LIVE AT FIVE – 03.03.11

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TOP NEWS
Libyan Rebels Repulse Raid On Brega

Rebels celebrate victory over Gaddafi column

Khadafy: Libyans will die if US intervenes
Gates: Notion of force against Libya “loose talk”

Supremes Rule For “Free Speech” Over Decency; Approves Phelps Clan Stupidity At Funerals
“…a ringing endorsement of free speech with an outcome that almost no one liked…”

Wikileaks Source Manning Faces 22 New Charges
One carries death penalty, though prosecution hasn’t requested it



POLITICS
Senate Vote Averts Federal Shutdown; President Calls For Budget Talks

Senate passes stopgap spending bill, 91-9

VP Joe Biden to lead budget negotiations.

TSA Screeners Disciplined After Major Security Breach At JFK




Ohio Senate Passes Bargaining Restrictions On Public Sector Unions

Philly Abortion Doctor Faces Murder Charges; Death Penalty Possible

Another Democratic Senator Calls It Quits: Akaka To Retire In 2012
Good riddance to racist rubbish.



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
US Stocks Close Slightly Higher, Led By Energy, Tech
Fed’s Beige Book Shows Economic Growth Across The Country
Oil Gains For Third Day On Mideast Unrest, Stockpile Decline
IPad 2: Thinner, Faster, Lighter
Android Market Apps Hit With Malware
HP Calls Out RIM For Copying TouchPad Features In Playbook



SPORTS
Dahlberg: It’s Getting Harder For Sanity To Win At NFL Talks

NFL owners Robert Kraft (L), Jerry Jones (R)

“Reasonable minds don’t seem to be running the show.”

Serena Williams Recuperating After Pulmonary Embolism

Real Winners In Vick Contract Deal? His Creditors


Stoudemire, Douglas, Anthony Lead Knicks To 107-88 Crushing Of Hornets

A’s Outfielder Coco Crisp Busted For DUI

Cubs’ Ramirez Brushes Off Dugout Spat With Carlos Silva

Bruins Head Home Winners After 6-0 Road Streak: First Since 1972



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Charlie’s Kids Removed After Alleged Death Threat

What happens when the Charlie Sheen wears off?

Sheen Vows To Fight For Full Custody (Video)

Charlie Gives “20/20” Best Ratings In Over Two Years




Snooki Talks About Smushing And The Stress of “Jersey Shore” In Rolling Stone

White House Party Crashers Headed To “Celebrity Rehab”

Funky Little Fashion Troll Speaks Out On Anti-Semitic Rant

Disney Teaming “Toy Story” Tandem Hanks & Allen For “Jungle Cruise”



FOREIGNERS
Lone Muslim Gunman From Kosovo Kills Two US Airmen In Terrorist Frankfurt Bus Attack
Assassination Of Pakistan’s Lone Christian Minister Shows Growing Extremism In Pakistan
Gorbachev Honored By Kremlin On 80th Birthday; Blasts Putin And Current Russian Government
Bangladesh Seeks To Oust “Banker To The Poor”
Power, Water Cut Off To Northern Ivory Coast
Yemeni President Reaches Deal With Opposition; Will Step Down At End Of Year



BLOGS & STUFF
American Power: Third Rail – Americans Oppose Cutting Entitlements
Allahpundit: Wisconsin Democratic Party Joins Recall Push Against GOP State Senators
Atlas Shrugs: Details Emerge On Jihadi Who Shot American Airmen
Jim Geraghty: Akaka’s Retirement An Opportunity For Linda Lingle?
Mediaite: No, Fox Did Not Lie With “Wisconsin Palm Tree” Violent Protest Video
Moonbattery: Muslims Call For Demolition of Statue Of Liberty
620WTMJ: Resolution Passed To Fine Missing Wisconsin Democrat Senators $100/Day
Tim Blair: In Britain, A Swampy Era Ends
WyBlog: Michele Bachman Introduces Light Bulb Freedom Act; Would Repeal Ban On Incandescents
Jim Lacey: The Inquisition Of General Caldwell

— compiled by Wombat-socho

Your Daily Charlie Sheen Update

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“It seems crazy to everybody else, but for us, I mean, it works well.”
— Natalie Kenly, one of Charlie Sheen’s “goddesses”

“I am very concerned that [Sheen] is currently insane. I am in great fear that he will find me and attack me and I am in great fear for the children’s safety while in his care.”
— Brooke Mueller, Sheen’s ex-wife, in court document

I’ve always liked hanging out with crazy people because it relieves me of my usual social burden of being The Craziest Guy in the Room. Even a professional Crazy Guy occasionally needs to chill out and let somebody else carry the ball.

