Lots came in over the weekend

Took the weekend off. Made two grape pies for the church brunch. Didn’t have the energy to do it alone, especially rolling the crusts, so Bonnie worked with me. They turned out well. And logged back on to 274 e-mails, with more coming in steadily, so a lot today. Syria at the end again. Thanks to all. Reminder: if you don’t send a link, I am unlikely to have the time and energy to search for the item. ~Bob

Excellent: Liberalism’s Legacy, Part II. By John Goodman

http://healthblog.ncpa.org/liberalisms-legacy-part-ii/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=HA#more-32285

Excerpt: What is liberalism? By that term I mean the intellectual effort to apologize for and defend economic programs primarily associated with Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson. There are four main ones: The substitution of regulation for markets, The substitution of social insurance for private provision, The nationalization of welfare, and The manipulation of the economy by the government. It is difficult to exaggerate how completely this intellectual movement dominated thinking in the post-World War II period. During the 1950s and 1960s there was virtually no book, no journal, and no college campus where you could find a serious competing point of view. When I was an undergraduate at the University of Texas in the 1960s, there were only two people on the entire liberal arts faculty who you could describe as right of center ― a moderate Republican in the English department and a libertarian in the Political Science department. And this was a campus with 27,000 students! (when I was a student at U-Mass, 1970-72, there were two Republicans in the Political Science Department, one moderate and one conservative. The rest of the faculty were liberal Democrats or Marxists. Liberals are for all sorts of diversity except the most important one—diversity of thought. ~Bob.)

Good Column: Counterclockwise - So Moves Corps and Country. By Andy Weddington

http://acoloneloftruth.blogspot.com/2013/09/counterclockwise-so-moves-corps-and.html

Excerpt: Counterclockwise refers to the direction opposite to that in which the hands of a clock move. That is, counterclockwise is backwards - which time does not move (as far as we know).

107-year-old killed in standoff with Ark. police

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/107-year-old-killed-in-standoff-with-ark-police/2013/09/08/a8829372-18bd-11e3-a628-7e6dde8f889d_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines

Excerpt: When the officers announced who they were, Isadore shot through the door at them but missed hitting them, Pine Bluff Lt. David Price said in a news release.

Be There: September 10th: Conservative Leaders Mike Lee, Rand Paul and Ted Cruz to Rally on White House Lawn Against Obamacare.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/09/05/Conservatives-Rallying-To-Exempt-America

Excerpt: On Tuesday, September 10th, conservative leaders are to rally at the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol to tell Congress once and for all: it’s time to exempt America from Obamacare. This important event is headlined by Senators Mike Lee, Rand Paul, and Ted Cruz, as well as a number of Members of Congress and other conservative leaders.

Dueling protests rage outside Tunisia Constituent Assembly

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2013/7/28/protests-rages-outsidetunisiaconstituentassembly.html

Excerpt: Thousands of protestors -- both for and against the ruling Islamist Ennahda Party -- crowded outside the Tunisian National Constituent Assembly (NCA) Sunday night for a sit-in, after the second assassination this year of an opposition political leader provoked a public outcry across the nation. (The Arab Spring, beloved by Progressives and the Media, rolls on. ~Bob.)

Farkash: It's Not an 'Arab Spring,' But an 'Arab Tsunami': The “Arab Spring” has turned into an “Arab Tsunami,” said former head of military intelligence, Aharon-Ze'evi Farkash.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/171694#.UizzN9JzGuI

Excerpt: The “Arab Spring” has turned into an “Arab Tsunami,” said former head of military intelligence, Aharon-Ze'evi Farkash. Farkash was speaking Sunday at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism's (ICT) World Summit on Counter-Terrorism, taking place at the Herzliya Interdisciplinary Center (IDC). He continued to posit that restive populations in the Arab world were bringing their leaders to account for long-standing abuses against them – and that Israel could not and must not allow itself to get dragged into these conflicts.

Sinai Militants Killed in Egypt Army Offensive

http://world.time.com/2013/09/07/egypt-launches-offensive-against-sinai-insurgents/

Excerpt: Smoke billowed in the sky as Egyptian helicopter gunships rocketed suspected Islamic militant hideouts in the lawless northern Sinai Peninsula for a second day on Sunday, killing 11 suspected fighters as part of the largest military offensive in the region in years, military officials said. (Good for Egypt. ~Bob.)

Guatemalan bar attack leaves 11 people dead

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-24011094

Excerpt: The motive is not clear, but Guatemalan police are investigating the possible involvement of the country's notorious criminal gangs, or maras. Some residents said they doubted this interpretation of events

Nigerian Boko Haram and vigilantes 'in deadly clashes'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-24011745

Excerpt: At least 18 people have died in clashes between suspected Boko Haram fighters and a vigilante group in Borno state in north-eastern Nigeria, reports say. A majority of those killed were thought to have been vigilante members who had tried to defend the town of Benisheik against the Islamist militants.

