Quote du jour

From a book review: "This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force."

-Dorothy Parker

Dan Fogelberg - Same Auld Lang Syne

James Taylor - Auld Lang Syne

"Have Some Madeira, My Dear" - Lou Gottlieb

A cautionary tale before imbibing at tonight's New Year's Eve party...

If you can't trust a man in a Castro beard, who can you trust?

Friday Night Babe

Tonight's FNB* is in the news this week: Penelope Cruz!
(*a.k.a. Rule Five Friday)

Naomi Campbell: Reading is Fundamental!

The Daily Caller had a Pop Sugar poolside pic of model Naomi Campbell, proving once and for all that models are not just pretty faces!



Note the title of the book. (Turn your monitor upside down, if necessary.)

"Top 10 Politician Promises Gone Wrong" -John Stossel

If you've got the time, this video is fascinating and right on the money.




Video via Common Cents

Quote du jour

"Barack Obama was the biggest loser of 2010. He allowed the angry Tea Party movement to grow powerful, he did not pass any decent laws despite his majority in Congress and he was aloof, elitist and indecisive. He had to accept a formidable, yet entirely understandable, defeat in the midterm elections as a result. No one expected much from Obama, at least not during the rest of this year."

-Marc Hujer , Der Spiegel

Here We Come A-wassailing - King's Singers

My Predictions for 2011

Making predictions is always a bit of risky business.
But, someone asked me recently for my predictions for 2011, and though my crystal ball is still a bit hazy, there are the things I have a good gut feeling about:

The new Republican majority in the House allows Obama to blame all his failures on Republican "obstructionism", which he will (those he's still not blaming on Bush, anyway!). He will use his veto pen repeatedly.

Hillary Clinton will, on the surface, remain aloof from petty, partisan politics in 2011, while people in her "camp" take potshots at and actively seek to undermine Obama between now and the 2012 primaries. Look for some kind of rule reform in caucus states like Iowa to prevent lopsided victories such as Obama's in 2008. Irony alert if they opt for more stringent credentials check (which they strongly oppose at the voting booth).

Hillary will undoubtedly resign as Sec State in 2011.

I don't foresee an aggressive rollback of the Obama agenda, which will, nonetheless, anger the right and left respectively, as both too little and too much.

Let's see if Obama can make it from New Year's Day to the end of February without another vacation. Smart money says "No".

The Tea Party will hold another big rally in Washington in late Spring. This will be a reaction in part to the reluctance of Congress to send much of the Obama agenda to the ash heap of history.

Obama will be conspicuously absent from Arlington Cemetery on Memorial Day. (Again.)

Any attempt for Republicans to roll back Federal control of school lunches will be characterized both by Democrats and their media arm, the MSM, as "Republicans want to starve children".

Any attempt for Republicans to reform Social Security will be characterized both by Democrats and their media arm, the MSM, as "Republicans want to starve grandma".

Any attempt for Republicans to permanently keep everyone's tax rates right where they are will be characterized as "Republicans want to enact a reckless millionaire tax bailout". (And that's just Mooove On dot org!)

Look for the class envy card to be played a lot in 2011.

Look for Obama to come up with a gift as thoughtful as his last, for when the British Ambassador comes calling again.
(I hear he's commissioned a "Winston Churchill Chia pet"!)

Look for fewer press conferences with subsequently fewer opportunities for former presidents to outshine him. (Jimmy Carter will be so upset at the lost opportunity, he will write another book bashing Israel.)

Look for Air Force One to be spotted in countries all around the world. At least once or twice, it will be for an official presidential visit.

Dan Rather will finally find a copy of Barry Sotero's "birth certificate" stuck between two pages of GWB's Texas Air National Guard fitness reports.



And finally, predictions that came true in 2010 will be repeated in 2011:

Obama will play golf. (frequently)

Joe Biden will say something really stupid.

Al Gore will fly in a private jet, met by a limousine, to speak about how much we need to change our lifestyle, or at least to buy carbon credits from him.

And, last but not least, liberal trolls will still be clueless.

Vintage Babe of the Week

Tonight's Vintage Babe* is Yvonne Craig!
(*a.k.a. Rule Five Thursday)











Like fine wines, the ladies improve with age!

Obama Practices for January 2013

I came across this picture over at Icanhascheeseburgers:



The caption, of course, was all mine.

Cellist, Inspiration for "Rosie the Riveter", Dead at 86

From a Washington Post story:

"Geraldine Doyle, 86, who as a 17-year-old factory worker became the inspiration for a popular World War II recruitment poster that evoked female power and independence under the slogan "We Can Do It!," died Dec. 26 at a hospice in Lansing, Mich."

