The song has all the elements of right-wing lunacy: Conservative Christian privilege ("don't try to tell my children when and where to pray"), Islamophobia ("If you wanna serve in a Muslim church, go and take your ass back home"), anti-immigrant xenophobia ("Hell No, I won't push one for English", "We need to lock down all the borders"), attacks on Obamacare ("This damn Obamacare is a joke"), imaginary gun confiscation rhetoric ("If you want to come and try to take my gun, well you better be bulletproof"), and shaming welfare/food stamp recipients ("Take yourself to work if you're able, instead of living off our dime. This 'give me a hand out' generation is gonna bleed this country dry").

Amanda Marcotte at The Raw Story:

Yep, no one is trying to take his gun away and they certainly aren’t banning his children from praying. Indeed, from what we can tell from the demographic information, the likelier story is his kids aren’t praying because they see through Dad’s pious bullshit. There’s a lot of other mythical oppressions he lays out, including the myth that Obamacare is stealing medication from old people (read: taking medical care from older, white people and giving it to younger people of color, which is not happening—there’s enough to go around), the false claim that people are on welfare and refusing to work (in fact, most people on assistance work but just don’t make enough to make ends meet), that sort of thing. But most of the time on places like Fox News and whatnot, they are careful to avoid being overtly racist, knowing that audiences will fill in the blanks for them. That allows the myth that racism is dead to persist, because it’s conveyed in most spaces through raised eyebrows and implication.

But not with this dicknozzle! No, he goes there:

No, I won’t push one for English
I just as soon hang up the phone
If you wanna serve in a Muslim church
Go and take your ass back home
Also, the chorus is, “This is coming from real America, son/And pissed off rednecks like me”.

All three of these statements are pure, unvarnished racism. The excuse for complaining about “press 1 for English” is that immigrants “should” learn English. But that argument assumes that learning a language is easy and takes no more than a couple of weeks, when in reality, it’s a long process, especially for adults, to become conversant enough in a language to conduct personal business in it. Of course, the vast majority of people making this argument cannot speak a second language themselves, because they know full well it’s fucking hard, showing that this argument is disingenuous and simply a cover for the belief that this country should be reserved for Anglos and should be formally racist against Latinos. Jones doesn’t even hide this, singing, “They need to lock down on the borders.” Don’t think he’s talking about Canada there.

Lyrics:

Mr. stick-head politician
I got some news for you
If you want to come and
Try to take my gun
Well you better be bulletproof
And don't try to tell my children
When and where to pray

[...]

Hell No, I won't push one for English
I just as soon hang up the phone
If you wanna serve in a Muslim church
Go and take your ass back home
Take yourself to work if you're able
Instead of living off our dime
This 'give me a hand out' generation
Is gonna bleed this country dry
Yeah, I think it's time that we change your policy
This is coming from real America, son
And pissed off rednecks like me

[...]

Old folks say can't afford medication
This damn Obamacare is a joke
If it will help you with your sickness
I say fire it up and take a toke
We need to lock down all the borders
Throw away the keys and
Let's help our own right here at home
And stop sending it overseas
But right now raise your glasses
If you agree, Yeah
This is coming from real America, son
And pissed off rednecks like me
This is coming from real America, son
And pissed off rednecks like me

St. Louis Business Journals' Ben Unglesbee:

Under the hashtag #PorkSteakRebellion, Schmitt has taken to Twitter to denounce the EPA for backing the study, which won the initial grant last July. While the EPA notes on its website that perspectives and conclusions by project winners don’t represent the agency’s views, Schmitt has voiced concern that the government might soon look to regulate backyard grills.
Schmitt told the Washington Examiner this week, “The idea that the EPA wants to find their way into our back yards, where we’re congregating with our neighbors, having a good time, on the 4th of July, barbecuing pork steak or hamburgers, is ridiculous and it’s emblematic of agency that’s sort of out of control.”
Not stopping there, Schmitt has preemptively introduced a resolution discouraging the EPA from regulating barbeques and has started an online petition asking the “EPA and government bureaucrats to stop wasting taxpayer dollars trying to regulate backyard grills and barbecues.”
An EPA spokesman said the agency does not regulate backyard grilling and has no plans to.

To perform research and develop preventative technology that will reduce fine particulate emissions (PM2.5) from residential barbecues. This technology is intended to reduce air pollution as well as health hazards in Southern California, with potential for global application.

No it's not. RT @Eric_Schmitt: "BEWARE!! The EPA is Coming For Your Barbecue Grill"http://t.co/...#porksteakrebellion

— Sean Nicholson (@ssnich) March 20, 2015

Amazing Ribs's Facebook Page debunks the lies told by Fox and the RW media apparatus:

HPBA is not aware of any initiative by EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation (OAR) that would involve or contemplate the regulation of grills in the U.S.

[...]

In the U.S. and other developed countries, most grilling and barbecuing enthusiasts cook outdoors in a well-ventilated area. In parts of the Third World, many people cook on open fires indoors in very poorly ventilated areas. Groups like the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves are working to address this problem and also host the annual Cookstoves Future Summit. The EPA makes it clear on their website that this is largely an issue in the developing world.

Brendan James at TPM:

Emails published by the Washington Post on Friday show the racist jokes and email chains that Ferguson, Missouri police and city officers exchanged over several years, including comparing President Barack Obama to a chimpanzee.

The emails were described by the Justice Department in its report detailing the widespread racism in the Ferguson police department. But the actual contents of the emails were not public until the Washington Post got them through a public records request.

The three officials connected to the emails were Ferguson police Capt. Rick Henke, Sgt. William Mudd, and court clerk Mary Ann Twitty. They sent racist material back and forth between 2008 and 2011.

City officials in Ferguson, Mo., on Thursday evening released the full, unredacted content of racially charged and religiously insensitive e-mails sent by the city’s former court clerk as well as two former supervisors in the police department.

[...]

Several of the e-mails focus on President Obama, and the majority of them speak disparagingly of him or minorities more broadly.

In a message dated Tuesday, April 19, 2011, Twitty forwarded a message titled “Very Rare Photo” that included an image of former president Ronald Reagan feeding a baby monkey. Beneath the photo is the caption: “Rare photo of Ronald Reagan babysitting Barack Obama in early 1962.”

Another e-mail Twitty sent both men on March 1, 2010, included a short story titled “Leroy’s last child support payment.”

In an e-mail that Mudd forwarded to Twitty — which she then forwarded to others — in May 2011, the body of the message declares:

“A black woman in New Orleans was admitted into the hospital [for] pregnancy termination. Two weeks later she received a check for $5,000. She phoned the hospital to ask who it was from. The hospital said, ‘Crimestoppers.’”

Another, sent by Mudd on June 7, 2011, included a photo of two dogs and compared them to welfare recipients.

In an e-mail written Nov. 14, 2008, Henke wrote to a recipient whose identity was redacted in the records, that “we shouldn’t worry about him being president for very long because what black man holds a steady job for four years.”

Senior police officers and a city official in Ferguson, Missouri, exchanged emails that likened ethnic minority welfare recipients to dogs and joked about stoning Muslim women, it emerged on Friday.

The previously undisclosed messages were released along with full copies of emails referenced in a report by the US Department of Justice that led to the dismissal of a series of senior city officials last month.

One of those emails depicted Barack Obama as a chimpanzee, another doubted his ability as a black man to hold a job for four years, while a third labelled a photograph of a black tribal gathering “Michelle Obama’s high school reunion”.

[...]
Included among a series of “one-liners” forwarded by Twitty to Mudd and Henke was a joke about a man who discovered his wife had an affair. “But, by turning to religion, I was soon able to come to terms with the whole thing,” it said. “I converted to Islam, and we’re stoning her in the morning!”

These smears against Najiy for alleged "insufficient" salutation to the American Flag are Islamophobic and racist.

Amanda Batchelor at WPLG:

The Miami Police Department said Assistant Chief Anita Najiy followed proper code when deciding not to salute the American flag while in uniform during a recent promotional ceremony.

Maj. Delrish Moss said the military code of conduct supersedes police code and that Najiy properly followed that code.

[...]

The Miami Police Benevolent Association released a statement Wednesday afternoon that said in part, "Racism cloaked in patriotism is a huge insult to the American flag, the city of Miami Police Department, and the countless hate and anti-Muslim filled rants generated by the recent antics of the FOP president; those two things seem to be the genesis of the current false controversy."

The statement continued, "A person who calls attention to Assistant Chief Najiy's decision to stand respectfully at attention during the Pledge of Allegiance, while he himself video taped the proceedings rather than pay the proper respect to the flag, is acting like a hypocrite."

Fraternal Order of Police President Javier Ortiz wants Najiy reprimanded for not saluting the flag or covering her heart during the Pledge of Allegiance.

