Comrade Kerry Shows His True Colors

At first I thought it was the usual cheap comment from a Presidential Wanna-Be when I heard John Kerry say that President Bush had lived in Texas but now “lives in a state of denial.”

Then, Mr. Kerry said: “You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”

If this doesn't show the true difference between Republicans and Democrats than nothing ever will. John Kerry has shown his complete contempt for the US military. I believe this is typical of the Democratic Party. Make no mistake... this isn't a slam at the White House but a slam on our troops. Obviously Mr. Kerry doesn't have a high regard for those who wear this nation's uniform.

When Senator John McCain stated "Senator Kerry owes an apology to the many thousands of Americans serving in Iraq, who answered their country’s call because they are patriots and not because of any deficiencies in their education,” Kerry said that the criticism of his statements were from “assorted right-wing nut jobs.”

Sen. John Kerry defiantly and in no uncertain terms declared Tuesday that he would "apologize to no one" for statements made about education and American troops.

"Shame on them, shame on them," Kerry said of the Bush administration, which he charged is afraid to debate "real men."

Is John Kerry a "real man"?







How Can People Be so Dumb?

59 million Americans voted for this clown in 2004. That's slightly over 48% of those who voted.















John Kerry said "This war in Iraq is a disgrace."
I say that he is a disgrace.
If Silver Star recipient Kerry does begin even an undeclared presidential campaign, as the months roll by he will come under increasing pressure to announce that he won't seek re election to his Senate seat, which is also up in 2008.

AWESOME!

Anyone that loves photography will appreciate the precision of the photo. As the jets are probably moving at around 400 mph and you being just right to get the shot at that instant. And that is a hard formation to stay at as the ones in the "S" are just a little graduated degree behind the next one and staying that way to maintain the formation.

It is a great photo of an Air Force training squadron flying in a never-done-before "USA" formation over the control tower "Taj Mahal" (HQ building) of Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.

Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you,
Jesus Christ and the American G. I.
One died for your soul;
the other for your freedom.

***OK...I have officially been duped. The above photo is a fake. It was sent to me in an e-mail from a trusted source. In its place is a real picture from the Blue Angels.
















HAPPY HOLLOWEEN!

Pause for Thought: Homegrown Terror Overstated?

Over the weekend, I read a story from The Christian Science Monitor titled:
Radical Islam Finds US "sterile ground"
The story came out last Monday but it usually takes me over the weekend to catch up on my reading. The complete story can be found online here.


Alexandra Marks

NEW YORK – The Islamist radicalism that inspired young Muslims to attack their own countries - in London, Madrid, and Bali - has not yielded similar incidents in the United States, at least so far.

"Home-grown" terror cells remain a concern of US law officers, who cite several disrupted plots since 9/11. But the suspects' unsophisticated planning and tiny numbers have led some security analysts to conclude that America, for all its imperfections, is not fertile ground for producing jihadist terrorists.

To understand why, experts point to people like Omar Jaber, an AmeriCorps volunteer; Tarek Radwan, a human rights advocate; and Hala Kotb, a consultant on Middle East affairs. They are the face of young Muslim-Americans today - educated, motivated, and integrated into society - and their voices help explain how the nation's history of inclusion has helped to defuse sparks of Islamist extremism.

"American society is more into the whole assimilation aspect of it," says New York-born Mr. Jaber. "In America, it's a lot easier to practice our religion without complications."

In a nation where mosques have sprung up alongside churches and synagogues, where Muslim women are free to wear the hijab (or not), and where education and job opportunities range from decent to good, the resentments that can breed extremism do not seem very evident in the Muslim community. Since 9/11, however, concern is rising among Muslim-Americans that they are becoming targets of bias and suspicion - by law enforcement as well as fellow citizens. It's a disquieting trend, say the young Muslims - one that might eventually help radicalism to grow.

It's impossible to pinpoint the factors that produce home-grown terrorists, analysts say. But it's also impossible to ignore the stark contrast between the lives of Muslims in European countries where bombings have occurred and those of Muslims in America.

"What we have here among Muslim-Americans is a very conservative success ethic," says John Zogby, president of Zogby International in Utica, N.Y., whose polling firm has surveyed the Muslim-American community. "People come to this country and they like it. They don't view it as the belly of the beast. With very few exceptions, you don't see the bitter enclaves that you have in Europe."

The 'home-grown' threat: Is it overstated?

A small but growing number of analysts believe that some US officials have overstated the threat of homegrown Islamist radicalism in the United States. While Al Qaeda and foreign terrorists remain determined to attack in America, they say, the focus on potential American cells may be leading the US to misdirect its antiterror efforts.

"My theory as to why we haven't found any [homegrown Islamist terrorist cells] is because there aren't very many of them.... They aren't the diabolical, capable, and inventive people envisioned by most politicians and people in the terrorism industry," says John Mueller, a political scientist at Ohio State University. "The danger is that we've wasted an enormous amount of money with all of the wiretaps [and] investigations, and diverted two-thirds of the FBI from criminal work to terrorism work."

The FBI calls such conclusions "uninformed," citing alleged plots by radicalized US citizens. The most notable was the case of the Lackawanna Six, so named for the six Yemeni-Americans from Lackawanna, N.Y., who went to Al Qaeda training camps in the spring of 2001.

"The people who make these claims [about threats being exaggerated] are never the ones responsible for preventing these attacks," says John Miller, the FBI's assistant director of public affairs. "The point is that if you're the dead guy, or you're a family member of one of those guys, all you know is that you wanted someone to develop the intelligence and take the actions to prevent it."

Still, a lack of public evidence pointing to extensive Islamist extremism in the US is leading a small but growing number of experts to agree with Professor Meuller's assessment. Like Meuller, though, they add a cautionary note.

"There's not zero threat in any community, but it is good news and we have to hope that reflects an underlying reality that [homegrown extremist cells] don't exist here," says Jonathan Winer, a terrorism expert in Washington. "You've always got lone nuts in every imaginable ethnic group grabbing every imaginable ideology to justify terrorism."

Instead of my usual editorial, why don't you decide?

False Comments and False Prophets

It may be Hussam Ayloush's official web site, but should the Southern California executive director of CAIR be fabricating false and inflammatory comments to his own postings?

Check out the comments section to this post " It is humbling to be popular" by Hussam Ayloush.

Read these three comments:

john killebrew said...

80% of all muslims,lend financial,moral,or infrastructure support to terrorist's.muslims have lifted deception to an art form.i've yet to hear any of you denounce terrorism or terrorist's.you worship "allah"the name of the ancient arabic "moon god"you spread your faith by the sword.your goal is imposing your beliefs on the world.you are my enemy.

10:33 PM
Don R said...

CAIR is simply a collection of terrorist supporters who don't deserve the freedoms they are allowed in this country. Of course the owner of this blog won't have the guts to allow this to be posted, since Muslims don't seem to like criticism.

6:53 AM
Anonymous said...

You're a bunch of pedophile-worshipping Muslim terrorists. Oops, I'm sorry---that's a redundancy. It's enough to say Mohamedans. The mass deportation of the entire Islamic fifth column from the West is only a matter of time. Enjoy our hospitality while it lasts, Mohamedans, because if the civilized Germans were capable of perpetrating a genocide against millions of innocent and helpless Jews, Slavs and gypsies, you can be sure that the same Europeans will arrange the same genocide for millions of Muslims who burn cars, attack individuals in broad daylight and rape women. THEN you will learn what TRUE "Islamophobia" really is.

Curse the umma.

Are these comments designed to arouse anger among the Muslim community?

If you take the time to read the comments at his web site, you will see that these comments are easily fabricated. None of them are from registered bloggers.

But Hussam Ayloush is not alone.
Ahmed Bedier does the same thing.
Go to this comment section in reference to this posting.. "Ahmed Bedier is Not Spokesperson for Al-Arian and Has Never Met Him"

If you try to post a comment you will read:
Comment moderation has been enabled. All comments must be approved by the blog author.
This blog does not allow anonymous comments.

But the first four comments are all anonymous.
These "anonymous" comments are clearly fabrications used to enhance the post.
Here are the comments:

Anonymous said...

If I remember correctly Kaufman is tied to the jewish terrorist group Kach. He should be sued for libel and defamation, including an thorough investigation of ties to terrorist organizations.