"Rosie the Riveter", who, in this famous poster, was neither named "Rosie" or a "riveter", has symbolized to this day a "can do" attitude on behalf of women everywhere. No shrinking violet need apply. No fainting couch needed for Ms. Riveter!

...One day, a photographer representing United Press International came to her factory and captured Mrs. Doyle leaning over a piece of machinery and wearing a red and white polka-dot bandanna over her hair.

In early 1942, the Westinghouse Corp. commissioned artist J. Howard Miller to produce several morale-boosting posters to be displayed inside its buildings. The project was funded by the government as a way to motivate workers and perhaps recruit new ones for the war effort.

Smitten with the UPI photo, Miller reportedly was said to have decided to base one of his posters on the anonymous, slender metal worker - Mrs. Doyle.

For four decades, this fact escaped Mrs. Doyle, who shortly after the photo was taken left her job at the factory. She barely lasted two weeks.

A cellist, Mrs. Doyle was horrified to learn that a previous worker at the factory had badly injured her hands working at the machines. She found safer employment at a soda fountain and bookshop in Ann Arbor, where she wooed a young dental school student and later became his wife.

Ms. Doyle spent just two weeks in a factory but sixty nine years symbolizing the strength of the American woman.

Rest in peace, Ms. Doyle.

H/T Memeorandum

Cross posted at Lady Cincinnatus

Quote du jour

"Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months."

-Oscar Wilde

The 2010 "Don't Let Them Eat Cake Award" goes to:

...Michelle Obama!



Whether she's telling people they need to take a "smaller piece of the pie", as she and her entourage jet off to Spain, India and Hawaii, or trying to dictate what kinds of foods are available in school lunches, vending machines and bake sales, while she and Barry fly in chefs from Chicago and Honolulu for pizza and luaus, Michelle Obama "takes the cake" for wretched excess and sanctimonious hypocrisy.

Medal of Honor

Corporal Rodolfo P. Hernandez

Citation:

Cpl. Hernandez, a member of Company G, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. His platoon, in defensive positions on Hill 420, came under ruthless attack by a numerically superior and fanatical hostile force, accompanied by heavy artillery, mortar, and machinegun fire which inflicted numerous casualties on the platoon. His comrades were forced to withdraw due to lack of ammunition but Cpl. Hernandez, although wounded in an exchange of grenades, continued to deliver deadly fire into the ranks of the onrushing assailants until a ruptured cartridge rendered his rifle inoperative. Immediately leaving his position, Cpl. Hernandez rushed the enemy armed only with rifle and bayonet. Fearlessly engaging the foe, he killed 6 of the enemy before falling unconscious from grenade, bayonet, and bullet wounds but his heroic action momentarily halted the enemy advance and enabled his unit to counterattack and retake the lost ground. The indomitable fighting spirit, outstanding courage, and tenacious devotion to duty clearly demonstrated by Cpl. Hernandez reflect the highest credit upon himself, the infantry, and the U.S. Army.

Cpl. Hernandez: We humbly salute you and thank you for your service.



Hat tip Home of Heroes

There are fewer than a hundred living MoH recipients today. Their names and their stories should not be forgotten. My mission is to honor one of those heroes here each week, and salute them for their courage and sacrifice. In the words of John Fitzgerald Kennedy:

“A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces, but also by the men it honors; the men it remembers.”

Cross posted at Say Anything

Liberal Moonbat Meme of the Day: Conservatives Motivated by "Fear and Large Amygdalas"

by the Left Coast Rebel

An enlarged amygdalas has nothing to do with one's prostate (or other body part), rather it's the newest suspect in a long list of leftist attempts to connect the dots and offer an explanation on the motivations of anyone that prefers limited government to statism, freedom to socialism and human liberty to collectivist slavery.

The amygdalas region of the brain is responsible for "fear and primitivism" and a new study out of the UK shows that the cavemen/women on the right have a super-large amygdalas:

(Raw Story) A study at University College London in the UK has found that conservatives' brains have larger amygdalas than the brains of liberals. Amygdalas are responsible for fear and other "primitive" emotions. At the same time, conservatives' brains were also found to have a smaller anterior cingulate -- the part of the brain responsible for courage and optimism.

If the study is confirmed, it could give us the first medical explanation for why conservatives tend to be more receptive to threats of terrorism, for example, than liberals. And it may help to explain why conservatives like to plan based on the worst-case scenario, while liberals tend towards rosier outlooks.

"It is very significant because it does suggest there is something about political attitudes that are either encoded in our brain structure through our experience or that our brain structure in some way determines or results in our political attitudes," Geraint Rees, the neurologist who carried out the study, told the media.

