Thursday, June 30, 2016

Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough Could Soon Go Public as a Couple

I don't watch the show. But I gotta admit, she's a stunning babe.

At Page Six, "Mika's hush-hush divorce fuels Joe romance chatter.

Via Memeorandum.

Fabulous Charlotte McKinney in New Guess Campaign

WWTDD cracks me up, "Charlotte McKinney Domination by Breast":


What happens when the A for Effort chick from grade school grows up with a pretty face and enormous tits? Trick question. It's never happened before. Lotto winners who declare they're going back to their job packing holiday meat trays don't deserve the money

Kate Upton exited stage left to wash Verlander cum off her ear and hasn't ever returned. She's in grave danger of becoming a Trivial Pursuit answer alongside Wally Pip. Next tits up. Everybody is replaceable in this world. One reason to keep epic superlatives to a minimum.

Charlotte McKinney does not let an hour pass without reminding men why they'd kill their sensei for the chance to finish on her chest. Scrape Ellen's browser history and follow the money. This chick is starting to rake.
Also, at London's Daily Mail, "Charlotte McKinney flaunts her jaw-dropping curves in seductive Guess campaign."

PREVIOUSLY: "New Charlotte McKinney Photos."

The Never-Ending Sale

I don't worry too much about shopping on the Fourth of July, but it's a big weekend for retailers.

At WSJ, "How to Play the July 4th Sales":
With the July 4th holiday approaching, watch for emails landing in your inbox pitching big sales from retailers on this traditional summer sale day. They’ll start by offering deep discounts. Then on Monday, they’ll press the urgency—Final hours! If past experience is any guide, you may wake up July 5 to find the sale has been extended and is still going.

As they battle for attention, retailers are increasingly playing a hurry-up-and-wait game, which leaves consumers struggling to figure out when the sales are climaxing with maximum discounts.

Retailers over Memorial Day repeatedly warned shoppers they’d better move fast. “Only Hours Left!” Lands’ End announced in an email blast Monday afternoon. “Last Chance,” Pottery Barn intoned. But by Tuesday, their sales and others’ were still on. “Memorial Day might be over, but our sale is not,” said an email from menswear seller Knot Standard.

Deep discounts for some retailers including Neiman Marcus, which also extended its Memorial Day sale, have lasted virtually all month. Some Fourth of July sales started early. Pottery Barn was advertising 70% off for its Independence Day sale as early as June 23.

Retailers agonize over whether and when to offer discounts, and fashion brands hate sales. They risk teaching consumers to wait for a sale to buy and make it tougher for retailers to sell items at full price. Extending a sale with an email blast creates a potentially even more potent mix: It could make it tougher to convince consumers to buy discounted items because they wait for an even better offer. A shopper who rushes to buy after an urgent email says a sale will end may be annoyed to wake up the next morning to an email saying the sale continues.

“Basically, it’s always a sale now,” says Barry Schwartz, a Swarthmore College consumer psychologist, professor, and author of The Paradox of Choice a groundbreaking 2004 book that argued brands benefit from offering fewer choices. “The retailers are killing themselves.”
Still more.

NRA to Run $2 million Benghazi-Themed Advertising Campaign for Donald Trump (VIDEO)

This is awesome.

This ad's narrated by survivor Mark "Oz" Geist, a Marine Corps veteran who helped provide security services in Benghazi.

Via Theo Spark:



How the 'Bralette' Trend Upended Victoria's Secret (VIDEO)

At Heat Street:

Victoria’s Secret has a problem, and it’s not much of a secret: “Athleisure” is upending the bra business.

Growth is slowing in the retailer’s core bra business, which accounts for about 35% of sales at its parent company, L Brands Inc. as shoppers seek comfort instead of flash from their undergarments. In the first quarter, the retailer said bra sales rose less than 10%, down from growth rates in the midteens in prior quarters. Shares of L Brands have tumbled 29% so far this year.

Victoria’s Secret has been aggressively marketing its “bralettes” window displays and email messages that say “no padding is sexy.”

“It’s not a sick business, but it’s not growing at the rate we want,” the company’s finance chief, Stuart Burgdoerfer, said in May. The retailer has taken steps in recent months to fix the issue. It has brought in new leadership, pared its merchandise and responded to the athleisure trend...
Well, here's hoping they make it. They've got some of the hottest babes in the business modeling their stuff.

At 48, Tony Hawk Lands the 900, 17 Years After He First Pulled It Off (VIDEO)

I'm 54, so back in the day, when I was skating the SoCal skatepark circuit at around 17, Tony Hawk would have been 11-years-old. He was already great then. No one had any idea, however, that he'd one day become the world's most successful (and famous) skateboarder.

The bonus here is how utterly clueless are Chris Cuomo and Alisyn Camerota. Such fake enthusiasm for something about which they know nothing and for which they literally couldn't care less.

Watch:


Istanbul Airport Attackers Came from Islamic State Stronghold of Raqqa in Syria (VIDEO)

At CNN, "ISIS leadership involved in Istanbul attack planning, Turkish source says":

Istanbul (CNN) - Turkish officials have strong evidence that the Istanbul airport attackers came to the country from the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa in Syria and that ISIS leadership was involved in the planning of the attack, a senior Turkish government source told CNN on Thursday.

Officials believe the men -- identified by another Turkish official and state media as being from Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan -- entered Turkey about a month ago from Raqqa, bringing along with them the suicide vests and bombs used in the attack, the source said.

They rented an apartment in the Fatih district of Istanbul, where one of the attackers left behind his passport, the Turkish government source told CNN.

The attack was "extremely well planned with ISIS leadership involved," the source said...
Keep reading.

Boy, those ignorant British racist rubes are looking more prescient all the time. Of course, the leftist elite will deny the attacks have anything to do with European Union policy, which is to welcome literally millions of "refugees" flooding into the continent.

Feminism's Attack on the Family

Here's the latest long-form essay, from Robert Stacy McCain, at the Other McCain, "Anti-Marriage and Anti-Motherhood: Feminism’s War Against the Family":
Feminism is a movement devoted to destroying the family. Feminist theory condemns marriage and motherhood as institutions of “male domination,” which is why taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood is sacred to feminists: The road to “equality” is paved with dead babies.

Misery loves company, and the leaders of this anti-male hate movement therefore encourage young women to pursue lifestyles that will lead them to the same attitude of embittered resentment that defines feminism. Crucial to this project is the promotion of abnormal sexual behavior.

“Sex is about reproductive biology,” as I have previously explained. “Human beings are mammals, and any eighth-grader can figure out what that means in terms of sex. Once you understand this scientific definition of sex, everything else is just details.” Rejecting this normal common-sense understanding of sex, feminists adopt intellectual theories that are directly hostile to the reproductive purposes of human sexuality. One obvious reason for this hostility is because so many leaders of the feminist movement are lesbians...
They're usually fat, ugly lesbians at that, heh.

But keep reading.

And buy the book, Sex Trouble: Essays on Radical Feminism and the War Against Human Nature.

Hallel Yaffa Ariel, 13-Years-Old, Stabbed to Death While Asleep at Home in Kryat Arba Settlement (VIDEO)

So horrible.

