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Why U.S. Policy Leans TooClose to Terrorist Appeasement "A well-organized plan to infiltrate and influence U.S. policymakers at the highest levels has been operating on American soil for well over a decade." And the Muslim Brotherhood is involved -- who else? Clare M. Lopez of the Intelligence Summit explains in Human Events: "Why U.S. Policy Leans Too Close to Terrorist Appeasement," February 10: [...] Under the Bush administration we had no Iran policy. Now, our policy leans too close to appeasement. How did it get this way?
America’s foreign policy toward Iran did not reach this level of malleability overnight or by accident. A well-organized plan to infiltrate and influence U.S. policymakers at the highest levels has been operating on American soil for well over a decade. Conceived in Tehran under the direct authority of the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the plan set out to create a network of top U.S. academics, diplomats, journalists, NGOs, and think tanks that would advocate a policy of appeasement towards Iran. Iran’s top strategic objective has always been to buy time for its nuclear weapons program, which now is well along in developing the three critical components: enriched uranium, warhead weaponization, and a credible missile delivery system. Beginning in the late 1990s, a de facto alliance between Muslim Brotherhood fronts in the U.S. (such as CAIR -- the Council on Islamic American Relations) and frank Tehran regime advocates like the American-Iranian Council (AIC) openly began to promote public support for a U.S. foreign policy based on the favored positions of the Islamic Republic. In 2002, a new pro-Iran group was formed by a young Swedish-Iranian immigrant named Trita Parsi. That group, the National Iranian-American Council (NIAC) quickly established itself as the nexus of a growing network of individuals and organizations that openly lobby for a U.S. policy of acquiescence, diplomacy, incentives, and negotiations with the Tehran regime -- while strongly opposing coercive diplomacy, sanctions, or threat of military action. Part and parcel of this advocacy on behalf of Tehran is a pattern of antipathy towards Israel that minimizes its security concerns and dismisses its legitimate defense needs. Under Parsi, who is closely connected to the Tehran regime, the NIAC network has expanded to include a growing number of new groups. Some of them -- such as The Campaign Against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran (CASMII) -- are NIAC clones. CASMII was founded in December 2005 to oppose all forms of pressure on Iran. Others, such as the Center for a New American Security (CNAS, founded in February 2007) play the role of useful idiots. CNAS had Dr. Susan Rice, the Obama administration’s appointee as Ambassador to the UN, on its Board of Directors. Dr. Vali Nasr, who has been named senior advisor to U.S. Afghanistan/Pakistan envoy Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, was one of the authors of a September 2008 CNAS publication called Iran: Assessing U.S. Strategic Options. Nasr’s chapter, "The Implications of Military Confrontation with Iran," urged the U.S. to take the military option for dealing with Iran off the table and instead focus on how best to accommodate Tehran’s rising power in the Middle East region. The Campaign for a New American Policy on Iran (CNAPI) launched its pro-Iran activities with a cross-country event called The Folly of Attacking Iran Tour, which crisscrossed the U.S. in February and March 2008. The American Foreign Policy Project (AFPP) was founded in December 2008 with an “experts list” that reads like a remix of other CAIR and NIAC affiliates, including former Ambassadors Thomas Pickering, James Dobbins, and William Miller plus well-known academic figures such as Professors Gary G. Sick of Columbia University and Juan R. Cole of the University of Michigan. These groups’ interlocking Boards of Advisors, Directors, and Experts include many other nationally-known figures from public policy and international business arenas, including some big oil companies. All are associated in one way or another with Trita Parsi and NIAC and all advocate a policy of accommodation with Iran. The Iranian regime makes no attempt to disguise its links to this network. NIAC, for instance, was openly mentioned in the 7 December 2007 issue of the government-controlled Aftab News, where the NIAC network was called the regime’s “Iran lobby in the U.S.” In March 2007, the Fars News daily described NIAC as ‘a non-profit’ organization with headquarters in Washington, D.C. that was established to counter the influence of AIPAC [the American-Israeli Political Action Committee, a legal lobby group] and to enlist the support of Iranian expatriates living in the U.S. in order to ‘penetrate U.S. politics.’ Maneuvering behind Washington, D.C. policymaking scenes to exert influence on U.S. decision makers is pretty standard for a host of legitimate interest groups, including many foreign countries. Concern is indicated, however, when the guiding influence behind such maneuvering emanates from the top levels of a regime like Iran’s that holds top spot on the Department of State’s state sponsors of terror list, makes no secret of its hatred and enmity for the U.S. and our ally Israel, and acts in myriad ways to support those who have assassinated, held, kidnapped, killed, and tortured American civilians and military over a 30-year period. The expanding influence of this pro-Iran lobby on U.S. foreign policy attests to a determined and sophisticated operation that serves only the interests of regime implacably hostile to America’s own national security interests.
Is it fair to paint all Islamic schools of thought as violent? 
Islamic apologists often point out that Islam is not a monolith and that there are differences of opinion among the different Islamic schools of thought. That is true, but, while there are differences, there are also common elements. Just as Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Protestant Christians differ on many aspects of Christianity, still they accept important common elements. So it is with Islam. One of the common elements to all Islamic schools of thought is jihad, understood as the obligation of the Ummah to conquer and subdue the world in the name of Allah and rule it under Sharia law. The four Sunni Madhhabs (schools of fiqh [Islamic religious jurisprudence]) -- Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali -- all agree that there is a collective obligation on Muslims to make war on the rest of the world. Furthermore, even the schools of thought outside Sunni orthodoxy, including Sufism and the Jafari (Shia) school, agree on the necessity of jihad. When it comes to matters of jihad, the different schools disagree on such questions as whether infidels must first be asked to convert to Islam before hostilities may begin (Osama bin Laden asked America to convert before Al-Qaeda's attacks); how plunder should be distributed among victorious jihadists; whether a long-term Fabian strategy against dar al-harb is preferable to an all-out frontal attack; etc.
Islamic rebels kidnap Red Cross workers in Philippines
Reuters | Friday, 16 January 2009 Three Red Cross workers, including an Italian and a Swiss national, were kidnapped by suspected Muslim rebels on a southern Philippine island yesterday, officials said. Senator Richard Gordon, the head of the Philippine National Red Cross, told Reuters the three, who also included a Filipina woman, were travelling in a Red Cross vehicle on the island of Jolo when they were stopped and taken away by an armed group. Marine officials and police on Jolo confirmed the incident, saying an alarm was raised when the three did not arrive to catch a flight back to the mainland that they had been booked on. "We are in a hot pursuit operation," said Julasirim Kasim, police chief in Sulu province, of which Jolo is the capital. A military spokeswoman, Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, said troops had recovered the Red Cross vehicle and were told by locals that the gunmen were taking the captives toward the mountainous interior of the island. The Abu Sayyaf, the smallest and deadliest of Muslim rebel groups operating in the Philippines, was believed to be responsible, officials said. The group is notorious for kidnappings and is based on Jolo and the nearby island of Basilan. "I am appealing to the Abu Sayyaf to free those people, because they are neutral in any conflict," Gordon said. "They do not realise this but these people help them if they get wounded and get them out of the conflict areas." The Abu Sayyaf has twice attacked luxury beach resorts and taken away tourists, including Westerners. They have held them for months at a time and secured large ransoms for their release. In 2000, Abu Sayyaf militants kidnapped over a dozen Western tourists from a beach resort in neighbouring Malaysia and brought them to Jolo. They then took millions of dollars in ransom. A year later, the group attacked a luxury resort in the western Philippines and took away about 20 tourists and hotel workers. Most were freed after payment of ransom but three were beheaded, including an American, and an American missionary was killed in a shootout between the kidnappers and the army. The Abu Sayyaf has also been blamed for the bombing of a ferry near Manila Bay in 2004 that killed 100 people.
