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March 31, 2006

Ungrateful bastards update

Did you hear what the Moonbat Pacifist Peace Activists did after they were rescued (less one dead Moonbat)?

Well, I should say, did you hear what they didn't do?

No, they still haven't said "Thank you" to the British soldiers who risked their lives to rescue them.

According the the Telegraph, Released hostages 'refuse to help their rescuers'.

The three peace activists freed by an SAS-led coalition force after being held hostage in Iraq for four months refused to co-operate fully with an intelligence unit sent to debrief them, a security source claimed yesterday.

The claim has infuriated those searching for other hostages.

The [Ungrateful] Canadians: Harmeet Sooden and Jim Loney, before and after.

Neither the men nor the Canadian group that sent them to Iraq have thanked the people who saved them in any of their public statements.

[...]

The two Canadians kidnapped with Mr Kember - Harmeet Sooden, 32, and Jim Loney, 41 - were said to have been co-operative at first but less so on arriving at the British embassy in Baghdad after being given the opportunity to wash, eat and rest.

Previous hostages have been questioned on everything from what shoes their kidnappers wore to the number of mobile phones they had. The pacifist Christian Peacemaker Teams with which the men were visiting Iraq is opposed to the coalition's presence and has accused it of illegally detaining thousands of Iraqis.

Jan Benvie, 51, an Edinburgh teacher who is due to go to Iraq with the organisation this summer, said: "We make clear that if we are kidnapped we do not want there to be force or any form of violence used to release us."

Although the CPTs has welcomed the men's release, it has not thanked the rescuers in any of its statements. It blamed the kidnapping on the presence of foreign troops in the country, which was "responsible for so much pain and suffering in Iraq today".

[...]

Gen Sir Mike Jackson, the chief of the defence staff, told Channel 4 News: "I am slightly saddened that there does not seem to have been a note of gratitude for the soldiers who risked their lives to save those lives."

Asked if he meant that Mr Kember had not said thank you, he said: "I hope he has and I have missed it."

It emerged that about 50 soldiers, led by the SAS, including men from 1 Bn the Parachute Regiment and the Royal Marines, as well as American and Canadian special forces, entered the kidnap building at dawn.

Ungrateful, miserable bastards. We should send them back.

I've previously commented on the contempt I feel for pacifists.

My opinion remains unchanged.

Posted by Mike Lief at 11:45 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 30, 2006

Ain't technology somethin'?

Thanks to the wonders of science, we now have this, the miracle product countless dog owners have been seeking for years.

Of course, untold numbers of wives are probably wondering if they make a husband-compatible version, too.

Thanks to Greg B. for the tip.

UPDATE

Bogie insists on a clarification that in his house, only the cats need products like these.

Posted by Mike Lief at 08:56 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Terrorists release American journalist; says kidnappers were swell

Jill Scott, the journalist held for more than 90 days by terrorists, was released today.

Best comment on her statement to the press appeared on Little Green Footballs.

She says the terrorists treated her well.

Her interpreter, murdered during the kidnapping, was not available for comment.

Well said.

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:09 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

March 29, 2006

They just want to be Americans, don't they?

I'm so angry, I'm having a difficult time not pounding the keyboard to pieces.

Un-American. Un-patriotic. Un-lawful.

All of which applies only as to American citizens. These people will never be deserving of a place in our country. The Senate amnesty bill is DOA.

These illegals aliens and their American supporters are remarkably stupid. Flying the American flag upside down is a distress symbol; as Michelle Malkin points out, they think they're just being disrespectful, but in reality, they've created a perfect metaphor for the crisis they've brought upon themselves.

Adios, morons.

Further thoughts: Why am I so upset by these pictures, when I saw a local idiot running aroundwith an American flag below a Mexican banner?

Because the Ventura reconquista had them mounted on a broomstick, and the American flag wasn't inverted. The people in the pictures above had to take the American flag down, remove it, then hook it back up after they'd given the place of honor to their flag.

People, American soldiers have died for the American flag. I'm not speaking metaphorically, as in, "they fought and died to protect the right of foreign nationals to piss on our flag."

I mean GIs have died to protect the American flag itself, to keep it from falling into enemy hands. All soldiers know the value of their national colors, which is why this picture has inspired us for more than sixty years.

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:29 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Political correctness meets cowardice

Remember the questions I asked Monday?

These students are across the street from the courthouse. They periodically run with their flags to the other corners. I am told by reliable sources that the police could cite them for truancy. Hmmm, does anyone see any cops? Did you know that the Ventura school district should lose money for each student ditching?

Just asking.

As it turns out, the local fish wrap was able to provide an answer to at least one of my questions.

Apparently, the Ventura Police Department did have officers on the scene. What -- if anything -- could they have done? What does the California Education Code say about students who leave campus?

48264. The attendance supervisor or his or her designee, a peace officer, a school administrator or his or her designee, or a probation officer may arrest or assume temporary custody, during school hours, of any minor subject to compulsory full-time education or to compulsory continuation education found away from his or her home and who is absent from school without valid excuse within the county, city, or city and county, or school district.

So, were the police officers issuing citations to the truant teens?

Well, referring once again to the litterbox liner:

Ventura Police officers John Fournell, left, and Mark Knackstedt tell Buena High School students to be careful of traffic as they protested immigration issues at the County Government Center

Rather than enforcing the law, it sure sounds like the Ventura Police Department was aiding and abetting the breaking of said law.

I don't for a minute think these two cops decided on their own to ignore what was going on; that's a policy decision, and those get made by the bureaucrats. But it does raise questions.

In Ventura County, truants are routinely cited for not being in class. If they're cited three times in a year, they end up in a process that may involve the district attorney's office. Parents end up being fined, possibly put on probation if their kids don't go to school.

Or is that something that only happens to truants who aren't foreign nationals? Or ignorant American students rallying on behalf of a vocal group of illegal aliens? Does the enforcement of the law become conditional, imposed only when the truant is not part of a group claiming "victim" status?

I suspect it's only a matter of time until some parent files a law suit claiming an Equal Protection violation of the U.S. Constitution, as a result of race-based prosecution -- or is that non-prosecution? -- which of course will be settled, with the taxpayers stuck with the bill.

As for the "students," so-called because I don't really think they give a damn about their educations, they've failed to learn the most important lesson of civil disobedience: If a perceived wrong is bad enough to justify breaking the law in order to highlight the injustice, the protesters must also be prepared to suffer the consequences of their acts. If they're not willing to do so, they're simply spoiled poseurs.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:56 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Mmmmm, Scotch!

Kim du Toit has an essential primer on the joys of single-malt Scotch whisky, as well as some good advice for new fans of the blessed nectar.

There's lot's of good discussion in the comments section, too.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:09 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 28, 2006

Army days

I attended the Basic Orientation Course for members of the California State Military Reserve this past week; it's a four-day series of lectures and military drill, designed to reinforce the mission, as well as inculcate a sense of pride and military esprit d'-corps.

Camp Parks is in Dublin, California, not too far from San Francisco as the crow flies, but worlds away when it comes to red-state American patriotism and values.

The soldiers began arriving Thursday morning, some flying in and taking the BART trains from Oakland, others (like me), driving. I got my base pass and drove to the barracks, where I found my colleague, Colonel D, in his half of a two-man, open-bay cubicle. I'd brought his sleeping bag up with me, so we went out the the car to fetch it, along with my gear, too.

Barracks 391 is a two-story structure, with day rooms in the center dividing it into two wings. The head is entered from the day room, and has eight toilets, eight sinks (four on either side of a wall, and eight individual fiberglass shower stalls with glass doors.

In the berthing areas are eight two-man cubicles -- four on either side of the corridor -- each containing two lockers, two steel-frame beds, one desk, a lamp, and a chair. The beds all have fluorescent lights mounted on the wall above them, and there are two windows, covered with heavy, light-blocking curtains on steel-pipe rods, in-between the beds. There are no doors, and the walls stop a good three feet shy of the ceiling.

Arriving as I had just a few minutes before we were scheduled to muster in formation, I quickly put on my BDUs, bloused them above my boots, made sure my pockets were buttoned, and headed out to the area between the two barracks.

A couple of sergeants were standing in front of us, and they instructed the company to form four squads, facing our barrack. Sgt. W walked along the front row, calling out, "One, two! One, two!" then told all the "Twos" to fall out and form a platoon to the left of the original group. I was one of the Twos, and quickly found myself in the fourth squad of Bravo Company -- soon to become the "Killer Bees," always shouted out while at attention.

Forming up after breakfast, outside Building 391.

My squad leader, Captain C, is a superior-court judge in civilian life, with this being his first exposure to the esoteric joys of drill. The other three squad leaders, Sgt. S-1, Sgt. S-2, and Sgt. L, all had prior military experience, and were born leaders, guiding their troops with precision and military polish. Capt. C did a good job, despite his inexperience with the commands and the moves, and the rest of the company helped him -- and anyone else having trouble -- master moving a group of soldiers from Point A to Point B with a pretty good approximation of parade-ground precision.

Keep an eye on this one, Chaplain; he looks like trouble. No, the fellow on your left; I think he's one of those ex-Air Force types . . . .

Sgt. W faced us and said, "This platoon has everything from corporals to bird colonels, so I apologize in advance if I don't observe military courtesies while we're in formation."

One of the colonels said, "No apologies necessary, sergeant." The sergeant smiled and said, "At-ten-HUT! Parade, REST!"

Master Sergeant Depp strode to the front of the Company, did a smart left face, the heels of her spit-shined boots smacking together as she popped to attention, then called out, "Platoon leaders, take your reports!"

The two sergeants did an about face, and yelled, "Platoon, At-ten-Hut!"

We came to positions of attention, heels together, toes at a 45-degree angle, knees slightly flexed, shoulders back; I stared at the back of the neck of the soldier standing in front of me, trying not to sway.

Sgt. W said, "Dress right (pause) DRESS!"

Everyone raised their left arms at a 90-degree angle from their bodies, palms down, fingers extended, and pushed the soldier to their left away until we had an arms length between us. Every soldier looked to his right, except for the squad leaders; we moved slightly forward or back until we were aligned with our squad leaders, who were on the right edge of the platoon.

Sgt. W said, "Ready, FRONT!"

We dropped our arms smartly and whipped our heads around to the front, then moved slightly left or right, to "cover," i.e., line up with the soldier standing in front of us.

When we were done, the platoon looked like this:

x x x x x x x 1
x x x x x x x 2
x x x x x x x 3
x x x x A x x 4

I'm the "A" in the fourth squad.

Sgt. W said, "Report!"

Sgt. S-1 saluted and said, "Seven assigned, seven present, sergeant!"

Sgt. W returned his salute.

Sgt. S-2 repeated the drill, as did the other squad leaders. When they were done, Sgt. W did an about face and saluted MSG Depp and said, "Twenty-nine assigned, twenty-nine present, M'am!"

MSG Depp took the report from the other platoon leader, then called out, "Company, right --"

Both platoon leaders turned their heads to the right and called out over their shoulders, "Right --!"

MSG Depp yelled, "FACE!", and more than 60 soldiers pivoted in place 90 degrees and formed a column.

Our drill instructor yelled, "FORWARD -- !"

Both platoon leaders echoed, "Forward -- !"

"MARCH!"

And we began moving out, Depp calling cadence. "Left, left, left, right, left.

"Column left -- MARCH!"

The first squad pivoted 90 degrees, while second, third and fourth squads took mores steps, then executed their turns. The fourth squad, being on the outside, pivoted twice, about 45 degrees, taking bigger strides to catch up the the first squad, who had less distance to travel. The soldiers then "guided right" on the march, glancing out of the corners of their eyes at the marcher to the right for alignment; everyone lined up on the men in the fourth squad.

I experienced a strong sense of deja vu; I was 17 again, in bootcamp, marching across the grinder at Recruit Training Command, San Diego, Company 167 moving like a deadly human-centipede chymera, the thudding sound of boots striking asphalt setting a rhythm that guided us wherever our commanders pointed, unstoppable -- or so it seemed.

"Left, left, left-right-left! Don't bounce, heels down, roll through, left, left, left-right-left!"

My reverie didn't last long. We hadn't marched for more than five minutes on our way to the classroom when there was a commotion in Alpha Platoon; I saw a man falling like a sack of potatoes, clearly unconscious. Medics rushed to his side as the drill instructor called out for us to keep moving, the fourth squad guiding around the stricken man.

We marched in the chill twilight, taken aback by the casualty, unsure what had happened, each soldier engaging in silent speculation as our boots pounded out a thudding accompaniment to our thoughts.

We arrived at the lecture hall and filed in silently, our drill instructor and the cadre assisting pointing out where we were to sit -- at attention, of course.

The drill instructor began teaching us immediately, peppering us with questions, insisting on a raised hand; if chosen to answer, standing at attention while speaking.

MSG Depp points out the proper way to stand at attention, as the class pays close attention. Most members have prior military service -- sometimes several decades -- but some have no military experience, so it's all new to them. Our most senior member of the class entered the military in 1962, and we have many Vietnam veterans qualified to wear the Combat Infantryman's Badge.

We were lectured on the intricacies of moving a company of soldiers from one place to another in an orderly fashion, as well as stationary drill; executing a proper About-Face on carpeting is a bitch when you're wearing sticky-soled combat boots.

A number of soldiers were told to fall out and speak with the medics; the incident with the injured soldier, who, it turned out, was Lieutenant T., a chaplain, had the cadre spooked. They wanted to make sure that the troops were fit for physical activity.

I noticed a uniformed federal police officer come into the room with reports in hand; it appeared that Chaplain T hadn't made it, although no official word had been issued.

One of the sergeants assigned as training cadre asked if I'd drive the van back to the barracks behind the formation as it marched, in case anyone needed medical assistance, and I slowly trailed the men in the darkness, my headlights casting long shadows into which the troops marched, never quite escaping into the darkness.

Lights out was at 2200 hours (10 p.m.), and it seemed I'd just crawled into my sleeping bag before the drill instructor turned on the lights, calling out "Good morning!"

Silence greeted her as we squinted and looked at our watches. Five o'clock. "Gawd," I thought, "it's far too dark, cold and early for this."

"I said 'Good morning!' Do you read me?" our drill instructor said.

From within the cubicles came a half-hearted, "Hoo-ah!" the all-purpose response of the 21st century Army.

"Formation at oh-six-hundred," she said, which I knew meant 0550. I had set me cell phone alarm for 0520, so I closed my eyes. A few minutes later it started playing the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's version of "Over There," and Col. D started laughing.

It had rained throughout the night, and it was still pouring out as we stumbled into the dayroom. Col. T, my platoon leader for the day said we'd wait inside until just before the appointed time, then muster outside.

Thankfully, the rain let up, although a biting, cold wind would last throughout the day, numbing fingers, ears and noses as we practiced more marching in the occasional passing rain shower.

Standing at parade-rest, waiting to get into the chow hall. It's chilly out, and coffee is much needed. Chief Warrant Officer Persad served in the British Army as a young man; he now teaches linguistics when he's not on active duty.

The troops are told to come to attention, move forward, then go to parade-rest. Lather, rinse, repeat, until inside.

It was cold out as we formed up, then marched to the chow hall for breakfast. The food was good, better than I'd had in bootcamp a quarter-century before. Then I realized that this was an active base, with soldiers and civilians who wouldn't stand for the kind of swill boots had to eat. Eggs, bacon and sausage, wheat toast and coffee, as Fox News Channel played on the TVs mounted in the corners of the mess hall's ceiling.

We marched to the classroom (are you noticing a marching motif?) and began a long day of instruction, one that would run from 0700 to 2000. Col. G greeted us and gave the official word that Chaplain T, 48 and a father of two, had in fact died. No known medical conditions existed, he appeared to be in fine health, and he was gone. One medic who'd tried to revive him said they never got a pulse during compressions; he was gone before he hit the ground.

By Sunday, we'd received more than 20 hours of classroom instruction, as well as many more hours -- and miles -- of drill. With a few rhythm-challenged exceptions, we were moving pretty smartly, a credit to the persistence and skill of our drill instructor.

SGT. Villafrench, a five-year veteran of the National Guard, waits to turn in her final exam. The sergeant was impressive on the march, moving with precision and loudly answering the drill instructor's cadence-calls in a voice that carried a hint of her childhood in Haiti.

We marched over to headquarters for an inspection by Brigadier General Hagan, the commander of the California SMR. Gen. Hagan, who was a Marine frogman before he retired and was subsequently recruited by the governor, is a lean man of indeterminate years. Brimming with energy and enthusiasm, he's a warrior's warrior, and the troops appear to respond to his leadership.

He moves from soldier to soldier, inspecting each one closely, shadowed by the platoon leaders, pausing to ask a question of each, offering corrections when needed, praise when deserved.

Sergeant Major Delaney: We're depending on you! And you, too! What are you smiling at? Get some polish on those boots, Capt. Lief.

He stops in front of me, and looks me over from head to toe. Having made sure to get a close haircut and a good shave, removed all dangling threads and checking that all the buttons on the myriad pockets of my BDUs are fastened, he finds nothing amiss, although the Sergeant Major, a grizzled fellow who's been in the infantry since Moses was a buck private, tells me later that I need some polish on my boots.

The general says, "Capt. Lief, where are you assigned?"

"146th Air Wing, JAG, general," I answer.

He looks at my dolphins, sewn on my BDUs above my breast pocket. "Submarine sailor, eh? Boomer or fast attack?"

"Neither, sir; diesel boat."

He appears surprised; most military men assume the last of the pigboat sailors are long gone.

"Which one?" he asks.

"USS Blueback, SS-581, general."

He asks how I'm enjoying life in the SMR. I'm not lying when I tell him that it's an outstanding experience, but I'm also thinking there aren't many men who would tell this general that his military is anything other than out-frickin'-standing.

Then he moves on, and I stand and listen to him speaking to the man to my left. When the inspection is done, we march inside for a speech by the general. He tells us of the valuable service we provide, to the security of the state -- and the nation. Gen. Hagan speaks of his desire for the California SMR to become the benchmark for the entire country, and says that the National Guard has told him that we've provided invaluable service, during Hurricane Katrina relief; in the run up to Operation Iraqi Freedom, and in the continuing fight against the terrorists and insurgents.

He reminds us that our mission is to support the National Guard in every way we can, to take over their duties stateside, freeing up more National Guardsman to fight overseas, and I think back to the soldiers I've helped prepare for their deployments, assisting them with planning for the possibility that they won't come home.

The general speaks for a moment of Lieut. T's death, reminds us that casualties -- while regrettable -- cannot and will not prevent us from doing our duty. He then asks for a moment of silence in honor of the lieutenant.

Soon, it's time for the graduation ceremony. We're each called to the front to receive our certificates, presented by Gen. Hagan with a salute and a handshake, then back to our seats, as awards are presented.

For some unknown reason, I find myself taking the long way 'round and, feeling like I'm taking w-a-y too long to get to the front, start jogging around the seats and up the center aisle, coming to a halt in front of Gen. Hagan, where I manage to pop to attention and render a snappy salute. Certificate, handshake, 'nother exchange of salutes and I'm on my way back to my seat.

MSG Depp in a contemplative moment, before she resumes teaching the finer points of military drill, customs and courtesies.

Our drill instructor, MSG Depp receives a decoration and gets a standing ovation from the troops; I find myself moved by her dedication and the affection we've developed for this consummate professional in a mere four days, and find myself cheering along with the men and women of our company.

All too soon, it's handshakes and salutes as the troops head for the shuttles to the airport, and I begin my drive home.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:38 AM | Comments (8)

March 27, 2006

It's 2 p.m. on a school day; do you know where your kids are?

These teens are standing in front of the Ventura County Hall of Administration, which is in the same complex as the courthouse.

These students are across the street from the courthouse. They periodically run with their flags to the other corners. I am told by reliable sources that the police could cite them for truancy. Hmmm, does anyone see any cops? Did you know that the Ventura school district should lose money for each student ditching?

Just asking.

Well, actually, if you're ditching class, you are, aren't you?

Hey, I'm just asking.

Take a look at the fellow in the picture above. He's pumping his fist as a Metro bus goes by, cheering at the passengers. It must be chilly, 'cause he's wearing such a colorful scarf; I wonder if it has some sort of significance to Mexican-Americans.

"Free Palestine," eh? What the hell?

Just another one of the "Americans/Jews are at the root of all evil" types, I guess. He had a clipboard and was on the cell phone a lot, so he looks suspiciously like some sort of organizer.

But he does seem to be having a good time, especially given the scarcity of that imperialist symbol of oppression, aka the American Flag. Oh, sure there were a couple here and there, one of them mounted below the Mexican flag on a pole, contrary to custom, usage, and the United States Code, but you'd need an education to know that the American flag flies above all other flags.

I noticed one juror wondering through the crowd, nodding his head approvingly. When he saw me looking at his Juror badge, he took it off and slipped it into his pocket.

One middle-aged guy was questioning a girl about how long she'd protesting; she said she'd been on the corner since seven this morning. When he asked if she was supposed to be in school, she answered that her teacher gave her permission, so long as she stayed on the sidewalk, and besides, she got out at noon.

Your tax dollars at work.

Posted by Mike Lief at 03:02 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

Did anyone even notice I was gone?

I haven't had access to the internet for the last few days; new posts will resume later today.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:41 AM | Comments (1)

March 22, 2006

A college professor's revenge

University of North Carolina Prof. Mike Adams decided he'd simply follow the lead of his students and let his feelings guide his actions.

. . . Thanks to the woman who spent our entire review session asking me what was going to be on the test by repeating terms and asking “Is this important?” The answer is “yes.” Being a chronic pain in the ass is important. It means your co-workers will probably hate you as much as your professors – that is, if you ever graduate from college.

And, finally, thanks to the young man who frantically shoves his cell phone in his pocket every day at the exact moment I walk in to class. Sure, cell phones are banned in my class but you really need yours because you can’t go for one hour without text messaging your girlfriend. You figure if you keep sending her twenty messages per hour, she’ll never figure out that you’re in it for the sex. You’re in for a long life, buddy.

But at least all of you have shown me that personal needs are more important than the rules that help us live in a little thing call “society.” Since, I am now joining you in basing my decisions on my personal feelings – as opposed to objective rules – I may well get promoted to the Office of Campus Diversity where all the ground-breaking intellectual work is done.

But, of course, I first have to let you all know how this new philosophy will affect my conduct. Listen carefully as some of these changes may affect you personally:

I will no longer resend you a copy of the syllabus via email after you come to class late or walk in with your cell phone. Instead, I will just take a letter grade off your final average without bothering to inform you. Why? Well, I simply feel like doing it that way. And nothing else matters but my feelings.

I will no longer grade exams and pass them back. If you manage to refrain from making me angry (anger is a feeling, too) for the rest of the semester, I will give you the grade that I feel you deserve. The rest of you will simply fail. Why? Well, I simply feel like doing it that way. You know that nothing else matters but my personal feelings.

For those of you who are my advisees, I have decided to stop doing that, too. Advising is boring and I simply don’t feel like doing it anymore.

I’ll also be coming to class late and answering calls and text messaging during lectures. Some may call it unprofessional but I really don’t feel that way.

All of the complicated and boring cases I discuss in class will simply be skipped from now on. You will still be tested on the material but I won’t explain it. It just takes too much effort. And effort makes me tired. And, of course, tired doesn’t feel good. Some may say I’m lazy but that’s too bad. Nothing matters but my feelings. I don’t like to be inconvenienced.

Oh yes! Before I forget, all of you who have missed appointments this semester please sign up for another one at your convenience. This time, I’m going to stand you up for a meeting. That’s called revenge. Revenge feels good.

If anything I have said today is confusing I promise to send an email reminder later when I feel like it. It may be rambling and it may contain misspellings. I just don’t feel like editing and spell-checking anymore. Living without any rules or any vision is just so damned liberating.

Thank God I never have to leave college! And thank God for tenure!

Don't you just hate it when The Man co-opts the proletariat's talking points?

Posted by Mike Lief at 06:15 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Top 10 cars, UK edition

The folks at the London Times have posted their list of the best -- and worst -- cars of 2006.

Will it shock any of you that France takes first place in two different categories. Oh, you didn't think the categories were best in class, did you?

An interesting pick, in light of my post about diesel engines, is that the diesel-powered Honda Accord snags the top spot in the family sedan class.

Posted by Mike Lief at 05:52 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Oh, how I hate to get up in the moooooorn-ing!

The world's 10 Most Annoying Alarm Clocks.

Yeah, just what the world needs, a grumpier Lief.

For the definitive take on the joys -- Not! -- of daybreak, read here, or listen here.

Posted by Mike Lief at 05:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 21, 2006

Worst print ad campaign ever

It only looks disgusting at first glance; when you take a closer look, it's not what you think.

Actually, it's still gross.

Worksafe, but gross.

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:52 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

The art of war

From a time when artists strove to stir Americans to support our fighting men.

Now, the scribblers produce less inspirational work.

Via Little Green Footballs.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:49 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

What do you do when even sushi becomes ho-hum boring?

Japan's rich buy organs from executed Chinese prisoners.

I understand the pancreas is especially delicious tonight.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:38 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

What are the implications of the Afghan death sentence?

The folks at Power Line state the implications of the Christian facing execution in Afghanistan for refusing to renounce his faith:

This is, I think, a watershed moment. The American people will bear a great deal of sacrifice, but only on behalf of principle. If, after our liberation of Afghanistan, a man may still be executed for being a Christian--or a Jew, although to my knowledge that case hasn't arisen--there is no logical basis on which our government can continue to request the ultimate sacrifice from its most devoted supporters.

My initial reaction was to nod in agreement. But the more I think about it, the less I think he's right. Our self-interest must be the deciding factor, not the degree to which Afghanistan -- or Iraq -- end up as swarthier versions of America.

We went after the Taliban because they were engaged in aiding and abetting our enemies, providing support to Al Queda and endangering our nation. Of course, the Taliban was also brutalizing the Afghan people, destroying cultural artifacts more than a thousand years old in a quest to eradicate every last vestige of non-Muslim culture from their country.

