I won't be posting much at all 'til Monday now. I'm taking the day off to put a new floor in my family/kitchen area. I will post some pics of the before and after, provided the after turns out as well as expected.
Until then, please hit up the bloggers on the sidebar there, especially the fine members of the 101st Fighting Keyboardists.
The Web Recon as well as a follow-up to Deep Change will appear on Monday. Until then...
Scouts Out!
September 29, 2006
September 28, 2006
Lack of Intelligence in Those Who Cover It
By Jack Kelly
Jewish World Review
The Senate Democratic Policy Committee held a "hearing" last Monday to permit retired military officers to bash Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld before news cameras.
The witnesses were retired Major Generals John Batiste, who commanded the 1st Infantry Division in Iraq, and Paul Eaton, the who was responsible for training Iraqi security forces; and retired Marine Col. Thomas Hammes, an expert on counterinsurgency warfare.
"Donald Rumsfeld is not a competent wartime leader," Gen. Batiste said. "He surrounds himself with like-minded and compliant subordinates who do not grasp the importance of the principles of war, the complexities of Iraq, or the human dimension of war."
The Democrats in attendance applauded that and similar statements. But they turned a deaf ear when their expert witnesses told them a pullout from Iraq would lead to disaster.
"The result will be a civil war of some magnitude that will turn into a regional mess," Gen. Batiste said in response to a question from Sen. Hillary Clinton. He and the other witnesses said the number of U.S. troops in Iraq should be increased, and that we should be prepared to stay for a long haul.
I took the quotes above from the balanced account of the hearing by the Washington Post's Dana Milbank. But while Mr. Milbank deserves praise, his colleagues at the Post, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times who did stories last Sunday on a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) issued in April deserve a horsewhipping.
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
The Senate Democratic Policy Committee held a "hearing" last Monday to permit retired military officers to bash Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld before news cameras.
The witnesses were retired Major Generals John Batiste, who commanded the 1st Infantry Division in Iraq, and Paul Eaton, the who was responsible for training Iraqi security forces; and retired Marine Col. Thomas Hammes, an expert on counterinsurgency warfare.
"Donald Rumsfeld is not a competent wartime leader," Gen. Batiste said. "He surrounds himself with like-minded and compliant subordinates who do not grasp the importance of the principles of war, the complexities of Iraq, or the human dimension of war."
The Democrats in attendance applauded that and similar statements. But they turned a deaf ear when their expert witnesses told them a pullout from Iraq would lead to disaster.
"The result will be a civil war of some magnitude that will turn into a regional mess," Gen. Batiste said in response to a question from Sen. Hillary Clinton. He and the other witnesses said the number of U.S. troops in Iraq should be increased, and that we should be prepared to stay for a long haul.
I took the quotes above from the balanced account of the hearing by the Washington Post's Dana Milbank. But while Mr. Milbank deserves praise, his colleagues at the Post, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times who did stories last Sunday on a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) issued in April deserve a horsewhipping.
Read the Rest...
A War We Have to Win
By Jeff Jacoby
Jewish World Review
The consensus in the intelligence community is that the war in Iraq has worsened the threat from radical Islamic violence and hurt US efforts to combat terrorism. So, at any rate, say The New York Times ("Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Worsens Terrorism Threat") and The Washington Post ("Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Hurting US Terror Fight"), which reported on the most recent National Intelligence Estimate in front-page stories on Sunday. Is it true?
The NIE was a classified document until Tuesday, when President Bush declassified some of its findings. The Times and Post stories were written, it appears, by reporters who hadn't read the document they were characterizing. The papers' headlines were unequivocal, but the stories themselves never actually quoted the NIE. They merely passed along the spin — and advanced the antiwar agenda — of the anonymous sources who chose this moment to leak secret intelligence for political purposes.
Has the Iraq war undermined efforts to defeat the jihadis? Maybe, but the Times and Post stories don't come close to making that case. They claim that new terrorists are being enlisted at a growing rate and that America's presence in Iraq has become a major terrorist recruitment tool. Well, yes: If you go to war against fanatics in Iraq, the fanatics will point to Iraq as a reason for their war. That hardly adds up to a weakened campaign against al-Qaeda and its accomplices. D-Day and the battle of Midway triggered some of the most ferocious fighting of World War II and resulted in tens of thousands of additional Allied casualties. But would anyone say that they undermined the drive to defeat Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan?
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
The consensus in the intelligence community is that the war in Iraq has worsened the threat from radical Islamic violence and hurt US efforts to combat terrorism. So, at any rate, say The New York Times ("Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Worsens Terrorism Threat") and The Washington Post ("Spy Agencies Say Iraq War Hurting US Terror Fight"), which reported on the most recent National Intelligence Estimate in front-page stories on Sunday. Is it true?
The NIE was a classified document until Tuesday, when President Bush declassified some of its findings. The Times and Post stories were written, it appears, by reporters who hadn't read the document they were characterizing. The papers' headlines were unequivocal, but the stories themselves never actually quoted the NIE. They merely passed along the spin — and advanced the antiwar agenda — of the anonymous sources who chose this moment to leak secret intelligence for political purposes.
Has the Iraq war undermined efforts to defeat the jihadis? Maybe, but the Times and Post stories don't come close to making that case. They claim that new terrorists are being enlisted at a growing rate and that America's presence in Iraq has become a major terrorist recruitment tool. Well, yes: If you go to war against fanatics in Iraq, the fanatics will point to Iraq as a reason for their war. That hardly adds up to a weakened campaign against al-Qaeda and its accomplices. D-Day and the battle of Midway triggered some of the most ferocious fighting of World War II and resulted in tens of thousands of additional Allied casualties. But would anyone say that they undermined the drive to defeat Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan?
Read the Rest...
Time to Step Forward
By Robert Stacy McCain
FrontPageMagazine.com
[The following is a speech delivered to Tufts Republicans, at Tufts University, Medford, Mass.]
The war is going badly. There has been a series of embarrassing defeats. The people are discouraged. The commander-in-chief is widely ridiculed. George is very unpopular.
But the war is not in Iraq. And the unpopular commander-in-chief is not George Bush.
It’s not 2006, it’s 1776, and George Washington’s army is falling apart.
Defeated in New York, Washington’s army had suffered heavy casualties and had been forced to retreat, all the way across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania, hoping to defend the American capital at Philadelphia.
When that war started, some people expected an easy victory, and so most of Washington’s army had only enlisted for a few months. There came a day, Dec. 31, 1776, when these enlistments were set to end.
The British army was on the other side of the Delaware River, and Washington wanted to fight them, but half his army was about to go home.
So, one snowy day in December 1776, a New England regiment was called out into formation. The historian records that some of those men didn’t even have shoes. Uniforms? They were dressed in dirty rags. They were sick and hungry, and they were cold.
Read the Rest...
FrontPageMagazine.com
[The following is a speech delivered to Tufts Republicans, at Tufts University, Medford, Mass.]
The war is going badly. There has been a series of embarrassing defeats. The people are discouraged. The commander-in-chief is widely ridiculed. George is very unpopular.
But the war is not in Iraq. And the unpopular commander-in-chief is not George Bush.
It’s not 2006, it’s 1776, and George Washington’s army is falling apart.
Defeated in New York, Washington’s army had suffered heavy casualties and had been forced to retreat, all the way across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania, hoping to defend the American capital at Philadelphia.
When that war started, some people expected an easy victory, and so most of Washington’s army had only enlisted for a few months. There came a day, Dec. 31, 1776, when these enlistments were set to end.
The British army was on the other side of the Delaware River, and Washington wanted to fight them, but half his army was about to go home.
So, one snowy day in December 1776, a New England regiment was called out into formation. The historian records that some of those men didn’t even have shoes. Uniforms? They were dressed in dirty rags. They were sick and hungry, and they were cold.
Read the Rest...
Let's Dare Call It Treason
By Michael Reagan
FrontPageMagazine.com
Benedict Arnold was a war hero whose courageous actions at the Battle of Saratoga helped turn the tide for the colonists in the American Revolution, so it is not fair to him to compare him to the sniveling nest of traitors now endangering our national security in the name of cheap partisan politics.
They are not Benedict Arnolds - they are in a class all by themselves – political and journalistic hacks willing to do anything to win an election and oust an administration they loathe even if by so doing they endanger the safety of their fellow Americans.
Time after time, for months on end, we have watched the spectacle of government officials in the intelligence agencies violate their oaths by leaking the most sensitive secrets to dedicated anti-American newspapers such as the treasonous New York Times.
Vital anti-terrorism operations designed to monitor communications between terrorists overseas and their agents in the United States or track the international movement of funds meant to finance terrorist activities have been compromised, if not rendered useless, by leaks to the Times and The Washington Post.
Both newspapers loathe the Bush administration and the Republican Party, and both have wallowed in self-congratulation for their coups against the security of the American people, delighted to be inflicting harm on the president and his attempts to safeguard the American people if it will help turn the Congress over to their Democrat allies.
They are being enabled by what amount to moles lurking in the CIA and other intelligence agencies, who ignore the fact that they are committing real crimes by betraying their oaths for the most sordid of political purposes.
Read the Rest...
FrontPageMagazine.com
Benedict Arnold was a war hero whose courageous actions at the Battle of Saratoga helped turn the tide for the colonists in the American Revolution, so it is not fair to him to compare him to the sniveling nest of traitors now endangering our national security in the name of cheap partisan politics.
They are not Benedict Arnolds - they are in a class all by themselves – political and journalistic hacks willing to do anything to win an election and oust an administration they loathe even if by so doing they endanger the safety of their fellow Americans.
Time after time, for months on end, we have watched the spectacle of government officials in the intelligence agencies violate their oaths by leaking the most sensitive secrets to dedicated anti-American newspapers such as the treasonous New York Times.
Vital anti-terrorism operations designed to monitor communications between terrorists overseas and their agents in the United States or track the international movement of funds meant to finance terrorist activities have been compromised, if not rendered useless, by leaks to the Times and The Washington Post.
Both newspapers loathe the Bush administration and the Republican Party, and both have wallowed in self-congratulation for their coups against the security of the American people, delighted to be inflicting harm on the president and his attempts to safeguard the American people if it will help turn the Congress over to their Democrat allies.
They are being enabled by what amount to moles lurking in the CIA and other intelligence agencies, who ignore the fact that they are committing real crimes by betraying their oaths for the most sordid of political purposes.
Read the Rest...
Web Reconnaissance for 09/28/2006
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention.
Hugh Hewitt writes What Democrats Really Believe “Kathryn Jean Lopez points to this amazing roll-call vote on the military tribunals for terrorists bill: Only 34 Democrats in the House voted to bring these killers to justice in this fashion. 160 Democrats voted against the bill. K-Lo notes that Democrats Sherrod Brown and Harold Ford were among the 34 --and that they are running for Senate, and have the eyes of the voters upon them.
But let's be clear: No serious observor of politcs believes that Brown and Ford would do other than revert to form if elected to the Senate. They have records of Pelosi-like fealty to the hard left policies of their party, and election year manuevers can't obscure that reality.” (READ MORE)
Cassandra writes Deconstructing the NIE “Regarding the lamestream media's latest orgiastic fetish, the recently leaked Dance of the Veils also known as the NIE, Robert Kagan notes the unwisdom of relying on partial leaks of reports we can't see, from anonymous sources who refuse to be identified (but whose credibility and motives we must not question, though they've violated the terms of their employment - and the law - by disclosing classified information to people who have no business knowing it):” (READ MORE)
Charlie Munn of OPFOR writes I Have Returned... Now Relax! “…Now that I’ve got the awkward introduction over with, I want everyone to take a deep breath and relax –the country’s doing fine. What do I mean? My troops and I sit in the chow hall in the morning after PT, and in the evening after a long day of training, and we watch the news. Every day we are deluged with reports of war and violence spreading across the globe, political fractures threaten to split apart our society at home, and the threat of terrorism looms so close we can’t take a bottle of water on a plane! With all of this uncertainty and violence encroaching upon us –how can I remain optimistic, and have a belief that the future will turn out alright? Simple, every day I see the best of the country around me –the American riflemen.” (READ MORE)
Huntress writes Open Letter to Lt.Col. Barry Johnson. “Lt.Col Johnson: I happened to be listening to Pat Campbell's show when I heard him ask you if you knew Michael Yon. You may think it was my imagination - but I'm sure I heard you gasp as you were not only blindsided by the question but clearly uncomfortable at the mere mention of Michael Yon's name. A five second gap of silence on radio does not go unnoticed; the emnity you were harboring was palpable. I'm sure a few people were touched by your deep concern for Michael's well-being, but surely you better than most people understand that you cannot spin to a PR savvy audience - especially to someone who has worked in Hollywood as long as I have- so don't insult me or Michael's huge savvy and very influential global audience by trying to do so.” (READ MORE)
jonjayray of Stop the ACLU writes A Defence of Muslims from a Leftist Elitist “I very rarely bother to fisk Leftist articles. It is much more interesting to spend my time looking at articles that endeavour to consider all the facts of a matter rather than looking at the very selective attention to the facts that characterizes Leftist writing. A reader has however drawn my attention to a typical bit of Leftist hate by Australian columnist Amanda Blair and offered some comments on it. I reproduce both the column and the comments on it elsewhere. I thought however that I might make a few comments in passing on the column myself:” (READ MORE)
Slublog of Ace of Spades HQ writes Deceit and the Left “DR, our resident "conservative Republican" recently made a confession on Citizen Smash's blog: ‘I think you are just trying to provoke needless confrontation at our vigils. We at Code Pink will not tire from our mission of bringing the troops home, no matter how much deceitful propaganda is written about us. If you can prove we do not support the troops, we will more than gladly stop holding our vigils. Until then, please drop the divisive charade and try to accept that one can oppose the war while supporting the troops.’ This "conservative Republican" has been active on the threads lately, calling his "fellow" conservatives "Bushbots" and the like, while mouthing suspiciously liberal-flavored phrases. Now we find out he's a member of one of the most vile anti-war organizations in the United States. And in that Smash thread, unlike here, he doesn't claim to be a conservative Republican. He does have this to say, though:” (READ MORE)
Hugh Hewitt writes What Democrats Really Believe “Kathryn Jean Lopez points to this amazing roll-call vote on the military tribunals for terrorists bill: Only 34 Democrats in the House voted to bring these killers to justice in this fashion. 160 Democrats voted against the bill. K-Lo notes that Democrats Sherrod Brown and Harold Ford were among the 34 --and that they are running for Senate, and have the eyes of the voters upon them.
But let's be clear: No serious observor of politcs believes that Brown and Ford would do other than revert to form if elected to the Senate. They have records of Pelosi-like fealty to the hard left policies of their party, and election year manuevers can't obscure that reality.” (READ MORE)
Cassandra writes Deconstructing the NIE “Regarding the lamestream media's latest orgiastic fetish, the recently leaked Dance of the Veils also known as the NIE, Robert Kagan notes the unwisdom of relying on partial leaks of reports we can't see, from anonymous sources who refuse to be identified (but whose credibility and motives we must not question, though they've violated the terms of their employment - and the law - by disclosing classified information to people who have no business knowing it):” (READ MORE)
Charlie Munn of OPFOR writes I Have Returned... Now Relax! “…Now that I’ve got the awkward introduction over with, I want everyone to take a deep breath and relax –the country’s doing fine. What do I mean? My troops and I sit in the chow hall in the morning after PT, and in the evening after a long day of training, and we watch the news. Every day we are deluged with reports of war and violence spreading across the globe, political fractures threaten to split apart our society at home, and the threat of terrorism looms so close we can’t take a bottle of water on a plane! With all of this uncertainty and violence encroaching upon us –how can I remain optimistic, and have a belief that the future will turn out alright? Simple, every day I see the best of the country around me –the American riflemen.” (READ MORE)
Huntress writes Open Letter to Lt.Col. Barry Johnson. “Lt.Col Johnson: I happened to be listening to Pat Campbell's show when I heard him ask you if you knew Michael Yon. You may think it was my imagination - but I'm sure I heard you gasp as you were not only blindsided by the question but clearly uncomfortable at the mere mention of Michael Yon's name. A five second gap of silence on radio does not go unnoticed; the emnity you were harboring was palpable. I'm sure a few people were touched by your deep concern for Michael's well-being, but surely you better than most people understand that you cannot spin to a PR savvy audience - especially to someone who has worked in Hollywood as long as I have- so don't insult me or Michael's huge savvy and very influential global audience by trying to do so.” (READ MORE)
jonjayray of Stop the ACLU writes A Defence of Muslims from a Leftist Elitist “I very rarely bother to fisk Leftist articles. It is much more interesting to spend my time looking at articles that endeavour to consider all the facts of a matter rather than looking at the very selective attention to the facts that characterizes Leftist writing. A reader has however drawn my attention to a typical bit of Leftist hate by Australian columnist Amanda Blair and offered some comments on it. I reproduce both the column and the comments on it elsewhere. I thought however that I might make a few comments in passing on the column myself:” (READ MORE)
Slublog of Ace of Spades HQ writes Deceit and the Left “DR, our resident "conservative Republican" recently made a confession on Citizen Smash's blog: ‘I think you are just trying to provoke needless confrontation at our vigils. We at Code Pink will not tire from our mission of bringing the troops home, no matter how much deceitful propaganda is written about us. If you can prove we do not support the troops, we will more than gladly stop holding our vigils. Until then, please drop the divisive charade and try to accept that one can oppose the war while supporting the troops.’ This "conservative Republican" has been active on the threads lately, calling his "fellow" conservatives "Bushbots" and the like, while mouthing suspiciously liberal-flavored phrases. Now we find out he's a member of one of the most vile anti-war organizations in the United States. And in that Smash thread, unlike here, he doesn't claim to be a conservative Republican. He does have this to say, though:” (READ MORE)
A Legacy Of Hypocrisy
This is a Stop The ACLU Blogburst
ACLU: A Legacy Of Hypocrisy
In case you haven’t heard, a group of dissenters from the ACLU are rebelling and calling for a change in the current leadership of the main organization. The summary of things this new group is fed up with is hypocrisy and the ACLU is full of it. Purging the ACLU of its hypocrisy is bound to be a Goliath task.
Where do we even begin with the ACLU’s hypocrisy? How about its odd stance on the Second Amendment? They have decided that the term “the people” that is contained in the Second Amendment does not apply to “the people” as it does in all of the other rights contained in the Bill of Rights. Instead they say that the Second Amendment only applies to militias such as the National Guard. They defend even the most radical free speech issues as individual rights, but somehow have adopted the opposite position on the Second Amendment.
In August of 2005 the New York ACLU sued against random bag searches on the NY Subway. Ironically the NYCLU HQ has a sign warning visitors that all bags are subject to search.
The ACLU have fought tooth and nail against the Bush administration’s NSA program, a program designed to track international phone calls being made to or from suspected terrorist organizations. They have hailed themselves defenders of the right to privacy and labelled the program an illegal “secret” program of “domestic spying”. All the while the ACLU has its own “secret” program of domestic spying of its own members and their personal financial information. This program has nothing to do with national security and everything to do with the real bottom line of fund-raising. Former ACLU board member Michael Myers was shocked at this discovery.
The American Civil Liberties Union is using sophisticated technology to collect a wide variety of information about its members and donors in a fund-raising effort that has ignited a bitter debate over its leaders’ commitment to privacy rights.
Some board members say the extensive data collection makes a mockery of the organization’s frequent criticism of banks, corporations and government agencies for their practice of accumulating data on people for marketing and other purposes.
The group’s new data collection practices were implemented without the board’s approval or knowledge and were in violation of the ACLU’s privacy policy at the time, according to Michael Meyers, vice president of the organization and a frequent internal critic. He said he had learned about the new research by accident Nov. 7 during a meeting of the committee that is organizing the group’s Biennial Conference in July.
He objected to the practices, and the next day, the privacy policy on the group’s Web site was changed. “They took out all the language that would show that they were violating their own policy,” Meyers said. “In doing so, they sanctified their procedure while still keeping it secret.”After spending 23 years on the ACLU board, the "defenders of free speech” issued gag orders to him, not to speak about the issue. Now thats free speech for you.
When it comes to free speech the ACLU claim to be its most steadfast defender. Now, I am not an absolutist on unlimited free speech. However, most people would think that an organization arguing for hate cults to protest with “God Hates Fags” signs at military funerals, neo nazis to march through Jewish neighborhoods, and that child porn distribution is protected by the First Amendment are about as absolutist as it gets. Not so!
When it comes to abortion protesters the ACLU could care less about their free speech rights. As a matter of fact they actively fight against pro-life protesters’ free speech and have even tried RICO lawsuits on them. It is scary to see just how far the ACLU will go for its unrestricted abortion agenda. Free speech definitely takes a backseat to their pro-abortion agenda. They have even listed it as their number one priority pushing the defense of the First Amendment, the alleged heart and soul of the ACLU’s mission, down to third on the list, after civil rights.
But don’t just take my word for it, listen to the words of a former Executive Director:
The right to express unpopular opinions, advocate despised ideas and display graphic images is something the ACLU has steadfastly defended for all of its nearly 80-year history.
But the ACLU, a group for which I proudly worked as executive director of the Florida and Utah affiliates for more than 10 years, has developed a blind spot when it comes to defending anti-abortion protesters. The organization that once defended the right of a neo-Nazi group to demonstrate in heavily Jewish Skokie, Ill., now cheers a Portland, Ore., jury that charged a group of anti-abortion activists with $107 million in damages for expressing their views. Gushed the ACLU’s press release: “We view the jury’s verdict as a clarion call to remove violence and the threat of violence from the political debate over abortion.”
Were the anti-abortion activists on trial accused of violence? No. Did they threaten violence? Not as the ACLU or Supreme Court usually defines it, when in the context of a call for social change.
The activists posted a Web site dripping with animated blood and titled “The Nuremberg Files,” after the German city where the Nazis were tried for their crimes. Comparing abortion to Nazi atrocities, the site collected dossiers on abortion doctors, whom they called “baby butchers.” …
This is ugly, scary stuff. But it is no worse than neo-Nazi calls for the annihilation of the Jewish people, or a college student posting his rape fantasies about a fellow coed on the Web, both of which the ACLU has defended in the past.
Defending NAMBLA to print material advocating for sex between grown men and boys is the definition of defending “robust freedom of speech” in the ACLU’s book, but defending people’s right to protest against killing the unborn somehow fails to make the list.
But the hypocrisy does not end there. When it comes to protecting religious expression the ACLU has proven itself to be number one in America’s religious censors. They have consistently shown themselves to be hostile towards Christianity in particular. When the Tangipahoa Parish School Board in Louisiana opened its board meetings with a prayer like they had for 30 years the ACLU sued. After the ACLU won that case and the School Board ignored the court ruling, Louisiana ACLU chief Joe Cook called for them to be jailed and compared them to terrorists. Mr. Cook is currently leading an attack on plan for a Katrina memorial paid for with private funds to be erected on private land simply because it is in the shape of a cross and might offend some sensitive passerby. When valedictorian of Foothill High, Brittany McComb, decided to share her faith voluntarily at her graduation cermony the ACLU said it was the right call to pull the plug. Currently when the ACLU wins a case from attacking religious expression it is awarded attorneys fees, often in the millions, at the expense of the American taxpayer. The U.S. House of Representatives recognized this abuse and passed the Public Expression Of Religion Act to put a stop to it. However, the threats and abuse will continue however if we can’t convince the Senate to pass this as well.
But the hypocrisy goes even further. The ACLU’s disdain for free speech outside of its agenda extends beyond Christians and pro-lifers to its own dissenting members. Very recently the ACLU attempted to put forth a policy restricting the free speech of its own members.
Natt Hentoff, another former ACLU board member, was incredulous.
“For the national board to consider promulgating a gag order on its members — I can’t think of anything more contrary to the reason the A.C.L.U. exists.”
After a huge controversy, media coverage, and public concern of the NY Attorney General’s office the ACLU dropped the proposal. Instead they switched to more effective measures of replacing or voting out the members that were not in line with their agenda.
When it comes to principles the ACLU has none other than lining their pocketbooks and furthering their own liberal agenda. As I said at the beggining of the article, cleansing the ACLU of hypocrisy will be a mammoth task. I don’t think its possible. I’m more hopeful that their own greed and corruption will eat them from the inside. I think we are beggining to see the cracks and hopefully enough light will shine through them to wake people up to the truth.
This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 200 blogs already on-board.
The Declassified NIE Report
What follows is a copy of the entire declassified section of the NIE report that the MS and the DNC have butchered simply to attack President Bush. I will post a copy of the .pdf version when times permits.
Ed Note: You can read the original PDF version here.
~~~
Declassified Key Judgments of the National Intelligence Estimate “Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States.”
dated April 2006
Key Judgments
United States-led counterterrorism efforts have seriously damaged the leadership of al-Qa’ida and disrupted its operations; however, we judge that al-Qa’ida will continue to pose the greatest threat to the Homeland and US interests abroad by a single terrorist organization. We also assess that the global jihadist movement—which includes al-Qa’ida, affiliated and independent terrorist groups, and emerging networks and cells—is spreading and adapting to counterterrorism efforts.
Although we cannot measure the extent of the spread with precision, a large body of all-source reporting indicates that activists identifying themselves as jihadists, although a small percentage of Muslims, are increasing in both number and geographic dispersion.
If this trend continues, threats to US interests at home and abroad will become more diverse, leading to increasing attacks worldwide.
Greater pluralism and more responsive political systems in Muslim majority nations would alleviate some of the grievances jihadists exploit. Over time, such progress, together with sustained, multifaceted programs targeting the vulnerabilities of the jihadist movement and continued pressure on al-Qa’ida, could erode support for the jihadists.
We assess that the global jihadist movement is decentralized, lacks a coherent global strategy, and is becoming more diffuse. New jihadist networks and cells, with anti-American agendas, are increasingly likely to emerge. The confluence of shared purpose and dispersed actors will make it harder to find and undermine jihadist groups.
We assess that the operational threat from self-radicalized cells will grow in importance to US counterterrorism efforts, particularly abroad but also in the Homeland.
The jihadists regard Europe as an important venue for attacking Western interests. Extremist networks inside the extensive Muslim diasporas in Europe facilitate recruitment and staging for urban attacks, as illustrated by the 2004 Madrid and 2005 London bombings.
We assess that the Iraq jihad is shaping a new generation of terrorist leaders and operatives; perceived jihadist success there would inspire more fighters to continue the struggle elsewhere.
The Iraq conflict has become the -cause celebre- for jihadists, breeding a deep resentment of US involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for the global jihadist movement. Should jihadists leaving Iraq perceive themselves, and be perceived, to have failed, we judge fewer fighters will be inspired to carry on the fight.
We assess that the underlying factors fueling the spread of the movement outweigh its vulnerabilities and are likely to do so for the duration of the timeframe of this Estimate.
Four underlying factors are fueling the spread of the jihadist movement:
(1) Entrenched grievances, such as corruption, injustice, and fear of Western domination, leading to anger, humiliation, and a sense of powerlessness;
(2) the Iraq jihad;.
(3) the slow pace of real and sustained economic, social, and political reforms in many Muslim majority nations; and
(4) pervasive anti-US sentiment among most Muslims - all of which jihadists exploit.
Concomitant vulnerabilities in the jihadist movement have emerged that, if fully exposed and exploited, could begin to slow the spread of the movement. They include dependence on the continuation of Muslim-related conflicts, the limited appeal of the jihadists radical ideology, the emergence of respected voices of moderation, and criticism of the violent tactics employed against mostly Muslim citizens.
The jihadists greatest vulnerability is that their ultimate political solution an ultra-conservative interpretation of sharia-based governance spanning the Muslim world - is unpopular with the vast majority of Muslims. Exposing the religious and political straitjacket that is implied by the jihadists’ propaganda would help to divide them from the audiences they seek to persuade.
Recent condemnations of violence and extremist religious interpretations by a few notable Muslim clerics signal a trend that could facilitate the growth of a constructive alternative to jihadist ideology: peaceful political activism. This also could lead to the consistent and dynamic participation of broader Muslim communities in rejecting violence, reducing the ability of radicals to capitalize on passive community support. In this way, the Muslim mainstream emerges as the most powerful weapon in the war on terror.
Countering the spread of the jihadist movement will require coordinated multilateral efforts that go well beyond operations to capture or kill terrorist leaders.
If democratic reform efforts in Muslim majority nations progress over the next five years, political participation probably would drive a wedge between intransigent extremists and groups willing to use the political process to achieve their local objectives. Nonetheless, attendant reforms and potentially destabilizing transitions will create new opportunities for jihadists to exploit.
Al-Qa’ida, now merged with Abu Mus’ab al-Zarqawi’s network, is exploiting the situation in Iraq to attract new recruits and donors and to maintain its leadership role.
The loss of key leaders, particularly Usama Bin Ladin, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and al-Zarqawi, in rapid succession, probably would cause the group to fracture into smaller groups. Although like-minded individuals would endeavor to carry on the mission, the loss of these key leaders would exacerbate strains and disagreements. We assess that the resulting splinter groups would, at least for a time, pose a less serious threat to US interests than does al-Qaida.
Should al-Zarqawi continue to evade capture and scale back attacks against Muslims, we assess he could broaden his popular appeal and present a global threat.
The increased role of Iraqis in managing the operations of al-Qaida in Iraq might lead veteran foreign jihadists to focus their efforts on external operations.
Other affiliated Sunni extremist organizations, such as Jemaah Islamiya, Ansar al-Sunnah, and several North African groups, unless countered, are likely to expand their reach and become more capable of multiple and/or mass-casualty attacks outside their traditional areas of operation.
We assess that such groups pose less of a danger to the Homeland than does al-Qaida but will pose varying degrees of threat to our allies and to US interests abroad. The focus of their attacks is likely to ebb and flow between local regime targets and regional or global ones.