9/10/2006 1:51 AM
Anonymous said...

I have been reading this guy kaufman for a long time. He doesn't seem to have any credentials yet gives himself the license to write on Muslim affairs. Does anyone know who funds him? He used to have links to the terrorist Jewish Defense League on his website. The FBI should investigate him.

9/13/2006 2:37 PM
Anonymous said...

Excellent post, keep your voice heard!

9/20/2006 12:31 PM
Anonymous said...

I don't hate Muslims, I just will NEVER *trust* any of them. I have no idea WHY muslims want to live in America anyway if we are such evil people.

I really wish muslims in America would go back to their own beloved Islamic countries.

You people don't like our freedoms here anyway, and don't seem to understand that Free Speech goes BOTH WAYS.
And to the poster who said "Jewish terrorist group Kach" LOL
How many are in that group compared to Islaimic terrorist groups causing terror ALL OVER THE WORLD??
Why not make a website like THIS ONE (link below) to list all the Jewish terror done in the world..keep a running list? And then we can compare who causes MORE terror??!!
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/

Paris Times Deux: An Experiment in Multiculturalism Gone Wrong

While Americans are getting ready for trick or treating, Parisians are getting ready for another round of riots.
Last year in Paris nearly 9000 automobiles were torched and over 3000 arrest during three weeks of rioting. Most of those rioting were Muslims of African or Middle Eastern descent.

The rioting was not contained just to France but spread throughout Europe last year including:
Belgium
Germany
Greece
Denmark
Netherlands
Spain
Switzerland

On Wednesday night this week, two groups of masked youths boarded two busy buses travelling through the suburbs of Paris. Pulling out pistols, they proceeded to threaten the drivers and passengers at gunpoint before spraying gasoline throughout the carriage and then setting it ablaze.

Attackers, some carrying handguns, torched buses in three overnight attacks in suburban Paris, as the nation faced the one-year anniversary of riots in France’s down-and-out, heavily immigrant neighbourhoods.

Fears of repeat Paris riots as buses burn

Armed "youths" today hijacked and burned a bus in Paris on the eve of the anniversary of the riots which tore through France last year.

Around ten hooded men, five of them carrying handguns, put a weapon to the head of the driver and forced him and his passengers off a bus heading to the eastern suburb of Montreuil in the early hours of the morning.

The gang then drove off in the vehicle before setting it alight in the second incident of its kind in Paris within a few hours.

In the other attack in the suburb of Nanterre around ten passengers scrambled to safety after a bus was boarded by a group of six youths who sprayed it with flammable liquid before starting a fire.

French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said the vandals were guilty of "attempted murder".

Drivers on the Montreuil line went on strike to protest against the attack while the Essonne local public transport network, TICE, said it was suspending all night time bus services on 17 routes because of "a series of "minor incidents".

As the first bus was being attacked youths threw stones at passing vehicles at Grigny, in the south of the capital, as well as police cars that came to the scene while another group stoned police and firefighters who came to put out a burning car in the nearby town of Corbeil-Essonnes.

Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, a leading contender for next year’s presidential elections whose hardline stance has angered many in the suburbs, vowed to track down those who set the buses on fire.

“The people responsible should know that we are after them…and they will face severe punishment,” he said at a news conference in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, where he was meeting with interior ministers from five other European countries.

French authorities are keeping a force of some 50,000 riot police in permanent stand-by. A ministry spokesman said it is important to find “the good balance: not overreact to the situation, but at the same time, not underestimate it either.”

The Ties That Bind Us...Bedier and Ellison

Source: StarTribune.com


WASHINGTON - Alarmed by the furor surrounding Muslim Fifth Congressional District candidate Keith Ellison, a national Islamic group(CAIR) is targeting Minnesota with an "anti-terror TV ad" blitz disavowing ties between Islam and terrorism.

The campaign, "Not in the Name of Islam," will begin airing today on cable networks statewide and during Monday night's Vikings game.

This campaign has been shown in other states in the past, but now will target Minnesota exclusively. Should CAIR be allowed to openly support a candidate and maintain its tax-free status?


To be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, an organization must be organized and operated exclusively for purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3), and none of its earnings may inure to any private shareholder or individual. In addition, it may not attempt to influence legislation as a substantial part of its activities and it may not participate in any campaign activity for or against political candidates.

The new Minnesota ad is meant to distance Islam from terrorism, but it has added fuel to the fire over Ellison's ties to some Muslim figures, including Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.

The 30-second spot is sponsored by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Washington-based group with strong ties to Minnesota.

The group's leader, Nihad Awad, says Ellison's predicted election to the U.S. Congress from the heavily DFL district centered on Minneapolis has electrified Muslims around the world, some of whom have asked him, "Is it true?"

But Awad, a former Minnesotan, has himself been the subject of an acrimonious nationwide debate over his alleged support for terrorist groups in the Middle East -- which he denies. Both of Ellison's opponents in the race, Republican Alan Fine and Independence Party candidate Tammy Lee, accuse CAIR of secret ties to Hamas, and question Ellison's support from the organization. The United States considers Hamas a terrorist organization.

Ellison's opponent Independent Party candidate Tammy Lee doesn't think much of CAIR

"CAIR is to Muslims as the Ku Klux Klan is to Christians," Fine said Tuesday. "I don't think that we can say that CAIR truly represents Muslims in America."

The ad campaign, which is intended to counter what the group says is anti-Muslim stereotyping, also is being coordinated by a CAIR official in Florida, Ahmed Bedier.

Why is a representative of CAIR from Florida coordinating the ad campaign in a Minnesota congressional race?

"The focus is not on the election," Bedier said, "but to send the message that American Muslims do not condone terrorism."

Bedier dismissed any allegations of the group's terrorist ties, including ones made in lawsuits brought by families of 9/11 victims. "After 9/11, there were families that sued every Muslim under the sun," he said.

He also said that CAIR's critics are indirectly taking aim at Muslims: "We are to the American Muslim community what the NAACP is to blacks in America. If you attack us, you are attacking the Muslim community and the religion of Islam in this country."

Is Mr. Bedier actually stating that criticism of CAIR is an attack on all Muslims?
Criticizing CAIR...an organization that has supported terrorism is the same as attacking the religion of Islam?
Mr. Bedier seems to think so.

Has CAIR Endorsed Keith Ellison?

Credit here goes to: The American Thinker

Beginning Wednesday, October 25, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) will air its “Not in the Name of Islam” anti-terror television advertisement on cable networks in Minnesota, including during a Monday night Vikings football game.

CAIR’s 30-second spot features American Muslims stating: “We often hear claims Muslims don’t condemn terrorism and that Islam condones violence. As Muslims, we want to state clearly that those who commit acts of terror in the name of Islam are betraying the teachings of the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad. We reject anyone ­ of any faith - who commits such brutal acts and will not allow our faith to be hijacked by criminals. Islam is not about hatred and violence. It’s about peace and justice.

Hmmm...So it must be purely a coincidence that it is to begin airing television spots in Minnesota affirming that most Muslims are against terrorism during a Monday night Minnesota Vikings game. Keith Ellison, a Black Muslim of the Farrakhan variety is running for Congress in the Fifth District in Minneapolis.

If CAIR were found to be engaging in partisan politics, it would jeopardize its tax-exempt status. I just wonder why the ads are running only in Minnesota if there is no intent to influence an election?

Some background information on Keith Ellison:

1987--Ellison enrolls in University of Minnesota Law School

1989--Ellison publishes the first of two articles in the University of Minnesota Daily under the alias "Keith Hakim." In the first such article, Ellison speaks up for the Nation of Islam.

1990--Ellison participates in the sponsorship of the anti-Semitic speech by Kwame Ture given at the University of Minnesota Law School ("Zionism: Imperialism, White Supremacy or Both?"). Ellison rejects the appeal of Jewish law students to withdraw sponsorship of the lecture. Ellison graduates from University of Minnesota Law School.

1992--Ellison appears as speaker at demonstration against Minneapolis police with Vice Lords leader Sharif Willis following the murder of Officer Haaf by four Vice Lords gangsters in September.

