Mr. Moto's Diary

Get employed soon! Here are some unemployment flowers to make you feel better

2011-09-26T22:21:00.001-07:00

Somebody should put Obama's head on that layoff dog. Chicago Tribune: Hallmark adds sympathy cards for job loss

Nurse Ratched Goes to Washington

2011-09-24T01:45:00.001-07:00

Surreal Diplomacy

2011-09-23T15:47:00.001-07:00

"Pelosi and Van Hollen, along with the Obama White House, bet the ranch on a strategy that featured as its centerpiece an attack on Rush Limbaugh."

2010-11-04T11:04:00.001-07:00

The American Spectator : The Winner: Rush Limbaugh

...They didn't just lose, they were humiliated.
...

"I hope he fails."

With those famous four words, uttered January 16, 2009 -- only days before Barack Obama was to be inaugurated -- Rush Limbaugh drew a line in the sand.
...
Obama, as Rush Limbaugh predicted, has in fact now failed. Nancy Pelosi is out of a job. And thanks to Rush Limbaugh, a new generation of Americans is learning that conservatism is not simply cool -- more importantly they are learning collectivism isn't smart.

Why question authority when you can give it a lavish tongue bath instead?

2010-10-28T22:56:00.000-07:00

Your Daily Dose of Leftist Snuff Porn

2010-10-06T17:35:00.000-07:00

I don't think anyone hasn't seen this yet, but here it is. This post is actually a reaction to the video below. Scroll down for more.

Here's the reaction from the invaluable Doctor Zero.

The Left always has trouble dealing with the human remainder from their draconian social calculations. Environmentalists have been muttering darkly about overpopulation for decades. Leftist governments, including the current American president, respond to double-digit unemployment with helpless confusion. Their carefully-designed societies crumble beneath the weight of superfluous people. Their plans rely on absolute compliance from captive populations. Given any amount of power, the Left almost immediately begins talking about censorship, in one form or another.

Free people admire renegades who put their money where their mouth is. Collectivists demand absolute obedience to their agenda, and prosecute thought crimes. Left to curl up on a thick bed of British taxpayer money, the 10:10 group began daydreaming of little red buttons that could erase the human remainder with grisly explosions. Totalitarians always find such notions hilarious. It was a bust in the Western world, but I’m sure “No Pressure” would have the elites of Havana and Pyongyang rolling in the aisles.

Please read the whole thing by clicking here.

Gloria Allred is a stupid cow

2010-10-01T22:52:00.000-07:00

SF Chron: Whitman within law, immigration lawyers say:

Whether or not Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman received a letter from the Social Security Administration saying her former housekeeper's false documents did not match its records, Whitman did not act unlawfully by keeping the housekeeper employed, immigration lawyers said Thursday.

In fact, had she gone ahead and fired Nicandra Diaz Santillan based on such a letter, she would have exposed herself to potential anti-discrimination violations, lawyers said.

When You've Lost Big Bird...

2010-09-24T22:36:00.000-07:00

Negating Justice Department Spin on New Black Panther voter intimidation case

2010-09-24T12:43:00.000-07:00

Pajamas Media » American Hero: Coates Negates a Year of Justice Department Spin on New Black Panther Case

It has been a very bad week for the dwindling number of people defending the dismissal of the voter intimidation case against the New Black Panther Party by Eric Holder’s Justice Department. Today might have been the worst day of all. Former Voting Section Chief Christopher Coates testified to the United States Civil Rights Commission that Obama political appointees dismissed the case because they are opposed to enforcing civil rights laws in a racially neutral fashion.

And that was just the beginning.

You mean, smearing the movement as racist didn't work?

2010-09-15T10:38:00.000-07:00

'Tea party' is polarizing, but has many 'closet admirers,' poll finds - CSMonitor.com

Americans who see the tea party movement in a favorable light equal – or slightly surpass – those who see it unfavorably, according to a new Christian Science Monitor/TIPP poll.
...

"The general party line says the tea party is fringe, but I think most of the public hasn't bought that point of view ... and sees the tea party movement in a positive to neutral light," says Mr. Mayur, president of TechnoMetrica Market Intelligence in Ramsey, N.J., who last weekend oversaw the poll of 908 American adults. "The overarching message here is that Democrats have been in denial about the tea party [phenomenon] … and I think it's coming back to haunt them."

Being Muslim does NOT mean you are a terrorist. . . like if you agree

2010-09-12T19:32:00.000-07:00

Several of my friends have 'liked' this particular link on facebook. A VERY public and EXCEEDINGLY cheap way to demonstrate your piety with the click of a button. (Also, saving you the necessity of actually speaking to a muslim, but I digress) It's one of the most condescending and patronizing notions I've ever come across. OF COURSE being a muslim does not mean you're a terrorist. The vast majority of muslims are not terrorists. To acknowledge as much doesn't take intelligence or courage. Only a pathological need to remind the world of your own well-worn badge of moral superiority. I celebrate diversity by not throwing a parade every time I come across one of my gay friends; by treating them not as some brilliantly-plumed aberration in a lavender petting zoo but as, well, a person like everyone else. In the same way, I acknowledge the humanity I share with muslims by not patting them on the head and, with my megaphone turned up to 11, shouting GOOD NOT-A-TERRORIST-MUSLIM!

Like if you agree.

Filmdrunk Review: Machete? More like Meh-chete.

2010-09-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

"I’m aware of the universal truth that every time you criticize Danny Trejo, an angel gets shanked in prison, but..."

...

Quote of the day

2010-09-03T12:08:00.000-07:00

"resolutely cleaning up after the failed Obama revolution"

...

Yes!

