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Overnight Open Thread
Open | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 11:49:50 pm PST
My friend, you have seen this incident based on sworn testimony. Can you prove that it didn’t happen? Perhaps on your way home, you will pass someone in the dark, and you will never know it, for they will be from outer space. Many scientists believe that another world is watching us this moment. We once laughed at the horseless carriage, the aeroplane, the telephone, the electric light, vitamins, radio, and even television! And now some of us laugh at outer space. God help us... in the future.
— Criswell, Plan 9 from Outer Space
The 2008 Weblog Awards
Blogosphere | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 6:57:53 pm PST
Voting is open for the 2008 Weblog Awards, and LGF is nominated for Best Conservative Blog.
Which will undoubtedly infuriate some people who think we aren’t pure enough.
We Got Mail!
Weird | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 6:16:32 pm PST
Received this evening from a reader in Kuala Lumpur, who followed a link from the “Most Blogged” section of a Yahoo News article:
you are lying thru your teeth if you want to deny those pictures as ”staged".. how is it staged ? just because that shows how cannibal, uncultured, self subservient monstrous idiots you are .. may yo and the rest of your sickening zionist honcos rot in hell one day
Tech Note: Comment Ratings
Sci/Tech | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 3:20:56 pm PST
One feature readers have requested for our comment ratings is the ability to simply cancel a rating (aka, a “ding”) and remove a vote. The method that we’ve been using only allowed you to reverse your ding — in other words, you could only change your rating from plus to minus. Once you threw your hat in the ring, it stayed there.
But now, comment ratings behave differently; if you reverse your rating, it removes it entirely and adds/subtracts one from the overall rating, and your name vanishes from the ding list (which you see by clicking the rating number itself).
This puts you back to square one, so to speak, and you can then rate the comment either up or down again — both the plus and minus buttons will be clickable.
Monday Afternoon Open
Open | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 1:15:52 pm PST
It’s a first Monday of 2009 open thread...
Jihad in Anaheim
US News | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 11:22:34 am PST
At an anti-Israel protest yesterday in Anaheim, California, open support for jihad from a woman in disguise:
“Peaceful inner struggle,” anyone?
UPDATE at 1/5/09 12:02:14 pm:
Here are more photos of the demonstration, at which protesters carried signs with swastikas, wore T-shirts with pictures of Yasser Arafat, and exhibited a quilt with the slogan “One Global Family:” demonstration anaheim photos - Daylife.
Staged Photos Pouring Out of Gaza
Media | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 10:54:28 am PST
We should not forget that every television image and every news photograph coming out of Gaza right now is filtered through Hamas. The photographers filing pictures for Reuters, Associated Press, and Agence France Presse are all Palestinians, and all propagandists for Hamas—or they wouldn’t be allowed to take pictures in Gaza.
With that in mind, here’s yet another example of news photographs staged for propaganda purposes by terrorists and their allies: CAMERA Snapshots: Green Helmet’s Successor?
UPDATE at 1/5/09 11:06:16 am:
Israellycool has another example: the same injured child being paraded around by two different men.
Here are the two images at Daylife.com:
A Palestinian father carries his wounded baby daughter into a hospital in Gaza City...
A Palestinian carries a child into the Shifa hospital in Gaza City...
JihadTV Makes Deal with Sony
Middle East | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 9:25:31 am PST
Coming to Sony Ericsson mobile phones: JihadTV.
The Al Jazeera Network has announced a partnership with Sony Ericsson, where RSS feeds of its news content will be pre-installed on four models of its mobile devices in both the Middle East and North Africa.
This means that owners of these phones will soon be able to enjoy quality Al Jazeera programs like this: a birthday party for a child killer, Samir Kuntar, who forced a little girl to watch as he shot her father, then bashed her brains out with a rifle butt.
Sony Ericsson should be ashamed of themselves for promoting this evil hatred.
Guardian Hits Bottom, Digs
Middle East | Mon, Jan 5, 2009 at 9:00:03 am PST
In Britain’s most disgusting newspaper: an obituary for a genocidal mass murderer.
A big, bearded man, usually surrounded by balaclava-clad fighters, he was hated by Israelis. Yet on the streets of Gaza, where economic and social misery has boosted Hamas’s reputation during the past five years, he was something of a hero. He was famed for fighting alongside his men and being seen with them publicly. And he was not merely a fighter. He was highly regarded as an Islamic academic.
Retch.
Overnight Open Thread
Open | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 11:43:44 pm PST
Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.
