Stop With the Good News Already!

"What's good news for America is bad news for Democrats" has never been more relevant than with the recent news of things going much better in Iraq. Since the Democrats have invested so heavily in our defeat, they face a major credibility problem when we win, so they are pulling out all stops to help ensure our defeat.

Wes Pruden rips them apart in the Washington Times today. Some parts hilarious, some infuriating, but a good read nonetheless.

When Good News is Awful News

It's not easy to pimp surrender, but some of our congressional and media worthies are giving it their best shot.

It won't be easy. Nobody but the loons think quitters, fakers, surrender monkeys and pessimists of various stripes are good custodians of the national interests, and the men and women who read the newspapers and magazines and watch the television newscasts are smarter than the men and women who write and preen for them. Americans are fed up with the Iraq war not because they think resisting jihad is wrong, but because they think the leaders at the top may not necessarily be serious about winning without apology. Anthony McAuliffe, who answered the German demand for surrender at Bastogne with "nuts" (if not something a little saltier), is the kind of general Americans admire most.

The risks for Democratic doom-criers are becoming evident. The accumulating evidence of progress, little by little, is changing public opinion. Media opinion will follow, slowly as always, and the sluggard notabilities of press and screen will be tugged -- "kicking and screaming," as the liberals once said of conservatives -- into reality. The Democrats in Congress, like the embittered losers on the left, will be left behind on the other side of the famous bridge to the 21st century.

Still, no amount of evidence will change their minds, so expect in the next month for our enemies both domestic and abroad to step up their efforts. Otherwise, we'll be seeing fear and loathing from the likes of Nancy Boyda and Jim Clyburn.

Nevertheless and grudging or not, things are reported to be better than they used to be, and seem to be getting a little better every day. It's enough to make a partisan Democrat weep. Some are. Nancy Boyda of Kansas, a freshman in the House, was so unnerved by good news from the front that she stalked out of a committee hearing when a retired general described developments in Iraq as encouraging. ood news like that, she said, only "further divides the country."G Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, the Democratic majority House whip, was even more revealing: If things improve in Iraq, that would be "a real problem for us."

Read the whole thing.

Meanwhile, speaking of doom and gloom, I've always been a great admirer of New Gingrich, but lately he's been getting on my nerves. Maybe he understands he has no chance at ever being President (for reasons that should be obvious to most) and is just lashing out in frustration. But for the longest time he's rubbed me the wrong way by fawning over Mrs. Bill Clinton, and this goes back a decade.

Now, 15 months from the 2008 election, he's telling us to get used to the idea that this abomination is going to be President, and we should just get used to it.

Way to rally the troops, Newt. Nothing like sending the message of defeat and helping depress turnout. Someone as astute a political observer such as yourself should realize 15 months can be a lifetime in politics, so how about helping the cause by pointing out her many deficiencies and helping out the team by throwing your support behind the GOP candidates who have a shot? Is that too much to ask for?

Says Newt: "Odds are significant" the Democrats win the White House

If you're a betting man, you have to like Democrats' chances of taking over the White House next year, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said early this morning.

"The odds are fairly significant that that the left will win next year. My personal bet is that it'll be a Clinton-Obama ticket. I think they have a very high likelihood of winning," Gingrich told business leaders at a gathering of the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce.

Great, a ready-made commercial for the Democrats.

This from a fellow who, just three months ago, was fending off scores of when-will-you-announce questions about his own presidential aspirations. Gingrich didn't address the question directly on Monday.

But politicians chomping at the bit to run have three things in common: A slimmed-down figure, a tan suitable for TV cameras, and well-coiffed hair. Maybe not John Edwards-style hair, but well-barbered nonetheless.

Perhaps it was the 7 a.m. hour, but Gingrich had none of these. He was, however, very sober when it came to the GOP dilemma

Read the rest. He does quantify things by appropriately noting the gap between now and November 2008, but please, let's be a little more positive.

Now I'm not saying we should be blindly optimistic and set ourselves up for defeat, but when I look at the Democrat candidates, there really is nobody there who so greatly inspires the masses. I understand that 99% of the media is carrying water for them and for that reason alon the GOP faces an uphill battle.

But if you want to be helpful to the party, Newt, why don't you come out and scrutinize them more than you do the GOP?

Goracle: "Polluters" Manipulate Information

Washed-up scaremonger Al Gore, coming out of hiding after his Live Earth event drew 1,981,000,000 fewer people than predicted and tending to his drug-addled son, is over in Singapore making up his own facts once again and suffering from a major case of projection.

Gore: Polluters manipulate climate info

SINGAPORE - Research aimed at disputing the scientific consensus on global warming is part of a huge public misinformation campaign funded by some of the world's largest carbon polluters, former Vice President Al Gore said Tuesday.

Misinformation? Such as what, that the polar ice caps are melting? That we're facing a "crisis" greater than, say, nuclear terrorism because the earth's temperature has gone up half a degree the past 120 years?

"There has been an organized campaign, financed to the tune of about $10 million a year from some of the largest carbon polluters, to create the impression that there is disagreement in the scientific community," Gore said at a forum in Singapore. "In actuality, there is very little disagreement."

And where is the evidence of this? Oh, you don't have any?

"This is one of the strongest of scientific consensus views in the history of science," Gore said. "We live in a world where what used to be called propaganda now has a major role to play in shaping public opinion."

So questioning his propaganda is now considered "propaganda" by this moron.

After the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, made up of the world's top climate scientists, released a report in February that warned that the cause of global warming is "very likely" man-made, "the deniers offered a bounty of $10,000 for each article disputing the consensus that people could crank out and get published somewhere," Gore said.

"They're trying to manipulate opinion and they are taking us for fools," he said.

You know, I'm getting tired of people impugning fools. What have I done to deserve such scorn?

Anyway, the thought that some mythical $10 million campaign could compete with the daily onslaught of global warming nonsense churned out by the left is just ridiculous, and Gore knows it.

He's clearly becoming more alarmist the more he's ignored and it won't be long until he goes into a full meltdown, no pun intended.

Speaking of manipulation, judging by these photos, Gore may need to manipulate a scale to get it to read under 300 pounds.

Meanwhile, there's going to be a huge price to pay for all the hysteria.

Climate bill shaves $533 bln off economy

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Senate bill to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions would raise energy prices and also reduce American economic output by more than half a trillion dollars over two decades, according to a government report released on Monday.

Congress is expected to consider climate legislation this fall that would fight global warming. Many businesses worry the U.S. economy would suffer under a measure to impose tough mandatory cuts in emissions.

