The Conservative Brawler

Extremist mob brutally murders young Muslim woman

2015-12-30T00:50:00.001-05:00

It's hard to be shocked by much of anything any more. We're so desensitized by horror and gore... partly because of sensationalized entertainment and partly because of the reality of the times we live in. Enter Farkhunda Malikzada, a 27-year-old Muslim woman falsely accused of burning a Quran. She was brutally murdered by a mob in central Kabul as hundreds watched and filmed.

As you watch this, consider: Just how "tiny" is the "extremist" Islamist "minority"? The good guys seem far too outnumbered...

This video contains extreme scenes of graphic violence.

The Conservative Brawler Podcast #16: Stop playing politics with ISIS

2015-11-28T00:51:00.002-05:00

After the deadly terrorist attack in Paris, will this administration FINALLY start taking the threat posed by ISIS seriously? Or will it be politics as usual?

Bowe Bergdahl and other bad deals of the Obama Administration: The Conservative Brawler Podcast #15

2015-03-29T21:19:00.000-04:00

This administration may go down as the worst in history at making "deals." With our foreign policy in a shambles, it's not hard to see why Americans are losing faith. From Bowe Bergdahl to Hillary Clinton's emails to Iranian nuclear talks... it's one failure after another.

A Major New Chemical Weapons Attack in ‪Syria‬?

2013-08-21T20:03:00.003-04:00

Post by The Conservative Brawler.

Hillary Clinton was fired from Watergate investigation for "lies" and "unethical behavior"

2013-05-16T01:04:00.000-04:00

Despite Salon's recent whiny protestation that people should "stop comparing the Obama administration's recent scandals to Watergate," there's a couple parallels in such comparisons that are just too eery to ignore.

For starters, the IRS scandal has echos of Watergate that should make anyone's skin crawl.

And then there's this, from Dan Calabrese:

I've decided to reprint a piece of work I did nearly five years ago, because it seems very relevant today given Hillary Clinton's performance in the Benghazi hearings. Back in 2008 when she was running for president, I interviewed two erstwhile staff members of the House Judiciary Committee who were involved with the Watergate investigation when Hillary was a low-level staffer there. I interviewed one Democrat staffer and one Republican staffer, and wrote two pieces based on what they told me about Hillary's conduct at the time.

...

The now-retired general counsel and chief of staff of the House Judiciary Committee, who supervised Hillary when she worked on the Watergate investigation, says Hillary’s history of lies and unethical behavior goes back farther – and goes much deeper – than anyone realizes.

Jerry Zeifman, a lifelong Democrat, supervised the work of 27-year-old Hillary Rodham on the committee. Hillary got a job working on the investigation at the behest of her former law professor, Burke Marshall, who was also Sen. Ted Kennedy’s chief counsel in the Chappaquiddick affair. When the investigation was over, Zeifman fired Hillary from the committee staff and refused to give her a letter of recommendation – one of only three people who earned that dubious distinction in Zeifman’s 17-year career.

Read on...

But, really, what difference - at this point - does it make?

It matters.

Federalism is the way forward for the GOP

2013-05-03T00:36:00.000-04:00

It seems the GOP faces an insurmountable paradox in Washington D.C. On the one hand, Republicans argue to reduce the federal government's role in our daily lives. On the other hand, we're supposed to elect these same Republicans to federal positions of authority. Which means, at best, these folks are getting into office and hitting the pause button on the expansion of federal bureaucracy.

And while simply stopping government growth rather than rolling it back doesn't sound ideal, it seems like all the Party's been able to do recently is moderately slow the endless creep of federal intrusion into every nook and cranny of our existence. That approach simply isn't going to be enough to win the Presidency back.

But, then again, maybe Americans just need to another proof of concept from Conservatives before they're willing to give them back the keys to the White House.

Across the country, Republican governors and GOP state leadership are delivering real solutions and results to their constituencies while Blue states continue to linger in the residual effects of a recession brought about by their own Community Reinvestment Act-type social engineering.

And while Conservatives are running up the score at the state level, Conservative media, talking heads and celebrities continue to focus on national issues - where we simply do not have the media firepower to compete. And let's face it, there are too many national issues to defend at once - that's the whole point of the Left's Cloward-Piven Strategy: to overwhelm the government with an unending number of false "priorities" (gay marriage, amnesty for illegal immigrants, late-term abortions, marijuana legalization, limitations on the size of our soda drinks, global warming, etc.) so that we distract ourselves into a total collapse.

For Liberals, any one area of expansion awarded the Federal government is a victory. For conservatives, any one such expansion is a failure. It's hard to truly ever win on those terms, and I'm not entirely sure what we have to show for the past several decades of trying.

All politics is local, or so the saying goes. As evidenced in the recent gun control push, Federalism is a viable solution both to stemming the tide of Federal Government overreach and in shaping/informing local perception and understanding. So, why don't Republicans start putting a more concerted effort behind using Federalism to combat the burgeoning expansion of big government? Is the specter of the Civil War really still so prevalent that we're going to simply continue ignoring the 10th Amendment -- or is it simply that politicians in Federal office (Republican and Democrat) have convinced themselves that they, not the states they represent, know best?

The Conservative Brawler changes URL

2013-04-23T23:42:00.001-04:00

If you hadn't noticed, I've downsized - from www.TheConservativeBrawler.com to www.TCBrawler.com Accordingly, I've changed my Twitter handle to @TCBrawler

Bush's Approval Rating Higher than Obama's?

2013-04-23T00:38:00.000-04:00

Not yet. But close.

Here's a little tidbit you're not likely to hear on network news: A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows President George W. Bush's approval rating at 47%.

The kicker? That means Bush's approval rating is almost as high as Obama's - per Gallup.

No doubt, the MSM will chisel away at Bush's renewed approval rating in the coming days as they use the opening of his presidential library as a excuse to regurgitate the same hackneyed, disproven, revisionist accounts of his presidency.

Still, I think this says something about Bush's strategy to stay out of the limelight since leaving office - and about how history will view his presidency in the long-term.

Bill Ayers and the Boston Bombings: Why the Next Stop for Dzokhar Tsarnaev Might be a Position with NYU

2013-04-22T16:32:00.001-04:00

Liberal apologists are already out in full-force - blaming anything and everything (except Islamic extremism, of course) for the terrorist acts of Dzokhar Tsarnaev.

Apologist narratives range from suggesting "he was brain-washed by his brother," to the outlandish conspiracy theory that the suspects were "wrongly accused," to the #freejahar hashtag trending on Twitter, to idiotic poems expressing empathy, to the President of the United States (after learning the bombers weren't TEA Party members as he'd originally thought/hoped) urging Americans not to extrapolate any broad conclusions or reasonable connections between these attackers and their religion - you know, because it's a "religion of peace," or something.

Of course, none of this should be surprising.

We're talking about the same subset of the political sphere which has not only forgiven the likes of Bill Ayers, Bernardine Dohrn and Kathy Boudin for the terroristic bombings (and potential murder) they committed as part of the Weather Underground during the early 1970s, but these terrorists are now given prominent positions within Liberal universities.

So, I have to ask: Is there a professor position at the likes of NYU waiting for Dzokhar Tsarnaev in the not too distant future? If NYU is willing to hire Kathy Boudin as a scholar-in-residence, why not Tsarnaev?

Consider the lessons learned from our nation's handling of the Weather Underground, via The Daily Beast:

"They might have been violent charlatans, but they were violent charlatans in search of a better society. They might resist providing a full and proper accounting of their crimes, but most will concede that their tactics might have been misguided and offer qualified repentance, but insist that their instincts were correct.

"So go ahead and commit a crime, 'expropriate' a bank. Just make sure you leave an incoherent manifesto at the scene, claiming that you’re shooting your guns and filling your pockets with loot for the people. When caught, you won’t be a convicted murderer, but a 'political prisoner.' And when released, you can be a college professor."

