The Scarlet Letter, or, Has Justine Landed Yet?

The Times promotes an upcoming book by Jon Ronson by running an article adapted from "“So You've Been Publicly Shamed", due out in March.

After reprising a few recent examples of Internet takedowns of the low and powerless the author segues to a history of public shaming in colonial America, with stocks and whippings. I like this detail:

The pillory and whippings were abolished at the federal level in 1839, although Delaware kept the pillory until 1905 and whippings until 1972.

Of course, Delaware elected Joe Biden to the Senate in 1972 so the punishment was changed, not ended.

I SHOULD ADD... The Ace of Spades has been characteristically insightful on this topic many times. Here are his thoughts on Chait and civility, and earlier on the takedown of a random hot chick. From the Chait piece:

Mobs do not "argue." They intimidate or humiliate (or both). Mobs do not engage in an enlightened, reasonable dialogue. They shout ritualized chants. Mobs are not interested in persuading someone of their wrongness of their claims; they only care about shutting the speaker up, whether he's changed his mind or not.

An argument from a single author (or group acting together to write a single paper) is an instrument of reason; a mob which selects a target and then attacks that target with wolf-pack like tactics is an instrument of emotion.

Human beings are in fact hard-wired, as an evolutionary matter, to cringe before the baying mob; and they are further hard-wired to feel empowered by being part of an angry, screaming mob.

So it's not quite true that joining up with a mob is "speech" just like any other speech. The "speech" of a mob is emotionally abusive and personally intimidating -- and it is hardwired into our brains to find it such, when directed at we ourselves.

On the other hand, we're also hard-wired to really enjoy leading a mob against someone. It feels good. There is no denying that; I've felt damned good everytime I've joined up with a mob.

And it is precisely because it Feels So Good to engage in coordinated mob cruelty that thoughtful people must resist the lure and call out mobs where they see them.

 

Comments

[sbwaters]

Me? Wow!

[sbwaters]

First and second! :-)

[Soylent Red]

Thirdish

[Jeff Dobbs]

Jon Ronson is the bizarro world version of the senior senator from Wisconsin.

[Neo]

Speaking of being "Publicly Shamed" ...

Rev. Jesse Jackson, the polarizing civil rights activist, is calling for Little League International to return the U.S. championship to the 12-year-olds from Jackie Robinson West, mere hours after Little League stripped the team of its title.

And if that doesn't happen, Jackson said Wednesday afternoon, he may take legal action.

Jackie Robinson West -- consumed in a vortex of allegations involving ineligible players and illegally redrawing its league boundaries -- became a feel-good story in Chicago and across the country on its run to the Little League World Series. An all-black team that was supported by MLB players, Jackie Robinson West became U.S. champions before losing to South Korea in the international title game. Afterward, the kids from Chicago were celebrated from the World Series to the White House.

But Wednesday's ruling, which followed months of allegations trigged by a neighboring Little League coach, vacated those wins, took away the championship and suspended the team's coach.

... "trigged" ??

[MarkO]

Pillory (rhymes with Hillary) and whippings are shades of gray numbers 33 and 40.

[Frau Steingehirn]

MarkO - just wait till Hillary! emerges from her cocoon. Heads will turn.

(set-up)

[henry]

Suing the Little League is a good use of Jesse's time. If it had a snowball's chance in hell of accomplishing anything (or even merely extracting cash) Resit We Much would have beat him to it.

[sbwaters]

Regrets, I know, are not JOM style,

. . . but if I had been on my game, in the first comment I would have added BaDaBoom! to TM’s funny punch line.

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

Finishing up on Dalton Trumbo: he wrote many scripts under aliases to keep him going during the dark times for Hollywood commies. Trumbo is credited for the Bruce Dern SF film "Silent Running." He is an uncle of one of my closest friends, the one who marches to close down nuclear plants.

[Some Guy]

Re: Jackie Robinson West

It's been interesting (or depressing) reading some of the coverage on this story. The number of people who are dragging race into it, is pretty pathetic.