Wonderful. Let's wreck the economy on behalf of junk science.

Intifada NYC Principal "Regrets" Remarks

They always regret their words once they come to public attention. Now Arabic School principal Debbie Almontaser is furiously backtracking and offering mealy-mouthed explanation for her actions, which, quite frankly, ring hollow.

Arab School Principal Says She Regrets Intifada Remarks

The principal of an Arabic-language public school due to open next month is under fire for taking what several Jewish groups are condemning as a soft stance on the violent Palestinian Arab uprising known as the intifada. The principal, Debbie Almontaser, was quoted yesterday interpreting T-shirts that say "Intifada NYC" as not an endorsement of violence but rather "an opportunity for girls to express that they are part of New York City society ... and shaking off oppression." She followed the word's literal Arabic meaning, which is "struggle" or "uprising."

In a statement late yesterday afternoon, Ms. Almontaser backed away from her comments, reported by the New York Post, saying she regretted suggesting the T-shirt slogan was appropriate. "By minimizing the word's historical associations I implied that I condone violence and threats of violence," she said. "That view is anathema to me and the very opposite of my life's work."

Sure. What a pile of drivel.

Meanwhile, the ADL, which had supported the notion of an Arabic School, has done a 180.

"I feel like a fool. I think Abe Foxman should feel like a fool. And certainly Joel Klein if he sponsors it will be a fool," a CUNY board member who had decided to support the school, Jeffrey Wiesenfeld, said.

Watch it guys, there's only one fool around here...

Today's New York Post editorial reminds NYC school's Chancellor Joel Klein he has a choice to make. Does he have the guts?

Dhabah "Debbie" Almontaser is to be principal of Khalil Gibran Interna tional Academy, New York City's new Arabic-centered public school, when it opens in the fall.

Either she is a fool or she thinks New Yorkers are morons. Regardless, she has no business running a public school.

Almontaser, as The Post's Chuck Bennett and Jana Winter reported yesterday, sits on the board of an organization that shares office space with a group called Arab Women Active in Art and Media, which has been selling T-shirts proudly proclaiming "Intifada NYC."

What does that mean, exactly?

Is it meant to support the Palestinian intifada, which has killed thousands of innocent people over the years?

Is it an incitement to such deadly violence here in New York City?

Neither, according to Almontaser.

"The word basically means 'shaking off,' " she tells The Post. "That is the root word, if you look it up in Arabic."

And while she says that intifada "is developing a negative connotation" because of its murderous anti-Israeli violence, Almontaser claims the shirts are merely "an opportunity for girls to express that they are part of New York City society . . . and shaking off oppression."

And the moon is made of green cheese.

No doubt, Almontaser is right about the literal definition of "intifada."

But if its generally accepted meaning were as benign as she insists, you can bet no one would be wearing it on a T-shirt.

You can further bet that she knows it.

Now, if Dhabah Almontaser is going to be as disingenuous about something like this, why should New Yorkers believe her claim that "you won't find religious or political indoctrination or anti-Americanism" at her Khalil Gibran school?

She's got to go. Of course, the goons from CAIR will file lawsuits in the blink of an eye, but we're used to that. What you don't get through craven acquiescence, you go for through intimidation in the courts.

For background on this school, check out the NY Sun's special page on the Khalil Gibran International Academy.

Previously: Intifada NYC.

Mohamed and Megahed Had Pipe Bombs

The curious case of the two University of South Florida students is beginning to look a bit more serious that authorities have previously let on.

Authorities: Men Had Pipe Bombs in Their Car

MONCKS CORNER, S.C. (AP) -- Authorities say two Middle Eastern men arrested near a Navy base had several pipe bombs in their car.

Authorities say 24-year-old Ahmed Abda Sherf Mohamed and 21-year-old Yousef Samir Megahed were charged Monday with possession of an incendiary device.

An FBI spokeswoman says a joint state-federal investigation is under way to see if there was any terrorism connection but no link had been found yet. The Navy base is the site of a brig where enemy combatants have been held.

According to an affidavit with his arrest warrant, Mohamed admitted he made the pipe bombs from items he bought at Wal-Mart.

Defense attorney Dennis Rhoad says Mohamed and Megahed have a reason for having the devices, but he declined to comment further during their bond hearing.

Naturally, the thugs at CAIR rule out any link to terrorism. Question: How would they know?

Ahmed Bedier, the executive director of a civil rights organization for Muslims in Tampa, criticized the arrest as racial profiling, an accusation South Carolina police refuted.

"Definitely this is not related to terrorism," said Bedier, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

"Had these been two good ol' boys from South Carolina driving through and speeding -- and even if they did have some fireworks -- nobody would have been arrested," Bedier said.

Watch it, Ahmed, you're precipitously close to hate speech there.

Dan Riehl is still all over this one. More also at Hot Air.

Previously: Al Qaeda Cell on the Loose in America?

UN Translator Busted in Visa Scheme

Hard to fathom someone working for the UN would be corrupt, but here you have it.

U.N. translator charged in U.S. visa scheme

NEW YORK — U.S. authorities today arrested a U.N. translator and two other persons on charges of running an extravagant scheme to sell U.S. visas, mostly to Russian and Uzbek nationals.

Vyacheslav Manokhin, a relatively low-ranking U.N. staffer, was accused of providing requests on U.N. letterhead for U.S. visas to allow aliens to attend U.N. conferences that didn't exist or that the visitors did not attend.

The scheme had apparently been in operation for years.

"Manokhin used his position at the U.N. to make it appear as though the U.N. supported the visa applications, so that the aliens could enter the United States, purportedly to participate in conferences organized by non-government organizations, by the U.N. or by entities associated with the U.N.," according to a statement issued yesterday by the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York.

"In most instances, the alien was successful in obtaining a visa and entering the United States."

No doubt they've ever left.

A man named Kamiljan Tursunov, who was arrested by Immigration and Customs on July 25 for failing to appear at an immigration proceeding, admitted to paying $15,000 to an associate in Uzbekistan for the false letter of invitation, according to the charging documents.

Wow, he failed to appear for an immigration proceeding. See how easy it would be to keep tabs on all the illegals here?

A third man, identified as Vladimir Derevianko, is accused of participating in the scheme. The charging documents say it was at Mr. Derevianko's request that Mr. Tursonov prepared the false letters.

The documents say Mr. Derevianko faces a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and the other two face up to five years. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has already lifted Mr. Manokhin's diplomatic immunity.