Disgraceful.

** NOTE: The title of this article could have equally highlighted Minnesota State University Moorhead, University of Illinois at Chicago, Columbia University, or any number of other Liberal universities which have shamelessly decided to give gainful positions of employment to convicted terrorists.

Active Shooter Incident at MIT in Boston, Officer Down

2013-04-18T23:35:00.002-04:00

#MIT ALERT: Shots fired near 32 Vassar St (Stata Center), police officer down. Please stay inside.
— The Tech (@thetech) April 19, 2013

There is a report of an active shooter in the vicinity of Bldg. 32 (Stata). Please stay clear of the area. emergency.mit.edu
— MIT (@MITnews) April 19, 2013

Outside the stata center at MIT... twitter.com/Adrian_H/statu…
— Adrian Heilbut (@Adrian_H) April 19, 2013

Photo from the #MIT shooting #CambMA (warning: potentially graphic) twitter.com/thetech/status…
— The Tech (@thetech) April 19, 2013

UPDATE:

Ongoing investigation into #MIT incident. No suspect in custody at this time. #CambMA
— Cambridge Police (@CambridgePolice) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #2:

#Breaking : Mass State Police confirm #MIT officer wounded in shooting has died.
— NBC Connecticut (@NBCConnecticut) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #3:

#MIT K-9 units on scene. Officers going door-to-door to check for unlocked entrances. 100's of reporters in town due to bombing swarming.
— Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #4:

BREAKING DEVELOPMENT: Press release just put out regarding #MIT officer shot and killed on campus - @globedavidd twitter.com/Breaking911/st…
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) April 19, 2013

Now State Police flying the other away... Going away from campus #MIT vine.co/v/bUiHeFlXTxP
— George Colli (@GeorgeColli) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #5:

"2nd officer down, automatic gunfire and hand grenades." #MIT in Boston broadcastify.com/listen/feed/62… #MITshooting
— Anonymous (@CIApressoffice) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #6:

1 Suspect down on ground, shot multiple times. Other suspect got into SUV, fled the scene #Watertown #Boston #MITshooting
— Anonymous (@CIApressoffice) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #7:

Multiple Sources confirming SWAT and Homeland Security are on scene at #Watertown: twitter.com/ProvFireVideos…
— Peter Leung (@peterleung) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #8:

Live police feed says "We have a second suspect in custody" #Newtown #MIT
— Seth Stuck (@Con_Brawler) April 19, 2013

From police feed "we have the vehicle... the vehicle has been cleared... waiting on that ID of second suspect." #MIT #Newtown
— Seth Stuck (@Con_Brawler) April 19, 2013

Police feed now saying "we may not have second suspect - he may still be out there" #MIT #Newtown
— Seth Stuck (@Con_Brawler) April 19, 2013

Video still of suspect on ground. Via WHDH-TV. #BostonMarathon #MIT #Watertown twitter.com/alastormspotte… via @colormered
— Seth Stuck (@Con_Brawler) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #9:

Boston scanner: 2nd suspect is not in custody. It was repeated by an officer 8 times. One fled the scene.. #watertown #MITshooting
— Anonymous (@CIApressoffice) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #10:

Again, no official confirmation that #MITShooting, #BostonBombing, and #Watertown are related in any way.
— Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #11:

Female officer on scanner describes "Middle Eastern" looking male, clean shaven, w/"Christmas" style cap with snowflake. #watertown
— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) April 19, 2013

Guy arrested (photos were circulated of him laying face down) has been released. He is not second suspect. #Watertown #MITshooting
— Anonymous (@CIApressoffice) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #12:

.@bostonglobe reporting: "One suspect in custody, another remains on the loose" b.globe.com/17K9a7D #watertown #MIT
— Seth Stuck (@Con_Brawler) April 19, 2013

UPDATE #13:
I give up, just follow me on Twitter @Con_Brawler for live updates on this!