Rees, who heads up UCL's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, was originally asked half-jokingly to study the differences between liberal and conservative brains for an episode of BBC 4's Today show that was hosted by actor Colin Firth. But, after studying 90 UCL students and two British parliamentarians, the neurologist was shocked to discover a clear correlation between the size of certain brain parts and political views.

The point to this story should not be that conservatives do or do not have enlarged amygdalas's but rather than those on the left are so close-minded and stupid as to grant clemency to the notion that caveman-esque conservative behavior is explained by this underappreciated lobal region.

What underdeveloped section of the liberal brain grants clemency to the most horrid ideas ever known to mankind, ie. "socialism and communism has never worked because America never gave it a proper shot"?

I know that this graphic is all over the net but I have to post it here, regardless; the liberal brain:

And the conservative/libertarian/Objectivist/limited government advocate/Goldwater Republican brain:

Exit question - If conservatives are driven to madness by their amygdalas then doesn't that mean that they are not responsible for their actions (according to the liberal worldview?).

Thus, should conservatives and their belief system be part of the left's protected class system?

Cross posted to LCR.

Oklahoma Man : Wife's Death was Sex Fantasy Accident

In what would have most likely been an honorable mention for the Top Ten Boneheaded Things of 2010, we have Arthur Sedille:

(CNN) -- Arthur Sedille was up-front with police: He would often put a gun to his wife's head during fantasy sex play at their Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, home.

But Sedille said he didn't know the gun was loaded when he pressed it to his wife's head and pulled the handgun's slide back during sex on the night of December 21.

Now Sedille, 23, is facing the possibility of a murder charge in Canadian County, Oklahoma, in the death of his wife, 50-year-old Rebecca Sedille -- who died when the handgun went off in their bedroom.

Or his other sexual fantasy, where his 50 year old wife dies, he gets her stuff and gets to bang younger chicks...

Whether it was truly a stupid and totally avoidable accident or just a rejected script from "Murder, She Wrote"... either way, this guy is a bonehead.

H/T Memeorandum

Quote du jour

“The sword is not the cause of murder, and there is no sin upon him who made it.”

-Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman

Top Ten Boneheaded Things of 2010

The end of the year is a traditional time for doing best of/worst of lists. In keeping with the spirit of the times, I give you: Top Ten Boneheaded Things of 2010 (I know we still have a couple more days, but I don't think anything is going to top these! Most of them I could have written back in September!)

10. Ellie Light: Astroturf and Sockpuppets for Obama

9. Threat to burn Koran: Fourteen and a half minutes of fame too much for FL pastor

8. Sharing the "Alec Baldwin Voicemail Award": Mel Gibson and Eleanor Holmes Norton for their outstanding performances on voicemails they wish they'd never left.

7. Obama bows to everybody in sight

6. Avatar released on DVD on Earth Day: Because nothing says "Save the Planet" like tons of non-biodegradable plastic designed to entice people to suck power off the grid to watch again and again and again.

5. Obama blows off Boy Scout Centennial to appear on "The View"

4. Turning NASA from Space Exploration to Self Esteem Agency

3. Obama takes advice from children: "Did you plug the hole yet, Daddy?" He should have asked Carter how Amy's opinion on nuclear weapons went. Tied with Obama's refusal to accept help from Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United Nations to clean up the Gulf oil spill.


2. Having Steven Colbert "testify" before a House committee on immigration

And the number one boneheaded thing of 2010?

1. Tiger Woods cheated on Elin Nordegren


(Honorable mentions: 1. Domestic Violence Lobbyist Shoots Husband, 2. The new Dem logo: Overhyped and "D" for disappointing, 3. Oval Office Rug gets quote wrong)


Thanks to Linkiest for the link, and a welcome to all of you who came from there!

Great News out of Florida! (Unless you're a Mitt Romney fan)

Public Policy Polling has Mitt Romney dropping from over fifty percent, when originally polled against Huckabee and Palin, to thirty one per cent when Gingrich and Ron Paul's names were added to the poll, down to twenty one percent in their latest poll.

"...in later polls the anti-Palin sentiment was diffused across several candidates and Romney's mile wide but inch deep support declined further and further and further to where it is now."

Mile wide and an inch deep? Mitt has many things to like about him, but his baggage outweighs them all. RomneyCare, in Massachusetts (as I noted here) is one of the most expensive in the country, did not realize savings from decreased ER usage, and is heavily dependent on bailouts form the federal government to keep it solvent.

ObamaCare, which is strikingly similar to RomneyCare, has no Uncle Sugar to bail it out. It is doomed to failure. Romney simply hasn't the credentials to wipe out whatever vestiges there are of Obama care when 2012 rolls around.

H/T Mememorandum

Cross posted at LCR, Say Anything.

Quote du jour

"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand."

-Wes Westrum, New York Mets Manager

The Marvelous Toy - Chad Mitchell Trio

Quote du jour

These are not books, lumps of lifeless paper, but minds alive on the shelves.

-Gilbert Highet

Juan Williams: "Palin Can't Stand on Intellectual Stage" with Obama"

Fox News contributor Juan Williams said Sunday that Sarah Palin "can't stand on the intellectual stage" with President Obama

I think what he means is that there just isn't room for her, what with all his teleprompters...

H/T Memeorandum

Global Warming Cancels Sunday Night Football

Blizzard of '99. Your blizzard may vary.

We all remember how "global warming" tore a hole in the Metrodome, dumping large amounts of global warming precipitate which collapsed the roof. Now, more global warming has caused the cancellation of tonight's scheduled Sunday Night Football game between the Eagles and the Vikings.

The upside is that Brett Favre will have two more days to heal up. The downside is that he'll be two days older...

"A-Soulin" - Peter, Paul and Mary

Good King Wenceslas - The Irish Rovers

How does Good King Wenceslas order his pizza?

Deep pan, crisp and even.

Small Tempest, Attractive Teapot*

Is the term "anchor baby" really offensive? Fox News had a story speaking of Penelope Cruz's desire to have her baby in the US as an "anchor baby".

A Republican Hispanic group, Somos Republicans, objected, saying, in part:

Penelope Cruz is admired world-wide, and comparing her unborn child to an inanimate object is demeaning.

"Comparing her unborn child to an inanimate object"? I think this may be a bit of PC run amok. Does anyone get upset when Walter Cronkite or Dan Rather was referred to as an "Anchorman ? When someone calls Katy Couric a "News Anchor", are they comparing her to an inanimate object, or describing her position in a news organization?

"Anchor baby" describes the role that an infant, born in the US to non US citizens, can play in establishing US residence and citizenship, and the possibility of additional "chain migration" of relatives. Now, those relatives are no more "chains" than the infant is an "anchor" as far as inanimate objects go, but it is descriptive of the relationship.

Now if Somos Republicans want to object to the characterizations of her motives, that's fair game. But to object to the comparison of "her unborn child to an inanimate object" is simply abusing the language.

* FYI, I am not comparing Penelope Cruz to an inanimate object. It's an analogy.

H/T News Real blog

Cross posted at LCR.

Christmas in Killarney -The Irish Rovers

Happy Boxing Day!

...to all our friends in Canada, the UK, Australia and NZ!


Not sure if this picture captures the spirit of the holiday, but then, it's my blog and I post what interests me! Heh.

Quote du jour

If you would convince a man that he does wrong, do right. Men will believe what they see.

-Henry David Thoreau

White Christmas - Diana Krall

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Celtic Woman

A Little Saturday Night Music

George Winston - Pachelbel's Canon

Shawn Phillips - A Christmas Song

This, too is one of my absolute favorites.

Find more videos like this on video.filestube.com.

I first heard this song when the 45 single was delivered to the college radio station I was working at.

from Shawn's website: "The Christmas Song was written in a hotel room in Rome, in 1969. I can't remember what I was in Rome for, but it was close to Christmas, and I started thinking about that, and all that entailed, and I wanted to tell the story somewhat differently, and make it fun. A few months later, when we were recording Second Contribution, I played the song for Jonathan Weston, and he didn't want to waste any of the studio time we had. I was determined to get it on tape. So when he and the engineer Robin Cable went out for a dinner break, I got on the phone, and gathered together 19 musicians, and I had everyone of them set up with microphones, and had the levels set, we'd rehearsed it several times, and we were sitting in the studio, and then Jonathan, and Robin walked into the control room. I just told Robin to roll the tape. It was done in the first take."

Actually, on the recording, which you can get for a nominal fee from itunes, there's a bit of a false start, that isn't heard on this video. Shawn gives an infectious, joyous laugh and says "I think that's tremendous" and then launches into the song.
I think I love that laughter as much as I love the song.

O Tannenbaum - Vince Guaraldi

Saturday Linkaround

Bollinger & Hayek

First amendment rights as probable cause

A Junk Science Czar — Schwarzenegger Wants to Work in the Obama Administration Fighting Non-Existent Global Warming

The Clinton Tax Myth

MUSLIMS IN BRITAIN

What Do the ‘Holiday Terror Warning’ Targets Have in Common?

‘True Grit’ Review: A More Than Worthy Remake of a John Wayne Classic

'Compliance': The Word That Sunk a Million U.S. Jobs

NJ Gov. Chris Christie commutes Aitken’s sentence

How Secure Are Our Ports?

‘The Voyage of the Dawn Treader’ Review: Perfect Holiday Adventure For Whole Family

Keith D’Ohlbermann’s Greatest Hits of 2010

Talking Points? What Talking Points?


Christmas Greetings, and the World Is Insane


Christmas Carols for the Far Left



Rule Five Roundup*:


Rule Five Sunday –The Other McCain


Rule Five Saturday, Hump Day Rule Five –Camp of the Saints

Brooke Burke–Mind Numbed Robot


Eye of Polyphemus – Jennifer Love Hewitt

Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup, Pre X-mas Rule 5 –Pirates Cove

Friday Pin up -Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

"Topless Woman Masturbating In Van Arrested On Gun Charge"


Friday Night Babe – Anna Benson


Victoria’s Secret Sexy Christmas



Vintage Babe of the Week – Debra Paget



Rule Five Shameless Plugging -Yankee Phil

Caprice Bourret and friend –Last Tradition








*By no means comprehensive.

Use the comments as an open thread on any of these topics.

Cross posted at Say Anything

Old Toy Trains

One of my holiday favorites from Roger Miller.

Merry Christmas!

However you celebrate the day, may it be a good one for you!

Quote du jour

Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.

-C.S. Lewis

Celtic Woman - Carol of the Bells

Hallmark Holiday Ad

Merry Christmas!

And in case I don't say it enough during the year, thanks for stopping by!

Friday Night Babe

Tonight's FNB* is Anna Benson!

(*a.k.a. Rule Five Friday)

Sinatra - The Christmas Song

Ray Stevens: Nightmare Before Christmas

H/T Monkey in the Middle

After Accident Paralympics Athlete Can Walk Again

Saw this amazing bit of video over at Pat Dollard, about a Dutch paralympics athlete who regained her ability to walk after a "freak" accident.

I can remember a time, not too long ago, that such events were sometimes termed "miraculous". Some might even say, despite all the tongue in cheek imitators, that this was a "Christmas miracle".

Now it is true that the miraculous is truly out of the ordinary, but has the language degenerated so, or is it faith of the speakers, that something that might once have been considered miraculous is now simply "freaky"?

Anyway, I thought you might like to hear her story.

Honolulu Dukes it out With Chicago for Obama Library

Here's a David and Goliath story for you, which I predict that David will probably win in a walk.

HONOLULU — As President Barack Obama prepares to battle with Republicans for a second term, another fight is already brewing: where to enshrine his legacy once he leaves office.

The effort to play host city to Obama’s presidential library is being complicated by the peripatetic life he has had. His diverse background — a fixture of his political brand — is now fueling a debate at a time when the White House would like to focus on anything but where to store the Obama archives.

Chicago gave Obama his start in politics. Illinois is where his political career began. Chicago is the home town that he avoids whenever he can in favor of going to Hawaii.

Barack likes going to Hawaii. Barack can barely tolerate the thought of spending time in Chicago. Winner? I predict Hawaii, hands down.

H/T Mememorandum

Cross posted at LCR, Say Anything.

Quote du jour

"Wonder is music heard in the heart, is voiceless."

-Rosemary Dobson

Rove: Hillary to Run in 2016

I've said for months that it was going to be 2012. That was before wikileaks. I think she'll spend the next year keeping her head low and her powder dry and see just how badly those have hurt her. Unless this wikileaks thing keeps dribbling out bad news about her, a year is an awfully long time in politics.

I still look for Hillary in the primaries in 2012, unless there are more damaging leaks to come.

2016 could be the back up plan, I suppose.

H/T Memeorandu

Garmin Holiday Ad

Dean Martin - Let it Snow

Vintage Babe of the Week

Tonight's Vintage Babe* is Debra Paget !
(*a.k.a. Rule Five Thursday)










Like fine wines, the ladies improve with age!

Nat King Cole - The Christmas Song

"If it Bleeds, it Leads..."

Boy, 13, Busted For Illegal Marker Possession


Ever vigilant in keeping the world safe from Sharpies

DECEMBER 22--A 13-year-old boy was arrested Friday for using a permanent marker while in class at his Oklahoma City middle school, a violation of an obscure city ordinance.

According to an Oklahoma City Police Department report, the boy was spotted “in possession of a permanent marker” by Roosevelt Middle School teacher DeLynn Woodside. The 50-year-old educator told cop Miguel Campos that the student was “writing on a piece of paper, which caused it to bleed over onto the desk.”