1993--Ellison leads demonstration chanting "We don't get no justice, you don't get no peace" in support of Vice Lords defendant on trial for the murder of Officer Haaf. Ellison attends Gang Summit in Kansas City with Willis.

1995--Ellison supports Million Man March, appears at organizing rally with former Nation of Islam spokesman Khalid Muhammed at University of Minnesota. Ellison acts as local Nation of Islam leader in march at office of U.S. Attorney in Minneapolis protesting indictment of Qubilah Shabazz for conspiring to murder Louis Farrakhan. Ellison charges FBI with conspiring to murder Farrakhan. Ellison writes article under alias "Keith X Ellison" attacking Star Tribune for criticizing Louis Farrakhan.

1997--Ellison appears under alias "Keith Ellison-Muhammad" at Minnesota Initiative Against Racism hearing in support of Joanne Jackson. Ellison defends "the truth" of Jackson's statement that "Jews are the most racist white people."

1998--Ellison first runs for DFL endorsement for state representative. Ellison identifies himself as member of Nation of Islam in Insight News article on his candidacy. Ellison runs for endorsement under alias "Keith Ellison-Muhammad."

2000--Ellison gives speech supporting Kathleen Soliah/Sara Jane Olson at National Lawyers Guild fundraiser. Demands Soliah/Olson's release. Asks audience to recall time when "Qubilah Shabazz was prosecuted in retribution against Minister Farrakhan." Speaks favorably of cop killers Mumia Abu-Jamal and Assata Shakur.

May 2006--Ellison writes letter to JCRC asserting involvement with Nation of Islam limited to 18 months supporting Million Man March.

August 2006--Ellison appears at unpublicizied fundraiser with CAIR executive director and Hamas supporter Nihad Awad among featured guests.

***
For follow-ups on Bedier Responds, I suggest visiting Always on Watch "The Blogosphere And CAIR" and What Would Charles Martell Do here.

Steve Harkonnen gives us a comprehensive review at Cair Watch.



For an excellent review of the Nancy Pelosi visit Gayle's Republican Blog here.

Don't Eat Spaghetti While Wearing a Niqab

Memories: Picture of the Wife and Daughters

Ahmed Bedier Finally Responds

After repeatedly ignoring my comments and blocking all negative responses at his blogsite...Ahmed Bedier has finally responded.

Here is the video I repeatedly tried to comment on. It can also be found on YouTube but again comment moderation has been enabled.



Did you even listen to the Pope's comments? He was reciting a document nearly 700 years old. He was not expressing his own views but of course this has gone completely over your head. You say that a "few Muslims" have burned a "few houses of worship"?
Doesn't the hypocrisy of this statement make you feel ashamed? Churches and synagogues have been burned down in vast numbers in Gaza, Serbia, Indonesia, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Turkey, Afghanistan, and in just about any other Muslim country you can think of.
That you say only a few Muslims acted violently towards the pope's comments again shows either a selective memory or a purposeful attempt to deceive. Anger broke out throughout Europe, Southeast Asia and throughout the Middle East. These were large-scale demonstrations and some were surely supported by the governments of certain Islamic countries.
Please speak the truth.

Posted by American Crusader | 10/20/2006 1:03 PM

American Crusader: I'm speaking the trut and speaking out. If you unplug your ears and stop being selective, you'll clearly hear me denouncing violence. I said that Muslims MUST NOT use violence when accused of being violent.

What's your problem?

You have a very distorted view of history. The entire world knows that it was Christian Serbs who massacred, raped and destroyed Muslim Bosnians.

In reaction to the recent attacks on Churches in Palestine, not only did we speak up against it, but we also raised the money and I personally delivered $5000 to the Catholic Charity for the repair of churches.

What have you done, but run your mouth, how are you helping bring people together. You and your buddies are only spewing hatred. Your comments are only one sided hate speech.

Why don't you read over the history of Jews in Christian Europe and compare that to the history of Jews in the Muslim lands, like the Golden Era of Jews in Spain, Egypt and Turkey.

Posted by Ahmed Bedier | 10/21/2006 1:35 AM

The following list contains all the responses/comments found at YouTube. It's pretty obvious that free speech is not one of Ahmed Bedier's favorite freedoms.

milsum (2 weeks ago)
What a reasonable statement. This Muslim man must have an international stage where the world can hear him. Kudos to CAIR.


milsum (2 weeks ago)
Very nice

milsum (2 weeks ago)
keep up the good work

Supkem (2 weeks ago)
Positive comments, proper admonsihing. I'm willing to give you a chance.

milsum (2 weeks ago)
Yes very positive and refreshing to hear a Muslim speak with confidence on this matter.

milsum (2 weeks ago)
Bedier is the mannnnn. You got me sold :)

hishoo (2 weeks ago)
Very positive presentation. Hope the world gets it.

GraBear (2 weeks ago)
That is the best speech I have heard so far.

KCtheKat (6 days ago)
Very well spoken, I wish your hopes and wisdom could ring around the world, and allow the misguided ones to hear your words. It is good to hear positive comments during these troubled time. (pbuy)

Why not allow all comments? Are you afraid of an open dialog?

Opened Letter to Pope Benedict XVI

On October 19, 38 Muslim scholars from 20 different countries, sent the Pope Benedict XVI urging mutual tolerance and respect. When I first read this letter I wanted to dissect and respond to it section by section but I decided to leave it alone and leave it to you to decide how to respond to this letter.
I've reprinted what I thought were the most important excerpts but the entire letter can be read here.

OPEN LETTER TO HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful,
Do not contend with people of the Book except in the fairest way.
(The Holy Qur'an, al-Ankabut, 29:4)

Your Holiness,

With regards to your lecture at the University of Regensburg in Germany on September 12th 2006, we thought it appropriate, in the spirit of open exchange, to address your use of a debate between the Emperor Manuel II Paleologus and a "learned Persian" as the starting point for a discourse on the relationship between reason and faith. While we applaud your efforts to oppose the dominance of posi-tivism and materialism in human life, we must point out some errors in the way you mentioned Islam as a counterpoint to the proper use of reason, as well as some mistakes in the assertions you put forward in support of your argument.

There is no Compulsion in Religion

You mention that "according to the experts" the verse which begins, There is no compulsion in religion (al-Baqarah 2:256) is from the early period when the Prophet "was still powerless and under threat," but this is incorrect. In fact this verse is acknowledged to belong to the period of Quranic revelation corresponding to the political and military ascendance of the young Muslim community.

There is no compulsion in religion was not a command to Muslims to remain steadfast in the face of the desire of their oppressors to force them to renounce their faith, but was a reminder to Muslims themselves, once they had attained power, that they could not force another's heart to believe. There is no compulsion in religion addresses those in a position of strength, not weakness. The earliest commen-taries on the Qur'an (such as that of Al-Tabari) make it clear that some Muslims of Medina wanted to force their children to convert from Judaism or Christianity to Islam, and this verse was precisely an answer to them not to try to force their children to convert to Islam.

Moreover, Muslims are also guided by such verses as Say: The truth is from your Lord; so whosoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve. (al-Kahf 18:29); and Say: O disbelievers! I worship not that which ye worship; Nor worship ye that which I worship. And I shall not worship that which ye worship. Nor will ye worship that which I worship. Unto you your religion, and unto me my religion (al-Kafirun: 109:1-6).

What is "Holy War"?

We would like to point out that "holy war" is a term that does not exist in Islamic languages. Jihad, it must be emphasized, means struggle, and specifically struggle in the way of God. This struggle may take many forms, including the use of force.

Though a jihad may be sacred in the sense of being directed towards a sacred ideal, it is not necessarily a "war". Moreover, it is noteworthy that Manuel II Paleo-logus says that "violence" goes against God's nature, since Christ himself used violence against the money-changers in the temple, and said "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword" (Matthew 10:34-36).

When God drowned Pharaoh, was He going against His own Nature? Perhaps the emperor meant to say that cruelty, brutality, and aggression are against God's Will, in which case the classical and traditional law of jihad in Islam would bear him out completely. You say that "naturally the emperor knew the instructions, developed later and recorded in the Qur'an, con-cerning holy war." However, as we pointed out above concerning There is no compulsion in religion, the aforementioned instructions were not later at all. Moreover, the emperor's state-ments about violent conversion show that he did not know what those instr-uctions are and have always been.

