A.M. Links: Obama Approval Rating Down Precipitously, White House Tours Canceled, Hugo Chavez Dead

• 

  White House

  President Obama's approval rating is at 43 percent, down 7 points from two weeks ago, in the Reuters/IPSOS poll.

• Google is now including information on the national security letters it receives and how many users they affect (between one and two thousand last year) in its Transparency Report, despite a gag order that comes with the letters.
• White House tours have been canceled for the sequester.
• Venezuelans in America cheered the death of Hugo Chavez and are cautiously optimistic about the country's future.
• The United Kingdom will be sending body armor and armored vehicles to Syria's rebels, as the refugee population tops a million.
• The European Union fined Microsoft $731 million over Internet Explorer. What is this, the 90s?

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Comments

[sarcasmic]

Classy cop breaks woman's face.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....uffle.html

[Ted S.]

She repeatedly put her face in the way of his fist.

STOP RESISTING!!!!!

[WTF]

Love the comments:
she was interfering with a copper doing his job, she deserved what she got. She should have been arrested.

- Tycho , Holland, United Kingdom, 06/3/2013 13:14

[Hugh Akston]

I guess Tulpa wanted a different persona for European websites.

[wareagle]

bootlickers gonna lick boots

[Andrea]

just as Shawn explained I am surprised that a stay at home mom able to profit $8294 in 4 weeks on the computer. did you read this web page... http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....13925.html

[sloopyinca]

Well Shawn's a fucking idiot. That stay at home mom never made $8294 in 4 weeks on the computer. She made it selling hand jobs to passers-by at Burning Man. And half of the money she raked in ended up going to the undercover cop that arrested her the minute she got done jacking him off.

If that's the kind of business you and Shawn are suggesting, well I'm gonna have to politely ask you to leave. There's not a soul on here that would subject themselves to that kind of humiliation to make a buck. Well, except Episiarch.

[sarcasmic]

Don't forget Warty. He doesn't know what "shame" means.

[AlexInCT]

Where is she now? Is she back doing the hand jobs? Askign for a friend, you know.

[sloopyinca]

I don't know, man. Hey Episiarch! Is your mom home from Burning Man yet?

[An0nB0t]

Burning Man operates according to a gifting economy. Those handjobs were free (or at least as "free" as any handjob that any man has ever received).

[Brett L]

Just as free as any diamond a woman has ever been given according to the jeweler commercials.

[PapayaSF]

Um, she grabbed a cop who was trying to grab someone. There are actual abuses by cops, but this doesn't seem like one of them. Yeah, grabbing a cop during a scuffle might get you slugged. Duh.

[sarcasmic]

What do you do when an eight year old girl throws a tantrum? Put cuffs on her hands and feet, deny her access to the restroom or her coat, and lock her away for two hours. I suppose that's better than breaking her face and killing her dog.
http://www.kmov.com/news/local.....85751.html

[Night Elf Mohawk]

What do you do when an eight year old girl -- who isn't yours -- throws a tantrum? I'm not sure that there are any solid answers that won't be second-guessed, depending on how the situation turns out.

[RBS]

This is why I love my son but generally can't stand being around other people's kids.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

The last time one of my kids threw a tantrum was when the younger one was 2 or 3. She saw some Hershey Kisses at the grocery store and went batshit crazy when I wouldn't buy them. After about 15 seconds I asked her if she thought that was going to work. She said "no" and we went on with the shopping. It took her a few minutes to stop sniffling, but that was the end of it.

As far as I can tell, the current parenting wisdom is to say something like "I'm going to count to five and if you don't stop I'm going to count to five again."

[mad libertarian guy]

What do you do when an eight year old girl -- who isn't yours -- throws a tantrum?

Absolutely nothing.

[wareagle]

though I have been known to say "pretty sure that kid has parents; wish they would do something about their brat" in a loud voice.

[Rich]

I've been known to use the Mary Poppins technique: "Now, not another word, or I shall have to summon the policeman."

[mad libertarian guy]

though I have been known to say "pretty sure that kid has parents; wish they would do something about their brat" in a loud voice.

Obviously. But that's merely making a public suggestion, not Doing Something.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

Yeah, that's a great way to run a school.

[mad libertarian guy]

Except being in a school has nothing to do with your question.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

I presumed people here could deal with the context in which the question was raised in the first place. My bad.

[Xenocles]

"Absolutely nothing."

^This. It's unpleasant but it's not your business. In certain situations a proprietor might be expected to encourage (with varying degrees of intensity) the parents to deal with it more effectively.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

This happened in a school. The parents weren't there to deal with it effectively or ineffectively.

[Ted S.]

If she's in a public place, record it and post it to Youtube.

[Brandon]

Make sure you get the kid's name so it shows up for later background checks.

[Nuked]

I really don't know how to deal with someone else's crazy kid. Sometimes I think a smack may be required. It is a tough call though and is also why I don't like having to deal with people kids who I know to be little shit rats.

[NeonCat]

Bucket of cold water?

[Ska]

Shit hawks, Randy, that's how you deal with shit rats.

[Nuked]

They're swoopin in low, shittin' on people.

[EDG reppin' LBC]

Reason #1 I read H&R.

[AlmightyJB]

Start yelling Attica! Attica! loudly and repeatedly so the parents take there child far away from the crazy man.

[EDG reppin' LBC]

Reason #2 I read H&R.

