Year: 2011

A Christian Virgin in Hollywood?

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Sixteen-year-old Courtney Alexis Stodden, pictured above, is said to be an aspiring singer, but no one had ever heard of her until she married 51-year-old actor Doug Hutchison:

“We’re aware that our vast age difference is extremely controversial,” the couple told E! News in a statement released by their spokesperson. “But we’re very much in love and want to get the message out there that true love can be ageless.”
Stodden’s mother gave parental consent so the two could wed in Las Vegas.
“We are totally supportive of this marriage,” Krista Stodden told RadarOnline.com. “Doug is a wonderful man and we love him.”
She added, ““Courtney was a virgin when she married Doug. She is a good Christian girl.”

Oh, my goodness. The teen bride’s mom vouches for her prenuptial virginity and Christian faith? What could be less fashionable — indeed, what could be more politically incorrect — than a Christian virgin in Hollywood?

Civil Rights and ‘Elevator Eyes’

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“Elevator Eyes: When someone looks another person up and down, giving their eyes the resemblance of elevators.”
— Urban Dictionary

Michael Barone explains that the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights sent a 19-page letter to colleges and universities in April:

The OCR letter includes a requirement that universities adopt a “preponderance of the evidence” standard of proof for deciding cases of sexual harassment and sexual assault. In other words, in every case of alleged sexual harassment or sexual assault, a disciplinary board must decide on the basis of more likely than not.
That’s far short of the requirement in criminal law that charges must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. And these disciplinary proceedings sometimes involve charges that could also be criminal, as in cases of alleged rape.
But more often they involve alleged offenses defined in vague terms and depending often on subjective factors. [Foundation for Individual Rights in Education president Greg] Lukianoff notes that campus definitions of sexual harassment include “humor and jokes about sex in general that make someone feel uncomfortable” (University of California at Berkeley), “unwelcome sexual flirtations and inappropriate put-downs of individual persons or classes of people” (Iowa State University) or “elevator eyes” (Murray State University in Kentucky).

Wait a minute! We’re talking about college students. If young people on our nation’s university campuses aren’t permitted to tell “jokes about sex” or engage in “sexual flirtations” without risk of a federal civil-rights action, who among us is safe?

This Department of Education letter — a seeming threat to deploy Federal Flirting Police — was, in fact, a belated reaction to last October’s incident at Yale University, where fraternity pledges undergoing initiation were made to chant rude things about rape. The offensive fraternity (of which both President Bushes are alumni) was suspended for five years, but not before the feds announced an investigation of Yale. And part of the government’s response was to issue this 19-page letter (sent to all universities) imposing the “preponderance of evidence” rule.

Note that this was undertaken by the department’s Office of Civil Rights, showing how the term “civil rights” has been hijacked. Continue reading Civil Rights and ‘Elevator Eyes’ →

Ladd’s Ad Gets Results

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And by “results,” I don’t mean merely a cease-and-desist letter from a lawyer for the Los Angeles County Democratic Party. No, as I report at The American Spectator:

Tuesday, the National Republican Congressional Committee debuted a new “Hahn Got Me Out” Web site telling 36th District voters: “Janice Hahn helped steer taxpayer money to support violent, inner-city criminals who mocked police officers and were involved in breaking the law — including assault, rape, drug possession, and home invasions.”
On Twitter, the TRUSA PAC ad’s director claimed victory. “My ad is working. … Welcome to [the] bandwagon, boys,” Ehlinger wrote, adding later: “I woke up the sleeping elephant.”

Meanwhile, the “Give Us Your Money, Bitch” ad is nearing 600,000 views.

UPDATE: Death threats?

PREVIOUSLY:

Film Noir and the Femme Fatale

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For the second consecutive night, insomnia struck and I found myself watching the 1952 film noir classic Angel Face. This RKO release had it all — produced by Howard Hughes, directed by Otto Preminger, screenplay by Ben Hecht — and the dynamite starring duo of Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons.

Film buffs can argue over the merits of various actors, but for my money no one beats Robert Mitchum as the classic noir protagonist. He’s just got that jaded, cynical tough-guy thing down cold. And what’s a film noir thriller without a dangerous dame?

