The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

LIVE AT FIVE: 02.05.14

Posted on | February 5, 2014 | Comments Off on LIVE AT FIVE: 02.05.14

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
CBO: Obamacare Will Push 2 Million Workers Out Of The Job Market

Approved!
(with apologies to Mike Williamson)

White House argues reduction in work force is a good thing

Turkish Deputy PM: Progress In Talks With Israel
Still no agreement on weregild for Turks killed in Mavi Marmara incident


Russia Has Had About Enough Of Your Free Speech Bullshit
With political protests banned from Olympics, Russia plans to block dissidents from attending even as spectators



POLITICS
After Three Years Of Talks, Farm Bill Finally Passes

An Illinois farmer walks along his cornfield

Most of $100 billion/year budget allocated to food stamps; bill ends direct subsidies to farmers in favor of crop insurance

Alaska To Vote On Legalizing Pot


NY State Delays Common Core Tests

Boehner: Immigration Still Iffy For 2014

Obama Forgot To Consult DOJ Before Claiming No Corruption At IRS

Navy Opens Investigation Into Reactor Training Cheating

Texas Exonerated More Inmates In 2013 Than Any Other State

S&P Cuts Puerto Rico Bond Ratings To Junk



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
America’s Polar Vortex Pumps Up Asian Crude: NYMEX $97.59, Brent $105.88
Microsoft Gets Style Shift As Nadella Replaces Ballmer
JPMorgan To Pay $614 Million Fine In Mortgage Fraud Cases
Wall Street Bounces Back As Bargain Hunters Move In
Asian Stocks Higher On Modest Rebound In Japan
WSJ: Radio Shack To Close 500 Stores
Microsoft Buys $15 Million Stake In Foursquare
OpenDaylight Debuts Hydrogen Open-Source SDN Platform
Apple, Microsoft, Mobile Carriers Pony Up For Obama’s School Broadband Plan
Evernote Adds Descriptive Search With Filters And “Everyday Language” To Mac App
Satellite Hotspot Will Leave No Stone Unturned To Get You Wifi



SPORTS
Boozer & The Bulls Bounce Back

Carlos Boozer shoots over the Suns’ Channing Frye

Bulls defuse Suns explosive offense in 101-92 win; stops Phoenix’ win streak at five


Thorburn Lifts Jets To 2-1 Win Over Canes

Journalists Find Incomplete Hotels, Other Unpleasantries In Sochi

Nash Returns, But Lakers Lose To Timbermutts Anyway

Bourque Helps Habs Shut Down Flames


Pacers End Streak Of Losses In Atlanta At Twelve

Sens Edge Blues In Shootout

#8 Kansas Shakes Off Sluggish Start To Beat Baylor

Iginla, Lucic Lead Bruins To 3-1 Win Against Canucks

#18 Kentucky Tops Mississippi 80-64

Thomas Makes 20 Saves As Lightning Down Leafs

Ex-NBA Star McGrady Tries His Hand At Baseball

Nationals Still Interested In Oliver Perez



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Taylor Swift’s Dating Tips

“I would repeat all the same mistakes”

Glamour’s March cover girl dishes on the one thing she won’t do in relationships


NYPD Arrests Four In Hoffman Death

The Paltrow Affair

George Zimmerman To Take On Rapper DMX In The Boxing Ring

Katy Perry Blows Thousands On Strippers After The Super Bowl


Baba Wawa Defends Woody Allen

“He Was Sleeping With Half The Women In Hollywood”

George Clooney On The Epic Battle To Make “Monuments Men”

Netflix Renews “House Of Cards” For Season Three

Candice Patton Cast In CW Pilot “The Flash”

Gwen Stefani Calls Herself “Chunky” In 1983 Photo, Gets Slammed For “Body Shaming”

