Mass Killings in Missouri, CPAC Continues, Net Neutrality Lawsuits Ahoy: P.M. Links

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(The Simpsons)
  • The cosmic ballet goes on.
    The Simpsons

    A man killed seven people in a rampage in the small Southern Missouri town of Tyrone and then apparently killed himself.

  • Leonard Nimoy, indisputably the most beloved of the actors from the original Star Trek series, died at age 83, wiping most discussions of llamas and dresses off of social media.
  • The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) continued today, featuring speeches from Sen. Marco Rubio, Gov. Rick Perry, Sen. Rand Paul, and Donald Trump (one of these things is not like the others). Paul garnered some attention for playing up some of his libertarian bonafides, calling for "lovers of liberty to rise to the occasion," urging them to reject censorship, indefinite detention, and torture, attacking both Hillary Clinton over Benghazi and the decision to arm Syrian rebels. Watch his speech below:
  • After a significant amount of bad publicity, Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Ill.) has repaid $40,000 from his personal funds for the Downton Abbey-influenced redecorations of his congressional office.
  • A new round of negotiations have begun between the United States and Cuba to restore diplomatic relations.
  • What's next for net neutrality? Lawsuits, obviously.

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NEXT: Libertarians Will Never Be Successful Because EDWARD SNOWDEN!

Scott Shackford is an associate editor at Reason.

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  1. Leonard Nimoy, indisputably the most beloved of the actors from the original Star Trek series, died at age 83…

    I’m surprised Abrams’ reboots haven’t killed them all.

    1. Scruffy Nerfherder

      +1 Red Matter

    2. PRX

      I loved In Search Of.

      and for that matter, Thrillseekers hosted by Chuck Connors. skydogging* for the win.

      *steer wrestling from a cessna.

      1. Pope Jimbo

        WTF? Did they throw the cowpoke and the steer out of the Cessna at the same time? Or did the cowboy jump out and parachute down onto the steer?

        I would love to see the reaction of the steer when pounced on from 10K feet.

        Wait, I would rather see Francisco (or one of his fellow MT ovine molesters) leap from a Cessna onto an unsuspecting sheep.

    3. Rufus J. Firefly

      Hello.

    4. GILMORE

      I was always more of a Mr Sulu guy.

      I mean come on, he drove the boat. What was Spock doing most of the time? Looking into his fancy stereoscope gizmo.

      1. Florida Man

        Spock spent a lot of time being smug and acting superior. Goddamn elves, I hate them so much.

        1. Timon 19

          You shut your mouth!

      2. Spock and Kirk–the ultimately work buddies. They were both great characters, but Spock was something new and special. Thanks in large part to Nimoy.

        I saw them both speak at the only Star Trek convention I ever attended, up in Minneapolis. Very entertaining, and it was then I realized that they were actually close friends, which surprised me at the time, because I knew how competitive they had been during the series.

        1. Florida Man

          All I heard is “wah wah wah Ima nerd wah wah wah….”

          1. What was funny is that I was thinking how un-nerdlike I was compared to the hundreds of people there dressed up in various kinds of Star Trek garb. This is before they paid attractive women to do this.

            1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

              “I was way better than those athletes at the special olympics!!!”

              1. Exactly. In any case, I’ll take my money and hot Colombian wife and not worry about whether my love of Star Trek engeekifies me or not. I mean, shit, I’m a libertarian–doesn’t get much worse than that.

            2. Florida Man

              I confess I desperately want to go to comic-con to see all the cosplay chicks. If that makes me a nerd so be it.

              1. Funny that it took so long for someone to think of paying attractive women to dress up and attend.

                1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

                  More geeks have money now, what with the internet and all.

                  1. Part of it is that science fiction and fantasy are far more mainstream than they used to be, due to all of the movies and TV shows.

                    1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

                      I agree. I was going for a level of discourse that was more on the level of Homer Simpson.

                      As HM pointed out, they were able to make an entire lost episode of Star Trek from pornos. That’s about as mainstream as it gets.

              2. Hamster of Doom

                Some geek chicks are insanely hot. There was a wank a couple(three?) years back. Some little tit complaining about a “gender-swapped steampunk Joker in a top hat” cosplay proving girls try too hard. Turns out, that’s Duella Dent. Much crying and psuecide and flouncing off the internet.

                That cosplay girls rack was A-MAZING. Her photo should have come with a legal disclaimer. “Painfully hot”. All that kerfluffle could have been avoided if he’d done the sensible thing and just stared in awe and wonder.

                1. It must be noted, though, that Joker’s Daughter is the worst character in DC Comic’s history. Worse than Hawk and Dove, worse than Prez Rickard: Teen President, worse than Vibe, worse than (dare I say it?) New 52 Harley Quinn.

                  The worst.

  2. rts

    Obama gives a shout out to his Useful Idiots at Reddit

    Thanks Redditors! Wish I could upvote every one of you for helping keep the internet open and free!

    More regulations = free. Got it.

    1. What are you, some sort of oldthinker who unbellyfeels Ingsoc? Of course more regulations = free.

      1. More regulations equal free? Well, three of those four letters is correct.

    2. Andrew S.

      Lots of Redditors still think back wistfully to the time he did an AMA on Reddit. You know, the one where he answered 10 astroturfed softball questions and then left.

