More on NYC Bombing Attempt, Transgender Troops May Enlist Soon, Russia Starts Pulling Out of Syria: P.M. Links

• 

  Akayed Ullah passport photo

  The latest on the failed New York City subway bombing effort: The suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah, was wearing a pipe bomb-type device on his body that detonated, possibly prematurely. He injured himself and three others, None of the injuries are life-threatening.

• Some women who had previously accused President Donald Trump of sexual misconduct have come forward again to remind folks that they had accused Trump of sexual misconduct. Also, they were promoting a documentary about it.
• The Pentagon will start permitting transgender recruits to enlist beginning at the start of 2018. For some reason, this is being presented in some news stories as though the military is choosing to defy Trump's wishes, but there are court decisions blocking much of the implementation of the president's attempted new ban.
• One of California's wildfires is now bigger than New York City and Boston combined. So far only one death has been attributed to the fire.
• A convicted serial killer in South Carolina says he's killed more people than the public had been made aware of.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin is ordering a partial pullout of his military forces from Syria, declaring their work there completed.
• The 75th Golden Globe nominations are out.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

Some women who had previously accused President Donald Trump of sexual misconduct have come forward again to remind folks that they had accused Trump of sexual misconduct.

More like all-handser-in-chief, am I right?

[Rufus The Monocled]

Hello.

"The latest on the failed New York City subway bombing effort: The suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah,"

NO WAY!

Stop jumping to conclusions!!!

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

Get to work old man that yells at computer.
Go BLUES ?

[Rufus The Monocled]

Speaking of St. Louis blues. Didn't Albert King sing "Chokers?"

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

*drops gloves looks for Canadians to punch in the mooseknuckle*

[Unicorn Abattoir]

You mean he wasn't a Celtics fan?

[creech]

Huh? I thought all Amish were name like Abraham Stoltzfus or something like that?

[Fist of Etiquette]

Also, they were promoting a documentary about it.

Hopefully Michael Moore is attached.

[Rich]

"Is attached", or "Has attacked"?

[Mitsima]

Is it edible?

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

"Russia Starts Pulling Out of Syria"

Russia pulls you in not out.

[Fist of Etiquette]

...declaring their work there completed.

In Russia, mission accomplish you.

[Zeb]

Is that really the best you could do with Russia and "pulling out"?

[sharmota4zeb]

Yeah, I didn't see the potential of Russia pulling out, but about that pipe exploding prematurely ...

[Hank Phillips]

At least the Rooshians have finally gotten rid of military socialism and learnt to uninvade once in a while. Are the Afghanistan opium farm occupiers paying attention?

[Fist of Etiquette]

One of California's wildfires is now bigger than New York City and Boston combined.

But not bigger than the Beatles.

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

Billy Joel didn't start the fire either.

[TrickyVic (old school)]

He said it so many times, that I think he's hiding something.

[MarkLastname]

I have it on good authority though that he's out there trying to fight it.

[Don't look at me.]

Paris Hilton said : " That's hot".

[Conchfritters]

"Be adequate" - - Lindsey

[Mitsima]

Buster Poindexter approves.

[Fist of Etiquette]

For some reason, this is being presented in some news stories as though the military is choosing to defy Trump's wishes, but there are court decisions blocking much of the implementation of the president's attempted new ban.

Welcome to the world of fake news, Shackford.

[Hank Phillips]

Has fanboy Milo been alerted about this ban?

[Fist of Etiquette]

The suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah, was wearing a pipe bomb-type device on his body that detonated, possibly prematurely.

Try thinking about Israeli baseball next time.

[Telcontar the Wanderer]

Actually, thinking about Israeli women's league baseball may be the cause of the problem.

[Crusty Juggler]

Do you think Shawn Green could have gotten a hit off of Sandy Koufax?

[Fist of Etiquette]

A convicted serial killer in South Carolina says he's killed more people than the public had been made aware of.

His appeal is math-based.

