Think About It

Terrorism - Will Americans Remember in November?

Over the course of the next few months we are going to hear a lot about pulling our troops out of the Middle-East.  I fear that many Americans will be lulled into the trap of thinking, “If we leave them (the Muslims) alone, they will leave us alone.” 

Obama and the Democrats have already laid the groundwork for blaming George W. Bush for any future attacks on the U.S.   The blame game goes like this:  When the U.S. launched an unprovoked attack on Iraq, this triggered jihad against the United States.  Any future attacks is just part of that continuing jihad.  I think it is critical for the McCain campaign to continually remind Americans that we has been under attack since 1968.

1. In 1968 Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by a Muslim male, who thought he was striking a blow for the Palestinians.

2. In 1972 at the Munich Olympics, Israeli athletes were kidnapped and massacred by Muslim males.

3. In 1979, the US embassy in Iran was taken over by Muslim males.

4. During the 1980's a number of Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon by Muslim males.

5. In 1983, the US Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by Muslim males.

6. In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked and a 70 year-old American passenger was murdered and thrown overboard in his wheelchair by Muslim males.

7. In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens , and a US Navy diver trying to rescue passengers was murdered by Muslim males.

8. In 1988 , Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by Muslim males.

9. In 1993 the World Trade Center was bombed the first time by Muslim males.

10. In 1998, the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by Muslim males.

11. On 9/11/01, four airliners were hijacked; two were used as missiles to take down the World Trade Centers and of the remaining two, one crashed into the US Pentagon and the other was diverted and crashed by the passengers.  Thousands of people were killed by Muslim males.

12. In 2002 the United States fought a war in Afghanistan against Muslim male extremists between the ages of 17 and 40.

13. In 2002 reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and murdered by-- you guessed it-- Muslim males.

In addition to reminding our fellow Americans about these attacks, it is important to remind them there have been no attacks against us since 9/ll.

Questions:

How should the McCain campaign handle this information?

Should it be made part of the official campaign?  If McCain does and there is another terrorist attack in the U.S., what effect would that have?

Will Americans remember this when they go to the polls in November?

The Origin of Radical Islam

When we in the West look at Islam, we find it difficult to understand what it is in the Quran or Koran that gives terrorists justification to attack non-Muslims.  The Skeptics Society has published on their website portions of the Quran that is divided into topics.  I encourage all who read this blog to go to the Skeptic Society’s website and review what the Quran has to say about the non-believers.  That would be you, if you aren’t a Muslim.  Below is some of their justification, along with the chapter and verse of the Quran.

The curse of Allah is on disbelievers.--2:89

For disbelievers is a painful doom.--2:104

Those who disbelieve ... will be fuel for Fire.--3:10

Let not the believers take disbelievers for their friends in preference to believers--3:28

Choose not friends from them [unbelievers]. ... Take them and kill them wherever ye find them.--4:89

Take them [unbelivers] and kill them wherever ye find them. Against such We have given you clear warrant.--4:91

The disbelievers are an open enemy to you.--4:101

We shall cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve--3:151

Whoso is wont to think (through envy) that Allah will not give him (Muhammad) victory in the world and the Hereafter ... let him stretch a rope up to the roof (of his dwelling), and let him hang himself.--22:15

Those who disbelieve Our revelations, We shall expose them to the Fire. As often as their skins are consumed We shall exchange them for fresh skins that they may taste the torment.--4:18

Slay them wherever ye find them, and drive them out of the places whence they drove you out ... If they attack you (there) then slay them. Such is the reward of disbelievers.--2:191

The Children of Israel ... We have cursed them and made hard their hearts--5:12-13

Take not the Jews and the Christians for friends. ... He among you who taketh them for friends is (one) of them.--5:51

The Jews ... We have cast among them enmity and hatred till the Day of Resurrection.--5:64

Fight them until persecution is no more, and religion is all for Allah.--8:39

Slay the idolaters wherever ye find them, and take them (captive), and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush.--9:5

The Jews ... and the Christians ... Allah (Himself) fighteth against them. How perverse are they!--9:30

For those who disbelieve, theirs will be a boiling drink and painful doom because they disbelieved.--10:4

We have prepared for disbelievers Fire. Its tent encloseth them. If they ask for showers, they will be showered with water like to molten lead which burneth the faces.--18:29

But as for those who disbelieve, garments of fire will be cut out for them; boiling fluid will be poured down on their heads, Whereby that which is in their bellies, and their skins too, will be melted; And for them are hooked rods of iron.--22:19-21

Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world.  The Skeptic Website is:  http://skepticsannotatedbible.com/quran/index.htm

Questions:

If this is being taught and accepted throughout the world, what will be the result?