It's funny that nobody is denying that the team cheated, but they're crying 'racism' because they claim the team drew scrutiny only because of the kid's color.

These people are, I believe the clinical term would be -- idiots. The team drew scrutiny because of their SUCCESS. Period.

Deflate-gate was only such a big story because NE is a successful franchise. Look at how little is cared about the Atlanta Falcons actual and admitted cheating this season.

[henry]

Frau, please... it's lunch time here.

[Janet]

Here's some VERY Reassuring news - NYT Defends Iranian-Backed Houthi Rebels: “Very Reassuring” That “Death To America” Slogan Isn’t Meant Literally…

http://weaselzippers.us/213894-nyt-defends-iranian-backed-houthi-rebels-very-reassuring-that-death-to-america-slogan-isnt-meant-literally/

[glasater]

I 'heart' you Frau…

Have some very dear friends who are anti fluoride and nuke plants but do come to Tea Party shindigs...

[Extraneus]

I believe the clinical term would be -- idiots.

Careful there, SG. There are serious experts here on the formal distinctions between idiots, morons and imbeciles.

[Old Lurker]

Cross posted for RSE.

RSE, looks like all her real costs are included, especially tickets which are expensive, so $50/day for pocket money is good, I think.

I chuckled when you added important travel to my list of reading good books and writing well as the essential requirement to raising a good adult.

Back in the day I was vice chair and finance chair of my daughters' school, so I was well versed in selling the kool aid. Spent 14 years on those boards...

As I looked back near the end of my terms, I commented to a friend on the board, that, having spent more than $1M of after tax cash getting the girls through high school, I wondered if we might have done better spending that money 1) on a private teacher of the old school sort; and 2)travelling the world with the teacher in tow so we could visit the places being taught and read about.

I was serious about wondering that.

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

henry, you mean Hillary! and her impending metamorphosis? In "My Fair Lady" vein: just you wait, henry.

[MarkO]

Before Obama's start turn on BuzzFeed becomes a topic, I want to note that:

Obama’s just not that smart©

[henry]

Frau, Lipstick on that would be an insult to pigs everywhere. DO NOT REMOVE THE TARP!!!!

[MarkO]

"I am not an animal!"

"Hillary, you're likeable enough."

[NKvirusedand back]

henry/MarkO-- TOO funny

[Janet]

Are we gonna up the number of Yemen refugees that can come here now?

[Appalled]

This is the last place I would expect a Dalton Trumbo reference.

Funny thing about Trumbo -- you'd think, from his rep, that he wrote Citizen Kane or All About Eve. With him, Spartacus and Gun Crazy is about as good as it gets. A lot of his stuff is downright sentimental icky, and some of it really is Communist agitprop. (If you really want movies to please a Soviet Commissar, check out his Heaven With a Barbed Wire Fence, the Magnificent Andrew and Tender Comrade)

[GMax]

Insty is highlighting a guy mocking the WaPo saying that they found that once upon a time, Scott Walker ate two cookies for lunch when he was suppose to eat but one.

Weird how the incurious become quite curious, almost psycopathically obsessed in a blink of an eye. What could account for that other than they are playing for the other team?

[rse]

OL-Red says pulling them from private and using the difference to travel changed her childhood in wonderful ways.

CH-my son is about 30 months older then Red and when he came to the hospital late that morning she was about 12 hours old. He leans over bassinet and looks at her. Then he leans over bassinet again, covers his eyes, and says 'peek-a-boo'" and grins at her like she should be ready to play.

He is a big fellow and that remains a very fun memory.

On my point with OL, having skipped college, nobody believes it because he read so much in elementary school. Those really are the crucial years for creating the adults they will become.

