SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 8:56 P.M. ET: 

CHRIS'S SHIP FOUND?  – From London's Daily Mail:  "The ship that led Christopher Columbus' mission to discover America has been found after 500 years, it has been claimed.  A recent expedition has left experts 'confident' a wreck found off the north coast of Haiti is the the Santa Maria.  The 58foot ship was the flagship of the expectation, but its final whereabouts have never been known - until now.   The wreck was found off the north coast of Haiti during an expedition led by Barry Clifford, an explorer most famously known for his discovery of a complete pirate ship."  Today it's politically incorrect to admire Columbus, so I'll be curious to see how the discovery, if proved valid, is handled by the press and historians. 

NOW WE KNOW – We now have a definitive answer to why there is such widespread use of torture in the world.  Amnesty International, a great racket posing as a "human rights" group, gives us the unvarnished truth.  From AFP:  "(AFP) — Torture is rampant across the world and has become almost normalized by the 'war on terror' and its glamorous portrayal in shows such as '24' and 'Homeland,' Amnesty International said on Tuesday.  'It’s almost become normalized, it’s become routine,' Amnesty secretary general Salil Shetty told reporters at the launch of the 'Stop Torture' campaign in London.  'Since the so-called war against terrorism, the use of torture, particularly in the United States and their sphere of influence… has got so much more normalized as part of national security expectations.'"  Absolutely despicable.  So it's American television, is it?  Yeah, I'll bet that, all over the world, people yearn for torture after seeing "Homeland."  I doubt if Salil will blame his own co-culturalists.

NOT GOOD – From The Hill:  "Democrats in three top southern Senate races are holding their own — and even running ahead in a few cases — against Republicans in a new poll out Monday.   A new series of NBC News/Marist polls show Democrats in Arkansas, Kentucky and Georgia are running even or ahead of their GOP opponents.  In the three red states, President Obama’s low approval rating is still troubling for Democrats who fear he could be a drag down-ballot. And while ObamaCare isn’t popular in any of the three states, Democrats appear to be weathering GOP attacks focused on the law.  In Arkansas, Sen. Mark Pryor (D) holds an 11-point lead over his GOP opponent, Rep. Tom Cotton, taking 51 percent support among registered voters to Cotton’s 40 percent support. Most surveys have shown a tighter race, but this is the third poll since the start of April to show Pryor, long considered one of the cycle’s most vulnerable incumbents, ahead of Cotton by double digits."  We should note that polls of "registered" voters, as opposed to "likely" voters, tend to tilt Democratic, as a greater percentage of Democratic registered voters don't actually vote.  But I'm concerned at these polls.  Tom Cotton is about the best candidate out there.  He should be doing better, and I expect that he will.

HUH? – From the Moscow Times:  "The youngest son of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, has been appointed head of legal affairs at Ukraine's largest private gas producer — a move he said would benefit Ukrainians and the country's economy.  In a statement published Monday on its website, Burisma Holdings announced Hunter Biden would join its board of directors and head the company's legal unit.  'As a new member of the board, I believe that my assistance in consulting the company on matters of transparency, corporate governance and responsibility, international expansion and other priorities will contribute to the economy and benefit the people of Ukraine,' Hunter Biden said in the statement."  I'm sure he was picked because he had strong extracurricular activities in law school.

May 13, 2014