“Since she clearly has no respect for the flag or the United States, on behalf of the Fraternal Order of Police, I am requesting that Assistant Chief Najiy is removed as the commander of the MPD Honor Guard Detail,” Ortiz said in a letter Monday to Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes.

That’s not likely to happen. Though the police department’s code of conduct allows for a reprimand if an officer doesn’t salute the flag, it makes no mention of covering your heart during the Pledge of Allegiance. And not a single member of the command staff standing next to Najiy last week saluted the flag during the ceremony.

[...]

The city’s code of conduct for police officers clearly states that an officer in uniform, unless engaged in police duties, “will face the approaching flag and render a sharp military salute. Members in civilian clothes will stand at attention, holding right hand over left breast.”

On the April 27 edition of Fox & Friends, the hosts reported on a controversy in Miami over a police officer, Assistant Chief Anita Najiy, who did not put her hand over her heart during the Pledge of Allegiance. Co-host Steve Doocy noted that military guidelines require that military personnel "stand at attention, remain silent, and face the flag; and that's what she's doing." Nonetheless, the Fox & Friends hosts brought up a baseless accusation by Javier Ortiz, president of the local Fraternal Order of Police, that the reason Najiy didn't put her hand over her heart is because she is "Muslim" and "has no respect for the flag or the United States."

[...]

But Miami Police Major Delrish Moss said it had "nothing to do with personal beliefs" and that Najiy was following military conduct guidelines, which "supercedes police code." And the Miami Community Police Benevolent Association, which represents black police officers, blasted Ortiz claims as racist:

"Racism cloaked in patriotism is a huge insult to the American flag, the city of Miami police department," MCPBA President Ella Moore said in a letter she intends to hand personally to Miami Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes.

Hemant Mehta at The Friendly Atheist:

So she was following military rules… and that, in Ortiz’s eyes, makes her un-American. What he has against her, I don’t know, but even if she sat down during the Pledge, it wouldn’t make her any less patriotic. If you equate being a True American with participating in a mindless ritual, your priorities need adjustment.
Thankfully, it looks like no one is taking Ortiz seriously. After all, he’s the same guy who went to Ferguson, Missouri to show solidarity… with the officer who shot and killed Michael Brown.

Todd Robberson's insensitive column at Dallas Morning News:

The New York Times and Associated Press, among other news organizations, have decided that they will recognize the gender preference of transgenders in news copy. Which is to say, when a male who has yet to undergo gender reassignment surgery nevertheless calls himself a female and is the subject of a news story, he will be identified as a female in all references.

Thus, if I were to correctly rewrite the previous sentence to conform to AP and New York Times style, I should have written: “Which is to say, when a female who has yet to undergo gender reassignment surgery nevertheless calls herself a female and is the subject of a news story, she will be identified as a female in all references.”

[...]
Does our devotion to the language of acceptance require us to misinform the public? The Army service member who dumped thousands of classified documents onto the Internet via Wikileaks was not Chelsea Manning. It was Pfc. Bradley Manning. (And Manning’s action did not legally constitute whistle-blowing. It was a massive theft and document-dump, for which Manning is now serving time in prison.)

If the act in question was undertaken by an individual who had yet to change his/her name or declare his/her sexual identity, it undermines our integrity as journalists to alter the facts just to suit a newfound sense of social justice in support of transgender rights. If Bruce Jenner decides tomorrow that he wants to change his name to Beverly, that would not justify future journalistic references to 1976 Olympic decathlon gold medalist Beverly Jenner. To do so would be a misstatement of fact. Bruce Jenner, and only Bruce Jenner, won the 1976 Olympic decathlon gold medal.

Carlos Maza at MMFA:

An editorial writer for The Dallas Morning News offered an embarrassing defense for not bothering to correctly identify transgender people, arguing that widely accepted journalistic guidelines for talking about the transgender community are "confusing" and  "misinform[s] the public."

In a May 4 column in The Dallas Morning News, editorial writer Tod Robberson criticized The New York Times and Associated Press for recognizing "the gender preference of transgenders in news copy." According to Robberson, identifying trans people using the pronouns they prefer "distort[s] the truth" in order to embrace "the politically correct transgender language of the day."

A generation ago, transgender Americans were widely regarded as deviants, unfit for dignified workplaces, a disgrace for families. Those who confided in relatives were, by and large, pitied and shunned. For most, transitioning on the job was tantamount to career suicide. Medical procedures to align a person’s body with that person’s gender identity — an internal sense of being male, female or something else — were a fringe specialty, available only to a few who paid out of pocket.

Coming out meant going through life as a pariah.

Being transgender today remains unreasonably and unnecessarily hard. But it is far from hopeless. More Americans who have wrestled with gender identity are transitioning openly, propelling a civil rights movement that has struggled even as gays and lesbians have reached irreversible momentum in their fight for equality. Those coming out now are doing so with trepidation, realizing that while pockets of tolerance are expanding, discriminatory policies and hostile, uninformed attitudes remain widespread.

They deserve to come out in a nation where stories of compassion and support vastly outnumber those that end with a suicide note. The tide is shifting, but far too slowly, while lives, careers and dreams hang in the balance.•

[...]

As prominent transgender people have come out in recent years, their revelations have been a source of fascination, much of it prurient. There was the actress Laverne Cox, the Army whistle-blower Chelsea Manning and most recently, Bruce Jenner, the gold-medal Olympian. Their stories have brought attention to the plight of a segment of the population that continues to confound many Americans. One challenge lies in semantics, a complex and fraught subject given the extraordinary diversity of experiences within the transgender community. The term transgender covers a broad range of people who do not identify with the gender listed on their birth certificate.

GLAAD has the list on how to properly cover transgender issues.

Some examples:

DESCRIPTIONS
Always use a transgender person's chosen name.
Many transgender people are able to obtain a legal name change from a court. However, some transgender people cannot afford a legal name change or are not yet old enough to change their name legally. They should be afforded the same respect for their chosen name as anyone else who lives by a name other than their birth name (e.g., celebrities).

Whenever possible, ask transgender people which pronoun they would like you to use.
A person who identifies as a certain gender, whether or not that person has taken hormones or had some form of surgery, should be referred to using the pronouns appropriate for that gender.

If it is not possible to ask a transgender person which pronoun is preferred, use the pronoun that is consistent with the person's appearance and gender expression.
For example, if a person wears a dress and uses the name Susan, feminine pronouns are usually appropriate.

It is never appropriate to put quotation marks around either a transgender person's chosen name or the pronoun that reflects that person's gender identity.

The Associated Press Stylebook provides guidelines for journalists reporting on transgender people and issues.

According to the AP Stylebook, reporters should "use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth. If that preference is not expressed, use the pronoun consistent with the way the individuals live publicly." (see AP & New York Times Style)

When describing transgender people, please use the correct term or terms to describe their gender identity.
For example, a person who was assigned male at birth and transitions to living as a woman is a transgender woman, whereas a person who was assigned female at birth and transitions to living as a man is a transgender man. If someone prefers a different term, use it along with an explanation of what that term means to them.

Avoid pronoun confusion when examining the stories and backgrounds of transgender people prior to their transition.
Ideally a story will not use pronouns associated with a person's birth sex when referring to the person's life prior to transition. Try to write transgender people's stories from the present day, instead of narrating them from some point in the past, thus avoiding confusion and potentially disrespectful use of incorrect pronouns.

Al-Jazeera:

A video showing a university employee telling a black student he was harassing staff by sitting in a waiting room went viral after he posted it to Twitter on Wednesday.

Kevin Bruce, a student at Kennesaw State University in Georgia, said he went to his academic advisor's office after repeated attempts to set up an appointment. According to Bruce, he told an assistant that he would wait to talk to his advisor. A staff member later told Bruce he was harassing his advisor.

A black student at Kennesaw State University is drawing national attention after he says he was treated unfairly by staff at the Georgia college.

Kevin Bruce drew attention to the issue Wednesday when he posted the below video to his @IamKB_ Twitter account.

In it, we see a woman tell Kevin “you’re not going to harass Mrs. Tilly like that,” and he responds, “I’m just waiting to talk to someone, I’m not harassing no one though.”

The woman then says, “Sitting here until somebody is available is harassment” and threatens to call campus security.

Video footage has emerged of a Kennesaw State University student being told that the police are being called as a result of him waiting to meet with his advisor.

In the 30-second video, a woman can be seen telling student Kevin Bruce that he's committing an act of harassment. When Bruce contends that he isn't harassing anyone, she responds with, "Sitting here until someone is available is harassing them" before retreating to contact campus security.

Kennesaw State University (KSU) in Georgia acknowledged it received and is looking into a complaint from a student who was accused of harassment for waiting on an academic advisor to meet with him.

