Today's Deals

At Amazon, Gold Box Deals.

Also, Cuisinart ICE-70 Electronic Ice Cream Maker, Brushed Chrome.

More, BERTA 1875W Negative Ions Hair Blow Dryer with 2 Speed and 3 Heat Setting Ceramic Hair Dryer, Black.

Here, Coleman Oak Point Cool Weather Big and Tall Adult Sleeping Bag.

Plus, Craftsman 220 pc. Mechanics Tool Set with Case, # 36220 (Newest Version), and Craftsman 11 pc. Metric 12 pt. Combination Wrench Set, # 49822.

And, LG 55UJ6300 55-inch 4K Ultra HD Smart LED TV (2017 Model) + HDMI 1080p High Definition DVD Player + Solo X3 Bluetooth Home Theater Sound Bar + 2x HDMI Cable + LED TV Screen Cleaner.

BONUS: Mary Katharine Ham and Guy Benson, End of Discussion: How the Left's Outrage Industry Shuts Down Debate, Manipulates Voters, and Makes America Less Free (and Fun).

'The View' Star Joy Behar Mocks Vice President Mike Pence for His Christian Faith (VIDEO)

Tomi Lahren speaks out against Joy Behar, at Fox News:

Angela Davis' Papers Acquired by Harvard

She's a communist. Actually, she's a communist with a large "C." But of course, media outlets will just call her an "activist," like the New York Times, "A New Home for Angela Davis's Papers (and Her 'Wanted' Poster)."

The papers of Angela Davis, just acquired by Harvard, trace her transformation from an obscure philosophy professor to an icon of the global left https://t.co/YpAetgW11H

— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 13, 2018

Radcliffe’s Schlesinger Library has acquired the papers of famed activist Angela Davis https://t.co/tcpAVUZskN cc: @RadInstitute

— Harvard University (@Harvard) February 14, 2018

Shaun White Completes the Comeback (VIDEO)

He won the gold medal last night, and today's he's apologizing for "gossip" comments about sexual harassment allegations?

Politics is the cancer of everything right now.

At LAT, "Shaun White saves best for last to win third halfpipe gold."

And at USA, "Shaun White apologizes for calling sexual harassment allegations 'gossip' after Olympic gold."

ADDED: From Christine Brennan, "As Shaun White cements legacy, why so little attention paid to sexual harassment allegations?" (Via Memeorandum.)

Chloe Kim Steals the Spotlight (VIDEO)

She's a good young lady.

At LAT, "Gold-medal winner Chloe Kim, a daughter of Korean immigrants, is a star in two cultures":

Shortly after winning gold in the Olympic halfpipe, Chloe Kim was ushered into a tent at the bottom of the hill to face a clutch of international reporters.

The 5-foot-3 Southern California snowboarder had delivered a stunning performance, doing tricks no other woman in her sport could do, but that wasn't the only reason she has become the breakout star of the 2018 Winter Games.

When a reporter asked a question in Korean, the 17-year-old quickly waved off the interpreter, saying: "I've got that."

Kim is a first-generation Korean American, the daughter of immigrants who settled in the greater Los Angeles area. She speaks both languages and, throughout her life, has made visits to family in this country.

That helps explain why her face has been splashed across local newspapers and television this week.

"It's so cool being here," she said. "Competing in my first Olympics in the country where my parents came from is insane."

This aspect of her Olympic experience has not only boosted her celebrity, it seems to have touched her in a personal way that extends beyond sport, perhaps helping her to reconcile a childhood spent straddling two cultures.

Kim said: "I definitely, when I was younger, struggled a little to understand my identity and who I wanted to be."

Not all the attention here has focused on her, not in a part of the world that has a reputation for producing, among other things, top-notch short-track speedskaters.

It was a big deal when Lim Hyo-jun earned the host nation's first gold medal in a 1,500-meter race last Saturday. But Kim quickly stole the spotlight with a historic performance at Phoenix Snow Park three days later.

In capturing gold, she became the first woman in Olympic history to land consecutive 1080s — two triple rotations. Her near-perfect score of 98.25 outdistanced silver medalist Liu Jiayu of China by almost 10 points.

"I feel like I got to represent both the U.S. and Korea today," she said.

The feeling, apparently, was mutual.

"The media has given her very glowing coverage because they see her as one of their own," said Peter Kim, a New Jersey native who works as an assistant English professor at Kookmin University in Seoul.

In particular, it seems that people here have responded to reports that her father, trained as an engineer, gave up his career to focus on Chloe and her snowboarding...

