Summer Camp in South Korea

They take that stuff seriously.

Leon Russell Like You've Never Seen Him

Unless you were watching Shindig in 1964

Prominent Conservative Dismisses Black Panther Case

Odd, how you didn't hear about this on the Republican echo chamber.

Newspapers on the Internet

Gene Weingarten doesn't like what he sees.

Crime Is Down Across Arizona

Except where Sheriff Joe is in charge.

What's Gallagher Up to These Days

I know some of you (I'm looking at you, Ron) have been asking that question. Here's the answer.

The Fox News Minstrels

Dave Weigel writes:

Fox News uses the Panthers the way that Phil Donohue used to use the KKK or G.G. Allin. They're good on TV. The difference between the Panthers and other freakish groups that look good on the air, of course, is that that they threaten white people.


How often does Fox bring on the Panthers, or talk about them? A Lexis-Nexis search finds 68 mentions of "Malik Zulu Shabazz," a leader of the NBPP. The majority are appearances on Fox News, where Shabazz is repeatedly brought on to act as a foolish, anti-Semitic punching bag. Among the segment titles: "Professor's Comments on Whites Stir Controversy" and "Black Panthers Take a Stand on Duke Rape Case." Here's one example of a Shabazz appearance during the Jeremiah Wright controversy. Fox was the only network to book him; Sean Hannity conducted the interview.

Jesse Walker adds:

The New Black Panther Party plays the same role for the right that Hutaree-style militants play for the left: They're a tiny, uninfluential group whose importance is magnified to keep the base excited. Left and right wind up worrying more about each other than they care about the institutions that actually govern the country. It's great if your goal is maintaining movement identity, but not if you're more interested in changing policy than collecting scalps.

Wrestling with the Facts

The Weekly Standard has a piece on Linda McMahon's Senate candidacy that contains this passage:

McMahon is not the first figure from professional wrestling to enter politics. In 1974, Jim Crockett, who ran the National Wrestling Alliance, ran for the Senate in North Carolina. He finished sixth in a field of six in the GOP primary. And, in 1990, Jesse “The Body” Ventura was elected mayor of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. Eight years later, he was governor of the state.

Where do we begin?

First, Jim Crockett Jr. wasn't elected NWA president until 1980, and I don't think it would be correct to say that he "ran" the NWA even then since the president's only two roles were to run the annual meeting and book the world champion.

Second, everything I've ever read says that Crockett ran for state Senate not the Senate as the Standard says.

Third, if you are taking about pro wrestles in politics, how can you talk about Crockett's failed run for Senate and not mention even Tom Drake, who served 32 years in the Alabama House of Representatives, including two terms as speaker, while maintaining a successful pro wrestling career?

Elder Abuse in Japan

Oh, what's that. Abuse by the elderly in Japan?