Florida—Trump wins whites 52%—33%.

Pennsylvania—Trump wins whites 48%-37%.

Ohio—Trump wins whites 49%—32%.

More at Bloomberg:

Clinton-Trump Race Tight in Three Battlegrounds: Quinnipiac Poll https://t.co/qCv6AWsw8r via @bpolitics

— Jennifer S. Carroll (@MrsJSCarroll) May 11, 2016

I'm Going to Vote for Trump Though It Makes Me Want to Projectile Vomit (VIDEO)

Well, at least he's going to hold his nose and do the right thing. I suspect you'll see more and more so-called #NeverTrump folks do this as well. Those who don't in the end are grandstanding bitches.

From Kurt Schlichter, at Town Hall, "I intend to vote for Donald Trump, and just typing those words makes me throw up a little."

Hillary Clinton Crushed in Coal Country of West Virginia

Ouch.

At Instapundit, "CRACKS IN THE FOUNDATION: Clinton Faces Hard Reality Of Unity In Trump Country."

Click through for the Ruby Cramer piece at BuzzFeed.

also, striking scnes of anger at/resistance to HRC & WJC across W.Va. as Clinton promises to unify https://t.co/4ihYfjzpjp

— Ruby Cramer (@rubycramer) May 11, 2016

And extra harsh piling on, from the Hill. The Democrats are going to be nominating a train wreck of a standard-bearer. I love it!

West Va. exit polls show nearly half of Sanders voters would vote Trump in November https://t.co/V2e8mAxss6 pic.twitter.com/icEOju0RrY

— The Hill (@thehill) May 11, 2016

Jackie Johnson's Morning Clouds with Afternoon Sunshine Forecast

I'm forecasting some tight bright yellow dresses, heh.

Here's the lovely Jackie Johnson, via CBS News 2 Los Angeles: