American Power

Thursday, December 24, 2015

RUBIO AND CRUZ DON'T HAVE LATINO CRED BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT MEXICAN-AMERICANS

The hateful left will do anything to destroy opponents of their collectivist program, almost always turning reality upside down.

From Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit, "Because once somebody has an (R) after his name, he’s fair game for any abuse the left wants to hurl at him, racism be damned."

George Will Warns That Donald Trump's Nomination Would Destroy the Republican Party

Well, I'm not that worried about it. The GOP's pretty screwed already.

But see BCF, "If Trump Wins the Nomination, Prepare for the End of the Conservative Party."

I like George Will, but he's about as establishment as you can be. He used to be on "This Week with David Brinkley" back in the 1980s, when I was first following politics. Charles Krauthammer convinced him to move over to Fox News a couple of years ago, but he seems out of place even at Fox.

In any case, Trump's revitalizing the GOP as a party with a backbone, willing to stand up to the PC Democrat-Media-Leftist complex. That's why everyone's pulling their hair out. They're used to Republicans lying down amid cries of racism, sexism, or you name it.

Donald Trump Warns Hillary Clinton on the 'War on Women Card' (VIDEO)

Hillary's initial comments were at the Des Moines Register yesterday, "Clinton says Trump's vulgarity doesn't shock her."

And watch, at CBS This Morning:

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Minnesota Police Rout Black Lives Matter Protesters at Mall of America (VIDEO)

At Blazing Cat Fur.

And watch, at CBS News 4 Minnesota, "Black Lives Matter Shifts MOA Protest to MSP Airport," and "Inside the MOA During BLM’s Protest."

One-Day Shipping by Christmas — BUMPED

For last minute shoppers.

At Amazon, Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide.

And New Year, New You: Personalized Gifts for the Holidays.

Also, ICYMI, from David Horowitz, The Black Book of the American Left - Volume 5: Culture Wars.

BONUS: Unholy Alliance: Radical Islam And the American Left.

Driver Shouting 'Allahu Akbar!' Runs Down 11 French Pedestrians in Dijon (VIDEO)

At Instapundit, "I BLAME CLIMATE CHANGE: Driver Shouting ‘Allahu Akbar!’ Runs Down 11 French Pedestrians."

There's video at RT, with analyst Pierre Schweitzer chalking the attack up to an alleged increase in tensions between Israel and Palestine. Yeah, that's it. Couldn't be more of the standard Islamic jihad we've been seeing all year, right? FWIW, "Driver shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ hits crowds of pedestrians in France, 11 injured."

Refugee Crisis Drives Rise of New Right Wing in Germany

There's so much fear of "the right" in Germany. They fear the Nazis coming back to power more than they fear the purveyors of a new Holocaust in their midst.

But most people protesting against the refujihadists aren't radical right wingers. They're everyday people overwhelmed by the migrant onslaught.

At Der Spiegel, "Fear, Anger and Hatred: The Rise of Germany's New Right":

For years, a sense of disillusionment has been growing on the right. Now, the refugee crisis has magnified that frustration. Increasingly, people from the very center of society are identifying with the movement -- even as political debate coarsens and violence increases.

Martin Bahrmann, a local politician in the Saxon town of Meissen, was just preparing to speak in a council debate on refugee shelters when a ball-point pen ricoched off the back of his head. It was a cheap, plastic writing utensil -- blue with white writing.

As a member of the business friendly Free Democrats (FDP), Bahrmann's seat in the regional council is at the very back and the visitors' gallery is just behind him. The pen must have come from somebody in the audience. When Bahrmann turned around, he found himself looking at a sea of hostile faces. Although there were around 80 visitors in the gallery, nobody admitted to having seen who threw the pen. On the contrary: The FDP representative and his colleagues were later insulted as being "traitors to the German people."

Bahrmann, 28, does not draw a salary for his involvement in local politics. It is merely his contribution to a functioning democracy. He was born and grew up in the region he represents and he has known many of the people there for many years. But even he, Bahrmann says, now must be more careful about when and where he makes political appearances. Ever since the regional council discussed transforming the former Hotel Weinböhla into a refugee hostel, the established political parties have been confronted with the hate of many locals. One Left Party representative was spit on as he was walking down the street while another was threatened with violence. Meanwhile, representatives from the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and the neo-Nazi NPD were celebrated for having voted against the refugees in the regional council.

The pen thrown in Meissen may not have garnered much media attention, but it says a lot about the public mood in Germany, a country in which increasing numbers of people are united against the state, its institutions and its elected officials. It is a country in which antipathy towards democracy is gradually increasing while xenophobia is growing rapidly. And it is a country where incidents of right-wing violence are on the rise and refugee hostels are set on fire almost daily.

It is still just a radical minority that is responsible for much of the xenophobia and violence. The tens of thousands of volunteers who offer their assistance in refugee shelters every day still predominate. But at the same time, a new right-wing movement is growing -- and it is much more adroit and, to many, appealing than any of its predecessors...

Jeez, they make it sound like it's the end of Wiemar, or something.

But keep reading.

And ICYMI, "'Ultra-Conservative' Protests Against 'Refujihadist' Invasion of Europe (VIDEO)."

Black Lives Matter Assholes Storm Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (VIDEO)

Via CNN:

And also on Twitter:

Black Lives Matter protesters march on Minneapolis airport https://t.co/thp4V7s5N4
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) December 24, 2015

Black Lives Matter assholes snarl Minneapolis airport https://t.co/Ysd8C4zxDa
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) December 24, 2015

Mohammad Tariq Mahmood, Banned from Flying to U.S., Linked to Taliban and al-Qaeda on Facebook

Are there any Muslims not linked to global jihad?

I don't think so.

At London's Daily Mail, "Facebook page linked to Taliban and Al Qaeda was registered to same address as British Muslim father whose Disneyland trip was blocked by Homeland Security."

Nadine Leopold Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Casting Call (VIDEO)

She's Austrian:

Gun Sales Booming This Holiday Season (VIDEO)

At CBS News 2 Los Angeles:

And notice how California has the extended background checks, requiring background checks even for private sales.

PREVIOUSLY: "Surge in Gun Sales in Southern California (VIDEO)."

Donald Trump's Tightly Controlled Chaos

Following-up from previously, "Donald Trump's Strength Points to New Campaing Dynamic in New Hampshire."

At the Los Angeles Times, "Analysis: Donald Trump's campaign: It's less chaotic and more calculated than it looks":

Louise Sunshine, a former New York lobbyist and real estate executive, has known Donald Trump for more than 40 years. She shared a small office with Trump just as his career as a developer began to take off. She helped him cajole politicians for tax breaks on his first buildings.

