Breitbart Takes Over Weiner Press Conference, Stuns MSM
I would not have believed it if i wasn't watching it with my own two eyes.
Embattled Democrat Anthony Weiner was expected to take the stage at a 4:00 PM press conference, when Andrew Breitbart took over the stage and the message.
After providing his version of events reading the media the riot act for their biased coverage, Breitbart left the stunned journalists almost speechless in his wake as he strode off stage.
Update: Weiner joins his press conference a half hour later makes half-admissions of his guilt before and after his marriage.
"I haven't told the truth, and I've done things i deeply regret."
Admits his guilt, will not resign at this time.
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So then, how does John Ensign stack up to Weiner?
"Persistently Vegetatively" yours,
Erin O'Brien
Genius
Liberal
Human being
Posted by: Erin O'Brien at June 06, 2011 08:38 PM (Wh+v/)
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Ok - we get it. And no doubt JFK would have been in the same hot water if he had had access to the same technology.
But don't you think there are more important things, we *as a country* need to focus on? For example, your excellent coverage of the Jose Guerena shooting.
One other thing with regards to your slogan. If you've ever seen The Princess Bride, "that word you keep using, I don't think it means what you mean"
Posted by: skepticalsinner at June 11, 2011 11:34 AM (zGn5w)
I hate to point out the obvious, but all the leftists that have been shrieking that Weiner was hacked now look like fools, and poor souls like Kossack "Stranded Wind" have destroyed their credibility for a lifetime.
Shrieking LibRules care that their partisan hate-mongering makes them look like fools?
That... would be news.
Posted by: DANEgerus at June 06, 2011 02:24 PM (e3/KR)
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Unless it is part of his divorce settlement (she gets to keep his office) I don't see anything to suggest this. Democrats can do anything and not have to resign. They don't even feel guilty about it. Just tell themselves about all the good they can do in office and how much the little people NEED them there.
Posted by: Professor Hale at June 06, 2011 03:16 PM (m7EhJ)
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Is it too soon to remind everyone that "Gabby Giffords" hasn't done anything to represent her district since her trauma? Think she will run for re-election? I am guessing yes. And she will do it without making any public appearances more strenuous than walking onto the stage.
Posted by: Professor Hale at June 06, 2011 03:20 PM (m7EhJ)
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Breaking News! Weiner is a wiener! And he admits it!!
Posted by: North at June 06, 2011 04:36 PM (FZidc)
Confirmed: Lee Franklin Booth is a Confidential Informant For the Feds
I mentioned on the 23rd of last month that I thought felon Lee Booth may be getting high-level federal protection that has kept local, state, and federal agencies investigating him at bay.
I can now confirm not only that Booth was a confidential informant that appears to have abused the system protecting him, but I can also name the federal agency that was sheltering him. I won't name the agency, however, to protect any agents or investigations that they may have underway.
Booth's CI status is under review, apparently due in no small part to his high-profile flouting of the law.
Now that his status is apparently about to be revoked, it seems that indictments could begin raining down upon him almost immediately after federal protection is lifted.
Justice may come slowly, but it does appear to be on the way.
Update: Further thoughts here.
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I'm not following your reluctance to identify the agency.
Given that Booth's identity and status as an informant is known, isn't it safe to conclude that anyone working with Booth would likewise be compromised?
Posted by: steve at June 06, 2011 01:27 PM (L9End)
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Way to go CY! Just be sure to watch your 6 brother!
Tarheel Repub Out!
Posted by: Tarheel Repub at June 06, 2011 02:16 PM (prDeJ)
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Booth's CI status is under review, apparently due in no small part to his high-profile flouting of the law.
And that the "C" part of the "CI" marker is no longer relevant.
Posted by: Douglas at June 06, 2011 02:24 PM (YKOnu)
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No official confidential informant for a Federal law enforcement agency is allowed to break any law except at the direction of the assigned agent and with the written permission of the assigned Assistant United States Attorney who is assigned to the particular matter.
Posted by: Federale at June 07, 2011 05:06 PM (NAlbk)
LAST October, I won the Nobel Prize in economics for my work on unemployment and the labor market. But I am unqualified to serve on the board of the Federal Reserve — at least according to the Republican senators who have blocked my nomination. How can this be?
In case you haven't been paying attention for the past half-decade, the Nobel Prize has been reduced to absurdity. Even Paul Krugman has one. ManBearPig got on for junk science that was debunked. Our current war-monger President, who is fighting what the left used to call "an illegal war" in Libya, and which is supplying drug cartels with heavy weapons in Mexico via his BATF, was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize before he even finished moving into the White House.
A Nobel means nothing.
The reason you were blocked Mr. Diamond, is that you are a Keynsian hack, with no understanding of real markets. The idiocy you espouse has led us into the largest recession on this side of the Second World War.
You weren't hired, because you aren't up to the job.
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I might even go so far as to put forth the idea that owning a Nobel Prize for Economics should be a dis-qualifier for any position involving setting national economic policy.
"Welcome to the Nobel Prize presentation. Here's yer sign." (credit: Bill Engvall)
Posted by: Georg Felis at June 06, 2011 11:45 PM (i5bRG)
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Waah waah waaah. What an egotistical twat! Take your rejection in silence like a man, don't whimper in public.
Posted by: Bohemond at June 07, 2011 11:14 PM (dwXf/)
It is an article of faith among Socialists that Socialism cannot possibly be wrong. When any socialistic policy is failing, the only possible explanation must be that socialism has not had sufficient time to work its magic, that insufficient socialism has been applied, or that evil capitalists are hindering ultimate, inevitable success, often by their mere existence.
Economic news has been so bad of late that the Lamestream Media has, for the most part, dropped the modifier “unexpected”—as in “Huge Drop in Home Values Unexpected,” or “Unexpected Record High Unemployment Surprises Obama Administration”--from its coverage of the death spiral of Mr. Obama’s socialistic economic policies. Even so, Mr. Obama and his minions continue to claim that it’s only a “bump” on that glorious revolutionary highway to complete recovery. They claim that they “saved or created” this or that number of jobs, and that without their brilliant socialistic manipulations, things would be much worse. That we are already broke and borrowing at the rate of billions per hour means nothing to the determined Socialist, for there is no possibility but the ultimate triumph of Socialism.
This pathology—for it is nothing less—is individually debilitating. Combined with a pathological narcissism the likes of which America has, prior to the advent of Mr. Obama, never experienced, it is likely to debilitate the nation.
A recent rare accidental Administration truth-telling (here) illustrates the degree to which one may become so impaired that reality becomes a nothing more than an infinitely changeable concept, which may transmogrify into whatever shape is politically useful from moment to moment. Socialism rejects conventional reality and constructs its own. Spending far more money than you have therefore becomes merely an opportunity to print and borrow money and to endlessly spend the money that isn’t real.
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- What's your definition of socialism? Because it either isn't accurate or doesn't include the Obama admin.
- How many jobs have been created in the last 14 months? In the last 6? How many jobs were being lost when Obama took office? 2 million +, 1 million +, 700,000. Them's the facts. Conservative policies nearly destroyed the economy, and Obama's had to fight to correct it. And it's working.
- In regards to Mr. Katyal: did you read the article you linked? It's obvious he's responding to a specific scenario established by an appeals court judge. The judge tried to claim that there's no exit option against the mandate. The SG explained there was. He was in no way advocating people do so; he was responding to a specific argument with a specific logic, and he provided a response that showed that logic was not true.
- Why do you consider Katyal a socialist? What evidence do you have?
Posted by: Hoo haw at June 06, 2011 12:48 AM (LpDZw)
Good questions; thanks for asking. It is interesting to note that while the Obama Administration pursues policies that are surely socialistic, its supporters take great public offense when anyone identifies them as such. Socialism is essentially Communism-lite. It is characterized by an unshakeable belief in the primacy and superiority of government over the individual. It seeks to greatly increase government size power at the expense of individual liberty, and as I pointed out, while producing much rhetoric about benefiting "the people," it cares little or not at all for the individuals who comprise "the people." It is also characterized by the employment of class warfare. Oh, yes, redistribution of wealth also figures prominently. All of this, Mr. Obama has said and done, as have his various czars and bureaucrats.
As to jobs "created or saved," by the Obama Administration, let's keep in mind that Democrats controlled the Congress for the final two years of the Bush Presidency, and that much of our economic difficulty was brought about by the bursting of the housing bubble, which was primarily a Dem. creation, though many feckless Republicans either assisted or did little to oppose it. In fact, Mr. Bush repeatedly warned Congress about the mess Fanny and Freddy were creating, but was, of course ignored. Many of the jobs you mention have been federal government jobs, jobs that create no wealth and are, through taxes, a drain on the economy. In any economic cycle, some jobs will be lost, some gained, but there is no doubt that we are gaining an insufficient number for recovery, and by an enormous margin. If Mr. Obama's policies are in fact, working, why do we keep hearing horrendously bad economic news, week after week? Oh yes, and one surely can't argue with a straight face that taking over 2/3 of the American auto industry while stiffing the legal rights of shareholders is a capitalist innovation.