Group That Funded Rep. Ellison's Pilgrimageto Mecca Called aFront for ExtremismMinnesota Rep. Keith Ellison took a trip to Mecca in December that was funded by a group terrorism experts say is tied to the Muslim Brotherhood, an international Islamist movement.
Rep. Keith Ellison Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison's groundbreaking pilgrimage to Mecca last month was paid for by an American Muslim organization that has ties to Islamic radicals and is "the Muslim equivalent of the neo-Nazi party," his critics say. Ellison, a Democrat, became the first U.S. congressman ever to make the hajj pilgrimage when he visited Islam's holy city in December. The trip was funded by the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, a non-profit interfaith group that is one of 55 branches of the MAS nationwide. The pilgrimage was hailed by Muslim activists in the U.S. "A U.S. congressman going on hajj sends a very positive message to the Muslim world about America and the religious diversity in America," said Ibrahim Hooper, communications director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim advocacy group. But Ellison, the only Muslim in Congress, is coming under fire for his ties to MAS, which one terrorism expert called "the Muslim equivalent of the neo-Nazi party." "It is the de facto arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S.," said Steven Emerson, director of the Investigative Project on Terrorism. "The agenda of the MAS is to ... impose Islamic law in the U.S., to undermine U.S. counterterrorism policy." The MAS was founded by members of the Muslim Brotherhood, an international Islamist movement created in Egypt in 1928. Radical members of the Brotherhood founded the terror group Hamas and were among the first members of Al Qaeda. The Muslim American Society's former secretary general has acknowledged that the group was founded by the Brotherhood, and in 2004 he estimated that about half of MAS members were in the Muslim Brotherhood. "Ikhwan [Brotherhood] members founded MAS, but MAS went way beyond that point of conception," Shaker Elsayed told the Chicago Tribune, explaining that the group had expanded to include a wider viewpoint. The Department of Justice has never taken action against MAS and declined to comment on whether it was investigating the group's ties. "As a general rule, the Justice Department does not comment on whether or not a particular group or individual is under investigation or has been under investigation," said Dean Boyd, a spokesman for DOJ. Ellison gave the keynote address at MAS-Minnesota's conventions in 2007 and 2008, and one of the organization's directors took time off his job to campaign for Ellison during his run for the House in 2006. Ellison was also the first guest on an MAS radio show launched last month. Representatives for MAS-Minnesota did not return calls or e-mails requesting comment. But Mahdi Bray, the national director who campaigned for Ellison, denied his group had funded the congressman's pilgrimage, calling the story a "myth" and "urban legend" that needed to be laid to rest. "Keith Ellison is a member of Congress who knows that congressmen don't take trips sponsored by nonprofits. That would be a breach of congressional ethics," said Bray, executive director of the MAS Freedom Foundation. But Ellison's office told FOXNews.com that MAS had indeed paid for the congressman's hajj. "The trip, funded by the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, was fully reviewed and approved in advance by the House Ethics Committee," Ellison's office said in a statement to FOXNews.com. The office, which did not say how much Ellison's trip cost, defended MAS as a highly regarded interfaith organization with many ties in Minnesota. "The Muslim American Society of Minnesota is a widely respected 501c3 organization incorporated in Minnesota, whose mission is to promote interfaith understanding," Ellison's office said in a statement to FOXNews.com. "The Muslim American Society of Minnesota (MASMN) has an ongoing interfaith project with the Minnesota Council of Churches, and a community outreach partnership with the St. Paul Police Department." Ellison's office stressed that prominent Minnesota politicians, including former Vice President Walter Mondale, are close to the MAS. It did not address allegations that MAS has ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Emerson said Ellison's embrace of MAS was an attempt to legitimize the group, which he called out of the mainstream. "It's very troubling that he is trying to project an image of moderation, but he is tied to these radical groups," Emerson told FOXNews.com. MAS has stirred up controversy in Minnesota for its activities in the state, including a fatwa, or religious edict, it issued barring Muslim taxi drivers from carrying passengers with alcohol. MAS said in its 2006 decree that Islamic jurisprudence prohibited carrying those passengers "because it involves cooperating in sin according to Islam." Click here for more on that story. The MAS magazine, "The American Muslim," has printed articles defending "martyrdom operations" to wrest control of Gaza and the West Bank from Israel. The Minnesota chapter at one time featured writings from Islamic clerics praising Hamas and urging Muslims to "wage Jihad until death." The postings, which were active as late as June 2007 -- one month after Ellison first addressed the group's convention -- have since been removed. Though the MAS Web site has been washed of the religious texts that critics found offensive, Emerson says the group's ties to the Muslim Brotherhood remain intact. "Their founding ideologues are all members of the Muslim Brotherhood," Emerson said. "I don't think you can get more radical in the United States without crossing the line to incitement." Those accusations have some Muslim activists fuming. "If you read the anti-Muslim hate sites on the Internet, every Muslim is the devil incarnate," said Hooper. "In general any Muslim who seeks to have positive participation in American society is going to come under attack by those who seek to marginalize and exclude the American Muslim community," he said. More on this story from Jihad Watch: January 9, 2009Mahdi Bray: Muslim American Society didn't pay for Ellison's hajj; Ellison's office: Yes, they didMore on this story. "Group That Funded Rep. Ellison's Pilgrimage to Mecca Called a Front for Extremism," by Joseph Abrams for Fox News, January 8: The Whole World Needs A Leader Like This Prime Minister Kevin Rudd - Australia
Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of Australia , as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks..
Separately, Rudd angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques. Quote: 'IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS, MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave It. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali , we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians.. '
'This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom'
'We speak mainly ENGLISH, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society . Learn the language!'
'Most Australians believe in God. This is not some Christian, right wing, political push, but a fact, because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture.'
'We will accept your beliefs, and will not question why. All we ask is that you accept ours, and live in harmony and peaceful enjoyment with us.'
'This is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this. But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about Our Flag, Our Pledge, Our Christian beliefs, or Our Way of Life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great Australian freedom, 'THE RIGHT TO LEAVE'.'
'If you aren't happy here then LEAVE. We didn't force you to come here.. You asked to be here. So accept the country YOU accepted.'
Maybe if we circulate this amongst ourselves, WE will find the courage to start speaking and voicing the same truths.
If you agree please SEND THIS ON and ON to as many people as you know
Medvedev Strengthens Laws Against Terrorists Suspected terrorists, spies and coup plotters in Russia will no longer have the right to trial by jury according to a new law signed by President Dmitry Medvedev. The new law rules out jury trials for anyone accused of being involved in hostage taking or the organisation of mass riots and those cases will be overseen by a panel of three judges in a federal court.The State Duma passed the bill on December 12, 2008 and the Federation Council approved it on December 17, 2008.According to the bill, a person charged with terrorism can get from 15 to 20 years, or even life imprisonment.The bill adds new elements to Criminal Code articles describing hostage-taking and sabotage, such as "willfully inflicting death to a person and bringing considerable material damage or other serious consequences,” reported the Russian Presidential Press Service.
Canadian mosque offers "Specialized De-radicalization Intervention Program" 
Don't wait! Sign up now for Muhammed Robert Heft's "12-step Extremist Detox Program" and start living again! What other religion needs to offer its members "theological detox" so they can live peaceably with their neighbors? Think about it. "Toronto mosque offers 'detox' for Islamic radicals," from CTV.ca, February 11: In what is likely the first of its kind in Canada, a Toronto mosque is offering a "detox" program for young Islamic radicals who are sympathetic to the terrorist group al Qaeda.Muhammed Robert Heft, a team member of the Specialized De-radicalization Intervention program, says the program is based on the idea that Islamic extremism can be fought by incorporating traditional teachings of the Qur'an into a "12-step Extremist Detox Program." Among the steps in the program offered at Toronto's Masjid El Noor mosque: * Finding common ground, "not fighting ground," with other faiths
* In the "Open society of Canada," how to reconcile "dogmatic idealism with pragmatic realism"
* Seeing the whole as one, and take into account "global challenges that affect us all."