Jenelle Evans Of “Teen Mom 2” Pregnant With Second Boy



FOREIGNERS
US Reportedly Curtails Drone Strikes In Pakistan
Russia Says Syria Will Ship More Chemical Weapons For Disposal
Rival Koreas Discuss Resuming Family Reunions
Libya Says Qaddafi Regime’s Chemical Weapons All Destroyed
Rwanda Genocide Trial Opens In Paris
Thai Opposition Seeks Annulment Of Election, Disbanding Of Ruling Party
Suicide Bomber In Peshawar Hotel Kills Nine
Scottish Parliament Votes To Allow Gay Marriages
EU Corruption Draining 100 Billion Pounds/Year From European Economy
New Afghan Law Protects Abusers Of Women
Turkish PM Erdogan Campaigns At Berlin’s Tempodrom



BLOGS & STUFF
First Street Journal: Another One Bites The Dust
Blackmailers Don’t Shoot: Atlantic – Philip Seymour Hoffman Died Because We’re Not Canada
Doug Powers: CBO Revises Estimates On Obamacare Again – It’s Going To Be As Big A Disaster As Opponents Warned
Twitchy: Josh Barro Unloads On “Anti-Intellectual” US Conservatives; “Hicks” Fire Back
Chicks On The Right: Honoring America In An American School May Offend Non-Americans, Just FYI
American Power: LBCC Tiered Tuition Scam Makes Front Page Of LA Times
American Thinker: GOP Amnesty – The Final Last Straw
Blackfive: The End Of American Exceptionalism?
The Necropolitan Sentinel: Obamacare Watch – Consultants Say Obamacare Is Affordable…If You Ignore All Those Other Costs
Conservatives4Palin: Governor Palin Thanks Rep. Gosar For Standing Up For Everyday Americans
Don Surber: Daily Scoreboard, February 4
Jammie Wearing Fools: Woman Who Can’t Afford Own Birth Control Scrapes Up Money For Congressional Run
Joe For America: Ohio Late Term Abortion Clinic To Remain Open Despite Not Meeting Standards
JustOneMinute: Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Pedophile
Pat Dollard: Ryan, Gowdy In Secret Amnesty Talks With Chuck Schumer
Protein Wisdom: Electability, Respectability, Realism
Shot In The Dark: Caucasus Night
The Jawa Report: Heartache – Taliban Going Bankrupt As Wealthy Saudi Donors Send All Their Cash to Syria
The Lonely Conservative: National Debt Grew $6.666 Trillion During Obama’s Presidency
This Ain’t Hell: Obama Says GI Bill Is Welfare
Megan McArdle: Learning From Iraq, Katrina, And Other Policy Disasters


Category: Live at Five

‘The Court Should Dismiss … With Prejudice in Favor of All Defendants’

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 26 Comments

The title quote is from John Hoge’s Reply to Plaintiff’s Oppositions in the federal RICO lawsuit Kimberlin v. the Universe, et al. Hoge is proceeding pro se — acting as his own lawyer against Brett Kimberlin, who is doing the same — and it’s interesting to contrast Kimberlin’s accusations with Hoge’s defenses, knowing that the burden of proof is on the plaintiff. Hoge today posted Kimberlin’s opposition, which begins with this exercise in verbose gesturing:

Nary a day goes by without Defendant Hoge falsely accusing Plaintiff of some sort of crime or malfeasance, if not in a court filing then on his blog. This harassment has been ongoing for the past two years, and it goes to the heart of Plaintiff’s Complaint, that this pattern of defamatory intimidation and constant “threats of doom” are being done to retaliate and chill Plaintiff’s right to redress.

This is just nonsense. What, pray tell, is “defamatory intimdiation,” and how is Hoge — a defendant in two separate lawsuits filed by Kimberlin — acting to “retaliate,” simply by arguing his case?

Kimberlin seems upset that the defendant is defending himself!

Kimberlin has been neither defamed nor harassed by Hoge, but the Plaintiff evidently hopes that repeating these allegations will impose his beliefs on a federal judge. It’s the Jedi Mind Trick Theory of Law, and amusing to watch, knowing that Kimberlin’s RICO complaint is a gigantic wad of legally flawed fact-deficient gibberish.