VIDEO: Fertilizer Plant Explosion Near Waco, Texas

2013-04-18T00:12:00.002-04:00

Explosion happens after 0:28...
Developing: Hundreds of people were likely injured in a fiery explosion on Wednesday night at a fertilizer plant near Waco, Texas, that damaged or destroyed numerous buildings including a nursing home, authorities said.
UPDATE: Scanner audio from the first five minutes after the explosion...

Obama's Gun Control Solipsism

2013-04-17T21:26:00.000-04:00

In a spectacular display of solipsism, Obama's tantrum after the Senate refused to expand background checks on gun sales proves true my favorite William F. Buckley-ism: "Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other views, but then are shocked and offended to discover that there are other views."

Which begs the question:

Brawler Redesign

2013-04-17T01:17:00.000-04:00

Just refreshed the ol' blog design. So if the formatting of some of the older posts now looks a little janky - my apologies. Now, you can share individual blog post links without the otherwise useful Facebook embed getting in the way. And the Brawler's hallmark pinstripes - like the Brawler himself - have gotten thicker.

Obama's low approval ratings conveniently ignored by media during Middle East photo op

2013-03-21T23:20:00.000-04:00

Aside from some tertiary coverage of this one heckler (who is soon-after drowned out by a sea of applause from gushing, wide-eyed, star-struck college students), there's been little-to-no mention by the mainstream media of the fact that Obama's approval rating in Israel sits at roughly 10%. Equally little is said of the fact that U.S. leadership is earning progressively lower approval marks worldwide with each passing year of the Obama presidency - to the point that the U.S. is less popular in the Middle East now than it ever was during any point of the Bush presidency.

Contrast this media malfeasance with the day after day after day obsession with George Bush's approval numbers - at home and abroad. And who can forget the shoe toss heard 'round the world?

No one can forget it. The mainstream media made sure of that by looping the video of the incident repeatedly... for days. To get an idea of the media's fascination with the original shoe throwing incident, a Google search of "Man throws shoe at Bush" produces more than 1.2 million results. Newsbusters reports that LexisNexis, similar search terms produced almost 1,000 reports in the days immediately following the event. CNN logged 34 reports, MSNBC and Fox News aired eight, followed by ABC and NPR with seven, and CBS and NBC with six.

It's hard to determine whether being outraged or numb to this despicable but nonetheless routine media bias is the more apropos response.

Rand Paul's Drone Filibuster

2013-03-06T21:01:00.002-05:00

MUST SEE! Mitt Romney brings the house down at 67th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York

2012-10-18T23:56:00.000-04:00

Be sure to SHARE! Important for folks to see this side of a man the media have tried to paint as a "robot" who "has trouble connecting with real people."

Top one-liners and quotes from the Presidential Debate in Denver

2012-10-03T23:33:00.000-04:00

1. "Mr. President, you're entitled as the president to your own airplane and to your own house, but not to your own facts." -- Mitt Romney

2. "The president has a view very similar to the view he had when he ran four years, that a bigger government, spending more, taxing more, regulating more -- if you will, trickle-down government -- would work." -- Mitt Romney

3. "You don't just pick the winners and losers, you pick the losers." -- Mitt Romney [talking about Obama's $90 billion investment in failed green energy companies]

4. "We've got 23 million people out of work or stopped looking for work in this country... When the president took office, 32 million people on food stamps; 47 million on food stamps today; economic growth this year slower than last year, and last year slower than the year before. Going forward with the status quo is not going to cut it for the American people who are struggling today." -- Mitt Romney

5. "Jim, I -- you may want to move onto another topic." -- Barack Obama [wherein Obama asks the moderator to change the subject because he was getting a shellacking on the subject of taxes]

6. "This is bigger than an election about the two of us as individuals. It's bigger than our respective parties. It's an election about the course of America. What kind of America do you want to have for yourself and for your children?" -- Mitt Romney

7. "I just don't know how the president could have come into office, facing 23 million people out of work, rising unemployment, an economic crisis at the kitchen table, and spend his energy and passion for two years fighting for Obamacare instead of fighting for jobs for the American people." -- Mitt Romney

8. "Well, first of all, I think Governor Romney's going to have a busy first day, because he's also going to repeal Obamacare, which will not be very popular among Democrats as you're sitting down with them." -- Barack Obama [did he just admit Romney's going to have a "first day" in office?]