* Actively countering extremist ideology through "education, public speaking and writing." "As Canadians of Muslim faith, it is our ardent desire to become leaders in the championing of anti-terror values," says a document explaining the program. Heft told CTV Newsnet's Power Play on Wednesday that among the young radical Islamic followers the mosque is hoping to counsel are members of the notorious "Toronto 18." In 2006, a series of counter-terrorism raids in the Greater Toronto Area resulted in the arrest of 18 alleged members of a purported Islamic terrorist cell plotting a variety of attacks against targets in Ontario. That case, along with that of Ottawa's Momin Khawaja who was convicted for his role in a British terror cell, have raised concerns about home-grown terrorism. Heft said there are many sects in Islam, and that "99.9" per cent of Islamic leaders across the country agree they must work together to combat extremism. That's vague: what kind of "extremism" do 99.9% of Islam's leaders want to combat -- perhaps extreme infidelity, extreme secularism, extreme democracy? But he did admit there are a "small number of firebrand preachers" who try to persuade young Muslims to jump onto the extremist bandwagon."Unfortunately, a few emotional, Internet-surfing, like-minded individuals who do what I call 'Do-It-Yourself Islam,' find themselves getting caught up in emotion and justify getting caught up in the hate that's inside them," Heft told Power Play host Tom Clark. "They end up falling prey to people with deviant views of the religion." I.e., jihadists are "victims." But he says if one studies the tradition of Islam, going back to the orthodox scholars, "you realize these are the teachings of Islam." Here's a standard teaching of the orthodox scholars, one that receives unanimous consent among the orthodox schools of jurisprudence -- that the world is split in two halves, Islam and non-Islam, and that the former, when possible, must always attack the latter until the globe is governed according to sharia. Nothing "deviant" about this view. And by incorporating these teachings into the mosque's program, Heft claims he's had success converting those who formerly held radical, anti-Semitic views into "productive members of society." He says the program has also helped disenfranchised Muslims get jobs, and to get off welfare. "We're winning," said Heft.
| Swati man paid with his life for saving Chinese engineer |
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Zhang Guo is back in China while Liaqat was killed by Taliban By Rahimullah Yusufzai
PESHAWAR: The man who delivered the kidnapped Chinese engineer to the security forces after his escape from the Taliban custody in Swat was subsequently made to pay with his life.It wasn’t known until now that one Liaqat Ali Khan, son of Nadir Khan, a landlord from Dagai village in Matta Tehsil in upper Swat valley, was murdered by the local Taliban for helping Chinese telecommunication engineer, Zhang Guo, to reach the Pakistan Army’s roadside security post at Vennai. Members of his family, requesting anonymity due to a risk to their lives, told The News that Taliban fighters chased Liaqat while he was driving his car near his village on November 20 last year and shot him dead.Liaqat’s family, his cousins and other close relatives had to abandon their homes and move out of Swat after the incident. They still live in fear of the Swati Taliban and are unable to lead normal lives even in places far away from their native Swat.The 30-year-old Zhang Guo and his colleague, Long Xiao We, were kidnapped from a spot near the Khall town in Upper Dir district on August 29 while installing towers for a mobile phone company. They were taken to Swat and mostly kept in the Shawar, Peochar and Namal mountainous areas in Matta Tehsil.The Maulana Fazlullah-led Taliban in Swat demanded release of their 136 men and ransom in exchange for the two Chinese hostages. The government refused to make a deal with the Taliban.It was on October 17, 2008 that the two young Chinese engineers made their move to escape from Taliban’s custody. They reportedly sneaked out of the house where they were held during the night and ran for their life. Long Xiao We, 26-year-old and heavily-built, slipped during the escape and broke his leg. The mountainous terrain and the darkness made it difficult for them to find their way to safety. It is said Zhang Guo lost his colleague on the way after the latter’s fall and after a futile search decided to go it alone. The desperate engineer wanted to seek protection in some house in Chinglalai and the nearby Dagai village as he feared that the militants would soon learn about their escape and track them down. The Taliban managed to find Long Xiao We and made him hostage again but Zhang Guo was lucky to find a place to hide and regain freedom.According to late Liaqat’s family members, the unusual barking of dogs alarmed their security guards and prompted them to come out of the house of one of his cousins. They found the Chinese engineer shivering from cold outside the Hujra, or male guesthouse, and unable to speak a word of Pashto or Urdu, the two languages that the guards understood. Zhang Guo could barely speak English, the language the guards didn’t understand. Finding it difficult during the night to lodge him in the locked house or Hujra, the guards took him instead to a cattleshed and asked him to sleep there. They found an old blanket for him to protect himself from the cold.In the morning, the guards contacted Liaqat in Dagai village and told him about the stranger, who they believed was deaf and dumb. After seeing Zhang Guo, he knew this was one of the Chinese engineers who had been kidnapped by the Taliban. Liaqat reportedly consulted his cousins in Swat and Peshawar and sought their advice how to handle the situation. He was advised to deliver the engineer to the Army checkpost at Vennai, located about 1.5 kms from Dagai.According to one of his cousins, Liaqat was aware of the seriousness of the situation and he, therefore, tried to arrange a traditional, all enveloping Burqa for the Chinese engineer to wear while transporting him to the military checkpoint. Efforts to lay hands on the shuttlecock-type Burqa failed and Liaqat had little other choice than to seat Zhang Guo in the back seat of his car and drive him to the Vennai security forces’ post. He was able to return home safely but this was the beginning of his troubles.Somehow the word got out about the Chinese engineer’s stay in the house after his escape from the Taliban and his handing over to the security forces. The Taliban started suspecting Liaqat for helping the engineer and not long after that he became a marked man. It was just a matter of time that the militants would target him.Neither the Chinese diplomats nor most Pakistan government and military officials know that it was Liaqat Ali Khan who helped save Zhang Guo’s life but in the process paid with his own. It was a targeted killing of a man who had opted to stay in Swat unlike other Khans and resourceful people.
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The U.S. has names of 400,000terrorism suspectsThe U.S. now has the names of around 400,000 terrorism suspects. A civil rights group says the list has become too bulky to be an effective counter-terrorism tool, while the Bush administration disagreed and said exactly the opposite, reports Reuters news agency. The ever-increasing database recently reached a one million milestone. Those together describe some 400,000 individuals that the U.S. suspect of being terrorists or having links with terrorist organisations.The American Civil Liberties Union says the list is an impediment for millions of travellers.
"America's new million-record watch list is a perfect symbol for what's wrong with this administration's approach to security: it's unfair, out-of-control, a waste of resources (and) treats the rights of the innocent as an afterthought," ACLU technology director Barry Steinhardt said in a release.The group wants stricter criteria for adding names on the list, giving people the right to challenge their inclusion and better procedures for erasing the names of those wrongly accused.Spokesman for the Terrorism Screening Center, Chad Kolton, brushed aside criticism and called the watch list “one of the most effective counterterrorism tools that our country has”. He cited a Government Accountability Office report that said the federal government had a general agreement that the list had helped to combat terrorism.The terrorist watchlist was created in 2003 combining several similar lists into a single database to be used by all federal agencies. It’s maintained by FBI’s Terrorist Screening Center. 95% of the listed individuals are of non-U.S. residents.
Some 50,000 of the people included are also on the Transportation Security Administration ‘no-fly’ list making them subject to travel ban, arrest or additional screening.
Egyptian Authorities starving Christian kids to force mom to convert back to islam Egypt demonstrates just how barbaric islam can be when someone leaves the cult. This time they are starving two little children, one aged 4, the other 2. Christian Mom Faces Choice of Children’s Starvation or Her Conversion To Islam To eat or to continue embracing Christianity? — That is the question facing Martha Samuel, formerly known as Zainab Said, who converted from Islam to Christianity five years ago. Egyptian authorities are starving Martha’s two children, Kirillos age 4 and Emmanuel age 2 to compel her to release Christianity and return to Islam, according to reports from several ministry organizations. Martha with her two children and husband, Fadl Thabet, were trying to exit Egypt and enter Russia on December 13, 2008, to flee religious persecution caused by her conversion when authorities arrested them at Cairo airport, according to The Assyrian International News Agency. Martha is charged with forging her passport to flee Egypt. In addition to the starvation of her children, Egyptian police officers are trying to compel Martha to return to Isalm by beating, sexually assaulting and torturing her, ministries report. Pray for Martha, Kirillos, Emmanuel, and Fadl that they will be strengthened by Jesus Christ and by His Words such as Romans 8:38 (Amplified Bible) which says, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
January 9, 2009 Thousands of Pakistanis rally: "Long Live Osama bin Laden," "Jihad is the only treatment for Israel," "Death to Israel, death to America and death to Britain"Pakistan's herrow We're not allowed to notice, of course, for fear of being diagnosed with "Islamophobia," but we never have seen Muslims anywhere rallying against Osama bin Laden in numbers like this. Tiny Minority of Extremists™ Update: "Pakistanis Cheer Bin Laden At Anti-Israel Rally," from AFP, January 9 (thanks to Twostellas): CHAMAN, Pakistan (AFP)--Thousands of people rallied Friday in southwest Pakistan, near the Afghan border, against Israel's strikes on the Gaza Strip, cheering support for Al-Qaeda's Osama bin Laden, police said. The rally in the town of Chaman was organized by the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam political party and was the biggest yet in Pakistan against the Israeli campaign in Gaza, which has killed hundreds of Palestinians. "Our estimate is that there were more than 3,000 people at the rally," local police station chief Abul Latif said. "Long Live Osama bin Laden," protesters chanted as they marched through town carrying placards that read "Jihad is the only treatment for Israel," "Stop killing innocent people in Palestine" and "Stop atrocities against Muslims". They also chanted "Death to Israel, death to America and death to Britain". "Muslim countries should shut down the embassies of the U.S. and Israel, and declare jihad against Israel," local party leader Maulvi Mohammad Hanif told the crowd. "The silence of the United Nations over the atrocities being committed against Muslims shows that it is a surrogate of America, Israel and Britain," he said.... Uh, not exactly.
| Iranian presence in Latin America disturbs Pentagon June 9, 7:08 AM 
Terrorist-sponsoring nation Iran is increasing its presence in Latin America, and Hezbollah, a terrorist organization it sponsors, is making inroads in drug trafficking in Colombia, according to Pentagon spokesperson Donna Miles in a press statement to the National Association of Chiefs of Police During a recent congressional hearing, Navy Admiral James G. Stavridis told the House Armed Services Committee that he shares the concerns of Defense Secretary Robert Gates about Iranian activity in Central and South America. Iran has opened six embassies in the region during the past five years and is promoting Islamic activities in the region, according to Miles.
"That is of concern, principally because of the connection between the government of Iran, which is a state sponsor of terrorism, and Hezbollah," Stavridis told the panel of Congressman. 
"We see a great deal of Hezbollah activity throughout South America, in particular," he said.
Much of that activity takes place in the tri-border area of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina, and in the Caribbean, an area previously pinpointed by former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace (USMC-Ret) in a similar congressional hearing. Recently, a number of armed gunmen entered the US from Mexico and caused National Guard troops to retreat. Not only did the President and his administration remain silent about this incursion, but the elite media either ignored the story or minimized its significance.
"Most government and news reports of the illegal aliens' confrontation with the Guard troops appear to assume the invading gunmen were Mexican. But with all involved in the investigation of the incident saying they're not certain who these armed men were, how do we know they weren't terrorists conducting a recon mission?" asks former New York City Police detective Ben Cardoza
Stavridis noted in his written statement that the Pentagon supported a Drug Enforcement Administration operation in the tri-border area last August that targeted a Hezbollah-connected drug trafficking organization.
Two months later, officials from the US Southern Command supported another interagency operation in which several dozen people were arrested in Colombia for ties to a Hezbollah-connected drug trafficking and money laundering ring.
Despite big successes in professionalizing the Colombian military and helping it deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, Southcom has witnessed a direct connection there between Hezbollah and drug trafficking in Colombia, Stavridis stated.
He asserted that a direct link exists between the illicit drug trade and the terrorist groups it bankrolls, noting the threat posed by Islamic radical terrorism.
"Indentifying, monitoring and dismantling the financial, logistical and communication linkages between illicit trafficking groups and terrorist sponsors are critical to not only ensuring early indications and warnings of potential terrorist attacks directed at the United States and our partners, but also in generating a global appreciation and acceptance of this tremendous threat to security," he said while testifying.
Stavridis called Colombia -- the major global source of cocaine and home of the FARC -- pivotal in the fight to stop illicit traffickers at the source and advocated continued support to Colombia to help it in this endeavor will pay big dividends for the region and for the United States, he said. Meanwhile, Border Patrol agents continue to voice what many believe are legitimate concerns about "armed incursions" into the United States from Mexico-based assailants. They reported that heavily armed Mexican army units and federal police, called Federales, had infiltrated US territory and fired upon them, in some cases because -- federal agents would later discover -- Mexican drug lords had put prices on the heads of American law-enforcement agents serving along the border. "Where was the outrage by our political leaders and the mainstream media over this blatant violation of our national sovereignty?" asks Det. Cardoza. Author: Jim Kouri 
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-2684-Law-Enforcement- Examiner~y2009m6d9-Iranian-presence-in-Latin-America-disturbs-Pentagon Fort Dix jihad attacker rejects American legal system, calls on judge to convert to IslamNot that this has anything to do with Islam! Fort Dix Jihad Update: "Convict in Fort Dix plot case tries to oust lawyer," from Newsday, March 20 (thanks to Samir): CAMDEN, N.J. - One of the five men convicted in the Fort Dix trial wants to fire his lawyer and waive his right to appeal.Eljvir Duka (el-VEER' DOO'-kah) wrote the judge on Thursday that he wants to give up his rights because he rejects the American legal system. He calls it a system of "injustice."... It's Duka's second letter to the judge in a week. Earlier, he wrote that the judge should convert to Islam. Duka, his two brothers and two other men were convicted in December of conspiracy to kill military personnel....
