General News and Comment
Chart.
Movie Recommendation: America
http://www.americathemovie.com/
Bonnie and I finally had time to see thi terrific movie. If
you haven't they told us here playing through Thursday, July 31, best hurry.
The only problem is that the people most likely to see it don't need to, while
the low-info voter is more into sex and violence movies. We hope to be able to
take the granddaughter. See the review below. ~Bob
Excerpt: On Sunday afternoon, my husband and I finally set
aside a little time to make a very rare visit to the movie theater to see Dinesh
D'Souza's, America :
Imagine the World Without Her. I know many clear-minded people have already
written glowing reviews, but there's always room for one more big thumbs-up. A
number of liberals have also written typically spiteful "reviews" in
an effort to thwart attendance. But, as we fully understand, if liberals hate
it, then we know it's probably good, and this is certainly true with America . (One
of several excellent reviews of this movie about the real America , not the imperialist,
racist, corrupt, oppressive one that they've been teaching in too many schools
for too long. I hope to get a chance to go see it. --Del )
Bonnie and I read this fine novel for a small book group we
belong to. It is set in NW Italy in WWII during 1943-45. It is the story of
Jews behind German lines, both Italian and refugees from other countries, of
the Italian people who aided them, often at the cost of their lives, and of the
brutal partisan war against the Nazis and the Italian fascists. It is also
meticulously researched--it took her seven years to finish it. The narrative is
harshly realistic, the characterization strong and the dialog sparkling.
Russell, a paleoanthropologist academic by training holds a PhD. This was her
third novel.
BRAVO: The Movie
This sounds good. ~Bob
Jeremiah Denton,
admiral, senator and defiant Vietnam POW, is buried in Arlington
Excerpt: He was held with the most recalcitrant captives in
the Hanoi prison dubbed “Alcatraz ”
(
Excellent Video of
Malaysian Flt 17 being hit by missile
Excerpt from email: Looks like the right engine and wing
area took the hit. Note the camera operator is able to record
the moment of impact in the first 2 seconds of this clip. Note the smoke
burst left behind on impact with the #2 engine area. There is a 18
second delay (speed of sound delay) due to the distance and altitude of the
explosion. Question: how did this video operator know to have his camera
running just prior to the missile explosion? How many people run their camera
in the sky looking for an airplane cruising at altitude so high that most are
not visible to the human eye? Note that the pilots are maintaining wings level,
the airplane and burning wing still intact, in what appears to be an
uncontrolled descent from 33,000 feet when the video ends at 1+19sec.
(480P is best resolution available)(select FULL SCREEN) (Perhaps President BO
needs to finance with more money the Ukrainian Russian Separatists to at
least beg them to bring back the pieces of the 777 and the bodies of all of
that plane's passengers that they murdered when they stole any
possible evidence of that plane's shoot down. In so doing, their efforts were
to, at least, contaminate all of that downed aircraft's pieces
of wreckage so that as much of the evidence needed to
confirm who and what shot the Malaysian Aviation 777 aircraft down
were highlighted to confirm who, what, where, how, and why that 777 was shot
down. This videotape shows - in pretty clear evidence - how, what,
and why that 777 was shot down. The world's leader are, thus far, working on
building their own case that Putin was trying to gin up his excuses and alibis
for that plane's shoot down. Meanwhile, President BO was very busy flying
around the country for fundraising tours, playing golf with celebrities, and
doing every thing else except spending time on the phone with leaders of
like-minded countries and their leaders to present a united front against
Putin's obvious efforts to keep himself and his country more than at arm's
length length away from their very real complicity in Putin's country
and their innocence in this murdering of almost 300 people on board that aircraft. --Paul)
Two Ukrainian
military jets shot down over rebel-held area
Excerpt: Separatists fighting the Kiev
government claimed credit for shooting down two warplanes Wednesday over
eastern Ukraine
near where a passenger airliner crashed last week after being struck by a
missile. The attack on the warplanes came just six days after the Malaysia Airlines disaster, which has drawn
international outrage and showcased the advanced firepower that apparently is available
on the ground in the region.
Excerpt: Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.) plagiarized a substantial
portion of of this final thesis at the United States Army
War College
The Insiders: See no
Obama, hear no Obama, quote no Obama. By Ed Rogers
Excerpt: The Obama administration is dangerously close to
causing a serious fracture within the Democratic Party. There is so much
deceit, delusion and incompetence coming from this administration and
Democratic Party leaders that rank-and-file Democratic candidates are becoming
leery of being seen with President Obama and are exercising caution in signing
on to administration initiatives, repeating its talking points or giving the
White House the benefit of the doubt even on routine matters. Democratic
candidates must be starting to feel as though it is every man or woman for
himself or herself. Being a team player and a good soldier is not worth the
risk.
How’d that nonintervention and ‘smart diplomacy’ work out?
By Jennifer Rubin
Excerpt: These days are troubled for anti-interventionists
and multi-lateralists. Virtually all of their nostrums have
proven false. We can woo powers by economic engagement? That didn’t work with Russia . We let Russia into the World Trade Organization, and
Europe’s economy is more intertwined than ever with Russia ’s. That, it seems, has made
it harder, not
easier, to check Russian aggression.
Single Mother
Arrested for Carrying Gun to Protect Her Children
Excerpt: A mistake could separate a single mother from her
children and send her to prison for three years. Her crime? Unlawfully possessing
a gun in New Jersey that she could legally
possess and carry in her home state of Pennsylvania .
Shaneen Allen, a single mother with two children, planned to spend the weekend
celebrating her son’s birthday in New
Jersey . Along with the supplies for the party, she
made sure to pack her .380 handgun for protection. Having
been robbed twice before in the same year, Allen bought the gun in Pennsylvania just one
week before her drive. (Black. 1:00 AM. Driving [carrying] while black? ~Bob)
Tree planted in
memory of George Harrison felled ... by beetles
Excerpt: In a case of unbelievable coincidence, a pine tree
planted in memory of the late Beatle George Harrison was killed by a beetle
infestation.
NAACP Legal Defense
Fund: Detroit
Excerpt: After a class action lawsuit filed against the
city of Detroit , the NAACP Legal Defense Fund
says that recent water shutoffs to Detroit
residents were discriminatory. (After a class action lawsuit filed against
the city of Detroit , the NAACP Legal Defense
Fund says that recent water shutoffs to Detroit residents were discriminatory. --GS.
well, I see their point. In a black-run city, expecting blacks to pay their
bills like the rest of us is of course racist. Detroit should provide everything free to
minorities--borrow the money like the feds do. ~Bob)
Watch Some Marines
Confront a Man Impersonating An Army Sergeant Major
Excerpt: At a military funeral this weekend in West Palm Beach , Florida
Help Make Offshore
Drilling a Reality
Map shows where drilling is blocked
http://reason.com/blog/2014/07/22/border-patrol-agent-draws-gun-on-boy-sco
Excerpt: Central Iowa received a lesson they won't forget in federal manners at a border crossing fromCanada
into Alaska .
According to the scoutmaster, a casual snapshot of a Border Patrol agent got
the group of about two dozen scouts and volunteers detained, searched—and one
of them ultimately held at gunpoint.
Excerpt: Central Iowa received a lesson they won't forget in federal manners at a border crossing from
Excerpt: If nothing else, both parties — and allies and
foreign foes — have learned not to take anything this administration says very
seriously. Red lines come and go. Secretary of State John F. Kerry says there’s
“progress” in the Hamas truce talks, but he had said there had been progress in
the “peace process.” Time and again, we’ve seen hypocrisy or intellectual
dishonesty (or both) from this crew:
Beretta Dumps
Maryland After New Gun Laws: Moves manufacturing to Tennessee
Excerpt: Beretta USA ,
one of the nation’s largest firearms manufacturers, will move its
manufacturing and approximately 300 jobs out of Maryland because of the state’s new gun
control laws, the company said in a statement Tuesday. Beretta said the company
will transition its manufacturing from Maryland
to Tennessee in 2015, citing Maryland ’s passage of Democratic Gov. Martin
O’Malley’s Firearms Safety Act last year and the state’s general gun control
atmosphere.
Excerpt: "The longer individuals were exposed to
socialism, the more likely they were to cheat on our task," according to
a new study, "The (True) Legacy of Two Really Existing Economic
Systems," from Duke University and the University of Munich. The team of
researchers concluded this after working with 259 participants from Berlin who grew up on
opposite sides of the infamous wall.
Excerpt: Earlier this month, the 50th anniversary of the Civil
Rights Act was celebrated. During the act’s legislative debate, then-Sen.
Hubert Humphrey, responding to predictions, promised, “I’ll eat my hat if this
leads to racial quotas.” I don’t know whether Humphrey got around to keeping
his promise, but here’s my question: Is it within the capacity of black
Americans to make it in this society without the special favors variously
called racial preferences, quotas, affirmative action and race-sensitive
policies? What might a “yes” answer to that question assume and imply about
blacks? Likewise, what would a “no” answer assume and imply? Let’s look at it.
(Williams grew up poor and black in the Philadelphia
projects, earned a PhD in economics without affirmative action, and was head of
the economics department at George
Mason University
Worth Reading
Excerpt: In a recent confrontation between protesters
against the illegal flood of unaccompanied children into the United States and
counter-protests by some Hispanic group, one man from the latter group said
angrily, "We are as good as you are!" One of the things that make the
history of clashes over race or ethnicity such a history of tragedies around
the world is that — regardless of whatever particular issue sets off these
clashes — many people see the ultimate stakes as their worth as human beings.
On that, there is no room for compromise, but only polarization. That is why
playing "the race card" is such an irresponsible and dangerous
political game.
Costco and the perils
of mixing politics and business: Retailer pays a price for getting too close to
Obama. By Ben S. Carson.
Excerpt: Astute business people generally do not make their
political views widely known, because they realize that about half of their customers agree with them and half of them do not.
There certainly is no need to unnecessarily create animosity, especially when
you are trying to sell products. In the case of Costco, a company highly
respected for very wise business practices, Jim Sinegal,
the co-founder and CEO until recently, has made no secret of his profound
admiration for President Obama and his policies. For the sake of disclosure,
before I go further, I should reveal that I have been a member of the Costco Board of
Directors for 15 years. (Carson
is the brilliant black pediatric neurosurgeon, not retired from practice, who
performed the first successful operation separating twins co-joined t the head.
~Bob)
WaPo Fact Checker: Obama's claim that the GOP has
'blocked every serious idea.' By Glenn Kessler
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/0714/fact_checker.php3#.U9BxivldW8M
Excerpt: "So far this year, Republicans in Congress
have blocked every serious idea to strengthen the middle class." -President
Obama, weekly address, July 12, 2014 This has become a standard
line in the president's oratory, as part of making his case that he's
"acted this year to help working Americans on my own- when Congress won't
act." ... But to claim that "every serious idea" has been
blocked is going too far-given that the president lauded at least three bills
as aiding the middle class. (Update: In a speech the morning this column
appeared, the president adjusted his language appropriately: "Republicans
in Congress keep blocking or voting down some of the ideas that would have the
biggest impact on middle-class and working families.") Three Pinocchios.
Obama raises funds while international crises loom. By Dave Boyer
Excerpt: Facing emergencies from Ukraine
to the Mexican border, President Obama left Washington on Tuesday for a three-day
Democratic fundraising trip amid signs that his image-makers are worried about
criticism that the president’s excursion is an “unsavory distraction.” Mr.
Obama’s schedule on the West Coast is packed with five party fundraisers at the
exclusive estates of wealthy donors, at a time when Israel is engaged in an
escalating ground war with Hamas, European allies are grappling with the
downing of a jetliner in Ukraine by Russia-backed separatists, and the
administration is scrambling to stem to flow of unaccompanied minors from
Central America. (No golf? ~Bob)
Big Business: Lapdog of the Left: Why there will never be a bipartisan alliance against corporate welfare. By Jonah Goldberg
Excerpt: The Ex-Im gives U.S.
taxpayer-backed loan guarantees to the foreign customers of giant U.S.
corporations that don’t need the help. It socializes the risk while privatizing
the profits. Basically, it’s free money for big businesses like GE,
Caterpillar, and particularly Boeing (hence the outfit’s nickname, “the Bank of
Boeing”). Even Barack Obama, shortly before he became president, derided Ex-Im
as “little more than a fund for corporate welfare.” Ex-Im is up for
reauthorization in September. Not surprisingly, both the people who get free
money and the people who enjoy giving out money that doesn’t belong to them
would like to continue doing so.
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/383452/just-words-just-words-tom-rogan
Excerpt: Why, Fournier asks, did the White House see a
game of pool as more presidential than crisis management? Fournier then
ventured an answer: "[Obama] and his advisers are so certain about their
moral and political standing that they believe it’s enough to make a
declaration. If we say it, the public should believe it." Indeed. But
this dysfunction is not only due to arrogance. Ultimately, it’s a symptom of
the administration’s strategic incompetence.
Tale of the Tapes:
IRS head confirms investigators have found backup tapes in Lerner probe
Excerpt: The revelation is significant because the IRS
claimed, when the agency first told Congress about the missing emails, that
backup tapes "no longer exist because they have been recycled." It is
unclear whether the tapes in IG custody contain any Lerner emails, but Koskinen
said investigators are now checking. ($20 says no emails, or no incriminating
ones, or they would have vanished. ~Bob)
The Democrats’ Obama problem. By Aaron Blake
Excerpt: President Obama is unpopular. In the 12 states that
will decide control of the Senate this November, though, he's even
more unpopular. A new poll from Democratic pollster Democracy
Corps shows 60 percent of people in these states say they
disapprove of Obama, compared to just 37 percent who approve. Perhaps more
striking: 50 percent of voters in these states say they not only disapprove of
Obama, but they "strongly" disapprove of him.
Excerpt: According to a Pew survey, the “next-generation
left” has a huge, generational disagreement with older, traditional
left-liberals. Among the older liberals, for instance, 83% identify
“circumstances” as the cause of poverty. Nexties are almost evenly split on
this, with 47% blaming circumstances and 42% blaming “lack of effort.” Fifty-six
percent of the older Democrats think Wall Street does more harm than good,
whereas 56% of the younger ones think the reverse.
Excerpt: They say the definition of insanity is doing the
same thing over and over again, and expecting different results. The definition
of insanity in Washington
is when, despite painfully obvious facts and experiences, ideologically-slavish
legislators insist the “solutions” (read: more money) that they’ve tried for
years will finally solve persistent problems.
The latest personification of such insanity is Senator
Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the self-proclaimed socialist who also happens to be
the chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs (VA) committee. This comes under
the heading of "Are you nuts?" And the answer is..... not hard to
figure out. The VA system is the problem, where all the upper level managers
are in the civil servants' union, and very close to untouchable no matter how
arrogant or incompetent or amazingly stupid they are. The only real fix to the
"culture of corruption" is an extreme makeover, that would break the
power of the union and subject everyone to the same kinds of requirements for
performance that everyone in private industry has. Then and only then will
things really change. If a fresh set of managers and reviewers from Congress
then decide that spending money to hire more doctors or build more facilities
is part of the answer, then it should be given some credence. But the important
thing is to change the system, and that will require a major battle with the
union that nobody in Congress wants to get into. For one thing, they contribute
a lot of money to campaigns, and that sure means something to the politicians.
We have to hope that keeping up pressure on Congress to grow a pair and
really face the situation will finally result in the kind of changes that will
actually make a difference in VA performance. --Del )
Excerpt: They include a $4bn (£2.34bn) credit line in return
for Venezuelan crude and other products. The agreements came on the latest stop
of a four-country visit to Latin America . Mr
Xi has already signed key deals in Argentina
and Brazil .
He has now departed from Venezuela
and will visit Cuba
next. (The article clearly demonstrates a huge 'nail in the coffin' of the free
world as we knew it. The newly formed BRICS will bail out all the bankrupt
countries on the planet..... Everyone should note the influence of China in AFRICA and South
America . CHINA
built the new $200 Million Dollar headquarters of the AFRICAN UNION in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia
Interesting: Mary Burke Addresses Trek Outsourcing
99.5% of Their Bikes: "Trek Does What it Can to Manufacture Bikes Here."