[Bones]

Throw a tantrum of your own right in front of the kid. It doesn't take them long to realize they are no longer the attention grabber in the room and STFU. Amazing how well this works. It works best of you stare directly at the kid while throwing your tantrum, cry and wail just as they are. They look dumbfounded and it's awesome.

[sarcasmic]

Google is happy to give the FBI information about you.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....-year.html

[Mike Laursen]

Where's the part of the article that says they're happy about it?

[sarcasmic]

Christina Hendricks is... growing...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvs.....rence.html

[WTF]

She's just fat now.

[sarcasmic]

John would.

[RBS]

I would too, at least for now. I'll have to reassess next week.

[Drake]

Yep - you have to look at the present and the trend. The trend isn't good - and she's a smoker - so a week after she quits, she'll break 250.

[An0nB0t]

she's a smoker

Another fantasy ruined. Thanks a bunch.

[Francisco d Anconia]

That just means she gives.

[LTC(ret) John]

Maybe...wait, wrong John?

[sloopyinca]

The worst of the pics is the one where you can see the fat rolls on her feel spilling out of her shoes. That's a really, really bad sign.

I have a sneaking suspicion they will start using this as her new stock photo pretty soon.

[Astra]

Those aren't fat rolls, they're bunions. Too much time in heels.

[John]

Told you she was a fat women waiting to happen

[sarcasmic]

Kate Moss is still hot.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvs.....tsuit.html

Rachel Weisz is very nice.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvs.....tress.html

[Ptah-Hotep]

Kate Moss is still hot.
Rachel Weisz is very nice.

You're half right Sarc.

[Killazontherun]

Kate actually looks better now than in her waif years.

The photoshoot of Weisz is nice, but in the pic of her and Craig her face looks weird.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The European Union fined Microsoft $731 million over Internet Explorer. What is this, the 90s?

I think they're still into disco over there.

[An0nB0t]

If they fine M$ another $20 trillion or so, Spain and Greece might be able to get their unemployment rates under 15%.

[Fist of Etiquette]

...despite a gag order that comes with the letters.

It's not like the gag order came from the Chinese government or anything.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Venezuelans in America cheered the death of Hugo Chavez and are cautiously optimistic about the country's future.

Which country's?

[LTC(ret) John]

Why its obvious!

Its...um...wait a minute, I just had it...uh. Never mind.

[Rich]

Three White House calligraphers pull down big bucks

Guess they're busy writing all the "Closed" signs and pink slips.

[WTF]

There's nothing in the budget that can be cut. Nothing.

[Ted S.]

Unsurprisingly, you didn't get a hat tip over on 24/7

[Rich]

If it helps pay down the Debt, that's OK.

[JW]

They know that if they cut them, they'll have to face a barrage of finely crafted graffiti.

[JW]

They're forced to comic sans, due the sequester.

COMIC SANS. Will the horror never end?

[gaijin]

Caligula needs calligraphers?

[Ted S.]

White House tours have been canceled for the sequester.

How much do they pay the guides? Divide that by the number of people on the tour, and charge the people. It's that simple.

But, of course, Obama is deliberately cutting the tours to say "look how evil the Republicans are for stopping White House tours!"

(If I were President, I'd force an entire government shutdown and then lead the White House tours myself.)

[Bam!]

Weren't the tours canceled after 9-11? When were they reopened?

[Hugh Akston]

They reopened for a few years after 9/11, but closed again after an assassination attempt by a mutant radical.

[Nuked]

Finally we are making real cuts to the wasteful spending Washington is known for. You free market folk will never be happy!

Seriously though, this could appear on The Onion as news. Obama is becoming a parody POTUS.

[Drake]

Are these real cuts? Did they actually fire the tour guides?

I doubt it.

[Nuked]

I doubt it too. It's pure theater.

What irks me is there are morons out there that will not see these sequester stunts for what they truly are.

[JW]

Can't the calligraphers lead the tours?

[AlmightyJB]

Exactly

[RBS]

What? Charge people admission? That's insane! Seriously though, when I was a young staff assistant one of my jobs was to book various tours for constituents. Some of them, shockingly, actually do have a price of admission. People were always pissed about that and usually told me to forget about it.

[wareagle]

aren't a lot of tours self-guided?

[Ted S.]

At the White House? Do you really think the security freaks would let people walk around without a minder?

[Bam!]

Originally they did.

[Zeb]

Originally, you could walk up and knock on the front door.

[NeonCat]

It's as if it were the property of the American people and not a palace for a pseudo-monarch.

[Brett L]

Wasn't it Jefferson who would basically sit down with whoever showed up to dinner as if it were their right as Americans to sit down to dinner with the President as his equal?

[Bobarian]

Not 'a' pseudo-monarch;

The Pseudo-Monarch.

[Bobarian]

And her husband, too!

[JW]

Is there a Pseudo-Dr. Girlfriend?

[VG Zaytsev]

Knocking of doors is passe bourgeoisie nonsense.

In the new socialist America you just enter without knocking.

[Fist of Etiquette]

White House tours have been canceled for the sequester.

And I'm okay with that.

[Rich]

The People shut out of The People's House?!

This is an outrage!

[Ted S.]

How many people take the tours? I don't see why they can't be a self-funding thing by charging admission.

(Well, in theory. This is Washington DC we're talking about.)

[Nuked]

Charge everybody admission regardless of their income? Your draconian regressive scum.

[Xenocles]

I think the way it works is that you have to go to your congressman for tickets, which are free but limited in number.

[sarcasmic]

Back in my teaching days, many years ago, one of the things I liked to ask the class to consider was this: Imagine a government agency with only two tasks: (1) building statues of Benedict Arnold and (2) providing life-saving medications to children. If this agency's budget were cut, what would it do?

The answer, of course, is that it would cut back on the medications for children. Why? Because that would be what was most likely to get the budget cuts restored. If they cut back on building statues of Benedict Arnold, people might ask why they were building statues of Benedict Arnold in the first place

http://townhall.com/columnists.....ampaign=nl

[Night Elf Mohawk]

I'm a big Sowell fan.

[Capt Ace Rimmer]

You still teach us today 🙂

[Ruckus]

The Washington Monument Strategy is a viable self serving maneuver (let's not dive into the false rhetoric that paid public officials put public interests over selfish interests), and I understand that. To me it still seems extremely short sighted. From my experience the people that can accomplish the most with less are usually "rewarded" in the long run. Of course I've never had the honor of serving as a public official, so what do I know.

[Bobarian]

From my experience the people that can accomplish the most with less are usually "rewarded" in the long run.

Inside government service agencies, this person is either

1. punished for making others look bad.
or
2. given less and less resources until they break, while those newly available resources go to where all the wasteful demand exists.

In other words the 'reward' comes in the form of a pineapple up the butt.

[Ruckus]

Incentives, how do they work again?

[Dweebston]

Extreme myopia IS the long-run thinking of bureaucracy.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Congressman Offers Amendment Defunding Obama's Golf"

"Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-Texas) introduced an amendment to the fast-moving continuing resolution spending bill that would bar funding for President Obama's golf outings until the White House reopens for public tours."

http://www.whitehousedossier.c.....bama-golf/

[WTF]

No big deal, he'll just shoot clays instead.

[$park?]

From his balcony, no doubt.

[Bones]

I hope so. Then arrest him for firing a gun in city limits. Even though he can pardon himself, it would be worth it.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Capitol janitors making 'ends meet' with overtime? Nope"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/....._blog.html

[T]

Hell, I'm not Venezuelan and I cheered at the news of Hugo's death. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

[Rich]

Mandatory gun ownership

Commerce Clause, biotches!

[robc]

While its obviously unconstitutional, Kennesaw's law has held up for 30 years so far.

They do have a conscientious objector clause, plus a too poor to afford one clause, plus a we will never bother to enforce this law anyway clause, so that helps.

[The Late P Brooks]

Apparently, HuffPo is on the Oberlin case. A person I know was breathlessly jabbering about it last night, and from his report you would have thought ten thousand hooded goose-stepping Kleagles had overrun the campus with a torchlight parade, chanting "Death to the NIGGAHS".

Authorities are still sifting through the wreckage. No firm tally of those lynched, raped, or similarly inconvenienced has been released.

[LTC(ret) John]

Oberlin case?

[RBS]

Someone allegedly dressed as a Klansman was spotted on the campus outside/near the Arikans house.

[PS]

They were after the spice.

[LTC(ret) John]

The spice must flow. CHOAM needs its profits and the Guild is a little short this month too.

[Francisco d Anconia]

Speaking of the MOVIE Dune...

Anyone seen the doc lately? He didn't leave us for a woman, did he?

[WTF]

Apparently it wasn't even someone dressed as a Klansman. The responding police observed a woman with a blanket wrapped around her in the area at the time of the hysteria.

[Teaching Student]

Classic.

[VG Zaytsev]

Someone should start trolling progs by wearing white burkhas.

[PS]

As someone said, "If the KKK didn't exist, the left would have to invent it. Which is what it has done for the last 50 years."

[robc]

Not quite 50 years. The Klan marched a block from my house in 1975, for example.

[PS]

Are you sure they weren't just Illinois Nazis?

[WTF]

I hate Illinois Nazis.

[robc]

Well, it was KY, and I think in my neighborhood, Illinois nazis wouldnt have gotten out alive. Not for being nazis, but for being Illinites.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

I remember they had rallies in Denver on the state capital steps for a couple years in the early 90s during MLK day. That ended after 1992 when a riot started.

http://articles.latimes.com/19.....klan-rally

[Azathoth!!]

The Left DID invent it. The Klan is a creation of the Democrats.

[NeonCat]

I think Episiarch in the afternoon links mentioned some student who had huddled in her dorm room and cried with her roomies after the school locked down over the sighting. I was thinking about it last night and decided it would be hilarious if you had a bunch of people in klan robes off campus holding signs saying things like "Racists are people too", "Your othering is hurtful", etc.

[VG Zaytsev]

Better yet, march in white burkhas for tolerance.

[ant1sthenes]

They should just protest Zionism and agitate for Palestinian rights.

[Brett L]

10 year old wrestling champ gets fat letter from state. Video evidence shows him to simply be strong. Fucking busybody do-gooder fuckstains.

[RBS]

Total fatass.

[Ted S.]

I didn't watch the video. How tall is the kid. He'd have to be under 3'11" to be obese at 94 lbs, if I've done the BMI calculation correctly.

[RBS]

Only Top Men can perform BMI calculations correctly.

[Brett L]

He's about average for a 10 year old, so yeah, 4ft or so. But his waist is narrower than his shoulders, signifiantly so. He's not fat, he's just strong.

[Ted S.]

According to Boston Children's Hospital, the average height for a 10-year-old boy is between 50 and 59 inches, which is more than 3'11".