UK jihadist: All homosexuals should be stoned to deathYes, of course it's Choudary again. But all he is doing is repeating traditional precepts of Islamic law. Patrick Mercer is shocked, shocked, and calls for an investigation -- but what will he say when he finds out that this is the mainstream, authoritative, and traditional Islamic perspective? "The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: If you find anyone doing as Lot's people did, kill the one who does it, and the one to whom it is done." -- Sunan Abu Dawud 38.4447 "All homosexuals should be stoned to death, says Muslim preacher of hate," by Sam Greenhill for the Daily Mail, March 21 (thanks to all who sent this in): All homosexuals should face stoning to death, a Muslim preacher of hate declared yesterday.Anjem Choudary, the firebrand cleric who wants to see Britain ruled by Sharia law, said such a regime was the only way to fix the country's ills. Under it, adulterers and homosexuals would be killed by stoning. Asked if that would include anybody - even a Cabinet minister such as Business Secretary Lord Mandelson - Choudary responded with an astonishing diatribe. He said: 'If a man likes another man, it can happen, but if you go on to fulfil your desire, if it is proved, then there is a punishment to follow. You don't stone to death unless there are four eyewitnesses. It is a very stringent procedure. "Why did they not produce four witnesses? Since they produce not witnesses, they verily are liars in the sight of Allah." -- Qur'an 24:13 'There are some people who are attracted to donkeys but that does not mean it is right.'Choudary was speaking at a press conference in London arranged by Muslim extremists to justify their protest in Luton last week against soldiers returning home from Iraq.
His incendiary remarks immediately prompted calls for him to be investigated by police. Tory MP Patrick Mercer said: 'These statements show the depravity of this man's beliefs. They must incite hatred and encourage terrorism, and I would encourage the Metropolitan Police to investigate them as rigorously as possible.'...
Jordan: Muslim beats daughter to death for wearing makeup Yet another honor killing in modern, moderate Jordan, where Islamic clerics resist attempts to stiffen the existing light penalties for honor killings, on the grounds that to do so will lead to immorality. "Jordanian beats daughter to death for wearing makeup in 'honour' killing," from the Canadian Press, March 21 (thanks to Maxwell): AMMAN, Jordan — Jordan's prosecutor has charged a man and his two sons for the premeditated murder of his 19-year-old daughter Saturday, in the latest "honour killing" to take place in this conservative desert kingdom. As if "conservatives" beat their daughters to death for wearing makeup. The man and his two sons were charged with beating to death the daughter for leaving the house in makeup and talking to a stranger, according to prosecutor Salah al-Taleb's indictment sheet....The man comes from the eastern Jordanian town of Zarqa, home of slain Iraqi al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and known for its conservatism. As if "conservatives" beat their daughters to death for wearing makeup. In Jordan, an average of 20 women are killed by male relatives each year. Men have the final say in all family matters in this largely conservative society, where many consider sex out of wedlock an indelible stain on a family's reputation.... As if "conservatives" beat their daughters to death for wearing makeup. The government urged judges to consider honour killings equal to other homicides, punishable with up to life in prison.But attempts to introduce harsher sentences have been blocked in Jordan's parliament, where the predominantly conservative Bedouin legislators argue that tougher penalties would lead to adultery. As if "conservatives" beat their daughters to death for wearing makeup.
OBAMA AWOL IN TERROR WAR By DICK MORRIS & EILEEN MCGANN 2/19/09
 Guantanamo Bay
President Barack Obama's record in battling terrorism has proven so weak that one wonders if he really takes the issue seriously.
Since he has taken office, the president has:
• Announced closure of Guantanamo.
• Declined to prosecute the mastermind behind the USS Cole bombing.
• Closed all overseas CIA interrogation centers.
• Appointed an Attorney General and Justice Department officials on record as opposed to the use of "enhanced" interrogation techniques in terror investigations.
• Granted Al Arabia television his first news organization interview and called Fatah Party leader and PA President Mahmoud Abbass in his first phone contact with any foreign leader. |
Now, with no strings attached, the president has allocated $20.3 million in "post-conflict humanitarian aid" to "Palestinian refugees and conflict victims in Gaza. The additional funds bring to $60 million U.S. aid commitments in Gaza.
Of course, Gaza is totally controlled by the terrorist group Hamas which grabs any aid that arrives and uses it for its own purposes. In fact, on February 7th, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) - the body charged with distributing the new U.S. aid - announced that it was suspending assistance in Gaza because ten lorries, laden with humanitarian supplies, were seized by Hamas members. It was the second time that week that Hamas has stolen aid destined for the UNRWA.
Christopher Gunness, a UNRWA spokesman, told Al Jazeera that UN aid shipments would not restart until the goods were returned. "Until we get all of this aid back, and until we receive credible assurances from the Hamas government, the suspension of our imports of aid into Gaza will continue, he said."
Responding to the obvious low profile Obama is giving his battle against terrorism, two key nations - one an adversary and the other an ally - both acted to aid al Qaeda in the days after Obama's inauguration. Neither got so much as a verbal a slap on the wrist from the new Administration.
The Associated Press reported, on February 8th, that Yemen, which boasts of having a "truce" with al Qaeda, "released 170 men it had arrested on suspicion of having ties to al Qaeda." The announcement came "two weeks after [al Qaeda] announced that Yemen had become the base of its activities for the whole Arabian Peninsula."
Yemen has also made it clear that it expects most of the 100 remaining Yemenis at Guantanamo (out of the 250 inmates still there) to be sent home after Obama orders the prison shut.
And, Pakistan, a supposed ally, has just concluded a deal with the Taliban ceding to its control an area on the Afghan/Paki border which its troops had, unsuccessfully, tried to capture. The Taliban now has the same deal it had in Afghanistan - a protected sanctuary from which to launch raids on the West. In view of the Administration's passive acquiescence in the Paki decision, one is driven to ask why do we still care about freedom in Afghanistan?
On all fronts, the message from Obama is the same - surrender, pullback, and weakness. It is a matter of time until al Qaeda and other terrorists walk through the door he and his appointees are holding open and hit us again.
War on terror tacticsWAR ON TERROR: President Obama and the treatment of terrorist suspects By Fred Burton and Ben West, Stratfor.com U.S. President Barack Obama signed an executive order Feb. 1 approving the continued use of renditions by the CIA. The order seems to go against Obama’s campaign promises to improve the image of the United States abroad, as renditions under the Bush administration had drawn criticism worldwide, especially from members of the European Union. The executive order does not necessarily mean that renditions and other tactics for dealing with terrorist suspects will proceed unchanged, however. Obama came into office promising changes in the way the United States combats terrorism. One of these changes was a new emphasis on legal processes and a shift away from controversial methods of treating terrorist suspects, like rendition, harsh interrogation techniques, and secret prisons. The Obama administration can and will roll back some of these tactics, as demonstrated by the president’s Jan. 22 order to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay. But some will continue. Renditions and the legal processRenditions are a powerful tool for counterterrorism operations. They involve agents moving into a foreign country to execute a warrant. Once the fugitive is located, agents track, seize, and transport him out of the country for interrogations, or to stand trial, as in the cases of Lebanese hijacker Fawaz Younis, CIA shooter Mir Amal Kanzi, 1993 World Trade Center bombers Abdel Basit (aka Ramzi Yousef) and Mahmud Abouhalima, and even Ilich Ramirez Sanchez (aka Carlos the Jackal). Some of the individuals targeted for renditions have warrants out for their arrest, but are taking refuge in countries that either lack the law enforcement capability to capture them or cannot arrest and extradite them for political reasons. By contrast, the renditions where there is no indictment or warrant and where the suspect is transported to a secret prison for interrogation and detention without a public trial are far more controversial. Renditions of either kind virtually always occur with the knowledge of the host country, and usually with the host government’s express consent. (Few countries wish to shelter suspected terrorist masterminds.) Renditions thus involve legal questions as much as they do diplomatic questions. Before renditions can be carried out, the Washington bureaucracy kicks into full swing. The U.S. State Department must consider the diplomatic ramifications. The ambassador in the host country must consider his or her position and judge the response of his or her contacts in the host country government. The U.S. Justice Department must also sign on. Finally, the agency in charge of actually nabbing the suspect must be willing to work within any restrictions imposed by any one of the many individuals who must