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We gave up reading Pam Geller’s Atlas Shrugged blog years ago. It’s just not our style. But she’s been relentless on exposing the threat of radical Islam for years. So too Robert Spencer and Gert Wilders.

In the wake of the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris, these three hosted a “Draw Mohammed” contest, and yesterday were holding the awards ceremony in a Dallas suburb, not coincidentally at the same event center where earlier in the year local Muslims had held a controversial event.

Near the end of the program, two gunmen rolled up, and opened fire, wounding one security guard. Officers of the Garland Independent School District returned fire, killing both Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi.

Of course, all the usual suspects of the intellectually and morally bankrupt left (and a disgustingly large number on the right) immediately blamed Geller.

Geller argues that radical Islam is a threat, that there are people out there that will seize any provocation, or none, to kill you.

And for that, she’s labeled as a hate monger.
Here’s the winning cartoon:

That’s incredibly mild compared to the political cartoons every conservative in America has to tolerate.

And this, this is just dripping with hatred. I clearly can see how this justifies murder.

Here’s all the entries.

As usual, CDR Salamander does a much better job of saying what it is I’m trying to say.

We live in a free (mostly), pluralistic society, where freedom of speech is a right recognized by the Constitution, and for most of our history, deeply embedded in our culture. Increasingly in recent years, however, elements of our society have more and more sought to impose restrictions on speech.  So-called Social Justice Warrior wish to ban any speech that doesn’t meticulously meet their ever shifting standards. As a rule of thumb, if it was said by a white heterosexual male, it should be banned. Feminists on campus wish to ban any speech that doesn’t explicitly endorse their agenda. And of course, some members of the so-called Religion of Peace wish to hold a veto on any expression you may have in regards their religion.

Be damned to them all.

I’m generally an inoffensive guy. I don’t go out of my way to offend or outrage others, and I strive mightily not to take offense or be outraged by others, particularly when someone might be unwittingly offensive. I try to use my manners.

But there is increasingly an element of extremism creeping into society, amplified far  beyond their numbers by social media. And no, it isn’t the political right.

And so, I’m increasingly finding myself in agreement with WeirdDave writing at the Mothership.

Eff Off.

“I’m a dragon-kin, I demand that you respect my draconic traditions!”

No, you’re not. Eff off.

“Oh, your belly dancing is cultural appropriation !”

Eff off.

“That’s your white privilege talking!”

Eff off, I have the same privilege as you do, I’m a free American.

“You’re fat shaming!”

Eff off and eat a salad once in a while.

“I can’t stand these micro aggression from you”

How about a macro aggression? Eff off.

You’re offended? Eff off. It’s your problem, not mine.

You don’t like Geller and friends hosting a contest to draw Mohammed?

Eff off and die.

Of course, I have my own favorite drawing from the contest.

One of the constant bleats from the political left in America is that anyone questioning the patriotism or motives of the Left is engaging in McCarthyism, a politically motivated witch hunt.

It’s amazing that this has become an effective deflection from legitimate criticism, as McCarthy was right- the government, under the Democratic administrations of FDR and Truman was absolutely riddled with agents of the Soviet Union.

I would urge the reader to study two subjects on this matter- The Venona Project, and the Vassiliev notebooks.  Of the two, the Vassiliev notebooks are probably the least trustworthy, mainly because they are uncorroborated. Still, they’re generally in line with Venona, and the prosecution of various Soviet agents throughout the Cold War. Which, by the by, was a long, long list.

Oh my.

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The Navy is managing to really piss off Congress.

WASHINGTON: The cruiser war continues. With House seapower subcommittee chairman Randy Forbes declaring the Navy has “no credibility” when they promise to modernize aging Ticonderoga-class cruisers, House Republicans and Navy leaders are accelerating towards a public collision.

Last week, Forbes rolled out legislation requiring the Navy to modernize the cruisers twice as fast as planned, in just two years per ship instead of four. On Tuesday, the Chief of Naval Operations urged Congress to get rid of Forbes’ provision, saying the faster pace it mandates would cost an extra $300 to $400 million. On Wednesday, the full House Armed Services Committee sided with Forbes against the Navy. Yesterday, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus suggested several ways that Congress could make sure the cruisers got modernized without having to accelerate the pace. This afternoon, Rep. Forbes told me Mabus’s alternatives weren’t good enough.

Of course, the Navy is far more willing to cut cruisers than admirals.

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Veterans are more likely than similar civilians to volunteer more hours, to vote consistently and to serve in civic organizations, according to a report released Thursday that advocates hope will counteract the perception of veterans as “broken heroes.”

The report found that veterans, even those who may be struggling with issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder, are eager to contribute to their communities and can make neighborhoods safer and friendlier.

“For years, we’ve been working to make sure veterans are perceived as leaders and assets. Now we have empirical evidence,” said Chris Marvin, managing director of Got Your 6, a veterans group that sponsored the report. “The statement that veterans are civic assets is no longer an opinion; it’s a fact, and it’s backed up by data.”

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I think we all know the “other experiment” on the X-37B.

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Today marks the anniversary of the Battle of Manila Bay, where the US Navy smacked Spain upside the head, and ann0unced itself as a world power.

You may fire when ready, Gridley.

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It’s also the anniversary of one of the more interesting air raids of the Korean War, the attack on the Hwachon dam, by Navy AD Skyaiders using aerial torpedoes to breach the floodgates.

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It’s also the anniversary of the first Black Buck raid at Port Stanley, Falklands, by RAF Vulcans. And of course, Think Defence has a great article on the critical runway there, with a lot of really interesting pictures.