As to Mr, Katyal, I did indeed read the article I linked, and I noted specifically that he might be merely making a lawyerly argument. My point was that while there is technically an "exit option" as you put it, the article itself makes clear that its not really an option at all, and is certainly impractical for virtually anyone.
My implication is that such comments are in line with Socialist thought, and there is more than sufficient precedence for establishing that simple proposition. Surely you know that a great many Socialists are or have been members of the Obama Administration, people such as self described Communist Van Jones or Anita Dunn who so admires Mao, the most prolific mass murderer in history. Do I know specifically that Mr. Katyal is a self-described Socialist? No, however, my point was, again, that his comment would be what one would expect a good Socialist to think and say.
Thanks again for taking the time to read and comment.
Posted by: Mike Mc at June 06, 2011 09:49 AM (rSpVF)
and fascism is socialism-lite: supposedly controlling the means of production by the state without actually taking them over. The end result is the same--corruption at the top by either the Party or the Party and the rent-seeking rich.
As for conservative policies nearly destroying our economy--I cannot wait for the return of the debate over whether 4% or 5% unemployment constitutes full employment. But that will not happen for a long time as the country works its way out from under the burden enthusiastically generated by the current administration.
Posted by: iconoclast at June 06, 2011 11:34 AM (MZd0C)
As I predicted, your definition of socialism is incorrect. The things you list can certainly be aspects of a socialistic system, but that do not necessarily constitute one (ie they are necessary but not sufficient conditions). It's hard to point to specific definitions of terms in political philosophy since everyone has a slightly different take, but check Wikipedia. Socialism involves the state taking over the means of production. It is a different economic arrangement than capitalism. We obviously are nowhere near having something like that in the US, and saying we are is silly.
As for the auto takeover, that arrangement was agreed to by the firms that were taken over (the offer was extended to Ford, but they didn't take it). Those firms are now profitable, and are paying back the government money used to keep it afloat. It was a necessary move, since those firms would have gone under and taken the other US car firms with it, losing hundreds of thousands of jobs and adding another crater to an economy that could ill afford it. And, regardless of anything else, the government stating conditions for reform in a firm it's lending money to does not equal a nationwide Socialist economy.
As for jobs, the only thing you can say to the fact that they numbers have been drastically reversed is that "we're not all the way there yet". Duh. We're working ourselves out of the worst economic disaster of the past 80 years. It takes time, and Obama deserves credit for walking the economy back from the edge of a cliff the fall from which would have been absolutely catastrophic.
Which gets us to the cause of the crisis: conservative policies. There's been lots commentary on this, most of which agrees that the Fannie/Freddie/CRA actions did make things worse than they would have been, but weren't the cause of the crisis. See Richard Posner and Alan Greenspan, the former the founder of the Law and Economics movement and a very very conservative appeals judge appointed by Reagan, the latter literally in bed with Ayn Rand. They both agree that conservative economic policy caused the housing bubble and the economic environment that caused a crisis after the bubble burst. Specifically, low interest rates from the Fed and lax/de-regulation of the financial system. Links here http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2009/11/posner_on_the_f.html and here http://www.thebigmoney.com/articles/juicy-bits/2008/10/23/greenspan-recants
As for Katyal, look: you either recognize the context of the legal argument when he made that statement, or you do not. It's clear Katyal wasn't advocating people forgoing income, and that he isn't in favor of people not making money. Paul Krugman was part of the Reagan Administration; you think Krugman's a socialist, right?
Bottom line: businesses are recording record profits, the stock market is back on its feat, millions of new jobs being created (oh, forgot to mention that the situation is the opposite of what you insinuated: most of the jobs being cut are public sector, and the growth is in the private sector). To claim Obama and his administration is Socialist or Anti-Business is just pure ideology ignorant of facts.
Posted by: Hoo haw at June 07, 2011 09:49 AM (mRNaQ)
Government ownership of the means of production? Check Wikipedia? As a teacher of high school English, I don't allow my students to use Wikipedia as a research writing resource, nor should anyone. It's simply not a reliable, authoritative source. That said, even contemporary nations that are, without question, Socialist--self-identified as such--do not own the means of the production. They do in some industries, but by no means all. And I did not suggest that the United States is socialist, merely that Mr. Obama and his followers have imposed, and are attempting to impose socialistic policies. Silly? Fact.
The auto companies agreed to it? Indeed, after substantial thuggish arm twisting. What choice did they have? Mr. Obama controlled both houses of Congress, wanted to preserve the union status quo, and in so doing, ignored the legal rights of the shareholders. As to their profitability, GM, and now Chrysler, have claimed to have paid off their government loans--with other government loans. The Obama Administration has already written off some portion of the billions given to GM and Chrysler and has admitted that they will likely have to write off even more. Being able to show a profit for a quarter or two is a very different thing from being kept afloat by government loans and being actually profitable over the long term.
In addition, you seem to want to have things both ways. On one hand, you suggest that the government hasn't taken over the means of production, yet claim that "the government stating conditions for reform in a firm it's lending money to does not equal a nationwide Socialist economy." It does not equal a nationwide Socialist economy, but it is surely socialistic policy, which is my point.
They're drastically reversed jobs numbers? The fact is that in order to come close to reversing unemployment we need to produce--in the private sector--at least 200,000 jobs per month. We're not anywhere close. It is also a fact that job growth in the public sector, almost exclusively in the federal government, is at a record high. In recent months, for example, the only reason there has been any significant private sector growth was because of job pushes by McDonald's. Private businesses are hiring or expanding because of the uncertainty of the regulatory, socialistic policies which have been and are still being promulgated by the Obama Administration. Even Mr. Obama, just a few days ago, gave a speech in which he said he must now concentrate on creating private sector jobs. Of course, that's rhetoric. Doing away with his big-government, socialistic policies is quite another matter. Have some jobs been created? Yes, but not nearly enough to push down our persistently high unemployment numbers.
And by the way, it was George Bush who took the first major steps toward "walking the economy back from the edge of a cliff." Mr. Obama promised wonders from his nearly trillion dollar "stimulus," and they didn't materialize because the entire stimulus was merely socialistic wealth redistribution. It is that, and his other policies, which have deepened, not lessened our economic woes, and all he wants to do it to borrow and spend even more. By all means, try to explain that he has not and does not. You are making my point that socialism can never be wrong. The economy isn't perfect because socialism hasn't been allowed to work long enough. "Duh" indeed.
As to Mr Katyal, as I've twice stated, he may have been making a lawyerly argument, but it is not at all clear that he doesn't believe it. In addition, in these times, even making such an argument is not a terribly bright thing to do. It would seem to indicate a very socialistic view of pretending to care for "the people," but caring nothing for individuals. Paul Krugman? Don't get me started.
I'm afraid your bottom line is quite the opposite of what you claim. The stock market, by itself, is hardly an indicator of absolute economic health. If Mr. Obama is not anti-small business, why is he doing one of his rhetorical outreaches to it? In fact, public sector jobs on the local and state levels are essentially static. They are not declining or increasing in number, but in the Federal Government, they have been significantly increasing and continue to do so. Other nations are refusing to loan us money, are talking about replacing the dollar as the international reserve currency, and are--with good cause--lecturing us about our profligate ways. Our entitlements are either broke or will be broke in the very near future, and we're so far under water the Congress is wrangling about raising the debt ceiling several trillions of dollars--trillions! Treasury Secretary Geithner predicts absolute economic doom and national default if we do not. Not exactly happy days are here again or economic progress.
As to being a socialist, you might want to read Mr. Obama's two pseudo-autobiographies where he outlines, in significant detail, his lifelong intimate associations with prominent communists and socialists, and his appreciation of and agreement with their views. Stanley Kurtz's new book on that subject is well researched and quite convincing on the topic as well.
Posted by: Mike Mc at June 07, 2011 11:06 AM (rSpVF)
... stand beside you in a fight
... plead a case defending your Constitutional rights
... speak to the family of a fallen soldier
... represent your best interests in a negotiation
Posted by: Mikey at June 05, 2011 12:45 PM (PZ49o)
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Although I don't consider myself a Democrat, I am a liberal.
I would choose Obama over Palin in your five situations without hesitation. If you had pitted Obama against Colin Powell, I would have had to put some thought into the matter.
Posted by: Erin O'Brien at June 05, 2011 05:04 PM (Wh+v/)
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I'd go with Palin on all of the ones you mentioned, but if you asked which one would you prefer to suggest a name for your kids, I'd go with Obama.
Posted by: AYY at June 05, 2011 07:48 PM (crnQj)
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Eric, if you'd choose Mr. Zero Empathy to read off flashcards to the family of a fallen soldier over someone with a child in the military... well, not to put to fine a point on it, but you're a fool.