Italian Praised for Saving Jews Is Now Seen as Nazi Collaborator

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/20/arts/an-italian-saint-in-the-making-or-a-collaborator-with-nazis.html?emc=eta1

Excerpt: Information about Giovanni Palatucci, celebrated for saving Jews, is being removed from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in light of evidence that the tales may be untrue.

ObamaCare eats Kentucky

http://www.redstate.com/davidadamsinky/2013/09/06/obamacare-eats-kentucky/

Excerpt: Humana actuary Nick Mueller today confirmed the Kentucky Department of Insurance has approved ObamaCare health premiums very close to the eighty percent increase he requested in June. (Well, BO promised it would “bend the cost curve.” ~Bob.)

As Obamacare's 'Compassionate' Reality Sets In, Companies 'Cruelly' Cut Health Benefits. By Sally Pipes

http://www.forbes.com/sites/sallypipes/2013/09/02/as-obamacares-compassionate-reality-sets-in-companies-cruelly-cut-health-benefits/?utm_source=followingweekly&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20130909

Excerpt: Increasingly, large employers who aren’t dropping spousal health benefits are requiring their employees to pay monthly surcharges in the neighborhood of $100 per spouse.

10 Ways Obamacare Isn't Working

http://blog.heritage.org/2013/09/09/morning-bell-10-ways-obamacare-isnt-working/?utm_source=heritagefoundation&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=&utm_content=&utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Morning%2BBell

Excerpt: Obamacare is an unworkable law. It’s obvious because the Administration keeps trying to “fix” it—to no avail. It has delayed parts of the law, ignored others, and carved out exemptions for its political allies.

Here Comes Obamacare "Sticker Shock." By Kevin Glass

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/kevinglass/2013/00/08/here-comes-obamacare-sticker-shock-n1694216?utm_source=thdaily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=nl

Excerpt: The Obamacare health insurance exchanges are still supposed to go live next month even though implementation delays have continued to pile up. Additionally, many analysts have predicted what has come to be known as "rate shock" - the realization of many who go to get insurance on the exchanges that they'll be paying a lot more now than they used to.

Global warming? No, actually we're cooling, claim scientists

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/10294082/Global-warming-No-actually-were-cooling-claim-scientists.html

Excerpt: There has been a 60 per cent increase in the amount of ocean covered with ice compared to this time last year, they equivalent of almost a million square miles.

Obamanomics: Calling All Distractions for Post-Labor Day Catastrophe. By William Pauwels

http://clashdaily.com/2013/09/obamanomics-post-labor-day-catastrophe-needs-syrian-distraction/

Excerpt: According to the Department of Labor, 13.4 million college graduates were working for hourly pay in 2012. In 2007, that statistic was 11.3 million. This deterioration represents a 19% increase since the Democrats took control of Congress in 2007 and Obama acquired the White House in 2009. 

Obama Reduces 2014 Pay Hike for U.S. Troops, Still Fighting in Afghanistan

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/susan-jones/obama-reduces-2014-pay-hike-us-troops-still-fighting-afghanistan

Excerpt: As promised in his Fiscal Year 2014 budget, President Obama has just informed Congress that he will cap next year's pay raise for U.S. military personnel at 1 percent, instead of the 1.8 percent raise set by the formula Congress established.

6 killed, 24 hurt in Zamboanga clashes

http://www.rappler.com/nation/38432-mnlf-hostages-zamboanga-city

Excerpt: MANILA, Philippines (7th UPDATE) — Up to 400 suspected members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) have taken over 4 barangays in Zamboanga City early Monday morning, September 9, Mayor Maria Isabelle "Beng" Climaco told Rappler.

Sharia in action in Sudan: Woman faces flogging for uncovered hair

http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/09/sharia-in-action-in-sudan-woman-faces-flogging-for-uncovered-hair.html

Excerpt: "Moreover, freedom in America is indivisible from the freedom to practice one's religion. That is why there is a mosque in every state in our union, and over 1,200 mosques within our borders. That's why the United States government has gone to court to protect the right of women and girls to wear the hijab and to punish those who would deny it." -- Barack Obama, Cairo, June 4, 2009. But who will go to court, or do anything at all, in the U.S. or Sudan or anywhere else, to protect the right of women and girls not to wear the hijab and to punish those who would deny it?

Drug Cocktail That Protects Monkeys From Deadly Virus May Aid Humans

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/09/health/drug-cocktail-used-to-treat-mers-in-monkeys-may-aid-humans.html?_r=0

A combination of two well-known antiviral drugs protects monkeys against MERS and could potentially be used to save humans from the lethal disease, scientists said on Sunday.

Stork once suspected of being spy found dead in Egypt
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/09/08/stork-once-suspected-being-spy-found-dead-in-egypt/?test=latestnews#ixzz2eN4aLskM

Excerpt: A stork that was once detained by Egypt on suspicion of being a spy has been found dead, with a wildlife organization claiming that it was “eaten by local villagers.” (I suspect foul play. ~Bob.)