By Jud Lounsbury, Progressive News from the
Cheddarsphere. 11/01/2013
http://www.uppitywis.org/blogarticle/mary-burke-addresses-trek-outsourcing-995-their-bikes-trek-does
Mary Burke is the Democrat candidate for governor. Gov.
Scott Walker has criticized her on this. Here is a liberal's view from last
year. ~Bob. Excerpt: Plus, Burke is one of Trek's private owners and currently
sits on their board. This is a real-time issue. Did she object or do anything
to stop Trek for sending jobs to China ? Is she doing
anything right now to bring back the Trek jobs back? ... But, here's
the kicker. During her time at Trek, Burke served as a board member on the
Bicycle Parts Suppliers Association (BPSA), a powerful trade association that,
among other things, has lobbied for weakening tariffs and free trade. In
addition, they've defended Chinese manufacturing and fought
regulations during the recent Chinese manufacturing lead paint scare.
So, while it is nice to hear Mary Burke bemoan unfair trade deals, the reality
is that she in past has fought for them and personally profited from
them. (Of course, we know how this all ends. Every Madison progressive,
every union member, every liberal beating the drum for protecting American jobs
who sneered about Mitt Romney's greed will shrug their shoulders and vote for
her . . . just because she's the Democrat. -- Jim Geraghty, Morning Jolt)
Chappaquiddick: When
Progressivism Started Issuing Get-Out-of-Jail-Free Cards. By Jim Geraghty, Morning Jolt
Last Friday was the 45th anniversary of the Chappaquiddick
incident. Brian Cates wrote why Chappaquiddick matters -- and why the U.S. public
would be wise to study the last half-century — in a lengthy series of Tweets collected on Storify. I'd just add
one more note . . .Ted Kennedy was one of the biggest, earliest, most glaring
examples of how many progressives believed, despite their professed values, the
personal wasn't political. You could be the biggest womanizer around,
but if you voted to support abortion, the professional women's movement would
look the other way on any other behavior. ... "The personal is
political" is a pretty dumb philosophy used to justify a lot of political
meddling in our personal lives. A better saying would be "both the
personal and the political matter" — that is, how you treat
people matters, and it's easy to argue that how you treat
others — "Love your neighbor as you love yourself" — is
way more important than your philosophy, ideology, or politics. If you're a
jerk who agrees with me all the time, I probably don't want to hang around with
you or be associated with you. Sure, a lot of politicians on both sides of the
aisle drink too much and womanize. But Ted Kennedy killed
somebody, or at the very least, let her die. For almost all of us, serious
legal charges would follow that kind of behavior. But Ted Kennedy got a
two-month suspended sentence for leaving the scene of an accident. The judge
declared Kennedy, "has already been, and will continue to be punished far
beyond anything this court can impose." The legal term for that conclusion
is horse pucky. ... Signaling that your personal behavior doesn't really matter
as long as you have the right political beliefs is a formula to encourage
really dreadful personal behavior.
Worth Reading
Excerpt: Stranger yet, Silicon Valley
excelled at 1950s-style profit-driven capitalism while projecting the image of
hip and cool. The result is a bizarre 21st-century 1-percenter culture of
$1,000-a-square-foot homes, $100,000 BMWs, and $500 loafers coexisting with
left-wing politics and trendy pop culture. Silicon Valley
valiantly tries to square the circle of driving a Mercedes or flying in a
Gulfstream while lambasting those who produce its fuel.
Obamacare News
Batting .500 on Obamacare suits, Democrats still suffer a
loss. By Jennifer Rubin
Excerpt: On the same day that the D.C. Circuit struck down
the subsidies in federal exchanges, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an
opinion saying the law is vague and therefore the administration can do what it
wants. The split decision practically guarantees the case will go to the
Supreme Court.
