How a massive, silent cultural revolution has changed America

 "Increasingly, we don’t want to judge others for anything, even if what they’re doing is destructive. But is being non-judgmental the same as granting tacit approval, even support?"

NY Post 
Do you really want to watch this?

"It happened without a Summer of Love, without Timothy Leary, without a groovy anthem or a shaggy new national look. In the past decade or so, there’s been a silent revolution in American culture, one at least as profound as the ’60s upheavals.

"We’ve hardly taken notice of it, because it happened in people’s minds instead of in the streets, happened in ordinary people instead of in the elites and the punditocracy.

 "It happened without a Summer of Love, without Timothy Leary, without a groovy anthem or a shaggy new national look. In the past decade or so, there’s been a silent revolution in American culture, one at least as profound as the ’60s upheavals.

"We’ve hardly taken notice of it, because it happened in people’s minds instead of in the streets, happened in ordinary people instead of in the elites and the punditocracy." . . .

http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/tag/brian-williams-salary-at-nbc/

Who's On First?": The Sequel (w/ Jimmy Fallon, Billy Crystal & Jerry Seinfeld)

Youtube

The original version: Abbott & Costello Who's On First 

Hat tip to Tim Martin; Folsom, CA

Friends and enemies of the Duggar family speak out

 Police Chief Who Released Duggar Molestation Report Should Be Fired, Senator Charges 
 . . . "In Touch obtained the police report through a Freedom of Information Act request. FOIA requests allow citizens to access federal government information, such as police reports.
"Hester, however, says the city of Springdale's liability on releasing the information is "endless," and he anticipates charges against Springdale Police Chief Kathy O'Kelley. " . . .

'Young ladies re-victimized': Springdale police chief hit for releasing Josh Duggar report
" According to KFSM Channel 5 News, it was O'Kelley, along with Springdale City Attorney Ernest Cate, who released the 2006 police report containing the child molestation accusations against Josh Duggar to In Touch Weekly."

City of Springdale Responds to Duggar Claims

 "On 5/20/15, in full compliance with Arkansas Law, the Springdale Police Department responded to a records request under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. The requested record was not sealed or expunged, and at the time the report was filed, the person listed in the report was an adult. Any names of minors included in the report, as well as pronouns, were redacted from the report by the Springdale Police Department in compliance with Arkansas law prior to release."

Salon Magazine: Springdale PD says Josh’s molestation reports were legally obtained . . . " As NBC News’ Phil Helsel reported, Springdale City Attorney Earnest B. Cate released a statement in which he said “[t]he requested record was not sealed or expunged, and at the time the report was filed. Any names of minors included in the report, as well as pronouns, were redacted from the report by the Springdale Police Department in compliance with Arkansas Law prior to release.”

Palins slam media's treatment of Duggars, calls Lena Dunham a 'pedophile'
"Sarah Palin went on to say that the media thinks “Lena Dunham’s sexual assault on her sibling is cute, and she’s rewarded for it with fame and fortune. Meanwhile, they crucify another, along with an entire family.' ”
Liberal publication words the above story like this:  Bristol Palin Compares Lena Dunham To Josh Duggar, Blames ‘Liberal Media’ "They just won’t go away. Maybe it’s that families who do reality shows have to stick together."

http://www.wnd.com/2015/06/who-are-the-freaks-now/

Some headlines from the liberal press:

•  No Laws Were Broken When Josh Duggar's Police Report Was Released to the Public, Says City Attorney
•  Duggar Political Pal Wants Chief Who Handed Over Police Report Fired
•  GOPer Wants Police Chief Who Released Duggar Offense Report To Be Fired
•  Fox News is wrong — Josh Duggar’s police records were not illegally released
•  Conservatives Spiral themselves into Anti-Liberal Rage to Defend/Excuse Duggars
•  Bart Hester covering madly for his anti-gay allies, the Duggars

Khameni and Obama

http://www.americanthinker.com/cartoons/

Is the USA Even Worth Saving Anymore?

