Obama Cancels Summit With Putin

President Obama has canceled a trip to Moscow that had been scheduled for next month, where he would have met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Reasons for the cancellation include "a lack of progress in bilateral relations" since Putin retook the presidency, recently-passed laws against certain behavior by gays, and the Russian government's decision to grant temporary asylum to accused leaker Edward Snowden.

Read more at CNN, The Hill, NBC News, Reuters, the Christian Science Monitor and the Washington Post.

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A Few Items

A few things I've run across in the last couple of days:

In a hospital in central New York, doctors intent on harvesting a patient's organs suddenly realized that rumors of her death had been greatly exaggerated.

The United States is no longer the world's fattest nation.  We've been overtaken by Mexico.  Sí, se puede....comer!

Two House Democrats have proposed a new National Historical Park - on the moon.  This would present a number of difficulties, starting with the fact that while the moon was explored by twelve Americans, is not United States territory.  And any Department of the Interior personnel assigned to such a park would face an exceptionally difficult commute.

A House Republican has inserted an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would protect the religious freedom of military personnel.

If you're a legislator, please be careful how you write your laws.  A law in Florida that bans Internet cafes might also ban computers and smartphones.

This next item is two and a half years old, but still relevant in light of the recent Supreme Court rulings on "gay marriage".  This is a look inside the gay culture and the gay rights movement, from a former participant.

The Virginia Tech football team has lost a running back, due to his own fault.  This past April, Michael Holmes was charged with malicious wounding, a felony, for his actions in a fight that started between his then-girlfriend and an ex-girlfriend.  Holmes plea-bargained the charge down to assault and battery, a misdemeanor.  School policy allows a misdemeanor offender to be reinstated to his athletic team, but a student judicial panel decided to expel Holmes from both the team and the school.

Scuba divers off the coast of Alabama have discovered the remains of a 50,000-year-old forest.

It would appear that protesters outside the U.S. embassy in Cairo have some complaints about our president.  Like many teabaggers/hobbits/wacko-birds back here in the U.S., I say, "Join the club."  Thankfully, many Egyptians seem able to distinguish between Barry and America.

The recent train wreck in Quebec, Canada may have been the result of tampering.

To finish, a musical blast from the past.  Here's Nat King Cole and Billy Preston (age 11) performing Fats Domino's Blueberry Hill.

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Tuesday Links

I'll be away for a few days visiting family for the 4th of July, so here are some stories to pass on before I go:

From Canada Free Press, millions of Egyptians are protesting against their president - and ours.

From Al Arabiya, the Egyptian army has drafted a plan to suspend the country's parliament and contsitution.

From CBS News, Egyptian President Morsi refuses to step down.

Also from CBS News, Pope John Paul II, who died in 2005, is on track for sainthood.  Are you ready for Święty Jan Pawel, a.k.a. Święty Karol Wojtyła?

From Investor's Business Daily, electric cars aren't all that clean.

From Fox News, the Obama administration has announced that the employer mandate provision of Obamacare will be delayed until 2015.

From Science Recorder, a 15-year-old student invents a flashlight that runs on body heat.

From AMOG, Aaron Hernandez and the ten most infamous athletes.

From Israel National News, Canadian police have arrested two British Columbia residents for an alleged terror plot.

From The Corner at National Review Online, abortion-rights activists and their signs.

From Bare Naked Islam, the British government, who recently decided to ban Robert Spencer and Pamela Geller from entering their country, had already stopped an American Jew from doing so.

From The Blaze, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has apologized to Congress for lying to them earlier this year.

From Time, alleged leaker Edward Snowden just can't find a country that will give him asylum.

From the Swampland section of Time, President Obama and his immediate predecessor meet in Tanzania.

And from The Guardian, beware of the Mongolian neo-nazi environmentalists.

