We’ve Lost Count of the Dead in Syria

Even the United Nations has given up trying to maintain an accurate estimate.

Trump’s Twitter “Diplomacy” Is Making A Mess Again

Once again, President Trump’s foreign policy tweeting is causing problems.

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House Committee Tougher On Mark Zuckerberg, But Regulation Seems Unlikely

Mark Zuckerberg’s second day before Congress was somewhat more contentious than the first, but at the end of the day it’s still unclear that more regulation is the answer to the issues raised by recent Facebook “scandals.”

Trump Weighs Options In Syria While His Twitter Taunting Foolishly Risks Escalation

President Trump took to Twitter this morning and decided poke a stick in the eye of the Russian bear.

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Mark Zuckerberg Tries To Explain The Internet To Elderly Senators

Not surprisingly, a joint Senate Committee failed to really lay a glove on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg at yesterday’s hearing.

OTB’s Engage Feed

You many have noticed the array of images and links under the footer of post pages. Here’s what it is.

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Kevin Williamson Doesn’t Want Women Murdered and Doesn’t Belong at The Atlantic

Argumentation without the intent to persuade is masturbation, not journalism.

Woman Fired After Flipping The Bird To Trump’s Motorcade Sues Former Employer

A woman who was fired after a photograph of her giving the middle finger to President Trump’s motorcade went viral is suing her former employer. She doesn’t have much of a case.

‘Woke’ Civil War at the New York Times?

Old-fashioned notions of journalistic neutrality are chafing young reporters in the Age of Trump.

Confirmation Bias, Hidden Agendas, and the Challenges of Conversation

A blog post and resulting Twitter exchange point to a larger problem in our political dialog.

YouTube Shooter Nasim Aghdam Was Crazy

The woman who wounded three people at the video company before killing herself posted insane rants all over social media.

News Anchors At Sinclair Owned Stations Caught Reading From Same Corporate Mandated Script

News anchors at dozens of local stations owned by conservative-leaning Sinclair Broadcast Group were recently required to read a script mandated by corporate headquarters, and it’s leading to some bad media coverage for Sinclair.

Proposal to Tie Some Visas to Social Media Checks

Under the proposal certain visa-seekers (such as China and India) would have to have their social media presence scrutinized.

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Are Marriage Proposals Stupid?

The grand gesture may put undue pressure on women in making an important life decision.

Hillary Clinton ‘They Never Told Men Who Lost to Go Away’

The woman who lost the 2016 election is apparently not going to go away.

Spurred By Parkland Shooting, Students March, But Will It Lead To Any Actual Change?

Organizing protests was the easy part. The hard part for those who would seek to expand gun regulations is yet to come.

Former Playboy Model Sues To Be Able To Tell Her Story Of Affair With Trump

Former Playboy model Karen McDougal is suing the publisher of the National Enquirer for the right to tell her story of an alleged affair with President Trump in 2006.

Ralph Peters Suddenly ‘Ashamed’ of Fox News After Decade of Appearances

The network’s longtime “strategic analyst” is “ashamed” of his association because they’ve become a “propaganda machine.”

Scott Kelly’s Year In Space Apparently Caused Changes In His DNA (Updated)

After a year in space, Astronaut Scott Kelly was no longer 100% genetically identical to his twin brother. However, the changes are not as significant as initial media reports made them out to be.

US Imposes New Sanctions on Russia for 2016 Election Interference

The Treasury Department has designated five entities and 19 individuals tied to the Russian government for cyber espionage.

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Farhad Manjoo Totally Unplugged from Twitter if You Don’t Count the Constant Tweeting

CJR’s Dan Mitchell has a tiny quibble with a recent viral NYT thumbsucker. 

Judge Hearing Twitter Blocking Lawsuit Against Trump Asks: Why Not Muting Instead Of Blocking?

The Judge presiding over the lawsuit brought by a group of Twitter users blocked by President Trump may have sent a hint about how she’s inclined to rule during a hearing this week.

Obama Coming to Netflix

Netflix no longer offers President Frank Underwood. They’re lining up a replacement.