[$park?]

Sorry, but MA sends those BMI letters to everyone whose child doesn't fit their ideal notions of BMI. I got one because my son's BMI is 5.

[Francisco d Anconia]

Does MA have a balanced state budget or are they one of the over-spenders? If the latter, I might have identified a potential area in which to cut.

[$park?]

MA consistently goes waaaay over budget. But don't worry, they realize they can't possibly cut anything so they don't bother with the theatrics.

[Francisco d Anconia]

Can't. Find. Anything. To. Cut.

[RBS]

Am I being too cynical when I immediately thought the BMI thing was just means to end for the state to punish the kid for being too strong and making the match unfair for that poor fish?

[Zeb]

I think so. They aren't clever enough for that kind of thing.

[CampingInYourPark]

"It is possible, I suppose, to imagine an extraordinary circumstance in which it would be necessary and appropriate under the Constitution and applicable laws of the United States for the President to authorize the military to use lethal force within the territory of the United States."

http://www.mediaite.com/online.....-u-s-soil/

[LTC(ret) John]

I like Holder's logic - "Pearl Harbor"? I seem to recall that was naval aviators from the Empire of Japan, not US citizens.

Basically, he said we can blow anyone up we want, as long as we say it was justified.

[Rich]

"Can you prove that it wasn't justified?"

[T]

People always act like there's some prohibition on using the military in America. There's not. It's simply extremely unusual and not traditionally done. The Posse Comitatus Act is limited in its effects and can be repealed (or modified) at any time.

Frankly, I'm surprised they haven't snuck some modifiers into Posse Comitatus already.

[LTC(ret) John]

Despite the CIA answer, I think the main fear isn't the USAF blowing you up real good, its that O! tells the CIA to zorch someone, and we need nothing else than his good word that is was justified.

[ant1sthenes]

They have: they had the DoD give people who are not officially soldiers military training and military equipment for use in police work.

[RBS]

I saw that last night. I can't wait to see the mental gymnastics of Obama's supporters.

[wareagle]

that part has been quite something, hasn't it, the contortions the Obama dogwashers will go into to justify anything this man does.

[RBS]

He could pretty much just piss all over the front row at his next campaign appearance and they would all tell MSNBC how great it was.

[Virginian]

"Rain Unable to Dampen Obama Supporter's Spirits"

[mad libertarian guy]

He could pretty much just piss all over the front row at his next campaign appearance and they would all tell MSNBC how great it was.

"His stream was unusually warm in a way that made me feel loved."

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

Thanks for that image of Chris Matthews

[NeonCat]

"Warm and strong, reflecting the vitality and humanity of this great man."

[Mike Laursen]

I know a lot of faithful Obama supporters and they know next to nothing about his foreign policy. They just talk about how he freed all gay people.

[Francisco d Anconia]

Meh.

Flight of Black Angel scenario. Pilot (a citizen) steals nuke and is going to drop it on Las Vegas. Does the President have the authority to shoot him down?

I'd say yes.

[Zeb]

Sure. When Canada invades, use of military force on US territory will be appropriate.

[Gbob]

As I sit, listening to the sound of crickets from the left, I find myself wondering what the reaction to this would have been if Bush had said this.

[Ken Shultz]

"President Obama's approval rating is at 43 percent, down 7 points from two weeks ago, in the Reuters/IPSOS poll."

Racists!

[Palin's Buttplug]

ABC News says Daily Caller still lying about prostitutes identity:

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/.....d=18653773

They just don't make ratfuckers like they used to!

[Drake]

I was going to object, but you are right - a prostitute who fucks Menendez is a ratfucker.

[LTC(ret) John]

We wouldn't go near that creep.

Sincerely,
Rats

[Zeb]

I don't think that he cares whether the rats consent or not.

[carol]

My understanding is that he prefers his rats to be below the age of consent.

[Hugh Akston]

The European Union fined Microsoft $731 million over Internet Explorer. What is this, the 90s?

I'm sure it as nothing to do with Europe's financial woes and everything to do with JUSTIZZZZZZZ

[PS]

Nor anti-Americanism nor the fact that Almunia is a socialist.

"Almunia was director of the research program on "equality and redistribution of income" at the Fundaci?n Argentaria from 1991 to 1994."

Redistribution succeded!!!!

[The Late P Brooks]

Venezuelans in America cheered the death of Hugo Chavez and are cautiously optimistic about the country's future.

Those people were expelled from Venezuela for a reason. They're mean.

[Ken Shultz]

The more educated Venezuelans and the Venezuelan entrepreneurial class comes to the U.S., the better it is for us.

And they've been helping to fuel the boom in Miami real estate prices.

http://www.reuters.com/article.....KX20120224

And to be perfectly honest, that means more hot chicks per capita too.

It's all win.

[Zeb]

Well, except for the suckers left in Venezuela.

[Rich]

Kerry: Well, I?I mean, I can't tell you why you have not heard from any of the Benghazi survivors.

What difference, at this point, does it make?

[Brett L]

I put this up last night. This guy finished 2nd in the presidential voting in the last decade and can't lie worth a shit? I'm surprised he didn't say, "that's Hillary's problem, how dare you ask me about it!"

[Rich]

Or, "Why don't you just ask Holder? Nanner-nanner! " 8-(

[$park?]

Nanner-nanner!

Are you calling Holder a monkey???? RACIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Rich]

Well, I?I mean, I can't tell you what Kerry was thinking!