Knowing how Trump operates, Sunshine was surprised to hear his rival Jeb Bush brand him last week as a “chaos candidate.” Trump, she said, “is the least chaotic person I know.”

“The least,” she added to underline the point. “And the most determined person I know.”

Trump’s raw, in-your-face style of politics can come off as random ranting. Over the weekend, he called Hillary Clinton a liar and Bush a loser.

“Dumb as a rock!” he wrote on Twitter of the former Florida governor.

But if Trump sows chaos, it is tightly controlled chaos. The bluster and put-downs are part of a meticulously calculated strategy by a surprisingly disciplined front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. Trump is the rare first-time candidate whose mastery of basic political skills seems unmatched by most, if not all, of his rivals in a crowded Republican field.

Trump’s history as a builder of major Manhattan real estate projects schooled him in the real-world give-and-take of politics at a level where enormous amounts of money and power are at stake. For New York developers whose business model depends on taxpayer subsidies, a keen understanding of how governors and mayors operate can make or break a real estate empire.

Trump’s father, Fred Trump, was a major New York City developer with deep ties to elected officials. In the 1970s, Donald Trump began forging his own ties with politicians — among them Mayor Ed Koch and Gov. Hugh Carey — as he sought tax breaks on midtown high-rise projects with a higher profile than anything his father had built.

Bill Cunningham, a veteran New York political operative, said the city’s big developers must weather bad press, but stay focused on their goals as they battle unions, contractors, public agencies, environmental groups and property owners who refuse to sell their land.

“You learn to take a lot of hits and keep on going, and that’s Donald Trump,” Cunningham said.

Trump, 69, jokes that he hates being a politician after six months in the trade. He also boasts of using no teleprompter, giving crowds the impression that his remarks, sometimes salted with profanity, are spontaneous.

“I speak for an hour and a half with no notes, no nothing,” he told a recent rally of supporters in Las Vegas.

But in city after city, Trump hews closely to his stump speech, staying on message as faithfully as the best of career politicians. The words vary, but the themes stay the same — all in service of solidifying and expanding his core audience of blue-collar white men...

Still more.

Donald Trump's Strength Points to New Campaing Dynamic in New Hampshire

Following-up from previously, "Poll: Donald Trump Firmly Consolidates Lead Atop GOP Primary Field (VIDEO)."

Trump's allegedly falling behind on the ground-game in Iowa, and now in New Hampshire, he leads the polls despite a light presence. Trump's campaign is a major test of established models of presidential campaigning.

And at the Wall Street Journal, "In a state that values retail politics, the Republican presidential front-runner maintains his lead despite few visits":

BERLIN, N.H.—New Hampshire voters take their first-in-the-nation primary very seriously, ribbing their early-voting compatriots in the Midwest with the expression, “In Iowa, they pick corn. Here, we pick presidents.”

But now, the success of Donald Trump, who has topped polls of Republicans here for nearly five straight months, is unnerving those who cherish the small state’s tradition of shoe-leather campaigns, with candidates trekking from bingo hall to barnyard to answer policy questions from voters face to face.

The New York businessman has held only 23 events in the state this year, according to the New England Cable News candidate tracker—even fewer than former rivals Scott Walker and Rick Perry, who dropped out of the race during September.

“The entire justification for New Hampshire being the first in the nation is that you can meet people one on one,” said Drew Cline, former editorial page editor of the New Hampshire Union Leader newspaper. “If New Hampshire goes for Trump, who is connecting with voters via debates and celebrity status, it is potentially fatal,” he said.

Mr. Trump’s popularity in New Hampshire reflects the decades-long trend away from state-by-state ground games and toward a national, media-driven presidential campaign. This year, the daily grind of the campaign trail has been overshadowed by record-setting debate audiences, the expanding reach of social media (Mr. Trump has 5.4 million Twitter followers) and the sheer size of the field, making it harder for voters to check out all the candidates before the Feb. 9 primary.

Mr. Trump can reach twice the population of New Hampshire by simply calling, as he did this past Sunday, into NBC’s “Meet the Press,” which traditionally conducts in-studio interviews of major guests.

Corey Lewandowski, Mr. Trump’s campaign manager, said he has “seen tens of thousands of New Hampshire residents on his numerous trips” and will return next week. His campaign Tuesday announced the appointment of 200 volunteer “town chairs” in communities throughout the state.

“Mr. Trump loves the people of New Hampshire and they love him, as is indicated by every poll that shows he is the clear front-runner,” he said.

Mr. Trump’s critics dismiss his enduring lead in the polls, pointing to a history of late decision-making in a state that lets voters register to vote on Election Day. Forty-six percent of the voters in the 2012 New Hampshire GOP primary—held early on Jan. 10—said they made their decision that day or in the past few days, according to exit polling.

New Hampshire has traditionally rewarded Republican candidates who hunker down in the frigid weeks leading up to its primary. Most recently, that was 2012 nominee Mitt Romney, who conveniently owned a vacation home in the state, and 2008 nominee John McCain, who staged a comeback from here after his campaign verged on collapse...

More.

Poll: Donald Trump Firmly Consolidates Lead Atop GOP Primary Field (VIDEO)

At CNN, via Memeorandum, "Trump dominates GOP field heading into 2016."

And at WSJ, "Donald Trump Poised to Enter New Year as Clear GOP Front-Runner":

Donald Trump is poised to enter the new year as the clear front-runner in the GOP presidential contest, with support for the celebrity businessman growing in the latest CNN/ORC poll.

The new survey finds Mr. Trump leading the GOP field with 39% of the vote — up from 36% earlier this month. He leads his closest rival Sen. Ted Cruz by more than 20 points. Mr. Trump has been on top of the Republican field, according to CNN’s polling, since July.

As he has consolidated his position atop the GOP field, Mr. Trump has turned his attention to Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton — marking a new phase in the primary campaign.

He has demanded an apology from Mrs. Clinton for suggesting his words were being used by Islamic State for recruitment, deployed a vulgar term to describe her 2008 loss to Barack Obama, and said it was “disgusting” that she took a bathroom break during last week’s debate.

Mr. Cruz has surged in the polls, though he trails Mr. Trump significantly. He now draws 18% in the latest CNN poll — up from 4% in October. A Quinnipiac poll this week showed a much closer race, with Messrs. Cruz and Trump within four points of one other and each drawing about a quarter of the Republican vote.

Former neurosurgeon Ben Carson has slipped in the polls in recent months, drawing 10% support in the latest poll. That’s down from 14% in early December and and 22% in October. His campaign has been rocked by questions about his command of foreign affairs and allegations he invented key portions of his life story.