She was a Jewish settler, attacked by a "virtuous" Palestinian. Watch, leftist anti-Zionists will say the poor thing deserved it.

At the Telegraph UK, "13-year-old Israeli girl stabbed to death in her bedroom."



ADDED: According to Yair Rosenberg on Twitter, the girl was an American citizen.

Bernard Bailyn

After the spring semester finished, my department cleared out the office of Professor Julian Del Gaudio, who passed away suddenly last year. Stacks and stacks of books and academic journals sat outside in the hallway. Plus, my colleagues Greg and Charlotte Joseph both retired, and they set out dozens of books in the hall as well.

I grabbed a bunch of classic old tomes. It was better than going to a favorite used bookstore, heh!

Professor Greg Joseph is an historian of the Cold War and the early American republic. He gave me a copy of Bernard Bailyn's classic, Pulitzer Prize-winning, The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution.

I finished Roger Scruton last night, Fools, Frauds and Firebrands: Thinkers of the New Left.

Now I'm just sampling chapters from the various books I've got stacked up on the ottoman downstairs in the living room. I'm also shopping for a couple of more books online. Thanks to everyone who's been shopping through my Amazon links. The affiliate fees help me afford my book binges, heh.

Bernard Bailyn photo 13512039_10210229589039158_2106461038821320455_n_zpsdrmimzs4.jpg

Ideologue or Pragmatist?

It's Jonah Goldberg, from Prager University.

Goldberg's the author, most recently, of The Tyranny of Clichés: How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas.

The only problem with his video is that he insists on calling leftists "liberals." Decent, well-meaning people (and not just conservatives) aren't going to defeat radical postmodern leftism if they idiotically continue to treat these ghouls as "liberals." They're not. See Kim R. Holmes, The Closing of the Liberal Mind: How Groupthink and Intolerance Define the Left.



Samantha Hoopes Irresistibles (VIDEO)

Via Theo Spark:


Boris Johnson Withdraws from Leadership Contest, Upends Tories After Michael Gove Ambush (VIDEO)

At the Telegraph UK, "Conservative MPs in uproar as Boris Johnson 'rips party apart' by withdrawing from leadership contest after ambush by Michael Gove":

The battle for the Conservative leadership was dramatically transformed today after Boris Johnson ruled himself out of the race.

It followed the shock declaration from Michael Gove that he would throw his hat in the ring because he didn't believe his close friend was up to the job.

He said: "I have come, reluctantly, to the conclusion that Boris cannot provide the leadership or build the team for the task ahead. I have, therefore, decided to put my name forward for the leadership."

Conservative MPs who turned up for what they thought would be Boris Johnson’s decision to stand for the Tory leadership at the St Ermine hotel near Scotland Yard are absolutely furious.

The MPs who spoke to the Telegraph said they had no idea the Mr Johnson had planned to withdraw from the Tory leadership.

One MP who attended Mr Johnson’s launch said: “Any politician who trusts Michael Gove needs their head examined.

The chaos sent shock waves through the campaign as Home Secretary Theresa May announced her bid to succeed David Cameron this morning.

At midday Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, announced that Theresa May, Michael Gove, Stephen Crabb, Liam Fox and Andrea Leadsom will fight it out to succeed David Cameron.

Mr Brady announced that the first set of voting will take place on Tuesday as the party's MPs winnow down the field of five candidates to two.

With the least successful contender eliminated at each round, further ballots will be held on Thursday, then successive Tuesdays and Thursdays until two front-runners emerge to be put forward to the party membership in the country for a final decision.

Mr Brady said the committee wants a winner to be chosen by September 9.

A handful of Tory MPs reacted with disbelief as news that Mr Johnson would not be seeking the leadership filtered through as they waited for Mr Brady's announcement...
Watch Johnson's full withdrawal speech here, "LIVE: Boris Johnson's shock announcement he will not run for Tory leadership."

Europe Is Dead: Long Live Europe?

At Der Spiegel, "Black Thursday for U.K. and Europe as Britain Votes to Leave E.U.":
Three weeks prior to the big bang, Michael Gove was standing on a rooftop terrace in London's East End talking about how much he likes Europe. German music, Italian food, French joie de vivre -- oh how much he loves this wonderful continent. Gove is a close friend of British Prime Minister David Cameron and the UK secretary of state for justice. He is also a leading proponent of the British campaign to leave the European Union, commonly called Brexit. "I got married in France and my in-laws live in Italy," he said. "Last year, we went to Bayreuth on vacation. Beautiful." He just couldn't stop gushing.

There is, though, one thing that he doesn't like about Europe -- the damned European Union. Gove describes the 28-country bloc as a "job-destroying, misery-inducing, unemployment-creating tragedy." He's been fighting for Britain to leave the EU for years and is convinced he's right. He is an ideologue. His strategic skill is one big reason why the anti-EU camp attracted more and more people in the weeks leading up to the vote.

In a room next door, Brexit activists are waiting with signs and "Vote Leave" T-shirts. It is Gove's job to motivate them for the campaign's final stretch. He straightens his tie and says that he spent a week sitting on a wooden bench listening to Wagner's operas at the Bayreuth Festival. It was complete dedication, he says, offering it as yet more proof of his love for the continent -- and then an advisor tells him it is time to take the stage.

Gove and his followers were ecstatic on Friday morning. They had achieved their goal. According to the final results, 52 percent of the British voted in favor of leaving the EU. It is an outcome that many in Europe didn't initially take seriously. Soon, however, they began to fear it and ultimately, they could do nothing to prevent it.

The Direst Worst-Case Scenario

At shortly after 4 a.m. London time, Nigel Farage, head of the euroskeptic UKIP party, was one of the first to step in front of the cameras. He said the Brexit vote was a "victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people." He also demanded Cameron's immediate resignation. At the time of his speech, only 237 of 382 local authorities had declared their results. Just a few minutes later, the pound plunged to its lowest level against the dollar since 1985.

Scotland, London and Northern Ireland all voted clearly in favor of remaining in the EU, but that wasn't enough. The results in the rest of the UK were clear, and the Brexit campaign's lead grew throughout the night. At 5:40 a.m., the BBC made its call: Brexit was reality.


The influential Labour parliamentarian Keith Vaz called the result "a catastrophe;" European Parliament President Martin Schulz said a short time later that it was "a real crisis;" BBC journalists, clearly stunned by the result, said they had never thought they would have to comment on such an outcome. The United Kingdom will become the first European country ever to leave the union.

June 23, 2016 will go down in European history as Black Thursday, a day when a country succumbed to nostalgia and a yearning for freedom instead of following reason. Against the recommendation of a majority of its parliamentarians, against the advice of economists, politicians, academics, friends and allies around the world. It is a decision marked by national egocentrism, stoked by fear and world weariness, but it is nonetheless a democratic decision...
Well, "nonetheless" democratic.

Thanks a lot, buddy!

Keep reading.

More, "The Refugee Question: Is Merkel To Blame for Brexit?"

EARLIER: "This Is a Real Headline on Britain's EU Referendum, You Ignorant Unwashed Racist Rubes."