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SCOTUS Gay Marriage Decisions And Other Stories

Earlier today, the Supreme Court struck down part of the Defense of Marriage Act, commonly referred to by its acronym DOMA, and dismissed an appear of a lower court ruling against California's Proposition 8, a state constitutional amendment that had defined marriage as being between a man and a woman.  DOMA had first been enacted during the presidency of Bill Clinton.  Here are some related stories:

From the Washington Post, a report on the DOMA decision.

From CNN, how the court ruled on standing with respect to Proposition 8.

From The Examiner, President Obama promises not to force churches to perform gay weddings.

From CBS Local, the National Cathedral rings its bells to celebrate the court's decisions.  (via Weasel Zippers)

From Breitbart's The Conversation, how the rulings could further polarize our politics.

The Blaze reminds us that most of DOMA still stands, including a provision that could lead to another court battle.

In other news:

From Forbes, Democrat legislators in Massachusetts are trying to force Governor Deval Patrick to seek a waiver from Obamacare.  (Is this another case of "just words"?)

From Politico, a second IRS staffer pleads the Fifth when summoned before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.  (via Red State)

From the Military Times, accused NSA leaker Edward Snowden, having flown from Hong Kong to Russia, may or may not be hanging out at Moscow's Sheremetchevo Airport.

From Biz Pac Review, Obama-Corps could be on its way to becoming reality.  (Will the participants be called "Obama-Corpsemen"?)

From The Times Of Israel, the US is considering sending training teams to Lebanon and Iraq, to help those countries deal with possible spillover from the civil war in Syria.

From Yahoo Sports, New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez has been arrested and charged with murdering his neighbor.  Metrodesk at Boston(dot)com has more.

From CNN Tech, three newly discovered planets, just 22 lightyears away, might be able to support life.

And from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, diplomas given out by Radford University in Virginia misspell "Virginia".

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Yes, We Scan!

On President Obama's current visit to Germany, he has found the place to be somewhat less welcoming than on a previous visit during his 2008 candidacy.  As the New York Times reports, instead of the 200,000 people who attended his speech back then, only about 5,000 showed up for his appearance today, which was by invitation only.  At Checkpoint Charlie, a crossing in the Berlin Wall that has been the site for other speeches by American presidents, protesters showed up with signs parodying Obama's 2008 campaign slogan.

Read more at the Global Post, The Atlantic and Reuters.

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This Date In History, And Today

June 6th is widely commemorated as the day in 1944 during World War II when the western Allies invaded Europe, landing on the beaches of the German-held French region of Normandy.  From their narrow foothold, they would eventually advance across France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany itself, joining the westward-advancing Soviet army to defeat the once-powerful German military forces.  Here are a few links to some historical facts and modern tributes:

The History Channel has a page on D-Day, with lots of places to explore.

The British version of the History Channel likewise has a D-Day page.

The U.S. Army has a webpage remembering D-Day.

More information on D-Day can be found at the National WWII Museum, World War II History Info and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library.

Paying tribute to the events of D-Day are Nola(dot)com (New Orleans being the site of the above-mentioned National WWII Museum), the Patriot-News, CNN and Business Insider.
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In more recent military history, June 6th was the second day of the Six-Day War, in which Israel defeated neighboring Arab countries, taking the Sinai and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the West Bank and the old city of Jerusalem from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria.  This war is remembered by History Learning Site, the Jewish Virtual Library, Israeli Weapons and SixDayWar(dot)org.
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June 6th, 1799 was the birth date of Alexander Pushkin, considered to be the founder of modern Russian literature.  You can read about him at the Literature Network, Russiapedia, Poetry Lovers Page and AlexanderPushkin(dot)com.
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On June 6th, 1949, according to the History Channel, George Orwell's book 1984 was published.
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Moving on to today's news:

From ABC News, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) has appointed Jeff Chiesa (R), currently the state's attorney general, to be interim Senator until the special election previously announced by the governor takes place later this year.  Chiesa has stated that he will not run in that election.

From the Washington Post, the FBI and the NSA have been data-mining from nine leading U.S. Internet companies.

From National Review, the House has voted to de-fund President Obama's DREAM policy, which he enacted by executive order.