There are “secular” Muslims, such as those in Turkey.  Will the fanatics prevail?

What do we in the West do to stem the tide of Islamic fanatics?

Government Wiretaps Bring Lawsuits to Telephone Companies

P.C. World is reporting that a class action lawsuit has been filed against AT&T and other telecommunications companies.  The lawsuits allege the phone companies allowed agents of the federal government to wiretap phone lines without a warrant or special certification.

Apparently, many of these taps were on overseas calls made right after 9/11.   Government agents presented letters to the various phone companies asking for the phone companies’ assistance.

Needless to say, the phone companies are saying, “Wait a minute, we were acting in good faith.”  The federal government is sympathetic, so they are moving to enact legislation that would give the phone companies retroactive immunity.

Those who are critical of the Patriot Act are siding with the plaintiffs, who claim their civil rights have been violated.  The House bill would grant retroactive immunity to the phone companies, providing they had acted in good faith and had been presented with letters prior to the taps.

Questions:

How do we balance civil liberties against the governments need to know?

Should the plaintiffs’ suit be summarily dismissed?

Should taps on overseas calls be easier or harder to get?

Should the same standards apply to e-mails?

Is the End Near for Osama bin Laden?

An interesting shift is taking place in Islam. Yesterday, Osama bin Laden broadcast another proclamation from his cave, but instead of the usual Death to America speech, , bin Laden denounced Arab leaders for sacrificing the Palestinians.  Osama bin Laden is now urging Muslim militants to liberate the Gaza by going to war with Arab regimes that have aligned themselves with Israel.  These regimes include Saudi Arabia, Quatar, Kuwait, and Jordan.   He devoted much of his speech to Egypt, who he urged to use force to break the blockade around the Gaza.  Bin Laden called Arab leaders “agents of the crusaders” and “wolves.”

It is interesting to note that bin Laden is now urging Muslims to ignore the Islamic prohibition against going to war with other Muslims.  Bin Laden gets around this prohibition by claiming the leaders of Muslim countries who support Israel are not governing according to Islamic law.

“Those (Arab) kings and leaders sacrificed Palestine and Al-Aqsa to keep their crowns, but we will not be relieved of this responsibility,” said bin Laden.

Bin Laden singled out the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, for criticism.  He said Nasrallah has claimed he had enough money and men to fight Israel, but he has not fought to liberate Palestine.  Bin Laden was also critical of Iran, accusing it of trying to dominate the Middle-East.

Israel and Egypt have closed their borders with Gaza since Hamas seized control of the Palestinian territory in June last year. The closure brought about food and fuel shortages in the already impoverished strip where 1.4 million Palestinians live.

Questions:

What does all this mean?

Will this further fractionalize the militant Islamists?

Will those in militant Islam attack the heads of states, such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt?

Will this cause some in Islam to mark Osama bin Laden for death or capture?

Obama's Journey Towards Appeasement

Wow, President Bush hit a nerve when he spoke to Israel’s Knesset.   Barack Obama and the usual suspects in the Democratic Party went ballistic.  So, what did Bush say that upset our liberal friends?  Bush spoke to Israel’s parliament on the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish state, and as would have been expected, he pledged U.S. support for Israel and placed Iran on notice.  I am quoting much of President Bush’s speech, because it was a good speech, a speech that Churchill would have been proud to make.   "America is with you in breaking up terrorist networks and denying the extremists' sanctuary. And America stands with you in firmly opposing Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions. Permitting the world's leading sponsor of terror to possess the world's deadliest weapon would be an unforgivable betrayal of future generations. For the sake of peace, the world must not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon," said Bush.

Bush’s speech could have been given by a European leader before one of the crusades.  “The fight against terror and extremism is the defining challenge of our time. It is more than a clash of arms. It is a clash of visions, a great ideological struggle… This struggle is waged with the technology of the 21st century, but at its core it is an ancient battle between good and evil. The killers claim the mantle of Islam, but they are not religious men. No one who prays to the God of Abraham could strap a suicide vest to an innocent child, or blow up guiltless guests at a Passover Seder, or fly planes into office buildings filled with unsuspecting workers. In truth, the men who carry out these savage acts serve no higher goal than their own desire for power. They accept no God before themselves.

President Bush goes on to make it quite clear that the U.S. and Israel are now together in the struggle against radical Islam.  “And that is why the founding charter of Hamas calls for the "elimination" of Israel. And that is why the followers of Hezbollah chant "Death to Israel, Death to America!" That is why Osama bin Laden teaches that "the killing of Jews and Americans is one of the biggest duties," said Bush.

