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JULY 26,  2015

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:46 P.M. ET: 

OCCASIONALLY THE YOUNG DO SOMETHING INTELLIGENT – From the Jerusalem Post:   BERLIN -- A public row over stopping Iran’s nuclear program has caused the youth organization of the second largest opposition party in the Bundestag, The Greens, to criticize its leaders for ignoring Tehran’s threats to Israel’s existence, deteriorating Iranian human rights conditions, and their complicity in preserving Iran’s atomic program. In a public letter to senior Green MPs, youth group Grüne Jugend wrote that the “deal legitimizes an Iranian atomic program without addressing the human rights situation or that [Iran] retract questioning of Israel’s right to exist. It is for us incomprehensible that the Greens, in such a manner, withdraw criticism of the atomic deal.”  There have been disturbing currents in German public opinion recently.  This is refreshing. 

MAJOR ISSUE ADVANCES – From The Hill:   President Obama announced Saturday he is proposing a new ban on the sale of “virtually all ivory across state lines.”  In his first visit to Kenya as president, Obama told reporters that he is planning to crack down on ivory trafficking to protect the country’s wildlife from poachers.  The proposed rule would ban the sale of ivory from African elephants, which have long been targeted by poachers for the U.S. and Asian markets.  There will be some exemptions, as with previous U.S. rules on ivory. Antique items like musical instruments, furniture pieces and firearms that have small amounts of ivory can continue to be sold.  The U.S. remains the second-largest markets for ivory, behind China, despite existing regulations.  I love elephants.  Elephants are friends of mine.  They are guests in my home often.  But I just find it odd that elephants would be a major presidential issue at this moment.  Lame ducks maybe.  But elephants?  Well, here's to the elephants and their survival.

JOB OPENINGS, COMRADES – From the College Fix:   New Jersey union activists are savaging Kean University because its China campus, run jointly with Wenzhou University, is advertising job openings that give preference to Chinese Communist Party members:  “Membership in the Chinese Communist Party is preferred” for the Specialist for Residence Life and Specialist for Student Conduct positions. These positions involve close, daily contact with students. For example, the Specialist for Student Conduct would, according to the job posting, manage the student code of conduct and violation process as well as “student profiles and archives.”...The listings also require applicants to complete an application form that asks them for their “political status” – a practice that “could be found illegal and discriminatory” in the United States, and which raises “serious concerns about the existence of academic freedom at Wenzhou,” the union said.  It said that Kean has informed the local American Federation of Teachers chapter on campus that it’s “actively planning” up to 30 staff layoffs on top of the 12 it cut four years ago.  I'm sure the Obama administration will have no problem with the Chinese employment standards.  After all, who are we to criticize another culture?

July 26, 2015       Permalink

HILLARY'S MESS – AT 12:18 P.M. ET:   Now the phrase "Clinton collapse" is entering the Democratic vocabulary.  From DCWhispers.com:  

Earlier, D.C. Whispers reported on federal investigators’ request to initiate a full CRIMINAL investigation into the Hillary Clinton email scandal due, at least in part, to Mrs. Clinton’s alleged and purposeful destruction of classified material she kept on a private email server. Apparently this development is but one of several now plaguing a Hillary Clinton campaign that has a candidate who often appears “lost, confused, tired, and angry.”

The term “Clinton Collapse” is apparently an increasingly common one these days for those whose job it is to continue insulating their candidate from media scrutiny and try and push Mrs. Clinton across the eventual finish line that is the Democratic Party nomination – no easy task given Clinton herself appears increasingly unstable, politically speaking.

…This past week saw campaign operatives trying to figure out how to break the news to candidate Clinton regarding her sudden drop in several battleground states that show her losing by wide margins to potential rivals like Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, and Scott Walker. When that news was finally delivered, Hillary Clinton is said to have initially brushed it off.

Mere hours later she proceeded to lash out her handlers, and then went on to blame what she perceives to be “unfair media coverage.”

And...

