Must See: Red Dust (1932)

Are you ready to be shocked by an eighty year old movie? Back before the Production code made scandalous or risqué material a no no, Red Dust was just the type of thing that grabbed the movie going masses.

Basic triangle: prostitute Jean Harlow plus rugged and macho Clark Gable plus refined lady Mary Astor. Throw in a rubber plantation in the tropics, Astor's husband stricken by malaria and a steamboat that won’t take one of the women away, and you have more chemistry and conflict than you'd think you could pack into less than ninety minutes.

In an age of heightened glitter and movie illusion (and platinum bleached hair) the three leads are real, human and believable, and create more heat than there was in Malaysia.

If you mainly know the mustachioed Gable from Gone with the Wind then you have to see him here, in his star making role, still clean shaven but messy and rugged, cementing his status as the most mature and masculine leading man of the era.

It took a strong woman to stand up to him in the movies, and Jean Harlow was one of the few who could. For many, Harlow's greatest claim to fame is her death at twenty-six; don’t be one of those deprived people, going through life without the experience of seeing cinema's original blonde bombshell, she who was the mold for later versions like Marilyn Monroe. During filming, Harlow’s movie producer husband put her in the news by committing suicide under mysterious circumstances; when the movie came out it was just Harlow who got the attention, in her nearly nude barrel bathing scene and for being amazing as a sassy, playful and petulant force of nature.

Mary Astor was class personified, but not laced up so tight that she couldn’t give her roles the needed twists of snark, naughtiness and desire. When Red Dust was remade twenty years later as Mogambo, they had a super cast (Gable caught between Ava Gardner and Grace Kelly) but somehow managed to leave most of the heat and sizzle back in 1932.

See it SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20 @ 06:00 AM on TCM; it also came out on DVD this week.

Find me at the Speakeasy for much more classic entertainment.

DOJ Attempts to Have Fast & Furious Lawsuit Tossed Out

The Department of Justice filed court papers on Monday in an attempt to have the House Oversight Committee lawsuit dismissed. The lawsuit would force Attorney General Eric Holder to finally release documents related to the Fast and Furious gun tracking operation.

Within the legal brief, it is alleged that federal courts lack the authority to intervene, once the executive branch has wielded executive privilege in response to a congressional branch subpoena, as President Obama did in this case.

The motion also states that the dispute should be resolved by the two branches in question rather than in the courts: "Disputes of this sort have arisen regularly since the founding [of the country]. For just as long, these disputes have been resolved between the political branches through a constitutionally grounded system of negotiation, accommodation and self-help."

To refresh the reader's memory, a brief history:

• The House lawsuit was filed in mid August by Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA)

• The lawsuit was a part of Issa's probe into a bungled ATF operation, which had the intent of  tracking gun sales to straw purchasers for Mexican drug gangs.

• Two of the guns were subsequently found at the murder scene of a Border Patrol agent in Arizona.

• GOP lawmakers launched a querry into determining when administration officials first became aware of the operation’s controversial "gun walking" tactics.

• In 2011, the DOJ sent a letter to Congress, maintaining that at all times it makes every attempt to stop weapons from illegally crossing over the border into Mexico.

• That letter was rescinded approximately ten months later.

• Issa's lawsuit and contempt resolution against Holder are focused on obtaining internal DOJ documents related to the DOJ's decision to rescind that letter, and whether the agency intentionally lied to Congress and then tried to cover it up.

• The DOJ did submit more than eight thousand pages of documents in response to other requests from Issa, but Obama asserted executive privilege over the subset pertaining to Issa’s subpoena for the internal exchanges.

• In June, the Republican House overwhelmingly passed resolutions holding Holder in contempt of Congress for failure to comply with the latest subpoena.

• Issa then filed a lawsuit in an attempt to force Holder to relinquish the documents, because the DOJ said it would not prosecute the attorney general over the contempt charge.

Though several DOJ officials were cited by the Inspector General as being complicit in Fast and Furious, the IG determined that Holder had no knowledge of the scheme.

President Obama referred to the IG's report as an "independent" investigation and one that should silence the critics.

It did not, however, silence Univision talk show co host, Maria Elena Salinas. Via a translator, she asked Obama if Holder should be fired. Coming as a surprise to no one, the president said no.

Salinas went on to say: "Let's have an independent investigation, because at the end of the day, this is the Justice Department investigating its boss and is saying they say is not at fault? Why don't we have, very briefly, an independent investigation that is not done by the Justice Department?"

Obama answered: "Well, understand that, not only have we had multiple hearings in Congress, but the inspector general is put in place specifically to be independent from the attorney general. This attorney general's [sic] report was not a whitewash in any way. I mean, it was tough on the Justice Department, and it indicated that, potentially, more supervision was needed, people should have known in some cases, even if they didn't actually know. So, it was, I think, independent, honest, it was a clear assessment of what had gone wrong in that situation."

Obama thinks it was an independent, honest and clear assessment.

Cross posted on RedState and Red Pill Report.

Agenda, Taqiyya, and the (in)Artful Dodging of Barack Obama

You’ve heard the speculation, the alarming excuses, the tidbits & minutia, etc about the Benghazi attack. So let’s cut to the proverbial chase and lay out a timeline of events; we’ll go from there:

Taquiyya: Deceit used to protect Islam and its followers. TRANSLATION: sponsored lying.

