The Other McCain

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

David Welch, Snake for Hire

Posted on | December 6, 2012 | 19 Comments

In May 2010, during Michael Steele’s chairmanship of the Republican National Committee, research director Jeff Berkowitz resigned and was replaced by David Welch, a 30-something operative who had previously worked on John McCain’s presidential campaigns and for the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Welch lasted about a year at the RNC gig and used his “former research director” status earlier this week to get himself published by the New York Times denouncing the Tea Party movement:

By loudly espousing extreme rhetoric, yet holding untenable beliefs, they have run virtually unchallenged by the Republican leadership, aided by irresponsible radio talk-show hosts and right-wing pundits. While the Tea Party grew, respected moderate voices in the party were further pushed toward extinction. Republicans need a Buckley to bring us back.

A familiar sort of lament, by someone whose view of Buckley was almost certainly cribbed from books about Buckley rather than from books by Buckley. You meet a lot of these “Cliff Notes Buckley” types nowadays, and it is to be doubted that any of them have ever read Up From Liberalism. much less McCarthy and His Enemies.

The Cliff Noters know Buckley the Historic Icon more than anything else. The one thing they all know about him is that Buckley purged the Birchers, so that whenever any of them wishes to purge those noxious espousers of “extreme rhetoric” — by which they mean Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Mark Levin and any other conservative with a syndicated column, a successful radio show, a best-selling book and/or a Fox News contract — you can be sure they’ll invoke Buckley’s Bircher purge as their historic authority.

So the details of David Welch’s critique are less important than the overall theme, and then there is the matter of tone:

It basically comes down to respect. Do you respect the people with whom you have disagreements? If you respect them, you may disagree with a particular position [or] idea, but you do not disapprove of them personally.
Once you cross that line — showing disrespect for the right, and disapproval verging on loathing for the right — I cannot credit you as being “a maverick within the conservative movement” or whatever other crap title you might want in your CNN chyron. . . . Once you cross that line, you’re not a reformer or internal critic; you’re simply on the other side. . . .
I support no-fault divorces. But what I can’t support is what I’m guessing comes next . . . His claim to not be divorced at all, but a loving and devoted spouse, who just happens to keep stabbing the conservative movement in the face and neck.

That’s Ace of Spades and you should read the whole thing. If we need a Buckley-type figure to purge extremists, I hereby nominate Ace for the duty, so long as he promises never to purge me.

 

Category: Republicans, Tea Party

Unexpectedly: Unemployment Increases!

Posted on | December 6, 2012 | 21 Comments

Can we endure four more years of this?

U.S. unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, was 7.8% for the month of November, up significantly from 7.0% for October. Gallup’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is 8.3%, nearly a one-point increase over October’s rate.

Ed Morrissey comments:

The economy is shedding jobs at roughly the same rate as we’ve seen for [the past 18 months], and it’s not generating jobs quickly enough to give those workers enough options other than unemployment.

Given the continuing misery, why did Americans re-elect Obama? Jeff Goldstein at Protein Wisdom has a few thoughts on that subject. Speaking of economic hardship, Jeff is rattling the tip jar as an alternative to seeking shelter with “an extended family of self-sufficient pioneer types.”

It’s already overcrowded here — all these city slickers running from the revenuers, and Lindsay Lohan is likely to show up any minute now — so readers probably ought to go hit Jeff’s tip jar.

 


Category: Economics

Deadly Chaos in Egypt

Posted on | December 6, 2012 | 9 Comments

How’s that “Arab Spring” working out for ya?

Five people were killed and hundreds wounded in violent clashes between supporters and opponents of Egypt’s President Mohammed Morsi that raged for several hours into early Thursday morning.
Angry mobs battled each other with Molotov cocktails, rocks and sticks outside the presidential palace complex.

Via Ed Morrissey at Hot Air, who provides this NBC News video:

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Category: Egypt

LIVE AT FIVE: 12.06.12

Posted on | December 6, 2012 | 3 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
TurboTax Timmy Says Administration “Absolutely” Willing To Go Over Fiscal Cliff

President Obama blowing smoke up ventral orifices at the Business Roundtable

White House adamant that the top tax rate must be raised


Syrian Loyalists Load Nerve Agent Into Bombs
Military awaiting Assad’s order


Software Pioneer John McAfee Arrested In Guatemala
Held for illegal entry; will be extradited to Belize



POLITICS
Speaker Has Strong Backing From House GOP

Speaker Boehner speaks to reporters after a caucus meeting

Republicans close ranks around the Speaker

Midnight Party As Pot, Gay Marriage Become Legal In Washington State
Will state’s congressional delegation defend the state’s pot law?