[Drake]

It is crazy that nobody except Fox is even asking.

And WTF is going on with Kerry's head? It's fucking huge and getting bigger. How does his neck support it?

[wareagle]

It is crazy that nobody except Fox is even asking.

and this, of course, fuels the lefty paranoia that it's all politically driven. Because if this happened under a Repub POTUS, no news agency would be digging.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Like the 'Chief Calligrapher,' Patricia A. Blair, who has an annual salary of $96,725, and her two deputies, Debra S. Brown, who gets paid $85,953 per year, and Richard T. Muffler, who gets paid $94,372 every year.

In all, the White House appears to employ 3 calligraphers for a yearly total of $277,050.

Despite sequestration, there's been no announcement of the White House scaling back on calligraphers."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/.....06521.html

[Night Elf Mohawk]

Like the 'Chief Calligrapher,' Patricia A. Blair...

I had a thing for her when she was on The Rifleman, but she's probably 80 now.

[generic Brand]

Those fancy invitations to presidential soirees aren't going to write themselves!

[Ted S.]

Isn't that what the Autopen is for?

[Spoonman.]

...Deputy Dick Muffler?

[Rich]

LOL

[Killazontherun]

If only those Seals killed in Benghazi studied calligraphy instead. Alive, and not busting their asses for 40 odd thousand a year. At close to 100 thousand for one of those calligraphers that is a hefty chunk of what the ambassador was making.

[mad libertarian guy]

Better watch out for those anti-government grandmother death squads:

Also, the center's definition of hate groups has changed in the past year, kicking up a controversy. Critics accused the group of unfairly bundling together organizations with vastly different points of view -- and painting them all as potentially violent.
For example a North Carolina-based group calling itself "Granny Warriors" appears on the SPLC list of active "patriots."

But founder Linda Hunnicutt says her organization is harmless.

"I am deadly!" she joked. "I'm 74 years old. I have COPD. I have congestive heart failure. I'm sewing a quilt."
Hunnicutt acknowledges she's no friend of the federal government, but, she wishes no harm on anyone.
"All these people that want to bomb places and kill children, come on," she said. "Who would be in sympathy with them?"

Hunnicutt said she and her group just want Uncle Sam to leave them alone. When Granny Warriors showed up on the SPLC list, Hunnicutt said she wasn't surprised. But it made her wonder, "Is this all they have to do?"

(cont)

[mad libertarian guy]

Of course that isn't the worst part. Not only is the SPLC counting government weary grandmothers as extremist hate groups hell bent on inciting mass violence against the fed, they are actively and purposefully mischaracterizing government violence as anti-government violence perpetrated by citizens against the government.

The rise in such groups echoes a period almost 20 years ago, around the time when Congress passed the 1993 Brady Bill and the 1994 ban on assault weapons, the SPLC said. That legislation came near a period of infamous and deadly anti-government violence in Waco, Texas; Ruby Ridge, Idaho; and Oklahoma City, "and led to the first wave of the patriot movement," the report said.

Yeah. Because Ruby Ridge, an incident incited solely by government agents on private property over Weaver's refusal to cooperate with federal officials, is a great example of anti-government violence. You know: the incident in which the government settled in an attempt to avoid an embarrassing trial.

[Ted S.]

This all makes me want to end up on the SPLC's list.

[Francisco d Anconia]

Who says you're not?

[tarran]

Count Waco there as well.

In Waco, the feds shot first IIRC, gunning down the guard dogs as they rushed the compound, while the media crews they invited to watch the fun rolled their cameras.

[Virginian]

During the first raid, they knocked on the door. As soon as it was opened by someone they started shooting into it. The Davidians fired back.

Counting Waco as anti-government violence is like counting the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising as anti-government violence.

[RPR2]

Waco was the ATF's annual congressional appropriation network news publicity stunt. They did a raid every year in January and it was on the evening news. The justification was questionable and the execution was compromised for TV.

[Rich]

The [SPLC] study defines patriot groups as anti-government militias driven by their fear that authorities will strip them of their guns and liberties.

Ah, so *that's* why we say "hero" rather than "patriot".

[Shine on, Nikki Diamond]

Does anyone else think it's just straight bizarre to define "patriot" as "anti-government"?

[mad libertarian guy]

It's the left doing what the left does, which is taking words that have a traditionally noble meaning and perverting it for their own cause.

See also "militia".

[Shine on, Nikki Diamond]

Well, I wouldn't say "patriot" has a very noble meaning, because it means something like "pro-government." Unless you meant they were perverting anti-government activities by calling them patriotic 😉

[mad libertarian guy]

I'd argue that "patriot" means something closer to "pro-country" than it does "pro-government."

[Virginian]

When the President is MY TEAM, patriotism means supporting them unflinchingly in every action they take. When the President is YOUR TEAM, then dissent is the highest form of patriotism.

[Ted S.]

This is SPLC we're talking about.

[sloopyinca]

Ever since Sean Hannity started using it to describe anybody with an R after their name, "patriot" has caused me to vomit a little in my mouth every time I hear it uttered. Now that I hear the SPLC are using it, I expect my reaction to be full-blown projectile vomit. Thanks for pointing this out, asshole.

[Jerryskids]

I like it when I hear Washington, Jefferson, Franklin et al referred to as 'patriots'. I can support that sort of patriotism.

[sloopyinca]

So do I. But hearing Hannity say "Joe Arpaio, you are a great American patriot." makes me puke.