approve the operation. Even when the government ultimately deems a rendition operation legal, numerous factors can still stymie the effort (not least of which is that by the time all the necessary approvals have been obtained, the window of opportunity to nab the suspect might have closed). So while Obama’s executive order in theory permits renditions, it is only one part of the whole process; the appropriate members of Obama’s administration must also be on board. Many members of the Obama administration also served in the Clinton administration, which was widely seen as considering all legal ramifications of potential renditions before taking any action. As a former deputy attorney general in the Clinton administration, new Attorney General Eric Holder enjoyed a reputation for deliberating on renditions to the point of inaction—effectively vetoing such operations. While an appearance of greater attention to the law might come as a relief to many, actors in the field do not have the luxury of endless deliberation and total consensus—they have a narrow window of opportunity in which to act on perishable intelligence. Assuming that Obama’s administration acts with deliberation and pursues consensus building (as he himself has emphasized, and has demonstrated in the bipartisan nature of his Cabinet selections), the legality of renditions might become moot if they are not agreed upon in a timely manner. There is a fine line to walk between efficiency and legality in this field, with extremes on either side being detrimental to national security. By their very nature, renditions are ad hoc and rarely fit into a nice, clean process, something that explains their controversial nature. They frequently occur in countries allied to the United States, meaning the practice falls outside the scope of war. And renditions resulting in suspects’ standing trial are far less controversial than those involving secret prisons, harsh interrogation tactics and reliance on third countries to carry out interrogations—tactics disfavored by the Obama administration. Alternatives to renditionApprehending suspects in foreign countries does not always involve controversial tactics. U.S. counterterrorism officials also use tactics abroad that are not forbidden under U.S. law, though they might be illegal if used within the United States (and could well be illegal in the country where U.S. agents employ them). In general, such tactics remain constant as administrations change. These tactics include surveillance of foreign targets, ruse operations and economic incentives and punishments to encourage cooperation in counterterrorism efforts. Ruse operations, a less controversial way to apprehend fugitives than renditions, involve deception, obviating the need to jump through the bureaucratic hoops required for renditions. Ruse operations involve luring suspects to a location where U.S. agents can apprehend them legally. This involves persuading targets to venture into international waters, for example, or even to travel to the United States, where U.S. agents lie in wait. While such tactics avoid the legal complexities surrounding renditions, they are extremely difficult to carry out. Suspects worth chasing around the world typically are not overly gullible, and know where it is safe to travel. So while there is no reason to believe that ruse operations will cease anytime soon, successful ones are few and far between. Sometimes killing a terrorist target is both more efficient and less legally complex than renditions or ruse operations. Tactical strikes, such as the unmanned aerial vehicle-launched missile strikes against suspected al-Qaida targets in Pakistan, both remove a suspected terrorist target and avoid drawn-out legal processes. Like its predecessor, the Obama administration apparently sees striking at al-Qaida targets along the Pakistani-Afghan border as acceptable within the scope of the ongoing war in Afghanistan, despite Pakistani protests. The latest such U.S. strike came Jan. 23, just three days after Obama took office. Given the administration’s presumed hesitation based on legal reservations and an unwillingness to expand warfare beyond the Afghan theater, this tactic is unlikely to pop up in other areas of the world without a serious threat escalation. Secret prisons and interrogation issuesObama on Jan. 22 also ordered the CIA to close its secret prisons around the world that hold detainees without adhering to U.S. legal standards. Because fewer than 100 detainees were held in these prisons, however, this is a minor point. A different executive order also issued Jan. 22 applied the interrogation guidelines outlined in the U.S. military field handbook and the Geneva Conventions to the CIA. Obama and Holder also have made it clear that the new administration views waterboarding as torture and thus illegal, settling the debate on the matter. Still, it is only a matter of time before new techniques used by interrogators in the field will face questions of legality and morality. No national leader can micromanage at the field level. Even though the Justice Department and senior White House officials in the Bush administration signed secret findings authorizing the CIA to conduct waterboarding in specific cases, tactical, field-level topics do not stick around at the level of national policy for very long. With secret prisons on the way out, more restrictions on how agents act in the field and an expected decline in renditions, a greater U.S. reliance on third countries to carry out rendition operations is possible. During the Clinton and Bush administrations, countries like Egypt and Jordan were known to cooperate with U.S. agencies in detaining and interrogating prisoners. Critics claimed that relying on third countries exploited a loophole that allowed the United States to see that unsavory acts were committed without directly carrying them out. Obama’s emphasis on using diplomacy to improve the U.S. image in the world suggests that his administration will turn to other countries for counterterrorism assistance instead of operating unilaterally. Obama already has asked for other countries to help out more in Afghanistan (specifically European countries). Obama might also tap third countries like Portugal, Switzerland or Germany to take in detainees leaving Guantanamo who are not sent back to home countries like Yemen and Saudi Arabia after the facility’s closure. Working with these countries to ensure safe delivery of the detainees out of U.S. custody will remove a lightning rod for criticism of the United States in the Muslim world. Delegating counterterrorism responsibilities to other countries allows the United States to avoid the legal complexities inherent in renditions, secret prisons and harsh interrogation. But ultimately, increased reliance on other countries with different interests can enhance the overall complexity of missions. It is also important to remember that the United States possesses one of the most capable counterterrorism forces in the world, and that other countries simply cannot carry out the same missions that the United States does. This is not to say that pursuing U.S. interests abroad does not call for diplomacy (which is one of the administration’s main tools to fight terror), but that seeking international approval and establishing legal cover does reduce efficiency and restrain U.S. capabilities. Finding the balance between fighting terror efficiently and remaining within legal boundaries will be a key challenge for the Obama administration.
Republished with permission of stratfor.com.
THE UK FIGHTS BACK AGAINST ISLAM!! DONT MISS THIS VIDEO! 2/2/09
 Submitted by OCA writer Justreq'd I received this from friends overnight. Being someone who believes unequivocably that God still exists, AND answers still prayers, I have found the following article from the London Sun to be somewhat interesting. While armies have only been somewhat effective in limiting the growth of the terrorist organizations, it appears that there may be another source of containment. If this account has been substantiated, the results cannot be attributed to mankind's fight against the terrorist al-Qaeda, but the instrument of punishment would be in the hand of Almighty God. Subject:
Date: Sunday, January 18, 2009, 11:38 PM By ALEX WEST - The Sun (UK) Published: Today ANTI-TERROR bosses last night hailed their latest ally in the war on terror — the BLACK DEATH.
=0 A At least 40 al-Qaeda fanatics died horribly after being struck down with the disease that devastated Europe in the Middle Ages.
 Epidemic ... in Britain in 1665
The killer bug, also known as the plague, swept through insurgents training at a forest camp in Algeria, North Africa. It came to light when security forces found a body by a roadside.
The victim was a terrorist in AQLIM (al-Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb), the largest and most powerful al-Qaeda group outside the Middle East. It trains Muslim fighters to kill British and US troops.
Now al-Qaeda chiefs fear the plague has been passed to other terror cells — or Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
One security source said: “This is the deadliest weapon yet in the war against terror. Most of the terrorists do not have the basic medical supplies needed to treat the disease. “It spreads quickly and kills within hours. This will be really worrying al-Qaeda.”
Black Death comes in various forms. Bubonic Plague is spread by bites from infected rat fleas. Symptoms include boils in the groin, neck and armpits. In Pneumonic Plague, airborn bacteria spread like flu. It can be in the body for more than a week — highly contagious but not revealing tell-tale symptoms.  Deadly ... the plague bacteria causes horrific symptoms
The al-Qaeda epidemic began in the cave hideouts of AQLIM in Tizi Ouzou province, 150km east of the capital Algiers. The group, led by wanted terror boss Abdelmalek Droudkal, was forced to turn its shelters in the Yakouren forest into mass graves and flee.