So Hoge has replied to Kimberlin’s opposition, and I’m sure he’ll want to discuss that on his own blog — to retaliate by defamatory intimidation and chill! — but I hope my co-defendant doesn’t mind if I quote a few of his pro se sentences:

Plaintiff has attempted to remedy the deficiencies in his Amended Complaint by alleging new “facts” and new bases for his claims . . . but that should be done in an Amended Complaint. If Plaintiff wishes to amend his Complaint a second time, he should seek the Court’s leave to do so. In the meantime, the Court should disregard Plaintiff’s new allegations until they are properly presented in a new Amended Complaint. . . . Defendant Hoge opposes allowing a second Amended Complaint. The various Defendants’ Motions and Replies have pointed out facts not alleged and legal points improperly raised. Plaintiff’s ongoing demonstrations of bad faith strongly suggest the likelihood of his using another Amended Complaint as an opportunity to fill in those blanks with false information. The Court should dismiss the instant suit with prejudice in favor of all Defendants.

What Hoge is saying is that Kimberlin — whose complaint is a carnival of errors — should not be permitted to benefit from the defendants having pointed out the holes in his complaint.

The complaint is fatally flawed and Kimberlin, having compounded his errors through his “ongoing demonstrations of bad faith,” deserves to lose. But I suppose it’s “harassment” to say this.

UPDATE: Mirabile dictu! Hoge has now posted the entirety of his Reply to Plaintiff’s Oppositions, so you can read it all there.

 



 

 

Category: The Kimberlin Files

Whose Children Are They?

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 42 Comments

Tell you what: How about me and Harvard University Professor Paul Reville go on one of those tacky tabloid TV talk shows where they DNA test children? I’ll bet $100 — no, make it $1 million — that Professor Paul Reville is not the father of any of my children, no matter what he has been telling his liberal buddies:

Paul Reville, the former secretary of education for Massachusetts, recently said “the children belong to all of us” at a panel discussion at the Center for American Progress when discussing those who oppose Common Core.
“To be sure, there’s always a small voice — and I think these voices get amplified in the midst of these arguments — of people who were never in favor of standards in the first place and never wanted to have any kind of testing or accountability and those voices get amplified,” Reville said, according to CNS News.
Reville’s language is reminiscent of MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry in April of last year, when she said, “We have to break through that private idea that kids belong to their parents . . . kids belong to whole communities.”

Leave my children out of your plans. Damned liberal weirdos abort all their babies and then think they can tell us how to raise our kids.

 


Category: Education

Failure Is Not a Public-Relations Problem: The Brutal Economics of ObamaCare

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 11 Comments

“Obama: Anatomy of a World Leader,” by Alex Gray (detail)

The Congressional Budget Office report about the economic impact of ObamaCare is out, and it paints an ugly picture. The Hill:

The new healthcare law will slow economic growth over the next decade, costing the nation about 2.5 million jobs and contributing to a $1 trillion increase in projected deficits, the Congressional Budget Office said in a report released Tuesday.

The Washington Post:

The Affordable Care Act will reduce the number of full-time workers by more than 2 million in coming years, congressional budget analysts said Tuesday in the most detailed analysis of the law’s impact on jobs.

ObamaCare is a disaster in pretty much exactly the same ways that Republican opponents of the bill predicted four years ago, although it’s also been a disaster in ways that even its harshest opponents did not predict. The problem for Obama, Democrats and their media allies is that they have treated the failure of ObamaCare as a matter of public-relations, as if the reality of failure could be concealed by a P.R. blitz claiming that it was actually a success. But the laws of economics can’t be changed by wishful thinking or political spin, and the failure of ObamaCare is a matter of basic economics.

 

 


Category: Barack Obama, Economics, Health Care

#BlogBash Nominations Are Open

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 16 Comments

Wow, time flies: The annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is now barely a month away — it convenes March 6 at National Harbor near Washington, D.C. — which means it’s time for you to nominate your favorite blogs for the Blog Bash Awards.

In case you don’t know it, Blog Bash is the hottest ticket at CPAC. The whole buzz about New Media means that a lot of people who aren’t bloggers are eager to hang out with bloggers, so inevitably there is a crunch where (a) the need to make sure that all the actual bloggers are admitted intersects with (b) the ticket requests by VIPs and sponsors, and (c) fire code capacity of the venue. The Blog Bash committee has lots of headaches to deal with every year, but managing The RSVP List From Hell is arguably the worst of it.