And from The Hayride, Obama criticizes warrantless wiretaps.

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Links To Start The Long Weekend

The Memorial Day weekend, one of those "anchors" on the calendar, has just started.  This coming Monday, Americans will pay tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice to keep us free.  Today, here are some things recently in the news:

From the New York Post, a homeless teenage girl living near Atlanta has just become her high school's valedictorian.

From Fox News, the Boy Scouts of America have voted to accept openly gay members.

From Breitbart's Big Hollywood, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie gets into a confrontation with Jersey Shore cast member Snooki.

From Biz Pac Review, polling expert Scott Rasmussen says that the recent scandals are bringing bad news for President Obama.  (Isn't that what scandals normally do to a president?)

CNS News reports on Obama's commencement speech as the U.S. Naval Academy, where he blamed the "misconduct of a few" for eroding the public's trust in the government.

From CBN News, an American missionary in Africa has gone missing.

From NBC News, the Department of Justice confirms that the search warrant for Fox News reporter James Rosen's e-mails was approved "at the highest levels".  One writer at National Review suggests that reporters "should just CC Eric Holder" from now on.

From The Hill, Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) says that the "Gang of Eight" immigration bill does not have the votes to pass the Senate.

From the Washington Examiner, a former president of Guatemala has been extradited to the United States to face money-laundering charges.

Reason gives us three reasons, other than Lois Lerner, to fear the IRS.

From CNN, yesterday's collapse of a section of the Skagit River bridge on Interstate 5 in Washington state is believed to have been caused by an 18-wheeler hitting an overhead tress (and not from GOP obstruction, as reported by Mediaite).

And from Wired, on the 30th anniversary of Return of the Jedi, 30 things you didn't know about the movie.

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Thursday News And Links

A few stories out there:

From ABC News, the IRS official in charge of the division that deals with tax-exempt organizations when Tea Party groups were targeted for extra scrutiny now runs their Affordable Care Act office.

From the American Thinker, a lawsuit against the IRS accuses it of seizing the medical records of 10 million people.

From the Associated Press, an arrest warrant has been issued for former NFL player Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson.

From The Corner at National Review, the Speaker accuses President Obama and his administration of "remarkable arrogance".

From Fox News, the manager of the Fort Campbell sexual assault prevention program has been arrested for allegedly violating an order of protection against his ex-wife.

From the Washington Post, an investigation finds that terrorists who had entered the witness protection program and were given new identities were allowed to board airplanes in the United States.

From the Washington Examiner, Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley has signed legislation passed by the state legislature that has "some of the toughest new gun restrictions in the nation".

The Daily Caller asks if the IRS gave presidential candidate Mitt Romney's tax returns to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

From Newsmax, Catholic League director Bill Donohue claims that his organization was targeted by the IRS.

From Gateway Pundit, the IRS granted applications for tax-exempt status much more quickly for Muslim groups than for Christian or Jewish groups.

From Politico, a second federal court has ruled that President Obama's NLRB appointments were unconstitutional.

From The Guardian, Venezuela has been experiencing a shortage of toilet paper.

Continuing with the British media, a study reported by the Mail Online claims that strong men tend to have rightwing political views.

And from the International Business Times, Canada appears to be the place to watch for UFOs.

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Tuesday Links

Some recent news and opinion:

From ABC News, according to a study done by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 42% of Americans don't know that Obamacare is the law.

In Townhall, John Hawkins gives us 30 reasons to dislike President Obama.

From Breitbart's Big Government, Tea Party Patriots gets ready to rally against the "Gang of Eight" immigration bill.

From the Washington Free Beacon, extremists with ties to Al Qaeda have been using the Boston area as a base ever since 1993.

From Yahoo News, many in the Muslim world want Sharia as the official law of their lands.

From The Examiner, a study finds that over a quarter million Somalis have died from famine and terrorism.

From The Blaze, the FDA has approved over-the-counter sales the "morning after" pill - to girls as young as 15.

From the Washington Post, some officials say that Obama is "moving toward" sending weapons to Syrian rebels.