The extremists supporting madman Osama bin Laden went to Bejaia and Jijel provinces — hoping the plague did not go with them. A source said: “The emirs (leaders) fear surviving terrorists will surrender to escape a horrible death.” AQLIM boss Droudkal claims to command around 1,000 insurgents. Training camps are also based in Morocco, Tunisia and Nigeria.
AQLIM bombed the UN headquarters in Algiers in 2007, killing 41. Attacks acr oss Algeria last year killed at least 70 people.
In an interview last July, Droudkal boasted his cell was in constant contact with other al-Qaeda “brothers”.
CHAVEZ = Terror To Come! 
"I'm just waiting for the Witches of the View to invite Hugo Chavez on their show, and I'm surprised it hasn't already happened" by Synnove Bakke, Political Writer/Investigative Reporter January, 13 2009 Did you know Hugo Chavez picked 9/11/2008 to kick US Diplomats out of Venezuela?Chavez threw American Embassy leader, Patrick Duddy out of HIS country on 9/11/ 2008! Read this again! Make sure this sinks in!
Did you see this on the News much? It was a drive-by report, and then the Media moved on to the next news bit. Why do you think 9/11 was chosen as the date for this?
Two Human Rights watch employees where also deported, shortly thereafter, one of which was the Director of said agency.
Chavez has in earlier reports stated that 9/11 was a "gift" for Bush! Chavez is a buffoon with money. His State is very oil rich and Chavez riches have gone to his head, and made him insane, in my opinion.
Is this the Major "test" Biden was suggesting B.Hussein Obama would have to deal with, within the first 6 months of taking office?9/11 was the single, worst day in American History! This was the day we were attacked by terrorists on our very soil. Over 3000 Innocent American women and men died on that day! Many American Children had to wake up the next day without one of their parents! America grieved heavily, and 9/11 was a day when the whole Western Civilizations of our world grieved with America.What is Chavez agenda with picking this day? Is it a "slap" in our faces, a shoe thrown our way, or something more sinister? Americans were attacked on that very day that Chavez picked, and no one knows about this news report or question it? That's the big thing, no one has heard about it! It is also very hard to find any news on it, while doing a thorough Internet search. I came up with only one bloggers report on this!
Hollywood is so Liberal, they would rather spit on their own Country and disgrace it, than agree with good and solid Conservative American values! The last Actor to "chummie" up with Hugo Chavez was Kevin Spacey, but the list of American Traitors goes on and on. To mention a few, Danny Glover, Sean Penn and Harry Belafonte. How can these "alleged" Americans "play" and "chummy" up with a Dictator that laughed giddily and cheered the shoe thrower on, while he attacked our Nations President? That goes beyond just different political views. It is sickening that they call themselves American Citizens! Hollywood actors are so out of touch with reality and how Real Americans live, and they have the most warped sense of importance in the Political Arena. Many of us wish they would just shut their mouths already! In addition, they make our Country look less "intelligent" and very shallow, when they visit other countries and "spew" their nonsense. I don't know about democrats, but I know Conservatives most certainly don't want people like them representing us overseas! I'm just waiting for the Witches of the View to invite Hugo Chavez on their show, and I'm surprised it hasn't already happened!Chavez, more recently threw the Israeli Ambassador out of his country in protest of the war between, Israel and the Palestinians, where he clearly as well as could be expected, takes sides with the terror group Hamas!Venezuela has huge amounts of corruption and with Chavez and his governments iron grip on the press, it has made the country a haven for the transit of illegal drugs and contraband's! If you are a Journalist in Venezuela and want to stay a free man, you DON'T report on the corruption, drug trade, crime or any other stories that would embarrass Chavez and his Government!U.S. officials say the country could be a transit point for upward of 200 tons of cocaine per year. Half the estimated annual production in Colombia, the world's leading cocaine producer.Venezuela's own statistics showed an eight-fold increase in drug seizures since 1999, according to an AP report.Despite Chavez anti-US and anti-imperialistic rhetoric against us, trade with the US has intensified, exceeding $ 50 Billion in 2007, and increasing by 72% since 2004. The US imports about 13-15 % of its oil from Venezuela. In this respect Chavez repeated threats to cut oil exports are hollow! The Chavez administration would be in dire straits, should the US impose an embargo on Venezuelan oil imports,Since Chavez took power in 1998, the illegal drug trafficking has increased to Venezuela transferring an estimated, 80 % of neighboring Colombia's trade of drugs to the world market.Furthermore, there are alleged existence of drug smuggling cartels led by higher ups in the National Guard. Venezuelan authorities have said the United States has no moral authority to comment on drug trafficking since it is the world's leading consumer of illegal drugs. The corruption most likely, goes directly into the office of President Hugo Chavez.
There is no free speech in Countries like Venezuela. It is understandable and expected that news get buried there. The Government makes sure it does!
What is our Media outlet's excuse? Why haven't we demanded an answer to what Hugo Chavez is up to and why don't we watch him closer?
At the same token we see in recent news that Hugo Chavez is also TEAMING up with Russians President Dmitri Medvedev!As Bush is making his last televised National address to our Country today, I read very discouraging and frightening news.
According to RT news online, Russian energy Majors has signed agreements to co-operate with Venezuela's State-owned oil and gas company! Anyone Else's internal Red Flag way up on hearing this?
In November, 2008, Russian warships arrived in Venezuela for joint maneuvers with the Venezuelan Navy, an activity not seen in the region since WWII. The ships, one a nuclear-powered cruiser, and destroyer Admiral Chabanenko, arrived at a port in Northern Venezuela for a week-long stay to coincide with Russian President Medvedev to Venezuela. This was a show of strenght meant to send a cautionary message to the US, and to show Russians ambitions in Latin-America.We normally feel OK while hearing threats and innuendo's from these foreign dictator ships, because most of us, have felt safe in our country since 9/11, with Bush at the helm!
Now, with B. Hussein Obama, a former Muslim as our leader, I have many reservations and worries. B.Hussein has in his own words said he wants to sit down and have "talks" with these world leaders, that clearly understand no other language, but who's stronger and has more weapons. Does B. Hussein Obama think these Rouge and corrupt countries wants to be his "friend"?
B. Hussein has also said he wants to cut down on our Nuclear Developments and Military spending! Not a very smart thing to do, or say, while we are so "hated" in the Muslim countries of the world!!
President Hugo Chavez, visited Moscow recently and was in talks with Russians President, Medvedev (Putin's puppet). I call Russians leaders Dictators, since they have shown behaviors that lean so far towards that type of Leadership in the past, and now. These two brilliant Dictators has promised to take personal control over the implementation of key, joint oil and gas projects! Anyone else feel a shivering anticipation of a possible "nuclear" exchange in the near future?
Are the US and the UN going to sit on the sidelines and just watch these powers form dangerous alliances? Are we back "asleep" like we were before 9/11? Will it take another attack on our soil before we react and do something about these and other dangerous powers, like Iran, that threatens America's very existence?
Medvedev stressed that bilateral co-operation in this area "is not directed against any states."
"It is mutually beneficial," he said.
Ahhh, that explains it all! The Russian President said not to worry!! Its NOT directed against any other States! (like the US)
Phew! I thought for a second that this deal was a MAJOR threat to our Nation! Well now that we got that cleared up, lets go back to being naive and join the UN in making idle threats, and non effective Sanctions against Terrorist Nations, that has the destruction of our Country and Israel close at heart!Recently Chavez also purchased 1 billion dollars of weapons from Russia, what sinister plans do these 2 countries have?
