Borrowed from The Associated Press - Thank you
After the blast, enraged Christians clash with police and storm a nearby mosque, prompting fights and volleys of stone throwing with Muslims.
CAIRO— A car exploded in front of a Coptic Christian church as worshipers emerged from a New Year's Mass in the Egyptian city of Alexandria early Saturday, killing at least seven people, officials said.
After the blast, enraged Christians emerging from the church clashed with police and stormed a nearby mosque, prompting fights and volleys of stone throwing with Muslims, police and witnesses said — a sign of the sectarian anger that has been arising with greater frequency in Egypt.
Nearly 1,000 Christians were attending the Mass at the Saints Church in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, said a priest at the church, Father Mena Adel. The service had just ended, and worshippers were leaving the building when the blast went off, about a half-hour after midnight.
"I was inside the church and heard a huge explosion," Adel told The Associated Press. "People's bodies were in flames."
The blast came from a car parked outside the church, but police said they were still investigating whether the car had been rigged with explosives or if a bomb had been placed under it. Witnesses reported seeing the charred chassis of the destroyed car, with the remains of several bodies nearby and dozens wounded.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement that seven people were killed and 24 wounded. Alexandria's governor, Adel Labib, put the death toll as high as 10.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast. Labib immediately blamed al-Qaida, pointing to recent threats by the terror group's branch in Iraq to attack Christians. It was not clear, however, if Labib had firm evidence, and he may have intended more to deny any homegrown Muslim-Christian tensions in Egypt.
"The al-Qaida organization threatened to attack churches inside Egypt. This has nothing to do with sectarianism," he told state TV.
After the explosion, some Christians from the church clashed with police in anger over the blast. The Christians hurled stones at police and a nearby mosque, chanting, "With our blood and soul, we redeem the cross," the witnesses said.
Friday, December 31, 2010
The 16 Wars of 2011 - Happy New Year
Borrowed from Foreign Policy blog - Thank you
Across the globe today, you'll find almost three dozen raging conflicts, from the valleys of Afghanistan to the jungles of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the streets of Kashmir. But what are the next crises that might erupt in 2011? Here are a few worrisome spots that make our list.
Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire is on the brink of what may be a very bad 2011. After a five-year delay, Côte d'Ivoire held presidential elections on Oct. 31. A peaceful first round of voting was commended by the international community, but the runoff between incumbent Laurent Gbagbo and former Prime Minister Alassane Ouattara was marred by clashes and allegations of fraud on both sides.
The international community, including the United Nations, the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), former colonial power France, and the United States, has recognized Outtara as the victor, but this has not prevented Gbagbo, with the backing of senior military officials and the Constitutional Council, from taking the oath of office. Both politicians have named prime ministers and governments as tension mounts and protests occur in the streets. The United Nations has reported disappearances, rape, and at least two dozen deaths so far.
Worst case scenario: Gbagbo stays in power, armed conflict between the supporters of each side plunges the country into civil war. Best case scenario: Gbagbo succumbs to international appeals and steps down. But it's not clear how things could get better from here. The international community has already ratcheted up pressure, including financial restrictions and travel bans. And the United Nations renewed the mandate of its peacekeeping operation there, despite Gbagbo calling for its immediate departure.
It's very possible that Cote d'Ivoire will take a turn for the worse in 2011. Gbagbo and Ouattara both have heavily armed supporters who seem ready to fight for the long haul.
Colombia
At first glance, Colombia's prospects for 2011 look bright. The country's new president, Juan Manuel Santos, has surprised many former critics with his bold reform proposals, many of which are aimed at addressing the root causes of the country's 46-year civil conflict against leftist rebels. He has mended relations with neighbouring Venezuela and Ecuador, committed to protect human rights advocates, and proposed legislation to help resettle the country's four million displaced.
The news is not all good, however. Despite a series of strategic losses in recent years -- from territory to key leadership -- the country's leftist guerrillas, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), still maintain about 8,000 armed troops and perhaps twice that number of supporters. The rebels killed some 30 police in the weeks after Santos's inauguration, clearly to make a point. Meanwhile, new illegal armed groups have sprung up to capture the drug trafficking market, their ranks filled with former paramilitary fighters. These gangs are largely responsible for the rising incidence of urban violence; homicide rates have gone up by over 100 percent in Colombia's second city, Medellín, last year.
If these new armed groups are not contained, Colombia stands to regress in its long fight to finally root out the drug trade -- and the militancy it fuels. In such a scenario, FARC could see a comeback, restarting its campaign of terror in the country's major cities. As has been the case so often in Colombia's recent history, it would be the civilian population who would suffer most from such a return to conflict.
Yet the opposite scenario is equally likely in the coming months. Santos has worked with his counterparts in Venezuela and Ecuador to increase border surveillance, putting pressure on illegal armed groups holed up there. Under such pressure, FARC may even welcome the chance to start talks with the government about disarmament and reintegration. Much rests in this government's hands.
The Smoking Gun - New York City Union Sanitation Workers Targeted Specific Neighborhoods and Why It's Important to You
"If you're giving the NYC Sanitation Union the benefit of the doubt, don't, after you read this article from the New York Post. This is the proof that prosecutors should use to fire and imprison union leaders. This conduct is inexcusable and must be punished.
You might wonder why I'm all over this story. Like I mentioned in my last article, this is how sick bed ridden Americans will be treated by unions when ObamaCare takes hold. Unions are Godless and they have no respect for life, as you all have seen this past week."
Nicholas Contompasis
By SALLY GOLDENBERG, JOHN DOYLE and JOSH MARGOLIN
There was a method to their madness.
The selfish Sanitation bosses who sabotaged the blizzard cleanup to fire a salvo at City Hall targeted politically connected and well-heeled neighborhoods in Queens and Brooklyn to get their twisted message across loud and clear, The Post has learned.
Their motives emerged yesterday as the city's Department of Investigation admitted it began a probe earlier this week after hearing rumblings of a coordinated job action.
Sources told The Post several neighborhoods were on the workers' hit list -- including Borough Park and Dyker Heights in Brooklyn and Middle Village in Queens -- because residents there have more money and their politicians carry big sticks.
"It was more targeted than people actually think," said a labor source. "Borough Park was specifically targeted [because of] . . . its ability to sort of gin up the p.r. machine."
The plan worked. Residents of those neighborhoods -- who, after three days, were still trying to dig out their cars -- are apoplectic.
"It's hurting people for greed," seethed Barry Coogan, 60, who lives on 64th Road in Middle Village. "Whoever made those decisions should lose their jobs.
"Don't hurt the neighborhood so you can't get medical help."
In Brooklyn, Democratic Assemblyman Dov Hikind called the clean-up "an absolute disaster."
"You have the most unbelievable anger I've ever seen," he said of his Borough Park constituents.
The revelation came as:
* A Queens baby was brain dead last night after poorly plowed roads hampered efforts to rescue him.
* Sources said Sanitation bosses issued verbal directives during the clean-up to give priority to streets near the homes of agency heads and other city bigwigs. "This happens all the time," one Sanit worker said. "They make sure the bosses and politicians get taken care of."
* Despite Mayor Bloomberg's insistence that all roads would be plowed at least once by yesterday morning, many were untouched, with snow still piled high. "We still have work to do," Bloomberg later said.
* Even as streets in the outer boroughs waited for a single plow to arrive, crews were clearing bicycle lanes on the Upper West Side. Bloomberg, however, insisted that was not happening.
Across the city, residents still confined to their homes by the storm's after-effects had plenty of blame both for Bloomberg and the rogue Sanitation workers.
Moshe Pollack, 55, of Borough Park, said, "It's disgusting. And we pay them overtime for this? People could have died."
John Delliliune, 42, of Penelope Avenue in Middle Village said he was "very disappointed" but "not surprised."
"I saw plows driving around with their shovels up," he fumed, adding, "I would like to see some disciplinary action to whoever made the call."
Hikind said his phone had been ringing off the hook.
"I just know that something went wrong, and God is not to blame," he said.
Hikind said he had been told months ago that Sanitation Department unions were planning some sort of slowdown or job action to protest budget cuts.
Chaya Schron, who lives in Midwood, Brooklyn, said she didn't hear any plows passing by her bedroom window Sunday night or Monday morning.
"I suspected a slowdown from the very beginning. It didn't make sense," she said.
On Monday, she saw a plow drive down her street with its blade up.
"When we asked why his plow was up, he said he had instructions not to plow side streets because it wastes gas," she said. "I was in disbelief."
Gov. Paterson yesterday morning called for a criminal investigation, and Bloomberg said such a job action would be an "outrage."
A DOI spokeswoman told The Post her agency has been probing the actions of plow drivers and supervisors all week, trying to determine "whether there was intentional misconduct in connection with snow removal. We are in the throes of that."
The slowdown was confirmed Wednesday by City Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Queens), who met with a group of guilt-stricken plow drivers and supervisors who dropped a dime on their colleagues.
Yesterday, Halloran provided The Post with two videos showing a plow driver in Queens driving his truck on a snow-covered road without plowing it.
The snitches said they were told to leave many roads unplowed and skip streets that were not on their routes.
The hostility stems from a series of labor and budget cuts that are culminating today with demotions -- and resulting salary declines -- for 100 supervisors.
The president of the sanitation supervisors union continued to deny any subversion.
And Harry Nespoli, president of the union that represents the Sanitation Department's rank and file, also denied a slowdown and welcomed all investigations. He admitted, though, that some plow drivers could be slowing down on their own.
"Look, individually, if you walk around, you're going to see a truck doing something [wrong]? Yeah," Nespoli said. "You're going to have people that are annoyed."
Not as annoyed as the people whose streets were left buried.
"It makes my blood boil. Those people should be reprimanded," said Marlon Singh, 33, who lives on 94th Street in Middle Village.
"They made us feel like we live in a Third World country."
You might wonder why I'm all over this story. Like I mentioned in my last article, this is how sick bed ridden Americans will be treated by unions when ObamaCare takes hold. Unions are Godless and they have no respect for life, as you all have seen this past week."
Nicholas Contompasis
By SALLY GOLDENBERG, JOHN DOYLE and JOSH MARGOLIN
There was a method to their madness.
The selfish Sanitation bosses who sabotaged the blizzard cleanup to fire a salvo at City Hall targeted politically connected and well-heeled neighborhoods in Queens and Brooklyn to get their twisted message across loud and clear, The Post has learned.
Their motives emerged yesterday as the city's Department of Investigation admitted it began a probe earlier this week after hearing rumblings of a coordinated job action.
Sources told The Post several neighborhoods were on the workers' hit list -- including Borough Park and Dyker Heights in Brooklyn and Middle Village in Queens -- because residents there have more money and their politicians carry big sticks.
"It was more targeted than people actually think," said a labor source. "Borough Park was specifically targeted [because of] . . . its ability to sort of gin up the p.r. machine."
The plan worked. Residents of those neighborhoods -- who, after three days, were still trying to dig out their cars -- are apoplectic.
"It's hurting people for greed," seethed Barry Coogan, 60, who lives on 64th Road in Middle Village. "Whoever made those decisions should lose their jobs.
"Don't hurt the neighborhood so you can't get medical help."
In Brooklyn, Democratic Assemblyman Dov Hikind called the clean-up "an absolute disaster."
"You have the most unbelievable anger I've ever seen," he said of his Borough Park constituents.
The revelation came as:
* A Queens baby was brain dead last night after poorly plowed roads hampered efforts to rescue him.
* Sources said Sanitation bosses issued verbal directives during the clean-up to give priority to streets near the homes of agency heads and other city bigwigs. "This happens all the time," one Sanit worker said. "They make sure the bosses and politicians get taken care of."
* Despite Mayor Bloomberg's insistence that all roads would be plowed at least once by yesterday morning, many were untouched, with snow still piled high. "We still have work to do," Bloomberg later said.
* Even as streets in the outer boroughs waited for a single plow to arrive, crews were clearing bicycle lanes on the Upper West Side. Bloomberg, however, insisted that was not happening.
Across the city, residents still confined to their homes by the storm's after-effects had plenty of blame both for Bloomberg and the rogue Sanitation workers.
Moshe Pollack, 55, of Borough Park, said, "It's disgusting. And we pay them overtime for this? People could have died."
John Delliliune, 42, of Penelope Avenue in Middle Village said he was "very disappointed" but "not surprised."
"I saw plows driving around with their shovels up," he fumed, adding, "I would like to see some disciplinary action to whoever made the call."
Hikind said his phone had been ringing off the hook.
"I just know that something went wrong, and God is not to blame," he said.
Hikind said he had been told months ago that Sanitation Department unions were planning some sort of slowdown or job action to protest budget cuts.
Chaya Schron, who lives in Midwood, Brooklyn, said she didn't hear any plows passing by her bedroom window Sunday night or Monday morning.
"I suspected a slowdown from the very beginning. It didn't make sense," she said.
On Monday, she saw a plow drive down her street with its blade up.
"When we asked why his plow was up, he said he had instructions not to plow side streets because it wastes gas," she said. "I was in disbelief."