      1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

        “He”

      2. John Titor

        “He”=Campaign staff person.

        1. Andrew S.

          Well, yeah. I thought it was understood that most celebrity AMAs are done by staffpeople.

          (I’m just here to talk about Rampart)

          1. HeteroPatriarch

            The old NES game? that was the most frustrating motherfucker ever.

      3. Jordan

        Sounds like Stephen Colbert’s fawning interview.

      4. Bo Cara Esq.

        I remember the GOP’s response, they had McCain try to plug a seashell into a USB port.

        1. C. Anacreon

          You’ll have to explain your attempt at humor here, it seems like a desultory analogy worse than a badly-written Family Guy referential bit.

          1. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

            Actually a good dig, considering the Gary Busey commercial

            Or are you on this?

          2. Pl?ya Manhattan.

            Peter Griffin: This reminds me of the time that blah blah blah tried to blah blah on the blah blah.

        2. AlexInCT

          Gary Busy wants his funny back..

      5. Sevo

        “You know, the one where he answered 10 astroturfed softball questions and then left.”

        1) How come you’re so smart?
        2) etc.

    3. CatoTheElder

      Everything this motherfucker has done to the internet has diminished freedom. For example:

      1) internet poker
      2) Silk Road
      3) peer-to-peer file sharing

      He has been worse than useless for anything other than making George W. Bush look good.

      Irrumabo autem FCC.

  3. grrizzly

    A good article by McArdle.
    http://www.bloombergview.com/a…..ve-answers

    I’m going to rile up a large portion of my readership by saying this, but I’m not sure it matters what the president believes about evolution.

    Most of the people who “believe” in evolution don’t have much more scientific foundation for their beliefs than a young-earth creationist does for theirs. I would be slightly surprised to learn that the reporters asking the questions — or, for that matter, President Obama — could deliver more than a few vague sentences about how evolution works, desperately dredged up from the Life Sciences module of their seventh-grade science class.

    Many of us who profess a belief do so not because we ourselves have examined the matter closely, but because smart people we respect told us it was true, and it fits in with what our friends and family believe and the rest of our own beliefs about the world. Most people who are young-earth creationists — about a third of the country — probably hold their beliefs for much the same reasons.

    1. Bo Cara Esq.

      This is silly. Everyone ‘believes’ many commonly accepted scientific findings for which they have not verified themselves in a lab or the field. To say you ‘believe’ in evolution or any other scientific finding or theory just means you think scientists and the scientific method are more trustworthy sources of information than, say, ministers or scriptures.

      1. lap83

        “To say you ‘believe’ in evolution or any other scientific finding or theory just means you think scientists and the scientific method are more trustworthy sources of information than, say, ministers or scriptures.”

        and what does that have to do with politics?

        1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

          He’s accidentally right, though.

          Here you have one person with advanced degrees from Harvard that speaks like 5 languages who is sharing his opinion.

          An obnoxious college student with zero demonstrated knowledge disagrees with that opinion.

          Who are you going to listen to?

          Thanks for the advice, Bo.

          1. Warty

            zero demonstrated knowledge

            Change the word order a little. Demonstrated zero knowledge.

        2. C. Anacreon

          And furthermore, Congressman, how many angels do you believe can dance on the head of a pin?

    2. Are one-third of Americans really young-earth creationists?
      That’s…disturbing.

      1. Florida Man

        Does it matter? Do members of all the other world religions believe in their creation myths? Thank *fill in the blank* the constitution separates religion and government.

        1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

          Jeebus. The full in the blank is Jeebus.

          1. Florida Man

            Correct. +3 internets or you can choose anything off the lowest shelf.

            1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

              Lowest shelf? I need any cat food.

              1. Florida Man

                *hands over can of fancy feast*

        2. Bo Cara Esq.

          I think a person who thinks scientists are a better source of truth about the material world is a better choice for leader, everything else being equal, than someone who thinks ministers, astrologers or witch doctors are, yes.

          1. Florida Man

            Doesn’t matter to me what you believe as long as you don’t think it is governments job to force that belief on others.

            1. Bo Cara Esq.

              Of course I’d take a liberty loving astrologist over a tyrannical scientist, I’m just saying is A factor of some worth

              1. I’m a licensed astrologist. (True story.) And I’d vote for me.

                1. Bo Cara Esq.

                  Citizen, I gave up voting for astrologists at the start of the Age of Aquarius.

                2. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

                  Back of Rolling Stone magazine licensed?

                3. Rufus J. Firefly

                  Aquarius is the best sign!

                  MOTHERFUCKERS!

              2. Florida Man

                All I want out of a president is respect for the constitution. If you have wacky ideas or are an idiot you really can’t do too much damage if you are held to the orginal limits of the office.

                1. You don’t give my Scorpionic powers enough credit.

                  1. Bo Cara Esq.

                    I’m stung by what you say.

                  2. Florida Man

                    I’m a Capricorn with Aquarius rising sooooo… My goat pours water on your scorpion? I don’t know how this works.