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

William J. Murray, Utopian Road to Hell

I'm just about finished with Roger Scruton's, Fools, Frauds and Firebrands: Thinkers of the New Left.

It's extremely scholarly, and quite heavy reading, actually.

I've learned a lot though. The book's going to be a key reference as I plow through more and more of the radical left's postmodernist literature.

Relatedly, I just saw this book on Amazon, and it's worth a look. From William Murray, Utopian Road to Hell: Enslaving America and the World With Central Planning.

Definitely timely.

'Why not blow up the security line?'

Australia's Daily Telegraph cites Mark Steyn's tragic prediction from six years ago, at it's editorial on Istanbul, quoted at Steyn Online, "The Insecure Security Line":
As we observed yesterday, while Mark is traveling overseas researching a forthcoming book, we could easily run the "Steyn was right" series all summer. It would be too sad and bleak to do so, but today Australia's Daily Telegraph, in its editorial on the airport attack, takes note of another ancient insight from Mark:
SIX years ago, following the introduction of further airport security measures in the US, American-based columnist and author Mark Steyn made the following acute observation:

"The second thought that strikes you is that the ever- longer lines to get into the 'secure' area are now the least secure area in America. Why not blow up the security line? You could kill as many people as on an aeroplane, and inflict more long-term economic damage.

"But don't worry. The Transportation Security Administration has plans to expand the 'secure' area, so the insecure perimeter will be somewhere else, with even more vulnerable people standing around waiting to get into it."

Steyn's views from 2010 rang true following the terrorist attacks in March at Brussels airport, which targeted two security check-in areas, and they ring true again following yesterday's horrific terrorist attacks at Istanbul's Ataturk International, which also occurred at a security point.

An initial and understandable impulse may be that we need to rethink how airport security should operate — perhaps by expanding the secure areas. But as Steyn more recently pointed out, that would only shift potential targets:

"Clearly we need a secure zone outside the secure zone — maybe, say, outside the concourse. So everyone has to crowd on the sidewalk. And then when they blow that up we can move it back to the perimeter of the airport. And then ..."

And then ... where?
Indeed. We mourn the dead in Istanbul as in Brussels, but, as Mark remarked on another occasion, you get the feeling our rulers are hoping we're getting used to it.
Israel Matzav commented on just this yesterday, in the context of Israel security policies:


WATCH: Airport Surveillance Video Shows Istanbul Airport Attacker Detonating Bomb

This video by now has been played thousands of times on all the combined major news networks.

It's pretty astonishing.

Via CNN:



Also, at London's Daily Mail, "Chilling moment ISIS suicide bomber casually walks into Istanbul Airport terminal next to a pilot: Jihadists are caught on CCTV before blowing themselves up and killing 41 in deadly massacre."

This Is a Real Headline on Britain's EU Referendum, You Ignorant Unwashed Racist Rubes

Remember, if you had to boil down Britain's vote to leave, it's actually quite simple: "#Brexit: A Referendum on Elites and Immigration."

Of course, that elite class includes all the leftist media's foreign policy intelligentsia, that part of the revolutionary cadre that does its agitation for the proletarian liberation from behind a desk.

I mean, seriously. I thought was was a joke when I first saw the headline, but it's not, which makes it even more hilarious.

From James Traub, at the über establishment Foreign Policy, "It's Time for the Elites to Rise Up Against the Ignorant Masses":
The Brexit has laid bare the political schism of our time. It’s not about the left vs. the right; it’s about the sane vs. the mindlessly angry.


The issue, at bottom, is globalization. Brexit, Trump, the National Front, and so on show that political elites have misjudged the depth of the anger at global forces and thus the demand that someone, somehow, restore the status quo ante. It may seem strange that the reaction has come today rather than immediately after the economic crisis of 2008, but the ebbing of the crisis has led to a new sense of stagnation. With prospects of flat growth in Europe and minimal income growth in the United States, voters are rebelling against their dismal long-term prospects. And globalization means culture as well as economics: Older people whose familiar world is vanishing beneath a welter of foreign tongues and multicultural celebrations are waving their fists at cosmopolitan elites. I was recently in Poland, where a far-right party appealing to nationalism and tradition has gained power despite years of undeniable prosperity under a centrist regime. Supporters use the same words again and again to explain their vote: “values and tradition.” They voted for Polishness against the modernity of Western Europe.

Perhaps politics will realign itself around the axis of globalization, with the fist-shakers on one side and the pragmatists on the other. The nationalists would win the loyalty of working-class and middle-class whites who see themselves as the defenders of sovereignty. The reformed center would include the beneficiaries of globalization and the poor and non-white and marginal citizens who recognize that the celebration of national identity excludes them.

The schism we see opening before us is not just about policies, but about reality. The Brexit forces won because cynical leaders were prepared to cater to voters’ paranoia, lying to them about the dangers of immigration and the costs of membership in the EU. Some of those leaders have already begun to admit that they were lying. Donald Trump has, of course, set a new standard for disingenuousness and catering to voters’ fears, whether over immigration or foreign trade or anything else he can think of. The Republican Party, already rife with science-deniers and economic reality-deniers, has thrown itself into the embrace of a man who fabricates realities that ignorant people like to inhabit.

Did I say “ignorant”? Yes, I did. It is necessary to say that people are deluded and that the task of leadership is to un-delude them. Is that “elitist”? Maybe it is; maybe we have become so inclined to celebrate the authenticity of all personal conviction that it is now elitist to believe in reason, expertise, and the lessons of history. If so, the party of accepting reality must be prepared to take on the party of denying reality, and its enablers among those who know better. If that is the coming realignment, we should embrace it.
Funny, but notice how Traub has reversed the "party of accepting reality" and the "party of denying reality." Clearly, the reality now is that everyday people --- you know, the actually citizens in popular democracies --- have woken up to the lies of the corrupt elites. It's not "pragmatic" to keep telling yourself that all is well when half the EU countries are drowning economically and the other half is hellbent of importing the developing world's wretched of the earth. Regular voters know cultural suicide when they see it, and they're having none of it.

Thank goodness.

Here's the relevant entry to further explain things, "#Brexit: Life-Orienting Belief System of Progressivism Shattered on the Rocks."

American Women Have the Biggest Breasts in the World

Hey, talk about American exceptionalism, lol.

At the Telegraph UK, "US women have the biggest breasts in the world – study reveals."


Well, my guess is that Charlotte McKinney's still something of an outlier, dang!


PREVIOUSLY: "New Charlotte McKinney Photos."

Czech Republic's Lucie Šafářová Dress 'Too Short for Wimbledon'

So since when are short dresses a controversy in professional tennis? Seems like you're always looking at women's undies.

At the Telegraph UK, "Why Wimbledon loves a controversial fashion moment on court":
After the week that is, what relief to be absorbed into the fastidious sartorial guidelines of South-west London’s finest purveyors of sporting dignity.