The more I dwell and the more research I do on this, the more petrified I get. I should be assured and feel confident that our Government and UN will take care of this in a useful way. Well, I'm not assured and I don't feel safe!! We definitely would, had John McCain been elected President!! McCain had the potential, in my eyes, to be the next Ronald Reagan of the world!
UN has proven useless and powerless in dealing with Dictatorships in the past, and nothing they're doing now is indicative of a changed policy. The only action I've seen them take, is in giving aid to countries that will bite our hand clear off ,given the opportunity!
I recently heard on FOX news, that US gave $1 billion in aid to Egypt this last year, in the misguided hope of getting co-operation in fighting Hamas. The only co-operation it seemed we got was their leader speaking against Hamas in a Televised address after Israel and Hamas got into closer war recently. Pretty expensive Televised event!
I don't want to know how much aid we give the Palestinians (I know we do) or how much the UN gives in aid there. I honestly choose not to know, because it will bug me to no end!
How many more Islam and Terrorist Nations does the US Government foolishly give aid to, while the Americans are struggling in a Recession and losing their homes? I choose to be in the dark on this, because at this time there is nothing my party can do about it!
56 Million Americans voted for McCain, and you better believe the Conservatives are going to demand some answers if the new Administration "sillyfoot" around, and allow another Terrorist attack on our Nation! It would serve this Administration well to question these Radical leaders and their Nations motives and keep them under strict watch!No arms deals were signed this time around, but since 2003 Venezuela has racked up contracts worth over $ 4 billion for Russian weapons and there are plans to buy more.
Here's some more "reassuring" news on the issue of arms deals between Venezuela and Russia:
Venezuela wants to equip its armed forces with Russian submarines, helicopters and anti-aircraft systems. (I hope, against "likelihood" of hopes, that the Russian weapons, tanks, helicopters and Millitary equipment are as defaulted and outdated as they used to be!!)Venezuela has already bought over 50 combat helicopters, 24 Su-30MK2 fighters, and 100,000 Ak-103 rifles from Russia, and also holds a licence for their production.
Chavez and Ahmedinajad has joined Bin Laden's Jihaad on the Dollar!
In 2007 Chavez teamed up with Iran's Ahmedinejhad, and taunted the US. During Chavez visit to Iran, the two of them, boasted that they would be victorious over the United States. They said the fall of the US dollar was a prelude to the end of American dominance in the world. Chavez has repeatedly said that the US empire is coming down. He has stated this many times in Televised speeches to his people. Since 2001, the two countries has signed over 180 Trade agreements, worth over $ 20 Billion in potential investments, according to Fox News.They also have partnered up on several projects in the South American nation to produce cars, tractors and plastic goods!Chavez has according to Us and other Western Officials, let Iran use its airlines to transport computers and engine components to Syria for use in missiles. This is clearly against UN sanctions, but is being done anyway! Syria is also a well known enemy to US and Israel!
Lets not forget how Cuba and the Castro's has also formed an allegiance and a "close" bond with Chavez.
Chavez is travelling in the South American countries and the Middle East spreading his hate for the United States and he is forming dangerous alliances right under our noses.Peace and a feeling of safety will not be with us Americans for the next four years, unless our new President puts his foot down and make sure dangerous Dictators, like Chavez and others are dealt with in a firm and strong manner!
More to come on this, as OCA will keep an eye out for the American people and make sure you will hear ALL news and NOT what the main stream and Liberal Media feeds you, which is mostly a short version, if any at all! 
Synnove Bakke
Victory Over Islamism? by Daniel Pipes Issue 123 - January 7, 2009 Victims caught in terrorist atrocities perpetrated for Islam typically experience fear, torture, horror, and murder, with sirens screaming, snipers positioning, and carnage in the streets. That was the case recently in Bombay (now called Mumbai), where some 195 people were murdered and 300 injured. But for the real target of Islamist terror, the world at large, the experience has become numbed, with apologetics and justification muting repulsion and shock. If terrorism ranks among the cruelest and most inhumane forms of warfare, excruciating in its small-bore viciousness and intentional pain, Islamist terrorism has also become well-rehearsed political theater. Actors fulfill their scripted roles, then shuffle, soon forgotten, off the stage. Indeed, as one reflects on the most publicized episodes of Islamist terror against Westerners since 9/11 – the attack on Australians in Bali, on Spaniards in Madrid, on Russians in Beslan, on Britons in London – a twofold pattern emerges: Muslim exultation and Western denial. The same tragedy replays itself, with only names changed. Muslim exaltation: The Mumbai assault inspired occasional condemnations, hushed official regrets, and cornucopias of unofficial enthusiasm. As the Israel Intelligence Heritage & Commemoration Center notes, the Iranian and Syrian governments exploited the event "to assail the United States, Israel and the Zionist movement, and to represent them as responsible for terrorism in India and the world in general." Al-Jazeera's website overflowed with comments such as "Allah, grant victory to Muslims. Allah, grant victory to jihad" and "The killing of a Jewish rabbi and his wife in the Jewish center in Mumbai is heartwarming news." Such supremacism and bigotry can no longer surprise, given the well-documented, world-wide acceptance of terror among many Muslims. For example, the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press conducted an attitudinal survey in spring 2006, "The Great Divide: How Westerners and Muslims View Each Other." Its polls of about one thousand persons in each of ten Muslim populations found a perilously high proportion of Muslims who, on occasion, justify suicide bombing: 13 percent in Germany, 22 percent in Pakistan, 26 percent in Turkey, and 69 percent in Nigeria. A frightening portion also declared some degree of confidence in Osama bin Laden: 8 percent in Turkey, 48 percent in Pakistan, 68 percent in Egypt, and 72 percent in Nigeria. As I concluded in a 2006 review of the Pew survey, "These appalling numbers suggest that terrorism by Muslims has deep roots and will remain a danger for years to come." Obvious conclusion, no? Western denial: No. The fact that terrorist fish are swimming in a hospitable Muslim sea nearly disappears amidst Western political, journalistic, and academic bleatings. Call it "political correctness, multiculturalism, or self-loathing"; whatever the name, this mentality produces delusion and dithering. Nomenclature lays bare this denial. When a sole jihadist strikes, politicians, law enforcement, and media join forces to deny even the fact of terrorism; and when all must concede the terrorist nature of an attack, as in Mumbai, a pedantic establishment twists itself into knots to avoid blaming terrorists. I documented this avoidance by listing the twenty (!) euphemisms the press unearthed to describe Islamists who attacked a school in Beslan in 2004: activists, assailants, attackers, bombers, captors, commandos, criminals, extremists, fighters, group, guerrillas, gunmen, hostage-takers, insurgents, kidnappers, militants, perpetrators, radicals, rebels, and separatists – anything but terrorists. And if terrorist is impolite, adjectives such as Islamist, Islamic, and Muslim become unmentionable. My blog titled "Not Calling Islamism the Enemy" provides copious examples of this avoidance, along with its motives. In short, those who would replace War on Terror with A Global Struggle for Security and Progress imagine this linguistic gambit will win over Muslim hearts and minds. Post-Mumbai, Steven Emerson, Don Feder, Lela Gilbert, Caroline Glick, Tom Gross, William Kristol, Dorothy Rabinowitz, and Mark Steyn again noted various aspects of this futile linguistic behavior, with Emerson bitterly concluding that "After more than 7 years since 9/11, we can now issue a verdict: Islamic terrorists have won our hearts and minds." What finally will rouse Westerners from their stupor, to name the enemy and fight the war to victory? Only one thing seems likely: massive deaths, say 100,000 casualties in a single WMD attack. Short of that, it appears, much of the West, contently deploying defensive measures against fancifully-described "activists," will gently slumber on. Mr. Pipes (www.DanielPipes.org) is director of the Middle East Forum and Taube distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University. | |