This explains why I like Marty Beckerman. The very first time I read his book, Generation S.L.U.T., I recognized Beckerman as an insanely depraved soul, looked up his e-mail address, and soon became his friend.

But there’s crazy and then there’s crazy, as in mentally ill, and Beckerman evidently fails to recognize the symptoms of Charlie Sheen’s psychosis:

This is Charlie Sheen’s world. We’re just living in it.
Go check your Facebook or Twitter feed. Everyone is linking to stories about him, quoting his diatribes, and either celebrating or condemning him. It’s most likely split by gender: ladies deriding Sheen as a “pig” and “asshole,” guys praising him (correctly) as the most hilarious person on earth. He’s instantly become a hero to millions of educated, courteous young males who would never emulate his antics — nor watch Two and a Half Men, for that matter — yet admire him with irony and sincerity. . . .
His appeal is that, while most guys — especially post-college — must reign in their ids and demure to society’s expectations to advance rung by rung up the soul-crushing ladder of corporate mediocrity, Sheen has reached the ultimate apex of manhood eternal: doing whatever he wants and speaking the complete truth, consequences be damned.

Beckerman e-mailed that article to me — you can read the whole thing, including Beckerman’s astute observation that Sheen “makes deranged narcissistic self-destruction look fun” — but after reading it, I felt the need to warn against admiring the Trainwreck Called Charlie, and sent Beckerman this e-mail:

Manic-phase bipolar disorder may seem fun, Marty, but even with all his wealth and fame, Sheen won’t escape the inevitable crash. This will not end well: Either jail, hospital or an early grave.
Please note that Sheen, the most successful star on TV, who was once married to the fabulously hot Denise Richards, is now shacked up with a couple of low-rent bimbos who aren’t even as hot as Charlie’s third wife. If he’s “winning,” why is he scraping the bottom of the bimbo barrel?
— RSM

The fact that Sheen is associating with women so far beneath him is rather a telltale signal of his fundamental problem: Such an overbearing personality that he can’t stand to be contradicted or criticized, which is something guys in normal (i.e., reasonably equal) relationships have to deal with from their spouses or girlfriends.

Charlie likes hanging out with these dimwit floozies because they will never question his judgment.

OK, fine. And so when he makes a complete wreck of his career (and health) there will be no one there to say, “Hey, Charlie, maybe you’re pushing it a little too far this time.”

The fantasy of a Peter Pan existence of perpetual irresponsible boyhood is just that — a fantasy — and being a man requires a willingness to shoulder responsibility, for oneself and for others. Sheen’s wealth and fame enable him to indulge his reckless whims, but his wealth is not unlimited, and being an “unemployed winner” (as he boasted on his Twitter page) isn’t going to pay the bills.

Also, it might be hard for Charlie to pay the bills after it is alleged that he threatened to “execute” his manager, Mark Burg, whom he reportedly called a “stupid Jew pig.” And as for his fame, I know they say there’s no such thing as bad publicity, but I’m not sure that applies to headlines like these:

Sheen Allegedly Wanted Associates Killed

Brooke Mueller Claims Charlie Sheen
Knocked Her Unconscious

Just sayin’ . . .

So while I think Beckerman is dead-on in observing that Sheen is admired because he “makes deranged narcissistic self-destruction look fun,” it’s important to remember that Sheen is an actor. He is trying very hard to convey the impression that he’s having fun — “Winning!” — but I’ll bet it’s a lot less fun than it looks.

UPDATE: Welcome, Instapundit readers!

UPDATE II: Linked by Maggie’s Notebook and by That Mr. G. Guy’s Blog — thanks!

Hey, Maybe Glenn Beck Was Right

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You may recall that, when the Egyptian revolution first popped into the news, Glenn Beck caught a lot of grief for saying that the American Left was in league with Islamists to destabilize the Middle East. What Beck said — or perhaps the way he said it — seemed a bit kookier than that, but the essence of his accusation is not really new: David Horowitz’s 2006 book, Unholy Alliance, makes basically the same argument.

Well, guess what? Glenn Beck isn’t the only one worried about the American Left supporting terrorists. There’s also the U.S. Justice Department:

It’s not every day that an American labor union gets investigated for possible ties to two of the world’s most lethal terrorist organizations. But Chicago’s Service Employees International Union Local 73 isn’t an everyday union. Last September 24, FBI agents raided residences in Illinois, Minnesota and Michigan of more than a dozen radical activists in an effort to connect them to the Hamas (Gaza and the West Bank) and FARC (Colombia) guerrilla movements. Two of the occupants were SEIU Local 73 chief steward and executive board member Joe Iosbaker and former local board member-steward Tom Burke. . . .
Federal officials are trying to determine whether they and a dozen other subpoenaed activists, mainly in Chicago and Minneapolis, have provided financial or other material support for armed revolutionary movements. “The warrants are seeking evidence in support of an ongoing Joint Terrorism Task Force investigation into activities concerning the material support of terrorism,” remarked Steve Warfield, spokesman for the FBI’s Minneapolis field office.

Read the rest of that. And here’s video from those crazy kooky conspiracy theorists at Fox News Democracy Now:

Video via The Blaze, and thanks to commenter Adobe Walls for the tip.

Sheila Jackson-Lee: Boss From Hell

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Everybody on Capitol Hill has stories to tell about members of Congress who are screaming tyrants toward their staff. John McCain is notorious in that regard. But by far the worst bosses on Capitol Hill are women members, and one might narrow down that list by saying “liberal Democratic congresswomen,” among whom a particuilarly vile specimen is Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Hell):

The Houston Democrat addressed one of her employees as “you stupid motherf****r.” And not just once, but “constantly,” recalls the staffer, “like, all the time.”
Another Jackson Lee aide recounts the time her parents came to Washington to visit: “They were really excited to come to the congressional office. They’re small town people, so for them it was a huge deal. They were actually sitting in the main lobby waiting area….[Jackson Lee] came out screaming at me over a scheduling change. Called me a ’stupid idiot. Don’t be a moron, you foolish girl’ and actually did this in front of my parents, of all things.” . . .
Capitol Hill is famous for its demanding, insensitive bosses. Yet even by the harsh standards of Congress, Sheila Jackson Lee stands out. She may be the worst boss in Washington. “It’s like being an Iraq War veteran,” says someone who worked for her. Strangers may say, “‘oh I know what you’ve been through.’ No, you really don’t. Because until you’ve experienced it. . . . People don’t tell the worst of the stories, because they’re really unbelievable.”

Read the whole story by Jonathan Strong, who is turning out to be one of the best hires Tucker Carlson made at the Daily Caller.

Who Is John Galt?

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The makers of the new movie Atlas Shrugged: Part I have invited me to an exclusive screening today in Washington, D.C. Here’s the trailer:

They’ve taken a huge gamble, producing this ambitious film under a tight deadline and on a tight budget.

During the CPAC blogger bash at FreedomWorks, they previewed four scenes from the movie. Clearly, they’re hoping to generate major buzz before the film’s theatrical release on April 15.

Yeah: Tax Day. Pretty clever.

Learn more at the official Atlas Shrugged Movie site.

‘Centrist’ Obama?

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Obama’s decision to dump the Defense of Marriage Act exposes the bogusness of his mythical “move to the center”:

It also is increasingly clear that Mr. Obama has learned nothing from the “shellacking” his party took in the midterm elections, despite all the talk to the contrary from his sycophants in the media about his “moving to the center.”
The pretense of a move to the center is, and always was, just that — pretense — his window-dressing appointment of William Daley as chief of staff and a supposed rapprochement with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce notwithstanding. . . .
Why else would he make the calculated decision not to defend DOMA, a law duly enacted by Congress and signed into law by a fellow Democratic president? Mr. Obama variously claims to be against gay marriage, even as he says his views on the subject are “evolving,” but this decision rips the mask off that charade. He knows his opposition to DOMA, while it might send a thrill up the collective leg of the editorial board of The New York Times, is contrary to the expressed wishes of the electorate: Thirty states have voted on gay marriage, and all 30 have voted against it. What part of “no” does Mr. Obama not understand? . . .

Read the whole thing at The Washington Times.

Note to Self: Never Link Xconomy.com

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Megan McArdle at the (soon-to-be-Sully-free) Atlantic linked and excerpted an interview that Xconomy.com did with a venture capitalist, Ken Kinsella.

The World’s Tallest Female Blogger admits that her excerpting — more than a third of a 2,100-word article — was way over the “fair use” line and, while she included a link to the article, she named neither the source site nor the writer who conducted the interview.

Bad Megan! Bad, bad Megan!

However, it subsequently became apparent that Xconomy is a site run by obnoxious douchebags:

I won’t disclose the contents of our correspondence, since the editor who emailed me has requested that they remain confidential. I think I may disclose that they are very upset about what they see as an egregious fair use violation. I attempted to rectify the situation by trimming down the excerpts, and naming the site from which they were drawn, but this seems to have somehow only made them madder — perhaps because this is so rare in my ten years of experience blogging that I was mystified rather than sufficiently apologetic.  But of course I support their right to control lengthy dissemination of their work, so I have taken down the offending post.

Look: Nothing wrong with a publisher enforcing his intellectual property rights, but it isn’t good business for a publisher to act like a complete douchebag toward bloggers.

In point of fact, my excerpt of Megan’s post amounts to more than a third of its content, so if her editors at the Atlantic wanted to be total douchebags, they could start filling my inbox with huffy e-mails threatening me with legal action. But they don’t do that because, even though their traffic is way bigger than mine, getting linked by bloggers is good for their business.

Megan McArdle is a nice person who has good-naturedly put up with a lot of joshing from me over the years and seldom complained, not even when — after her engagement to Peter Suderman — I dubbed her “my favorite acromegalic bride-to-be.” Megan knew that I was just trying to needle her enough to get a link and, imperious giantess that she is, she refused to lash out in anger.

That would be beneath her — as, of course, most things are beneath someone who’s nine feet tall.

Perhaps I exaggerate. Still, it is a mark of her graciousness that Megan hasn’t crushed me beneath one of her enormous feet, and anyone who is mean to her is therefore my enemy.

Xconomy.com now has a spot on my (very short) no-link list.

‘Floating Out There in the Journalistic Ether’

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Jack Shafer of Slate attempts to make sense of New York Times columnist Frank Rich’s departure for New York magazine:

Let me see if I’ve got this straight: Frank Rich is leaving a weekly column at the nation’s most important daily newspaper for a monthly column at the second best weekly in the country.
If Rich’s move is about wanting to spend more time with his family, gain greater distance from Editorial Page Editor Andrew Rosenthal, free himself to pursue his HBO projects more aggressively, or to work once again with New York Editor Adam Moss, with whom he has a mind-meld, I understand. But unless the deal came with Bloombergian bags of cash, it makes no sense. . . .
One of the charms of working weekly—or daily, for that matter—is that your readers know where and when to find you. But with Rich going monthly for a much less prominent publication, he’ll get lost. In this new venue, there will be no obvious cues—Sunday morning bagels and coffee, for example—that it’s Rich time. He’ll just be floating out there in the journalistic ether.
He won’t be the only one. Howard Kurtz, one of the iron men of journalism, has been floating in the ether ever since leaving the Washington Post for the Daily Beast last fall. He’s writing prolifically about the media and other topics for the Beast, as he did for decades at the Post. But Kurtz’s copy used to be hand-delivered to my front door step

I agree with Shafer that it’s hard to make sense of Rich’s move, except for the possibility that New York will let him run rampant online as a blogger, which would be amusing. Rich’s columns in the Sunday Times, which he had all week to compile, were generally target-rich environments, full of tendentious and predictable liberal nonsense. On the other hand — and I certainly wouldn’t rule this out — perhaps Rich is going to a monthly so as to free up his time to compile a book.

On the other hand, I don’t think Kurtz’s work has suffered by his transfer to the online Daily Beast, except for the fact that he now has a smaller footprint in D.C. Being a prominent contributor to the Washington Post — where Kurtz’s articles were most often placed on the “Style” section front — has a cachet.

Speaking of “journalistic ether,” how much ether did Tina Brown huff before hiring Andrew Sullivan? And what was she smoking when she wrote this?

I am thrilled to share the news that Andrew Sullivan is bringing his trailblazing journalism to The Daily Beast. Andrew almost single-handedly defined the political blog and has been refining it as a form of journalism in real time nearly every day for the past decade. . . .
Scrolling down Andrew’s blog helps to give orientation in the world, to get the smartest possible fix on the news at any given moment. . . .

It is said that “a fool and his money are soon parted.” In publishing, a fool and his money sooner or later hire Tina Brown, so that in a few short years, he becomes a fool with much less money.