Or not, as the case may be… viewers (and questions of taste) have already been sent spinning by the erm, fluidity of Nike’s 'Premier Slam’ dress: a sort of sporty, baby doll, thigh-skirting pleated mini dress worn by Czech Republic first round winner Lucie Safarova on Monday, which floated up perilously throughout play...
Even the staid NYT's getting into the action on this one:


New Charlotte McKinney Photos

At London's Daily Mail, "Blonde bombshell Charlotte McKinney stops traffic as she flaunts her assets in a tiny red mini dress on set of new movie."

Speaking of being drunk, she takes her clothes off here (NSFW).

Brianna Addolorato, Fashion Model, Blogger, and Activist

And topless hottie.

At Drunken Stepfather, "'TOPLESS “FASHION BLOGGER' OF THE DAY":
Her name is Brianna Addolorato. I’ve never heard of her – but if the paparazzi are taking pictures of her – it’s safe to assume that she’s got a good scam going on, one that involves knowing who the paparrazzi who will take pictures of anyone in a bikini are – but more importantly, that she has been able to polarize her whore behavior, slutty pics, by calling herself a Fashion Blogger…which basically means zero, just that she tags the clothing she wears, or as she probably calls it “curates”…because justifying her whore for follower behavior, or packaging it as “fashion blogger” you know giving it a bigger purpose – makes brands happier to send money her way…it’s all fucking lies…

But at least she knows her place, gets topless one the beach and keeps the lie alive by reminding us she’s down to fuck, but she can make more money if she pretends she’s not...
Click through for the photos. She's a blond hottie.

Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Jackie Johnson's Cooling Trend Forecast

Ms. Jackie's back!

I was missing this wonderful lady!


LATEST: At Least 28 Dead in Istanbul Jihad Attack (VIDEO)

Yep.

The number of fatalities has more than doubled since the initial reports on the attack.

Previously, "At Least 10 Dead in Istanbul Airport Homicide Bomber Attack (VIDEO)."

And now at WSJ, "Attack at Istanbul Airport Kills at Least 28":

ISTANBUL — Turkey’s busiest airport was rocked by a terrorist attack late Tuesday that killed at least 28 people and injured scores on the eve of a major holiday, the fourth major attack in Istanbul this year.

At least two blasts rocked the international terminal of Istanbul Ataturk Airport at about 10 p.m. local time, according to a Turkish official. Police fired on two suicide bombers who blew up themselves at the entrance to terminal, the official said.

Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said an attacker had sprayed the area with a Kalashnikov and then detonated explosives.

Sixty other people were wounded in the attack, with six in critical condition, the state-run Anadolu news agency said.

Ambulances and police rushed to the area. Telecasts from the area showed bodies splayed on the floor outside the arrivals area and travellers rushing out of the airport. Police cordoned off the area and started evacuating passengers.


Flights to and from Istanbul were halted after the attack. British British Airways rerouted an Istanbul-bound plane back to London and Lufthansa cancelled at least one flight.

Turkish television channels reported at least three explosions at multiple areas, but there was no immediate confirmation from officials.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim called Interior Minister Efkan Ala and established a crisis desk.

Turkey’s largest airport has a strict security regime, unlike the other airports that have suffered bombings in the recent past.

Passengers are required to send all luggage and personal items through security screenings at the entrance to the departure zone, long before reaching check-in areas, which are separated by glass partitions and walls. The Islamic State-affiliated bombers who attacked the Brussels airport this year faced no such security screenings, and security officials believe that contributed to the high number of casualties there.

No group had claimed responsibility immediately after Tuesday’s attack...
More.

Deal of the Day: 20% Off on APC Back-UPS Power Supply

At Amazon, APC BR1500G Back-UPS Pro 1500VA 10-outlet Uninterruptible Power Supply.

And, Up to 40% Off Select Logitech PC Accessories.

More, from Sebastian Gorka, Defeating Jihad: The Winnable War.

Joby Warrick, Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS.

Also, Fawaz Gerges, ISIS: A History.

Patrick Cockburn, The Rise of Islamic State: ISIS and the New Sunni Revolution.

BONUS: Stephen Brooks and William Wohlforth, America Abroad: The United States' Global Role in the 21st Century.

Lauren Southern in France's 'Calais Jungle' (VIDEO)

Via the Rebel Media, "Lauren Southern: Searching for 'Syrian refugees' in France’s 'Calais Jungle'."


Melissa Satta Black Bikini Hotness in Italy

At Egotastic!, "Boston born Italian hottie Melissa Satta of the amazing booty finally married her professional soccer player boyfriend because soccer players simpl[y] get the hottest women."

For sure.

Sports Illustrated had her doing body paint a couple of years ago, "SI Swimsuit World Cup Body Painting: Melissa Satta Wearing Nothing But PAINT!"

PREVIOUSLY: "Hot Wives and Girlfriends of Euro Cup Soccer Players."

At Least 10 Dead in Istanbul Airport Homicide Bomber Attack (VIDEO)

This is breaking news.

If it's as bad as it looks, the number of fatalities is going to go way up.





Expect updates.

Alien Sharks: Close Encounters (VIDEO)

It's Shark Week at Discovery Channel.

My wife popped it on to get away from all the blathering talking heads on CNN after the Trump trade speech, lol.

Honestly, though, this is a fantastic series.

Watch:



I'll post more videos as we go along. Absolutely freakin' amazing.

UKIP's Nigel Farage to the EU: 'You're Not Laughing Now, Are You?' (VIDEO)

At the Federalist, "Watch Brexit Architect Nigel Farage Curb-Stomp the Entire EU Parliament."

And at NPR, "WATCH: Brexiteer Nigel Farage to EU: 'You're Not Laughing Now, Are You?'":

Nigel Farage, a member of the European Parliament and the leader of the U.K. Independence Party, spoke on the floor of the European Parliament on Tuesday morning.

It was a special session of the Parliament, called in the wake of the U.K.'s decision to leave the European Union. Farage — whose eurosceptic right-wing party was firmly in favor of the Brexit, and who personally campaigned quite passionately for it — was grinning.

And on a day marked with fiery speeches, his stood out...
Keep reading.

The leftist press highlight's drunkard Junker's rude rebuke to Farage, at the Guardian, for example, "'Why are you still here?' asks EU's Juncker amid barrage of Nigel Farage."

Remember, the left's entire utopian consciousness has been flushed down the drain.

Not Everything Should Be Decided by the People

Here's the post at Althouse, "Some things just shouldn't be decided by the people?"

She links Instapundit, "THEY LOVE DEMOCRACY UNTIL IT TURNS OUT THE WRONG WAY: WaPo: Brexit is a reminder that some things just shouldn’t be decided by the people."

We used to hear this argument all the time in California once Prop. 8 passed. Remember, "human rights shouldn't be up for a vote by the people."

Now, though, with Black Lives Matter, and all that, it's, "This is what democracy looks like!" You know, shutting down people and opinions with whom you disagree.


Corbyn Supporters Blame Labour Coup on Zionist Plot

Well, what else these days?

Following-up, "Jeremy Corbyn Refuses to Resign After Losing Nob-Confidence Vote (VIDEO)," and "Angela Eagle to Challenge Jeremy Corbyn (VIDEO)."

