Imam Rauf's Extremist Speaking Engagement

HT:Aim.Imam Rauf's Extremist Speaking Engagement.Feisal Abdul Rauf, the imam behind the Ground Zero mosque, is kicking off his nationwide speaking tour at the Islamic Society of North America's Diversity Forum Banquet in Detroit on January 15. He will be speaking alongside extremists like Siraj Wahhaj and Zaid Shakir, contradicting the moderate image he's trying to put forth on his tour.The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) denies being an extremist organization, saying it "rejects all acts of terrorism, including those perpetrated by Hamas, Hizbullah and any other group that claims Islam as their inspiration." This statement, however, does not necessarily mean they oppose the Islamist political agenda. In fact, ISNA has been listed by the federal government as an "unindicted co-conspirator" in the Holy Land Foundation trial that found the charity to be guilty of financing Hamas. ISNA has tried to have this designation removed, but a judge ruled on July 1, 2009 that the government "produced ample evidence" to justify it.Also speaking at ISNA's Diversity Forum Banquet is Zaid Shakir, one of the founders of Zaytuna University in California. Shakir opposes attacks on civilians, such as the hijacking of airliners, but then says, "If you hijack an airplane filled with the 82nd Airborne, that's something else." The New York Times wrote in June 2006 that "he said he still hoped that one day the United States would be a Muslim country ruled by Islamic law" and he voices 9/11 conspiracy theories.Shakir has also condemned the United States's "demonization" of people like Saddam Hussein, Hugo Chavez, Manuel Noriega, Muammar Qaddafi and most shockingly, the Taliban and Osama Bin Laden. He also depicts terrorist groups as nationalists fighting against Western imperialism."Hamas calls for the liberation of Palestinian lands, not the physical elimination of the Jews. Al-Qaeda calls for the end of America's strategic presence in the Middle East and not the destruction of America. The Iraqi resistance calls for the end of the American occupation of Iraq and not the end of America," he wrote.If Imam Rauf is as moderate as he says he is, he should be speaking out against people like Shakir and Wahhaj and groups like the Muslim Brotherhood. Instead, he's launching his speaking tour at a conference that exalts them. With friends like these, Imam Rauf's tour may end up hurting Park51's prospects instead of helping.Hmmmm...."We do not want to take over your country"?Read the full story here.

Obama May Bypass Guantánamo Rules, Aides Say

Obama May Bypass Guantánamo Rules, Aides Say.WASHINGTON — President Obama’s legal advisers, confronting the prospect of new restrictions on the transfer of Guantánamo detainees, are debating whether to recommend that he issue a signing statement asserting that his executive powers would allow him to bypass the restrictions, according to several officials.If Mr. Obama were to issue such a statement, it could represent a more aggressive use of unilateral executive powers than what he exerted in his first two years in office. The issue has arisen as the Republican Party takes control of the House.But the administration is also considering whether he should go further by issuing a signing statement — a formal document recording a president’s interpretation of a new law for the rest of the executive branch to follow — asserting that he has the constitutional power to disregard the restrictions. Under the latter approach, the president would assert that as the head of the executive branch and commander in chief, his prosecutorial discretion and wartime powers would allow him to lawfully bring detainees into the United States for trial or to transfer them to other countries as he sees fit. It remained unclear whether the administration would actually carry out a detainee transfer despite the restrictions, or whether it would merely assert, as an abstract matter, that Mr. Obama had the authority to do so.Hmmmm....More totalitarian rule?Read the full story here.

Obama and Air Force One: It's good to have a 747.

Obama and Air Force One: It's good to have a 747.President Obama will spend Monday night flying across the Pacific and United States after his latest vacation, 11 days in Hawaii. It will be his first trip of 2011 aboard Air Force One.Last year Obama flew in Air Force One 172 times, almost every other day.White House officials have been telling reporters in recent days that the Democrat doesn't intend to hang around the White House quite so much in 2011.They explain he wants to get out more around the country because, as everyone knows, that midterm election shellacking on Nov. 2 had nothing to do with his healthcare bill, over-spending or other policies, and everything to do with Obama's not adequately explaining himself to his countrymen and women.And with only 673 days remaining in the neverending presidential campaign, the incumbent's travel pace will not likely slacken.At an Air Force-estimated cost of $181,757 per flight hour (not to mention the additional travel costs of Marine One, Secret Service, logistics and local police overtime), that's a lot of frequent flier dollars going into the president's carbon footprint. According to Knoller's copious notes, during the last year Obama made 65 domestic trips over 104 days and six trips to eight countries over 22 days. Not counting six vacation trips over 32 days.He took 196 helicopter trips, signed 203 pieces of legislation and squeezed in 29 rounds of left-handed golf.Hmmmm....."The Democrat doesn't intend to hang around the White House quite so much in 2011" 172 Airforce One TRIPS in 2010!Read the full travelodge brochure story here.