Sen. Marco Rubio also draws 10% of the GOP vote in the latest poll, with no one else in the field cracking double-digits.

Support for Mr. Trump is based on his perceived competence on the issues. In CNN’s poll, 57% of Republicans said he was best able to handle the economy, 55% said he was the best candidate to tackle immigration and 47% said he would be the strongest in fighting the terrorist group Islamic State.

Republicans seem split on Mr. Trump’s electability, with 50% saying that the party has a better shot of winning the presidency in 2016 with a different candidate. By contrast, 46% said Mr. Trump was the strongest candidate. That’s up from August, when just 38% of Republicans said Mr. Trump was the party’s best shot at winning back the White House.

The CNN poll was conducted between Dec. 17-21 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points...

More.

Abdirizak Warsame, Alleged ISIS Conspirator, Bragged He Could Take Down Planes at 2,000 Feet (VIDEO)

The fucker once worked at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, in baggage handing, which should tell you something, especially in light of the downing of Russia's Metrojet Flight 9268 over Egypt.

I'm shaking my head at this. Just wow.

At CBS News 4 Minnesota:

How to Manufacture an Anti-Muslim Hate-Crime 'Epidemic'

From Michelle Malkin:

Step one: Find an expert with an impressive-sounding academic title to legitimize shoddy advocacy propaganda.

Meet Brian Levin. He’s the one-man band behind something called the “Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism” at California State University, San Bernardino. The “center” (that is: Levin) claims to be “nonpartisan” and “objective.” But he is a former top staffer of the militant, conservative-smearing Southern Poverty Law Center, which was forced to apologize earlier this year after including famed black neurosurgeon and GOP 2016 candidate Ben Carson on its “extremist watch list” of hate groups.

At SPLC, Levin infamously posited that the 2002 Beltway jihad snipers were Angry White Men, a fatal error echoed by politically correct law enforcement officials whose wild-goose chase needlessly cost lives. A decade later, the SPLC’s target map and list of social conservative groups were used by convicted left-wing domestic terrorist Floyd Lee Corkins to shoot up the Washington, D.C., office of the Family Research Council.

The radical left-wing SPLC, whose annual “hate and extremism” report spawned Levin’s sham “center,” brazenly declared that its mission is to “destroy” its political opponents. Harper’s Magazine writer Ken Silverstein called the SPLC and its work “essentially a fraud” that “shuts down debate, stifles free speech, and most of all, raises a pile of money, very little of which is used on behalf of poor people.”

Step two: Enlist gullible, lazy, biased, and complicit journalists who recycle the “expert’s” sweeping pronouncements as proven facts, backed up by other ideologically vested advocacy group spokespeople.

NBC News, The New York Times, the Daily Mail and Slate all quoted Levin over the past week hyping his new “study” (published in esteemed academic journal The Huffington Post) on an alleged “increase,” “surge” and “spike” in “crimes against Muslims and mosques” this year.

Levin’s “methods” of “analysis”? Stringing together “apparent hate crimes reported in the media and by civil rights groups across the United States.” Most prominent among his sources: the Council on American-Islamic Relations, whose jihad-apologizing frontman Ibrahim Hooper was quoted by both NBC and The New York Times backing Levin’s “research” (which were, of course, based on several of CAIR’s grievance-grifting claims). Cozy, huh?

“We’re seeing so many of these things happening that it’s unbelievable,” Hooper told the Times.

Indeed, it is.

In his list of “Suspected Hate Crimes Directed at Actual or Perceived Muslim Institutions or Individuals Since Paris Attacks,” Levin cites a Nov. 26 incident in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, noting, “Cab driver shot. Attempted Murder.”

The rest of the story: The suspect is 26-year-old Anthony Mohamed, whose father is Muslim. Authorities have so far refused to press hate crimes charges despite CAIR’s demands. At a hearing this week, the cab driver denied in court that he had been subjected to negative comments about his religion before Mohamed allegedly shot him in the back. Court filings fail to mention any evidence of anti-Muslim bias in the case.

Or take a look at Levin’s No. 23: “12/6 Buena Park, CA. Sikh Temple. Vandalism, Crim. Mischief.” CAIR’s Los Angeles office publicized vandalism at an Orange County Sikh temple, immediately condemning a “tiny minority of bigots who violate our nation’s longstanding principles of religious tolerance and inclusion.”

The rest of the story: Authorities arrested a local, 20-year-old Brodie Durazo, after he admitted spray-painting the temple, a tractor trailer and other property in the gang-infested neighborhood. “I have lived alongside this temple for many years of my life and have never once seen you as anything but a peaceful people,” he told the temple-goers in a personal apology at the house of worship. “I just hope that you will see by my presence that all I want is for peace as well.”

Not a menacing “bigot.” Just a bored punk.

Or consider Levin’s No. 33: “12/10 Tampa, FL. Rocks/shots at 2 Muslim drivers. Assault, Threat leaving relig. service in hijab.”

Both women are unidentified. Their unvetted stories were immediately publicized by, you guessed it, CAIR. “Both incidents were investigated by Hillsborough County sheriff’s deputies,” according to local Florida media, “though investigators said neither case involved definitive proof of a hate crime.” In one case, the sheriff’s office spokeswoman said, “It could have been road rage or just a misunderstanding.” In the second case involving alleged shots fired at a vehicle, investigators said the woman “was not sure where or when” a bullet hole found on the car was made.

Step three: Attack the messenger. After I published a lengthy post on my blog outlining an epidemic of Muslim hate-crime hoaxes at colleges, mosques and businesses dating back to 2001, Levin took to Twitter to accuse me of “smears.” The facts, which the rest of the media failed to inform readers about while hyping Levin’s work this week, speak for themselves (see michellemalkin.com).

Step four: Classify this article as “hate” and any media outlet that publishes it as a “hate group” so that other journalists shun the truth and continue perpetuating the hoax.

Rising Package Volumes and Costs Have Strained Amazon's Relations with UPS

Well, online retailing is bigger than ever, so no surprise at the tension between Amazon and UPS.

At the Wall Street Journal, "Amazon Seeks to Ease Ties With UPS":

As the clock counts down to Christmas, workers at United Parcel Service Inc. are busy hustling packages along loading docks and conveyor belts at its Louisville, Ky., hub—part of a costly, intricate system built in part to cater to Amazon.com Inc., its biggest customer.

But the symbiotic relationship between the two giants has come under increasing strain, according to interviews with more than a dozen current and former UPS and Amazon executives.

Rising package volumes and costs have Amazon seeking alternative delivery routes—shifting the online retailer’s role from key ally to a potentially disruptive competitor.