Ted Cruz: Syria Discussions Distracting From Benghazi

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/08/ted-cruz-syria-benghazi_n_3890302.html

Excerpt: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) insisted on Sunday that the Obama administration is misdirecting its attention by considering action in Syria rather than continuing to search for the people and groups who attacked a U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, last year, killing four Americans. (I attended a luncheon for Cruz last Friday. He again proved himself to be consistent and focused. Have to say that I agreed with him whole heartedly. -- Rebuild the economy. Flat Tax. Defund Obamacare. No attack on Syria without proof that the security of our nation is at risk. --MM)

Time for officials to pay for their own portraits, lawmaker says
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/09/08/picture-this-time-for-officials-to-pay-for-their-own-portraits-lawmaker-says/?test=latestnews#ixzz2ePr4O0Ej

Will Democrats Forgive Obama for Blowing His Second Term? By Noah Rothman

http://www.mediaite.com/online/will-democrats-forgive-obama-for-blowing-his-second-term/

Excerpt: Obama’s most stalwart fans will blame “obstructionist Republicans” who they will say managed to overcome broad public mistrust to block the president’s agenda. But this, too, is a damning verdict on Obama’s presidency. If an unpopular GOP can govern the country from one chamber of Congress where a relatively popular president could not, what does this say about the president’s competency in office? (If they don’t, they’re racists! ~Bob.)

The New American Dream: It's Not What You Think

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/american-dream-not-think-173054394.html

Excerpt: A great number of Americans are redefining the American Dream. That was the takeaway from a recent Credit.com poll, which showed that nearly one in four people between the ages of 18 and 24 defined the American Dream as being debt-free. Shockingly, that’s more than those who dream of owning a home.

Obama’s last war: Special report: We all thought Libya had moved on – it has, but into lawlessness and ruin: Libya has plunged unnoticed into its worst political and economic crisis since the defeat of Gaddafi. By Patrick Cockburn

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/special-report-we-all-thought-libya-had-moved-on--it-has-but-into-lawlessness-and-ruin-8797041.html

Before we attack Syria, how’s this one working out? ~Bob. Excerpt: A little under two years ago, Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, urged British businessmen to begin “packing their suitcases” and to fly to Libya to share in the reconstruction of the country and exploit an anticipated boom in natural resources. Yet now Libya has almost entirely stopped producing oil as the government loses control of much of the country to militia fighters.

WHITE Marine beaten by WHITE youths while saving BLACK teen: 'It was worth it' 

http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/former-marine-brutally-beaten-while-saving-teen-says-142639150--abc-news-topstories.html?vp=1

EXCERPT: "You know doing the right thing is always the right thing," said Wen Jones, 43. Jones is speaking out for the first time about the brutal beat-down caught on camera back in May. Jones' instinct to protect kicked into overdrive when he stumbled upon three men bullying 14-year-old Zion Wright on Florida's Juno Beach. (Race is nothing. Culture is everything. Semper Fidelis. ~Bob.)

VIDEO: "I hate white people!" Black on white rampage leaves New Yorker brain dead. By CBS New York

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/09/06/nypd-man-brain-dead-following-random-rampage-in-union-square/

Excerpt: His 92-year-old mother, Hedda, was by [victim 62-year-old Jeffrey Babbitt's] side. She shared a Sheepshead Bay apartment with her son. He was her primary caregiver.

Do you know that abortion clinics are closing like crazy? By Cortney O'Brien

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/cortneyobrien/2013/09/07/did-you-know-abortion-clinics-are-closing-like-crazy-n1693144

Excerpt: At least 58 U.S. abortion clinics -- almost 1 in 10 -- have shut down or stopped providing the life-ending procedure since 2011.

U.N. Butts In to Trayvon Martin Killing

http://politicaloutcast.com/2013/09/u-n-butts-trayvon-martin-killing/

Excerpt: Did I miss something? Did we just dissolve the national government and all our state governments and hand the keys to the United Nations while I was making a snack in the kitchen? I mean, I know the United Nations has for years through Agenda 21, the United Religions Initiative and support groups like the Council on Foreign Relations been trying to take over the United States and complete its hold on global power(and the "New World Order"~JB) 

United Nations Human Rights Truther Richard Falk Claims Egypt is Plotting Genocide Against...Muslims. By Daniel Greenfield

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/united-nations-human-rights-truther-claims-egypt-is-plotting-genocide-against-muslims/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=united-nations-human-rights-truther-claims-egypt-is-plotting-genocide-against-muslims

Excerpt: [Says Falk:] "The Orwellian features of the military takeover in Egypt have received attention, although the use of language to evade unwanted truth continues because incentives to do so persist." Orwell, who wrote essays on the importance of clear political writing, would rise from the dead and punch Falk in the face for associating him with this clumsy sentence

Obama's new "gay" foreign policy not helping anyone. By Daniel Greenfield

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/obamas-new-gay-foreign-policy-not-helping-anyone/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=obamas-new-gay-foreign-policy-not-helping-anyone

Excerpt: Getting into a pissing contest with Putin over gay rights while Syria burns seems like an odd choice. It no doubt makes sense to Obama’s donors. There are quite a few billionaires, like Amazon CEO and new Washington Post owner, Jeff Bezos, who have spent millions on gay rights.