.Top Five Things Obama Has Done to Raise Gasoline Prices

HT:AmericanSolutions.Top Five Things Obama Has Done to Raise Gasoline Prices.With gasoline currently above $3 per gallon nationwide and economists expecting that price to rise even further in 2011, America should be getting serious about producing more of its own resources. But instead of focusing on how to bring more relief to American motorists, President Obama has imposed massive new regulations, restrictions, and even threatened higher taxes on American energy, all of which negatively impact domestic production.What follows is a list of the five most egregious actions on the part of the Obama administration that have contributed to higher gasoline prices and greater dependence on foreign dictators for our energy.Hmmmm....If he really wanted to destroy America would he do anything different?Read the full story here.

.Is The New Madrid Fault Earthquake Zone Coming To Life?

HT:TheAmericanDream.Is The New Madrid Fault Earthquake Zone Coming To Life?What in the world is happening in the middle of the United States right now? Thousands of birds are falling dead from the skies, tens of thousands of fish are washing up on shore dead, earthquakes are popping up in weird and unexpected places and people are starting to get really freaked out about all of this. Well, one theory is that the New Madrid fault zone is coming to life. The New Madrid fault zone is six times bigger than the San Andreas fault zone in California and it covers portions of Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Mississippi. The biggest earthquakes in the history of the United States were caused by the New Madrid fault. Now there are fears that the New Madrid fault zone could be coming to life again, and if a "killer earthquake" does strike it could change all of our lives forever.So exactly what events have happened recently that are causing people to take a close look at the New Madrid fault zone? According to the U.S. Geological Survey, more than 500 measurable earthquakes have been recorded in central Arkansas just since September.But the fact that they all happened in or around the New Madrid fault zone is starting to raise some eyebrows.About 200 years ago, in 1811 and 1812, there were four earthquakes that were so powerful in the area of the New Madrid fault zone that they are still talked about today. All four of the quakes were estimated to have been magnitude-7.0 or greater. It is said that those earthquakes opened deep fissures in the ground, caused the Mississippi River to run backwards and that they were felt as far away as Boston.The last major earthquake to hit the region was a 5.4-magnitude quake that struck the town of Dale, Illinois in 1968. Things have been strangely quiet in the region since then until recently.If a true "killer earthquake" struck along the New Madrid fault zone today, cities such as St. Louis, Missouri and Memphis, Tennessee could potentially be completely destroyed.Unfortunately, this is not an exaggeration.The following video describes just how incredibly powerful the earthquakes along the New Madrid fault in 1811 and 1812 actually were....Read and see the full story here.

Afghan women speak out on abuse from behind mask

Afghan women speak out on abuse from behind mask.Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- "I had so many dreams for my life, but when I saw him, they just disappeared." Saraya spoke softly, her hunched-over body and nervously twisting hands testimony to all she says she has had to endure."I told my father I didn't want to marry him: 'why are you doing this to me?'" She continued: "My father said 'you are of an age to be married and this is my decision, not yours.'"Saraya says it only took three days for her to realize she had been married off to a madman.Emotions and turmoil she never dared publicly speak of tumble out freely -- concealed, along with her face, behind a mask.Half the mask is pale blue, the color of the "chaudari" or burka, symbolizing the oppression of women; the other half white, representing innocence.This is Afghanistan's new revolutionary TV show called "Niqab," meaning "The Mask."Behind the concept is 28-year-old Sami Mahdi."I was always desiring to have something like the mask, like this show in our media," Mahdi said. "I was not very sure about the concept and the format, but I was very sure about the mask, you know. Because in Afghanistan, it's very difficult for women to talk about their difficulties and their problems, and the violence they are facing in their home."Her identity safely concealed behind the mask, Saraya said she was forcibly married off to a known rapist, a man with an existing criminal record when she was 15 years old. He was 58."When my youngest was just four years old, my husband brought women to the house and raped them."My child asked me: 'who are these women?' I could not say anything to my child -- my husband would just beat me."She said she eventually ran away, fearing that he would harm their daughter. She said she firmly believes that if her husband ever found her and their three children he would murder them all."During the second episode, the victim, the guest, was a lady who was 12 years old when she got married," Mahdi said, noting this was a "badal" marriage. Her brother had murdered a man. She was given to the family of the victim.As she spoke of the abuse and torture she endured, Mahdi says everyone in the control room broke down."They were crying ... they were crying," he recalled. "There are a lot of realities in Afghanistan, but when you talk about realities publicly, I am sure it will shock people. I was shocked."Hmmmm.....Welcome to A.D. 620?Read the full story here.