Amazon has held talks with air-cargo companies to lease airplanes and build its own freight operation. The company is already using its own trucks, drivers and a fleet of couriers for the final and most-expensive leg of an order’s trip.

It has been making its own deliveries in certain high-density regions and relying more heavily on the U.S. Postal Service. Eventually, it hopes to get drones to drop packages into backyards.

Such steps are part of a much broader plan at Amazon, which counts shipping costs as one of its fastest-growing expenses, totaling 11.7% of revenue in the third quarter, up from 10.4% a year ago. The goal is to reduce its reliance on carriers like UPS, according to people familiar with the matter.

“Amazon’s interest is not in doing what may be good for UPS,” said Satish Jindel, a parcel-industry analyst with SJ Consulting Inc. “Their interest is in getting control over logistics.”

Amazon declined to comment. A spokesman for UPS said “we will continue to work closely with Amazon and all our customers to help them solve their growth and customer service challenges.”

There is more than loyalty at stake for Atlanta-based UPS. This year, its Amazon account exceeds $1 billion, say former Amazon and UPS executives. That is roughly a fivefold increase since 2005, according to an estimate by a former executive with direct knowledge of the company’s spending.

While UPS investors generally view growing volumes as a sign of health, the company’s cost-per-package has actually risen since more than a decade ago, putting margins under pressure.

The average cost to handle a parcel was about $8 last year, up from roughly $6.50 in 2000, according to the company. Much of the increase was attributed to a growth in e-commerce, as UPS has invested more than $11 billion over the past five years to upgrade and expand its network.

It hasn’t helped relations that Amazon was a factor in UPS’s last two back-to-back Christmas snafus—each of which cost UPS an unexpected $200 million. Two years ago, Amazon overwhelmed UPS with hundreds of trailers of last-minute Christmas orders. It later got UPS to help underwrite millions in customer refunds.

Last year, UPS increased capital spending by 10% to be ready for a prolonged holiday surge that never came.

This year, the company is expecting record volumes and has already seen parts of its network strained from a surge of online holiday spending over the days before and after Thanksgiving...

Keep reading.

Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik Revealed Personal Details in Visa Application (VIDEO)

At the Los Angeles Times, "What Tashfeen Malik's visa application reveals about the San Bernardino killers":

They had only met online — first on a matrimonial website, and then in what he called “several weeks of emailing” — when Syed Rizwan Farook first sat down with Tashfeen Malik during his pilgrimage to Mecca, Islam’s holiest city, in October 2013.

They got engaged that same day, and the couple disclosed extensive personal details, including her birthplace in a historic Pakistani town and his Social Security number, when Farook filled out a K-1 fiancee visa application so he could bring Malik to Riverside to marry him the following summer.

But the 21-page application and supporting documents gave no hint of whether Farook and Malik’s then-secret commitment to violent jihad, rather than romance, brought them together in a conspiracy two years before they carried out a rampage that left 14 people dead in San Bernardino.

That, together with their motive for shooting his co-workers at the Inland Regional Center on Dec. 2, and their whereabouts for nearly four hours before police spotted their car and killed them in a shootout, are among the key unanswered questions three weeks after the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil since 2001.

The documents were released Tuesday as FBI Director James B. Comey visited San Bernardino for a briefing from agents from the Los Angeles field office.

The paperwork doesn’t appear to substantiate charges from some Republican lawmakers that immigration officials failed to catch errors on the visa application that should have blocked Malik’s entry, and that the Obama administration thus allowed a budding terrorist into the country.

The FBI has concluded that Farook and Malik separately radicalized on the Internet as early as 2011, largely from English-language sermons and other material posted online by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. The Times also has reported that Malik sent private messages to friends on Facebook in 2012 and 2014 expressing support for jihad.

Farook also had considered a terrorist spree in Southern California long before the two met. He hatched plots to gun down drivers on the 91 Freeway and butcher students at a community college in Riverside, according to a federal indictment against Enrique Marquez, who bought the semiautomatic weapons used in the San Bernardino attack.

None of that evidence came to light before the shootings, however, and Comey has said the couple appeared on no terrorism or criminal watch lists that would have led to greater scrutiny by law enforcement and intelligence agencies.

On the K-1 visa application form, Farook answered “no” to questions of whether he had ever committed “homicide, murder, manslaughter” or other crimes, including illegal drug use and domestic violence.

The application provides the first public look at the evidence that Farook, a U.S. citizen born in Chicago, gave immigration officials to prove he and Pakistani-born Malik had met in person and were planning to marry...

More.

Bestselling Safeco Workspace Office Products

At Amazon, Shop - Safco Office Deals.

Also, Shop Amazon Fashion - Holiday Sweaters.

And from Donald Trump, Crippled America: How to Make America Great Again.

BONUS: Books in Soviet History.

Iraqi Troops Storm Downtown Ramadi in Bid to Oust Islamic State Occupiers (VIDEO)

At the Washington Post:

BAGHDAD — Iraqi forces broke into Ramadi’s city center on Tuesday, pushing closer to its main government buildings in what commanders hope will be a final thrust to recapture the key provincial capital from Islamic State militants.

Security forces erected a temporary bridge over a canal to gain access to downtown Ramadi, about 80 miles west of Baghdad, and launch a morning offensive, military leaders said. By nightfall, the troops were within half a mile of the government compound, they added.

Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, represents a key battle for Iraqi forces. It is the largest population center they have tried to retake from the Islamic State.

The offensive, backed by U.S. air power, also marks the first major battle for Iraq’s armed forces that has largely excluded pro-government Shiite militias, testing whether the military can go it alone.

“We’ve entered the center,” said Brig. Gen. Hamid al-Fatlawi, commander of the army’s 8th Division. The militants have put up only “simple” resistance, he said...

Keep reading.

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Today's the Last Day for 2-Day Shipping at Amazon, If You Want to Put Your Gifts Under the Tree

You better get shopping, heh.

Here, Books in Russian History.

You can still get one-day shipping tomorrow.

BONUS: Star Wars Trilogy (A New Hope / The Empire Strikes Back / Return of the Jedi) (Widescreen Edition with Bonus Disc), and Star Wars Prequel Trilogy (Widescreen Edition).

Must Obama Reach Out to 'Angry White Voters'?

Actually, Obama hates "angry white voters."

I doubt he'd ever deign to "reach out" to them. Frankly, he's constantly demonizing them.