As the stepdaughter heiress Diane Tremayne, Jean Simmons provides just the right mix of alluring innocence and evil obsession. Not as sexy as Jane Russell (who starred opposite Mitchum in such noir classics as His Kind of Woman and Macao), Simmons nonetheless has a certain doll-faced beauty that works perfectly in this role. And what a role it is! Perhaps someone more thoroughly familiar with the noir genre can name a more purely evil female character, but certainly Diane Tremayne is one of the most wicked femme fatales of all time.

Given the success of Against All Odds, the 1984 remake of the 1947 noir thriller Out of the Past, I’d suggest that someone in Hollywood should consider the possibility of remaking Angel Face — and considering the film’s shocker ending, maybe get M. Night Shyamalan to direct it. You could call the remake Don’t Let That Crazy Bitch Drive!  Here’s the original trailer:

LIVE AT FIVE – 06.22.11

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TOP NEWS
Mexican Police Arrest Head Of La Familia Drug Cartel

Jose Mendez Vargas, a/k/a El Chango

Captured in Aguascalientes without confrontation or casualties; major blow to cartels, claims President Calderon





Former Utah Governor Joins 2012 GOP Presidential Race
Promises a civil campaign

Obama Weighs Options On Troop Withdrawal
Three scenarios

Midwest Storms Strand Travelers
Hundreds of flights canceled, commuter rail passengers stranded for hours by thunderstorms and high winds



POLITICS
Feds Nab 2400 Illegals In Sting Operation

ICE Director John Morton

Usual suspects predictably butthurt

Mass. House Speaker Touts Transparency, Holds Gambling Hearings Behind Closed Doors



Leon Panetta Confirmed As Defense Secretary

Botched Budget Means No Pay For California Lawmakers

Indiana Elections Chief Fights Voter Fraud Allegations

Illegal Shot And Killed After Threatening Agent With Concrete Slab



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Euro Down Vs. Dollar, Yen As Greek Debt Concerns Persist
JP Morgan Knew MBS Portfolio Had Losses
Japan, Australian Shares Up As Greek PM Survives Confidence Vote
Yahoo Approaches Hulu About Possible Acquisition
Oil Falls Below $94 After Mixed US Supply Report
Walgreens, Express Scripts Split
Apple’s Rebuilt Final Cut Pro Hits App Store For $300
Despite Arrest, LulzSec Sails On
Microsoft Makes SkyDrive Storage Faster, Cleaner
Five Good Reasons To Download Firefox 5



SPORTS
Mounting Bills Give NFL Owners Incentive To Deal

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell

Owners running out of time, money after unexpected failure to prevail in court

NBA Owners’ New Cap Deal Fails To Satisfy Players

Rangers’ Moreland Ends Thriller With Sayonara Homer In 11th Inning

Red Sox Go Belly Up In Loss To Padres

NCAA Charges UNC Football With Nine Infractions




Serena Williams Lets Tears Flow After First-Round Wimbledon Win

College World Series: Cocks On Record Run

Mavericks’ Cuban Interested In Dodgers

Cubs Can’t Sustain Offense In 3-2 Loss To White Sox

Mariners Stunned As Nats Rally For Five In Ninth, Win 6-5



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Roger Ebert Backs Off “Unseemly” Tweet About Dunn’s Death

"Jackass" star Ryan Dunn, RIP

Former movie critic catches flak for intemperate tweet
Other victim in crash newly married SEAL, Iraq War vet

Pitt Kids Meet Brad’s Zombie Co-Stars



“Lost”‘s Terry O’Quinn Joins “Hawaii 5-o” Cast

Britney Takes Page From Rihanna’s Book, Gives Audience Member A Lap Dance

Megan Fox Joins Sacha Baron Cohen’s “The Dictator”

Jon Hamm Locks Into “Mad Men” For Three More Years, Eight Figures

Rikers Island Visitors Issued T-Shirts To Cover Up The Skankiness



FOREIGNERS
Australia Imposes Sanctions On Syria
Marching Season In Belfast Kicks Off With Second Night Of Sectarian Rioting
Ban Ki-Moon Unanimously Elected For Second Term As Secretary-General
India, Pakistan Aim To Nudge Peace Process Forward
Kiwis Celebrate Penguin’s Happy Feat