[Rich]

Well, he is a math killer.

[Don't look at me.]

With a lithp.

[BestUsedCarSales]

Still lamer than the Green River Killer. The finest serial killer of the last while.

[Hank Phillips]

The Las Vegas shooter--the one whose tax return we've never seen, who bought weapons no-questions-asked like The Pentagon itself--had an impressive, if brief, stint as a seral killer.

[CE]

You know who else killed more people than the public had been made aware of?

[Scarecrow Repair & Chippering]

Obama?

[Hank Phillips]

Lt. Calley?

[Mitsima]

The cafeteria lunch lady?

[sharmota4zeb]

Decades ago, my mom was very upset when they discovered that the Unibomber was a mathematician.

[BestUsedCarSales]

Anyone surprised by that never met a Ph.D in Math. They are all broken, insane people.

[Tom Bombadil]

"One of California's wildfires is now bigger than New York City and Boston combined. So far only one death has been attributed to the fire."

A fire spreading ahead of hurricane force winds, one dead. Imagine the genocide of a sea level rising 4 inches every century. The horror!

[CE]

Don't worry. The Washington Post assured us that we can pump the rising seawater to the interior of Antarctica with multiple nuclear power plants for refreezing. I thought it might be easier to just raise the sea wall by a foot in coastal cities, if you have a hundred years to work on it.

[Hank Phillips]

Will the penguins pay for it?

[Tom Bombadil]

Let's not bring Pittsburgh into this.

[Rich]

The suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah, was wearing a pipe bomb-type device on his body that detonated, possibly prematurely.

Apparently Ullahu not akbar.

[Citizen X - #6]

One of California's wildfires is now bigger than New York City and Boston combined. So far only one death has been attributed to the fire.

That makes the wildfire far less threatening than New York City or Boston, then.

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

New Year's Eve trip to the wildfire! At least it will be fucking warm, and you can piss anywhere you want.

[Rich]

"Thank God the perpetrator did not achieve his ultimate goals. Thank God our first responders were there so quickly to address the situation," de Blasio said

, offending many Muslims.

[Don't look at me.]

They were able to react faster than the explosion, or are you taking credit for the bombers failure?

[Tom Bombadil]

"Russia starts pulling out of Syria"

But leaves her with a nice pearl necklace.

[Don't look at me.]

Ooh, sorry about the hair. ( not really).

[Citizen X - #6]

The suspect, identified as Akayed Ullah, was wearing a pipe bomb-type device on his body that detonated, possibly prematurely.

Allah may be great, but a lot of his fanbois sure are fucking retarded.

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

You say that but right now they have 72 virgin reason commenters from which to choose from right now.
#blowingshitupforvirginmeat

[Crusty Juggler]

Technical virgins aren't virgins fwiw.

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

A technical virgin is the best kind of virgin.

[Unicorn Abattoir]

So basically everyone here except for STEVE SMITH.

[Zeb]

Anyone see the new (well maybe a year old now) show from David Cross and Bob Odenkirk on Netflix? They had a great bit on representing Mohammed, martyrdom and the promise of virgins that would tie in nicely here.

[BestUsedCarSales]

Yeah. It was an excellent Mr. Show revival, even if they couldn't call it Mr. Show.

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

You joke, but premature detonation is not something to joke about.

[Tom Bombadil]

It's probably true when guys like this claim "this has never happened to me before".

[Rich]

Some women who had previously accused President Donald Trump of sexual misconduct have come forward again to remind folks that they had accused Trump of sexual misconduct.

Come again?

[Crusty Juggler]

He was open-mouth kissing ladies as a greeting, which is hella Alpha.

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

So when Crusyy open-mouth kisses the Alpha is that like the Omega Alpha move?

[Azathoth!!]

Those aren't 'open mouthed' kisses--his lower jaw has just rotted away(it's the syph, y'know/)

[Rich]

For some reason, this is being presented in some news stories as though the military is choosing to defy Trump's wishes

Emphasis added. Nice sarcasm, Scott.