In any case, at Politico, "Why Obama Must Reach Out to Angry Whites:

For all the bad feelings that Donald Trump’s naked religious bigotry and race baiting are conjuring up, it is also providing our nation with an opportunity. The ugly rhetoric just might force the country to finally contend with a problem many don’t even want to acknowledge exists: that we are fast becoming a nation in which minorities make up a majority of the population. As a result, tens of millions of white Americans, accustomed for so long to having all the benefits of being the majority, are scared out of their minds—and it is this fear that Trump is exploiting so effectively. These feelings are emerging not because whites are all racists, but because they don’t know what that might mean for them and their children.

As long as angry, scared white Americans follow Trump and his ugly rhetoric, the racial divide in America will only deepen, and it will become increasingly difficult to solve the nation’s most pressing problems. So the question becomes: Who can counter Donald Trump?

Actually, there's no "naked religious bigotry" nor "ugly rhetoric." Trump's just speaking plainly. We've become a nation where minorities are exempt from criticism, to the point on national suicide.

Still more at that top link, FWIW.

Save 60 Percent Off Singer Products

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And ICYMI, William Taubman, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era.

'Ultra-Conservative' Protests Against 'Refujihadist' Invasion of Europe (VIDEO)

ABC News calls the populist protests against Islamic refugee invaders "ultra-conservative."

William Taubman, Khrushchev

Remember, as I was finishing up Stephen Kotkin's Stalin, I was wishing I could start on volume 2, but it's not out yet.

So imagine my luck last night when I came across William Taubman's Pulitzer Prize winning biography on Stalin's successor, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era.

I've got almost a half dozen books I'll be ordering after Christmas, and recall that I just started Orlando Figes', A People's Tragedy: The Russian Revolution: 1891-1924, last night.

So, I better quit blogging for awhile and get back to reading.

You can get two-day shipping today at Amazon, so your gifts will arrive in time for Christmas. Have a good one!

photo 12641846231_zps3jrzut3i.jpg

Eva Adams Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Casting Call (VIDEO)

Well, thank goodness we still have Sports Illustrated, considering.

FHM and Zoo Magazines to 'Suspend' Publication

Following-up from April, "Death of the Lads Mags?"

The feminist campaign to destroy men's magazines in Britain is virtually complete.

At the Telegraph UK, "The end of the lads' mag? FHM and Zoo magazines suspended":

FHM and Zoo magazines are to suspend publication, their publisher has announced.

Bauer Media today set in motion the process to call time on the two titles, effectively ending the presence of so-called 'lads' mags' on newsagent shelves.

"Unfortunately it’s true and it has been announced today the intention to suspend publication of FHM," read a statement posted on the FHM website.

"It’s been an absolute joy producing the magazine over the years. Thank you for all your support, we will keep you updated with developments over the coming weeks.

A similar statement published on Zoo's site said: "It is with regret we have to inform you of the intention to suspend publication of ZOO.

"We've loved every minute of the near 12 years and 600-plus issues we've shared with you and would like to thank each and every one of you who've been there with us along the way."

Still more.

Look, even Playboy's ditching the centerfold. It's hard out there for hot red-blooded males.

Defeating ISIS Won't Solve Threat of Islamic Jihad in Syria

At the Telegraph UK, "Defeating Islamic State will not end jihadist threat in Syria, report warns":

Study backed by Tony Blair Faith Foundation says that some 65,000 fighters in Syria who do not support Isil still have jihadist leanings.

Defeating Islamic State will not end jihadist threat in Syria, report warns https://t.co/U6htvDZYN5 pic.twitter.com/Ay40EAyary
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) December 20, 2015

Around 65,000 fighters with jihadist sympathies belong to rebel militias in Syria other than Islamic State, a new report claims, adding to concerns that defeating the group will do little to bring peace to the country.

The study by the Centre on Religion and Geopolitics said fighters with extremist views were to be found across Syria’s rebel groups.

Up to 60 per cent of all rebels belonged to groups with an Islamist agenda, with more than half of those adhering to Salafi-jihadism, the hardline ideology underpinning Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

Some 15 groups besides Isil have jihadist views even if they are currently dedicated to the local fight against the Assad regime, the report said. They include al-Qaeda’s local branch, Jabhat al-Nusra, the Saudi-backed Jaish al-Islam and one of the most powerful fighting forces, Ahrar al-Sham.

The Centre on Religion and Geopolitics is an arm of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation. Its senior adviser is Ed Husain, a London-born former Islamist who later set up a think-tank, Quilliam, to promote counter-radicalisation.

“ISIS represents a continuation of a way of thinking that started before it existed and will carry on if it is defeated,” the study says. “The West risks making a strategic failure by focusing only on ISIS.

"Defeating it militarily will not end global jihadism. We cannot bomb an ideology, but our war is ideological.”

Putin's Power Play in Syria

A fantastic analysis, from Angela Stent, at Foreign Affairs, "How to Respond to Russia’s Intervention":

At the end of September, Russia began conducting air strikes in Syria, ostensibly to combat terrorist groups. The strikes constitute Russia’s biggest intervention in the Middle East in decades. Its unanticipated military foray into Syria has transformed the civil war there into a proxy U.S.-Russian conflict and has raised the stakes in the ongoing standoff between Moscow and Washington. It has also succeeded in diverting attention away from Russia’s destabilization of Ukraine, making it impossible for the West to continue to isolate the Kremlin. Russia is now a player in the Syrian crisis, and the United States will have to find a way to deal with it.

Once again, Washington has been caught off-guard, just as it was in March 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea and began supporting pro-Russian separatists fighting Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine. For all of Russia’s domestic problems—a shrinking economy, a declining population, and high rates of capital flight and brain drain—it has projected a surprising amount of power not only in its neighborhood but also beyond. U.S. President Barack Obama may refer to Russia as a regional power, but Russia’s military intervention in Syria demonstrates that it once again intends to be accepted as a global actor and play a part in every major international decision. This will be a vexing challenge not only for Obama during his remaining time in office but also for the next occupant of the White House.

Why has Washington been so slow to grasp the new Russian reality? Russian President Vladimir Putin has not kept his agenda a secret. In February 2007, for example, he delivered a scathing critique of U.S. foreign policy at the Munich Security Conference. “One state and, of course, first and foremost the United States, has overstepped its national borders in every way,” he warned. Countless times since, Russia has vowed to replace what it sees as a coercive U.S.-led global order with one in which the West respects Russia’s interests. In retrospect, Russia’s war with Georgia in August 2008 signaled Moscow’s willingness to use force to prevent its neighbors from drifting toward the West and to reassert its influence in areas that were formerly part of the Soviet Union. But the United States and its allies have repeatedly underestimated Russia’s determination to revise the global order that Moscow feels the West has imposed on Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.

