Little Green Footballs

Onion: Ground-Breaking Poll Technology Gives Pundits Real-Time Feedback

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:42:13 PDT

[Video]

And Now for Some Evidence

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:18:10 PDT

From David Byrne’s weird little film True Stories (iTunes link).

[Video]

Here’s the movie at Amazon Video on Demand: True Stories.

Texas Creationism Follies, the Sequel

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:24:43 PDT

When the Texas legislature kicked out creationist dentist Don McLeroy as head of the state’s Board of Education, I wrote:

It’s almost certain that Perry will select another creationist; he did, after all, pick McLeroy not once but twice, even after McLeroy’s Biblical literalist views were notorious. There’s no shortage of creationist Republicans currently on the School Board, so this debacle is going to have another chapter after all.

Well, here’s the next chapter in the Texas Creationism Follies, as Republican Governor Rick Perry’s likely pick for the best person to supervise the education of Texas children is Cynthia Dunbar (R-Richmond), another religious fanatic with theocratic leanings who considers public education a “subtly deceptive tool of perversion.”

In a book published last year, Dunbar argued the country’s founding fathers created “an emphatically Christian government” and that government should be guided by a “biblical litmus test.” She endorses a belief system that requires “any person desiring to govern have a sincere knowledge and appreciation for the Word of God in order to rightly govern.”

Also in the book, she calls public education a “subtly deceptive tool of perversion.”

The establishment of public schools is unconstitutional and even “tyrannical,” she wrote, because it threatens the authority of families, granted by God through Scripture, to direct the instruction of their children.

Dunbar home-schooled her own children.

Also see:
slacktivist: Sub-subminimal
The Right Pushes for Dunbar Appointment

BNP Leader: The EU Needs to Sink a Few Immigrants' Boats

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:53:49 PDT

New member of European Parliament Nick Griffin, the Holocaust-denying leader of the white supremacist British National Party, is very concerned about “large numbers of sub-Saharan Africans dying” on boats trying to get into Europe. He’s so concerned about their health that he says the European Union should start sinking their boats.

[Video]

What Happened to 'Creating Jobs?'

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:50:36 PDT

Andrew Malcolm reports that the Obama administration has quietly dropped “creating jobs” as the criteria for that $3.4-billion Energy Department project.

Totten: The Future of Iraq, Part III

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:15:53 PDT

Part three of Michael Totten’s must-read series on The Future of Iraq:

The United States has basically won the war in Iraq. No insurgent or terrorist group can declare victory or claim Americans are evacuating Iraq’s cities because they were beaten. America’s most modest foreign policy objectives there have been largely secured. Saddam Hussein’s toxic regime has been replaced with a more or less consensual government. I doubt very much that Iraq will seriously threaten the United States or its neighbors any time soon. It isn’t likely to be ruled by terrorists as it probably would have been if the United States left between 2004 and 2007. It’s a relief. A few years ago, I was all but certain the U.S. would withdraw under fire and leave Iraq in the hands of militias. Even so, many have a hard time feeling optimistic about the future. Iraq remains, in some ways, a threat to itself.

Read the whole thing...

IPT: Another 'Mainstream' Islamist Convention

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:25:36 PDT

Antisemitic conspiracies and hate speech were at the ISNA Convention — along with Barack Obama’s Senior Advisor for Public Engagement and International Affairs, Valerie Jarrett: ’Mainstream’ Islamist Convention Features Hate Speech and Hezbollah Defense.

Kindle 2 Price Drop

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:26:54 PDT

If you were intrigued by Amazon’s Kindle e-book reader but thought it was a bit expensive, there’s good news today as Amazon drops the price by $60 on the Kindle 2, to below $300. Amazon says it’s because they’re manufacturing a larger volume of the devices, decreasing the cost.

The price of the larger Kindle DX (available in 3 to 5 weeks) will stay the same: $489.