How much you want to wager this story, as well as the defendants, quickly disappears?

Swingtime for Hitler

Put your hands in the air!

No truth to the rumor these songs will be the basis for the soundtrack of YearlyKos: The Movie, but I'm sure spiritual leader Markos will relent under pressure.

Hitler's record collection from his Berlin bunker

A collection of gramaphone records from Adolf Hitler's headquarters in Berlin has appeared, giving an insight into the Führer's musical tastes.

The record collection was in possession of Russian military intelligence officer Lew Besymenski, who examined the Führerbunker in Berlin following Germany's defeat in 1945.

Mr Besymenski kept his haul secret but after he died in June this year his daughter revealed the find to German magazine Der Spiegel.

Surprisingly, the music Hitler and his entourage listened to featured Russian composers, including Tchaikovsky, as well as a Jewish musician who fled Germany in 1933.

List here.

Via Hot Air.

Al Qaeda Cell on the Loose in America?

Eli Lake has some disturbing details evolving out of the Scotland jihadi plot.

Al Qaeda Cell May Be Loose in U.S., British Plot Hints

WASHINGTON — As an American-born spokesman for Al Qaeda threatens to blow up American embassies abroad, intelligence gleaned from last month's British "doctors plot" of car bombers suggests that a Qaeda cell is on the loose in the American homeland.

E-mail addresses for American individuals were found on the same password-protected e-mail chains used by the United Kingdom plotters to communicate with Qaeda handlers in Europe, a counterterrorism official told The New York Sun yesterday. The American and German intelligence community now believe the secure e-mail chains used in the United Kingdom plot have provided a window into an operational Qaeda network in several countries.

"Because of the London and Glasgow plot, we now know communications have been made from Al Qaeda to operatives in the United States," the counterterrorism official said on condition of anonymity. "This plot helps to connect a lot of stuff. We have seen money moving a lot through hawala networks and other illicit finance as well." But this source was careful to say that at this point no specific information, such as names, targets or a timeline, was known about any particular plot on American soil. The e-mail addresses that are linked to Americans were pseudonyms

Perhaps this is just a coincidence, but one might hope the authorities dig a little deeper into these mysterious men arrested over the weekend in a scandalously underreported story.

Authorities demolished a suspicious item found in a car that led police to close a highway outside Charleston Saturday night.

WIS News 10 spoke with officials at the Berkeley County Detention Center who said 24-year-old Ahmed Mohamed and 21-year-old Yousef Megahed, the occupants of the car, are still in police custody.

So far they have only been charged with possession of explosive devices, but the FBI is working to see if more crimes have been committed.

The Berkeley County Sheriff's Department tells WIS News 10 the two men are not US citizens.

Bomb squad technicians demolished an item found in the car at 2:45am Sunday. It made a loud bang, similar to a firecracker.

Seems to me two guys names Ahmed and Mohamed who are not U.S. citizens driving around with explosives rates a little bit more attention.

Dan Riehl has been all over this, and has numerous updates.

UPDATE: They're students at the University of South Florida.

Ahmed Bedier, executive director of the Tampa chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a civil rights organization for Muslims, said the men arrested are Youseff Megahed, 21, and Ahmed Mohamed, 24 - two University of South Florida students.

Family members told Bedier they think the materials were leftover fireworks Megahed kept in his trunk since July 4.

“Both of them are really naïve kids,” Bedier said.

Please. USF just so happens to be where terror supporter Sami al-Arian was a professor.

All just coincidental, I'm sure.

Intifada NYC

Those Che Guevara t-shirts are such popular items, why not some harmless "Intifada NYC" shirts to help raise awareness?

Activists with ties to the principal of the city's controversial new Arabic-themed school are hawking T- shirts that glorify Palestinian terror, The Post has learned.

The inflammatory tees boldly declare "Intifada NYC" - apparently a call for a Gaza-style uprising in the Big Apple.

The organization selling the shirts, Arab Women Active in Art and Media, shares office space on Brooklyn's Third Avenue with the Saba Association of American Yemenis.

Dhabah "Debbie" Almontaser, principal of the Khalil Gibran International Academy - which is scheduled to open in Brooklyn next month - is a board member and spokeswoman for Saba.

Members of AWAAM refused to comment.

But Almontaser downplayed the significance of the T-shirts.

"The word [intifada] basically means 'shaking off.' That is the root word if you look it up in Arabic," she said.

"I understand it is developing a nega tive connotation due to the uprising in the Palestinian-Israeli areas. I don't be lieve the intention is to have any of that kind of [violence] in New York City.

"I think it's pretty much an opportunity for girls to express that they are part of New York City society . . . and shaking off oppression."

If they want to "shake off oppression," why are they going to attend an Arabic academy? After all, women are oppressed under Islam. So how about some "Renounce Islam" t-shirts?

AWAAM's co-founders, Rama Kased and Mona Eldahry, are also active in the more militant pro-Palestinian group, al-Awda, whose main U.S. office is in California.

That organization, according to the Anti-Defamation League, is an active supporter of the terrorist groups Hezbollah and Hamas.

"The T-shirt is a reflection of a movement that increasingly lauds violence against Israelis instead of rejecting it. That is disturbing," said Oren Segal, a spokesman for the ADL.

Almontaser, a community activist and Muslim, has said the new grade 6-12 public school will be modeled on other dual-language city schools and have no religious component.

Sure.

As it so happens, Ms. Almontaser has some interesting connections, including one Linda Sarsour.

Linda Sarsour is the director of the Arab American Association of New York. In 2005 she organised the Arab American Heritage festival together with her friend Dhabah aka Debbie Almontaser, the principal designate of The Khalil Gibran International Academy. In a 2004 article Sarsour revealed that Arab men pictured in an Arab newspaper recruiting suicide bombers for martyrdom were relatives and friends - one of them was her brother in law who is serving a 12 year sentence for his involvement with Hamas. Sarsour's husband is facing deportation and she was "questioned by US authorities". One reason could be that her husband together with his brother and Sarsour's cousin, may have been involved in Hamas activities as well. He comes from El Bireh and his name was given as Maher Judh" in the article below. Note that Sarsour too "was questioned by US authorities".

Daniel Pipes has A Madrassa Grows in Brooklyn.

Arabs or Muslims, Ms. Almontaser says, are innocent of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001: "I don't recognize the people who committed the attacks as either Arabs or Muslims." Instead, she blames September 11 on Washington's foreign policies, saying they "can have been triggered by the way the USA breaks its promises with countries across the world, especially in the Middle East, and the fact that it has not been a fair mediator."