2010-09-01T20:29:00.000-07:00

Tea Party’s Alaska victory forcing GOP agenda changes - The Boston Globe:

The political insurgents have taken hold in the Grand Old Party, unseating lawmakers, capturing nominations for open seats, and forcing Republicans to recalibrate both their campaign strategy and issues agenda. Out is talk of delivering federal dollars back home; in is talk of fiscal discipline.

Smart Power

2010-09-01T15:51:00.000-07:00

Cell phone left in Ala. burglary leads to arrest - KTUL.com - Tulsa, Oklahoma - Coverage You Can Count On:

Police investigating a home burglary in Russellville found a surprising clue - a cell phone that got left behind. Franklin County District Attorney Joey Rushing said the phone was left near where a computer was taken in the weekend burglary. Investigators began calling some of the phone numbers and determined the phone belonged to a 19-year-old who was on probation for a previous burglary.

"Blowing a $921 billion hole in the nation's ailing economy"

2010-08-31T00:48:00.000-07:00

Washington Examiner -

Jan. 1, 2011. That's the day the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire. Tax rates on all five income brackets, not just those paid by "the rich," will increase by 2 to 4 percentage points

The smell of malaise in the morning. It smells like...

2010-08-30T23:21:00.000-07:00

Via Michelle Obama's Mirror's Blog -

Connecting dots

2010-08-30T19:54:00.000-07:00

Breitbart.tv - Obama Blames Bush for economy...again

WSJ MarketWatch - U.S. stocks end steeply lower on economic concerns

Gallup - GOP Takes Unprecedented 10-Point Lead on Generic Ballot

"Can you guys still hear us?"

SMART POWER!

2010-08-30T18:43:00.001-07:00

Truism of the day

2010-08-30T10:13:00.000-07:00

Via The Daily Gut

[A]nything the press says will decimate us, won't. Ever.

White Like Me

2010-08-29T22:40:00.001-07:00

So, what color was the crowd at the Glenn Beck rally?

2010-08-29T12:33:00.000-07:00

Via The Daily Caller -

a vast, predominantly white crowd - Associated Press

the predominantly white crowd - AFP

the predominantly white crowd - James Hohmann

overwhelmingly white followers - Newsweek

the audience at the event was overwhelmingly white - CBS

overwhelmingly white crowd - Washington Post

overwhelmingly white crowd - Salon.com

The crowd, however, was overwhelmingly white - LA Times

the overwhelmingly white audience - Toronto Star

The media can't seem to get its story straight. Is the crowd "predominantly white," or "overwhelmingly white"? You'd think with cool kid clubs such as Journolist they could construct a tighter narrative.

Will the last person out of California please turn off the high efficiency light?

2010-08-27T00:45:00.000-07:00

In the teeth of the most vicious housing downturn in decades, the liberal masterminds running California have decided to kill the state's economy once and for all. Their weapon: a massive new encyclopedia of "environmentally friendly" regulations called "CALGreen".

Read the rest here.

SMART POWER!

2010-08-21T23:05:00.001-07:00

A sign on the freeway near our house. The only problem? We live in Washington, not Oregon. Oh well. I'm sure the brain wizards that are handing out the gub'mint cheese are WAAAAY smarter than the brain wizards handing out the signs.

Right?

OMFG

2010-08-20T10:30:00.000-07:00

Via Drudge this morning -

msnbc.com:

A Kenyan man has been sentenced to nine years in prison for trying to sell an albino man to witchdoctors in Tanzania, local media reported Thursday...At least 53 albinos have been killed since 2007 in the east African nation and their body parts sold for use in witchcraft

myfoxdc.com

A man was arrested Tuesday in California for ejaculating twice into a female co-worker’s water bottle.

Criminal defense lawyer pleads to using cocaine......in courthouse bathroom

2010-08-19T19:57:00.000-07:00

MinnLawyer Blog -

In January, Ramsay was defending Jack Nissalke on charges of terroristic threats in a murder investigation when police saw him leave a courthouse bathroom “sniffing profusely” and pinching and wiping his nose...Ramsay was charged with third- and fifth-degree possession of cocaine after sheriff’s deputies found five grams of cocaine in his pocket and belongings

Aside from being pathetically nineteen-eighties, does bursting out of a bathroom door shnurfing and wincing and pinching your nose (while - who knows - clamping the eyes shut then popping them wide open while exclaiming "Yowza mama!"?) provide probable cause for a search of ones pockets and belongings? I would argue not. But, as it turns out, he left behind a white powdery residue that "field-tested positive for a controlled substance, which police used as probable cause to arrest and search Ramsay’s belongings."

Oh yeah - Bratz-Barbie Fight Gets Ugly, With RICO, IP Theft Claims

2010-08-18T19:16:00.000-07:00

Law.com -

In an explosive counterclaim filed in federal district court late Monday night, MGA Entertainment Inc. fired off a new round in the Barbie vs. Bratz doll war

I liked my fiction better when it was just fiction

2010-08-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

I tried reading Atlas Shrugged about 15 years ago. I'd always heard about it, and it seemed like the kind of book I should be aware of, but, once picking it up and digging in, it just didn't seem to have any relevance to me or anything around me. Of course, I was a pissed-off, petulant leftist at the time. In retrospect, I think that had something to do with it. Anyway, ponderous, heavy, and a bit stiff, it was the literary equivalent of eating your vegetables. I stopped about 50 pages in. I picked it up again about a year ago. Ponderous? Yes. VERY heavy? Yes. Overly long? Check. Wooden dialogue? Mais oui! However, reading it now is like, well, I was going to say like reading a newspaper, but, well, you can just insert your own MSM snark here.