Gov. Paterson yesterday morning called for a criminal investigation, and Bloomberg said such a job action would be an "outrage."
A DOI spokeswoman told The Post her agency has been probing the actions of plow drivers and supervisors all week, trying to determine "whether there was intentional misconduct in connection with snow removal. We are in the throes of that."
The slowdown was confirmed Wednesday by City Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Queens), who met with a group of guilt-stricken plow drivers and supervisors who dropped a dime on their colleagues.
Yesterday, Halloran provided The Post with two videos showing a plow driver in Queens driving his truck on a snow-covered road without plowing it.
The snitches said they were told to leave many roads unplowed and skip streets that were not on their routes.
The hostility stems from a series of labor and budget cuts that are culminating today with demotions -- and resulting salary declines -- for 100 supervisors.
The president of the sanitation supervisors union continued to deny any subversion.
And Harry Nespoli, president of the union that represents the Sanitation Department's rank and file, also denied a slowdown and welcomed all investigations. He admitted, though, that some plow drivers could be slowing down on their own.
"Look, individually, if you walk around, you're going to see a truck doing something [wrong]? Yeah," Nespoli said. "You're going to have people that are annoyed."
Not as annoyed as the people whose streets were left buried.
"It makes my blood boil. Those people should be reprimanded," said Marlon Singh, 33, who lives on 94th Street in Middle Village.
"They made us feel like we live in a Third World country."
Thursday, December 30, 2010
US Homeland Security Chief Arrives in Afghanistan and Guess What She's Doing?
"The hypocrisy that is Janet Napolitano. She goes to Afghanistan to help secure their borders while thousands pour across ours. Are we living in the Twilight Zone? This article provided by the Associated Press illustrates the lack of concern this administration has for our country."
Nicholas Contompasis
WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano (neh-pahl-ih-TAN'-oh) has arrived in Kabul, Afghanistan, to spend New Year's Eve with U.S. troops and the Homeland Security officers who have been working with the Afghan government to try to secure that country's porous borders from militants, as well as weapons and drug smugglers.
The department said in a statement that Napolitano will meet with top American and Afghan officials before traveling to the Persian Gulf state of Qatar (GUH'-tur), then to Israel and Belgium.
Napolitano is checking on progress to track and stop the flow of terrorist financing through the Gulf, and regional efforts to increase aviation security. Yemen's al-Qaida offshoot attempted to bring down two U.S.-bound cargo planes with explosives-packed printer cartridges in September.
Nicholas Contompasis
WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano (neh-pahl-ih-TAN'-oh) has arrived in Kabul, Afghanistan, to spend New Year's Eve with U.S. troops and the Homeland Security officers who have been working with the Afghan government to try to secure that country's porous borders from militants, as well as weapons and drug smugglers.
The department said in a statement that Napolitano will meet with top American and Afghan officials before traveling to the Persian Gulf state of Qatar (GUH'-tur), then to Israel and Belgium.
Napolitano is checking on progress to track and stop the flow of terrorist financing through the Gulf, and regional efforts to increase aviation security. Yemen's al-Qaida offshoot attempted to bring down two U.S.-bound cargo planes with explosives-packed printer cartridges in September.
Throw New York City Union Leaders in Jail for Blizzard Slowdown - People Died
By Meredith Jessup from the Blaze - Thank you
"New Yorkers should bring CRIMINAL charges against New York City unions for the intentional slowdown during the blizzard. It endangered the citizens of New York City. I'm sure someone died or was harmed during this slowdown because of it. How many will die with ObamaCare when unions get a bug up their asses and let you die because of a strike or slowdown? Stop this now or become a statistic of stupidity. "
Nicholas Contompasis
Frustrated New Yorkers have vented their complaints over the city’s response to the “Blizzard of 2010,” including a slow response time from snow plows and sanitation workers. Fingers are being pointed at Mayor Michael Bloomberg, including from Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowtiz who complained that two days after the storm, a number of streets in Brooklyn and Staten Island boroughs had not been plowed yet.
So who is to blame for the seemingly slow response to the “snowpocalypse”?
After the storm clouds parted, a rumor reportedly floated around the city that a number of sanitation workers were purposefully working slowly as a protest to city budget and staff cuts. Borough President Markowitz told Good Day New York that he had not heard the rumor, but noted that the department of sanitation had handled bigger snow storms in the past “with flying colors.”
“The truth of the matter here is that there is no question that something happened. Something happened between 1 and 6 am within the department of sanitation. They did not send out enough trucks. We have one of the finest commissioners, but I believe something happened. Put hundreds of tow trucks, thousands of able bodied men and women, get these people out and get these streets open. These streets have not been touched,” Markowitz said.
In addition, New York City Councilwoman and sanitation chairwoman Letitia James also told Good Day New York on Tuesday that the “deployment of snow plows was orchestrated in City Hall as opposed to the respective sanitation garages in each of the community boards… there was a change in the response,” she said.
"New Yorkers should bring CRIMINAL charges against New York City unions for the intentional slowdown during the blizzard. It endangered the citizens of New York City. I'm sure someone died or was harmed during this slowdown because of it. How many will die with ObamaCare when unions get a bug up their asses and let you die because of a strike or slowdown? Stop this now or become a statistic of stupidity. "
Nicholas Contompasis
Frustrated New Yorkers have vented their complaints over the city’s response to the “Blizzard of 2010,” including a slow response time from snow plows and sanitation workers. Fingers are being pointed at Mayor Michael Bloomberg, including from Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowtiz who complained that two days after the storm, a number of streets in Brooklyn and Staten Island boroughs had not been plowed yet.
So who is to blame for the seemingly slow response to the “snowpocalypse”?
After the storm clouds parted, a rumor reportedly floated around the city that a number of sanitation workers were purposefully working slowly as a protest to city budget and staff cuts. Borough President Markowitz told Good Day New York that he had not heard the rumor, but noted that the department of sanitation had handled bigger snow storms in the past “with flying colors.”
“The truth of the matter here is that there is no question that something happened. Something happened between 1 and 6 am within the department of sanitation. They did not send out enough trucks. We have one of the finest commissioners, but I believe something happened. Put hundreds of tow trucks, thousands of able bodied men and women, get these people out and get these streets open. These streets have not been touched,” Markowitz said.
In addition, New York City Councilwoman and sanitation chairwoman Letitia James also told Good Day New York on Tuesday that the “deployment of snow plows was orchestrated in City Hall as opposed to the respective sanitation garages in each of the community boards… there was a change in the response,” she said.
The Great American Deception
Author Paul Kengor - Thank you
A list of some of the biggest Soviet dupes in American history ranges from the celebrated acting duo of Bogie and Bacall to the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, author Paul Kengor tells Newsmax.TV.
Kengor details the left’s misguided love affair with all things communist in his new book, “Dupes: How America’s Adversaries Have Manipulated Progressives for a Century.”
The Grove City (Pa.) College professor uncovered the information by combing through the archives of the Comintern, or Communist International, an organization created to spread the communist doctrine worldwide.
“I found in there not just-jaw dropping statements, and contacts and correspondence between American communists and Soviet communists but the very deliberate, very cynical, very shrewd manipulation and targeting of American liberals and progressives to be used by the communists, with always very clear instructions: ‘Don’t let them know you’re communist,” Kengor said in the exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV.
“And again, and again, and again, especially, with, among others, academics, social justice, religious left, progressive pastors, they had amazing success manipulating, duping, hood winking, fooling, deceiving these people and through that these people became unwitting participants. They helped aid and abet these enemies of America.”
Kengor, the executive director of Grove City College’s Center for Vision and Values, also has written “God and Ronald Reagan” and “The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism.”
Among the greatest dupes, Kengor lists Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Kennedy, Hollywood writers, politicians, and educators. Kengor makes clear that those named were not traitors and were not guilty of treason. In fact, he writes, they didn’t realize they were being used.
Kengor’s book reprints a six-page document regarding Kennedy’s contact with Soviet leader Yuri Andropov in 1983 in which Kennedy blames worsening U.S.-Soviet relations on President Ronald Reagan’s belligerence and defense policies.
The left’s blind spot to communism is replicated today with liberals’ views on radical Islam, North Korea, and Iran, he said during the Newsmax interview.
“Here again you’ve got this fatal gullibility, this fatal naïveté where they just don’t have good judgment when it comes to who the real enemy is,” he said.
When asked who might pick up the Reagan mantle, Kengor praised two well-known Republicans: “I’ve always been very impressed with Newt Gingrich. He’s very articulate. I don’t know if he could win the presidency . . . I think Sarah Palin has the courage that the vast majority of the people in our party lack. And the fact that the left hates her so much shows how right she often is.”
Although he said he could not predict the eventual presidential nominee, he said the Republican Party needs to unite because its disunity is giving President Barack Obama an advantage.
A list of some of the biggest Soviet dupes in American history ranges from the celebrated acting duo of Bogie and Bacall to the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, author Paul Kengor tells Newsmax.TV.
Kengor details the left’s misguided love affair with all things communist in his new book, “Dupes: How America’s Adversaries Have Manipulated Progressives for a Century.”
The Grove City (Pa.) College professor uncovered the information by combing through the archives of the Comintern, or Communist International, an organization created to spread the communist doctrine worldwide.
“I found in there not just-jaw dropping statements, and contacts and correspondence between American communists and Soviet communists but the very deliberate, very cynical, very shrewd manipulation and targeting of American liberals and progressives to be used by the communists, with always very clear instructions: ‘Don’t let them know you’re communist,” Kengor said in the exclusive interview with Newsmax.TV.
“And again, and again, and again, especially, with, among others, academics, social justice, religious left, progressive pastors, they had amazing success manipulating, duping, hood winking, fooling, deceiving these people and through that these people became unwitting participants. They helped aid and abet these enemies of America.”
Kengor, the executive director of Grove City College’s Center for Vision and Values, also has written “God and Ronald Reagan” and “The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism.”
Among the greatest dupes, Kengor lists Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Kennedy, Hollywood writers, politicians, and educators. Kengor makes clear that those named were not traitors and were not guilty of treason. In fact, he writes, they didn’t realize they were being used.
Kengor’s book reprints a six-page document regarding Kennedy’s contact with Soviet leader Yuri Andropov in 1983 in which Kennedy blames worsening U.S.-Soviet relations on President Ronald Reagan’s belligerence and defense policies.
The left’s blind spot to communism is replicated today with liberals’ views on radical Islam, North Korea, and Iran, he said during the Newsmax interview.
“Here again you’ve got this fatal gullibility, this fatal naïveté where they just don’t have good judgment when it comes to who the real enemy is,” he said.
When asked who might pick up the Reagan mantle, Kengor praised two well-known Republicans: “I’ve always been very impressed with Newt Gingrich. He’s very articulate. I don’t know if he could win the presidency . . . I think Sarah Palin has the courage that the vast majority of the people in our party lack. And the fact that the left hates her so much shows how right she often is.”
Although he said he could not predict the eventual presidential nominee, he said the Republican Party needs to unite because its disunity is giving President Barack Obama an advantage.
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
The Crumbling of California is Beginning - What Now Governor-Elect Brown, Beg?
Borrowed from The Wall Steet Journal
By Bobby White
HALF MOON BAY—This coastal city next month will begin an aggressive campaign to warn residents of severe budget cuts that lie ahead, as the cash-strapped town tries to avert insolvency.
Laura Snideman, appointed earlier this month as Half Moon Bay's city manager, says she and the five-member city council and top managers will meet in the next few weeks with residents to alert them about impending changes, such as potentially outsourcing the town's 15-person police department to an outside agency.
New city manager Laura Snideman, above, says the town faces painful choices.
The city has planned as many as a dozen meetings and will have a town hall gathering at the end of January, says Ms. Snideman. She adds that Half Moon Bay hasn't embarked on such an aggressive public outreach before and plans to walk residents through the city budget to show where cuts need to come from.
"The choices are no longer hard, they're painful," says Ms. Snideman, formerly an economic development manager in the city of San Mateo. She adds that she hopes by making the case for cuts, some residents will offer ideas or even volunteer to save some services and programs.
The campaign is the latest development in Half Moon Bay's long and winding financial descent, which has made it a poster child of the problems plaguing Bay Area municipalities. While many towns face budget gaps, Half Moon Bay is in especially tough straits. The city already has outsourced some public-works services, including trash, building inspection and health-code enforcement to independent contractors and private companies.
The city of 13,000 is essentially "turning into a functionally unincorporated locale," says Christopher Thornberg, a principal at consultancy Beacon Economics in San Rafael. "They're pretty much a city in name only, having turned over or outsourced most of their essential services."
A Message to American Women - Don't Date Muslims - Duh!!!!!!!!
Borrowed from CNN - Thank you
Jerusalem (CNN) -- A letter from about 30 prominent rabbis' wives was causing a stir in Israel Wednesday because it urges Israeli girls not to date Arabs.
The open letter comes three weeks after the uproar caused by another letter, which was written by 50 state-appointed rabbis and told Jews not to rent or sell property to non-Jews.
