text:
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Pete Seeger: Stalinist and Communist
Labels: Communism, Culture, music, Obama
New Euphemism for Obama Lie: "Bump."
James Taranto in the WSJ "Best of the Web"
'Bump' Is the New 'Misspoke'
From a "fact check" of the State of the Union address by the Associated Press's Calvin Woodward:It seems to be something of an occupational hazard for President Barack Obama: When he talks about his health care law, he's bound to hit a fact bump sooner or later.Gotta love that "fact bump." Obama's speech might not have had much else to recommend it, but at least it's given us a new euphemism.
Or: THAT'S RACIST!
Labels: biased reporting, Lies, Obama, The Press, WSJ
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Is "Worse" the New Normal for Most of Us?
Obama's pointless, traceless super-spending is now (as they used to say after 9/11) "the new normal." Nancy Pelosi assured the nation last weekend that everything that can be cut has been cut and there are no more cuts to be made. And the disturbing thing is that, as a matter of practical politics, she may well be right. Many people still take my correspondent's view: If you have old money well managed, you can afford to be stupid — or afford the government's stupidity on your behalf. If you're a social-activist celebrity getting $20 million per movie, you can afford the government's stupidity. If you're a tenured professor or a unionized bureaucrat whose benefits were chiseled in stone two generations ago, you can afford it. If you've got a wind farm and you're living large on government "green energy" investments, you can afford it. If you've got the contract for signing up Obamaphone recipients, you can afford it.But out there beyond the islands of privilege most Americans don't have the same comfortably padded margin for error, and they're hunkering down. Obamacare is something new in American life: the creation of a massive bureaucracy charged with downsizing you — to a world of fewer doctors, higher premiums, lousier care, more debt, fewer jobs, smaller houses, smaller cars, smaller, fewer, less; a world where worse is the new normal. Would Americans, hitherto the most buoyant and expansive of people, really consent to live such shrunken lives? If so, mid-20th-century America and its assumptions of generational progress will be as lost to us as the Great Ziggurat of Ur was to 19th-century Mesopotamian date farmers.
Labels: Academia, Democrats, Economy, government control, Hollywood, Liberalism, Obama, ruling class, Steyn, wealth
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
If you dare to challenge the scientific establishment generally, and its global warming adherents specifically, you better have deep pockets and plenty of time on your hands. That is the takeaway of the last 15 months, and soon to be more, of Mark Steyn's life — one of the recent victims of the Left's war on speech whose case has arguably been the least-covered but most deserving of your attention.
"by far the biggest consequence of this ridiculous case is in these [National Review's] pages. If you are only a print subscriber (as opposed to an Internet reader), you will have no idea that NATIONAL REVIEW is in the midst of a big free-speech battle on one of the critical public-policy issues of our time. There have been no cover stories, no investigative journalism, no eviscerating editorials. NR runs specialized blogs on both legal matters and climate change, yet they too have been all but entirely silent. I assume, from this lonely outpost on NR's wilder shores, that back at head office they take the view that it's best not to say anything while this matter works its way through the courts. In other words, a law explicitly intended to prevent litigious bullies from forcing their victims to withdraw from "public participation" has resulted in the defendants themselves voluntarily withdrawing from "public participation" . That's nuts.
All people that cherish and value their freedom should stand behind the Canadian Mr. Steyn who dared speak up for American "climate deniers," and is now representing himself in the case, having parted ways with his prior joint legal representation with National Review.
Labels: global warming, Law, Steyn
Romney knocks CNN's Crowley over debate flap
Mitt Romney said Monday that CNN's Candy Crowley overstepped her bounds by playing fact-checker during a debate between Romney and President Obama in 2012.Appearing on Hugh Hewitt's radio show, Romney said Crowley shouldn't have interjected to confirm President Obama's claim about the evolution of the administration's talking points about the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya."Well, I don't think it's the role of the moderator in a debate to insert themselves into the debate and to declare a winner or a loser on a particular point," Romney said. "And I must admit that, at that stage, I was getting a little upset at Candy, because in a prior setting where I was to have had the last word, she decided that Barack Obama was to get the last word despite the rules that we had."
It's a little late Mitt.
Labels: biased reporting, debate, Romney, The Press
DRUDGE: Emperor Obama
PAPER: Is Obama an imperial president?
White House warns of congressional bypass...
SOTU address will lay out 'unilateral' agenda...
Plan to Use Executive Action Triggers Criticism...
There's this from Glenn Reynolds:
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR: Is Barack Obama an imperial president? President Obama's use of executive action to get around congressional gridlock is unparalleled in modern times, some scholars say. But to liberal activists, he's not going far enough. Some "liberal activists" are pretty comfortable with autocracy.
I would say that many "liberal activists" are pretty comfortable with Communist dictatorship and the mass purges that it brings. They were in the past, why should the present be any different?
Woman, 61, Tells Cops A Man Named Ted Stole Her "Obama Phone"
A South Carolina woman told cops that a male acquaintance stole "her government issued 'Obama Phone'" and a pair of DVDs from her residence, according to a police report.
Rosa Clowney, a 61-year-old Spartanburg resident, told officers that she had invited a man named "Ted" over to her house Thursday night to watch a pair of movies she had borrowed from the library ("Act of Valor" and "The Bourne Identity").
She had no further information about "Ted."
'Face the Nation' Edits Out Senator Cruz Condemning Obama's 'Abuse of Power'
First the See B. S. version:
Second, the actual comments made by Senator Cruz:
Labels: biased reporting, Cruz, Liberalism, media, The Press
ObamaCare Update - DRUDGE 1/28/2014
BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD cancels 'family' policies for gay couples in NC...
Michelle O wants $10 donations 'to help protect Obamacare'...
CA: Only One-Third Have Regained Insurance Lost...
Children Unable To Be Included In Parents' Plans...
Retiring House Dem Slams Healthcare Law...
Republicans Pitch Obamacare Alternative...
Monday, January 27, 2014
Wisconsin's Earth Shattering Kabookm
Labels: government success, Limbaugh, Scott Walker, wisconsin
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Media and Global Warming Priests Puzzled by Sun.
So when reality intrudes, it has to be fitted in where it can, so long as their basic beliefs are not impacted. This is their creed:
- The globe is warming and mankind is the cause.
It's fairly clear from this report that the
Another illustration of the fact that theirs is a faith-based belief system rather than a scientific one.
UPDATE: Thanks for the link Ross, and I like your headline better.
Labels: Academia, global warming, The Press
Don't have a life? Borrow Michelle's.
It highlights Michelle Obama's most memorable and glamorous moments. Below, ten examples from the list, which you can read in full here:
- Dance to Beyonce
- Move into a massive new house with your family and invite your mother to move in too
Labels: Liberalism, media, Obama, The Press
DRUDGE: "We are now a police state ..."
NSA Spies Are 'Our Neighbors and Friends'...
WHITE HOUSE: Obama didn't know extent of surveillance...
PANEL: Program Hasn't Prevented Any Terrorist Attacks...
'We Are Now a Police State'...
Spies Want Snowden Dead...
Assange: 'We heard a lot of lies'...
Podesta to Lead NSA Review...
Soros Crony...
Labels: Drudge, Fascism, NSA, Obama, spying
Friday, January 17, 2014
Senior UK Defense Advisor: Obama Is Clueless About 'What He Wants To Do In The World'
Sir Hew Strachan, an expert on the history of war, says that the president's strategic failures in Afghanistan and Syria have crippled America's position in the world.President Obama is "chronically incapable" of military strategy and falls far short of his predecessor George W. Bush, according to one of Britain's most senior military advisors.Sir Hew Strachan, an advisor to the Chief of the Defense Staff, told The Daily Beast that the United States and Britain were guilty of total strategic failure in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Obama's attempts to intervene on behalf of the Syrian rebels "has left them in a far worse position than they were before."
Strachan, a current member of the Chief of the Defense Staff's Strategic Advisory Panel, cited the "crazy" handling of the Syrian crisis as the most egregious example of a fundamental collapse in military planning that began in the aftermath of 9/11. "If anything it's gone backwards instead of forwards, Obama seems to be almost chronically incapable of doing this. Bush may have had totally fanciful political objectives in terms of trying to fight a global War on Terror, which was inherently astrategic, but at least he had a clear sense of what he wanted to do in the world. Obama has no sense of what he wants to do in the world," he said.
Labels: Obama
ObamaCare Update
SEBELIUS: 'Get in line'...
State lawmakers press to kill Oregon's troubled health exchange...
Hackers: HealthCare.gov still riddled with security issues...
Official: No One Knows How Many Have Actually Paid...
Liberal Quarantine
From the House of Eratosthenes
It really doesn't take much to trash a place once you can manage to define, influence and eventually monopolize the prevailing viewpoint. It's inevitable when people start to see self-improvement as a futile effort. Of course, that's exactly the viewpoint liberalism keeps pushing…unless you count "be more liberal" as self-improvement. Education? They're for it as long as it means being more liberal. If it means what it used to mean, if it has something to do with earning a more respectable living and making yourself more self-sufficient, they're not for it anymore. Employment? They like the kind of employment that doesn't actually produce anything. Service and sacrifice? Only if they get to choose. The soldier doesn't have their respect. Freedom and personal choice? Again, the choice is for them.It's particularly depressing in California. Most other states, the folks in charge drone on and on about how each new year is going to be the best one ever for that state. Our folks only talk about the slim chance we have at maybe surviving this "crisis," digging ourselves out of the hole. There's no vision for actually winning at this thing. But that's not to say there isn't a stated answer. It's always there, and it's always more liberalism. We have the crime, we have the problems with our schools, we have the high taxes. And we have people leaving. Are they all conservatives? No. Just like the graphic says, the liberals vote in the nonsense and they get sick and tired of the messes they create, so they leave. They go someplace red, that's missing the nonsense, and then they vote in more of it over there.
H/T Vander Leun
Labels: Liberalism
TSA Pat-Down At DIA Leads To Sex Assault Investigation
We should see many more of these. Let them worry about the public they fondle every day.