When she won the Gold, her dad reportedly said "this makes all the sacrifice worth it."

More.

Chicago Police Commander Paul Bauer Shot and Killed During 'Tactical Chase' of Armed Suspect (VIDEO)

This is really intense.

At the Chicago Tribune, "Chicago police Cmdr. Paul Bauer shot to death at Thompson Center in Loop."

Kate Upton Swept Into the Water During Photo Shoot for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue

Ed Driscoll has the story, from Daily Mail, "'Everybody was very scared': Kate Upton shares footage of frightening moment she got swept off rock by wave while TOPLESS during SI shoot."

Plus, some video:

'Blitzkrieg Bop'

From yesterday's drive-time, at the Jack F.M.

Blitzkreig Bop - Ramones
02/12/18
9:45 AM

Jimmy Buffett - Margaritaville
Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes
02/12/18
9:41 AM

Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out
02/12/18
9:37 AM

ZZ Top - Legs
02/12/18
9:33 AM

Foo Fighters - Everlong
02/12/18
9:22 AM

Rod Stewart - Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?
Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?
02/12/18
9:16 AM

Kings Of Leon - Sex On Fire
02/12/18
9:13 AM

John Mellencamp - Pink Houses
02/12/18
9:08 AM

O.M.D - If You Leave
02/12/18
9:04 AM

Bon Jovi - Wanted Dead Or Alive
02/12/18
8:52 AM

Oasis - Champagne Supernova
02/12/18
8:46 AM

Queen - Fat Bottomed Girls
02/12/18
8:42 AM

The Cars - Just What I Needed
02/12/18
8:38 AM

Sports Illustrated's #MeToo Swimsuit Issue (VIDEO)

Sports Illustrated taking the heat for some alleged hypocrisy.

Is it feminist to openly celebrate women's bodies, or is it regressive, "objectifying" women solely to satisfy the patriarchal gaze (and to make massive amounts of money)?

I don't care, frankly. As long as women remain free to do as the wish, then it's all good. Once you start policing this stuff, banning soft-porn from the marketplace, it's all overreaction. (Think of the "lads' mags" in Britain, which were banned from the magazine racks, bringing an end to an era.

In any case, Paulina Porizkova's doing great!

Republicans Abandon Traditional Goal of Balanced Budget

Following-up from Sunday, "U.S. Budget Deficit Could Balloon to $1 Trillion This Year."

It's kinda like when you've lost the battle over waist-size: You say screw it and start wearing sweats all the time. You're never going to lose all those pounds you've packed on over the last few of years. You let yourself go.

That's what it is with the budget. America has let go. Of course, if something can't go on forever it won't. At some point America's going to have a budget reckoning. Bills are coming due. It's going to be a nasty political blowout at that time. We'll all be Mel Gibson in the "Road Warrior" at some point.

At WaPo, "Trump plan will drop GOP’s traditional goal of balancing budget within 10 years":

President Trump is remaking the Republican economic playbook in his own image, abandoning ideological consistency in ­favor of a debt-busting strategy that will upend how Washington taxes and spends trillions of dollars each year.

On Monday, Trump is slated to announce a new budget plan that will no longer seek to eliminate the deficit over the next decade, forfeiting a major Republican goal, according to three people familiar with the document. The plan will call for a range of spending cuts that reduce the growth of the deficit by $3 trillion over 10 years, but it will not attempt to balance the federal budget, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the proposal before its official release.

The decision to relinquish the deficit goal comes after Trump pushed a $1.5 trillion tax cut through Congress late last year and signed a two-year budget deal last week that lifts federal spending limits by $500 billion, suspends for one year the ceiling on the national debt and is expected to lead to $1 trillion annual budget deficits.

The Republican turnaround on economic policy stands in sharp contrast to the party’s opposition to President Barack Obama’s stimulus program during the Great Recession. At that time, Rep. Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), now the speaker of the House, warned of a “debt crisis” and said that “spending is the problem.” Trump’s budget director, Mick Mulvaney, then a congressman from South Carolina, derided Obama’s spending plans as a “joke” and backed a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget.

Now, GOP leaders are largely silent on the two issues that had preoccupied them for the past decade — total spending and the growth of federal entitlements — while Trump has signed legislation that will lavish cash upon both defense and domestic programs far beyond what he had earlier proposed.

On Sunday, amid a backlash from conservative groups, Mulvaney defended the decision, while acknowledging that ballooning deficits are “a very dangerous idea” and that he wouldn’t have voted for the legislation if he were still in Congress. In an interview on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” he said that his job now is “to get the president’s agenda passed,” which included Pentagon funding that Democrats would allow only if the administration accepted big domestic spending increases.