Note: If you buy a Kindle by clicking a link at LGF you help support us; we get a small piece of the purchase price as part of the Amazon Associates program. (But I’d recommend this wonderful gadget even if that weren’t so.)

Arizona State Senator: 'This Earth's Been Here 6,000 Years'

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:58:10 PDT

Arizona Republican State Senator Sylvia Allen argues in favor of uranium mining on state land, because our planet has managed to last 6,000 years without any environmental laws, and look, we’re just fine.

I can’t say enough how it’s time that we get beyond, and, and start focusing on the technology we have, and move forward into the future so that our grandchildren and, can have the same lifestyle we have, and, and, this earth’s been here 6,000 years and I know I’m goin’ on and on and I’ll shut up ... It’s been here 6,000 years, long before anybody had environmental laws, and somehow it hasn’t been done away with.

[Video]

Phil Plait savors the crunchy irony:

The irony, of course — and there’s always irony when creationism is involved — is that she’s talking about uranium mining, and it’s through the radioactive decay of uranium that we know the Earth is billions of years old. And she also praises technological achievements!

Iowahawk: Please Do Not Touch the Bureaucrats

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 10:55:28 PDT

Iowahawk announces the opening of an exclusive new salon: Please do not touch the bureaucrats.

Music (throughout)
Motley Crue, “Girls Girls Girls”

Katherine Weymouth
Hey fellas, after a hard week lobbying down on K Street, we know what you want. When the sun goes down on the capitol dome, you want to kick off those white shoes and get comfortable with the Beltway’s hottest journalists and public policy analysts. And they’re all waiting for you at the Washington Chrome Post.

Sexy Reverb Voice
mmmm.... the Washington Chrome Post.

Katherine Weymouth
The Washington Chrome Post, home of DC’s most uninhibited panel discussions, with dozens of key government policy analysts waiting to make all your lobbying fantasies come true. Whether your tastes run to heath care, union pensions, or asphalt contracting, let the Washington Chrome Post show you the kind of full-frontal journalism that will make yours an evening to remember.

Sexy Reverb Voice
ooh.... journalism. Tee hee!

North Korean Cyber Assault

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 10:18:16 PDT

Since July 4th, major websites in the US and South Korea have been under attack by “a hostile group or government.”

SEOUL, South Korea — Cyberattacks that have crippled the Web sites of several major American and South Korean government agencies since the July 4th holiday weekend appear to have been launched by a hostile group or government, South Korea’s main government spy agency said on Wednesday.

Although the National Intelligence Service did not identify whom they believed responsible, the South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that the spy agency had implicated North Korea or pro-North Korea groups.

A spokesman at the intelligence agency said it could not confirm the Yonhap report, which said that the spy agency briefed lawmakers about their suspicions on Wednesday. The opposition Democratic Party accused the spy agency of spreading unsubstantiated rumors to whip up support for a new anti-terrorism bill that would give it more power.

Access to at least 11 major Web sites in South Korea — including those of the presidential Blue House, the Defense Ministry, the National Assembly, Shinhan Bank, the mass-circulation daily newspaper Chosun Ilbo and the top Internet portal Naver.com — have crashed or slowed down to a crawl since Tuesday evening, according to the government’s Korea Information Security Agency.

On Wednesday, some of the sites regained service, but others remained unstable or inaccessible.

In an attack linked with the one in South Korea, 14 major Web sites in the United States — including those of the White House, the State Department and the New York Stock Exchange — came under similar attacks, according to anti-cyberterrorism police officers in Seoul.

What Security?

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:53:22 PDT

Here’s our warm, fuzzy news of the day: Bomb parts smuggled into 10 federal buildings during test.

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Plainclothes investigators sent to test security at federal buildings in four U.S. cities were successful in smuggling bomb components through guard posts at all 10 of the sites they visited, according to a government report.

The investigators then assembled the bombs in restrooms and freely entered numerous government offices while carrying the devices in briefcases, the report said.