[Captain Hate]

How can Jon Leibowitz compete with this?

http://weaselzippers.us/213896-psaki-third-u-s-embassy-evacuation-in-mideast-doesnt-mean-u-s-is-being-run-out-of-town-we-have-six-embassies-in-the-mideast-still-open/

[Old Lurker]

Boy I agree with your point there, RSE. My wife and I had agreed that if we had money issues, we would still do the K-6 super school they were in, then go public after that. There is no question that the thirst for reading, and the attention to skill in writing, was baked into the cake by Middle School.

[Captain Hate]

How many scars on the back are enough?

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/conncarroll/2015/02/12/jeff-flake-aides-democrat-efforts-to-block-immigration-debate-n1956619

[Momto2]

I am sorry I missed the writing/reading discussion on the last thread. I teach 9th grade writing at a homeschool/hybrid school. My 9th graders write a 3-5 page paper every week. This year they are writing about their genealogy (which they have researched). At the end of the year, they will compile these into a book which will be "published" - professionally printed and bound. It is rigorous for some of them, but they all thank me when they get to college. Regardless of their major, they will need to be able to write well.

[Dave (in MA)]

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/biden-gives-shout-out-old-butt-buddy-iowa_849717.html# Biden's "butt buddy".

[lyle]

http://dailycaller.com/2015/02/11/charlie-rangel-to-benjamin-netanyahu-meet-me-by-the-bike-racks-after-school/

[Old Lurker]

Dave, without clicking on your link, is it about Brian Wilson's daughter and that Dunham creature, but now with Joe Biden in the sandwich?

[lyle]

Please, OL, I was looking forward to lunch.

[Old Lurker]

Yes, I will banish myself to my room now.

[lyle]

http://thediplomad.blogspot.com/2015/02/are-they-really-journalists-need-we-ask.html?m=1

Well worth your time. Final sentence:

Telling lies is essential to progressivism.

[lyle]

I believe the JOM stylebook requires self-denunciation as well, OL. See to it.

[Old Lurker]

I denounce myself.

[lyle]

There you go!

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

Ext - why did you leave out cretins?

Be prepared, henry. Get the eye bleach ready, and may the Tarp be with you.

[Soylent Red]

Biden's "butt buddy".

WTF is wrong with this guy?

Those really are the crucial years for creating the adults they will become.

I am convinced that you can produce super-intellectual children by concentrating on three things:

1. Ability to read, using the most advanced reading the kid can handle.

2. Ability to write, paying strict attention to sentence structure, grammar, and spelling.

3. Rote memorization, whether it's Bible verses, multiplication tables, or poetry. Doesn't matter.

I don't know how we ever got away from the classical education trivium, but every classical education school I've ever seen or heard of produces crazy smart children.

[Old Lurker]

I know, I know, but it pays to see it in writing:

WashTimes: "IRS Commissioner John Koskinen told Congress on Wednesday that even illegal immigrants who didn’t pay taxes will be able to claim back-refunds once they get Social Security numbers under President Obama’s temporary deportation amnesty.

The revelation — which contradicts what he told Congress last week — comes as lawmakers also raised concerns Mr. Obama’s amnesty could open a window to illegal immigrants finding ways to vote, despite it being against the law.

Mr. Obama’s new deportation policies, which carve most illegal immigrants out of danger of being removed, and could proactively grant as many as 4 million illegal immigrants work permits and Social Security numbers, are increasingly under fire for ancillary consequences such as tax credits and competition for jobs.

Mr. Koskinen, testifying to the House oversight committee, said the White House never asked him or anyone else at the IRS about the potential tax effects of his amnesty policy.

“I haven’t talked to the White House about this at all,” he said.

On Wednesday, he said even illegal immigrants who didn’t pay taxes will be able to apply for back-credits once they get Social Security numbers.

The EITC is a refundable tax credit, which means those who don’t have any tax liability can still get money back from the government.

“Under the new program, if you get a Social Security number and you work, you’ll be eligible to apply for the Earned Income Tax Credit,” Mr. Koskinen said.

He said that would apply even “if you did not file” taxes, as long as the illegal immigrant could demonstrate having worked off-the-books during those years.

