GOT ADVICE IF YOU WANT IT: The latest Ask Dr. Helen column is up.

IN THE MAIL: A Deeper Blue, by John Ringo. Ringo is a science fiction / fantasy writer, but this is more of a Tom Clancy-style techno-thriller.

5-YEAR-OLD BOY saves his friends.

JIHADI TRANSVESTITE BUSTED IN ISLAMABAD. “Just look at this guy, a typical blowhard inciting his followers to martyrdom, who cross dresses and tries to sneak out the alley, leaving his followers to their doom.”

ONE OF THE RAPS ON THE UNITED STATES is that we’re nicer to our enemies than to our allies. Sadly, there’s a lot of truth to it, and it’s one reason our foreign policy efforts aren’t as successful as they should be.

Now it seems that we’re doing it again, with Colombia and free trade. It’s almost as if we’d rather have them selling cocaine and supporting terrorists than functioning as a democracy. More on the subject here and here. The incompetence and venality of America’s political class surprises even those of us who are paying attention.,

UPDATE: Various readers think I’m lax in not stressing that the Democrats are behind this. Okay. But Bush is letting them get away with it: “The Beltway’s favorite theme these days is the decline of the Bush Administration, but the trade story is about Democratic protectionism and a political double-cross. The President and business community should stop taking punches and start warning about the damage that the Levin-Pelosi Democrats are doing to the economy and to America’s image in the world.”

DON’T TELL THE BRITISH ABOUT THE E.U. TREATY: It’ll be harder to get support if they know what they’re supporting!

HELP FOR ABUSED MEN.

MICKEY KAUS: “When Villaraigosa announced his marital trouble last month, the hapless LAT, in its traditional life-draining thumbsucker, listed Gary Hart as one of the politicians who emerged from personal scandal “with their careers largely intact, or enhanced.” I’m sure ex-Sen. Hart, now a prestigious HuffPo blogger, will be happy to learn this. …”

Personally, I’d rather be a prestigious blogger than President! Hart may or may not agree, though.

BRENDAN LOY LOOKS AT office politics at the National Hurricane Center.

SEVERE WEATHER CAUSES EVACUATION ON THE MALL:

Fourth of July crowds have been evacuated from the National Mall until severe storms pass through the area, according to Rob Lachance, of the U.S. Park Police.

The West Front of the U.S. Capitol also was evacuated due to inclement weather. . . .

Crowds were moved to nearby museums, which will provide shelter. Smithsonian buildings and the Commerce Department are opening up for people to use as shelter.

Reader Scott Barber sends a firsthand report and this photo:

This picture shows the crowd in DC waiting for the Patriotic 4th concert in DC in the parking garage of the Rayburn Building.

I and my family had been waiting next to the security entrance for the West Lawn since about 1 pm. At about 5, when we were supposed to be able to enter, the police made us move away from the entrance because of the inclement weather. They eventually hearded most of us to the parking garage of the Rayburn building, where the picture was taken.

The Capital Police have done a great job moving the crowd and in keeping us informed – very friendly and professional. The crowd is in a good mood – applauding the latest announcement from the police about the weather moving through quickly.

Now, some might think waiting for several hours and then for another hour or so in the garage of an office building for a Tony Danza payoff might be a little much – but my fellow Americans seemed to be determined to stick it out in surprisingly good spirits. That strikes me as being pretty neat.

Indeed.

HEADLINE OF THE YEAR: “I KICKED BURNING TERRORIST SO HARD IN BALLS THAT I TORE A TENDON.”

Maybe the decade.

A LESSON ON AMERICA FOR OLIVER STONE: But if Stone takes it to heart, his career as he has known it is over.

CAT STEVENS MAKES A COMEBACK, with help from Al Gore.

Plus, Tony Danza and Michael Jackson.

UPDATE: Roger Simon thinks Gore has his priorities wrong.

HANNIBAL CHOATE: Hero of the Fourth! Well, a quick thinker, anyway.

CHARGES OF hypocrisy on the Libby decision. There’s plenty of that to go around.

CAL THOMAS AND CAIR.

JOYCE LEE MALCOLM remembers the Framers: “It’s easy now, in a nation awash with complaints about what our Founders did not do, what imperfect humans they seem to 21st century eyes, to overlook how startlingly bold their views and actions were in their own day and are, in fact, even today. Who else in 1776 declared, let alone thought it a self-evident truth, that all men were created equal, entitled to inalienable rights, or to any rights at all? How few declare these views today or, glibly declaring them, really intend to treat their countrymen or others as equal, entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?”

VIDEO: Christopher Hitchens on American independence.

WIRED: Did the National Press Club cave to Hugo Chavez? “If you set aside the horrible precedent of canceling the event on short notice after being contacted by a representative of a foreign government, the club’s explanation almost makes sense. . . . But not really.”

JAMES PETHOKOUKIS on Bin Laden’s vision of globalization vs. the West’s:

Don’t forget that the 9/11 attacks were, to a great extent, the start of a war on globalization, as symbolized by the World Trade Center. “The towers are economic power,” Osama bin Laden said in an October 2001 interview. It’s globalization—the worldwide spread of people, capital, products, brands, and ideas—that’s the real threat to the terrorists. . . .

So, who’s winning the race, us or them? One way to answer that is to examine how the global economy is doing in the post-9/11 era? The answer: It’s booming. World economic growth has averaged right around 5 percent since 2002, and it looks to be right on track again this year. In a way, this is the strongest global economy in history.

So far, so good.

UPDATE: Cal Thomas and CAIR.

ARNOLD KLING HAS thoughts on trust. “My idea of a high-trust society differs from that of many elites. Elitist journalists think that a high-trust society is one where we trust the mainstream media. Elitist politicians and activists think that a high-trust society is one where we trust legislators, regulators, and experts to exercise broad authority. In contrast, I believe that a high-trust society is one in which processes ensure that elites are subject to checks and accountability. It is particularly important for legislators, regulators, and experts to have their authority limited and their accountability assured.”

IN THE MAIL: James Michael Hiatt’s The Earth Mosaic.

ON INDEPENDENCE DAY, here’s a collection of ways to help American troops overseas.

A FUEL-CELL-POWERED AIRPLANE on a five-hour flight.

UPDATE: Related story here.

MICKEY KAUS: “Looks like eccentric lone blogger Luke Ford was more trustworthy than L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.”