The latest missive, which was published by some websites and news outlets, says Arab men act polite around Jewish girls and "act as if they really care about you," but it says that's a ruse. The men, it says, even change their Arab names to Hebrew forms like Yossi and Ami in order to get close to the girls.
"This behavior is temporary," the letter says. "As soon as you are in their hands, in their villages under their control, everything becomes different. You can ask dozens of girls who have been there. They will tell you it is all an act.
"As soon as you arrive at the village, your life will never be the same. The attention will be replaced with curses, beatings, and humiliations. Even if you want to leave the village it will be much harder. They won't let you, they will chase you, they won't let you come back."
It urges Jewish girls not to go out with non-Jews or work in places that employ non-Jews.
"Your grandmothers never dreamt that their descendants would do something that will take the next generations of her family out of the Jewish people," it says.
The letter was initiated by the head of Lehava, an extreme right-wing group that says it aims to prevent the "assimilation of the Jewish people" and works at "saving Jewish girls from Arab villages."
"It's known that girls who go out with Arabs are beaten, these girls are in danger. ... There is a violent social trend and everyone ignores it," said the head of the group, Anat Gopstein, in a radio interview Wednesday morning.
Among the rabbis' wives who signed the letter is Nitzchia Yossef, the daughter-in-law of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the spiritual leader of the ultra-orthodox Shas political party. Esther Lior, the wife of extreme right-wing Rabbi Dov Lior, was another signatory.
Rabbi Yosef was one of the authors of the letter written earlier this month that urged Jews not to sell or rent property to non-Jews. It prompted widespread condemnation from politicians, human rights groups, and leading rabbis in both Israel and the United States.
The letter, which was distributed to synagogues and published in some religious newspapers, had warned that those who defied the religious ruling should be ostracized. It said if one apartment is taken by a non-Jew, it devalues all the neighbors' apartments.
More than 800 rabbis from around the world signed a petition against the letter, saying "statements like these do great damage to our efforts to encourage people to love and support Israel."
The petition said "the attempt to root discriminatory policies based on religion or ethnicity in Torah is a painful distortion of our tradition. Am Yisrael (the Jewish people) knows the sting of discrimination, and we still bear the scars of hatred. When those who represent the official rabbinic leadership of the state of Israel express such positions, we are distressed by this ... desecration of God's name."
Nearly 1.5 million Arab residents live inside Israel, making up 23% of the population.
A poll published Tuesday by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem showed that 48% of Israelis oppose the call to avoid renting or selling property to Arabs.
Jerusalem (CNN) -- A letter from about 30 prominent rabbis' wives was causing a stir in Israel Wednesday because it urges Israeli girls not to date Arabs.
The open letter comes three weeks after the uproar caused by another letter, which was written by 50 state-appointed rabbis and told Jews not to rent or sell property to non-Jews.
The latest missive, which was published by some websites and news outlets, says Arab men act polite around Jewish girls and "act as if they really care about you," but it says that's a ruse. The men, it says, even change their Arab names to Hebrew forms like Yossi and Ami in order to get close to the girls.
"This behavior is temporary," the letter says. "As soon as you are in their hands, in their villages under their control, everything becomes different. You can ask dozens of girls who have been there. They will tell you it is all an act.
"As soon as you arrive at the village, your life will never be the same. The attention will be replaced with curses, beatings, and humiliations. Even if you want to leave the village it will be much harder. They won't let you, they will chase you, they won't let you come back."
It urges Jewish girls not to go out with non-Jews or work in places that employ non-Jews.
"Your grandmothers never dreamt that their descendants would do something that will take the next generations of her family out of the Jewish people," it says.
The letter was initiated by the head of Lehava, an extreme right-wing group that says it aims to prevent the "assimilation of the Jewish people" and works at "saving Jewish girls from Arab villages."
"It's known that girls who go out with Arabs are beaten, these girls are in danger. ... There is a violent social trend and everyone ignores it," said the head of the group, Anat Gopstein, in a radio interview Wednesday morning.
Among the rabbis' wives who signed the letter is Nitzchia Yossef, the daughter-in-law of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the spiritual leader of the ultra-orthodox Shas political party. Esther Lior, the wife of extreme right-wing Rabbi Dov Lior, was another signatory.
Rabbi Yosef was one of the authors of the letter written earlier this month that urged Jews not to sell or rent property to non-Jews. It prompted widespread condemnation from politicians, human rights groups, and leading rabbis in both Israel and the United States.
The letter, which was distributed to synagogues and published in some religious newspapers, had warned that those who defied the religious ruling should be ostracized. It said if one apartment is taken by a non-Jew, it devalues all the neighbors' apartments.
More than 800 rabbis from around the world signed a petition against the letter, saying "statements like these do great damage to our efforts to encourage people to love and support Israel."
The petition said "the attempt to root discriminatory policies based on religion or ethnicity in Torah is a painful distortion of our tradition. Am Yisrael (the Jewish people) knows the sting of discrimination, and we still bear the scars of hatred. When those who represent the official rabbinic leadership of the state of Israel express such positions, we are distressed by this ... desecration of God's name."
Nearly 1.5 million Arab residents live inside Israel, making up 23% of the population.
A poll published Tuesday by the Hebrew University in Jerusalem showed that 48% of Israelis oppose the call to avoid renting or selling property to Arabs.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
ObamaCare: The Death Panels Begin - This Woman Wants You Dead
The Department of Health and Human Services announced Tuesday that, starting next year, health insurance companies must receive permission from the Obama administration before they can raise rates higher than 10%. As we warned before Obamacare even became law, this is a form of price control, a government intervention that has a long and well established history of failure.
Way back in 1993, Heritage Foundation scholar Heritage’s Ed Haislmaier was detailing the shortcomings of price controls in health care:
Price controls would not work in health care because they attack the symptoms of runaway costs, not the cause. Medical costs today are soaring because consumers are largely insulated from them…and because the tax system discourages consumers from seeking good value for money in health care.
Most policy makers who favor health care price controls view them as a way to curb rapid medical inflation. But most of the blame for that same inflation can be traced directly to previous government health care policies that they support or maintain. Health care price controls also are attractive to Members of Congress because they provide a benefit (cheaper medical care) to a favored constituency (health care consumers) at the expense of less favored constituencies (doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and insurance companies). This is why some Members of Congress are so quick to blame the health care industry for escalating medical costs, when in fact it is largely government laws, regulations, and policies that are responsible.
Video - Christians of the World - You Better Listen Up - Austria Stands Up Against Islam
This is in German but has sub-titles. It starts our slow but this guy gets rolling as he lashes out at the Turkish government and the attacks on Christians and priests in Turkey. Imagine this happening in our congress. It may come to that some day.
Pilot That Exposed Security Problems on YouTube Goes Public - Is Treated Like a Criminal
By George Warren - Thank you
COLFAX, CA - WORLD EXCLUSIVE: The airline pilot who lost his federally-issued gun and badge for posting video on YouTube critical of airport security has chosen to go public with his identity.
"My name is Chris Liu and I'm an airline pilot," Liu said during an exclusive interview Monday with News10 at his home in Colfax.
Liu's cell phone video tour of security at San Francisco International Airport led to a team of six federal agents and sheriff's deputies coming to his home on Dec. 2 to take his handgun and Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO) credentials.
Liu's state-issued permit to carry a concealed weapon was also suspended by the Placer County sheriff.
Liu contacted News10 last Tuesday to share his story, but insisted that neither he nor his airline be identified for fear of retaliation.
Liu decided to reveal his identity Monday because he wants to become actively involved in changing what he believes is a major flaw in airport security.
"I just found a disparity between what happens upstairs and what happens downstairs," Liu explained.
As Liu pointed out in the video, pilots and flight crew are subjected to real-time TSA security screening while ground crew are not. "Upstairs they're going through the metal detectors and the X-ray machines, and downstairs they're swiping a card," he said.
News10 established a relationship with the Liu family last July after their rental home in Sacramento's Oak Park was destroyed by an arsonist. Four firefighters were injured when the house exploded.
Although Liu is no longer an FFDO, his flight status with his airline has not changed. Liu's wife, Sandra, said she worries about repercussions from the publicity, but supported her husband's decision to go public.
"I think my husband was very courageous. He did what he believed what right," Sandra said. "It's not all about us. It's about the safety of every American."
COLFAX, CA - WORLD EXCLUSIVE: The airline pilot who lost his federally-issued gun and badge for posting video on YouTube critical of airport security has chosen to go public with his identity.
"My name is Chris Liu and I'm an airline pilot," Liu said during an exclusive interview Monday with News10 at his home in Colfax.
Liu's cell phone video tour of security at San Francisco International Airport led to a team of six federal agents and sheriff's deputies coming to his home on Dec. 2 to take his handgun and Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO) credentials.
Liu's state-issued permit to carry a concealed weapon was also suspended by the Placer County sheriff.
Liu contacted News10 last Tuesday to share his story, but insisted that neither he nor his airline be identified for fear of retaliation.
Liu decided to reveal his identity Monday because he wants to become actively involved in changing what he believes is a major flaw in airport security.
"I just found a disparity between what happens upstairs and what happens downstairs," Liu explained.
As Liu pointed out in the video, pilots and flight crew are subjected to real-time TSA security screening while ground crew are not. "Upstairs they're going through the metal detectors and the X-ray machines, and downstairs they're swiping a card," he said.
News10 established a relationship with the Liu family last July after their rental home in Sacramento's Oak Park was destroyed by an arsonist. Four firefighters were injured when the house exploded.
Although Liu is no longer an FFDO, his flight status with his airline has not changed. Liu's wife, Sandra, said she worries about repercussions from the publicity, but supported her husband's decision to go public.
"I think my husband was very courageous. He did what he believed what right," Sandra said. "It's not all about us. It's about the safety of every American."
Monday, December 27, 2010
AOL News - 2010 the Year of the Tea Party
Borrowed from AOL News - Thank You
WASHINGTON -- This was the year of the tea party.
What began as a rant on cable TV morphed into a populist movement and political juggernaut in 2010 as conservatives turned against the status quo. Leaning Republican but willing to attack the party establishment, the burgeoning crusade pummeled the policies and persona of President Barack Obama and decisively ended the Democratic monopoly in Congress.
"The tea party from beginning to end really defined this election cycle," said Kate Zernike, a New York Times reporter who wrote "Boiling Mad: Inside Tea Party America."
"The mood that they captured was frustration and fear about the economy and a sense that government was doing too much and we didn't know what the government was doing so they must be up to no good."
The tea party became a political juggernaut as sympathizers showed up at rallies, called in to talk radio and, most importantly, turned out at campaign events. Here, tea party activists demonstrate against government spending on Sept. 12 in Washington.
The tea party is the latest incarnation of American populism, yet the so-called "lamestream media," as the movement's icon, Sarah Palin, calls it, initially dismissed the movement. After all, pundits asked, how serious could folks waving "Don't tread on me" flags with tea bags hanging from their tricorne hats be?
Very, it turned out.
Buoyed by Glenn Beck and his amen corner at Fox News, tea party sympathizers showed up at rallies, called in to talk radio and, most importantly, turned out at campaign events.
WASHINGTON -- This was the year of the tea party.
What began as a rant on cable TV morphed into a populist movement and political juggernaut in 2010 as conservatives turned against the status quo. Leaning Republican but willing to attack the party establishment, the burgeoning crusade pummeled the policies and persona of President Barack Obama and decisively ended the Democratic monopoly in Congress.
"The tea party from beginning to end really defined this election cycle," said Kate Zernike, a New York Times reporter who wrote "Boiling Mad: Inside Tea Party America."
"The mood that they captured was frustration and fear about the economy and a sense that government was doing too much and we didn't know what the government was doing so they must be up to no good."
The tea party became a political juggernaut as sympathizers showed up at rallies, called in to talk radio and, most importantly, turned out at campaign events. Here, tea party activists demonstrate against government spending on Sept. 12 in Washington.
The tea party is the latest incarnation of American populism, yet the so-called "lamestream media," as the movement's icon, Sarah Palin, calls it, initially dismissed the movement. After all, pundits asked, how serious could folks waving "Don't tread on me" flags with tea bags hanging from their tricorne hats be?
Very, it turned out.
Buoyed by Glenn Beck and his amen corner at Fox News, tea party sympathizers showed up at rallies, called in to talk radio and, most importantly, turned out at campaign events.
Ok Obama - Tell Us How You're Getting Re-Elected With $5 Gas and Energy Shortages
Borrowed from Fox News - Thank You
The former president of Shell oil is predicting that the United States will face 1970s-style energy shortages and rationing by the end of the decade, accusing the federal government of turning its back on the country's domestic oil supply.
The dire prediction comes as energy analysts toss out a string of frightening predictions about the rising price of oil in the short term. Oil has topped $90 a barrel, and JP Morgan Chase & Co. earlier this month predicted oil could hit $120 a barrel by the end of 2012. At the same time, the national average gasoline price is about $3 a gallon for the holiday season
But former Shell executive John Hofmeister offered a more aggressive estimate, saying Americans could be paying $5 a gallon in two years. And he predicted that sometime between 2018 and 2020, supply and demand will become so out of balance that gas stations in several regions of the country will simply start to run out.