Here's an excerpt-from a doctor who has decided to stop practicing medicine:

“I quit when medicine was placed under State control some years ago,” said Dr. Hendricks. “Do you know what it takes to perform a brain operation? Do you know the kind of skill it demands, and the years of passionate, merciless, excruciating devotion that go to acquire that skill? That was what I could not place at the disposal of men whose sole qualification to rule me was their capacity to spout the fraudulent generalities that got them elected to the privilege of enforcing their wishes at the point of a gun. I would not let them dictate the purpose for which my years of study had been spent, or the conditions of my work, or my choice of patients, or the amount of my reward. I observed that in all the discussions that preceded the enslavement of medicine, men discussed everything—except the desires of the doctors. Men considered only the ‘welfare’ of the patients, with no thought for those who were to provide it. That a doctor should have any right, desire or choice in the matter, was regarded as irrelevant selfishness; his is not to choose, they said, but ‘to serve.’ That a man’s willing to work under compulsion is too dangerous a brute to entrust with a job in the stockyards—never occurred to those who proposed to help the sick by making life impossible for the healthy. I have often wondered at the smugness at which people assert their right to enslave me, to control my work, to force my will, to violate my conscience, to stifle my mind—yet what is it they expect to depend on, when they lie on an operating table under my hands? Their moral code has taught them to believe that it is safe to rely on the virtue of their victims. Well, that is the virtue I have withdrawn. Let them discover the kind of doctors that their system will now produce. Let them discover, in the operating rooms and hospital wards, that it is not safe to place their lives in the hands of a man they have throttled. It is not safe, if he is the sort of man who resents it—and still less safe, if he is the sort who doesn’t.”

Sound familiar? Anyway, Investors.com has a really good article about Ayn Rand and her eerie relevance today. Here's a sample:

Since the Obama administration took office, "Atlas Shrugged" has been enjoying a renaissance with rising sales and library waiting lists, partly because it explains our current economic woes more straightforwardly than most of what we hear from today's experts.

What happened in Rand's narrative is coming to pass today, with an anti-business administration reviling private industry and capitalizing on crisis to expand and redirect investment within and between sectors of the economy — setting quotas, prices and compensation.

Businesses responded by retrenching — ceasing to invest, innovate and expand. Whole industries contracted, closed down or moved offshore, much like the U.S. gas and oil drilling industry is doing today. Then, just as now, management became frustrated, discouraged and reluctant to create jobs in an environment of excessive government meddling.

Read the whole thing here.

The never-ending Favre

2010-08-17T17:21:00.000-07:00

Brett Favre back with Minnesota Vikings, thanks to teammates' recruiting - The Huddle: Football News from the NFL - USATODAY.com

Blago guilty on just 1 count

2010-08-17T16:21:00.000-07:00

WaPo

A federal jury found former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich guilty on Tuesday of one count of lying to federal agents, and the judge said he intends to declare a mistrial on the more serious remaining 23 counts

Mom killed children before sinking car

2010-08-17T10:19:00.000-07:00

The Associated Press -

A South Carolina mother who claimed her children drowned when their car careened into a river was charged with murder Tuesday after authorities said she confessed to suffocating the two toddlers and then faking the accident.

Best Buy Sends Cease-and-Desist Letter to ‘God Squad’ Priest

2010-08-17T00:23:00.000-07:00

ABA Journal -

A Wisconsin priest who drives a Volkswagen Beetle with a “God Squad” logo has gotten a cease-and-desist letter from Best Buy.

The letter informs Father Luke Strand at the Holy Family Parish in Fond Du Lac that his logo too closely resembles Best Buy's trademarked Geek Squad logo

Benedictine Monks Seek Ban on 'Casket Cartel,' Claim Constitutional Right to Sell Coffins

2010-08-17T00:15:00.000-07:00

ABA Journal -

A group of Benedictine monks is seeking a federal court order recognizing their claimed constitutional right to sell simple wooden coffins—at what they say is a considerably lower cost than funeral home competitors who have allegedly banded together in a 'casket cartel.'

Attempted enforcement of a state criminal law in Louisiana requiring caskets to be sold by licensed funeral homes violates the monks' 14th Amendment right to due process, they contend in a filing in the Eastern District of Louisiana. The law, they say, isn't rationally related to health or public safety concerns

Thief Sentenced To Potential Life Term To Go Free

2010-08-17T00:07:00.000-07:00

NPR -

A judge on Monday ordered the release of a man serving a potential life sentence for stealing food from a Los Angeles church.

...

The Stanford Law Project filed a writ of habeas corpus seeking freedom for Taylor, who was sentenced in 1997 under California's three-strikes law. The district attorney did not oppose the group's move.

Proposition 8 Case Could Fizzle Before Reaching Supreme Court

2010-08-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

Law.com - :

That's because the advocates of Prop 8, who are launching the appeal, may not have the necessary standing to carry it forward. The case is titled Perry v. Schwarzenegger, with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and other officials in the position of defending the ballot initiative. But those officials, who are sympathetic toward gay marriage to varying degrees, are not inclined to appeal Walker's ruling.

Under Supreme Court precedent, it's unclear that proponents of legislation would have standing to defend it if state officials are not themselves defending it, because they can't show that they are suffering the necessary injury. In Arizonans for Official English v. Arizona, a 1997 case, the Court expressed 'grave doubts' about the ability of such groups to challenge rulings that strike down ballot initiatives.

Ninth Circuit Halts California Marriages Pending Appeal

2010-08-16T23:56:00.000-07:00

Poliglot

Same-sex marriages will not proceed in California this week, per an order this afternoon from the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that will not be appealed by the plaintiffs or California Attorney General Jerry Brown in the case challenging Proposition 8. The court also, however, set an expedited appellate schedule that will lead to the oral argument in the case being heard the first full week in December.