Now, I can see choosing Obama to handle your finances. Not that he'd do a better job of it, but he could arrange favors to get you off the hook when TurboTax *oops* makes an impossible error in your favor for thousands of dollars.
Posted by: Dr. Horrible at June 05, 2011 11:43 PM (ERq6D)
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I don't like either. But I don't like anyone, other than the Paul's, that have been suggested. I feel we are at that point faced by France in 1890's. It is time for everyone to loose a head.
Posted by: david7134 at June 06, 2011 12:15 PM (bjigf)
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I'm with the moonbats on this one. This is nothing more than genital mutilation based on ancient and senseless tribal superstitions. Just like female circumcision it has no place in the modern world.
Posted by: Will Butler at June 05, 2011 12:39 AM (zgaaP)
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To clarify, I'm in favor of the ban, but yes that pamphlet is tasteless and trades in classic anti-semitic imagery. It needs to be pulled.
Posted by: Will Butler at June 05, 2011 12:43 AM (zgaaP)
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"To clarify, I'm in favor of the ban, but yes that pamphlet is tasteless and trades in classic anti-semitic imagery. It needs to be pulled."
So, you're in favor of actual "anti-Semitism"
(oh, do be a man and use the real term, Jew hatred) as suggested by attempting to outlaw a religious rite, but something trivial like a pamphlet which might embarrass the Jew haters ought to be forbidden. Got it.
Posted by: Mike James at June 05, 2011 12:55 AM (FMUMi)
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The male process is COMPLETELY different than female "circumcision." The butchery done on females is punitive, violent, and a form of barbaric (typically Islamic) dominance.
Medical science agrees without question that the procedure done on males (mostly on Gentiles, overwhelmingly by doctors) leads to a more sanitary "member," fewer infections, and greatly lowers the risk of STDs, including AIDS.
So nothing's changed: The original Nazis had a large gay contingent. So what is it that's so appealing about Nazism? Is it the boots and leather? The undercurrent of sado-masochism? Or just the image of Manly Men Marching in Manly Uniforms and Living in Manly Barracks and Taking Manly Communal Showers? ...that does sound reminiscent of San Francisco.
Posted by: pst314 at June 05, 2011 10:08 AM (mFPMV)
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Circumcision is unnecessary, the same health benefits can be obtained through good hygiene. Also, if anyone cares, circumcision removes about 40% of the sensation from the sexual act. It's also being done to an 8 day old infant who has no say in the matter. Most secular Jewish people I know abhor the practice. Of course I suspect most of you know as much about actual Jewish Americans as you know about San Francisco, where very few men actually walk around in leather gear. Also, most Jewish-Americans are liberals and progressives and are pretty thin on the ground in the red states, so spare me your "expertise" about this particular community.
Posted by: Will Smith at June 05, 2011 11:26 AM (zgaaP)
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Will Smith, I know lots of secular Jews, liberal Jews, and some conservative Jews. So up yours, too.
Posted by: pst314 at June 05, 2011 05:43 PM (mFPMV)
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Yeah, I only lived in New York, worked for two Jewish bosses at two jobs, and was a big hit as a salesman with the Hasidic community. Clearly, I don't know anything about Jews.
Anthony Weiner may have sexted lewd photos of himself before:
Of course, the simplest explanation of the scenario is that he had, in fact, tried to send a picture of his genitals to a 21-year-old Washington state college student. Weiner has denied that in public and in private. Two people who spoke to him privately said he had suggested that, as one said, "he took or sent a photo or photos like this at some point — but in this case actually was hacked/set up, perhaps with a posting of one of his own photos or something very similar."
"If that is the reality, there is no magic, good way to handle it," Dezenhall said. "You have what lawyers call a 'bad fact.'"
Note this is one of his protectors trying to help Weiner (therefore pushing the improbable hacking angle) that states the Congressman has a history of this kind of behavior.
Oh well, At least his real name works for a stage name once he finally resigns and begins his new career doing porn full time.
A YouTube video of a memorial service at the home of Jose Guerena has been posted (here). It is more than ten minutes long, what is of greatest interest is the final few minutes shot by someone attending the service. The video focuses on the back wall of the Guerena home, the backyard fence and the wall of the home behind. Both homes are obviously frame homes covered in stucco, apparently reasonably thick. The fence is made of solid concrete blocks, somewhat narrower than common cinder blocks. Keep in mind that the camera is more or less constantly moving, the framing imperfect, and lens reflectivity—it was shot in bright sunlight—occasionally interferes. There were a few close-ups, but they were brief, shot from a distance, and there was nothing nearby from which to make accurate scale comparisons. Even so, a few reasonable conclusions can be drawn.
OBSERVATIONS:
(1) I could make out at least 11 apparent exit holes in the back wall of the Guerena home, at least two through a window, and nine through the wall. The lowest hole in the stucco wall appears to be approximately 2’ above ground level and the highest, approximately 7’ above ground level. The exit holes have approximately a 5’ horizontal spread. It is possible—perhaps likely--that there are more holes that I could not see.
(2) The AR-15 platform is popular with SWAT teams because the weapons have excellent ergonomics, light weight, low muzzle blast and recoil, are readily available at reasonable prices, have a very wide range of available accessories, and fire the .223 cartridge, which, if the proper ammunition is used, is a very accurate and effective stopper while also being relatively safe in an urban environment. From this video, it seems likely that the proper ammunition was not used.
He doesn't seem to have yet approved my comment on the professional excellence shown in the video, I'm sure it just slipped his mind. ...
Posted by: Kevin at June 03, 2011 02:26 AM (G2DiJ)
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The public range I practice at in Garland TX specifically disallows FMJ ammo on its' rifle range precisely because of over penetration issues if a round escapes.
Posted by: SDN at June 03, 2011 12:01 PM (b0LKF)
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While it is a good guess that police forces have the various versions of the M-4 Carbine "patrol rifles" you should not rule out other types of weapons being it the mix too. Many police departments, flush with anti-terrorism and stimulous dollars have gone on shopping trips and bought whatever the SWAT team chief wants based on what looks really cool. To guys with lots of cash, the M-4/AR will look like last year's model to the fashionable cop.
As such, you might see some .308 and fully auto 9mm/.45 guns in the mix.
As for ammo, I would guess that most police departments would buy exclusively 55gr FMJ "ball" ammo for their AR's since that is what the manufacturers recommend. The hard metal nose in just the right shape leads to greater reliability. It is also very easy to buy in bulk for most ammo manufacturers and is the cheapest to get.
Purists will want to get the mil green tip 62 grain penetrators because they heard that their new high rate of twist barrels demand it. They won't understand that such things hardly matter when shooting at a house 50 ft away.
No matter what type of ammo was used, you are right that many of the neighbors are damn lucky to be alive. You just can't spray that kind of lead around without hitting something or someone.
While we gun enthusiasts can wax eloquently about ammo weights and balistic drop, I seriously doubt if your average police department considers more than what looked cool in the brochure. It is very possible that the police in this case never even considered what kind of ammo they were using other than caliber.
Posted by: Professor Hale at June 03, 2011 01:41 PM (m7EhJ)
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Palin did it!!! Actually, I wouldn't beleive him about anything.
Posted by: A_Nobody at June 03, 2011 08:16 PM (fEnA4)
You're wrong about the 'average police department' speculation. While the vast majority of police are NOT "gun enthusiasts", at least 15-20% are. That small group are the ones most likely to end up in the firearms/training arena, and the most likely to keep up on ballistic test protocols (Fackler, Roberts, FBI). And, in most departments responsible for recommendations, if not approval & purchase.
Regardless of bullet design (FMJ, polymer tip, open tip, soft point, green tip) the 5.56 has terrible penetrating traits, not much better than a FMJ 9mm NATO round.
Speaking of the 5.56 specifically, IMHO, overall cartridge design would be more important (sealed primer, no flash retardants, feeding reliability, etc.) than JUST projectile architecture.
Posted by: Buck Turgidson at June 04, 2011 12:18 PM (URQTr)
When we're talking about such qualities as "penetration," "muzzle flash" or "recoil," we must keep in mind that such things are relative. As I suggested, one of the reasons that the .223 is a reasonable choice for urban law enforcement is that with the proper bullets, it tends not to over-penetrate relative to most other cartridges in commonly military use. However, with FMJ bullets or hardened bullets (not armor piercing) designed to enhance penetration, they do quite well--for a light weight, .22 caliber cartridge.
In this case, they apparently penetrated very well indeed, which again, would tend to indicate that something other than hollow point or soft point bullets was used. The other alternative, which considering the "grouping" of the holes on the wall of the Guerena home seems less likely, is that a separate element of the SWAT team fired blindly through the back wall of the home with Guerena sandwiched between them. In essence, they were shooting directly at each other. Even for a team that performed as poorly as this did, that would be unlikely, however, if they wish to own up to doing just that, things get even more interesting--and frightening.