Alabama School Shooting Kills 17-Year-Old Girl

Witnesses say another student was “showing off his gun.”

Kellyanne Conway Violated Hatch Act

The legal distinction between “personal capacity” and “official capacity” makes no sense for senior presidential appointees.

20-Year-Old Sues Dick’s and Walmart Over Gun Discrimination

The inevitable response to announcements by the big box stores that they would not sell guns to those under 21 has arrived.

The President’s Self-Imposed Bubble

POLITICO buries the lede in making the case for “Donald Trump’s bubble presidency.”

Guilt By Association: The Strange Case of the Oshry Sisters

Four social media stars have been fired from their television show after the revelation that Pamela Gellar is their mother.

Lindsey Graham Says War With North Korea Would Be “Worth It.”

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham says war against North Korea would be worth it. Ignoring the fact that it would result in casualties unlike anything America has seen since the Vietnam War.

Facebook, Google Get One Hour From EU to Scrub Terror Content

Yet more absurdity from Brussels, where regulators seemingly don’t understand how the Internet works.

NSA Has Received No Orders To Act Against Russian Interference In 2018 Election

President Trump continues to deny the reality of Russian interference in the 2016 campaign, and he’s failing to act to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

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Facebook Algorithm Change Kills ‘Little Things’

A recent change to the way the social media giant selects articles readers see first has crushed a web magazine.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Announces Limits On Gun Sales, Stops Selling “Assault Weapons”

Dick’s Sporting Goods will no longer sell “assault weapons” at any of its stores, and will limit the sale of any gun to people aged 21 and above.

Xi Jinping Solidifies His Hold On Power In China

China’s Xi Jinping solidified his hold on power well into the next decade over the weekend.

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Democrats On House Intelligence Committee Release Rebuttal Memo That Utterly Decimates Nunes Memo

Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee have released a memo that completely eviscerates the memo prepared by Committee Chairman Devin Nunes.

Anti-NRA Boycott Gaining Steam

More than a dozen companies have ended relationships with the gun rights organization and protesters are demanding more follow suit.

‘Deep Fakes’ a Looming Crisis

An emerging technology will take “fake news” to a whole new level.

Security Force Assistance Brigade Deploys Amid Beret Controversy

The U.S. Army is once again embroiled in an internecine fight over hats.

Parkland Shooting Survivors Speak Out On Gun Control, And Some On The Right See A Conspiracy

The students who survived last week’s mass shooting in Parkland, Florida are speaking out, and some on the right are responding by engaging in personal attacks and spreading conspiracy theories.

Collapse of the Global Elite?

Elliot Cohen laments the lack of steel in the spine of the statesmen, diplomats, soldiers, and thinkers of the current generation.

Donald Trump’s Dereliction Of Presidential Duty Is Self-Evident

Donald Trump’s dereliction of duty in response to clear evidence of Russian interference in the 2016 election is a staggering and flagrant dereliction of the duties he agreed to take on when he took the Oath Of Office more than a year ago.

Gun-Violence Restraining Orders?

NRO’s David French offers “A Gun-Control Measure Conservatives Should Consider.”

Donald Trump’s Own Appointees Are Telling World Leaders To Ignore His Tweets

President Trump’s tweets, other public statements, and actions are causing world leaders to doubt the reliability of the United States on the world stage.

Another Trump Campaign Aide Set To Plead Guilty

Mueller tightens the screws even further.

Some Thoughts on Russian Interference in US Elections

A few key observations on the bigger picture.

Hyperpartisanship Continues To Ruin Our Political Culture And Our Country, And We’re Letting It Happen

The tragedy in Florida last week revealed once again how hyperpartisanship is destroying our politics and harming the country.

Trump Still Won’t Acknowledge The Reality Of Russian Interference In The 2016 Campaign

Even with yesterday’s indictments, President Trump still won’t acknowledge reality even though it’s staring him in the face.

Are Mass Shootings a National Security Threat?

Phil Carter makes an interesting argument but he’s ultimately mistaken.

OTB Site Refresh

The long-overdue redesign of OTB is now live.