[Crusty Juggler]

The Pentagon will start permitting transgender recruits to enlist beginning at the start of 2018.

Cats and dogs are living together - it's mass hysteria.

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

But enough about Citizen X's house.

[Rich]

So far only one death has been attributed to the fire.

We're not counting trees and wildlife anymore?

[Zeb]

Were we before?

That would be pretty funny to hear the daily tree body-count during fire season.

[CE]

Should at least count horses.

[Tom Bombadil]

They shoot them, don't they?

[Rich]

Putin is ordering a partial pullout of his military forces from Syria, declaring their work there completed.

"You remaining comrades, keep doing your work there."

[Eidde]

Partial pullout? What a tease.

[Eidde]

"The Pentagon will start permitting transgender recruits to enlist beginning at the start of 2018."

I wonder how they'll enforce male-only draft registration?

[Tom Bombadil]

I admit, I would never have guessed that the bigotry of male-only draft registration would be crushed under the weight of 1000's of drag queens. You go, girls.

[Rich]

*** scratches head ***

At the point of a gun?

[Eidde]

"Ladiex and Gnxtlemen of the jury, the indictment says my client is male, but have they *proven* it? Sure, xhe has a dick, but so do plenty of trans women. Remember, it's *their* job to show my client is guilty!"

[Crusty Juggler]

The New Yorker Fires Star Reporter Ryan Lizza Over 'Improper Sexual Conduct'

"The New Yorker recently learned that Ryan Lizza engaged in what we believe was improper sexual conduct. We have reviewed the matter and, as a result, have severed ties with Lizza," a spokesperson for the magazine said. "Due to a request for privacy, we are not commenting further."

Lizza is perhaps best known for inadvertently ending the short-lived White House career of Anthony Scaramucci. When the notoriously chatty then-White House comms director called up Lizza in July 2017, he went on an unhinged rant against Trump administration colleagues?calling Reince Priebus a "fucking paranoid schizophrenic" and derisively referring to Steve Bannon's media-hungry ways as "trying to suck [his] own cock."

[Crusty Juggler]

Lizza was anonymously accused of improper behavior in the secret "Shitty Media Men" list passed around by female journalists earlier this fall.

Every one of these guys who has been accused is kind of a smug douche, so maybe there is a connection?

[damikesc]

Could be. But this idiotic "Why would women lie" nonsense that is popping up again is insanity.

Using the logic of "#Metoo", the Salem Witch Trials were totally legit. Why would girls lie, after all?

[Rich]

Lizza was anonymously accused of improper behavior in the secret "Shitty Media Men" list passed around by female journalists earlier this fall.

Anonymous *and* secret -- Sound like *super* bad behavior.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

Maybe that's what the Mooch meant when he saw Lizza as a brother and confidant.

[sharmota4zeb]

And yet, the doctors who gave left-wingers coloring books to help them cope with Trump winning insist that schizophrenia is just a disease like diabetes is.

[MP]

(Reposting...belongs here anyhow) Glenn Greenwald's Glorious MSM Takedown from Friday

Money Quote: "So continually awful and misleading has this reporting been that even Vladimir Putin's most devoted critics ? such as Russian expatriate Masha Gessen, oppositional Russian journalists, and anti-Kremlin liberal activists in Moscow ? are constantly warning that the U.S. media's unhinged, ignorant, paranoid reporting on Russia is harming their cause in all sorts of ways, in the process destroying the credibility of the U.S. media in the eyes of Putin's opposition"

[Rufus The Monocled]

Read that today.

Awesome.

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

Thanks MP, that is hilarious.

[Crusty Juggler]

People are taking out mortgages to buy bitcoin, says securities regulator

Smart.

[Rufus The Monocled]

Evidently.

Sound.

[Don't look at me.]

BUY FUTURES ON MARGIN WITH GRANDMAS MONEY!

[CE]

California's pension problems: solved!