I'm not sure that we can even agree on a 15-20% "gun guy" component in police agencies. In my experience, those who would have any kind or real knowledge of ballistics, bullet configuration and performance and related issues, as opposed to guys who just like guns and shoot more than most-- is likely closer to 5%, and almost certainly no more than 10% (I'm guessing at averages here), and there is no guarantee that such people would automatically be assigned SWAT duty, or that their leaders would listen to them on such matters if they were.
Still, it would be interesting indeed to know exactly what sort of ammunition was being fired in each weapon--and much more--wouldn't it?
Thanks for your comments, as always!
Posted by: Mike Mc at June 04, 2011 08:21 PM (rSpVF)
In my experience, you can leave out SWAT people in our 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% guestimations numbers as 'gun people'. (no disrespect - it's just the way it is) It may be the selection process that eliminates 'gun people' for that clique, I'm not sure, however the only tactical people that ever volunteered ballistic/firearms information and suggestions were the sharpshooters....yet it was only for THEIR special firearms. In contrast many patrol, detectives and even the 'empty holster job' officers, frequently provided timely studies, articles and opinions/questions about cartridges and firearms. And yes, I knew who were the IDPA, steel & benchrest shooters ONLY looking for 'spare' ammo and brass!!
As far as 5.56/.223; because they are so light, I doubt if penetration differences would even be noticeable regardless bullet design. An exception might be one of them there 77gr trophy bonded type rounds, and then it wouldn't be much.
I believe (and hope) the Professor is wrong about the current 'average police department' selection criteria being a cool looking brochure, although that's exactly what happened with the Silvertip ammo before 1986. Much has changed in 25 years and I know of no one, including my prevailing tiny hillbilly Sheriff's Office, that solely uses manufacture's proclamations as an ammunition selection. (Interesting how we do that with vehicles, however!)
BTW, I agree, it will be VERY interesting to learn the particulars!
Posted by: Buck Turgidson at June 05, 2011 09:41 AM (URQTr)
Posted by: Old NFO at June 05, 2011 07:49 PM (DB2/U)
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Slightly OT and drawn from 50 year old memories.
Hollow points are illegal in warfare by international treaty.
The Army doctrine was that it was better to wound than to kill as took a lot more resources to tend the wounded than bury the dead. Additionally screaming and moaning are bad for morale. Of course that kinda falls apart for irregulars.
Posted by: Roy Lofquist at June 05, 2011 08:56 PM (OE1ij)
11
"Regardless of bullet design (FMJ, polymer tip, open tip, soft point, green tip) the 5.56 has terrible penetrating traits, not much better than a FMJ 9mm NATO round."
A 'standard' 115 gr. FMJ 9mm projectile, or even a NATO 9mm round will not remotely penetrate 1/2" mild steel plate at 25 yards, a 55 gr. FMJ .223 (or 5.56 NATO equivalent) certainly will.
Posted by: ThomasD at June 06, 2011 09:38 AM (i/tnP)
If the mild steel is A36, yes it will. 223/5.56 will also ding the hell out of AR500 at 25 yards. It's all about SPEED, Thomas, as if you could push a pencil eraser fast enough it would penetrate A36. However, the conversation was about shooting in houses. Shoot through layers of dry wall, sheet rock, cement board, plywood or 2x4s with both 5.56 and 9mm and you will find penetration is very comparable. A .223/5.56 will not penetrate a railroad tie or wood telephone poll, but will penetrate soft body armor but rarely the torso of the occupant. A FMJ 9mm will not penetrate soft body armor, but sometimes will on a unprotected torso.
You can find many penetration testing protocols by every major ammo manufacture online. I believe you will be surprised how little a .223/5.56 will penetrate in common house materials.
Posted by: Buck Turgidson at June 06, 2011 02:13 PM (URQTr)
Anthony Weiner took a dick pic and wanted to send it to a young woman who is not his wife. Instead of hitting "D" (to direct and privately message) the young lady, he hit "@," posting his pecker to the world, or at least the 40,000 or so people that were following the congressman at the time.
He realized his mistake and erased it quickly, but not quickly enough. He was caught, literally, with his pants down. From there, it has only gotten worse as the arrogant New Yorker has fanned the flames of scandal in one of the most disastrous political damage control campaigns in recent memory.
It has now gotten so bad that Weiner has even been forced to admit that there are other pictures of his package.
"I have photographs. I don't know what photographs are out there in the world of me," he said in one cable news interview, asked whether he'd ever snapped a photo like that of himself.
In another interview, Weiner acknowledged "it could be" the case that one of his private photos spilled onto the Internet.
Taking his own words at face value, the only rational conclusion is that Weiner did exactly what he is accused of doing.
And then there is something called a "Stranded Wind," which has created increasing more elaborate and fanciful conspiracy theories in an attempt to scapegoat conservatives for Weiner's transgressions.
Stranded Wind's latest claim is that Andrew Brietbart is behind a nafarious scheme to frame Weiner in order to protect Supreme Court Justice from (left-wing) allegations of tax evasion for not complying with disclosure requirements on financial forms. Like significant players in Obama's cabinet, Thomas made amends when the discrepancy was pointed out. I'd note that this even less than it appears to be, Thomas merely failed to disclose his wife's source of income, he wasn't a tax cheat like, say, the Treasury Secretary.
So how does a picture of a New York Congressman's erect member keep Clarence and Ginny Thomas out of jail for "corruption" in Stranded Wind's fantasy?
It's like this:
Stranded Wind apparently thinks that Andrew Breitbart is MacGyver enough to use Weiner's wiener to pick Thomas' cell lock even though, uh, Thomas isn't under investigation—or even the suspicion of wrong-doing—outside the wild and loopy world of Stranded Wind's fantasy land, where Karl Rove was frog-marched to jail and George Bush was executed for war crimes.
There is crazy, and there is weapons-grade crazy. All I can say about Stranded Wind is that national security demands that we make sure the Iranians don't put this Kossack in a centrifuge.
Scattered reports are coming in, and it looks now like a shooter has killed at least 4people and seriously injured another before taking his or her own life in a series of shootings in and around Yuma, AZ.
The shootings took place at 3 or more locations, which would seem to indicate a methodical elimination of specific individuals and not a random spree-type killing. One of those killed was a divorce attorney, though there is no word about who the other victims are at this time.
More updates as this develops.
1
If you enter his name in the Court lookup for Arizona you see that he has two cases. One was a civil case in 2002, and the other was for an order of protection against him in 2006.
2
Its true. Thursday morning a 73-year-old male began a shooting spree in Yuma,, Ariz.. The Yuma man, Carey Hal Dyess, slaughtered 5 individuals and wounded one. He has subsequently taken his own life, experts say. I found this here: Shootings in Yuma kills at least 5 and wounds 1, newstype.com
Posted by: MileyR at June 07, 2011 12:44 AM (BRMEC)
"How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?"
This is one of the most recognized quotes attributed to the fictional detective, but perhaps we need to go one better as we look at the continual, improbable, and ever more conspiratorial fantasy excuses that progressive bloggers are offering up to explain how a picture of a man's package was sent from New York Democrat Rep. Anothony Weiner Twitter account to a comely co-ed when his wife wasn't around.
The old saying that "truth is stranger than fiction" is indeed true often enough to make it a maxim, but the fact remains that reality is far more often boring and rote. Those events that break from the tedium of normalcy are sadly more likely the result of stupidity than brilliance, and Weiner's scandal is no different.
While it isn't appropriate for Holmes' fictional character, a real detective in this world is more likely to agree with the following.
"When you have eliminated the improbable, whatever remains, however straightforward and anticlimactic, must be the truth."
By far, the mostly likely scenario is precisely what appears to have occurred: Anthony Weiner tried to direct message (DM) a picture of his "package" to a co-ed, but mistakenly posted it to the public-facing side Twitter of instead.
That's it.
No grand conspiracy. No technological wizardry. Just a horny Congressman with loose morals and bad judgement.
Weiner is trying to save his marriage and his Congressional seat, so he has every reason to lie. Progressive bloggers want to protect one of their champions, and they have every reason to muddy the waters and offer a string of ever-more-fanciful excuses to try to get him off the hook.
But the most likely truth is simple.
Weiner did it.
Posted by: Dan Irving at June 02, 2011 11:19 AM (zw8QA)
3
Sadly, I confess that that was not the first Holmes that came to mind... or even the second.
I don't understand why this is even an issue. As a voting Democrat party legislator he is doing far more provable damage to the country than merely sending out pictures of himself of questionable artistic merit. His political enemies already hate him and won't vote for him and his supporters aren't going to be discouraged by a little thing like this. In that party, perversion is elevated to national policy.