That expands the universe of people eligible for the tax credit by millions. He said only about 700,000 illegal immigrants currently work and pay taxes using an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, but as many as 4 million illegal immigrants could get a stay of deportation and work permits under the temporary amnesty, which would mean they would be eligible to claim back-refunds if they worked those years.

Rep. Mick Mulvaney, the South Carolina Republican who grilled Mr. Koskinen on the tax credits, said he was stunned the White House never checked with the IRS on the tax implications of its move.

“That’s just outrageous,” he said. “If Congress had passed a law doing exactly what the president did, we would have had not only an estimate of the costs, but we would have also been required to propose ways to pay for the programs. This is just another example of the administration operating outside the rule of law.”

Mr. Koskinen said he didn’t know how much money the tax refunds would cost, and said the White House never checked with him before announcing the amnesty. He said the maximum annual credit is between $500 and $600 for an individual.

[Old Lurker]

Sorry, that was a long C&P.

[lyle]

I don't know how we ever got away from the classical education trivium

Oh, I think we ALL have some idea...

[NKvirusedand back]

Lyle@1:55-- yeah, you can write a book about that... wait, someone here already did.

[Old Lurker]

Of course the purpose of the EITC is to keep people from starving even while they are working. So where does giving live people three years of back EITC fit into that, but for simply redistributing cash to the world?

[Jeff Dobbs]

OL:
is it about Brian Wilson's daughter and that Dunham creature

Brian *Wilson*?

So . . . you had "Good Vibrations" on the brain.

[Jeff Dobbs]

I ain't denouncing my ownself and there ain't a thing anybody gonna do about it.

[Old Lurker]

heh!

[henry]

You mean I have to work to keep getting free s***? Welcome to Wisconsin!. Soon you will have to pass a drug test or go to rehab as well.

[lyle]

Good catch, hit.

[Danube on iPad]

Getting to know Kayla Mueller:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/16455

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

Happy birthday, Abraham Lincoln! You did all right for a country boy who didn't go to Harvard.

My husband wants Presidents Day abolished because it honors *all* presidents which includes Clinton and Obama. Lincoln and Washington are already being forgotten and Common Core will kill them off for good.

[Soylent Red]

Well smartasses... ;)

Of course I know the how and why. What I don't understand is how long it took for people to start waking up to it.

Also, this is as good an argument as any against Common Core or any other kind of centralized curriculum and instruction methods, and the Dept of Education in general. Let the Blue Hells stew in their ignorance while local boards of ed in red states establish classical education models in their districts. In twenty to thirty years, let's see who is running the country.

[Stephanie De Nile is a river in Progtopia]

Does Reggie hold onto Obama's ears when they are busy? I swear his ears are sticking further and further out.

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

I don't watch much sports. Isn't it a foul to hold onto someone's ears during play, Stephanie?

[Stephanie De Nile is a river in Progtopia]

50 shades of gay, frau.

[NKvirusedand back]

"Does Reggie hold onto Obama's ears when they are busy?"

Words fail. That is all.

[MarkO]

Asking for a friend: Do we know Obama's grade in any class he ever took? Do we even know what classes he took?

He can hide behind this, but he could waive it: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

Double facepalm...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans delayed a committee vote on the president's nominee for attorney general Thursday, saying they had more questions for Loretta Lynch.

Democrats complained Lynch was being held to a double standard compared to other nominees and said her nomination should be voted on immediately.

"Clearly she's been treated differently, and I guess that's what I object to, because there are sensitivities," Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said at a meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

But committee Republicans disputed that and said a delay of a week or so is standard procedure when senators have additional questions for a nominee.

"I don't see any reason for the fuss made here," said Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. "We've long had the procedural move that anybody can put somebody over to the next markup. There shouldn't even be a fuss made."

Hatch added that he intends to support Lynch and said he hopes the additional time will give other Republican senators, including Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley of Iowa, the opportunity to come around to his position.

[Eric in Boise]

Pretty little Kayla really was a second helping of pancakes, wasn't she? She even had the whole "lying down with bulldozers" thing going on.

