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Joel B. Pollak

Joel B. Pollak

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Did They Have to Shoot?

Becoming a parent really does change your perspective on things. And there’s no way for me to look at that picture of police taking Miriam Carey’s 18-month-old daughter–the same age, roughly, as my own daughter–out of her bullet-riddled Infiniti without

Beyond the Shutdown: Cut, Cap and Balance

Beyond the Shutdown: Cut, Cap and Balance

The partial shutdown of the federal government is on its third day, but the political fight is effectively over. The GOP has fought to a draw–and, as predicted, the shutdown is now part of a bigger, and more consequential, debt

Iran's Rouhani Boasts: I Rejected Obama Five Times

Iran's Rouhani Boasts: I Rejected Obama Five Times

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani told reporters on Wednesday that he turned down five requests from U.S. President Barack Obama to meet at the United Nations, according to Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency. Rouhani said: “Before my trip (to New York),

Viral Video of Tesla on Fire Sends Shares Tumbling 6%

Lindsay Leveen, the expert behind greenexplored.com, sent along this alarming YouTube video, taken by passing drivers, of a new Tesla Model S on fire in Washington state (no injuries, language warning): The video garnered nearly 200,000 views since it was

China's Maoist Economy Has Obama Parallels

The Wall Street Journal ran a very interesting analysis Wednesday about new pressures facing foreign companies in China: old Maoist tactics. Those amount to using threats of investigation to force concessions–such as price cuts–as well as public confessions of wrongdoing, not

Obamacare Crash Highlights Obama's Narcissicm

Obamacare Crash Highlights Obama's Narcissicm

The failure of the Obamacare exchanges–two-thirds of which, according to CNN, are not working after launch–is more than just a fulfillment of conservative skepticism of government in general. It also highlights a key feature of Barack Obama’s personality: his absolute

Tom Friedman: Save Our Democracy from the Tea Party!

Tom Friedman: Save Our Democracy from the Tea Party!

Tom Friedman of the New York Times, who never misses an opportunity to praise Chinese autocracy, has articulated a new argument that Democrats are using against the Republicans’ insistence on changes to Obamacare: “Our Democracy Is at Stake,” he warns,

Israel's Danon: 'We Will Count Only on Ourselves'

Israel's Danon: 'We Will Count Only on Ourselves'

Israel’s Deputy Minister of Defense, Danny Danon, told Breitbart News on Tuesday that Israel was prepared to act alone in preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear power. His message echoed that of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who addressed the United

LA Phil Review: Dudamel Converts a Skeptic

LA Phil Review: Dudamel Converts a Skeptic

I’ll admit nursing a grudge against Los Angeles Philharmonic music director Gustavo Dudamel ever since he traveled back to his native Venezuela to play for Hugo Chávez’s funeral. Chávez was a thug, though some in Hollywood might prefer to pretend

NPR Eagerly Excuses Obama's Failure on Inequality

NPR Eagerly Excuses Obama's Failure on Inequality

Steve Inskeep of National Public Radio interviewed President Barack Obama on Monday, as a government shutdown loomed. To his credit, Inskeep asked an interesting question about why President Obama has seen economic inequality grow rapidly on his watch. But to

Israel vs. Iran: War of Words at UN

Israel vs. Iran: War of Words at UN

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday and sent a clear message that Israel was prepared to attack Iran, alone if necessary, to prevent the Iranian regime from emerging as a nuclear-armed power. His

Obama's Missed Opportunity in Shutdown

Obama's Missed Opportunity in Shutdown

President Barack Obama told National Public Radio recently: “I shouldn’t have to offer anything.” That sounds tough, but those are words the president and his party may live to regret. As Republicans scrambled to find a way to pass funding

Get Settled: Shutdown Likely to Last

Get Settled: Shutdown Likely to Last

Though the media and the Democrats are describing the hours-old partial federal government shutdown as if Republicans can be expected to cave on their positions at any moment, it is far more likely that the shutdown will continue through the

Hitler's 'Fatwa' Against War, 1940

Hitler's 'Fatwa' Against War, 1940

President Barack Obama’s telephone call with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani took place on the 75th anniversary of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s appeal to Adolf Hitler for peace in Europe. Roosevelt urged that “negotiations [between Germany and Czechoslovakia] be continued until

The Lame 'Congress Must Pay Its Bills' Line

Former President Bill Clinton recently parroted a line that President Barack Obama likes to drag out whenever the debt ceiling deadline looms–that Congress must “pay its bills.” It is one of the most cynical and insidious lies in American politics

Who Gets Credit for a Government Shutdown?

Who Gets Credit for a Government Shutdown?

The End is Nigh. So say the media, counting down the seconds to a partial shutdown of the U.S. government. Certainly Americans will miss some federal functions, and the media will focus eagerly on victims–real and imaginary–of the impasse (though,

Report: Israel Warned Jews About Kenya Massacre Suspect

South Africa’s City Press reported over the weekend that Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency had warned the local Jewish community in South Africa that Samantha Lewthwaite (a.k.a. the “White Widow”) had entered the country and was a known threat, having been recorded

Cruz vs. Gregory: 5 Lessons

Cruz vs. Gregory: 5 Lessons

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) put on a masterclass in his appearance on NBC News’ Meet the Press with David Gregory on Sunday. In less than twenty minutes, Cruz not only demolished Democrat arguments–as transmitted by the ever-eager Gregory–but also showed a keen

Three Conditions for an Israeli Strike on Iran

Three Conditions for an Israeli Strike on Iran

When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with President Barack Obama today, he will do so against the backdrop of vastly changed circumstances. President Obama’s bungling of the Syria crisis has established that the U.S. is no longer a deterrent force

Obama Falls for Iranian 'Fatwa' Hoax on Nuclear Weapons

Obama Falls for Iranian 'Fatwa' Hoax on Nuclear Weapons

Last week, President Barack Obama assured the United Nations General Assembly that Iran did not actually seek nuclear weapons. However, the basis for Obama’s defense of Iranian intentions is an elaborate hoax. Obama said that a “fatwa,” or religious ruling, by

Review: The Consumer Reports Guide to Obamacare

Recognizing that Americans are going to have to deal with Obamacare on Tuesday, even though most don’t want to, Consumer Reports magazine has published a helpful 11-page article explaining the legislation. It’s no surprise that a private company has produced a