Are the Afghans better off as a result of our military intervention? Unquestionably yes. Girls, forbidden access to schools under the rule of the Taliban, may now acquire the educations needed to help Afghanistan prosper. The tyrannical rule of the Talibs has been replaced with democracy, albeit in a form alien to American sensibilities.

That Abdul Rahman faces death because he converted to Christianity is repellent, but not surprising, given the current state of Islam.

If anything, Rahman's fate should serve as a warning to the proponents of multiculturalism. All cultures are not equal; the West and its values are worth preserving, worth fighting for.

If the Afghan government kills Mr. Rahman because he is an apostate, the rationale for our war on the Taliban will not have been invalidated. America will still be better off for their having been consigned to the trash heap of history. Afghanistan will still be better off for their ejection from the levers of power. But the Muslim world will be the worse for his death, not just for the effect on the Afghan people, but for the increasing number of Americans who will have been convinced that there is no hope; that Muslims are irredeemable savages; and that the answer is for America to turn her back on the world, isolationism resurgent.

The sacrifices of our troops will truly have been for nought if the execution of Rahman provides the pretext for Americans to withdraw to the illusory safety of Festung Conus, leaving the feckless Europeans to root out the Islamist thugs planning their next attacks on the West.

UPDATE

Michelle Malkin has posted tons of information on Abdul Rahman as she rallies readers to try and save his life, including where to write on his behalf. Check it out.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:18 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 20, 2006

"Religion of Piece"* update

We're always being reassured that the Secular and Judeo-Christian West is not in the midst of a war of civilizations; after all, there are three great monotheistic faiths, all of which are peaceful when practiced "correctly."

This sorta screws that argument up.

Afghan man faces death for Christian conversion

KABUL, Afghanistan -- An Afghan man is being prosecuted in a Kabul court and could be sentenced to death on a charge of converting from Islam to Christianity, a crime under the country's Islamic laws, a judge said yesterday.

The trial is thought to be the first of its kind in Afghanistan and highlights a struggle between religious conservatives and reformists over what shape Islam should take here four years after the ouster of the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban regime.

Abdul Rahman, 41, was arrested last month after his family accused him of becoming a Christian, Judge Ansarullah Mawlavezada said. Mr. Rahman was charged with rejecting Islam, and his trial was held Thursday.

During the one-day hearing, the defendant confessed that he converted from Islam to Christianity 16 years ago while working as a medical aid worker for an international Christian group helping Afghan refugees in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, Judge Mawlavezada said.

"We are not against any particular religion in the world. But in Afghanistan, this sort of thing is against the law," the judge said. "It is an attack on Islam."

Afghanistan's constitution is based on Shariah, Islamic law that is interpreted by many Muslims to require that any Muslim who rejects Islam be sentenced to death, said Ahmad Fahim Hakim, deputy chairman of the state-sponsored Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.

The prosecutor, Abdul Wasi, said he had offered to drop the charges if Mr. Rahman converted back to Islam, but he refused. "He would have been forgiven if he changed back. But he said he was a Christian and would always remain one," Mr. Wasi said. "We are Muslims, and becoming a Christian is against our laws. He must get the death penalty."

After being an aid worker for four years in Pakistan, Mr. Rahman moved to Germany for nine years, his father, Abdul Manan, said outside his Kabul home. Mr. Rahman returned to Afghanistan in 2002 and tried to gain custody of his two daughters, now ages 13 and 14, who had lived with their grandparents their whole lives, the father said. A custody battle ensued, and the matter was taken to the police.

During questioning, it emerged that Mr. Rahman was a Christian and was carrying a Bible. He was arrested immediately and charged, the father said.

The Voice of America has more details.

Under Afghanistan's new constitution, minority religious rights are protected but Muslims are still subject to strict Islamic laws. And so, officially, Muslim-born Rahman is charged with rejecting Islam and not for practicing Christianity.

Appearing in court earlier this week Rahman insisted he should not be considered an infidel, but admitted he is a Christian. He says he still believes in the almighty Allah, but cannot say for sure who God really is. "I am," he says, "a Christian and I believe in Jesus Christ."

Officials say his family, who remain observant Muslims, turned him over to the authorities.

On Thursday the prosecution told the court Rahman has rejected numerous offers to embrace Islam.

Prosecuting attorney Abdul Wasi told the judge that the punishment should fit the crime.

He says Rahman is a traitor to Islam and is like a cancer inside Afghanistan. Under Islamic law and under the Afghan constitution, he says, the defendant should be executed.

This is the first case in which the defendant has admitted to converting and is refusing to back down, even while facing the death penalty.

Wow, I'd hate to see a religion of violence and cruelty. Good thing we ran the Taliban out of town, 'cause they were the problem, not the Religion of Peace.

More on this at Captain's Quarter's and Michelle Malkin.

*Well, it's a Religion of Pieces, actually, given the eagerness by the most faithful adherents to hew to the rule that "An infidel and his head are soon parted."

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:07 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 19, 2006

Diesels: Boring, noisy slow, right? Nein!

I've liked diesel engines since I first read about them when I was a kid; immensely strong with loads of low-end torque; bulletproof because of the pressures they must contain; and very miserly with the fuel, they seemed . . . tough.

This is a great explanation of the differences between diesel and gas engines.

In case you didn't notice, there aren't any sparkplugs; the piston compresses the fuel until it flashes/ignites without an external spark.

I remember when VW first began importing their TDI Jetta, hmmm, must have been in the early 90s. They had an ad running in magazines that said, "Chicago to Washington, D.C., in one tank of gas." That's 700 miles on one tank of gas, and it ain't a gigantic, SUV-sized tank, either.

Now that's the kind of mileage that'll make a Prius blush in shame.

Most Americans don't have such fond memories, courtesy of the Detroit three. The last crop of American passenger cars with diesel engines were horrendous: boring, noisy, slow, and prone to falling to pieces.

Since then, Americans have avoided diesels like Hollywood avoids pro-America filmmaking.

Meanwhile, overseas, diesel-powered versions of popular cars outsell their gasoline bruders by more than a 2-to-1 ratio. Why? The latest versions are quiet, very fast off the line, extremely durable (often lasting 250,000 miles), and get great mileage, without any fancy -- and expensive -- hybrid hoo-ha and batteries.

The final proof that the image of the diesel engine as a slug, a dog, an automotive Special Olympics on wheels is this:

After pasting up a new track record during qualifying, Audi's diesel-powered Audi R10 TDi racers went on to torque their way to first place in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring on Saturday.

The No. 2 Audi of Tom Kristensen, Allan McNish and Rinaldo Capello won the first race in on the 2006 American Le Mans Series schedule by three laps, besting the No. 37 Lola of Intersport Racing. This, despite starting the race from pit lane in 34th position after a heat exchanger failed.

The No. 2 car took the lead over their Audi teammates in the No. 1 machine around a third of the way through the race, after the latter was forced to retire with overheating issues.

This is reportedly the first time an oil-burner has claimed victory in a major American auto race.

When will we start seeing this technology make it's way into cars for sale in the U.S.? Yesterday wouldn't be soon enough for me.

Via AutoBlog.

Posted by Mike Lief at 09:36 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 16, 2006

Something old, something new

On the left, the 2007 Volkswagen Golf, decontented (read: stripped) to sell at $16K. On the right, the 1992 Honda Civic, about $2K.

I would think that if you were trying to generate enthusiasm for a new design, you'd try to avoid making it look like a 14-year-old economy car -- albeit a very good economy car.

So, for an extra fourteen large, you can get a bare-bones German car that needs a lot of warranty work (see Consumer Reports), but at least it looks reliable.

Via the folks at Autoblog.

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:49 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

What's worse than screaming kids in a restaurant?

I've got a pet peeve -- Pipe down! -- all right, I've got lots of pet peeves, but one that is shared by many of you is the screaming brat in the restaurant.

A good meal isn't just the food; it's also the wine, the conversation, the setting, and the ability to enjoy all these aspects of the dinner.

Nothing -- and I do mean nothing -- chaps my ass like having my meal ruined by parents letting their kids run riot throughout the restaurant, confusing Koba Sushi or The Water Grill for Chuckie Cheese. It doesn't even have to be a fancy restaurant; unless there's a big rat and arcade games, it ain't the place for a play date.

The sheer bloody rudeness of the adults is mind-blowing; they're simply oblivious. I was having lunch with my wife and a friend at a sandwich shop, when a blonde, rail-thin, Landrover-driving blonde mom flounced in with her young son trailing behind, the kid pushing one of those Fisher-Price two-wheeled contraptions, the one with the clear bubble and a punch of crap inside that makes a popping sound as the wheels turn.

As we ate, the mother stood in line, waiting to order as her kid proceeded to ram the toy into the counter with a BANG!

BANG!

I looked up.

BANG!

She stared at the menu, oblivious.

BANG!

I could feel my eyes widening, nostrils beginning to flare, blood vessels in my brain beginning to tear.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Heads were turning, as every other sentient being in the restaurant wondered what the hell was going on.

BANG!

Had the mother reacted yet? Sure. She was gazing adoringly at her little boy.

BANG! BANG!

I couldn't stand it anymore.

"EXCUSE ME!" I snarled. "THAT IS SIMPLY THE MOST CHARMING CHILD! IS HE YOURS?"

She turned, confused by the contrast between what I'd said and how I'd said it, looked into my bloodshot Manson lamps, then turned to Little Lord Fauntleroy and said, "Harold, be quiet."

Oh, sure, now she notices.

Barbie spun around and glared at me with her pale, ice-blue peepers and said, "You don't have children, do you?"

"As a matter of fact I do," I replied, thinking of Bogie.

"Well," she sniffed, "you should be more understanding."

I bared my teeth at her in a rictus of a grin that stopped far south of my eyes; she grabbed hold of Hubert (Herbert, whatever) and ordered through tightly-clenched jaw, then stormed out.

Naturally, the wife was greatly amused by my irritation, rolling her eyes at me and resuming her conversation with our friend.

I think back to that meal -- and every other where diners were serenaded by squalling brats -- and think how misguided I was to believe that there was nothing worse one could encounter in a restaurant.

Then I read this.

Britney Spears reportedly shocked fellow diners when she changed her baby's dirty nappy - on a restaurant table.

Customers were horrified as they watched the pop babe clean up five-month-old Sean Preston as they enjoyed a meal at a lavish Los Angeles eatery.

One said: "It was disgusting. Someone else has got to eat at that table. Yuck." The restaurant manager is quoted in Britain's News of the World newspaper as saying: "It's Britney Spears. What can we do?"

A two-fer! Moronic celebrity worship and crack-whore parenting techniques. The other diners should have rioted (I would have). As for that gutless manager? He should have thrown Spears out and comped dinner for everyone within sight -- or smell -- of the nasty nappy.

And you thought hotel room bedspreads were gross; they can't hold a candle to a table when Britney's been to dinner. Is that really guacamole on the table?

Blecch.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:22 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

What if the Internet existed during WW2?

Lileks says about a website:

This makes me weep, it’s so good. Probably not safe for work, since it’s a pin-up model’s site, but dang, that’s some wonderful web design. And it’s everything I hate – tiny pop-up windows, embedded music, small pictures. I don’t care: this is what the web would have looked like in 1944, and it’s fantastic.

He's right; the design is fantastic, capturing the feel of the late 1940s/early 1950s perfectly. I especially like the way you contact the model. Despite his caution, it's worksafe -- none of the photos shows any of the naughty bits. Make sure your speakers are on to get the full effect.

These guys designed the web site; take some time and scroll through their portfolio. They've done some extraordinary work.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:11 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 15, 2006

Ignorance and violence prove effective mix

Did you know that the acerbic Mark Steyn is no longer published in England? Every newspaper that carried his often politically incorrect, always witty columns, have given him the sack. Another sign of Blighty's decline.

Steyn's latest, published in Canada's Western Standard, offers this gem:

Anyone who's spent any time in the Muslim world cannot help but be struck by its profound ignorance. The famous United Nations statistic from a 2002 report -- more books are translated into Spanish in a single year than have been translated into Arabic in the last thousand -- suggests at the very minimum an extraordinarily closed society, which in turn explains its stunted political development. For example, the editor of the Yemen Observer, Mohammed al-Asadi, wrote a strong editorial denouncing the Danish cartoons, but, like this magazine's editor, decided to show its readers what they looked like. As a result, he's now in jail. The point about Islam is that it's beyond discussion. No corner of the earth would benefit more from the ability to debate ideas openly.

That U.N. statistic is stunning. It's as if the Muslim world can't accept that the West has anything to offer, which, given the dearth of scientific or artistic contributions from the Muslim world in at least a millenia, is an instance of profoundly undeserving cultural self-esteem.

The Japanese tried to keep the West at bay, finally opening up to the Occident only after the American fleet showed that the future lay without -- not within.

The rapid industrialization and modernization of Japan showed what is possible when a society is willing to borrow from other -- even alien -- cultures. Would that the Muslim world was willing to learn from the Japanese experience.

Unfortunately, the West has some lessons it might learn from the Muslims, lessons that could prove as corrosive to our culture as it has proven to their own.