[MP]

I used my HELOC on Tulips!

[Tom Bombadil]

And those mortgages will be bundled into CDO's and given a AAA rating. What could go wrong?

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

Crusty was an early adopter of cryptohousing.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

The Pentagon will start permitting transgender recruits to enlist beginning at the start of 2018.

Of course, Reason's so blinded by TDS that they're trying to rope the Pentagon into the #Resistance. Contrary to how Scott's presenting this story, there are court orders blocking much of the implementation of Trump's ban.

[Crusty Juggler]

What bad-sex novels can teach us about consent and harrassment

Why even teach novels full of sex? Given all the pressures students already face, why go there, to the uncomfortable terrain of sexual experience?

Good questions. To which I would answer: Fiction shouldn't soothe us; it should make us think, expand our range of feelings and possibly reshape our worldview. Sexual experience does that, and so does reading about sex. A well-written novel can really shake us up. Perhaps the ones I taught my undergraduates can still do that for us.

My gosh I agree with the premise.

[Rich]

To determine how easy it is for a woman to actually say "no," I went around the room asking all my female students to say aloud the word like they mean it. The first time around, none of them could do it. Instead, there were whispers and even some giggles.

Oops.

[Crusty Juggler]

They do seem to need help getting out of pretensies land and into reality.

[Eidde]

"A well-written novel can really shake us up. Perhaps the ones I taught my undergraduates can still do that for us."

I'm guessing that this prof didn't assign any well-written novels.

[Crusty Juggler]

Good fiction died in 1616.

[Eidde]

I think I can take a good guess what you're alluding to...

[Crusty Juggler]

Okay...

[Eidde]

A joke about the King James Bible or the Bible in general?

[Crusty Juggler]

Omg no. Lol.

[Eidde]

It's tamer than your usual joke.

[Eidde]

Well-written novels:

Moby's Dick
A Sale of Two Titties
The Rapes of Grath

[Square = Circle]

A joke about the King James Bible

Oh, Eddie, that would be 1611,
you silly goose!

[Eidde]

It wasn't *my* joke.

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

OMG, WHEN IS CRUSTY GONNA TELL US WHAT HE MEANT???

[mpercy]

Shakespeare died? As did Miguel de Cervantes.

[lap83]

To which I would answer: Fiction shouldn't soothe us; it should make us think, expand our range of feelings and possibly reshape our worldview.

It should lecture us, be a slog to get through and annoying to read.

[CE]

Fiction shouldn't soothe us; it should make us think, expand our range of feelings and possibly reshape our worldview.

Not without a trigger warning it shouldn't!

Every library needs its own safe space, just in case.

[Crusty Juggler]

A millennial must read: Cat Person

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

I wasn't sold until "small log of his erection."

[lap83]

"Um, that won't really work. Because of my roommate?"

I like prose with the uptalk built right in

[Chipper Morning Baculum]

That could never have been written by a guy. Entertaining story.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

She didn't earn tips at the movie theatre, but the job was boring otherwise, and she did think that Robert was cute. Not so cute that she would have, say, gone up to him at a party, but cute enough that she could have drummed up an imaginary crush on him if he'd sat across from her during a dull class?though she was pretty sure that he was out of college, in his mid-twenties at least. He was tall, which she liked, and she could see the edge of a tattoo peeking out from beneath the rolled-up sleeve of his shirt. But he was on the heavy side, his beard was a little too long, and his shoulders slumped forward slightly, as though he were protecting something.

If you're hired by the New Yorker, is it considered a job skill to not get to the fucking point?

[CE]

Yes. Subway rides are long.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

After the movie, he came back to her. "Concession-stand girl, give me your phone number," he said, and, surprising herself, she did.

Thank you. THAT'S how you talk to bitches.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

After being all self-conscious about ordering friggin' Red Vines.

Also, popcorn and Red Vines is now considered weird?