We judge that most jihadist groups - both well-known and newly formed - will use improvised explosive devices and suicide attacks focused primarily on soft targets to implement their asymmetric warfare strategy, and that they will attempt to conduct sustained terrorist attacks in urban environments. Fighters with experience in Iraq are a potential source of leadership for jihadists pursuing these tactics.
CBRN capabilities will continue to be sought by jihadist groups.
While Iran, and to a lesser extent Syria, remain the most active state sponsors of terrorism, many other states will be unable to prevent territory or resources from being exploited by terrorists.
Anti-US and anti-globalization sentiment is on the rise and fueling other radical ideologies. This could prompt some leftist, nationalist, or separatist groups to adopt terrorist methods to attack US interests. The radicalization process is occurring more quickly, more widely, and more anonymously in the Internet age, raising the likelihood of surprise attacks by unknown groups whose members and supporters may be difficult to pinpoint.
We judge that groups of all stripes will increasingly use the Internet to communicate, propagandize, recruit, train, and obtain logistical and financial support.
September 27, 2006
Why Don't More People Know About This Man?
Via Blackfive, OPFOR and ThreatsWatch:
MSNBC has produced a series of a few "Faces of Courage" 60 second Vignettes. First to be released last evening is SFC Paul Smith - the man that gave his life to save his soldiers during the Invasion of Iraq, yet not many people know who he is. He was awarded the Medal of Honor.
John Noonan of Op-For uploaded the video to YouTube. Here it is:
MSNBC is to be commended for spending the resources on this project - particularly at a time when the war is not popular with the media. The good folks at ThreatsWatch.Org have the right idea - we need to send emails to MSNBC :
Help us to encourage MSNBC to produce and release more of these by emailing MSNBC at heroes (at) msnbc (dot) com.
Want to help spread the word? Post the YouTube clip on your blog, and send an email to MSNBC, then tell everyone you know to do the same thing.
MSNBC has produced a series of a few "Faces of Courage" 60 second Vignettes. First to be released last evening is SFC Paul Smith - the man that gave his life to save his soldiers during the Invasion of Iraq, yet not many people know who he is. He was awarded the Medal of Honor.
John Noonan of Op-For uploaded the video to YouTube. Here it is:
MSNBC is to be commended for spending the resources on this project - particularly at a time when the war is not popular with the media. The good folks at ThreatsWatch.Org have the right idea - we need to send emails to MSNBC :
Help us to encourage MSNBC to produce and release more of these by emailing MSNBC at heroes (at) msnbc (dot) com.
Want to help spread the word? Post the YouTube clip on your blog, and send an email to MSNBC, then tell everyone you know to do the same thing.
On to (Military) Justice
By Paul Greenberg
Jewish World Review
Alexander Hamilton may have been a great statesman and financier, the kind of conservative who is also a visionary, but he was no prophet. At least not in Federalist Paper No. 78, in which he assured voters that the judiciary would always be "the least dangerous" branch of the proposed new federal government.
Learned in the law as he was, Colonel Hamilton could not have foreseen this present Supreme Court, which has vastly complicated the work of both the country's military and its intelligence operatives.
The court began by ignoring Congress' explicit instruction in the Detainee Treatment Act that "no court, justice or judge shall have jurisdiction to hear or consider an application for a writ of habeas corpus filed by or on behalf of an alien detained by the Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba."
Then the court — to borrow a phrase attributed to a former governor of Arkansas — opened a whole box of Pandoras. A five-justice majority of the court proceeded, in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, to put all plans for military commissions on hold until Congress would agree to re-establish them with new, unprecedented protections for unlawful enemy combatants, including Osama bin Laden's personal driver. Erasing the historic distinction between lawful and unlawful enemy combatants, the court ruled that these military tribunals also violated the Geneva Conventions, even though that treaty applies only to the governments that signed it, and al-Qaida was certainly never a signatory. (Its favored form of justice consists of beheadings on video.)
The Supreme Court's recent rulings in Hamdan and similar cases provide the best illustration yet of the late Robert Jackson's observation that the judiciary is ill-equipped to make foreign policy, especially military policy.
When Push Comes To Torture
By Jonah Goldberg
Jewish World Review
When confronted with the assertion that the Soviet Union and the United States were moral equivalents, William F. Buckley responded that if one man pushes an old lady into an oncoming bus and another man pushes an old lady out of the way of a bus, we should not denounce them both as men who push old ladies around.
In other words, context matters.
Not according to some. Led by Time magazine's Andrew Sullivan, opponents of the CIA's harsh treatment of high-value terrorists have grown comfortable comparing Bush's America to, among other evils, Stalin's Russia.
The tactic hasn't worked, partly because many decent Americans understand that abuse intended to foil a murder plot is not the same as torturing political dissidents, religious minorities and other prisoners of conscience. Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was not asked to renounce his faith or sign a false confession when he was reportedly waterboarded. His suffering wasn't intended as a form of punishment. The sole aim was to stop an ongoing murder conspiracy, which is what al-Qaida is. If accounts from such unbiased sources as ABC News' Brian Ross are to be believed, his suffering saved American lives.
Comparing CIA facilities to Stalin's gulag may sound righteous, but it is a species of the same moral relativism that denounces all pushers of old ladies equally.
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
When confronted with the assertion that the Soviet Union and the United States were moral equivalents, William F. Buckley responded that if one man pushes an old lady into an oncoming bus and another man pushes an old lady out of the way of a bus, we should not denounce them both as men who push old ladies around.
In other words, context matters.
Not according to some. Led by Time magazine's Andrew Sullivan, opponents of the CIA's harsh treatment of high-value terrorists have grown comfortable comparing Bush's America to, among other evils, Stalin's Russia.
The tactic hasn't worked, partly because many decent Americans understand that abuse intended to foil a murder plot is not the same as torturing political dissidents, religious minorities and other prisoners of conscience. Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was not asked to renounce his faith or sign a false confession when he was reportedly waterboarded. His suffering wasn't intended as a form of punishment. The sole aim was to stop an ongoing murder conspiracy, which is what al-Qaida is. If accounts from such unbiased sources as ABC News' Brian Ross are to be believed, his suffering saved American lives.
Comparing CIA facilities to Stalin's gulag may sound righteous, but it is a species of the same moral relativism that denounces all pushers of old ladies equally.
Read the Rest...
A Battle Lost in the War on Terror
By Tony Blankley
Jewish World Review
With little reporting, and almost without media or governmental comment, the United States has suffered a substantial defeat in the war against radical Islam. Three weeks ago, Pakistan signed the terms of the Waziristan Accord with the northern region of its country called North Waziristan. It was, effectively, the terms of surrender by Pakistan to the Taliban and al Qaeda, which dominate North Waziristan. Pakistan has negotiated a separate peace — the eternal danger to any wartime alliance.
With the exception of a superb article in the Weekly Standard by Daveed Gartenstein-Ross and the redoubtable Bill Roggio and a few blogs, such as Flopping Aces, The Fourth Rail and The Belmont Club (apologies to some other blogs I surely have missed) there has been little comment. This column is based largely on the reporting from those sources.
The event itself was reported by the major newspapers, but the abject nature of the surrender passed with almost no comment. But surrender it was.
According to intelligence sources cited by The Fourth Rail and other sources above, the Accord includes: (1) Pakistan to abandon its garrisons in Waziristan, (2) Pakistan military to not operate in or monitor actions in the region, (3) Pakistan to turn over weapons to Waziris, (4) Taliban and al Qaeda to set up a Mujahideen council to administer the region, (5) region to be called "The Islamic Emirate of Waziristan, (6) unknown but substantial amount of money paid by Pakistan to the Taliban, (7) al Qaeda and other jihadis to be allowed to stay in region, (8) 2,500 foreign fighters linked to al Qaeda and Taliban released by Pakistan from their prisons (this fact also confirmed by London's Daily Telegraph), and (9) Taliban to refrain from violence in Pakistan only; the agreement does not stipulate refraining from violence in Afghanistan.
Moreover, according to intelligence sources, Pakistan is negotiating similar terms with agencies in the Khyber, Tank, Dera Ismail Kahn and Bajaur regions of western Pakistan. If those negotiations are realized, the Taliban and al Qaeda will essentially have their own country again. With Waziristan they already have an excellent base of operations against our forces in Afghanistan.
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
With little reporting, and almost without media or governmental comment, the United States has suffered a substantial defeat in the war against radical Islam. Three weeks ago, Pakistan signed the terms of the Waziristan Accord with the northern region of its country called North Waziristan. It was, effectively, the terms of surrender by Pakistan to the Taliban and al Qaeda, which dominate North Waziristan. Pakistan has negotiated a separate peace — the eternal danger to any wartime alliance.
With the exception of a superb article in the Weekly Standard by Daveed Gartenstein-Ross and the redoubtable Bill Roggio and a few blogs, such as Flopping Aces, The Fourth Rail and The Belmont Club (apologies to some other blogs I surely have missed) there has been little comment. This column is based largely on the reporting from those sources.
The event itself was reported by the major newspapers, but the abject nature of the surrender passed with almost no comment. But surrender it was.
According to intelligence sources cited by The Fourth Rail and other sources above, the Accord includes: (1) Pakistan to abandon its garrisons in Waziristan, (2) Pakistan military to not operate in or monitor actions in the region, (3) Pakistan to turn over weapons to Waziris, (4) Taliban and al Qaeda to set up a Mujahideen council to administer the region, (5) region to be called "The Islamic Emirate of Waziristan, (6) unknown but substantial amount of money paid by Pakistan to the Taliban, (7) al Qaeda and other jihadis to be allowed to stay in region, (8) 2,500 foreign fighters linked to al Qaeda and Taliban released by Pakistan from their prisons (this fact also confirmed by London's Daily Telegraph), and (9) Taliban to refrain from violence in Pakistan only; the agreement does not stipulate refraining from violence in Afghanistan.
Moreover, according to intelligence sources, Pakistan is negotiating similar terms with agencies in the Khyber, Tank, Dera Ismail Kahn and Bajaur regions of western Pakistan. If those negotiations are realized, the Taliban and al Qaeda will essentially have their own country again. With Waziristan they already have an excellent base of operations against our forces in Afghanistan.
Read the Rest...
Intimidating the West
By Daniel Pipes
Jewish World Review
The violence by Muslims responding to comments by the pope fit a pattern that has been building and accelerating since 1989. Six times since then, Westerners did or said something that triggered death threats and violence in the Muslim world. Looking at them in the aggregate offers useful insights.
1989 — Salman Rushdie's novel, The Satanic Verses prompted Ayatollah Khomeini to issue a death edict against him and his publishers, on the grounds that the book "is against Islam, the Prophet, and the Qur'an." Subsequent rioting led to over 20 deaths, mostly in India.
1997 — The U.S. Supreme Court refused to remove a 1930s frieze showing Muhammad as lawgiver that decorates the main court chamber; the Council on American-Islamic Relations made an issue of this, leading to riots and injuries in India.
2002 — The American Evangelical leader Jerry Falwell called Muhammad a "terrorist," leading to church burnings and at least 10 deaths in India.
2005 — An incorrect story in Newsweek, reporting that American interrogators at Guantánamo Bay, "in an attempt to rattle suspects, flushed a Qur'an down a toilet," was picked up by the famous Pakistani cricketer, Imran Khan, and prompted protests around the Muslim world, leading to at least 15 deaths..
February 2006 — The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published twelve cartoons of Muhammad, spurring a Palestinian imam in Copenhagen, Ahmed Abdel Rahman Abu Laban, to excite Muslim opinion against the Danish government. He succeeded so well, hundreds died, mostly in Nigeria.
September 2006 — Pope Benedict XVI quoted a Byzantine emperor's views that what is new in Islam is "evil and inhuman," prompting the firebombing of churches and the murder of several Christians.
These six rounds show a near-doubling in frequency: 8 years between the first and second rounds, then 5, then 3, 1, and 1/2.
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
The violence by Muslims responding to comments by the pope fit a pattern that has been building and accelerating since 1989. Six times since then, Westerners did or said something that triggered death threats and violence in the Muslim world. Looking at them in the aggregate offers useful insights.
1989 — Salman Rushdie's novel, The Satanic Verses prompted Ayatollah Khomeini to issue a death edict against him and his publishers, on the grounds that the book "is against Islam, the Prophet, and the Qur'an." Subsequent rioting led to over 20 deaths, mostly in India.
1997 — The U.S. Supreme Court refused to remove a 1930s frieze showing Muhammad as lawgiver that decorates the main court chamber; the Council on American-Islamic Relations made an issue of this, leading to riots and injuries in India.
2002 — The American Evangelical leader Jerry Falwell called Muhammad a "terrorist," leading to church burnings and at least 10 deaths in India.
2005 — An incorrect story in Newsweek, reporting that American interrogators at Guantánamo Bay, "in an attempt to rattle suspects, flushed a Qur'an down a toilet," was picked up by the famous Pakistani cricketer, Imran Khan, and prompted protests around the Muslim world, leading to at least 15 deaths..
February 2006 — The Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published twelve cartoons of Muhammad, spurring a Palestinian imam in Copenhagen, Ahmed Abdel Rahman Abu Laban, to excite Muslim opinion against the Danish government. He succeeded so well, hundreds died, mostly in Nigeria.
September 2006 — Pope Benedict XVI quoted a Byzantine emperor's views that what is new in Islam is "evil and inhuman," prompting the firebombing of churches and the murder of several Christians.
These six rounds show a near-doubling in frequency: 8 years between the first and second rounds, then 5, then 3, 1, and 1/2.
Read the Rest...
To Kill an Alan Dershowitz
By Alan M. Dershowitz
FrontPageMagazine.com
Last month I wrote an article called “Norman Finkelstein’s Obscenities,” a response to Finkelstein’s latest screed, “Should Alan Dershowitz Target Himself for Assassination?” As the title of the article suggests, Finkelstein puts forward in his article what he believes to be a justification for my assassination as a war criminal, based on my support for Israel.
Nor was this the only obscenity in the article. Not by a long shot. As I wrote in my article, Finkelstein piece was accompanied by a:
Read the Rest...
FrontPageMagazine.com
Last month I wrote an article called “Norman Finkelstein’s Obscenities,” a response to Finkelstein’s latest screed, “Should Alan Dershowitz Target Himself for Assassination?” As the title of the article suggests, Finkelstein puts forward in his article what he believes to be a justification for my assassination as a war criminal, based on my support for Israel.
Nor was this the only obscenity in the article. Not by a long shot. As I wrote in my article, Finkelstein piece was accompanied by a:
cartoon drawn by “Latuff”, a frequent accomplice of Finkelstein. The cartoon portrayed me as masturbating in rapturous joy while viewing images of dead Lebanese civilians on a TV set labeled “Israel peep show,” with a Jewish Star of David prominently featured.I found out recently that Rabbi Michael Lerner, founder and editor of Tikkun magazine, has been circulating the Finkelstein article from his Tikkun e-mail account and under Tikkun letterhead. Lerner apparently didn’t have the stomach to attach the cartoon, despite the fact that the inspiration for the disgusting cartoon comes directly from what Finkelstein writes in the article circulated by Rabbi Lerner, as I showed in my previous article:
Read the Rest...