[The Late P Brooks]

White House sataff callgirls?

[JW]

The European Union fined Microsoft $731 million over Internet Explorer. What is this, the 90s?

Z'er must be ORDAH!

[Palin's Buttplug]

A woman in Arizona was arrested this week after she used Facebook to make herself appear nearly 20 years younger so that she could have sex with two teenagers.

Jennifer Dempsey, 35, used her false identity?a doctored photo little more doctored photo with heavy makeup and a silly, teenaged smile?to corral the two boys, ages 14 and 16, over to her house, which she'd explain was her aunt's.

http://www.dailydot.com/news/w.....ebook-sex/

[Brett L]

Yeah, the teenage boys "fell" for it.

[Jordan]

Yeah, I guess I was too clever when I was growing up.

=(

[generic Brand]

I don't understand why she went to all the trouble. Maybe the 14 year old is on the fence, but the 16 year old would probably jump at a chance to have sex with a decent looking 35 year old.

[Zeb]

Honestly. Getting a 16 year old boy to fuck you hardly requires any trickery.

[Gbob]

In fairness, she did ruin those poor kids. After being with a woman between the ages of 30-35, having sex with younger women will seem boring and tame. (My post divorce lesson. 31-36 year old women are the best between the sheets. Everything goes, and no drama.)

[The Late P Brooks]

"Is this all they have to do?"

If Americans tolerate alternate viewpoints, the terrorists win!

Also, proofreading is intrinsically paternalistic.

[Brett L]

AGW hearing cancelled due to snow.

Well, you've sold me. Gaia is real, and she hates people who use her name in vain to advance their own causes.

[NeonCat]

"It's not nice to fool Mother Nature."

[CampingInYourPark]

"Recently uncovered government documents reveal that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) unmanned Predator B drone fleet has been customize designed to identify civilians carrying guns and track cell phone signals."

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-G.....rying-Guns

[The Late P Brooks]

AGW hearing cancelled due to snow.

Something something weather, blah blah blah.

"The sky is falling!"

[Brett L]

As I pointed out to a friend, Jim Hanson and Michael Mann aren't waving their arms about how human activity is driving the Earth out of the current interglacial and into another Ice Age. Its anthropic global warming they worry about. Climate change they could give a shit about.

[a better weapon]

Now the Chavez is dead, all of my liberal-socialist friends are lining up to tell me why he wasn't reeeaaallly a socialist. When they're in power, they are rock stars, borderline gods. Once they're out of power, the once devoted rob their graves. Its quite fascinating, really.

[generic Brand]

Fascinating is one word. "Disgusting" is a more accurate one. I can't believe the Chavez love from my more socialist acquaintances on Facebook. And when I write that he was a dictator who stood on the necks of his people in order to stay in power, they appeal to authority by saying he was overwhelmingly re-elected multiple times in elections that have been "certified by the international community". And then they put dictator in quotation marks to prove their point, and included a Willy Wonka meme about how he wasn't really a dictator.

Well, I'm sold!

[Warty]

And yet, you're the one who talks to them. Who's the real moron, hmmmmm?

[generic Brand]

Definitely me 🙁

[NeonCat]

Willy Wonka meme? Do they think Venezuelans do "spontaneous" dance numbers all day about how the US will bomb them, defend the poor, etc.?

[generic Brand]

Nah, meant the picture of Wonka looking bemused and saying something while having a faux-shocked face. Basically this, but related to how cool and awesome Chavez was.

[LTC(ret) John]

So they are traitors to the Bolivarian Revolution!

/Power Fist Raised

[CampingInYourPark]

"According to the latest Project Veritas investigation, 'you're on your own' in the event of a home invasion. James O'Keefe's Project Veritas released a new investigation this morning. Undercover journalists visited police departments from North Carolina to New York and asked how they should defend themselves in the event an armed break in.
'Go get some bleach. Go get ammonia,' one officer instructed. Yet another officer instructed the undercover journalist to, 'lock yourself in a bedroom' and 'start yelling and screaming.'"

http://www.freedomworks.org/bl.....e-invaders

[Jordan]

North Carolina? I'm not surprised. The sooner my wife finishes her residency and we can move out of this retarded state, the better. It's the Massachusetts of the South.

[Rich]

North Carolina? Isn't that the state with the governor who would suspend elections?

Jordan, if it ain't too much of an imposition, would you list as a PSA a few other reasons NC is "retarded"?

[CampingInYourPark]

"North Carolina? Isn't that the state with the governor who would suspend elections?"

She was replaced this past election.

[Virginian]

They have retarded taxes for a Southern state. I think they're like 7 out of 10 on the top 10 worst tax states. Very strange.

[Jordan]

Yes, true. I consider even having a state income tax to be retarded (I'm used to Texas).

[Ted S.]

Probably all the Northerners who have moved to places like the Research Triangle.

(My aunt moved from NY to NC back in the late 1970s.)

[Virginian]

Well yeah, but the NC Dem Party is unlike all the other Southern Dem parties in that they managed to cling to power. The GOP now controls both houses of their legislature, but that's the first time that's happened since 1896. So basic conservative reforms that other Southern GOPs have passed in the last two decades have not been done. Like simplifying gun laws, and cutting taxes.

[Jordan]

1. You need a permit to buy a pistol.
2. If you move here from out of state, you have to retake the written driver's test before you can get a license, as if driving here is vastly different than in every other state.
3. It is a crime for students to "bully" teachers on facebook.
4. The liquor stores are state-owned.
5. Driving more than 5 mph over the speed limited can be considered reckless driving.