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

"No, I could use a drink, after that movie." Even though it had been playing at the mainstream theatre, the film he'd chosen was a very depressing drama about the Holocaust, so inappropriate for a first date that when he suggested it she said, "Lol r u serious," and he made some joke about how he was sorry that he'd misjudged her taste and he could take her to a romantic comedy instead.

I'm doing my best to skim this for the bullet points, and based on my scan, for once the person writing the article doesn't come off as the tool, but he does.

[Crusty Juggler]

It's not a "must read" or deserving of the attention it is receiving, but it is well-written and pretty good.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

I have a better reaction to it after a few hours. I choose to believe my interpretation is more Sophisticated than what the writer intended.

[BestUsedCarSales]

Was the "Whore" line at the end added to make Robert the bad guy? Or is it supposed to be an understandable thing?

[BestUsedCarSales]

Though I read that article and I all I wonder is, "Is that guy going to be me?"

[BestUsedCarSales]

Man, makes me feel miserable. Every now and again I build up enough confidence to say "BUCS, you're not a worthless piece of shit, there's hope that you'll find someone" but stories like this remind, "Oh wait, I am a worthless piece of shit."

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

Hah. I feel part of that at times, but it will also make me think, "Yeesh, at least I'm not like that."

I own losership, losers.

[Jerryskids]

One of California's wildfires is now bigger than New York City and Boston combined. So far only one death has been attributed to the fire.

Stood on end, it would reach nearly 3% of the way to the moon and it weighs more than 17 Statues of Liberty. It would take nearly the entire population of Des Moines, Iowa holding hands to encircle it.

[Eidde]

...let me guess for what purpose they're encircling a fire? [ziiip]

[Jerryskids]

Just FYI, Boston is like 1/5 the size of NYC and both of them put together are about half the size of Jacksonville, Florida. If you really want to make it sound impressive, give the size of the fire in square feet.

[Eidde]

Hey, they promised there wouldn't be math!

[MarkLastname]

If you're feet are square I'd suggest you see a podiatrist!

[Tom Bombadil]

Your silly.

[Unlabelable MJGreen]

Time-Traveling Hillary Clinton Warns Self To Do Everything In Exact Same Way

HEMPSTEAD, NY?Bursting through the glowing space-time portal backstage just before the first debate of the 2016 presidential election, a frantic time-traveling Hillary Clinton reportedly warned her past self to do everything in the exact same way. "Listen very carefully because we don't have much time: Make sure you do everything that you're already intending to do," said the future Clinton, passionately urging her year-younger self to execute her current campaign strategy precisely as planned. "Now this election is going to have a lot of unpredictable moments, but, no matter what, you must change absolutely nothing?remember, no matter what the end result, you did everything right." At press time, present-day Hillary Clinton was being counseled by 2020 Hillary Clinton on the grave importance of not doing anything differently if she wanted to lose again three years from now.

[Eidde]

This is how comedians criticize Democrats - "OMG you lost an election to a Republican!"

[Square = Circle]

Don't forget "isn't it funny how super awesome you are?!"

[Rich]

"remember, no matter what the end result, you did everything right."

*** facepalm ***

[BestUsedCarSales]

I think that's the joke. That Hillary doesn't learn a thing.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

I see the onion is plagiarizing from Politico now.

[CE]

I thought time-traveling Obama already warned her not to skip that fish fry in Wisconsin.

[TrickyVic (old school)]

""Some women who had previously accused President Donald Trump of sexual misconduct have come forward again to remind folks that they had accused Trump of sexual misconduct.""

Ah, remember the time Trump tried to help remind people about Clinton's accusers. Yeah, no one cared.

[Sigivald]

When will people support common-sense pipe bomb control laws?!

(I mean, "being totally illegal without a tax stamp and background check" can't be enough! Someone still made one!)

[Bacon-Magic glib reasonoid]

You are trying to violate their freedom of Religion. Stop that you fascist.

[Eidde]

Without a tax stamp? So this guy will be charged with tax fraud like Al Capone?