May I see a show of hands: How many 13 year olds are well versed on all the ordinances of the localities in which they reside? Anyone? Anyone at all??

His 50 year old teacher, with less sense than God gave geese, had the kid arrested for accidentally marking up his desk. Wow! Oklahoma City can certainly sleep safe tonight!

Whatever happened to "first offense"? Presumption of innocence?? Kids make mistakes??? Teachers who actually know how to teach???? Ms. Broadside, er, Woodside, could have taken the moment to instruct her student about the cost of carelessness. I suppose she could have informed her principal (I almost wrote "principle". None of those involved here! ) and had the kid's parents informed of the cost of the cleanup (if any) and asked them to pay for it. No. She calls the cops.

Now if the kid were an habitual offender or did this on purpose, that might have been an appropriate response. (No, not really, but I'm trying to get her the benefit of the doubt.) But, there is no indication that that was the case. So she wastes valuable police and court resources (and perhaps some of her own nonproductive classroom time) to escalate this matter far beyond its reasonable consequences.

Another case of Zero tolerance run amok resulting from an abundance of zero common sense.

H/T Memeorandum

"Topless Woman Masturbating In Van Arrested On Gun Charge"

er, you couldn't find anything with batteries??


Why is this woman smiling?

A topless woman who was masturbating in a hotel parking lot is facing a weapons charge after Illinois cops investigating her auto eroticism discovered a loaded pistol in her vehicle.

A Naperville cop responding to an unrelated call spotted Vikki Myers, 44, in a van outside the Red Roof Inn. After initially claiming that she was changing clothes, Myers admitted to pleasuring herself in the vehicle, according to police.

'Tis the season?? Red Roof's slogan used to be "Sleep Cheap". Now I think it's "We'll keep the light off for you"!

...In addition to copping to the vehicular masturbation, Myers told cops that that there was a loaded 9mm Sig Sauer handgun in the car, a weapon for which she did not have a state-issued Firearm Owners Identification card. Myers, pictured in the above mug shot, was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm.

Steven Spielberg in Saving Nancy Pelosi's Privates

by the Left Coast Rebel

Hollywood provides glittering fiction and truth is often stranger than fiction. Yes, Steven Spielberg is helping Nancy clean up her far-left authoritarian Democratic image in a Hollywood sorta-way (think of it as Operation Saving Pelosi's Privates or Saving Private Pelosi or Jurassic Park Meets K Street):

(WaPo) Lawmakers say she is consulting marketing experts about building a stronger brand. The most prominent of her new whisperers is Steven Spielberg, the Hollywood director whose films have been works of branding genius. Lawmakers said Spielberg has not reported to Pelosi with a recommendation.

Spielberg has been a power player in Democratic politics for years, working on everything from President Bill Clinton's millennial celebrations to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. He endorsed Hillary Clinton in the last presidential race, but since then he's helped fundraise for President Obama.

But, the news that he is advising the leading Democrat in the House on building a strong party brand would seem to be a different -- and more expansive -- role than Spielberg has played in the past.

A more expansive role for Spielberg? Perhaps, if he can provide this level of suspension of belief then anything is possible (think of Nancy as the T-Rex and the American people as the kids stranded in the car):



If you scroll through this list of his work, please check the latest projects. I think we can assume that his work has definitely trailed off in the last decade, perhaps that explains the Spielberg/Pelosi Jurassic Park makeover?

I mean, come on, the Tinsel Town movie-magic maestro responsible for this (NSFW).....

....is now Queen Pelosi's errand boy/lap dog? How the mighty have fallen!

Cross posted to LCR

Quote du jour

Unfortunately, in regards to the "general welfare clause" of the Constitution, too many Lefties substitute "general welfare" with "Santa".

-Proof

A Dave and Tim Christmas Song

Not exactly what you might expect. Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds:

Enya - Come O, Come Emmanuel

Medal of Honor

Corporal Duane E. Dewey

Citation:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a gunner in a machinegun platoon of Company E, in action against enemy aggressor forces. When an enemy grenade landed close to his position while he and his assistant gunner were receiving medical attention for their wounds during a fierce night attack by numerically superior hostile forces, Cpl. Dewey, although suffering intense pain, immediately pulled the corpsman to the ground and, shouting a warning to the other marines around him. bravely smothered the deadly missile with his body, personally absorbing the full force of the explosion to save his comrades from possible injury or death. His indomitable courage, outstanding initiative, and valiant efforts in behalf of others in the face of almost certain death reflect the highest credit upon Cpl. Dewey and enhance the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.