Posted by: Professor Hale at June 02, 2011 12:45 PM (PDTch)
4
All this reminds me of my favorite part from the video game LA Noire -- after your character, Detective Cole Phelps (ahem) explains Occam's Razor to his partner Rusty, he's introduced to Rusty's Razor -- "It's probably the guy who's banging her."
Posted by: Phelps at June 02, 2011 01:12 PM (J/1Ja)
5
Hale,
Did you really mean to say "little thing"? Maybe you have something there, if the package is not that big, then now big deal.
Posted by: david at June 02, 2011 02:28 PM (bjigf)
6
So, what seems to be skimmed over in all this ruckus is why the good Democrat congressman had a picture of his organ online. Doesn't that strike anybody as odd? A sitting congressman with a weiner on line. Stupid much? Blackmail much? Oh, but all those coeds are kind of cute, aren't they. I might be tempted too. Not.
Posted by: TimothyJ at June 02, 2011 04:41 PM (w7YPP)
It is difficult to blackmail someone who really doesn't care about a scandal, and what Democrat really cares. The days of a dead girl or a live boy ending careers is long over, as Teddy Kennedy and Barney Fwank have proven.
Posted by: iconoclast at June 02, 2011 09:13 PM (MZd0C)
8
In this case, I think you mean to say,
"Truth is stranger than diction."
ITEM: Don’t These Guys Have Copy Editors? Department: An AP headline (here): “French Minister Probed on Sex Allegations Resigns.” Well no wonder he resigned if they did THAT to him!
ITEM: Is This Cool Or What?! Department: A team at the University of Maryland recently succeeded in actually flying a human powered helicopter for ten seconds. So what? The pilot was a woman: Judy Wexler, a biology graduate student. Go here for the story and video. You’ll see why Judy could pull it off. You go, girl!
ITEM: Is it possible that conjoined twins could actually share not only certain brain structures, but a mind as well. Can they feel each other’s sensations? Know each other’s thoughts? Research on Krista and Tatiana Hogan raises those—and more--fascinating possibilities. Do read this story (here).
ITEM: Well, it’s official; the Senate voted 97-0 against Barack Obama’s Fiscal Year 2012 budget. Not a single Democrat supported it. But on the other hand, not a single Democrat has actually proposed a budget either, proving conclusively that something is not better than nothing, particularly when it’s dreamed up by Mr. Obama. Visit The Hill (here) for the entire mess.
ITEM: AG Eric Holder continues to investigate CIA personnel, who, acting on the specific advise of the Department of Justice, protected American lives during the Bush Administration. John Hindearaker at PowerLine (here) suggests that the only reasonable conclusion is that Mr. Obama is at war with America’s intelligence community. I agree. See if you do.
ITEM: Even while pretending to support full energy development, including nuclear power, Mr. Obama’s actions reveal him to be at war with American energy producers and workers. John Hinderaker provides revealing video here. Once again, I agree. You?
ITEM: Louis Renault Award, Illinois Division: Does anyone remember Rod Blagojevich? You remember? Former, disgraced governor of Illinois, currently on trial for corruption? I didn’t think so. He’s been very much out of sight and out of mind, likely because his trial could be very, very embarrassing to Mr. Obama who ran in the same circles and used at least some of the same money men, such as Tony Rezko, who, strangely, has not been put on the stand by prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald. Visit Newsalert (here) which surmises that this state of affairs is an attempt by Mr. Fitzpatrick to protect Mr. Obama and various Chicago cronies. I’m shocked, shocked! to even contemplate such a thing. How could this be true, in Chicago, of all places?!
ITEM: One of the Obama Administrations tactics in delaying and denying oil exploration and drilling has been hysteria about alleged danger to groundwater by the hydraulic “fraccing” process, which makes recovering previously unobtainable oil economical and safe. Visit Hot Air (here) for one of those “oops!” moments when Lisa Jackson, EPA Administrator admits under Congressional questioning that there is no evidence whatever to indicate any such groundwater contamination through fraccing. Well, at least Mr. Obama has put science back in its proper place: to be used in furthering environmentalist hyperbole and the destruction of the American economy.
PS: There is some debate among grammarians on precisely how to spell “fraccing.” As “frack” has entered the popular lexicon as a euphemism for the shorter slang version of “fornicate,” I’ll stick with “frac” and “fraccing.”
Bonus: One of the fastest ways to end any conversation is to suddenly and excitedly observe “You know, what you just said has fascinating grammatical possibilities!”
ITEM: He’s Out! Leftist Berkely law professor Goodwin Liu, nominated by President Obama for a position on the most leftist appeals court in the nation, the 9th Circuit, recently saw his nomination fail in the Senate. Liu has now formally withdrawn. Despite having none of the qualifications the American Bar Association requires, such as experience as a judge or having actually practiced law—Liu has done neither—he received its highest rating. This is a small, but decisive victory for the rule of law and the Constitution. See Fox News (here) for the story.
ITEM: So That’s The Problem! House Assistant Democratic leader James Clyburn, who happens to be black, on Mr. Obama’s problems:
“And I can tell you; people don’t like to deal with it, but the fact of the matter is, the president’s problems are in large measure because of the color of his skin…”
Uh, sorry Rep. Clyburn, but the problem is that many people consider him to be an incompetent Marxist. The overwhelming majority of Americans are proud that a black man could be elected president. They want their presidents, of any color and gender, to be successful, to be someone they and their children can respect. Unfortunately, Mr. Obama, by race-baiting, narcissism, arrogance, refusal to listen to the people and sheer lack of ability and insight has manufactured his own problems. Go here for the whole story.
ITEM: Well, At Least He’s Consistent! Barack Obama, the President who has made something of a career of insulting the British, fresh from his latest diplomatic debacle of badly botching a toast to the Queen, has once again behaved like, well, like himself. Rather than attend a Royal Society banquet in his honor where England’s most eminent scientists planned to honor him with a prestigious medal, Mr. Obama, the man who swore he would restore science to its rightful place in government—by, for instance, changing scientist’s views 180° to support his anti-oil policies in the gulf of Mexico—couldn’t be bothered. Go here for the story of our continuing “special relationship” with the British. One can’t help be suspect that Mr. Obama has a rather different definition of “special” than the British, or any of our other allies, for that matter.
ITEM: Snit Fits To Remember: I can just imagine the snit fit AG Eric Holder is having today. The US Supreme Court (story here) affirmed Arizona’s law that imposes sanctions on businesses that hire illegal immigrants. While this decision does not have a direct bearing on the ongoing suit brought against Arizona by the DOJ, it does suggest that the Supreme Court recognizes that immigration enforcement is not the exclusive province of the Federal Government. Take a stress pill Mr. Holder. Perhaps a change of career would be more relaxing?
ITEM: Female SEALS? It seems that in the aftermath of the takedown of Osama Bin Laden, some feminists believe that the Navy is discriminating against women because there are no female SEALs, except Demi Moore, of course, but I’m still harboring a vague suspicion that was only a movie and not a documentary. It’s so hard to tell these days. Visit the always interesting Heather McDonald at City Journal (here) for a story of Yale women who cannot be successful in college because some college boys were behaving, like, well, like college boys. McDonald suggests that this kind of whining hypersensitivity demonstrates that women—particularly of the feminist bent—may not, in fact, have the psychological wherewithal to function as SEALs. Indeed.
ITEM: Cass Sunstein to the Rescue! Sounds like a Jewish cowboy hero from the 50s, doesn’t it? Not quite. Sunstein is a leftist academic attorney who accepted a position as the czar of the “Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.” The brilliant Mark Steyn (here) exposes Sunstein and government regulatory excess generally. It has to do with the fact that the federal government has classified spilled cow’s milk as oil to be treated as any petroleum spill. I’m not kidding. Read the whole article. Git along little doggies!
ITEM: How much does the average family spend on gasoline per month? Last month it was $369, compared with $201 in April, 2009. And gentle readers it’s not Mr. Obama’s fault and he can’t do anything about it, but he really, really supports drilling and exploration and nuclear power. Really. He said so. Go here for more discouraging details. Question: Why haven’t Americans already run every Washington Democrat and environmental weenie out of DC? How high will gas prices have to rise to get a rise out of them? $5.00? $10.00? Discuss.
ITEM: Uh, Doesn’t That Actually Mean “illegal?” Go to Michelle Malkin (here) where Doug Powers comments on a recent talk by DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Wasserman Schultz is apparently upset that those nasty Republicans actually want to enforce federal immigration laws, you know, the kind that apply to “undocumented immigrants?”
ITEM: Basic Economics 101: Let’s review, gentle readers. If you make $5000 per month, and spend $100,000 per month, you are in…? Economic deep doo-doo! That’s right! Good job! Would it be a surprise that you would be in economic trouble now and well into the future? According to Michael Barone in the Washington Examiner (here) this sort of utterly predictable consequence of lunatic spending and destructive economic policies is a continual source of amazement to Mr. Obama’s base, the Lamestream Media. Do read the article for a glimpse into campaign 2012 where Mr. Obama’s base will leave no ethical wall standing in an attempt to ensure his reelection.