“Then Bush turned his attention to the naïve among us.  “There are good and decent people who cannot fathom the darkness in these men and try to explain away their words. It's natural, but it is deadly wrong. As witnesses to evil in the past, we carry a solemn responsibility to take these words seriously.  Jews and Americans have seen the consequences of disregarding the words of leaders who espouse hatred. And that is a mistake the world must not repeat in the 21st century.

“President Bush then goes on to utter those lines that caused a hysterical breakdown within the Democratic leadership.  “Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along. We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: "Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided." We have an obligation to call this what it is — the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history.

“Some people suggest if the United States would just break ties with Israel, all our problems in the Middle East would go away. This is a tired argument that buys into the propaganda of the enemies of peace, and America utterly rejects it. Israel's population may be just over 7 million. But when you confront terror and evil, you are 307 million strong, because the United States of America stands with you,” said Bush.

“It is questionable whether Obama really took that much offense to President Bush’s comments or he simply saw this as a good opportunity to stir a national debate about the merits of face-to-face discussions with our adversaries in the Middle-East.  If that was Obama’s intent, then he has succeeded.  There are pros and cons to face-to-face discussions – and we will hear them all in the next few months.”

Questions: 

Is it wise to enter into sit-downs with the leaders of Hamas or Hezbollah?

Should our President meet with the President of Iran?

Obama has cited previous cases where U.S. Presidents have met successfully with our enemies.  He cites Reagan and Gorbachev, and Nixon and Mao as examples.  Did it work then and will it work now?

Obama's Lie to Support Jews in Israel

Sometime when I hear politicians speak, I want to throw up.  On Thursday, Barack Obama pledged his support of Israel at an event sponsored by the Israeli Embassy.  At a celebration marking the 60th anniversary of the Jewish state in Washington, Obama said, `I pledge to you that I will do whatever I can in whatever capacity to not only ensure Israel's security but also to ensure that the people of Israel may thrive and prosper and build on the enormous promise that was made 60 years ago... So it is critical that we send a message around the world, we will stand with Israel, we want them around not just for 60 years but for 600 years and when I am president of the United States they will have an unwavering ally in me."

Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and John McCain also pledged their support of Israel, but in light of Obama’s incessant daily promises to cut and run from Iraq, his pledge to support and defend Israel has to go down in history as the biggest political lie since Hitler shook Stalin’s hand in 1940 and pledged his support to the Soviet Union.

This brings up many questions about Obama and his future policies, should he be elected President:

If the U.S. pulls out of Iraq, will it jeopardize Israel?

Does Obama see the inconsistencies between his campaign promises and his promises to the Jewish community?

Is there a connection between Israel and us being in the Middle-East?

Does the Jewish community understand the implications of Obama’s campaign promise to immediately leave Iraq?

Why haven’t those in the Jewish community condemed Obama’s promises to leave Iraq?

Should We Close our Military Prison at Guantanamo?

A friend and I got into a discussion the other night about our military prison in Guantanamo Bay.  He was outraged at the idea that the detainees were on American soil without having the rights and benefits of a detained suspect in our criminal courts.  Ah, where does one start.  Perhaps with this week’s news from the BBC in Iraq:  “Guantanamo Man' in Iraq bombing.”  It seems one Mr. Abdullah al-Ajmi, a former guest at our facilities in Guantanamo Bay took part in a suicide bomb attack in Mosul that killed several members of the Iraqi security forces on April 29.  Abdullah al-Ajmi had been in U.S. custody in Gitmo and because he was a Kuwaiti, the U.S. transferred him to Kuwait in 2005 where he was acquitted of terrorist charges.  More than 80 prisoners have been transferred to other countries, and over 200 have been released.

According to reports, Abdullah al-Ajmi and two alleged accomplices obtained new passports before going to Mosul through Syria.  Once in Iraq, the trio detonated two car bombs that killed the several members of the Iraqi security forces.

The ACLU  and an battalion of defense lawyers tried to make the case that these military combatants should be tried as criminals in the U.S. courts.  Apparently the Supreme Court cringed at the idea of seeing 400 O.J. style trials, so in a 6-3 decision they gave the U.S. Military Tribunals sole jurisdiction at this time.   

What exactly would the three presidential candidates do about our military prison in Guantanamo is unclear, but if Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton get into office, they are pledging to bring the troops home, so presumedly the prison at Gitmo would no longer be necessary.

Questions:

If the war in Iraq and Afghanistan continues, what should be done with the 400+ prisoners in Guantanamo?

If we withdraw from Iraq and Afghanistan, will the prisoners simply be released?

Do Military Tribunals provide adequate justice for detainees?
Should we close the prison at Gitmo and move it to Iraq or the Middle-East?

What will John McCain do with Gitmo if he is elected President?

What would Hillary or Obama do if elected?