[T]he Boston Phoenix was admirably straightforward. It declined to publish the cartoons, it said, "out of fear of retaliation from the international brotherhood of radical and bloodthirsty Islamists who seek to impose their will on those who do not believe as they do . . . Simply stated, we are being terrorized, and as deeply as we believe in the principles of free speech and a free press, we could not in good conscience place the men and women who work at the Phoenix and its related companies in physical jeopardy."

I was the subject of an attack-piece in the Phoenix a year or two back. As hit pieces go, it was a pretty feeble effort, and I didn't feel it was worth driving all the way down to Boston just to kill a few members of staff and burn the building down. But it makes you think. In our multicultural society, the best way to get "respect" from others is to despise them; the surest way to have your views boundlessly "tolerated" is to be utterly intolerant of anybody else's. Those who think Islam will apply these lessons only to op-ed cartoons or representations of Mohammed are very foolish.

I made the point last month that the success of the Muslims in punking most U.S. papers and news networks into not publishing the Mohammed cartoons was in stark contrast to the treatment of Christians and Jews in the media.

Is it possible that the threats and violence might prove attractive to other faiths and cultures who have heretofore felt powerless to do anything other than accept in silence the mockery and disrespect of secular America? It would be an ironic consequence of our craven willingness to knuckle under to the Muslim demands.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:46 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Reading the graffiti on Detroit's walls

An interesting post over at Joe Sherlock's blog, View Through the Windshield.

Sherlock has an update on the rumored impending bankruptcy of GM, an event made less unimaginable by the list of once mighty, now defunct corporations.

[W]e've seen a lot of large and well-known companies declare bankruptcy in our working lifetimes - Penn Central, Studebaker, Texaco, Atari, United, Kmart, Macy's, Braniff, Polaroid, U.S. Steel, National Gypsum, TWA, Allis-Chalmers, Johns-Manville, Lionel, Nucorp Energy, Continental Airlines, Southland Corp., PanAm, Owens Corning and many more.

Sherlock has been involved in the automotive industry for a long time, and his observations are well worth pondering.

All of us are convinced that GM is well on its way to bankruptcy. Forget sophisticated cash flow analysis, reading the details of 10-K filings, etc. It's a gut feel -- based on lack of good product, GM's severe and continuing misreading of the market, the number of GM cars seen in rental lots, the substantial off-price deals being offered on most models ('March Madness' being the latest) and the lack of interest by any of our friends in owning anything made by GM. Oh, and the fact that it's trying to sell GMAC - its most profitable entity - is a big signal, too. Another tip-off is the bankruptcy of several key Tier I suppliers. And the reported financial losses of other Tier I vendors that have not (yet) gone Chapter 11. The bankrupt suppliers will soon force price increases on GM - a company which can't seem to raise its own prices in the marketplace because of low perceived value by prospective customers. That makes the squeeze tighter.

He goes on to say that a GM bankruptcy might push Ford into receivership, too, which leads one of his friends to advise new car buyers to be very cautious.

One of my car buddies remarked, "Because of warranty issues that might result from these bankruptcies, I can't - in good conscience - recommend a Ford or GM product to anyone. It hurts me to do this (he's been a loyal Ford man for 40+ years) but I'm telling people to check out Honda and Toyota if they're thinking of a new car."

Sadly, I have to agree with him.

Given that none of the top-rated cars in Consumer Report's annual auto issue are U.S. marques, I'm afraid I also agree: for now, American cars are a sucker bet.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:26 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 14, 2006

Welcome Power Line readers!

I'm a news, politics and film junkie, with a background in journalism, the law, and driving submarines. Click and scroll around for a couple of minutes -- but make sure to check out my books over on the right side of the page. There's a third coming this summer, so be sure to look for updates.

I've written on a variety of topics; here's a sampling:

The threat presented by Germany's latest U-boat.

Why Hollywood's award-winning films are so deeply uninteresting.

Reasons why justice and the law often are poles apart.

The joys of jury selection.

The death penalty and remembering the victims instead of lionizing the killers.

And, of course, stunning fashion choices by criminal defendants and other courthouse denizens.

I hope you'll come back and see what's new.

Posted by Mike Lief at 10:36 AM | Comments (0)

Who ordered the knuckle sandwich?

Remember what I said about a jury of district attorneys not convicting even with video of the crime?

Well, check out Defense Exhibit A.

Astronauts were usually fighter pilots first. They don't suffer fools gladly. And being military men, they tend to have pretty strict views on retrograde macho concepts like courage and honor.

So, when some conspiracy theory, glue-sniffing punk decides to let Buzz Aldrin have a piece (a very small piece) of his mind, the man who has walked on the moon unleashes an Apollo-size uppercut.

Priceless video.

To the moon, ass hat!

Via The Officer's Club.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:23 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Hypocrite, thy name is Rather

Check out what happens when a journalist takes what Dan Rather says at face value.

Here's the scene: Former CBS anchorman Dan Rather is in Cherry Hill, giving a speech about the need for journalists to do better.

"What's gone out of fashion is the tough question and the follow-up," he tells an admiring audience of about 600 people at Cherry Hill's Star Forum.

So how can I, the guy covering Rather's remarks, just sit there?

When he finishes, I hurry to a floor mike to ask Rather about an issue that will be part of my story.

"Mr. Rather," I say. "Great suggestions. But you left the anchor desk last year after your report questioning President Bush's military service was discredited. Key memos could not be authenticated. Do you think the failure to ask questions then affects your credibility now?"

Rather responds with civility -- if not clarity. He notes, in part, that an independent review "couldn't determine whether the documents were authentic or not."

Eager to please, I follow up: "The Courier-Post won't run something if we're not sure it's authentic. Are you saying it's OK . . ."

But my microphone goes dead -- and the audience stirs to life.

Some people jeer. Others glare and scowl (I can now distinguish between the two). This continues outside as I call in my story.

Gee, Rather's speech never mentioned this.

Rather's absolutely right: those follow-up questions are important. But apparently they're easier to ask then they are to answer.

Jackass.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:09 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 13, 2006

Gimme that damn ball!

Ordinarliy a dog of great mirth, given to telling tall tales and bouts of laughter over chewbones and kibble in rowdy, smoke-filled kennels, Bogie's moods have been known to take an ominous turn when he doesn't get his daily fix of tennis ball.

Posted by Mike Lief at 06:18 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Peter Piper picked a kilo of all-natural, hormone-free gherkins

More madness from the sensitivity brigades: protecting kids from the dangers of racist rhymes.

TRADITIONAL nursery rhymes are being rewritten at nursery schools to avoid causing offence to children.

Instead of singing “Baa baa, black sheep” as generations of children have learnt to do, toddlers in Oxfordshire are being taught to sing “Baa baa, rainbow sheep”.

The move, which critics will seize on as an example of political correctness, was made after the nurseries decided to re-evaluate their approach to equal opportunities.

Stuart Chamberlain, manager of the Family Centre in Abingdon and the Sure Start centre in Sutton Courtenay, Oxfordshire, told the local Courier Journal newspaper: “We have taken the equal opportunities approach to everything we do.

“This is fairly standard across nurseries. We are following stringent equal opportunities rules. No one should feel pointed out because of their race, gender or anything else.”

In keeping with the new approach, teachers at the nurseries have reportedly also changed the ending of Humpty Dumpty so as not to upset the children and dropped the seven dwarfs from the title of Snow White.

A spokesman for Ofsted, the watchdog which inspects Sure Start centres, confirmed that centres are expected to “have regard to anti-discrimination good practice” and that staff should “actively promote equality of opportunity”.

[...]

This is not the first time, however, that the nursery rhyme — written in 1744 satirising the taxes imposed on wool exports — has fallen foul of political correctness. In 2000 Birmingham City Council tried to ban the rhyme, after claiming that it was racist and portrayed negative stereotypes. The council rescinded the ban after black parents said it was ludicrous.

Last year, a nursery school in Aberdeen caused uproar, when teachers changed the lyrics to “Baa baa, happy sheep”.

It reminds me of the Washington, D.C., civil servant who was fired for using the word "niggardly." Of course, the fact that it has nothing to do with race didn't matter; people ignorant of its true meaning* were offended by what they thought it meant, and feelings always take precedence over facts.

So, a rhyme based upon a three-hundred-year-old tax has to be altered, just in case someone takes offense at a mistaken racial reference.

Good thing there's nothing more important to worry about.

*The Barnhard Dictionary of Etymology traces the origins of "niggardly" to the 1300s and the words nig and nigon, meaning miser, in Middle English. It also notes possible earlier origins in languages including Old Icelandic, Old English and Middle High German. There is no mention of any racial connotation.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:20 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 12, 2006

Chris Muir strikes again

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Sometimes, justice requires ignoring the law

There are times when justice requires the law to step aside in favor of common decency. I know you're probably asking, "How can Lief say that? Isn't he a prosecutor?"

Well, yes I am, and yes I can. I can think of crimes that -- because of the picayune nature of the offenses, the players involved, or the underlying provocation -- make it likely that no jury would convict. When you have overwhelming evidence of guilt and the jury refuses to return a guilty verdict, you have a classic example of jury nullification, or as I prefer to think of it, real world, commonsense justice, as opposed to slavish adherence to the letter of the law.

In my career as a prosecutor, I've seen cases where a jury of 12 district attorneys, given full confessions and High-Definition video of the crime, wouldn't be able to return a unanimous guilty verdict.

Think I'm kidding? Then you haven't read this.

Hecklers harass families of US soldiers killed in Iraq

Five women sang and danced as they held up signs saying "thank God for dead soldiers" at the funeral of an army sergeant who was killed by an Iraqi bomb.

For them, it was the perfect way to spread God's word: America was being punished for tolerating homosexuality.

For the hundreds of flag waving bikers who came to this small town in Michigan Saturday to shield the soldier's family, it was disgusting.

"That could be me in that church," said Jackie Sandler whose son Keith is currently serving his second tour of duty in Iraq.

The fringe group of fire and brimstone Baptists from Kansas has been courting controversy for more than 15 years, traveling the country with their hateful signs and slogans.

The Westboro Baptist Church first gained national notoriety when they picked the funeral of Matthew Shepard, a Wyoming student who was murdered in 1998 for being gay.

They have since picketed the funerals of Frank Sinatra and Bill Clinton's mother, celebrated the terrorist attacks of September 11 as an act of God's wrath, and have even targeted Santa Claus and the Ku Klux Klan.

But it was the callousness and cruelty of harassing the grieving families of soldiers at dozens of funerals across the country that has sparked a grassroots movement of bikers determined to drown out the jeers and taunts.

In Flushing, Michigan they turned their leather-clad backs to the five women and held flags and tarps up so that mourners walking past wouldn't see the signs saying "God hates fags," "fag vets" and "America is doomed."

Many found it hard to hide their anger when Margie Phelps, the daughter of Westboro's founder, called out "All this for little old us? Oh, you shouldn't have. I feel so special," before she started singing "the Pope, the Pope, the Pope is on fire. He don't get no water let the heretics burn" in front of a Catholic church.

The glee with which the women hurled insults made John Franklin, 64, sick to his stomach.

"This guy's family deserves a peaceful funeral. It's not right what they're doing," said Franklin, who fought in the Vietnam War. "The only reason they're able to walk around like that is because the veterans fought for their freedom."

While Westboro's congregation remains stable at around 100 people - most of whom are the extended family of founder Fred Phelps - the ranks of the Patriot Guard Riders has swelled to more than 16,000 in just a few months.

The protests come at a time when many Americans think the war in Iraq was a mistake but are anxious to show their support for the troops.

Four states have enacted legislation barring protests at funerals and a dozen more are in the process of introducing bans. But it is unlikely that the bans will stand up to legal challenge.

The group is careful to protest in public spaces and is well aware of its constitutional rights - 11 of Phelps' 13 children are lawyers.

"This nation is poised to trash the first amendment just to stop my preaching," Fred Phelps said in a telephone interview. "I'm kind of honored."

Phelps said he and his congregants are targeting the funerals because God's way of punishing an "evil nation" of "fags and fag enablers" is to "pick off its children."

"I don't have any sympathy for these parents. They're all going to hell," Phelps said. "The family's in pain because they haven't obeyed the Lord God."

As an officer of the court, I can't condone the kind of beating I would hope these jackals receive at every funeral they disrupt. But I'd be hard pressed to convict anyone for administering some much-needed street justice if I was in the jury box.

And on a side note, this is a great example of why most Americans -- including the Founding Fathers, if they're listening -- have disdain for the judiciary and law professors.

The men who wrote the Constitution would never condone much of the behavior for which the legal establishment eggheads have found protections hidden in the nooks and crannies -- not to mention the dreaded penumbras -- of the Bill of Rights.

The idea that the First Amendment as interpreted by the legal establishment protects this kind of conduct, while allowing a prohibition on explicitly political speech (McCain-Feingold) would baffle the authors. There was a recognition that certain conduct was so far beyond the pale that it would never be protected within the ambit of the Constitution and its Amendments.

I dare-say this story is exactly the kind of thing that would have left the attendees at the Constitutional Convention scratching their heads (wigs?) in shock and disgust.

Posted by Mike Lief at 09:36 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 11, 2006

Pacifist finds peace at last

So, the jihadists killed American pacifist Tom Fox, missing since last November.

Wretchard says of the organization Fox was with:

It is abundantly clear from the Christian Peacemaker Team website that they could hardly have done more to declare their sympathy for the Muslim world, the Palestinian cause or their distaste for America. A less haggard Tom Fox is shown holding up a sign protesting the construction of an Israeli barrier in "Palestine". There's a statement abhorring the publication of the Jyllands-Posten cartoons, which says:

We, the members of the Christian Peacemaker Teams in Iraq, are disturbed by anti-Muslim cartoons from twelve different artists published in September by Denmark's daily paper the Jyllands-Posten. The publisher claims the freedom of speech to publish the cartoons, but we believe they are only spreading hate and bigotry. To those who believe and act as if terrorism is an essential part of the Islamic faith, we say No! Stop! We cannot stand by and remain silent when our gracious Muslim brothers and sisters are being defamed.

Wretchard says Fox wasn't a complete Candide; he had some awareness of the danger posed by the terrorists. But a taste of Fox's writing demonstrates the depths of his moonbattery.

Fox was not oblivious to the fact that terrorists in Iraq killed innocent people too. Or that his life was in danger at terrorist hands. He could offer no definite answer to the question he himself posed: "How do you stand firm against a car-bomber or a kidnapper?" But he was sure of one thing: fighting was always the wrong answer.

Clearly the soldier disconnected from God needs to have me fight. Just as clearly the terrorist disconnected from God needs to have me flee. Both are willing to kill me using different means to achieve he same end--that end being to increase the parasitic power of Satan within God's good creation. It seems easier somehow to confront anger within my heart than it is to confront fear. But if Jesus and Gandhi are right then I am not to give in to either. I am to stand firm against the kidnapper as I am to stand firm against the soldier. Does that mean I walk into a raging battle to confront the soldiers? Does that mean I walk the streets of Baghdad with a sign saying "American for the Taking?" No to both counts. But if Jesus and Gandhi are right, then I am asked to risk my life, and if I lose it to be as forgiving as they were when murdered by the forces of Satan.

Oh, please. Spare me a moment's mourning for this fool.

Gandhi and his ilk can only succeed when their foes are unwilling to be utterly ruthless. While the Indian pacifist made out okay against the Brits, his peaceful resistance would have proven hilarious to the Nazis. Stalin would have chuckled, filled his pipe and watched through narrowed eyes as Beria put a bullet into the ascetic's head.

I find pacifists to be perhaps the most contemptible of all creatures. They exist only as a result of the courage and sacrifices of brave men, who shield them from the natural cruelty of the world.

That Fox was unable to see that evil will triumph if good men do nothing, after the Holocaust, after the Killing Fields, after Rwanda, is simply disgusting.

His death is meaningless, for his killers valued his life no more than he did.

UPDATE

A commenter on Wretchard's site says:

You understand nothing. If it were not for men like that you would have no moral compass at all-he may have died uselessly--but he died for his beliefs, and they are the only kind of beliefs that will ever lead us to peace. I celebrate this man.

The commenter is right, after a fashion. Fox's beliefs truly are the only kind guaranteed to lead to peace.

The peace of the grave.

As for my moral compass, it points to Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith, who was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions on April 4, 2003, when he saved more than 100 American GIs, killing 20-50 of the enemy, before he fell, mortally wounded.

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded in the name of Congress the Medal of Honor to Sergeant First Class Paul R. Smith, United States Army.

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty:

Sergeant First Class Paul R. Smith distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with an armed enemy near Baghdad International Airport, Baghdad, Iraq on 4 April 2003.

On that day, Sergeant First Class Smith was engaged in the construction of a prisoner of war holding area when his Task Force was violently attacked by a company-sized enemy force. Realizing the vulnerability of over 100 fellow soldiers, Sergeant First Class Smith quickly organized a hasty defense consisting of two platoons of soldiers, one Bradley Fighting Vehicle and three armored personnel carriers.

As the fight developed, Sergeant First Class Smith braved hostile enemy fire to personally engage the enemy with hand grenades and anti-tank weapons, and organized the evacuation of three wounded soldiers from an armored personnel carrier struck by a rocket propelled grenade and a 60mm mortar round.

Fearing the enemy would overrun their defenses, Sergeant First Class Smith moved under withering enemy fire to man a .50 caliber machine gun mounted on a damaged armored personnel carrier. In total disregard for his own life, he maintained his exposed position in order to engage the attacking enemy force. During this action, he was mortally wounded.

His courageous actions helped defeat the enemy attack, and resulted in as many as 50 enemy soldiers killed, while allowing the safe withdrawal of numerous wounded soldiers. Sergeant First Class Smith’s extraordinary heroism and uncommon valor are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, the Third Infantry Division “Rock of the Marne,” and the United States Army.

Not only did he save the lives of his comrades that day, but the lives of countless others who might have suffered at the hands of the enemy troops that Sgt. Smith made sure would never fight again.

How many lives did Fox save?

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:17 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 10, 2006

In the aftermath of the Dubai debacle . . .

Gerard Van der Leun discusses the reasons for the upsurge in opposition amongst the American electorate.

"I'm concerned about a broader message this issue could send to our friends and allies around the world, particularly in the Middle East," Bush said.

I, for one, am not concerned about the message. Bluntly put, the message is that Americans -- through their elected representatives -- are, for once, united. They are united around the fact that, when you get right down to the nub of it, they simply do not trust Arabs and Muslims. We are, after all, at war with the culture and the religion . . .

What was the deal-killer here? Three simple words: "United Arab Emirates." I submit that a deal that handed over control of American ports to the "United Swiss Cantons" would have gone through like a downhill racer above Gstaad. . .

Neither side will point to the obvious cause of the slip-sliding away of the ports deal: Muslim and Arab behavior over the last six decades peaking at 9/11 and rolling on since then quite nicely, thank you.

The question is not "Do Americans distrust Arabs and Muslims?" They do. They distrust them all across the political spectrum -- with the exception of the Left side of what now passes for the Democratic Party, and the members of the Republican Party and assorted plutocrats that have profit in their plans.

The question is "Should Americans distrust Arabs and Muslims?"

Well, when you have a rag-tag collection of cultures and a global religion that regularly turns out to burn down embassies, drive airplanes into skyscrapers, plants bombs along roadsides on a daily basis, has its "representatives" run into crowds, buses, and subway tunnels and self-detonate, beheads random innocent individuals, and promises to conquer the world and put all unbelievers to the sword or into slavery, you don't exactly feel good about those folks. While it is true that their actions get a lot of ink and air-time, you can't say that their PR creates a lot of mellow, positive feelings. What it creates is fear, suspicion and distrust. . .

If a lot of members of your family spend a lot of time killing and threatening members of my family, I might be willing not to condemn every member of your family, but that doesn't mean we're going to be doing a lot of business deals over lunch.

Apart from the politics of the deal, I'm troubled by the attempt to portray those opposed to the Dubai Port World purchase as either ignoramuses or bigots, with supporters of DPW resorting to ad hominem attacks, rather than citing reasons for me to change my mind.

There's a thread of comments over at Captain's Quarters that's typical: a few folks asking questions about the deal, and the majority tarring opponents as shamefully ignorant.

Although DPW would not have had turban-clad jihadis unloading cargo, they would have some role in actually running the ports, right? I listened to Tony Snow; he drove me up a wall, nay-saying any and all complaints about DPW, in essence saying that they don't do anything.

Really? So they buy the port operations franchise and then just sit back and cash checks? The supporters of the ports deal had a tremendously difficult time telling us anything DPW would actually do.

I believe the two main vulnerabilities were that DPW would have access to the security plans and emergency/disaster response protocols as the operating entity; and they would have the ability to control the computerized cargo manifest system.

The problems with having any foreign-owned company having access to the security plans for a port should be -- pardon the pun -- manifest. To gain access to the information is vital to bypassing it.

As to the cargo manifests, it doesn't matter who unloads the ships, if DPW controls the ports of origin. They can load anything -- or re-load a container -- and hide any skullduggery by manipulating the computerized cargo tracking system.

One of the commenters over at Captain's Quarters made the point that Pres. Bush, for all the good he did in the aftermath of 9-11, appears incapable of grasping the need to secure our borders. I agree -- as do the majority of Americans.

The better criticism of opposition to the DPW deal is that it's easier to smuggle a nuke into the U.S. by hiding it in a bale of marijuana just south of the U.S.-Mexico border, and have a couple of illegals carry it in on foot.

As for the other ports operated by other foreign companies, well, I'd support revisiting that issue, too. Free trade, like the Constitution, is not a suicide pact.

Today, I was listening to Michael Medved on the way to lunch. A conservative, Yale-educated lawyer by training and an Orthodox Jew, I usually find his analyses to be quite astute. But he proceeded to set up and knock down a series of straw-men in a fashion that had me on the verge of apoplectic road rage, so dishonest were his premises.

Medved began by positing that foreign investment was good, wasn't it? Don't we want foreign companies to invest their dollars in the U.S.

Yes, Michael.

"For goodness sake, doesn't it help our economy?"

Yes, Michael.

"Well, if a foreign investor buys a building, isn't it more likely that he wants to make a profit than knock it down?"

Well, that depends. Is it an investor whose motivation is the desire to make more money? Or is he a wealthy jihadi, who considers the purchase price of the building part of the cost of conducting a war against the West?

Medved went on in this fashion, as if DPW was some transnational supermarket chain, looking to buy a few bodegas.

First, let me say that I don't oppose anyone investing in the U.S. I do have a problem with foreign corporations, especially government-run businesses, buying a controlling interest in American industries, most particularly those that have a direct impact on our national security. They can have 49 percent all the live-long-day, but not control.

Second, all countries are not alike. As Van der Leun pointed out, a Swiss consortium probably would not have had the kind of problems DPW faced. That may seem unfair, but if you're looking for sympathy, you'll find it in the OED between "shit" and "syphilis."

Dubai, for all the good it has done assisting us in the fight against the jihadis, does not recognize the State of Israel. Dubai takes part in the economic boycott of Israel. Dubai engages in material support of terrorist organizations. Some have made the argument that it is illegal for them to do business with the U.S. because of these facts.

Setting that aside, if we want to reward them for their efforts to back us up, then by all means, they can invest in many U.S. industries. Just not aerospace, transportation, nuclear power, shipping, or other areas that are integral components of our national security.

As Van der Leun said, "If a lot of members of your family spend a lot of time killing and threatening members of my family, I might be willing not to condemn every member of your family, but that doesn't mean we're going to be doing a lot of business deals over lunch."

Tough, but true. Money can buy a lot of things. Trust ain't one of them.

Posted by Mike Lief at 06:16 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Multi-culti madness

So, Yale doesn't want to let military recruiters on campus because the "Don't Ask; Don't Tell" policy discriminates against homosexuals. They don't want the R.O.T.C. on campus because it's an oppressive symbol of the gay-hating military.

But they'll admit a former official of the Taliban, a regime that murdered homosexuals on a regular basis, prohibited women from going to school, and did I mention this thug has a fourth-grade education?

The alumni must be so happy.

The MUSLIM who rented an SUV, carefully navigated along footpaths to an area where students gathered, then mowed down nine people to avenge the deaths of MUSLIMS overseas, is being reported in the New York Times without once mentioning that the perpetrator is a MUSLIM, as well as his self-professed motive for the crime, i.e., those dead MUSLIMS.

What about the geography teacher? Hell, I gave up on the public schools a looooooong time ago. Par for the course.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:15 AM | Comments (0)

March 09, 2006

Sopranos, the real-life version

If you're in law enforcement, whether a D.A. or a cop, this has to give you a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach. According to the New York Sun, an esteemed ex-FBI agent will be indicted on murder charges, after an investigation revealed he fingered informers to his Mafia contact. One of the victims was a woman, held down on the floor of a "social club" while the capo shot her in the head three times.

Former FBI organized crime supervising agent
and mob informer R. Lindley DeVecchio

It's behind a login, but Captain Ed posted an excerpt:

In a case with stunning implications for both law enforcement and some convicted gangsters, prosecutors have decided to seek murder charges against a former mob-busting FBI agent for involvement in at least three Brooklyn Mafia hits between 1984 and 1992, Gang Land has learned.

The Brooklyn district attorney's office has concluded a six-month probe of the scandalous allegations against R. Lindley DeVecchio and will soon ask a grand jury to vote on murder charges against the retired agent, sources said. The move could come as early as today.

According to evidence before the panel, Mr. DeVecchio had no role in the actual slayings but passed along information to his longtime top echelon informer, Colombo capo Gregory Scarpa, knowing that the murderous mobster would use the details to kill his victims, sources said. ...

Victim no. 1 of the ex-G-man's alleged treachery was a beautiful 5-foot, 2-inch brunette named Mary Bari who often hung out with wiseguys. Bari was killed on September 24, 1984, when, according to court records, Scarpa shot her three times in the head as his son, Gregory Jr., held her down on the floor of a Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, social club.

Sources said Scarpa acted after Mr. DeVecchio alerted him that the "dropdead gorgeous" gun moll, who had once dated a Colombo family consigliere, was also a paid informant for the FBI. Mr. DeVecchio had become Scarpa's control agent four years earlier, in 1980, when the agent renewed the gangster's informer status five years after he had been closed. Before that, according to FBI records, Scarpa was an active paid informer between 1962 and 1975, although sources said he began working as a snitch in the late 1950s. He died in 1994.