                    1. jesse.in.mb

                      I’m a Capricorn with Aquarius rising sooooo… My goat pours water on your scorpion? I don’t know how this works.

                      Pervert!

                    2. Florida Man

                      So I’m a pervert with no regard to sexual mores? You know I’m not a big fan of astrology but sometimes it is scary accurate.

                    3. jesse.in.mb

                      sometimes it is scary accurate.

                      Go on…

                    4. Florida Man

                      So I was getting spit roasted the other day…..

                    5. jesse.in.mb

                      *Glances down at visibly tented trouser, looks up, makes eye contact with Florida Man and smiles”

                  3. Pope Jimbo

                    I’d vote for Sylvester or Happy, but Toby and Walter are sort of asses.

                    Besides I think the work that Scorpion does for DHS disqualifies them from public office.

        3. Protagoronus

          What if the belief that it is turtles all the way down leads to the killing of turtle predators and Florida is over-run? By turtles? Is that not turtley enough?

          1. Florida Man

            You owe me 18 seconds of my life back.

            1. Protagoronus

              Do you accept payment in Thundersnow?

              1. Florida Man

                I have multiple questions about what I just saw, but feel the answers probably aren’t worth hearing.

                1. Protagoronus

                  Maybe these are more your speed?

                  1. Florida Man

                    At first I blamed you, now I’m just disappointed in me for clicking every link you have posted.
                    PS the cat chick was kind of cute until she tipped her hand and showed she was holdin’ a handful of crazy.

      2. Old Man With Candy

        It’s easy to phony up statistics, if you have a narrative in mind.

      3. Puddin' Stick

        Are one-third of Americans really young-earth creationists?
        That’s?disturbing.

        Maybe? but I doubt it.

        It depends upon the how the question is phrased. If we phrased it as “Do you believe that the earth was created 6000 years ago as the Bible says?”, you’d get a lot of yeses from people who want to be seen as good Christian believers even if they known nothing about the arguments, etc., either way.

    3. Old Man With Candy

      Could any of the FCC guys who voted on net neutrality, or the ex-community activist who pushed them, describe how a data packet is transmitted? Will anyone ask them?

      1. AlexInCT

        Government makes it move?

        1. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

          Government allows it to move. Without Government, physics would cease functioning.

      2. By the United States Postal Service.

      3. You see, there are these tubes…

        1. Pope Jimbo

          And they are greased up with Ether…

    4. lap83

      I think this issue is really a litmus test for whether you care about individual freedom more than advancing a political agenda. Someone who wants political power for advancing their agenda only sees other people in terms of their usefulness for their goals. Therefore, the most seemingly mundane personal characteristics must be scrutinized through that lens. (You shop at WalMart? Ew!) But someone who values individual freedom sees most human traits as just facts of life and differing human traits as unavoidable. All they care about is if a given person with authority and responsibility, however weird in their personal life, will leave them alone.

    5. Pope Jimbo

      I blame Mac and his silver tongue

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22bo6CKJcJM#t=144

  4. …Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Ill.) has repaid $40,000 from his personal funds for the Downton Abbey-influenced redecorations of his congressional office.

    Would the Downtowns from the Abbey have paid back the money? I don’t think so.

    1. “Downton Abbey-influenced redecorations of his congressional office”

      Aaron Schock is the least effectively closeted gay man I have ever heard of. It’s like he’s in a paper thin closet having an orgy with other men and is confused how we all know what’s going on.

      1. Ever hear a reference to a closet with a screen door? Aaron “Look at my abs” Schock must not have.

        1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

          Screen door? That’s just tacky decorating.

      2. Pope Jimbo

        -1 Marcus Bachmann

        Of course from the photo it looks like Michele is into it.

        http://deadspin.com/5830719/fu…..a-corn-dog

      3. jesse.in.mb

        Whatever, Irish, he burned the belt already, ok!?

    2. C. Anacreon

      Especially since the family name is Crawley, and the title is Lord Grantham. The estate’s name on the show has never been explained. I figured that Lord and Lady Grantham were big Petula Clark fans, and named their digs accordingly (while dignifying the name further by removing the second ‘W’).

      1. Like I’m going to watch a show from a country that has a monarchy.

        1. C. Anacreon

          You haven’t missed much, don’t feel bad. And they had the audacity to kill off the only hot chick on the show two seasons ago. Since then we’ve been expected to believe that ice-princess Lady Mary is oh-so-desirable as she casts aside suitors, but she’s not all that great looking, and has a pissy personality that no one would like if the scriptwriters didn’t force them to.

          1. And they had the audacity to kill off the only hot chick on the show two seasons ago.

            O’Brien didn’t die, she went off to India.

            1. C. Anacreon

              O’Brien didn’t die, she went off to India.

              Ewwwww!

              You had to remind me of that face, didn’t you? I’m picturing her out sneaking a smoke with evil Barrow.

  5. BiMonSciFiCon

    A new round of negotiations have begun between the United States and Cuba to restore diplomatic relations.

    We want our trillion dollar bill back.