Labels: crime, police, sexual politics, TSA
Thursday, January 16, 2014
The IRS Scandal, Day 252
An FBI Just As Tainted And Untrustworthy As The IRS
The FBI says it won't prosecute anyone at the IRS for its admitted targeting of the president's political foes. This just as the agency claims the law is no longer its main mission. So it's a political goon squad now.According to a leak to the Wall Street Journal, the Federal Bureau of Investigation "didn't find the kind of political bias or 'enemy hunting' that would amount to a violation of criminal law." And so, nobody was likely to be prosecuted for the most blatant politicization of a federal agency within memory.All the Bureau found was a "mismanaged" agency that enforced rules "it didn't understand." In other words, nothing to see here, move along.That's strange stuff for an agency whose most implicated regulator, Lois Lerner, invoked her Fifth Amendment rights against self incrimination in congressional testimony last year. That she came to congressional attention was only because of her calculated announcement that the IRS had in fact targeted Tea Party groups for special scrutiny — that's right, admitted to breaking the law — in a preemptive attempt to paint her abuse of power as a customer service problem.Her minions lied that it was only the work of low-level bureaucratic bumblers in Cincinnati. And after that sleazy string of favors that coincidentally benefited her president, she was permitted to retire on a full pension.The reality is, the acts reeked of political targeting, the most illegal of acts, a corrupt use of government power, and a worthy target of checks and balances provided by the FBI in the name of law and order.But for some reason, the FBI has neither interviewed the Tea Party activists targeted for intrusive scrutiny, nor has it noticed anything amiss in light of the White House's rabid attacks on Tea Party activists. It hasn't noticed the Tea Party's demonstrable political strength in its large gatherings during the most intense period of its political targeting, nor noted the president's record of "joking" about investigating political opponents.
I wonder how the FBI agents at the local level feel about this? How does the field FBI agent feel about being part of a political goon squad?
Labels: cover-up, FBI, government failure, Holder, IRS, Obama, Tea Party
Killary Klinton
Via Commonsense and Wonder.
Jackie Kennedy 'had an affair with ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev and so did Bobby Kennedy'
- The Pink Triangle penned by Hollywood biographer Darwin Porter and independent publisher Danforth Prince comes out next month
- It reports alleged conversations with Gore Vidal and Truman Capote about the extra-marital affairs of Jackie Kennedy
- Porter claims Capote told him about Jackie's affair with Rudolf Nureyev while Vidal revealed her affair with another dancer
- A separate 'rumor' exists claiming Bobby Kennedy was caught in a passionate embrace with Nureyev
- Paris gossip magazine Paris Match allegedly claimed Nureyev once drunkenly boasted of an affair with Jackie Kennedy
- In an interview he also boasted that everyone thought he was the sexiest man alive including the Kennedys
- Capote also believed Bobby Kennedy was a closeted homosexual, according to the book
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
Labels: homosexuality, Kennedy, sexual politics
Wisconsin 'John Doe' target demands prosecutors end retaliatory probe or face federal civil rights lawsuit
The Right has to begin using the courts at least as aggressively as the Left.
One target in the Wisconsin "John Doe" investigation is demanding state prosecutors end their action against him or face a federal civil rights lawsuit.
H/T Glenn Reynolds PUNCHING BACK TWICE AS HARD
Labels: culture of corruption, Dissent, Free Speech, Instapundit, Law, Liberalism, wisconsin
Chris Christie's Staff Blames Bridge Closing on Anti-Islam Video
CHRIS MATTHEWS: I'm on the phone live with former Secretary of State Clinton. Thank you for calling, Madam Secretary.
HILLARY: Oh, my pleasure Chris.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Madam Secretary, what was your initial reaction when you heard the Christie people are blaming a YouTube video for the George Washington bridge lane closings?
HILLARY: Oh gosh, Chris. Not only is it shameful to blame a harmless video that nobody has seen for the massacre on that bridge, but to hide behind a lie in order to avoid responsibility is … well, it's unconscionable.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Amazing isn't it, Madam Secretary?
HILLARY: What kind of people are capable of such acts of cowardice, Chris? It's deplorable, inexcusable and frankly, it's un- American.
TRENTON – This afternoon staff members loyal to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie alleged that the September closing of traffic lanes leading to the George Washington bridge was the result of a spontaneous reaction to an anti-Islam YouTube video. Although Gov. Christie has apologized for "unwittingly" misleading the public, calling the bridge closing "embarrassing and humiliating," his staffers have nevertheless filed a complaint with the justice department, calling for an FBI investigation. Christie spokesman Collin Reed read a brief statement to reporters."The information, the best information and the best assessment we have today is that in fact these were not preplanned, premeditated lane closings. That what happened was a spontaneous reaction to a vile and despicable film that pokes fun at the prophet Mohammad. Let me state very clearly and I hope it is obvious, that the New Jersey Governor's office had absolutely nothing to do with this insensitive video. We absolutely reject its content and message and call for the immediate investigation of its filmmaker."After attending a fundraiser at Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein's Malibu home today, President Obama was asked by reporters to comment on the latest news out of New Jersey.obama egypt Chris Christies Staff Blames Bridge Closing on Anti Islam Video"I want to personally extend my heartfelt sympathies to the victims of the lane closings," Obama said. "If I had family members who commuted from New Jersey to New York, some of them would look like the folks stuck on the George Washington bridge. Now, it seems highly implausible that the horrifying chaos so many of us watched unfold on that bridge was a spontaneous reaction to a silly YouTube video. And I find it even harder to believe the American people are gullible enough to accept such a ludicrous story. The American people aren't stupid."
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Thank you for calling, Madam President. I'm back with my guest, African American journalist, Eugene Robinson. (Looks at Robinson) What the heck is going on in New Jersey, my African American friend? Is this Chris Christie's dress stain? His illegitimate love-child? His toe-tap in the airport men's room?EUGENE ROBINSON: Well I ….CHRIS MATTHEWS: And my God, what about the covert racism? Are Republicans ever going to evolve from the Jim Crow era? Did you happen to notice how many times Gov. Christie said bridge during his mea culpa?EUGENE ROBINSON: Uh, another racial code word?CHRIS MATTHEWS: Ha! Look at you, Eugene, playing naive! Ha! Why doesn't Christie just wear his white hood to press conferences?EUGENE ROBINSON: I think …CHRIS MATTHEWS: But the gall, Eugene … laying the blame for the lane closings on a video nobody's seen? Is that the best they can do? How stupid do these white men think we are? Is it any wonder Republicans have alienated women and Hispanics? Huh? Talk to me my African American friend.EUGENE ROBINSON: Well, what I think ….CHRIS MATTHEWS: Hold on, Eugene. (listens to earpiece) Looks like they need to wipe the spittle off the camera lens again. Let's take a commercial break and when we come back, MSNBC lesbian Rachel Maddow will tell us about the devastating effects Christie's bridge closing had on the LGBT community. You're watching Hardball!
(You do know that no one ever says anything on Hardball except Matthews. His guest could as well be cardboard cut-outs.)
Labels: Christie, Hillary, humor, Libya, Matthews, MSNBC, parody, Race, The Press
Do you want to end World Hunger?"
H/T Vander Leun
Navy Cross Citation to Cpl. Clifford Woolridge
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Corporal Clifford M. Wooldridge, United States Marine Corps, for extraordinary heroism while serving as Vehicle Commander, Combined Anti-Armor Platoon White, Weapons Company, Third Battalion, Seventh Marines, Regimental Combat Team 2, FIRST Marine Division (Forward), I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) Afghanistan, on 18 June 2010 in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM.
When their mounted patrol came under intense enemy fire, Corporal Wooldridge and his squad dismounted and maneuvered on the suspected enemy location. Spotting a group of fifteen enemy fighters preparing an ambush, Corporal Wooldridge led one of his fire teams across open ground to flank the enemy, killing or wounding at least eight and forcing the rest to scatter. As he held security alone to cover his fire team's withdrawal, he heard voices from behind an adjacent wall. Boldly rushing around the corner, he came face-to-face with two enemy fighters at close range, killing both of them with his M-249 Squad Automatic Weapon.
As he crouched back behind the wall to reload, he saw the barrel of an enemy machine gun appear from around the wall. Without hesitation, he dropped his empty weapon and seized the machine gun barrel. He overwhelmed the enemy fighter in hand-to-hand combat, killing him with several blows to the head with the enemy's own machine gun.
His audacious and fearless actions thwarted the enemy attack on his platoon. By his bold and decisive leadership, undaunted courage under fire, and total dedication to duty, Corporal Wooldridge reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and of the United States Naval Service.
H/T Vander Leun
Labels: Afghanistan, Courage, Marines, War
A walk down memory lane with Al Sharpton and Tawanda Brawley
Back in November 1987, 15-year-old Tawana Brawley was found curled up inside a plastic bag in an apartment building parking lot. She had feces and racist graffiti all over her body, her clothing was torn and burned, and she was apparently unconscious.When she emerged from her (fake) unconsciousness, she claimed she had been held captive in the woods for several days, while being raped and beaten by six white men, including policemen and the local prosecutor.The story being utterly preposterous, every law enforcement agency in the universe was called in to investigate -- the FBI, local, county and state police. Gov. Mario Cuomo directed the state attorney general, Robert Abrams, to investigate Brawley's claims.MSNBC's Al Sharpton was one of Brawley's "advisers" throughout this massively expensive investigation, along with lawyers Alton Maddox and C. Vernon Mason -- both later disbarred.Eight months and 1.3 million taxpayer dollars later (in today's dollars), the purported attack was exposed as a complete fraud. It turned out that Brawley made up the gang-rape story to avoid explaining to her volatile stepfather why she hadn't come home for four nights straight.Among other findings, the grand jury's 170-page report noted these facts:-- Witnesses saw Brawley getting into the plastic bag by herself, and then hopping around in it before curling up into a ball on the ground.-- The hospital rape tests were negative and no semen was found anyplace on her body.-- She had no recent bruises or other marks on her body consistent with rape.-- Hospital technicians who evaluated Brawley concluded that she was faking unconsciousness.-- Brawley was well-nourished, had clean breath, no bruises or injuries to her body and was not suffering from exposure, despite temperatures having dropped to freezing several times when she was allegedly being gang-raped in the woods.-- Witnesses had seen Brawley in a vacant apartment where she had once lived during the period of the alleged attack.-- In that apartment, investigators found charred fibers matching the burnt clothes Brawley had been found in, the source of the material that had been stuffed in her nose and ears, and the feces that had been smeared on her. Investigators even identified the dog whose feces it was. Her dirty clothes were still in a washing machine in the building.At no point did Sharpton question Brawley's story or urge her to recant. To the contrary, as the case fell apart, Sharpton's demagoguery rose to Olympian heights.He branded Abrams "Hitler," called Gov. Mario Cuomo a racist, and demanded that Cuomo appoint Maddox special prosecutor on the case. (It was a reasonable request: Maddox had accused Abrams of masturbating to photos of Brawley.)Even in 1997 -- a decade after Brawley's story had been proved a hoax beyond a scintilla of a doubt -- Sharpton arranged for her to give a speech to his United African Movement at a Brooklyn church.I find it hard to believe that Al Sharpton did not know Brawley was lying about being raped by a Nazi cult on the Wappingers Falls police force.