"I think it's going to be a cumulative problem that won't happen suddenly," Hofmeister, who now heads Citizens for Affordable Energy, told FoxNews.com. He predicted the problem would start with "stockouts" at select gas stations during the summer and during bad weather and then spread. He said those states farthest from refineries would get hit the worst and that in order to maintain some consistency, local and state governments might resort to the kind of rationing they employed in the early '70s -- when drivers with even-numbered license plates would buy gas on even days, and vice-versa.
READ MORE HERE http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/12/27/oil-exec-predicts-gallon-gas-energy-shortages-decades-end/
The former president of Shell oil is predicting that the United States will face 1970s-style energy shortages and rationing by the end of the decade, accusing the federal government of turning its back on the country's domestic oil supply.
The dire prediction comes as energy analysts toss out a string of frightening predictions about the rising price of oil in the short term. Oil has topped $90 a barrel, and JP Morgan Chase & Co. earlier this month predicted oil could hit $120 a barrel by the end of 2012. At the same time, the national average gasoline price is about $3 a gallon for the holiday season
But former Shell executive John Hofmeister offered a more aggressive estimate, saying Americans could be paying $5 a gallon in two years. And he predicted that sometime between 2018 and 2020, supply and demand will become so out of balance that gas stations in several regions of the country will simply start to run out.
"I think it's going to be a cumulative problem that won't happen suddenly," Hofmeister, who now heads Citizens for Affordable Energy, told FoxNews.com. He predicted the problem would start with "stockouts" at select gas stations during the summer and during bad weather and then spread. He said those states farthest from refineries would get hit the worst and that in order to maintain some consistency, local and state governments might resort to the kind of rationing they employed in the early '70s -- when drivers with even-numbered license plates would buy gas on even days, and vice-versa.
READ MORE HERE http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/12/27/oil-exec-predicts-gallon-gas-energy-shortages-decades-end/
This is How it Starts - Chinese Stocks Leaving U.S. Exchanges for Greener Pastures
Borrowed from The Wall Street Journal
Hong Kong’s stock exchange could be looking forward to another revenue stream in 2011 - Chinese companies delisting from other exchanges.
As Deal Journal reports, small Chinese companies listed in the U.S. that feel that they are undervalued there are considering either going private, or listing in another market where they can get better valuations, such as Hong Kong, as exchanges on the mainland could be out of bounds altogether. According to Deal Journal:
If the Chinese companies leave the U.S. and re-list, it is likely to be Hong Kong that benefits most. Foreign companies still aren’t allowed to list on China’s domestic exchanges. That category includes overseas-listed Chinese firms that restructured into offshore entities, even though their operations and assets are predominantly in mainland China.
Continue reading here
http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2010/12/27/chinas-companies-dump-us-stock-listings/
Hong Kong’s stock exchange could be looking forward to another revenue stream in 2011 - Chinese companies delisting from other exchanges.
As Deal Journal reports, small Chinese companies listed in the U.S. that feel that they are undervalued there are considering either going private, or listing in another market where they can get better valuations, such as Hong Kong, as exchanges on the mainland could be out of bounds altogether. According to Deal Journal:
If the Chinese companies leave the U.S. and re-list, it is likely to be Hong Kong that benefits most. Foreign companies still aren’t allowed to list on China’s domestic exchanges. That category includes overseas-listed Chinese firms that restructured into offshore entities, even though their operations and assets are predominantly in mainland China.
Continue reading here
http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2010/12/27/chinas-companies-dump-us-stock-listings/
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Iraq is Now Safer Than Mexico - The Bush Dream Just Could Be Happening
Borrowed from the Washington Post - Thank you
At the beginning of this year, Iraq's fragile new political order faced a momentous challenge. The country needed to hold credible democratic elections at a time when its army was still battling al-Qaeda and other domestic insurgents. The winners had to form a government in spite of deep rifts among leaders and sects, who just three years ago were fighting a civil war. And all this had to happen even as the United States reduced its troops from 150,000 to 50,000 and ended combat operations for those who remained.
The result was a long, painful, contentious, confusing and sometimes bloody year. But when Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki presented his new government to parliament on Tuesday, Iraq could fairly be said to have passed a major test. It is not yet the peaceful Arab democracy and force for good in the Middle East that President George W. Bush imagined when he decided on invasion eight years ago. But in the past 12 months it has taken some big steps in the right direction.
First was the election, which was judged free and fair - a rare event in the Middle East and a big contrast with recent balloting in Iran, Egypt and Afghanistan. The result was a tricky deadlock, in which no party held a majority in parliament and the winner of the most votes, a Sunni coalition, had no realistic chance to form a government. Iraq's neighbors, whose rulers have little understanding or respect for democratic processes, lined up behind competing favorites even as al-Qaeda tried to trigger another civil war.
Somehow, the country's oft-maligned leaders worked their way through all this, with help from the Obama administration. The coalition Mr. Maliki presented Tuesday was led by Shiite parties but handed major positions to Sunnis and Kurds. Sunnis serve or will be named as deputy prime minister, defense minister and speaker of parliament. Measures to integrate former Sunni militiamen into the security forces or other government jobs have finally been implemented. Fears that Mr. Maliki will establish a dictatorship look, at least for now, to be exaggerated.
Violence, meanwhile, has dwindled to the lowest level Iraq probably has known in decades. In September 2006 the Web site iCasualties. org recorded more than 3,300 civilian deaths from violence; this month so far it has counted 62, making Iraq a far safer country than Mexico. The economy is nearing a tipping point: Foreign oil companies are refurbishing the fields of southern Iraq, and the city of Basra, a militia-ruled jungle four years ago, is beginning to boom.
It's still too early to draw conclusions about Iraq, though many opponents of the war did so long ago. Mr. Maliki's government could easily go wrong; the coming year, which could end with the withdrawal of all remaining U.S. troops, will likely be just as challenging as this one. But the country's political class has repeatedly chosen democracy over dictatorship and accommodation over violence. If that keeps up, a rough version of Mr. Bush's dream may yet come true.
At the beginning of this year, Iraq's fragile new political order faced a momentous challenge. The country needed to hold credible democratic elections at a time when its army was still battling al-Qaeda and other domestic insurgents. The winners had to form a government in spite of deep rifts among leaders and sects, who just three years ago were fighting a civil war. And all this had to happen even as the United States reduced its troops from 150,000 to 50,000 and ended combat operations for those who remained.
The result was a long, painful, contentious, confusing and sometimes bloody year. But when Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki presented his new government to parliament on Tuesday, Iraq could fairly be said to have passed a major test. It is not yet the peaceful Arab democracy and force for good in the Middle East that President George W. Bush imagined when he decided on invasion eight years ago. But in the past 12 months it has taken some big steps in the right direction.
First was the election, which was judged free and fair - a rare event in the Middle East and a big contrast with recent balloting in Iran, Egypt and Afghanistan. The result was a tricky deadlock, in which no party held a majority in parliament and the winner of the most votes, a Sunni coalition, had no realistic chance to form a government. Iraq's neighbors, whose rulers have little understanding or respect for democratic processes, lined up behind competing favorites even as al-Qaeda tried to trigger another civil war.
Somehow, the country's oft-maligned leaders worked their way through all this, with help from the Obama administration. The coalition Mr. Maliki presented Tuesday was led by Shiite parties but handed major positions to Sunnis and Kurds. Sunnis serve or will be named as deputy prime minister, defense minister and speaker of parliament. Measures to integrate former Sunni militiamen into the security forces or other government jobs have finally been implemented. Fears that Mr. Maliki will establish a dictatorship look, at least for now, to be exaggerated.
Violence, meanwhile, has dwindled to the lowest level Iraq probably has known in decades. In September 2006 the Web site iCasualties. org recorded more than 3,300 civilian deaths from violence; this month so far it has counted 62, making Iraq a far safer country than Mexico. The economy is nearing a tipping point: Foreign oil companies are refurbishing the fields of southern Iraq, and the city of Basra, a militia-ruled jungle four years ago, is beginning to boom.
It's still too early to draw conclusions about Iraq, though many opponents of the war did so long ago. Mr. Maliki's government could easily go wrong; the coming year, which could end with the withdrawal of all remaining U.S. troops, will likely be just as challenging as this one. But the country's political class has repeatedly chosen democracy over dictatorship and accommodation over violence. If that keeps up, a rough version of Mr. Bush's dream may yet come true.
Friday, December 24, 2010
The Great American Death Wish - START Treaty
According to available data on standing armies in the world I came across some interesting facts on Wikipedia that originated from reliable sources. What I found just could shatter some conceptions you may have on just how safe you really are in this cruel and hostile world. All numbers that I’ve included are rounded and are a total of ready military and reserves.
Did you know that England has a standing army of 375,000 (2,000,000 Muslims live in England) and Vietnam has 5,500,000? The United States has a standing army of 2,500,000.
In Asia North Korea has 9,500,000 and South Korea has 8,700,000. Japan has 280,000. Red China has 3,500,000.
To our South, Brazil has 1,700,000 and Venezuela has 123,000 with a standing army of 500,000 in Columbia. Cuba has 1,200,000 and Mexico has 350,000.
In the Middle East Iran has 2,800,000 and Iraq has 570,000 with Israel having 750,000. Syria has 750,000 and Lebanon has 312,000. Saudi Arabia and the United Emirates combined have 300,000. Pakistan has 1,400,000 and India has 4,800,000. Again Red China has 3,500,000 and Taiwan has 2,000,000.
Per Wikipedia, give or take a few hundred thousand troops, the worlds standing armies plus reserves totals 57,000,000 of which U.S. troops represent less than one half of one percent (2,500,000). With the new agreed upon START Treaty we will have to reduce our nuclear capacity to a level that would only protect our country, and not our allies. With the ramp up of our enemy's arsenals to nuclear capacity, it leaves our allies that once looked to us for protection as new targets for the tyrants of the world.
Russia our new START Treaty partner again has 21,500,000 troops. Again the United States has 2,500,000 troops and according to START only a fraction of our once superior nuclear arsenal. Nice move United States and what about those other guys? Does our country have a death wish or have we forgotten what its like to be dominated by another? Maybe that's the plan, to be dominated by another like China or a coalition of countries that could overpower us at any given moment? Whatever the plan is, I pray our leaders know what they're doing. But, as we've found out recently they don't know what the hell they're doing, do they?
Feel safer now?????????
Thursday, December 23, 2010
If You Think Things Are Getting Better Take a Look At These Charts – Lowest Absolute New Home Sales Volume Ever – What Next?
By Mark Hanson
Borrowed from Hanson Advisors - Thank you
The month of November broke a record on the new home sales front.
It was not only the lowest in terms of absolute sales volume for any November, but for any month since the data have been tracked in 1963.
Because of this I will concede to the bulls...yes, we are closer to the bottom (zero) than ever before.
Outside of the South, new home sales are consolidating to the point at which they run the risk of a catastrophic gravitational collapse.
New home sales as a percentage of existing sales are not worth analyzing.
North Korea Threatens ‘Holy War’ Amid Tension
POCHEON, South Korea (AP) — North and South Korea beat the drums of war Thursday, with each threatening the other with immediate retaliation if attacked.
Seoul has staged days of military drills in a show of force meant to deter North Korea, including live-fire exercises earlier this week on a front-line island shelled by the North last month. Angered by the exercises, North Korea threatened Thursday it would launch a "sacred" nuclear war if Seoul hit it and warned that even the smallest intrusion on its territory would bring a devastating response.
The two sides are still technically at war because their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce not a peace treaty, and a U.S. governor who recently made an unofficial diplomatic mission to the North has said the situation on the peninsula is a "tinderbox" and the worst he had ever seen it.
Still, the latest rhetoric seemed likely to be just that, words aimed at stirring pride at home and keeping the rival at bay.
Read more here in The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/12/22/world/asia/AP-AS-Koreas-Clash.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss
Iran Just Shipped Missiles to Venezuela
Borrowed from Pajamas Media – Thank you
Recent revelations about hostile incursions into South America have raised alarm in those who care about U.S. interests and security, particularly in America’s hemisphere. They have also raised questions about whether the Monroe Doctrine — America will tolerate no hostile incursions in her own hemisphere — is dead. These revelations have been, for the most part, ignored by those who care little for American sovereignty and security, such as the MSM and apparently the Obama administration.
Among the two most alarming revelations is the already completed sale and delivery, to Venezuela by Russia, of nearly 2,000 advanced, shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles capable of hitting aircraft as high as 19,000 feet. Equally and perhaps more alarming is an October agreement between Iran and Venezuela. The agreement establishes a joint ground-to-ground missile base on Venezuelan soil and calls for the sharing of missile technology and the training of technicians and officers. In addition, Venezuela may use the missiles as it chooses for “national needs” and in case of “emergency.” Several types of missiles will be deployed, giving Venezuela the ability to strike targets throughout South and Central America and throughout the U.S.
Read more here http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/iran-shipped-missiles-to-venezuela/
Jews of America and Concerned Americans – Do You Care About Israel? Maybe it’s Time to Do Something – Don’t You Think?