Keith Ellison, CAIR, and Hamas
By Robert Spencer
FrontPageMagazine.com
Keith Ellison (D-MN) is shaping up to be the first-ever Muslim member of Congress, and the mainstream media is treating his candidacy as a huge human-interest story and a triumph of multiculturalism. The Christian Science Monitor gushed that “when Keith Ellison arrives at the Karmel Square, one of Minneapolis’s Somali malls, a rock star might as well be walking by the bustling stalls of bright fabrics, jewelry, phone cards, and videos.” It quoted Larry Jacobs of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota exulting: “You think of the stereotype of Minnesota -- Garrison Keillor and white Norwegian farmers. The first Muslim congressman coming from Minnesota? It says a lot about the changing face of the United States and Minnesota.”
Of course, not all is rosy: the Monitor notes that “conservative bloggers” and Ellison’s Republican opponent, Alan Fine, have raised questions about Ellison’s alleged ties to the Nation of Islam, as well as about a number of unpaid parking tickets that led to the suspension of his drivers’ license. But the Monitor doesn’t mention the most troubling aspect of Ellison’s record: the support he has received from the Council on American Islamic Relations.
Journalist Joel Mowbray has been virtually the only journalist who has pursued this connection, exploring in a recent column “Mr. Ellison’s seemingly tight connection with Nihad Awad, co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), whom he met almost two decades ago at the University of Minnesota.” Mowbray reports that “Mr. Awad headlined a fundraiser last month that the campaign estimates netted $15,000 to $20,000, and in July, and it appears that CAIR’s co-founder bundled contributions totaling just over $10,000. (The campaign issued a terse denial on the latter point, though it refused to explain away overwhelming evidence to the contrary.)” Faced with this evidence, Ellison’s backers have “attempted to paint attacks on the candidate as overtly partisan or even bigoted. A Minneapolis Star Tribune columnist, for example, recently suggested that Mr. Ellison is under attack solely for being Muslim.”
What is so troubling about Ellison’s connection with Awad and CAIR? Mowbray quotes the assessments of two leading Democrats: Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois has declared that CAIR “is unusual in its extreme rhetoric and its association with groups that are suspect.” New York Senator Charles Schumer, once said that CAIR “has ties to terrorism” and that Ellison’s supporter Awad has “intimate connections with Hamas.” Mowbray establishes the latter point from Awad’s own mouth, quoting his 1994 statement: “I’m in support of the Hamas movement.”
Read the Rest...
FrontPageMagazine.com
Keith Ellison (D-MN) is shaping up to be the first-ever Muslim member of Congress, and the mainstream media is treating his candidacy as a huge human-interest story and a triumph of multiculturalism. The Christian Science Monitor gushed that “when Keith Ellison arrives at the Karmel Square, one of Minneapolis’s Somali malls, a rock star might as well be walking by the bustling stalls of bright fabrics, jewelry, phone cards, and videos.” It quoted Larry Jacobs of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota exulting: “You think of the stereotype of Minnesota -- Garrison Keillor and white Norwegian farmers. The first Muslim congressman coming from Minnesota? It says a lot about the changing face of the United States and Minnesota.”
Of course, not all is rosy: the Monitor notes that “conservative bloggers” and Ellison’s Republican opponent, Alan Fine, have raised questions about Ellison’s alleged ties to the Nation of Islam, as well as about a number of unpaid parking tickets that led to the suspension of his drivers’ license. But the Monitor doesn’t mention the most troubling aspect of Ellison’s record: the support he has received from the Council on American Islamic Relations.
Journalist Joel Mowbray has been virtually the only journalist who has pursued this connection, exploring in a recent column “Mr. Ellison’s seemingly tight connection with Nihad Awad, co-founder of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), whom he met almost two decades ago at the University of Minnesota.” Mowbray reports that “Mr. Awad headlined a fundraiser last month that the campaign estimates netted $15,000 to $20,000, and in July, and it appears that CAIR’s co-founder bundled contributions totaling just over $10,000. (The campaign issued a terse denial on the latter point, though it refused to explain away overwhelming evidence to the contrary.)” Faced with this evidence, Ellison’s backers have “attempted to paint attacks on the candidate as overtly partisan or even bigoted. A Minneapolis Star Tribune columnist, for example, recently suggested that Mr. Ellison is under attack solely for being Muslim.”
What is so troubling about Ellison’s connection with Awad and CAIR? Mowbray quotes the assessments of two leading Democrats: Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois has declared that CAIR “is unusual in its extreme rhetoric and its association with groups that are suspect.” New York Senator Charles Schumer, once said that CAIR “has ties to terrorism” and that Ellison’s supporter Awad has “intimate connections with Hamas.” Mowbray establishes the latter point from Awad’s own mouth, quoting his 1994 statement: “I’m in support of the Hamas movement.”
Read the Rest...
Hastings: American Secrets for Sale?
By Andrew Walden
FrontPageMagazine.com
Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s possible pick of Alcee Hastings (D-FL) to become Chair of the House Select Committee on Intelligence if Democrats win control of the House in the November 7 elections is a sure sign of Democrats’ true attitude toward the War on Terror. Pelosi is apparently planning to hand leadership and even more dangerous--access to America’s most sensitive secrets--to a man who has shown that he is a criminal who can be bought.
The best evidence for that conclusion comes from Hastings’ articles of impeachment. Alcee Hastings is one of only 13 Federal Judges to be impeached in the entire history of the United States. In 1988 Nancy Pelosi joined in supporting the 413-3 impeachment vote by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives. Hastings was convicted in a Senate trial the next year —finally forcing him from the bench.
As Jacob Laskin explained in a June, 2006 Front Page Magazine article: “The case involved two brothers, Frank and Thomas Romano, who had been convicted in 1980 on 21 counts of racketeering. Together with attorney William Borders Jr., Hastings, who presided over the Romanos' case, allegedly hatched a plot to solicit a bribe from the brothers. In exchange for a $150,000 cash payment, Hastings would return some $845,000 of their $1.2 million in seized assets after they had served their three-year jail terms. Taped conversations between Hastings and Borders confirmed that the judge was a party to the plot….”
The 17 Articles of Impeachment indicate why Hastings would be a perfect choice to implement the Democrat Party post-victory plan. Article 17 explains Hastings, “(formed) a corrupt relationship” with William Borders. Hastings “repeated false testimony” and engaged in the “fabrication of false documents which were submitted as evidence at his criminal trial….”
These are the exact skills Hastings would need to use in order to manufacture the fraudulent intelligence documents which Democrats would need as “evidence” for their planned impeachment of President Bush. On his campaign website, Hastings prepares the ground for this, denouncing the war in Iraq as “unjustified” and accusing the Bush administration of “pre-meditated fabrication of intelligence.” Hastings’ knowledge of impeachment procedures—having been on the receiving end--is icing on the cake.
Read the Rest...
FrontPageMagazine.com
Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s possible pick of Alcee Hastings (D-FL) to become Chair of the House Select Committee on Intelligence if Democrats win control of the House in the November 7 elections is a sure sign of Democrats’ true attitude toward the War on Terror. Pelosi is apparently planning to hand leadership and even more dangerous--access to America’s most sensitive secrets--to a man who has shown that he is a criminal who can be bought.
The best evidence for that conclusion comes from Hastings’ articles of impeachment. Alcee Hastings is one of only 13 Federal Judges to be impeached in the entire history of the United States. In 1988 Nancy Pelosi joined in supporting the 413-3 impeachment vote by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives. Hastings was convicted in a Senate trial the next year —finally forcing him from the bench.
As Jacob Laskin explained in a June, 2006 Front Page Magazine article: “The case involved two brothers, Frank and Thomas Romano, who had been convicted in 1980 on 21 counts of racketeering. Together with attorney William Borders Jr., Hastings, who presided over the Romanos' case, allegedly hatched a plot to solicit a bribe from the brothers. In exchange for a $150,000 cash payment, Hastings would return some $845,000 of their $1.2 million in seized assets after they had served their three-year jail terms. Taped conversations between Hastings and Borders confirmed that the judge was a party to the plot….”
The 17 Articles of Impeachment indicate why Hastings would be a perfect choice to implement the Democrat Party post-victory plan. Article 17 explains Hastings, “(formed) a corrupt relationship” with William Borders. Hastings “repeated false testimony” and engaged in the “fabrication of false documents which were submitted as evidence at his criminal trial….”
These are the exact skills Hastings would need to use in order to manufacture the fraudulent intelligence documents which Democrats would need as “evidence” for their planned impeachment of President Bush. On his campaign website, Hastings prepares the ground for this, denouncing the war in Iraq as “unjustified” and accusing the Bush administration of “pre-meditated fabrication of intelligence.” Hastings’ knowledge of impeachment procedures—having been on the receiving end--is icing on the cake.
Read the Rest...
Terrell Owens Attempts Suicide
Police: T.O. tried to kill himself
By JAIME ARON, AP Sports Writer
Flamboyant Dallas Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens tried to kill himself by overdosing on pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened, according to a police report obtained Wednesday.
The report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time (he) stated, `Yes."'
The Dallas police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.
Police Lt. Rick Watson said during a brief news conference that he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.
"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."
As Drudge is wont to say, developing.
By JAIME ARON, AP Sports Writer
Flamboyant Dallas Cowboys receiver Terrell Owens tried to kill himself by overdosing on pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened, according to a police report obtained Wednesday.
The report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time (he) stated, `Yes."'
The Dallas police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.
Police Lt. Rick Watson said during a brief news conference that he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.
"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."
As Drudge is wont to say, developing.
Web Reconnaissance for 09/27/2006
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention.
Crazy Politico writes Context is Everything “Thanks, Washington Post, for a link to the whole declassified document from the National Intelligence Estimate. By posting that link, you make it easier to look through it, and your sensationalized headlines. Once again proving that context is everything, you made available the information to rip apart your own skewed editorials. While the Post, and others have great headlines about how the war in Iraq is fueling terrorism, the NIE judgments finish the story. For instance, we've all stuff like this since Sunday:” (READ MORE)
Ian of Hot Air writes Report: 7-11 dumps Citgo (Update: Dropped before) “WFLA of Orlando, FL is reporting: ‘…Janey Carpenter, Manager of Consumer Affairs that states 7-11 Stores are ending their 20-year supply agreement with CITGO Petroleum Corp. According to Carpenter, the contract ends next week and 7-11 is now making the switch to its own branded gasoline. The company says the change has nothing to do with derogatory comments made last week by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez at the United Nations.’”(READ MORE)
Hugh Hewitt writes The NIE and the Chumps at the NYT “Keep in mind that the National Intelligence Estimate, portions of which were declassified today --hailed by the New York Times on Sunday as "a consensus view of the 16 disparate spy services inside government"-- begins its "Key Judgments" section this way: ‘United States-led counterterrorism efforts have seriously damaged the leadership of al-Qa'ida and disrupted its operations; however, we judge that al-Qaida will continue to pose the greatest threat to the Homeland and US interests abroad by a single terrorist organization.’”(READ MORE)
Atlas Shrugs writes THIRD NIGHT Muslim Rioting in the Capital of Europe “The courageous Paul Belian of Brussels Journal writes of three nights of Ramadan rioting in Europe's capital city. Note that the international mainstream media have all but ignored it. And the riots are barely mentioned by their own (Belgium) press as well. Read it all. Paul Belian is a personal hero of mine. A man who speaks truth to power at his own peril. The attempts to silence him for writing of the islamofascists speaks volumes to the environment in Europe.” (READ MORE)
Sachi writing at Big Lizards writes The Gatekeeper Effect, or, If Iraq Is Getting Better, Why Does the News Keep Getting Worse? “During the interview with in Jim Lehrer News Hour on PBS, Army Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), said the situation in Iraq is getting better. But how can that be, when the news reports sectarian violence is getting worse everyday? Just this morning, I heard on the radio that the last two months were "the worst for the Iraqis since the Iraq war started." This sentiment is reflected in the recent USA Today/Gallup poll, which showed that 72% of likely voters believe that "civil war" is occurring in Iraq right now (in the link, scroll down to Gallup). If things are getting better, why do we hear so much about the violence? Gen. Abizaid explains.” (READ MORE)
Froggy writing at Blackfive writes Recruiting Terrorists “Is it just me, or do you find it puzzling how people are unable to make the simplest of logical assumptions when it comes to just about anything in this country? It seems that every day on the news we are treated to the results of some brilliant scientist's research study that states the obvious after spending millions in grant money. Did you know that children who live in homes with alcoholic crack addicts who own guns are 10 times as likely to shoot themselves accidentally as children that go to northeastern college prep schools? Really, you don't say?” (READ MORE)
Captain Ed writes The Real NIE Revelations “The Bush administration's decision to declassify the conclusions of the National Intelligence Estimate yesterday revealed two truths about politics and the intelligence community, neither of which appear very complimentary. First, the Democrats allowed themselves to get outfoxed on national security yet again by allowing themselves to get hysterical and seriously misrepresent the conclusions of the NIE. As the Washington Post reports, Democrats made a lot of extraordinary claims about the NIE, which the report itself doesn't support:” (READ MORE)
Michelle Malkin writes OperaRage: Idomeneo and Islam “The first thing to remember when reading about the cancellation of Mozart's Idomeneo in Germany and the opera house Deutsche Oper's kowtowing to Islamic bullies is that jihadists hate Western art and music. They hate love songs. They hate Muslim female pop stars. They hate church frescos. And poems. And illustrations of poems. And, uh, you know how they feel about cartoons. So it doesn't take much to get them worked up.” (READ MORE)
Smash writes Breaking Bread with My Brothers “Some of you are hitting this site regularly, waiting with great anticipation for my latest report on the Friday Code Pink protest outside Walter Reed Army Medical Center. You're waiting in vain. I wasn't at Walter Reed on Friday. Instead, I had dinner with my family. No, not my blood family; I dined with my military brothers and sisters, many of whom are missing a limb or two. That's right: instead of rallying to express support for our wounded warriors outside Walter Reed, I broke bread with them at the Capitol Hill Club.” (READ MORE)
Jay of Stop the ACLU writes House Passes Public Expression Of Religion Act: 244 to 173 “Well, we are half way there! Now the legislation needs to pass the Senate. This will be more difficult to do, so we continue to need all of the support we can get. The roll call is in from the House and its not good news for the ACLU! The bill, H.R. 2679, would deny legal fees and out-of-pocket expenses to be taken from taxpayers and put into the pockets of groups like the ACLU when they successfully sue against references to God and religion in public settings, has passed by a vote of 244-173!” (READ MORE)
Tom The Redhunter writes Support the Troops Weekend - After Action Report “There were two main events: Friday evening September 22 outside of Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC, and Saturday afternoon, September 23, at the Sylvan Theater near the Washington Monument, also in Washington DC. Support the Troops 2006 was sponsored by FreeRepublic.com, the DC Chapter of FreeRepublic.com, Military Families Voice of Victory, and the Protest Warriors. I'm not sure if I'm officially a member of FreeRepublic but I've got a Freeper screen name and have participated in most of their events over the past year so I suppose that's good enough.” (READ MORE)
Crazy Politico writes Context is Everything “Thanks, Washington Post, for a link to the whole declassified document from the National Intelligence Estimate. By posting that link, you make it easier to look through it, and your sensationalized headlines. Once again proving that context is everything, you made available the information to rip apart your own skewed editorials. While the Post, and others have great headlines about how the war in Iraq is fueling terrorism, the NIE judgments finish the story. For instance, we've all stuff like this since Sunday:” (READ MORE)
