We’re still looking for more info on the story, but this is a pretty big deal guys. The decision reverses a combat exclusion policy passed back in 1994. source
Video: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and U.S. Senator Ron Johnson clash over Benghazi consulate attack (via Talking Points Memo)
“With all due respect, we had four dead Americans. Was it because of a protest or was it because of some guys out on a walk one night who decided they’d go kill some Americans? What difference, at this point, does it make? It is our job to figure out what happened and to prevent it from ever happening again, Senator.” Damn, Hill brought her A game.
If you read this in a book, you’d say the author went too far and the narrative was no longer believable:
If the gun advocates behind this year’s inaugural Gun Appreciation Day had hoped to use the day’s festivities to build support for their anti-regulation platform, they are going to have to wait another year.
[…]
A representative from Political Media, the group responsible for organizing Gun Appreciation Day, was not immediately available for comment.
This is real life.
It’s like the gun control talking points write themselves sometimes.
The Daily Show investigates investigative reporters
Holy shit. This is the most biting and scathing thing I’ve seen in some time. Wow. Everyone in a journalism school needs to see this. The news industry is awful. This is depressing. Watch this.
Spot-on satire. Too spot-on, unfortunately.
Man shot dead after posting on Facebook: ‘im about to get shot’
(Photo: Facebook)
It appears that one of the last things Eric L. Ramsey did before he was shot and killed by police Thursday was to let his friends and family know on Facebook that he was about to die.
“Well folkes im about to get shot. Peace” Ramsey posted on the social network at 3:15 a.m. Jan. 17 using his mobile phone.
What this description doesn’t tell you is that, before this recent parolee got shot, he kidnapped and allegedly raped a woman, and when that woman successfully escaped to a nearby home, he tried setting the home on fire. Just a word of warning regarding this story. This FB message may be novel, but nothing else about this story is.
How a Gun Control Petition Went from the Tumblr Dashboard to Washington DC
I created the petition “Immediately address the issue of control through the introduction of legislation in Congress” as a knee-jerk reaction in mid-December of last year. It was a way of gaining control over a situation I had no control over. After the awful extent of the Sandy Hook shootings became clear, I felt disoriented. The mind tends to turn toward blame, but the murder of twenty children and six school officials was, and will always be, a hard thing to wrap my head around.
I knew that if there ever were a tipping point for effective gun control, this would be it. So, I wrote a petition. My primary goal was to appeal to both sides of the debate. Writing an incendiary, partisan petition benefits no one. The vast majority of gun owners are people who have the Constitutional right to own one, several, or many guns, and singling these people out was wrong. Simply put, the petition was intended to start a realistic dialogue about guns and their role in the United States. We have a gun problem, plain and simple.
Great piece by David on his notable contribution to a larger debate — a contribution which took him to the White House this week.
Oprah’s interview with Lance Armstrong
Lance doped strong. Here’s what you missed.
A moment 14 years in the making
The Daily Dot wins the fastest-GIF-in-the-land award for the evening.
Paul Haggis says leaving Scientology was ‘a treasonous act’
(Photo: Rock Center with Brian Williams)
In an exclusive interview with Rock Center’s Harry Smith, ex-Scientologist and famed Hollywood director Paul Haggis discusses the controversial church of which he was a member for more than 30 years. He calls the religion a ‘cult’. Haggis is part of author Lawrence Wright’s new book, “Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief.” Wright talked to Rock Center about his new book and Scientology’s controversial history. Rock Center’s two-part report airs Thursday, Jan. 17 at 10pm/9CDT on NBC’s Rock Center with Brian Williams.
Hey Harry, did you ask him about the Atlantic ad?
Conrad Bain, Mr. Drummond on ‘Diff’rent Strokes,’ dies at 89
(Photo: Everett Collection)
Actor Conrad Bain, perhaps best known for his role as kindly millionaire Phillip Drummond on “Diff’rent Strokes,” has died at 89, his daughter, Jennifer, has confirmed to Access Hollywood.
Nearly as sad as the loss of Mr. Drummond is the fact that he outived most of his TV family. :/
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
Here’s a hidden feature that shipped in...
Watch: PCB gets a visual shout out on GMA’s Yahoo/Tumblr...
If you joyride a train, you’ll prob crash into a house.
A derailed train on Tuesday crashed into the side of a house in Saltsjöbaden, a town of about 10,000 outside Stockholm. A woman, reportedly a twenty-something cleaner for the train company, somehow snagged the keys to the train and drove it away before it crashed into the building. (Lisbeth Salander, is that you?) The cleaner was injured in the incident, but amazingly, there are no reports of injuries of people in the residence.
Reblogging because I’ve done this before.
After the Sandy Hook shootings in Newton, Connecticut I started a petition urging the Obama Administration to work with Congress to limit access to guns. I first posted it here on tumblr and it quickly took off, making it’s way to Twitter and Facebook, eventually going viral.
In a few days it became the most popular petition on the “We The People” White House petition site, and even prompted a video response from the President. Here’s the fun part… I found out a few days ago that I am invited to the White House this Wednesday.
While details are up in the air, I know there will be an interview, and a good chance to meet the king of Dad Sneakers and his #2, as well as some other fun stuff. So with that said, here’s a big thanks to everyone who supported the petition, because it does matter. If you have any questions/comments please let me know and I’ll do my best to answer them. Wish me luck (I need a haircut and a shave).
Now this is awesome. Best of luck!
Powell champions Hagel as defense secretary and rips some Republicans
(Photo: Meet the Press)
Former Secretary of State Colin Powell said on NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday that President Barack Obama’s nominee to be defense secretary, former Sen. Chuck Hagel, was “superbly qualified” and would be a strong advocate for Americans in uniform.
Here’s the sad part: If Powell tried to run for president today, he’d get railroaded in the primaries because he’s too moderate. His words matter in this discussion because of his time as Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but we’re not in an era where arguments favoring a moderate stance, like this one, win easy. Then again, Obama could nominate the reanimated version of Ronald Reagan as Defense Secretary and Reagan would still face an uphill battle.
That guy there, with the face tattoo … he could be the next president of the Czech Republic. Seriously. Do yourself a favor, read this.
Moving to Eastern Europe just so I can vote for this guy.
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