Alert and Background on the Anti-Israel Bus and Billboard Ad Campaign in Seattle, Houston, Albuquerque and San Francisco
The Facts:
As many of you may already have heard, a group calling itself Stop30Billion has purchased the following billboard and bus banner ads that demonize Israel. The bus ads will run on buses that serve downtown Seattle for at least the next four weeks starting on December 27. This is part of a growing campaign that has placed similar ads on buses and billboards in Houston, Albuquerque and San Francisco.
The Problem:
These ads, as you can see here, for the first time try to spread broadly into our community a message of hate against Israel.
In our culture of sound-bite news, what people will remember from this bus and billboard ad campaign will be the lead line, "Israeli War Crimes."
This is a well-funded effort to have our community reject Israel, an effort to have our friends and neighbors, co-workers and children's schoolmates see Israel as a pariah state, a country acting outside of acceptable norms.
The impression it leaves is false and wrong, destructive and divisive.
Jewish Community Reaction:
Friday, after learning that the press had contacted the Federation of Greater Seattle and the ADL to ask about the Stop30Billion advertising campaign, we coordinated a conference call that included the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, the ADL and AIPAC. This is part of the effort to battle the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (the "BDS Movement") that has been vilifying Israel throughout our region.
Federation put out a statement (see the link below) and the ADL was interviewed by KING 5 News.
What Will StandWithUs Northwest Be Doing?
StandWithUs Northwest will be running an advertising campaign on buses and billboards to counter these anti-Israel ads. We have responded to these types of anti-Israel ad campaigns elsewhere by running our own advertising in support of Israel, emphasizing Israel's desire for peace.
In the next few days, we will send out to you the likely ad copy and we very much want community input, suggestions and feedback on our proposed ads. Please email us at Northwest@StandWithUs.com with your ideas and comments.
In addition, StandWithUs Northwest will ask the other Jewish organizations to join with us in requesting a direct meeting with King County and Seattle officials to express how divisive and destructive this ad campaign by Stop30Billion is and will be. There is no reason the buses and billboard companies need to accept this advertising. There is no reason to allow the Stop30Billion campaign to inject the Mideast conflict into our community.
The First Amendment guarantees that this anti-Israel group can express its message, but the First Amendment does not require that any particular medium (the buses and billboard companies) carry such hateful and divisive ads.
Among the many suggestions we have already received are a bus boycott and picketing the buses and the billboard company.
If you have other suggestions, ideas or contacts, please let us know by emailing us at Northwest@StandWithUs.com.
What You Can Do Now
• Post a comment for Metro by clicking here.
• Call Metro Customer Assistance Office at 206-553-3060 206-553-3060 to register your disapproval.
• Vote against Metro ads on the KING 5 website. Click here to vote.
Thank you,
Rob Jacobs
Regional Director
StandWithUs Northwest
RobJacobs@StandWithUs.com
As many of you may already have heard, a group calling itself Stop30Billion has purchased the following billboard and bus banner ads that demonize Israel. The bus ads will run on buses that serve downtown Seattle for at least the next four weeks starting on December 27. This is part of a growing campaign that has placed similar ads on buses and billboards in Houston, Albuquerque and San Francisco.
The Problem:
These ads, as you can see here, for the first time try to spread broadly into our community a message of hate against Israel.
In our culture of sound-bite news, what people will remember from this bus and billboard ad campaign will be the lead line, "Israeli War Crimes."
This is a well-funded effort to have our community reject Israel, an effort to have our friends and neighbors, co-workers and children's schoolmates see Israel as a pariah state, a country acting outside of acceptable norms.
The impression it leaves is false and wrong, destructive and divisive.
Jewish Community Reaction:
Friday, after learning that the press had contacted the Federation of Greater Seattle and the ADL to ask about the Stop30Billion advertising campaign, we coordinated a conference call that included the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, the ADL and AIPAC. This is part of the effort to battle the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (the "BDS Movement") that has been vilifying Israel throughout our region.
Federation put out a statement (see the link below) and the ADL was interviewed by KING 5 News.
StandWithUs Northwest will be running an advertising campaign on buses and billboards to counter these anti-Israel ads. We have responded to these types of anti-Israel ad campaigns elsewhere by running our own advertising in support of Israel, emphasizing Israel's desire for peace.
In the next few days, we will send out to you the likely ad copy and we very much want community input, suggestions and feedback on our proposed ads. Please email us at Northwest@StandWithUs.com with your ideas and comments.
In addition, StandWithUs Northwest will ask the other Jewish organizations to join with us in requesting a direct meeting with King County and Seattle officials to express how divisive and destructive this ad campaign by Stop30Billion is and will be. There is no reason the buses and billboard companies need to accept this advertising. There is no reason to allow the Stop30Billion campaign to inject the Mideast conflict into our community.
The First Amendment guarantees that this anti-Israel group can express its message, but the First Amendment does not require that any particular medium (the buses and billboard companies) carry such hateful and divisive ads.
Among the many suggestions we have already received are a bus boycott and picketing the buses and the billboard company.
If you have other suggestions, ideas or contacts, please let us know by emailing us at Northwest@StandWithUs.com.
What You Can Do Now
• Post a comment for Metro by clicking here.
• Call Metro Customer Assistance Office at 206-553-3060 206-553-3060 to register your disapproval.
• Vote against Metro ads on the KING 5 website. Click here to vote.
Thank you,
Rob Jacobs
Regional Director
StandWithUs Northwest
RobJacobs@StandWithUs.com
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Town Taxes Christians for Listening to Sermons
By Bob Unruh
Borrowed from WorldNetDaily - Thank you
First Baptist in Mission, Kan. Christians who attend worship services in a suburb of Kansas City will have to ante up for new thousand-dollar city "fees" that are being assessed against their churches based on the number of seats in their sanctuaries.
That's if the scheme announced recently by officials in Mission, Kan., survives a court challenge that has been filed by the Alliance Defense Fund.
"No one should be taxing church attendance, but that's what this tax does: It punishes churches based on their attendance," said Erik Stanley, a senior legal counsel for the organization.
"Cleverly disguising a tax as a fee is just another way to penalize churches and other nonprofit organizations and charities by subverting their tax exemptions so the government can collect more money," he said. "This driveway tax is simply outrageous. Will we soon be seeing a 'sidewalk tax' based on the number of people who walk to church?"
It was in August when the city council in Mission created Ordinance 1332 for a "Transportation Utility Fee." The law requiress that owners of all property within city limits with improvements such as buildings or landscaping pay a fee, "which functions as an additional property tax."
Read more here http://ow.ly/3sYVS
Borrowed from WorldNetDaily - Thank you
First Baptist in Mission, Kan. Christians who attend worship services in a suburb of Kansas City will have to ante up for new thousand-dollar city "fees" that are being assessed against their churches based on the number of seats in their sanctuaries.
That's if the scheme announced recently by officials in Mission, Kan., survives a court challenge that has been filed by the Alliance Defense Fund.
"No one should be taxing church attendance, but that's what this tax does: It punishes churches based on their attendance," said Erik Stanley, a senior legal counsel for the organization.
"Cleverly disguising a tax as a fee is just another way to penalize churches and other nonprofit organizations and charities by subverting their tax exemptions so the government can collect more money," he said. "This driveway tax is simply outrageous. Will we soon be seeing a 'sidewalk tax' based on the number of people who walk to church?"
It was in August when the city council in Mission created Ordinance 1332 for a "Transportation Utility Fee." The law requiress that owners of all property within city limits with improvements such as buildings or landscaping pay a fee, "which functions as an additional property tax."
Read more here http://ow.ly/3sYVS
Net Neutrality, Taxpayer Guilt, the Census and Terrorism – Merry Christmas America
Was it a coincidence the FCC decided to start regulating our Internet under what is known as Net Neutrality, the very same week that Hugo Chavez in Venezuela by Presidential decree took full control of his population's Internet services? I think not. Over the past two years it’s been said that President Obama envies Hugo’s ability to take control of his people and their rights. Now it seems he’s attempting to mimic the fat dictator to the South by following in his footsteps through dictatorial decrees by over-regulation. There is no doubt in my mind that when Tea Party and more conservative Republicans take further control of our government there must be a purge and reversal of many of these restrictive regulations that encumber America and its private sector.
In the past few days after signing the extension of the Bush Tax Cuts, President Obama has attempted to lay guilt on the so-called rich in our country for the tax cuts he extended. Simply saying, you rich people making more than $250,000 a year should feel guilty about forcing him to sign the extensions that give more money to your family as opposed to going to the government’s coffers to be wasted on high paying government jobs with little left to help the real people who need help. I truly wonder if this President thinks before he opens his mouth, when in fact he should take a long hard look at himself for attempting to get our inefficient government between the givers in our country and the needy. He should be ashamed of himself for literally attempting to reduce the level of giving for a bigger government that we can no longer afford. If you handed a dollar to a homeless person or paid an additional dollar in taxes how much of that dollar would get to that homeless person? I think you get the idea. You should be ashamed of yourself Mr. President.
The results of the 2010 census were announced today and it looks like the bad old blue states are losing more congressional seats while the South and West are gaining. This is good news for the Tea Party and more conservative Republicans. With the shift towards more red states this gives the Republican Party a clear shot to control the congress for the next ten years that is if they don’t blow it, which they always seen to do. Cross your fingers.
It seems that all day we’ve been getting reports of terror plots being uncovered or squashed throughout the world. From a bomb being found in Rome to a mass arrest in England where many from the religion of peace, Islam, have been brought in for questioning. It seemed they were going to blow up just about everyone they could find in shopping malls and cafes in England.
Then we have Eric Holder our great Attorney General announce in a near full flow of tears that something big is going to happen and he can’t stop it. Gee, thanks Eric, for nothing.
Anyway, one last comment before I lean over the railing of my fifty-two foot yacht and barf. When you’re out dinning this holiday season, don’t eat the salad bar. It appears that terrorists are targeting, yes, targeting salad bars. Yes, they want to poison your salad bar. What next, right?
So, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.
New Census Puts Tea Party in Control
Borrowed from USA Today - Thank you
The U.S. population is 308,745,538, according to the 2010 U.S. Census.
That represents a 9.7% increase over the 2000 figure of 281,421,906.
Nevada had the biggest growth in population, jumping 35.1%, while Michigan dropped the most, losing 0.6%.
Following a multi-year trend in migration patterns, the South grew 14.3% and the West jumped 13.8%,while the Northeast increased only 3.2% and the Midwest 3.9%.
The count not only gives the nation a snapshot of its overall population, the state-by-state figures are used to determine how the 435 seats in the House of Representatives are apportioned.
Under the 2010 figures, eight states will gain representation, with Texas the biggest winner, picking up four seats.
Also gaining seats: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Washington. Florida picks up 2 seats, the rest getting one each.
Losing seats: Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania
The U.S. population is 308,745,538, according to the 2010 U.S. Census.
That represents a 9.7% increase over the 2000 figure of 281,421,906.
Nevada had the biggest growth in population, jumping 35.1%, while Michigan dropped the most, losing 0.6%.
Following a multi-year trend in migration patterns, the South grew 14.3% and the West jumped 13.8%,while the Northeast increased only 3.2% and the Midwest 3.9%.
The count not only gives the nation a snapshot of its overall population, the state-by-state figures are used to determine how the 435 seats in the House of Representatives are apportioned.
Under the 2010 figures, eight states will gain representation, with Texas the biggest winner, picking up four seats.
Also gaining seats: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Washington. Florida picks up 2 seats, the rest getting one each.
Losing seats: Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania
World To Jews: Drop Dead
By Abigail E. Esman
Borrowed from Forbes - Thank you
First, there was the immutable Helen Thomas, legendary Hearst White House reporter, who pronounced in May that Jews in Israel (or “Palestine”) should “go home” to Poland, Germany, and “everywhere else” – a statement that resulted in her immediate dismissal from Hearst. Not satisfied yet, however, Thomas then added earlier this month that Zionists “control” Washington, Wall Street, and Hollywood.
Closely nipping at Thomas’ heels comes Dutch politician and former European Commissioner Frits Bolkestein, whose solution to the growing and often violent anti-Semitism among Dutch Muslims is for the Jews themselves to leave. With anti-Semitic incidents in 2009 up 55 percent over 2008, Bolkestein sees, he says, “no future” for Dutch Jews: but rather than invite Jew-haters to leave the country, he recommends the Jews themselves find somewhere else to live – namely, Israel or the USA.
So there you have it: In America, Thomas wants to send the Israeli Jews to Europe, and in Europe, Bolkestein wants to send the Jews to America and Israel. And Israel, as we all know, is the country most of the world wants “wiped off the map.” (There’s a “final solution” for you, plain as day.)
But before resolving that Jews can therefore settle safely in the USA, it might be worth noting that attacks on Jews are on the rise in America, as well, where (despite wails of “Islamophobia), of the 1575 victims of anti-religious crime recorded by the FBI in 2009, 1,132 were Jews. (Of the rest, 132 were Muslim, 131 “other religion,” 59 Catholic, and 42 were Protestant. To get a sense of proportion here, consider that 2008 census figures show the number of Jews at twice the number of Muslims – yet nearly ten times as many Jews as Muslims were attacked.)