DC Circuit Court Ruling Deals Massive Blow to Obamacare. By
Guy Benson
Excerpt: A full-blown Obamacare earthquake. The 'second
highest court in the land's'judgment may
not be final -- the administration will almost certainly appeal for an en
banc hearing before the full court, and there's always SCOTUS -- but for
now, it is the binding decision. ... UPDATE III - The Fourth Circuit
Court of Appeals just ruled in
the opposite direction on this precise issue, increasing the likelihood that
we're ultimately headed to SCOTUS.
http://freebeacon.com/issues/oklahoma-man-struggles-for-three-months-to-cancel-obamacare-enrollment/
Excerpt: The Obamacare woes continue as an Oklahoma man spent three agonizing months
trying to cancel his health insurance plan. David Emanuel’s 65th birthday
last April, when he became eligible for Medicare, spurred him to cancel his
private health insurance plan. He called BlueCross BlueShield to terminate the
plan and was met with resistance. “They said, ‘You can’t do anything
until healthcare.gov tells us that you can drop it,’” he said.
Obamacare's Fraudulent Incentives. By Conn Carroll
Excerpt: GAO investigators used fictitious identities and
documents to apply for Obamacare coverage on 12 separate occasions. The Obama
administration granted coverage and subsidies to 11 of 12 fraudulent
applicants. Additionally, as of July 2014, the GAO reported that fake
documentation sent for two enrollees had been "verified". (well, if
you can vote without proving who you are, why not get insurance coverage
without proof? ~Bob)
Has the ACA Slowed
Health Care Spending Growth?
Excerpt: More recent data from the Bureau of Economic
Analysis indicates that the recent 2009 to 2012 slowdown in health spending
may, in fact, be reversing: Real per capita GDP growth from the first quarter
of 2013 to the first quarter of 2014 was 0.8 percent, but real per capita
health care spending grew at 2.2 percent. Preliminary estimates indicate that
health care spending as a share of GDP will increase from 17.2 percent in 2012
to 17.4 percent in the first quarter of 2014. The authors also looked to
employment growth within the health care sector, finding that health care
employment has continued to grow faster than the economy as a whole:
("Bend the cost curve downward" was, of course, just another Obama
lie. ~Bob)
Company That ‘Saved’ HealthCare.gov Faces Questions of
Cronyism. By Melissa Quinn
Excerpt: Jarred by the defect-riddled rollout of the
Obamacare website, Obama administration officials signed up a technology
company to rid HealthCare.gov of its bugs. Now, though, congressional
Republicans are scrutinizing that outfit for a potential conflict of interest
because its sister company, UnitedHealthcare, is among insurance companies
selling plans to Americans through online marketplaces, or “exchanges.”
Undocumented Democrat News
Gov. Perry to send
National Guard troops to Mexican border amid migrant crisis
Excerpt: Texas Gov. Rick Perry announced plans Monday to
send up to 1,000 of his state’s National Guard troops to the Mexican border
within 30 days, saying that the Obama administration has not kept Texas secure. Perry (R)
said the troops will be integrated into a state law enforcement program called
Operation Strong Safety, which is aimed at preventing criminal activity by
Mexican drug cartels on the Texas
side of the border.
Tex. Lt. Gov: 80-85%
Of Illegals Aren't Unaccompanied Kids
Excerpt: Texas Lt. Governor David Dewhurst (R) reported that
the vast majority of illegal immigrants coming over the southern border are not
unaccompanied minors in an appearance on Tuesday’s broadcast of
MSNBC’s “The Daily Rundown.” “Our effort in Texas is not focused on the
unaccompanied children...we are focused on-the unaccompanied children represent
some 12%-20%. We're focused on that 80, the 85% of which a quarter according to
the border patrol, have a criminal record” he said about Texas ’ recent deployment to of the National
Guard to the southern border.
Report:
Illegals Allowed To Stay Longer Because Immigration Courts On Verge of
'Implosion'
Excerpt: According to Reuters, "U.S.
Obama Wants $4.3
Billion to Solve Border Crisis. But He Plans to Spend Only $25 Million This
Year.
Excerpt: The Congressional Budget Office has released its
score on how President Barack Obama’s$4.3 billion emergency request on
immigration will be spent. The big news? The CBO score confirms that the
president’s $4.3 billion emergency request is not warranted. CBO reports that
only $25 million of the president’s request would be spent in fiscal year 2014
and the remaining funds would not be spent until the next fiscal year or in the
out-years.