A student named Kevin Bruce posted a video to Twitter Wednesday night with the message: "Rude advisors at Kennesaw. [Shaking my head]." In the video, an advisor Bruce identified as Abby Dawson approaches him and tells him he is harassing her and her assistant and leaves to call campus security.

This lady is consumed with #whiteprivilege and racism by her actions to call for police. #ItsBiggerthanKSUhttps://t.co/...

— Justin Gibson (@JGibsonDem) May 14, 2015

Rude advisors at Kennesaw . Smh pic.twitter.com/ugcX4gnIsp

— KB (@IamKB_) May 14, 2015

Rude advisors at Kennesaw . Smh pic.twitter.com/ugcX4gnIsp

— KB (@IamKB_) May 14, 2015

Black student @IamKB_ was waiting to see a @kennesawstate advisor. He was accused of harassment. #ItsBiggerThanKSU:
https://t.co/...

— AJ+ (@ajplus) May 14, 2015

The university responds:

We are aware of the video and situation. Thanks for sharing your concern with us. A formal complaint process has begun.

— Kennesaw State (@kennesawstate) May 14, 2015

Hashtag: #ItsBiggerThanKSU

In Touch Weekly:

Rumors about Josh have swirled for years, but In Touch’s investigation has uncovered the secret he has been hiding. “I saw and read the report and it clearly stated that Jim Bob brought his son Josh into the Arkansas State Police and spoke to a state trooper about Josh’s involvement in alleged inappropriate touching with a minor,” one source told In Touch.

The first report was filed shortly before 2005. Josh and his wife, Anna, have three children and live in Washington, D.C., where he is a lobbyist for the Family Research Council.

Josh Duggar allegedly did something terrible when he was a teen, according to a recent report. However, he majorly lucked out, and his parents are likely thanking God that the 19 Kids and Counting star isn’t being shunned by the fans who worship the Duggar family.

In Touch Weekly alleges that Josh Duggar “was named in a police report as the ‘alleged offender’ in an underage sexual abuse probe.” It’s important to point out that In Touch didn’t provide any documentation of this probe, instead citing “multiple sources who have seen the police report and are familiar with the case.”

The police report allegedly said that Josh was turned into the police by his own father, Jim Bob Duggar. Jim Bob told the cops that his then-underage son was caught leaving a minor girl’s bedroom, and Josh potentially could have been charged with sexual assault in the fourth degree. According to the Arkansas Coalition Against Sexual Assault, a person commits sexual assault in the fourth degree by engaging in “sexual contact with another person, not the person’s spouse, who is less than sixteen (16) years of age.”

[...]

Josh Duggar avoided potentially being prosecuted because it was discovered that the cop who took the police report was in possession of child pornography. By the time Josh’s case started getting attention again, the statute of limitations was up. This means that he could no longer be prosecuted. In other words, Josh wasn’t ever charged with anything. Jim Bob Duggar has never spoken about this incident, and it seems as though he never bothered pursuing legal action after initially turning his son in.

According to a new report, 19 Kids and Counting‘s Josh Duggar was investigated by the Arkansas State Police in 2005 for the alleged sexual abuse a female minor. Josh would have been 16 or 17 at the time.

In the new issue, InTouch cites “multiple sources who have seen the police report and are familiar with the case” who said Josh was turned into cops after dad Jim Bob Duggar found him leaving the minor’s room and “learned something inappropriate happened.” A source added the incident involved “inappropriate touching,” which could have resulted in a sexual assault in the fourth degree charge.

[...]

It has been previously reported that Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar sent Josh to ALERT, a bootcamp-style training camp designed by controversial IBLP founder Bill Gothard. A short time after he returned, he met and married Anna Duggar.

Here's some precedent: Another TLC show, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, was cancelled over similar allegations; however, unlike the Duggar family, Honey Boo Boo's family is supportive of LGBTQ rights.

Travis Gettys at The Raw Story:

TLC has pulled the plug on its long-running reality show, “19 Kids and Counting,” over revelations that stars Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar covered up their son’s molestation of his sisters and other girls.

The network has canceled all airings of the program from its lineup, reported TMZ, after Josh Duggar – the eldest son of the 21-member evangelical Christian family – admitted this week to “inexcusable” actions 12 years ago, when he was a teenager.

[...]

It’s not clear whether TLC knew of the allegations against the Duggars until this week.

Sources told TMZ that no long-term decision had been made about the show, but a General Mills representative said it had removed “19 Kids and Counting” from the company’s advertising schedule.

TLC refused to comment on the incident Thursday, but the network sparked outrage later that evening when it ran a 19 Kids and Counting marathon. As of early Friday, the show had been scheduled to air on the morning of May 27, but it has since been taken off the schedule.

[...]

The move is no surprise considering that TLC canceled Here Comes Honey Boo Boo shortly after allegations surfaced about a romantic relationship between series matriarch June "Mama June" Shannon and a man convicted of child molestation.
On Friday, Shannon told TMZ that she is prepared to sue TLC if they do not act swiftly about 19 Kids and Counting, citing unfair and inconsistent treatment. Shannon claims she has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars since the sudden October 2014 cancelation of her series.

If it gets cancelled, it is a cause for celebration; however, like with what happened when A&E suspended Phil Robertson from Duck Dynasty temporarily back in December 2013, at least some of the Religious Right will be screaming mad over the show's cancellation by playing the usual victim card and falsely claiming "we're being persecuted for being [Conservative] Christians."

#CancelTheDuggars

Compare that to now, with reports that his son Josh did the same activities that he once said was "worthy of death." The family and its sycophants (Mike Huckabee, et al.,) have provided cover for his dangerous actions and doing a disservice to victims of his sexual abuse by saying "he made a mistake,""playing doctor," or any other excuse trotted out there.

Hemant Mehta at The Friendly Atheist:

When Jim Bob Duggar was running for U.S. Senate in 2002, his campaign website explained his positions on the issues.
Turns out he called for the death penalty for those who committed incest.
That’s gotta be awkward now that we know his son Josh Duggar molested five little girls, including four of his sisters, when he was a teenager.

Jim Bob’s platform on his campaign website—preserved via web cache—states that he believes “rape and incest represent heinous crimes and as such should be treated as capital crimes.” Jim Bob offered this belief to explain his position on abortion (only acceptable if both the mother and the baby were going to die anyway, of course).Jim Bob lost the Republican nomination for Senate to Arkansas’ incumbent Senator Tim Hutchinson. His son Josh remained very much alive and went on to molest several underage girls including some of his sisters from 2002-2003.

Photo via KSDK's Casey Nolen (@CaseyNolen) on a Cardinals fan supporting the team in spite of #CardsHackGate:

.@Cardinals fans flashing signs of support. #HackGatepic.twitter.com/C7arABl43a

— Casey Nolen KSDK (@CaseyNolen) June 16, 2015

Brian Feldt at St. Louis Business Journal on jail time possibility:

Allegations that unnamed St. Louis Cardinals officials hacked into the Houston Astros’ internal networks to compromise the work of Jeff Luhnow, the Astros’ general manager who had been a Cardinals executive until 2011, could result in hefty fines or even jail time, legal experts say. No charges have been filed.

Marc Edelman, a law professor and sports business scholar who specializes in sports law, said if the accusations are true, Cardinals officials violated state and federal law.

[...]
Following the federal investigation, the Cardinals could be subject to a Major League Baseball investigation.

The negative publicity could soil the reputation of one of the league’s premier teams; the Cardinals have been to the National League Championship Series nine times since 2000, and reportedly generate an annual operating income of more than $73 million.

The St. Louis Cardinals are being investigated by the FBI and the Justice Department for hacking into the Astros internal network to steal information on player personnel, a person involved in the investigation said. The Astros and MLB are aware and cooperating with the probe. The New York Times first reported that the Cardinals were the focus of the probe.

Investigators have uncovered evidence that Cardinals officials broke into a computer network of the Astros that housed special databases the team had built, according to law enforcement officials. Internal discussions about trades, proprietary statistics and scouting reports were compromised, the officials told the Times.

[...]

The Houston office of the FBI declined to comment on the investigation.

The Astros computer system, dubbed Ground Control, was featured in the Houston Chronicle last year. Shortly after the article appeared, the Astros said people were trying to get into the database because they could see a URL in a photo that accompanied the article. However, the site and link were also available via Google.

Also last year, Deadspin published leaked documents from the site. The Chronicle reported last June that the FBI was investigating the leaks.

The Times reported that agents found that the Astros’ network had been breached from a computer at a home that some Cardinals officials had lived in. The agents then turned their attention to the Cardinals’ front office.

Astros GM Jeff Luhnow worked for the Cardinals for nearly a decade and helped modernize St. Louis’ approach to using data-driven research and making data-driven decisions.

Luhnow left the Cardinals after the 2011 season to take over the reins of Houston and begin a rebuilding process with the Astros.