At a community meeting with the New York Police Department commissioner, she berated the NYPD for using "FBI tactics" when informants were used to prevent a subway bombing, thereby polarizing the Muslim community. For Ms. Almontaser, it appears, preventing terrorism counts less than soothing Muslim sensibilities.

Rewarding these views, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a foreign-funded front organization, in 2005 bestowed an honor on Ms. Almontaser for her "numerous contributions" to the protection of civil liberties.

More on Almontaser here.

“President Bush is trying to destroy the United States that I love and of which I am a result. He has abandoned our forefather's ideals of a society of freedom; democracy and pluralism build by immigrants. He is a nightmare."

“We are in favor of combating terror, but that cannot be done by violating fundamental human rights, says Debbie Almontaser (37). - After the terror attacks last year our government has put aside our civil rights and it is particularly Muslim, Arab-American and South Asian families that suffer under this."

UPDATE: Bryan at Hot Air links. Michelle Malkin and Gateway Pundit also link. Also check out the video at One Jerusalem.

Memo To The Koslings

Back in the day, w-a-a-a-a-y back in the day, there was an abundance of surrender monkey, military-hating asshats, just as there are today.

So, to honor the events that occurred during the daughter of COMINTERN, we introduce the progressives to someone they can add to their hate list.

Tommy
I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer,
The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here."
The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I:
O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away";
But it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls,
But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls!
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide,
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.

Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;
An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit.
Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.

We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints,
Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints;
While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind",
But it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind,
There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind,
O it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind.

You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires, an' all:
We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace.
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country" when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees!

Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)

Global Warming "Deniers" a Well-Funded Machine

An absolute joke of a piece from Newsweek.

The Truth About Denial

If you think those who have long challenged the mainstream scientific findings about global warming recognize that the game is over, think again. Yes, 19 million people watched the "Live Earth" concerts last month, titans of corporate America are calling for laws mandating greenhouse cuts, "green" magazines fill newsstands, and the film based on Al Gore's best-selling book, "An Inconvenient Truth," won an Oscar. But outside Hollywood, Manhattan and other habitats of the chattering classes, the denial machine is running at full throttle—and continuing to shape both government policy and public opinion.

I thought two billion people were going to watch Live Earth? Is it possible people are "in denial" because they're not buying the propaganda?

Also, is it possible author Sharon Begley is so stupid to not realize that outside Hollywood, Manhattan, and the chattering classes lie the overwhelming majority of America people who aren't as painfully gullible as her?

The sheer arrogance and condescension of this dreck runs for six pages, so read at your own peril. It's hard to believe Newsweek thinks this passes for journalism, but I guess when your readership is dwindling so rapidly, you'll do anything to sell your "green" magazine.

For more, check out Noel Sheppard at NewsBusters, who rips this nonsense to shreds.

Murdoch and Ailes Prepare for All-Out War

The bedwetters from Moveon.org, Media Matters, Kos, and the rest of the sniveling left who caterwaul and whine 24/7 about Fox News are in for some sobering news.

These pissants think they can bully some advertisers and flex their muscles whenever they score some mythical victory. Well, they're playing with the big boys now and stand to be crushed like the insignificant little worms they are.

With The Wall Street Journal and a new business network, Rupert Murdoch and Fox News chief Roger Ailes plan their next move: all-out war

But the war for the future of journalism is just beginning. When combined with News Corp. properties like Fox News and the soon-to-be-launched Fox Business Network, Murdoch's purchase of the Journal will create a juggernaut whose influence ranges far beyond the world of financial news and information. With plans to expand the Journal's political and international coverage, Murdoch is itching for a fight with the nation's presumed newspaper of record, The New York Times, as well as the Financial Times of London.

Read the rest.

Muslims Gaining Strength in America, Claims Cleric

Well, they've scared the daylights out of the media, the left, academia and pretty much anyone they harass and threaten with lawsuits, so this guy does have a point.

Muslims gaining strength in United States - cleric

RIYADH, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Muslims are steadily improving their position in U.S. society, contrary to the media image of a community besieged by suspicions of links to militants, a leading U.S. Muslim cleric said on Sunday.

Yahya Hendi, a prayer leader who teaches at Georgetown University, said the Sept. 11 attacks on U.S. cities in 2001 had spurred Americans to know more about Islam and Muslims to affirm their U.S. identity.

"I think the future is bright, because of our wisdom in dealing with the reality," Hendi, a Palestinian by birth, told a gathering of Saudi academics on a visit to Saudi Arabia.

Well, the reality is Hendi was spewing this nonsense in the land where 15 of the 19 9/11 hijackers were spawned. Yes, I would say Americans became much more aware of Islam after 9/11.

After all, we must know the enemy.

"There are serious efforts being made among the second and third generation to become part of the political establishment. The challenge we face is in the media and from some Christian extremists who don't want an Islamic presence in America."

What, you mean it's not the Jews???

Hendi said U.S. Muslims, whose number he put at 7 to 9 million, were working on "nationalising" Islam as part of the fabric of U.S. society, including cutting funding links to Muslim countries.

"Last year we elected the first Muslim to Congress and I expect that by 2015 there will be three or four as well as at least 30 mayors," he said, adding there were now 400 Muslim lawyers in the United States compared to nine before Sept. 11.

Yes, and every one of them seemingly is busy filing frivolus lawsuits.

The Sept. 11 attacks, when 19 Arab Muslims killed about 3,000 people in New York and Washington, led to strict security measures in the United States that some rights groups say often unfairly target Arabs and Muslims.

Hendi, who met President George W. Bush days after Sept. 11, 2001, said Muslims had thrown off a tendency to shun political action such as voting and running in elections because it was considered akin to surrendering to U.S. culture.

He said he did not feel there was general animosity towards Muslims in American society, and that he encouraged Muslims to join intelligence bodies like the CIA and FBI.

Wonderful.

Hendi travels in some elite circles, apparently.

Bin Laden Boytoy Blabs in New Video

I wonder if he did an advance screening at the KosKidz Konvention?

Al Qaeda member posts video warning to US

A wanted US member of Al Qaeda has warned in a new video that American interests and diplomatic missions are legitimate targets.

The warning posted on an American website that monitors terrorist groups says Al Qaeda will continue to target the US at home and abroad just as it targets at home and abroad.

Adam Gadahn, a convert to Islam who has been indicted for treason in the United States, says in the video that the Americans and their crusader allies must leave Muslims alone.