At Heat Street:
Jeremy Corbyn is fighting for his political life today as more than 20 of his top team have lined up to knife him.

Disgruntled frontbench MPs cited his lack of leadership and inability to stop Brexit as reasons for their revolt – but die-hard Corbyn fans say they know better.

Hundreds of supporters who have the leader’s back claim the real reason for the revolt is a fruition of a Zionist conspiracy.

Truthers posted their thoughts publicly on social media, while MPs including rising star Jess Phillips say they are receiving far more accusations in private.


Angela Eagle to Challenge Jeremy Corbyn (VIDEO)

Following-up, "Jeremy Corbyn Refuses to Resign After Losing Nob-Confidence Vote (VIDEO)."

 Check the Guardian U.K., "Brexit live: Angela Eagle touted as unity candidate in Labour leadership crisis."


Jeremy Corbyn Refuses to Resign After Losing Nob-Confidence Vote (VIDEO)

At Telegraph UK, "Labour crisis: Jeremy Corbyn refuses to resign after losing confidence of 172 MPs as Angela Eagle eyes up leadership challenge":

Jeremy Corbyn has lost a vote of no confidence in his leadership (172 votes to 40) but is expected to battle on to force a contest in which Angela Eagle or Tom Watson is likely to be the rival candidate.

David Cameron is in Brussels for discussions with European leaders about Britain's exit from the EU. He has told journalists that "we must not turn our backs on Europe".

An earlier session of the European Parliament saw Ukip leader Nigel Farage booed and jeered by fellow MEPs...
More.

Hot Wives and Girlfriends of Euro Cup Soccer Players

Heh.

At WWTDD, "Soccer Players Get the Best Tail":

Soccer WAGS photo hot_wives_and_girlfriends_of_euro_cup_soccer_players_02-186d2c36_web_zpsomm2zanm.jpg
There used to be some debate as to which professional athletes got the hottest tail. That debate ended when everybody admitted that soccer might be boring as shit, but playing professionally essentially guarantees you a slender brunette with big tits wearing screaming your name from the wives and girlfriend section of the stands.

You'd expect top scores of some South American country to have Victoria's Secret model shtupping...

#Brexit: Life-Orienting Belief System of Progressivism Shattered on the Rocks

Heh.

From Damon Linker, at the Week, "How Brexit shattered progressives' dearest illusions" (via Instapundit):
It's perfectly reasonable to worry about what will happen after Britain's historic vote to break up with the European Union. Will Brexit provoke Scotland and Northern Ireland to secede from the United Kingdom, leading to its dissolution? Will it embolden other members of the EU to bolt? And will those secessionist movements empower unsavory characters who end up being seduced by Vladimir Putin and modeling themselves on his form of authoritarian populism? Will the dire short-term economic consequences of Brexit create chaos and recession in the long term, too?

As I said, lots of reasons to worry.

But what we've seen from a wide range of writers and analysts in the days since the Brexit vote is not necessarily worry. It is shock. Fury. Disgust. Despair. A faith has been shaken, illusions shattered, pieties punctured. This is what happens when a life-orienting system of belief gets smashed on the rocks of history.

The name of that shattered system of belief? Progressivism...
Still more.

And ICYMI, "U.K.'s Guardian After #Brexit — A Roundup."

Monday, June 27, 2016

Currency Woes Rack Central Banks

At WSJ, "Strengthening Currencies Bedevil Central Banks":
Britain’s vote to leave the European Union has set off a fresh round of currency pressures in the world’s largest economies, further complicating efforts by central banks to spur growth.

The pound hit a three-decade low on Monday, and both Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings cut their ratings on the U.K., saying that last week’s vote raises risks to the country’s economy.

Meanwhile, the Japanese yen, Swiss franc and U.S. dollar posted further gains, as market turmoil resumed after the weekend and sent investors in search of havens. Government bonds also benefited from the flight from risk, with the yield on the 10-year British bond falling below 1% for the first time, as the rout in U.S. and European stocks deepened.

The currency moves, in particular, pose risks for businesses and in turn for economies that have posted lackluster performance.

The resurgent yen and franc are putting renewed pressure on companies in Japan and Switzerland. Meanwhile, U.S. companies that had benefited from a weakening dollar this year face a bout of currency-related stress as the second-quarter earnings season looms.

Stronger currencies tend to make a country’s exporters less competitive as the effective price of their goods goes up. They also tamp down inflation as import prices fall, frustrating outcomes for central banks in Japan, Europe and the U.S. that are trying to calibrate policies to boost growth and inflation. The moves could tempt central banks to intervene or modify policies to limit the upward pressure.

“Policy makers are unlikely to sit idly by while their strengthening currency derails any economic progress that they’ve made,” said Omer Esiner, chief market analyst at international-payments firm Commonwealth Foreign Exchange. “Central banks would be justified in stepping in.”

The problem is currencies can’t all weaken at once. The Swiss have been trying to push the franc down against the euro. The European Central Bank has nodded to the benefits of a weaker currency as it lowers interest rates into negative territory and expands its bond-buying programs. Japan has tried to weaken the yen against the dollar. And Federal Reserve officials have cited the stronger dollar as an impediment to growth.

All are showing little success, and investors have raised concerns that central-bank tools for influencing currency values are losing their effectiveness...
Still more.

Deal of the Day: Up to 62% Off PetSafe Fountains and Feeders

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And, Save on Game of Thrones: Season 1 & 2 (here and here). High demand on those, no doubt.

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Thomas Levenson, The Hunt for Vulcan: . . . And How Albert Einstein Destroyed a Planet, Discovered Relativity, and Deciphered the Universe.

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BONUS: Andrew Hartman, A War for the Soul of America: A History of the Culture Wars.

Nina Agdal in Bikini at Coney Island

Via Egotastic!, "Nina Agdal Revealing Bikini In Coney Island."

Hat Tip: WWTDD.

FLASHBACK: "Nina Agdal: American Power's Woman of the Year for 2015."

BONUS: At Pirate's, "If All You See……is an evil rising sea because Other People drove fossil fueled vehicles, you might just be a Warmist." (That's some Lucy Pinder hotness, heh.)

The World Crisis of Illiberalism

From Sohrab Ahmari, at Commentary, "Illiberalism: The Worldwide Crisis":
According to the bland conventional wisdom, Americans frustrated by the failure of the establishment to address issues like immigration and economic inequality have turned to an unlikely pair of political outsiders, a New York developer-turned-reality-TV-star and a Vermont socialist, to set things right. This account is true as far as it goes, but it is also hopelessly parochial and inadequate to the scope of the changes afoot. Trumpism (and Bernie Sanders-ism) are but the American symptoms of a global phenomenon: the astonishing rise of illiberal movements of the far right and far left.

As an ideology and as a governing philosophy, liberalism is fast losing ground. “Liberalism” here is understood not as the American shorthand for those who vote Democratic in the United States, but as the philosophy of individual rights and (relatively) free markets that in theory is shared by the U.S. Republican Party and Scandinavian social democrats alike. As it fades, populism and identitarian politics of all kinds are gaining adherents nearly everywhere. Today’s illiberals are less likely to be organized around systematic philosophies like Fascism and Communism than was the case in the years between the two world wars—the last time liberalism appeared this vulnerable. In our time, illiberal forces are disparate, instinctual, inchoate, more likely to be local in focus, and internally divided. Often various illiberalisms are locked in combat against one another.