OK, so the awards nominations: Last year, I won the Best Investigative Post award for “‘A Faint Whiff of Vigilante Hysteria’: Weinergate’s Kimberlin Connection.” In a sense, that June 2012 post was representative of the weeks I spent covering the Brett Kimberlin saga, but it was also my best one-stop effort to explain how all the pieces of that complex story fit together:

Kimberlin has been targeting Patterico since October 2010, and it was evidently [Neal] Rauhauser’s anti-Patterico blogging that brought him into Kimberlin’s orbit so that, by October 2011, Rauhauser seemed to be describing Kimberlin as his client.
As Investors Business Daily reporter David Hogberg observed at Aaron Walker’s hearing [May 29, 2012], Rauhauser is now accompanying convicted felon Brett Kimberlin to court.
Another coincidence: What do “SWATting” victims Patterico and Mike Stack have in common, other than the fact that, as Patterico himself notes, Rauhauser hates their guts?
Is Rauhauser being paid by Brett Kimberlin — with proceeds from tax-exempt non-profits — to pursue these vendettas? . . .

You can read the whole thing, just in case you forgot what kind of craziness Kimberlin and Rauhauser unleashed in 2011-2012. Notice that I was asking questions, rather than making accusations.

To this day, we still have not learned the details of the relationship between Kimberlin and Rauhauser, details that I suspect would explain a lot of what still remains mysterious.

Also, notice the use of the word “evidently” and the phrase “seemed to be.” You think I don’t understand libel law? There is a vast difference between (a) accusing someone of wrongdoing and (b) describing a reasonable interpretation of facts that anyone may observe. If there was some other explanation of the observable facts, it would behoove Kimberlin and Rauhauser to supply that explanation, rather than suing those who have reported and commented on the facts. But I digress . . .

Blog Bash award nominations are open, and this year, I would hope to be considered for my efforts in beating back the “Free Kate” movement in their attempt to create a “lesbian loophole” in Florida’s age-of-consent laws. When I first became aware of the Kaitlyn Hunt story on May 22, it seemed the Gay Victimhood Narrative was on the verge of prevailing. Mainstream media were lavishing sympathetic coverage on the accused sex offender, who was supported both by the ACLU and by Florida’s largest gay rights group. Yet key elements of the “Free Kate” narrative were false, and I took alarm at what appeared to be a sneaky attempt to use Kaitlyn Hunt as the photogenic poster girl for what Rush Limbaugh had called a movement to “normalize pedophilia.”

Less than five months later, however, Kaitlyn Hunt took a plea bargain and was sentenced to jail. This wasn’t the result of “investigative journalism,” I don’t think, but look at the criteria in the category of “Best Activism Post”:

Nominate a blog post that fostered significant activism — be it calls to Congress, people in the street, boots on the ground, etc.

Hmmm. Could the collective pushback against the “Free Kate” narrative be described as “significant activism”? If so, I think a lot of people would say I “fostered” the hell out of it, between my blogging here and my reporting at Viral Read. Indeed, I “fostered” it so well the Free Kate freaks threatened to “shut down” my blog! (Why does the Left so routinely resort to “shutuppery”?)

All right, if you want me to be recognized for that “activism,” which blog post out of the many should you nominate?

May 25, 2013: Aggravating Circumstances: Against the #FreeKate Campaign for Sexual Anarchy

That was the fourth day (and the sixth post) of my coverage of the Kaitlyn Hunt story, in which I tried to make clear (a) how the facts of the case explained why Florida prosecutors were not willing to reduce Hunt’s felony charges to misdemeanors; and (b) why citizens should be alarmed by the misleading arguments made by Hunt’s supporters in the “Free Kate” movement:

People who care about America’s future should be angry about this case and, personally, I’m so angry I’m starting to get angry at other people for not being angry about it.
If we can’t draw the line here, folks, there is no hope at all.
Supporters of Kaitlyn Ashley Hunt are making flawed and dangerous arguments which, if we don’t argue back against them, could subvert the rule of law and bring about a culture of sexual anarchy, where school children are violated and corrupted “consensually” and parents have no legal recourse to prevent such outrageous behavior.
Are judges and prosecutors in Indian River County, Florida, reading this blog? Are the citizens of Florida reading it? Are readers concerned about the direction of our culture sharing these arguments on your Facebook pages and via e-mail with your friends?
“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Will you let it be said that you did nothing?