[Threadkiller]

Reggie should have been putting pencils in Obama's ears.

[daddy #GiveUsBackOurSnow]

Good Morning!

Just got an excellent E-Mail from JiB on the topic of Steam Generators, and wanted to publicly thank him for that good info. I suspect he and momma would have a lot to chat about over a couple beers:)

Thanks, Jack.

[Captain Hate]

Flake and Hatch could learn from this:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/dog-shows-hospital-owner-battling-cancer/story?id=28916913

[Frau Atomkraaft Ja!]

Smart daddy and smart momma = smart daughters

[henry]

DA's to be defanged in the future, John Doe reform bill. Transparency and accountability (to voters) over the current star chamber tyranny.

[Extraneus]

Reid recovering after 2nd surgery

Sen. Harry Reid is recovering at his Washington residence after surgery Wednesday to restore vision in his wounded right eye.

It was Reid's second surgery since breaking bones in his face and hurting his eye in a violent exercise accident at his home in Nevada on New Year's Day. He also suffered broken ribs.

The Nevada Democrat's office said Reid's doctors hope to have a clearer prognosis for his vision in coming days. He is under instruction to rest the eye.

Reid's office said he will return to work after next week's recess, and that it is unknown whether additional surgery will be needed.

And still, no curiosity from our gumshoe-wearing nose-for-news 3rd Estate. Can't take time away from checking out Scott Walkers junior high attendance record.

[James D.]

Of course I know the how and why. What I don't understand is how long it took for people to start waking up to it.

Government policies and cultural pressure from every direction in the MSM pushing more families to have both parents in the workforce, pushing for parents to put kids into daycare rather than stay home with them, lengthing the school day with activities that keep kids away from home and parents...

It's almost as though there was an organized movement to take responsibility for raising children away from parents and assign it to the state and its agents, and to make it as difficult as possible for parents who resisted that to be able to do so.

[rse]

soylent--my kids were in private as the changes were occurring which is how I becaME AWARE OF IT.

Oops on cap lock. Eventually we got to the point where we were paying too much for what we were getting.

Now though I have a lot of angry private school teachers frustrated that parents are not protesting about the changes. Same problem in high end communities like Highland Park or North Fulton where the homes are large, parents successful, and taxes high. The parents believe their affluence buys them protection and their alarm bells are generally slow to go off. Even now. I will sit in meetings and listen to admins lie about what is going on and board members using terms as if they mean one thing when they do not.

It's not my job to stand up and tell parents how badly they are being lied to. I will if anyone asks me. One more year and I can truly tell the story without any kid in K-12.

One general comment--when someone asks me what they can do to protect their child, telling them to make sure they read fluently and phonetically (can they read words never seen before in print and those dinosaur names?) is my number 1 point. With that, they can be bored but they have their Axemaker Mind.

Second is travel of whatever kind is in the budget and align reading with where you are going and where you've been. Especially the fairy tales and folk tales from that area and historical adventures.

Third, if someone can afford it, hire someone who can write to teach them how and just make expressing themselves in print a norm.

[Ann]

On Twitter, Now:

UNCONFIRMED: There are initial reports of ISIS attack/capture of al-Asad air base in which there are over 300 U.S. marines

The town of al-Baghdadi, which is nearby, fell to ISIS today.

[jimmyk]

I'm sure everyone's seen this, but it's too good to pass up--Obama with a selfie stick:

[Ann]

Breaking: ISIS stormed al-Asad airbase in Anbar Iraq, Several US advisors and marines are trapped inside the base. - @RamiAlLolah

[Jeff Dobbs]

HotAir: Bad news: Notorious narcissist now has a “selfie stick”

Ironic Process Theory: Try *not* to think of an elephant what Obama's been doing in front of that mirror to cause those smudgy spots.

Let me check....

Nope, still no self-denouncing.

[Miss Marple]

Ann, Shep (ugh) Fox is covering this now.