A D.C. Whispers source had this to say regarding Mrs. Clinton’s view of the modern media:

“She doesn’t understand how it works. She still thinks the New York Times is the end-all, be-all regarding media coverage and because they (the Clinton Machine) pretty much control how the Times covers them, she feels she controls her own media destiny and when that doesn’t happen, it infuriates her. She gets very angry very quickly and it’s a particularly aggressive kind of nasty on her part.”

COMMENT:  Just the kind of person we want in the White House.  The problem is, what's the alternative?  The people trying to bring down Clinton aren't looking for a better president.  They're looking for a more left-wing president. 

There is talk of Biden getting in.  And increasing talk of John Kerry or Al Gore. 

There is still time to build that backyard shelter.

July 26, 2015       Permalink

SIGN OF MORE TROUBLE? – AT 11:46 A.M. ET:   One group Hillary is depending on for 2016 is college students.  They're young, they're uninformed, they're idealistic, they have an attention span of four seconds.  Perfect for Hillary.

Trouble is, they aren't showing much interest.  From Campus Reform: 

Emphasizing the importance of Millennial voters in upcoming elections, progressive activists spoke to a nearly empty auditorium at the College Democrats of America annual conference on Friday.

Despite offering a full day of activities, speakers like Julian Castro, and campaigning advice from top political operatives, the College Democrats of America were barely able to fill the first couple rows with young attendees.

The speakers emphasized the important role Millennial voters can play in the political process by getting out the vote, engaging fellow students on campus, and supporting the objectives of the Democratic Party. The conference began July 22 and will end this Saturday.

Donna Brazile, Vice Chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee and frequent television political commentator, began an unscheduled appearance by thanking “all those who work so hard to ensure that all of our young people, all of our College Democrats, are involved, active, and engaged in the national Democratic Party.”

Brazile encouraged the members of the sparse audience to seek public office while pointing to an empty chair on stage.

“I want you to start thinking about filling this seat,” said Brazile, who said she has been active in politics since childhood and looked forward to the contributions of the next generation.

“I didn’t come here with any talking points, I don’t have a speech, I don’t have a candidate yet, but I do have an empty chair,” said Brazile.

COMMENT:  Lots of empty chairs.  Is it possible that young people are actually starting to think?  That would be news.  And it would be news if a large number started considering Republican candidates.  And that is what the Republican Party must aim toward.  Compromise the youth vote and the 2016 election will be much easier to win.

July 26, 2015        Permalink

EXTRAORDINARY – AT 11:07 A.M. ET:  I'm generally not a fan of Ross Douthat, a "conservative" columnist at The New York Times.  Call him "conservatism lite."  The Times, under its current management, would not have a conservative in the spirit of William Safire today. 

And yet Douthat has written, and the Times to its credit has published, the most extraordinary essay on abortion that I've read in recent years.  It will cause trouble.  There will be people who want Douthat to be fired for upsetting their "Sundays in bed with The Times."  Must not upset the New York liberals.  From Douhat: 

IN an essay in his 1976 collection, “Mortal Lessons,” the physician Richard Selzer describes a strange suburban scene. People go outside in the morning in his neighborhood, after the garbage trucks have passed, and find “a foreignness upon the pavement,” a softness underfoot.

Looking down, Selzer first thinks he sees oversize baby birds, then rubber baby dolls, until the realization comes that the street is littered with the tiny, naked, all-too-human bodies of aborted fetuses.

Later, the local hospital director speaks to Selzer, trying to impose order on the grisly scene. It was an accident, of course: The tiny corpses were accidentally “mixed up with the other debris” instead of being incinerated or interred. “It is not an everyday occurrence. Once in a lifetime, he says.”

And Selzer tries to nod along: “Now you see. It is orderly. It is sensible. The world is not mad. This is still a civilized society…

“But just this once, you know it isn’t. You saw, and you know.”

And here is how Douthat ends:

But the reluctance to look closely doesn’t change the truth of what there is to see. Those were dead human beings on Richard Selzer’s street 40 years ago, and these are dead human beings being discussed on video today: Human beings that the nice, idealistic medical personnel at Planned Parenthood have spent their careers crushing, evacuating, and carving up for parts.

The pro-life sting was sweeping; there are reportedly 10 videos to go. You can turn away. But there will be plenty of chances to look, to see, to know.