Labels: Coulter, Lies, media, MSNBC, Race, Sharpton, The Press
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
What FBI 'investigation' of the IRS scandal?
Last week, we learned that the head of the "probe," Barbara Bosserman, is a donor to Obama campaigns and the Democratic National Committee. This is, someone who could hardly be trusted to understand what all the fuss is about.Now we learn that the FBI has "concluded" that there was no actual illegal activity involved in the IRS scandal, conclusions reached without ever speaking to a single conservative or Tea Party organization leader or attorney to learn what actually happened these past four years.
Labels: culture of corruption, FBI, IRS, Obama, Tea Party
One year ago, David Gregory was let off the D.C. gun law hook
Labels: crime, Guns, Liberalism, The Press
13,000 teens complete Hamas training camps to emulate 'suicide martyrs'
"Beware this generation," Haniyeh said, addressing Israel. "This is a generation which knows no fear. It is the generation of the missile, the tunnel and the suicide operations."The Hamas prime minister added that female trainers are also on staff "to oversee the training of the young women to follow in the footsteps of the female suicide operatives."
Labels: Islamofascism, Muslim, violence
ObamaCare update via DRUDGE
Jimmy Kimmel Savages Obamacare...
Ads Attacking on Health Law Stagger Outspent Dems...
Dozens of new regs coming...
Three House Dems Announce Retirement -- In Three Days...
Five Dem Senate Chairmen Retiring...
To show support for jobless, Obama invites some over to his big white mansion.
Fallon: President Obama invited unemployed Americans to the White House for a discussion on income inequality. Because if there's one way to show sympathy for the unemployed, it's to have them over to a giant white mansion where you get to live for free.
Leno: That MSNBC anchor has apologized for making fun of a Mitt Romney grandchild. She said from now on before she goes on the air, she'll remind herself that some people may actually be watching MSNBC.
Labels: humor
Employment Law Firm: Drop American Studies Assn membership or risk Title VII liability
Since ASA announced its academic boycott of Israel, we have confirmed that 6 universities have dropped their Institutional Memberships, while 11 more have denied being Institutional Members despite being so listed.
The updated list appears at the very bottom of this post.
While over 190 university presidents have denounced the ASA academic boycott of Israel, many have decided either to keep the membership or to leave the decision to individual American Studies Departments. Some others are switching the membership listing to their American Studies Departments, rather than the full University name.
Anything other than a full termination of Institutional Membership, however, opens up the universities to legal liability for national origin discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
That potential liability is explained in a recent article by two attorneys at the Seyfarth Shaw law firm.
Read the whole thing.
One college that is in our area, the College of William & Mary, will be asked about this.
Labels: Academia, anti-semitism, bigotry, Israel, Jews, Liberalism
Sarah Palin's father harassed by IRS six times since 2008
Via American Thinker:
The problems with a politicized IRS may be far more serious than we have yet suspected. Sarah Palin's brother Chuck Heath, Jr. posted the following on his Facebook account January 11th:My father, who worked multiple jobs and faithfully and honestly paid his taxes for fifty years, had never heard a word from the IRS. In 2008, his daughter was tapped to run for vice president of the United States. Since that time, he has been, in his words "horribly harassed" six times by the agency. They've tried to dig up something on him but he's always operated above board.
As Glenn Reynolds reminds us regularly, Barack Obama "joked" about auditing his enemies.
American Caudillio
Why bother with laws when the President can write his own? Who's to stop him? He's got the Senate,the judiciary, the military and the media.
"We're not just going to be waiting for legislation in order to make sure that we're providing Americans the kind of help they need. I've got a pen and I've got a phone," Obama said Tuesday as he convened his first Cabinet meeting of the year.Obama continued: "And I can use that pen to sign executive orders and take executive actions and administrative actions that move the ball forward in helping to make sure our kids are getting the best education possible, making sure that our businesses are getting the kind of support and help they need to grow and advance, to make sure that people are getting the skills that they need to get those jobs that our businesses are creating."
And if you don't like it, he's also got the IRS and the DOJ.
Labels: Fascism, Liberalism, media, Military, Obama, Senate, Supreme court, The Press
Giving Peace Yet Another Chance
Let's hear that old refrain" "Aaaallll we are saaaaying ...."
It is never a good omen when a president of the United States is chanting old hippie slogans, but it is especially worrisome in response to the martial chest-thumping of theocratic nutcases intent on acquiring nuclear weapons. There is still a chance that Congress might scuttle the deal by continuing sanctions, as even some Democrats are unimpressed with the plan, and we hope they will do so despite the White House warnings that it would provoke a war. Allowing an apocalyptic suicide cult to set off a nuclear arms race in a traditionally bellicose region gripped by ancient and irrational hatreds cannot end well, and doing so for the sake of giving peace a chance makes no sense.
Well said, Bud.
Iraqi deputy prime minister blames U.S., al-Maliki for rising violence
Mr. Mutlaq said Iraq began veering toward dangerously divisive political territory during and after its parliamentary elections in 2010, when the Shiite-dominated coalition rose to power in Baghdad "because of pressure from Iran" and "because the U.S. did not act in a strong way."
That's because Obama wanted it that way.
Tired of being known as a "Baldfaced Liar" Jay Carney grows a beard.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
"You can observe a lot by watching"
(Edited 1/16/2014)
Labels: Culture
Half of U.S. Counties Haven't Recovered From Recession
About half of the nation's 3,069 county economies are still short of their prerecession economic output, reflecting the uneven economic recovery,
Well, it is tough when Team Obama is working so hard to put a spoke in the wheels of the economy ... except for the part run by crony capitalists and Obama bundlers.
Labels: crony capitalism, Economy, Obama
Spanish-language Obamacare website is written in 'Spangli
The Administration of the Perfectly Creased Pants, run by the guy who should have been elected to be a GQ model, (no thinking required) strikes again.
It launched two months late, but the rollout of the Spanish version of the federal Obamacare portal has been just as disastrous as its English counterpart's October debut, according to an Associated Press report.This time, the problem is lousy translations and glitches that send users back to the English version of HealthCare.gov.The AP says the translations on so poor that many users feel they were computer-generated. The name of the site, CuidadoDeSalud.gov, can be litterally read as "for the caution of health."One health navigator who works in Miami told the wire service that, if anything, the site is written in "Spanglish.
Labels: ObamaCare
Want to get rid of the Third Amendment out of fairness? You support the troops, don't you?
California, home of the fruits and nuts:
Californians Sign Petition Allowing U.S. Troops to Commandeer Their Homes
Note how enthusiastic some of the young girls are.
Two other young women simply agreed with everything Dice said even though most of it was nonsense. "They should be able to come into your house and they can quarter there forever if they want to." Dice stated, as the women both replied "oh yeah definitely" and "I agree".
These people are what make California, California. Gives new whole new and chilling meaning to the song by Whitney HJouson "Children are our Future."
Labels: California, Constitution, Liberalism
Will Federal Investigators Probe Obama Administration about Christie ads?
Christie office: Obama administration approved Jersey Shore TV ads
Via DRUDGE & Daily Caller.
Labels: Christie
Monday, January 13, 2014
Those Moderate Muslims!
"Firefighters struggled to subdue the flames as the decades-old Al-Saeh library went up in smoke on Friday in the Serail neighborhood of Tripoli. Despite firefighters' best efforts, little of the trove of historic books and manuscripts was recovered from the wreckage. 'Two thirds of some 80,000 books and manuscripts housed there,' a security source told Agence France Press, referring to the items destroyed. The source added that the blaze was started after a manuscript insulting the Prophet Mohammed was found hidden in the pages of one of the library books.
Labels: Islamofascism, Muslim, violence
Hurricane Sandy ended Mitt Romney's presidential bid, now it'll end Christie's.
What about the Republicans? Christie burned a lot of bridges in that debate, and in his embrace (literally) of Obama in those final days of the 2012 election. Ironically, it's the Obama administration that is widening its probe into the use of those funds now. Don't expect too many Republicans to rush to Christie's side in this fight, except to point out that the $2.2 million difference between the two advertising campaign proposals amounts to 0.041% of the porkfest Barack Obama and Chris Christie demanded from Congress for Sandy relief.
He must have thought he was being smart. Such political ineptitude on display here by Christie. Piss off a huge number of your potential base so that when the opening salvo is launched you've got no allies. Well played.
Labels: Christie
What doe you do if 95 million people can't find jobs and the economy sucks?
If you're a Democrat you propose bringing in millions of illegal immigrants to take all the entry level jobs and raising the minimum wage so that Americans won't be hired. Then you extend unemployment benefits for 50 years so that no one ever needs to actually get a job.
Labels: Democrats, Economy, jobs
Hillary Clinton's Enemies List
There was a special circle of Clinton hell reserved for people who had endorsed Obama or stayed on the fence after Bill and Hillary had raised money for them, appointed them to a political post or written a recommendation to ice their kid's application to an elite school. On one early draft of the hit list, each Democratic member of Congress was assigned a numerical grade from 1 to 7, with the most helpful to Hillary earning 1s and the most treacherous drawing 7s. The set of 7s included Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), as well as Reps. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Baron Hill (D-Ind.) and Rob Andrews (D-N.J.).