Nevertheless there are common patterns that range vastly different geographies and political contexts, suggesting that this illiberal ascendance will be a defining feature of the 21st century. Welcome to Planet Trump...
Keep reading (via Instapundit).

And ICYMI: "'No Free Speech for Fascists!' — Leftist Extremists Launched Violent Attack at Sacramento Rally (VIDEO)."

The #Brexit Moment of Truth (VIDEO)

This is a phenomenal commentary, from Pat Condell.

It came out a couple of weeks ago, and thank goodness Britons chose to leave that poxed Euro-dictatorship for good.

Watch, "The Moment of Truth: "Do we want to live in a sovereign democracy or a federal dictatorship?"

John Gillingham: The EU

This is timely.

At Amazon, The EU: An Obituary.

 photo 13529120_10210204896661864_8435303992423344073_n_zpsbohybwk4.jpg

Frances Wang

Man, this lady was just bringing it home yesterday. She video'd the black bloc anarchists throttling the so-called "neo-Nazis," and especially captured the one dude getting rung-up on the back of his head with a 2x4.

Posted here, "'No Free Speech for Fascists!' — Leftist Extremists Launched Violent Attack at Sacramento Rally (VIDEO)."

And here's her bio, at ABC News 10 Sacramento:

Frances Wang joined the ABC10 reporting team in October 2015. She was born in San Francisco but grew up in Sacramento, which she considers home.

Frances has dreamed of being a journalist since she was kid after being interviewed by Walt Gray.

She's always been the most talkative of her peers, so her former teachers and classmates aren't surprised she became a reporter.

After graduating from St. Francis High School, she went on to become a Trojan at the University of Southern California. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with Phi Beta Kappa honors. During her time there, she also earned a second Bachelor's degree in Business Administration.

Most recently, Frances worked as a morning news reporter for KREM2 in Spokane, Wash., where she would cover breaking news one day and zip line through the mountains on live TV the next. She's also had internships at KABC-TV, CNN and E! News.

Frances' favorite part of her job is getting to know people she may not have met otherwise. She loves to tell stories about the amazing things people do for their communities.

In her free time, you can find her catching up on shows, trying out new restaurants, and struggling to get to the gym.


'Rock of Ages'

I picked my son up from work last night at midnight, and the Sound L.A. was jamming a fairly unusual playlist.

Def Leppard rarely airs during daytime prime-time drive-time, heh.

What a flashback to the '80s.




D'yer Mak'er
Led Zeppelin
12:34 AM

Don't Bring Me Down
Electric Light Orchestra
12:30 AM

Say You Love Me
Fleetwood Mac
12:26 AM

Come Sail Away
Styx
12:21 AM

Shake It Up
The Cars
12:17 AM

Rock of Ages
Def Leppard
12:10 AM

Killer Queen
Queen
12:08 AM

It's Only Rock 'N Roll (But I Like It)
The Rolling Stones
12:02 AM

Baba O'Riley
The Who
11:57 PM

Space Oddity
David Bowie
11:52 PM

Sweet Child O' Mine
Guns N' Roses
11:47 PM

The Logical Song
Supertramp
11:43 PM

Election '16 Bellwethers Ohio and Pennsylvania

From Salena Zito, at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, "Keep Your Eyes on Bellwethers Ohio & Pennsylvania":
Perception and reality are two different things in politics.

On paper, Republicans Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Rob Portman of Ohio should be losing in the polls in their U.S. Senate re-election races.

Both men have been hammered for a month over whether they will support their party's presumptive nominee, their opposition to voting on President Obama's Supreme Court nominee and their refusal to enact new gun legislation after the massacre in Orlando. Yet both are defying conventional political wisdom.

Toomey increased his lead over Democrat Katie McGinty by 8 percentage points in the latest Quinnipiac survey.

Portman's numbers improved by 9 points, placing him in a tie with Democrat Ted Strickland, a former governor who lost his re-election bid to John Kasich in 2010.

The two Republicans are competing in critical states that offer insight into whether Democrats can regain House and Senate majorities in November.

In short, if you want to know who will hold or retake the Senate majority, watch Toomey's battle with McGinty and Portman's with Strickland...
More.

Scenes from a Wedding

At the Other McCain:


Groveling Red Cross Takes Down 'Racist' Pool Safety Poster After One Single Complaint

At Biz Pac Review, "Red Cross apologizes for ‘super racist’ pool safety poster, as we all drown in an INSANE PC world."

Also at the Root, "Red Cross Apologizes After ‘Super Racist’ Pool-Safety Poster":
An American Red Cross signboard came under fire after showing white children being labeled as “cool” and the children of color as “not cool.”


'No Free Speech for Fascists!' — Leftist Extremists Launched Violent Attack at Sacramento Rally (VIDEO)

I don't shock easily, but the beginning of the video, when the black bloc anarchist, armed with a wooden club, smashes a protester in the side of the head, is mind-boggling.

Some of these activists from the Traditional Workers Party appeared indeed to be Nazis, as I found out after trolling around on Twitter yesterday. The only thing is, it was the leftists who started the violent attacks. Frankly, they set out to violently confront the so-called "white nationalists" and shut them down. So who's the extremist? Who's the real fascist?

Here's the event announcement from BAMN (By Any Means Necessary), "NO “FREE SPEECH” FOR FASCISTS! Mass, militant demonstration shuts down Sacramento Neo-Nazi rally!":


PROTEST THE NAZIS/KKK IN SACRAMENTO!

No Racist Organizing in California!

No “Free Speech” for Fascists!

• SMASH FASCISM! NO PLATFORM FOR ORGANIZING RACIST VIOLENCE, MURDER, AND GENOCIDE!
• No Racist Demagogy! No Anti-Muslim Bigotry! No National Chauvinism, Fear Mongering, or Immigrant Scapegoating!
• Latina/o, Black, Native American, Arab, Asian, and White, Immigrants With and Without Papers, We are ALL Californians!
• Open the Borders! Full Citizenship Rights for All Undocumented Immigrants, Refugees, and Asylum-Seekers Now!
• Build the New Independent, Integrated, Mass Militant Youth-Led Civil Rights and Immigrant Rights Movement!
Also, from Lee Stranahan, at Breitbart, "Officer: Left-Wing Extremists Started Sacramento Riot."

And get this, at the Sacramento Bee, "Activist Yvette Felarca says anti-fascist rally at the Capitol will prevent more violenceJun 26, 2016" (VIDEO):
Yvette Felarca, from the activist group By Any Means Necessary in Oakland, says their violent reaction to a white supremacist rally at the California Capitol Sunday will help prevent violence against immigrant communities by dissuading other supremacist groups from holding events.
The leftist MSM was lapping up the propaganda from this pig Felarca. Watch, at CNN, "Bloody protester: We took Nazis on."