Roger Simon calls National Guardsmen child-killers. …Does
Politico agree? @politico: Well, at least he didn't call them 'baby-killers.'
That's progress, right? By Moe Lane
Excerpt: Let me explain the entire good/bad thing. There’s
Roger Simon, over at Pajamas Media. I
generally call him ‘Good’ Roger Simon, because that way I can distinguish him
from the Roger Simon over at Politico, who I used to typically call ‘Bad’ Roger
Simon. Only now I’m just going to call Bad Roger Simon
nothing but Bad Roger Simon, on the basis of this
particular tweet.
Religion of Peace News
Excerpt: Once again President Obama and Secretary of State
John Kerry are learning that simply proclaiming their desires is not a foreign
policy. Indeed, the more empty threats and grand
pronouncements they make, the less influence they have. So it is with the Gaza conflict.
Our Sudden De Facto
Travel Ban on Israel
Excerpt: I suppose there's a bit of logic to the Federal Aviation Administration's decision to bar all flights
into Tel Aviv — after the shoot-down in the Ukrainian skies,
surely everyone in the aviation world is more jittery than usual. But by
barring flights, we're giving Hamas what they want. We're stopping all U.S. flights
into Tel Aviv for 24 hours . . . and then what? We've just told Hamas that
we'll stop our flights into Israel
whenever they hit near the airport. The airport is well within range; it's just a matter
of firing enough until one gets through the Iron Dome air defense system and
scaring away air travelers.
Excerpt: Fr. Anthony Hanna saw a 4th-century church after
Muslim thugs looted, torched it, then dug up priests, crushed and burned their
bones. Fr. Anthony Hanna saw a
4th-century church after Muslim thugs looted, torched it, then dug up priests,
crushed and burned their bones. (Kerry caught on hot mic saying Israel Israel
Shocking moment ISIS
militants take sledgehammers to Mosul tomb of Prophet Jonah as more than 50
blindfolded bodies are found massacred south of Baghdad
Excerpt: The rebels, who are members of the Islamic State
terror group, were filmed attacking centuries-old graves in the north-west city
of Mosul in
Ninevah province. …One of the devastated tombstones belonged to the
Prophet Jonah (Younis in Arabic) and was revered by Muslims and Christians
alike, according to Iraqi authorities. The prophet, who is the central figure
in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Jonah, is best known for being swallowed by a
fish or a whale, depending on translation. (Evil is rampant, swallowing
heritage. The world is upside down. Here is an innocent telling Jonah’s story,
Mary Margaret: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4VrujheblY&list=PLB1344DECED2624AC
--Barb)
Berlin imam: “Oh
Allah, destroy the Zionist Jews…Count them and kill them to the very last
one…Make them suffer terribly.” By Robert Spencer
Excerpt: Imagine the outcry if a Jewish or Christian cleric
prayed something like this about Muslims. But no one will take any particular
notice of this. Just don’t, whatever you do, call them “savages,” you greasy
Islamophobe.
Excerpt: Hamas posted this video on Facebook. Clearly Hamas
jihadis believe that they don’t have to take the slightest pains to hide the
fact that they launch attacks from civilian areas. They know that the international
media will cover for them, no matter what.
Boko Haram insurgents
kill 100 people as they take control of Nigerian town: Survivors say group
fired RPGs, threw bombs into homes and gunned down people trying to escape the
ensuing fires
Excerpt: Boko Haram extremists
have killed more than 100 people and hoisted their black and white flag over a
north-eastern town left undefended by Nigeria's military, according to a civil
defence spokesman and a human rights advocate.
Excerpt: Jewish-owned businesses and a synagogue were
targeted in the suburb of Sarcelles , just
outside Paris . Shops
were looted and 18 people were arrested as youths went on the rampage during
Sunday's protest, which had been banned by authorities. ... "What's
happened in the past few days is terrible. They're shouting 'Death to the Jews' and
attacking synagogues. It's completely out of control", he said.