ITEM: Remember when GM announced that it had paid off its government loans? Remember that it turned out that GM actually used money from a government line of credit—another loan-- to “pay off” the first loan? Remember how you realized that GM was engaging in what is commonly called “lying” because they did not actually reduce their debt to the taxpayers at all? Well, now it’s Chrysler’s turn. Hot Air (here) sums up their loan pay-off shenanigans:
“So, to recap, the Obama Energy Department is loaning a foreign car company [Fiat, Chrysler’s partner] $3.5 billion so that it can pay the Treasury Department $7.6 billion even though American taxpayers spent $13 billion to save an American car company [Chrysler] that is currently only worth $5 billion.”
Read the whole thing—if you have the stomach for it.
ITEM: Payback Comes in Unexpected Ways: Remember that shortly after becoming President, Mr. Obama reneged on our agreement to provide an anti-missile shield that would have protected Poland, among other Eastern European nations. Remember that he pulled the rug out from under the Poles on the anniversary of the very day that the Poles were invaded and conquered by the Russians? Unsurprisingly, the Poles were not impressed and inexplicably came to feel that America under Obama would be, at best, an unreliable ally. Enter Lech Walesa (here), Nobel Prize winner and George Washington-like figure in Polish history, who given the opportunity to meet with Mr. Obama, declined, noting that he really didn’t want to be used as a prop in a photo op. That’s statesmanship and common sense. Such are the results of alienating your allies while trying to appease your enemies. Desperately trying to be liked should be reserved for adolescents. It has no place in a dangerous world. Be sure you visit Chris Muir’s excellent Day By Day cartoon on this issue (here).
ITEM: Via Fox News (here) Mr. Obama has announced his new pick to lead the Commerce Department: John Bryson, former CEO of Edison International, which is billed as “a California-based energy company.” Bryson co-founded the Natural Resources Defense Council and “served on a United Nations advisory group on energy and climate change.” Uh, right. Correct me if I’m missing something, but isn’t promoting climate change—on behalf of the UN, for Pete’s sake!-- and co-founding a rabid environmental group pretty much diametrically opposed to promoting commerce in every way? Would we expect anything else from Mr. Obama? The more we hope for change, the more things stay the same.
ITEM: Continuing News From The Religion of Peace: Iranian Ayatollah Mohammed Taghi Mesbah has issued a Fatwa—religious edict—authorizing the killing of enemies of Islam, particularly Israelis of all ages. Go here for the peaceful, diverse and tolerant story.
ITEM: Even More News From The Religion of Peace: An Egyptian General has admitted (here) that during recent democracy demonstrations in Egypt, women were beaten, tortured and subjected to “virginity tests,” ostensibly so that they couldn’t claim they were raped. Apparently worried about claims of beatings and torture weren’t considered as important. Remember, gentle readers, these, and people like them, are reflexively supported by our current President and his administration.
ITEM: More News From the Religion of Peace. It is difficult for Americans to realize that in Islam, there is no separation of Church and State. Many Muslims, regardless of where they live, identify, first last and always, as Muslims. They may or may not claim any national identity, but even if they do, it will be at best a distant second to their status as a Muslim. For such people, there is no such thing as secular law or religious tolerance. An example is the tragic tale of Katya Koren, a 19 year old Muslim living in the Ukraine who dared to enter a beauty contest. It cost her life; she was stoned to death. Go here to read the entire story.
ITEM: Wisconsin’s Long, National Nightmare Is Finally Over…whoops! I was thinking about Nixon. Periodic flashbacks, you know. “I am not a crook!” Horrifying! Sorry. What has actually happened is that JoAnn Kloppenburg has finally conceded the Wisconsin Supreme Court election to Incumbent Justice David Prosser. After the recount netted her only an additional 300 votes, still leaving Prosser with a margin of more than 7000 votes, Kloppenberg still had the option of filing an additional legal challenge, but finally bowed out. Presumably, a slam- dunk Wisconsin Supreme Court decision against Governor Walker’s union reforms is no longer in the cards, but the union war continues (here).
ITEM: Could the Dems who run California actually do anything fiscally responsible? Well, sort of. Maybe. At Hot Air (here) we learn that CA authorities petitioned the Obama Department of transportation for some flexibility in the way that they implement a HS rail project beloved by the Obamites. Is anyone surprised that the answer was not only no, but hell no? It seems that the CA Dems might actually be realizing that the project might stick them with untold billions in continuing debt into eternity. Hmm. Does this mean they might actually do something affirmative to avoid running off the the bankruptcy cliff? I doubt it, but…Discuss.
ITEM: Nominations For the Most Ironic Use of The Suffix “Gate” for 2011 Are Officially Closed! WEINERGATE, WEINERGATE, WEINERGATE! Go here for the latest. You know, some bloggers would use this prominent scandal to get a cheap rise out of their readers. Yes, they’d whip a flaccid story into something of real prominence, filled with turgid, throbbing prose and gratuitous references to flag poles, obelisks and sausages. And that’s not the wurst, no! Some bloggers, bulging with self-righteousness, would erect virtual Washington Monuments to the rigid symbolism inherent in this flagging tale, or, the other side, as it may be. They’d mix metaphors and throw their organs into the ring before the fat lady sings and breaks the camel’s back. But not here at CY, no sir! Still, I can’t seem to get the Oscar Meyer Wiener Song out of my mind…
And on that spine and other part-stiffening note, I must, once again, thank you for stopping by and urge you, yet again, to visit us next Thursday for another edition of Quick Takes, where we leave no wiener unsung!
I met an Army Ranger once, around the time of the Gulf War. Two friends and I went out to Luke AFB west of Phoenix for some golf. The starter sent a fourth to join us. The guy was about 6'4", maybe 250 lbs - had maybe 2 ounces of fat somewhere. He didn't have a cart so I offered to share mine. He said thanks, but he preferred to walk. We teed off, he picks up his bag and starts jogging down the fairway. Eighteen holes, jogging all the way carrying his clubs - the temperature was around 105. I asked him if he had any part in the Gulf thing and he said No, I'm way too old for that. Now I just train the kids. We invited him to join us at the 19th hole. He politely declined because he had to take the guys out to the White Tanks (mountains) and climb some cliffs.
That's why women can't be Seals.
Posted by: Roy Lofquist at June 02, 2011 04:55 PM (7HlFX)
The Congressman asserts, "My system was hacked. Pictures can be manipulated. Pictures can be dropped in and inserted."
So he wants to now change his story for the third time (from twitter account hack, to "prank," to "system hack"), implying that someone was able to take control of his personal computer, scrape data from the hard drive, and then use that high level of access and control of his system to post Weiner's wiener on Twitter at roughly the same time the Congressman was, shockingly, online and using twitter.
We are now asked to believe that Weiner's PC was compromised, but that since it was his personal computer and not his government computer, cyber-crimes units of the federal government should not be brought in to investigate.
I beg to differ.
Federal computer systems or private, Congresspersons are privy to classified information, information that can mean millions of dollars in the event of industrial or commercial espionage, or the lives of our soldiers and citizens if the information compromised involves infrastructure or military secrets.
Further, it is reasonable to believe that if his private system was indeed hacked as he asserts, then the information on that computer could provide evidence of who hacked it, information that federal cyber-crimes units must have to catch the hacker or hacker responsible before they penetrate more sensitive systems.
After all, an embarrassing wiener picture stolen today could be nuclear secrets stolen tomorrow.
New York Congressional Representative Anthony Weiner simply has every obligation to turn his computer over to the FBI for investigation. It is simply a matter of national security.
Either that, or a lying crap-weasel meant to DM one of his little tarts with a tawdry photo, but because of his innate stupidity, posted it for all the world to see instead.
Yeah... Like you, I think the FBI should investigate, just to be sure.
1
Rep Weiner does not want to make a police report for one reason only. He is a lawyer and he knows that if he makes a false police report, he can re charged with a felony.
Posted by: Pops Petrick at June 01, 2011 05:09 PM (Bdc2B)
Pareene Furious with Drudge for Exposing "The Wrecked Society""
Alex Pareene is wetting himself because—he claims—Matt Drudge is trying to incite a race war by reporting crimes that actually occurred:
It all came to a head, as John Cook noted, this Memorial Day weekend when Drudge posted 10 separate headlines -- including the massive, above-the-logo one -- related to violent incidents involving "urban" people at venues like "Black Bike Week" in Miami and "Rib Fest" in Rochester, N.Y. There was an "Urban Melee in Charlotte," for example. Do you know what makes an "urban melee" different from a regular "melee"? It's not that it takes place within the city limits of a major metropolitan area. It's that it involves the world's most obvious code term for "scary black people."