The American Thinker asks, is Obama working hard or hardly working?

From CNS News, a Miami archbishop says that establishing gay marriage would spread "moral relativism" and eventually bring about tyranny.

The American Spectator tells the story of the "Pigs of Pigford".

From USA Today, a D.C. councilman has introduced a resolution calling for the Washington Redskins to change their name to the Redtails.

And from CBS Sports, San Diego cartoonist Steve Breen welcomes soon-to-be-Charger Manti Te'o.

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Wednesday Links

Some stories in the news from earlier today:

From Human Events, a crook invades the home of a Colorado prosecutor and meets the Second Amendment.

From Investors Business Daily, as Obamacare crumbles, its namesake goes back to fundraising.

From CNN Money, most individual health insurance plans don't cover everything required by Obamacare.

From the New York Post, basketball player Kobe Bryant praises Magic Johnson's son EJ for coming out.

Also from the New York Post, and from the "you can't make this up" department, five schools in Norway have rescheduled their mid-term exams to allow students to attend a Justin Bieber concert.

From My Fox NY, a school in Ohio has taken down a portrait of Jesus which had been displayed since 1947.

From World Net Daily, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad goes on trial (in absentia) for crimes against humanity.

From the Washington Times, an Islamic cleric has given permission for Syrian rebels to rape non-Sunni women.

From the Jerusalem Post, Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu promises a strong response if rockets are fired into Israel from Gaza.

From the Military Times, North Korea has stopped workers from South Korea from entering an industrial complex in the north, but used by both countries.

From Fox News, the U.S. Military will deploy a missile defense system in Guam, in response to threats from North Korea.

From WKRG, the Carnival Triumph has broken away from her dock.

From the Daily Currant, Egypt has issued an arrest warrant for American comedian Jon Stewart.

And from the Canada Free Press and my neck of the woods, at a hearing by the Maryland legislature, a 15-year-old witness testifies in favor of gun rights.

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Thursday Links

A few stories in the news:

From CNN, the Chinese solar energy company Soltech Power's Wuxi subsidiary has gone into bankruptcy.

From the Washington Times, Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes has converted to Islam.

From The Blaze, while in Israel discussing Israeli-Palestinian relations, President Obama evokes the relationship between the United States and Canada.  That's funny, I don't recall any Canadians launching rockets at American towns full of civilians, or any Canadian suicide bombers.

From Time, the Palestinians aren't all that pleased with Obama.

From World Net Daily, in a speech to young Israelis, the president quotes Saul Alinsky.

From Fox News, in southern Idaho, nearly 40 dogs have mysteriously disappeared, with some of them eventually turning up dead.

From CBS Bay Area, CVS pharmacy is ordering its employees to reveal their health information.

From Liberty News, congressman Charles Rangel claims that "millions of kids" have been shot down by "assault weapons", a number that is actually way off the mark.

From MSN News, Chicago school officials announce plans to close 54 schools, due to a billion-dollar deficit.

From the Military Times, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has found no proof that the Navy's use of bombing ranges on the island of Vieques has caused its inhabitants to get sick.

From the New York Post, Saudi Arabia, despite being the homeland of most of the 9/11 hijackers, will become just the fifth nation to receive "trusted traveller" status.

And from Phillyburbs, the up-for-reelection Bucks County Sheriff has been petitioned to remove his nickname from the upcoming ballot.

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Presidential Limo Hits SNAFU

On President Obama's current visit to Israel, his official limousine, known as "The Beast", appears to have run head-on into Murphy's Law.  According to reports, the diesel-powered car was mistakenly filled with gasoline, and is not currently able to be driven.  Obama was not in the limo when the malfunction occurred.

Read more at Fox News, the Telegraph, Autoblog, the Washington Times and the International Business Times.

There has been no word yet as to whether this SNAFU has been blamed on the Sequester, or on problems inherited from President George W. Bush.

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Does Satan Look Like Obama?

