Month: December 2012

Muslim Brotherhood reaches out to Hezbollah.

Ah, the Arab Spring.

Tell me again how marvelous it is that we encouraged the Muslim Brotherhood to take over in Egypt: “In a dramatic policy shift, Egypt will seek to forge “tight” relations with Hezbollah, Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon Ashraf Hamdy revealed in a candid interview published Saturday in Lebanon’s Daily Star.” Such ‘tight’ relations will presumably include Hezbollah’s right to keep getting ready for that armed conflict with Israel that Hezbollah is supposedly not REALLY getting ready for. Because, of course, nobody in the Middle East has ever preemptively decided to try to attack Israel, ever. Continue reading Muslim Brotherhood reaches out to Hezbollah.

So, I wanted a freaking pork roll sandwich.

For those unaware, pork roll is often referred to as “Taylor ham,” and a sandwich made of it, cheese, pepper, salt, sometimes ketchup, and sometimes egg – all on a hard roll – is a New Jersey delicacy. There are two things that you can’t really get outside of NJ: proper pizza* and a proper pork roll sandwich. I always get both, whenever I’m up here.

FIVE stores in THREE towns before I could find one that took credit cards. I have spent far too long living in the Imperial District…

Moe Lane

*I am perfectly willing to grant that someone from, say, Chicago has a completely different definition of “proper pizza” than I do.

George Monbiot is offered a lesson by the Universe.

I am curious to see whether ANYBODY can read this all the way through without laughing at the last sentence. I didn’t even try to hold it back. I also won’t spoil the surprise.

Via Ace of Spades & David Thompson.

Moe Lane

PS: I swear to God: there’s a smart Righty hiding in there, deep inside Monbiot’s psyche. It should come out more.

Lisa Jackson forced out of EPA.

Ostensible reason:

[Lisa] Jackson, 50, a chemical engineer by training and a mom of two teenagers, offered no reason for her resignation other than saying she’s ready for “new challenges, time with my family and new opportunities to make a difference.” She said she was leaving the EPA “confident the ship is sailing in the right direction.”

Actual reason:

This month, at the prodding of congressional Republicans, the EPA’s inspector general said he was opening an inquiry into Jackson’s use of a secondary e-mail account for official business.She said she had the account — named “Richard Windsor” after the name of her dog and her former home in Windsor Township, N.J. — because her public e-mail address was well known.

This is what we call a “stealth” catastrophic meltdown: Jackson’s ability to function in DC effectively cratered as soon as this came out, anyway.  A pity that the Media won’t destroy this woman’s reputation for the way that she hypocritically  contravened good-government transparency, but at least she’s going to be gone.  And good riddance.

Moe Lane (crosspost)

Neil Abercrombie ignores Daniel Inouye’s dying wish, picks Brian Schatz for Hawaii Senate.

Just as a thought experiment: imagine what would happen if the following scenario played out…

  • A minority Republican Senator passes away.
  • Choosing a successor is the responsibility of his state’s (white) (Republican) governor.
  • The late Senator in question had formally made a request to the governor that a particular qualified individual (who also happens to be a minority) succeed him.
  • The governor then proceeds to ignore the dying wish of the late Senator, and instead chooses his (white) Lt. Governor.

The question before the board is, Just how big would the resulting media firestorm be, anyway?  Large enough to detect from orbit?

Continue reading Neil Abercrombie ignores Daniel Inouye’s dying wish, picks Brian Schatz for Hawaii Senate.

It’s a freaking trifecta.

…No, wait, it’s not a trifecta. I just have a cold that’s making me fall asleep at irregular intervals and the sudden snowfall has delayed my departure to my mom’s for a day. That’s two: three would be if one of the kids… well. Let’s not invite further trouble.

Sorry. Rough night and I’m kind of cranky. Mild to light posting until the end of the week, probably.

David Gregory should be arrested for violating DC’s gun law.

Background: last Sunday on Meet The Press David Gregory brandished a 30 round ammunition magazine while lecturing interrogating interviewing NRA head Wayne LaPierre.  The problem is, however, that the mere possession of this item is in point of fact illegal in the District of Columbia, where Meet The Press is filmed.  The police have been notified, and they are “investigating.”  I’m not sure what they would be investigating, since Gregory demonstrated possession of the item on national television and the law is clear.  The penalties are also apparently up to a $1,000 fine and/or a year in jail, but that’s actually incidental to the discussion at hand.  What is not incidental is that we have a clear case where somebody broke the law.  Probably unaware: but then, ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law.

I am perfectly serious. David Gregory needs to be arrested, for a very simple reason: if I publicly demonstrated my possession of an illegal magazine in DC then I would be arrested – which is something that I already knew very well.  That David Gregory apparently did not is because David Gregory thinks that he is protected by privilege – which, as Robert Anton Wilson once reminded us, literally means ‘private law.’  The DC law is absurd and inequitable; it should be repealed.  But if it is not going to be repealed then it absolutely must be enforced equitably. Continue reading David Gregory should be arrested for violating DC’s gun law.

Chuck Hagel’s Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin moment.

Not a cock-crowing three times moment, mind you: Chuck Hagel deserves to be left twisting in the wind by an administration suddenly gun-shy about nominating an anti-Israel, anti-gay, anti-war suck-up*. From Buzzfeed:

“The White House was never actually all that close to naming Hagel, and to a degree feels awkward about the dust-up about him, however, they have no real interest in defending him because they don’t plan to pick him and see the issues being raise as hard to defend,” the insider said. “The Hagel dust-up is the best thing that could have happened for the President and the party. It nets out well, giving easy sailing to their real choice when the time comes.”

Via Hot Air Headlines. I have to say: it’s kind of fun to torpedo Obama’s Cabinet picks.  Who’s next?

Moe Lane

*I wonder when Hagel’s fellow antiwar loons will finally get tired of supporting a President who is just like George W. Bush on foreign policy, only without the competence and ability to play well with others.  Probably never.