[Zeb]

To seriously answer your joke question: they take home made bombs pretty seriously these days and you get in deep shit if you get caught making a pipe bomb.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

If those laws had been in place when I was a kid, I'd be on the FBI's most wanted list.

[sharmota4zeb]

Yeah, most of my high school friends blew up garbage cans for the fun of it. One of them eventually did it on local television to advertise his science education company.

[Dead inside]

The 75th Golden Globe nominations are out.

And....no one cares!

[Tom Bombadil]

"The 75th Golden Globe nominations are out."

This could be interesting. Between now and the awards night, how many nominees will get outed as sex criminals?

[Zeb]

was wearing a pipe bomb-type device on his body that detonated

I'm going to guess that it actually deflagrated and did not detonate. I doubt he had access to high explosives or the brains to set them off properly. Had it actually detonated, he'd be a lot deader now.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

I'm going to guess that it actually deflagrated and did not detonate.

Even though people in the area felt the ground trembling under their feet? I dunno, man.

[Juice]

Re: the alt text.

Whenever there's a terrorist attack and/or a mass shooting of some sort, the perpetrator's name should never be mentioned. Ever. Their picture should never be shown.

They should be referred to as "the terrorist" or "the shooter" or something along those lines and nothing more. No bios, no history.

I know the news wants to make a story and a narrative out of it, but it can be done without "glorifying" the perpetrator. Every mention of the name, motives, and life story is something the perpetrator wanted and, more importantly, what future perpetrators want.

If someone's planning an attack, they know if they carry it out, they will go down in history and be remembered. They should not have that as an incentive. They should know that if they carry it out, it will be done in anonymity. Nothing about them will be known publicly, or at least not constantly broadcast and discussed.

You can talk about motives and mental health, etc. without naming names and getting too specific about the person.

Please, news people. Get together on your journolists and try to do this as a group. I know it's wishful thinking, but I think it can be done.

[MarkLastname]

Better yet give them all fake names like Faggy McSheepfucker.

[CE]

Exactly.

[Eidde]

Withholding a perp's name like it was the plans for D-Day - and withholding it indefinitely, unlike the plans for D-Day, seems impractical and really only enforceable under a severe censorship regime.

And if the media *do* withhold, it probably won't be on anti-crime grounds, but on "anti-Islamophobia" grounds.

[Azathoth!!]

Allah will know. So it won't work for an Islamic terrorist attack

And that's who they're doing it for. Not 'media coverage' or 'infamy'.

[Diane Reynolds (Paul.)]

None of the injuries are life-threatening.

Not even for Ullah? Man, talk about ineffective.

[Entropy Drehmaschine Void]

Ahhhh, Schlakinfurt Links ...

Way to start off the week with Great Links, Reason.

/Giving Britches the stinkeye ...

[Hank Phillips]

I expected the serial killer in this version of "Even Lambs Have Teeth" to be Trooper Tiller of Seneca. Imagine my disappointment when the girl he had chained in the steel box turned out not to be Solicitor Chrissy Adams. But now that we're stuck with supporting yet another killer, this would be a good time for the LP to take the creepy mercenary plank out of its platform. The political state (rather than this sort of whacko or communist anarchist infiltrators) was designed to enforce the death sentence in defense of individual rights.

[Crusty Juggler]

I completely disagree.

[XM]

Dozens of people almost died today because some wannabe terrorist was triggered by Christmas ornaments.

One of these days someone brighter than this man will build a better bomb and blow himself up. It boggles the mind that half the country thinks sanctuary cities are a good idea. The guy had a green card, but in CA he local cops would have effectively concealed him from the Feds if he was nabbed for something else.

[sharmota4zeb]

Not that I support this plan, but how do you feel about building a wall around California, deporting all illegal aliens to California, and announcing that we will not spend any federal dollars keeping illegal aliens out of California?

[Zeb]

I'm not sure that's how sanctuary cities work.