I'll have to try and recall some more.

[Rich]

Thanks!

[Drake]

I lived in NC for a couple years. At the time I thought it was a little strange - then I moved to CA...

[wareagle]

state-owned liquor stores happen in a lot of states. AL is another with an ABC system. GA and FL stores are privately run.

[robc]

And its a sign of Bama being a tarded state.

KY doesnt have fucking state stores, when you are dumber than us (not that I dont expect that from Alabama) you are pretty damn bad off.

[mad libertarian guy]

Liquor Barn FTW!

[An0nB0t]

Bama is also one of the only two states left that outlaws homebrewing (there was a scuffle involving armed state employees invading a craft beer store that was selling HB supplies just a few months ago) and the only one that still makes wine-making illegal.

I know they're home to Mises and all, but what a shitty place to live.

[RBS]

Duke fans and Carolina fans.

[wareagle]

NC has a new governor, a Repub who used to be mayor of Charlotte. The last one, a Dem, is who you refer to.

Jordan's problem is that he, likely, lives in the Triangle, home to the state capitol and the triumverate of UNC, State, and Duke. In other words, full immersion therapy into the glory of the state. Other parts are decidedly red; every county surrounding mine in the mountains sure is and they are not the only ones.

[Jordan]

Yeah, most people I've met seem sane. But the government is complete morons. I was pleasantly surprised to find a libertarian candidate for governor in the last election.

I'm also bitter because there's no beach here. I moved from Charleston, SC.

[wareagle]

two hours to Wrightsville down I-40; a little longer to the Outer Banks on other highways. A few hours the other way and it's mountains. That part is pretty cool.

Keep in mind that Dems ran the State House for about a hundred years or so, and Dem governors are the rule. Yet in presidential years, the state tends to be red. Curious place.

[robc]

Keep in mind that Dems ran the State House for about a hundred years or so, and Dem governors are the rule. Yet in presidential years, the state tends to be red. Curious place.

That is KY too.

The Dems have never lost the state house in my lifetime. There have been 2 GOP governors in that stretch.

And Obama couldnt get anywhere near 40%.

[robc]

Randall Terry finished 4th over Jill Stein in KY this time around, which also says something.

[robc]

Outer Banks?

North Carolina has beaches.

[Jordan]

I meant the area I'm in.

[wareagle]

Jordan,
get out a little bit. The state has a lot to offer in terms of scenery and outdoor activity, and you are in a central location with good highway access.

[$park?]

'Go get some bleach. Go get ammonia,'

That way they can arrest you later for having bomb making equipment and possibly being a terrorist.

[a better weapon]

Why bleach and ammonia?

[Rich]

Not everyone can vomit, urinate, or defecate at will.

[Jordan]

WTF. They do know that produces chlorine gas, right? That's a great way to commit suicide.

[NeonCat]

Ah, but chlorine gas is heavier than air (IIRC), so as long as you're upstairs and don't have central air you will probably live long enough to be sued for chemical warfare.

[mad libertarian guy]

How dare you insinuate that there is a liberal bias in the media? There is no way that journolistas would openly accuse "The Tea Party" of murdering a federal census worker without one shred of evidence, then fail to inform their audience that they were wrong all along.

When it comes to media bias, I try not to get too worked up. It's bound to happen in an industry so monolithically dominated by Democrats and liberals. But I couldn't help but feel the rage boil up as I read Schapiro's (excellent*) piece this morning. Just remember: If you ask to see a cabinet nominee's speeches or financial records, you're a McCarthyite. But if you accuse a political movement of inspiring murder based on no evidence whatsoever, well, no big deal.

[Rich]

WDATPDIM

[Palin's Buttplug]

I once read an essay from a conservative who cited the lack of Creationism articles as "proof" the media was liberal.

[mad libertarian guy]

Who farted?

[mad libertarian guy]

Who farted?

[AlexInCT]

Why does it smell like ass and jizz at the same time?

Oh, who farted?

[Andrew S.]

Living in South Florida can sometimes be interesting.

I live right next to Weston, which, besides being a giant planned community of nothing but houses that all look the same, also has the second-highest concentration of Venezuelans in Florida. Apparently there was a huge celebration there last night (as there was in Doral (west of Miami), which has the highest concentration). Wish I could've seen it.

I can't wait to see the parties when Castro dies. They're going to have to shut down the city of Miami for that.

[Xenocles]

It must have been exciting living next to Michael Westen what with the weekly gun battles.

[Andrew S.]

When I worked in Miami we'd sometimes get notices that one street or another was closed because they were filming Burn Notice. Never managed to get anywhere near the sets though.

[Jordan]

What about Dexter?

[Andrew S.]

If I remember correctly, any filming of Dexter in Miami was near the beach. So never saw anything about it.

[EDG reppin' LBC]

Dexter is filmed in Long Beach, CA. A lot of "Miami" on TV is actually Long Beach.

[Jordan]

Oh, and Miami is one of the places I'm considering moving to in a few years. Would you recommend it? Or do you have any other recommendations in FL?

[Andrew S.]

Eh.

I don't mind living here. It's not where I'd choose to live (and I resisted it for a long while), but it's grown on me. The weather is awesome this time of year. Summer is pretty awful, but it's actually less hot than a lot of the rest of the country. Though you do have to deal with the media hyping every cloud that shows up in the Atlantic Ocean for six months (there's really only two months, from about mid-August to mid-October, where you do have to worry about hurricanes). Driving here is positively awful, especially during the winter (until the snowbirds go home).

