They recently seem to have outlawed s3x there. As Ed notes, it’s going to put a damper on Spring Break. Guess they’ll all have to go to Cancun instead.
The Wichita Lineman
Who does the best cover?
Jimmy Webb was a great songwriter, but no one could ever do it better than Glenn Campbell. Though the James Taylor version is listenable.
What is really sad, is how unappreciated a guitar picker he was. Though you wouldn’t know it from the Wichita Lineman video.
And yes, the lyrics, can’t be beat: “And I need you more than want you…and I want you for all time…”
[Update a couple minutes later]
The genius of the Campbell arrangement was the morse code background in the chorus of the radio hit, though you won’t hear it in the linked video above. It’s sad and frightening how many memories listening to that song brings back. Reading the comments of people much younger at the video of the ’68 hit is even more poignant.
California’s Coming Train Wreck
…over high-speed rail. The plan is lunacy, really.
So Newt Is In?
Not a surprise, of course, he’s been saying he was going to do it all week. I’m not thrilled, but I’d vote for him over Obama, and one thing you can say — he would be the most pro-space president we’ve ever had.
[Update a few minutes later]
Here’s the story from the HuffPo.
Hillary Clinton
But first, the popular question: Who cares?
Osama bin Laden was responsible for the most heinous act of terror in modern history. Only lawyers and their sophistry could defend human-rights protections for someone who displayed so little humanity. Right?
These arguments may seem obvious to most, but disquiet in legal circles has been growing after the initial euphoria following bin Laden’s death. It is quickly becoming apparent that the “who cares” retort will not wash, that Washington must establish a proper legal basis for having killed bin Laden. By doing so the U.S. could not only deconstruct the myth that an unarmed bin Laden was an innocent who was killed unjustifiably; it could also negate the jihadi narrative about Western hypocrisy: that we are no different from the terrorists. In what could be bin Laden’s last hurrah, Washington has yet to make its case, and the Obama administration is rapidly losing the narrative.
Via Kenneth Anderson, who has also been harping on this.
This is just one part of all the Keystone Kops nature of the administration actions in the wake of the killing. Another is why they’ve been talking about what a treasure trove of intel they got, and why they were in such a hurry to declare him dead:
I’m no expert on such matters — though I’ve talked to several about this — but even a casual World War II buff can understand that the shelf life of actionable intelligence would be extended if we hadn’t told the whole world, and al-Qaeda in particular, that we had it.
It’s a bit like racing to the microphones to announce you’ve stolen the other team’s playbook before you’ve had a chance to use the information in the big game.
But that’s exactly what President Obama did. He raced to spill the beans. The man couldn’t even wait until morning. At just after 9:45 p.m., the White House communications director, Dan Pfeiffer, informed the media: “POTUS to address the nation tonight at 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time.”
The announcement came less than three hours after Obama had been informed that there was a “high probability” that bin Laden was dead and that the Navy SEAL helicopters had returned to Afghanistan.
In other words, it seems that the White House planned to crow as soon as possible. Why? Nobody I’ve talked to can think of a reason that doesn’t have to do with politics or hubris.
I can’t, either.
A Brave Cartoonist
I’m not generally a fan of graphic novels, but this guy’s got some sand. Andy McCarthy has the back story.
Another Reason To Convert
Necrophilia is acceptable within Islam. I was relieved to see this, though:
Sheikh Zamzami tempered his most unusual fatwa by stating that necrophilia, though Halal is a disgusting act that would be best avoided.
Glad he cleared that up.
Regime Change In Syria?
Well, better years late than never.
The War In The Congo
Thoughts on the most under-reported war in the world.
[Afternoon update]
Almost fifty women are raped per hour there?
Questions For The President
From Peter Kirsanow:
In 2006, Congress passed legislation to construct a 700-mile fence along the southern border. Construction of the fence began, but according to several sources, including Sen. Jim DeMint, of the 36 miles built to date, only 4.3 were built since you took office.
In 2009, you sold the $800 billion stimulus bill, in part, on the promise that the funds would be directed toward “shovel-ready projects” that would create jobs. But a few months ago, you conceded that “there’s no such thing as shovel-ready projects” in public works. Given that the border fence is an authorized public-works project already under construction, isn’t it, in fact, a “shovel-ready project” that could have benefited from stimulus funds? Were any of the stimulus funds (in addition to any funds already appropriated) dedicated to expediting the construction of the fence? If not, is it because Republicans insisted that a portion of the funds be used for the creation of a moat with alligators?
Wednesday’s bonus questions: Yesterday you called for comprehensive immigration reform but suggested that Republicans are an impediment thereto. Is that the reason why you failed to seriously pursue comprehensive immigration reform in the two years Democrats held sizable majorities in both houses? Or is it possible that some Democrats also insist on a moat with alligators?
I wonder if the “moat with alligators” is going to become the new stock line on the campaign/fundraising trail, like “sipping on their slurpees was”? Does he have no idea how off putting all this condescension, ridicule, straw men and outright lies are to those who don’t worship him? Is this the “adult conversation” that he wants to have?