    1. Andrew S.

      That episode was on last night! Like to watch it before Archer (top 5 episode of all time last night by the way)

      “Well, if it’s a crime to love one’s country, then I’m guilty. And if it’s a crime to steal a trillion dollars from our government and hand it over to communist Cuba, then I’m guilty of that too. And if it’s a crime to bribe a jury, so help me, I’ll soon be guilty of that!”

      1. BiMonSciFiCon

        Completely agree that Archer was fantastic. “I’m sorry that I tried to spitroast your mom.”

        1. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

          Do you do phrasing?

      2. I watched Absence of Malice on TCM last night. Apparently, newspaper writers in real life got butthurt over the portrayal of the newspaper in the movie, overlooking the fact that the screenwriter had been an editor-in-chief for several years in real life.

        And the climactic scene has Wilford Brimley.

        1. HeteroPatriarch

          It’s criminal that most people only know Brimley as the “Diabeetus” guy and don’t know the Strangers with Candy skit.

          1. The Last American Hero

            Or as Mob Enforcer from that Tom Cruise movie.

            1. Pope Jimbo

              Or USPS enforcer from Seinfeld.

          2. Cdr Lytton

            I’m old enough to remember him as the oatmeal guy.

            And the patriarch of Our House.

            1. C. Anacreon

              And the baseball team manager in The Natural.
              And the rejuvenated old duffer in Cocoon.

  6. rts

    ICBC may withhold licence for outstanding court fines, student loans in default

    The provincial government [of British Columbia] has proposed legislation to expand ICBC’s ability to refuse driver’s licences to those in debt.

    The insurance company is already able to withhold licences from people who owe money, such as toll fees, but the new bill ? if passed ? would be a “last-resort measure” to collect on outstanding court fines or student loans in default.

    1. HeteroPatriarch

      Student loans? I thought Canada had “free” college?

  7. The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) continued today, featuring speeches from Sen. Marco Rubio, Gov. Rick Perry, Sen. Rand Paul, and Donald Trump…

    Trump? Really?

    1. Andrew S.

      Yeah, he’s running again. No, nobody can figure out why.

      1. Scruffy Nerfherder

        That’s easy, he needs publicity

      2. Pope Jimbo

        We can use someone who knows how to use bankruptcy laws to screw over creditors and come out better than before.

        1. Heedless

          Can we rent him out to Greece?

    2. Bo Cara Esq.

      Was Hannity chosen to do most if the questioning of Presidential speakers? Because that speaks worse of CPAC than giving Trump a choice slot.

      1. Florida Man

        You’re a great American Bo.

  8. BiMonSciFiCon

    “Hello. I’m Leonard Nimoy. The following tale of alien encounters is true. And by true, I mean false. It’s all lies. But they’re entertaining lies. And in the end, isn’t that the real truth? The answer is: No.”

    1. rts

      Nimoy’s appearances on The Simpsons and Futurama are among the best episodes for each of those series.

      Perhaps you’re thinking of my one man show about Vincent van Spock. Uh, I mean van Gogh! Damn!

      1. BiMonSciFiCon

        Alien dude: need 2 tickets to Pearl Jam. /Jimbo

    2. And I’m a llama wearing a dress, and I have cable.

      1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

        Is the dress gold and white or blue and black?

        1. IT IS “4 LIGHTS WHITE”

  9. …calling for “lovers of liberty to rise to the occasion,” urging them to reject censorship, indefinite detention, and torture, attacking both Hillary Clinton over Benghazi and the decision to arm Syrian rebels.

    Shows he knows who he’d be running against.

  10. Leonard Nimoy, indisputably the most beloved of the actors from the original Star Trek series, died at age 83, wiping most discussions of llamas and dresses off of social media.

    He has been, and always will be, our surrogate friend.

    1. /slow clap

  11. Bo Cara Esq.

    Rand Paul continues to be a political genius. I’ve never seen a nationally known politician who can so deftly feed conservatives red meat while by and large sticking to libertarian principles.

    1. waffles

      I fucking love red meat and it’s a Friday in Lent.

      1. The Last American Hero

        Just take a page from the Muslim Ramadan handbook get a Big Mac at 12:00am on Saturday.

    2. GILMORE

      REAL LIBERTARIAN, RAND PAUL

      on Bombing ISIS

      “…he did not regret his decision to support airstrikes in Syria, and despite evidence to the contrary, he believes the airstrikes have “lessened” ISIS’ ability to attack the U.S….
      …
      “I’ve always said that I adhere to foreign policy realism?that you look at the facts as they exist, not as you wish them to be… Things change on the ground, and so does the analysis as those things change on the ground.”

      on Immigration

      “I do not support amnesty, I support legal immigration and recognize that the country has been enriched by those who seek the freedom to make a life for themselves. However, millions of illegal immigrants are crossing our border without our knowledge and causing a clear threat to our national security.”

      on Abortion

      “I am 100% pro-life. I believe life begins at conception and that abortion takes the life of an innocent human being. It is the duty of our government to protect this life as a right guaranteed under the Constitution.”

      HE IS NOTHING LIKE THE RIGHT-LEANING FAUX LIBERTARIANS OF THE REASON COMMENT SECTION

      1. Calidissident

        Paul’s not a hardliner either way on illegal immigration. He’s stated that he’d support granting temporary legal status to illegal immigrants, which is enough to excommunicate him for a lot of conservatives.