The only thing worse than a mob killer is someone who'd finger a women for the hitman. And the only thing worse than that is when it's a cop.

This ex-FBI agent should get the honor of the first Fibbie on death row.

UPDATE

A 1998 investigation by the Pittsburgh Post Gazette details allegations that the FBI agent was dirty, but notes:

And what of the Justice Department’s probe into the actions of its rogue agent? The agency’s investigation exonerated DeVecchio.

The Post-Gazette’s two-year investigation into misconduct by federal law enforcement officials found the kid glove treatment of DeVecchio is not unusual.

The Justice Department did not respond to questions the newspaper posed about concerns raised in this story.

Why am I not surprised?

Posted by Mike Lief at 08:21 AM | Comments (1)

You know what this means . . .

They're out there!

Via Drudge:

NASA'S CASSINI DISCOVERS POTENTIAL LIQUID WATER ON ENCELADUS
Thu Mar 09 2006 11:21:33 ET

NASA's Cassini spacecraft may have found evidence of liquid water reservoirs that erupt in Yellowstone-like geysers on Saturn's moon Enceladus. The rare occurrence of liquid water so near the surface raises many new questions about the mysterious moon.

"We realize that this is a radical conclusion - that we may have evidence for liquid water within a body so small and so cold," said Carolyn Porco, Cassini imaging team leader at the Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colo. "However, if we are right, we have significantly broadened the diversity of solar system environments where we might possibly have conditions suitable for living organisms."

High-resolution Cassini images show icy jets and towering plumes ejecting huge quantities of particles at high speed. Scientists examined several models to explain the process. They ruled out the idea the particles are produced or blown off the moon's surface by vapor created when warm water ice converts to a gas. Instead, scientists have found evidence for a much more exciting possibility. The jets might be erupting from near-surface pockets of liquid water above 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit), like cold versions of the Old Faithful geyser in Yellowstone.

"We previously knew of at most three places where active volcanism exists: Jupiter's moon Io, Earth, and possibly Neptune's moon Triton. Cassini changed all that, making Enceladus the latest member of this very exclusive club, and one of the most exciting places in the solar system," said John Spencer, Cassini scientist, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder.

"Other moons in the solar system have liquid-water oceans covered by kilometers of icy crust," said Andrew Ingersoll, imaging team member and atmospheric scientist at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif. "What's different here is that pockets of liquid water may be no more than tens of meters below the surface."

"As Cassini approached Saturn, we discovered the Saturnian system is filled with oxygen atoms. At the time we had no idea where the oxygen was coming from," said Candy Hansen, Cassini scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena. "Now we know Enceladus is spewing out water molecules, which break down into oxygen and hydrogen."

Scientists still have many questions. Why is Enceladus so active? Are other sites on Enceladus active? Might this activity have been continuous enough over the moon's history for life to have had a chance to take hold in the moon's interior?

As Einstein said after conceptualizing his theory of relativity, "Dieses ist unglaublich Kool! Whoa."

Posted by Mike Lief at 08:09 AM | Comments (0)

That's how to fight insurgents!

In an essay by Wretchard over at the Belmont Club, comes this discussion of the techniques used by American Cold Warrior Col. Edward Lansdale against the Huks in the post-war Philippines.

One psywar operation played upon the popular dread of an asuang, or vampire.... When a Huk patrol came along the trail, the ambushers silently snatched the last man of the patrol.... They punctured his neck with two holes, vampire-fashion, held the body up by the heels, drained it of blood, and put the corpse back on the trail. When the Huks returned to look for the missing man and found their bloodless comrade, every member of the patrol believed that the asuang had got him and that one of them would be next.... When daylight came, the whole Huk squadron moved out of the vicinity.

[...]

The army unit captured a Huk courier descending from the mountain stronghold to the village. After questioning, the courier, who was a native of the village, woefully confessed his errors in helping the Huks. His testimony was tape-recorded and made to sound as if his voice emanated from a tomb. The courier was killed. His body was left on the Huk-village line of communications. Soldiers in civilian clothes then dropped rumors in the village to the effect that the Huks had killed the courier. The villagers recovered the body and buried the Huk. That night army patrols infiltrated the cemetery and set up audio-equipment which began broadcasting the dead Huk's confession. By dawn, the entire village of terror-stricken peasantry had evacuated! In a few days, the Huks were forced to descend the mountain in search of food. [owing to the disappearance of the support village] They were quickly captured and/or killed by the army unit.

Aside from the fact that Lansdale's tactics sound like something out of a Mission Impossible script, they are both incredibly effective and guaranteed to offend the sensibilities of 21st-Century Metrosexuals, who always prefer to believe that killing is so primitive.

Better feng shui would solve so many more problems.

Wretchard notes -- or is it one of his commenters? -- that such tactics would have caused a firestorm of controversy even back then amongst the American public; their successful use was due to the public remaining unaware of what it took to defeat the enemy, in this instance through the skillful use of both violence and psy-ops. Restrictions on media access -- as well as the belief by American journalists that they were Americans first and foremost -- helped keep these tactics covert.

In this, we can see how the media's ability to instantaneously transmit from the field cripples our ability to fight as hard as we must in order to prevail. This also means that, because we must fight in a more "sensitive" fashion, more Americans will die.

Which makes the assertion that the Left "supports the troops" not just laughable, but despicable.

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Forgetting those who serve

In case you didn't know, I didn't bother to watch the Oscars this year.

Ben Stein didn't see all of it, but his wife did, and she pointed out an omission that says everything you need to know about the moral depravity of the self-obsessed Hollywood hoi-polloi.

[T]here was not one word of tribute, not one breath, to our fighting men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan or to their families or their widows or orphans. There were pitifully dishonest calls for peace -- as if the people we are fighting were interested in any peace for us but the peace of the grave. But not one word for the hundreds of thousands who have served and are serving, not one prayer or moment of silence for the dead and maimed.

Basically, the sad truth is that Hollywood does not think of itself as part of America, and so, to Hollywood, the war to save freedom from Islamic terrorists is happening to someone else. It does not concern them except insofar as it offers occasion to mock or criticize George Bush. They live in dreamland and cannot be gracious enough to thank the men and women who pay with their lives for the stars' ability to live in dreamland. This is shameful.

The idea that it is brave to stand up for gays in Hollywood, to stand up against Joe McCarthy in Hollywood (fifty years after his death), to say that rich white people are bad, that oil companies are evil -- this is nonsense. All of these are mainstream ideas in Hollywood, always have been, always will be. For the people who made movies denouncing Big Oil, worshiping gays, mocking the rich to think of themselves as brave -- this is pathetic, childish narcissism.

[...]

Hollywood is above all about self: self-congratulation, self-promotion, and above all, self-protection. This is human and basic, but let's not kid ourselves. There is no greatness there in the Kodak theater. The greatness is on patrol in Kirkuk. The greatness lies unable to sleep worrying about her man in Mosul. The greatness sleeps at Arlington National Cemetery and lies waiting for death in VA Hospitals. God help us that we have sunk so low as to confuse foolish and petty boasting with the real courage that keeps this nation and the many fools in it alive and flourishing on national TV.

Disgusting. Shameful. But not surprising.

Can we question their patriotism, now?

Read the whole thing.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:57 AM | Comments (2)

March 08, 2006

Running rhetorical rings around the Medieval Muslim

I've received a number of e-mails pointing me to this video, and it's popping up all over the web -- for good reason.

Wafa Sultan, an Arab-American psychologist, was interviewed on Al-Jezeera last month, and she said some things that took immense courage to say, especially in Arabic to an audience not given to, how shall we say, tolerating dissent.

Wafa Sultan: The clash we are witnessing around the world is not a clash of religions, or a clash of civilizations. It is a clash between two opposites, between two eras. It is a clash between a mentality that belongs to the Middle Ages and another mentality that belongs to the 21st century. It is a clash between civilization and backwardness, between the civilized and the primitive, between barbarity and rationality. It is a clash between freedom and oppression, between democracy and dictatorship. It is a clash between human rights, on the one hand, and the violation of these rights, on other hand. It is a clash between those who treat women like beasts, and those who treat them like human beings. What we see today is not a clash of civilizations. Civilizations do not clash, but compete.

[...]

Host: I understand from your words that what is happening today is a clash between the culture of the West, and the backwardness and ignorance of the Muslims?

Wafa Sultan: Yes, that is what I mean.

[...]

Host: Who came up with the concept of a clash of civilizations? Was it not Samuel Huntington? It was not Bin Laden. I would like to discuss this issue, if you don't mind...

Wafa Sultan: The Muslims are the ones who began using this expression. The Muslims are the ones who began the clash of civilizations. The Prophet of Islam said: "I was ordered to fight the people until they believe in Allah and His Messenger." When the Muslims divided the people into Muslims and non-Muslims, and called to fight the others until they believe in what they themselves believe, they started this clash, and began this war. In order to start this war, they must reexamine their Islamic books and curricula, which are full of calls for takfir and fighting the infidels.

My colleague has said that he never offends other people's beliefs. What civilization on the face of this earth allows him to call other people by names that they did not choose for themselves? Once, he calls them Ahl Al-Dhimma, another time he calls them the "People of the Book," and yet another time he compares them to apes and pigs, or he calls the Christians "those who incur Allah's wrath." Who told you that they are "People of the Book"? They are not the People of the Book, they are people of many books. All the useful scientific books that you have today are theirs, the fruit of their free and creative thinking. What gives you the right to call them "those who incur Allah's wrath," or "those who have gone astray," and then come here and say that your religion commands you to refrain from offending the beliefs of others?

I am not a Christian, a Muslim, or a Jew. I am a secular human being. I do not believe in the supernatural, but I respect others' right to believe in it.

Dr. Ibrahim Al-Khouli: Are you a heretic?

Wafa Sultan: You can say whatever you like. I am a secular human being who does not believe in the supernatural...

Dr. Ibrahim Al-Khouli: If you are a heretic, there is no point in rebuking you, since you have blasphemed against Islam, the Prophet, and the Koran...

Wafa Sultan: These are personal matters that do not concern you.

[...]

Wafa Sultan: Brother, you can believe in stones, as long as you don't throw them at me. You are free to worship whoever you want, but other people's beliefs are not your concern, whether they believe that the Messiah is God, son of Mary, or that Satan is God, son of Mary. Let people have their beliefs.

My jaw just about hit the floor when I read the following translation. This was on Al-Jezeera?

[...]

Wafa Sultan: The Jews have come from the tragedy (of the Holocaust), and forced the world to respect them, with their knowledge, not with their terror, with their work, not their crying and yelling. Humanity owes most of the discoveries and science of the 19th and 20th centuries to Jewish scientists. 15 million people, scattered throughout the world, united and won their rights through work and knowledge. We have not seen a single Jew blow himself up in a German restaurant. We have not seen a single Jew destroy a church. We have not seen a single Jew protest by killing people. The Muslims have turned three Buddha statues into rubble. We have not seen a single Buddhist burn down a Mosque, kill a Muslim, or burn down an embassy. Only the Muslims defend their beliefs by burning down churches, killing people, and destroying embassies. This path will not yield any results. The Muslims must ask themselves what they can do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them.

Incredible bravery on the part of Ms. Sultan, wouldn't you say? Memo to American left-wing moonbats (I'm talking to you, Clooney!): This is speaking truth to power.

Posted by Mike Lief at 10:09 PM | Comments (1)

March 07, 2006

More from the demented Jackson Family

Fox News columnist Roger Friedman saw Jermaine Jackson on Larry King last night. After hearing Jackson "lie" about what was in his book proposal, Friedman tracked down a copy and posted portions of what the pop star's brother wrote.

I was so interested in Jermaine Jackson’s 2003 proposal for a book about his brother Michael that I called around to find the actual document. Jermaine had shopped it around to several book publishers and sure enough, there still were copies to be found.

Here are excerpts from it, in Jermaine’s own voice. I have no idea where he is right now, but my guess is that if Michael has found out about this, Jermaine is on his way to a place much farther away than Bahrain:

“My brother is a superstar, yes. My brother is wealthy. He owns shares in Sony music. He drinks, he does drugs, he lies, he cheats, he changed his skin color and mostly, he’s human. He attracts gay men and wards off women like the plague.”

“He married a woman because she was pregnant and he was doing business with Muslims (which I am a Muslim) and Muslims won’t do business with someone who is engaged in having children without being married.

"He paid this woman, who nobody would ever look twice at, several million dollars. My brother purchased children. It is like a sanctioned black market. He is very powerful; he picked the sperm donor by using information provided by a sperm bank. Now, who can do that? Michael Jackson, that’s who, my brother.

“I have maintained my residence by my mother's side at the family's Hayvenhurst estate in Encino, California because I know how much I am needed there. Michael counts on me to be there as does the rest of my family.”

“It was my little brother, he conceived the whole idea behind DreamWorks. The logo is still proudly the official logo of Neverland. Unfortunately, Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen all stole the idea from him. That’s one reason why Michael hates Jewish people so much. But he plays the game with them. There is a game that all in Hollywood play. But the Jews are the powerful ones and they have done a lot to put my brother in his place….just another nigger. That’s what Don King told Michael at the start of the "Victory" tour. No matter what Michael, you’re just another nigger.