Also, from Ed Driscoll at Instapundit, "VIDEO: THE INSANE SACRAMENTO NEO-NAZI/ANTI-FASCIST MELEE."

Frantic Efforts to Contain the Erskine Fire in Southern Sierra Nevada (VIDEO)

CBS News 2 Los Angeles has the video.

And from the front-page of today's L.A Times, "Kern County fire evacuees struggle with another trauma — uncertainty."



Babes for Trump

I noted the hashtag yesterday, "#TrumpGrilsBreaktheInterne." See, "Cristina Laila Breaks the Internet!"

And Heat Street has the follow-up, "‘Babes for Trump’ Want to Break the Internet."


Labour to Hold Vote of No-Confidence on Leader Jeremy Corbyn (VIDEO)

The best part of the Brexit vote is watching the left's global nuclear meltdown.

At Telegraph UK, "Labour crisis: Jeremy Corbyn sees 33 shadow ministers quit as new MP is told 'keep your phone on, you might be in the shadow cabinet by end of day'":


Jeremy Corbyn has lost more than half his Cabinet and seen more than 30 of his MPs revolt against his leadership over the last 48 hours.

Mr Corbyn has lost 20 of his 31 strong shadow cabinet and seen a further 13 shadow ministers resign this morning.

The rebels have criticised his performance in the EU referendum and he faces further resignations from the junior frontbench ranks amid fresh calls for him to stand down as leader.

Jeremy Corbyn's grip on the Labour leadership looked increasingly weak as Angela Eagle became the most senior member of his shadow cabinet to quit.

Shadow housing minister John Healey, shadow energy secretary Lisa Nandy and shadow work and pensions secretary Owen Smith have all resigned - adding to the 12 shadow cabinet members Mr Corbyn lost on Sunday.

Sources said that Mr Corbyn will refuse to step down and will instead try and make public a planned secret vote on his future so that voters can see which MPs are trying to unseat him.

Mr Corbyn has been forced to promote a number of key allies as the revolt against his leadership intesnifies.

A number of the 2015 intake have joined the new shadow cabinet with just a year's experience on the job.

Late on Sunday evening Mr Corbyn issued a bullish statement and vowed to continue as leader despite the resignations. He said: "I am not going to betray the trust of those who voted for me – or the millions of supporters across the country who need Labour to represent them.

“Those who want to change Labour’s leadership will have to stand in a democratic election, in which I will be a candidate.

“Over the next 24 hours I will reshape my shadow cabinet and announce a new leadership team to take forward Labour’s campaign for a fairer Britain - and to get the best deal with Europe for our people.”
More.

And David Cameron's got a good sense of humor about things, considering.

HBO's John Oliver Slurs Boris Johnson as 'Shaved Orangutan' and David Cameron as 'Pig-F***er' (VIDEO)

Jeez, this lefty loon John Oliver makes Bill Maher look like Miss Manners.

Ed Driscoll has it, at Instapundit, "TIME-WARNER-HBO-CNN SPOKESMAN JOHN OLIVER CALLS BORIS JOHNSON A ‘SHAVED ORANGUTAN’ AND DAVID CAMERON A ‘PIG-F***ER’ IN NINE-MINUTE ANTI-BREXIT RANT ON US TV."

And watch, "John Oliver: Brexit Results - 'There Are No F*cking Do Overs' Last Week Tonight - June 26 2016 (HBO)."

Supreme Court Strikes Down Texas Abortion Law (VIDEO)

I forgot we had another blockbuster case due this week.

Unfortunately, this one went the wrong way.

Jan Crawford has an analysis of the ruling, for CBS This Morning, at the video below.

And at LAT, "High court overturns Texas abortion restrictions":

The Supreme Court, in a victory for abortion-rights advocates, has limited the power of Texas and other states to restrict or effectively shut down clinics that offer the procedure.

The justices, by a 5-3 vote, said Monday that Texas lawmakers went too far by imposing unnecessary regulations that had forced most of the state’s abortion clinics to go out of business.

The decision is the court's clearest pronouncement since 1992 on abortion, and it makes clear that states may not impose health regulations that severely restrict the right to abortion...
More.

Also at Memeorandum.

Sunday, June 26, 2016

Britain's Forgotten Voters - and Ours

From Glenn Reynolds, at USA Today:
America, too, is experiencing a populist upheaval, of which Donald Trump’s candidacy is more of a symptom than a cause.

So the post-Brexit number-crunching is over and it turns out that the decisive support for Britain’s leaving the EU came not from right-wing nationalists but from working-class Labour voters. This offers some lessons for British and European politicians — and for us in America, too.

Much of Britain’s prosperity in recent years has centered on London, which has done very well and become very pleased with itself. As Peter Mandler writes in Dissent, this turned out to be a problem. London occupies a huge place in British society — as if Washington, D.C., New York, Hollywood, and perhaps Silicon Valley were all in the same place. But that leaves the rest of the country feeling somewhat left out, and deeply suspicious of the people running things, especially as the people running things seem to hold the rest of the country in contempt, openly mocking the traditional, the middle-class, the non-Metropolitan.

Mandler writes, “London, a young, thriving, creative, cosmopolitan city, seems the model multicultural community, a great European capital. But it is also the home of all of Britain’s elites—the economic elites of “the City” (London’s Wall Street, international rather than European), a nearly hereditary professional caste of lawyers, journalists, publicists, and intellectuals, an increasingly hereditary caste of politicians, tight coteries of cultural movers-and-shakers richly sponsored by multinational corporations.”

The result, Mandler writes, is that “For the rest of the country has felt more and more excluded, not only from participation in the creativity and prosperity of London, but more crucially from power. . . . A majority of people around the United Kingdom are feeling like non-people, un-citizens, their lives jerked about like marionettes by wire-pullers far away. In those circumstances, very bad things indeed can be expected.”

Given a chance, these people seized an opportunity to give the wires a yank of their own. A lot of people felt powerless, and the political system not only didn’t address that, but seemed to glory in it.

But will leaders learn the lesson? It seems doubtful. As Bloomberg’s Megan McArdle observed about the post-Brexit reaction, they mostly seemed to double down. “The inability of those elites to grapple with the rich world’s populist moment has been on full display on social media. Journalists and academics seemed to feel that they had not made it sufficiently clear that people who oppose open borders are a bunch of racist rubes who couldn’t count to 20 with their shoes on, and hence will believe any daft thing they’re told. Given how badly this strategy had just failed, this seemed a strange time to be doubling down. . . . Or perhaps they were just unable to grasp what I noted in a column last week: that nationalism and place still matter, and that elites forget this at their peril. A lot people do not view their country the way some elites do: as though the nation were something like a rental apartment — a nice place to live, but if there are problems, or you just fancy a change, you’ll happily swap it for a new one. In many ways, members of the global professional class have started to identify more with each other than they have with the fellow residents of their own countries. Witness the emotional meltdown many American journalists have been having over Brexit.”
Keep reading.

And not surprisingly, Glenn gives a shout-out to Dana Loesch's new book at the piece.