        1. Bo Cara Esq.

          And if course he’s the least hard liner of the other potential GOP nominees. But it’s Gilmore you know.

      2. Bo Cara Esq.

        Rand Paul is a libertarian but of course of the Republican Party. A libertarian Republican is the best available at the national level realistically. It’s funny that you seek to equate him with most Reason commenters whom I describe as right leaning or GOP friendly libertarians. You prove my point rather than undercut it.

        1. GILMORE

          “You prove my point rather than undercut it.”

          You don’t have a point. You cheerlead Rand as a libertarian while demonizing people who hold the same views as him as ‘outside the pale’. Totally legit.

          1. GILMORE

            correction = you demonize people who even dare to share any *one opinion* with rand paul as being unacceptably ‘right-wing’…. even though they’re probably far more-libertarian than paul on many (every) others.

            Which says nothing about Paul, or anyone else other than you.

            1. Bo Cara Esq.

              So you and all the others I criticize are libertarian Republicans trying to win the GOP nomination? Because then I wouldn’t find y’all so out of step.

              1. GILMORE

                “Out of step” with what?

                You’ve only been around here for about a year

          2. Bo Cara Esq.

            Poor Gilmore, do you feel ‘demonized’ by me?

            1. GILMORE

              you’re more like an ear infection

  12. Jordan

    Fourth quarter GDP was revised downward, unexpectedly, no doubt. Related:

    Since 2007 nearly every Fed economic forecast has been on the optimistic side.

    In an attempt to explain, a new Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco dives into the Persistent Overoptimism about Economic Growth.

    My friend “BC” commented “It has taken 7-8 years for Fed economists to get around to this brilliant insight.”

    Bernanke like Greenspan could not see the obvious. This is a general statement. Buildup of imbalances has nothing to do with it. Neither Greenspan nor Bernanke could spot bubbles.

    Janet Yellen right now is virtually blind as a bat. She cannot see the bubbles in bonds and equities the Fed created. When those bubbles burst, the slowdown should smack some sense into the Fed, but it won’t. Moreover, the bigger this equity bubble gets, the bigger the crash. The Fed cannot see that either.

    1. Amazing how everything goes the wrong direction when the truth comes out, isn’t it?

  13. Invisible Handjob

    The Libertarian Delusion by Robert Kuttner at American Prospect. Part of their “What Markets Can’t Do” series (I haven’t looked at any of the articles in the series yet).

    tl;dr version: Set up the usual strawmen and Government is Magic thinking.

    1. Warty

      Sounds like the old Critiques of Libertarianism site. How boring.

    2. Injun, as in from India

      It is easy to summarize what markets can’t do: they can’t come after you with AR-15s, MRAPs, and flash bang grenades. They can’t throw you in prison for not obeying them.

    3. Tonio

      And expect to see a lot more of this as we approach the next election. They’re starting to be scared of us.

      1. Winston

        If Rand Paul actually gets elected President and tries to implement some libertarianish reforms then they will really have to deal with an actual “anti-government” Republican.

    4. HeteroPatriarch

      Robert Kuttner looks like the villain from a Genesis game.

    5. Juice

      “What Markets Can’t Do”

      They should re-phrase it to more accurately reflect what they want.

      “When We Must Use Force On You For Your Own Good.”

  14. Carl ?s the level

    Hillary Clinton ‘gave in’ to China says Chen Guangcheng

    Hillary Clinton’s account of one of her crowning moments as secretary of state has been flatly contradicted by a leading Chinese activist.

    Chen Guangcheng, a blind lawyer who escaped house arrest and caused an diplomatic crisis between China and the US by taking refuge in the American embassy in Beijing in 2012, accused the Obama administration and Hillary Clinton of “giving in” to Chinese negotiators.

    …

    The rescue of the 43-year-old “barefoot lawyer” featured prominently in Mrs Clinton’s manifesto-memoir, Hard Choices, as a triumph of white-knuckle diplomacy that also respected Mr Chen’s individual rights and wishes.

    In the end Mr Chen… said he felt he had no choice but to leave the safety of the US embassy compound.

    Mr Chen then went to the hospital but the deal to allow him to study at a Chinese university rapidly unravelled as Mr Chen said he felt the “noose” of Chinese security tightening back around him and suddenly abandoned by the US embassy who initially did not answer their phones.

    1. Jordan

      Hey, Hilary personally freed him while dodging Chinese sniper fire!

  15. Clich? Bandit

    I got a liberty stiffie listening to RP. Damnit, if he gives me hope and makes me optimistic I am going to be pissed.

  16. Carl ?s the level

    China Paper: We Aim Higher Than Japan’s High-Tech Toilet Seats

    China’s English-language daily newspaper, Global Times, ran an editorial Thursday saying news of Chinese tourists purchasing Japanese “washlet” toilet seats “makes a mockery of the Chinese boycott of Japanese goods over the past two years.”

    The paper, run by the state-owned People’s Daily, was referring to tourists in Japan during the Lunar New Year holiday seen buying toilet seats and rice cookers at electronics stores.