“My brother doesn’t always learn the valuable lessons life teaches. He is stubborn, hard-headed and, at times, harsh. He is cold, calculating and devious. The blood of his father runs freely through him. We were all afraid that the blood of Joseph Jackson would eventually contaminate all of us.

“But this is still my family and I love every one of them and I won’t sit by and let my brother go to prison. Prison would kill him. I’ve thought about doing the time for him, if he’s convicted. Michael wouldn’t survive in prison for one day. He’d commit suicide.

“Joseph did some disgusting things to Latoya and Rebbie, especially. If it weren’t for Mother’s loyalty to him, he’d probably be in prison for what he did to our sisters.”

Nice to know how far family loyalty will go. And kudos to Larry King for another tough interview. Not. Friedman notes King's failure to ask any tough questions of his guest, including the fact that he was lying about the contents of the book proposal. How does that guy keep his job?

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:37 AM | Comments (0)

The best movies are playing at home

Anne Althouse had a couple of posts about the entertainment industry that got me thinking.

"I just feel that filmmakers are much more proactive since the second Bush administration,"
says Steven Spielberg. "I think that everybody is trying to declare their independence and state their case for things that we believe in. No one is really representing us, so we're representing our own feelings, and we're trying to strike back."

Emanuel Levy, professor of critical studies in the UCLA Film School and author of the book "All About Oscar: The History and Politics of the Academy Awards," said he thinks the tremors of a post-9/11 world have just caught up with Hollywood in this year's Academy Award races. Levy said that when society faces a divisive issue, such as the war in Iraq or the response to terrorism, critical movies emerge, but not immediately.

There is an expression in Hollywood that the studios make movies about what people were talking about last year. There is always a lag between idea and premiere. "Munich" took six years to reach the multiplex. "Brokeback Mountain" took eight. "Syriana" is based on a book written during the Clinton administration.

In other words, Spielberg is totally bullshitting. It's not about Bush, it's about Clinton.

Ann also commented on the low numbers of Americans who had bothered going to a theater to see the pictures nominated for an Oscar, and whether many would bother to watch the Oscars.

Oddly enough, I've got something to say about this (and damn near anything else, too, I know).

I've been a HUGE movie buff (cinephile sounds too snobbish) since I was a little kid, when my mom would drop me off at the Studio City Theater and the La Reina on Ventura Blvd. for their summer movie programs in the early 70s.

My wife cautions before each Costco visit, "You're not going to buy anymore DVDs, are you?" Of course, it's hard to resist when you can own a classic flick, or even just a pretty good one, for less than the price of two tickets, drinks and popcorn.

Sigh.

I got to meet many old-time actors and technicians while hanging out at the Studio City Driving Range with my dad, and later when I got my first job in the coffee shop, where the duffers would drink coffee and shoot the breeze about the good old days.

How many kids got to see Jack Albertson do a softshoe with a putter standing in for his cane; Harry Warren talk about writing "Atchinson, Topeka & the Santa Fe," and "Chatanooga Choo-Choo," ; George Tobias talking about his time on the set with Cagney and Bogie.

I grew up watching the Oscars, and went to school with actor's kids; Walter Matthau's son would go to the races with his dad, sporting his own bankroll to bet on the ponies.

Anyhow, having stated my bona fides, I must also tell you that I didn't bother watching the Oscars Sunday night. I hadn't seen any of the nominated films, and have no interest in doing so.

Between the sexual identity agenda films (Brokeback and TransAmerica) and the anti-American, anti-Western political agenda flicks (Good NIght, Crash, Munich and Syriana), I've avoided the movies like a bathroom in a Chinese restaurant.

I wrote about Munich, Brokeback and TransAmerica here.

The theaters themselves are annoying, with high ticket prices, ads (frickin' ads!) playing before the feature, dim pictures because of theaterowners trying to extend the life of the projector bulbs, and rude, crude, socially inept patrons, talking, answering cell phones, and bringing squalling infants and complaining toddlers to grossly inappropriate films.

We bought an LCD front projector, which we put on the coffee table, and now watch on a pull-down six-foot widescreen screen, on a comfy couch, and quite frankly don't miss the communal experience of fighting for the armrest with the moron who showed up late and asked everybody in the row to move down one seat.

The only genre that suffers as a result is the comedy; nothing compares to hundreds or thousands of people laughing, the sounds of their laughter ebbing and building, rolling throughout a darkened theater.

But few comedies of late inspire that kind of hilarity. . . .

Finally, the last place I want to get my politics from is the movies. Spielberg has gone off the rails; a good technician who produced rousing pop entertainment has decided he needs to educate us about the moral complexities of the Middle East.
BWAHHHHAAAAA.

Sorry.

I wonder how Schindler's List would look had it been made during Spielberg's new, "speak-truth-to-power" phase.

Posted by Mike Lief at 01:25 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 06, 2006

What has she done to herself?

I remember the first time I saw Meg Ryan; it was in the film Innerspace, and I thought she was the cutest, all-American girl-next-door actress I'd ever seen. She seemed real, which I suppose is what all actresses ought to strive for.

She captured the hearts of the American public in the romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally, perhaps the quintessential portrayal of big-city dating in the late '80s. Ryan's Sally reminded me of a college friend; they could have been sisters, only my Sally was even better looking than her cinematic doppelganger. Unlike Harry, "Sally" and I never got together . . . .

Sigh.

Anyhow, Meg made Sleepless in Seattle with Tom Hanks, and her place as moviegoers' favorite nice girl seemed secure.

But her marriage to Dennis Quaid fell apart amidst rumors of an affair with co-star Russell Crowe, and a series of ho-hum films left her career stalled as she entered her late-thirties and early forties.

Then I saw this picture, from a recent appearance on Oprah.

Aw, crap.

What on Earth has she done to herself? Is aging so horrific? I know that plastic surgery is the norm in LaLa Land, but this is just awful.

Posted by Mike Lief at 09:36 PM | Comments (1)

March 05, 2006

All the Jacksons are nutjobs

Buried near the end of an article on a tell-all book proposal by one of Michael Jackson's brothers (Jermaine) is this nugget.

Michael hates Jews because he thinks Hollywood moguls Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen stole the idea for Dreamworks studio, including the boy-on-the moon logo, from him.

"But the Jews are the powerful ones and they have done a lot to put my brother in his place ... just another nigger."

And Jermaine Jackson is the sane one. Need I point out that if there's a group of Americans less likely to refer to a black as "just another nigger" than the Jews, they've yet to be revealed by modern science. There's only one group of people in 21st Century America that enjoys spicing up conversation with the more-than-occasional "nigger," and it ain't studio executives or self-loathing creative types.

It's amazing how much of this hatred is just below the surface, and it's symptomatic that so many in the entertainment industry feel comfortable spewing it.

And the capacity of my fellow Jews to suck it up, brush it off, and move on is repellent. But the Jews in the entertainment industry may be putting on a good public face. I've heard that more and more Jews are moving to the right, alienated by the increasing evidence that the historic alliance between the blacks and Jews dating back to the 60s-era Civil Rights Movement has been repaid with this kind of anti-Semitic bilge.

Wasn't it Mark Twain who said that no good deed goes unpunished? Perhaps that's the growing sentiment amongst American Jews.

Posted by Mike Lief at 03:18 PM | Comments (0)

Teaching Americans to obey wannabe Muslim Mullahs

The indoctrination of college students continues, this time on the Left Coast.

CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) -- A student's column in the Oregon State University campus newspaper has prompted protests by Muslim students, who say it is offensive to their faith.

The piece headlined "The Islamic Double Standard" was written by OSU microbiology student Nathanael Blake and published in the Daily Barometer on Feb. 8.

The column accused Muslims of expecting special treatment after a Danish newspaper published cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad. Riots over the cartoons amounted to "savagery," Blake said. "Bluntly put, we expect Muslims to behave barbarously," his column said.

On Thursday, about a dozen students -- including members of Muslim and Arab student groups -- held a vigil on the campus to protest both Blake's piece and the Danish cartoons.

They handed out flyers that stated "While staying loyal to the main values of freedom of expression that founded this country, we also feel the need to reflect on the values of tolerance and acceptance on this campus."

Among the students offended by the column was Nada Mohamed, a 20-year-old junior and the vice president of OSU's Muslim Student Association.

"It was amazing to me that they (the campus newspaper) were allowed to publish this kind of stuff," she told the Corvallis Gazette-Times. "Tears were flowing out of my eyes as I was reading," she said. "I felt like somebody was ripping my heart out."

At the Daily Barometer, editors said e-mail and phone calls poured in. Senior editors have met with the Muslim Student Association.

"The pain that it caused ... did not subside with time," said DD Bixby, the Barometer's editor-in-chief. "It kind of just festered." She said editors have been checking copy with Muslim students, and on Tuesday deleted one paragraph from a piece scheduled to be published the next day.

In case you missed it, the cowards running the paper are allowing Muslim students to read the paper before publication and censor articles they find offensive.

In a state-run university.

Funded with Americans' tax dollars.

This kind of stuff is guaranteed to generate a reaction that will shock our multi-culti friends, and I don't mean in a good way. Jim Geraghty has an interesting post over at National Review, discussing the "Tipping Effect".

The Bush Administration’s reaction to the cartoon riots was comparably milquetoast. The violence and threats committed over the cartoons shocked, frightened and really, really angered Americans. They want somebody to smack the Muslim world back onto its heels and set them straight: “It doesn’t matter how offensive a cartoon is, you’re not allowed to riot, burn down embassies and kill people over it.”

. . . Courting these voters will mean supporting proposals that are supported by wide swaths of the American people, but are largely considered nonstarters in Washington circles: much tougher immigration restrictions, including patrolling the Mexican border; racial profiling of airline passengers instead of confiscating grandma’s tweezers; drastically reducing or eliminating entry visas to residents of Muslim or Arab countries; and taking a much tougher line with Saudi Arabia and coping with the consequences of that stance. Since 9/11, the Bush administration, and most leaders on Capitol Hill in both parties have dismissed those ideas as unrealistic, counterproductive, or not in accordance to American values.

More newspaper articles about Americans allowing Muslims to censor articles will have ever-greater numbers of formerly-moderate and liberal Christians, Jews and atheists rethinking their worldview as they step into the voting booth.

I don't think the Mullahs are going to like the results.

Via Little Green Footballs.

Posted by Mike Lief at 02:50 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 02, 2006

Heavy petting

When was the last time you read a more fitting tribute to the love of a hairy ass?

[Donkeys] are sweet, powerfully spiritual creatures. Mine have an ostensible purpose: They're my security detail, fiercely protective of my flock of sheep. They run off stray dogs and coyotes. Since I've lost no sheep to these common predators, the donkeys seem to do their jobs well.

But they also—and this is why I have more donkeys than I truly need—attach to people. They nuzzle and lean into humans they like, which can sometimes be disconcerting, but is also touching. They are gentle with children, calm around strangers. They coexist reasonably amiably with my dogs and chickens. My ferocious rodent-massacring barn cat, Mother, sleeps near them often, and last week I came into the barn and saw her curled up next to the baby, both of them dozing comfortably on a pile of straw bedding.

When I come out of the house in the morning, all three girls are waiting at the barnyard gate, wheezily braying for their cookies. Serious about snacks, they're likely to nose into your pockets if you're slow to produce them.

But our connection goes beyond food, I think. Almost every day, I sit on a tree stump in the pasture, and one donkey or another—sometimes all three—comes over to nuzzle with me, putting a big furry head on my shoulder or the top of my head. During winter storms, I trudge up to the pole barn and comb ice from their long eye lashes and brush the snow off their coats. They hold still, then nuzzle me in appreciation.

More can be found here.

Posted by Mike Lief at 07:30 AM | Comments (1)

Bond? Not bloody likely

I'll brook no foolishness: Sean Connery was is James Bond. The only actor to capture the cruelty of Ian Fleming's character, Connery seemed authentically dangerous, a killer by trade.

He was replaced by the foppish Roger Moore, who always seemed like he was looking for a way to avoid mussing his hair.

Then came Timothy something or other, who was believable as a secret agent only because his total lack of charisma made him invisible in a crowd. Good for a spy, not so good for a movie star.

I liked Pierce Brosnan; who would've thought Remington Freakin' Steele could make a decent 007? But he did, coming close to equaling Connery's mastery of the character -- at least until the stupidity of the scripts did him in.

But Brosnan did pull off the necessary air of menace.

The producers have seen fit to retire Brosnan -- with prejudice. Have you seen the new guy? Oy!

From the unbelievably funny-but-cruel I Don't Like You in That Way comes this.

Reports from the much labored production of the new James Bond flick, Casino Royale, claim that star Daniel Craig has a horrible case of prickly heat he caught while getting a sunburn when he was trying to tan. This comes on the heels of Craig losing his two front teeth during a fight scene and his confession to producers that he is unable to drive a stick shift, a problem since the classic Aston Martin DB5 is Bond's car of choice.

Other sources are claiming that Craig asked the film's producers to supply him with numerous beauty and pampering products such as baby lotion, nail files and wet wipes. All of these incidents have a large number of fans and industry insiders worried about the film's success.