They are still under the impression that the base is not taken.

I will report anything else which is reported.

[Sue]

Holy mother of sweet Jesus, this is what happens when Jimmy Carter, Jr. Is president. Doom!

[Threadkiller]

Selfie Shtick

[NKvirusedand back]

Selfie Stick? beyond parody.

[Jeff Dobbs]

This from MarkO:
Pillory (rhymes with Hillary) and whippings are shades of gray numbers 33 and 40.

Goes with Obama's "selfie stick".

And in the There's No Turning Back Now Department...

Axelrod: America wanted Obama because they're really hot for someone who understands shades of gray.

[Jane]

Do we know Obama's grade in any class he ever took? Do we even know what classes he took?

I heard he got a C+ in "English as a second language" at Columbia.

If we survive this debacle, I think Columbia should be shut down.

[Ann]

MM, Thanks.

Hope the reporting is bad.

Ditto, Sue!

[Jane]

UNCONFIRMED: There are initial reports of ISIS attack/capture of al-Asad air base in which there are over 300 U.S. marines

The town of al-Baghdadi, which is nearby, fell to ISIS today.

I think it has been confirmed. I hope the State department didn't confiscate their weapons.

Obama should he jailed for that selfie, did you see him point his fingers like a gun.

I have officially run out of any tolerance at all for this president.

[Jane]

Believe MM not me. I only half listen.

[Ben]

Where are you seeing this Al Asad news

[daddy #GiveUsBackOurSnow]

From the previous thread on the Media trying to rubify Walker with the Evolution Question:

a serious person would know the answer to a question on evolution.

Allow me a quick answer before I head back to bed. Simply, I don't see how Darwin's theory of evolution as portrayed in the MSM is important in any way. It has no effect on the sciences, and is just a wedge issue to see who the rubes are.

FWIW, Fracis Collins is a Christian fundamentalist. He runs NIH, after he lead the human genome project.

It is worth while to keep in mind that the Worlds current most famous Evolutionist is Richard Dawkins.
It is worth knowing of Dawkins that:

1) Dawkins claims to be an Atheist, which be definition means a person who does not believe in God, period.

2) Dawkins then admits that he is only about 97% or 98% or 99% certain that there is no God, and that he believes Yes, there might indeed be a God.

By definition then, Dawkins cannot be an Atheist.

I suppose it might be worthwhile to respond to these gotcha Evolution questions by responding something like "I believe in Evolution to the same degree that the world's Leading Evolutionist and Atheist, Richard Dawkins, believes in God, and an intelligent designer who created us."

That would raise the question then for the reporter to snarkily respond that Dawkin's is an Atheist, or Dawkin's doesn't believe in God, which is then easily refuted by quoting Dawkin's many statements where he admits that well, yes, he's a bit murky technically on the Atheist business, and does believe there is a chance God exists, and there is also a chance that there is a higher intelligence that created life on Earth.

It could probably be put better and simpler, but by simply saying "I believe in Evolution to the same degree that the world's Leading Evolutionist and Atheist, Richard Dawkins, believes in God, and an intelligent designer who created life on Earth," we have responded adequately to the question and placed the spotlight and the onus back on the smug reporter asking the question and on their intellectual champion Richard Dawkins, who is already on record as quite muddled.

I suppose a better, simpler response, having viewed my second link (starting at about 03:30 in) might be, "I believe in Evolution to the same degree that Richard Dawkin's believes that an Intelligent Designer created life on Earth."

And leave it at that.

[Extraneus]

Southern Poverty Law Center apologizes to Ben Carson, takes him off 'extremist’ list

The Southern Poverty Law Center apologized on Wednesday to Ben Carson after placing the potential Republican presidential candidate on its "Extremist Watch List" -- which is mostly made up of hate groups and white supremacists.

Carson was placed on the list last October by the civil rights advocacy group for allegedly being "anti-gay." The group drew criticism after the listing was reported on last week.

Isn't this the same outfit that inspired the guy who killed the Muslim students this week?