The authoritative and traditional Islamic rules of war can be summarized in the following principles:

1. Non-combatants are not permitted or legitimate targets. This was emphasized explicitly time and again by the Prophet, his Companions, and by the learned tradition since then.

2. Religious belief alone does not make anyone the object of attack. The original Muslim community was fighting against pagans who had also expelled them from their homes, perse-cuted, tortured, and murdered them. Thereafter, the Islamic conquests were political in nature.

3. Muslims can and should live peacefully with their neighbours. And if they incline to peace, do thou incline to it; and put thy trust in God (al-Anfal 8:61). However, this does not exclude legitimate self-defence and maintenance of sovereignty.

Muslims are just as bound to obey these rules as they are to refrain from theft and adultery. If a religion regulates war and describes circumstances where it is necessary and just, that does not make that religion war-like, anymore than regulating sexuality makes a religion prurient. If some have disregarded a long and well-established tradition in favour of utopian dreams where the end justifies the means, they have done so of their own accord and without the sanction of God, His Prophet, or the learned tradition.

God says in the Holy Qur'an: Let not hatred of any people seduce you into being unjust. Be just, that is nearer to piety (al-Ma'idah _5:_8). In this context we must state that the murder on September __17th of an innocent Catholic nun in Somalia-and any other similar acts of wanton individual violence-'in reaction to' your lecture at the University of Regensburg, is completely un-Islamic, and we totally condemn such acts.

Forced Conversion

The notion that Muslims are commanded to spread their faith "by the sword" or that Islam in fact was largely spread "by the sword" does not hold up to scrutiny. Indeed, as a political entity Islam spread partly as a result of conquest, but the greater part of its expansion came as a result of preaching and mission-ary activity.

Islamic teaching did not prescribe that the conquered populations be forced or coerced into converting. Indeed, many of the first areas conquered by the Muslims remained predominantly non-Muslim for centuries. Had Muslims desired to convert all others by force, there would not be a single church or synagogue left anywhere in the Islamic world. The command There is no compulsion in religion means now what it meant then. The mere fact of a person being non-Muslim has never been a legitimate causus belli in Islamic law or belief.

As with the rules of war, history shows that some Muslims have violated Islamic tenets concerning forced conversion and the treatment of other religious communities, but history also shows that these are by far the exception which proves the rule. We emphatically agree that forcing others to believe-if such a thing be truly possible at all-is not pleasing to God and that God is not pleased by blood. Indeed, we believe, and Muslims have always believed, that Whoso slays a soul not to retaliate for a soul slain, nor for corruption done in the land, it shall be as if he had slain mankind altogether (al-Ma'idah _5:32__).

Something New?

You mention the emperor's assertion that "anything new" brought by the Prophet was "evil and inhuman, such as his alleged command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." What the emperor failed to realize-aside from the fact (as mentioned above) that no such command has ever existed in Islam-is that the Prophet never claimed to be bringing anything fundamentally new.

God says in the Holy Qur'an, Naught is said to thee (Muhammad) but what already was said to the Messengers before thee (Fussilat __41:43__), and, Say (Muhammad): I am no new thing among the messengers (of God), nor know I what will be done with me or with you. I do but follow that what is Revealed to me, and I am but a plain warner (al-Ahqaf, __46:9_).Thus faith in the One God is not the property of any one religious community. According to Islamic belief, all the true prophets preached the same truth to different peoples at different times. The laws may be different, but the truth is unchanging.

Christianity and Islam

Christianity and Islam are the largest and second largest religions in the world and in history. Christians and Muslims reportedly make up over a third and over a fifth of humanity respectively. Together they make up more than __55% of the world's population, making the relation-ship between these two religious communities the most important factor in contributing to meaningful peace around the world. As the leader of over a billion Catholics and moral example for many others around the globe, yours is arguably the single most influential voice in continuing to move this relationship forward in the direction of mutual under-standing. We share your desire for frank and sincere dialogue, and recognize its importance in an increasingly interconnected world.

Upon this sincere and frank dialogue we hope to continue to build peaceful and friendly relation-ships based upon mutual respect, justice, and what is common in essence in our shared Abrahamic tradition, particularly 'the two greatest commandments' in Mark 12:29-31__ (and, in varying form, in Matthew 22:37-40_), that, the Lord our God is One Lord; / And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy understanding, and with all thy strength: this is the first command-ment. / And the second command-ment is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. Muslims thus appreciate the following words from the Second Vatican Council:
The church has also a high regard for the Muslims. They worship God, who is one, living and subsistent, merciful and almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, who has also spoken to humanity. They endeavour to submit themselves without reserve to the hidden decrees of God, just as Abraham submitted himself to God's plan, to whose faith Muslims eagerly link their own.

Although not acknowledging him as God, they vener-ate Jesus as a prophet; his virgin Mother they also honour, and even at times devoutly invoke. Further, they await the day of judgment and the reward of God following the resurrection of the dead. For this reason they highly esteem an upright life and worship God, especially by way of prayer, alms-deeds and fasting. (Nostra Aetate, 28 October 1965)
And equally the words of the late Pope John Paul II, for whom many Muslims had great regard and esteem:
We Christians joyfully recognize the religious values we have in common with Islam.

Today I would like to repeat what I said to young Muslims some years ago in Casablanca: "We believe in the same God, the one God, the living God, the God who created the world and brings his creatures to their perfection" (Insegnamenti, VIII/2 [1985] p.497, quoted during a general audience on May 5, 1999_.

Muslims also appreciated your un-precedented personal expres-sion of sorrow, and your clarification and assurance (on the 17th of September) that your quote does not reflect your own personal opinion, as well as the Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone's affirmation (on the 16th of September) of the conciliar document Nostra Aetate. Finally, Muslims appreciated that (on September 25th) in front of an assem-bled group of ambassadors from Muslim countries you expressed "total and profound respect for all Muslims". We hope that we will all avoid the mistakes of the past and live together in the future in peace, mutual acceptance and respect.
And all praise belongs to God, and there is neither power nor strength except through God.

SIGNED

****

I strongly recommend visiting FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT's blogsite to see a tribute to the Coast Guard and yours truly.

Ahmadinejad Back to Old Tricks

As if dealing with one loony dictator wasn't enough, Iran's president has once again questioned Israel's right to exist.

TEHRAN, Oct 19, 2006 (AFP) - A defiant President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted Thursday that Iran will not back down "an inch" over its nuclear programme despite the growing threat of sanctions, and fired off another verbal attack on Israel, calling it a fraudulent regime that cannot survive.

"The world must know that the Iranian people will not back down even an inch on its rights to peaceful nuclear energy," Ahmadinejad said in a speech in Islamshahr, southwest of the capital.

"The enrichment of uranium and having nuclear fuel are among the main demands of Iranian nation," he added in the address broadcast live on state television.

Iran has vehemently rejected warnings by the West to halt its sensitive nuclear activities, particularly the enrichment of uranium, a process which makes fuel for nuclear power stations but can be extended to form the core of an atomic bomb.

The West sees Iran's nuclear programme as a cover for weapons development, but Tehran insists it is for peaceful energy purposes only, and says it has every right to enrich uranium under the Non-Proliferation Treaty.


Ahmadinejad also took another verbal swipe at its arch-enemy Israel, saying "the Zionist regime is fraudulent and illegitimate and cannot survive".

"The big powers have created this fraud regime and allowed it to commit all kind of crimes to guarantee their interests," he told the crowd.

Ahmadinejad has in the past called for Israel to be "wiped off the map" or even relocated as far away as Alaska, and has also questioned the Holocaust.

His comments came on the eve of the Islamic republic's "Qods (Jerusalem) Day" in support of the Palestinians and to condemn Israel.

Israel has repeatedly said Iran is now its greatest threat, following the toppling of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq in 2003.

The Jewish state is however widely considered the Middle East's sole, if undeclared nuclear weapons power with an estimated arsenal of 200 warheads. Complete story here.

Was It Really 17 Years Ago?

1989: East Germany leader ousted
The Communist leader of East Germany, Erich Honecker, has been forced to step down as leader of the country.

After 18 years in power he will be replaced by Egon Krenz, currently the head of internal and external security for the Politburo.

