Blog Heap of Links for the day 31 May 2011

Does it matter if the president chooses to play golf on Memorial Day, and for the second time in his presidency (he did so as well in 2009)? I think it does, and it displays extraordinarily bad judgment, not only by Obama himself but also by his advisers. His chief of staff for example should have firmly cautioned against it. President Obama is not just any American but Commander in Chief of the US Armed Forces. The United States is currently engaged in a major war in Afghanistan with over 100,000 troops on the ground, and more than 1,500 have already laid down their lives for their country. The least the president can do on Memorial Day is spend the whole day with veterans and servicemen's families while acknowledging their sacrifice. As Koffler points out above, President George W. Bush stopped playing golf out of respect for the families of Iraq War dead. This demonstrated not only good judgment but humility and respect for the men and women who keep America safe.

The dancers? They weren't innocent tourists moved to sway by the majesty of Jefferson. They were professional protesters — Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin and Iraq war veteran Adam Kokesh among the group — who were making a point about freedom and liberty in an event they promoted on Facebook. They boogied with Jefferson to challenge this month's U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that dancing at memorials is forbidden "because it stands out as a type of performance, creating its own center of attention and distracting from the atmosphere of solemn commemoration," according to the panel's ruling.

George Will: "There's no undecided vote in this country anymore on Sarah Palin The threshold question, it's not usually asked, but it's in everyone's mind in a presidential election. 'Should we give this person nuclear weapons?' And the answer [Palin], answers itself. That doesn't mean she can't be without political consequence." When Republicans call into question another Republican's national security chops you know there's real animus goin' on.

Rodriguez remained in the Harris County Jail Monday with no bail set. He is also charged with possession of less than a gram of cocaine and evading arrest. He is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. Investigators say Rodriguez flew past flashing lights early Sunday, as he was traveling east on the North Loop when his car struck Will near the Yale exit. The HPD officer, just two years on the job, was investigating a hit-and-run accident along Loop 610 North when a driver, apparently drunk, ignored the flashing lights of patrol cars and steered his Volkswagen around a makeshift barrier set up to block the freeway. Rodriguez' vehicle plowed into Will, killing the 38-year-officer at the scene. The officer leaves behind a pregnant wife, Alicia, whom he married last year. He also has two stepchildren: a 10-year-old boy and a 6-year-old girl. Just before he died, Will yelled at the witness he was interviewing to "get out of the way," just before the speeding vehicle careened through the police barricade. ... "The witness had no time to look around or react, except to leap over the concrete barrier that divides the freeway," Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland said. "He credits Officer Will with giving him the prior warning of getting out of the way. It actually saved his life, or he said, he would have been struck with Officer Will."