Aircraft Carrier Commander Relieved of Duty After Airing Explicit Videos

Aircraft Carrier Commander Relieved of Duty After Airing Explicit Videos.Capt. Owen Honors was to be relieved of duty Tuesday as commander of the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise after he broadcast sexually charged videos taken aboard the ship, a senior U.S. defense official told Fox News.The videos, distributed on closed-circuit television during 2006 and 2007 deployments of the USS Enterprise, the Navy's oldest nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, showed simulated masturbation, suggestive shower scenes with multiple women and gay slurs. The Virginia-Pilot newspaper first broke the story, publishing edited versions the lewd videos on its website."Contrary to assurances that standards of conduct will remain high, and that 'leadership' and sensitivity training can 'mitigate' the consequences of human failings, this embarrassing episode demonstrates how discipline can be incrementally redefined downward, lowering standards for all," Donnelly said. "Adm. Mullen and like-minded allies in the White House, Pentagon and Congress are inviting trouble that cannot be 'mitigated' by wishful thinking alone."It was a bad year for commanding officers in 2010. The Navy Times reported that 17 COs were fired last year for conduct unbecoming of an officer -- the second highest number of firings in a decade.Read the full story here.

Iran Offer of Nuclear Site Tour Irks U.S.

Iran Offer of Nuclear Site Tour Irks U.S.Iran has invited representatives of several nations to visit its nuclear installations this month, including Russia, China and the European Union, but has excluded the U.S. from the proposed trip, according to diplomats briefed on Tehran's correspondence.The Obama administration and a number of European and Arab governments quickly dismissed Tehran's overture, saying they viewed it as an attempt by Iran to reduce mounting economic pressure aimed at curbing its nuclear program."A tour for some countries is not a substitute for sustained and transparent cooperation," State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Monday. "Iran continues to be in violation of its international obligations and the international community won't be distracted by this ploy."Two diplomats from EU countries said Monday their governments were unlikely to accept Tehran's invitation specifically because it is seen as an attempt to divide the international community. Rather, they said Tehran should be prepared to engage in serious discussions with the West and allow greater access to international inspectors from the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency."Let's make sure nobody gives a hand to this…attempt at disguising opacity as transparency," said one of the European diplomats working on Iran.Hmmmm......Divide et impera.Read the full story here.

New Speaker Vows to Share Power—a Tricky Proposition

New Speaker Vows to Share Power—a Tricky Proposition.When John Boehner takes over one of the most powerful jobs in Washington this week, he says his first order of business is to make himself less powerful.On Wednesday the new speaker of the House of Representatives plans to offer a package of rule changes that, he says, will give minority-party members more of a say and decentralize power. In short, Ohio Republican Mr. Boehner is promising he'll be a different figure from many speakers throughout history—from Republican Joseph Cannon a century ago to his immediate predecessor, Democrat Nancy Pelosi—who kept a tighter leash.But there's a reason so many speakers try to keep close control: It works."New speakers always say they want to have a more open process," says Rep. Anthony Weiner, a New York Democrat. "Then the sheer demands of making the trains run on time and getting things passed requires that you change your mind."How this tension is resolved—between Mr. Boehner's promises and the need to get things done—will help determine the success of the new Republican majority. The GOP is in a hurry to show that it's different, not just from Democrats but from its old self. Mr. Boehner himself was catapulted into a GOP leadership role in 2006 after a fund-raising scandal deposed then-majority leader Tom DeLay.Mr. Boehner now finds himself master of a Republican majority created by a group of newcomers whose hallmark is a restless cry for action. On issues from cutting spending to raising the government's debt ceiling, Mr. Boehner's burden will be letting his freshmen members vent while keeping the House on track.One of Wednesday's first votes could be Mr. Boehner's package of rule changes. Among them:

1.  Lawmakers will be required to vote on whether or not to raise the federal debt ceiling, a move sought by tea-party representatives. Current rules let the House automatically raise the limit when they pass a budget.
2. All legislation must be posted online 72 hours before going to the House floor to prevent party leaders from changing bills the night before House votes, as has been the practice over the years.Read the full story here.

