“JUST?” Suzanne Venker: Most men just want a woman who’s nice. “A lot of women think they’re nice because they act nice. But acting nice and being nice are two different things.”

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, THE FDA MANAGES TO SLOW DOWN LOTS OF BENEFICIAL DRUGS, TOO: About a third of FDA-approved drugs go on to have major safety issues.

THE AUDACITY OF HYPOCRISY: Maxine Waters Thinks It Would’ve Been Fine for Hillary to Fire Comey, But Doesn’t Support Trump Firing Him.

I had to read that headline twice.

WELL, ANDREW MCCABE HAS CLOSE TIES TO THE DEMOCRATS, SO I SUPPOSE HE’S PRESUMPTIVELY NONPARTISAN: Five takeaways from FBI Director Andrew McCabe’s testimony on Comey, Trump, Russia.

Related: Acting FBI Director McCabe just passed on nuking Donald Trump at Senate oversight hearing.

PAST PERFORMANCE IS NO GUARANTEE OF FUTURE RESULTS:

Say, we’ve seen a similar pivot before, haven’t we?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5p-qIq32m8

Not even Tony Hawk can perform 180s like the left — but then, they’ve had over three quarters of a century of practice to perfect their signature move.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: 5 Gynos Share The Sex Tips That Have Changed Their Patients’ Lives.

CLASSY EXIT: James Comey’s farewell letter to the FBI.

THIS SEEMS LIKE A PLUS FOR E-CIGARETTES: More than half of UK vapers have quit smoking.

IT HAPPENED AGAIN: ‘The View’ Didn’t Expect This Reaction From The Audience To Comey’s Firing.

The ladies on “The View” clearly didn’t expect their audience to cheer as they announced Wednesday on their show that President Donald Trump had fired FBI Director James Comey.

“I’m sure you all have heard, but FBI Director James Comey’s been fired,” Whoopi Goldberg announced to the audience who could be heard cheering.

I think it was Jim Treacher who noted yesterday that Stephen Colbert was shocked when his audience reacted exactly the way he’d spent the last six months training them to react.

IT’S DIFFERENT WHEN THEY DO IT:

OOPS: Study identifies common sweetener as a marker for weight gain.

FASTER, PLEASE: U.S. Military to Move ‘Very Quickly’ in Arming Syrian Kurds Despite Turkish Opposition.

HOSTILE HOSTEL IN BERLIN: North Korea’s embassy in Germany rents out space to a money-making hostel. The German government says it is a North Korean business subject to economic sanctions and is shutting it down.

The move is in line with UN sanctions aimed at curbing Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons capability.

German media say City Hostel Berlin is run by a Turkish hotelier who pays more than €38,000 (£32,000; $41,000) a month in rent to North Korea.

The embassy also derives income from a conference hall at the site.

CHRISTIAN TOTO: 4 Times Liberals Called Fellow Liberals Racist (Or Worse). “Being woke is no longer a defense for liberal stars and starlets.”

When the standard is outrage, nothing is outrageous enough.

OBVIOUSLY WE NEED A GOVERNMENT SUBSIDY PROGRAM: Feminist Web Site Endangered by Systemic Oppression and a Lack of Cash. But mainly, it’s the lack of cash.

NOISY KNEES as predictors of arthritis.

BARREL, SCRAPED: Dem Senator Uses Info From Conspiracy Blogs To Draw Trump-Russia Connections.

Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey uses conspiracy theory-laden blogs as sources for information on alleged Trump-Russia connections, according to a top aide in his office.

“In fact, subpoenas have now been issued in Northern Virginia in regard to General Flynn and General Flynn’s associates. A grand jury has been empaneled up in New York,” the Massachusetts Democrat said in a Wednesday CNN interview.

One of Markey’s top aides told The Daily Caller that his sources were Louise Mensch’s blog and a left-wing blog called the Palmer Report. Markey did not mention these sources in his television appearance.

A spokeswoman later released a statement that said: “This morning Senator Markey erroneously reported that a grand jury has been empaneled in New York related to the wider inquiry of possible Trump campaign and administration ties to Russia. Senator Markey does not have direct intelligence that is the case, and the information he was provided during a briefing is not substantiated. Subpoenas have been issued in Eastern Virginia, but Senator Markey apologizes for the confusion.”

That’s the kind of confusion one usually sows with a purpose.

UM, NO: Violence and unrest are tearing Venezuela apart.

Violence and unrest are the reaction to years of socialist misrule, which has been tearing Venezuela apart.

“KIND OF A WARNING”: China Says it Successfully Tests New Type of Missile.

The Chinese weapon tested was likely a DF-26 intermediate range missile being developed to sink warships, including U.S. aircraft carriers, said Song Zhongping, an expert on military affairs and commentator for Hong Kong’s Phoenix TV. The Bohai Gulf is the preferred location for such tests because it is Chinese territorial waters, Song said.

However, while the DF-26 could be useful against THAAD, China also has several other missiles that are up to the task, he said.

“It hasn’t much to do with THAAD directly, but it is a kind of warning” to South Korea and the U.S., Song said.

If South Korea’s liberal new president had hoped his election would bring moderation from Beijing or Pyongyang, he might want to reassess.

ACADEMIA: Duke Professor Faces Disciplinary Action for Calling Diversity Training a Waste.

There’s no discourse in here, gentlemen — this is a diversity seminar!

I HAD HIM IN TWO CLASSES. HE WAS AN EXCELLENT STUDENT AND A GREAT ROLE MODEL FOR OTHERS: At 73, Tom Winston finishes law school and encourages others to keep learning.

OH, CANADA: Magazine editor quits after outrage over column saying he doesn’t believe in cultural appropriation.

Hal Niedzviecki, editor of Write — a publication for the union’s members — published an opinion piece in the spring 2017 issue titled “Writer’s Prompt.” In the article, in an issue dedicated to indigenous writing, Niedzviecki wrote: “In my opinion, anyone, anywhere, should be encouraged to imagine other peoples, other cultures, other identities.

“I’d go so far as to say there should even be an award for doing so — the Appropriation Prize for best book by an author who writes about people who aren’t even remotely like her or him.”

He went on to argue that Canadian literature remains “exhaustingly white and middle class” because writers are discouraged from writing about people and places they don’t know.

A sociological term, cultural appropriation is used to describe the adoption of elements or practices of one cultural group by members of another.

On Wednesday, the Writer’s Union of Canada issued an apology for the piece, announcing Niedzviecki’s resignation and pledging to review the magazine’s policies.

“The Writer’s Prompt piece offended and hurt readers, contributors to the magazine and members of the editorial board,” said the statement. “We apologize unequivocally. We are in the process of contacting all contributors individually.

The left always eats its own.

(Hat tip, Will Collier.)

AND THE GLUT GOES ON: OPEC sees much higher oil supply from rivals in 2017.

OPEC on Thursday raised its forecast for oil supplies from non-member countries in 2017 as higher prices – partly as a result of OPEC supply cuts – encourage U.S. shale drillers to pump more, reducing demand for OPEC’s oil this year.

In a monthly report, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries revised up its estimate of oil supply growth from producers outside the group this year to 950,000 barrels per day (bpd), up from a previous forecast of 580,000 bpd.

That’s a huge increase — have you hugged a fracker today?