Ian of Hot Air writes Report: 7-11 dumps Citgo (Update: Dropped before) “WFLA of Orlando, FL is reporting: ‘…Janey Carpenter, Manager of Consumer Affairs that states 7-11 Stores are ending their 20-year supply agreement with CITGO Petroleum Corp. According to Carpenter, the contract ends next week and 7-11 is now making the switch to its own branded gasoline. The company says the change has nothing to do with derogatory comments made last week by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez at the United Nations.’”(READ MORE)
Hugh Hewitt writes The NIE and the Chumps at the NYT “Keep in mind that the National Intelligence Estimate, portions of which were declassified today --hailed by the New York Times on Sunday as "a consensus view of the 16 disparate spy services inside government"-- begins its "Key Judgments" section this way: ‘United States-led counterterrorism efforts have seriously damaged the leadership of al-Qa'ida and disrupted its operations; however, we judge that al-Qaida will continue to pose the greatest threat to the Homeland and US interests abroad by a single terrorist organization.’”(READ MORE)
Atlas Shrugs writes THIRD NIGHT Muslim Rioting in the Capital of Europe “The courageous Paul Belian of Brussels Journal writes of three nights of Ramadan rioting in Europe's capital city. Note that the international mainstream media have all but ignored it. And the riots are barely mentioned by their own (Belgium) press as well. Read it all. Paul Belian is a personal hero of mine. A man who speaks truth to power at his own peril. The attempts to silence him for writing of the islamofascists speaks volumes to the environment in Europe.” (READ MORE)
Sachi writing at Big Lizards writes The Gatekeeper Effect, or, If Iraq Is Getting Better, Why Does the News Keep Getting Worse? “During the interview with in Jim Lehrer News Hour on PBS, Army Gen. John Abizaid, commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), said the situation in Iraq is getting better. But how can that be, when the news reports sectarian violence is getting worse everyday? Just this morning, I heard on the radio that the last two months were "the worst for the Iraqis since the Iraq war started." This sentiment is reflected in the recent USA Today/Gallup poll, which showed that 72% of likely voters believe that "civil war" is occurring in Iraq right now (in the link, scroll down to Gallup). If things are getting better, why do we hear so much about the violence? Gen. Abizaid explains.” (READ MORE)
Froggy writing at Blackfive writes Recruiting Terrorists “Is it just me, or do you find it puzzling how people are unable to make the simplest of logical assumptions when it comes to just about anything in this country? It seems that every day on the news we are treated to the results of some brilliant scientist's research study that states the obvious after spending millions in grant money. Did you know that children who live in homes with alcoholic crack addicts who own guns are 10 times as likely to shoot themselves accidentally as children that go to northeastern college prep schools? Really, you don't say?” (READ MORE)
Captain Ed writes The Real NIE Revelations “The Bush administration's decision to declassify the conclusions of the National Intelligence Estimate yesterday revealed two truths about politics and the intelligence community, neither of which appear very complimentary. First, the Democrats allowed themselves to get outfoxed on national security yet again by allowing themselves to get hysterical and seriously misrepresent the conclusions of the NIE. As the Washington Post reports, Democrats made a lot of extraordinary claims about the NIE, which the report itself doesn't support:” (READ MORE)
Michelle Malkin writes OperaRage: Idomeneo and Islam “The first thing to remember when reading about the cancellation of Mozart's Idomeneo in Germany and the opera house Deutsche Oper's kowtowing to Islamic bullies is that jihadists hate Western art and music. They hate love songs. They hate Muslim female pop stars. They hate church frescos. And poems. And illustrations of poems. And, uh, you know how they feel about cartoons. So it doesn't take much to get them worked up.” (READ MORE)
Smash writes Breaking Bread with My Brothers “Some of you are hitting this site regularly, waiting with great anticipation for my latest report on the Friday Code Pink protest outside Walter Reed Army Medical Center. You're waiting in vain. I wasn't at Walter Reed on Friday. Instead, I had dinner with my family. No, not my blood family; I dined with my military brothers and sisters, many of whom are missing a limb or two. That's right: instead of rallying to express support for our wounded warriors outside Walter Reed, I broke bread with them at the Capitol Hill Club.” (READ MORE)
Jay of Stop the ACLU writes House Passes Public Expression Of Religion Act: 244 to 173 “Well, we are half way there! Now the legislation needs to pass the Senate. This will be more difficult to do, so we continue to need all of the support we can get. The roll call is in from the House and its not good news for the ACLU! The bill, H.R. 2679, would deny legal fees and out-of-pocket expenses to be taken from taxpayers and put into the pockets of groups like the ACLU when they successfully sue against references to God and religion in public settings, has passed by a vote of 244-173!” (READ MORE)
Tom The Redhunter writes Support the Troops Weekend - After Action Report “There were two main events: Friday evening September 22 outside of Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC, and Saturday afternoon, September 23, at the Sylvan Theater near the Washington Monument, also in Washington DC. Support the Troops 2006 was sponsored by FreeRepublic.com, the DC Chapter of FreeRepublic.com, Military Families Voice of Victory, and the Protest Warriors. I'm not sure if I'm officially a member of FreeRepublic but I've got a Freeper screen name and have participated in most of their events over the past year so I suppose that's good enough.” (READ MORE)
September 26, 2006
Deep Change
I was introduced Robert Quinn’s concept of Deep Change this weekend, not in some management class but rather in a sermon. The pastor did an excellent job of tying Mr. Quinn’s theory of leadership to the reading Mark 9:30-37. He stated that Quinn’s concept of true leadership was right in line with Jesus’ teaching as it reveals itself in Mark 9:30-37. Let me quote you this passage.
A slow death, what a phrase, but its one we as American’s should be used to, for we have been leading that slow death for decades. Jared Diamond writes in his book "Collapse:"
All four of these men realized that civilizations do not advance by maintaining the status quo, civilizations advance when someone steps forward and honestly leads at any cost to his or her standing among their peers. Maintaining the status quo they all reason only subverts true advancement or enlightenment, and a simple look at our modern society reveals their teachings to be brutally honest.
Today, America as well as most of Western Civilization can be found floundering about on its daily schedule completely ignorant of the events going on round them, unless, those events somehow upset their delicate sensibilities. Even the mundane traffic patterns of modern cities is upsetting to the status quo not because it equalizes all to its slow pace but because the pace does not match our own egotistical belief that my life is more important than anyone else’s. Socialism with its pie in the sky prize of enough for everyone at the minimal effort is but a symptom of our race towards a slow death. Toynbee’s Challenge and Response theories refuted the effectiveness of Socialism not long after Marx proposed it, but still the Left and many Americans and Europeans all believe that if only life were easier then life would be, well easier.
Today the anti-American and anti-military left is waging a slow war of decay, making our life easier by removing threats that we must endure to advance, and the American populace is following right in line. Unfortunately for western civilization the threats that the Left insists they are removing from our lives is only stepping off to the side and watching with glee as we slowly kill our own ability to resist them. Islamic Fascism isn’t concerned with being thought of as being tolerant, they believe that they are right in their views and their intolerance of those who speak out against them is not some hypocritical act on their part it is a calculated response. In their minds they are the dominant force and it is their right to quell any rebellion in any manner they deem necessary.
And where then does all of this leave us, the enlightened?
We are in a precarious position my friends for we have seen the best and worst of civilization and as of this writing only a few are fighting against the status quo. Even members of the Republican Party are not immune to the effects of the left’s suicide not because they are weak, but rather because they are not true leaders, for a true leader must be willing to do what ever it takes to challenge the status quo, to demand that what’s good enough is not enough and to demand that better ways be found to conduct our business.
The Gang of 14, the retired Generals and the leaders of the Democratic Party are the prime enablers of the Left’s efforts to maintain the status quo not because they all side with the left, but because as I said before they are not true leaders. They worry about the next vote, the next poll, and the next sound bite; in short they worry about being great and not being great leaders. Their comfort zone was attacked and they showed their true colors not by accepting the change but by going into a complete defensive mode to protect “their job.”
Great leaders are few and far between and yet we have encountered two of them in the last 20 years. The first was Ronald Reagan, the second, George W Bush and yet even the second of our great leaders falls into the trap set by the Left. He fails often when it is imperative that he does the right thing, but instead caters to the next poll, he is more often than not a human with allusions of greatness. And yet, he is a great leader for it is obvious to even the blind that is driving force is the protection and security of our nation, and it is this force that will never gain him any sympathy from those who wish us to fail. George Bush has challenged their status quo and it is driving the left crazy and for that they will vilify him to his death and ultimately ours.
A friend of mine, a veteran, is a member of this community that is vilifying the President, he calls it a Cowboy Arrogance that he hates, but what he hates to admit is it was cowboy arrogance that made this country great and will once again. My friend is torn between his love of his fellow service members and the challenging of his comfort zone, when questioned about it he will admit that it was the realization of the trauma of war that made him resign and move into the civilian sector and now he fights against that trauma everyday in his fight against the assault on his comfort zone.
For my friend it will only be good again when “that man” is gone and we can end this silly war, but what he refuses to see is that this war will not end when George Bush leaves office it will however do one of two things: either the next President will continue the war in its current form or the next President will end the current conflict allowing the enemy to regroup and attack us in a new and more deadly fashion.
For many on the left, leading us on an eventual path to suicide they focus their energies not on our common enemy but rather on some mythical date when all that is wrong with the world will suddenly in one fell swoop disappear. I know you’ve seen them with their 01/20/06 bumper stickers acting as if the rapture will come upon them on that date and their comfort zone will be returned to them, but on that date if we as a civilization are lucky they will not get their rapture for if they receive their wishes and the status quo is returned to its 09/10/2001 format, we will all die.
Allow me to leave you with a quote from Kholmayer’s ‘The Suicidal Left.’ He writes:
It’s a little hard to find the management part in these passages isn’t it, but there they are right in front of you, verses 33 – 37. You see Jesus was saying 2000 years ago what Quinn wrote just a couple of years ago, that great managers don’t attempt to maintain the status quo, they upset it, they challenge their charges to think beyond their comfort level. As many commenters on Quinn’s site say when they write about their own revelation to Deep Change, incremental change is a slow death.9:30 They went out from there and passed through Galilee. But Jesus did not want anyone to know,
9:31 for he was teaching his disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man will be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise.”
9:32 But they did not understand this statement and were afraid to ask him.
9:33 Then they came to Capernaum. After Jesus was inside the house he asked
them, “What were you discussing on the way?”
9:34 But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.
9:35 After he sat down, he called the twelve and said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”
9:36 He took a little child and had him stand among them. Taking him in his arms, he said to them,
9:37 “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”
A slow death, what a phrase, but its one we as American’s should be used to, for we have been leading that slow death for decades. Jared Diamond writes in his book "Collapse:"
“…that societies, as often as not, aren't murdered. They commit suicide: they slit their wrists and then, in the course of many decades, stand by passively and watch themselves bleed to death.”Vasko Kohlmayer repeats this assertion in his February 2006 article on American Thinker; The Suicidal Left: Civilizations and their Death Drives and while he reserves his analysis for the liberal Left, his assertion that “[E]ven as individuals commit suicide by drowning or shooting or some other such means, so the West is in the process of committing suicide by the Left...” is just as true for all political parties.
All four of these men realized that civilizations do not advance by maintaining the status quo, civilizations advance when someone steps forward and honestly leads at any cost to his or her standing among their peers. Maintaining the status quo they all reason only subverts true advancement or enlightenment, and a simple look at our modern society reveals their teachings to be brutally honest.
Today, America as well as most of Western Civilization can be found floundering about on its daily schedule completely ignorant of the events going on round them, unless, those events somehow upset their delicate sensibilities. Even the mundane traffic patterns of modern cities is upsetting to the status quo not because it equalizes all to its slow pace but because the pace does not match our own egotistical belief that my life is more important than anyone else’s. Socialism with its pie in the sky prize of enough for everyone at the minimal effort is but a symptom of our race towards a slow death. Toynbee’s Challenge and Response theories refuted the effectiveness of Socialism not long after Marx proposed it, but still the Left and many Americans and Europeans all believe that if only life were easier then life would be, well easier.
Today the anti-American and anti-military left is waging a slow war of decay, making our life easier by removing threats that we must endure to advance, and the American populace is following right in line. Unfortunately for western civilization the threats that the Left insists they are removing from our lives is only stepping off to the side and watching with glee as we slowly kill our own ability to resist them. Islamic Fascism isn’t concerned with being thought of as being tolerant, they believe that they are right in their views and their intolerance of those who speak out against them is not some hypocritical act on their part it is a calculated response. In their minds they are the dominant force and it is their right to quell any rebellion in any manner they deem necessary.
And where then does all of this leave us, the enlightened?
We are in a precarious position my friends for we have seen the best and worst of civilization and as of this writing only a few are fighting against the status quo. Even members of the Republican Party are not immune to the effects of the left’s suicide not because they are weak, but rather because they are not true leaders, for a true leader must be willing to do what ever it takes to challenge the status quo, to demand that what’s good enough is not enough and to demand that better ways be found to conduct our business.
The Gang of 14, the retired Generals and the leaders of the Democratic Party are the prime enablers of the Left’s efforts to maintain the status quo not because they all side with the left, but because as I said before they are not true leaders. They worry about the next vote, the next poll, and the next sound bite; in short they worry about being great and not being great leaders. Their comfort zone was attacked and they showed their true colors not by accepting the change but by going into a complete defensive mode to protect “their job.”
Great leaders are few and far between and yet we have encountered two of them in the last 20 years. The first was Ronald Reagan, the second, George W Bush and yet even the second of our great leaders falls into the trap set by the Left. He fails often when it is imperative that he does the right thing, but instead caters to the next poll, he is more often than not a human with allusions of greatness. And yet, he is a great leader for it is obvious to even the blind that is driving force is the protection and security of our nation, and it is this force that will never gain him any sympathy from those who wish us to fail. George Bush has challenged their status quo and it is driving the left crazy and for that they will vilify him to his death and ultimately ours.
A friend of mine, a veteran, is a member of this community that is vilifying the President, he calls it a Cowboy Arrogance that he hates, but what he hates to admit is it was cowboy arrogance that made this country great and will once again. My friend is torn between his love of his fellow service members and the challenging of his comfort zone, when questioned about it he will admit that it was the realization of the trauma of war that made him resign and move into the civilian sector and now he fights against that trauma everyday in his fight against the assault on his comfort zone.