More from Laura Mansfield, Jawa Report, Strata-Sphere.

Back to the Future: Democrats Raise Taxes

They'll never learn, which is the hallmark of idiotic socialism. Well, I'm sure the morons at the Kult of Koslam Konvention cheered when they heard this, but consumers can expect one thing: gas prices will increase to pay for this massive tax hike on oil companies. Unless, of course, the President whips out the veto pen.

House OKs new taxes on oil companies

WASHINGTON - Declaring a new direction in energy policy, the House on Saturday approved $16 billion in taxes on oil companies, while providing billions of dollars in tax breaks and incentives for renewable energy and conservation efforts.

Republican opponents said the legislation ignored the need to produce more domestic oil, natural gas and coal. One GOP lawmaker bemoaned "the pure venom ... against the oil and gas industry."

The House passed the tax provisions by a vote of 221-189. Earlier it had approved, 241-172, a companion energy package aimed at boosting energy efficiency and expanding use of biofuels, wind power and other renewable energy sources.

"We are turning to the future," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Not a word about drilling for oil on our own soil. It's all about gouging the evil oil companies, who make less revenue than the federal government does off oil. They do the heavy lifting while the government spends nothing and collects billions in taxes.

"This will save consumers money," said Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M., the provision's co-sponsor, maintaining utilities will have to use less high-priced natural gas.

Nonsense. The oil companies, I guarantee you, will increase prices. I'd noticed a decrease in costs at the pump in recent weeks. So much for that.

Naturally, Pelosi whipped out the "it's for the children" canard, forgetting the fact the children's parent's will be forced to pay.

"It's about our children, about our future, the world in which they live," Pelosi said.

There are still some Republicans willing to tell the truth, however.

"There's a war going on against energy from fossil fuels," said Rep. Ralph Hall, R-Texas. "I can't understand the pure venom felt against the oil and gas industry."

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, said the bill was "a political exercise" to promote "pet projects, ... pet ideas." He predicted it "isn't going anywhere" because President Bush will veto it if it gets to his desk. Feel free to veto, Mr. President.

Pali Car Inspection

You can just never get enough of these.

Israeli air strike kills 2 militants in Gaza Strip

GAZA, Aug 4 (Reuters) - An Israeli air strike killed two Palestinian militants in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday, ambulance crews and local residents said.

The Israeli military said the strike, which it described as a joint operation with the Shin Bet internal security service, targeted a truck carrying a shipping container with an explosives-laden vehicle hidden inside.

The Israeli attack, a military spokeswoman said in Tel Aviv, foiled "an imminent terrorist strike on Israel".

Which brings us to the ubiquitous car swarm.

Palestinians inspect a destroyed car after it was targeted by an Israeli air strike in the southern Gaza. ... REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

Here we have the remains of the day.

Palestinian carry the body of a member of the Islamic Jihad movement who was killed during clashes in Gaza. ... REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

Make that former member.

Sadly, some made it out alive.

Wounded Palestinians lie in a hospital following an Israeli air strike in the southern Gaza. Wounded ... said. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

This Ibraheem Abu Mustafa sure does get around.

JWF Goes Mainstream

The nefarious house organ of the ruthless Murdoch empire saw fit to quote me in today's edition. Thanks for the pub, guys.

In the meantime, they slap around the Silky Pony a bit more, including another heretofore unknown tidbit.

The Edwards campaign has refused to answer questions from The Post seeking information about how all of the advance and expense money was spent.

The book was "edited" by Edwards with his daughter, Cate, and Jonathan Prince, an aide. The campaign also refused to answer questions about Edwards' work on the book and whether his daughter and aide were paid.

Meanwhile, the Edwards campaign said he will not return the campaign donations he collected through his networking page on MySpace.com, which is also owned by News Corp.

Memo to Chuck Hagel

You cannot be serious.

SEN. Chuck Hagel, the Senate's toughest Republican critic of President Bush's war policy, has not ruled out a campaign for the GOP presidential nomination and will use the August recess of Congress to make up his mind.

A major reason for the unexpectedly strong professions of support for Rep. Ron Paul's libertarian-conservative candidacy is that he is the only announced Republican presidential candidate opposed to the invasion of Iraq. Hagel as an anti-war candidate might attract a broader base of support than Paul. He has received many offers of financial support should he run.

Hagel must decide what to do in 2008: to run for president, to run for Senate re-election or to get out of politics. The betting in the Senate Republican cloakroom is that he will retire, but Hagel has given no signal of his intentions and tells friends that he has yet to make a decision.

Hagel faces a strong primary challenge in Nebraska, rates at 0% or 1% in any polls, and is widely despised by the base of the party.

The only reason to declare a candidacy, which he said he would do back in March, is to get some more camera time on the Sunday talking head shows.

He should retire and retain any remaing dignity.

Being beaten by a nutcase like Ron Paul won't exactly help your shattered reputation.

On the Road With Journalist Spicoli

A comical AP dispatch, seemingly a parody. The masses swoon for thug dictator Hugo Chavez, while serious, somber journalist Sean Penn soaks it all in.

Sean Penn takes back seat on rural tour with Venezuela's Hugo Chavez

LA GRITA, Venezuela: President Hugo Chavez reveled in his role as host to Hollywood star Sean Penn as they traveled together through the Venezuelan countryside in an open jeep, stopping to greet adoring crowds.

The Oscar-winning actor hardly said a word Friday, saying he was working as a freelance journalist, following up on reporting stints in Iraq and Iran. In any case, his star power was clearly eclipsed by the populist president, who took the wheel, honking to the crowds, signing autographs and gathering letters from people asking for help.

"I'm going to write. I'm here as a journalist," Penn told The Associated Press. "So I'm not going to give quotes to anyone. But I'm having a great trip, very interesting.

"I'm just here to take it in like everybody else."

Penn is the latest in a series of U.S. celebrities and public figures to visit with Chavez, including actor Danny Glover, singer Harry Belafonte and Cindy Sheehan, who became a peace activist after her 24-year-old soldier son Casey was killed in Iraq.

Like the others, Chavez has embraced Penn as a fellow critic of U.S. President George W. Bush.

"He's a courageous man, he's very quiet," Chavez said as he introduced Penn to reporters and foreign dignitaries during the flight from Caracas to western Venezuela. "But he has a fire burning inside."

Chavez also talked about the havoc an economic crisis in the U.S. might wreak.

"When the economic crisis in the United States breaks out, it's going to hit the world," Chavez said. "We'll help them. The United States must be helped because the United States is going to implode."