Drudge does not collect and attempt to tie together disparate, unrelated stories of crimes committed by drunk, rowdy white kids. And for the record, drunk, rowdy white kids commit a lot of crimes, in a lot of places!
Drudge exists because he posts sensational headlines, like every other infotainment site on the Internet... including Salon and Gawker.
What pisses Pareene off is the massive influence Drudge has in pushing his infotainment and his views, while Pareene's are viewed on a much lower scale.
Pareene is a far left liberal that would like to embrace the childish fiction that all races and cultures are essentially the same. It's a wonderful view to have when you're ten.
While individuals within these cultures can be anyone and achieve anything, it is a statistical fact that African-Americans are disproportionately responsible for crimes in this nation compared to any other ethnic group. They are also more likely to commit some of the more sensational crimes, such as the near riots and wildings that are the prime headline fodder that are Drudge's bread and butter.
If Pareene really wanted to make an impact, he'd spend his time and resources trying to find the reason for the statistical discrepancy that shows African-Americans are more prone to be criminals and victims of violent crime.
Of course, he already knows the reason. It started with LBJ's "Great Society," and continued with the rise of Planned Parenthood and the destruction of the African-American family unit due to "progressive" social reforms.
Pareene has no interest in helping African-Americans.
He just doesn't want Drudge's exposure of the "Wrecked Society" dismantling what his progressive ideology has created in 50 years of incompetence, corruption, eugenics, and greed.
1
I am amazed at the amount of grief Drudge gets for linking to stories that are already floating about in the news. He doesn't write any of the stories himself. Yet he is called biased. The originators of teh stories are not similarly called biased. Drudge does not seem to link only to biased right-wing sources.
Posted by: Professor Hale at June 01, 2011 01:28 PM (m7EhJ)
2
I'm sure Alex will tell us about that riot by those white guys in, um, ah, well, I'm having trouble finding one.
Posted by: William Teach at June 01, 2011 02:07 PM (Z9uL6)
3
I dunno... I read the one about the Boston fracas, (I'm originally from the area) and the beach in question is located in what's locally known as "Southie" which is predominantly a purely Irish A.O... In fact Boston is one of the MOST racially defined cities in the entire world (and I say this from experience.)
It (primarily) breaks down thusly:
North Boston ("The North End"): Italians (best Italian food in New England)
'West' Boston/Roxbury/Jamaicia Plain (J.P. as its called): predominantly Black/Carribean (incl. Obama's Aunt)
South Boston ("Southie"): Irish (lots of Irish Pubs, some world famous)
East Boston/Charleston ("Eastie"): Southeast Asians/Peurto Ricans.
I'd say by knowing the "you stay with your own" mentality of Boston, my guess is that the folks involved there were more than likely the Local Irish toughs out for a "lark" as they'd say...(f.w.i.w., my Fam settled in Southie back in 1921)
Posted by: Big Country at June 01, 2011 03:12 PM (Z8fIq)
4
So... where is the list of ignored white riots this weekend that prove Drudge's bias?
Posted by: Phelps at June 01, 2011 03:26 PM (J/1Ja)
5
The paragraph that begins with "While individuals ..." hones right in on the foundational flaw in all Liberal/Leftist thinking - they simply cannot separate the concept of an individual from the demographic groupings and divisions that define their entire world view. This is what makes them profoundly ignorant of how to handle statistics rationally - they simply do not understand the measurements taken on a sample pre-define no conclusions regarding future individual data points. So, it instantly becomes emotional for them.
d(^_^)b
http://libertyatstake.blogspot.com/
“Because the Only Good Progressive is a Failed Progressive”
Posted by: LibertyAtStake at June 01, 2011 05:13 PM (Y0uLg)
Wish I had done that or that my post was as good as my comment I had later.
But yeah if the truth hurts, it must be buried.
Posted by: Howie at June 01, 2011 05:21 PM (rBz+3)
7
The gods tempt people for which they are most weak. Artificial Intelligence will create desire in people's minds for the following sins:::
1. Alcohol
2. Drugs
3. Preditory "earning"
4. Homosexuality
5. Gambling
6. Something for nothing/irresponsibility (xtianity)
7. Polygamy/superiority over women/misogyny (Islam)
Much like the other prophets Mohhamed (polygamy/superiority over women/misogyny) and Jesus (forgiveness/savior), the gods use me for temptation as well. In today's modern society they feel people are most weak for popular culture/sensationalism, and the clues date back to WorldWarII and Unit731:TSUSHOGO.
It has been discussed that, similar to the Matrix concept, the gods will offer a REAL "Second Coming of Christ", while the "fake" Second Coming will come at the end and follow New Testiment scripture and their xtian positioning. I may be that real Second Coming.
What I teach is the god's true way. It is what is expected of people, and only those who follow this truth will be eligible to ascend into heaven as children in a future life. They offered this event because the masses have just enough time to work on and fix their relationship with the gods and ascend, to move and grow past Planet Earth, before the obligatory xtian "consolation prize" of "1000 years with Jesus on Earth" begins.
Your job as a future mother is to learn the god's ways and to help your child understand despite the negative reinforcement and conditioning of today's society. Without consciousous parents the child will have no hope, and may even exaserbate their disfavor by becoming corrupted in today's environment.
Your ultimate goal is to fix your relationship wiith the gods and move on. You don't want to be comfortable here, and the changes in Western society in the last 100 years has achieved just that.
1000 years with Jesus is the consolation prize. Don't be deceived into thinking that is the goal.
The Prince of Darkness, battling the gods over the souls of the Damned.
It is the gods who have created this environment and led people into Damnation with temptation. The god's positioning proves they work to prevent people's understanding.
How often is xtian dogma wrong? Expect it is about the Lucifer issue as well.
The fallen god, fighting for justice for the disfavored, banished to Earth as the fallen angel?
I believe much as the Noah's Flood event, the end of the world will be initiated by revelry among the people. It will be positioned to be sanctioned by the gods and led for "1000 years with Jesus on Earth".
In light of modern developments this can entail many pleasures:::Medicine "cures" aging, the "manufacture" of incredible beauty via cloning as sex slaves, free (synthetic) cocaine, etc.
Somewhere during the 1000 years the party will start to "die off", literally. Only those who maintain chaste, pure lifestyles, resisting these temptations, will survive the 1000 years. Condemned to experience another epoch of planet's history for their ignorant pursuit of xtianity, they will be the candidates used to (re)colonize (the next) Planet Earth, condemned to relive the misery experienced by the peasantry during history due to their failure to ascend into heaven before the Apocalypse.
Never forget:::It is not a house of Jesus.
If this concept of Lucifer is true another role of this individual may be to initiate disfavor and temptation among this new poulation, the proverbial "apple" of this Garden of Eden. A crucial figure in the history of any planet, he begins the process of deterioration and decay that leads civilizations to where Planet Earth remains today.
Now you are faced with a lifetime to work and prepare for your next chance. Too many will waste this time, getting stoned, "Hiking!", working, etc.
Posted by: Another lost generation at June 02, 2011 07:21 AM (ubVSf)
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I would not call Drudge "infotainment." He is a serious media outlet. He doesn't do much original reporting, but provides access to news that is important for the nation, but in many cases ignored or spiked by major outlets. Just look at the issues conerning the post. Local news outlets reported these serious incidents of black crime, but the major media ignored or under-reported the incidents.
This is not "infotainment" like some sort of Entertainment Tonight or Oprah, it is serious journalism.
Posted by: Federale at June 03, 2011 12:27 PM (aO1W9)
New york Democratic rep. Anthony Weiner could have easily stopped the burgeoning "Weinergate" scandal in its tracks with a simple statement:
"I did not send that tweet. It is not a picture of me. Law enforcement has been notified and we will prosecute the person who sent this photo to the fullest extent of the law."
But as we all know, Wiener had the opportunity to say those things and instead imploded. He refused no less than four direct appeals by the media to deny that the erect member in the photo belonged to the belligerent member of Congress. Instead he evaded, hemmed and hawed, looking all the more guilty with each and every second.
Miraculously, there are still hardcore progressive zealots on the interwebs still insisting that Weiner is absolutely innocent, and that conservative firebrand Andrew Breitbart is somehow to blame.
Really, folks?
We've referred to the far left as the "community-based reality" (a play on their claim to be a "reality-based community") for a long time because of their penchant for concocting and then following conspiracy theories with religious fanaticism. Their contortions to blame right wing "hackers" for Weiner's unseemly tweet and spiraling collapse of evasions and non-denials, however, really drives home the fact that some are simply insane.
1
Investigation? If the twitter account is through the congressional IT department I'm sure there was a rapid and comprehensive investigation already which has definitively determined exactly what happened. All the when and wheres of IP addresses, MAC addresses involved and number of packets sent via what protocol. I'm sure the IT department was informed immediately when a congressman claimed he was hacked and that a lot of them worked over the weekend to find and fix/patch the whole in their network. Which means they have already run to ground what happened and can either confirm there was a flaw that' been patched to reassure the other representatives, senators, committees and their staffs--- or that there was no flaw to reassure those same folks they were not vulnerable or compromised.