The official reason for his departure is said to be "ill health" but failure to deal with the tide of discontentment sweeping the country and the party is thought to be the real reason.

Up to 120,000 people marched in Leipzig on Monday to protest against a lack of political reforms and thousands of people are continuing to leave the country in search of better opportunities.

The recent visit of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev is also being seen as a contributing factor to the downfall of Mr Honecker.

The Soviet leader was highly critical of the East German leadership saying there was a need for people to feel involved with their country and to have their opinions taken seriously.

The placement of Mr Krenz is being seen by the opposition as a change of tactics rather than a change of direction.

The banned opposition movement New Forum said: "Krenz's appointment shows the Communist party has no intention of sharing power. Reform under him is unlikely."

A decade's grooming

Mr Krenz, who at 55 is the youngest member of the Politburo, has been groomed to take over for more than a decade by Mr Honecker.

The news has so far received mixed reactions.

Student Steffi Muller, referring to the official announcement that "health reasons" were the cause for the departure said: "They were really referring to the health of the country - we were dying on our feet under Honecker."

Rainer Eppelmann, an East Berlin vicar said: "Krenz must show that he has the will to change things, and not only cosmetically."

Mr Honecker was expected to retire next year, following the country's 40th anniversary celebrations.

In November 1989, in a bid to bolster the political regime, the Berlin Wall, set up under the personal supervision of Erich Honecker, was torn down on the orders of Egon Krenz.

It was not enough to stop people leaving East Germany and on 3 October 1990 the two Germanys merged to form a new united country.

A new administration took over in the reunified Germany, led by Helmut Kohl.

In 1990 Mr Honecker was charged with high treason, abuses of power and corruption.

Proceedings against him were suspended, due to his ill health, and he was allowed to go into exile in Chile where he died in 1994.

Does Bush Get It?

Bush Honors Muslims at White House Dinner

AP:WASHINGTON — President Bush marked the end of the daily fast during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan Monday night by honoring Muslims living in the United States and Islamic nations that are helping in the War on Terror.

Bush stated "Ramadan is the holiest time of the Muslim year and an important holiday when Muslims take time for prayer, fasting and personal sacrifice," said the US President. "Ramadan is also an opportunity to gather with friends and family and show thanks for God's blessings through works of charity."

Bush has hosted an iftar dinner annually for the last six years in the State Dining Room. This year, he opened with the traditional Ramadan greeting of "Ramadan Karim" and praised Islam for bringing "hope and comfort to more than a billion people around the world."

Hope and comfort? Charity? Ramadan has continually been one of the deadliest months of the year. Insurgent and sectarian attacks in the Iraqi capital have shot up during Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting and atonement, according to U.S. military statistics released last Thursday.

Since the beginning of the holiday three weeks ago, the number of violent incidents has averaged 36 a day. That compares with about 28 a day since mid-June, when U.S. and Iraqi security forces began a high-profile security crackdown aimed at stemming the violence between Sunni Arabs and Shiite Muslims.

In the last week Baghdad has seen 22 car bombs, with 10 on a single day - last Friday. Not far from Baghdad, at Musayyib, between Hilla and Karbala, nearly 100 Shia Muslims were killed.

In today's news, a series of six bomb attacks in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk has killed at least 10 people and injured dozens of others, police say.
And police found at least 40 corpses in the town of Balad and close to another 30 in Baghdad, in an apparent fresh wave of sectarian killings.

Earlier in Baghdad, two bombs hit the convoy of a senior interior ministry official, killing seven people.

In the last four days sectarian slaughter has killed at least 91 people in Balad, a town near a major U.S. air base an hour's drive north of the capital.

Ramadan isn't limited to sectarian violence. Throughout history, Ramadan has been a month of war between Muslims and nonbelievers. The following is a list of battles fought during Ramadan by Muslims.

* 624 - Battle of Badr. On 17 Ramadan, Muhammad led his forces in Arabia to victory over Makkan idolaters. "The great battle of Badr" or "Conquest of Mecca", was the first battle between believers and infidels.
* 627 - The Battle of the Ditch. Muslims trained for this battle during Ramadan, though it occurred in the following month of Shawal.
* 630 - Battle of Tabouk (also called the Battle of Tabuk). The soldiers of Islam, under the leadership of Muhammad, established a training and fighting camp in Tabouk during the month of fasting, and attacked the Byzantine army.
* 653 - Conquest of Rhodes. Muslims plundered the Colossus of Rhodes, melted it and turned it into arms for the soldiers.
* 710 - Muslims led by Tarek bin Ziyad, invaded Spanish southern frontier cities on the Andalusian coast defeating King Roderick. They stayed for eight hundred years, disseminating Islam. From there, Islam spreads out through Europe.
* 1099 - Battle of Ascalon. Took place on 22 Ramadan (August 12), the newfound crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem defeated Fatimid Egypt.
* 1187 - Battle of Hattin. Took place at dawn -- after the Night of Power (Lailat ul-Qadr); a night during the last ten days of Ramadan when tradition says that the angel Gabriel descended and God called Muhammad to be His messenger. (It is sometimes translated as the Night of Destiny.) Sultan Saladin (Salah Al-Din Al-Ayubi) wiped out the Frankish army and went on to reclaim Jerusalem for Islam. The battle took place on July 4.
* 1260 - Battle of Ain Jalut. Qutuz defeated the Mongols in Palestine.
* 1962 to 1970 - Yemeni Civil War. Fighting continued through nine Ramadans.
* 1973 - Ramadan War (Elsewhere known as the Yom Kippur War). Egypt and Syria launched their attack on Israel it was called Operation Badr, and foot soldiers were given religious slogans. The Yom Kippur War is also known as the 6th of October war of 1973 and the 10th of Ramadan War.
* 1975 to 1990 - Lebanon's civil war. Fighting took place over the course of seventeen Ramadans.
* 1981 - Iran rejected Iraqi offers for a Ramadan cease-fire.
* 1982 - Iran launched an attack on Iraq that they explicitly called "Operation Ramadan."
* 1986 - Christian forces called for a Ramadan cease-fire, which lasted two weeks.
* 1987 - Iran again rejected Iraqi offers for a Ramadan cease-fire.
* 1987 to 1993 - The first Palestinian Intifada was waged over six Ramadans.
* 1990s - There were at least 20 examples of Ramadan violence by Muslims during the Algerian civil war.
* 2000 - Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee stated that India would initiate a unilateral cease-fire in observance of the holy month of Ramadan as a step towards peace in Kashmir. Nonetheless, widespread fighting continued between Indian forces and the guerrillas in Jammu-Kashmir.
* 2000 - Al-Qaida operatives tried to bomb a U.S. destroyer, USS The Sullivans, in the harbor at Aden, Yemen. It was the Night of Power. The suicide boat was overloaded with explosives and sank.
* 2000 - Al-Qaida successfully bombs the USS Cole in the same harbor at Aden.
* 2003 - After the 2003 Iraq war, suicide bombers struck at four locations, including the Red Cross headquarters, killing at least 35 people.

The Eye of God

According to the Hubbel Telescope site, this particular picture if of the HELIX NEBULA, which is about 650 light years from earth.
It is said to be the nearest planetary nebulae to earth.
A planetary nebula is gas around what used to be a star much like our sun.
The photograph is not just from the Hubble telescope, but is a composite of data from the Hubble telescope and from Kitt Peak in Tucson, Arizona.

More Fizzle Than Pop. Plus a Dummy a Dhimmi and a Hero

Despite the UN sanctions (or lack thereof) and international bluster, it appears that North Korea failed in its attempt to produce a nuclear explosion.

The Washington Post reported that U.S. sources believe the North Korean test did not create a nuclear explosion.


"U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said seismic readings show that the conventional high explosives used to create a chain reaction in a plutonium-based device went off, but that the test fell short of producing a nuclear blast.

“'We’re still evaluating the data and as more data comes in we hope to develop a clearer picture,' said one official familiar with intelligence report.

“'There was a seismic event that registered about 4 on the Richter scale, but it still isn’t clear if it was a nuclear test. You can get that kind of seismic reading from high explosives.'”