Later in the jeep, Penn stayed in the back seat, wearing sunglasses and taking in the spectacle. Screaming women tried to flag down Chavez, who stopped to kiss young children and braked for a cow that wandered across the road as he led a caravan of trucks through fields of potatoes, beets, lettuce and corn.

Wow, sounds like paradise.

On the upside, not everyone in Hollywood is a blithering idiot.

Some Chavez opponents say Penn is being used by the president for political purposes.

Cuban-born actress Maria Conchita Alonso, who grew up in Venezuela, said Penn's visit lends support to a "totalitarian" leader who wants increasing control of society — a charge Chavez denies. Speaking by phone from her home in Beverly Hills, California, Alonso said she respects Penn as an actor, but hopes he "comes to his senses and he realizes that he's being used."

Good luck with that.

Trent Lott: Get Out of DC

This gives you a really safe feeling.

Capitol police step up security fearing terror attack in next six weeks

Without mentioning a specific threat to the Capitol, Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott (R-Miss.) ominously advised Thursday that Congress needed to pass changes to terrorist surveillance laws before leaving for the August recess and warned that otherwise “the disaster could be on our doorstep.”

When asked if people should leave Washington, D.C., during the month of August, Lott responded, “I think it would be good to leave town in August, and it would probably be good to stay out until September the 12th.”

Man up, Trent, and show some stones.

DNC/Nutroots Convergence

Details at The Politico.

Apparently these goons think they're the only ones who can do opposition research.

They're in for a rude awakening.

Shameless Media Whore Rejected in Court

The thing that wouldn't leave, 2007 edition.

Judge Backs C.I.A. in Suit on Memoir

Valerie Wilson may be the best known former intelligence operative in recent history, but a federal judge in New York ruled Wednesday that she was not allowed to say how long she worked for the Central Intelligence Agency in the memoir she plans to publish this fall.

Valerie Wilson? I though her name was Plame?

Although the fact that Ms. Wilson worked for the C.I.A. from 1985 to 2006 has been published in the Congressional Record and elsewhere, the judge, Barbara S. Jones of Federal District Court in Manhattan, said Ms. Wilson was not free to say so.

?The information at issue was properly classified, was never declassified and has not been officially acknowledged by the C.I.A.,? Judge Jones wrote.

Asked whether the ruling would affect the book?s scheduled publication date in October, Adam Rothberg, a spokesman for Ms. Wilson?s publisher, Simon & Schuster, said only that the book would appear ?this fall,? suggesting that revisions required by the decision may cause a slight delay. David B. Smallman, a lawyer who represented Ms. Wilson and Simon & Schuster in the suit they had filed to include the information, said his clients had not decided whether to appeal.

C.I.A. employees sign agreements requiring them to submit manuscripts to the agency for permission before they are published. The C.I.A. has publicly acknowledged only that Ms. Wilson worked there from 2002 to January 2006, when she resigned.

Yawn.

Meanwhile, over at the Home Office of Hate, bloated psychopath and Father of the Year Alec Baldwin calls for prosecution of those who leaked Mrs. Plame Wilson's name. I don't know, maybe he's been on a long bender or coking up with his drugged-out brother Daniel, but somehow he missed the railroading of Scooter Libby.

The fifth thing that I would do is to prosecute whoever is responsible for outing Valerie Plame as a CIA agent.

Yes, there are a number of other issues that would seem to be equally as important, if not more so, than the Plame case. Infrastructure, taxes, agriculture, clean water, trade deficits, election protection and on and on. But the Valerie Plame issue strikes at the very heart of what is most wrong with our current government and creates an inescapable mandate for Bush's successor. Lying is one matter. Destroying the career and good name of an intelligence officer of this country for the purposes of some sick political retribution is another. The issue is one of morality on the deepest level and it is this government's betrayal of Plame that reveals how corrupt and immoral this administration truly is.

I see how the left has latched onto infrastructure as a big concern now. Never mentioned it before the Minneapolis bridge collapse, for some odd reason.

Curiously omitted from his rant is the name Richard Armitage, the mean who "leaked" Plamewilson's name.

Little Dick Does YearlyKos

Expect nothing less than full-fledged idiocy from a buffoon who compares our troops to Nazis.

Durbin does DailyKos convention

CHICAGO -- Sen. Dick Durbin, Illinois Democrat had to skip his planned remarks here at the Yearly Kos convention because he was stuck in Washington for votes.

But he sent some video love -- complete with red meat -- to the crowd.

"I wish I could be with you," he said. "You're really changing the Democratic party and you're changing America for the better.

He joked that Karl Rove's nickname for columnist Bob Novak is "speed dial No. 3."

Organizers said the convention, inspired by prominent liberal blog Daily Kos, boasts 1,400 attendees.

Durbin lauded the "brave bloggers" in the crowd for helping force John Bolton to resign and exposing the White House's role in the Valerie Plame scandal.

"If it weren't for the progressive netroots I wouldn't be assistant majority leader," he added, and the crowd whooped.

Air America host Sam Seder riled up the Kossacks by poking at Fox's Bill O'Reilly.

"I'm going to have to disagree with Bill O'Reilly -- you don't look hateful or crazy and thank god you're not the Ku Klux Klan," he said, to big cheers, going on to ridicule the sexual harassment claims against O'Reilly.

Silky Pony Took Murdoch Money

The endless hypocrisy of the Silky Pony never ceases to amaze.

Edwards Urges Fellow Democrats To Reject Murdoch's Money

Former senator John Edwards, who has been throwing punches at Rupert Murdoch and his Fox News Channel, demanded yesterday that the other Democratic presidential candidates return contributions from Murdoch's media conglomerate.

"John Edwards will never ask Rupert Murdoch for money -- he won't accept his money," said a statement e-mailed to supporters.

Not so fast, Murdoch's people say. His publishing unit, HarperCollins, paid Edwards a $500,000 advance -- and $300,000 in expenses -- for his 2006 book "Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives."

"We assume the senator is going to give back the money from his advance," News Corp. spokesman Brian Lewis said.

Oops.

Totally, busted, he still tries to worm out of it.

Edwards spokesman Eric Schultz said his boss donated the book payments to charity and that the expense money went to staffers and vendors. Citing the announcement that prompted Edwards's e-mail -- Murdoch's $5 billion deal to buy Dow Jones -- Schultz said, "This is about whether or not Murdoch should expand his media empire and use the Wall Street Journal to further promote his right-wing agenda."