Illegal Immigration Drops After A Decade Of Increases

Fox News Puts Karl Rove On The Bench

CT, NY, NJ Governors Agree: Obama’s $50 Billion Disaster Recovery Bid Not Enough

Former Texas Congressman Jack Brooks Dies, 89



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Oil Prices Slump On Slack Demand, Fiscal Cliff Concerns: NYMEX $87.72, Brent $108.72
Foreclosure Sales Fall In Q3 Compared To Last Year
Citigroup To Cut 11,000 Jobs, Take $1 Billion Charge
Stocks Rise On Obama’s Optimistic Remarks
Charities Unite To Defend Deduction
Mortgage Deduction Popular, But Few Claim It
Sandy And Fiscal Cliff Play Havoc With Jobs Numbers
Deal Reached To End California Port Strike (Video)
Apple v. Samsung Verdict Reconsidered In Court
Apple Falls As Nokia Wins China Mobile Deal
Instagram Change Blocks Pix From Displaying Correctly On Twitter
iPad Mini Demand Outstrips Supply, But iMac Sales Weak
“Call Of Duty: Black Ops II” Passes $1 Billion In Sales In Just 15 Days
UN Summit Votes To Support Internet Eavesdropping
Virginia Crime Commission Pushes For Tougher Penalties On Texting Drivers
Verizon Loses Bid To Quash FCC Roaming Rules



SPORTS
Kobe Bryant Youngest To 30K Points

Kobe Bryant

Also, Lakers beat Hornets 103-87

NHL Continues Late Night Labor Talks

Garnett, Celtics Beat Timbermutts 104-94

Knicks Barely Edge Bobcats In “Warmup” Game, 100-98

Jets Stick With Sanchez – For This Sunday, Anyway

Dan Haren Signs With Nationals, Sean Burnett Signs With Angels



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Jazz Giant Dave Brubeck Dies, 91

Dave Brubeck, 1920-2012, RIP

Dead of heart failure; led the only racially-integrated jazz combo in the Armed Forces during WW2

Brandi Glanville Slams LeAnn Rimes As Stepmom

Kate Middleton’s Hospital Falls For Prank Phone Call

Kate Hudson Planning A Surprise Wedding

Gabriel Aubry Started Thanksgiving Fight, But Won’t Be Prosecuted

Susan Luckey Dead At 74; Actress In “The Music Man”

Stephen Tobolowsky Out, B.J. Novak To Guest On “The Mindy Project”

Pregnant Jessica Simpson’s Weight Watchers Deal May Be In Jeopardy

Disney Springs For Johnny Depp-Produced Don Quixote Pitch

Miranda Kerr Reveals Her Grandma’s Tips For Keeping Husband Orlando Bloom Happy



FOREIGNERS
Four Killed, Over 350 Wounded As Muslim Brotherhood Clashes With Anti-Morsi Protesters
350 Dead, 400 Missing After Typhoon Hits Philippines
Drone Kills Three Suspected Jihadis As Suicide Bombers Attack Pak Army Camp Killing Three And Wounding 20
New Chicom Leaders Ban Red Carpets, Pomp, And “Empty Speeches”
Serbia’s NATO Ambassador Jumps To His Death From Brussels Car Park
Kasparov Predicts Putin Won’t Stay In Power Long



BLOGS & STUFF
John Podhoretz: A Losing GOP Hand
Legal Insurrection: Fiscal Cliff – The Christmas Strategy
Riehl World View: Boehner Has To Go
FreedomWorks: Boehner Removing Fiscal Conservatives From Committees
Ed Morrissey: Falling Back To The Debt Ceiling?
Joel Kotkin: The Blue State Suicide Pact
Jim Geraghty: Can Congress Hike Blue-State America’s Taxes The Highest?
Weasel Zippers: Harry Reid Denies Senate A Chance To Vote On Obama’s Fiscal Cliff Plan
The Blaze: Detroit Councilwoman Rants “We Voted For You, Obama, So Give Us Some Of That Government Bacon”
Rush Limbaugh: The GOP Seminar In Surrender
Power Line: Iron Dope
Wall Street Journal: The Underworked Public Employee

Category: Live at Five

To the Reader Who Bought the Mitsubishi 73-Inch Home Cinema HDTV via Amazon

Posted on | December 5, 2012 | 4 Comments

Thanks! That’s one big TV for $1,115 and by purchasing it via our Amazon Associates links, you not only get low prices and free Super Saver shipping, but you also earn us a small commission that helps put the ho-ho-ho into our holiday season.

With our Top Holiday Deals there are great savings at Amazon every day for everyone on your Christmas gift list. In the past week, our readers have snapped up all kinds of terrific stocking stuffers, including the complete Columbo TV series on DVD and also an HP Officejet Pro 8600 Premium Wireless Color Printer.

 

 

Those are just a few of the items our readers have purchased via our Amazon Associates links and ads. With less than three weeks left until Christmas, now is a great time to save money — and avoid the mall hassles — by shopping Amazon. We appreciate your support!

Category: Amazon

Fugitive Software Pioneer John McAfee Reportedly Arrested in Guatemala

Posted on | December 5, 2012 | 6 Comments

He lost most of his fortune, moved to Belize and plunged into a decadent lifestyle of hallucinogenic drugs and hookers, and then took it on the lam after one of his neighbors was shot dead. Now the erstwhile multimillionaire playboy has been busted in Guatemala:

John McAfee, the Silicon Valley millionaire wanted for questioning in a Belizean homicide, was reportedly arrested in Guatemala on Wednesday for illegally entering the neighboring country.
Interior minister Mauricio Lopez Bonilla told Reuters that Guatemalan police arrested the creator of McAfee antivirus software Wednesday night. McAfee’s neighbor was shot and killed in Belize earlier this month, and authorities there wish to question him in the death of Gregory Viant Faull.
McAfee has been evading police since the killing while writing a blog and communicating with media members.

He was writing a blog? And never linked me? Death penalty!

 

Category: Crime

‘Born That Way’ — Not!

Posted on | December 5, 2012 | 6 Comments

Hunter Walker of the New York Observer highlights the lesbian past of Chirlane McCray who, for the past 20 years, has been the wife of Bill de Blasio, a likely candidate for mayor of New York City. Such stories are a lot less rare than the “gay gene” theorists would have you believe, but because the born-that-way mantra is essential to the argument that homosexuals should be treated as a special category for civil-rights purposes, these stories don’t usually get much attention.

Accusations of “homophobia” in 3, 2, 1 . . .

Category: Gays

‘Anger Issues,’ to Put It Mildly

Posted on | December 5, 2012 | 21 Comments

Lucius Crawford is 60 years old. A summary of his criminal career:

In 1976, he was released after serving three years in prison for stabbing a woman in Charleston, S.C.
In 1977, Crawford was sentenced to 24 years in prison for stabbing five women, ages 14 to 28, over a five-day period in Charleston.
In 1991, just months after his release, Crawford was sentenced to 184 days in jail after being convicted of assaulting his ex-girlfriend.
In 2008, Crawford was released on parole after serving 13 years in prison for attempted murder for stabbing his 31-year-old co-worker 13 times.

In case you lost count, during a 35-year period, Crawford served more than 30 years in prison for violent crime. Any person with ordinary common sense would look at that record and say, “Gosh, this Lucius Crawford guy sure likes to stab women, doesn’t he?”

So when cold-case detectives were trying to solve a 1993 murder — a woman stabbed to death during one of those brief episodes when Crawford wasn’t in prison for stabbing women — the logic led them to a rather obvious suspect:

Detectives hoping to finally arrest a suspect in a 19-year-old killing in New York City didn’t find him when they went to his apartment this week. But they made another shocking discovery: the body of a woman who had been stabbed nine times in the chest.
Once he was located, Lucius Crawford further surprised investigators by confessing to killing the 42-year-old woman found in his Mount Vernon, N.Y., home, along with two other victims in 1993, police said Wednesday. The carnage fit a horrific pattern of violence against women that began in South Carolina in the 1970s.
The ex-con told police that he “has anger issues and he did in fact murder this young lady and that he has done this in the past,” Mount Vernon police Commissioner Carl Bell said at news conference. “He focuses his attacks on young women. He befriends them and at some point he ends up either attacking them or killing them.”

Lucius Crawford “has anger issues.” And, usually, a knife.

Category: Crime
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