    The editorial, titled “Popularity of Japanese Toilet Seats Overstated,” acknowledged that the Japanese personal hygiene device “explicitly shows the human touch, intelligent design and sophistication of Japanese goods.” But it also said some people in China are ashamed that their compatriots are making such purchases.

    “Japan used to dominate the global household electrical appliance market, but now consumers only recognize its toilet seats or rice cookers, which demonstrates the regression of its industry,” the editorial said, adding that high-tech toilet seats are “not what Chinese manufacturers aspire to make.” China must aim higher, it said.

    And the cleavage police strike again.

    1. Rhywun

      And the cleavage police strike again.

      Socially, China could stand to be dragged into the first half of the 20th century.

    2. Ok, but that’s because the Chinese still use squat toilets. And anyone who has seen the inside of a Chinese public toilet knows that the bathroom hygiene of your typical Chinese citizen is on par with that of the dung beetle.

      1. Florida Man

        Don’t you disparage the dung beetle! If it wasn’t for them we would be knee deep in our shit. There is a reason the Egyptians choose the dung beetle as the creator of life.

        1. There’s only one way to settle this:

          JAPANESE BUG FIGHTS!!!!

          1. Florida Man

            Goddamn I love Japanese TV!

            1. Carl ?s the level

              There was a show on Discovery called Monster Bug Wars with a similar premise. I don’t know which came first.

              1. I’d guess the Japanese one, as bug collecting and fighting is a traditional Japanese boy’s hobby dating back to God knows when.

      2. CatoTheElder

        Yeah, but dung beetles have an excuse: they actually like dung.

        Chinese public toilets are, without any exception at all, the most disgusting places in the world.

        1. I’ll see your Chinese public toilet, and raise you the turd and offal strew way of an Panjshir Valley village.

          I would need SugarFree to describe the mixed horrors of the smell.

          1. CatoTheElder

            I know what you’re talking about … but
            China is worse due to population density.

    3. GamerFromJump

      I’d just settle for China *having toilets*, instead of it being a hit or miss affair.

  17. Florida Man

    Whisk(e)y update: I’m currently drinking bushmill’s 16 year old single malt Irish whiskey and I have to say for the price point I rate it a “if it’s free drink it, but don’t buy it”. Alternately Jameson’s black barrel was very good for the price. For the scotch drinkers, the glenlivet guardian’s chapter is pretty good. I’m not a scotch fan in general but I enjoyed it.

    1. BiMonSciFiCon

      I have been drinking 1792 bourbon lately. It’s only $21.49 a bottle near me and avoided it because most bourbon’s at that price point are not great neat or with a cube or two. I think it’s my new favorite every day bourbon. Very smooth, very little bite, great flavor. I used to swear by Bulleit but this one is even better, I think.

      But don’t everyone buy it, I want it to stay cheap.

      1. Florida Man

        I like bulliet’s, especially the Rye and especially for the price. I also like angel’s envy but it is 2x more for bourbon and 3x more for Rye. I’ll try the 1792 after I finish this Russell’s reserve somebody gave me.

      2. HeteroPatriarch

        My last bottle was Rowan’s Creek, and I am on a bottle of 1792 now. The curved bottle was attractive, but for almost the same price, the Rowan’s Creek was a lot smoother.

        1. BiMonSciFiCon

          Really? I’ll have to try that. Thanks for the tip.

          I suspect I’ll find some gems tomorrow. Going to a distillery tasting in Madison, WI. 69 different distilleries. Multiple bottles per distillery.

          If I don’t comment Monday you know what’s happened to me.

          1. Florida Man

            comment Monday you know what’s happened to me.

            You opened your own distillery?

            1. “Face Down Distillery”

    2. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

      I have not tried the Jameson Black Barrel, but their 12 yr stuff is the bomb, diggity!

      Despise scotch, though. Bourbon without the flavor.

      1. Florida Man

        Agree on the scotch. I’ll pick up the 12 year old next. I’m finishing the bushmill’s as we speak. Also redbreast is very good for an Irish whiskey. More expense than Jameson though.

    3. Pl?ya Manhattan.

      You’ve reminded me that it’s Friday afternoon.

      I go through phases, and I’m about 9 months into my IPA phase. Really, really bitter IPAs. I think I’m about ready to move on to something with less empty calories.

      I’m 6′, 188 lbs. Without all those IPAs, I’d probably be closer to 178 and have abs. But whatever, I’m married.

    4. The Last American Hero

      Macallan, at least 18 yrs, or don’t waste your time.

      1. Florida Man

        I’ve had Macallan’s, my cousin is a huge fan, I’m just not into scotch.

      2. sssbobbyr

        Glenmorangie 18. That is all.

  18. Carl ?s the level

    Mass Killings in Missouri

    Spree killings.

    Yeah, I’m that guy.

    1. Carl ?s the level

      Apparently I’m that guy who doesn’t close his blockquote tags, too.

      1. Warty

        BO

        1. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

          BOo?

          1. paranoid android

            “Are you saying ‘Bo’, or ‘Bo-urns’?”

            1. Florida Man

              I was saying boo-urns.

              1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

                A lot of people were yelling stuff.
                (I know, different episode. Don’t Bo me).