• Where normally US Marines guard our ambassadors and embassies, there was a local security company contracted to handle this critical task.
• Local security agents were urged to quit their job for an “imminent attack” and, as a result, left the consulate short staffed.
• Multiple requests were placed for additional security at this location in the weeks and months preceding the murders and destruction. The requests obviously fell on deaf ears. (In April there was only one U.S. diplomatic security agent stationed there)
• The embassy goes down in flames, four courageous men brutalized, murdered and dragged through the streets.. 
• The spin machine goes into overdrive, the event being blamed on a video that’s deemed insulting to “the Prophet of Islam.” Every conceivable possibility and excuse follows, nothing changing that four men were brutalized and now have families weeping and a nation outraged for their loss

To be continued…

 

By now I doubt there’s anyone that isn’t both aware of, and confused by, the Benghazi attack & this administration’s handling of it. It was caused by a little movie that insulted Islam… right? No, wait… it was an Al Qaida attack. No, it was a “demonstration” that got out of control! Sorry… I meant it was about the ambassador being gay in an middle eastern country! No no NO!!! Wait… it was about the ambassador hopefully being taken hostage so the “blind sheik” could be released “under duress!” Or no… I’ve GOT IT! It’s about an excuse to cancel the November elections… right? Oh, never mind.

Are you confused yet? No worries; you’re SUPPOSED to be. Welcome to this president’s “spin it till they’re dizzy” machine. So let’s expose and look at the FACTS of the matter. They speak for themselves, and when viewed as a whole, they paint a picture that should strike anger & fear both in the heart of EVERY American, regardless of their political affiliation. So let’s look at the different dimensions nobody’s linking to this incident.

On page 261 of Barack Obama’s “Audacity of Hope,” (paperback edition) he states...
 

Continue reading at: A Common Patriot Speaks Out

Israel and US Announce Missile Defense Exercises

Israel and the United States will be holding a new set of joint exercises, later this month.

The three week long exercise will focus on missile defense, and will include one live fire event.

It's goal will be to test how well Israel would do if attacked by a multitude of missiles, both long and short range.

At least 3,500 US military personnel will be involved, with a thousand of those being in Israel for the duration.

Troop numbers, for Israel, have not yet been released, but it is believed that most of the IDF will take part.

Denver Buffeted by Winds

Winds buffeted the Denver metro area Tuesday night, and continue to do so on Wednesday.

Gusts through the night hit as high as eighty nine miles per hour.

Branches are down all over, and trees were felled in many locations.

At least forty thousand people lost electrical power, the morning drive of many was effected by traffic lights being out, and workers are still getting it turned back on for some.

There have been no reports of deaths or injuries, due to the winds.

6th Annual Night at The Museums

On Saturday November 3, museums around the world will take place in the sixth annual Night at The Museums.

Twenty-two museums in Denver, Golden, and other metro cities will be participating in it, by staying open late.

From 5pm til 10pm, they will also be free.

Free buses will shuttle people between the various museums, that are involved.

Some of the museums have even planned special events, as part of the night.

If you live elsewhere, be sure and check for information on your city participating in the night.

University of Phoenix Closing 115 Locations

Owners of the University of Phoenix announced that they will be closing down one hundred and fifteen locations.

The move is expected to save the mostly online school three hundred million dollars, while removing eight hundred positions.

Only campuses that require hands on learning will remain open.

One hundred and twelve locations, in thirty-six states, will be left after all the closures take effect.

Not set timetable has been set for all the closures to take place, but expectations are for them to happen by the summer of 2013.

US Embassy in Sweden Reopened After Evacuation

The US embassy in Stockholm has been reopened, after being evacuated earlier Wednesday morning.

Staff reported an unknown white powder upon opening an envelope, causing an emergency evacuation of the building.

Swedish police have taken the letter and powder, for further investigation.

Police said that they are preparing charges for an "unlawful assault" case.

All one hundred and fifty employees and staff have been medically cleared, and work has resumed.

Canadian Border Guard Stable After Being Shot

A Canadian border guard is in stable condition after she was shot Tuesday afternoon, in Blaine, British Columbia.

Around 2pm PDT, a man pulled up to the border guard booths, in a white fifteen passenger van, with Washington plates.

It's unclear what led up to the incident, but it ended up with him shooting the officer in the neck, and then killing himself.

Investigators are conducting interviews and reviewing camera footage to determine what happened.

The Peach Arch border crossing, the third busiest crossing along the US Canadian border, has been closed since and is set to reopen at 4pm PDT, Wednesday.

Denver Bar Burned in Attempt to Hide Murders

After Denver firefighters put out a fire early Wednesday morning, they discovered five bodies in the remnants of the bar.

Firefighters responded to a fire at Fero's Bar and Grill just after 2am MDT.

Investigators quickly determined that the fire was caused by arson, and then they found five bodies inside.

According to police officials the bodies showed clear signs of trauma, telling them that they are looking at the scene of a multiple homicide.

The fire was apparently set as an attempt to cover up the murders of the four women and one man.

Police are asking anyone who was at the bar earlier to contact them, so that they might be able to piece together what happened.