Netanyahu asks Obama to pardon Pollard

Netanyahu asks Obama to pardon Pollard.Prime minister addresses Knesset plenum, reads out letter sent to US President Obama asking him to pardon spy. White House says will review letter. The prime minister addressed the Knesset plenum Tuesday in a debate titled "The failure of the Netanyahu administration in the political, economic and social realms." A total of 40 Knesset members signed an appeal to hold the debate thus forcing Netanyahu to attend. In his speech, Netanyahu detailed efforts that have been made along the years to free Pollard. He noted that he received a letter from Pollard two weeks ago pleading him to publicly approach the US president and ask for his release."After 25 years that Jonathan has spent in jail and after 15 years of failed efforts to release him, I have decided to grant this request and I do this openly, here, from the Knesset podium in a step that represents and unites all the people of Israel," he said.Netanyahu read the letter he sent to Obama in which he noted that despite the fact that Israel had not directed any intelligence efforts against the US, it was wrong in doing what it did and had acted in an unacceptable manner. The letter further noted that both Pollard and Israel's governments have regretted these acts and that Israel continues to pledge never to repeat such acts in the future. Netanyahu wrote to Obama that he had raised the matter of Pollard's release many times in meetings with US officials, past and present. He noted that many former senior US officials as well as congressmen who are familiar with the issue share his view and support releasing the spy.The prime minister closed his letter by saying that as far as Israel is aware Pollard has served more time in jail than any other person convicted of similar charges. He noted that Pollard's health has deteriorated considerably and stressed that the Jewish people will forever be thankful to Obama should he choose to free the spy. Meanwhile, the French news agency reported Tuesday that a senior official with the US administration announced the letter will be reviewed by the White House.Hmmmm.....Most killers serving life would have been paroled by now after serving this long.Read the full story here

French Intelligence Specialist on Islamic Extremisme

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Pakistan Punjab Governor killed by own guard

Pakistan Punjab Governor killed by own guard.The governor of Pakistan’s powerful Punjab province was shot dead in the capital on Tuesday by one of his guards, who told interrogators afterward that he was angry about the politician’s stance against the country’s blasphemy law, officials said. The killing of Salman Taseer was the most high-profile assassination of a political figure in Pakistan since the slaying of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in December 2007, and it rattled a country already dealing with a crisis of a potential collapse of the government. Mr. Taseer was a member of Ms. Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party and a close associate of President Asif Ali Zardari. The governor was vocal on a range of subjects, even using Twitter to get across his views.In recent days, as the People’s Party has faced the loss of its coalition partners, the 56-year-old Taseer has insisted that the government will survive. But it was his very public stance against the blasphemy law that apparently led to his killing.An intelligence official interrogating the suspect, identified as Mumtaz Qadri, told The Associated Press that the elite force security guard was boasting about the assassination, saying he was proud to have killed a blasphemer. “He was the most courageous voice after Benazir Bhutto on the rights of women and religious minorities,” said a crying Farahnaz Ispahani, an aide to Mr. Zardari and friend of Taseer. “God, we will miss him.” Police official Mohammad Iftikhar said Mr. Taseer was gunned down after he reached Khosar Market, a shopping centre in Islamabad popular with Westerners and wealthy Pakistanis. Five other people were wounded as other security personnel responded to the attack. Another police official, Hasan Iqbal, said a pair of witnesses told the police that as the Governor was leaving his vehicle, a man from his security squad fired two shots at him. Taseer then fell, while other police officials fired on the attacker.Hmmmm......Obama "Islam is a great religion".Read the full story here.More here.

Saudi clampdown on bloggers,news sites

HT:TundraTabloid.Saudi clampdown on bloggers,news sites.Saudi Arabia is beginning a major internet clamp-down, starting with blogs, forums, news sites, personal websites, electronic archives, chat rooms and online ads.New regulations were approved by Dr. Abdulaziz Bin Mohee Al-Dien Khoga, the Minister of Culture and Information, which will require licences for the operation of an e-publishing site within the country when the laws come into effect in a month’s time,Anyone who writes on a blog, online newspaper, or similar form of electronic publishing will be required to meet the following obligations: they must be a Saudi national, over 20, hold a high school or higher qualification, be of good conduct and behaviour, and hold an appropriate licence given by the Ministry.Failure to comply with the new regulations can result in a number of penalties. The user will be ordered to “correct” the content of the website, or, in other words, remove the offending material. They will need to pay a fine, they may be required to pay compensation to an individual in addition to the fine. And finally their website may be partially or fully blocked, for either a period of time up to two months or indefinitely.Saudi Arabia said that this does not constitute a breach of freedom of speech and said that it will act in a transparent manner in the conducting of the new laws, but the news is likely to upset a lot of bloggers and web users in the country.Hmmmmmmm......Freedom of speech,what freedom of speech?Mr President you're drooling!Read the full story here.

UK: Number of Muslim converts doubled in 10 years

UK: Number of Muslim converts doubled in 10 years.New study reveals some 5,000 Britons covert to Islam each year despite growing criticism of Muslim community. Group: People are interested in finding out what Islam is all about.The number of Britons choosing to become Muslims has nearly doubled in the past decade, according to a study published by the Independent newspaper on Tuesday. The report said the figures were surprising in light of the fact that British Muslims have faced more scrutiny and criticism than any other religious community following the global spread of violent Islamism.The Independent said estimating the number of converts living in Britain has always been difficult because census data does not differentiate between whether a religious person has adopted a new faith or was born into it. Previous estimates have placed the number of Muslim converts in the UK at between 14,000 and 25,000, according to the British daily.However, the report said, a new study by the inter-faith think-tank Faith Matters suggests the real figure could be as high as 100,000, with as many as 5,000 new conversions nationwide each year.By using data from the Scottish 2001 census, researchers estimated that there were 60,699 converts living in Britain in 2001.Read the full story here.