Cpl. Dewey,: We humbly salute you and thank you for your service.



Hat tip Home of Heroes

There are fewer than a hundred living MoH recipients today. Their names and their stories should not be forgotten. My mission is to honor one of those heroes here each week, and salute them for their courage and sacrifice. In the words of John Fitzgerald Kennedy:

“A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces, but also by the men it honors; the men it remembers.”

Cross posted at Say Anything

Achmed the Dead Terrorist - Jingle Bombs (video)

Here, in all his politically incorrect glory, is Achmed the Dead Terrorist.

Van Jones: The Left's "Pretended" Green Crisis

Van Jones Admits Left is ‘PRETENDING’ Need for Regulations in Green Movement

Environmental Adviser to President Barack Obama, and infamous 9/11 Truther, Van Jones was caught in another candid moment last month.

Demonstrating that his intellectual landscape is very sparse or barren*, he says the only way to get "innovation" up on clean energy is to push the "dirty stuff" down. I wonder if any one ever asked him to defend the notion that "innovation" somehow thrives in an atmosphere of heavy regulation, high taxes and licensing? Generally speaking, don't sets of iron clad rules tend to militate against "innovation"?

He then goes on to say, there are only three ways to accomplish getting more clean energy and less dirty energy. Somehow, "innovation" didn't make the cut!

1) "Regulate (them) hard". Businesses complying with endless government regulations have far less time, money and talent that could be devoted to innovation (the missing way) in cleaner energy.

2) "Tax them real hard". Businesses with less capital have less capital for R&D. Higher taxes can change the viability of the company, where it may have little to no budget for R&D just to survive. And transferring that money to the government will make clean energy possible faster? Ask Jimmy Carter, whose Department of Energy, to date, hasn't created any. How much money has this agency chewed through since the 1970's? Maybe the government hasn't thrown enough money at the problem yet? Sheesh!

3)"Or you make them buy permits" Which, in reality, is no different from #2. Why should the fiction of whether it is a license or a tax decrease the cost of doing business to the company that is so burdened?

In reality, a good socialist like Van Jones knows only two ways to deal with what he paints or perceives as a problem: Increased government regulation, or increased taxes (Or both). But, taxation itself can be another means of government regulation. If the government taxes you more heavily to do "A" than "B", you tend to do "B". If given a tax break to do something by a certain date, people will alter their (or their business's) behavior to comply with the whim of government regulation or tax code.

In essence, the government has only one way to regulate business and that is through coercion. The full force of the federal government will enforce whatever regulations they pass and collect whatever taxes and fines they levy.

If Van Jones would ever step away from the ivory tower he is currently living in, he might have taken note of the fact that the old Soviet block countries, where government regulation and enforcement reigned supreme, the pollution was their court's hand maiden. Gross pollution was the mark of the old Soviet block, because the people weren't free to make their own choices. Bumbling bureaucrats were in charge of everything and they had no fear of their customers "taking their business elsewhere". There was no elsewhere.

Also overlooked are efforts currently underway by the "old dirty" companies to advance "green energy". ExxonMobil is currently studying hydrogen powered vehicles. Their efforts are not primarily altruistic, but the possible twofold matter of their economic survival. One, the discovery of a safe, affordable and virtually pollution free means of transportation would bring tremendous profit to whomever perfects it. Secondly, they have a vested interest in the transition to this new methodology, since having thousands of ExxonMobil stations through the interstate highway system selling tree shaped air fresheners and sodas may not be a viable business plan in the foreseeable future.

So, Mr. Jones: Please tell us how increasing the taxes or regulations on a company like ExxonMobil increase the likelihood of them perfecting what you would term a "greener" technology?

No, what you really want is more state control over companies in this country and more control over its people. Raising taxes on ExxonMobil is passed through the company in the form of higher costs and resulting higher prices to the consumer. If the consumer has to spend an inordinate amount of time struggling to keep himself and his family intact, he has less time to contemplate what his government is doing to him. And keeping people broke is a sure way to help keep them powerless, in both senses of the word.

* We also allow for the possibility that his positions are simply more dishonest pretense to advance a different agenda.

Update:The website on the wall behind him, is from The Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University

H/T Memeorandum

Cross posted at LCR, Lady Cincinnatus , Say Anything.

Total Eclipse of the Moon - Time Lapse Video

William Castleman has a great time lapse video of the total eclipse of the moon.

Winter Solstice Lunar Eclipse

This is the next best way to watch one, or the best way, if you don't like freezing your tuchas off!