BLOGS & STUFF
Troglopundit: Gingrich Loses More Staff, Mindless Speculation To Follow
Daily Caller: Huntsman Begins Campaign By Misspelling Own Name
American Digest: Laughing AT Him, Not WITH Him
Allahpundit: Surprise! ObamaCare Will Extend Medicaid To Three Million Middle-Class People
Atlas Shrugs: The Apple Of Jihad’s Eye
PJ Tatler: The Libertarians Are Coming! The Libertarians Are Coming!
Kevin Williamson: Five Points In Rick Perry’s Favor
Walter Russell Mead: Blue State Schools, The Shame Of A Nation
Watts Up With That?: Al Gore Branches Out Into Population Control Theory
iOwnTheWorld.com: “Allahu Akbar”

— compiled by Wombat-socho

Science Gone Wrong

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Instapundit’s enthusiasm for all things scientific leads him to write this headline:

MORE WOMEN ARE freezing their eggs
to make babies later. Makes sense.

Well, excuse me for disagreeing. It is a preposterously stupid idea to encourage women deliberately to postpone first-time motherhood until they are middle-aged, without concern for the obvious arguments against such a decision.

For a woman to have her first (and most likely only) child at age 45 — to do this deliberately, as I say — is to ensure that her child grows up with an elderly mother, one who will be in her 60s when her child is a teenager. And it is quite likely that, should this child eventually become a parent, that child’s grandmother will already be in the grave. You are almost guaranteeing a sundering of direct cultural continuity between generations.

It is one thing, I say, when such things happen by luck or accident or fate (call it what you will), but it is another thing to pursue this preposterously unnatural course of action deliberately, with the aid and encouragement of science. And I wish Professor Reynolds, whose admiration of science extends also to science fiction, would keep in mind how often sci-fi offers dystopian warnings about well-intentioned Science Gone Wrong.

We are just now seeing how “scientific” intervention on the other side of the procreative ledger has brought unintended consequences, and perhaps we ought to consider whether it is time for a return to making babies The Good Old-Fashioned Way.

IYKWIMATIYD.


Bombshell Headlines With Jane Russell

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After my wee-hours insomniac rendezvous with Anna Maria Alberghetti, I slept past noon and woke up to discover that Turner Classic Movies is having a Jane Russell marathon in recognition of the late bombshell’s birthday. The film was His Kind of Woman, a 1951 noir thriller that pairs Russell with Robert Mitchum and also features Vincent Price, Raymond Burr and Jim Backus.

Between my disrupted sleep schedule and my fascination with classic beauties from the Golden Age of Hollywood, however, I’ve fallen behind on the news, and thought I’d better catch up:

  • New York Times: John McCain and John Kerry introduce a bipartisan resolution to legalize Obama’s Illegal War™ in Libya.
  • Conservatives for Palin: Buy your tickets now for the July 15 theater debut of the Palin documentary, The Undefeated.
  • Associated Press: Newt Gingrich’s top fundraisers quit, saying the Republican’s presidential campaign is more than $1 million in debt already. We’ll know more when the second-quarter FEC reports are released next month, but I wonder if Newt will still be an active candidate by then.
  • Human Events:  First it was Joe Camel, now it’s Tony the Tiger.
  • Ed Driscoll: Kiddie movie targets Big Oil?
  • Gallup: Obama’s popularity plunging?
  • Piece of Work in Progress: Summer’s here, and it’s snowing in Colorado. I blame global warming.
  • Moe Lane: Roger Ebert, Ryan Dunn and Westboro Baptist Church? Yeah, there’s your trifecta.
  • ABC News: Some guy named Huntsman declared his candidacy for 2012. A friend called to get my reaction, which I summarized in four words: Charlie Crist for President. Huntsman’s challenging Romney for the RINO vote. Good luck with that.
  • American Power: Jon Stewart is a bitter, angry man. Let’s face it, he’s a slightly funnier Bill Maher — and it would be impossible to be less funny than Bill Maher.
  • Associated Press: Worst housing market EVAH!
  • Instapundit: A physics professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University has been arrested in New Mexico for running a prostitution Web site that connected some 200 hookers with 1,200 johns. And he says he did it as a “hobby.” Here I am trying desperately to monetize my blog, and this guy’s pimping hookers online for fun. You should hit my tip jar, just for consolation.

OK, so you’re caught up with the latest news and, if you’ll excuse me now, TCM’s showing Jane Russell in The Young Widow (1946) and you wouldn’t want me to keep Jane waiting, would you?