9. "Look, I've been in business for 25 years. I have no idea what you're talking about." -- Mitt Romney [in response to Obama's claim that the U.S. gives tax breaks to businesses who "send jobs overseas"]

10. "You put $90 billion into green jobs. And I'm all in favor of green energy. $90 billion, that would have hired 2 million teachers. $90 billion. And these businesses, many of them, have gone out of business. I think about half of them, of the ones [that] have been invested in, have gone out of business. A number of them happened to be owned by people who were contributors to your campaigns." -- Mitt Romney

11. "Dodd-Frank is the biggest kiss that's been given to New York banks I've ever seen." -- Mitt Romney

12. "I Had 5 Seconds Before You Interrupted Me." -- Barack Obama [wherein Obama realizes he's lost the debate and lashes out at a moderator who'd already allotted him 10% more time than his opponent]

CNN transcript of the whole debate - a debate where 67% of registered voters say Romney won the debate. The above quotes show why.

Clint Eastwood's Republican Convention Speech

2012-08-31T01:41:00.000-04:00

I'm not going to bother fully combating the media's stupidity regarding the Clint Eastwood speech tonight. But I want to make a few points.

His deadpan comedy sketch was meant to loosen the crowd for Romney who, let's face it, isn't a comical juggernaut. And in that regard, it was perfect.

But, more importantly, I think the Liberal media are making a misstep here. They think they are distracting people from tonight's home-run speeches by Romney and Rubio by claiming that Eastwood "went unhinged," and in doing so, they assume they're helping Obama. To what end? Eastwood's speech was hilarious and, I think, will appeal to a great many Americans. So... the media's plan is to shift focus to it and make it go viral? Fine by me.

Oh, and there's a sub-narrative here: the idea that the only Hollywood stars who could even entertain the idea of mocking Obama are necessarily "unhinged" and "crazy." Classy.

It's also worth noting that, as of the conclusion of Romney's remarks, Romney and Rubio's speeches had been Tweeted about significantly more than Eastwood's. The MSM narrative that "social media was abuzz with chatter about the Eastwood debacle" and that "people are talking about Eastwood more than Romney's speech" was false, but will likely turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy, now -- perhaps once and for all answering the question about whether the media make the news or report it.

Romney's trip abroad a success, despite media obfuscation

2012-07-31T23:47:00.000-04:00

Let's discuss for a moment what the mainstream media have labeled Romney's "string of gaffes" abroad which were, as a statement of fact, nothing of the sort.

The "disconcerting" statement in London was an honest assessment (reinforced by prior media reports) from a man who, himself, had previously run the Olympics. Obviously, it wasn't what the Brits wanted to hear, but it doesn't make his comment invalid, or mean that his sharing the insight translates into poor diplomatic prowess.

If he'd wanted to appease, he could have avoided voicing his concern, yes, but what if something terrible had happened and he had, instead, said everything looked perfect? He'd have looked clueless. Better to be honest. The "controversy" was definitely "a bit of a fuss about nothing." What's more, Obama's done far worse, far more often.

That an American Republican speaking in Israel said something that upset the Palestinians is neither shocking nor news. To attempt to connect his statements about culture - statements he made in his book, has regularly made in stump speeches, and which were tied to objectively true figures comparing the two cultures' avg. individual salaries - to any sort of "racism" wreaks of desperation. Never mind the fact that he was right, culture does matter.

His moment at the wailing wall - and that he chose to go to Israel at all when our own President hasn't visited - were truly striking contrasts to the current administration.

