Snark of the Day: Mother Jones

The feminist movement, it seems, has not just brought women opportunities to live more like men, but also to die like them

Mother Jones.

Bonus.  Original story: David Brown, Washington Post. Sober albeit a wee bit wry commentary, Walter, Just One Minute.   Asinine commentary:   America Blog.

JERUSALEM —Washington Times-  Hamas said yesterday it was prepared to accept a Palestinian state within 1967 borders, but contradicted a statement by former President Jimmy Carter that it would accept Israel’s right to exist if that was the will of the Palestinian people.

Uh-oh… Trouble in Peanut land.  Add this to the list of Jimmy Carter’s OTHER foreign policy successes. Which were… ummm.. Hmmm. Well, I’ll have to get back to you on that one.

I say once again, why isn’t Jimmy Carter wearing dayglow orange horzontal stripes?

Mrs. Clinton appeared on Poutdown with Keith Olberman.  So question, which one, the interviewer or the interviewee, was the sane one?   Allah Pundit, Hot Air, links to the video.   Ben Smith has a partial transcript.

The problem for Mrs. Cinton’s threat is that it is simply not credible.  Oh sure, Mrs. Clinton would be more than willing to nuke Iran, but only if their check to the Clinton libary bounced.   With the Clintons, everything, from the Lincoln bedroom to national security, is always for sale.

Answer:  Neither.

Quick, name me a terrorist who isn’t Islamic

You can’t.

Nor can I.

But check Hume, last night:

A coalition of American Muslim groups is demanding that presumptive Republican nominee John McCain stop using the word “Islamic” to describe terrorists. The Washington Times reports Islamic Society of North America’s secretary general wants McCain to use something he calls “more acceptable to the Muslim community.”

“You want to call them terrorist criminals, fine. But adding the word ‘Muslim’ or ‘Islamic’ certainly doesn’t help our cause as Americans… It paints an entire community of believers, 1.2 billion in total, in a very negative way.”

But McCain strategist Steve Schmidt says there will be no changes. “The reality is, the hateful ideology which underpins bin Ladenism is properly described as radical Islamic extremism. Senator McCain refers to it that way because that is what it is.”

Exactly so. In fact, in the world of just now, we can’t even NAME a terrorist who isn’t flying the flag of Islam. Here it is, Gang; You’ve got a problem with the image being portrayed of Islam just now because of your religion constantly getting tangled with terrorism?  Fine. Actually I’m sympathetic. But there’s only one way out of being associated with terrorism. Have the courage to stand up and denounce them, shout down their image of Islam, and be willing to fight against them… physically, if needs be.  It’s your religion they’re messing with, not ours. It is thereby your problem, more than ours.

As you may or may not know, today is officially “Earth Day”.

What you likley don’t know is that NBC and the WSJ sponsored a poll, the results of which are encouraging; Only around 4% of Americans think that “Global warming’ should be at the top of the list of concerns for the Federal government. Yes, I know, those are actually troubling numbers that the 4% is so high, but given the state of things I’ll take it.

I note that Global warming has become such a problem that Earth Day festivities outside Edmunton, Alberta, had to be moved indoors because of the snow. A blizzard, actually of about 15-20cm. Kinda hard to sell global warming,  I guess,  when both sets of cheeks are turning blue.  One wonders how much in the way of Fossil Fuel had to be burned to keep the tent they moved into, warm enough to preach about global warming.   But, you see, they call it ‘ Climate change’ now, because that way it’s an all-purpose complaint. Doesn’t matter if you’re up past your belt loops in snow. You can still blame it on man, and imply guilt, no matter WHAT the weather.

Your first indication that the ‘crisis’ is a sham is when the conditions change, and contradict the original premise, and yet the movement simply carries on, still playing the guilt trip angle.

At the bottom line, spare me the “Earth Day” nonsense. The whole thing is designed as a guilt trip.  I will not be attending. Rather, I think I’ll go for a drive in the country, in my Luxury SUV.

Addendum:  (David L)

Associate the word eviromentallist with watermelon.   To wit, green on the outsdie, but red on the inside.   In the spirit of watermelons David Bueche, American Thinker, puts up a great essay for Eaerth Day:

The world has been warming since approximately 1650 when it reached its latest low and almost dipped into a modern Ice Age. This episode is well-recorded and notable for its misery as crop yields declined, economic activity contracted, and people were generally extremely cold. On the lighter side… you could ice skate on the Thames. But all in all, not a good trend…

As I define it, a religon is any belief system based on faith.  Thus, anthropogenic global warming is a religon   Don’t impose your religoin on me.  On the other paw, global warming is just an obsserved fact.