Read the whole thing, and if you agree that was worthwhile blog “activism,” please nominate me for a Blog Bash Award.

 

Category: CPAC

Could Jamie Casino Find ‘A Smidgen’ Of Corruption At The IRS?

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 10 Comments

by Smitty

Via Brietbart and Instapundit, we may have found just the guy who can help our poor, beleaguered, yet supremely self-assured Rodeo Clown-in-Chief. Clearly, #OccupyResoluteDesk needs help to track down that non-existent smidgen of corruption so dreadful in its purely fanciful form that it caused Lois Lerner to take the 5th.

This blog sees a Chief Executive in a jam, and raises the call to get that man some assistance sorting all this. Say, an electoral tsunami on the first Tuesday in November.

 

Category: Barack Obama

LIVE AT FIVE: 02.04.14

Posted on | February 4, 2014 | 8 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
Tech Firms Reveal Secret US Demands For Data

File photo shows server racks at a Google data center; Agent Smith not shown :v

Google, Facebook, others reveal data requested by secret FISA court


Christie Reiterates: No Role In Lane Closures
Acknowledges federal subpoena during radio show



Israelis Take Kerry’s Boycott Remarks As Threat
Strategic Affairs Ministers Sheinitz: “Israel will not negotiate with a gun to its head.”



POLITICS
Fractures Emerge Between Obama, Congressional Democrats

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is opposed to President Obama’s prime trade initiative

Senate Democrats also want Keystone pipeline approved as they eye the 2014 elections


Senator Hatch Rebukes IRS Over Reinstatement Of 2013 Performance Bonuses



Auditors Say VA Lacks Control Over Its Own Data, Leaks Could Result

Recruiting Fraud, Kickback Scandal Rock Army

Treasury Secretary Asks For Bipartisan Approach To Debt Ceiling

Farm Bill Survives Test Vote In Senate, Faces Heavy Criticism

Democrats Introduce Bill To Temporarily Fix Net Neutrality



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Asian Crude Drops On Weak Manufacturing Data From US, PRC: NYMEX $96.64, Brent $105.98
Asian Shares Extend Rout As Shares Slide In Japan
Chattanooga VW Plant Vote Will Settle Union Question
Suspected Data Breach At Holiday Inn, Marriott Hotels
Layoffs Expected At Disney Interactive
Trader Joe’s Bails On NE Portland Store
CEO Of iOS News App “Paper” Tells Facebook To Stop Using Their Name
Google Chromecast SDK Lets App Developers Supersize Their Apps For TV
Facebook Turns Ten, But Are Its Days Numbered?
Sprint Brings Push-To-Talk To More Android Devices
Apple Building Its Own Content Delivery Network?



SPORTS
Cooney Scores 33 As #1 Syracuse Tops Notre Dame

Trevor Cooney carries the Orange offense

No other Syracuse player reached double figures

Hendricks Lifts Oilers To 3-2 Win Over Sabres

Griffin Scores 36, Clippers Fall To Nuggets Anyway

Red Wings Shut Out Canucks In Tortorella’s Return

Nyets Hold Off Sixers 108-102, Snap Three-Game Skid

Pens Edge Sens 2-1

Mets Sign Kyle Farnsworth To Minor-League Deal

Avalanche Bury Devils With Third Period Rally, Early OT Shot

Mavs Rout Cavs 124-107

#6 Villanova Rolls To 20th Win

Fister Avoids Arbitration, Signs For One Year, $7.2 Million



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Laura Prepon Returning For “Orange Is The New Black” Second Season

Well, most of it.