The Edwards demand was aimed squarely at Sen. Hillary Clinton, who has received more than $20,000 from News Corp. executives, including $2,300 from Murdoch and $4,600 from company president Peter Chernin. Sen. Barack Obama has gotten $2,100 from Chernin. Lewis noted that Chernin appeared, at Edwards's request, at a 2004 fundraiser for the Kerry-Edwards ticket.

I wonder hoiw this will play at the Hitler Youth, I mean, YearlyKos convention?

More from Michelle Malkin, Hot Air, Sister Toldjah.

CNN Moonbat Cafferty Blames Bridge Collapse on Iraq War

Well, that didn't take long.

Less than 24 hours after the Minneapolis bridge collapse, barking moonbat Jack Cafferty used the tragedy to go off on the war in Iraq.

Forget more money for infrastructure. We need a national campaign to cure Bush Derangement Syndrome.

If there anything these morons won't blame on Bush?

Details at NewsBusters.

I wonder if Cafferty will retroactively blame Bush for his road rage incident?

According to the police, on May 14, CNN anchorman Jack Cafferty struck and injured bicyclist Billy Maldonado and dragged his bike under his car for at least two blocks at West 42nd Street and 9th Avenue in Manhattan. A traffic officer and pedestrians ran after Cafferty's car to stop him, but he drove through at least two red lights and around other vehicles without stopping. When cops found Cafferty a day later, he claimed he didn't know he had hit the bicyclist. He also claimed that he did not hear the bicycle as it dragged under his car, though he did admit seeing Maldonado on the ground in his rear view mirror.

Cops charged Cafferty with leaving the scene of an accident along with misdemeanor charges of reckless driving, assault and harassment. If convicted, Cafferty could have served more than a year in jail and have had to pay thousands of dollars in fines.

But the Manhattan District Attorney let Cafferty off with a $250 fine and 70 hours of community service after he plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident.

Call him convicted criminal Jack Cafferty.

The Perfidy Continues

This was originally posted by our friend, Carl in Jerusalem and provides further insight into our involvement in Israel. All text in bold is not part of Carl's original publication, but has been added for the purpose of highlighting US policy towards Israel.

Prime Minister Ehud K. Olmert has approved the construction of a new Arab town 20 kilometers south of Shchem (Nablus) and 35 kilometers north of Ramallah along Highway 505, the main east-west highway through Samaria. The town is to be located in 'Area B,' which is under Israeli security control and will house 30-40,000 hostile 'Palestinians' in its first phase and 70,000 within ten years. Olmert did not bring the plan to the cabinet for approval before committing to Secretary of State Rice last night that the town would be built. DEBKA is calling the plan a 'major strategic restructure' of Samaria:DEBKA-Net-Weekly’s sources report that the new town site will encompass the Palestinian villages of Qabalan, Oseria and Qudela and straddle Trans-Samaria Highway 505 opposite Tapuach junction. The US planners intend the new town to provide territorial contiguity between Nablus and Ramallah. At the same time, it will cut off Israeli villages in the Jordan Valley from the settlement blocs in Samaria.

The new Palestinian urban entity, which our sources reveal Olmert first learned about in his talks with President Bush on June 19, will be the first Arab town to go up in the region in 1,500 years, since the foundation of Ramleh. [I actually find that 1500 figure hard to believe. CiJ]

During his White House visit, Olmert learned that the Americans regard the Palestinian town as a primary project for consolidating Mahmoud Abbas’ government. It is designed to provide tens of thousands of jobs for West Bankers, whose unemployment rate has soared to 70 percent since the Palestinian uprising was launched against Israel in 2000.

American town planners and architects hired by the US government have prepared initial diagrams after secret visits to the site. During her current tour, Rice showed the plans to the Israeli prime minister, Abbas and Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad.

The problem still outstanding is financing. It was hoped that the Saudis would put up part of the initial investment for the foundations. When he brokered the Mecca accord for a Palestinian unity government earlier this year, the monarch pledged $250 million in aid to the Palestinians. However, this hope was dashed, when King Abdullah flatly refused to hear of aid to the Abbas regime in his talks with the US secretary in Jeddah Tuesday.

I'm surprised Olmert (apparently) hasn't pledged Israeli money to pay for it yet.

But the key to this story is that it means that the Jewish towns in the Jordan Valley are going to be cut off from the rest of the country except if they go south to Jericho or north to Beit She'an.

In the meantime, Olmert won't allow so much as a new caravan in the Jewish towns of Judea and Samaria. He and his corrupt, Jew-hating government have to go, quickly, before they can do more permanent damage.

Carl in Jerusalem

Also at Israel Matzav

.

170 Cancel WSJ Subscriptions; Can Murdoch Survive?

An utterly laughable story from Editor & Publisher notes that a paltry 170 people have canceled subscriptions to the Wall Street Journal, or one out of every 10,000 subscribers.

How will they carry on?

170 Cancel 'WSJ' Subscriptions -- But How Many Will Follow?

NEW YORK At least 170 subscribers to the Wall Street Journal have canceled their orders since word emerged that Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. will soon take over the newspaper.

The paper does have 1.7 million print subscribers left.

An article in the Journal today by Martin Peers added that other readers had "voiced their displeasure with the deal in emails."

I'm sure those 170 will likely be offset by new subscribers, but E&P isn't interested in that.

Curious how virtually every newspaper in the country is hemorrhaging readers, but we never hear specific numbers of cancellations.

Now the evil Rupert Murdoch takes over the WSJ, and we have exact cancellation numbers.or

Al-Qaeda Honcho Iced in Iraq

More bad news for the Democrats.

Al-Qaeda warlord killed, emirs arrested in Iraq crackdown

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi troops killed a local Al-Qaeda warlord and US soldiers arrested two of the extremist network's chieftains as a suicide car bomber struck police in one of the group's strongholds on Thursday.

Al-Qaeda crackdowns were announced after a series of car bombings killed more than 80 people in Baghdad on Wednesday, which served as a bloody backdrop to mounting political crisis in Iraq's shrinking coalition government.

A militant known as Safi, touted as Al-Qaeda in Iraq's emir of Mosul, was killed in a shootout with Iraqi soldiers on Wednesday after he and two cohorts were spotted driving in the country's third largest city, the US military said.

The dim bulb from Searchlight, Harry Reid, was unavailable for comment.

Practice Civil Disobedience, Earn Big Bucks

Is it any wonder why judges and lawyers are viewed with such contempt?

Arrested Demonstrators Awarded $1 Million

WASHINGTON -- Protesters arrested during a rally five years ago were awarded $1 million on Wednesday.