The fact is that anti-Jewish attitudes no longer represent a fringe mentality of extremists – nor can they be simply brushed off as the ravings of little old ladies going batty. Rather, noted Rabbi Marvin Hier of the Simon Weisenthal Center, which last week released its “Top Ten Anti-Semitic Slurs of 2010” list (Helen Thomas’s remarks took first place, followed by comments by CNN anchor Rick Sanchez and director Oliver Stone), “Never before, in recent memory, has the Simon Wiesenthal Center seen such a proliferation of anti-Semitism going mainstream. Our list shows that anti-Semitic canards normally thought to belong to the lunatic fringe have in fact been bought into by major elements of Western society.”
And the problem is also not limited to a couple of outspoken characters here and there: Anti-Semitism has been rising or several years across all of Europe, mostly among the Muslim population; and a recent report from the UK shows that it’s destined to get worse. “Muslim religious schools operating in Britain are using poisonously anti-Semitic textbooks from Saudi Arabia to teach children as young as six that Jews are descended from “monkeys” and “pigs,” and that Zionists are plotting to take over the world,” reports the Hudson New York Journal, based on a BBC expose of the Muslim schools in Britain, most of which are run and overseen by Saudis. (The New York Times also covered the story here.)
Americans take notice: such schools exist as well in the US, funded by the very same sources, and teaching the very same material. And despite repeated efforts by New York Senator Charles Schumer (D) and others, no one seems to be doing much about it. One need look no further than the likes of Bolkestein and Thomas to begin understanding why.
Borrowed from Forbes - Thank you
First, there was the immutable Helen Thomas, legendary Hearst White House reporter, who pronounced in May that Jews in Israel (or “Palestine”) should “go home” to Poland, Germany, and “everywhere else” – a statement that resulted in her immediate dismissal from Hearst. Not satisfied yet, however, Thomas then added earlier this month that Zionists “control” Washington, Wall Street, and Hollywood.
Closely nipping at Thomas’ heels comes Dutch politician and former European Commissioner Frits Bolkestein, whose solution to the growing and often violent anti-Semitism among Dutch Muslims is for the Jews themselves to leave. With anti-Semitic incidents in 2009 up 55 percent over 2008, Bolkestein sees, he says, “no future” for Dutch Jews: but rather than invite Jew-haters to leave the country, he recommends the Jews themselves find somewhere else to live – namely, Israel or the USA.
So there you have it: In America, Thomas wants to send the Israeli Jews to Europe, and in Europe, Bolkestein wants to send the Jews to America and Israel. And Israel, as we all know, is the country most of the world wants “wiped off the map.” (There’s a “final solution” for you, plain as day.)
But before resolving that Jews can therefore settle safely in the USA, it might be worth noting that attacks on Jews are on the rise in America, as well, where (despite wails of “Islamophobia), of the 1575 victims of anti-religious crime recorded by the FBI in 2009, 1,132 were Jews. (Of the rest, 132 were Muslim, 131 “other religion,” 59 Catholic, and 42 were Protestant. To get a sense of proportion here, consider that 2008 census figures show the number of Jews at twice the number of Muslims – yet nearly ten times as many Jews as Muslims were attacked.)
The fact is that anti-Jewish attitudes no longer represent a fringe mentality of extremists – nor can they be simply brushed off as the ravings of little old ladies going batty. Rather, noted Rabbi Marvin Hier of the Simon Weisenthal Center, which last week released its “Top Ten Anti-Semitic Slurs of 2010” list (Helen Thomas’s remarks took first place, followed by comments by CNN anchor Rick Sanchez and director Oliver Stone), “Never before, in recent memory, has the Simon Wiesenthal Center seen such a proliferation of anti-Semitism going mainstream. Our list shows that anti-Semitic canards normally thought to belong to the lunatic fringe have in fact been bought into by major elements of Western society.”
And the problem is also not limited to a couple of outspoken characters here and there: Anti-Semitism has been rising or several years across all of Europe, mostly among the Muslim population; and a recent report from the UK shows that it’s destined to get worse. “Muslim religious schools operating in Britain are using poisonously anti-Semitic textbooks from Saudi Arabia to teach children as young as six that Jews are descended from “monkeys” and “pigs,” and that Zionists are plotting to take over the world,” reports the Hudson New York Journal, based on a BBC expose of the Muslim schools in Britain, most of which are run and overseen by Saudis. (The New York Times also covered the story here.)
Americans take notice: such schools exist as well in the US, funded by the very same sources, and teaching the very same material. And despite repeated efforts by New York Senator Charles Schumer (D) and others, no one seems to be doing much about it. One need look no further than the likes of Bolkestein and Thomas to begin understanding why.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Chavez of Venezuela Censors His People - We've Lost Another Country to an Evil Dictator in the Western Hemisphere as Obama Does Nothing
Borrowed from the BBC - Thank you
The parliament in Venezuela has approved a law which will tighten the rules regulating internet content.
Under the bill, online messages inciting hatred, or political and religious intolerance, are banned.
The new law also prohibits contents which is deemed to disrespect public officials.
Opposition politicians voted against the measure, which they say is a threat to freedom of speech.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says it will help protect citizens against online crimes.
Under the new rules, providers of online contents and internet portals could be fined if images or messages appearing on their sites "disrespect public authorities, incite or promote hatred or create anxiety in the citizenry or alter public order".
President Chavez says the law will shield citizens from messages promoting drug use, prostitution and other crimes.
'Fighting cybercrime'
"We aren't eliminating the internet here, or censoring it," he said during his weekly television and radio broadcast on Sunday.
"What we're doing is protecting ourselves against crimes, against cyber-crimes," he added.
The Venezuelan Chamber of Electronic Commerce has criticized the measure saying that it is another step on the way to censorship and the blocking of websites.
Opposition politicians accuse President Chavez of passing a raft of restrictive laws before January, when a new parliament with more opposition delegates is sworn in.
The measure was passed just days after parliament voted to give President Chavez special powers to pass laws by decree for 18 months.
The parliament in Venezuela has approved a law which will tighten the rules regulating internet content.
Under the bill, online messages inciting hatred, or political and religious intolerance, are banned.
The new law also prohibits contents which is deemed to disrespect public officials.
Opposition politicians voted against the measure, which they say is a threat to freedom of speech.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says it will help protect citizens against online crimes.
Under the new rules, providers of online contents and internet portals could be fined if images or messages appearing on their sites "disrespect public authorities, incite or promote hatred or create anxiety in the citizenry or alter public order".
President Chavez says the law will shield citizens from messages promoting drug use, prostitution and other crimes.
'Fighting cybercrime'
"We aren't eliminating the internet here, or censoring it," he said during his weekly television and radio broadcast on Sunday.
"What we're doing is protecting ourselves against crimes, against cyber-crimes," he added.
The Venezuelan Chamber of Electronic Commerce has criticized the measure saying that it is another step on the way to censorship and the blocking of websites.
Opposition politicians accuse President Chavez of passing a raft of restrictive laws before January, when a new parliament with more opposition delegates is sworn in.
The measure was passed just days after parliament voted to give President Chavez special powers to pass laws by decree for 18 months.
Support for al-Qaeda in the Muslim World - Almost the Population of the U.S. - Are You Worried Yet - You Should Be
by Brian Fairchild - Thank you
On December 2, 2010, the Pew Research Center released the results of a new poll of six Muslim countries that sheds a surprising new light on the number of Muslims worldwide that support al-Qaeda. (The six countries polled: Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey.) The report reveals that majorities of the world’s 1.3 billion Muslims neither support al-Qaeda nor believe that suicide bombings are ever justified in defense of Islam. Osama bin Laden, the poll reveals, “receives overwhelmingly negative ratings in nearly all countries” asked about him.
The Pew report coincides with an al-Qaeda video distributed on October 23, 2010. In it, al-Qaeda spokesman Adam Gadahn airs al-Qaeda’s poor view of the majority of Muslims. According to Gadahn, one part of the global Muslim community is apostate; another is victim to lustful, worldly influences; and a third (perhaps largest) portion has lost the ability to think for themselves, allowing clerics to turn them against al-Qaeda and the jihad.
While it is good news that the majority of the world’s Muslim population repudiates al-Qaeda, and vice versa, we in the West cannot take too much comfort. Pew also provides each polled country’s percentages of support for al-Qaeda: 34 percent of Jordanians, 49 percent of Nigerian Muslims, 3 percent of Lebanese, 20 percent of Egyptians, 23 percent of Indonesians, 18 percent of Pakistanis, and 4 percent of Turks. In real numbers, the total is staggering. A whopping 129,942,000 Muslims support al-Qaeda. That’s right, almost 130 million Muslims support al-Qaeda — and that from just the six countries Pew’s pollsters visited.
As the Pew organization admits, pollsters couldn’t conduct their research in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in Pakistan, where al-Qaeda and the Taliban rule. Undoubtedly, if the residents of the FATA were polled, the number of al-Qaeda supporters in Pakistan would rise significantly. One can only imagine how high this number would rise if Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, and Saudi Arabia were polled.
Read more here http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/130-million-strong-al-qaedas-deep-muslim-support/2/
On December 2, 2010, the Pew Research Center released the results of a new poll of six Muslim countries that sheds a surprising new light on the number of Muslims worldwide that support al-Qaeda. (The six countries polled: Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey.) The report reveals that majorities of the world’s 1.3 billion Muslims neither support al-Qaeda nor believe that suicide bombings are ever justified in defense of Islam. Osama bin Laden, the poll reveals, “receives overwhelmingly negative ratings in nearly all countries” asked about him.
The Pew report coincides with an al-Qaeda video distributed on October 23, 2010. In it, al-Qaeda spokesman Adam Gadahn airs al-Qaeda’s poor view of the majority of Muslims. According to Gadahn, one part of the global Muslim community is apostate; another is victim to lustful, worldly influences; and a third (perhaps largest) portion has lost the ability to think for themselves, allowing clerics to turn them against al-Qaeda and the jihad.
While it is good news that the majority of the world’s Muslim population repudiates al-Qaeda, and vice versa, we in the West cannot take too much comfort. Pew also provides each polled country’s percentages of support for al-Qaeda: 34 percent of Jordanians, 49 percent of Nigerian Muslims, 3 percent of Lebanese, 20 percent of Egyptians, 23 percent of Indonesians, 18 percent of Pakistanis, and 4 percent of Turks. In real numbers, the total is staggering. A whopping 129,942,000 Muslims support al-Qaeda. That’s right, almost 130 million Muslims support al-Qaeda — and that from just the six countries Pew’s pollsters visited.
As the Pew organization admits, pollsters couldn’t conduct their research in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in Pakistan, where al-Qaeda and the Taliban rule. Undoubtedly, if the residents of the FATA were polled, the number of al-Qaeda supporters in Pakistan would rise significantly. One can only imagine how high this number would rise if Muslims in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, and Saudi Arabia were polled.
Read more here http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/130-million-strong-al-qaedas-deep-muslim-support/2/
Sunday, December 19, 2010
WikiLeaks - Let's Not Forget
WikilLeaks 2010 is the expression of rage by President Obama over the rejection of his leftist policies and the inevitable expelling of the leftist government that has controlled our congress for the past four years.
Remember WikiLeaks started leaking damaging information in April of 2010, after President Obama realized he would lose his leftist supported congress. By using a well placed homosexual member of our military Pvt. Manning, who has a grudge against our country for denying “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” illegally released top level communiqué’s to WikiLeaks.
Politically attuned WikiLeaks held this information for maximum impact after realizing the left had lost the congress and the American people. In fact the American people had been in the dark over this insidious attempt to undermine American dominance around the world.
Every American should be outraged that a sitting President is allowing and apart of this destruction of national security and relations with our allies around the world.
I have included a pro-WikiLeaks video from Youtube that glorifies the illegal and treasonous action of WikiLeaks.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Islam the Religion of Peace Continues to Close Christian Churches in Indonesia
JAKARTA, Indonesia (Borrowed from CDN - Thank you) – About 200 demonstrators from hard-line Islamic organizations in West Java on Sunday (Dec. 12) disrupted the worship of a church in Rancaekek district, Bandung, driving more than 100 worshippers from the building.
Members of the Islamic Defenders Front, the Indonesian Ulama Forum and the Islamic Reformist Movement arrived with the Civil Service Police Unit of Rancaekek district and sealed the house, thus leaving other churches that use it without a worship venue. The protestors also disrupted the worship of six other churches meeting in homes the same day.
The demonstrators arrived at 9 a.m., when the Huria Kristen Batak Protestant (of HKBP) Bethania church building had begun worship in the building where a pastor and his family live. The protestors urged the local government to seal the building immediately because it was a private house rather than registered as a place of worship.
About 10 minutes into the church’s worship, the demonstrators removed by force more than 100 members of the HKBP church on Teratai Street, the pastor said.