The buildings contained offices of several federal lawmakers as well as agencies within the departments of State, Justice and Homeland Security, which is responsible for safeguarding federal office buildings.

Is Kim Jong-Il Dying?

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:36:17 PDT

New pictures of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il strongly suggest that his health is rapidly deteriorating.

Video: Evian Roller Babies

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:26:08 PDT

Possibly the best advertisement ever produced for French water. Tout petits et d�j� incroyables!

[Video]

Armstrong a Fraction of a Second Away from Tour De France Lead

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:15:23 PDT

Velonews has a good account of today’s team time trial at the Tour de France, in which Lance Armstrong and his Astana team won the stage and came within a fraction of a second of taking the yellow jersey. If anyone still doubted Lance could make a comeback, he ended all the speculation today.

Team Astana blazed through the team time trial to win stage 4. Astana came across the line 40 seconds ahead of the Saxo Bank squad of race leader Fabian Cancellara — the exact margin by which Cancellara led Lance Armstrong on general classification. After some careful math by race officials, Cancellara now holds the yellow jersey by a fraction of a second over Armstrong.

Garmin-Slipstream finished second on the day, 18 seconds down.

Astana came into the stage with four riders in the top 10 thanks to their time trialing ability, and that strength showed again on the 39km stage around Montpellier. Held largely on narrow roads, the technical course featured more than a few dicey corners that put riders from several teams on the ground.

Churchill's Suit Fails

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:56:38 PDT

The ruling came down today, and it looks like Ward “Little Eichmanns” Churchill is getting no money and no job.

In a resounding defeat for ousted University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill, a judge decided Tuesday to neither give the controversial professor his job back at CU nor award him any financial compensation for his dismissal from the school nearly two years ago.

The ruling from Chief Denver District Judge Larry Naves, which was released this afternoon, comes in stunning contrast to a jury’s verdict from a civil trial Churchill brought against the school earlier this year, in which six jurors determined that CU had unlawfully stripped Churchill of his job for expressing his political beliefs in a controversial essay he wrote about the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.

LGF Palin Approval Polls

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:32:35 PDT

A couple of silly Internet polls, asking some Palinesque questions:

[Poll] [Poll]

Brits Foil Far Right Plot to Bomb Mosques

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 10:09:55 PDT

It hasn’t gotten much notice in US media, but last week British police foiled an international plot by far right groups to smuggle weapons into Britain and launch attacks on mosques.

AN ALLEGED Neo Nazi plot to flood Britain with guns and explosives has been foiled by anti terror police set up to combat al-Qaeda.

Detectives recovered pipe bombs and rocket launchers after an investigation which showed the “growing threat” of the far right, a senior officer revealed. Two men have been charged and further suspects identified in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, West Yorkshire chief constable Sir Norman Bettison said.

The case was handled by the North East Regional Counter Terrorism Unit, based in Leeds, where the 7/7 bombers plotted their suicide attacks.

Senior counter terrorism sources told the Mirror the Leeds CTU is currently investigating “just as many” far right plots as al-Qaeda conspiracies.

More details in the Daily Mail: Far-Right extremists ‘are plotting spectacular terrorist attack in UK’.

Last weekend it was revealed that a network of suspected extremists with access to 300 weapons and 80 bombs has been uncovered by counter- terrorism detectives.

Thirty-two people were questioned by police and 22 properties were raided over an alleged plot to bomb mosques.

It was the biggest terrorist arms haul since the IRA mainland bombings in the 1990s.

Sir Norman Bettison, the chief constable of West Yorkshire, said: ‘The big bad wolf is still the Al-Qaeda threat.

‘But my people are knocking over right-wing extremists quite regularly. We are interdicting it so that it doesn’t first emerge into the public eye out of a critical incident like an explosion.’

Totten Interviews Goldberg

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:20:52 PDT

Michael Totten talks with the Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg about The Real Quagmire in the Middle East.