Border Security

Some still don't get it. Listen to this congressman's take on the need to build a barrier to protect Americans from the flood of illegal immigrants crossing Mexico into America:

Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.)"“It seems like millions more dollars thrown at the problem,” said Frotman, “and turning the United States into the world’s biggest gated community. This goes against everything that our nation, as a nation of immigrants, stands for.”



In 2005, Border Patrol agents arrested nearly 1.2 million people who entered the U.S. illegally.
I wonder how many illegal immigrants they did not catch?
Estimate:
4-9 MILLION GOT THROUGH
They should personally thank Rep. Gutierrez for his support.


Dhimmi of the Week


This award goes to 'in a runaway' Keith Ellison, the Democratic nominee for US Representative from Minnesota's 5th Congressional District.

The nominee owes $37,233 in back taxes and tries to claim it makes him more sensitive to "pocketbook issues."

As bad as that would be alone, even worse he has accepted money from CAIR.
CAIR has been linked to convicted terrorists, terrorist acts and terrorist groups overseas. Isn't that a conflict of interest? Why not accept money from Cali..a notorious Colombian drug cartel. They both hate America and they are both connected to terrorist.

Background information on CAIR:
The Council on American-Islamic Relations or CAIR was founded by three leaders of a front for the terrorist organization Hamas, in June of 1994. Since its creation:

* Four of CAIR’s officials have been charged with terrorist activities, in relation to Hamas and Al-Qaeda. Two of those officials are behind bars in the United States; the other two have been deported. One of them, Ghassan Elashi, was just sentenced, this past Thursday, to seven years in prison. Another CAIR official was listed by the U.S. Attorney’s office as a potential co-conspirator to the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.
* CAIR has solicited money for two terrorist “charities” which were shut down shortly after the attacks on 9/11 for raising millions of dollars for Hamas and Al-Qaeda. Leaders of both these organizations were representatives of CAIR.
* CAIR has been named as a defendant in a lawsuit put forward by the family of the former Chief of the FBI’s Counter-Terrorism Section, John P. O’Neill, for his murder during the 9/11 attacks.
* CAIR’s parent organization, the Islamic Association for Palestine, in 2005, was shut down after it was found liable for the murder of an American boy, David Boim, during a Hamas terror operation in Israel.

Now I know Minnesotans aren't known for their political acumen, but would ANYBODY want this man representing them in Congress?

An American hero

CORONADO — A Navy SEAL sacrificed his life to save his comrades by throwing himself on top of a grenade Iraqi insurgents tossed into their sniper hideout, fellow members of the elite force said.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael A. Monsoor had been near the only door to the rooftop structure Sept. 29 when the grenade hit him in the chest and bounced to the floor, said four SEALs who spoke to The Associated Press this week on condition of anonymity because their work requires their identities to remain secret.

"He never took his eye off the grenade, his only movement was down toward it," said a 28-year-old lieutenant who sustained shrapnel wounds to both legs that day. "He undoubtedly saved mine and the other SEALs' lives, and we owe him."
Read the complete story here

Saturday's Protest by Joe Kaufman and Americans against Hate

October 12, 2006
For Immediate Release
Contact: Joe Kaufman (info@americansagainsthate.org)

AAH TO PROTEST CAIR, ELLISON AND DAVIS
SAYS CANDIDATES TAKING MONEY FROM THOSE CONNECTED TO TERRORISTS IS A "BETRAYAL OF THE VOTERS"
(Coral Springs, FL) On Saturday, October 14, 2006, Americans Against Hate (AAH) will be leading a protest against the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Minnesota Candidate for U.S. Congress Keith Ellison, and Florida Gubernatorial Candidate Jim Davis. The protest will be taking place at the Southwest Focal Point Senior Center, in Pembroke Pines, Florida, which is playing host to a CAIR sponsored event featuring Ellison as Keynote Speaker.

The reason for the protest is to call attention to the fact that both Ellison and Davis have accepted campaign donations from CAIR officials. According to records, Keith Ellison received contributions from CAIR's National Executive Director Nihad Awad and CAIR's Government Affairs Director Corey Sawyer. As well, according to records, Jim Davis has received a contribution from the Communications Director of CAIR-Florida Ahmed Bedier.

AAH calls this a conflict of interest and a betrayal of the voters, as CAIR has been linked to convicted terrorists, terrorist acts and terrorist groups overseas. CAIR was incorporated in June of 1994 by three leaders of the Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP), a Hamas front co-founded by the number two leader in Hamas today, Mousa Abu Marzook. Two of CAIR's former representatives are currently serving jail time for conducting terrorist activities with groups connected to Hamas and Al-Qaeda. And CAIR is currently the defendant in a lawsuit for the murder of an FBI Agent who was killed during the 9/11 attacks.

Both Awad and Bedier, two of the campaign contributors, have made disturbing statements with regard to terrorist organizations. Awad stated, in March of 1994, "…I am in support of the Hamas movement more than the PLO." And Bedier, in December of 2005, when asked if he believed Sami Al-Arian's association with Palestinian Islamic Jihad was immoral, said, "To a certain degree. Now, before 1995, there was nothing immoral about it." In addition, in July of 2006, Bedier co-hosted a radio show entirely devoted to praise for Hezbollah.

AAH Chairman and founder of CAIR Watch, Joe Kaufman, who will be speaking at the protest, stated, "It is beyond bad taste and completely unacceptable for candidates seeking high positions within the U.S. government to accept money from those individuals that support terrorist organizations and who are connected to a group whose former officials include convicted terrorists. This is nothing more than a betrayal of the voters of Minnesota and Florida."

When: Saturday, October 14, 2006, 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
Where: Southwest Focal Point Senior Center, in Pembroke Pines, Florida, 301 NW 3rd Ave
Directions: From I-95 head west on Hollywood Blvd, which turns into Pines Blvd. From Pines Blvd, make a right onto NW 106th Ave (which is not easy to make out). Go straight and continue around the bend, which soon ends at the Senior Center.

There will be refreshments.
Joe Kaufman is available for interview. E-mail: info@americansagainsthate.org.

Brainwashed From Birth

Why Muslims Hate

Friday the 13th

Friday the thirteenth is considered the unluckiest of days in many superstitions, unless you were born on Friday the thirteenth in which case it is your lucky day.

The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskavedekatriaphobia or paraskevidekatriaphobia, a specialized form of triskaidekaphobia, a phobia (fear) of the number thirteen.

Some say that the arrest of Jaques de Molay, Grand Master of the Knights Templar, and 60 of his senior knights on Friday, October 13, 1307 by King Philip IV of France is the origin of this superstition. That day thousands of Templars were arrested and subsequently tortured. They then 'confessed' and were executed. From that day on, Friday the 13th was considered by followers of the Templars as an evil and unlucky day.

As the story goes .... King Philip IV of France was known as an uncommonly handsome man. He was called Philip le Bel, the Beautiful, an ironic epithet for a king of Gothic pitilessness. Because of the French king's constant financial problems, relations between Paris and Rome had degenerated into a ludicrous state.

King Philip IV had exhausted all the usual medieval methods for balancing the books. He had stolen property, arrested all the Jews, and devalued his currency. As a last resort, he tried to tax the church.

Pope Boniface VIII was a fat and dissolute pontiff. One contemporary described him as "nothing but eyes and tongue in a wholly putrefying body . . . a devil." Philip the Beautiful openly referred to him as, "Your Fatuity." But Boniface knew the rules of the game as well.

In retaliation for France's new fiscal arrangements, the pope issued a dictum forbidding the taxation of the clergy. So the Beautiful closed French borders to the exportation of gold bullion, cutting off Rome's trans-alpine money supply. To rub it in, he arrested the bishop of Pamiers and charged him with blasphemy, sorcery, and fornication.

In retaliation the pope issued a bull condemning the arrest and revoked some of the Beautiful's papal privileges. The Beautiful burned his copy of the bull in public. The pope delivered a stinging sermon filled with ominous warnings that the church was a creature with one head, not a monster with two. The Beautiful issued charges, in absentia, against the pope himself, alleging blasphemy, sorcery, and sodomy.

The pope excommunicated the Beautiful. He compared the French to dogs and hinted that they lacked souls. His nuncios leaked a rumor that the pontiff might well excommunicate the entire country.