“Because they were fearful, children and women were crying when they came out of their place of worship,” the Rev. Badia Hutagalung told Compass by phone.
Hutagalong, 26, lives in the second story of the building. Church officials declined to say who owned the home.
Hutagalung said the congregation resisted the temptation to clash with the Islamic protestors, who were using ambulance sirens to disrupt the service.
Read more here http://www.christianpost.com/article/20101218/islamists-raid-house-churches-in-indonesia/
Members of the Islamic Defenders Front, the Indonesian Ulama Forum and the Islamic Reformist Movement arrived with the Civil Service Police Unit of Rancaekek district and sealed the house, thus leaving other churches that use it without a worship venue. The protestors also disrupted the worship of six other churches meeting in homes the same day.
The demonstrators arrived at 9 a.m., when the Huria Kristen Batak Protestant (of HKBP) Bethania church building had begun worship in the building where a pastor and his family live. The protestors urged the local government to seal the building immediately because it was a private house rather than registered as a place of worship.
About 10 minutes into the church’s worship, the demonstrators removed by force more than 100 members of the HKBP church on Teratai Street, the pastor said.
“Because they were fearful, children and women were crying when they came out of their place of worship,” the Rev. Badia Hutagalung told Compass by phone.
Hutagalong, 26, lives in the second story of the building. Church officials declined to say who owned the home.
Hutagalung said the congregation resisted the temptation to clash with the Islamic protestors, who were using ambulance sirens to disrupt the service.
Read more here http://www.christianpost.com/article/20101218/islamists-raid-house-churches-in-indonesia/
Friday, December 17, 2010
The Adolf Hitler of South America Has Arrived - Venezuela Congress Grants Chavez Decree Powers
Borrowed from The Associated Press - Thank you
CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuelan lawmakers granted President Hugo Chavez broad powers Friday to enact laws by decree, undermining the clout of a new congress that takes office next month with a bigger opposition bloc.
Chavez opponents condemned the move as a power grab, saying the law gives him a blank check to rule without consulting lawmakers. The National Assembly approved the special powers for 18 months.
A new congress goes into session Jan. 5 with an opposition contingent large enough to hinder approval of some types of major laws.
Chavez has argued he needs decree powers to fast-track funds to help the victims of recent floods and landslides, and also to hasten Venezuela's transition to a socialist state.
The president's critics view the law as one of many controversial measures being pushed through in the final weeks of a lame-duck congress.
Another measure under discussion Friday was the revised "Social Responsibility Law," which would impose broadcast-type regulations on the Internet and ban online messages "that could incite or promote hatred," create "anxiety" in the population or "disrespect public authorities."
Questions remain about how the Internet regulations would be enforced.
"They're accusing me of being a dictator," Chavez said on state television Thursday night, dismissing the criticism as unfounded. "We're building a new democracy here that can't be turned back."
The law to grant Chavez decree powers, the fourth such legislation of his nearly 12-year presidency, also will allow him to unilaterally enact measures involving telecommunications, the banking system, information technology, the military, rural and urban land use and the country's "socio-economic system."
Among the planned decrees already announced, Chavez intends to increase the value-added tax, now 12 percent, to raise funds for coping with the disaster caused by weeks of heavy rains. The government is erecting tents to house thousands left homeless and is accelerating public housing construction.
Critics accuse Chavez of taking advantage of the disaster to tighten his grip on power, saying he is violating the constitution while trying to impose a Cuba-style system.
Lawmaker Pastora Medina, a former Chavez ally who turned against him, condemned the decree powers saying the president already "has the budget and the resources to solve the problems."
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Congress Passes Tax Bill
By JANET HOOK and JOHN MCKINNON
WASHINGTON—Congress passed the most far-reaching tax bill in a decade late Thursday, averting across-the-board tax increases, enacting new breaks for individuals and businesses and laying a marker for how Washington might work in an era of divided government.
Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin on Capitol Hill Thursday as the tax bill that passed the Senate a day earlier was held up in the House.
The bill goes to the White House for President Barack Obama's signature after the House overcame persistent liberal opposition and passed it with an unexpectedly large bipartisan majority of 277-148. The measure passed the Senate earlier in the week also with an overwhelming majority.
The bill reaches deeply into the life and economy of the U.S., more so than might have been expected when Congress first started tackling the matter. Wage-earners will get a new payroll tax break; wealthy heirs get a lower estate-tax rate; and businesses gain an unexpected plum—a big tax write-off for new equipment purchases.
The $858 billion bill breaks a stubborn political impasse prompted by the Bush-era tax cuts, which were due to expire at the end of this year. The bill provides a two-year extension for all income brackets, kicking the issue into the next Congress and into the middle of the 2012 election. Lawmakers, especially Republicans, said the current economy was too weak to withstand a tax increase.
In the bill's sweep, Congress signaled a return to tax cutting as a principal engine of driving economic growth, especially compared with Mr. Obama's 2009 stimulus bill, which put more emphasis on government spending. Coming after the Democratic losses in November's midterm elections the playbook this time was more in keeping with Republican orthodoxy.
My First and Last Call to Homeland Security - Back to Square One
By Nicholas Contompasis
Late last night your trusty on-guard patriot, yours truly, posted a CNN report on this blog that al-Qaeda was planning attacks in the United States during our upcoming Christmas holiday. The reports were nonspecific and originating from Iraq.
With that said, this morning I received a phone call from my father who had just spent three days with my mother in Reno, Nevada at their timeshare way too close to those casinos where my mother continues to eat away at my inheritance.
So while my mother was busy paying the light bill at the Silver Legacy Casino my good frugal father was sipping coffee at the recreation center of the condo complex.
I’m going to retell the story the way I heard it from my dad over the phone this morning and you tell me what you think and what you would do?
While he was having coffee three Pakistani men came in and sat close to him at a big table. Being the chatty guy he is, he struck up a conversation with them and slowly gleaned some information in a casual sort of way.
He found out that the three of them, along with a woman who was not present, had just come in from Pakistan three days earlier and they were heading for Chicago this morning. They were in their twenties, clean shaven and somewhat friendly, except the third man who was almost thirty was silent through the twenty minute encounter. My father dominated the conversation with his age-old stories of India and China where he was attached with the Flying Tigers during World War Two. As the conversation ended the three men stood up and the two who spoke said good-by. As they filed out the last man, the one who didn’t speak through this entire episode, ominously commented, “World War Three has already started,” and walked out in an arrogant sort of way.
Needless to say, this comment got under my father’s skin, but he was good. He kept his mouth shut and let them exit without a comeback. At eighty-eight years of age he’s learned that it’s important not to piss people off, after all he might have to hurt somebody.
An hour after ending my conversation with my father this story was still rattling around in my head as it was for him. I debated with myself, should I call Homeland Security about this or was I overreacting? Well, I called and frankly I wish I hadn’t.
I started by calling the national hot line number in Washington D.C. that’s listed on their website. I told the operator who answered the phone that I would like to report a suspicious occurrence. She very quickly transferred me to a Los Angeles 911 operator. After two minutes of explaining that I’m in Northern California the 911 operator suggested that I call two other numbers which I did. The new numbers where in Denver and D.C. where I spoke with two other people who supposedly handled dispatch for western states. The Denver dispatcher was nice but I still wasn’t able to report the details of the incident. I was told that I would be contacted shortly, and I left my phone number and name and waited. I’m still waiting and it’s now been over eighteen hours.
The nice Denver operator suggested that in the future I should contact my local police if I hear or see of suspicious occurrences. My response to these instructions was swift and to the point. “Excuse me, we spend billions of dollars to set up Homeland Security and when I see or hear something we’re back to calling the local police, where the report could die on the vine, before being acted upon, God help us all,” I lamented. After getting off the phone I thought, is this as far as we’ve come in nine years? Frankly, next time I suspect anything I’m heading out for more ammo, screw Homeland Security.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Breaking News - New Information - al Qaeda Planning Attacks In US at Christmas
Washington (CNN) -- Iraqi authorities have shared information obtained from captured insurgents who claim al Qaeda is planning suicide attacks in the United States and Europe during the Christmas holiday season, according to a U.S. official.
The official said the threat report is being taken seriously, but there is no intelligence indicating there is a specific or credible threat against the U.S. homeland. But the official added al Qaeda in Iraq remains a dangerous force.
The official indicated the United States remains vigilant especially during the holidays in light of what happened last Christmas, a reference to the failed attempt to blow up an airliner over Detroit.
Another US official said, "we are looking closely" at the information coming from Iraq.
The official said the threat report is being taken seriously, but there is no intelligence indicating there is a specific or credible threat against the U.S. homeland. But the official added al Qaeda in Iraq remains a dangerous force.
The official indicated the United States remains vigilant especially during the holidays in light of what happened last Christmas, a reference to the failed attempt to blow up an airliner over Detroit.
Another US official said, "we are looking closely" at the information coming from Iraq.
Could This Be the End? – No Start Treaty and Little Known Facts
Let’s see if I have this right. What has this world come too?
Russia is arming Venezuela. The United States is arming Saudi Arabia. North Korea is arming Iran. Iran is arming Syria. Russia still arms Cuba. Russia is arming South Ossetia. Russia is arming Georgian separatists in Georgia. Venezuela is arming rebels in Columbia. Russia is arming Armenia. Iran is arming Venezuela. Iran is arming the Palestinians. Russia is arming Iran. China is arming Sudan. Russia is arming Sudan. Russia is arming Syria. The United States is arming Georgia. Israel is arming Georgia. The United States still arms Israel. Macedonia is arming Georgia. Nicaragua is arming Honduran rebels. China is arming Iran. China is arming the Taliban. Iran is arming Iraqi insurgents. China is arming rebels in India. China is arming North Korea. The United States is arming South Korea. The United States is arming Taiwan. Ecuador is arming rebels in Columbia. Israel is arming Darfur rebels. Israel is arming Georgia. North Korea is arming Myanmar (Burma). Russia is arming North Korea. The United States is arming Pakistan. India is arming Myanmar. France is arming Lebanon. France is arming Russia. France is arming Greece. Germany is arming Greece. The United States is arming Japan. I could list more, but I think you got the idea.
So, on and on it goes, as this world slowly becomes armed to the teeth and more countries become hostile towards each other. Whether because of religion, economics or political ideology this world is streaking headlong towards another global conflict. If something doesn’t change soon we could see another world war the likes of WW I and WW II times a hundred.
With the absence of global leadership in Washington it seems the crazies of the world are now flexing their tyrannical and dictatorial muscles while the world’s policeman is out munching on donuts and coffee. With this absence comes the enslavement of millions of more people and their rights. With this absence comes more pain and suffering for the majority in the world and the minimization of democracy.
If the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the people willing to use them continue to grow in strength we could see the mere 80,000,000 people that died in World War II swell to possibly 1,000,000,000 casualties in the next global conflict. No Start Treaty will stop this madness as more die daily and more anger is created by those deaths.
For America to disarm now would be sheer insanity in a world of growing threats. Since the leadership coming out of Washington has now left us almost alone in the world we should be preparing for the hordes that soon will be crashing our borders and shores.
It's Official - Chavez is Adolph Hitler 1935 - Can't Wait for 1941
By FABIOLA SANCHEZ
Borrowed from AP - Thank you
CARACAS, Venezuela – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday asked congress to grant him special powers to enact laws by decree for one year, just before a new legislature takes office with a larger contingent of opposition lawmakers.
The measure would give the president the ability to bypass the National Assembly for the fourth time since he was first elected almost 12 years ago.
Vice President Elias Jaua made the request on Chavez's behalf, saying the president will use the authorization to ensure fast-track approval of laws aimed at helping the nation recover from severe flooding and mudslides that left thousands homeless and in government shelters.
"The measures we have to take are deep. Almost 40 percent of the country was affected" by the heavy rains, Jaua said.
It is expected to win easy approval in the outgoing legislature dominated by Chavez allies.
Chavez's opponents accuse him of using the natural disaster to impose socialist-inspired measures and undermine the power of newly elected opposition lawmakers.
Hundreds of Chavez opponents protested outside the legislature Tuesday, saying Chavez is violating democratic principles and objecting to other planned laws that could impose regulations on the Internet and endanger Globovision, the country's last stridently anti-Chavez television channel.
Decrees planned in the next two weeks include laws to speed construction of housing and roads, increase the value-added tax and develop projects involving farming and use of urban lands, Jaua said.
He said Chavez aims to pass laws dealing with vital services after the disaster and in areas including infrastructure, land use, the banking sector, defense and the "socio-economic system of the nation."
Jaua also mentioned plans to legislate in the area of "international cooperation." Chavez has urged lawmakers to pass a law barring non-governmental organizations such as human rights groups from receiving U.S. funding.
Newly elected opposition lawmaker Julio Borges said the measures being taken up by the National Assembly in its final days go against the will of the voters.
"As elected deputies, we're asking for a meeting between the new assembly and the old one, so that people are respected — the voters and the constitution," Borges told reporters.
Chavez announced the plan to seek decree powers Friday, and some critics suggested he intended to push through controversial measures during the holidays while many Venezuelans are focusing on their families.