        2. Carl ?s the level

          Are you referring to the annoying little shit and his refusal to enclose quotations in tags, or are you saying “Blown Out”?

          1. Warty

            Do I have to choose?

            1. Carl ?s the level

              Yes.

  19. sasob

    Attackers in Bangladesh hack to death American Blogger.

    The barbarity of some of these atavists is just mind numbing. Were the Dark Ages really this bad?

  20. Warty

    It will be interesting to see how much play this Missouri redneck rampage gets in the press. My prediction is not much. They’re not the right kind of white.

    1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

      Is there a hot blonde teenage daughter involved?

  21. Sidd Finch v2.01

    I’m doubled over laughing at this dumb shit.

    1. BiMonSciFiCon

      Oh man, I’m only a few in and these are great. Thank you.

      I’ll try to dig up the IT ones. “Google Ultron.”

    2. BiMonSciFiCon

      Tales of IT

      Read both part I and part II.

      1. Nephilium

        I know it’s late… but in case you’ve never seen it. Behold the Chronicles of George.

    3. Bobarian (hyphenated-american)

      Ken M is now my spirit animal, as well!

      1. Pl?ya Manhattan.

        I can’t believe he got a free tour. Lucky duck.

    4. C. Anacreon

      Yes, absolutely hilarious, thanks!

    5. Carl ?s the level

      Finley Field is another in this genre.

      This one is great.

      1. Carl ?s the level

        And this is my favorite.

        This is also sick/funny

  22. Reading reports that Boris Nemtsov, one of the most outspoken Putin critics within Russia’s political system, was murdered in Moscow.

    1. HeteroPatriarch

      Unexpectedly!

  23. Apparently we are in week five of The American Conservative having articles about the sources of libertarianism. This week: John Stuart Mill’s On Liberty. Just in case you were wondering what The American Conservative‘s take is, this quote sums it up nicely:

    Following in Mill’s tradition, an active government is justified in the name of individual liberty. While libertarians have always been mistrustful of centralized government power, arguably at the very core of the tradition is a willingness to use extensive and powerful government powers to eviscerate the “despotism”?or even residue?of Custom, and thus, in freeing people from tradition and the communities that were their homes, forcing them to be free.

    Forcing people to be free. Well, that is one way to look at it, I suppose. That does not seem a smart way to look at it, but perhaps I am expecting too much.

    1. Warty

      It all depends on what the Custom is that we’re eviscerating. Slavery? Serfdom? Great, I’m all for using the government to burn it down. Some snake-handler church not marrying gays? Maybe I’m a little less enthusiastic.

      1. Winston

        What about Wage slavery?

        1. Drake

          And slow internet service?

    2. Since when has libertarianism in any way implied an ‘assault on custom?’

      If people want to adhere to a custom, libertarians would allow them to. What libertarians are arguing is that people should not be coerced into following a custom.

      If your custom requires coercion, it’s probably a shitty custom.

    3. Oops. My mistake. The American Conservative is in the middle of a series about liberal ideas, and the author of the series, Patrick, J. Deneen, apparently thinks libertarianism and classical liberalism are just facets of progressive liberalism.

      1. Winston

        So he’s Sheldon Richman?

    4. Florida Man

      People are free naturally. It takes other people to deprive them of that freedom.

      -FM

      1. You would think so. But a commenter at The American Conservative disagrees. Get this:

        When peoples are left to their own devices they naturally form hierarchies, establish laws, customs, and traditions which certainly place limits on peoples’ behavior. These things are just part of what it is to be human.

        Both libertarians and liberals share a similar conception of freedom, though many would deny it, which sets itself against these natural limitations and practices. Therefore, through a logic that depends on the misuse of the word “freedom,” a man can only be free because of a centralized modern state, not despite it. The modern state is needed to enforce managerial freedom that overrides and destroys all of the natural accretion of local custom and law that bind people.

        In this way, “freedom” becomes the enemy of actual liberty.

        Which, in my opinion, is another way of saying that “Freedom is Slavery.”

        1. “Some people complain about a nanny state, but then want the federal government to nanny the state governments, and the courts to nanny the democratic branches. And of course, like everyone else who wants a nanny state ? they imagine they’ll always be the ones wielding power.”

          What. I don’t think this guy knows what people mean when they say ‘nanny state.’

  24. Warty

    Grantland is mostly awful but occasionally hilarious. I enjoyed this.

    Grantland Exclusive: The Re-oranging of the Cleveland Browns

    How orange would something have to be to keep you from noticing whether it was competitively successful or not? Answer honestly.

    1. HeteroPatriarch

      Grantland is Simmons once a month and a bunch of awful.

      1. Crusty Juggler

        Zach Lowe is a great if you like to read about the NBA. Titus is pretty good if you like to read about college basketball. Keri and Lingbergh are pretty good for baseball, but the rest of the site is a bunch of uninteresting writers trying too hard. So, it is like the rest of the internet.

  25. Winston

    From AM Links:
    President Barack Obama is planning to use executive action to ban 5.56 M855 ammunition, a type of bullet commonly used with the popular AR-15 rifle

    Libertarian moment! And it’s not like libertarians support Obama’s EO when it comes to immigration which undermines their cause against this…oh wait.