Labels: ObamaCare
Journalists for Obama
Labels: Dem operatives with bylines
Obama Voter Remorse
Labels: ObamaCare
They're not the Fourth Estate. They're the Praetorian Guard.
Government officials and political operatives working for Christie, for weird and petty reasons, chose to make traffic worse. That's the takeaway. When they are reminded of the fact that people working on Christie's behalf thought it was a good political game to mire tens of thousands of their fellow Americans in the nightmarish gridlock that is a daily dreaded prospect for tens of millions, they will be discomfited by that and by the politician in whose name it was done.
And yet, you know what is also something everybody would find "relatable"? Politicians who sic the tax man on others for political gain. Everybody has to deal with the IRS and fears it. Last year, we learned from the Internal Revenue Service itself that it had targeted ideological opponents of the president for special scrutiny and investigation — because they were ideological opponents.
That's juicy, just as Bridgegate is juicy. It's something we can all understand, it speaks to our greatest fears, and it's the sort of thing TV newspeople could gab about for days on end without needing a fresh piece of news to keep it going.
And yet, according to Scott Whitlock of the Media Research Center, "In less than 24 hours, the three networks have devoted 17 times more coverage to a traffic scandal involving Chris Christie than they've allowed in the last six months to Barack Obama's Internal Revenue Service controversy."
Why? Oh, come on, you know why. Christie belongs to one political party. Obama belongs to the other. You know which ones they belong to. And you know which ones the people at the three networks belong to, too: In surveys going back decades, anywhere from 80% to 90% of Washington's journalists say they vote Democratic.
Scandals are not just about themselves; they are about the media atmosphere that surrounds them. They are perpetuated and deepened by the attention of journalists, whose relentless pursuit of every angle keeps the story going. That is exactly what has been missing from the IRS scandal from its outset; Republicans in Congress have been the dogged pursuers, not the press.
From the article written by John Podhoretz
To the journalists, the Obamans don't look like crooks and cheats. Far from it. For them, it's like looking in a mirror.
In September, Elspeth Reeve of The Atlantic Wire took note of 24 major journalists who have taken posts at senior levels in the Obama administration. All of them have worked for decades in various news organizations, thus creating personal ties and bonds of affection with literally hundreds of working reporters and editors.
The journalists are not covering up for their friends and their spouses. They just believe the people they know could not be responsible for behaving badly, or cravenly, or for crass political advantage —and the tone they strike when such things are discussed is often one of offense, as though it is a sign of low character to believe otherwise. It would be, well, like believing the journalists themselves were crooks.
Labels: Christie, Dem operatives with bylines, Democrats, IRS, Obama, The Press
The "Big Money" Boogeyman
Labels: Democrats, Fascism, Free Speech, Liberalism, Money
Obamacare's Stunning Redistribution of Wealth
Frontpage Mag.
For all the attention Obamacare has drawn in recent weeks, few observers have noted that the law is having the unexpected, yet most welcome, effect of transforming scores of millions of Americans, virtually overnight, into generous benefactors of the less fortunate. A real-world example—representative of countless millions of similar situations—will make this crystal clear:Let's say that you are a healthy, hardworking 54-year-old single adult in San Francisco earning $45,960 per year—the income level at which federal Obamacare subsidies from your fellow taxpayers are no longer available to help you pay your monthly health-insurance premiums. As a San Francisco resident, you are permitted to choose from among 16 separate Obamacare-compliant insurance plans. Four of these are so-called "Bronze" plans, low-level policies whose average premium will cost you $453 per month, or $5,436 per year. In exchange for those premium payments, a Bronze plan will cover 60% of your medical expenses—that is, after you meet the $5,000 out-of-pocket annual deductible. For this priceless peace of mind, you can thank Obamacare—the Democratic Party's gift to a grateful America.Let us contrast your case with that of Joe, another 54-year-old single individual in San Francisco, who happens to be an obese alcoholic and longtime drug abuser with little ambition and no history of ever having held a full-time job for very long. Joe currently earns $15,860 per year, which is just above the income level that would have made him eligible for Medicaid. Because Joe doesn't qualify for Medicaid, Obamacare stipulates that he must now purchase his own health insurance—thereby proving that, contrary to the shrill rhetoric of conservative naysayers, no one gets an undeserved free ride under Obamacare.Like you, Joe can choose from among 16 separate plans that are available to San Francisco residents. But unlike you, he is eligible to receive federal government subsidies—money that other, wealthier Americans, such as you, magnanimously "contribute" toward the healthcare expenses of financially "disadvantaged" individuals. If he selects one of the four Bronze plans (whose average monthly premium is $453), Joe qualifies for $452 in average monthly subsidies—meaning that, regardless of which Bronze plan he chooses, he will pay a monthly premium of exactly $1. You read that correctly. The very same healthcare plan that would cost you $453 per month, is available to Joe for $1 per month—i.e., the cost of three oatmeal-raisin cookies at your local Subway sandwich shop. Over the course of a year, you will pay a total of $5,436 in policy premiums, while Joe, who sadly failed to qualify for free healthcare through Medicaid, will pay his own fair share of $12. This is all in the interest of social justice, you understand. And please, don't even think about whispering that Obamacare might be some sort of "wealth redistribution" scheme, lest you expose yourself as a petulant reactionary who doesn't give a damn about sick people.
But wait, there's more ... read the whole thing.
Labels: Obama, Redistribution, socialism
The Hand of God
Gerard Vander Leun has written a wonderful essay about this, and the universe that God made along with you and me. And about the difference between "facts" and "truth."
Here's how he ends: (Excerpt:)
Do I, an exemplar of the most advanced culture in history, actually believe that this is the image, the manifestation, the fading photograph of the hand of God, the Supreme Being? Of course not. Not for a moment do I think that what I see in this image is that. I believe... no... I know for a fact that what I am seeing is merely gas and stars in a seemingly random arrangement shining in a narrow, very narrow, part of the spectrum so that, to my deeper mind and imagination, I pull together some vague shapes in the play of color on the void and relate it to what I have seen elsewhere, felt elsewhen -- and out of that produce a feeling, thought, in my mind that makes my eyes see what appears to be an impossible hand reaching across space long ago in exactly nowhere. It's a cosmic Rorschach image, a glowing gasblot somewhere in limitless space. That it is a 'hand' is impossible. It is even more impossible that it is even an image of a hand.But that is not the most impossible thing about this image.What is even more impossible than this utter impossibility is the fact that you see it too.I know, from all the facts that I have learned, that if the Earth itself were positioned in relative space a few degrees this way or that, moving at a slightly different relative speed towards a slightly different point in the sky, with its local group of stars slightly tilted a bit this way or a bit that way, that the purely imaginary impression of this being a hand would disappear utterly. It might look like a dagger. It might look like a flower. It might look like nothing other than the random assortment of gas clouds that it most assuredly is. What it would not look like, given just a few minor (on the cosmic scale) variations is 'The Hand of God.'And that's a stone cold fact. Note it. File it. Toss it to the top of the always rising mountain range of facts that we love to build as bulwarks against the dark.But is it the truth?Well, it is a true fact. But here's another.After all the facts are filed, here I am and there you are. We're spinning about an immense ball of thermonuclear fire on the third stone out from the Sun. We're the end product, as of today, of a great chain of being stretching backwards in time for billions of years to a primordial spark that we do not know or understand. That spark created life here and began the long process to us. It began life that is -- as far as we know today for a fact -- the only life anywhere in the billions of light years we can see. (Yes, I know it is unlikely we are alone, but until we know differently for a fact, that's the fact.) We do not know the why of it all even though the persistence of the miracle whispers there must be a why. At the same time, it is highly likely that beings as limited as we obviously are will never know the why. The why is pretty much outside of science, barely within metaphysics, and above our evolution grade.What we do know is that, because of how we are made and what we have become, through suffering, striving, effort and, yes, grace, that there are some six billion of us that can look at this strange image of gas and stars and somehow understand it as a hand. And that, at will, we can move our hands to write words such as these to reach across space and time and make others like us understand that although it looks like a hand it cannot possibly be one; that such a thing is utterly impossible.If you don't think that's a miracle that surpasses all understanding, you simply don't have all the facts.
Labels: Christianity, God, Religion, Space
U.S. war gains in Iraq now lost or threatened
A nation once seen as a great hope in the Middle East is unraveling, as al-Qaeda sinks its teeth in, and a bloodied America wonders what could have been.
If you want a war lost, put Obama in charge. He can even lose a war that was already won.
And if you think that al Qaeda wants to stop in the Middle East, you have your head so far up your posterior you have trouble breathing.
Labels: Iraq, Obama, War, Worst President Ever
Hillary Clinton ranks last on U.S. 'most admired' list, behind Rush Limbaugh, Bush
Run, Hillary, Run!
Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of state who leads all 2016 presidential polls, ranks dead last on a new top 10 poll of who Americans admire most, and at the bottom of who the world admires most, behind celebs like Angelina Jolie and Russian President Vladimir Putin.According to the new YouGov.com poll conducted for the Times of London, Microsoft's Bill Gates is the most admired person in the world, ahead of Pope Francis and President Obama, the runner-up on that list. Clinton ranks 27th on YouGov's world list.On the U.S. list, she does even worse, coming in 10th of 10 listed and most named. Among Americans, Pope Francis is the most admired, followed by the president, evangelist Billy Graham and former President George W. Bush. Even Rush Limbaugh, the nation's most popular conservative talk radio host, beat Clinton. He came in ninth.For the poll, YouGov went to 13 countries that hold more than half the world's population and asked people to name who they admire most. Only those living were allowed to be listed.
Labels: Hillary, Limbaugh, Polls
Sunday, January 12, 2014
Obama: "Maryland would lead the charge ..." for ObamaCare. Read all about its spectacular failure.