Egyptian Actor Amr Waked on Muslim Brotherhood: 'They sent their own people to get killed so that the U.S. could come and bomb us' By Daniel Greenfield

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/egyptian-actor-on-muslim-brotherhood-they-sent-their-own-people-to-get-killed-so-that-the-u-s-could-come-and-bomb-us/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=egyptian-actor-on-muslim-brotherhood-they-sent-their-own-people-to-get-killed-so-that-the-u-s-could-come-and-bomb-us

Excerpt: While [Amr Waked] says he has been threatened by the Brotherhood in the past, he adds this latest burst of animosity on its part stems from the fact that, when violence erupted after the Egyptian military ousted former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, Waked gave TV interviews saying that “the Muslim Brothers started the blood, not the army.

Man to plead guilty to 'Anonymous' [hacker collective] cyberattack on Koch Industries. By Mandy Nagy

http://legalinsurrection.com/2013/09/man-to-plead-guilty-in-2011-anonymous-cyberattack-on-koch-industries/

Excerpt: However, as more participants with Anonymous began realizing that the operation was a political one, largely orchestrated by labor unions and political activists, elements of Anonymous became angry. A rift developed, and one of the more prolific protest participants even had his/her Twitter account hacked and defaced by fellow Anons.

College enrollment dropped by half a million in 2012

http://collegeinsurrection.com/2013/09/college-enrollment-dropped-by-half-a-million-in-2012/

Excerpt: Enrollment by Hispanic students in U.S. colleges and universities rose, however, by 15 percent from 2011 to 2012. Hispanics now account for 17 percent of the total student population, which is an increase from 11 percent in 2006.

Tony Abbott to be new prime minister of Australia after 'landslide win' over Leftists.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/10293102/Tony-Abbott-to-be-new-Australian-prime-minister-after-landslide-win.html

Excerpt: In opposition, Mr Abbott led four years of blistering attacks on Labour, deploying effective three-word slogans such as "great big tax" and "stop the boats" to target the government's carbon tax, mining tax and its softer stance on asylum seekers. He has pledged to reduce foreign aid, to pay rewards to young unemployed people who find work and plans to travel to an Aboriginal community for a week each year to govern from the outback.

Tony Abbott: mate, you've done it--don't blow it! By James Delingpole 

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/jamesdelingpole/100234754/tony-abbott-mate-youve-done-it-dont-blow-it/

Excerpt: The hard part will be persuading Abbott to be as radical as he needs to be in order to get Australia back on its feet. This isn't to say he's another David Cameron in the making. He has – we hope – got more ideological backbone than that.

Map: Where You Don’t Want to Be When It Hits the Fan

http://www.thedailysheeple.com/map-where-you-dont-want-to-be-when-it-hits-the-fan_092013#sthash.Hcm9dP4i.dpuf

Obama Supporters: Jobs, Free College, Internet & Cars Are ‘Constitutional Rights’

http://conservativevideos.com/2013/08/obama-supporters-jobs-free-college-internet-cars-constitutional-rights/

Excerpt: Campus Reform interviewed attendees of the MLK rally in Washington DC. Here is a list of things they believe they are entitled to receive from the government (for free) under the constitution:

Germany's Conspicuous Silence. By Roger Cohen

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/06/opinion/cohen-germanys-conspicuous-silence.html?src=me&ref=general

Excerpt: Contemporary German psychology is in sync with the steady Merkel style (a frequent criticism of Steinbrück is that he is a “loose cannon”). “The scars of history are really very, very serious, and so we made the decision to bid farewell to the concept of a state based on power and become a merchant state,” Joschka Fischer, the former foreign minister, told me. In the age of the borderless online world where the nation-state feels like a curious hangover, and at a time when the post-9/11 wars have tired Europeans and Americans of militarism, this rejection of what Fischer called the “machtstaat” (the power state) explains much of Germany’s global popularity. [So this is basically what Soopermexican said we should be doing, yes? Sounds good to me. We could get popular and not have to die and pay for it all the time. –Kate.]

Muslim ‘Child Bride’ Dies: Yemeni 8yr. old Dies of Internal Injuries After Sex with ‘Husband’ Five Times Her Age
http://clashdaily.com/2013/09/muslim-child-bride-dies-yemeni-8yr-old-dies-internal-injuries-sex-husband-five-times-age/

Excerpt: An eight-year-old child bride has died in Yemen of internal bleeding sustained during her wedding night after being forced to marry a man five times her age, activists have claimed

Syria

Hey, Hey, Barack O. B., Don’t kill Syrian kids for me! ~Bob

Good Column: John Kerry: Pathetic Aging Hipsters and the Warmongers They Became
http://clashdaily.com/2013/09/john-kerry-pathetic-aging-hipsters-warmongers-became/

Excerpt: I ’d like to ask John Kerry when he decided to put away his torn blue jeans, his faded military jacket, the peace sign necklace and beads and stop pretending to be the benevolent hippy he claimed to be when he was young. And I would like to ask that because that young, seemingly idealistic John Kerry would have no clue who is the botoxed, face lifted, designer clothing wearing member of the establishment he became. A cynic might ask would he? 