The Cardinals front-office executives who hacked into the Astros’ database are extremely dumb.
Jeff Luhnow and his Astros colleagues are pretty dumb.
All the people responsible for designing the Astros’ database, known as Ground Control, are way dumb.
Whoever decided to put hacked documents on Anonbin, making them accessible to anyone with an internet connection, is a dimwit.

The Justice Department is investigating St. Louis Cardinals’ administrative officials for reportedly hacking into data servers belonging to the Houston Astros to gather personnel data for players, the New York Times reported Tuesday.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations found evidence Cardinals officials penetrated an Astros’ database in 2014 that contained internal communications regarding player trades, scouting reports, and team statistics. The breach was allegedly an act of revenge against Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow, a former Cardinals executive until 2011. Some information from the hack surfaced online last year, namely trade talks Luhnow had with other teams, according to a Deadspin report.
“Major League Baseball has been aware of and has fully cooperated with the federal investigation into the illegal breach of the Astros’ baseball operations database,” MLB said in a statement Tuesday. “Once the investigative process has been completed by federal law enforcement officials, we will evaluate the next steps and will make decisions promptly.”
The case is considered the first known instance of corporate espionage involving professional sports and it becomes even more shocking considering the profile of the team involved — the Cardinals currently have the best record in baseball and a long history as one of the most successful and supported teams.

In honesty, the allegations are heartbreaking. We have so many challenges in #STL. The #Cardinals are one proud institution we have left.

— Nicholas J.C. Pistor (@nickpistor) June 16, 2015

As a life-long Cardinals fan, I feel sickened by this incident (along with the Darren Wilson supporters fiasco last year and the recent Fredbird #PoliceLivesMatter sign kerfuffle.). It is a massive dent into our fanbase's credibility, and if the MLB and DOJ's investigations of the allegations turn out to be true, then they should throw the book on those doing the wrongdoing.

The lead appropriator of Bonhoeffer is Religious Right activist Eric Metaxas.

Clifford Green at The Christian Century:

You have to read Eric Metaxas with bifocals. With the upper lens you read the Metaxas of the book, an engaging narrative by an experienced writer who presents Bonhoeffer as a Christian hero led by God to struggle against an evil regime and against his wayward church. With the lower lens you read the Metaxas revealed in numerous web interviews in which he gives his account of Bonhoeffer's "staggering" significance today.

Metaxas first read Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship at the time of his evangelical conversion some 20 years ago. Formerly a staff writer for Chuck Colson's BreakPoint, he appears frequently as a cultural commentator on Fox News and CNN. He founded and hosts Socrates in the City, a monthly event in New York featuring prominent speakers on "life, God, and other small topics." He presumably treats such topics in his trilogy of popular apologetics, the first being Everything You Always Wanted to Know About God (But Were Afraid to Ask). In 2007 he published Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery, which made the New York Times best-seller list and was the companion book to the film Amazing Grace.

[...]

But that is not Metaxas's approach: polarization is a structural motif of the whole narrative, because his mission is to reclaim the true Bonhoeffer from "liberals" who have "hijacked" the theologian. Consider the treatment of Bon­hoeffer's year at Union Theological Seminary in 1930-1931. It is true that Bonhoeffer was very critical of theology at Union as well as the preaching he heard in white churches like Riverside Church. What Metaxas highlights, however, is Bon­hoeffer's experience at Abyssinian Baptist Church, where, he implies, Bonhoeffer had a conversion experience and became a serious Christian. In volume 10 of the Bonhoeffer Works I present new evidence of Abyssinian's deep personal impact on Bonhoeffer. But that is to complement, not disparage, the decisive impact of Bonhoeffer's friends at Union Seminary.

[...]

Descending to insult, even insulting the subject of his own book, is a sure sign that an author is in trouble. Why does he do this? Ostensibly because the death-of-God theologians, those "liberals," have "hijacked" Bonhoeffer. But why whip a few writers who made a brief splash 40 years ago and who have had little or no influence on theology or the church? Because they function as straw men in his polarizing narrative about "orthodox Christians" and "liberals."His real target is liberals, and not just theological liberals, but political liberals too.

Kyle Mantyla at Right Wing Watch:

As we have noted before, the Religious Right today is absolutely convinced that the movement is a bunch of modern-day Dietrich Bonhoeffers, the German theologian who resisted the Nazis and was ultimately put to death, for taking a stand against marriage equality, abortion, health care reform, and President Obama.

It’s no secret that conservative Christians who oppose marriage equality are using increasingly hyperbolic language to describe their campaign against LGBT rights. But as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to rule on a landmark case involving same-sex marriage later this month, anti-LGBT Christians are issuing a call to arms by invoking an unlikely hero: Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a prominent German pastor and theologian who was famously murdered for participating in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler during World War II.

[...]

“Because of the trends and cultural shifts that we have witnessed in culture over the past 40 years, we have all known that this day would likely come and Christians would be put at odds with the culture and the courts,” [Rick] Scarborough reportedly said. “I believe we are there. We are approaching a Bonhoeffer moment in America.”

[...]
But just because Bonhoeffer is well-known doesn’t make the use of his name appropriate or accurate, and while anti-LGBT Christians might fancy themselves heirs to his stirring legacy, scholars and the theologian’s own writings paint an image of the late pastor that doesn’t quite line up with modern homophobic theology.

Bonhoeffer assisted in an attempt to assassinate Hitler (the subject of a recent film starring Tom Cruise), primarily because the infamous Führer was actively coopting Christian churches in Germany for his own needs, seizing whole sections of Europe using one of the most powerful militaries ever assembled, and waging one of the bloodiest wars in human history with the goal of establishing a new world order based on the supposed genetic supremacy of white Germans. This in addition to Hitler’s overseeing of the Holocaust, the systematic murder of millions of Jews, Romani people, Poles, communists, and yes, LGBT people as a part of his “Final Solution.”This genocide was enacted by requiring Jews and others to wear symbols acknowledging their “non-Aryan” status, siloing them into ghettos, shipping them off to concentration camps, forcing them into gas chambers, and performing perverse, horrific medical experiments on Jewish men, women, and even children.
[...]
In fact, Bonhoeffer, trained in the meticulous German style of theology, was unimpressed with the American religious landscape of his time: although he attended the historically progressive Union Seminary in New York City during the 1930s, he was deeply critical of the school’s left-leaning theology, acknowledging its various rejections of Christian fundamentalism were “healthy” but noting that students would get “carried away with the general collapse.” He was equally disapproving of fundamentalist theology and Scarborough’s own Southern Baptist denomination, however, accusing it of preaching “the crassest orthodoxy…an unrelenting harshness in holding on to one’s possessions, possessions either of this or of the other world.”
[...]
Christians who center their faith on anti-LGBT theology will likely continue invoking his name for their causes, but the claim that Bonhoeffer, who repeatedly railed against the blindness of “bourgeois” Christians, would consider their fight his own is dubious at best.

I could have as easily titled this post "The Egregious Eric Metaxas's misuse of Dietrich Bonhoeffer," because, make no mistake, Metaxas is egregious, and the cottage industry he has cultivated in selling right wing Christian self-righteousness under the banner of comparing their moral sclerosis to the genuine courage and moral risk taken by Dietrich Bonhoeffer is disgusting and offensive. And the fact that he has done it through a biographical hatchet job that has become successful by flattering the delusions of American evangelicals that they are embroiled in a struggle for the soul of America that is in some way equivalent to that of the German Confessing Church just piles offense on offense.

So, when I read that, once more, Metaxas is peddling evangelical victimology under the cover of Bonhoeffer, I am both unsurprised and appalled. His latest comes in the form of an interview on a conservative Christian radio show, where he states, while comparing the struggles of Bonhoeffer (who, as a reminder, was murdered by the Nazis for his involvement in a conspiracy against the Reich).

[...]
I should probably just end there, but it is worth noting a couple of the underlying problems in Metaxas's whole approach, particularly in this interview. First is his insistence that the dividing line between his evangelical cohort of followers and "liberal Christianity" is over this idea of "Biblical orthodoxy," which is of course another way of saying "Liberal Christians don't go out of their way to condemn homosexuality," a topic that occupies all of about five verses in the entire Bible. "Biblical orthodoxy" never seems to attend such issues as, for example, nonviolence, which was central to Jesus' teaching, or charging interest on loans (known in the Bible as usury, but known in the United States as "the engine of our economy").

But then again, evangelicals of the kind who like to be flattered by Metaxas's historical distortions aren't really all that concerned with war or economic injustice, both of which are much more central to the moral concerns of the Bible than any issues of "sexual orthodoxy." It's passing strange when your conception of what constitutes orthodoxy of any sort revolves around the isolated focus on such a minuscule aspect of the Biblical text. It's even stranger when your conception of orthodoxy focuses, not on questions of God's nature, Christ's incarnation, the nature of his sacrifice or the possibilities of salvation, but instead on one question that was culturally marginal at the time the Bible was written and has become crucial today only because a subset of the human family has decided that it would very much like to be treated as fully human thank-you-very-much. If that's orthdoxy, I'll take heresy any day of the week.