On the morning of Oct. 1, shortly after Obama had proclaimed that Maryland would lead the charge in signing up residents for new health-care plans, the director of the state's health exchange was repeatedly rejected by the network before she became the first to log on, with the help of her IT staff.
Labels: Democrats, government failure, ObamaCare
Friday, January 10, 2014
TV gives 'Bridgegate' 17 times more coverage in 1 day than IRS scandal in 6 months
Why do they do this? Because they are Democrats and because they can.
Labels: biased reporting, Christie, Dem operatives with bylines
Thursday, January 09, 2014
Record-High 42% of Americans Identify as Independents
Republican identification lowest in at least 25 years
Labels: Democrats, Polls, Republicans, Tea Party
Iraqi ambassador slams Obama, praises Bush
Labels: Bush, Iraq, Obama, Obama Fail, Smart Diplomacy
Rep. Issa noted that current and former IRS officials revealed Barbara Bosserman, a trial attorney within the IRS's Civil Rights Commission, is leading the internal investigation.Bosserman's leadership raises all sorts of questions about the investigation's fairness. Rep. Issa's investigations revealed that she has been a loyal financial backer of the DNC since 2004 and has donated multiple times personally to President Obama's two campaigns. Her personal donation total reaches $6,750 to both the party and President Obama.
So what are members of Congress going to do about it?
Labels: Conflict of interest, culture of corruption, Democrats, Holder, IRS, Scandals, Tea Party
Wednesday, January 08, 2014
Another Not-Good Day for Obama
Ex-Defense Sec. Slams Biden, Reveals He Nearly Quit...
Says Obama, Hillary Opposition to Iraq Surge Was 'Political'...
WASHPOST: Memoir Could Haunt in 2016...
The Quiet Fury...
Labels: Biden, Drudge, Gates, Obama
Tuesday, January 07, 2014
Read this article which points out that not only does Rachel Maddow lie, but that she supports forced drug testing for people on welfare.
A final level of deception remains to be revealed: one of the many companies that have contributed to the State Policy Network is Comcast, which owns MSNBC and is Rachel Maddow's employer. So in her Thursday broadcast, Maddow could equally well have said that MSNBC "ha[s] been promoting forced drug tests for people on welfare," and that FFGA is an "MSNBC-affiliated group." She didn't do this for obvious reasons. She knew that she was addressing a stupid audience that would never know the difference.If Rachel Maddow is the best that MSNBC has to offer, MSNBC is in even deeper trouble than its steep ratings decline would indicate.
Labels: Liberalism, Lies, The Press
Global Warming Update
South Pole warmer than O'Hare...
Arctic birds seen in Florida...
Canada Startled by 'Frost Quakes'...
'Exposed skin may freeze in less than five minutes'...
Oil output threatened from Texas to N. Dakota...
Power Demand Soars...
Texas grid pushed to edge...Indianapolis Mayor Bans Driving...
JETBLUE To Halt All Flights To, From Boston, NY, NJ...
AMERICAN AIRLINES Cancels Flights Over Frozen Fuel Supply, Cold Employees...
Labels: Drudge, global warming
Not everything is coming to a halt because of the cold.
Bud Norman reminds us that ...
Which is not to say that there's nothing going on in the world except the cold. Al-Qaeda has recaptured the Iraqi city of Fallujah that American soldiers and Marines once fought bravely to liberate, it is increasingly apparent that Obamacare is clearly not the cure for the common cold, and the newly-inaugurated commie mayor of New York City has begun his campaign to create a socialist utopia by banning Central Park carriage rides and conveniently freeing up the stables for a campaign donor's new development, among other things. All of it is dispiriting, but it's hard to get one's blood appropriately boiling about it when the wind chill is well below zero. Whatever the next debacle the Obama administration is planning, they should unleash it now while the public is preoccupied with this even more dreadful weather.
Labels: Communism, Iraq, New York, Obama, Obama Fail, Obama's war, ObamaCare, War
Monday, January 06, 2014
This explains a lot: "Modern art was CIA 'weapon' "
"We have met the enemy and he is us."
I wonder how this crap ever managed to convince people that they are looking at "art." Now I know. It was done with my tax money, and yours.
The Central Intelligence Agency used American modern art - including the works of such artists as Jackson Pollock, Robert Motherwell, Willem de Kooning and Mark Rothko - as a weapon in the Cold War. In the manner of a Renaissance prince - except that it acted secretly - the CIA fostered and promoted American Abstract Expressionist painting around the world for more than 20 years.
Labels: Art, CIA, Liberalism


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Cheap tickets to Moncton from Myrtle Beach
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So what are you waiting for? Book WestJet cheap tickets now and you'll be all set to fly to dignified, history-laden Moncton with ease. No matter if you're headed there for business or you're hoping to check out such great attractions as Fort Beausejour, Magnetic Hill and Fundy National Park, WestJet will get you where you want to be. Fly to Moncton from Myrtle Beach and find out how your money goes further with WestJet.

subset: commoncrawl


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Cake Magic Bromsgrove
Celebration Cakes
This a small sample of cakes we have made.
Many more here on Facebook
Click on the image for the bigger picture...
The Magic Cake Company Limited t/a Cake Magic (Bromsgrove) . 21 The Strand, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire B61 8AB. All content, text, files and pictures are copyright © . Any reproduction in any form is strictly forbidden without written permission. Company number 7405875
Cake Magic 2003-2015


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To participate in the Florida Section Conference Dedicated to Safe Water
Cranston, RI, USA, April 21, 2015 – Primary Flow Signal (PFS), the leading designer and manufacturer of innovative, durable, and accurate flow-metering solutions for industrial, water/wastewater, and oil & gas applications, announces its participation in the Florida Water Resources Conference at the Caribe Royal Resort from May 4-5 in Orlando, FL.
A non-profit, educational and scientific organization, FWRC is a joint conference of the Florida Section American Water Works Association, the Florida Water Environment Association, and the Florida Water and Pollution Control Operators Association. The Florida Water Resources Conference is dedicated to preserving and enhancing Florida's water environment.
PFS will be exhibiting in Booth #407 at the Caribe Royal Resort. The exhibition booth will be open on:
Monday, May 4 from 9:00am – 12:00pm and 3:00pm – 6:00pm
Tuesday, May 5 from 9:00am – 12:00pm and 1:30pm – 3:30pm
"Primary Flow Signal is pleased to be showing at the Florida Water Resources Conference," said Bruce Briggs, President of Primary Flow Signal. "We invite water professionals to visit our booth to discuss how our proven, innovative flow measurement products can address their specific water/wastewater application requirements."
PFS's metering solutions are designed and manufactured in the United States by the industry's largest team of specialized hydraulic engineers, backed by extensive laboratory and field testing, ISO 9001-2008 certification, and efficient vertically-integrated facilities. PFS's products, including differential producing Venturi, WedgeType™, orifice plates, and PTC-6 primary flow elements, deliver a level of differential metering accuracy, reliability, and versatility, coupled with unparalleled engineering support, simply not available from other metering solutions.


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May 30, 2017
May 23, 2017
Instagram friends turned real friends, Becka (@becka.crowe) and Rachael (@freedomrachh) are two millenials who have lived through the ups and downs of the 20s- the party, the ego, the insecurities, the poor dietary and lifestyle habits. While the journey is on-going they have reached a point where they look back in disbelief at some of their choices! Never regretting anything, they now use this to propel them in their entrepreneurial endeavours to share with their followers their journeys as it relates to food, wellness, personal care, self-love, spirituality & more!
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text: Search Results We have found 1 business listings matching your search query. Close Search Settings my location Location Show/Hide All satellite Roadmap terrain Hybrid 917-704-4069 Psychiatrist NYC: Dr. Zlatin Ivanov, M.D. Doctors Dr. Zlatin Ivanov is a dedicated psychiatrist with 15 years of experience, serving the community of New York, NY. Dr. Ivanov attended the Medical University Varna Faculty of Medicine, where he receive More Details 1 Page 1 of 1


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Hola Amigos! I'm really happy to share with you seven brand new killer set including a few new faces. First up is a returning muse, Sage Sin with a brand new set. I travelled out to Sage's area where she showed me some really cool spots including a tree swing, a fun park with a bridge, and this cool overpass. Sage also brought some fun tricks including smoke bombs! At one point we when we were shooting the smoke bombs over by the swings we had a bike rider pass us and say, "It's not a good idea". We understood he was suggesting what we were doing was dangerous but we joked the rest of the shoot what kind of meanings this could include from ominous warnings of the future to bitchy critiques of our fashion. When you see the photos I think you'll agree that it was a good idea.
For this next set I travelled some more, this time up to Antelope Valley for my first ever shoot with Cherrie Bombshell. Cherrie and I had been talking for months about shooting together and I'm glad it finally happened. Cherrie is sooooo lovely, has a great sense of humor, and is a lovely ass muse. We had a really rad time together. Antelope Valley was so hot that day so we were lucky to find a few semi-indoor locations inside abandoned buildings and eventually took a little break to regroup and shoot at sunset. Cherrie and I will be shooting again really soon so stay tuned for that but for now check out this rad set.
From there we have another return with one of LA's favorite Lesbians: Sofia Weinberg. Sofia just turned 21 so we had to have a little shoot to celebrate. I had been traveling so much that I wanted to keep things local with some exploration around downtown. Nothing too interesting to report about this shoot but as usual with Sofia we had some laughs and shot some dope photos. At one a security guard did give us some tips on where we should shoot and said it was too bad we couldn't shoot at some spots we already had.
Up next is a new set with the lovely Sister Bonez. With each Sister Bonez set it feels like we are going further down the rabbit hole and I love it. Sister Bonez had mentioned to me previously about wanting to do a clown shoot so we set this one up. She showed up to my place as "Bling Bling" the Chola Clown so of course we travelled around the east side including my old stomping grounds of Echo Park. This wound up being one of my favorite shoots of all time and I think you'll really love it. With so many clown girls in my roster I know eventually I'll need to gather them all to clown around.