As the United States gears up for the 2016 presidential election, it faces two central challenges in deciding how to deal with Russia. First, it needs to determine the nature of Russia’s objectives in Syria and Ukraine. Second, because Russia depends on a highly personalized political system, Obama and his would-be successors need to decide how to manage relations with Putin, an especially difficult task given the overwhelming pressure on the campaign trail to look tough. The evidence suggests that if the next president wants to engage with the Kremlin in a way that is consistent with U.S. interests, he or she should focus on concrete areas where the two countries can and must work together—particularly nuclear and conventional military issues. Continuing to isolate Russia is not likely to work. Instead, the next U.S. administration should clearly communicate to the Kremlin what American interests and values are and join with U.S. allies in resisting further Russian attempts to unravel the post–Cold War order...

Keep reading.

'With Trump's call for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States, several of the nation's most esteemed journalists and influential news outlets have set aside traditional notions of balance and given themselves license to label the Republican front-runner a liar, a demagogue, a racist and worse…'

The quote's from Politico's Dylan Byers, at Jay Rosen's PressThink, "Something happened in journalism two weeks ago that I want to examine before we all forget about it and election season rolls on."

"Traditional notions" of media objectivity went out the window decades ago, if there were any such notions in the first place.

Let's face it: the U.S. has descended into a miasma of leftist political correctness, with the Democrat Media Complex leading the crash all the way down.

In case you missed it, go back and read the much-too-clear David Horowitz essay from yesterday, "Donald Trump and the American Future."

Muslims are not like any other minority group. They want to kill us. And leftists will be among the first of those slaughtered, which I suppose is poetic justice.

Transitioning to the Post-Obama Era

From VDH, at PJ Media:

How will the country wake up from its coma in 2016 to reality in 2017?

Next year the lame-duck, legacy-starved Obama administration will double down on its executive orders, bureaucratic fiats, and circumvention of the law. Obama will seek to fundamentally transform America, contrary to law, effecting change in ways he was not able to by adhering to the law.The media, as it has the past seven years, will not only ignore the illegality, but also rationalize and commend it.

Then comes 2017.

If a Republican is elected president, what will the media and its liberal sympathizers do should the next chief executive decide to follow the Obama modus operandi?

Consider a number of issues, starting with immigration...

Keep reading.

Turkey Getting Serious About Securing Its Borders?

Well, don't hold your breath.

At the New York Times, "Turkey Moves to Clamp Down on Border, Long a Revolving Door."

University of San Diego Students Wear 'Muslim Yellow Stars' to Protest Donald Trump (VIDEO)

Trivializing the Holocaust --- and protecting the perpetrators of a new Holocaust, the Islamo-lefitst jihadists.

At Victory Girls, "University of San Diego Students Wear “Muslim Yellow Stars” to Protest Trump."

And at Legal Insurrection, "Professors and Students at U. San Diego protest Trump by wearing 'Muslim Yellow Stars'."

And watch, at ABC 10 News San Diego:

Odell Beckham Jr. Gets One-Game Suspension (VIDEO)

From Sam Farmer, at the Los Angeles Times, "NFL's one-game suspension of Giants' Odell Beckham Jr. feels a little like a wrist slap":

Odell Beckham Jr. got off easy.

The NFL suspended the New York Giants star receiver for one game Monday, a day after he blatantly and repeatedly tried to injure Carolina cornerback Josh Norman.

Beckham, flagged for three personal fouls in Sunday's 38-35 loss, was caught by TV cameras throwing a punch at Norman and later trying to land a helmet-to-helmet blow.

It was an embarrassing display for a league trying to repair its image in terms of player safety. Beckham paid two hefty fines as a rookie last season: $10,000 for kicking St. Louis linebacker Alec Ogletree and $11,025 for throwing his helmet to the turf in anger while protesting a late tackle out of bounds. Earlier this season, he threw a punch at Buffalo safety Duke Williams and it cost him $8,681.

There's no question Beckham is one of the most exciting players in the game. His Matrix-like one-handed touchdown catch last season will go down as one of the most acrobatic plays in NFL history. But Sunday's spectacle will take some time to live down...

More.

And watch, at the NFL's YouTube page, "Odell Beckham Jr. Suspended One Game."

SpaceX Nails Falcon 9 Landing (VIDEO)

At the Sacramento Bee, "SpaceX launches rocket 6 months after accident, then lands."

High Winds, Cold Weather Batter the Pacific Northwest (VIDEO)

At KOIN 6 News Portland, "Heavy winds wreak havoc across Oregon and Washington."

And at CBS This Morning, "Rain and snow target millions in the West":

Many parts of the country are getting hammered by powerful weather systems during Christmas week. It’s raining in the East and the South, but the worst weather is in the West. Powerful Pacific storms threaten millions with rain and snow, while some areas in northern California are already being hit with snow. John Blackstone reports from Mill Valley, California.

Still more, at KCRA News 3 Sacramento, "Heavy rainfall moves into the Foothills Monday afternoon," and "Snow causes major delays on Sierra roads."

Amazon Offers Package Delivery in Two Hours or Less (VIDEO)

You need an Amazon Prime membership, but still, I love these guys.

At CBS This Morning:

Donald Trump and the American Future

From David Horowitz, at FrontPage Magazine:

I have to confess that of late I have become increasingly pessimistic about the future of our country. For awhile I was hopeful that the electorate would finally cut through the fog of political correctness: the racist, collectivist, America-and-white people-are-guilty party line of the Democratic Party. Not so any more. Both the conservative punditry (with a few notable exceptions) and the Republican establishment are proving as feckless in resisting the left’s attacks, and as unfocused on the Democratic adversary as the Republican congress. The Democrats are at it full bore. Having gotten away with disarming the nation in the face of its enemies, and with promoting systematic racial discrimination, along with racist lynch mobs in the streets, the Democrats are busy on the attack. In their election campaign year, they are accusing Republican candidates of being racist and recruiters for ISIS. The only serious - i.e., bloody-minded - fire coming from the Republican side is directed at Donald Trump. (Think about it – all the Democrats need is a damaged Trump. Then they can condemn Republicans for merely associating with him.) If Republicans want to join Democrats and match their viciousness in taking down the Republican front-runner, Hillary Clinton is going to be our next president.

The most recent explosion of outrage at Trump is his proposal for a temporary moratorium on Muslim immigration “until we figure it out” – i.e., figure out how to vet Muslim immigrants so that we don’t allow anymore Tashfeen Malik’s into the country where they are determined to kill innocent Americans. Otherwise perfectly intelligent conservatives have joined the Democrat smear squad in denouncing Trump’s suggestion as unconstitutional, illegal, and un-American. In fact, as a cursory Internet search should convince anyone free of anti-Republican bigotry, Trump’s proposal is not only constitutional (foreigners seeking entry into the country have no rights under the US Constitution – only US citizens do. It is also perfectly legal. There is an actual U.S. code that says the president has the authority to ban “any class” of individuals he deems a threat to the American citizens.

