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May 2014

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 05, 2014 25 Comments
It wasn't planned this way. It's just a coincidence. Really. By the time you read this, I'll probably be in the car driving to Poughkeepsie, NY, where I will appear tonight at 7 p.m. to give a speech in support of Israel and academic freedom. And against the Open Letter signed by 39 Vassar faculty members -- none of whom took up my debate challenge -- who support the American Studies Association boycott of Israel. Maybe I'll play this recording of David Ben-Gurion reading the Israeli Declaration of Independence: Things have been tense lately at Vassar when it comes to Israel. While I'm not expecting "trouble," I thought you might like to see what trouble for pro-Israel speakers on campuses looks like, in the video below taken at UC Davis in February 2012:

Posted by New Neo on May 05, 2014 63 Comments

When MSNBC host Krystal Ball opined on what she considered the true meaning of George Orwell's Animal Farm, her comments met with a storm of derision from the right. Here's what Ball said, and at first glance it seems preposterous: Animal Farm, hmmm — isn’t that Orwell’s...

Posted by A.F. Branco on May 05, 2014 3 Comments

Note: You may reprint this cartoon provided you link back to this source.  To see more Legal Insurrection Branco cartoons, click here. Branco’s page is Cartoonist A.F.Branco...

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 04, 2014 17 Comments
Obama adviser David Plouffe appeared on ABC's This Week today and in a classic case of liberal projection, he tried to blame the GOP for politicizing the attack in Benghazi. Conservative talk radio host Laura Ingraham was also on the panel and took Plouffe to task. Transcript via ABC News...
David Plouffe, you're actually on that email that caused so much trouble this week. It was an email to you and several others from Ben Rhodes. And everybody keying on this line in the -- in the -- in the email, to underscore -- this is the goals of the Sunday morning appearance -- "to underscore that these protests are rooted in an Internet video, not a broader failure of policy." A lot of Republicans saying this is the smoking gun. I know you dismiss that, but was it a mistake not to release this email earlier? DAVID PLOUFFE, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: No, I think, you know, lawyers have spoken to this and it's out now. I think, listen, what Benghazi was was a tragedy. What we need to do is figure out how to prevent it from happening again and to try and hold those accountable, as we did bin Laden. Took a while, but after 11 years, we did. I think what you see wasn't the U.S.S. Cole bombing, 17 of our sailors died. The weeks before the 2000 election. What did then-Governor Bush say? It's time for our nation to speak as one voice. Now you couldn't handle that in this party. This has been politicized like we've never seen before.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 04, 2014 5 Comments
The senate race between Democratic incumbent Jeanne Shaheen and Republican challenger Scott Brown is going to be a pricey one. Some are even speculating that it could set records. Chris Cassidy of the Boston Herald reports...
Scott Brown-Jeanne Shaheen N.H. race costs may set record The heavyweight U.S. Senate showdown between Jeanne Shaheen and Scott Brown — already off to a fast and snippy start with both sides accusing each other of breaking federal elections laws — could shatter records for campaign spending and even top the amount racked up by GOP presidential primary hopefuls in the Granite State two years ago. “It wouldn’t shock me if it topped $50 million,” said Dante Scala, a campaign finance expert at the University of New Hampshire. “I suspect the spending on the Senate race will dwarf the New Hampshire Republican primary spending in the 2012 presidential primary. ... In all likelihood this would set a record.” Spending during Shaheen’s last U.S. Senate race against John Sununu in 2008 hit about $37 million, Scala said. Even by his most conservative estimate, Scala expects to see $45 million in spending — $20 million combined by both campaigns and $25 million by super PACs and other outside groups. All this in a state with just 1.3 million people and less than 800,000 registered voters.
The stakes are high and both sides know it. In addition to hitting her support for Obamacare, Brown is taking Shaheen to task for the Keystone pipeline. Brown published the following letter in the New Hampshire Union Leader...
Will Jeanne Shaheen join me in supporting the Keystone pipeline?

Posted by David Gerstman on May 04, 2014 7 Comments
It is hard to believe that it has been three months since Barry Rubin passed away. With all going on in the world, and especially in the Middle East, Barry's absence is pronounced as there are few who saw things as clearly as he did. Barry's essays and columns are not disposable, like those of some other columnists and analysts. He wasn't looking for some pithy phrase to describe a complex problem or looking for new evidence to support his ideology. He looked at events and facts and drew his conclusions. Consequently something Barry wrote could still be relevant or true, months or years later. Two recent stories illustrate this point. Barry had been a critic of the Obama administration's handling of Syria's civil war. The Times of Israel last week featured an interview with a Syrian dissident Kamal Al-Labwani, Israel is our last hope, indicates Syrian dissident. The point referred to in the headline is Labwani's belief that Israel could win over the moderate rebels in Syria and much of the population if it helped protect civilians.
“If you only helped us intercept low-flying [regime] helicopters by providing a limited amount of antiaircraft weapons, with American approval, it would have a huge effect, morally and militarily,” Labwani said. “There are a million ways such weapons can be given to recognized people [in the opposition]. These weapons have ‘fingerprints’ and deactivation modes.” Alternatively, he said, Israel could declare a no-fly zone in southern Syria, as NATO did in Libya in its bid to topple Muammar Gaddafi. Such a move would immediately cause a large segment of Syrian society to support peace and normalization with Israel.
But there's more to the interview. Labwani is not currently among the Western backed rebels. He explained why:

Posted by Andrew Branca on May 04, 2014 36 Comments
Well, the media is still suffering from StandYourGroundPhobia., raising it in explanation of two recent killings by homeowners, that of Byron Smith in Minnesota (recently convicted and sentenced to life in prison) and Markus Kaarma in Montana. Naturally, all their scriblings truly reveal is their ongoing ignorance of what Stand-Your-Ground is (and isn't), and their perpetual obfuscation of Stand-Your-Ground with other discrete self-defense law doctrines, such as the Castle Doctrine, presumptions of reasonableness, defense of dwelling, and self-defense immunity (which they also do not understand). Indeed, some of these "journalists" have been reduced to writing euphemistically about the issue, using terms like "Stand-Your-Ground-like," in effect conceding the fuzziness of their understanding.  The latest event to spark media attention just happened in Montana, Man Who Set A Trap To Kill 17-Year-Old Intruder Invokes Stand Your Ground-Like Defense:
Seventeen-year-old Diren Dede lost his life Sunday, while in Missoula, Montana on a high school exchange program from Germany. He was shot dead at the home of Markus Kaarma, after Kaarma set a trap for intruders by intentionally leaving the garage open and placing a purse in clear view. After motion sensors detected someone in the garage, Kaarma shot Dede. And while he has since been charged with first degree murder, he is already invoking a Stand Your Ground-like defense.
KULR-8 Television, Billings, MT The first and most obvious error in attempting to apply Stand-Your-Ground to the Smith and Kaarma cases--indeed to ANY case taking place in or immediately around the defendant's home--is that Stand-Your-Ground is utterly irrelevant in that context.  Every state already has in place, by either statute or case law, the Castle Doctrine.  The Castle Doctrine eliminates any otherwise existing duty to retreat if you are in your home, or its curtilage (some states do suspend the Castle Doctrine if the person being defended against is also a lawfully present in the home). That's ALL the Castle Doctrine does--suspend an otherwise existing duty to retreat.

Posted by Mandy Nagy on May 04, 2014 3 Comments

Some links from across the web for your Saturday evening reading. Ripple effects of the Donald Sterling drama...

Posted by Mandy Nagy on May 04, 2014 2 Comments
I’m a sucker for these stories, so I couldn’t help but post about it when I saw it over at The Blaze. A veteran and the bomb-sniffing dog he worked with in the military were reunited this week, after the opportunity became available for the dog to be adopted by her former handler. The full story was covered by the Chicago Tribune, which also posted the video. Here’s an excerpt:
It was a sad parting when Sgt. Jason Bos left Fort Lee in Virginia nearly two years ago and had to say goodbye to MWD Cila M389, the bomb-sniffing chocolate Lab he called Cici. Over nearly five years, Bos and Cila — MWD stands for Military Working Dog, and M389 is the identification number tattooed in her ear — had forged a bond as they searched for roadside bombs and hidden weapons caches in Iraq, and screened sites for presidential visits across the U.S. Their partnership ended when a back injury forced Bos to leave the Army in 2012. Cila was just 5 years old, and still had time to serve as a military dog. While Bos headed home to Michigan, Cila remained on active duty. Bos, 33, did not know if he’d ever reunite with Cila. But a month ago, he saw on Facebook that Cila was due to be retired. He was thrilled when the kennel master at his former base contacted him to see if he wanted to adopt her. “I said ‘Yes. What do I have to do?’” Bos said.

Posted by Bryan Jacoutot on May 03, 2014 47 Comments
Appearing on CNN's Crossfire, Congresswoman Barbara Lee advocated for raising the national minimum wage to $10.10/hour, arguing it would increase worker productivity and decrease turnover. After discussing the national minimum wage, Newt Gingrich asked the Congresswoman whether she'd support an even higher hike than that. Via The Daily Caller,
“Let me ask you this question, you’re a good advocate for this,” Gingrich asked Lee. “The mayor of Seattle is proposing that the minimum wage ought to go up to $15 an hour.” “Good for him,” Lee responded. “In California — more than likely, from what I remembered — a living wage where people could live and take care of their families and move toward achieving the American dream was about $25, $26 an hour.” “So would you support that as a minimum wage for California?” Gingrich asked. “Absolutely I would support it for California. I think the regional factors –” “And you don’t think that’d have an effect on unemployment?” Gingrich interrupted.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 03, 2014 13 Comments

Republican Monica Wehby slightly ahead in recent poll for U.S. Senate...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 03, 2014 28 Comments
That's the observation of Sonny Bunch to the news that Condoleeza Rice is withdrawing as a Commencement Speaker at Rutgers after protests against her and threats to disrupt the festivities if she spoke: NRO reports that the following statement is to be released this morning:
Commencement should be a time of joyous celebration for the graduates and their families. Rutgers’ invitation to me to speak has become a distraction for the university community at this very special time. I am honored to have served my country. I have defended America’s belief in free speech and the exchange of ideas. These values are essential to the health of our democracy. But that is not what is at issue here. As a Professor for thirty years at Stanford University and as it’s former Provost and Chief academic officer, I understand and embrace the purpose of the commencement ceremony and I am simply unwilling to detract from it in any way. Good luck to the graduates and congratulations to the families, friends and loved ones who will gather to honor them.
Why are we always the ones concerned about distractions caused by other people? This is why we lost the campuses. We let the load mouths and bullies have their way. I blame Rice as much as the bullies. By withdrawing, Rice sends a message to other campuses that the tactic works. I also blame the President of Rutgers, who according to NRO, turned out to be a wimp:

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 03, 2014 3 Comments

Sometimes learning new things is uncomfortable. Jonah Goldberg Discovers a Clever Student Group at Williams College Sometimes certain words make people uncomfortable. Student Groups at Duke Appoint Themselves Word Police College ‘Trigger Warnings’ Get Noticed by the MSM Some people are made uncomfortable by religion. Man Says College Rejected Him Over...

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