It's starting to feel like a post is incomplete without a new set featuring The Spritely One so I'm happy to say this post has one! We had a pretty simple and fun local shoot but the necessity of this shoot for me went much deeper. I wound up having a really weird time that day including an actress I shot with ripping off one of my photos for an article about her, not crediting me, sending me the link, and then getting hostile when I asked her to fix the situation. During our shoot I had another muse call me telling me her crazy ex was trying to get her fired from her job and sent our shoots to her administration (we wound up taking the photos down), and someone tried to tarnish my good name in a situation I'd rather not go in to detail about. As weird as all of this was, shooting with my wonderful friend Sprite made it all ok.
Not letting the bullshit get me down I was really stoked to shoot with another new muse, the lovely Little Lotus. Little Lotus had previously been photographed by my friend and muse Kim Herrera Cruz. Kim told me about her and I knew we HAD to shoot together. What I didn't know is that Little Lotus would wind up crashing at a motel half a mile from my house on her way to moving in to a new place. The whole thing really felt like kismet. Lotus is first generation American with her family being from Cambodia. We talked a lot about what was going on in each other our lives, Cambodia, art making and all sorts of things. It was really fun shooting inside the motel room which had this cool vintage feel before moving on to Pasadena City Hall. Little Lotus was cool as the other side of the pillow and we will be shooting together again tomorrow so look for another set with Little Lotus next time but take your time with this really beautiful set.
And finally a brand new set with everybody's favorite May! May and I made some plans to hang out and shot some fun photos in my favorite territory of Melrose street art. During our hang out we crossed paths with another friend/muse Miss Chaos where were all headed downtown for Artwalk and Miss Chaos made a quick little cameo in the set. Miss Chaos will collabing with another muse next week so consider this a little tease. For now I'll part ways with you as I prep for some really cool shoots this week. Enjoy!


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The SA Reserve Bank's leading business cycle indicator points to six factors which may signal that better times are ahead for the economy, according to Overberg Asset Management in its weekly economic overview.
"The leading cycle indicator confirms that the recession is well behind us, signalling better times ahead, pointing to a steady recovery in economy activity over the next 6-9 months," said OAM.
South Africa economic review
- Although the trade surplus narrowed from R9.3bn in July to R5.9bn in August this is well above the consensus forecast of R2.1bn and the highest surplus for August since the data series began in 2011.
Seasonally, August tends to be a poor month for exports. While imports fell 1.3% year-on-year exports grew by 15% boosted by resurgent demand in key export markets. Vehicle exports were disappointing, declining by 17.0% on the year.
However, mineral exports including coal and iron ore, and base metals exports grew by 21.0% and 12.0% respectively. The year-to-date trade surplus has grown to R43.5bn compared to a deficit of -R13.7bn in the same period last year, boding well for South Africa's balance of payments and the rand.
- Growth in private sector credit extension (PSCE) increased marginally from 5.7% year-on-year in July to 6.0% in August. The mild acceleration was led by corporate credit growth which increased from 7.8% to 8.2%. Household credit growth gained to a lesser extent from a lower base of 3.3% to 3.4%.
Growth in unsecured credit slowed from 4.8% to 4.0%. While credit growth has been lackluster South Africa's total PSCE as a percentage of GDP remains relatively high at 72.8% although slightly improved on 73.9% in the first quarter. An acceleration in credit growth will require improved business and consumer confidence, which depend largely on the removal of political and policy uncertainty.
- Producer price inflation (PPI) accelerated from 3.6% year-on-year in July to 4.2% in August, close to the consensus forecast of 4.1%. The rise is attributed to inflation in coal and petroleum products, which accelerated from 3.0% to 7.3%. Inflation in intermediate manufactured goods also increased, from a low base, from 1.5% to 2.0% with a month-on-month rise of 0.5%. Similarly, mining inflation increased by a hefty 3.9% on the month.
However, agricultural inflation continued to decline falling by 1.2% on the month and 0.9% on the year. As a result, manufactured food inflation continued to slow year-on-year from 3.3% to 1.9%. Despite the latest uptick in PPI, its trajectory remains constructive benefiting from the rand's strength and the positive outlook for the currency. Modest PPI should feed through to benign consumer price inflation.
- The Quarterly Employment Survey was worse than expected reporting a 35 000 loss in formal non-agricultural sector employment in the second quarter (Q2). This follows a loss of 41,000 in Q1. By sector the biggest losers were manufacturing, construction, transport, and community services, with losses of 13 000, 11 000, 5 000 and 10 000, respectively. The public sector made progress in reducing its headcount, helping to stem the burgeoning wage bill.
Job losses at national department and provincial department level were 6,000 and 18,000. Encouragingly, growth in average gross earnings per worker slowed from 6.6% year-on-year in Q1 to 5.9% in Q2, contributing to a decline in inflationary expectations.
However, in real terms, growth in average gross earnings gained from 0.3% to 0.6% helped by the decline in the actual inflation rate. A recovery in jobs growth is required to restore domestic demand and to boost government's revenue collection.
- The FNB/BER Civil Confidence Index, which indicates the percentage of civil engineering contractors that are satisfied with prevailing business conditions, fell sharply from 28 in the second quarter (Q2) to 15 in Q3, the lowest level since Q3 2000. The index reading indicates that 85% of all respondents are dissatisfied with prevailing business conditions.
Respondents cited insufficient demand, stemming from depressed domestic demand and policy uncertainty, in particular surrounding the revised mining charter and renewable energy programmes.
- South Africa's equity market suffered its worst monthly net foreign investor outflows since October 2008 in the month of September. Monthly outflows amounted to -R27.95bn lifting year-to-date outflows to -R73.36bn.
The negative trend continued in the past week with equity outflows measuring -R1.67bn. By contrast, net foreign flows into South Africa's bond market remained positive at R1.04bn in the past week, R17.16bn over September and R69.52bn in the year-to-date.
Moody's credit rating agency last week, while acknowledging these positive bond inflows cautioned the danger of foreign investors holding 48% of South Africa's rand-denominated bonds. The level of foreign penetration in the bond market makes long-term interest rates and the rand especially susceptible to any change in global investor sentiment.
- South Africa fell sharply in the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness report from its position of 47 last year to 61 this year, out of 138 countries. The ranking for the quality of auditing and reporting standards fell from 1 to 30. The ranking of the country's institutional environment fell from 40 to 76.
The rankings for South Africa's financial markets and goods market efficiency also fell sharply to 44 and 54. The most problematic factors for doing business in the country were cited as corruption, government instability, crime and theft, and tax rates. Health and primary education scored an abysmal 121 out of 138 countries.
Technical analysis
- The rand needs to break through key resistance at R/$13.00, which if broken would target further gains to R/$12.50 and thereafter R/$12.00.
- The US dollar index has tried but failed to break through a major 30-year resistance line suggesting the three-year bull run in the dollar may be over.
- The British pound has broken above key resistance at £/$1.30 promoting further near-term currency gains to a target range of £/$1.35-1.40.
- The JPMorgan global bond index is testing the support line from the bull market stemming back to 1989, which if broken will project further sharp increases in bond yields.
- The US 10-year Treasury yield has failed to break below key resistance at 2.0% raising the probability that the multi-year bull trend in US bonds is over.
- The benchmark R186 2025 SA Gilt yield is trading in a tight trading range of 8.5-9.0%. A break above 9.0% is required for the yield to move decisively higher towards the 10.5% target level.
- Key US equity indices, including the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial, Dow Jones Transport, Nasdqaq and Russell 2000, have simultaneously set new record highs, confirming a bullish outlook for US equity markets.
- The Brent oil price has broken above key resistance at $50 and likely to remain in a trading range of $50-60 over the foreseeable future. Base metal prices are in a bull trend confirmed by copper's increase above key resistance at $6000 per ton.
- Gold has developed an inverse "head and shoulders" pattern, which indicates further upward momentum and a test of the $1400 target level.
- The break above 54 200 on the JSE All Share index projects an upward move to 60 000 marking a new high for the JSE.
Bottom line
- South Africa's economic outlook has brightened considerably. The South African Reserve Bank's forward-looking composite leading business cycle indicator unexpectedly jumped from 95.8 in June to 97.3 in July.
The leading business cycle indicator, which tends to be a reliable barometer of economic activity 6 to 9 months ahead, is back at levels last reached in February when it hit 98.4 prior to the ill-fated cabinet reshuffle. February marked the highest level since November 2014, also at 98.4.
- The leading cycle indicator confirms that the recession is well behind us, signalling better times ahead, pointing to a steady recovery in economy activity over the next 6-9 months. Eight of the ten subcomponents showed an improvement on the month, led by a rise in the number of building plans passed and an increase in job advertisements.
There were only two detractors, including money supply growth and a slight decline in the leading business cycle indicator of South Africa's major trading partners.
- The economic slowdown in the fourth quarter (Q4) last year and Q1 this year when GDP shrank by -0.3% and -0.6% quarter-on-quarter annualised had been predicted by the leading business cycle indicator. Around 6-9 months prior to the recession, the leading cycle indicator had collapsed to 92.2 in January 2016 plumbing a low of just 91.4 in April 2016, not recovering the 93.0 level until September 2016. The leading cycle indicator is greatly recovered from these levels, rising by a solid 5.6% year-on-year in July.
- Positive economic momentum is expected to draw further strength from the Reserve Bank's monetary policy easing cycle initiated in July. With consumer price inflation firmly established within the Reserve Bank's 3-6% target range the central bank is expected to cut the benchmark repo rate by a further 50 basis points over the next three policy setting meetings.
- With only 10 weeks to go before the ANC elective conference from the 16th to 20th December, the current cloud of political and government policy uncertainty will soon lift. The Zuma camp is losing ground to either a Cyril Ramaphosa leadership or to the compromise candidate Zweli Mkhize. Either would bring about a marked improvement on the status quo.
- The leading cycle indicator is set to post additional gains during the second half of the year stemming from further monetary easing and the likely outcome of the ANC's elective conference.