Where Congress Stands on Syria

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/politics/where-lawmakers-stand-on-syria/

Good graphic.

'Either You Convert To Islam, Or You Will Be Beheaded. '

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2013/09/09/Maaloula-Syria-rebels?utm_source=e_breitbart_com&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Breitbart+News+Roundup%2C+September+9%2C+2013&utm_campaign=20130909_m117165653_Breitbart+News+Roundup%2C+September+9%2C+2013&utm_term=More

Excerpt: The village of Maaloula has been taken over by Syrian rebels associated with al Qaeda, who have stormed the Christian center and offered local Christians a choice: conversion or death. A resident of the town said the rebels shouted “Allahu Akhbar” as they moved through the village, and proceeded to assault Christian homes and churches. (The “moderates” Obama and Kerry want to take us to war to support. ~Bob)

Obama launches final push to win congressional support for a strike on Syria. By Peter Wallsten

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-launches-final-push-to-win-congressional-support-for-a-strike-on-syria/2013/09/08/7ab2e884-18ae-11e3-8685-5021e0c41964_print.html

Excerpt: President Obama will begin an intensive public and private lobbying push this week to win congressional support for a limited missile strike against Syria, but even some of the strongest supporters on Capitol Hill for military action are pessimistic that the White House will succeed.

Kerry says Saudi Arabia has agreed to support military strike against Syria

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/kerry-says-saudi-arabia-has-agreed-to-support-military-strike-against-syria/2013/09/08/e966e0b8-188c-11e3-8685-5021e0c41964_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines

Excerpt: The Obama administration picked up new international endorsements Sunday for a military strike against Syria as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad denied his government had used chemical weapons and warned the American people not to get involved in another Middle Eastern war. (How many bombers will they commit to the strike? ~Bob.)

Truth leaking out? Nerve gas points to rebels
http://www.wnd.com/2013/09/truth-leaking-out-nerve-gas-points-to-rebels#OLEwtFIz7j6l8I89.03

Excerpt: They claim the “growing body of evidence” reveals the incident was a pre-planned provocation by the Syrian opposition and its Saudi and Turkish supporters. (I view all statements from all sides on this with skepticism. We all have a tendency to reinforce our positions. Certainly both sides are more than capable of using any weapon they can. Take this and everything else for what it is worth. ~Bob.)

Assad Denies Chemical Attack in Interview for U.S. Viewers

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/09/business/media/assad-denies-attack-in-interview-with-charlie-rose.html?_r=0

Excerpt: President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, who has denied that his government attacked civilians with chemical weapons on Aug. 21, reiterated that denial to the American people on Sunday morning via the television interviewer Charlie Rose.

Russia says it will push Syria to relinquish control of chemical weapons

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/john-kerry-in-london-campaigns-for-world-to-support-military-strike-against-syria/2013/09/09/e8ad7a72-193d-11e3-80ac-96205cacb45a_story.html?wpisrc=al_national

Excerpt: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday that his country has asked Syria to transfer control of its chemical weapons to international monitors in order to prevent a U.S. military strike.

Should the U.S. Use Military Force in Syria? By Bernard Goldberg

http://www.bernardgoldberg.com/should-the-u-s-use-military-force-in-syria/?utm_source=BernardGoldberg.com+Newsletter&utm_campaign=0fad17be5b-NEWSLETTER&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c1903183b6-0fad17be5b-284965241#sthash.4lmjjcqi.dpuf

Excerpt: Yes, it’s a lot easier being a community organizer than it is commander-in-chief. By now even Barack Obama has figured that out. By now we know there are no easy answers on Syria. We know there will be consequences no matter what we do. 

Good Column: Shooting the Syrian Elephant. By Daniel Greenfield

http://sultanknish.blogspot.com/2013/09/shooting-syrian-elephant.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FromNyToIsraelSultanRevealsTheStoriesBehindTheNews+%28from+NY+to+Israel+Sultan+Reveals+The+Stories+Behind+the+News%29

Excerpt: The majority of Americans do not want to invade or bomb Syria. The majority of American leaders do. Such a disparity between the leaders and the people is not wholly unique, but it arises in this case not from the usual disparities of power or corruption. Americans don’t want to fight Syria because it is no threat to them. American leaders admit that Syria is no threat to America. They want to bomb Syria because they feel that they ought to do it.

Footage of chemical attack in Syria is fraud

http://rt.com/op-edge/mother-chemical-attack-footage-fraud-509/

Excerpt: There is proof the footage of the alleged chemical attack in Syria was fabricated, Mother Agnes Mariam el-Salib, mother superior of St. James Monastery in Qara, Syria, told RT. She says she is about to submit her findings to the UN. (I read with skepticism. But if we attack and are proven wrong, it will be even worse. ~Bob.)

Updated Bumper Sticker

https://twitter.com/ToddAdams2/status/376857788422451200/photo/1

Spoof message from al Qaeda

https://twitter.com/FishWithDan/status/376856584137494528/photo/1

Obama-backed rebels dismember live Christian girl (Video)

http://www.examiner.com/article/obama-backed-rebels-dismember-live-christian-girl

Excerpt: Barack Obama-backed Syrian rebel terrorists this week have dismembered a girl while she was alive along with other similar atrocities in a Christian village in Syria, according to Russia Today. (While they are capable of that, I’m not sure Russia Today is a credible source. ~Bob.)

White House Admits It’s a Coalition of One. By Patrick Brennan

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/357890/white-house-admits-its-coalition-one-patrick-brennan

Good Column: The Myth of the Moderate Syrian Rebels. By Daniel Greenfield 

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/there-are-no-moderate-syrian-rebels/?utm_source=FrontPage+Magazine&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=3f8212e6d4-Mailchimp_FrontPageMag&utm_term=0_57e32c1dad-3f8212e6d4-156414477

Excerpt: The Syrian Civil War is a religious war. It’s not a war over democracy or freedom. It’s a conflict between two totalitarian systems, one loosely based on a mixture of Islam and Socialism, and the other more rigidly based on Islam. Both are brutal and merciless to anyone who doesn’t belong. Both have their death squads and extensive corruption on the inside.

Both are evil.

The Light of Day

http://pjmedia.com/richardfernandez/2013/09/06/the-light-of-day/

Excerpt: The drawdown of U.S. diplomats from Lebanon and Turkey is a reminder that the Syrian crisis is in the end not about Syria, but Iran. Obama’s threat to “punish” Syria is stirring up waves in Tehran, because the loss of Syria would isolate Hezbollah and leave it vulnerable to destruction by Sunni forces. Syria was, in strategic terms, Obama’s answer to Iraq.

Good Column: Drawing an Al-Qaeda Red Line: Why is Assad’s use of WMDs so much worse than Syrian rebels’ allying with jihadists? By Andrew C. McCarthy

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/357858/drawing-al-qaeda-red-line-andrew-c-mccarthy

Excerpt: In one corner, we have Bashar Assad. Unlike President Obama and his minions, who spent their first couple of years empowering Assad — Obama reopening diplomatic ties, Hillary pronouncing him a valiant “reformer,” Pelosi huddling with him, Kerry wining and dining him — many of us alleged “isolationists” on the right were never under any illusions about him.

Biden Woos GOP Senators with Italian Food; Obama ‘Drops By’

http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2013/09/08/biden-woos-gop-senators-with-italian-food-obama-drops-by/

Excerpt: A handful of Republicans senators dined with Vice President Joe Biden on Sunday evening as President Obama dropped in to presumably talk Syria. (It’s in the Chianti versus the Kool-Aid. –Barb)

House Intel Chair: ‘Counfounding’ Benghazi Fibber Susan Rice Would Brief Lawmakers On Syria On Anniversary Of Attacks

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2013/09/08/House-Intel-Chair-Confounding-Susan-Rice-Would-Give-Lamwakers-Briefing-on-Syria-on-One-Year-Anniversary-of-Benghazi

Excerpt: Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) said it was "confounding" that the Obama administration would send Susan Rice, the former Ambassador to the United Nations who is now the National Security Adviser, to brief some lawmakers in Congress next week on the case for military action in Syria on the one-year anniversary of the Benghaziattacks. Rogers said, "the credibility gap here is huge." The weekend after four Americans were killed in terrorist attacks in Benghazi last year, Rice, who was the Ambassador to the United Nations at the time, went on all of theSunday shows to perpetuate the false and now disproven claim that the attacks were spontaneous responses to a YouTube video of Muhammed.

Story: Global Warming Caused Current Syrian Conflict

http://politicaloutcast.com/2013/09/story-global-warming-caused-current-syrian-conflict/

Excerpt: In 1933, Syria banned yo-yos. No, not the kind of yo-yos we have pretending to be our elected representatives. I mean the toy. They banned them, because they believed they were the cause of a drought the country was experiencing. 

If It Wasn’t Syria, It Would Have Been Something Else. By Victor Davis Hanson

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/357799/if-it-wasnt-syria-it-would-have-been-something-else-victor-davis-hanson

Excerpt: It is very possible that the president will not obtain a join authorization to bomb Syria; if he chooses to go ahead and attack anyway, Obama will incite a constitutional crisis—the first time in history that a president has decided to go to war against the declared wishes of Congress. The public and the courts will adjudicate the legality of that act, and it would be contentious. So the corner that Obama has painted himself into is now inescapable.

A Shot Across The Bow

 http://floppingaces.net/2013/09/08/a-shot-across-the-bow/

Excerpt: The, “One Voice,” Kerry speaks of must be that bi-partisanship that was so prominent during the wars withIraq and Afghanistan, but this is another war, a self-righteous war, and it is imperative that we are behind our war mongering president. Unfortunately, Iran has managed to avoid the profound implications of Obama diplomacy for five years. …The days of wooden ships are over, no one will cower in fear of Obama’s threats, but like the proverbial scorned woman, the narcissist facing rejection is unpredictable and dangerous, and we fear his irresponsible and thoughtless actions as much or more than we fear Putin and Ali Khamenei.

Op-Ed: Starting World War III

 http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/13797#.Uizyf9JzGuI

Excerpt: First of all, let’s deal with the fact that the forces fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are dominated by Al-Qaeda and its affiliates. Senator Ted Cruz (R) from Texas stated on the Glenn Beck radio program on Tuesday that “at least seven out of nine major rebel groups are affiliated with Al-Qaeda.”

Homeland Security panel chief claims Obama trying to save face on Syria
http://thehill.com/video/sunday-shows/320899-homeland-security-panel-chief-claims-obama-trying-to-save-face-on-syria#ixzz2eL6IFWZ0 

Excerpt: “We always are concerned about our credibility,” Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday. “The problem is, I think, lobbing a few Tomahawk missiles will not restore our credibility overseas. It’s kind of a face-saving measure for the president after he drew the red line.” 

Benghazi haunting Obama effort to win support for intervention in Syria
http://thehill.com/blogs/global-affairs/middle-east-north-africa/320813-benghazi-anniversary-haunting-obama-effort-to-win-support-for-syria-strike#ixzz2eL4PzR4X

Excerpt: “I can't discuss the possibility of the U.S. involvement in Syria's civil war without also talking about Benghazi,” Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.) told Secretary of State John Kerry during a testy exchange at Wednesday's House Foreign Affairs hearing. “The administration has a serious credibility issue with the American people due to the unanswered questions surrounding the terrorist attack in Benghazi almost a year ago,” Duncan said. (The ol razzle dazzle ‘em, left hand-right hand switcheroo. –Barb)

Rep. Rogers: White House Syria strategy ‘a confusing mess’
Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-and-strategy/320897-rep-rogers-white-house-syria-strategy-a-confusing-mess#ixzz2eL3zkMmo 

Excerpt: House Intelligence Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) supports the White House on taking military strikes in Syria, but on Sunday he said the White House has done an “awful job” explaining its case.

Liberal Dem: Obama should withdraw Syria authorization request
http://thehill.com/video/sunday-shows/320881-rep-mcgovern-obama-should-withdraw-syria-authorization-#ixzz2eL3Qq1Q3 

Excerpt: McGovern is one more than 30 House Democrats who have said they are against or leaning toward a “no” vote on military strikes, according to The Hill’s Whip List. Opposition from Democrats like McGovern will present the White House with an even mightier task to win a House vote on authorizing military action in Syria, as Republican “no” votes are piling up. 

US: Proven link of Assad to gas attack lacking

http://www.chron.com/news/politics/article/US-Common-sense-test-holds-Assad-responsible-4796462.php

Excerpt: The White House asserted Sunday that a "common-sense test" dictates the Syrian government is responsible for a chemical weapons attack that President Barack Obama says demands a U.S. military response. But Obama's top aide says the administration lacks "irrefutable, beyond-a-reasonable-doubt evidence" that skeptical Americans, including lawmakers who will start voting on military action this week, are seeking. (Looks like they are going to hit every live TV program except the Weather channel. –Laura)

From the Left: Barry’s War Within. By Maureen Dowd

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/opinion/sunday/dowd-barrys-war-within.html?emc=eta1

Excerpt: THE winner of the Nobel Peace Prize had been up late pleading for war. The president looked exhausted as he met the press in St. Petersburg on Friday. The man elected because of his magical powers of persuasion had failed to persuade other world leaders at dinner the night before about a strike on Syria.

Hannity and Allen West: Bomb Iran Instead. By Cortney O'Brien

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/cortneyobrien/2013/09/06/hannity-and-allen-west-bomb-iran-instead-n1693365

Excerpt: Col. Allen West shared Hannity’s concern about Iran, as well as his solution. “Iran is really the center, the nerve center and sometimes you have to go after the head and I think that if you want to do the right thing strategically, you maybe want to focus against Iran so that you don’t give them the initiative.” Fox News contributor Juan Williams, however, disagreed with Hannity and West on the grounds that Iran "has not directly attacked us or our allies."

KUCINICH: Top 10 Unproven Claims for War Against Syria
http://clashdaily.com/2013/09/kucinich-top-10-unproven-claims-war-syria/

Excerpt: In the lead-up to the Iraq War, I researched, wrote and circulated a document to members of Congress which explored unanswered questions and refuted President Bush’s claim for a cause for war. The document detailed how there was no proof Iraq was connected to 9/11 or tied to al Qaeda’s role in 9/11, that Iraq neither had WMDs nor was it a threat to the U.S., lacking intention and capability to attack. Unfortunately, not enough members of Congress performed due diligence before they approved the war.

Funny: All the places in the world John McCain has wanted to attack.

http://ace.mu.nu/archives/343167.php

Excerpt: No one can deny that McCain was a hero in Vietnam -- but what I would deny is that there is any connection between that service and the "seriousness" with which he analyzes military/foreign policy questions. (I am among those who have lost faith in McCain. ~Bob.)

Krauthammer: Appeasing the Vanity and Ego of a President Who’s Become a Laughingstock Around the World Is No Reason to Go to War

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/charles-krauthammer-shamed-into-war/2013/08/29/b97a67a8-10cb-11e3-b4cb-fd7ce041d814_story.html

Excerpt: Having leaked to the world, and thus to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a detailed briefing of the coming U.S. air attack on Syria — (1) the source (offshore warships and perhaps a bomber or two), (2) the weapon (cruise missiles), (3) the duration (two or three days), (4) the purpose (punishment, not “regime change”) — perhaps we should be publishing the exact time the bombs will fall, lest we disrupt dinner in Damascus.

VIDEO: Warmonger John Kerry Sanctimoniously Demagoguing Against War.

http://moonbattery.com/?p=36074

Excerpt: Vietnam was no mistake; America had an obvious strategic interest in trying to hold back the advance of communism. But Obama’s red line on Syria was such an obvious mistake that the Peace Prize Laureate in Chief himself is clownishly trying towalk it back, even as he pushes us into a war because of it.

The 'Assad v Al Qaeda' narrative may not be what it appears. By William A. Jacobson

http://legalinsurrection.com/2013/09/the-assad-v-al-qaeda-narrative-may-not-be-what-it-appears//#more

Excerpt: None of this is meant to downplay the threat of al-Qaeda related groups in Syria. It is meant to let you know that there appears to be a conscious effort to manipulate the news cycle into forcing the West to choose between Assad and al-Qaeda, and that is the choice Assad wants you to have to make. But that may not be the only choice.

Fireworks: American citizen at McCain town hall meeting tells him, "I'd have you arrested for treason" [The text does not include the whole speech. It leaves out the bit about Egyptians rising up and about Christians being slaughtered.]

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2013/09/07/fireworks_man_at_mccain_town_hall_tells_him_id_have_you_arrested_and_tried_for_treason.html

Excerpt: "The simple irony is that the domestic enemy, now in this country, is the people in government, the United States. And McCain, you and the rest of the leaders are accountable for their actions. It is too bad that someone like me is not in office to hold you accountable. Because if I was in a position of power or authority, I would have you all arrested and tried for treason against my country."

U.S. saw year-long rise in chemcial weapons use in Syria. By Ken Dilanian and David S. Cloud

http://www.latimes.com/world/middleeast/la-fg-syria-intel-20130907,0,2289261.story

Excerpt: In July 2012, senior U.S. intelligence officials drove to the Capitol to secretly brief top lawmakers on the first indications that the Syrian government had used chemical weapons against its own people. The classified reports about a small-scale attack weren't definitive, according to U.S. officials who were privy to them. It was still a month before President Obama warned that the use of chemical weapons would cross a "red line" and "change his calculus" about taking action in Syria.

Syria's rebels and soldiers agree: America's military strikes will change nothing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10293591/Syrias-rebels-and-soldiers-agree-military-strikes-will-change-nothing.html

Excerpt: They've killed each other by the tens of thousands in a war mired in stalemate. But they're now agreed on one thing. The military strike America is preparing will not change anything.

Congressman Johnson, combat veteran, statement on Syria

http://samjohnson.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=347524

Excerpt: Today U.S. Congressman Sam Johnson (3rd Dist.-Texas) issued the following statement in light of current events on Syria. A decorated combat veteran, Johnson earned two Silver Stars, two Legions of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, one Bronze Star with Valor, two Purple Hearts, four Air Medals, and three Outstanding Unit Awards. The former Director of the Air Force school similar to Top Gun, Johnson spent nearly seven years as a Prisoner of War in Vietnam - more than half of that time in solitary confinement. "Like many Americans, I feel deeply concerned about the use of chemical weapons against innocent people - especially women and children - it is wrong. PERIOD. That said, I view this upcoming debate not only as an elected U.S. Congressman but as a life-long fighter pilot, student of war, a combat veteran, and a Prisoner of War. I strongly believe the Obama administration has failed to articulate a clear mission and path to victory. Can they answer the simple question - What are our CLEAR objectives?

Democrats Blame Bush For Syria

http://lastresistance.com/3156/shock-democrats-blame-bush-syria/

Excerpt: Albert Einstein said: "You can't blame gravity for falling in love." There is virtue in assigning blame to yourself when it is appropriate to do so. That seems like an obvious statement—and it is—but we live in such a self-centered society that selflessness is something quite rare. We are quick to pin the blame on anyone else but ourselves, so long as people will believe us. We've become a blame-centric culture because, if you're a good enough manipulator, you'll never feel the repercussions of being at fault. 

The Pacifist and the Warmonger. By Taki Theodoracopulos

http://takimag.com/article/the_pacifist_and_the_warmonger_taki_theodoracopulos#axzz20OPyZe1y

Excerpt: I would bet my bottom dollar that neither George W. Bush, certainly not the lying war criminal Tony Blair, nor that Napoleon wannabe mini-buffoon Francois Hollande have read many war books written by those who saw combat up close. Maybe Obama has, that’s why he’s holding back, but I doubt it very much. Uncle Tom’s Cabin seems to be his Bible.