For my friend it will only be good again when “that man” is gone and we can end this silly war, but what he refuses to see is that this war will not end when George Bush leaves office it will however do one of two things: either the next President will continue the war in its current form or the next President will end the current conflict allowing the enemy to regroup and attack us in a new and more deadly fashion.
For many on the left, leading us on an eventual path to suicide they focus their energies not on our common enemy but rather on some mythical date when all that is wrong with the world will suddenly in one fell swoop disappear. I know you’ve seen them with their 01/20/06 bumper stickers acting as if the rapture will come upon them on that date and their comfort zone will be returned to them, but on that date if we as a civilization are lucky they will not get their rapture for if they receive their wishes and the status quo is returned to its 09/10/2001 format, we will all die.
Allow me to leave you with a quote from Kholmayer’s ‘The Suicidal Left.’ He writes:
“Perhaps this recognition will give us the moral strength to swerve from the road to perdition along which we have been dragged for so long. There is every indication that its terminal point is not too far away. One can almost hear the echo of the abyss as one after another the great pillars of our civilization come crumbling down. Mixed with the doom-bound calls for appeasement in the face of barbarism, it makes for a bloodcurdling sound. If we want to live we must take heed, for the next bend in this road may well be the last.”Perhaps but if human nature is any indication I believe we are in for a long battle not just from without by those actively seeking to kill us, but also from within. Great leaders do not seek to maintain the status quo; they challenge it and force it out of its comfort zone. Deep change is needed in this country and it is needed right now, we can no longer allow the status quo drive our policies nor our political parties. Our leaders cannot aspire to be great without first being great leaders. Christ knew this long before we ever realized it: when will you?
Dhimmitude for Dummies
By Victor Sharpe
Israel Hasbara Committee
via: Frontpage Magazine
Ask one hundred people in the United States what a dhimmi is and perhaps two or three might know. In Western Europe the number would be slightly higher because of latent memories of battles fought against invading Moslem armies over hundreds of years.
In 732, Charles Martel led his Frankish forces at Tours to victory against an Islamic invasion of France, which nearly destroyed Christian Europe. Similarly, Islam was ousted from Spain in 1492 after an occupation of the Iberian Peninsula by the Moslems for hundreds of years. Sadly, the Spanish Christian monarchs, Isabella and Ferdinand, and the Portuguese a few years later, also expelled the Jewish community although the Jews had lived in Spain and Portugal for many centuries and had never posed a threat to either Moslem or Christian sovereignty.
In Italy, Islamic power was brought to an end when the heavy Turkish galleys were defeated by Venetian galleasses at the great naval battle of Lepanto in 1571. And the Moslem Ottoman power, which at its height again threatened all of Western Europe, was barely turned back at the gates of Vienna on 11 September 1683 by a coalition of European armies. Incidentally, could there be a connection between 9.11.1683 and 9.11.2001, or is it just coincidence?
These were four major defeats by Europe of Islamic attempts of conquest and subjugation set against a history of victorious Moslem invasions and conquests that had been the hallmark of Islam since its founding in the seventh century.
But what of the peoples and nations that fell under Islamic occupation? For them the story was one of forced conversions to Islam, slavery, death and the Islamic institution of dhimmitude.
Read the Rest...
Israel Hasbara Committee
via: Frontpage Magazine
Ask one hundred people in the United States what a dhimmi is and perhaps two or three might know. In Western Europe the number would be slightly higher because of latent memories of battles fought against invading Moslem armies over hundreds of years.
In 732, Charles Martel led his Frankish forces at Tours to victory against an Islamic invasion of France, which nearly destroyed Christian Europe. Similarly, Islam was ousted from Spain in 1492 after an occupation of the Iberian Peninsula by the Moslems for hundreds of years. Sadly, the Spanish Christian monarchs, Isabella and Ferdinand, and the Portuguese a few years later, also expelled the Jewish community although the Jews had lived in Spain and Portugal for many centuries and had never posed a threat to either Moslem or Christian sovereignty.
In Italy, Islamic power was brought to an end when the heavy Turkish galleys were defeated by Venetian galleasses at the great naval battle of Lepanto in 1571. And the Moslem Ottoman power, which at its height again threatened all of Western Europe, was barely turned back at the gates of Vienna on 11 September 1683 by a coalition of European armies. Incidentally, could there be a connection between 9.11.1683 and 9.11.2001, or is it just coincidence?
These were four major defeats by Europe of Islamic attempts of conquest and subjugation set against a history of victorious Moslem invasions and conquests that had been the hallmark of Islam since its founding in the seventh century.
But what of the peoples and nations that fell under Islamic occupation? For them the story was one of forced conversions to Islam, slavery, death and the Islamic institution of dhimmitude.
Read the Rest...
Who Makes the Terrorists Hate Us?
By David Limbaugh
Jewish World Review
What other nation in history has obsessively investigated itself during time of war? When are we going to quit beating ourselves up and move down the road?
Just a few weeks ago, we were treated to Phase 2 of the Senate Intelligence Committee's report analyzing our failures of prewar intelligence for the millionth time. The Committee — with a nominal majority of Republicans and a working majority of antiwar members — reported that the administration had been wrong in alleging a relationship between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda.
As Republican Chairman Pat Roberts made clear, the working majority cherry picked the evidence to conclude there was no relationship when the weight of the evidence indicated there was — going back 10 years, no less. Condoleezza Rice confirmed that there were always dissenting opinions, but that the prevailing view among our intelligence agencies was that there was indeed a relationship.
The committee demonstrated its absurdity elsewhere, too, when it concluded, preposterously, that Saddam didn't consider the United States an enemy because he said so during his debriefing. The committee chose to believe that obvious lie from a lying, murderous tyrant over his consistently contradictory statements and behavior over the previous decade.
Read the rest...
Jewish World Review
What other nation in history has obsessively investigated itself during time of war? When are we going to quit beating ourselves up and move down the road?
Just a few weeks ago, we were treated to Phase 2 of the Senate Intelligence Committee's report analyzing our failures of prewar intelligence for the millionth time. The Committee — with a nominal majority of Republicans and a working majority of antiwar members — reported that the administration had been wrong in alleging a relationship between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda.
As Republican Chairman Pat Roberts made clear, the working majority cherry picked the evidence to conclude there was no relationship when the weight of the evidence indicated there was — going back 10 years, no less. Condoleezza Rice confirmed that there were always dissenting opinions, but that the prevailing view among our intelligence agencies was that there was indeed a relationship.
The committee demonstrated its absurdity elsewhere, too, when it concluded, preposterously, that Saddam didn't consider the United States an enemy because he said so during his debriefing. The committee chose to believe that obvious lie from a lying, murderous tyrant over his consistently contradictory statements and behavior over the previous decade.
Read the rest...
Web Reconnaissance for 09/26/2006
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention.
John Hinderaker of Power Line writes What Else Was In the NIE Report? “In my addendum to this post by Paul, I repeated a point I've made several times before: one of the sinister aspects of leaks of classified information is that they are by nature selective. The leaker has access to lots of material, but he doesn't leak it all: he only leaks what he thinks will best serve his political agenda. The recent leaks of alleged conclusions from the National Intelligence Estimate that was completed last spring is a perfect case in point. Paul and I talked about an article in the Washington Post by a reporter who obviously had not read the report. All she could do was pass on the Democrat leaker's spin. Which, in all likelihood, she was happy to do. But what does the report really say? In From the Cold, a web site operated by a former intelligence officer with 20 years' experience, has obtained access to portions, at least, of the intelligence agencies' report. If you are interested in this story, you should read it all. Here are a few excerpts:” (read more)
Captain Ed writes Time To Release The NIE “The National Intelligence Estimate leak to the New York Times has given the Democrats yet another election-time club with which to beat Republicans, the Washington Post reports. The selective quotes have made their way into campaign speeches criticizing the Iraq War, and they hope to use them to maximum effect in their fading hopes of capturing either chamber of Congress … However, the usefulness of the report will only last as long as the larger context of the report remains hidden from the public. Already we have seen pushback from members of the intelligence community that object to the lack of that context in the New York Times. Spook86 at In From The Cold, a blogger and former intel worker with ties to the community, posted more quotes from the NIE that cast the report into a different light:” (read more)
John Hawkins writes What The MSM Isn't Telling You About That National Intelligence Estimate “Of late, we've been hearing a lot about a, "classified National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) contends that the war in Iraq has increased Islamic radicalism." However, there are some aspects of this issue that aren't getting enough attention. #1) This is a classified report and leaking it is a crime. There should be people spending the next decade in jail breaking big rocks into smaller rocks as a consequence of this report. If that means putting reporters in jail for contempt until they give up their sources, so be it. #2) Since this is an interpretation of a classified report, given by anonymous sources that presumably have axes to grind, we should be highly skeptical of any conclusions they claim were reached. After all, we have no way to verify that they're not simply cherry picking different parts of the report to reach politically motivated conclusions.” (read more)
Master Gunner of Tanker Brothers writes ...All Enemies, Foreign And Domestic “…My leaders do not ‘cheapen this war’, on the contrary, they have a very clear goal: the security of the American people and the spread of Democracy in a very volatile region as a catalyst for stability. As my Commander-In-Chief, and my Hero, has stated so eloquently before: ‘This isn't a battle of civilizations, this is a battle for civilization.’ Now, think about what I just said, and I want you to consider it for a moment before we continue.” (read more)
Jay Tea of Wizbang writes Bad Medicine “Captain Mary Hanna, US Army (Reserve), has decided that green just isn't her color. Captain Hanna signed an agreement with the United States Army back in 1997. In exchange for the Army paying for her schooling, she would serve four years on active duty, then four more in the Reserve. She's finishing up her residency at Tufts University, but now she's not so eager to fulfill her agreement. She says that since she agreed to that standard contract, she's experienced a renewal of her Coptic Christian faith, and as such she can not in good conscience participate in war or anything that offers the slightest bit of support for war.” (read more)
GayPatriot of Gay Patriot writes New York Times Fawns Over Islamists “I read this disgusting story in the Charlotte Observer’s Sunday paper. I couldn’t find the link to it there, but this is the same story as published online by the Wilmington Star News. Prepare to be outraged and on the verge of shock when reading this fawning, apologetic story about our enemies who have declared war on our nation. Islamists Calm Capital of Somalia With Restraint - Jeff Gettleman, New York Times News Service:” (read more)
Betsy Newmark writes That NIE report “Robert Kagan has the best response to the leaked NIE report that the war in Iraq is making more terrorists. First he notes that we're getting this second or third hand without getting the exact quotes and the context from the report. It is all being filtered through the person who leaked it and the reporters who wrote it, but hadn't seen it. Ya think that the leaking of the report had any connection to the very slight bump in the polls that Bush and the GOP have received since Bush started his series of speeches defending the war in Iraq and the way he has been conducting the war on terror? Ya think? But then Kagan goes on to explain how hard it is to determine terrorist motivations.” (read more)
John Hinderaker of Power Line writes What Else Was In the NIE Report? “In my addendum to this post by Paul, I repeated a point I've made several times before: one of the sinister aspects of leaks of classified information is that they are by nature selective. The leaker has access to lots of material, but he doesn't leak it all: he only leaks what he thinks will best serve his political agenda. The recent leaks of alleged conclusions from the National Intelligence Estimate that was completed last spring is a perfect case in point. Paul and I talked about an article in the Washington Post by a reporter who obviously had not read the report. All she could do was pass on the Democrat leaker's spin. Which, in all likelihood, she was happy to do. But what does the report really say? In From the Cold, a web site operated by a former intelligence officer with 20 years' experience, has obtained access to portions, at least, of the intelligence agencies' report. If you are interested in this story, you should read it all. Here are a few excerpts:” (read more)
Captain Ed writes Time To Release The NIE “The National Intelligence Estimate leak to the New York Times has given the Democrats yet another election-time club with which to beat Republicans, the Washington Post reports. The selective quotes have made their way into campaign speeches criticizing the Iraq War, and they hope to use them to maximum effect in their fading hopes of capturing either chamber of Congress … However, the usefulness of the report will only last as long as the larger context of the report remains hidden from the public. Already we have seen pushback from members of the intelligence community that object to the lack of that context in the New York Times. Spook86 at In From The Cold, a blogger and former intel worker with ties to the community, posted more quotes from the NIE that cast the report into a different light:” (read more)
John Hawkins writes What The MSM Isn't Telling You About That National Intelligence Estimate “Of late, we've been hearing a lot about a, "classified National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) contends that the war in Iraq has increased Islamic radicalism." However, there are some aspects of this issue that aren't getting enough attention. #1) This is a classified report and leaking it is a crime. There should be people spending the next decade in jail breaking big rocks into smaller rocks as a consequence of this report. If that means putting reporters in jail for contempt until they give up their sources, so be it. #2) Since this is an interpretation of a classified report, given by anonymous sources that presumably have axes to grind, we should be highly skeptical of any conclusions they claim were reached. After all, we have no way to verify that they're not simply cherry picking different parts of the report to reach politically motivated conclusions.” (read more)
Master Gunner of Tanker Brothers writes ...All Enemies, Foreign And Domestic “…My leaders do not ‘cheapen this war’, on the contrary, they have a very clear goal: the security of the American people and the spread of Democracy in a very volatile region as a catalyst for stability. As my Commander-In-Chief, and my Hero, has stated so eloquently before: ‘This isn't a battle of civilizations, this is a battle for civilization.’ Now, think about what I just said, and I want you to consider it for a moment before we continue.” (read more)
Jay Tea of Wizbang writes Bad Medicine “Captain Mary Hanna, US Army (Reserve), has decided that green just isn't her color. Captain Hanna signed an agreement with the United States Army back in 1997. In exchange for the Army paying for her schooling, she would serve four years on active duty, then four more in the Reserve. She's finishing up her residency at Tufts University, but now she's not so eager to fulfill her agreement. She says that since she agreed to that standard contract, she's experienced a renewal of her Coptic Christian faith, and as such she can not in good conscience participate in war or anything that offers the slightest bit of support for war.” (read more)
GayPatriot of Gay Patriot writes New York Times Fawns Over Islamists “I read this disgusting story in the Charlotte Observer’s Sunday paper. I couldn’t find the link to it there, but this is the same story as published online by the Wilmington Star News. Prepare to be outraged and on the verge of shock when reading this fawning, apologetic story about our enemies who have declared war on our nation. Islamists Calm Capital of Somalia With Restraint - Jeff Gettleman, New York Times News Service:” (read more)
Betsy Newmark writes That NIE report “Robert Kagan has the best response to the leaked NIE report that the war in Iraq is making more terrorists. First he notes that we're getting this second or third hand without getting the exact quotes and the context from the report. It is all being filtered through the person who leaked it and the reporters who wrote it, but hadn't seen it. Ya think that the leaking of the report had any connection to the very slight bump in the polls that Bush and the GOP have received since Bush started his series of speeches defending the war in Iraq and the way he has been conducting the war on terror? Ya think? But then Kagan goes on to explain how hard it is to determine terrorist motivations.” (read more)
Tuesday Morning Memorial
Peace Light Memorial - Oak Hill GMP Photo by: David M(Shutter Speed 1/400, F.Stop 3.7, ISO Speed 80, No Flash)
September 25, 2006
Islamic Fascism 101
By Victor Davis Hanson
National Review Online
Make no apologies for the use of “Islamic fascism.” It is the perfect nomenclature for the agenda of radical Islam, for a variety of historical and scholarly reasons. That such usage also causes extreme embarrassment to both the Islamists themselves and their leftist “anti-fascist” appeasers in the West is just too bad.