Here It Is: Cantor’s ObamaCare Repeal Bill Goes Online

HT:WZ.Here It Is: Cantor’s ObamaCare Repeal Bill Goes Online…Note: He’s posting the bill tonight so they can have the first procedural vote on Friday, this fulfills their pledge to post all bills for 72 hours before holding a vote.……………112TH CONGRESS  - 1ST SESSION . H. R. _
To repeal the job-killing health care law and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESMr. CANTOR (for himself and [see ATTACHED LIST of cosponsors]) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on____________A BILL  - To repeal the job-killing health care law and health care-related provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,Read the full bill here.

A New Year's Resolution for America ... and the World 2011

HT:RightTruth.A New Year's Resolution for America ... and the World 2011.There remains little doubt that Islamic jihadists have declared war upon the United States of America. Despite Osama bin Laden‟s and Ayman al-Zawahiri‟s 1998 “Fatwa Against Jews and Crusaders” as a call to wage war against Americans – “civilian and military” – because of our involvement within Kuwait and Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm, the fact remains that Islamists had already been at war with us for decades. Islam remains diametrically opposed to Trinitarian Christians and, therefore, Muslims must view us with suspect even if we “turn the other cheek” in reply.My personal interest in defeating runaway Islam arose in 1979 when Iranian students and Pakistani supporters attacked our embassies in Tehran and Islamabad. These were not “radical” fringes, but people who sought to return to Islam‟s glory days when the Prophet Muhammad murdered and conquered for Allah. Few people today understand the barbarity and deception practiced by Islam‟s founder, but no one with a grade schooler‟s understanding of the cult can deny the twenty-seven military campaigns led by Muhammad ibn Abdallah, or the half dozen or so assassinations “the Prophet” ordered against those who simply disagreed with his beliefs.Today, America has three enemies that seek its destruction. The first is the obvious: the Islamists who believe that Islam‟s destiny is to conquer the world..“War is cruelty. There is no use trying to reform it. The crueler it is, the sooner it will be over.” William Tecumseh Sherman.The Cruelty of War.Read the full story here.

House GOP to move this week on health care repeal

HT:PoliticalTicker.House GOP to move this week on health care repeal.CNN has learned that Republicans plan to try to repeal the health care law almost immediately after taking control of the House, setting the stage for an early confrontation with President Obama. House GOP sources tell CNN that they will unveil repeal legislation Monday night, even before they claim the majority Wednesday. Then, on Friday, Republicans will hold a critical procedural vote – the first step towards passing the repeal. A final House vote will likely take place next Wednesday.Republicans have said for some time the House would take up repealing health care, a top GOP campaign issue, during the first month of the new Congress, but up to now have not revealed exactly when. Regardless, the repeal has little chance of passing the Senate. Republicans say they decided to bring it up this soon to quickly respond to voters' frustration with the health care law, which Republicans argue is hurting the economy."Obamacare is a job killer for businesses small and large, and the top priority for House Republicans is going to be to cut spending and grow the economy and jobs," said Brad Dayspring, spokesman for incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-VA. "Further, Obamacare failed to lower costs as the president promised that it would, and does not allow people to keep the care they currently have if they like it. That is why the House will repeal it next week," he said.Hmmmm....Just forge the iron while it's hot!Read the full story here.

National Debt Tops $14 Trillion

National Debt Tops $14 Trillion.The latest posting today of the National Debt shows it has topped $14 trillion for the first time.The U.S. Treasury website today reported that as of last Friday, the last day of 2010, the National Debt stood at $14,025,215,218,708.52.It took just 7 months for the National Debt to increase from $13 trillion on June 1, 2010 to $14 trillion on Dec. 31. It also means the debt is fast approaching the statutory ceiling $14.294 trillion set by Congress and signed into law by President Obama last February.The federal government would have to stop borrowing and might even default on its obligations if Congress fails to increase the Debt Ceiling before the limit is reached.Some Republicans in the new Congress have said they'll seek to block an increase in the Debt Ceiling unless a plan is in place to significantly reduce federal spending and unfunded government liabilities on entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare. White House economic adviser Austan Goolsbee warned yesterday that it would be "catastrophic" if the U.S. Government were to default on its financial obligations. "That would be the first default in history caused purely by insanity," said Goolsbee of plans to block an increase in the Debt Ceiling.Hmmmmm.....Four Trillion added to the US Debt Mr President,just keep blaming Bush.Just keep partying like there's no tomorrow,where's the insanity?Read and see the full story here.