James Joyner, this morning:

Glenn Reynolds links, with praise, to an article about Hillary Clinton claiming that she would go to war with Iran if they attacked Israel.

Clinton further displayed tough talk in an interview airing on “Good Morning America” Tuesday. ABC News’ Chris Cuomo asked Clinton what she would do if Iran attacked Israel with nuclear weapons.”I want the Iranians to know that if I’m the president, we will attack Iran,” Clinton said. “In the next 10 years, during which they might foolishly consider launching an attack on Israel, we would be able to totally obliterate them.”

It is, of course, a good thing from time to time to remind folks that an attack on one of our allies is something that we would retaliate against. To that extent, I have no issue with what Clinton said.

Still, one thing that I think bears mentioning is that the tone of her response is a little too aggressive for my taste, considering that Clinton isn’t talking about retaliating against an attack on the United States, but rather Israel. For one thing, I’m a little disappointed that Clinton didn’t take GMA to task for the premise of the question. Namely, the fact that Iran doesn’t actually possess any nuclear weapons to attack Israel with.

Secondly, I find it a little problematic that Clinton offered an unequivocal commitment to “obliterate” Iran in the event that Iran attacked Israel. What if Israel attacked Iran first? Would we back them unequivocally then? No matter what the cause or reason for Israel’s attack?

I’m not sure I share James’ concerns with her aggressive tone. First of all, the aggression seems called for, given Iran. Anything less than a “Hands off, or you’re molten glass’ will be taken as an open invitation. Well, it would be worthwhile with anyone but Clinton, which is the second point. Can we trust her NOT to toss caveats in once things start rolling? I think we all know better than that.

As usual, Clinton has concerns other than the stated, for playing the line she is… such as mollifying the Jewish vote, who has until now, had no reason other than Barrack Obama, to vote for Hillary Clinton. Of course, they might, with a little strain, be forced to remember that she’s a known pathological liar, and that thereby her statements are to be taken with a shaker of salt.

And there’s the rub; The Iranians know this, too.

If I’m a Democrat and a Jew, I’m going to think long and hard before pulling the lever for either Democrat. for that reason.

The Democrats, you see, have a long an undistinguished history of empty rhetoric on Israel, that in the end, nobody pays any attention to here in the states, much less in the world at large. Take for example her statements as regards “Standing with Israel against Terrorism”, from her website, posted last fall sometime:

“Hillary Clinton believes that Israel’s right to exist in safety as a Jewish state, with defensible borders and an undivided Jerusalem as its capital, secure from violence and terrorism, must never be questioned.”

Note, please, the phrase “an undivided Jerusalem as its capital”. While this seems a rather hard line, nobody here in the states even noticed it. Also unmarked is the idea that this position matches AIPAC’s position on the matter, word for word. I guess they were too involved in watching her fellow Democrats like Jimmy Carter, auctioning off that “undivided Jerusalem ” to the highest bidding Palestinian terrorist group, to notice. Or, perhaps, we’re just so used to seeing Hillary Clinton play to the PACs, telling them what they want to hear, that it’s just par for the course. Or, perhaps the reason nobody noticed it we’re sick to death of having to parse everything she says, anymore.

