SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:57 P.M. ET: 

PASSING – From CNN:  "(CNN) -- For more than two decades, Chester Nez kept silent about his role as one of the original Navajo code talkers responsible for developing an unbreakable code during World War II.
His death Wednesday at his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at age 93 was lamented by the Marine Corps as the end of an era -- for both the country and its armed forces.  'We mourn his passing but honor and celebrate the indomitable spirit and dedication of those Marines who became known as the Navajo code talkers,' the Marines said in a statement.  Nez was the last remaining of the original 29 Navajos recruited by the Marine Corps to develop the legendary code that was used for vital communications during battle."  The enemy never broke the code.

BIZARRE – From the Washington Free Beacon:  "Some of Hillary Clinton’s closest aides blasted the New York Times for what they said was unfair coverage of the former first lady during a recent secret meeting with the paper’s Washington bureau, the Washington Free Beacon has learned.  Sources said the meeting included Clinton advisers Philippe Reines and Huma Abedin, as well as Times Washington bureau chief Carolyn Ryan and national political reporter Amy Chozick, who has been on the Clinton beat for the paper.  During the closed-door gathering, Clinton aides reportedly griped about the paper’s coverage of the potential 2016 candidate, arguing that Clinton has left public office and not be subjected to harsh scrutiny, according to a source familiar with the discussions."  Whaa?  She shouldn't be subjected to harsh scrutiny?  Really?  What Clinton apparently wants is the Obama treatment of 2008:  no serious questions asked.  She will certainly get that from some "journalists."  But others may have learned their lesson from the Obama disaster. 

AFTER FIVE YEARS OF OBAMA – From CNN:  "The American Dream is impossible to achieve in this country.  So say nearly 6 in 10 people who responded to CNNMoney's American Dream Poll, conducted by ORC International. They feel the dream -- however they define it -- is out of reach.  Young adults, age 18 to 34, are most likely to feel the dream is unattainable, with 63% saying it's impossible. This age group has suffered in the wake of the Great Recession, finding it hard to get good jobs.  Younger Americans are a cause of great concern. Many respondents said they are worried about the next generation's ability to prosper."  Another part of the Obama legacy.  And yet the young screamed for him in 2008.  He was Barack, come to save us.  He's saved no one.

THE MARCH OF SCIENCE – Would you trust energy policy in these hands?  From the Washington Times:  "An official on the Environmental Protection Agency’s hydraulic fracturing scientific advisory board got a doctorate degree from an unaccredited, shuttered online correspondence school that congressional auditors targeted a decade ago in an investigation into diploma mills.  The advisory board member is listed as Dr. Connie Schreppel in EPA records, which highlight her doctorate from Kennedy Western University and a master’s from Greenwich University.  Both schools are unaccredited or unapproved in several states, including Texas, where it’s a misdemeanor crime to cite a degree from either school in seeking a job or a promotion."  You'd think they could get someone with solid, unquestioned credentials.  But who are we to question the culture of the diploma-mill community?

June 4,  2014