We live a hair's breadth from chaos

2010-08-15T22:04:00.000-07:00

The Ghosts of World War II's Past (20 photos)

59% Say A-Bombing of Hiroshima, Nagasaki Was A Good Decision - Rasmussen Reports™

2010-08-11T12:40:00.000-07:00

59% Say A-Bombing of Hiroshima, Nagasaki Was A Good Decision - Rasmussen Reports™

a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 59% of American Adults believe the decision to drop the nuclear bombs on the two cities was a good one.

Just 16% say the A-bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was a bad decision. One-in-four Americans (25%) are not sure.

Twenty percent (20%) think the United States should apologize to Japan for the bombings which came after the Japanese government rejected a U.S. ultimatum to surrender. Fifty-nine percent (59%) say no apology is necessary. Twenty-two percent (22%) are undecided.

U.S. leaders said at the time that the bombings were an alternative to a military invasion of Japan which was expected to result in thousands of casualties. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Americans think the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki saved a lot of American lives. Only seven percent (7%) disagree, but another 25% are not sure.

After reading the story, I actually sympathize with the flight attendant

2010-08-10T09:14:00.000-07:00

Fed-Up Flight Attendant Held on Bail | NBC New York:

A flight attendant�who was arrested after arguing with a passenger on a JetBlue flight --�making �a grand exit from the aircraft by grabbing some�beers and pulling the emergency chute -- �is being held on $2500 bail.

Too soon?

2010-08-03T20:33:00.000-07:00

Meditation

2010-08-03T00:33:00.000-07:00

Palin: Obama lacks balls

2010-08-01T23:46:00.000-07:00

WaPo - Palin: Obama lacks 'the cojones' to tackle immigration

...

Oops

2010-07-30T23:47:00.000-07:00

WPIX - "Al Gore Cleared Of Sex Assault Allegation":

Among the difficulties that [county prosecutor] Schrunk cited: Although the red-haired masseuse said she was terrified of Gore, she also said she called him after their encounter and told him to "dream of redheaded women."

unintended crap

2010-07-30T23:43:00.000-07:00

KAALtv.com - Paperwork nightmare: A struggle to fix new law:

(AP) WASHINGTON - Talk about a paperwork nightmare: Tucked into the massive new health care law is a demand that nearly 40 million U.S. businesses file tax forms for every vendor that sells them more than $600 in goods.

The roller skates are a surprise

2010-07-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

Supreme Court as moral arbiters

2010-07-30T12:43:00.000-07:00

AP Yahoo! News on a speech by Justice Scalia this week at Montana State University's Museum of the Rockies.

Antonin Scalia believes Supreme Court justices are all too often deciding the nation's morals from the bench.
...
He said the Supreme Court should abandon the notion of a "living constitution" — an approach the court adopted in the last half of the 20th century that has resulted in the nation's charter being rewritten time and again by unelected judges who are unqualified to make decisions on morality.

Instead, the court should go back to the time when the constitution and the meaning of laws were considered static and could only be changed by an amendment of the people, he said.

The modern court's "living constitution" doctrine has resulted in the Supreme Court acting as moral arbiters for the nation, he said.

" GOP Lawmakers Want Explanation of Draft Memo on Amnesty for Thousands"

2010-07-30T11:01:00.000-07:00

FOXNews.com -

A group of Republican senators has written to top immigration officials in the Obama administration asking them to reveal whether large-scale plans are under way to provide a so-called non-legislative version of amnesty.

The lawmakers cite an 11-page draft document written by staff to the director of the Citizenship and Immigration Service that says they are reviewing several executive orders and other mechanisms that effectively would serve as a substitute for comprehensive immigration reforms.

I thought it was BP's fault...Haphazard Firefighting Might Have Sunk BP Oil Rig

2010-07-30T10:37:00.000-07:00

The Center for Public Integrity:

The Coast Guard has gathered evidence it failed to follow its own firefighting policy during the Deepwater Horizon disaster and is investigating whether the chaotic spraying of tons of salt water by private boats contributed to sinking the ill-fated oil rig, according to interviews and documents.

Coast Guard officials told the Center for Public Integrity that the service does not have the expertise to fight an oil rig fire and that its response to the April 20 explosion may have broken the service’s own rules by failing to ensure a firefighting expert supervised the half-dozen private boats that answered the Deepwater Horizon’s distress call to fight the blaze.

"Ms. Sherrod’s redemptive revelation was not cut from the excerpted video"

2010-07-30T10:30:00.000-07:00

Big Government: Who Got to Chris Matthews?: ‘Hardball’ Defense of Breitbart Memory-Holed -

My favorite part of Vogel’s reportering analysis is his having to finally face the unhappy fact that Ms. Sherrod’s redemptive moment was indeed included in the Breitbart excerpt. Grief-stricken that this fact is now out there for the world to see, Mr. Vogel enters the first stage of grief — denial — and writes this inconvenient fact off as a mistake, as though Breitbart would’ve removed the moment of redemption if only he had seen it.

"The Rangel Dispensation"

2010-07-29T17:46:00.000-07:00

Via WSJ.com As we went to press last night, it wasn't clear if Charlie Rangel would cut a plea deal with the House ethics committee to avoid a public trial. Still, the rap sheet of 13 alleged violations the committee released yesterday after a two-year investigation of the New York Democrat's conduct in office are an object lesson in the reasons the public holds Congress in contempt. They reveal in detail the culture of entitlement and self-dealing that typifies modern Washington.