Opposition newspaper editor Teodoro Petkoff called it a "Christmas ambush," writing in his daily Tal Cual that Chavez is preparing totalitarian measures that amount to "a brutal attack ... against democratic life."
In his nearly 12 years in office, the leftist Chavez has been granted temporary decree powers three times by lawmakers, in 1999, 2001 and 2007.
The last time, he enjoyed special legislative powers for 18 months and used them to seize control of privately run oil fields, impose new taxes and nationalize telecommunications, electricity and cement companies.
Chavez supporters have dominated the National Assembly since the opposition boycotted 2005 elections, but the opposition gained ground in September elections.
Starting Jan. 5, Chavez will face 66 opponents among the 165 lawmakers, a group large enough to challenge some government measures and prevent him from holding a two-thirds majority — the threshold needed to approve some laws, such as granting the president decree powers.
Borrowed from AP - Thank you
CARACAS, Venezuela – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday asked congress to grant him special powers to enact laws by decree for one year, just before a new legislature takes office with a larger contingent of opposition lawmakers.
The measure would give the president the ability to bypass the National Assembly for the fourth time since he was first elected almost 12 years ago.
Vice President Elias Jaua made the request on Chavez's behalf, saying the president will use the authorization to ensure fast-track approval of laws aimed at helping the nation recover from severe flooding and mudslides that left thousands homeless and in government shelters.
"The measures we have to take are deep. Almost 40 percent of the country was affected" by the heavy rains, Jaua said.
It is expected to win easy approval in the outgoing legislature dominated by Chavez allies.
Chavez's opponents accuse him of using the natural disaster to impose socialist-inspired measures and undermine the power of newly elected opposition lawmakers.
Hundreds of Chavez opponents protested outside the legislature Tuesday, saying Chavez is violating democratic principles and objecting to other planned laws that could impose regulations on the Internet and endanger Globovision, the country's last stridently anti-Chavez television channel.
Decrees planned in the next two weeks include laws to speed construction of housing and roads, increase the value-added tax and develop projects involving farming and use of urban lands, Jaua said.
He said Chavez aims to pass laws dealing with vital services after the disaster and in areas including infrastructure, land use, the banking sector, defense and the "socio-economic system of the nation."
Jaua also mentioned plans to legislate in the area of "international cooperation." Chavez has urged lawmakers to pass a law barring non-governmental organizations such as human rights groups from receiving U.S. funding.
Newly elected opposition lawmaker Julio Borges said the measures being taken up by the National Assembly in its final days go against the will of the voters.
"As elected deputies, we're asking for a meeting between the new assembly and the old one, so that people are respected — the voters and the constitution," Borges told reporters.
Chavez announced the plan to seek decree powers Friday, and some critics suggested he intended to push through controversial measures during the holidays while many Venezuelans are focusing on their families.
Opposition newspaper editor Teodoro Petkoff called it a "Christmas ambush," writing in his daily Tal Cual that Chavez is preparing totalitarian measures that amount to "a brutal attack ... against democratic life."
In his nearly 12 years in office, the leftist Chavez has been granted temporary decree powers three times by lawmakers, in 1999, 2001 and 2007.
The last time, he enjoyed special legislative powers for 18 months and used them to seize control of privately run oil fields, impose new taxes and nationalize telecommunications, electricity and cement companies.
Chavez supporters have dominated the National Assembly since the opposition boycotted 2005 elections, but the opposition gained ground in September elections.
Starting Jan. 5, Chavez will face 66 opponents among the 165 lawmakers, a group large enough to challenge some government measures and prevent him from holding a two-thirds majority — the threshold needed to approve some laws, such as granting the president decree powers.
Border Agent Murdered in Arizona - How Many More Will Die Before the Border is Secured?
By Michelle Malkin -
Borrowed from Michelle Malkin - Thank you
More horrible news from the southern border. One of the officers who put his life on the line to protect our security and sovereignty has been shot and killed.
Four suspects are in custody.
USA Today reports:
A Border Patrol agent was shot and killed Tuesday night near Rio Rico after encountering several suspects, federal authorities said Wednesday.
Agent Brian Terry was killed just 10 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, north of Nogales. Four suspects are in custody and one is being pursued, according to a press release from Customs and Border Protection.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office are investigating.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats continue to push the pro-amnesty DREAM Act and security-undermining environmental land grabs.
Borrowed from Michelle Malkin - Thank you
More horrible news from the southern border. One of the officers who put his life on the line to protect our security and sovereignty has been shot and killed.
Four suspects are in custody.
USA Today reports:
A Border Patrol agent was shot and killed Tuesday night near Rio Rico after encountering several suspects, federal authorities said Wednesday.
Agent Brian Terry was killed just 10 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, north of Nogales. Four suspects are in custody and one is being pursued, according to a press release from Customs and Border Protection.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office are investigating.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats continue to push the pro-amnesty DREAM Act and security-undermining environmental land grabs.
Computer Virus Set Back Iran’s Nuclear Program By Two Years
By YAAKOV KATZ
Borrowed from Jerusalem Post - Thank you
Top German computer consultant tells 'Post' virus was as effective as military strike, a huge success; expert speculates IDF creator of virus.
The Stuxnet virus, which has attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities and which Israel is suspected of creating, has set back the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program by two years, a top German computer consultant who was one of the first experts to analyze the program’s code told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
“It will take two years for Iran to get back on track,” Langer said in a telephone interview from his office in Hamburg, Germany. “This was nearly as effective as a military strike, but even better since there are no fatalities and no full-blown war. From a military perspective, this was a huge success.”
Langer spoke to the Post amid news reports that the virus was still infecting Iran’s computer systems at its main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz and its reactor at Bushehr.
Last month, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nation’s nuclear watchdog, said that Iran had suspended work at its nuclear-field production facilities, likely a result of the Stuxnet virus.
According to Langer, Iran’s best move would be to throw out all of the computers that have been infected by the worm, which he said was the most “advanced and aggressive malware in history.” But, he said, even once all of the computers were thrown out, Iran would have to ensure that computers used by outside contractors were also clean of Stuxnet.
“It is extremely difficult to clean up installations from Stuxnet, and we know that Iran is no good in IT [information technology] security, and they are just beginning to learn what this all means,” he said. “Just to get their systems running again they have to get rid of the virus, and this will take time, and then they need to replace the equipment, and they have to rebuild the centrifuges at Natanz and possibly buy a new turbine for Bushehr.”
Widespread speculation has named Israel’s Military Intelligence Unit 8200, known for its advanced Signal Intelligence (SIGINT) capabilities, as the possible creator of the software, as well as the United States.
Langer said that in his opinion at least two countries – possibly Israel and the United States – were behind Stuxnet.
Israel has traditionally declined comment on its suspected involvement in the Stuxnet virus, but senior IDF officers recently confirmed that Iran had encountered significant technological difficulties with its centrifuges at the Natanz enrichment facility.
“We can say that it must have taken several years to develop, and we arrived at this conclusion through code analysis, since the code on the control systems is 15,000 lines of code, and this is a huge amount,” Langer said.
“This piece of evidence led us to conclude that this is not by a hacker,” he continued. “It had to be a country, and we can also conclude that even one nation-state would not have been able to do this on its own.”
Eric Byres, a computer security expert who runs a website called Tofino Security, which provides solutions for industrial companies with Stuxnet-related problems, told the Post on Tuesday that the number of Iranians visiting his site had jumped tremendously in recent weeks – a likely indication that the virus is still causing great disarray at Iranian nuclear facilities.
“What caught our attention was that last year we maybe had one or two people from Iran trying to access the secure areas on our site,” Byres said. “Iran was never on the map for us, and all of a sudden we are now getting massive numbers of people going to our website, and people who we can identify as being from Iran.”
Byres said that some people openly identified themselves as Iranian when asking for permission to log onto his website, while others were impersonating employees of industries with which he frequently works.
“There are a large number of people trying to access the secure areas directly from Iran and other people who are putting together fake identities,” he said. “We are talking about hundreds. It could be people who are curious about what is going on, but we are such a specialized site that it would only make sense that these are people who are involved in control systems.”
Borrowed from Jerusalem Post - Thank you
Top German computer consultant tells 'Post' virus was as effective as military strike, a huge success; expert speculates IDF creator of virus.
The Stuxnet virus, which has attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities and which Israel is suspected of creating, has set back the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program by two years, a top German computer consultant who was one of the first experts to analyze the program’s code told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.
“It will take two years for Iran to get back on track,” Langer said in a telephone interview from his office in Hamburg, Germany. “This was nearly as effective as a military strike, but even better since there are no fatalities and no full-blown war. From a military perspective, this was a huge success.”
Langer spoke to the Post amid news reports that the virus was still infecting Iran’s computer systems at its main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz and its reactor at Bushehr.
Last month, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nation’s nuclear watchdog, said that Iran had suspended work at its nuclear-field production facilities, likely a result of the Stuxnet virus.
According to Langer, Iran’s best move would be to throw out all of the computers that have been infected by the worm, which he said was the most “advanced and aggressive malware in history.” But, he said, even once all of the computers were thrown out, Iran would have to ensure that computers used by outside contractors were also clean of Stuxnet.
“It is extremely difficult to clean up installations from Stuxnet, and we know that Iran is no good in IT [information technology] security, and they are just beginning to learn what this all means,” he said. “Just to get their systems running again they have to get rid of the virus, and this will take time, and then they need to replace the equipment, and they have to rebuild the centrifuges at Natanz and possibly buy a new turbine for Bushehr.”
Widespread speculation has named Israel’s Military Intelligence Unit 8200, known for its advanced Signal Intelligence (SIGINT) capabilities, as the possible creator of the software, as well as the United States.
Langer said that in his opinion at least two countries – possibly Israel and the United States – were behind Stuxnet.
Israel has traditionally declined comment on its suspected involvement in the Stuxnet virus, but senior IDF officers recently confirmed that Iran had encountered significant technological difficulties with its centrifuges at the Natanz enrichment facility.
“We can say that it must have taken several years to develop, and we arrived at this conclusion through code analysis, since the code on the control systems is 15,000 lines of code, and this is a huge amount,” Langer said.
“This piece of evidence led us to conclude that this is not by a hacker,” he continued. “It had to be a country, and we can also conclude that even one nation-state would not have been able to do this on its own.”
Eric Byres, a computer security expert who runs a website called Tofino Security, which provides solutions for industrial companies with Stuxnet-related problems, told the Post on Tuesday that the number of Iranians visiting his site had jumped tremendously in recent weeks – a likely indication that the virus is still causing great disarray at Iranian nuclear facilities.
“What caught our attention was that last year we maybe had one or two people from Iran trying to access the secure areas on our site,” Byres said. “Iran was never on the map for us, and all of a sudden we are now getting massive numbers of people going to our website, and people who we can identify as being from Iran.”
Byres said that some people openly identified themselves as Iranian when asking for permission to log onto his website, while others were impersonating employees of industries with which he frequently works.
“There are a large number of people trying to access the secure areas directly from Iran and other people who are putting together fake identities,” he said. “We are talking about hundreds. It could be people who are curious about what is going on, but we are such a specialized site that it would only make sense that these are people who are involved in control systems.”
Monday, December 13, 2010
General Says Islam is America's Greatest Threat - Former Delta Force Leader Speaks Out
Borrowed by Gannett - Thank you
OWEGO -- Army Lt. Gen. William G. Boykin's first words to an audience of about 300 on Friday set the tone for the three-part lecture on current events and military history he will give this weekend at the Owego Treadway Inn.
"Do we have any Muslims in here?" he asked. "Who's in here to cause trouble?"
Boykin's talk on Friday was the first of his three-part discussion, "America and the Greatest Threat of our Time." His lecture will continue with the second and third installments today at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the Owego Treadway Inn.
"I believe today we face as great a threat as we faced in 1776," Boykin said. "The situation in America is much far more serious than most Americans realize, and there's no longer any excuse for not knowing."
That threat, he said, is Islam.
"You need to remember one thing from tonight's presentation," Boykin told the audience. "Their objective is to replace our Constitution with Sharia Law."
Boykin spent 36 years in the Army, retiring as a lieutenant general in 2007. He was the U.S. undersecretary of defense for intelligence during part of the George W. Bush administration.
Boykin also was an original member of the Army's elite special operations unit, Delta Force. He either commanded or served on Delta Force missions in Iran, Grenada, Columbia and Somalia.
He was the Army's mission commander during the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, depicted in the movie "Black Hawk Down."
He said his experiences on these missions have led him to believe that Islam poses a threat to America.
"You need to understand that this is a war of ideology -- it's not a war of Islam versus Christianity," Boykin said. "This is a war of Islam against everybody that is not submitted to Allah. Now because most of the world is Christian, it falls out that most of the people who are under persecution, or the targets of Islam, are Christians."
Boykin said the way to solve what he considers the greatest threat of our times is to change the religious belief of Muslims.
"I have no resentment, no animosity towards them because I know that they're living under a hall of darkness," Boykin said, "and I know that the ultimate resolution to this is to take the gospel to them, to bring light to them."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
VISITORS