No, but the actor playing Satan in the miniseries The Bible seems to have some resemblance to the president.  Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, the married couple who are the show's producers, flatly deny any any intention of making a political statement.  Let's keep in mind that the actor's on-screen appearance is likely to some extent to be the result of makeup.  Still, Moroccan actor Mehdi Ouzaani does appear to look somewhat like Barry, but if you ask me, a few years older.  Read the story at the New York Post, the Independent, MSNBC and the Daily Beast, and judge for yourself.

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"Jedi Mind Meld"?

It appears that President Obama will never be a genuine sci-fi geek.  At a press conference today, he said that he couldn't do a "Jedi mind meld" with the Republicans to make them understand his positions on taxes and spending, thus getting mixed up between the Star Wars Jedi mind trick and the Star Trek Vulcan mind meld.  Even so, it's probably a good thing.  Could you imagine how much damage politicians could do if they could link their minds together?  Oh well, live long and prosper and may the Force be with you.

Read more at ABC News, CBS News, Reuters and the Washington Post.

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Links For (Fat) Tuesday

Today is Mardi Gras (French for "Fat Tuesday"), the day before Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent as observed by the Catholic Church and most of western Christianity.  The Orthodox Churches (Greek, Russian, etc.) use a different calendar, and thus schedule their Easter and Lent differently.  Tonight, President Obama will give his State Of The Union address, which like most SOTUs, I have no intention of watching.  Here are some other things going on:

From the Los Angeles Times, police in San Bernardino County, CA have a gun battle with former officer and murder suspect Christopher Dorner near Big Bear Lake.

From My Fox LA, a timeline and live stream of Dorner's suspected crimes and the resulting manhunt.

From the Inquisitr, the Antarctic ozone hole has shrunk to its lowest size in a decade.

From the Washington Post, the Virginia Senate has passed a bill to allow counties in northern Virginia to pass a 1% income tax without a public vote.

From ABC News, former police Sgt. Kimberly Munley, who with her partner stopped the Fort Hoot shooting spree, says the president has broken his promise that "the victims would be well taken care of".

From Fox News, gay rights activists have called for DC comics to fire Orson Scott Card, because he opposes gay marriage.  (via Weasel Zippers)

From the Daily Caller, several Democrats have have invited to the State Of The Union speech some guests who shouldn't even be in the country.

From the NY Post, the hacker group called Anonymous threatens to disrupt online broadcasts of the SOTU speech.

From Yahoo News, diners in Tokyo eat dirt.

And from SFGate, a postcard sent by a 13-year-old boy to his mother in Pauls Valley, OK arrives after 46 years.

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Dr. Ben Carson At The NPB

Dr. Benjamin Carson is the head of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University Medical School, a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a devout Christian, the author of four books including his autobiography Gifted Hands (which has been made into a movie), and the founder of the Carson Scholars Fund.  Here is his speech at this year's National Prayer Breakfast, in which he lambastes political correctness and fiscal irresponsibility, and which has been praised by conservatives and dismissed by liberals.  During the speech, the president, seated near the podium, appears to become somewhat uncomfortable.  (There's more info at the Blaze.)

Over 20 years ago, I had the privilege of attending a speech by Dr. Carson, not far from where I live.  Naturally, I don't remember very much of it, but in what I can recall, he spoke about how during his childhood, his mother Sonya Carson turned off their television and had him and his brother Curtis (who grew up to become an engineer) read books, and then report on them.  Ben and Curt only later realized that with her third grade education, she couldn't even read the books herself.  As a result, the grades the two boys were getting in school improved dramatically, which eventually led them to success in their respective professions.  As the saying goes, behind every great man (or two) is a woman.

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Barry's Got A Gun

Last August, President Obama went skeet-shooting at Camp David, or so we're told.  Recently, the photo below was released, to back up a previous claim that he frequently shoots clay pigeons, and to respond to Representative Marsha Blackburn's (R-TN) challenge to a skeet shoot.  (As Instapundit points out, at least one woman has better shooting form than Barry.)  Along with the pic came a warning not to manipulate it - which didn't get very far.  The American Thinker claims that the photo is a fake in the first place.  I thought that the smoke coming out of the side of the gun's barrel was a bit peculiar, but apparently, some guns have a side exhaust port on the barrel.  Either that, or across the road there was a second shooter hiding in the woody knoll.  Let the conspiracy theories begin!