On the same show, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), the leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said the bargain was unacceptable. “The swamp won,” he said. “And the American taxpayer lost.”

A month and a half before signing the spending legislation, Trump demonstrated similar ideological flexibility with his tax cut, shelving his campaign promise to focus on the “forgotten men and women” and signing a bill whose biggest benefits flow to corporations and the wealthy.

As Trump turns next to plans to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure and overhaul U.S. trade policy, his disregard for the traditional Republican economic catechism will again be on display Monday with the release of his detailed spending plan...

More.

Also,  from Matt Kibbe, at Reason, "The Tea Party Is Officially Dead. It Was Killed by Partisan Politics."

Leftist Obsession with Russia is the New McCarthyism

At great piece, from Ted Galen Carpenter, at the National Interest, "Why Democrats Are Obsessed with Russia":

Progressives need to adopt a course correction. Those who sincerely believe their shrill rhetoric need to get a grip and not succumb to Russia Derangement Syndrome. Those who are cynically using the anti-Russia hysteria as a club with which to beat the Trump administration need to pause and consider how their actions are triggering a second “cold war” with the one power that has the military wherewithal to destroy America. In either case, their current behavior is doing their country a grave disservice.

Susan Jacoby, The Age of American Unreason

At Amazon, Susan Jacoby, The Age of American Unreason in a Culture of Lies.

Shop Today

At Amazon, Gold Box Deals.

And, especially, iHome iBT74BC2 Color Changing Bluetooth Rechargeable Speaker System.

More, Gain He High Efficiency Original Liquid Laundry Detergent, 225 oz.

Plus, AmazonBasics Cotton Beach Towel, 30" x 60" - Cabana Stripe, Navy Blue, Pack of 2.

Still more, Montem Ultra Strong Hiking / Walking / Trekking Poles - One Pair (2 Poles).

Here, Koffee Kult Dark Roast Coffee Beans - Highest Quality Gourmet - Whole Bean Coffee - Fresh Roasted Coffee Beans, 32oz.

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BONUS: Leon Kass, Leading a Worthy Life: Finding Meaning in Modern Times.

Thomas C. Foster, How to Read Literature Like a Professor

This book's really good, heh.

At Amazon, Thomas C. Foster, How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines.

Jennifer Delacruz's Sunday Forecast

I know Sunday's half over, but I've missed my Ms. Jennifer blogging. She's so incredible!

At ABC 10 News San Diego:

Lais Ribeiro Sneak Peak (VIDEO)

For Sports Illustrated Swimsuit:

We All Live on Campus Now

From Andrew Sullivan, a.k.a, "RawMuscleGlutes," at New York Magazine:

"The goal of our culture now is not the emancipation of the individual from the group, but the permanent definition of the individual by the group. We used to call this bigotry. Now we call it being woke."https://t.co/iHY9xqjNps via @intelligencer

— Andrew Sullivan (@sullydish) February 9, 2018

Bari Weiss on 'Real Time with Bill Maher' (VIDEO)

She got some attention the other night on Twitter for her appearance on "Real Time." I don't know, she seems so young, heh.

Either way, she's the best writer at the New York Times right now. I'm blown away by the quality of her analysis. Every time.

Watch:

U.S. Budget Deficit Could Balloon to $1 Trillion This Year

I've long ago given up any hope that the political system, regardless of which party's in power, will get a handle on our perpetual budget deficits, and concomitantly, the national debt.

But a projected $1 trillion deficit for this year does seem like some apocalyptic milestone, my god.

At Forbes, "Trump's Federal Budget Deficit: $1 Trillion and Beyond."

And while I'm still in the neocon camp, I'm definitely in favor of winding down the Afghanistan deployment these days. It's just gone on too long. No once can say the U.S. didn't make an effort there, or at least some kind of effort. Perhaps a different strategy, or different historical circumstances (like no Iraq war in 2003), would have made things better.

In any case, I give props to Rand Paul on discussing the budgetary drawbacks of endless wars. A few years ago I would have blown off such talk. But not now. It'll be 17 years this November.

From Face the Nation this morning:

Circling the Drain

I don't think it's a question of if. California's a far-left basket case. A leftist, politically correct bureaucratic nightmare. Even San Francisco is witnessing an exodus of people these days.

This post, from Steven Hayward, at Power Line, has to be read in full at the link. It's amazing. Utterly mind-boggling.

See, "Is California Starting to Circle the Drain?"