COMMENT:  No matter where you stand on abortion, and we have both sides represented in our readership, this is required reading.  It may be the most important column you read this year, so please read it all.

July 26,  2015     Permalink

JULY 25,  2015

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:53 P.M. ET: 

BE THERE – From CBS:  DETROIT (WWJ/AP) – A group is planning to unveil an 8-foot-tall bronze statue featuring a goat-headed Satan in Detroit during a gathering that’s being billed as the “largest public satanic ceremony in history.”  The Satanic Temple has said Saturday’s private event will be open only to people with tickets, $25 each. Invitations to “The Unveiling” summoned guests to prepare for “a night of chaos, noise, and debauchery… Come dance with the Devil and experience history in the making.” The event location is not being announced publicly and is known only to those with tickets.  Not worth it.  Chaos, noise, and debauchery are free on MSNBC.

SOCIAL NOTE – From The New York Times:  When it comes to registering for gifts, a generational sea change has developed, with more and more millennial couples asking their guests to consider holding the gravy ladles and shelving the dishes in favor of gifts of a very different sort.  Young couples are opting instead to register for cash, home-repair gift cards and lavish honeymoon experiences.  “It’s a generational thing,” said Nina Vitale, who oversees weddings at the Mirbeau Inn & Spa in Skaneateles, N.Y. “During the past two years, guests have been bringing mostly envelopes, no gifts.” Because so many have moved away from registering for traditional dinner and cookware, she’s jettisoned the gift table and substituted cardholders.  Home-repair gift cards?  How romantic.  "Dear Aunt Frances:  Thanks so much for repairing our dishwasher.  Just what we always wanted."

WARMTH – From USA Today:   Iran's supreme leader tweeted a graphic Saturday that appears to depict President Obama holding a gun to his head as Britain relaxed its travel advice to the nation, citing decreased hostility under the Iranian government.  "US president has said he could knock out Iran’s military. We welcome no war, nor do we initiate any war, but.." reads the caption above the tweet sent by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on @khamenei_ir, his English language account.  I'm just thrilled by Iran's new kindness, its love for America, its reasonableness.  Our gracious president made all this possible.

July 25,  2015     Permalink

WARNING ABOUT MOSCOW – AT 12:32 P.M. ET:  When Mitt Romney warned about this in 2012, he was laughed at.  Russia is on the march, and Field Marshal Obama is dining in Kenya.  From Fox:

Russia seeks to test the United States at every opportunity and divide the NATO alliance, posing the most significant long term threat to US national security, the head of the U.S. Special Operations Command, General Joseph Votel , told the Aspen Security Forum.

"Russia is looking to challenge us wherever they can,” Votel told Fox News’ Catherine Herridge. "The intent is to create a situation where NATO can't continue to thrive."

Votel said he did not have "unique insights" into Russian President Vladimir Putin but he believes Putin sees the expansion of NATO "...as a threat to him and I think what they (Moscow) are attempting to do is create these frozen conflicts and create situations that are very, very difficult to resolve along their border."

That "does, could pose an existential threat," Votel added.

He also said Russia is using a "hybrid approach to warfare" where state and non-state actors are mixing military and non-military capabilities. The result is "a coercive effect...using information operations, using manipulation of media , using social media."

Since January, Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia – three traditional U.S. allies - have completed significant nuclear energy deals with Russia. Asked if this is evidence of Putin's effort to further expand Russia’s reach, and the seeds of a nuclear arms race in the Middle East, Votel replied it was proof of Moscow's push to challenge the U.S. and expand its influence.

Votel said SOCOM is assisting those countries that want to resist Russian influence.

COMMENT:  Wait a minute.  This is nonsense.  Why, we watched Hillary Clinton when she gave the Russian foreign minister a "reset" button, signifying that we were restarting our relations with Moscow on a friendly basis, not like that big, bad man, George Bush, or the even worse Dick Cheney. 

Why does an American general say these bad things about Russia?  I think SOCOM should be run by someone from Code Pink, don't you?

July 25, 2015        Permalink

MYTH OF LIBERAL SUCCESS – AT 11:18 A.M. ET:  We're being told by the mainstream media that liberal social policies are gaining favor all over the United States.  The culture war is over!  Well, not so fast.  Surveys tell a very different story.  From IBD: 

The end of the Supreme Court term was depressing for conservatives. The double-whammy of a 50-state mandate for gay marriage and the upholding of ObamaCare sounded the alarms for religious freedom. All that unease is measurable.

Credit the Washington Post for doing precisely that. The polling team has just reported, "Liberals have won a string of victories on gay marriage and health care reform this year, but a new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds a large majority of Americans are unhappy with where the nation is headed on social issues."

They found 63% of respondents are uncomfortable with the country's overall direction on social issues these days; 41% feel "strongly" uncomfortable about the nation's changes.

The spin coming from the media suggesting there is a national celebration underway is simply false. Indeed, the findings aren't encouraging for Democrats: 51% of racial minorities are uncomfortable with the current tide on social issues, along with two-thirds of women and even 50% of adults under age 30. That doesn't sound like the conventional wisdom about the "right side of history" crushing everything in its path.

The left counts on unelected forces to press its agenda. Hollywood's assembly line of products push the LGBT agenda with so much fervor that polls show Americans think about a quarter of the population is gay, 10 times higher than reality. Judges with their fingers in the wind feel "change" is in the air, and bow to media elite pressure.

But the debate isn't over. On the hot-button issues individually, the nation is divided. "History" is incomplete. It's as fluid as the liberals are on gender. It's true that gays have made significant gains in recent years — but how significant? On the Supreme Court mandate for gay marriage, 52% expressed support and 44% were opposed (51 to 45 among registered voters). The public divides more closely on the Supreme Court ruling for ObamaCare (45% for, 42% against).

Nevertheless, media coverage of these issues lines up dramatically for making and solidifying "change" and lectures that the Republican Party would be suicidal to take a stand against the tsunami of social liberalism. It dovetails perfectly with President Obama's spin. Both willfully ignore polls that suggest otherwise.

A new AP-GfK poll also found less of a social revolution in the polls. The survey found support for gay marriage in America slipped to 42%.  Only 39% backed the Supreme Court decision, 41% were opposed, and 18% didn't take a position. When gay rights were placed alongside religious liberty, 39% said it's more important for the government to protect gay rights, while 56% said protection of religious liberties should take precedence. Support for religious vendors being able to refuse to serve gay marriages climbed seven points to 59%.

COMMENT:  Polling is complex.  I'd want to know the way questions were phrased, and who was polled, but I think the article gets it generally right.  There is no real social revolution underway.  Americans are divided, but I think we are still basically a center-right country.  The young generation may actually turn out to be less liberal than previous generations, in part because of the impact of 9/11, which is still felt.

July 25, 2015       Permalink

CLINTON CASH – AT 10:46 A.M. ET:  Of course, we know this has nothing to do with buying influence.  Why, it's just an effort to help those less fortunate.  Please don't laugh.  From London's Daily Mail: 

Tens of millions of pounds of UK aid money has been siphoned through charities linked to Hillary Clinton, it emerged last night.

British politicians – including Gordon Brown – stand accused of diverting huge amounts of cash through the organisations after falling under the spell of the US presidential candidate and her husband Bill.

At least £50 million of taxpayer-funded foreign aid money has gone to Clinton charities, which are at the centre of allegations in the US that foreign governments used donations to buy influence.

The UK is one of the biggest donors, handing over more than £20 million last year alone to the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), an organisation chaired by former President Bill, 68, and whose board includes the couple's daughter Chelsea, 35. Since 2011, a total of £48.9 million has gone into the coffers of this charity alone.

And...

Philip Davies, the Tory MP for Shipley, said: 'The fact we are spending more and more on aid when we are massively in debt is bad enough, but when it is being tossed away for vanity reasons to ingratiate UK politicians with the rich and powerful in the US … I think most people would find that distasteful and unacceptable.'

COMMENT:  I wonder what favors the royal Clintons granted for this huge amount of British cash.  I also wonder how much good the "Clinton Foundation" actually does.  Some press reporting please...or is the answer too embarrassing?

July 25,  2015     Permalink