("Youths" is Europe media code for
"young Muslim thugs" ~Bob)
AMP Official
Defends Hamas, Praises Israeli Casualties
Excerpt: The group American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) does
not shy away from its support for the terrorist organization Hamas. The group's
National Campus Coordinator, Taher Herzallah, recently posted Palestine TV
photos of injured Israeli soldiers and a destroyed tank to his personal
Facebook page. The caption for both photos read: "The most beautiful site
in my eyes."
"Gas the Jews": Anti-Semitic Protesters Loot
Shops, Burn Cars In France 's
'Little Jerusalem
Excerpt: Eighteen people were arrested for attacks on shops,
including a kosher supermarket, a Jewish-owned chemist and a funeral home.
Rioters, who carried batons and threw petrol bombs according to eyewitnesses,
were yards from the synagogue when they were driven back by riot police who
used tear gas. “They were shouting: ‘Death to Jews,’
and ‘Slit Jews’ throats’,” David, a Jewish sound engineer told The Times. “It took us back to 1938.”
Albright: Hamas
Civilian Human Shields Hurt Israel
Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright offered one of
the more half-baked theories on the Israel-Hamas conflict we've heard yet. She
lamented Palestinian civilian deaths, saying, "I do think that it is very
hard to watch the number of Palestinians that are being killed --
innocents." Indeed, it is hard -- more than 600 are dead so far, despite Israel 's
incredible efforts to minimize those deaths. Albright then explained why it's
happening: "It is hard to dispute the fact that, as Prime Minister
[Benjamin] Netanyahu has said that, in fact, there are innocents being put in
the way in order to act as shields." Therefore, Hamas should be condemned
for such barbarous acts, correct? Not exactly, says Albright. She concluded,
"[T]he bottom line is, I think that this is hurting Israel 's moral
authority." Hamas' use of human shields hurts Israel 's moral
authority? In what universe is that coherent?
Excerpt: Netanyahu
responded: It should trouble all people of conscience and
morality because it’s so disgraceful. You know, you look at what’s happening in
the Middle East and I think most Americans understand this, they see this
enormous area riveted by religious hatred, by savagery of unimaginable
proportions. Then you come to Israel
and you see the one democracy that upholds basic human rights, that guards the
rights of all minorities, that protects Christians—Christians are persecuted
throughout the Middle East . So most
Americans understand that Israel
is a beacon of civilization and moderation. You know I would suggest to
these Presbyterian organizations to fly to the Middle East, come and see Israel for the embattled democracy that it is,
and then take a bus tour, go to Libya ,
go to Syria , go to Iraq , and see
the difference. And I would give them two pieces of advice, one is, make
sure it’s an armor plated bus, and second, don’t say that you’re Christians. (I
was a Presbyterian. Now a Lutheran. Not that the ELCA is much better. ~Bob)
Dear God...Struggling to Keep Afghan Girl Safe After
a Mullah Is Accused of Rape
Excerpt: It was bad enough that the alleged rape took place
in the sanctity of a mosque, and that the accused man was a mullah who invoked
the familiar defense that it had been consensual sex. But the victim was only
10 years old. And there was more: The authorities said her family members
openly planned to carry out an “honor killing” in the case — against the young
girl. The mullah offered to marry his victim instead. This past week, the awful
matter became even worse. On Tuesday, local policemen removed the girl from the
shelter that had given her refuge and returned her to her family, despite
complaints from women’s activists that she was likely to be killed.
Kerry Pledges $47
Million in Aid for Gaza
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on
Monday pledged $47 million in humanitarian aid for Gaza as he flew to the region to
intensify efforts for an immediate truce, AFP reports. Kerry, who has
voiced willingness to tour the region as long as needed, started his mission
in Cairo where
he met visiting UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The two leaders both called
for an end to two weeks of violence. "We are deeply concerned about the
consequences of Israel 's
appropriate and legitimate effort to defend itself," Kerry told reporters
as he met Ban. (Frees up Hamas money to buy rockets. ~Bob)
Posts
I believe that the video of the aircraft shootdown is actually that of the AN-26 that went down on July 14, rather than that of MH-17.
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