The peasants were stirred by such threats and the Beautiful quickly grasped that revolution was a better future to them than excommunication. So he acted fast, dispatching an army to Anagni, where the pope was staying. He placed the eighty-six-year-old pontiff under house arrest.

The locals managed to save him, but a month later Boniface passed away. Some allege he succumbed to shock at the outrage; other sources say that he beat his head against a wall until he died.

After a pliable pope assumed office, the Beautiful returned to his economic problems. His wife died in 1305, and since he no longer would have to kiss a woman's lips, he applied for membership in the Knights Templar.

The permanent knights of the Paris Temple may have suspected that his intentions were less than pious and did something almost unspeakable: they blackballed the king.

The following year, the grand master of the Knights Templar, Jacques de Molay, returned to Europe from the Mediterranean in a show of luxury. He was accompanied by sixty knights and a baggage train of mules laden with gold and jewels. Around that time the Beautiful was more desperate than ever to solve his messy state finances: he tripled the price of everything in France overnight.

Open rebellion broke out in the streets. Rioters threatened to kill him. As a result Philip fled to the Parisian temple and begged the knights for protection. It was all very humiliating.

In the fall of 1307, the Beautiful arranged a state action impressive even in these days of data highways and rapid deployment teams.

On September 14 he mass-mailed a set of sealed orders to every bailiff, seneschal, deputy and officer in his kingdom. The functionaries were forbidden under penalty of death to open the papers before Thursday night, October 12. The following Friday morning, alert to their secret instructions, armies of officials slipped out of their barracks. By sundown nearly all the Knights Templar throughout France were in jails. One estimate puts the arrests at two thousand, another as high as five thousand. Only twenty escaped.

The initial charges were vague - "A bitter thing, a lamentable thing, a thing horrible to think of and terrible to hear, a detestable crime, an execrable evil, an abominable act, a repulsive disgrace, a thing almost inhuman, indeed alien to all humanity, has, thanks to the reports of several trustworthy persons, reached our ear, smiting us grievously and causing us to tremble with the utmost horror."

What followed was so foul, according to folklore, that Templar sympathizers cursed the day itself, condemning it as evil - Friday the thirteenth - whose reputation never recovered.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Forgotten History Lesson

Theodore Roosevelt: "Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick"

Wise words. Too bad the Bush administration didn't follow his example. Just days before North Korea tested a nuclear device, officials in the Bush administration stated that they "are not going to live with a nuclear North Korea".

So what exactly is the United States planning to do now that North Korea has gone ahead with its test?
RESTRICT TRAVEL

The draft, obtained by the Associated Press, incorporates proposals circulated by the U.S. earlier in the day to prohibit all trade in military and luxury goods and prevent "any abuses of the international financial system." It also adds new calls from Japan to ban all countries from allowing any North Korean ships in their ports or any North Korean aircraft from taking off or landing in their territory and to impose travel restrictions on high-ranking North Korean officials.

Neither Russia nor China would say whether they support a resolution that could pave the way for sanctions.

Meanwhile, North Korea warns pressure will be taken as a declaration of war

In its first official announcement since testing a nuclear weapon underground, North Korea is warning that increased pressure from the United States will be taken as a declaration of war.

I guess this means next summer's vacation to Pyongyang will be put on hold.

***New Site
CAIR Watch


Since the early 80's, the terrorist organization Hamas has had a presence within the United States. Many groups connected to Hamas have come and gone. They include: the United Association for Studies and Research (UASR), the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF), the Global Relief Foundation (GRF) and KindHearts.

Another organization, the Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP) was shut down in 2005, after it was found liable for the murder of an American boy who was killed during a Hamas terror operation in Israel. Eleven years prior to its closure, three leaders from the IAP created the Council on American-Islamic Relations or CAIR.

CAIR Watch, a project of Americans Against Hate, was founded with the mission to expose the extremist nature and terrorist ties of CAIR, in hopes that it will be shut down, just as the others were before it. You can help in this endeavor. We need you to be our eyes and ears in your area. Events, publications, statements, and all else concerning the aforementioned are of grave importance to us.

Is there an article, blog entry or CAIR quote that we need to place on our site? Do you know of someone connected to the group that we should create a new profile for? We are open to your suggestions.

If you would like to assist us and become a CAIR Watcher, feel free to send an e-mail to us at:
cairwatchers@americansagainsthate.org.

Good Intentions

Update: Another good one.

North Korea Raises the Stakes

N. Korea Threatens to Fire Nuclear Missile if U.S. Won't Commit to Talks

Fox News: SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea stepped up its threats aimed at Washington, saying it could fire a nuclear-tipped missile unless the United States acts to resolve its standoff with Pyongyang, the Yonhap news agency reported Tuesday from Beijing.

Even if Pyongyang is confirmed to have nuclear weapons, experts say it's unlikely the North has a bomb design small and light enough to be mounted atop a missile. Their long-range missile capability also remains in question, after a test rocket in July apparently fizzled out shortly after takeoff.

"We hope the situation will be resolved before an unfortunate incident of us firing a nuclear missile comes," Yonhap quoted an unidentified North Korean official as saying. "That depends on how the U.S. will act."

Even if this is an empty threat, N. Korea has proven itself willing to continually raise the stakes with their nuclear threats. How far are they willing to go?

China caught in the middle

Unlike times in the past, China has come out in favor of UN actions against North Korea including economic sanctions. It has ruled out military action claiming it to be "unimaginable" but China was embarrassed when N. Korea went ahead and test fired a nuclear device despite China's strong objections.

BBC: A North Korean nuclear test has long been a nightmare scenario for China.

Beijing is one of the North's few remaining allies, and a major supplier of energy and financial aid to the secretive regime in Pyongyang.

China wants stability on the Korean peninsula; the last thing it wanted was an international crisis right on its doorstep.

It has condemned the claimed test on Monday, saying it resolutely opposes North Korea's actions, and that the test has damaged relations between the two countries.

That anger is also mixed with embarrassment, because Beijing repeatedly urged the
North Koreans to abandon their plans for a test.


The fact that the North went ahead regardless appears to be an indication that there are limits to the influence that China's leaders have in Pyongyang.

Balancing act

But the situation is more complex than that. China fears that if it uses what leverage it does have, by stopping aid to North Korea, the regime in Pyongyang might collapse.

That could send a flood of refugees over the border into China - something that Beijing wants to avoid at all costs.

Is Iran studying North Korea's nuclear moves?

North Korea may be going into uncharted waters but Iran is carefully watching events unfold as they prepares their own playbook.

For each of the besieged regimes, experts say, an underlying goal is to establish a level of international respect, especially in relations with Washington. To help achieve this, these experts say, the powers of Tehran are no doubt studying the more experienced Kim Jong Il for dos and don'ts, and vice versa.

"Not only do they watch each other, but they may indeed compare notes," says Jonathan Pollack, a North Korea expert at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I. Noting that North Korea has supplied Iran with missiles and other technology, he adds, "The North Koreans do have certain on again, off again relations with Iran, so they may do more than just study each other's experiences."

I wouldn't be surprised if Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and other hard-liners in the regime say, "Why do we back down at the last minute, when you look at the North Koreans and see that they make a threat and carry through - and on the whole that has not been a losing approach for them?"

Brave Words

Washington Post:









The Bush administration delivered a secret message to North Korea yesterday warning it to back down from a promised nuclear test, and it said publicly that the United States would not live with a nuclear-armed Pyongyang government.

North Korea "can have a future or it can have these weapons. It cannot have both," Assistant Secretary of State Christopher R. Hill said yesterday in remarks at Johns Hopkins University's U.S.-Korea Institute. It was the toughest response yet from the Bush administration, coming two days after Pyongyang announced plans to conduct its first nuclear test.

Hill did not explain how the administration would respond to a test, but he said it is willing to sit with North Korean officials and diplomats from the region to discuss the crisis. "We will do all we can to dissuade [North Korea] from this test," he said. State Department officials said Hill is considering a trip to Asia to discuss options with key allies.

"We are not going to live with a nuclear North Korea, we are not going to accept it," Hill said. He said the United States had passed along a private warning through North Korea's diplomatic mission to the United Nations in New York.