Gulag Bound  "Do real (aka legal) numbers of US citizens really care if the USA lives or dies and is taken over by Islamists and Nazis? From the questions asked of people on the street by Jesse Watters of “Watters’ World” the answer is no…and it’s always a surprise to me that these people can actually get out of bed and dress themselves. The late Peter Jennings’ television series “The Dumbing Down of America” has, ultimately, been proven to be oh so correct. Is this a country even worth bothering to save? Or has it been so corrupted and perverted from its original path that there is no longer anything to save?" . . .

Reading list: Some quick glances at the world in which we live

Proof that some people can be offended by anything 

 

" I suspect that somewhere, there is a top-secret organization that does nothing all day but look for innovative and novel ways that society offends one group or another.
"How else do you explain this? . . .

The Port Authority is looking into bus slogans that some are calling offensive.
Officials say they’ve recently received complaints that one of its slogans, “Ziggin Zaggin,” is offensive when read backwards, seeming to spell out a racial slur.

 One person complained ; ONE.

'Dividing Americans': Potential GOP rivals assail Clinton over fiery voting law speech

"Accusing her of "dividing Americans" and political pandering, several of Hillary Clinton's potential Republican rivals fired back Friday after the Democratic frontrunner accused them of trying to make it more difficult for Americans -- particularly minorities and young people -- to vote. " . . .

Ben Carson’s campaign faces turmoil amid staff exits and super PAC rivalry
. . . " But his campaign has been marked by signs of dysfunction and amateurism, alarming supporters who privately worry that Carson’s sprawling circle of boosters is fumbling his opportunity. And, they argue, the candidate has been nonchalant about the unrest." . . .

What will Obama’s legacy be?   . . . "Obama’s approval rating is still below 50 percent, and Republican presidential candidates are all running against Obamanomics, denouncing the last six years as an era of public-sector overreach and private-sector stagnation." . . .


 
"Columbia sex-attack accuser, who carried mattress around campus to protest against her 'rapist', creates new work 'renacting' violent sex called: 'This is not rape.'"  . . . "As predicted, many of the commenters on the piece slammed her for her decision to make it, saying it was in poor taste. 'Why did you have to go and ruin a man's life if all you wanted to do was make porn?' one quizzed." . . .

Dems ‘Failed Us': Chicago Pastor Tired of Liberals Taking Advantage of Blacks . . . " Corey Brooks of Chicago says that the Democratic party has relied on black votes and their loyalty to win elections but have not given much back to black areas once they are in office." . . .

Junk Journalism

 What the MSM calls “reporting” is often just activism, careerism, and narcissism to advance the Democrat agenda.

Victor Davis Hanson

 

"Once upon a time, Dan Rather — the fallen CBS celebrity anchorman from the evening news and at 60 Minutes – was the master of “gotcha” journalism. Rather would play up his populist credentials, do ambush interviews with supposedly self-important grandees, and then pull out an unknown memo, an embarrassing quote from one’s past, or some sort of previously unexamined hypocrisy. And, presto, down went the high and mighty, as Rather grinned that he had taken down another enemy of his middle-class viewers without power and influence.
 . . . "Stephanopoulos could not just question Peter Schweizer, author of an exposé on the Clinton Foundation. He had to go for the jugular, in ironic tu quoque fashion, suggesting that Schweitzer was a partisan hack and his book political mudslinging because the author had worked as a speechwriter for George W. Bush for four months.

"That paradox was a bridge too far — given that Stephanopoulos had been no mere speechwriter or a four-month employee, but a recent donor to his old employer’s pay-for-play family foundation. The closer that Hillary Clinton got to announcing her bid for the presidency, the more, it seems, Stephanopoulos started giving money to the Clintons’ foundation and participating in their “charity.”. . .
Bottom line:   

Turn on Brian Williams, read the L.A. Times’ lead stories, catch NPR on the radio, and it is often just liberal activism, careerism, and narcissism on the part of an elite who believes that their own activism exempts them from the contradictions of their own lives, as if privilege is not privilege if you crusade 9 to 5 on behalf of the unprivileged.

 

Flashback Friday: Campus political correctness in 1988

totus-blog.blogspot.com

The Volokh Conspiracy  "Campus political correctness appears to be back.  (Perhaps it never left.)  The Kipnis kerfuffle at Northwestern is viewed by many as symbolic of a wave of illiberal attitudes sweeping college campuses.  Is this the same political correctness some of us experience on campuses years (or decades) ago? Or is it something quite different?" . . .

To be PC it does not take much effort, one simply needs to wet one’s finger and hold it to the political wind and follow the currents of hot air. One would then find oneself in favor of the shanties, the FMLN in El Salvador, Nuclear Disarmament, Animal Rights, Locals 34 and 35, and of course Mike Dukakis (although Lloyd Bentsen cannot be perceived as more than a necessary evil to attain the White House). On the other hand, to maintain one’s PC status, one would also have to oppose Robert Bork, aid to any non-socialist Latin American government, fraternities, secret societies, the CIA, red meat and anything remotely resembling a Republican. (Lowell Weicker is summarily excused.) . . .

 Jonathan H. Adler teaches courses in constitutional, administrative, and environmental law at the Case Western University School of Law, where he is the inaugural Johan Verheij Memorial Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Business Law and Regulation.

Intolerance on the Left    "Every night I see and hear the "Intolerance of the Left". I see the violence in the streets, I see conservative speakers taunted and literally run from the podiums at some of our most prestigious universities. I see the marches in Oakland in support of a cop-killers. Most of these hateful demonstrators seem to be young. To me, its a sad commentary on the youth of this country. They claim to support change and openness, but simply cannot tolerate anyone with an opposing view. They condemn a capitalism system, that has provided them with one of the worlds highest standard of living. The United States economy is the envy of the world and people are literally tearing down fences in order to get here." . . .

After the Riots, More Crime

 Are we in for another high-crime era after the response to Ferguson and Baltimore?

 

Michael Barone

"Are we seeing a reversal of the 20-year decline in violent crime in America? A new nationwide crime wave? 

" Heather Mac Donald fears we are, and as a premier advocate and analyst of the policing strategy pioneered by Rudy Giuliani in New York City and copied and adapted throughout the country, she is to be taken seriously. The statistics she presented in an article in last weekend’s Wall Street Journal are truly alarming.

"Gun violence is up 60 percent in Baltimore so far this year compared to 2014. Homicides are up 180 percent in Milwaukee, 25 percent in St. Louis, 32 percent in Atlanta and 13 percent in New York in the same period. 

"Why is this happening? Mac Donald writes, “The most plausible explanation of the current surge in lawlessness is the intense agitation against American police departments over the past nine months.”

The narrative propagated by mainstream media, the Eric Holder Justice Department, and the Barack Obama White House was that unarmed innocent blacks were being slaughtered by racist police. “Black lives matter,” read the hashtag, as if most cops believed the opposite. Read more:

EPA: Remember all that horrible stuff we said about fracking? Yeah… never mind

Infidel Bloggers Alliance

 

. . . "The Environmental Protection Agency has finished a draft copy of a long awaited study on fracking and its impact (or lack thereof) on drinking water. The folks in the green energy community who have been pushing for bans on the practice for years now are up in arms already because the results were precisely what they didn’t want to hear.

"The alarmist have been pedaling bogus science for quite a while now.

"The Environmental Protection Agency’s long-awaited report on fracking dismayed liberal green groups Thursday while pleasing the oil and gas industry — the latest episode in both sides’ fraught relationship with President Barack Obama.

"The study, more than four years in the making, said the EPA has found no signs of “widespread, systemic” drinking water pollution from hydraulic fracturing.

"That conclusion dramatically runs afoul of one of the great green crusades of the past half-decade, which has portrayed the oil- and gas-extraction technique as a creator of fouled drinking water wells and flame-shooting faucets." . . .

 Think of the PC TV shows and movies about evil fracking...

 TNT’s ‘Rizzoli & Isles’ Demonizes Fracking
 TNT continued the Hollywood practice of condemning oil and gas in its June 12 episode of “Rizzoli & Isles.” The plot featured an ex-Blackwater agent, masquerading as a yoga guru, who kills a vegan student and a professor in order to hide his drilling for natural gas from shale. This episode was a triple decker for left-wing stereotypes. 

TNT continued the Hollywood practice of condemning oil and gas in its June 12 episode of “Rizzoli & Isles.” The plot featured an ex-Blackwater agent, masquerading as a yoga guru, who kills a vegan student and a professor in order to hide his drilling for natural gas from shale. This episode was a triple decker for left-wing stereotypes.  - See more at: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/scott-robbins/2012/06/18/tnt-s-rizzoli-isles-demonizes-fracking#sthash.BDNcxVSC.dpuf

 ABC, NBC Continue to Skip EPA Report Finding Fracking Doesn’t Harm Drinking Water

Obama’s Continuing Delusions: “Closest thing to a Jew” in White House, ever! Chip Bok update.

http://terrellaftermath.com/

 As a Catholic, I am going out on a limb to make a prediction. When Pope Francis comes to America this September, Obama will ask to be canonized. The rationale will be that he is, “the closest thing to a saint that there has ever been in the White House.” Leslie Eastman

Legal Insurrection 

Fantasy-based statement may be response to plummeting poll numbers! - See more at: http://legalinsurrection.com/2015/06/obamas-continuing-delusions-closest-thing-to-a-jew-in-white-house-ever/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LegalInsurrection+%28Le%C2%B7gal+In%C2%B7sur%C2%B7rec%C2%B7tion%29#sthash.78WCyxaH.dpuf

"What is the line between political hyperbole and utter fantasy?

"Whatever it is, President Obama has completely crossed that particular Rubicon. I recently noted that his assertions that America has become more respected internationally under his watch were not quite based in reality.

"Now, it appears he has delusions regarding his faith:

"Speaking to JPUpdates.com, top Obama confidant David Axelrod described a moment where the president expressed exasperation to him over being derided as anti-Israel by some.

 “ 'You know, I think I am the closest thing to a Jew that has ever sat in this office,” the president claimed, according to Axelrod. “For people to say that I am anti-Israel, or, even worse, anti-Semitic, it hurts.”

"Given President Obama’s treatment of Bibi Netanyahu over the years, and the troubling deal with Iran that my colleague David Gerstman reviews, I must admit to being a bit perplexed.

"However, because I am Catholic, maybe there is something I missed??? So, I went on a quest for information.

Perhaps it started in 2008, and his warm relationship with Chicago area Jews:" . . .See more here.

 

 Twitter Explodes Over Obama 'Closest Thing to a Jew' Claim 

 Obama: ‘I’m The Closest Thing to a Jew’ to Ever Be President

Bokbluster update

 

"Former Obama administration high priest David Axelrod says the president revealed to him that he’s “the closest thing to a Jew that has ever sat in this office.” It’s hurtful to him when people say he’s hostile to Israel. The president also told a young Asian group this week that he personally restored America to international respectability. And, despite missing state department emails, destroyed IRS emails, and delayed FOIA requests, he continues with the “most transparent administration in history” boast."

Why doctors quit, Chapter 2

 My argument is simple. If electronic records are such a great boon — as I believe they eventually will be — they will be adopted over time as the benefits begin to exceed costs. Let the market work. Let doctors breathe. And while you’re at it, drop the Medicare penalty.

Charles Krauthammer

 

"I rarely do follow-up columns. I’m averaging one every 10 years. And while my last such exercise resulted in a written apology from the White House (for accusing me of making up facts over its removal of Churchill’s bust), today’s is not a complaint. It’s merely a recognition that the huge response elicited by last week’s column, "Why doctors quit " warrants both rebuttal and clarification.

"Physicians who responded tended to agree with my claim that doctors are being driven out of the profession by the intrusions, interferences, regulations, mandates, constraints and sundry other degradations of their vocation that are the result of the bureaucratization of medicine. Chief among them is the imposition of electronic health records (EHR).

"I’ve also heard from people who notice how much attention their doctor must devote to filling out EHR boxes on a computer screen rather than to engaging with them during an office visit. To the point where a heretofore-unheard-of profession has been invented — the “scribe” who just enters the data so the doctor can actually do doctoring." . . .  Full article here.