AZ appeals order blocking parts of immigration law

2010-07-29T15:54:00.000-07:00

Via Yahoo! News

Arizona asked [the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals] Thursday to lift a judge's order blocking most of the state's immigration law...

The State's Motion to Expedite Briefing and Hearing Schedule is here. The exhibits include a copy of the lower judge's preliminary injunction order.

Sherrod to sue Breitbart

2010-07-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

CNN.com:

Breitbart did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He has said he released the Sherrod video because he believes it shows the NAACP itself tolerates racist behavior within its ranks -- an accusation that came after the civil rights group made a similar charge against the conservative Tea Party movement.

'This was not about Shirley Sherrod,' Breitbart told CNN's John King.

"The Death Of The Global Warming Movement"

2010-07-29T12:18:00.000-07:00

Forbes.com on Sen. Harry Reid's energy bill -

Beyond stricter regulations on off-shore drilling, it offers subsidies to both homeowners to encourage them to make their homes more energy efficient and the nation's fleet of trucks to use cleaner burning natural gas. This is not costless, but it is a bargain compared with the “comprehensive” action on energy and climate change that President Barack Obama had been threatening.

Is "foolish" a finding of fact, or a conclusion of law?

2010-07-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

WTOL.com

Wearing saggy pants is not a crime, just foolish.

That's how a New York City judge ruled in throwing out a summons issued to a man wearing low-slung pants that exposed his underwear.

100 million Facebook users' details published online -

2010-07-29T11:01:00.000-07:00

Via msnbc.com:

The personal details of 100 million Facebook users have been collected and published online in a downloadable file, meaning they will now be unable to make their publicly available information private.
...
The information was posted by Ron Bowes, an online security consultant, on the Internet site Pirate Bay.
...
On his website, www.skullsecurity.org, Bowes said the results of his code were "spectacular," giving him 171 million names of which were 100 million unique.

Waiting for the day the first would-be candidate is torpedoed by an ill-considered facebook revelation.

This kind of thing used to drive my liberal friends crazy

2010-07-29T01:05:00.000-07:00

White House proposal would ease FBI access to records of Internet activity:

The Obama administration is seeking to make it easier for the FBI to compel companies to turn over records of an individual's Internet activity without a court order if agents deem the information relevant to a terrorism or intelligence investigation.

The administration wants to add just four words -- 'electronic communication transactional records' -- to a list of items that the law says the FBI may demand without a judge's approval. Government lawyers say this category of information includes the addresses to which an Internet user sends e-mail; the times and dates e-mail was sent and received; and possibly a user's browser history. It does not include, the lawyers hasten to point out, the 'content' of e-mail or other Internet communication.

Man Dressed in Wig, Clown Pants and Fake Breasts Robs Bank with BB Gun

2010-07-26T20:23:00.000-07:00

CBS News -

A Pittsburgh man wearing a blond wig, fake breasts, and clown pants was arrested after he allegedly robbed a bank at gunpoint.
...
[Dennis] Hawkins, apparently covered in red dye from an exploding dye pack, allegedly entered a woman's parked car. She quickly got out of the vehicle, took her keys, and alerted authorities.

Police arrived at the gas station to find Hawkins still sitting inside the vehicle.

Ore. prayer-healing parents indicted over daughter's health

2010-07-24T18:25:00.000-07:00

KBOI CBS 2 -

An Oregon City couple, who are members of the Followers of Christ Church, will be indicted on a charge of criminal child mistreatment, the Clackamas County district attorney’s office revealed on Thursday.

Prosecutors said they will indict Tim and Rebecca Wyland next week because they say the couple failed to take their daughter to a doctor after a growth formed on her eye. That growth, a hemangioma, which is a buildup of blood vessels in the skin or internal organs, could make her blind.

The judge has already removed the 7-month-child girl from the Wyland’s Beavercreek home because he was concerned about the girl’s eye.

Taxing fat people

2010-07-23T16:53:00.000-07:00

AOL News -Germany Considers Tax on the Obese

...

Dozens of Defense Employees Picked Up in Child Porn Sting

2010-07-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

FOXNews.com - Investigator's Report Shows Dozens of Defense Employees Picked Up in Child Porn Sting:

Several dozen Pentagon officials and contractors have been accused of -- and in some cases were convicted of -- purchasing and downloading child pornography on government computers, the Department of Defense's inspector general's office disclosed in documents released Friday.�

The investigation that led prosecutors to these government workers was actually part of a larger Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency sting called Operation Flicker, aimed at identifying individuals who paid money over the Internet to access child pornography overseas, according to the inspector general's office.

UK toddler killer jailed on child porn charges

2010-07-23T14:13:00.000-07:00

Via WAOW - Newsline 9, Wausau News, Weather, Sports:

LONDON (AP) - A man who killed a toddler when he was just 10 years old in a crime that shocked Britain was sentenced to jail on Friday for new child pornography charges.

Jon Venables, who is now 27, was sentenced to two years in prison after he pleaded guilty to downloading and distributing dozens of indecent images of children.

Venables became one of Britain's most notorious criminals in 1993, when he and another 10-year-old abducted 2-year-old James Bulger from a shopping center and beat him to death by an isolated railway line in northern England.

Makes sense. I do the same thing with my fire alarm at home.

2010-07-23T13:48:00.000-07:00

The Guardian -

Deepwater Horizon alarms were switched off 'to help workers sleep'

...

Hearing on Arizona immigration law

2010-07-23T12:22:00.000-07:00

Washington Post

"Why can't Arizona be as inhospitable as they wish to people who have entered or remained in the United States?" U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton asked in a pointed exchange with Deputy Solicitor General Edwin S. Kneedler. Her comment came during a rare federal court hearing in the Justice Department's lawsuit against Arizona and Gov. Jan Brewer (R).