Denying the Jihad Against Christians

HT:Aim.Denying the Jihad Against Christians.An Islamic jihad-martyrdom suicide bomber murdered twenty-two people  and wounded eighty more at the Coptic Christian Church of the Saints in Alexandria, Egypt on New Year's Eve. Predictably enough, this mass murder has not resulted in any worldwide revulsion against Islamic jihadists, or general recognition of how Islamic supremacists and jihadists are persecuting Christians not only in Egypt, but in Iraq, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nigeria, and elsewhere also. Instead, it has brought only new and imaginative twists on the usual evasion, obfuscation, denial and finger-pointing that generally follow jihad attacks.Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak  was one of the first to muddy the waters, claiming that "foreign hands… a terrorist operation that is alien to us," rather than homegrown jihadists, carried out the attack. "All of Egypt is targeted," Mubarak went on, digging deeper. "This blind terrorism does not differentiate between Copts and Muslims."Yet no mosque was targeted, and no Muslim was killed. It was a remarkable coincidence that this "blind terrorism" that did not "differentiate between Copts and Muslims" struck at a Coptic church, killing only Christians and no Muslims at all.But the facts didn't stop Barack Obama, either. Obama's statement  was better than Mubarak's in that he acknowledged that "the perpetrators of this attack were clearly targeting Christian worshipers." However, he also claimed that the attack killed and injured people "from both the Christian and Muslim communities." No Muslims were actually killed or injured in the attack. And if the perpetrators (unnamed by Obama) were indeed "clearly targeting Christian worshipers," what was Obama's point in going out of his way to say that Muslims were hurt also? Did that claim make the crime more heinous in his eyes?Or did he think that it would mitigate the harsh reality of the fact that believing Muslims, acting in the name of Islam, were the anonymous perpetrators that he dared not name?Others found more imaginative ways to try to mitigate that harsh reality. Lebanese Shi'ite leader Sheikh Abdel Amir Kabalan said : "This terrorist act bears the fingerprints of Zionists who keep on targeting religious sights [sic] and are working to … sow discord between Muslims and Christians." Iran's PressTV , in an unsigned editorial, struck a tone so similar as to give the impression that a set of talking points were being circulated: "The fresh plot by terrorists to target churches is an organized Zionist scenario aimed at creating a rift between Muslims and Christians." This preposterous claim has been circulating for awhile. A Saudi Sheikh, Salman al-Awda, a member of Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi's International Union for Muslim Scholars, made the same assertion  about other recent jihad attacks against Christians in the Middle East: "These are tools in the hands of the Zionists, Israelis, Europeans, and Orientals, with the goal of damaging Islam." Even one Middle Eastern Christian leader climbed on this bandwagon: the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch Gregory III Laham declared several weeks ago that Muslim persecution of Christians in the Middle East "is actually a conspiracy planned by Zionism and some Christians with Zionist orientations and it aims at undermining and giving a bad image of Islam."Mamdouh Nakhla of Egypt's Al-Kalema Human Rights Center skewered both Mubarak's claim that "foreign hands" had carried out the attack and the anti-Semitic conspiracy paranoia that pointed the finger at Israel. "The crime is local," declared Nakhla, "and those who committed it are known…The Al Mujahedeen website threatens to repeat the attack in more churches. The site has addresses of churches and even how to make a bomb. Does security not know about it? Anyone who says that it was a foreign or Israeli plot is trying to play down the crime and is trying to clear those murderers of this massacre, and I consider them their accomplices."Hmmmmm......Political correctness did not kill these Christians ,but it's surely aiding the perpetrators!Read the full story here.

ANDERSON: Should we help Israel strike Iran?

ANDERSON: Should we help Israel strike Iran?An all-out assault may require all the American help it can get.It will be only a matter of time until Israel strikes Iran's nuclear power program. Most rational international leaders know there are two things you can do separately but never together. You can have a nuclear power program capable of producing weapons, and you can threaten to incinerate the Jewish state, but you can't do both. The Israelis have a 100 percent record in that regard. Some, although not all, of the Iranian leadership elite know that, but they are not calling the shots in Tehran.There is another truism at work here. When the Israelis go after the Iranians, the United States will get blamed in the Muslim world no matter what we do to dissuade the Israelis. No argument will convince the professional America haters, who set the narrative on the Muslim street, that we didn't put the Israelis up to it, so why try? If it is going to happen, we should give serious consideration to helping the Israelis get it right. A massive disruption of Iran's nuclear program will not permanently destroy Iranian nuclear ambitions, and it likely will coalesce Iranian public support around an already unpopular regime. Again, so what? The Iranians have not shown the will to unseat the regime.Hmmmm........Ever heard of the Green movement in Iran?Read the full story here.