H/T Wizbang

Coke Holiday Ad

The Poetry Corner

"Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"



by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Quote du jour

"Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas."

- Calvin Coolidge

Johnny Cash Coke Holiday Ad

Amy Grant - Tennessee Christmas

Jughead-in-Chief

Isn't he about due for another vacation?

Quote du jour

America is not a melting-pot it's more like a gumbo where all the elements are in the same pot and existing together, but maintaining its original form. As Americans, we are all different and we must celebrate those differences, not merge them into one hodgepodge of progressive mediocrity that celebrates everything at the same time, while truly celebrating absolutely nothing.

-Jeff Dunetz

Victoria's Secret Holiday Ad

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Jib Jab's 2010 Revue

H/T Flopping Aces

Grandma Got Run Over By a Connotation

Ever hear the song, "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer?



To me, the song was funny! I had never met any of my grandparents, at least, not while I was old enough to recognize them, and "Grandma" was pretty much just an intellectual concept, not especially tied to any concrete reality. (Think: the Democratic Party!)

My ex-wife, on the other hand, had lived with grandparents for a while, dearly loved her grandmother and it was in an entirely different connotation that she heard the word "Grandma". For her, the song was not as funny! She had a different perception of the word "Grandma". "Grandma" was a real person.

Which, reminds me of one of my favorite college texts, Sleepy Sam Hayakawa's Language in Thought and Action. The map is not the territory. Language, the map, is not a perfect representation of the territory it describes. It leaves...room for error in communication. Not only about grannies getting "run over".

When you consider that what I say is not exactly what I think I said and what you hear is not exactly what you think you heard, it's a wonder anyone understands anybody at all.

So we rely on secondary clues, on context, on facial expressions, on tone of voice...anything to make it all make sense. Owen Wister's Virginian said, "Smile when you say that", because an insult offered with a smile has an entirely different connotation that one given with a sneer.

The Internet, credited with giving us near instantaneous communication, can be very bad for that very reason. It is stripped of clues and inflections that might otherwise illuminate the meaning of the words. I can think of several examples where I offended someone or someone offended me by something that could be taken more ways than one. Adding a smiley face or a frowny face is a poor substitute for hearing the sound of one's voice. (Was that "sarcasm"? Was he being sarcastic? I couldn't tell!)

So, if you're offended by "grandma getting run over by a reindeer", you're probably looking at "grandma" in the concrete rather than the abstract. And if "Grandma in the concrete" gives you images of cement overshoes, well, then... welcome to my world!

In whichever language you call your own, however you perceive it, may you and yours have a happy, reindeer incident free holiday and a prosperous new year. Merry Christmas!

Quote du jour

there is no way — no way — that America’s enemies can defeat America. Only Americans can do that. How do you lose? For one thing, you lose moral reason. And here is one way of knowing if you’re having trouble in the moral-reason department: When you hear about Hamas — about something awful it has done — is your instinct to hate and condemn George Bush? The Patriot Act? Gitmo? That instinct is a crazy one. And destructive.

-Jay Nordlinger

Overstock.com Holiday Ad

WikiLeaker Leaked Upon

In a bit of irony, (you can't make this stuff up), Julian Assange's lawyers are "crying foul" for someone leaking his police files.

Incriminating police files were published in the British newspaper that has used him as its source for hundreds of leaked US embassy cables.

In a move that surprised many of Mr Assange's closest supporters on Saturday, The Guardian newspaper published previously unseen police documents that accused Mr Assange in graphic detail of sexually assaulting two Swedish women. One witness is said to have stated: "Not only had it been the world's worst screw, it had also been violent."

Bjorn Hurtig, Mr Assange's Swedish lawyer, said he would lodge a formal complaint to the authorities and ask them to investigate how such sensitive police material leaked into the public domain. "It is with great concern that I hear about this because it puts Julian and his defence in a bad position," he told a colleague.

Aside from the possible illegalities involved in leaking these documents, does the term "Sauce for the Goose" come to anyone else's mind?

H/T Memeorandum

Cross posted at LCR, Say Anything.

NFL Christmas Carols

(To the tune "Silver Bells")

"Bill Parcells, Bill Parcells,

It's Christmas time for the Dolphins.

He consults. Gets results.

Watch them beat De-troit Sunday"

TSA Singles Out Baywatch Babe for Scanning

 

Are there any adults in the Obama administration who could rein in some of the obvious excesses of this program?

More at Flopping Aces

Cross posted at LCR.

Quote du jour

“America is not what’s wrong with the world.”

-Donald Rumsfeld

Pomplamoose Deck the Halls for Hyundai

Season's Greetings from the TSA!