There are likely to be three things which have contributed to the phenomenon Mills describes. First, there is a subordination of doctrinal confession to aesthetics. Particularly in American evangelicalism, there is a tendency to treat doctrinal difference with chosen heroes as something to be ignored or wished away rather than addressed. Thus, C. S. Lewis and Dietrich Bonhoeffer have become American evangelicals as a result of posthumous virtual baptisms into the faith, the brash boldness of which would surely have made even Brigham Young blush.

Now, Lewis and Bonhoeffer both said nice things about Jesus. One wrote exceptionally well. The other died opposing Hitler. They were decent, admirable Christian fellows from whom we should all learn. But they were most definitely not conservative American evangelicals. That they have been made into such indicates how significant doctrinal differences have given way to a desire to recruit them to the chosen cause. It is a triumph of aesthetics and consumer taste over doctrinal confession.

Part one of his video rant on SCOTUS' decision, falsely declaring a "Christian Holocaust" will happen to scare his followers:

Him playing the "LGBT Pride Parades offend me" card:

Joshua Feuerstein’s recent video response to the Supreme Court decision has gone viral with over 1.6 million views on Facebook. In this video, Feuerstein insists that the landmark decision on gay marriage will usher in the Christian Holocaust where any Christian who speaks out against gay marriage will be herded into “Obama concentration camps.” But, this article is not about him. As self-serving as it may seem, this article is about my response to him. I had no choice. I absolutely had to do it.

The full unedited and raw version of Feuerstein's deulsional bigoted rant against SCOTUS's Obergefell v. Hodges decision

This is more proof that Feuerstein and his ilk are hateful imbeciles and not true Christians in any sense of the word.

Key rule, of which Varriale's violating:

No other flag should be placed above it. The flag of the United States is always the first flag raised and the last to be lowered.

Christian Flag Code
The Christian flag code states that the Christian flag should be placed either at floor level, outside the railing to the right of the congregation, or on the right side of the altar, pulpit or choir as they face the congregation. When displayed with the American flag, it should be on the same level, to the right of the American flag and dips only to the cross at the altar.

U.S. Flag Code
U.S. flag code unequivocally states that the American flag is always to be placed to the right or above any other flag. The only exception is for naval ships at sea that may fly the Christian flag above the American flag on the ship during onboard church services.

Two Baptist pastors in North Carolina’s Cleveland County have decided it would be a great idea to raise a “Christian flag” above the American flag. Who knew there was a “Christian flag?”

Yes, these are the same people who freak out if anyone looks cross-eyed at a US flag, and are throwing huge tantrums over taking down the Confederate battle flag from the South Carolina statehouse grounds.

[...]

And of course, the main impetus behind this bizarre idea is the Supreme Court’s ruling making same sex marriage legal throughout the US; the ruling that has apparently driven most of the religious right over the cliffs of insanity.

A North Carolina pastor is calling on churches across the United States to install flag poles so that they can fly the Christian flag above the American flag to protest same-sex marriage.

In a video posted to YouTube last week, Pastor Rit Varriale of Elizabeth Baptist Church in Shelby explained that his church had installed a flag pole so it could hold a “special ceremony” to raise the Christian flag above the American flag.

[...]

“We should be flying the Christian flag above the American flag as a demonstration that Christians will respect and obey the federal government up to the point that the government asks something that is inconsistent with what God has called His people to do,” he opined.

Varriale pointed to LGBT rights as proof that things in the country were “going wrong.”

Dear Dr. Rit Varriale, pastor of Elizabeth Baptist Church, Shelby, North Carolina, USA,
I am writing to you from a beautifully sunny London having just stumbled across your incredible blog, God Before Government, and, more specifically, the video you made last week explaining why your church would be flying the Christian flag above the US flag on Independence Weekend (which, as you know, goes against years of tradition). I was bowled over by your reasoning and your heartfelt explanation of the immense struggles faced by Christians in America today as a result of the Supreme Court's ruling on "gay" marriage, and I hope you don't mind me outlining some of my thoughts here.

[...]

P.P.S. Just FYI, there are many Christians who don't believe the same as you about the recent Supreme Court decision, rather they celebrate it. Shocking that some Christians might be celebrating love and joy and commitment, but there you go, the times they are a-changin'!

"If you stop and think about it, [flag etiquette] is inconsistent with what the Bible teaches us," Varriale said. "We are first and foremost Christians who are called to serve the living God."

[...]

The Sunday morning message was titled, "God Before Government," which also is the name of the church's newly launched website GodBeforeGovernment.org and Facebook page.

Varriale said he hopes other churches will join the public witness, including sending photos of their flag displays through the website or through Instagram via godbeforegovernment.

"If a church already has a flagpole, start flying the flags in that order. If they don't have a flagpole, go get one, and fly the flags in that order, so any person who drives by their church will see the Christian flag in the highest place and know they are driving by a church that has made the commitment to honor God before anything else."

From the 07.07.2015 edition of FNC's Fox and Friends:

Joel Currier at STLToday.com:

The flags in Dent County will not be lowered after all.

A day after county commissioners voted to lower the flags below half-staff to 'mourn' the same-sex marriage decision by the Supreme Court, it appears the three men have had a change of heart.

On Tuesday morning, Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles told The Salem News that today or Wednesday the commission would meet in special session to rescind the vote "out of respect for veterans and those currently serving in the military."

Commissioner Darrell Skiles tells Salem News he expects all three commission members will vote to cancel the order “out of respect for veterans and those currently serving in the military” in a special session held today or Wednesday.

Flags fly at half-staff to symbolize respect or mourning, such as after the deaths of soldiers. Dent’s decision to lower flags drew anger from people nationwide who felt it was disrespectful to compare disagreements over a Supreme Court ruling to the deaths of military servicemembers.

But Dent County officials didn’t just want their flags at half-staff. The order approved by the county commission Monday would lower U.S. and state flags to a level below half-staff once a month for a year in front of the buildings where same-sex couples apply for marriage licenses.

“May all who see these flags at this lowered position be reminded of this despicable Supreme Court travesty,” Skiles wrote in the proposal expected to be overturned later this week. “We feel sadness, shame, and outright revulsion of the U.S. high court’s stamp of approval of what God speaks of as an abomination.”

Looks like the bad publicity the County got is making them reconsider their ill-fated decision. #DentDiscriminateshttps://t.co/...

— Justin Gibson (@JGibsonDem) July 14, 2015

Dent County is voting to rescind flying flag at half mast due to "gay marriage" decision. #DentDiscriminateshttp://t.co/...

— PROMO Missouri (@PROMOMissouri) July 14, 2015

Just like that, Dent Co. Commission decides to rescind their order. Good. http://t.co/...#DentDiscriminateshttps://t.co/...

— Alexandra (@aliemalie) July 14, 2015

Hope Dent County (and any other place that tries this) faces mass boycotts/ protests. http://t.co/...#DentDiscriminates

— JPC on Tumblr (@JPCTumblr) July 13, 2015

Dent County, Missouri is today's WPITW!
#DentDiscriminates#BoycottDentCounty

— JPC on Tumblr (@JPCTumblr) July 13, 2015

Dent County reversing lowered flag decision "out of respect for veterans & those currently serving in the military."http://t.co/...

— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner) July 14, 2015

Best of all, @dominicholden got the actual Dent County, MO measure in full. It's hand-written. http://t.co/...pic.twitter.com/u3KftmkYF2

— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner) July 14, 2015

In Dent County, recognition of disrespect for veterans trumps hate for gays. The flag will stay flying: http://t.co/...

— Tony Messenger (@tonymess) July 14, 2015

In 2015, Dent County will fly their flag at half mast on the 26th of each month in "mourning" due to "gay marriage."#DentDiscriminates

— PROMO Missouri (@PROMOMissouri) July 13, 2015

Dear Dent County, here is when you should fly your flag at half mast. Take note. #DentDiscriminateshttp://t.co/...

— PROMO Missouri (@PROMOMissouri) July 13, 2015

The Dent County commissioners voted, unanimously, to observe a "year of mourning" over the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling.

— Moist Velvet (@Temporary_Yote) July 14, 2015

The out-of-context edited video by right-wing anti-choice front group The Center For Medical Progress.

The full version, still without any context.