First, the general idea of “fascism” — the creation of a centralized authoritarian state to enforce blanket obedience to a reactionary, all-encompassing ideology — fits well the aims of contemporary Islamism that openly demands implementation of sharia law and the return to a Pan-Islamic and theocratic caliphate.
In addition, Islamists, as is true of all fascists, privilege their own particular creed of true believers by harkening back to a lost, pristine past, in which the devout were once uncorrupted by modernism.
True, bin Laden’s mythical Volk doesn’t bath in the clear icy waters of the Rhine untouched by the filth of the Tiber; but rather they ride horses and slice the wind with their scimitars in service of a soon to be reborn majestic world of caliphs and mullahs. Osama bin Laden sashaying in his flowing robes is not all that different from the obese Herman Goering in reindeer horns plodding around his Karinhall castle with suspenders and alpine shorts.
Because fascism is born out of insecurity and the sense of failure, hatred for Jews is de rigueur. To read al Qaeda’s texts is to reenter the world of Mein Kampf (naturally now known as jihadi in the Arab world). The crackpot minister of its ideology, Dr. Zawahiri, is simply a Dr. Alfred Rosenberg come alive — a similar quarter-educated buffoon, who has just enough of a vocabulary to dress up fascist venom in a potpourri of historical misreadings and pseudo-learning.
Read the Rest...
National Review Online
Make no apologies for the use of “Islamic fascism.” It is the perfect nomenclature for the agenda of radical Islam, for a variety of historical and scholarly reasons. That such usage also causes extreme embarrassment to both the Islamists themselves and their leftist “anti-fascist” appeasers in the West is just too bad.
First, the general idea of “fascism” — the creation of a centralized authoritarian state to enforce blanket obedience to a reactionary, all-encompassing ideology — fits well the aims of contemporary Islamism that openly demands implementation of sharia law and the return to a Pan-Islamic and theocratic caliphate.
In addition, Islamists, as is true of all fascists, privilege their own particular creed of true believers by harkening back to a lost, pristine past, in which the devout were once uncorrupted by modernism.
True, bin Laden’s mythical Volk doesn’t bath in the clear icy waters of the Rhine untouched by the filth of the Tiber; but rather they ride horses and slice the wind with their scimitars in service of a soon to be reborn majestic world of caliphs and mullahs. Osama bin Laden sashaying in his flowing robes is not all that different from the obese Herman Goering in reindeer horns plodding around his Karinhall castle with suspenders and alpine shorts.
Because fascism is born out of insecurity and the sense of failure, hatred for Jews is de rigueur. To read al Qaeda’s texts is to reenter the world of Mein Kampf (naturally now known as jihadi in the Arab world). The crackpot minister of its ideology, Dr. Zawahiri, is simply a Dr. Alfred Rosenberg come alive — a similar quarter-educated buffoon, who has just enough of a vocabulary to dress up fascist venom in a potpourri of historical misreadings and pseudo-learning.
Read the Rest...
Lifestyles of Lear Jet Libs
By Debra J. Saunders
Jewish World Review
Limousine liberals, move over. You've been out-glammed by Lear Jet liberals who burn beaucoup fossil fuels in the sky as they soar around the planet fighting global warming.
Last week, they flew to their Mecca, the Clinton Global Initiative conference in New York City. For the left-leaning and loaded, this is the meeting that has it all — the mega-rich paying to be seen caring about poor people and the environment, while posing for photos with former President Bill Clinton.
You see, they care so much more about the environment than President Bush because they support the Kyoto global-warming pact, which they believe would save the planet from greenhouse gases, if only Bush had not rejected it. (Never mind that Clinton never asked the Senate to ratify the pact, probably because senators voted 95-0 for a resolution rejecting any treaty that exempted China and India.)
Forget that Kyoto has the depth of a cowboy movie set. The storefronts look like a general store and saloon, but when actors walk through the door, there's nothing there. The overwhelming majority of industrialized nations that signed on to Kyoto amid much fanfare haven't cut their greenhouse gases. In June, the United Nations reported that only two Western European signatories — Britain and Sweden — are on target to meet their greenhouse-gas reduction targets, which call for a worldwide reduction of 5 percent below 1990 levels in 2012.
Read the rest...
Jewish World Review
Limousine liberals, move over. You've been out-glammed by Lear Jet liberals who burn beaucoup fossil fuels in the sky as they soar around the planet fighting global warming.
Last week, they flew to their Mecca, the Clinton Global Initiative conference in New York City. For the left-leaning and loaded, this is the meeting that has it all — the mega-rich paying to be seen caring about poor people and the environment, while posing for photos with former President Bill Clinton.
You see, they care so much more about the environment than President Bush because they support the Kyoto global-warming pact, which they believe would save the planet from greenhouse gases, if only Bush had not rejected it. (Never mind that Clinton never asked the Senate to ratify the pact, probably because senators voted 95-0 for a resolution rejecting any treaty that exempted China and India.)
Forget that Kyoto has the depth of a cowboy movie set. The storefronts look like a general store and saloon, but when actors walk through the door, there's nothing there. The overwhelming majority of industrialized nations that signed on to Kyoto amid much fanfare haven't cut their greenhouse gases. In June, the United Nations reported that only two Western European signatories — Britain and Sweden — are on target to meet their greenhouse-gas reduction targets, which call for a worldwide reduction of 5 percent below 1990 levels in 2012.
Read the rest...
Who Are the Ones Suppressing the Facts on Iraq?
By Jack Kelly
Jewish World Review
A Democratic theme we're sure to hear repeated this fall is that President Bush "cherry-picked" intelligence on Iraq. But this isn't true, according to the bipartisan Robb-Silverman Commission, which investigated prewar intelligence:
"The commission found no evidence of political pressure to influence the intelligence community's pre-war assessments of Iraq's weapons programs . . . Analysts universally asserted that in no instance did political pressure cause them to skew or alter any of their analytical judgments."
But should Mr. Bush choose to "cherry-pick" intelligence to justify a future conflict, he has a terrific model to follow in the report issued by the Senate Intelligence Committee on Sept. 8.
The report focused on the extent to which the intelligence community relied upon reporting from Iraqis affiliated with the Iraqi National Congress in making its estimates of Saddam's WMD programs and his links to terrorists. The INC was headed by Ahmed Chalabi, a favorite at the Pentagon, but persona non grata with the CIA and the State department.
The report concluded that defectors affiliated with the INC lied to provoke the United States into attacking Iraq and that the information they provided profoundly influenced the intelligence community's assessments of the threat posed by Saddam's regime.
I read the whole 205 pages, and was stunned by the degree to which the "findings" in the body of the report did not support the "conclusions" at the end of it.
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
A Democratic theme we're sure to hear repeated this fall is that President Bush "cherry-picked" intelligence on Iraq. But this isn't true, according to the bipartisan Robb-Silverman Commission, which investigated prewar intelligence:
"The commission found no evidence of political pressure to influence the intelligence community's pre-war assessments of Iraq's weapons programs . . . Analysts universally asserted that in no instance did political pressure cause them to skew or alter any of their analytical judgments."
But should Mr. Bush choose to "cherry-pick" intelligence to justify a future conflict, he has a terrific model to follow in the report issued by the Senate Intelligence Committee on Sept. 8.
The report focused on the extent to which the intelligence community relied upon reporting from Iraqis affiliated with the Iraqi National Congress in making its estimates of Saddam's WMD programs and his links to terrorists. The INC was headed by Ahmed Chalabi, a favorite at the Pentagon, but persona non grata with the CIA and the State department.
The report concluded that defectors affiliated with the INC lied to provoke the United States into attacking Iraq and that the information they provided profoundly influenced the intelligence community's assessments of the threat posed by Saddam's regime.
I read the whole 205 pages, and was stunned by the degree to which the "findings" in the body of the report did not support the "conclusions" at the end of it.
Read the Rest...
U.N. Shows Why it's Incapable of Reform
By Mark Steyn
Jewish World Review
The last intervention in public affairs Ted Turner made was a month or two back, when he recounted what an agreeable vacation he'd had in Kim Jong Il's North Korea. (I sent him a postcard saying, "Wish you were still there.") He's now weighed in on the ayatollahs, and his line's pretty straightforward: Why shouldn't Iran have nukes?
"They're a sovereign state," he said. "We have 28,000. Why can't they have 10? We don't say anything about Israel — they've got 100 of them approximately — or India or Pakistan or Russia. And really, nobody should have them. They aren't usable by any sane person."
Cut to President Ahmadinejad's address to the United Nations. His speech was mostly a lot of run-of-the-mill kook boilerplate — the U.N. is a stooge of the Great Satan (if only), America started the Israel-Hezbollah war (whatever) — but he wound up the usual shtick with a prayer for the return of the Twelfth Imam, the so-called "Hidden Imam" — or, as the Iranian president put it: "the perfect, righteous human being and the real savior who has been promised to all peoples and who will establish justice, peace and brotherhood on the planet."
This isn't just some cockamamie pie-in-the-sky deal. Last year, Ahmadinejad told the Indian foreign minister that everything would be hunky-dory in two years' time, which the minister took to mean when Iran's nukes would be ready to fly. But, as the president went on to explain, that's apparently the Twelfth Imam's ETA.
Read the Rest...
Jewish World Review
The last intervention in public affairs Ted Turner made was a month or two back, when he recounted what an agreeable vacation he'd had in Kim Jong Il's North Korea. (I sent him a postcard saying, "Wish you were still there.") He's now weighed in on the ayatollahs, and his line's pretty straightforward: Why shouldn't Iran have nukes?
"They're a sovereign state," he said. "We have 28,000. Why can't they have 10? We don't say anything about Israel — they've got 100 of them approximately — or India or Pakistan or Russia. And really, nobody should have them. They aren't usable by any sane person."
Cut to President Ahmadinejad's address to the United Nations. His speech was mostly a lot of run-of-the-mill kook boilerplate — the U.N. is a stooge of the Great Satan (if only), America started the Israel-Hezbollah war (whatever) — but he wound up the usual shtick with a prayer for the return of the Twelfth Imam, the so-called "Hidden Imam" — or, as the Iranian president put it: "the perfect, righteous human being and the real savior who has been promised to all peoples and who will establish justice, peace and brotherhood on the planet."
This isn't just some cockamamie pie-in-the-sky deal. Last year, Ahmadinejad told the Indian foreign minister that everything would be hunky-dory in two years' time, which the minister took to mean when Iran's nukes would be ready to fly. But, as the president went on to explain, that's apparently the Twelfth Imam's ETA.
Read the Rest...
Gold Star Mother's Day
Gold Star Mother's Day, 2006 A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America
Since America's founding, every generation has produced patriots willing to sacrifice for our great Nation. Many of these proud sons and daughters have given everything for our freedom, and America has mourned the loss of every life. On Gold Star Mother's Day, we pay special tribute to the mothers of those lost while defending our country and extending the blessings of liberty to others.
Gold Star Mothers have long borne the hardships of war with dignity and devotion. Through heartbreaking loss and unimaginable grief, they continue to support each other through difficult times, stand up for those wearing the uniform of the United States, and serve their communities in the best traditions of the American spirit. Their strength, compassion, and determination are an inspiration to all and a source of great pride for our Nation.
America lives in freedom because of the sacrifices of America's finest citizens and of the mothers who raised them. In the words of President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944, "There is nothing adequate which anyone in any place can say to those who are entitled to display the gold star in their windows." Each year, this observance is an opportunity to offer our solemn respect to Gold Star Mothers and renew our ongoing pledge that America will always remember those who died while wearing the uniform of the United States and forever honor their families' sacrifice.
The Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 115 of June 23, 1936 (49 Stat. 1895 as amended), has designated the last Sunday in September as "Gold Star Mother's Day" and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in its observance. On this day, we express our deep gratitude to our Nation's Gold Star Mothers, and we ask God's blessings on them and on their families.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Sunday, September 24, 2006, as Gold Star Mother's Day. I call upon all Government officials to display the flag of the United States over Government buildings on this solemn day. I also encourage the American people to display the flag and hold appropriate ceremonies as a public expression of our Nation's sympathy and respect for our Gold Star Mothers.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-first.
I missed posting about this yesterday, because like most American’s I let my petty daily routines guide my life.
Since 1936 the United States of America has honored the Gold Star Mothers of our Service Members and yet, I bet not many of us knew that the day even existed. Despite one very misguided Gold Star Mother the mothers of our fallen largely go un-noticed and that is a tragedy.
The families of our fallen deserve to be treated better and with more respect for not only have their son’s and daughter’s given their last full measure they too gave more than most would ever contemplate.
Yesterday was the one Sunday out of 52 we recognize each year in our Julian calendar, you would think that we could take the time out of our busy day, stop watching the game for a moment and remember the brave families on the home front whose lives will never be the same.
You’d think that in a country where even the most anti-military say they support the troops we could have taken some time out of our life to say thank you for your service, and yet not one media outlet reported on this solemn day. Our most famous Gold Star Mother never even mentioned it.
To Sgt Stokely’s Mother, Step-Mother, Father and Wife I extend to you my sincere condolences on your loss. Sgt Stokely; as have the rest of the millions of our finest since 1775, gave of himself so that we might live free, and you are those who must bear that sacrifice for the rest of your lives.
To all of the Gold Star Families; thank you for your service and for your sacrifice for without them we could not be the greatest country in the world today.
OPERATION: LOVE FROM HOME
From the unstoppable Kat in GA:
During this holiday season, let's show our troops we love and support them!!!!
From September 30 to November 30, I will be collecting holiday cards for troops stationed in high-combat areas in Iraq and Afghanistan. Being away from home and living in harsh conditions during the holiday season is especially difficult ~ they need to know we have not forgotten them!!! Mail from home helps to keep our troops' morale strong, making a very real difference in their lives.
Send your signed, unsealed holiday cards to:
OPERATION: LOVE FROM HOME
P.O. Box 1660
Loganville, Georgia, 30052
The cards can be handmade or store-bought... for that matter, they don't even have to be cards; a hand-written or typed letter is just as wonderful! This is a great opportunity to get your Scout troop, school, church and other civic organizations involved in doing something to show support for our troops.
If you wish to send an email greeting (which will be printed off and mailed along with the holiday cards), please send an email here.
**IMPORTANT GUIDELINES: This is not a "dating service" of any type. Please do not send suggestive or otherwise inappropriate cards or materials. Please also refrain from making political statements of any nature. I will be reading and screening every card received to ensure that the above guidelines are adhered to.