His time in Poland was a humerun. While Mitt was being endorsed by reknowned anti-communist, Lech Walesa, Obama was getting the nod from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Again, stark contrasts.

And what's more, the media's massive overreach on this, to pretend like these non-controversies were "gaffes," to choose and crop imagery so as to make it seem like support was lacking for Romney when it wasn't, only serves to hurt their credibility. Honestly, if they were looking to undercut Mitt here, all they had to do was roll the video of Obama's visit four years ago and the massive European crowds that followed... or just not cover Mitt's trip at all. But to make up fake controversies only serves to further discredit American news media.

And to sink even lower, these same media sought to "create a moment" at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with shrill attempts to get a rise from Romney. Sure, an aide responded in kind. As I might have were I in his position --- they were way out of line, and being wholly disrespectful of the Polish people and their sacred site. I can't help but think that if they had treated Obama the same way, critics would call it raaaaaaaaaaaaacism (like they did when he was questioned in the Rose Garden, or when pressed by Fox commentators in the rare interviews they've been allotted).

Finally, the entire point of Mitt's trip abroad was never to attract droves of adoring fans but rather to draw stark contrasts between his foreign policy and Barack Obama's. As he outlined in his book, he wants America to draw closer to the very allies he just visited. His trip wasn't the "me fest" Obama's was - it was about showing what type of president he would be. And in that respect, the trip was an absolute success.

Did you hear? Barack Obama killed Osama Bin Laden

2012-07-25T10:56:00.000-04:00

File this under: rare instances when comedians step outside of their own ideology to explore the treasure trove of material available for mocking President Obama...

And Chris Rock said it was difficult to make jokes about our beleaguered president. It is to laugh...

DNC choreographs musical number for 2012 convention

2012-07-12T20:24:00.000-04:00

"We rob from the rich and give to the poor, THAT'S RIGHT!"

Unfortunately for the DNC, the narrative that the "rich" aren't "paying their fair share," is as ill-formed as the rest of their party platform. A recent report by the CBO reveals that top income earners actually pay 68% of the tax burden.

As the Daily Caller reports:

The top 1 percent of earners’ pre-tax income dropped 36 percent between 2007 and 2009, while the four lowest quintiles saw a loss of only about 5 percent, according to the Congressional Budget Office. During those years, the average pre-tax income for all earners dropped.

The top 20 percent of earners — the top quintile — bore 67.9 percent of the federal tax burden in 2009. The middle quintile paid 9.4 percent, while the lowest paid .03 percent of the federal tax burden.

As for Mitt Romney's plan:

According to analysis by the Tax Policy Center, presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney’s plan would reduce taxes for three-fourths of taxpayers by an average of $4,700. Obama’s plan, on the other hand, would lower taxes for just 12 percent of filers, while raising taxes for about 27 percent of filers — those making more than $250,000, ABC News reports.

So much for Robin Hood.

Obama’s campaign movie gets the “Mystery Science Theater” treatment

2012-04-29T22:58:00.000-04:00

Taking "fact-checking" to a whole new, and inevitable, level...

H/T HotAir

Social Media and Political Campaigns

2012-02-12T02:23:00.000-05:00

An interesting infographic here with valuable data as it pertains to using social media for political campaigning. Click for larger image...

Cartman warns old lady about hippie infestation

2011-10-25T22:01:00.002-04:00

The parallels between this South Park episode and the Occupy Wall Street protests are uncanny.

Full episode

Speaking of drum circles... how sweet is it that OWS communes are already having to come to terms with reality?

The drummers claim that the finance working group even levied a percussion tax of sorts, taking up to half of the $150-300 a day that the drum circle was receiving in tips. “Now they have over $500,000 from all sorts of places,” said Engelerdt. “We’re like, what’s going on here? They’re like the banks we’re protesting."

Fight the power man...

H/T Icarus Pundit

Quagmire blows up on Liberal blogger

2011-10-04T14:17:00.005-04:00

Edited clip