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The grape harvest in Burgundy has begun! Sue Boxell from "Burgundy on a Plate" wine tours sent this photo yesterday. I'm currently finishing up one of my LAST round of edits for "My Grape Village" which will be published next month. I'm at that stage where I feel as one writer friend put it, as though somebody has locked me in a dark closet and is forcing me to smoke every single page of my manuscript without a break! The same day that Sue sent this photo I was editing this scene of Charlotte and Camille taking part in the harvest shortly after our move back to Burgundy. I thought you might enjoy the excerpt!
Hand in hand, with the girls skipping in front of us, casting up the ochre vineyard dust, we made our way over to the harvesters. They were a motley crew, dressed in filthy clothes, with T-shirts or shorts tied around their heads to protect them from sunstroke. I knew that some of them were probably doctors and lawyers or other well-heeled friends of the winemaker who came and did the harvest every year, picking side by side with backpacking teenagers and unemployed youth. Harvesting was the great equalizer and they would all be complaining about the heat of the beating sun and sore backs from kneeling down in the dirt all day long.
Unlabeled bottles of wine were being passed up and down the rows. Charlotte and Camille stood at the head of the row, wide-eyed and tiaras askew.
"Do you want to try to harvest some grapes?" A man with an impressive girth and a pink t-shirt wrapped around his head came over and kneeled down beside the girls. He held out his wickedly sharp shears.
"Go ahead," I said, while Franck began chatting with another bare-chested man wearing a fraying straw hat. Franck and he seemed to vaguely know each other. I watched as the pink T-shirt man took Camille and Charlotte half way down the row and showed them how to separate the grape bunches from one another and where to cut the grapes off the vine. They cut off several bunches each until the man's bucket was full.
He kept up a constant stream of chatter and the girls occasionally nodded yes or no and Charlotte even squeaked out an occasional oui. When he asked them if they were from Savigny the girls shook their heads and Charlotte whispered "Non. Nous sommes Canadiennes."
"Canada!" he exclaimed, then stood up and shouted out to his fellow harvesters "We have little girls here that have come all the way from Canada to help us with the harvest. Everybody say bonjour to les petites canadiennes!"
Everyone shouted bonjour and Charlotte and Camille were immediately swept into the team of harvesters. My girls snipped off grapes, helped haul buckets to the tractor and then, when that was full, they were invited to ride on the tractor that was festooned with grape vines back to the village.
Franck and I followed behind on foot through the vineyards.
"Did you know that guy you were talking too?" I asked.
"Vaguely. Turns out he's a distant cousin, maybe second or third cousin. We couldn't really figure it out." This happened often since we arrived in Burgundy. Sometimes I wondered whether Franck wasn't related in one way or another to most of the people here.
The tractor wove through the narrow streets and into the cuverie at a local winemaker's family Domaine where the grapes were dumped out on the sorting table. We were all given a glass of freshly pressed grape juice to sip, although our new friend used imaginative miming to explain to the girls that they had to be careful not to drink too much or else they would get an explosive case of diarrhea.
About two hours later we all wandered out of the massive cuverie, Camille and Charlotte both wearing crowns of grape leaves and vines laid over their tiaras. They were smiling from ear to ear.


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Yes, my sneezes are sounding like yells. That's when you know it's bad.
But on to the good news, and perhaps some tears of joy to be shed because this is the CUTEST almost-one-year old I've photographed!! I finished editing Alexander's shoot this weekend while Jose's family came into town to help me pack. Every 5 minutes I would laugh at myself or squeal, then turn my laptop around to show them the photo I would be working on. GET A BABY! Ha. No, really, that will be a while.
Caitlin, I am SO happy you were able to catch me before leaving Atlanta because this boy is now on my desktop background. Not only is it beautiful to be around such a loving family, but Alexander made everything so easy for me. And if you need to reminisce on what Alexander looked like as a wee-baby... you can check it out here.
He puts my crunches to shame...
Awww :)
Who are you trying to bedazzle? Oh wait, DONE!
My new laptop background :)
New diaper? Car? Candy? You can have anything with that face!
Just lovely. I can't wait to get back into full swing! The Curriers were a sweet reminder of why I love what I do. Though I don't mind putting it off a little longer for a few weeks in Spain :)


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On Sunday, March 6, 2016, is the Los Angeles Zine Fest. I collaborated with a fellow illustrator, Ashley Izumi, to produce a 5"x 8" zine that we will be selling there. If you are planning on going, you should check out the OTIS booth. I've included some of the images that will be in the zine plus a picture of the banner hanging above the booth where our zine will be selling (shown above).
See you around!


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Nov. 19, 2010
Andal Ampatuan Jr. (l.) is escorted to his trial at the Quezon City Regional Trial Court. (Reuters photo)
MANILA — Almost half of the Philippines' population is dissatisfied with the way the government is handling the pursuit of justice for the victims of the Nov. 23 Maguindanao massacre, the latest survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.
The SWS poll, conducted from Sept. 24 to 27, showed 47 percent of 1,200 respondents dissatisfied, while 35 percent is satisfied with the handling of the case against the Ampatuan clan, for a net satisfaction score of -12 or "poor."
In the December 2009 survey, the government received a net satisfaction score of neutral -2 (44 percent dissatisfied and 41 percent satisfied).
The survey, first published in BusinessWorld last Tuesday, was released a week before the massacre's first anniversary.
The Ampatuan clan of Maguindanao allegedly orchestrated the murder of 57 people, at least 30 of them journalists, in an attempt to stop a rival political clan from contesting their political hold in the May 2010 elections.
The SWS survey showed that public satisfaction in the handling of the case worsened in all areas except in balance of Luzon, where it stayed neutral at +1 from -1 previously.
It fell by 28 points in the Visayas, to a "poor" -27 from a "neutral" +1, by 15 points in Metro Manila to a "poor" -23 from a "neutral" -8, and by 11 points in Mindanao to a "poor" -17 from a "neutral" -6.
Seven in 10 respondents or 70 percent were "somewhat closely" following news about the case.
This level of interest was highest in Mindanao at 77 percent, followed by Metro Manila, 73 percent, and the balance of Luzon and the Visayas, both at 68 percent.
The survey has sampling error margins of plus or minus three percentage points for national, and plus or minus six percentage points for area percentages.
SWS defined net satisfaction ratings as follows: +70 and above are classified as "excellent;" +50 to +69, "very good;" +30 to +49, "good;" +10 to +29, "moderate;" +9 to -9, "neutral;" -10 to -29, "poor;" -30 to -49, "bad;" -50 to -69, "very bad;" and -70 and below, "execrable."
The multiple murder case against the Ampatuans is being heard at the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 221 of Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes.
While the murder charges against the Ampatuan clan are heard, there have been reports of atrocities supposedly committed by the clan.
Non-government organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), in a report, claimed that there are 52 cases of killings, abductions, and sexual assaults by security forces of the Ampatuans, some committed even before the Arroyo administration.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima is eyeing a probe into the group's claims by the Death Investigation Division of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
She said the Arroyo administration was "partly responsible" for the development of the culture of impunity in Maguindanao.
But the spokeswoman for former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, now Pampanga representative, said Arroyo acted with dispatch to bring the Ampatuans to justice.
"Please remember that she was the one who immediately removed the Ampatuans' power base to pave the way for fair and independent investigation," said Elena Bautista-Horn.
She noted that after the massacre, the Ampatuans were expelled from then ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD party.
Arroyo then asked Mindanao adviser Jesus Dureza to negotiate for the surrender of the suspects.
The report also alleged that the military and police provided manpower for the clan's private armies.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), in reaction to the allegation, promised to punish soldiers who will connive with private armies.
"We have been conducting investigations. The AFP is now conducting measures so that there will be no repeat of the same," said AFP vice chief of staff Lt. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu. "We will see to it that nobody will be spared if the investigations reveal that they are at fault, that they are involved."
The militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan said President Benigno Aquino III should issue an executive order to dismantle paramilitary units to prevent them from being turned into private armies by politicians.
"The Maguindanao massacre should be the last of its kind. No longer should paramilitary units be allowed to become private armies," said Bayan secretary-general Renato Reyes.
Tim Lyncecum See details


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South Sudan: Growing Concerns for Children as Bodies Line the Streets and Shops are Looted in Juba
Fairfield, Conn. (July 14, 2016) — Following four days of bloody clashes between rival forces in South Sudan, which has left close to 300 people dead, at least 42,000 displaced and tens of thousands facing critical food and water shortages, the humanitarian situation in Juba is deteriorating despite the implementation of a fragile ceasefire on Monday evening.
Peter Walsh, Save the Children Country Director of South Sudan said: "There are bodies in the streets, shops have been looted, markets closed, people are queueing for food and families are desperately trying to leave the city but without the financial means for bus fares. People are returning to their homes with children who are visibly exhausted after spending nights out in the open with little to eat or drink."
According to an eyewitness report from a member of Save the Children staff, a ten-month-old baby died in Juba market yesterday as his desperate parents searched for scarce food and medicines.
"It is not known exactly why the child died but the current lack of access to food, water and basic health care is exacerbating already-chronic needs. The staff member who reported this incident himself says his family only has a three-day supply of food left and this is the case for many, many people across the capital," Walsh said.
More than 13,000 children have been separated from their families in South Sudan since December 2013. The violence that has exploded in Juba over recent days only escalates the chances that many more will have lost their parents or guardians in the unfolding chaos.
"The ceasefire in Juba is being maintained, for now, but there has already been a huge impact on our operations in terms of trying to getting much-needed cash to maintain our programmes in the field. All internal flights have been cancelled and the power has been intermittent for days."
Save the Children is calling on the national and international community to act now to prevent any further escalation of violence and find a long-term solution to the crisis. The aid agency is also calling on all warring parties in South Sudan to maintain the ceasefire in the interest of protecting all civilians.
Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. Since our founding 100 years ago, we've changed the lives of more than 1 billion children. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
We'll be in touch! By signing up to receive emails from Save the Children you will receive a subscription to our monthly eNews, access to breaking emergency alerts and opportunities to get involved. To ensure delivery of Save the Children emails to your inbox, add firstname.lastname@example.com to your contact list.


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Fergie's ex-husband says Draymond Green should apologize to her for laughing at her horrible rendition of the national anthem during the NBA All-Star game in February. Um, everyone watching the trainwreck of a performance laughed.
