Charles 'Dale' Ostrander, 12 Years-Old, Survives After More Than 20 Minutes Under Water

This is one of those stories that I can't even read. It's a miracle.



At ABC News, "Boy Survives After 25 Minutes Underwater, Rescued by 12-Year-Old Girl."

Dr. Benjamin Abella, director of clinical research in the Center for Resuscitation Science at the University of Pennsylvania, said rather than a miracle, Ostrander's survival may be due to the fact that the waters in which he was submerged were sufficiently frigid.



"A number of studies have shown that hypothermia -- reduced body temperature -- is highly protective of the brain when it is starved for oxygen and blood flow," Abella said. "The water that bathed him was certainly quite cold, and its likely that his core body temperature dropped during his cardiac arrest event."



Abella said Ostrander's age and overall health may have also factors in his survival.

Also at Daily Mail, "'He just spoke... it was amazing': 'Miracle' boy plucked from the sea stuns doctors with incredible recovery after spending 20 minutes under water."

Israel Leading the Way in In Vitro Fertilization

At New York Times, "Where Families Are Prized, Help Is Free":

TEL AVIV, Israel — Jewish and Arab, straight and gay, secular and religious, the patients who come to Assuta Hospital in Tel Aviv every day are united by a single hope: that medical science will bring them a baby.

Israel is the world capital of in vitro fertilization and the hospital, which performs about 7,000 of the procedures each year, is one of the busiest fertilization clinics in the world.

Unlike countries where couples can go broke trying to conceive with the assistance of costly medical technology, Israel provides free, unlimited IVF procedures for up to two “take-home babies” until a woman is 45. The policy has made Israelis the highest per capita users of the procedure in the world.

“It’s amazing when you think about it,” marveled Keren, 35, who asked to be identified only by her first name. She was seated in a waiting room at Assuta’s in vitro fertilization clinic, a beige canister of her husband’s frozen sperm at her feet. The sperm had been delivered from another hospital where she had her first IVF attempt three years ago, resulting in the birth of her daughter.

“I want at least three kids, and if we had to pay so much money I’m not sure we would be able to do this,” she said.

RTWT.

I love how non-discriminatory the program is. Definitely goes against the "evil" Israel meme. Shoot, progressives ought to be loving a policy like this. Sheesh.

Ritual Mourning for Leiby Kletzky

At New York Times, "Ritual Mourning for Slain Brooklyn 8-Year-Old."

Throughout the morning and afternoon on Friday, a stream of visitors entered the Kletzky family’s brick apartment building on 15th Avenue in Borough Park. Almost all were somber, as if on a mission they did not relish.

Shoeless and sitting on a low chair, Leiby’s father, Nachman, received the visitors alone in a narrow dining room while his wife, Itta, and their four daughters clustered in a bedroom off the kitchen.

Around the apartment, there were so many gifts of fruit and cakes that the family had been forced to send some back. But these were no consolation, visitors said.

“They’re trying to cope,” said Jonathan Schwartz, 42, a close friend. “They keep on saying that God gave them the privilege to raise this child for nine years.”

Though most visitors had attended shivas before, several observed that no gathering had approached the shock and deep grief of Leiby’s.

“If you had a dad go, 90 years old, it’s understandable,” said one family friend, who asked that his name not be used. “This is harder to comprehend, the worst of the worst.”

Update: After Leiby Kletzky Murder

A follow-up to "Reassessment After Leiby Kletzky Murder."

From Neo-Neocon, at Pajamas Media, "In Kletzky Killing’s Wake, We Can’t Lock Up Our Kids."

Great essay. Very reasonable. But again, I'm not sure reason returns very quickly after something so shocking. I don't think folks need to "lock up" their kids. I think we should all be more careful. That mother in Pico Rivera let her child, 6-years-old, go the restroom alone in a public park. My wife spoke about it at the time as something we'd never do. Rape is unconscionable, but the child is alive. Eight-year-old Leiby's forever gone from this world. His mother is gripped with guilt. I feel bad for her. I don't think she made a mistake. She's the mother. She would know her own child's ability. But as I noted already, my youngest boy wouldn't be ready for a 7-block walk all alone. It's not like he'd have a problem walking home. It's that he'd be distracted somehow and lose focus on the mission. He'd dawdle perhaps. He'd get absent-minded. He's got attention deficits. I don't know. But we're not at the trusting stage yet. Call me overprotective. That's fine. My son's well-adjusted and safely snug in his bed. But each child is different. My older son has all kinds of autonomy. But we still worry sometimes.

God bless the Kletzky family. I hope they're coping well. It's so sad.

Pat Austin has some comments on the case as well.

See also New York Daily News, "Leiby Kletzky died fighting for life: Confessed killer Levi Aron has marks indicating a 'struggle'."

Kletzky Defendant May Be Mentally Ill

More details on the murder, at Wall Street Journal, "Suspect Recounts Time With Child":

The man accused of abducting 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky told police he took the boy to an upstate wedding, let him sleep overnight in his apartment and then fed him a tuna sandwich before smothering him in a panic, authorities said Thursday.

Levi Aron's tale of an initially benevolent effort to help the lost little boy emerged as he appeared in a Brooklyn Criminal Court to face murder charges in a case that has unnerved the city and shattered the tight-knit community where Leiby lived.

Mr. Aron, 35 years old, entered the courtroom to loud and profane jeers from other defendants. He appeared blank-eyed and unemotional.

His lawyer, Pierre Bazile, entered a not-guilty plea on Mr. Aron's behalf and asked that his client be placed in protective custody.

"He indicated to me that he hears voices and has had some hallucinations," Mr. Bazile said. He would not comment further on the allegations outside the courtroom.

Continue reading.

Leiby's mom is said to be overcome with grief. She's beating herself up for giving in to Leiby's pleadings for independence.

Also at Reuters, "NY man accused of killing, dismembering boy is 'hearing voices'."

And New York Times, "Police Sort Through Suspect’s Account as He Pleads Not Guilty in Killing."

VIDEO: Leiby Kletzky Funeral

Via New York Daily News:

Also at NYDN: "Butcher of Brooklyn Levi Aron admits how he killed 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky in chilling confession."

PREVIOUSLY:

* "Reassessment After Leiby Kletzky Murder."

* "Levi Aron Charged in Kletzky Murder Case."

* "Leiby Kletzky."

Reassessment After Leiby Kletzky Murder

I'm upset by the murder of Leiby Kletzky.

We've had an empty nest all week. Our boys have been visiting relatives in Fresno. They'll be back today, but we've missed them. Sure, the downtime from the kids has been nice. The house is clean as a whistle. We had an open house on Sunday. My wife and I detailed everything. Here's the kitchen yesterday afternoon. A few items on the counter, but there's no usual mess from a full day of family cooking and hanging out, with clothes and toys strewn all about:

My wife hadn't heard of Leiby's death. I mentioned it to her when we went out last night to Yogurt Land. She reminded me of the report over the 4th of July weekend of the 6-year-old boy who was allegedly raped after his mother let him use the restroom alone at Rio Hondo Park in Pico Rivera. It looks like a nice park. No doubt the mom felt safe. In Brooklyn, families have to be asking questions, so many questions. As the New York Times reported earlier:

Suddenly, an Orthodox Jewish community that had blanketed streets and subway stations with missing-child posters, that had promised a six-figure reward, had to face the devastating reality: Leiby was dead, and the suspect was also Jewish, living not far away. His death also forced parents, not just in Borough Park but across the city, to wonder, to speculate, to second-guess themselves: Was it one of those headline-grabbing tragedies that could have been avoided? When is a child ready to go it alone, anyway?

My wife and I agree that our youngest son, who's almost 10, is nowhere near ready to "go it alone," so to speak. And my wife worries about our high-schooler, who walks by himself to and from school. We live in the Irvine Unified School District, and it's safe here. But no need to get a false sense of security. No one can predict when a crime might take place, and when one does people ask, "How could this have happened"? Well, yeah. How? But it's too late by then. The Wall Street Journal had something on this yesterday, "After Leiby Kletzky Murder, Urging Parents to Keep Calm." It's an interview with Hara Estroff Marano of Psychology Today. I can't imagine how this is reassuring:

The Wall Street Journal: Most parents’ first reaction to a story like this is to reassess–and in many cases, ratchet back–the independence they give their kids. What should be guiding their thinking right now?

Hara Estroff Marano: The very fact that this is such a rare event should get some consideration in their mind. One reason people are talking about it is because it’s so strikingly unusual. It’s within a particular community… this is a very insolated incident. I don’t know there are really lessons for outsiders here at all, because we don’t yet know all the details. So any reassessment should focus on the rarity of the event. This is just not something that’s likely to happen very often.

The first reaction is ‘oh my god I can’t let my kid walk down the street.’ No, look at the situation. Instead of saying ‘no you can’t cross the street,’ you say, ‘here, I’ll watch you cross the street’ and watch them a few times, then let them do it alone.

Keep reading.

It's sounds so logical and reasonable. Whereas fears and love aren't. I think parents need to go with their instincts, especially if they've got young kids. A couple more years of hovering ain't gonna harm a child. Frankly, in this day and age, I think families let kids off the leash a bit too early anyway.

Crystal Cathedral Denies Robert Schuller Ousted From Board of Directors

The initial report was in yesterday's Los Angeles Times, "Crystal Cathedral board ousts the Rev. Robert H. Schuller." But I saw a conflicting report at the Orange County Register, "Schuller will be a non-voting board member." And then this update at the Times, "Crystal Cathedral denies reports of Schuller's ouster from board":

A Crystal Cathedral spokesman on Monday denied reports that the church's founder, Robert H. Schuller, was voted off the board of directors in a meeting more than a week ago.

“He [Robert H. Schuller] was not voted off the board,” said John Charles, the Garden Grove church spokesman. “He is still board chairman emeritus.”

The church released its statement a day after Schuller’s son, Robert Anthony Schuller, said his 84-year-old father had been ousted because he had proposed adding new members to the board.

“Recently, the board of directors of Crystal Cathedral Ministries voted to change Dr. Schuller's position from that of a voting board member to the honorary Chairman of the Board Emeritus, a non-voting position,” the statement read.

The Times reported Schuller's new non-voting position June 19.

In Monday’s statement, Charles said the move will free up Schuller's time for more speaking engagements and a writing project: “He will also continue to speak in the pulpit of the Crystal Cathedral and on the 'Hour of Power' and meet with staff in creative and vision-casting meetings.”

PREVIOUSLY: "As Crystal Cathedral Fights to Survive Bankruptcy, Spanish-Language Ministry Comes of Age."

Aliyah

A timely follow-up to yesterday's Allison Benedikt blogging.

At Jeruslalem Post, "Talking seriously about aliya."

Let’s be honest: English-speaking Jews will not make aliya because you showed them a brochure extolling the financial benefits of immigration.

That’s not because they are waiting for more money, but because it’s not about money.

Young Diaspora Jews in the West are not seeking comfort, but challenge. They don’t want to blindly follow in the footsteps of their parents, but are nevertheless willing to explore Jewish life and tradition as a source of authentic identity. More than anything else, they want to feel that their lives are a product of their own initiative.

(I should know. In 1999, at the age of 18, I left a beloved community in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and a red 9- seater Chevrolet Suburban, bought for me by my parents when I learned to drive at 16, in order to join the IDF.)

The real challenge of aliya, therefore, is not bureaucratic. It’s not about reducing the paperwork or improving the benefits package. Indeed, it’s hard to imagine anything that could change the mind of an American Jew, especially a young one, on the question of whether or not to remain American. Hard, but not impossible.

Faced with these facts, we must ask ourselves if we actually know how to bring American Jews on aliya. For the first time, we find ourselves competing for their attention in a completely open marketplace, without the pressure of parents or tradition. Are we up to that challenge?

Go read the rest at that link.

I guess there's a crisis in Israel over the issue of aliyah. Check the article above, but the reference is to the essay by Isi Leibler of Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, "The collapse of Zionist leadership."

Should Evolution Be Taught in School?

Ann Althouse has a lengthy response:

These women don't seem to realize how well-established the theory of evolution is and how central it is to the study of science. Of course, it should be taught in school. The more lively present-day issue is whether intelligent design may also be taught alongside evolution, but that isn't what the women were asked. The question prompts them to think of evolution as something that perhaps ought not to be taught in schools. From the bizarre similarity of the answers, I would extrapolate standard beauty-contest advice: Look for the prompt in the question and echo it back with some embellishment that makes you sound thoughtful, caring, and respectful of diversity.

There's a lot of silly responses, yet I'm noticing some regional variation. The Southern girls appear more likely not to accept evolution as science, and thus is something that perhaps shouldn't be taught in schools, as if that would threaten belief systems. That said, these aren't ignorant responses to the one. Maybe someone's quantified this with a content analysis, but listen to Brittany Thelemann at about 7:20 minutes and I think that's an example of some very well-rounded beliefs. Althouse takes issue with Miss New Jersey in particular, and note that it's the demonic progressive outrage that prompted her post in the first place (notice how the clip is titled "Miss Ignorance USA"). Faith and religion is not science, and the existence of God isn't falsifiable, despite all the claims of militant atheists. (Certitude!) So possibilities will always remain and stir questioning and wonderment. Interestingly, some scientists suggest that the notion of an "In the beginning" type moment isn't incompatible with what we know --- or, especially, what we don't know --- about the universe and human evolution.

As Crystal Cathedral Fights to Survive Bankruptcy, Spanish-Language Ministry Comes of Age

I've been meaning to visit Crystal Cathedral all year. The famous mega-church is going through bankruptcy, and I wanted to take some pictures for a photo-essay. I drove over there yesterday, after reading the Sunday newspaper. See Los Angeles Times, "Crystal Cathedral's Tale of Two Ministries."

The two lines begin forming outside the Crystal Cathedral before 9 on Sunday mornings. It is a mostly immigrant crowd — Mexicans, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, among others — and they stand patiently, unfurling umbrellas against the sun.

When the doors open for the 9:30 English-language service, the lines don't budge. It isn't for a lack of seats inside — so few people are there that cameramen have trouble finding crowd shots for the "Hour of Power" television program, which has been broadcast from the Garden Grove megachurch since 1970.

At 11, a second English service starts, also sparsely attended. The lines outside grow longer.

By the time that service ends, each line stretches the equivalent of a city block — people of all ages dressed in their Sunday best. Just before 1, the doors reopen and, row by row, the cathedral is filled.

As the Crystal Cathedral fights to survive its descent into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, this is its untold success story: a Spanish-language service led by a dynamic Argentine pastor, Dante Gebel, who inspires comparisons to the church's founder, Robert H. Schuller.

Since Gebel arrived two years ago, the cathedral's Hispanic Ministry has grown from no more than 300 people to 3,000, far outstripping the traditional ministry led by Schuller's daughter, Sheila Schuller Coleman. The brash, shaggy-haired Gebel is seen on television in some 70 countries; his Facebook page is "liked" by more than 800,000 people.

Yet even this may not be enough to save the architectural and religious landmark, long known for its lavish spending and now caught short by plummeting revenues. Crystal Cathedral Ministries recently filed a reorganization plan that calls for selling its 40-acre campus to a real estate developer and leasing back its core for $212,000 a month. In October, the church said it owed creditors more than $50 million.

The hard reality is that Gebel's popularity is unlikely to generate the money needed to rescue the Schuller empire. And Gebel — an independent contractor, not a church staff member — is quick to say that he has no great attachment to the Garden Grove church and could leave at any time.

"I haven't been called to save the Crystal Cathedral, so that isn't my goal," he said in an interview in his office on the cathedral grounds. He thinks about just one thing, he said: "Preaching to the Hispanic people."

He likens the cathedral, with its soaring, light-filled vault, to a borrowed tuxedo. "I would say the same thing here as in Bolivia or Argentina," he said, "but here, I have a better suit."

It is hard to imagine a contrast more striking than the one between the English and Spanish services at Crystal Cathedral.

More at the link above.

And some pictures:

A man prays in the prayer room at the base of the spires. His daughter peeked around playfully while I took a picture:

A young woman posed for pictures near the base of the tower:

I looked in the main church, and an organist was playing, perhaps tuning the organ:

The young woman poses next to the painted models of the Holy Family:

And the plaque at the base had this from Matthew 2:19-23:

... an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.” And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel.

And below this statute of Jesus with the lamb, Luke 15:4-6:

What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!

Judgment Day

Some background at New York Times: "Harold Camping Rapture Prophecy Tests Families." Actually, progressive atheist blogs are all over this, although I saw this at CSPT: "May 21, 2011 The World Ends W/ The Rapture."

More here.

Rock Bottom

Read Neptunus Lex, "The Elephant in the Room" (via Dan Collins). Say a prayer and count your blessings as well.

Dennis Prager at David Horowitz's West Coast Retreat, April 3, 2011

Diane Schrader, my blogging colleague at NewsReal, reports, "Why You Better Pray that God is Not Dead – Dennis Prager Diagnoses America’s Disease":

What passes for faith in most mainstream (liberal) Christian denominations and most of Judaism (outside Orthodox) has become a mushy pablum of warm fuzzy feelings instead of concrete moral standards. One can’t even discuss concepts like sin and hell (which are necessary prerequisites, by the way, for mercy and grace) without being accused of “extremism” and, in a torturous logical twist, of being just like “radical Muslims.”

The lack of critical thinking skills from which these illogical flights of fancy emerge is of course the fault, in part, of our current educational vacuum, but Prager frames it in an interesting way. If a student was homeschooled in a strict Christian home his or her entire life, never allowed to watch television, listen to popular music, read anything other than the Bible, get on the internet, or even leave the house – would you consider them somewhat brainwashed? You might – although of course, I defy you to actually find anyone who has experienced this (despite the fevered imaginations of teacher unions that oppose homeschooling or any type of Christian education).

Now Prager turns this on its head. Keeping in mind the virtually lockstep leftist leanings of popular culture, the media and our educational institutions – if a student went to a secular K-12 school system his or her entire life, absorbed countless hours of secular TV programming, listened to nothing but popular music, read nothing about teen-oriented magazines and books, and went to movies, concerts etc. that were all completely non-religious and non-conservative in nature, would you consider them to be somewhat brainwashed? Because you should – and I guarantee that you can find thousands and probably millions of kids whose lives mirror this set of experiences.

What does this have to do with God? Well, an entire generation has been inoculated against thinking about Him in any kind of serious way. And without an understanding of God, as Prager says, our concepts of good and evil grow blurry indeed, and we get all mixed up, just like the leftists who confuse hating people who fight evil with hating evil.

Be sure to read the whole thing, at the link. Diane does an masterful job recounting Prager's talk, which was a sight to see. I'll have my work cut out for me later this week when I have some time to write up a couple of reports myself.

Gabrielle Giffords Smiled Inside Ambulance as She Heard Applause During Dramatic Send-Off

Here's the video from the presss conference:

PREVIOUSLY: "Doctors in Houston Report Gabrielle Giffords Aware of Surroundings."

Doctors in Houston Report Gabrielle Giffords Aware of Surroundings

At CBS News:

(CBS/ AP) Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords knows what's going on based on squeezing his hand the first day and going through streets of Tucson, said Dr. Randall Friese, Giffords' trauma surgeon at UMC in Tucson.

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords smiled inside an ambulance as she heard applause during a dramatic send-off from her hometown Friday, and doctors say her transfer by jet and helicopter to a hospital in Houston went flawlessly.

"She responded very well to that - smiling and even tearing a little bit," said Dr. Randall Friese, a surgeon at the University Medical Center trauma center in Tucson. "It was very emotional and very special."

Friese and Giffords' doctors in Houston spoke Friday afternoon at a news conference at Texas Medical Center. Doctors say Giffords has a drain in her brain because of a fluid buildup, so she will stay for now in the ICU. She will be moved later to the center's TIRR Memorial Hermann rehabilitation hospital.

Giffords still has a craniectomy, and it might be a month before her skull is shaped. Until then the Congresswoman will wear a specially measured helmet with the Arizona flag on it to protect her cranium.

"Whether she will form words, we will have to wait and see," said Dr. Dr. Dong Kim, a neurosurgeon at the hospital.

Dr. Kim also said Giffords is in the top 5 percent of what they would expect from a gunshot injury to the brain.

Also, at LAT, "Gabrielle Giffords Leaves Tucson."

Top 10 Tragedies Exploited by the Left

From Megan Fox, at NewsReal Blog:

By now, Americans should be hip to the Left’s jive. Exploiting the dead and the tragic is a premeditated, proven attack plan that is a staple of the Left. They have one goal and that is to destroy their opposition by any means necessary. Slander, libel, slime and lies is the name of the game. And they aim to win. The pattern is evident. The minute a tragedy occurs and there is any way to tie a conservative to it, they will do it before the bodies are cold. Once they’ve assigned blame they start trying to legislate away more personal freedoms. This is the formula. Tragedy+Outrageous Blame Shifting=Legislative Victory. There is no shame on the Left, only shameful behavior.

RTWT.

Obama Rides Wave of Support After Arizona Shooting: Seven-in-Ten Americans Reject Progressives' Blame-Righty Allegations

At WSJ, "President's Ratings Climb." The president is at 53 percent approval. It's a tragedy bump, to be expected following such a horrific event, and the sensational media coverage:

The poll was conducted days after a shooting rampage in Tucson, Ariz., in which six people died and 14 were injured, including Gabrielle Giffords, a Democratic congresswoman from the state.

Surges in presidential popularity are common after a galvanizing national tragedy, said Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster who co-directs the Journal/NBC News poll with Democrat Peter Hart. Bill Clinton saw a four-point jump after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. George W. Bush a huge surge after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

And at the raw pdf survey, 71 pecent said that the shooting was an "isolated incident by a disturbed person" (Question 35):

Thinking about the shootings of a Member of Congress, a Federal judge and others in Tucson, Arizona last weekend, do you feel the extreme political rhetoric used by some in the media and by political leaders was an important contributor to the incident or do you feel this is more of an isolated incident by a disturbed person that occurs from time to time?

That's 7-in-10 who reject the left's blame-righty campaign, although given a choice, substantial numbers say that radio and television, and blogs and the Internet, contributed "to a climate that some say encouraged the shootings" (at Question 37).

Encouraging overall, but those latter items remind me of William Jacobson's comments earlier:

The ruthless efficiency with which the left-wing blogosphere tied Palin to the shooting, and the success of their efforts in equating Palin with mass murder, is a lesson we should not forget.

Rep. Steve Cohen Compares GOP Healthcare Opposition to Nazi Party's 'Big Lie'

Well, fancy that.

Now that Democrats and fever-swamp progressives have been hammered for their blame-righty campaign following Tucson, we'll be hearing ObamaCare lackeys in Congress attacking GOP opposition as the "Big Lie."

That's sad, I gotta say. At Weasel Zippers, "Dem Congressman Compares GOP ObamaCare Claims to Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels, Lies About Jews That Led to Holocaust," and The Hill, "Democratic Lawmaker Compares GOP Health Law Claims to Nazi 'Lies'."

And from Michelle, "Civility Watch: Nazis and Crosshairs and Killers, Oh My":

When is it hate speech to compare politicians to Nazis? Only when the accusers are Tea Party activists or Republicans. When it’s Democrats, just move along. Nothing to see or hear ...

Democrats Continue to Blame Palin for Arizona Shooting

As we learned previously, in a CNN poll, a majority of 56 percent of Democrats thought Sarah Palin was to blame for the tragic shooting in Arizona.

And in a new Public Policy Polling survey released yesterday, 45 percent of Democrats believe that "Palin is at least partially responsible for what happened in Arizona." The survey contacted voters January 14-16, fully one week after the news broke. And of course it was known by Sunday at least that alleged killer Jared Loughner had acted without having seen Palin's target map, and by Tuesday, January 11, Loughner-friend Zach Osler reported that the shooter "didn't listen to political radio, he didn't take sides, he wasn't on the left, he wasn't on the right." And, according to William Jacobson, "We Just Witnessed The Media's Test Run To Re-Elect Barack Obama":

The false connection of the Palin electoral target map to the shooting did not start in the mainstream media. As I have documented, that false connection started with bloggers at DailyKos and Think Progress using Twitter to push the issue into the mainstream media within hours of the shooting with the help of their followers.



The ruthless efficiency with which the left-wing blogosphere tied Palin to the shooting, and the success of their efforts in equating Palin with mass murder, is a lesson we should not forget.



The Democrats and their mainstream media supporters were put back on their heels in 2010, and are regrouping. And if regrouping requires falsely accusing a major Republican figure of complicity in mass murder, and then amplifying that false accusation for several days in the face of contrary evidence until a substantial portion of the population believes it, they will do it.

Yeah, the progressive left got the meme going, but William discounts the epic lies of MFM Tuscon reporting, especially at the New York Times.



More later ...



CARTOON CREDIT: Saberpoint.