• Yeah, full moon, tonight. And no, I don’t mean the guy with his butt hanging out the window of the Yugo to your left.  It’s been a weird day, already.
• Your first clue, Billy, should have been when the two responsible for the bill are two of the more questionable critters Congress has ever produced. there’s a good deal of questions about the integrity of the one, and the sanity of the other, and the usefulness of them both.
• Perhaps it’s time we get over Mitch Daniels. And perhaps it’s time for him to get over himself?
• Look, Neal,blaming the Saudis isn’t solving the issue, nor is it even correct. As I said in these spaces the other day, we already have more cude, and more gasoline stockpiled, than we have in the last 15 years. The current situation is NOT, I repeat, NOT being driving by shortage.  That’s the most remarkable thing about this whole gasoline price debacle… it’s not following the laws of supply and demand.  Still, your points about drilling here at home are valid… and guess who prevented us from doing THAT? IN any event, I still say we’re due for a major price correction… down… by midsummer. And has anyone noticed what Soros is doing with his buying and selling in oil of late?
• So, Obama is now saying that McCain would be better than Bush? Well, gee, THERE’S an endorsement for you. I mean, hey, Barrack, your campaign isn’t being driven by BDS, by chance, is it?  This is a point that Bruce touches on today, as well.
• Even Joe Klein notes, though, that both Obama and Clinton have gone to pure pandering. I told you months ago, that what this was going to come down to was how much OPM*could be spent, and that this was going to get to the point where even the leftists in the MSM would notice. Klein, no tool of the right, he, just confrmed my point for me.
• Clinton’s polling edge is still expanding in PA. Drudge was running a siren at about 11am that said Clinton’s internal polliing was showing an 11 point lead over Obama.  I doubt that there is any way this race could get uglier for the Democrat party. Personally, I’m going to stock up on the popcorn. Oh… and Yes, Josh Marshall, I do expect that really is what her internals are showing. it’s their accuracy that seems at issue. What you and many other Clinton watchers fail to understand is, that this whole thing is abuot control… and one major thing about poeple who like to be in control is their being attracted to their own braggadocio. People who love being in control, and Hillary and her followers are certainly in that club…  can never stop bragging about themselves, though they’ll call it ‘creating their own destiny’, and other such nonsense.  Josh seems concerned that Hillary clinton might actually BE 11 points ahead. I wouldn’t worry.  Thing is, anything less than a 20-25 point swing isn’t going to change anything, and even that may not be enough.  And she’s not even close to doing that well. Remember also that Cinton’s campaign has a history of internally inflaing it’s own numbers.. Mark Penn, or no.  So, she’s not going to get anything out of this. She is, however, doing a pretty fair job of broadsiding Obama, which will have it’s uses as the summer progresses.
• Oh, speaking of Bruce, he also touches on the SBVT thing, and how the Democrats are trying to subvert the meaning of words to swing opinion.  Nothing new, but it is more blatant than usual.
• So, Jimmy Carter says Hamas is willing to accept Israel as it’s neighbor? In what alternate universe, Jimmah? How many ‘peace’ deals have these thugs signed onto in the past and not kept their end of the bargain?  Sorry… they’re just not credible. Nor, are you.
• Did you see wher PETA is attacking Al Gore? Far be it from me to defend Al Gore, but I think I should break those steaks out of the freezer tonight.
• Speaking of which, a great weekend. Middle 70’s and sunshine. We went out to one of the locak wildlife reserves to catch some herons on film, (Well, OK, into flash memory) …caught a few trains on the way home for the boys, and just enjoyed the sunshine. Got the SUV cleaned up, and it’s looking fiiiinnnnneee.  Got 24 to the gallon on the round trip. Not so shabby for a ~300hp , ~5000lb SUV. Gotta put a coat of wax on it this week, I think. Re-aquainted myself with the idea that pollen makes my black truck look green, this time of year. The Pollen makes it look like the Grave Digger, or something…. black with that greenish tinge.
• Enjoyed filling in over at The Conservative Reader. We’ll have to have Art fill in here for our vacations, too.
• Speaking of Art, he makes an excellent point about the seperation of what we supposedly beleive, vs what we actually DO. I don’t think we can aver that this is not the result of an effort by secularists to seperate ourselves from our values.
• Sure, Jon, I think you’re right;I wonder a bit if you don’t over-estimate their ability to change minds, which is what one presumes such mechanisms are for, in the end.. As an example, have they helped solve the debacle of Obama vs Clinton?  If they can’t use these new communications effectively in their internal squabbles, (and have demonstrably been unable to change minds within the party, with people who supposedly are already friendly to the basics of leftist politics) …are we really going to see them being that much more effective with the general electorate than they’ve been in the past several cycles? It seems doubtful, at best. In any event, the best they can do is reinforce the mindset of the already dedicated leftists. But it’s not going to affect anyone else. But as I say, they’re not even doing that.

* OPM=Other People’s Money

Remember: Traffic lights that are timed for 35MPH work just as well at 70

Curses another nefarious plot uncovered and foiled. The liberal intellects over at the Puffiington Post and unearthed yet another white male plot to oppress all women, snotty Hollywood screen writers.

Nora Ephron, Puffington Post exposes her greatest fear, white males:

Here’s another thing I don’t like about this primary: now that there are only two Democratic candidates, it’s suddenly horribly absolutely crystal-clear that this is an election about gender and race. This may have always been true, but weeks ago it wasn’t so obvious — once upon a time there were eight candidates, and although six of them withered away, their presence in the campaign managed to obscure things. Even around the time of Ohio, when there were primarily three candidates, the outlines were murky, because Edwards was still in there, picking up votes from all sectors

Ephron has discovered that we white males are the crucial undecided all powerful swing vote.   That is we, unwashed, unkempt and uncivilized mere males will decide that fate of the nation.   Little does Ephron realize, and how can she, a mere woman, that we monolithic males have already set our price.   We males will support whichever candidate will agree to submit all snotty Hollywood screen writers into a polygamous cult.