Bolton, a Democratic appointee, also questioned a core part of the Justice Department's argument that she should declare the law unconstitutional: that it is "preempted" by federal law because immigration enforcement is an exclusive federal prerogative.

"How is there a preemption issue?" the judge asked. "I understand there may be other issues, but you're arguing preemption. Where is the preemption if everybody who is arrested for some crime has their immigration status checked?"

Nooooooooooooo!

2010-07-22T17:38:00.000-07:00

The Tax Tsunami On The Horizon - IBD - Investors.com:

The lowest bracket for the personal income tax, for instance, moves up 50% — to 15% from 10%. The next lowest bracket — 25% — will rise to 28%, and the old 28% bracket will be 31%. At the higher end, the 33% bracket is pushed to 36% and the 35% bracket becomes 39.6%.

How bad for Democrats?

2010-07-22T17:28:00.000-07:00

Charles Rangel charged with ethics violations: How bad for Democrats? - CSMonitor.com:

The allegations range from misuse of rent-controlled apartments in New York City and failure to disclose income from a villa in the Dominican Republic to reports that he exchanged official favors – a tax loophole for oil driller Nabors Industries Ltd. – in exchange for a $1 million gift to the Charles Rangel Center at City College of New York.

One-fourth of Democrats think Jesus will ‘definitely return’ in 40 years

2010-07-22T11:23:00.000-07:00

Washington Examiner:

Thanks to the Pew Research Center, we now may have an idea who is buying up all those “Left Behind” books. Many of them appear to be … Democrats?

Yes, that’s right. As part of a larger survey about Americans’ predictions for the next 40 years, just over 1,500 people were asked whether they thought that Jesus Christ would return to the earth during that timeframe. Interestingly enough, it is self-identified Democrats who appear to have more certitude that this will happen than Republicans.

According to the poll, 26% of Democrats believe that the Second Coming “will definitely” happen within the next four decades. In comparison 19% of Republicans believe this.

AL GORE SEX SCANDAL SHOCKER - I knew he was wooden, but this is ridiculous

2010-07-21T11:27:00.000-07:00

National Enquirer:

A Beverly Hills hotel source told The ENQUIRER:

'The therapist claimed that when they were alone, Gore shrugged off a towel and stood naked in front of her.

'He pointed at his erect penis and ordered her, 'Take care of THIS.''

Drudge Headline: New Luxury Mall Opens in 'Besieged' Gaza...

2010-07-19T14:28:00.000-07:00

Bargain Prices for 'Zionist' Clothes in New Gaza Luxury Mall - A7 Exclusive Features - Israel News - Israel National News:

While Hamas continues to complain that Gaza lacks building materials, a luxury mall in Gaza City held its grand opening over the weekend. Among the goods on sale are Israeli men's clothing, and items from Turkey, France, and the United States.

Photojournalist Tom Gross, who publicized photos from Saturday's event on his website, noted that the opening coincided with a visit to Gaza from European Union foreign policy director Catherine Ashton. 'The BBC and other media have featured extensive reports all day long on what they term the dire economic situation in Gaza; why are they not mentioning the new shopping mall that opened there yesterday?” Gross asked.

Arrested for posting a video of his traffic stop on YouTube

2010-07-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

Videotaping Police Is Often Cause for Arrest - ABC News:

That Anthony Graber broke the law in early March is indisputable. He raced his Honda motorcycle down Interstate 95 in Maryland at 80 mph, popping a wheelie, roaring past cars and swerving across traffic lanes.

But it wasn't his daredevil stunt that has the 25-year-old staff sergeant for the Maryland Air National Guard facing the possibility of 16 years in prison. For that, he was issued a speeding ticket. It was the video that Graber posted on YouTube one week later -- taken with his helmet camera -- of a plainclothes state trooper cutting him off and drawing a gun during the traffic stop near Baltimore.

Surprise! Tea Party Members Support Striking Down DOMA :: EDGE Philadelphia

2010-07-14T20:11:00.000-07:00

Surprise! Tea Party Members Support Striking Down DOMA :: EDGE Philadelphia:

Many may find it surprising that the Tea Party favors striking down the so-called 'Defense of Marriage' Act (DOMA), the anti-gay federal law signed by Bill Clinton in 1996 that allows states to ignore marriages performed elsewhere and that also expressly forbids any federal recognition of gay and lesbian families.

But Tea Party philosophy embraces limited government, including an emphasis on states’ rights, over social policies that punish GLBT individuals and their families. Conservative bloggers say that it shouldn’t be a surprise at all that some among the movement support a recent ruling by federal court judge Joseph L. Tauro striking DOMA down.

The economy

2010-07-09T17:05:00.000-07:00

The Lady Gaga economy | The Daily Caller - Breaking News, Opinion, Research, and Entertainment:

Economic recovery requires massive spending cuts, deregulation, privatization, tax-cutting, avoidance of monetary inflation, and elimination of government-granted monopolies and favors. But, more importantly, economic recovery requires allowing prices and wages to adjust to market clearing levels. Politicians don’t allow that.

How the expiring bush tax cuts affect you

2010-07-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

from Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance:

You may have been led to believe that only individuals in the top two brackets will face higher federal income taxes when the Bush cuts go bye-bye. Not true! Unless Congress takes action and President Obama goes along, rates will go up for everyone -- not just a sliver of the wealthiest Americans.