Darfur and the African Problem

Recently, I saw the documentary, The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo (2008), which documents the brutal assaults on thousands of women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  It’s an eye opening film that all should see, particularly liberals.   Thousands of these women were not only raped by rebel and government troops, but large numbers had their sexual organs mutilated.  Thousands upon thousands will require months if not years of rehabilitation. 

Liberals never point their fingers at themselves when discussing the problems in Africa.  They jumped in with both feet after W.W.II, joining the demands of African nationalists who were demanding their independence.  Liberals demanded boycotts of South Africa and Rhodesian businesses, which brought their economies to a standstill.    Eventually, all of the former African colonies of England, France, Spain, and Belgium gained their independence because of political and economic pressures.  Colonial rule, with all its downsides, maintained law and order on the African continent, but once the colonial powers pulled out most of those countries degenerated into wholesale murder and chaos.  Despite promises made by the new South African government, whites have fled in record numbers because of out of control crime directly primarily at whites.  Former Italian Somaliland became Somali after gaining their independence.  They are now nothing more than a feuding patchwork of Muslim war lords and pirates. 

Among those colonies was the Sudan, a British colony.  Today, there is mass genocide going on in Darfur, a region in the western Sudan.  A new generation of liberals are spearheading humanitarian efforts in that region.  This is to be applauded, but I can’t help but wonder how many of them realize the efforts of their activist predecessors helped sow the seeds of what is happening today in that part of the world.

The questions are:  Will the countries of Africa ever gain stability?  Will Islam continue to gain domination in Africa?  Will the African states ever unite into some kind of United States of Africa?  What is the future of Africa?

Is the U.S. Going to War with Iran?

There is a lot of rumbling about a possible U.S. invasion of Iran, which has been brought about by Iran’s stubborn refusal to stop it’s nuclear development program.  A leading member of America’s Jewish community told Newsmax that a military strike against Iran is likely.

Contrary to some claims that the Bush administration will allow diplomacy to handle Iran’s nuclear weapons program, a leading member of America’s Jewish community tells Newsmax that a military strike is not only on the table – but likely.  “Israel is preparing for heavy casualties,” the source said, suggesting that although Israel will not take part in the strike, it is expecting to be the target of Iranian retribution.

Israel is conducting the largest military exercises in its history, and Israel’s Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer has allegedly sent a stern warning to Tehran:  “An Iranian attack will prompt a severe reaction from Israel, which will destroy the Iranian nation.”

He predicted that in a future war, “hundreds of missiles will rain on Israel,” but added that Iran “is definitely aware of our strength.”

Iran has been arming Hezbollah and Hamas and many predict huge missile attacks against Israel will be launched from Lebanon and Palestine

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is allegedly telling his associates privately his number one priority is have the Israeli military strike Iran if the U.S. is unwilling.

The Saudi government has approved nuclear fallout preparations, and the Iranian press reported that the approval came a day after Cheney met with the kingdom’s high-ranking officials, further stating that the U.S. “is now informing its Arab allies of a potential war.”

The questions are:  Is this just more saber rattling or the real thing?  Will the U.S. spearhead the attacks?   Or, will Israel go it alone in attacking Iran?   Can the U.S. afford to become embroiled in a war with Iran? 

The Unseen War with China

  The U.S. is at war, but not in the conventional sense.  Computer hacking, once the domain of geeky teenagers, has now moved into the shadowy world of foreign intelligence agencies.  Our government is reluctantly admitting that secret files within the Pentagon have been breached by unknown an unknown person or persons in China.  Recently, an innocent looking military shopping list from India was found to contain a deeply embedded computer code known as “Poison Ivy,” which allows the foreign agent to view each and every keystroke that is subsequently made on the recipient’s computer.  Poison Ivy also renders firewalls useless, and malware software isn’t detecting the embedded codes.  Last year, over 12,000 of these mysterious e-mails turned up in government agencies and defense contractors, and most of these intrusions can be traced back to the Internet address cybersyndrome.org, which is based in China.  Cybersyndrome is one of China’s largest Internet providers.  Other hacking has been traced back to Russia.  “It’s espionage on a massive scale,” said Paul Kurtz, a former high-ranking national security official.

   Often these foreign intruders route their electronic spying through one or more other countries, such as Saudi Arabia.  The detection is difficult because the foreign agents constantly change the coding, which means as soon as one is discovered and erradicated, another pops up.  This problem is not confined to the U.S.; Britain’s MI5 notified nearly 300 companies in 2007 that hackers from China were attempting to gain information. 

   The questions are:  How much sensitive information have they gotten?  How many of our intelligence agents are known to China and Russia?  How many trade secrets have they stolen?  How many Trojan Horses have they planted deep into our computer systems?  Will all of this render our missile defenses useless?    Think About It.