A James Bond movie is about as formulaic as you can get: cool one-liners, liquor, Bond girls with huge tits, explosions and evil villains.

A home video has more plot points than your average Bond film, yet there have been 20 of them. So at this point, a homeless man could direct a James Bond movie, as long as he stuck to this formula, and it would make millions.

So my question is, how in the hell do you screw that up? Oh I know, make sure your Bond is a prancing sissy and more concerned with his french manicure and getting his eyeliner just right to ever bother learning to drive a car. If I was the villain, I wouldn't know whether to dangle him over a pit of sharks or (when he asks) just tell him, "Yes, those pants make you look fat and you have lipstick on your teeth."

One commenter asked, "I wonder if Daniel Craig will reveal his mangina in the film?"

Mangina? Now that's funny!

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:35 AM | Comments (2)

America's useful Jewish idiots

Sonderkommando noun. German term for groups of Jewish concentration camp inmates whose job was to dispose of corpses from the gas chambers or crematoria. Some did the work to delay their own deaths; some thought they could protect friends and family, and some acted out of mere greed for extra food and money these men sometimes received.

Which leads me to this piece of lunacy, brought to my attention by a friend who sent it in an e-mail, subject line: Idiots.

JERUSALEM – While the U.S. Congress is attempting to push tough legislation aimed at financially and diplomatically isolating the new Hamas-led Palestinian government, WND has learned leftist American Jewish organizations are working to block the anti-Hamas efforts, some arguing the terror group – which has killed hundreds of Israeli civilians – may be willing to make peace with the Jewish state.

"We oppose the legislation. The U.S. should be extending carrots to Hamas, and not just slapping them with sticks. We should be trying to encourage Hamas to recognize Israel, not shutting them out completely," M.J. Rosenberg, director of policy for the Israel Policy Forum, a prominent leftist think tank, told WND.

Rosenberg is one of several leftist Jewish leaders opposing a bill initiated in the House of Representatives following Hamas' major election victory last month by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., and Tom Lantos, D-Calif., that calls for a strict termination of aid to the new Hamas-dominated government.

You're probably wondering why any Jews would object to blocking aid to a terrorist organization dedicated to destroying Israel and, in the process, killing -- wait for it -- Jews. Well, I'll tell ya. I have no idea. Let's take a look at the legislation.

The Ros-Lehtinen legislation designates the Palestinian Authority under Hamas a terror supporting entity. It demands the halt of direct and indirect U.S. assistance to the PA with the exception of certain humanitarian aid, and bars American financial support for U.N. and non-governmental agencies connected to the PA.

The bill calls for PA officials to be prevented from receiving visas to enter the U.S., restricts the Palestinian government from maintaining representative offices in the U.S., and places travel restrictions on PA and PLO representatives to the U.N.

The congressional bill also states American diplomats cannot hold talks with members of any Palestinian terror group, including Hamas and Fatah's Al Aqsa Martyr Brigades. And it places tight restrictions on the U.S. president's options for circumventing the bill, omitting any national security waivers related to aid and requiring a 15-day waiting period before any humanitarian assistance can be forwarded.

According to the Ros-Lehtinen bill, the U.S. can reassess its support for the PA if the Palestinian government proves it is not employing members of Hamas or any other group featured on the State Department list of terror groups. The PA would also need to dismantle all Palestinian terror organizations, ensure democracy and financial transparency, and halt all anti-Israel incitement and instead distribute material that promotes peaceful coexistence.

Sounds good to me. If the terrorists PA actually decides to govern instead of sending 'splodey-dopes into Israel, the U.S. applies less stick, more carrot.

But leftist American Jewish organizations are up in arms about the legislation, arguing it is too tough on Hamas – a terror group whose charter calls for the destruction of Israel "by assaulting and killing."

Lewis Roth, assistant director of Americans for Peace Now, a leftist group supporting final status negotiations to create a Palestinian state, said while his organization is still formulating its stance on the Ros-Lehtinen legislation it "has a problem" with the new bill demanding Hamas must recognize Israel.

"This new call for the PA to recognize the existence of Israel as a Jewish state is not agreeable," Roth told WND. "It's something the U.S. has never applied before in negotiations with the Palestinians or with regard to Jordanian treaties. The clause is clearly drafted with Hamas in mind. It makes no sense. What if Fatah [which recognizes Israel as a Jewish state] comes back to power?"

Roth said Americans for Peace Now also opposes the bill because it restricts options for a presidential waver. He said his group "hopes to work to improve the legislation so it is better fit to promote regional peace."

Another leftist group, the Brit Tzedek v'Shalom Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace, has initiated an online petition calling for Americans to oppose the anti-Hamas legislation.

"Lehtinen and Lantos have introduced legislation that severely restricts the U.S. ability to constructively engage with moderate Palestinians and to provide critical aid to the Palestinian people. This bill, H.R. 4681, effectively forfeits any constructive US role in returning Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table," states the online petition.

Brit Tzedek calls for a "wait-and-see approach" toward the new Hamas government. "However," continues the online petition, "Congress has rushed to respond to this turn of events with legislation that, as currently written, threatens to shut the door permanently."

Rosenberg of the Israel Policy Forum said if Hamas declares it recognizes Israel, the Jewish state should negotiate with the new Palestinian government.

Seymour Reich, the forum's president, told WND, "Our concern is that the bill is too restrictive. We need flexibility regarding Hamas. We need to follow the situation."

I agree, we do need flexibility regarding Hamas. I was thinking 7.62mm versus .50 cal.

Liberal Jews, followers of the Reform movement, are the most likely to buy into the belief that that Hamas and it's followers are really just like us -- only more likely to blow themselves up in restaurants and on buses. But that's just because our Arab brothers are misunderstood, driven to violence as a result of the wrong-headed Israeli insistence on that oh-so-retro idea: self-defense.

What is it the liberals always say? "An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind." I prefer the way Sean Connery put it in the Untouchables: "You wanna know how you do it? Here's how, they pull a knife, you pull a gun. He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That's the Chicago way."

Conservative movement Jews are the squishes of the political world. Less likely to slip Arafat (or his successors) the tongue than their Reform brethren, they are still uncomfortable acknowledging that the Israelis defending themselves is not a perpetuation of the "cycle of violence," but a necessary response in the face of sheer, bloody homicidal madness.

Orthodox Jews are the most clear-eyed when it comes to the threat presented by the ascension of Hamas to the seat of power. Mention the article above to a Jewish friend. If he rolls his eyes, I'll bet you a hot corned beef on rye that he doesn't belong to a Reform synagogue, and I'll bet you an egg cream that he's not going to services at a Conservative shul, either.

As for the American Sonderkommando, they're just carrying on in the finest tradition of Jews who preferred to believe that anything can be resolved if we just talktalktalk. Talk, much like the leadership of the Polish ghettos who filled German quotas for crematoria-bound trains, because, if they were reasonable, maybe they could convince their overlords to halt the transports.

I'm flabbergasted by their stupidity, but not surprised. History is filled with tales of people who have made their deal with the Devil, only to find that he rarely lets them enjoy their side of the bargain. I think what we're seeing now is a rejection of the idea of the Jewish identity, a refusal to acknowledge that for the anti-Semites, the Jew haters, we are defined not by how we view ourselves, but how our enemies view us.

Those prominent liberal Jews crying in their beer over our mistreatment of Hamas? Well, in the final analysis, I can't improve on my friend's pithy subject line: Idiots.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:30 AM | Comments (0)

March 01, 2006

Confronting Islamism

Jyllands-Posten, the Danish newspaper that published the cartoons that drove Muslims to murder, has now published a manifesto from prominent writers and intellectuals, avoiding the pusillanimous multi-culti sensitivity of papers like the New York Times, and actually dared to name the enemy at the gates.

After having overcome fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism, the world now faces a new totalitarian global threat: Islamism.

We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all.

The recent events, which occurred after the publication of drawings of Muhammed in European newspapers, have revealed the necessity of the struggle for these universal values. This struggle will not be won by arms, but in the ideological field. It is not a clash of civilisations nor an antagonism of West and East that we are witnessing, but a global struggle that confronts democrats and theocrats.

Like all totalitarianisms, Islamism is nurtured by fears and frustrations. The hate preachers bet on these feelings in order to form battalions destined to impose a liberticidal and unegalitarian world. But we clearly and firmly state: nothing, not even despair, justifies the choice of obscurantism, totalitarianism and hatred. Islamism is a reactionary ideology which kills equality, freedom and secularism wherever it is present. Its success can only lead to a world of domination: man's domination of woman, the Islamists' domination of all the others. To counter this, we must assure universal rights to oppressed or discriminated people.

We reject cultural relativism, which consists in accepting that men and women of Muslim culture should be deprived of the right to equality, freedom and secular values in the name of respect for cultures and traditions. We refuse to renounce our critical spirit out of fear of being accused of "Islamophobia," an unfortunate concept which confuses criticism of Islam as a religion with stigmatisation of its believers.

We plead for the universality of freedom of expression, so that a critical spirit may be exercised on all continents, against all abuses and all dogmas.

We appeal to democrats and free spirits of all countries that our century should be one of Enlightenment, not of obscurantism.

Signed

Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Chahla Chafiq
Caroline Fourest
Bernard-Henri Lévy
Irshad Manji
Mehdi Mozaffari
Maryam Namazie
Taslima Nasreen
Salman Rushdie
Antoine Sfeir
Philippe Val
Ibn Warraq

Presentations:

Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Ayaan Hirsi Ali, from somilian origin, is member of Dutch parliement, member of the liberal party VVD. Writter of the film Submission which caused the assasination of Theo Van Gogh by an islamist in november 2004, she lives under police protection.

Chahla Chafiq
Chahla Chafiq, writer from iranian origin, exiled in France is a novelist and an essayist. She's the author of "Le nouvel homme islamiste , la prison politique en Iran " (2002). She also wrote novels such as "Chemins et brouillard" (2005).

Caroline Fourest
Essayist, editor in chief of Prochoix (a review who defend liberties against dogmatic and integrist ideologies), author of several reference books on « laicité » and fanatism : Tirs Croisés : la laïcité à l'épreuve des intégrismes juif, chrétien et musulman (with Fiammetta Venner), Frère Tariq : discours, stratégie et méthode de Tariq Ramadan, et la Tentation obscurantiste (Grasset, 2005). She receieved the National prize of laicité in 2005.

Bernard-Henri Lévy
French philosoph, born in Algeria, engaged against all the XXth century « ism » (Fascism, antisemitism, totalitarism, terrorism), he is the author of La Barbarie à visage humain, L'Idéologie française, La Pureté dangereuse, and more recently American Vertigo.

Irshad Manji
Irshad Manji is a Fellow at Yale University and the internationally best-selling author of "The Trouble with Islam Today: A Muslim's Call for Reform in Her Faith" (en francais: "Musulmane Mais Libre"). She speaks out for free expression based on the Koran itself. Née en Ouganda, elle a fui ce pays avec sa famille musulmane d'origine indienne à l'âge de quatre ans et vit maintenant au Canada, où ses émissions et ses livres connaissent un énorme succès.

Mehdi Mozaffari
Mehdi Mozaffari, professor from iranian origin and exiled in Denmark, is the author of several articles and books on islam and islamism such as : Authority in Islam: From Muhammad to Khomeini, Fatwa: Violence and Discourtesy and Glaobalization and Civilizations.

Maryam Namazie
Writer, TV International English producer; Director of the Worker-communist Party of Iran's International Relations; and 2005 winner of the National Secular Society's Secularist of the Year award.

Taslima Nasreen
Taslima Nasreen is born in Bangladesh. Doctor, her positions defending women and minorities brought her in trouble with a comittee of integrist called « Destroy Taslima » and to be persecuted as « apostate »

Salman Rushdie
Salman Rushdie is the author of nine novels, including Midnight's Children, The Satanic Verses and, most recently, Shalimar the Clown. He has received many literary awards, including the Booker Prize, the Whitbread Prize for Best Novel, Germany's Author of the Year Award, the European Union's Aristeion Prize, the Budapest Grand Prize for Literature, the Premio Mantova, and the Austrian State Prize for European Literature. He is a Commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et Lettres, an Honorary Professor in the Humanities at M.I.T., and the president of PEN American Center. His books have been translated into over 40 languages.

Philippe Val
Director of publication of Charlie Hebdo (Leftwing french newspaper who have republished the cartoons on the prophet Muhammad by solidarity with the danish citizens targeted by islamists).

Ibn Warraq
Ibn Warraq , author notably of Why I am Not a Muslim ; Leaving Islam : Apostates Speak Out ; and The Origins of the Koran , is at present Research Fellow at a New York Institute conducting philological and historical research into the Origins of Islam and its Holy Book.

Antoine Sfeir :
Born in Lebanon, christian, Antoine Sfeir choosed french nationality to live in an universalist and « laïc » (real secular) country. He is the director of Les cahiers de l'Orient and has published several reference books on islamism such as Les réseaux d'Allah (2001) et Liberté, égalité, Islam : la République face au communautarisme (2005).

A clarion call to arms. Spread the word.

Posted by Mike Lief at 12:15 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack