Facebook Omits Israeli Flag From 2016 Rio Olympics Page

Haaretz  "Special section allows users to add frame with participating countries' flags to pictures or videos. Israel added to feature after Israeli olympic committee's request."

"Facebook omitted the Israeli flag from its list of countries participating in the 2016 Summer Olympics on a special page in honor of the opening of the games in Rio de Janeiro on Friday.

"The Olympic Committee of Israel sent a letter to Facebook on Thursday asking it to correct the error. The company said it was dealing with the issue, and it had been fixed by Thursday afternoon.

"The special section includes an icon of the Olympic torch that, when clicked, gives the user access to a set of tools Facebook developed in the games’ honor. One of those tools allows the user to add a frame with participating countries’ flags to pictures or videos that he posts to Facebook. The tool uses the MSQRD app, which Facebook purchased.
But the Ynet website reported that Israeli surfers soon noticed the Israeli flag was missing from the menu that enables users to select a flag to include in their frame. Instead of Israel, the English-language list offered “independent athletes,” while the Hebrew-language list offered nothing at all.
"The Olympic Committee of Israel confirmed Ynet’s report. Committee spokeswoman Bruria Bigman told Haaretz that the panel began getting complaints from surfers Wednesday evening about the absence of Israel’s flag. The committee then sent an urgent letter to Facebook asking it to fix the problem before Thursday afternoon's update. "
Oded Yaron has worked at Haaretz since 2000 and writes about technology.

Olympic Committee of Israel — Wikimedia Commons

Hat tip to Joe Newby

The Mendacity* Behind Obama's Mockery of the Cash-for-Iran Story

Mendacity  1. The condition of being mendacious; untruthfulness.  2. A lie; a falsehood.

Claudia Rosette

"It is not at all clear to me why it is that cash, as opposed to a check or wire transfer, has made this into a news story."   -- President Barack Obama, Pentagon Press Conference, August 4, 2016

 

"Thus did President Obama scold those who are now asking why his administration secretly airlifted $400 million worth of cash to Iran this past January, just as Iran was releasing four American prisoners. By Obama's account, there's nothing to see here. Not only did Obama deny, despite the striking coincidence of timing, that the payment was a ransom. He also mocked anyone who might see the story of the cash itself as troubling news, or newsworthy at all. Obama dismissed such reactions as "the manufacturing of outrage in a story that we disclosed in January."

"Welcome, once again, to the vertigo of the Obama "narrative," in which the priority of his "most transparent" administration is not to deal honestly with the American public, but to spin a web of half truths, enmeshed in complexities, to cover up highly questionable uses of power -- and then, if caught red-handed, use the bully pulpit to deride and dismiss the critics." . . .

Photo added, TD

5. Finally, there's the ugly matter of Obama belittling anyone who might question or criticize his cash payola for Iran. . .  It's even worse when the president, caught out by the press, chooses to defend himself by denigrating the reporters, and his fellow citizens generally, as sensation-seeking fools. The best retort by now, no matter what the presidential mockery, is don't stop following the money. 

L.A. Times Op-ed bares media bias in Clinton coverage

Joe Newby

. . . "For his part, Raimondo observed, “This transparent bias is a national phenomenon, infecting both print and television media to such an extent that it has become almost impossible to separate coverage of the Trump campaign from attempts to tear it down.”

"Had Raimondo substituted the term “national disgrace” for “national phenomenon,” his analysis could easily pass the smell test." . . .

After US president said Israeli officials consider accord a ‘game changer,’ Liberman’s ministry likens it to 1938 capitulation to Nazis

THE TIMES OF ISRAEL

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman at a meeting of the
 Foreign  Affairs and Defense Committee on July 18, 2016.

"Israel on Friday bitterly rejected US President Barack Obama’s claim that its officials now support last year’s nuclear deal with Iran. Far from accepting Obama’s assertion, the Israeli Defense Ministry compared the year-old accord to the Munich Agreement signed by the European powers with Nazi Germany in 1938.

. . . 

" 'A top minister close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, furthermore, directly contradicted Obama’s assertion that Israel now backs the accord. “I don’t know to which Israelis he (Obama) spoke recently. But I can promise you that the position of the prime minister, the defense minister and of most senior officials in the defense establishment has not changed,” Tzachi Hanegbi told The Times of Israel.

“ 'The opposite is the case. The time that has elapsed since the deal was signed proved all our worries that, regrettably, we were justified before the deal was made,” said Hanegbi, a minister who works in the Prime Minister’s Office and who until recently chaired the Knesset’s powerful Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee." . . .

Obama To Play 300th Round Of Golf While In Martha’s Vineyard…

What in Heaven's name can make this man as popular as he is? Do those who say they like Obama do so because they are afraid to criticize him? Who'd have ever said they didn't like the Beatles? You are expected to or else.  TD

Weasel Zippers

"Reminder: George W. Bush (also an avid golfer) played only 24 rounds of golf during his presidency. Bush stopped playing in 2003, saying that he “felt it was not appropriate to be seen golfing while American troops fought in Afghanistan and Iraq.' ”

Ransom or what?

comicallyincorrect

Jonah Goldberg: When Is a Ransom Not a Ransom? When It’s Inconvenient to Call It That  
. . . "Now, because of this pas-de-deux of asininity, not only have we given the Iranians untraceable walking-around money to give to its terrorist proxies, we’ve also given them every incentive to kidnap more Americans — which is exactly what they’ve been doing. But at least the folks at the State Department can sleep soundly knowing that they didn’t really pay a ransom — it just looks that way."

Rich Lowry: The Ransom that Dare Not Speak Its Name . . . "At the most basic level, if the U.S. government were paying ransom to Iran, this is what it would look like: A cargo plane stuffed with wooden pallets of $400 million in foreign currency, obtained by the U.S. government from the central banks of the Netherlands and Switzerland, landing in an airport in Tehran reportedly the same day the hostages were released. The director Michael Bay couldn’t ask for better material." . . .

Weekly Standard: Kerry Says $400 Million Iran Story Is Not New  " 'This story is not a new story," Kerry told reporters in Argentina. "It doesn't represent anything the American people weren't told by the president and by the administration. What it does represent is a policy of common sense.' "

Well, yes, it was. If your enemy holds hostages you desperately want back and asks money for them, you could say it is "common sense" to pay the money, just as it is "common sense" to give the schoolyard bully your lunch money. How will that all work out for you?

UK Mail:Could Trump have been right? Propaganda film suggests Iran DID videotape cash-drop plane and photograph shipment of cash during January prisoner swap

Salon: Congress was right: The Iran deal is a travesty — and Obama is to blame

. . . "These latest developments undoubtedly confirm what conservatives and other pro-Israel activists have been arguing throughout this entire episode. They’re yet another reason why people who don’t like flawed GOP nominee Donald Trump will still have a hard time voting for Hillary Clinton, given her prominent role in helping usher in this flawed deal. They also tarnish President Obama’s legacy, despite his brag last week at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia that he’d “shut down Iran’s nuclear weapons program' ” . . .

The Wall Street Journal has a story on it but you have to register to read it.

Black Lives Matter Keeps Getting More Radical — Will the Media Care?

David French at National Review

"Their decision to elevate the most extreme voices has dire consequences for racial justice."

. . . "But you’d never know this from coverage by mainstream media. The networks consistently elevate Black Lives Matter spokespeople without even hinting at their radical views — allowing them to draw adherents by the millions and granting them one of our culture’s largest megaphones. This directly contradicts the typical media approach to conservatives. Mainstream media not only work overtime to identify and root out conservative “extremism,” but they will blame conservative rhetoric for violence even in the total absence of evidence. (See, for example, commentary about the jihadist massacre in Orlando or the Gabby Giffords shooting in Tucson). When it comes to leftist extremists, however, the media will work overtime to distance Black Lives Matter from violence even though its supporters routinely call for it, sometimes attacking police directly." . . .

 This isn’t a serious political movement. It’s the grown-up equivalent of a student temper tantrum, where the demands for leaving the dean’s office include everything from better stir-fry in the cafeteria to peace in the Middle East. It self-identifies as radical, and implementing its agenda would require nothing more and nothing less than the overthrow of the American political and constitutional order.

 

Brave man who stood up to Munich shooter now facing prosecution for 'INSULTING killer'

UK Express

"Thomas Salbey, 57, saw the shooting happening from his balcony in the Bavarian capital on July 22. 

"In an attempt to stop 18 year old Ali Sonboly from further slaughtering people, he swore at the shooter as he was standing in a car park below.

"Sonboly shouted at him: "I am a German."

"Footage of the feisty exchange went viral as thousands praised Mr Salbey for standing up to the deluded teenager.

. . . 

"Loner Sonboly had just shot dead nine people, mainly young teenagers he had lured to McDonald’s on the premise of free food. 

"The German-Iranian also injured 16 others during the rampage before he killed himself a kilometre away from the Munich Olympiad shopping centre he carried the shooting out at.

"Now, in a twist of German justice, Mr Salbey is now facing charges for standing up to the killer who shot himself in the head."

Olympics viewers revolt over constant commercials during NBC broadcast

Via Drudge  " 'Mediaite notes the first 40 minutes of the Opening Ceremonies included 14 minutes of commercials during six different breaks.' "

Chris Sprague @Stinkalope

Thanks NBC for showing the Olympic Opening Ceremony in the short breaks between commercials. #nbcfail

Marc Ryan‏@MarcinKeene

@MeredithBlake NBC breaks into parade of commercials with Bermuda.

Note to GOPers shying away from Trump: Hillary Clinton a clear and present danger to U.S

Joe Newby

"On Friday, the Atlantic posted a list of “major” Republican figures and listed where they stand on Donald Trump, the current GOP nominee.  Other alleged Republicans say they’ll vote for Hillary Clinton, perhaps the most evil person ever nominated by a major party for the highest office in the land.  Perhaps they don’t understand that Hillary Clinton presents a clear and present danger to the United States.

"Let me explain why.

"For starters, Clinton has spent more than 40 years lying and scheming her way to the top.  There’s simply not enough space here to list all the lies, but there is a video showing her lying for some 13 minutes.

"Despite what some may think, Clinton is every bit the Marxist that Obama is.  As we noted last April, she once called for Marxist redistribution for “the common good.”  This is hardly something any true Republican can support.

"She’s hardly a supporter of the First Amendment, and she absolutely loathes the Second.

"Then there’s her history regarding the single greatest threat not just to America, but the West as a whole — radical Islamic terrorism." . . .

The Conservative

You may recall that her husband "loathes" the military. In addition, you may all know the stories of Hillary's treatment of our military.

Leftists, as a general rule have little respect for our military. Example:  Every Marine an Umbrellaman

People who cheer for and adore Hillary and Obama are indeed worthy of contempt in my view.

Reporters cheer Hillary Clinton during appearance before associations of black and hispanic journalists in DC

UK Daily Mail 

 "Hillary Clinton gave a political speech to an association in D.C. and got applauded by a group of her top supporters – the media.

"The Democratic presidential nominee addressed the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists in Washington, D.C. at their annual conference.

"There were hundreds of members of the media in attendance. Organizers were cognizant of the optics, and went to groups of reporters in advance to remind audience members not to stand and cheer.

"But as Clinton went through her speech and took questions, significant numbers of professional journalists couldn't help themselves from registering their approval.

Donald Trump and the fitness threshold

Charles Krauthammer  "Donald Trump, the man who defied every political rule and prevailed to win his party’s nomination, last week took on perhaps the most sacred political rule of all: Never attack a Gold Star family. Not just because it alienates a vital constituency but because it reveals a shocking absence of elementary decency and of natural empathy for the most profound of human sorrows — parental grief.

"Why did Trump do it? It wasn’t a mistake. It was a revelation. It’s that he can’t help himself. His governing rule in life is to strike back when attacked, disrespected or even slighted. To understand Trump, you have to grasp the General Theory: He judges every action, every pronouncement, every person by a single criterion — whether or not it/he is “nice” to Trump." . . .

Of course we all try to protect our own dignity and command respect. But Trump’s hypersensitivity and unedited, untempered Pavlovian responses are, shall we say, unusual in both ferocity and predictability.

Pookie's Toons

Cartoons added by TD