During an interview on Fair Game on Fox Sports, Josh Duhamel said that Green was being a real "p*ick" because he knew he was on camera when laughed at Fergie's performance of the Star Spangled Banner.
Duhamel said Green wasn't a real man because he didn't call her to apologize for doing what everyone who witnessed the disaster on national television did — burst out laughing.
Since Fergie's ex-husband rehashed this story, here's what some of Green's teammates responded by playing a remix of her performance:
🤣 Following Josh Duhamel's comments Thursday…https://t.co/AjlFOWH4VM
— KNBR (@KNBR) October 27, 2018
Draymond Green's mother even weighed in on Twitter: "Every time someone sing the Anthem someone say remember when FERGIE sung it and they BURST OUT LAUGHING or shaking their head!"
In case you forgot, here's Fergie's disastrous performance that Josh Duhamel wants Draymond Green to apologize for:


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Sep 12, 2018
Ten points to ponder as Canucks open training camp
Vancouver hockey fans will likely have to wait until the Canucks hit the ice for the first day of training camp to start any getting answers about the team's 2018-19 lineup but there are 10 pre-season points to ponder ahead of Friday's first on-ice session, TSN Canucks Reporter Jeff Paterson writes.
VANCOUVER – With weigh-ins and media availability Thursday unlikely to yield many clues, Vancouver hockey fans will likely have to wait until the Canucks hit the ice in Whistler on Friday for the first day of training camp to start getting answers about how the team may line up when the season opens on Oct. 3. In the meantime, here are 10 pre-season points to ponder ahead of Friday's first on-ice session at Meadow Park Sports Centre:
1) Where can Travis Green improve as a head coach in his second year behind the Canucks bench? When hired just over a year ago, Green expressed interest in the amount of data collected and available at the National Hockey League level. He dropped several clues last season about paying close attention to the numbers, but how will he use them moving forward? Will Green use advanced statistics to aid in his decision-making to optimize line combinations and defensive pairings? The numbers can tell him who played well together and perhaps more importantly who did not.
2) Can Jacob Markstrom pick up where he left off at the end of last season when he posted a 5-0-1 record with a 1.96 goals-against average and a sterling .937 save percentage allowing just 12 goals on 190 shots? Or were those numbers the product of a tighter system in front of the 28-year-old netminder and aided further by the fact workhorse Alex Edler averaged nearly 27 minutes a night over that span? Markstrom started 57 times last season and appeared in 60 games overall. He goes to camp as the clear-cut number-one goaltender in the system, but questions remain about whether there is still room for his game to grow or if those final few weeks of last season were merely a mirage when there was nothing on the line?
3) Is there a true battle for the backup job? If Markstrom is the main man in goal, then what's happening behind him on the depth chart? Anders Nilsson won only one of his 15 starts after Dec. 1 last season. Thatcher Demko also won once in that timeframe – but that was his NHL debut and his only big-league appearance. Nilsson back-stopped Sweden to a gold medal at the World Championship in May and perhaps that helped him regain his confidence. But Demko is clearly the goalie of the future. So does the future start now? Can Demko win the backup job with a strong showing over the next few weeks or do the Canucks go with Nilsson and allow Demko another year of development in the American Hockey League? What if Demko is considerably better than Nilsson at camp and in the preseason? The Canucks talk often about making room for youngsters who outperform veterans. I'll be curious to see if that promise holds true between the pipes.
4) How, exactly, will the same group of blueliners produce more offence than last season? Travis Green was emphatic at his year-end media availability about needing more production from the Canucks defence corps. One way to address the issue would have been to change personnel in the off-season. That did not happen. Not even a little. Quite remarkably, the team returns the same eight defencemen that underwhelmed a year ago and now the challenge is clearly to squeeze more out of the group. There will be plenty of talk in the weeks ahead about systems and activating defencemen to join the attack. But are any of the eight defencemen under contract really likely to make sizable gains in production this season? Ben Hutton would seem to stand the best chance considering he had zero goals and just six assists last season. But Hutton has to get into the lineup in order to contribute and that's not a sure bet, given the way his season played out last year.
5) It's not a great time to be a Canuck forward if your name starts with the letter G. Gaunce, Goldobin, Gagner, Granlund. Even Gaudette. Can anyone be certain how any of those players slots into the Canucks depth chart to start camp? And how many of those are locks to be in the opening night lineup? Gagner and Granlund are likely to be here based on their contractual status, their versatility and the fact they have performed and produced in the NHL in the past. But are they wingers? Are they centres? Does either of them project in a top-six role to start the season? It's even murkier for Gaunce and Goldobin who both likely have to play their way onto the team with strong preseasons. And then what about Gaudette? The reigning Hobey Baker Award winner didn't look out of place in his five-game taste of NHL action at the end of last season and was arguably the best all-around player at the Young Stars prospects tournament in Penticton last weekend. Still, with the log jam in front of him and the addition of Jay Beagle, Antoine Roussel and Tim Schaller as free agents on July 1, Gaudette may have to start the season with the Utica Comets in the American Hockey League.
6) What happened to the secondary-trade market Canucks general manager Jim Benning talked about after the draft in Dallas in June? There was much speculation (and I think plenty of hope) that the Canucks may work a deal or two on the draft floor in Big D. That didn't happen, but Benning expressed optimism that a secondary trade market would develop. Earlier this week, the Montreal Canadiens and Vegas Golden Knights made a significant deal while the Bruins and Rangers completed a smaller swap, so teams are trading. But the Canucks go into camp in Whistler without having made a dent in the trade market since last year's deadline. Does that indicate the players they'd be inclined to move have little or no value? Will they find a way to alleviate the glut of forwards on the training camp roster? Remember, the Canucks are hosting the 2019 NHL Entry Draft next June and Benning is on the record indicating he'd like to add more picks.
7) With the departure of Daniel and Henrik Sedin, what will the Canucks' power play look like? Remember that after mid-November last season, this was a top-five power play in the league. So, Newell Brown has his work cut out for him re-inventing the Canucks' PP. It would be ideal if Elias Pettersson could step in and fill Henrik's role in the right faceoff circle with Brock Boeser camped out on the left side of the ice. That would give the Canucks two shooting options to keep defences guessing and giving Alex Edler a good problem to have trying to decide how to distribute the puck from the top. Bo Horvat and perhaps Loui Eriksson could round out the first unit by standing their ground in front of the net. But what does that leave for a second unit – Sven Baertschi, Sam Gagner, Brendan Leipsic, Markus Granlund and Derrick Pouliot? (We mentioned above that there is no guarantee Gagner or Granlund will be on the team.) Could you find room for Jake Virtanen – with one career power-play goal in 140 NHL games – in front of the net? After that it gets awfully thin. Antoine Roussel has scored seven career power play goals, but he averaged just five seconds of power play time per game last season. Do the Canucks revert back to the Willie Desjardins era and look to Brandon Sutter who scored eight power play goals in three seasons under the previous coach? The construction of the power play – particularly the second unit – deserves plenty of attention in the coming weeks.
8) How will the Canucks line up down the middle to start the season? Horvat is the team's top centre right now and there can be no debate about that. Ideally, the Canucks would love Pettersson to develop into a legitimate first-line centre with Horvat behind him on the depth chart. The plan is to start Pettersson in the middle at training camp and gauge his ability to adapt to NHL life. Can he handle the workload as a centre and can he hold up his end of the bargain defensively? The Canucks sure hope so because that would give them options. If the Pettersson experiment isn't ready for prime time, then who slots in behind Horvat? Is it Gagner or Granlund? Does Gaudette get a look there? Or does Brandon Sutter play much higher in the lineup than he ought to? That's not an ideal scenario for Sutter or the hockey club. And what does the arrival of Jay Beagle mean for Sutter in terms of his matchup and defensive role? There are some who believe the Canucks may look to go with two scoring lines and two checking lines this season. But for a team that struggled to produce offence last season (29th in the NHL in even-strength goals for), it seems hard to believe that the Canucks would devote six forwards to defensive responsibilities and expect the other six to be able to carry the scoring load. That sounds like a plan to limit opponents and hope they win games 2-1. I think we saw how that worked for a couple of seasons prior to the last one.
9) Is Boeser absolutely, completely, 100 per cent healthy? The last time Canucks fans saw the Calder Trophy runner-up in person he was being taken off the Rogers Arena ice on a stretcher. Not exactly good times for Boeser, the organization or the fan base. Then came word that in addition to the back injury sustained on March 5 against the New York Islanders, Boeser was going to have a procedure performed on the wrist he'd injured in Tampa Bay in February. That's a lot for anyone to deal with in one off-season let alone a 21-year-old scoring star expected to put the organization on that injured back and carry it on many nights moving forward. Boeser returned to the ice and looked no worse for wear winning MVP honours in Minnesota summer league last month. But that's a non-contact league for professionals looking to get a sweat on ahead of training camp. Now comes the real test for Boeser. All indications are both his back and wrist have healed and he's ready to go. But after bursting onto the scene last season and scoring a team-high 29 goals, Boeser will not sneak up on opponents and no one will take him lightly. He'll likely see tougher matchups this season and he'll be tested both physically and mentally. In his short time in Vancouver, Boeser has shown that very little fazes him, so he'll likely take the added attention in stride. But it's clear the Canucks need him to score from the start of the season so it's vital that he has a strong training camp and carries that into the preseason schedule.
10) How quickly will the Canucks get down to manageable numbers? They're taking 59 players into camp who will skate in three groups for the first three days in Whistler. That's fine. But keeping 20 defencemen and six goaltenders around doesn't seem ideal even with a hectic start to the preseason next week. The Canucks play homes games on three consecutive nights next week (against the Edmonton Oilers, a depleted Flames roster of those left behind from Calgary's China junket and the Los Angeles Kings) before heading to Calgary for a fourth game in five nights. So sure, the Canucks will need bodies to fill out the rosters of those early games on the preseason schedule. But, hopefully, they'll get down in numbers by the midway mark of the preseason so that true battles can emerge – and be settled – in the second week of exhibition action.