Moreover, Trump’s proposal is obviously sensible – i.e., is justified by a realistic confrontation with the facts. According to a Pew Poll, 64% of Muslims in Egypt and Pakistan believe that leaving the Muslim faith should be punished by death. In Afghanistan the figure is 78%. While 64% of Muslims are not active terrorists, there was not a single member of the Muslim community in San Bernardino willing to alert authorities to the hateful, indeed murderous ideas of the shooter couple. Punishing apostasy by death is only a crystallization of the jihadists’ belief that all non-Muslims who refuse to submit to the Islamic faith should be killed. That is what the war that Islamists have declared on us is about. Donald Trump has done the country a service by putting this issue – previously unmentionable – before the American public. Thus far he is the only candidate with the guts to do this, and that is why he is leading in the polls by a wide margin.

According to a 2009 “World Opinion Poll” conducted by the University of Maryland, between 30% and 50% of Muslims in Muslim countries approve of the terrorist attacks on America. If 64% of Muslims think that infidels deserve death – and an impressive percentage approve of the attacks on America and the West – that amounts to between 500 million and 800 million sworn enemies of our country and our culture. Say it’s only a tenth of those numbers. That’s 50 million or more potential killers for Allah, and supporters of killers for Allah. Keep in mind that these terrorists already have chemical and biological weapons. Is there any person not blinded by leftwing ideas that doesn’t think this presents a vetting problem for us in dealing with Muslim immigrants and visitors? Moreover, a vetting problem that we obviously haven’t begun to solve? However, perhaps Trump’s blanket ban, though constitutional, legal and temporary - is also impractical. The details as Trump himself would be the first to admit are still negotiable. A practical plan even one of reduced scope is better than none.

So why are conservatives treating Trump as a pariah? Clinton and Obama have the blood of hundreds of thousands of Christians and non-ISIS Muslims on their hands not to mention the American victims of their rules of engagement. It is they and their party who have undermined the war on radical Islamists for 22 years since Bill Clinton refused to visit the thousand victims of the first World Trade Center bombing in 1993. Democrats have fought to try terrorist soldiers in civil courts where they would be given the rights of American citizens; they have fought to close Guantanamo, and have deliberately released terrorist generals to return to the battlefield and kill more Americans; Democrats have fought to abandon our military presence in Iraq, surrendering a hard won victory to ISIS and Iran; Obama and Hillary overthrew – illegally, immorally and unconstitutionally – the anti-al Qaeda government of Libya and turned that country into a terrorist hunting ground. Where are the Republican litanies high-lighting these betrayals?

In the meantime, jihadist mosques protected by Democrats continue to function – including the one attended by the San Bernardino shooters – the city of New York continues to bar first responders from monitoring mosques to see what they are preaching, 350 Sanctuary cities still refuse to cooperate with Homeland Security. All under the enemy-friendly doctrine that all Muslims belong to a protected species that cannot be scrutinized about their commitment to a religion that preaches hatred of non-Muslims, particularly Jews, and whose avowed goal is the political submission of the entire world to the Islamic faith. On the other side, a Republican/conservative chorus has so tarred and feathered the Republican front-runner who is doing by default the work that they should be doing, that they have made it virtually impossible for him to win a general election. And make no mistake, they have also made it virtually impossible for any Republican candidate to speak frankly about the Democrats’ perfidy and the danger it poses to our country.

How much innocent blood do Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have on their hands? How much innocent blood will be spilled in the next four years if Clinton is elected? These are the questions Republicans should be asking, not whether Donald Trump is a bigot. He obviously is not. Impolitic yes. Racist no. Donald Trump has many faults but lack of political courage is not one of them. He seems motivated by concern for the pit into which this country has fallen under an administration with catastrophic priorities and uncertain loyalties. That is what Republicans need to think about when framing their next attacks. Otherwise the future is dim indeed.

Conservative Icon Phyllis Schlafly Says Donald Trump is Last Hope for America

People like Trump because he's an unfiltered, politically incorrect warrior.

It's why I like him, although I sometimes cringe at the things he says.

In any case, at WND, "Phyllis Schlafly: Trump is 'last hope for America'":

Phyllis Schlafly, an icon of the conservative movement who has been active for half a century, is warning the nation: Donald Trump is the last hope for America.

Schlafly unloaded on Republicans in Congress for passing the $1.1 trillion omnibus bill last week, a move she called a “betrayal.”

“This is a betrayal of the grassroots and of the Republican Party,” Schlafly said in an exclusive interview with WND. “We thought we were electing a different crowd to stand up for America, and they didn’t. We’re extremely outraged by what Congress has done. Nancy Pelosi couldn’t have engineered it any better. I think the people are going to react by electing Donald Trump.”

Trump put out a statement Friday to ABC News saying, “If anyone needs more evidence of why the American people are suffering at the hands of their own government, look no further than the budget deal announced by Speaker Ryan. In order to avoid a government shutdown, a cowardly threat from an incompetent president, the elected Republicans in Congress threw in the towel and showed absolutely no budget discipline.”

Trump continued, “Congress cannot seem to help itself in bending to every whim of special interests. How can they face their constituents when they continue to burden our children and grandchildren with debts they will never be able to repay? Our government is failing us, so we must do something about it. Who knows how bad things will be when the next administration comes in and has to pick up the pieces?”

Schlafly applauded the GOP front-runner’s fighting spirit.

“It sounds like Donald Trump is the only one who has any fight in him,” she said. “He will fight for the issues that we really care about and are very hot at the present time, such as the immigration issue. I don’t see anyone else who’s eager to fight.”

The Republican-controlled Congress just sold America down in river in the “worst kind of betrayal,” Schlafly told WND.

“It’s the worst kind of a betrayal because we thought we elected a bunch of good guys who would shape up the party,” she said. “We had a lot of fancy promises that the Republicans were going to shape up and change course. And they disappointed us. Betrayal is an appropriate word to describe it.”

WND asked Schlafly if she believes Donald Trump is the last hope for America.

“He does look like he’s the last hope [for America],” Schlafly said. “We don’t hear anybody saying what he’s saying. In fact, most of the people who ought to be lining up with him are attacking him. They’re probably jealous of the amount of press coverage he gets. But the reason he gets so much press coverage is the grassroots are fed up with people who are running things, and they do want a change. They do want people to stand up for America. It really resonates when he says he wants to ‘Make America Great Again.’”