Juan Uribe Testicular Contusion (VIDEO)

This game was a couple of weeks ago, but the Cleveland Indians' "Vote Tribe" Twitter feed just posted a photo of the man with some gold training shoes and a cigar.

So I tweeted:




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Stephen Moore and Kathleen Hartnett White, Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy.

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Cristina Laila Breaks the Internet!

There's a cool hashtag out today, #TrumpGirlsBreakTheInternet. You got some real sweeties tweeting there, although I like Ms. Christina:


PREVIOUSLY: From Christina, "The Marxist Roots of 'Gender Neutral Restrooms'."

CBS News Battleground Tracker Poll: Trump Beats Clinton Among Voters Who Want Change (VIDEO)

CBS News Elections Director Anthony Salvanto breaks down the numbers and sees some pretty amazing disadvantages for Hillary Clinton, particularly on those things I mentioned in my last post, "on the issues of immigration and the corrupt political class," not to mention terrorism and political change.

This is an amazing video, especially in how Mr. Salvanto completely avoids taking leftist spin positions on the numbers. A breath of fresh air, frankly (particularly in that John Dickerson's a fairly hard-left political operative himself).

Watch:



Clinton Leads Trump 46 to 41 Percent in New WSJ/NBC News Poll

To gather from all the buzz at Memeorandum, you'd think Hillary Clinton had pulled out an insurmountable double-digit lead in the wake of Donald Trump's "horrible" couple of weeks following the Curiel comments and Orlando.

That's because WaPo has a sensational new poll out with Clinton expanding her lead over the bombastic Manhattan mogul, 51-39 percent. See Politico for the summary, "Clinton surges to 12-point lead in WaPo poll":
Hillary Clinton currently holds a double-digit lead over Donald Trump nationally, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll released Sunday.

If the election were held today, 51 percent of respondents said they would vote for Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, and 39 percent said they would vote for Trump...
There's clearly something wrong with the poll, and without digging through the internals (the folks at Hot Air usually do quite a thorough job of that), I'll bet they oversampled Democrats.

The fact is, there's been little change in the underlying structure of the horse race. If anything, Donald Trump's probably about tied with Clinton, since on the issues of immigration and the corrupt political class, the Brexit revolt in Britain tells us a whole lot about the electoral environment Clinton and the Democrats are facing. (An interesting hypothesis is whether there was some kind of Bradley Effect in the British voting. Recall with the Bradley Effect voters hide their true preferences from pollsters, to conceal more racialist sentiments and avoid the potential appearance of "bigotry").

At any rate, see WSJ, "Donald Trump Weathers Stormy Month, Loses Only 2 Points Versus Hillary Clinton":
Republican Donald Trump emerged relatively unscathed from one of the rockiest phases of his campaign, lagging rival Hillary Clinton by 5 percentage points but essentially tied when third-party candidates are included, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.

The survey of 1,000 registered voters showed Mrs. Clinton leading 46% to 41% in a head-to-head matchup. Mrs. Clinton’s number held steady over the past month, while Mr. Trump’s standing dropped by 2 points since May. The survey was conducted June 19-23, a period of tumult within his campaign.

Mr. Trump over the past week fired his campaign manager and faced criticism from within his own party over weak fundraising numbers and lack of organization. Earlier in the month, he was the target of bipartisan ire for his focus on a federal judge’s ethnicity and his reaction to the mass shooting in Orlando, Fla.

“Donald Trump has had the worst month one can imagine, but Clinton’s negatives are so high the net impact on the ballot is almost invisible,” said Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster who conducted the survey with Democratic pollster Fred Yang.
In a worrying sign for the former secretary of state, her advantage largely vanished when voters also get a choice of third-party candidates.

Mrs. Clinton’s lead fell to one point, at 39% to Mr. Trump’s 38%, when Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein are part of the mix. With both Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump saddled with low approval ratings, voters seem to be looking for alternatives. Together, Mr. Johnson and Ms. Stein were the choice of 16% of those who took part in the survey.

A spokesman for Mr. Johnson said the Libertarian ticket expects to be on the ballot in all 50 states. A Green Party spokesman said the party expects to do at least as well as 2012, when Ms. Stein was on the ballot in 37 states.
Still more.

Saturday, June 25, 2016

Heading Out for the Dana Loesch Book Signing at Politicon

I'll be spending the day in Pasadena at Politicon, which is supposed to be "the Comic-con of politics."

Here's the full write-up at the Riverside Press-Enterprise, "ELECTION 2016: Meet Politicon, the Comic-Con of politics":
Politicon is unique not only in its approach to politics, but who’s in the lineup. Conservative icons like Sarah Palin, Ann Coulter and Glenn Beck will share the same buildings and sometimes the same stage as outspoken liberals like Cenk Uygur and Democratic talking heads like James Carville and Paul Begala.

Throw in high-profile politicians -- California Sen. Barbara Boxer, former Mexican President Vicente Fox and a possible Hillary Clinton running mate are scheduled to attend -- artwork displays, live podcast tapings, comedic performances, film screenings and book signings and you get a non-partisan event intended to be a political junkie’s nirvana...
Here's video from last year, "Highlights of Politicon 2015, Held in Los Angeles."

And check the website.

Here's Dana's bio from the lineup page:
Dana Loesch hosts her award-winning, nationally syndicated daily radio show, The Dana Show: The Conservative Alternative from Dallas, Texas where she also hosts “Dana” on The Blaze television network. Dana appears regularly on Fox News, ABC, CNN, among others, and has co-hosted on “The View.” She describes herself as a “conservatarian.”

Dana’s original brand of young, punk-rock, conservative irreverence has found a fast-growing audience in multiple mediums. Dana is listed in the top 40 of Talkers Magazine‘s top 100 “heavy hitters” and was named Missouri’s #1 Radio Personality in 2014. A former award-winning newspaper columnist (and notable blogger since 2001), Dana was ranked as one of the top 16 most powerful mothers online by Neilsen and one of the top 30 Under 30 according to the St. Louis Business Journal. Dana was the 2012 winner of Accuracy In Media’s Grassroots Journalism award as well as the inaugural Breitbart Spirit Award. Dana was one of the original Breitbart editors selected by her late friend and mentor, Andrew Breitbart, to head what was BigJournalism.com and helped break the Anthony Weiner scandal before departing in 2012. Her Best Selling book on gun control, Hands Off My Gun: Defeating the Plot to Disarm America is on shelves now and is turning the tide in the gun debate. Mark Levin wrote of her book that it, “Obliterates every baseless argument made against the Second Amendment.” Sean Hannity quipped, “Buy this book before someone tries to ban it.” Michelle Malkin states, “WARNING: This book is explosive! Mother, wife, New Media warrior and political sharpshooter Dana Loesch confronts the ultimate war on women: gun control.”

Dana co-founded the tea party movement in St. Louis and speaks regularly on the subject of new media, gun control, anti-feminism, and grassroots. A native Missourian, she and her family now live in Texas.
I'm almost half way done with her new book, Flyover Nation. I just started reading it on Thursday, and I've been busy running around this last couple of days too. It's a quick read. Dana's a fabulous writer!

In any case, more blogging tonight or in the morning.

Have a great day!