— Philip K. Dick
Ken Miller Dissects the Creationists' Next Tactic
Sci/Tech | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 7:48:02 pm PST
Biologist Ken Miller, the Discovery Institute’s worst enemy, has three terrific guest posts at science writer Carl Zimmer’s blog, destroying the DI’s latest attempts to rewrite the history of the Dover creationism lawsuit:
Smoke and Mirrors, Whales and Lampreys: A Guest Post by Ken Miller
Ken Miller’s Guest Post, Part Two
Ken Miller’s Final Guest Post: Looking Forward
The only relevant question at this point is why the Discovery Institute keeps highlighting its own failings in this way. Why are Casey and his employers now — three years after the Dover trial — trying to rehabilitate the tattered credibility of both Michael Behe and Pandas? What mischief are they planning now? The only conclusion I can draw is that they must be maneuvering for the next round of state board hearings or legislative sessions — and I’m concerned. These folks are a whole lot better at politics and public relations than they are at science, and that means that everyone who cares about science education should be on guard.
Australian Hatefest Slideshow
Images | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 6:18:59 pm PST
Here’s a slideshow of photos emailed by an Australian reader, showing what was happening in Melbourne today, as Hezbollah supporters and genocide advocates took to the streets.
With their children.
Tech Note: Link Ratings Reversible
Sci/Tech | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 5:11:35 pm PST
By popular demand (actually by request of two or three people) the ratings for spinoff links can now be reversed, just like the ratings for comments and articles. And the ratings buttons now have those super keen CSS rollover effects as well.
IDF Video: Background on Gaza Conflict
Middle East | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 11:38:51 am PST
This is a good presentation by the IDF on the background and history of the current conflict in Gaza. Some people will no doubt label this as “propaganda,” and in the sense that it’s intended to promote Israel’s point of view, that’s correct — but there’s nothing inaccurate or dishonest here, just a simple summation of the facts about the militant Islamic terrorists who seized power in Gaza after the disengagement.
UPDATE at 1/4/09 1:03:38 pm:
Strange — the video has suddenly been marked as “private,” and no longer shows up on the IDF channel. Maybe they withdrew it?
Richardson Throws Himself Under the Bus
Politics | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 10:31:00 am PST
Bill Richardson is bailing out of the Obama administration: Richardson to withdraw as Commerce secretary.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, tapped in December by President-elect Barack Obama to serve as secretary of Commerce, has withdrawn his name for the position, citing a pending investigation into a company that has done business with his state.
“Let me say unequivocally that I and my Administration have acted properly in all matters and that this investigation will bear out that fact,” he said Sunday in a report by NBC News’ Andrea Mitchell. “But I have concluded that the ongoing investigation also would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process.”
Fake Anti-Israel Video Posted at Liveleak
Blogosphere | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 10:08:45 am PST
This is rich. A gruesome propaganda video uploaded to LiveLeak that purported to show the aftermath of an IDF attack on civilians in Gaza turned out to be a fraud—it actually shows the results of an accidental explosion of a truck full of Hamas rockets at a Palestinian rally.
This didn’t stop the video from reaching the top spot on reddit.com and gaining more than 2,000 up votes, because reddit.com is absolutely infested with antisemites and terror supporters: GRAPHIC Video of Israel Defense Force’s attack on Gaza civilian market — originally uploaded on & banned by YouTube (NSFW) : politics.
And the Jew-hating moron who posted this at reddit, now in damage control mode, seems to think LGF is somehow responsible:
Someone, likely a pro-Israel right-winger (judging his attitude rebutting criticism of Israel’s response to Hamas/Gaza reminiscent of Little Green Footballs fan who sought to “minimize” the horror as reflected in reddit comment history), posted a detailed comment on Reddit that debunked the claim.
Here’s that detailed comment. We had nothing to do with any of this, of course, but we congratulate ‘TW9zc2Fk’ for an excellent, lizard-like job of debunking another anti-Israel libel.
And please note that even after the video was definitively proven to be a fraud, the link has not been removed from reddit.com.
Idiot Leftists Planting Phony Extremist Comments
Blogosphere | Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 9:28:08 am PST
Interesting what you find in your referrals; here’s a thread at the Cesspool of Idiocy (otherwise known as somethingawful.com) in which the denizens brag about their attempts to troll “right wing” sites and plant phony extremist comments to discredit them: Right wing blogosphere goes Troll-crazy, T$ takes the lead.
Buried in this steaming pile of ugly, hateful drek, we find this:
Why the gently caress would you defend a full blown hate site like LGF. LGF is literally stormfront with “jew” crossed out and “muslim” written in.
loving hell whats wrong with you?
These guys are not even pretending to hide the whole hate-site thing anymore Just read the comments.
Overnight Open Thread
Open | Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 9:37:07 pm PST
You punch in at 8:30 every morning, except you punch in at 7:30 following a business holiday, unless it’s a Monday, then you punch in at 8 o’clock. Punch in late and they dock you. Incoming articles get a voucher, outgoing articles provide a voucher. Move any article without a voucher and they dock you. Letter size a green voucher, oversize a yellow voucher, parcel size a maroon voucher. Wrong color voucher and they dock you! 6787049A/6. That is your employee number. It will not be repeated! Without your employee number you cannot get your paycheck. Inter-office mail is code 37, intra-office mail 37-3, outside mail is 3-37. Code it wrong and they dock you! This has been your orientation. Is there anything you do not understand, is there anything you understand only partially? If you have not been fully oriented, you must file a complaint with personnel. File a faulty complaint and they dock you!
— Mail Room Orienter, The Hudsucker Proxy
Bad Craziness in San Francisco
US News | Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 5:19:39 pm PST
Zombie’s latest includes the following video from KTVU TV of yesterday’s protest in downtown SF, at which pro-Israel demonstrators were attacked by Palestinians wearing peace scarves: ‘I’m a little spooked’: Palestinian protests bring Gaza fighting to San Francisco.
Muslim Brotherhood Calls for 'Maximum Jihad'
Middle East | Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 3:22:04 pm PST
The leader of the Muslim Brotherhood says it’s time for jihad to the max.
In his weekly sermon, Muslim Brotherhood General Guide Muhammad Mahdi ‘Akef called to launch jihad for the Palestinians in Gaza in any way possible: military warfare, popular resistance groups, donations of blood and money, and comprehensive boycott.
He said that this fateful moment of the battle against Zionism is the time for jihad to its maximum degree, and that this is incumbent upon everyone.
Tech Note: Comment Icon Makeover
Sci/Tech | Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 12:19:07 pm PST
Yes, that image replacement and CSS rollover effect has now been applied to the row of icons at upper right of each comment.
You must now reload the page to install the proper Javascript and CSS files.
Breaking: Gaza Invasion Begins
Middle East | Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 10:46:50 am PST
The IDF is moving in... that’s the official word, now on the cable news networks.
This day was inevitable, ever since Israel’s withdrawal. Now the IDF are going to have to retake territory that’s been heavily armed and booby-trapped, in a densely packed urban environment.
IDF Invasion of Gaza Imminent?
Middle East | Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 9:01:48 am PST
The IDF may be about to launch that ground invasion of Gaza: IDF begins shelling northern Gaza for 1st time since op began.
For the first time since the start of Operation Cast Lead, the IDF began firing artillery shells into northern Gaza on Saturday afternoon, IDF officials said.
According to reports, the artillery units were attacking targets in northern Gaza from where Palestinian terrorists had been firing rockets at southern Israel. The shelling was seen as a possible signal that a ground invasion could be nearing.
Warplanes, gunboats and artillery units blasted more than 40 Hamas targets throughout Saturday, including weapons storage facilities, training centers and Hamas leaders’ homes.
Air strikes that had waned during the day gathered pace after dark. One raid hit a mosque in the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya, killing 10 people and wounding 33, seven critically, according to a Palestinian health official. Other Palestinian reports said that the mosque was hit by an artillery shell.
The IAF also hit a mosque in northern Gaza and the home of senior Hamas commander Abu Zacharia Al-Jamal. A Hamas spokesman announced that al-Jamal was killed in the attack, which would make him the third senior operative in the group to be targeted in the past three days.
Fox News is reporting that Israeli tanks are repositioning around the Gaza border.
12 Elegant Examples of Evolution
Sci/Tech | Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 9:22:44 pm PST
12 Elegant Examples of Evolution, compiled by the editors of Nature to celebrate the upcoming 200th birthday of Charles Darwin.
Dinosaurs of a Feather. Archaeopteryx, found in 1861, was long thought to be the first bird. Then it was recognized as something closer to a dinosaur with feathers — but still unique for that. In the 1980’s, however, paleontologists digging in deposits more than 65 million years old in northern China found feathered dinosaurs which very definitely did not fly. Some dinosaurs, it appeared, may have looked far different from our traditional conception — and feathers may first have served an insulating or aesthetic, rather than aerodynamic, purpose.
Friday Afternoon Open
Open | Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 3:32:42 pm PST
Just another open thread for the first Friday afternoon of the year, with the Dow index up 262 points...
Video: IAF Bombs Another Mosque Full of Bombs
Video | Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 12:55:36 pm PST
Watch for the big secondary explosion at about 0:10, indicating the presence of a cache of weapons.
Stupid YouTube Tricks, Pro-Hamas Version
Video | Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 11:39:52 am PST
Here’s a mind-numbingly schtoopid new trick from a Hamas supporter at YouTube, who created a channel in which he’s posting anti-Israel (and antisemitic) videos with the same titles and descriptions as the IDF’s official YouTube videos, under the charming name terroristisrail.
Another 'Flying While Muslim' Case
US News | Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 9:43:17 am PST
A group of Muslim passengers was removed from an Airtran flight at Reagan International Airport yesterday, after passengers reported hearing them discussing airport security.
Members of the party, all but one of them U.S.-born citizens who were headed to a religious retreat in Florida, were subsequently cleared for travel by FBI agents who characterized the incident as a misunderstanding, an airport official said. But the passengers said AirTran refused to rebook them, and they had to pay for seats on another carrier secured with help from the FBI.
Kashif Irfan, one of the removed passengers, said the incident began about 1 p.m. after his brother, Atif, and his brother’s wife wondered aloud about the safest place to sit on an airplane.
“My brother and his wife were discussing some aspect of airport security,” Irfan said. “The only thing my brother said was, ‘Wow, the jets are right next to my window.’ I think they were remarking about safety.”
Irfan said he and the others think they were profiled because of their appearance. He said five of the six adults in the party are of South Asian descent, and all six are traditionally Muslim in appearance, with the men wearing beards and the women in headscarves. Irfan, 34, is an anesthesiologist. His brother, 29, is a lawyer. Both live in Alexandria with their families, and both were born in Detroit. They were traveling with their wives, Kashif Irfan’s sister-in-law, a friend and Kashif Irfan’s three sons, ages 7, 4 and 2.
Naturally, the Council on American Islamic Relations (unindicted co-conspirators in the Holy Land Foundation Hamas funding trial) took a break from their busy schedule of supporting Hamas to capitalize on this opportunity to scream “discrimination!” CAIR: Muslim Passengers Removed from DC Flight.
Overnight Open Thread
Open | Thu, Jan 1, 2009 at 11:20:36 pm PST
His speech is clumsy, with a toadlike indolence, long winded, pedantic, choppy. The words tumble from his mouth in sentence fragments, which he holds back as much as possible, as if they were earning interest. It takes forever and a day for him to push out a clump of hardened brain snot. Then he writhes in painful ecstasy, as if he had sugar on his rotten teeth. A very slow blab machine. An obsolete model with a non-working switch— it can’t be turned off unless you cut off the electric power altogether. So I’d have to smash him in the kisser. No, I’d have to knock him unconscious. But even if he were unconscious he’d keep talking. Even if his vocal cords were sliced through, he’d keep talking like a ventriloquist. Even if his throat were cut and his head were chopped off, speech balloons would still dangle from his mouth like gases emitted by internal decay.
— Klaus Kinski, on Werner Herzog
The Door Opens - Update: The Door Closes
Open | Thu, Jan 1, 2009 at 7:57:15 pm PST
The window of registration opportunity is open for a limited time. Standard admonitions apply:
Read all the rules.
Commit them to memory.
Don’t register with a proxy.
Don’t register with a throwaway email address.
Don’t register more than one account.
Don’t be a jerk.
Don’t be a troll.
Do play nice.
And then everything will be groovy.
UPDATE at 1/1/09 8:52:59 pm:
And the door slams shut with 67 hatchlings on New Year’s Day.
Death from the Skies
Sci/Tech | Thu, Jan 1, 2009 at 7:37:16 pm PST
An interesting New York Times science article on new discoveries about a possible catastrophic meteor strike about 13,000 years ago: New Evidence of Meteor Bombardment.
At least once in Earth’s history, global warming ended quickly, and scientists have long wondered why.
Now researchers are reporting that the abrupt cooling — which took place about 12,900 years ago, just as the planet was emerging from an ice age — may have been caused by one or more meteors that slammed into North America.
That could explain the extinction of mammoths, saber-tooth tigers and maybe even the first human inhabitants of the Americas, the scientists report in Friday’s issue of the journal Science.
The hypothesis has been regarded skeptically, but its advocates now report perhaps more convincing residue of impact: a thin layer of microscopic diamonds found in rocks across America and in Europe.