North Korea conducts nuclear test

WASHINGTON -- North Korea conducted its first nuclear test yesterday in brazen defiance of the United States, China, and other world powers, which have sought for more than three years to persuade the reclusive Communist regime to give up its covert nuclear weapons program.

So now North Korea has proven to the world that it is capable of producing and detonating nuclear weapons. The United States has stated that it will not live with a nuclear North Korea. So what happens next?
A White House official said late last night that the United States condemned the nuclear test and would seek action in the Security Council today.
Uh-oh...UN sanctions.

Sounds a lot like we WILL be living with a nuclear North Korea.

Bush Sr's Ship Has Come In

The United States has christened the 10th and final Nimitz-class ship, the biggest military vessels the world has ever known.

Spraying bubbles from sparkling wine across the enormous grey bow of the USS George H.W. Bush, the Bush family christened the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier named after the 82-year-old former president Saturday.

"I know you join me in saying to our father, President Bush, your ship has come in," the current president said during a ceremony for the last of the Nimitz-class carriers, the CVN 77.

"She is unrelenting, she is unshakable, she is unyielding, she is unstoppable," Bush said, lauding the warship's state-of-the-art design before pausing for a punch line aimed at his mother's well-known steely constitution.

The USS George H.W. Bush, named after the former president, is a $6-billion US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that stretches 333 metres and will carry a crew of about 3,000 sailors when it enters service in 2008.

“This is any naval aviator’s dream come true,” said the former president, who was a navy pilot in the Second World War. Four of his fellow pilots from the war attended the ceremony.

During WW II George HW Bush enlisted in the U.S. Navy at the age of 18, was commissioned an ensign, and for a time was the navy's youngest pilot. Serving in the Pacific theater, he flew 58 combat missions. He was once shot down and rescued by a submarine.

What comes next?
The next-generation aircraft carrier is known as the CVX. To be commissioned in 2013 still in its conceptual stages.


CVNX, the centerpiece of the Navy's next generation carrier Fleet, will be a large-deck, nuclear-powered ship. This next generation aircraft carrier will be achieved at an affordable, evolutionary pace beginning with CVN 77. CVN 77 will have a newly designed and integrated combat system that eliminates rotating antennas. CVNX 1 will incorporate this new CVN 77 integrated combat system, and will add both a new nuclear propulsion plant and a new electrical power and distribution system. The new nuclear propulsion plant will provide immediate warfighting enhancements, immediate life cycle cost reductions, and will enable future warfighting enhancements and further life cycle cost reductions. Subsequent carriers will feature additional new technologies including an Electromagnetic Aircraft Launching System (EMALS), an Electromagnetic Aircraft Recovery System (EARS), improved crew habitability, survivability improvements, performance improvements, and new functional arrangements and distributed systems.






USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) (foreground),

USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) (middle), USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) and their associated carrier strike

Groups steam in formation while 17 aircraft from the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps fly over them

During a joint photo exercise (PHOTOEX) while preparing for exercise Valiant Shield 2006.

Open Letter *Updated with Timeline

Dearest Gang of 500:

The most common denominator threaded throughout this story is the question: To whom should those of us in the media assign blame? Our answer is simple: the blame lies squarely with Mark Foley. Mark Foley lied. Mark Foley engaged in widespread deception. Mark Foley disgraced the institution to which he was elected to serve. Mark Foley resigned in disgrace before the entire Congress expelled him from office. Mark Foley should be and will be held accountable for his despicable actions.

Additionally, any individual or individuals with knowledge of these explicit instant messages between Mark Foley and underage pages or former pages should come forward and provide this information to the proper authorities. These witnesses must cooperate with law enforcement about their knowledge of these explicit communications. Also any individuals who had prior knowledge of these instant messages and provided them to the media instead of alerting the proper authorities must answer questions about their motives and the possibility that they put others at risk.

House Democrats interested only in tearing down reputations in order to make a power grab will be sorely disappointed. Republicans are unified in our outrage against Mark Foley and resolute in our determination to complete a full and thorough investigation of the facts. That House Democrats have decided to merely resort to crass political maneuvering indicates they are motivated only by their political self-interest.

Ron Bonjean
Communications Director
Office of the Speaker

Kevin Madden
Press Secretary
Office of the House Majority Leader

***The Gang of 500 refers to political insiders and journalists who influence the daily media narrative in US politics.

The following is a timeline of events connected to Mark Foley.
2001 — A Republican staff member warns pages “to watch out for Congressman Mark Foley.” A former page says that they were told “don’t get too wrapped up in him being too nice to you and all that kind of stuff.” [ABC, 10/1/06]

2003 — Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) has sexually explicit IM exchanges with an underage boy who worked as a Congressional page. [ABC News, 9/29/06]

SUMMER 2005 — Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) sends inappropriate emails to another former Congressional page. [CREW]

SEPTEMBER 2005 — Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-LA), who sponsored the page, learns “of the e-mails from a reporter.” [AP, 9/29/06; CQ, 9/30/06]

FALL 2005 — “Tim Kennedy, a staff assistant in the [Speaker J. Denis Hastert’s] Office, received a telephone call from Congressman Rodney Alexander’s Chief of Staff who indicated that he had an email exchange between Congressman Foley and a former House page…[Mike] Stokke [Deputy Chief of Staff for Speaker Hastert] called the Clerk and asked him to come to the Speaker’s Office so that he could put him together with Congressman Alexander’s Chief of Staff.” [Hastert Statement, 9/30/06]

LATE 2005 — Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL), Chairman of the House Page Board, “was notified by the then Clerk of the House, who manages the Page Program, that he had been told by Congressman Rodney Alexander (R-LA) about an email exchange between Congressman Foley and a former House Page.” Shimkus interviewed Foley and told him “to cease all contact with this former house page.” He did not inform Rep. Dale Kildee (D-MI), the only Democrat on the House page Board. [Roll Call, 9/29/06]

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2006 — Alexander tells NRCC chairman Tom Reynolds about “the existence of e-mails between Mark Foley and a former page of Mr. Alexander’s.” Reynolds tells Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) about the emails and his conversation with Alexander. [Reynolds Statement, 9/30/06; Roll Call, 9/30/06; Hastert Statement, 9/30/06]

SPRING 2006 — House Majority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) learns of “inappropriate ‘contact’ between Foley and a 16-year-old page.” After leaning about Foley’s conduct, Boehner told Speaker of the House J. Denis Hastert who assured Boehner he would “take care of it.” Later, Boehner changed his story and told the Washington Post he didn’t remember whether he talked to Hastert. [Washington Post, 9/30/06; New York Times, 10/1/06]

MAY 10, 2006 — Reynold’s personal PAC, TOMPAC, donates $5,000 to Foley’s campaign. [New York Daily News, 9/30/06]

JULY 27, 2006 — Foley writes a $100,000 check to the NRCC, chaired by Reynolds. [New York Daily News, 9/30/06]

JULY 27, 2006 — Foley, still co-chairman of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children’s Caucus, attends a signing ceremony at the White House for the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. [White House, 9/27/06; Talkingpointsmemo, 9/30/06; Washington Post, 10/1/06]

SEPTEMBER 28, 2006 — ABC publishes emails between Foley and former page. [ABC, 9/28/06]

SEPTEMBER 29, 2006 — Foley resigns. [ABC, 9/29/06]

SEPTEMBER 29, 2006 — ABC publishes sexually explict Instant Messages between Foley and several former pages. [ABC, 9/29/06]

SEPTEMBER 29, 2006 — “Aides to the speaker [Hastert] say he was not aware until last week of inappropriate behavior by Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., who resigned on Friday after portions of racy e-mail exchanges between him and current and former underage congressional pages became public.” [Chicago Tribune, 9/30/06]

SEPTEMBER 30, 2006 — Hastert admits he was told about the emails by Reynolds in the spring. [Hastert Statement, 9/30/06]

I find it interesting that someone had transcripts of these IMs for approximately three years. That means they were sitting on information that this man was a sexual predator and decided to wait until the most opportune (opportune for Democrats anyways) moment to release them to ABC.
Who keeps transcripts of their IMs?
Also Nancy Pelosi blocks former FBI Director Louis Freeh from conducting the investigation claiming that he "isn't good enough". Strange because he was good enough to be selected by Bill Clinton to run the FBI.