Remember: This is strictly to let the troops know that we love them, we are proud of them and that we HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN them! If you have any questions, please contact me here.
~~~Ed Note: My Webelos don't know it yet, but they are going to be participating in the Christmas Card drive this year...why don't you join us and help Kat send some much needed cheer to our deployed troops.
DADISM # 44
"Don't make me come in there!"
Translation #1:
"I don't know what you're doing behind that door. And I don't want to know. But if I keep hearing any more of that blasted whining, I'm going to have to get up off this couch. And if, by doing so, I miss out on the biggest play of the season, there will be hell to pay, Buster (or Missey)!"
Translation #2:
"I don't know what the problem is between you two, but if I have to come in there and settle it, neither of you will like the outcome."
Translation #1:
"I don't know what you're doing behind that door. And I don't want to know. But if I keep hearing any more of that blasted whining, I'm going to have to get up off this couch. And if, by doing so, I miss out on the biggest play of the season, there will be hell to pay, Buster (or Missey)!"
Translation #2:
"I don't know what the problem is between you two, but if I have to come in there and settle it, neither of you will like the outcome."
Web Reconnaissance for 09/25/2006
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention.
The Hatemongers Quarterly posting at Wizbang writes The Curious “Anti-Racism” of the Radical Left “Pound for pound, the ‘political newsletter’ Counterpunch is surely one of the zanier ‘websites’ on Al Gore’s World-Wide Web. Run by Stalinoid conspiracy theorist Alexander Cockburn, Counterpunch presents a treasure trove of unhinged far-left rants, many of which take aim at the nefarious ‘Zionist lobby.’ This radical ‘website’s’ fixation with anti-Israel apologetics demonstrates the curious ‘anti-racism’ of the self-proclaimed progressive left. As everyone with a pulse knows, leftists constantly bleat about how gosh darn opposed to racism they are: They’re so dedicated to rooting out prejudice that they even invent examples of it merely to make formal displays of their virtue.” (read more)
Dafydd writes VegasBlogging 1: "Milestones," Or Media Millstones? “This AP story is one of the most maddening, infurating examples of elite-media manipulation I've seen in months. We start with the bizarre, defamatory, and demented headline: War Price on U.S. Lives Equal to 9/11. In the first place... huh? What's the point of this article? I was about to note that we lost fewer than 2,500 at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941; while a quick glance at the right sidebar to this very blog tells you that during the war for which that attack was the starting gun, 400,000 brave American sailors, Marines, soldiers, and airmen (then still part of the Army) were killed. There is no relation, cause-effect, or connection between the number of people who died in a precipitating incident and the number killed in the war it precipitates. For heaven's sake, wasn't the War to End All Wars "started" by the death of a single arch-duck?” (read more)
Omar of Iraq the Model writes War on peace… “Yesterday around noon, the 'Virgin Mary Old Eastern Church' in Baghdad was attacked with a series of bombings that involved the use of at least three explosive devices. The sequence in which the bombs were set off indicates the terrorists were trying to inflict as many casualties as possible among the worshippers who were preparing to leave the church after the Sunday ceremony. What really makes me sad and angry is that churches are the most peaceful places in the country. Churches did not turn into bomb factories or hideouts for criminals. They remained beacons for peace and love unlike our mosques and Husseiniyat that drifted far away from their original purpose and sadly became sources of fear and death and changed to become homes to torturers and kidnappers.” (read more)
Michelle Malkin writes About that National Intelligence Estimate “The NYTimes and WaPo went big yesterday with news of a leaked classified National Intelligence Estimate report, which reportedly claims that the Iraq war is exacerbating Islamic terrorism. WaPo:
‘The war in Iraq has become a primary recruitment vehicle for violent Islamic extremists, motivating a new generation of potential terrorists around the world whose numbers may be increasing faster than the United States and its allies can reduce the threat, U.S. intelligence analysts have concluded.’” (read more)
Greyhawk writes A Brief History of a Long War (Iraq, 1990-2003) / 1998 “1998: The tensions continue. Meanwhile, President Clinton is confronted with a growing domestic scandal that will ultimately become politically interwoven with military actions against Iraq. A more complete timeline of those events can be found here. Excerpts considered essential to this account will be included below. January 13, 1998: Iraq blocks an inspection by an American dominated team. It accuses the leader of the team, Scott Ritter, of spying for the US. UNSCOM timeline: The Executive Chairman reports to the Council that during the first day of an inspection, Iraq announced that it was withdrawing its cooperation with the inspection team on the pretext that the team had too many individuals of US or UK nationality (S/1998/27 of 13 January 1998).” (read more)
Neptunus Lex writes The Old Game “China, Russia and France: Can you name three things these countries have in common? Why yes. Yes they are permanent members of the US Security Council, and as such they do have veto authority over any sanctions that might be contempleted by that body against oh, Iran say, for that country’s violation of its agreements under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Not to mention the sanctions strongly suggested by UNSC in Resolution 1696, whose 31 August 2006 deadline to suspend nuclear enrichment Iran has defied.” (read more)
John Hawkins writes How Do Many Liberals Really Feel About Christians? “Over at the wildly popular liberal blog, The Smirking Chimp, there are a couple of posts, both on the front page, that merit a closer look. First, there's a column from Gary Vance called "How Can Any Christian Support the GOP?" Here's a quote from that column: ‘Many Democratic candidates have become more open about their religious faith during this election cycle in an attempt to appeal to the Christian values driven voting bloc. Critics on the Right ridicule this effort as being nothing more than shallow and insincere religious grandstanding.’ (read more)
Master Gunner of Tanker Brothers writes This Is Why There Is Such A Large Anti-War Movement In The United States... “I'll be the first one to admit: I read Time Magazine. Call it masochistic, call it morbid curiosity, whatever. The bottom line is this: I read it. And I'm not happy when I do[.] Why is that that people seek out Soldiers who have problems when they return home from War? The overwhelming number of Soldiers and Marines come back and are chompin' at the bit to go back. They don't sleep with guns under their beds, they don't hang themselves with garden hoses, they don't do anything crazy. They are your friends and neighbors. They come back, and they go about their normal lives. If they are active duty Soldiers, they go back to training. They spend time wth their families, and they train to go back and finish the job.” (read more)
Pam of Iraq War Today writes Most Moronic Blog Comment Ever “Some of the comments on this blog have been...well...less than impressive. And some of the classics have come from the "United We Stand" post above. Take this one, for instance: ‘You all are losers.’ Constructive criticism? I think not. This one is a peach, too: ‘Wow, there's a mistake here. I think it should read "United We Stand... in hoping that your killers are returned safely and not charged, and in support of your efforts in the War OF Terror."Cowards, you are one and all. All you want is the destruction of the Middle East and more Arab blood on your hands. I hope the I.D.F and the Coalition lose, because, if anything, that will help Arabs unite and seek a better solution to this whole mess than what the terrorists of America and Israel are giving the Middle East.’” (read more)
Andi of SpouseBUZZ writes A Roller Coaster Ride “All marriages have their ups and downs, but I'd venture to say that military marriages endure the highest of highs, and the lowest of lows. Take for instance the story of Lance Cpl. Shane E. Kielion and his young wife, April. The couple's story was featured in a FOXNews special titled, ‘Breaking Point: Company of Heroes.’ I saw the special months ago, and I haven't been able to get April Kielion out of my mind since. While Shane was busy cleaning out the rat's nest in Fallujah, April was at home, pregnant with their first child. On November 15, 2004, Shane Kielion was shot by a sniper. Thirty minutes later, April gave birth to Shane Kielion Jr, completely unaware that her husband had been shot.” (read more)
Wretcherd of The Belmont Club writes The old and the new “One of the more curious gaps in popular history is the lack of a first rate account of the Spanish Reconquista, the name given to the 800 year campaign by Christian kingdoms in Spain to expel Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula. Writing a dramatic history of the Reconquista is hard because it went on for so long. So long, in fact, that both sides had changed character over the intervening 8 centuries, one side morphing from the tribal Visigoths to the kingly state of Ferdinand and Isabella and the other going through a succession of Islamic regimes.” (read more)
The Hatemongers Quarterly posting at Wizbang writes The Curious “Anti-Racism” of the Radical Left “Pound for pound, the ‘political newsletter’ Counterpunch is surely one of the zanier ‘websites’ on Al Gore’s World-Wide Web. Run by Stalinoid conspiracy theorist Alexander Cockburn, Counterpunch presents a treasure trove of unhinged far-left rants, many of which take aim at the nefarious ‘Zionist lobby.’ This radical ‘website’s’ fixation with anti-Israel apologetics demonstrates the curious ‘anti-racism’ of the self-proclaimed progressive left. As everyone with a pulse knows, leftists constantly bleat about how gosh darn opposed to racism they are: They’re so dedicated to rooting out prejudice that they even invent examples of it merely to make formal displays of their virtue.” (read more)
Dafydd writes VegasBlogging 1: "Milestones," Or Media Millstones? “This AP story is one of the most maddening, infurating examples of elite-media manipulation I've seen in months. We start with the bizarre, defamatory, and demented headline: War Price on U.S. Lives Equal to 9/11. In the first place... huh? What's the point of this article? I was about to note that we lost fewer than 2,500 at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941; while a quick glance at the right sidebar to this very blog tells you that during the war for which that attack was the starting gun, 400,000 brave American sailors, Marines, soldiers, and airmen (then still part of the Army) were killed. There is no relation, cause-effect, or connection between the number of people who died in a precipitating incident and the number killed in the war it precipitates. For heaven's sake, wasn't the War to End All Wars "started" by the death of a single arch-duck?” (read more)
Omar of Iraq the Model writes War on peace… “Yesterday around noon, the 'Virgin Mary Old Eastern Church' in Baghdad was attacked with a series of bombings that involved the use of at least three explosive devices. The sequence in which the bombs were set off indicates the terrorists were trying to inflict as many casualties as possible among the worshippers who were preparing to leave the church after the Sunday ceremony. What really makes me sad and angry is that churches are the most peaceful places in the country. Churches did not turn into bomb factories or hideouts for criminals. They remained beacons for peace and love unlike our mosques and Husseiniyat that drifted far away from their original purpose and sadly became sources of fear and death and changed to become homes to torturers and kidnappers.” (read more)
Michelle Malkin writes About that National Intelligence Estimate “The NYTimes and WaPo went big yesterday with news of a leaked classified National Intelligence Estimate report, which reportedly claims that the Iraq war is exacerbating Islamic terrorism. WaPo:
‘The war in Iraq has become a primary recruitment vehicle for violent Islamic extremists, motivating a new generation of potential terrorists around the world whose numbers may be increasing faster than the United States and its allies can reduce the threat, U.S. intelligence analysts have concluded.’” (read more)
Greyhawk writes A Brief History of a Long War (Iraq, 1990-2003) / 1998 “1998: The tensions continue. Meanwhile, President Clinton is confronted with a growing domestic scandal that will ultimately become politically interwoven with military actions against Iraq. A more complete timeline of those events can be found here. Excerpts considered essential to this account will be included below. January 13, 1998: Iraq blocks an inspection by an American dominated team. It accuses the leader of the team, Scott Ritter, of spying for the US. UNSCOM timeline: The Executive Chairman reports to the Council that during the first day of an inspection, Iraq announced that it was withdrawing its cooperation with the inspection team on the pretext that the team had too many individuals of US or UK nationality (S/1998/27 of 13 January 1998).” (read more)
Neptunus Lex writes The Old Game “China, Russia and France: Can you name three things these countries have in common? Why yes. Yes they are permanent members of the US Security Council, and as such they do have veto authority over any sanctions that might be contempleted by that body against oh, Iran say, for that country’s violation of its agreements under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Not to mention the sanctions strongly suggested by UNSC in Resolution 1696, whose 31 August 2006 deadline to suspend nuclear enrichment Iran has defied.” (read more)
John Hawkins writes How Do Many Liberals Really Feel About Christians? “Over at the wildly popular liberal blog, The Smirking Chimp, there are a couple of posts, both on the front page, that merit a closer look. First, there's a column from Gary Vance called "How Can Any Christian Support the GOP?" Here's a quote from that column: ‘Many Democratic candidates have become more open about their religious faith during this election cycle in an attempt to appeal to the Christian values driven voting bloc. Critics on the Right ridicule this effort as being nothing more than shallow and insincere religious grandstanding.’ (read more)
Master Gunner of Tanker Brothers writes This Is Why There Is Such A Large Anti-War Movement In The United States... “I'll be the first one to admit: I read Time Magazine. Call it masochistic, call it morbid curiosity, whatever. The bottom line is this: I read it. And I'm not happy when I do[.] Why is that that people seek out Soldiers who have problems when they return home from War? The overwhelming number of Soldiers and Marines come back and are chompin' at the bit to go back. They don't sleep with guns under their beds, they don't hang themselves with garden hoses, they don't do anything crazy. They are your friends and neighbors. They come back, and they go about their normal lives. If they are active duty Soldiers, they go back to training. They spend time wth their families, and they train to go back and finish the job.” (read more)
Pam of Iraq War Today writes Most Moronic Blog Comment Ever “Some of the comments on this blog have been...well...less than impressive. And some of the classics have come from the "United We Stand" post above. Take this one, for instance: ‘You all are losers.’ Constructive criticism? I think not. This one is a peach, too: ‘Wow, there's a mistake here. I think it should read "United We Stand... in hoping that your killers are returned safely and not charged, and in support of your efforts in the War OF Terror."Cowards, you are one and all. All you want is the destruction of the Middle East and more Arab blood on your hands. I hope the I.D.F and the Coalition lose, because, if anything, that will help Arabs unite and seek a better solution to this whole mess than what the terrorists of America and Israel are giving the Middle East.’” (read more)
Andi of SpouseBUZZ writes A Roller Coaster Ride “All marriages have their ups and downs, but I'd venture to say that military marriages endure the highest of highs, and the lowest of lows. Take for instance the story of Lance Cpl. Shane E. Kielion and his young wife, April. The couple's story was featured in a FOXNews special titled, ‘Breaking Point: Company of Heroes.’ I saw the special months ago, and I haven't been able to get April Kielion out of my mind since. While Shane was busy cleaning out the rat's nest in Fallujah, April was at home, pregnant with their first child. On November 15, 2004, Shane Kielion was shot by a sniper. Thirty minutes later, April gave birth to Shane Kielion Jr, completely unaware that her husband had been shot.” (read more)
Wretcherd of The Belmont Club writes The old and the new “One of the more curious gaps in popular history is the lack of a first rate account of the Spanish Reconquista, the name given to the 800 year campaign by Christian kingdoms in Spain to expel Muslims from the Iberian Peninsula. Writing a dramatic history of the Reconquista is hard because it went on for so long. So long, in fact, that both sides had changed character over the intervening 8 centuries, one side morphing from the tribal Visigoths to the kingly state of Ferdinand and Isabella and the other going through a succession of Islamic regimes.” (read more)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)