Allen West: Obama Should Put His Life On The Line When He Visits Afghanistan

HT:ThinkProgres.Allen West: Obama Should Put His Life On The Line When He Visits Afghanistan.The New York Times magazine interviewed Rep. Allen West (R-FL) last week and asked West if he considers President Obama to be “a good leader.” “Not really,” West replied. The Florida congressman then went on to explain his reasoning — that Obama is weak because his recent trip to Afghanistan was shrouded in secrecy: NYT: Do you think those in the military respect him? WEST: I don’t know, you gotta ask guys in the military, but I will tell you this: I think that going in in the middle of the night doesn’t show leadership.NYT: Are you referring to that recent three-hour trip to a base in Afghanistan? He needs to consider his own safety, doesn’t he? WEST: Leaders lead by example, and if I’m asking my young men and women to go out there and put their lives on the line, I should be willing and able to do the exact same thing. As I told my soldiers when I was commander in Iraqin 2003, the most expendable person in our battalion was me.Hmmmm....But the "Commander in Chief" just loves dangerous situations.Ooooops wrong one?Read the full story here.

Allen West Says New Congress Should Prioritize Threat Of ‘Infiltration Of The Sharia Practice’ In U.S.

HT:ThinkProgres.Allen West Says New Congress Should Prioritize Threat Of ‘Infiltration Of The Sharia Practice’ In U.S. Rep. Allen West (R-FL), a newly-elected member who has loudly scapegoated Muslims and campaigned on a promise to oppose religious diversity, appeared on Frank Gaffney’s radio program last week. Gaffney, who routinely says that Obama is both a secret Muslim and a member of the “Muslim Brotherhood,” asked West about how the new Republican Congress plans to “take on Sharia as the enemy threat doctrine?”West said that, although he has not spoken with all of the new members, he hoped that Congress would focus on the “infiltration of the Sharia practice into all of our operating systems in our country as well as across Western civilization.” He explained that targeting Sharia should be part of America’s “national security strategy” and that a response to Sharia would somehow include “tailor[ing]” American “security systems, our political systems, economic systems, our cultural and educational systems, so that we can thwart this”ALLEN WEST: So there are many different ways we need to understand this 21st century battlefield, how we can leverage all elements of our nation’s power against and like I said we need to get away from this nation building  focus. I think that is economically hurting us. GAFFNEY: In terms of understanding our enemy, and I think you’ve done as much as any congressional candidate to help expand the awareness for not only your constituents but others. I count on you to be carrying that on in your new capacity. What is your sense of the willingness of this new Congress to take on Sharia as the enemy threat doctrine? Well, I haven't had the opportunity to sit down with all of the new members, giving all the new members of the freshmen class a phone call to talk to them. I think one of the critical things that we must come together is that there is an infiltration of the Sharia practice into all of our operating systems in our country as well as across Western civilization. So we must be willing to recognize that enemy. We cannot have a national security strategy that does not recognize it in specific and understand its goals and objectives.So once again, we can tailor you know our internal goals and objectives as far as our security systems, our political systems, economic systems, our cultural and educational systems, so that we can thwart this And it comes back to one of those strategic goals that you mentioned, reducing the sphere of influence of this Sharia you know ideology that is tied into Islam. But I think that is our most threatening part, is the Sharia philosophy.Hmmmm......Don't you just love this guy?Read the full story here.

Italian Foreign Minister: EU aid to Muslim countries should be tied to treatment of Christians

HT:JihadWatch.Italian Foreign Minister: EU aid to Muslim countries should be tied to treatment of Christians.Rome, January 3 - European Union aid should be tied to respect for human rights in countries where Christian minorities are under attack, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said Monday after a New Year's Day church bombing in the Egyptian city of Alexandria that killed 21 Coptic Christians. EU aid "should be reduced if not eliminated" for "those countries that do not collaborate" in protecting Christians, Frattini said."We have to move from monitoring to action," said the foreign minister, stressing that Italy could not remain "isolated" in the battle for Christians' rights around the world.Hmmmmm.....3....2....1 Obama no, no it's Muslims who are the victims.Read the full story here