Posted by: styrgwillidar at June 01, 2011 11:39 AM (NmR1a)
It's a yes or no question. The answer to a yes or no question is not, "I'm not going to be distracted." When you refuse to answer a yes or no question, it's an admission that the answer is very bad for you.
Posted by: Phelps at June 01, 2011 12:00 PM (J/1Ja)
3
Charles Johnson has become the King of Insane Leftists in this matter. People are weird.
Posted by: Pablo at June 01, 2011 01:02 PM (1fuCG)
You'd never know it occurred thanks to the US media that dutifully ignored the story, but Barack Obama used Memorial Day as an opportunity to squeeze in a round of golf for the ninth weekend in a row.
Can you imagine David Cameron enjoying a round of golf on Remembrance Sunday? It would be inconceivable for the British Prime Minister to do so, and not just because of the usually dire weather at that time of the year. Above all, it would be viewed as an act of extremely bad taste on a day when the nation remembers and mourns her war dead. I can’t imagine the PM even considering it, and I’m sure his advisers would be horrified at the idea. And if the prime minister ever did play golf on such a sacrosanct day he would be given a massive drubbing by the British press, and it would never be repeated.
Contrast this with President Obama’s decision to play golf yesterday, Memorial Day, for the 70th time during his 28-month long presidency. For tens of millions of Americans, Memorial Day is a time for remembrance of the huge sacrifices made by servicemen and women on the battlefield. The president did pay his respects in the morning, laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery, but later in the day traveled to Fort Belvoir to play golf. The story has not been reported so far in a single US newspaper, but was made public by veteran White House correspondent Keith Koffler on his blog.
It took a British paper to report this story of Americans least favorite socialist dishonoring the dead. Obama simply doesn't know how to be Presidential, or perhaps he simply doesn't care how this will be perceived.
I can't wait until this man is driven from the office he continues to denigrate.
1
Barry can't do Memorial Day. He sees dead people in the audience. Golf is the only escape from his sixth sense. /
This most un-American Manchurian Marxist pResident is an evil that God would only visit on an America that has turned from Him. Stupid and Evil are handmaidens that joined to put Barry Soetoro into office, and he continues to do his worst to The Republic.
Posted by: twolaneflash at May 31, 2011 12:35 PM (FipEk)
2
Don't you get it? We want him to play golf, even on Memorial Day. In fact, have him play every day. It distracts him and he is not bothering us.
Posted by: david7134 at May 31, 2011 06:53 PM (NEwEk)
3
I'm surprised he even bothered to acknowledge the day at all. Apparently someone managed to convince him a token gesture (laying a wreath at Arlington) was necessary before he proceeded to entertain himself.
David7134 has a good point though; the more time Obama spends on the links and on vacation, the less damage he does to our country.
Posted by: RandomThoughts at June 01, 2011 03:03 AM (WwIUf)
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I am on record on the Web as being in favor of planting lots and lots of anti-personnel mines on golf courses, if that were legal, of course.
Sorry, Sir, my attitude is somewhat soured by having to live in Southern Florida, which is just all ate up with damnyankee golf trash.
Posted by: Justthisguy at June 02, 2011 02:14 AM (mhnDc)
Letter From The Teacher #3: The Merits of Merit Pay
Anytown High School, Any State, USA
To: Ms. Rodriguez
From: Mr. English Teacher
Re: Answers to Your Questions
Dear Ms. Rodriguez:
Thanks for your e-mail. Alex is doing just fine. After we worked on the rough draft of his research paper last week, his final draft was much improved and his final score was 96%. Alex is a great kid, but he could stand to spend a little more time on his writing.
I was also intrigued by your question about merit pay. I don’t believe our district is currently considering it, but it does come up from time to time, so I’ll take this opportunity to explain it. Please let me know if you need any additional information.
A recurring issue in education is that teacher pay is determined primarily by two factors: longevity and formal education (degrees). For instance, in our state, one cannot be a teacher without at least a bachelor’s degree, and pay scales are based on that minimum level of education. If I have a master’s degree, in our school district, I earn only an additional $1500 per year. That’s an extra $125.00 per month before taxes. If I have a doctorate, I make $3000.00 more per year than a teacher with the same number of years of service and a bachelor’s degree. That’s an extra $250.00 per month before taxes.
That amount of money sounds pretty good, and $250.00 is certainly quite a bit of money for me, but the problem is that graduate credits are very expensive. Earning a master’s commonly takes two years, and a doctorate, at least another two. Tuition costs for a master’s can easily run $20,000.00, and at least that much for a doctorate. With a master’s degree or a doctorate, it would take me more than 13 years to break even on tuition costs, and I’m not including all of the incidental costs of college in time, fuel, computers, books, etc. Economically, at least, any teacher would be far better off with a part-time business or with working during the summer when possible. If a teacher earned a master’s or doctorate after working for five or more years, they’d probably never break even.
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Really wish there was a way to share this with my friends on facebook and elsewhere. Everyone who deals with education needs to read this...
Posted by: Lweson at May 31, 2011 08:10 AM (3gisR)
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I am not so much concerned with which exact method is used so much as long as it is some method that rewards teachers who do good work and eliminates teachers who deserve to be let go. When you hear of teachers being put into some sort of Limbo when they are accused of something - true or not - for years, in some cases, it seems that neither the administration of such a district nor the teachers' union is interested in what is best for the students but merely keeping their liability low (in the administration's case) or preserving the teacher's job (in the union's.)
Posted by: NevadaSteve at May 31, 2011 11:07 AM (cmerb)
3
You collectively made your bed, and now you're complaining about having to lie in it.
Institutionalized testing and merit pay and a good number of these other proposals/programs are in play precisely because the teachers associations have made it so hard to get rid of bad/ineffective teachers.
It's because we (the parents) can't trust the teachers to teach our kids what we want them to learn and because we can't trust the principals to get rid of those teachers and because we can't trust administrators to get rid of those principals that we push for testing programs and vouchers and charter schools. It's because you (as a group) demand that bad teachers get roughly the same base pay as good teachers that we push for merit pay, as the only way to reward the teachers we deem worthy.
If you were to start demanding that your union focus less on protecting the masses and their own perks and more on teaching our kids and getting rid of anyone who isn't doing that then we the parents won't need or want to come up with convoluted schemes to work around your (again, collective) obstructionism. It isn't enough to proclaim your own dedication in posts such as this, you need to start speaking up against your so-called brothers and sisters who don't cut it (did you condemn the Wisconsin teachers who called in sick rather than do their jobs? Or were you cheering them on?). Until you do, you just aren't that committed to the kids.
Ya missed the point...... hehehehehe! Hey ahh never mind....
Posted by: Orion at May 31, 2011 10:37 PM (TLs+j)
6
Steve, do you like what President Obama is doing? After all, he is your President? (I am assuming you are an American citizen...) How about your Senators, your representative, your governor? Do you like the job they are doing? Sometimes, because we vote on such things, we don't get the one we want for a time...or ever.
Yes, PEU's have too much power. So it needs to be curtailed. It is getting done, slowly, but it is still getting done. When crap happens fast we get the mess that O-care, the Patriot Act and California are.
Posted by: MunDane at June 01, 2011 11:34 PM (dlS06)
This weekend I was fortunately enough to be able to exercise my rights as an American thanks to the sacrifice of generations men and women who came before us. They laid down their lives for us, and I try to keep that sacrifice in my heart. Because of them, every day is a Memorial Day, a tribute to the freedoms they won for us with their lives.
"Thank you" just doesn't seem like enough, but it is sincerely meant.
So, thank you.
1
I am promilitary, so what I have to say should not be taken as a lack of respect. But what bothers me is that the soldiers have sacrifacied for little. We have lost our rights. About the only right that you currently have is the ability to go to church. But even that is shaky after Waco. We need to recognize this fact and begin the process of recovery.
Posted by: david7134 at May 30, 2011 02:35 PM (bjigf)
2
Here's a site that honors some of our war dead:
http://www.preserveandhonor.com/
Welcome back to the second half of the literary bird droppings of my high school students. I hope the first half, posted May 23 (here) made your week a bit more mirthful. Let’s begin with a slightly skewed observation about Shakespeare’s classic, “Julius Caesar”:
What Was the Soothsayer’s Warning to Caesar?: “Beware the eyes of March.”
Use “Debauchery” In A Sentence: “The family had a lovely evening of debauchery.”
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Mike, I'm sure you've seen a book entitled Anguished English. Your list reminds me of one of the funnest "Literary Confusion Department" entries I have ever seen.
Columbus circumcised the world in a hundred foot clipper.