The next President will surely face many problems.  However the whining of Hollywood screen writers will not be one of them.

Hat tip photo:  Daily Mail (UK)

Ex and disgraced President Jimmy Carter is reported to have said that Hamas, a terrorist organization, would accept the right of the State of Israel to exists, if a peace acgreement were negotiated and approved.

JERUSALEM (CNN) — Former President Jimmy Carter said Monday that Hamas is prepared to accept peace with Israel if the Palestinians approve any agreement negotiated with Israel

Carter’s comments came after controversial meetings Friday and Saturday in Damascus, Syria, with exiled militant Hamas leader Khalid Meshaal

Granted what Carter said was interesting and would be newsworhty if it were but true.   However Carter is a dupe   There is little likelyhood that Hamas said anything close to what Carter has attributed to them.   In fact, Hamas has alaeady refuted what Carter said, Karin Laub, Associated Press

Carter said Hamas officials, including Mashaal, agreed to this in a written statement.

“Let me read exactly what they accepted verbatim. This is their language: ‘If President Abbas succeeds in negotiating a final status agreement with Israel, Hamas will accept the decision made by the Palestinian people and their will in a referendum monitored by international observers … even if Hamas is opposed to the agreement,'” Carter said.

But Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri in Gaza said Hamas’ readiness to put a peace deal to a referendum “does not mean that Hamas is going to accept the result of the referendum.”

Both Carter and Hamas can not be telling the truth.   So which one do you believe?   As for me, I believe Hamas. 

Hat tip photo:  Kitty Litter.

Addendum I: 

Michelle Malkin thinks that Carter merely being a “Mailman for Hamas”

Jimmy Carter is touting his Hamas-hugging accomplishments. The jihadi do-badders have generously allowed kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit to write a letter to his parents, which Carter has gallantly volunteered to deliver it. Shalit’s father responded appropriately by deriding Carter as a postman for Hamas.

What a tool.

Gee, Michelle is that tool, or just fool?  Tools supposed to have some useful purpose,

Addendum II:

Let us pour salt in to poor Carter’s wound, Fox News:

JERUSALEM – Just hours after former President Jimmy Carter trumpeted Hamas’ agreement to let Israel “live as a neighbor,” the same terrorist leader he met with face-to-face vowed not to recognize the Jewish state.

The State Department would be doing Carter a favor, if it revoked his passport.

?

John Engler in today’s WSJ:

It is amazing how some presidential candidates are blaming the North American Free Trade Agreement for U.S. job losses. They seem to believe that a substantial part of the three million manufacturing jobs lost since 2000 resulted from Nafta, and that outsourcing of manufacturing production to Mexico and Canada resulted in a huge trade deficit.

Too bad they don’t know that the growth in the deficit isn’t due to manufactured goods, but to oil and gas imports.

There is no question that the imbalance of trade within Nafta has soared since 2000. That deficit has almost doubled to nearly $140 billion in 2007, from $77 billion in 2000. But the deficit in manufactured goods did not displace U.S. factory production.

What the antitrade advocates have been hiding from the candidates (or maybe don’t know themselves) is that almost all of the increase in our Nafta deficit since 2000 has been in increased U.S. imports of energy from Canada and Mexico. In fact, $58 billion of the $62 billion increase in our Nafta deficit has been in energy imports. That’s 95% of the total increase.

Except for energy, though, our trade deficit within Nafta has hardly grown at all – only $3.5 billion from 2000-2007. Our agricultural and manufactured goods sales to Nafta countries have just about kept pace with our imports. That’s a lot more than one can say about the rest of our foreign trade.

Quite correct. So not only does this blow away the anti-free trade arguments being put forward by the left… and particularly by both Obama and Clinton… this also points the fickle finger of blame for the trade deficit directly the the major source of the problem… The Democrats… who have continually prevented us from drilling for oil and gas here in the US

Isn’t it time we as a nation stopped taking the advce of the Demorats on these issues?

Uh-oh. CNN has a small problem, this morning. The NZ Herald… not CNN, of course… is reporting:

One of CNN’s star journalists is allegedly embroiled in a bizarre tale of ‘drugs ‘n’ debauchery’.

Richard Quest, a CNN anchor and personality was arrested on Friday for drug possession, amongst other things…

Quest, 46, best-known for his work as CNN’s business travel specialist and his eponymously-titled show Quest, was arrested in New York’s Central Park with methamphetamine in his pocket.

Initial reports indicated he had been arrested for loitering and violating the park’s curfew.