Canada - Group requests permission to distribute Qur’an in public schools

Canada - Group requests permission to distribute Qur’an in public schools.Waterloo Region — A Muslim organization has applied to the Waterloo Region District School Board to send a copy of the Qur’an home with any Grade 5 student whose parents indicate they would like one.A representative of the Islamic Information Center at the University of Waterloo approached the former chair of the board, Kitchener trustee Mike Ramsay, with the request about a month ago.Ramsay said he made sure that the group got all the information it required to make the written application.“That particular request will come before the Board in the fall of 2011 for approval of distribution of the Qur’an in the 2011-12 school year,” said the board’s education director, Linda Fabi, in an email.If trustees approve, the Islamic Information Center would be using the exact same distribution process as Gideons International has for the past 64 years in Waterloo Region.Every year, the Gideons have sent a copy of the Christian New Testament, plus the Hebrew Bible books of Psalms and Proverbs, home to families of Grade 5 students who sign a permission form for the household to receive one.The school board doesn’t use the books for classroom instruction. It only acts as a channel through which the books are sent home.The board distributes the permission forms and the books. The forms have to be produced by the Gideons and the distribution must happen before or after school hours.And also, the material — described as “non-instructional religious material” — is supposed to be reviewed ahead of time to be sure it doesn’t try to convert people to another religion, and to be sure it doesn’t denigrate any groups protected by human rights legislation.But increasingly, this practice has become deeply controversial.Board chair Kathleen Woodcock said this is the first time that she has heard of that a group other than the Gideons that has asked to distribute religious materials to students’ homes.“Somebody’s going to have to review” the Qur’an to make sure it doesn’t proselytize, or denigrate groups protected by human rights law, she said.Hmmmm.....Good luck with the latter!Read the full story here.

.1,292 Afghan police killed in 2010

HT:WomenAgainstSharia.1,292 Afghan police killed in 2010.Kabul -1,292 Afghan policemen had been killed in Taliban-led insurgency, spokesman of Interior Ministry Zamarai Bashari said Sunday."During the year 2010, Afghan National Police (ANP), in efforts to ensure law and order in the country, had lost 1,292 of its personnel and 2,447 others sustained injuries," Bashari told a weekly press conference here.The fatalities that Afghan police suffered in 2010 had decreased in comparison with 2009, Bashari said, adding that 1,400 police personnel had lost their life in 2009.He said 2,043 civilians had been killed and more than 3,570 others injured throughout the last year.He also added that 6,710 security incidents and terrorist attacks took place in 2010 and among them, 109 were suicide bombings, 2,300 were roadside bombings and the rest were other kind of subversive activities."Regarding fatalities on insurgents, I can confirm that a total of 5,225 militants were killed and 949 others sustained injuries in the past year," he emphasized.He also said that police conducted 210 independent operations and 712 joint operations with Afghan army and NATO-led forces in 2010 and had captured more than 5,590 militants."Police forces have also detected and defused 9,751 roadside bombs and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) throughout 2010," he stated.Bashari said that more than 35,300 policemen had been trained and commissioned to national police force. The strength of Afghan national police at present is 122,000 and would reach 134,000 by the end of 2011, the spokesman added.He also said ANP and special Counter-Narcotics Police had found and seized more than 171 tons of illicit drugs, including heroin in 2010.The security forces had also arrested over 1,600 persons on charge of involvement in drug trafficking during the past year.Hmmmmm......How many drug traffickers were released?Read the full story here.

Report: Iran tortures nuke scientist after US return.

Report: Iran tortures nuke scientist after US return.Nuclear scientist said to have been kidnapped by CIA hasn't been seen in public since return.An Iranian nuclear scientist who claimed he slipped away from his CIA captors has not been seen publicly since his heroic return to Tehran last year and could be facing an investigation as a possible turncoat, according to an opposition website. The report on the website Iranbriefing.net says that Shahram Amiri is now being held in a Tehran prison, where he allegedly has faced beatings so severe that he had to be hospitalized for a week. The website's account could not be verified, but it purports to offer the first details on Amiri's fate since he surfaced in the United States six months ago amid an array of contradictory stories between Tehran and Washington.The Farsi-language account posted on the Iranbriefing.net website claims to pick up Amiri's trail after his highly publicized return. It cited anonymous family members as saying Amiri was first held in a safe house in Tehran and allowed weekend visits with relatives at the Talaiie cultural center, which is operated by Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard.The website quoted family members as being told that Amiri's movements were restricted for "his own safety." The report says - without citing any source - that Amiri was later moved to a former military lockup, the Heshmatieh Prison, in Tehran, where he allegedly faced harsh interrogations and beatings that left him in a military-run hospital afterward for a week.In October, one of Iran's vice presidents, Ali Akbar Salehi - who is now acting foreign minister - acknowledged that some personnel at nuclear facilities had passed secrets to the West in exchange for payment. Salehi claimed that it "awakened" security forces to impose tighter controls.The website is operated by the IranBriefing Foundation, which describes itself as a "non-profit human rights organization" based in the United States that focuses on the role of the Revolutionary Guard and other Iranian security agencies. Officials at the group could not be reached immediately for comment.Read the full story here.