Sonny Sharrock: Philly Dog solo

2010-06-29T17:09:00.000-07:00

Jerry Van Rooyen - The Great Bank Robbery

2010-06-29T16:34:00.000-07:00

A super dope dutch easy listening funk break from Jerry Van Rooyen (normally known for some of the weirdest, off-beat filmscores)taken from the "At 250 Miles Per Hour" Album on the Crippled Dick Hot Wax label. Recorded in 1967/1968.

Law.com - Justices Extend Gun Owner Rights Nationwide

2010-06-28T13:49:00.000-07:00

Law.com - Justices Extend Gun Owner Rights Nationwide

(They decline, however, to overturn Slaughterhouse).

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, and What It Isn't | By Allen Barra - WSJ.com

2010-06-28T00:16:00.000-07:00

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, and What It Isn't | By Allen Barra - WSJ.com:

In all great novels there is some quality of moral ambiguity, some potentially controversial element that keeps the book from being easily grasped or explained. One hundred years from now, critics will still be arguing about the real nature of the relationship between Tom and Huck, or why Gatsby gazed at that green light at the end of the dock across the harbor. There is no ambiguity in 'To Kill a Mockingbird'; at the end of the book, we know exactly what we knew at the beginning: that Atticus Finch is a good man, that Tom Robinson was an innocent victim of racism, and that lynching is bad. As Thomas Mallon wrote in a 2006 story in The New Yorker, the book acts as 'an ungainsayable endorser of the obvious.'

It's time to stop pretending that 'To Kill a Mockingbird' is some kind of timeless classic that ranks with the great works of American literature.

Dr. Helen: The injustice of "social justice"

2010-06-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

Dr. Helen: The injustice of "social justice":

Quoting Hayek:

I have now become convinced, however, that the people who habitually employ the phrase simply do it as an assertion that a claim is justified without giving a reason for it....

What I hope to have made clear is that the phrase 'social justice' is not, as most people probably feel, an innocent expression of good will towards the less fortunate, but that it has become a dishonest insinuation that one ought to agree to a demand of some special interest which can give no real reason for it.

Dusty Springfield Just a Little Loving

2010-06-27T12:53:00.000-07:00

GoodShit › Down with the doom-mongers!

2010-06-26T01:16:00.000-07:00

GoodShit › Down with the doom-mongers!: Matt Ridley’s The Rational Optimist

To be optimistic is to be an idiot. That seems to be the mood of the times. The end is nigh, we are endlessly told, so we’d better get used to it.

The trouble is that the end is very clearly not nigh. By any sensible measure – life expectancy, wealth, literacy rates, food supply, social freedoms, even the general state of the environment – we live in an era that far surpasses any previous one. Our best days are – or at least should be – ahead of us. Yet books that have had the temerity to point out these simple facts – like Bjørn Lomborg’s The Skeptical Environmentalist or Indur Goklany’s The Improving State of the World – are routinely pilloried by liberal-left and green commentators.

Judge orders Lindsay Lohan to answer questions - KansasCity.com

2010-06-25T10:57:00.000-07:00

KCStar - Judge orders Lindsay Lohan to answer questions - KansasCity.com

The Daily Caller - E-mails reveal Post reporter savaging conservatives, rooting for Democrats

2010-06-25T10:56:00.000-07:00

E-mails reveal Post reporter savaging conservatives, rooting for Democrats | The Daily Caller

Congress Shall Make No Law

2010-06-24T12:31:00.000-07:00

Congress Shall Make No Law: "- a new First Amendment blog"

There's so many of us!

2010-06-22T20:31:00.000-07:00

New York Times: In Law Schools, Grades Go Up, Just Like That

In the last two years, at least 10 law schools have deliberately changed their grading systems to make them more lenient. These include law schools like New York University and Georgetown, as well as Golden Gate University and Tulane University, which just announced the change this month. Some recruiters at law firms keep track of these changes and consider them when interviewing, and some do not.

Law schools seem to view higher grades as one way to rescue their students from the tough economic climate — and perhaps more to the point, to protect their own reputations and rankings.

Bottom line: too many damn lawyers

Night of the Living Wonks - By Daniel W. Drezner | Foreign Policy

2010-06-22T19:20:00.000-07:00

Night of the Living Wonks - By Daniel W. Drezner | Foreign Policy: "- Interesting article in Foreign Policy magazine that explores how different international relations theories would cope with an invasion of zombies. Based on forthcoming book Theories of International Politics and Zombies. Analyzes the possible responses to a zombie invasion predicted by realist, liberal, and neoconservative theories of international relations.

Groucho-Father's Day

2010-06-20T23:10:00.000-07:00

AP Tea Partier profiles

2010-06-20T11:49:00.000-07:00

Enraged to engaged: Tea party backers explain why:

Fried eggs on potato chips

2010-06-17T21:59:00.000-07:00

via Monica Bhide's A Life of Spice (click link for the recipe)

Chris Matthews' Documentary 'Rise of the New Right': A Curveball from the Left

2010-06-16T23:55:00.000-07:00

Chris Matthews' Documentary 'Rise of the New Right': A Curveball from the Left: "- Matt Lewis via Politics Daily

The documentary features selective editing of heated political rhetoric that both parties regularly use. For example, while promoting the documentary on a recent episode of "Hardball," Matthews said the Tea Party movement is engaged in a debate over "whether the federal government deserves toppling." As evidence, the documentary features a video of Rand Paul, saying, "We've come to take our government back."

Matthews feigns that this is dangerous talk, but the "take our country back" slogan has been around forever -- and employed by both parties. As Matthews' own documentary shows, MSNBC's Pat Buchanan used the line back in 1992. But Matthews fails to note that Howard Dean even wrote a book titled, "You Have the Power: How to Take Back Our Country and Restore Democracy in America."

