Mau-Mauing the Multiculturalists [book review]

Is culture relevant anymore in this world of rap and video games? The New Criterion - one of America’s leading journals of culture and the arts - just had its twenty-fifth anniversary and set out to prove its worth with an anthology: Counterpoints. Roger L. Simon reviews the result for Pajamas Media.

by Roger L. Simon

Two of the Missing US Soldiers May be Alive: Two of three US troops captured by al-Qaeda may be alive, according to the LA Times, citing military sources. The military also know who the perpetrators were.

Pakistan, Once More: Winds of Change comments on the anti-Musharraf movement and asks whether US policy towards Pakistan isn’t in rigor mortis. “Almost six years after 9/11, the substantial failure of the pact with Gen Musharraf is plain for everyone to see. Osama bin Laden remains at large, the Taliban are back in Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan, the A Q Khan network is believed to be in operation and the one thing the deal was supposed to avoid—-severe political instability in nuclear-armed Pakistan—-is at hand.”

Incoming! What an incoming Kassam rocket looks and sounds like as captured by Shlomo Wollins of Israel Reporter in his backyard in Sderot on the afternoon of May 15th, 2007.

Three Wise Men and the Immigration Elephant: Is the immigration bill the best we can do for the moment in the real world, as Ed Morrissey argues? Have internal Republican expectations guaranteed that the immigration issue will shatter conservative ranks, as David Frum maintains? Or is it just unacceptable on its face as Power Line claims?

Stock Manipulation Via the Blogosphere: Popular Science describes how Engadget was hoaxed into reporting a fake email which purportedly showed delays in the release of iPhone — news which caused a temporary but sharp drop in the share price of Apple.

"As Allah as My Witness." Here’s a link to Jose Padilla’s al-Qaeda application form from CBS News. Headed “New comers form” it asks questions like “how much of the Koran did you memorize?” It asks about any relevant combat experience and closes with this boilerplate: “I, the undersigned … attest that the aforementioned information is correct … as Allah is my witness.”

Michael Moore's New Film Gets a Rave Review From Fox News: No, really. Seriously.

Critic Roger Friedman enthuses that the “brilliant and uplifting” documentary, Sicko, displays “a new maturity” on the part of the controversial filmmaker.

The Cyberattack on Estonia: Glenn Reynolds links to a Washington Post story indicating Estonia is under cyberattack from Russia. Estonia has received some assistance from the NATO, the EU and the FBI. La Russophobe says the attacks will be discussed at an EU-Russian meeting in Samara.

How Britain Gave Basra to Iran: The Guardian accuses Britain of delivering Iraq’s oil port to Iranian-controlled militias.

Good news from Anbar from Michael Yon: Violence may be subsiding. (via Instapundit)

Is al-Qaeda Growing in Gaza? The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs believes al-Qaeda is thriving in Gaza, just as it grows in any place where central order has collapsed.

Europe Versus Russia: Judy Dempsey at the International Herald Tribune says Putin’s heavy handedness has brought out Europe bare-headed against him.

Spare a Thought: Bill Hobbs is asking people to pray for his mother, Harriet, who has cancer.

In the Shadow of the Wolfowitz Wars: While the World Bank President goes down, Claudia Rosett keeps her on the eye UN-kleptocrat-North Korean ball at the Weekly Standard and on her PajamasXpress blog.

LOLCats, the Latest Internet Craze: “An entire kitty subculture has emerged on the Web in the form of cat photos with funny sayings written on them … At first, they were called cat macros, but now go mostly by the name lolcats — combining the Web abbreviation for “laugh out loud” (LOL) and ‘cats’,” reports the Charlotte Observer.

Grumpy dogs on a Saturday morning: Classical Values examines.

True Colors: A Republican Congressman will seek a reprimand of Jack Murtha for threatening him for voting against earmarks. Power Line has the details. Gateway Pundit has a link to related video.

Forty Years in the Wilderness: Neo-neocon, commenting on Iraq, recalls the Biblical story of the period after Moses escaped from Egypt when people pined for the safety of their chains and the old familiar ways. Some things, she says, take time.

Bait and Switch: The Brussels Journal thinks Sarkozy has negated his basic mandate by shifting his policies too far to the Left. The Washington Post notes Sarkozy has named a Socialist as his foreign minister.

Israel Strikes Gaza From the Air: The BBC says the raid had targeted “three members of a Qassam rocket-launching cell that had just fired a rocket towards Israel”