MJT: You have talked to Hamas people. Should the Israelis or Americans talk to them?

Goldberg: I don’t know what they’d get out of it.

MJT: What did you get out of it when you did it?

Goldberg: A first-hand understanding of how they think. People in the United States find it hard to understand how people in Hamas and Hezbollah think. It’s alien. It’s alien to us. The feverish racism and conspiracy mongering, the obscurantism, the apocalyptic thinking – we can’t relate to that. Every so often, there’s an eruption of that in a place like Waco, Texas, but we’re not talking about 90 people in a compound. We’re talking about whole societies that are captive to this kind of absurdity.

So it’s very important – and you know this better than almost anyone – to go over there yourself and tape it, get it down on paper, and say “this is what they actually say.”

Bert and Ernie: Brutal

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:58:27 PDT

If the previous video was too mellow and hypersensitive for you ... Bert and Ernie go BRUTAL.

[Video]

Monday Night Music: Power and White, 'Greenstone Waters'

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:57:17 PDT

Brendan Power (chromatic harmonica) and Andrew White (acoustic guitar) do a beautiful instrumental tune called “Greenstone Waters.”

[Video]

Also see: Power & White on MySpace Music.

New Dinos Down Under

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:19:54 PDT

The Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum and Queensland Museum have announced some new dinosaur finds — and these are big ones: New Dinosaurs!

WINTON: Premier Anna Bligh today announced the discovery of three new species of Australian dinosaur discovered in a prehistoric billabong in Western Queensland. ...

“The dinosaurs have been nicknamed after characters created by poet Banjo Paterson who is said to have written Waltzing Matilda in Winton in 1885,” she said.

“Banjo (carnivorous theropod) and Matilda and Clancy (giant plant-eating sauropods) were found in a vast geological deposit near Winton that dates from 98-95 million years ago.”

The creatures were unearthed during the State Government funded joint Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum and Queensland Museum digs in Western Queensland.

“The Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum and Queensland Museum have successfully partnered to uncover this greatest concentration of dinosaur bones ever found in Australia,” Ms Bligh said.

“This State Government funded initiative has revealed to the world the first new sauropods to be named in Australia in over 75 years and the most complete carnivorous dinosaur skeleton ever found in our country.”

The meat-eating Australovenator wintonensis (Banjo) has been coined Australia’s answer to Velociraptor – which was brought to terrifying life by Stephen Spielberg in the Jurassic Park films.

“Banjo possessed similar speed, razor-sharp teeth and had three large slashing claws on each hand. This was a terrifying creature,” said the Premier.

“The two plant-eating, four-legged sauropod species unveiled today are new types of titanosaurs – the largest animals ever to walk the earth.”

Palaeontologists say that the Diamantinasaurus matildae (Matilda) was a solid and robust animal, filling a niche similar to the hippopotamus today.

The second new species, Wintonotitan wattsi (Clancy) represented a tall animal that may have been Australia’s prehistoric answer to the giraffe.

Palin's Attorney Threatening Lawsuits

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:51:46 PDT

The Washington Post has an open letter from Sarah Palin’s attorney (PDF), threatening to sue Alaskan blogger Shannyn Moore and several media sources:

To the extent several websites, most notably liberal Alaska blogger Shannyn Moore, are now claiming as “fact” that Governor Palin resigned because she is “under federal investigation” for embezzlement or other criminal wrongdoing, we will be exploring legal options this week to address such defamation. This is to provide notice to Ms. Moore, and those who re-publish the defamation, such as Huffington Post, MSNBC, the New York Times and The Washington Post, that the Palins will not allow them to propagate defamatory material without answering to this in a court of law. The Alaska Constitution protects the right of free speech, while simultaneously holding those “responsible for the abuse of that right.” Alaska Constitution Art. I, Sec. 5. These falsehoods abuse the right to free speech; continuing to publish these falsehoods of criminal activity is reckless, done without any regard for the truth, and is actionable.