Quest was busted around 3:40am when police found him and another man inside the park near 64th street, sources say.

The park is normally closed between 1 am and 6 am.

But there’s more to this scandal than meets the eye.

The New York Post is reporting that Quest not only had drugs in his pocket, he also had a rope around his neck that was tied to his genitals.

Aside from the strategically placed rope, the newspaper also reports that a police search uncovered a sex toy inside the boot of his car.

And here’s the punch line…

The Post (with nary a whiff of irony) says “It wasn’t immediately clear what the rope was for.”

I’d draw you a diagram, but my editor would most likely castrate me.

Ummmm…
Yeah.

Sounds like the only thing missing was the gerbil, who is at this moment likely scurrying around Central Park wondering what the strange guy was all about.

According to reports I’m seeing Quest is already off the hook, legally, assuming he actually attends the court ordered six months of drug counseling sessions. But that does leave us with no info about the other man that Quest was arrested with, and what happens to him.

As to his gig at CNN, well, nobody knows, yet… or at least CNN isn’t saying. Not that anyone will miss the ‘reports’ he gave, unless you really needed to understand the inner workings of showers in airport lounges… once he manages to free himself from same… (How DOES the business travel guru get lost in the shower, anyway?)

Quest’s lawyer reportedly told the court Quest, well traveled man that he is, didn’t realize that Central Park had a curfew, and was simply returning to the hotel with some friends. No word on the question of where, exactly, he’d MET these friends. Inside the park roars to mind, but that would be speculation, now wouldn’t it? Might also explain the rope. (Shrug)

It kinda makes you wonder what the warning signs were on this one that got missed. Like for example, someone MIGHT have noted an on-air delivery that reminds one of a stressed out auctioneer with a hearing problem, who is on Crystal Meth, and whose facial expressions and wild arm waving are remote controlled by someone not listening to the dialog, maybe?

I mean how could anyone think that someone who makes Sky News’ Neal Sean look calm (another train wreck in the making, that Sean , had something wrong with him?

I guess that would be, like, judgmental, huh?

Well, at least now, he has the higher profile he was always seeking. And CNN gets lots of people talking about them, for the first time in years.

(Edited for flow, Bit. Also, when originally posted, We misspelled Neal Sean’s name. No, we werent talking about the guitarist. Sorry ’bout that.)

BAGHDAD —FOX- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice mocked anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr as a coward on Sunday, hours after the radical leader threatened to declare war unless U.S. and Iraqi forces end a military crackdown on his followers.

Rice, in the Iraqi capital to tout security gains and what she calls an emerging political consensus, said al-Sadr is content to issue threats and edicts from the safety of Iran, where he is studying. Al-Sadr heads an unruly militia that was the main target of an Iraqi government assault in the oil-rich city of Basra last month, and his future role as a spoiler is an open question.

About time someone treated the thing they way he deserves to be treated. Sometimes, ya see, the best way out of a bad situation is to speak the plain truth. The guy is a thug, and a coward, as most thugs are.

The democrat race boils down to the this.  Mrs Clinton is a habitual liar, and Barack Obama(BO) is a lie.  You have to wonder what some of the voters are smoking in Pennsylvania, David Lightman, McClatchy Newspapers:

NANTICOKE, Pa. – This old mining town, like much of the rest of Pennsylvania, has two kinds of Democratic voters: traditionalists like Mary Lou Pomicter and boat-rockers like Amanda Carannante.

Pomicter, 52, likes Hillary Clinton. “I just don’t know Barack Obama’s mind-set,” the deli owner said, “but I know Clinton’s.”

Carannante, 30, helps run a pizza restaurant. “I like Hillary, but I appreciate how Obama will not take lobbying money. He can really change things,” she said

What’s with the ‘rats claiming to be agents of change? Mrs. Clinton once tried to change health care.  She failed miserably.   Whereas BO has never even attempted to change anything.   In contrast John McCain has change he has attempted, comprehensive immigration reform, b.k.a. amnesty, and failed and change he as attempted and passed, Campaign Finance Reform, b.k.a. McCain-Feingold.

In fact, there is no evidence that either Mrs. Clinton or BO can affect change.

?

[Mrs. Clinton] has always been a policy wonk, a functionary attuned to bureaucratic process, but she has never shown executive ability, which makes her quest for the presidency problematic. Hillary’s disastrous botching of national healthcare reform in 1993 (a project to which her husband rashly appointed her) will live in infamy. Obama may also have limited executive experience, but he has no comparable stain on his record

Camille Paglia, Telegraph(UK)