(Did Howard Dean think that Bush overthrew democracy? Did Dean want to topple our government and "restore democracy"? Of course not!)

Matthews also makes much of Rush Limbaugh's references to the "Obama regime," but neglects to mention that several liberals -- including MSNBC's Ed Schultz -- and Matthews himself referred to the "Bush regime." He recounts threats made against Democratic members of Congress after the passage of health care reform, but neglects to mention a death threat made against Republican Rep. Eric Cantor.

The documentary features protesters holding signs and posters saying unflattering things about President Obama, but Matthews seemed less concerned about the "Bushitler" signs or of the 2006 movie portraying the assassination of President Bush.

This program comes on the heels of Rachel Maddow's April documentary on Timothy McVeigh on the anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing (at the time, liberal pundits like Maddow and even Bill Clinton were attempting to tie the current anti-government political sentiment with the Oklahoma City bombing). Of course, that comparison was both insulting and disturbing.

Ultimately, the Matthews' documentary failed to engage the central question repeatedly raised by the activists interviewed: Is the government too big, doing too many things, spending too much money? It is a discussion the left does not want to have.

2010-06-11T20:21:00.000-07:00

2010-06-11T13:57:00.000-07:00

AP -

Bill Clinton's presidential library won't publicly release memos and notes Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan wrote about the sexual harassment lawsuit that triggered Clinton's impeachment.

Kagan was involved in defending Clinton in the lawsuit brought by ex-Arkansas state worker Paula Jones, according to documents released Friday. Clinton's testimony for the Jones lawsuit, denying a sexual relationship with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, led to his impeachment.

2010-06-11T11:58:00.000-07:00

Editorial:

"The American people have absolutely no interest in taxing new media or consumer electronics to prop up an industry that's clearly on its way out"

Perverted Lust. Only 75¢.

2010-06-10T19:18:00.000-07:00

John Lord's 69th birthday

2010-06-09T21:56:00.000-07:00

Debate: Let it be resolved: boobs cause earthquakes

2010-04-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

Via News.com.au-

"Many women who do not dress modestly ... lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes,'' [Iranian cleric] Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi said.
...
"What can we do to avoid being buried under the rubble?'' Sedighi asked during a prayer sermon on Friday.

"There is no other solution but to take refuge in religion and to adapt our lives to Islam's moral codes.''

Or not -

Jennifer McCreight is determined to prove him wrong.

Since launching the "Boobquake" Facebook page she has enlisted more than 20,000 women promising to show as much cleavage as possible on Monday, April 26.

If the world doesn't then disappear into an apocalyptic fiery chasm, then Sedighi will have no option but to admit he was wrong.

And...it's causing earthquakes

2010-04-20T00:25:00.000-07:00

Spiegel -

A pornographic video is breaking all sales records in Iran. But it is also making a prominent TV star fear not just the end of her career, but also corporal punishment under the country's restrictive laws.
...
Iran's much-feared attorney general, Ghorbanali Dorri-Najafabadi, has gotten involved in the investigation, and he's demanding death by stoning

The Risen Christ?

2010-04-16T11:05:00.001-07:00

...or much ado about nothing?

Some parishioners at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church at Warr Acres, Oklahoma are freaking out over what they see as "pornographic" elements in a 10 foot tall crucifix that was mounted (hung?) over the alter there last month.

To be honest, I completely failed at first to register the gigantic genitalia supposed by critics to be sticking up from Christ's garment. I just read it as "abdomen." Maybe that's because I have a passing familiarity with the original, widely reproduced icon that the recent work is obviously based upon - the 12th Century San Damiano Cross that hangs in the Basilica of Saint Clare in Assisi.

Given the similarity of the controversial image with the original, and given that the artist is described in the news story linked above as "a local iconographer known for her religious artwork," I'm betting the artist was blindsided by the controversy.

Ever notice that you've never seen UN Climate Chartlatan Rajendra Pachauri and character actor Fisher Stevens in the same place at the same time?

2010-02-07T22:35:00.000-08:00

So that's the guy in the sandwich board and aluminum foil hat pacing manically in front of the UN...

2010-02-05T12:29:00.000-08:00

Fox News Science & Technology -

U.N. Climate Chief: Critics Should Rub Their Faces With Asbestos

The U.N.'s climate chief dismissed "nefarious" global warming skeptics this week by insinuating that they are deep in the pockets of big business -- and suggested that they go rub their faces in cancer-causing asbestos.

Rajendra Pachauri, the besieged head of the U.N.'s International Panel on Climate Change, told the Financial Times on Wednesday that he is the victim of a "carefully orchestrated" campaign to block climate change legislation.

"I would say [there are] nefarious designs behind people trying to attack me with lies, falsehoods," he told the paper, swatting away allegations that his India-based climate institute, TERI, has benefited from decisions made by the IPCC, which he also chairs.

Climate change skeptics "are people who deny the link between smoking and cancer; they are people who say that asbestos is as good as talcum powder," he said.

"I hope that they apply it (asbestos) to their faces every day."
...
"It's all part of a pattern," he continued. "But let me clarify. I have no proof. I can only presume something like this is at work.

Chávez arremete contra Twitter y estadios

2010-02-05T11:11:00.000-08:00

via BOINGBOING -

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has announced that he now considers Twitter messages and social networking as terrorist threats.

Well, if you believe the US detonated a secret earthquake weapon to cause a disaster in Haiti as a pretext for occupying that desirable and strategically key country...Oh, never mind. This is too easy.

Bonus really nice graphic on the original Spanish language news report:

Joe Klein is Clint Howard

2010-01-26T23:35:00.000-08:00

Ever notice that you never see Joe Klein and Clint Howard in the same place at the same time?