As indicated by the New York Post and Michelle Malkin's blog, Teh One^TM has inspired quite a bit of mockery with this pic.  From the latter (including a commenter or two thereon), come some of the above links and this whimsical explanation of what he might be shooting at.

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Sunday News And Links

Some items recently in the news:

From Reuters, President Obama says that football needs to become "less violent", invoking the "if I had a son" clause. (via Weasel Zippers)

From Fox News, lawsuits over the Obamacare birth control mandate appear headed to the Supreme Court.

Also from Fox News, Iran sentences Christian pastor Saeed Abedini to eight years in prison.

From the Brenner Brief, an explosion has reportedly occurred at the Fordo nuclear facility in Iran.

From the Weekly Standard, Obama violates his own "Stimulus" law.

From Breitbart Sports, two Egyptian soccer players were shot dead in a riot, which broke out in response to a judge's sentence in a trial of people accused of rioting over a soccer game.  (Perhaps it's this type of football that needs to be less violent, Mr. President.)  In a related story from Middle East Online, 22 people have died in these riots in Port Said.  Al Arabiya News reports 27 people dead.

Back to the American variety of football, and more violence, the New York Post tells the tale of Ray Lewis' homicide case.

From Yahoo News, Obama expresses his respect for the "tradition of hunting".  (via Gateway Pundit)

From the Independent, January 27th is Holocaust Memorial Day.  (via Infidel Blogger's Alliance)

From Newsbusters, a woman explains to Pierce Morgan why she needs an AR-15.

From Dawn, an intense battle rages in the Khyber region of Pakistan between a faction of the Pakistani Taliban and the "pro-government" group Ansar ul Islam.  (via Holger Awakens)

From National Review, the transcript of Congressman Paul Ryan's (R-Wis) speech at the NRI summit.

From the Daily Caller, about 2/3 of polled gun owners said that they would defy a law requiring them to give up their guns.

And to finish, something to eat for breakfast:  Crapola.

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Court Rules Against Obama's "Recess" Appointments

Via Gateway Pundit:

A federal court has ruled that President Obama's appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, made last year, were illegal because the Senate was not actually in a recess.  The presidential power to make recess appointments does not cover "intra-session" appointments, made when the Congress takes a short break, but only appointments made after a session is adjourned permanently.

Read the story at the Washington Times.

Also, at the Right Scoop, Mark Levin discusses the court's ruling.

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Notes On The Fiscal Cliff

The deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff", a.k.a. the end of the George W Bush tax rates, includes some tax increases.  Zerohedge puts them in perspective.

Gateway Pundit tells us what Michael Reagan says about the deal.

The Independent Journal Review reports that the deal makes $41 in tax increases for every $1 of spending cuts, a ratio far worse on deals agreed to by Presidents Reagan and George H W Bush.

But even so, according to Truth-Out, the liberal base thinks that President Obama gave away too much.

What good will the deal accomplish?  According to Frontpagemag, it will merely postpone the fiscal cliff until this coming March.

How long did the Senate take to consider the 154-page bill?  From CNS News, about 3 minutes.  Evelyn Wood would be proud.  It seems that the Nancy Pelosi tradition of passing the bill to find out what's in it has migrated from the House to the Senate.

From Townhall, Speaker Boehner likewise shoves the bill through the House.

Politico give us some of the discussion between John Boehner and Senator Harry Reid, and it ain't pretty.

What do I think will happen?  As in the Road Runner cartoons, we will go over the cliff just like Wile E. Coyote, perhaps not falling until we realize that there's nothing solid immediately under our feet.  After we hit the bottom, the resulting vibration will cause a large boulder, known as "Obamacare", to fall on top of us.

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