[Miss Marple]

They have switched from covering it to covering the Chris Kyle murder trial.

I will be here until 4:30 so will keep listening.

Am also monitoring Twitter. (I actually should be getting some work done, but decided I am going to just forget it and watch news.)

[daddy #GiveUsBackOurSnow]

Shep appears to be keeping hope alive that the 3 Muslims in Chapel Hill were killed for being Muslims.

[Sue]

WTH did Joe Biden think he was saying? Butt buddy?

[henry]

Sue, probably something he heard his boss say about Reggie.

[Ann]

Islamic State fighters seize western Iraqi town: officials
Thu Feb 12, 2015 2:45pm EST

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State insurgents took control on Thursday of most of the western Iraqi town of al-Baghdadi, threatening an air base where U.S. Marines are training Iraqi troops, officials said.

Al-Baghdadi, about 85 km (50 miles) northwest of Ramadi in Anbar province, had been besieged for months by the radical Sunni Islamist militants who captured vast swathes of northern and western Iraq last year.

"Ninety percent of al-Baghdadi district has fallen under the control of the insurgents," district manager Naji Arak told Reuters by phone.

Militants attacked al-Baghdadi from two directions earlier in the day and then advanced on the town, intelligence sources and officials in the Jazeera and Badiya operations commands said.

The officials said another group of insurgents then attacked the heavily-guarded Ain al-Asad air base five km southwest of the town, but were unable to break into it.

About 320 U.S. Marines are training members of the Iraqi 7th Division at the base, which has been struck by mortar fire on at least one previous occasion since December.

Pentagon spokeswoman Navy Commander Elissa Smith confirmed the fighting in al-Baghdadi. She said there had been no direct attack on the air base, adding: "There were reports of ineffective indirect fire in the vicinity of the base."

An Iraqi defence ministry spokesman declined to comment on the situation in Anbar.

The death toll from the fighting was not immediately clear.

Most of the surrounding towns in Anbar fell under Islamic State control after the group's rapid advance across the Syrian border last summer.

Elsewhere in Iraq, five civilians were killed when bombs went off in two towns south of Baghdad, police and medical sources said. Such attacks are not uncommon in and around the capital.

(Reporting by Saif Hameed in Baghdad and David Alexander in Washington; Writing by Stephen Kalin; Editing by Gareth Jones)

[jimmyk]

Shep appears to be keeping hope alive that the 3 Muslims in Chapel Hill were killed for being Muslims.

And that the shooter is a closet tea party guy?

[Extraneus]

It just sounded cool, Sue. Remember: these guys are mostly former student government nerds.

[jimmyk]

From The People's Cube, one of the photos of Kayla Mueller shows her in front of a Che poster that has Arabic inscriptions all over it, and someone waving a Pallie flag. It would be interesting to know what those inscriptions say, though the pictures say enough. (It's possible it's not her poster.)

http://thepeoplescube.com/peoples-blog/kayla-mueller-awarded-2015-golden-bulldozer-award-by-tpc-t15873.html

[Ann]

I always thought is was "bosom buddies".

Biden is just ass (guy). :)

[NKvirusedand back]

Will Obummer reinforce the USMC at the airbase? evacuate them? Obummer has screwed the pooch here in ways I could not even imagined 4 years ago.

[Sue]

Can you imagine being Neil Amith today? Dios mio.

[Sue]

Neil Smith, Biden's butt buddy.

[Miss Marple]

Ann,

Thanks for finding the Reuters article. I still have on Fox but they have moved on. On Twitter Pentagon is denying the base is under attack.

There is a guy on Twitter who is supposedly giving up-to-date reporting, but I am beginning to think he might be ISIS.

[Sue]

Pentagon is saying no assault on the air base it heavy fighting 10 miles away.

[Miss Marple]

@RamiAlLolah is the Twitter account that got everyone upset.

[Jeff Dobbs]

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: "I think Joe Biden is ready for gay marriage."