Schlafly said it’s not only Republicans who feel betrayed, but Democrats, too...

More.

It'd be hard to challenge Schlafly's conservative bona fides. No doubt Trump's tapping into a tremendous yearning for robust leadership against the leftist onslaught.

It's extremely interesting.

Donald Trump Hilariously Reports That Barack Obama 'Schlonged' Hillary Clinton in 2008 Election (VIDEO)

Raw Story, Talking Points Memo, and Think Progress have blown gaskets at this hilarious story, via Memeorandum, "‘Schlonged’: Watch Trump's Astonishingly Sexist Attack on Hillary."

What a freakin' riot!

Here's the video, "Trump Says Obama 'Schlonged' Hillary."

It's actually hard to make out the "schlonged" reference. Trump's kinda saying it under his breath. But Think Progress has the quote, so you be the judge. Either way, given the twisted leftist panties, it's the best, lol.

Monday, December 21, 2015

Lakeisha Holloway, Suspect in Deadly Las Vegas Vehicle Rampage, Faces Murder Charges (VIDEO)

Following-up from earlier, "One Dead and Dozens Injured as Driver 'Intentionally' Rams Pedestrians on Las Vegas Strip (VIDEO)."

Here's ABC News 13 Las Vegas:

Also, at the Las Vegas Sun, "Why? Motive sought after pedestrians mowed down along Las Vegas Strip."

30% Off Verbatim LED 'Warm White' Light Bulbs

At Amazon, Shop - Verbatim LED Bulb Promotion.

Plus, check out Susan Pedersen, The Guardians: The League of Nations and the Crisis of Empire.

And Richard Pipes, The Russian Revolution.

BONUS: From David Priestland, The Red Flag: A History of Communism.

Report: Public Opinion Polls Probably Underestimate Donald Trump's Popular Support

I argued that the polls were underestimating Trump's strength back in the summer months, particularly with reference to the left's monstrous sanctuary city policies. And now here comes statistical evidence that polls are likely shorting the Manhattan real estate developer's support.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Polls may actually underestimate Trump's support, study finds":

Donald Trump leads the GOP presidential field in polls of Republican voters nationally and in most early-voting states, but some surveys may actually be understating his support, a new study suggests.

The analysis, by Morning Consult, a polling and market research company, looked at an odd occurrence that has cropped up repeatedly this year: Trump generally has done better in online polls than in surveys done by phone.

The firm conducted an experiment aimed at understanding why that happens and which polls are more accurate -- online surveys that have tended to show Trump with support of nearly four-in-10 GOP voters or the telephone surveys that have typically shown him with the backing of one-third or fewer.

Their results suggest that the higher figure probably provides the more accurate measure. Some significant number of Trump supporters, especially those with college educations, are "less likely to say that they support him when they’re talking to a live human” than when they are in the “anonymous environment” of an online survey, said the firm's polling director, Kyle Dropp.

With Trump dominating political debates in both parties, gauging his level of support has become a crucial puzzle. The Morning Consult study provides one piece of the solution, although many other uncertainties remain.

Among the complicating factors is this: The gap between online and telephone surveys has narrowed significantly in surveys taken in the last few weeks. That could suggest that Republicans who were reluctant to admit to backing Trump in the past have become more willing to do so recently.

Another issue is that not only can polls change over time, but Trump's support in pre-election surveys might not fully translate into actual votes. He has not invested as heavily as some of his GOP rivals in building the kind of get-out-the-vote operation that candidates typically rely on, particularly in early voting states.

Some of the polls that show heavy support for Trump have also shown him doing better among self-identified independents who lean Republican than among regular GOP voters. At least some of those independents may not be in the habit of voting in primaries and caucuses, which could make a robust turnout operation even more necessary.

On the other hand, a candidate of Trump's level of celebrity may simply not need much of a get-out-the-vote operation. No one really knows...

And that was something I also suggested, in my post the other day, "Donald Trump Campaign Lags in Mobilizing Iowa Caucus Voters." With Trump's celebrity, is old-time voter mobilization passé?

We won't know until February.

But keep reading.

Police Shut Down Mathilde Grafström Photography Exhibition

Heh, a little too naturalistic, it turns out.

At London's Daily Mail, "Police shut down photo exhibition of naked women because they’re too ‘indecent’ for display in public square."

And check it out, at the Mathilde Grafström homepage.

Ah, very natural, you might say.

Season 5 Finale of 'Homeland'

Hmm, it was a pretty surprising finale.

Spoilers ahead, at WSJ, "‘Homeland’ Season 5 Finale: An Intelligence Expert Weighs In."

Once You've Declared 'War' on Bourgeois Values, You're Pretty Much Screwed

Postcards from the nihilist left. See David Thompson, via Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit:

“LEFTIST POSTURING IS OFTEN ANTITHETICAL TO PRACTICAL SUCCESS AND PRACTICAL HAPPINESS,” David Thompson writes:

To take a vivid and familiar example, imagine if your children, nieces and nephews took to heart the operatic blatherings of Laurie Penny, who tells her readers to “Fuck social mobility… Fuck money. Fuck rising above your class… Fuck marriage, mortgage, monogamy, and every other small, ugly ambition.” These, she says, are things “we should have abandoned.”

Well, okay. But where exactly does that leave a young person, or a person not-so-young? Once you’ve declared “war” on bourgeois values, once you’ve abandoned the conventional foundations of material and emotional reward, where do you go? How will that radicalism serve you later in life, when you’re no longer a stroppy teenager or a twenty-something poseur? Is a mix of contrarianism, hypocrisy, resentment and a colossal sense of entitlement a sound footing for an adult life? After all, those “small, ugly ambitions” are what gave Laurie her own comfortable upbringing and advantages in life, such that she can now flit around the world tweeting about how oppressed she is.

As noted before, it’s one of the classic problems for self-imagined radicals. In denouncing bourgeois habits (usually while enjoying the benefits of such behaviour, at least residually), they have little of practical use to offer their followers. If you do away with marriage, monogamy, responsibility, deferred gratification, personal territory, etc., you’re basically left with a recipe for failure, dependency and unhappiness. Though of course the resentment that follows can be very useful to would-be prophets of the left. If encouraging needless misery, and then exploiting it, is your thing...

The hideous prog-trolls who used to comment here used to hate being called nihilists, but that's exactly what they are.

Still more.

Suicide Bomber Kills Six American Soldiers In Afghanistan (VIDEO)

At the Wall Street Journal, "Bomb Kills Six American Troops in Afghanistan."

Actually, a "bomber" killed the troops. The bomb itself was just the weapon of destruction.

Thursday, December 24, 2015

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Monday, December 21, 2015

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