The truth, from Planned Parenthood VP of Communications Eric Ferrero:

“In health care, patients sometimes want to donate tissue to scientific research that can help lead to medical breakthroughs, such as treatments and cures for serious diseases. Women at Planned Parenthood who have abortions are no different. At several of our health centers, we help patients who want to donate tissue for scientific research, and we do this just like every other high-quality health care provider does -- with full, appropriate consent from patients and under the highest ethical and legal standards. There is no financial benefit for tissue donation for either the patient or for Planned Parenthood.  In some instances, actual costs, such as the cost to transport tissue to leading research centers, are reimbursed, which is standard across the medical field.

“A well funded group established for the purpose of damaging Planned Parenthood’s mission and services has promoted a heavily edited, secretly recorded videotape that falsely portrays Planned Parenthood’s participation in tissue donation programs that support lifesaving scientific research.  Similar false accusations have been put forth by opponents of abortion services for decades. These groups have been widely discredited and their claims fall apart on closer examination, just as they do in this case.”

Planned Parenthood’s US headquarters has denied that an eight-minute undercover video shows the abortion provider’s medical director offering to sell fetal body parts to a tissue procurement company, as a pro-life group has claimed.

“In health care, patients sometimes want to donate tissue to scientific research that can help lead to medical breakthroughs, such as treatments and cures for serious diseases. Women at Planned Parenthood who have abortions are no different,” Planned Parenthood’s vice president for communications, Eric Ferrero, said in a statement.

“There is no financial benefit for tissue donation for either the patient or for Planned Parenthood,” the statement said. “In some instances, actual costs, such as the cost to transport tissue to leading research centers, are reimbursed, which is standard across the medical field.”

In the video, which was taken via hidden camera by activist group the Center for Medical Progress, Planned Parenthood’s national senior director of medical services Deborah Nucatola can be seen eating a meal and discussing fetal tissue donation using medical terminology.

The Center for Medical Progress claimed that the video was part of a three-year investigation into Planned Parenthood’s practice of selling aborted fetus parts and captured a conversation that took place in July 2014 in which Dr. Nucatola discussed how organs were preserved during the abortion process with an eye towards later sale.

[...]

It’s unclear why the video was held for over a year before it was released, and it has some curious aspects to it. For starters, it opens with a news report and footage of Planned Parenthood president Gloria Feldt condemning “inappropriate behavior,” presented in a manner that made Feldt’s statement seem like she was commenting on the current issue even though the quote was actually more than a decade old.

[...]

The controversy has also raised some questions about the nature of the Center for Medical Progress. The organization’s Twitter and Facebook accounts are both only a few months old, and the only videos found on the group’s YouTube page are the two shown above, even though the organization has supposedly been engaged in a three-year long investigation. The group’s web site is also no longer viewable as of this writing.

Well, there’s another bogus, heavily edited James O’Keefe-style propaganda video being frantically circulated all over the right wing media and blogs, attacking Planned Parenthood. Yes, again.

I’m not going to embed this deceptive video, but here’s a link to it at YouTube if you really think you need to see it. But the picture above shows the single most relevant and important part of it — this Planned Parenthood director was talking about standard tissue donations, the kind that are done every day throughout the medical profession. The “pro-life” groups circulating this bogus story are doing their best to portray this as something it’s not: selling body parts. They’re not selling body parts; this is a flat out lie.

When opponents resort to selective editing passing for fact, they prove own weakness.

#Choice#PlannedParenthoodhttps://t.co/...

— GottaLaff (@GottaLaff) July 14, 2015

Zack Ford hits it out of the park on this one:

Do these anti-Planned Parenthood campaigns actually move anybody, or just energize those who were already anti-choice?

— Zack Ford (@ZackFord) July 14, 2015

Tom Lutz at The Guardian:

Caitlyn Jenner highlighted the challenges transgender people experience as she accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPY Awards on Wednesday night.

She said that “the last few months have been a whirlwind” before laying out in stark terms the dangers many young trans people face. “They’re getting bullied, they’re getting beaten up, they’re getting murdered, they’re committing suicide,” said Jenner.

She added: “If you want to call me names … go ahead, I can take it. But for the thousands of kids out there coming to terms with who they are, they shouldn’t have to take it.”

Jenner said she hoped her story could change attitudes to trans people. “They deserve your respect and from that respect comes more empathetic communities,” she said.

[...]

Another notable member of US sports’ LGBT community, Abby Wambach, presented Jenner with her award. Wambach helped USA to victory in the Women’s World Cup earlier month, and her kiss with her wife after the game became one of the enduring images of the final. Before presenting the award, Wambach said Jenner had brought attention to “people who truly need it” and that her story could help make America “a model for a better world”.

Jenner called on the ESPYS' assembled audience and viewers to help bring awareness to trans issues. "My plea to you tonight is to join me in making this one of your issues as well," she said. "How do we start? We start with education."

In particular, Jenner focused on some of the disparities trans people face. And she's right: In many ways, trans people are much worse off than other Americans.

[...]

Families shun and even disown children over their gender identity and expression. Some people are denied jobs and homes because they don't conform to gender norms — which is legal for employers and landlords to do in 31 states. In social settings and media, trans people are commonly portrayed as purposely deceptive individuals and even sexual predators who want to trick or trap others into sleeping with them.

In Caitlyn Jenner’s first major public appearance since transitioning, the Olympic gold medalist who became a role model for a generation of athletes took the stage at ESPN’s annual awards Wednesday to assume the role yet again, only this time, for a different community.
Accepting the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, Jenner noted how she has repeatedly put herself in, and overcome, high-pressure challenges over the years.
“But this transition has been harder on me than anything I could have imagined,” she said. “For that reason alone, trans people deserve something vital, they deserve your respect.”
Jenner used the platform of her highly anticipated appearance at ESPN’s annual ESPY Awards to introduce herself as perhaps the most well-known and public advocate for greater acceptance of trans people since her big debut on the cover of Vanity Fair in June.

Caitlyn Jenner accepted the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYs on Wednesday, and used the spotlight to advocate for the trans community.

“The people out there wondering what if this all about, whether it’s about courage or controversy or publicity, … it’s not just about one person,” the Olympian said in her acceptance speech. “It’s about all of us accepting one another. We’re all different. That’s not a bad thing. That’s a good thing.”

Jenner, 65, was presented with her award by U.S. women’s soccer team star Abby Wambach, who shared statistics showing that transgender people experience bullying, assault, homelessness, and suicide at a higher rate than the general public. “Let’s talk about a way that we can make our country better,” Wambach said. “Let’s talk about an issue that not enough of us stand up for.”

[...]

She also called on athletes to use “the power of the spotlight” to help “reshape the landscape” for trans people by setting an example of respect and acceptance. “Sometimes it gets overwhelming, but with the attention comes responsibility,” Jenner said.

Jenner thanked her family; journalist Diane Sawyer who conducted her coming-out interview; and her mother Esther, whom she credited with teaching her courage and determination.

.@AbbyWambach introducing @Caitlyn_Jenner winning the Arthur Ashe Courage Award. #ESPYSpic.twitter.com/Mr5DAmcQSv

— Justin Gibson (@JGibsonDem) July 16, 2015

Video Introduction to Caitlyn Jenner winning the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, via @SDKSTL's Twitter:

Video intro to @Caitlyn_Jenner receiving the #ArthurAsheCourageAward@ESPYS (14 mins.) http://t.co/...

— Staci D Kramer (@sdkstl) July 16, 2015

Her entire speech, from the 2015 ESPYs on ABC:

Caitlyn Jenner showed the power of being yourself while accepting the @Cadillac Arthur Ashe Courage award. WATCH: http://t.co/...

— ESPN (@espn) July 16, 2015

Of course transphobic bigots aren't happy about her winning the award, but that's the main reason why she was deserving of winning the Arthur Ashe Courage Award (alongside Leah Still, Lauren Hill, and/or Stuart Scott).  

Leah Still, Caitlyn Jenner, Lauren Hill, and Stuart Scott = all heroes.
https://t.co/...#ESPYSpic.twitter.com/ZvoS2qMmUp

— Justin Gibson (@JGibsonDem) July 16, 2015

Allie Jones at Gawker:

The Associated Press reports that after many weeks of deliberation, TLC has finally decided to cancel 19 Kids and Counting. The show “will no longer appear on the air,” the network said. This decision comes after it was revealed in May that the eldest Duggar son, Josh, molested several underage girls when he was a teen—including four of his sisters.

[...]
So there will still be Duggars on the network. Rumor has it that even though 19 Kids and Counting is dead, Jessa and Jill are in talks to star in a spinoff show. As group president of TLC, Animal Planet, and Velocity Networks Marjorie Kaplan told the AP, “We spent the past month and a half in thoughtful consideration about what is the best way forward here.”

David Badash at The New Civil Rights Movement:

"19 Kids And Counting" has been cancelled. The reality TV show about Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar was suspended when news broke months ago that elder son Josh Duggar had sexually molested five young girls, several of them his own family members, when he was a teen.