Creator Jenji Kohan says series moving to more of an ensemble cast


Taylor Swift Bumrushed By Obsessed Fan At London Concert

Miley Cyrus Doesn’t Care What You Think

Justin Bieber Sex Tape Shocker


“Teen Wolf” Books Dylan Sprayberry For Season Four

Prosecutor Wants Chris Smith Jailed Now

Fremantle Media To Adapt “American Gods” As Dramatic Series

Warner Brothers Already Working On Sequel To “The Lego Movie”

Kevin, Danielle Jonas Welcome Baby Daughter



FOREIGNERS
Ireland Must Do More To Tackle Corruption, EU Warns
Student With Rifles Kills Two In Standoff At Moscow School
Al-Qaeda Breaks Ties With Syrian Affiliate
Mandela’s $4 Million Estate To Be Split Among Family And Trusts
Thai Opposition Challenges Ballots In Court
Susan Rice Blasts Israel For Criticizing Kerry
Knox Judge Faces Allegations Of Impropriety
Syrian Air Strikes Kill At Least 18 In Aleppo
More Than 50 Jihadis Killed In Iraq’s Anbar Province
Saudi King Decrees Punishment For Jihadis
US, EU Officials Push For Ukraine Aid Package



BLOGS & STUFF
Blackmailers Don’t Shoot: Anyone Remember Heroin Chic?
Doug Powers: Obama Tells O’Reilly Administration Scandals Keep Surfacing Because Fox News Keeps Reporting Them
Twitchy: “Dana Loesch Is My Hero” Conservative Superstar Totally Kills It On The View
American Power: Montreal Woman Dies After Hijab Caught In Escalator
American Thinker: Why Gays Have So Much Influence Over Our Culture
Blackfive: ROTC Cadet Spit On At Phoenix Open
Blackmailers Don’t Shoot: Jesse Myerson Doubles Down On Stupidity
The Necropolitan Sentinel: Obamacare Watch – Exchange Screwup? Sucks To Be You.
Conservatives 4Palin: Sarah Palin – “Please Remember Prayers For Chris Kyle’s Family”
Don Surber: Daily Scoreboard, February 3
Jammie Wearing Fools: Another Obamacare Success Story – Sick Kids Denied Specialty Care In Washington
Joe For America: Donations To Karl Rove’s Groups Drop 98% After Targeting Tea Party
JustOneMinute: Woody Allen
Pat Dollard: Muslim Arrested For Arson Attack On Gay Nightclub Was Also State Department “Cultural Ambassador”
Protein Wisdom: Suddenly Serious Topic – Is The GOP On A Suicide Mission?
Shot In The Dark: Grandma Bea
The Jawa Report: Sandra Fluke Contemplates Run For Congress
The Lonely Conservative: Common Core Panelist – “The Children Belong To All Of Us”
This Ain’t Hell: To Karzai, Taliban Are “Brothers”, Americans Are “Rivals”
Megan McArdle: Obamacare Wonks Flunk Data Analysis


Category: Live at Five

Lesbian Teacher Could Face Life Sentence for Molesting Two Girls in California

Posted on | February 3, 2014 | 96 Comments

Andrea Michelle Cardosa, 40, was arrested Monday in Riverside County, California, and charged with 16 felony counts after two former students accused her of sexually molesting them. One of the victims, Jamie Carrillo, made headlines last month when she posted a YouTube video of a phone conversation in which she confronted the teacher she said began having sex with her when she was only 12:

Carrillo, now 28, titled the video “A call to my childhood rapist teacher.”
“I was only 12 years old when I met you. Do you realize that you brainwashed me and you manipulated me and that what you did was wrong?” Carrillo said in the video.
“Yes. And I regret it. I only — I just wanted to help you,” Cardosa responded.
“How is having a sexual relationship with a 12-year-old student helping?” Carrillo said.

Prosecutors say Cardosa’s molestation of Carrillo “took place between 1997 and 2001, when the victim was in middle school and high school.” After Carillo went public with her accusations, a second victim, now 18, came forward to say she “was allegedly abused [by Cardosa] while she was in high school in Perris in 2009 or 2010.” For some reason, news accounts about this case don’t describe Cardosa as a lesbian.

“You ruined my life. You ruined my childhood. Do you realize that?”

UPDATE: “Former Teacher Andrea Michelle Cardosa Arrested: Faces Sex Crimes Charges After YouTube Video Allegations.”

 

Category: Crime, Education, Gays, Sex
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