I actually live in the far western suburbs of Fort Lauderdale (my house backs up on a lake that's part of the Everglades). I'm not sure I could live near Miami, but this area is pretty nice.

Honestly, if I could choose to live anywhere in Florida, it would be Orlando. But I'm more or less happy where I am.

[generic Brand]

NOOOOO!!! DON'T MOVE TO ORLANDOOOOO!!! (Fuck Lake Eola)

I live here and while it has its niceties, everything is really spread out. International Drive is still 15 minutes from Downtown Disney, but also 15 minutes from Downtown Orlando, which is 20 minutes from the UCF area, but also 10-15 minutes from Winter Park. And you have to drive everywhere.

Not to mention that the area is always under construction, and most of it is "after the fact" construction, as in any competent planner could have seen that this would have been necessary when they originally built that area. Plus Orlando cops are among the worst.

I don't recommend it, and I only have ties here because I went to school at UCF and love going to home football games. I'm moving away for law school in August and really don't see myself ever returning here to live.

[mad libertarian guy]

Oh, and Miami is one of the places I'm considering moving to in a few years. Would you recommend it?

No. I was born and raised in Miami, and lived there until I was 25. Miami sucks.

Or do you have any other recommendations in FL?

If you're considering FL, make sure you're north or Orlando.

[Jordan]

Well damn. Thanks for the input.

[Jordan]

And Andrew S too.

[RBS]

They could probably sell out the Marlins stadium for that.

[Brett L]

Zing.

[Xenocles]

The funny thing about the whole MS/IE monopoly prosecution is that nowadays there are plenty of government websites that simply will not function on any other browser than IE.

[Drake]

The funny part to me is that I use Firefox at work and SeaMonkey at home. Reason works fine on the Mozilla products and for shit with IE.

[Enough About Palin]

Lawyer: State's main witness in George Zimmerman murder case lied:

SANFORD ? Trayvon Martin's girlfriend, the state's most important witness in the George Zimmerman murder case, was caught in a lie, it was revealed Tuesday.

It was not the first piece of misinformation tied to her, but it was the most damaging to date and left prosecutors in a very awkward position.

They had to publicly acknowledge that their star witness had lied under oath and had to answer questions about what they intend to do about it.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com.....9597.story

[Drake]

Might explain why they skipped the "Stand your ground" hearing. Why bother when they can destroy the prosecution's only witness?

[Virginian]

Witness? She was there? I thought they were just talking on the phone

[Drake]

Yes - and there is only her word on what was said on that phone. Being a proven liar hurts their case.

[Virginian]

I'm not a lawyer, but isn't someone relating the words of another the exact definition of hearsay?

[The Late P Brooks]

Why bleach and ammonia?

Chlorine gas.

Hardly the most efficient home defense tactic in the world. Especially if you are in the home. Maybe the cop is just looking at things in terms of OFFICER SAFETY.

"Fuck it, we'll just wait out here drinking coffee until they're all dead. Get some good overtime filling out the reports."

[a better weapon]

So the officer's advice for when faced with a home invasion is to perform a murder-suicide? Got it.

[Mike M.]

President Obama's approval rating is at 43 percent, down 7 points from two weeks ago, in the Reuters/IPSOS poll.

Great, a lot of fucking good that does now. Who gives a crap at this point; the idiot low-information voting American reelected him, and we're still stuck with him for another dismal four years.

[a better weapon]

State of Massachusetts sends parent's of 10 year old a letter informing them their son is obese

Sure he is 94 lbs at 10, but he is also a svelt little guy who just whooped ass in the state wrestling tournament. Not all high weight kids are fat, but no time for such dubious analysis by the Department of Public Health. It's for the chillunz.

[robc]

That story is so 9:09.

[$park?]

Once again, aggrieved parents are aggrieved.

[a better weapon]

I'm not a parent, but I'd be pretty chapped if my state officials wrote me a letter basically saying I need to get my shit together as a parent.

[mad libertarian guy]

They'd get a reply letter telling them to mind their own fucking business.

[Brett L]

More like a a bucket of tar and a bagful of feathers.

[$park?]

But it doesn't. I got one of these letters because my son's BMI is too low. That's all the letter says, along with a recommendation that something be done. I read it, laughed, and threw it in the garbage. The parents used it as a stepping stool to show off their special snowflake that just won a wrestling tournament.

[Eduard van Haalen]

"Surrogate mom offered $10K to abort baby after parents discover she would be born with disabilities

"Crystal Kelley, 29, ultimately refused the Connecticut couple's demand that she terminate the pregnancy. She fled to Michigan to have the baby and was able to find parents willing to adopt the girl, identified as Baby S., born with special needs.

"...Last February, an attorney for the couple told Kelley that she was "obligated to terminate this pregnancy immediately," CNN reported. She had signed a contract that said she would have an abortion "in case of severe fetus abnormality."..."

http://www.nydailynews.com/lif.....-1.1279997

[Brett L]

Passed on to me by my father. Its true.

[Gladstone]

http://www.lewrockwell.com/blo.....33329.html

Hugo Ch?vez may have been oppressive, but at least he wasn't a lapdog for Washington like so many other heads of state. The world would be a much more free and decentralized place with more anti-imperialist "rogue" nations.