    1. Warty

      A whine! From Winston! SHOCK!!!!!

      1. libertarians support Obama’s EO when it comes to immigration

        Name one.

        1. Winston

          Sheldon Richman, Shikha Dalmia, Robby SoaveHazelmeade, Francisco d’anconia, Ilya Somin, Peter Suderman.

          1. Some actual citations would be nice.

            And Richman never counts. Never.

            1. Florida Man

              Am I suppose to hate richman or suderman? Either way I like Hackman.

            2. Pope Jimbo

              I’ll give Richman credit for converting Dave Barry

              http://www.theadvocates.org/li…..ave-barry/

              In a 1994 interview with Reason magazine, Barry credited writer Sheldon Richman with convincing him to embrace libertarianism, back in the 1970s.

              “Sheldon and I would argue,” Barry told Reason. “I mean, really argue?. Then in the late ’70s, I begin to see. I think the gas crisis had something to do with it. I began to realize, this is all happening because of the government. And I began to think about all the government people I knew ? who were theoretically for the common good. Then I realized not one of them was [for the common good].” That led Barry to his ultimate insight about government: “It’s stupid.”

              1. Florida Man

                Barry, is this a revelation? It sure is other Barry.

              2. GILMORE

                “and what have you done for me lately?”

            3. Winston

              Soave:

              https://reason.com/blog/2014/11…..mmigration

              Since I despise the enforcement of expansive, confusing, and cruel laws, I personally count this as one of the president’s more gratifying decisions.

              And you really need cites from Shikha and Somin?

              1. Winston

                https://reason.com/archives/201…..is-constit

                Not only is mass deferral of deportation for undocumented workers well within the vast prosecutorial discretion that Congress itself granted him in the 1986 Immigration and Naturalization Act, I have repeatedly pointed out, but it would also be smart politics. That’s because, unlike in the mid-term, many more Latino swing states would be in play in the 2016 elections. Moreover, I noted, the more Republicans resisted his executive action, the more they would cement their reputation as anti-minority, something that would hurt them over the long run when whites become a plurality in this country. More immediately, however, I predicted, it would produce a civil war within the restrictionist and the moderate wings of the Republican party, causing it to self destruct.

                https://reason.com/blog/2015/02…..nervous-br

                1. Winston

                  https://reason.com/blog/2014/11…..ably-legal

                  1. Winston

                    https://reason.com/blog/2015/02…..ns-in-reje

  26. grrizzly

    Boris Nemtsov, Critic of Putin, Is Shot Dead in Moscow

    A prominent opposition leader, Boris Y. Nemtsov, was shot to death on a street in central Moscow on Friday night, the Russian Interior Ministry confirmed to the news agency Interfax.

    Mr. Nemtsov, 55, was one of the principal organizers of an opposition march scheduled for Sunday in Moscow.

    A smooth-talking and worldly man who spoke accented but near-perfect English, Mr. Nemtsov rose to prominence as the governor of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast and became a vice premier in the late 1990s, during the last years of Boris Yeltsin’s presidency.

    1. Warty

      How declasse. I expect assassination by polonium seed or better from the Kremlin.

      1. Yeah, like a micro black hole served in a pirogi.

        1. Beautiful Bean Footage

          But your micro black pirogi hole is only level 12, and my bunny is protected by nine 4-leaf clovers and here’s a level four defense card. PWN3D.

          /killer bunnies ftw

      2. paranoid android

        You gotta tailor the assassination to the message you want to send.

        Radiation poisoning? Means you don’t want anyone to know what the victim was up to.

        Shot dead in the street? Sends a message to his friends.

        Ice pick to the skull? It’s personal.

        1. jesse.in.mb

          This is the same reason chavs are so much classier than American poor white trash: in the UK they stab each other with sharpened screwdrivers, which is personal and intimate while in America you just get shot. It’s like Americans don’t really have a sense of craftsmanship anymore.

        2. Cdr Lytton

          Harry: Well, he saw the Archbishop and rushed towards him woth his head bowed, in order to receive his blessing, and, er, unfortunately, killed him stone dead.

          Edmund: How?

          Harry: Mortimer was wearing a Turkish helmet.

          Edmund: Oh, I see, yes: one of those with the two feet spike coming out of the top?

          Harry: It’s one of those things they normally use for butting their enemies in the stomach and (Edmund joins in) killing them stone dead.

          Edmund: (sarcastic) Yes, so, presumably he’d forgotten he was wearing it.

          Harry: Well, do you know, that’s exactly what the poor fellow had done! A tragic accident…tragic.

      3. rts

        Smithers: Honestly, sir, you don’t put the effort into your schemes that you used to.

      4. JW

        He slipped and fell on his gun several times.

    2. rts

      From this source…

      The president [Putin] thinks the murder was a contract killing meant to be a political provocation, Peskov said.

      He seems to know an awful lot about this.

      1. Winston

        political provocation

        From Whom?

  27. DEG

    Beer for the night: Troeg’s Mad Elf. What’s everyone else drinking?

    1. Nephilium

      Fat Head’s Kolsch, and an American Stout homebrew.

  28. kingsda

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    http://www.work-mill.com

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