TLC, the network that aired the hit show, told the AP that the show  "will no longer appear on the air."

TLC canceled 19 Kids and Counting, the show that chronicled the Duggar family, according to the Associated Press.

"After thoughtful consideration, TLC and the Duggar family have decided to not move forward with 19 Kids and Counting," the network said in a statement. "The show will no longer appear on the air."

The move comes after family member Josh Duggar admitted to molesting his sisters in 2002 and 2003. While the show lost support from other sources, including being pulled from Hulu, the network's only initial action was to stop airing the show, leaving its fate in jeopardy as it considered green-lighting a spin-off instead.

Duggar's admissions became headline news after InTouch Weekly published documents revealing he molested several young women, including his own sisters. He was 14 and 15 when the crimes happened. The patriarch of the family, Jim Bob Duggar, failed to report the abuses to the police until a year after Josh's confession.

TLC has decided to cancel its hit reality show "19 Kids and Counting" following accusations that star Josh Duggar molested underage girls, including his sisters, when he was a teenager.

The molestation accusations first surfaced back in May when tabloid magazine InTouch Weekly published a series of police reports that showed Josh Duggar, the eldest son of the ultra-conservative, Christian family featured in "19 Kids and Counting," was investigated in 2006 for allegedly fondling five underage girls years earlier, when he was 14 years old.

TLC pulled episodes of the Duggar family's reality show from the air a couple days after InTouch Weekly first reported the allegations. But the network waited more than a month and a half before deciding to pull the plug completely on its most-watched program despite increasing pressure from advertisers.

"It's no secret that '19 Kids and Counting' was a really, really hit show," Marjorie Kaplan, who oversees TLC for parent company Discovery Communications, told the Associated Press on Thursday. "But we have some other great shows, both on the air and in the pipeline."

While their reality show, which ran for 10 seasons, is just now coming to an end, the release of the police reports had an immediate negative effect on the Duggar family. Josh Duggar, now 27, resigned his position as the executive director of the anti-gay Family Research Council's lobbying arm immediately after admitting to vague "wrongdoing" in a Facebook post.

Feuerstein's video defends calling Caitlyn as her male name because "biology not bigotry."

A meme defaming Jenner (and Michael Sam) while praising Tim Tebow:

And a case can certainly be made, as well, for Galloway, on his own inspiring merits. But it’s simply not correct to criticize ESPN for relegating the veteran to “runner up” status to Jenner.

Josh Kurp at Uproxx:

A rant by the On Point with Tomi Lahren host, which is apparently a show on One America News, which is apparently a network, has gone viral, with the clip above gathering over one million views in a matter of days. It’s your typical, hateful “blah blah blah, Obama, blah blah blah, white racism” rigmarole, inspired by the recent shooting in Chattanooga, Tenn.

“Four United States Marines (and one sailor) are now dead,” Lahren said. “Climate change didn’t kill them, lack of a free community college didn’t kill them, the income gap, wage inequality — nope, not those things either. Gay marriage? Nope. White racism? Not that, either. So what did?”

“President Obama, if you won’t say it, I will — radical Islam,” she added. “This is not workplace violence; this is not a criminal act with motives unknown — this is terrorism.”

Lahren argued that most Muslims were terrorists or terrorist sympathizers.

“I’m sorry, but radical Islam is becoming the rule, not the exception,” she said. “Yesterday’s moderate is today’s terrorist.”

“I’ve had it with this failed strategy, this halfway, half-baked, tiptoe, be friendly to jihadis mentality pushed by this administration,” Lahren complained. “Be a leader, someone. They, the radical Islamists, have brought the fight right here to the red, white and blue, and it’s about time we bring it to them — full force.”

“Let’s show them what the United States of America looks like up close and personal — show them what a B-1 Bomber looks like flying overhead — show them what they’re messing with,” Lahren said. “Put the fear of God in their desert, because clearly our lack of strategy isn’t working.”

From the 07.17.2015 edition of One America News Network's On Point With Tomi Lahren:

Yesterday morning on Fox and Friends, Lahren told a much bigger TV audience the same fearmongering garbage spewed last week on One America News Network.

Priscilla at NewsHounds:

Today, Kilmeade informed us that a "TV News host's epic rant" has had a million views (all the rage on right wing websites) in less than a week. (Lots more to come, thanks to Fox News!) The banner reinforced the popularity: "Final Word, TV Host's Rant Against President Goes Viral." He played video done by Tomi Lahren, the  host of a show on an obscure, right wing cable network.  During the video, Lahren ranted about how the Chattanooga shooting was the work of "radical Islam" and how President Obama is ignoring it because he loves Muslims more than Americans. Kilmeade didn't play the part where she, like Kilmeade, says that most Muslims are terrorists. American flags provided the backdrop to her screed.

[...]

Although the FBI states that there is no proven connection between Chattanooga shooter Mohammed Abdulazeez and Islamic radicalism, Kilmeade claimed that Abdulazeez's background, diaries, and rants "clearly point to Islamic extremism." After crediting Tomi for "saying it," he asked why others aren't. In advancing Lahren's and Fox's anti-Obama sentiment, the banner quoted from her rant: "'Half-Way and Half-Baked, Anchor Slams President Obama's Policies." Lahren said that she watches Fox News and that when she heard about the shooting, "it made me mad as hell." Working in that requisite anti-Obama agitprop she asked "where is the leadership from the White House" and suggested that Obama isn't "standing in solidarity with our armed forces."

The title contenders will be Arsenal, Chelsea, and ManUtd, with Man City having an outside shot at it, and thus all four are likely favorites to go the Champions League.

The Europa League slots race could be any 1,2, and/or 3 of Liverpool, Tottenham, Crystal Palace, Everton, Southampton, Swansea, and West Ham United.

The relegation battle is looking like a very close battle between Sunderland, Aston Villa, Watford, Norwich City, Leicester City, and Newcastle. Any 3 of those 6 could be relegated.

This is the final season of the current rights deal for NBCSN/NBC to televise the league Stateside. Hope it stays there past this season.

Arsenal (my favorite club):
In- Petr Čech, Jeff Reine-Adélaïde, Yassin Fortune, Vlad Dragomir, Jordi Osei-Tutu
Out(transfer)- Abou Diaby (Marseille-FRA), Ryo Miyaichi (St. Pauli-GER), Semi Ajayi (Cardiff City), Jack Jebb, Austin Lipman, Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill (Swindon Town-ENG),  Josh Vickers, Lukas Poldolski (Galatasaray-TUR), George Dobson (West Ham-ENG)
On loan- Wojciech Szczęsny (Roma-ITA), Yaya Sanogo (Ajax-NED), Carl Jenkinson (West Ham-ENG), Ainsley Maitland-Niles (Ipswich Town-ENG)
Captain: Mikel Arteta (in practice either Mertesacker or Cazorla)
Key Players: Petr Čech, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Mesut Özil, Alexis Sánchez, Aaron Ramsey, Olivier Giroud, Santi Cazorla, Francis Coquelin
Emerging Stars to Watch: Héctor Bellerín (will see a ton of 1st team time), Chuba Akpom, Gedion Zelalem, Alex Iwobi, Gabriel Paulista (see Héctor Bellerín), Daniel Crowley, Jeff Reine-Adélaïde
X-Factors: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Theo Walcott, Nacho Monreal
Nicknames: The Gunners, Gooners

Chelsea:
In- Nathan, Asmir Begović, Danilo Pantić
Out(transfer)- Didier Drogba (Montreal Impact-USA/CAN), Thorgan Hazard, George Brady, Gaël Kakuta, Petr Čech (Arsenal-ENG), Josh McEachran, Filipe Luís
Loaned in- Radamel Falcao (Monaco-FRA)
Captain: John Terry
Key Players: Thibaut Courtois, Gary Cahill, John Terry, Cesc Fàbregas, Oscar, Eden Hazard, John Obi Mikel, Diego Costa, Willian, Nemanja Matić
Emerging Stars to Watch: Kurt Zouma, Ruben Loftus-Cheek
X-Factors: Loïc Rémy, Ramires
Nicknames: The Blues, The Pensioners

Crystal Palace:
In- Yohan Cabaye, Alex McCarthy
Out(transfer)- Shola Ameobi, Sonny Black,Michael Chambers, Shawniki Clement-Peter, Bradley Comins, Kyle De Silva, Stephen Dobbie, Mandela Egbo, Morgan Ferrier, Owen Garvan, Jahmal Howlett-Mundle, Elliott List, Kiye Martin, Lewis Price, Peter Ramage, Ghassimu Sow, Jerome Thomas
Loaned in- Patrick Bamford (Chelsea-ENG)
Captain: Mile Jedinak
Key Players: Wilfried Zaha, Yohan Cabaye, Julián Speroni, Paddy McCarthy, Damien Delaney, Joel Ward
Emerging Stars to Watch: Jake Gray
X-Factors: Mile Jedinak, Marouane Chamakh, Kwesi Appiah
Nicknames: Eagles

Everton:
In- Tom Cleverley, Gerard Deulofeu, David Henen
Out(transfer)- Sylvain Distin (Bournemouth-ENG), Antolín Alcaraz, George Green, Chris Long, John Lundstram, Curtis Langton, Ben McLaughlin, Arlen Birch, Charley Edge, George Newell
Captain: Phil Jagielka
Key Players: Phil Jagielka, Tim Howard, Gareth Barry, Kevin Mirallas, Romelu Lukaku, Arouna Koné, John Stones, Leon Osman, Gerard Deulofeu
Emerging Stars to Watch: Matthew Pennington, Courtney Duffus, David Henen
X-Factors: Séamus Coleman
Nicknames: The Toffees

Liverpool:
In- Joe Gomez, James Milner, Danny Ings, Ádám Bogdán, Roberto Firmino, Nathaniel Clyne, Christian Benteke
Out(transfer)- Brad Jones, Glen Johnson, Steven Gerrard (LA Galaxy-USA), Sebastián Coates, Iago Aspas, Javier Manquillo, Raheem Sterling
Captain: Jordan Henderson
Key Players: Simon Mignolet, Jordan Henderson, Kolo Touré, Dejan Lovren, Philippe Coutinho, Christian Benteke, Mamadou Sakho, James Milner, Mario Balotelli, Daniel Sturridge, Nathaniel Clyne
Emerging Stars to Watch: Danny Ings, Joe Gomez, Emre Can
X-Factors: Martin Škrtel
Nicknames: The Reds

Manchester City:
In- Raheem Sterling, Fabian Delph, Enes Ünal, David Faupala, Patrick Roberts
Out(transfer)- Dedryck Boyata, Matija Nastasić, Micah Richards, Scott Sinclair, Frank Lampard (NYCFC-USA), James Milner (Liverpool-ENG), Álvaro Negredo, John Guidetti, Karim Rekik, Adam Drury, Greg Leigh, Dominic Oduro, Joe Nuttall, Martin Samuelsen,
Jordy Hiwula
Captain: Vincent Kompany
Key Players: Sergio Agüero, Vincent Kompany, Joe Hart, Raheem Sterling, Samir Nasri, Edin Džeko, Yaya Touré, Gaël Clichy, David Silva, Fabian Delph
Emerging Stars to Watch:
X-Factors: Bacary Sagna, Wilfried Bony, Martín Demichelis
Nicknames: The Citizens, The Sky Blues

Manchester United:
In- Memphis Depay, Matteo Darmian, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Morgan Schneiderlin    England, Sergio Romero
Out(transfer)- Ben Amos, Tom Cleverley (Everton-ENG), Callum Evans, Saidy Janko, Ryan McConnell, Tom Thorpe, Ángelo Henríquez, Nani (Fenerbahçe-TUR), Robin van Persie (Fenerbahçe-TUR), Reece James
Captain: Wayne Rooney
Key Players: David de Gea, Wayne Rooney, Matteo Darmian, Morgan Schneiderlin, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Memphis Depay, Ander Herrera, Michael Carrick, Daley Blind, Juan Mata, Ashley Young
Emerging Stars to Watch: Adnan Januzaj, Tyler Blackett
X-Factors: Sergio Romero, Ángel Di María
Nicknames: The Red Devils

Southampton:
In- Juanmi, Cédric Soares, Cuco Martina, Jordy Clasie
Out(transfer)- Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool-ENG), Morgan Schneiderlin (Manchester United-ENG), Artur Boruc, Cody Cropper, Jos Hooiveld,Chris Johns, Omar Rowe, Jake Sinclair, Dani Osvaldo
Loaned in- Maarten Stekelenburg (Fulham-ENG)
Captain: Kelvin Davis/José Fonte
Key Players: Victor Wanyama, Ryan Bertrand, Dušan Tadić, Cédric Soares, Cuco Martina
Emerging Stars to Watch: Jordan Turnbull
X-Factors: Fraser Forster, José Fonte
Nicknames: The Saints

Swansea City:
In- André Ayew, Franck Tabanou, Kristoffer Nordfeldt    , Éder, Tom Holland, Oliver McBurnie
Out(transfer)- Tom Atyeo, David Cornell, Rory Donnelly, Corey Francis, Giancarlo Gallifuoco, Joseph Jones, Kurtis March, Curtis Obeng, Gareth Owen, Scott Tancock, Alan Tate, Gerhard Tremmel, Jazz Richards
Captain: Ashley Williams
Key Players:Łukasz Fabiański, Ki Sung-yueng, Ashley Williams, André Ayew, Gylfi Sigurðsson,    Jefferson Montero, Éder
Emerging Stars to Watch: Josh Sheehan, Ryan Hedges
X-Factors: Bafétimbi Gomis, Jordi Amat
Nicknames: The Swans, The Jacks

Tottenham Hotspur:
In- Kevin Wimmer, Kieran Trippier,Toby Alderweireld
Out(transfer)- Paulinho, Daniel Akindayini, Jordan Arche, Cristian Ceballos, Brad Friedel (Retired), Bongani Khumalo, Aaron McEneff, Alexander McQueen, Jonathan Miles, Lloyd Ross, Lewis Holtby. Étienne Capoue, Tomislav Gomelt, Younès Kaboul, Benjamin Stambouli
Captain: Hugo Lloris
Key Players: Hugo Lloris, Harry Kane, Jan Vertonghen, Kieran Trippier, Christian Eriksen, Roberto Soldado, Érik Lamela, Toby Alderweireld, Ryan Mason
Emerging Stars to Watch: DeAndre Yedlin, Ben Davies
X-Factors: Nacer Chadli, Vlad Chiricheș
Nicknames: Spurs, The Lilywhites

West Ham United:
In-    Stephen Hendrie, Kyle Knoyle, Darren Randolph, Pedro Obiang, Martin Samuelsen, Dimitri Payet, Angelo Ogbonna, George Dobson
Out(transfer)- Kieran Bailey, Carlton Cole, Guy Demel, Jussi Jääskeläinen, Sean Maguire, Paul McCallum,     Nenê, Dan Potts, Stewart Downing
Loaned in- Carl Jenkinson (Arsenal-ENG),Manuel Lanzini (Al Jazira-KSA)
Captain: Kevin Nolan
Key Players: Andy Carroll, Kevin Nolan, Winston Reid, Angelo Ogbonna, Mark Noble, Aaron Cresswell
Emerging Stars to Watch: Diego Poyet, Leo Chambers, Stephen Hendrie   
X-Factors: Adrián
Nicknames: The Irons, The Hammers

Teams:
Arsenal                    London (Holloway)         Emirates Stadium
Aston Villa                    Birmingham                 Villa Park
Bournemouth            Bournemouth                 Dean Court
Chelsea                    London (Fulham)                 Stamford Bridge
Crystal Palace            London (South Norwood)   Selhurst Park
Everton                    Liverpool                         Goodison Park
Leicester City            Leicester                         King Power Stadium
Liverpool                    Liverpool                         Anfield
Manchester City            Manchester                         Etihad Stadium
Manchester United      Manchester                         Old Trafford
Newcastle United            Newcastle upon Tyne         St James' Park
Norwich City            Norwich                         Carrow Road
Southampton          Southampton                 St Mary's Stadium
Stoke City                    Stoke-on-Trent                 Britannia Stadium
Sunderland                    Sunderland                         Stadium of Light
Swansea City            Swansea                         Liberty Stadium
Tottenham Hotspur     London (Tottenham)         White Hart Lane
Watford                    Watford                         Vicarage Road
West Bromwich Albion    West Bromwich                 The Hawthorns
West Ham United            London (Upton Park)         Boleyn Ground
Teams Promoted from Championship (2nd level).
UEFA
Europa League

Managers:
Arsenal-    Arsène Wenger
Aston Villa-    Tim Sherwood   
Bournemouth-    Eddie Howe   
Chelsea-    José Mourinho
Crystal Palace-    Alan Pardew
Everton-    Roberto Martínez
Leicester City-    Claudio Ranieri
Liverpool-    Brendan Rodgers   
Manchester City-    Manuel Pellegrini
Manchester United-    Louis van Gaal
Newcastle United-    Steve McClaren
Norwich City-    Alex Neil
Southampton-    Ronald Koeman
Stoke City-    Mark Hughes
Sunderland-    Dick Advocaat
Swansea City-    Garry Monk
Tottenham Hotspur-    Mauricio Pochettino
Watford-    Quique Flores
West Bromwich Albion-    Tony Pulis
West Ham United- Slaven Bilić