In September 2002, 100 people who marched on D.C. to protest the war in Iraq and World Bank policies. They were arrested. They later sued, claiming their arrests were unlawful.

A judge agreed.

On Wednesday, the judge awarded them monetary damages and threw out their arrests.

The demonstrators claimed police trapped them along Connecticut Avenue, then arrested them.

Since the incident, the D.C. Council has enacted legislation clarifying that it is legal to parade on the street without a permit.

This just opens a Pandora's box for every malcontent and anarchist to run wild in DC, just begging to be arrested so they can rake in the cash.

One can only hope there's an appeal on this one.

Argentina's First Lady: I'm No Pantsuit

Let's see. She's accomplished something in her life, she doesn't come off as a shrill, caterwauling socialist, and she's much easier on the eyes. I'd say she has a point.

I'm no Hillary Clinton: Argentine front-runner

Argentina's first lady and front-runner in the October presidential election rejected on Wednesday comparisons with U.S. presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton despite both women's hopes to follow their husbands into office.

Sen. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and Clinton, a Democratic senator from New York, also are lawyers who met their husbands at universities but Fernandez said the comparisons ended there.

"Hillary was able to position herself nationally because her husband was president. She didn't have a political life beforehand and that isn't my case," Fernandez de Kirchner said in an interview with CNN en Espanol, referring to her 30-year career in Argentine politics.

She also said she would mark out her own space from that of her husband, Argentine President Nestor Kirchner, with whom she has shared her political career, although she did not go into details.

I have a hunch if she shows a little cleavage, the masses won't be running for the eye bleach.

Iran Hangs 9, Obama Urges Dialogue

If we just talk to them nicely, they'll understand we come offering peace.

Iran Hangs 9 Convicts, 7 Publicly, in a Crackdown on ‘Thugs’

TEHRAN, Aug. 1 — Iran held a public hanging on Wednesday in Mashad, in the northeast, of seven men convicted of rape, the ISNA student news agency reported. Two other men were hanged Wednesday in a prison in Zahedan, in the southeast, convicted of armed smuggling of narcotics, the news agency reported.

It carried photographs of five men hanged in one place in Mashad as a crowd watched. The two others were hanged elsewhere in the city.

The state-run television news also showed the five men hanging from the gallows under a banner that said, “Carrying out justice equals increasing security.”

The Mashad chief prosecutor, Gholam Hossein Emaili, said that all seven men had been charged with abduction of women, theft and rape.

Last week 12 people were hanged at Evin Prison in Tehran for “rape, criminal acts, abduction and selling drugs,” said Tehran’s prosecutor, Saeed Mortazavi. Iran increased the number of executions in recent weeks since announcing a crackdown on so-called thugs and arrested nearly 1,000 people in May.

I recall when George W. Bush was Governor of Texas, every time there was a justifiable execution of some monster, the left would be holding candlelight vigils.

When Tookie Williams deservedly was put down, we didn't hear the end of it for weeks.

Strangely, the American left is silent.

Those Failing To Learn From History . . . .

Yesterday, it appeared that Israel found a James "F*&k the Jews" Baker - special order - American-made knife in her back.

Today, questions arise whether Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is trying to play on both sides of the street.

Israel Negotiates With Hamas in Tel Aviv
(IsraelNN.com) Sources described as "reliable" have been quoted by the Palestinian Authority news agency Quds Press saying a Hamas official made a secret trip to Tel Aviv last week to discuss the border crossings into Gaza. The reports say that just over a week ago, Abd al-Salah, who oversees economic affairs in the office of Hamas Authority prime minister Ismail Haniyeh, came secretly to Tel Aviv to meet with economic officials.

Al-Salah arrived with a proposal to transfer control of the Gaza crossings to private Palestinian Authority hands, under European supervision. He also raised the issue of the economic dependence of Gaza upon Israel.

Private Palestinian hands. Kind of like the private treasury that Yasser Arafart established?

The sources emphasized that the meeting was approved by both Israel and Hamas. Israel has said that it would not negotiate with or recognize Hamas, which calls for the destruction of all of Israel and its total replacement by an Arab state. Hamas, on the other hand, never ruled out talks with Israel on day-to-day issues in order to promote Hamas interests.

Such as continued perpetual victimhood, an unlimited supply of arms and armaments from Iran, via Syria; and maybe a seat at the UN for good measure?

In other Hamas news, Russia and Hamas appear to disagree regarding their diplomatic relations. Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister said on Tuesday that his country would reduce the level of its contacts with Hamas. On Wednesday, however, a Hamas parliament member said that exiled Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal, and other Hamas officials, have been invited to Moscow for an official visit.

Having lost the respect of New Europe, Soviet Russian president Vladimir Paranoid needs to find some friends somewhere. That he may be cultivating friends with the descendants of those who fellated the Austrian corporal is apparently of little, or no, importance.

Meanwhile, visiting U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is about to begin her meetings with Israeli and Palestinian Authority officials. Following her meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh with Gulf state leaders, she said that Hamas must get used to the idea of "two states," i.e., a PA state alongside Israel.

And that was said from which side of her mouth?

It was originally reported that Secretary Rice feels such a PA state can be formed even before Fatah and Hamas reunite. However, what she in fact said was, "We hope that at some point in time, when the two-state solution arrives, it will be a uniting force for all the Palestinians who want a state, and it will be a point of time at which people will have to choose if they are out of that consensus."

And what choice have they already made in Gaza, dear?

Meanwhile, Olmert, Hero of the Israel-Hamas War, is scurrying about in an attempt to establish his credentials as an intrepid leader.

Olmert to Rice: "Keep Hamas out of the game"
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday that Hamas Islamists had to be "kept out of the game" while Israel explores new cooperation with the Palestinians.

Pssst, Olmert! New cooperation is going to give you the same results as the old cooperation did.

At their first meeting since Hamas seized control in Gaza, Olmert discussed with Rice the possibility of handing over some security control in the occupied West Bank to President Mahmoud Abbas's forces and said this could only happen "after proper security guarantees" were given, an Israeli spokesman said.

Just like the guarantees given in exchange for the various Land For Peace More War initiatives?

It's madness. Sheer madness.

Flaming Mo, With Bacon

Gates of Vienna links the must see video and has some background.

Second Course: A Flaming Mo, With Bacon

In the video embedded below, you will see strips of bacon laid across a Koran before the book is set on fire. After that Mohammed is torched again. And there are other entertaining moments in this video which I won’t describe; you’ll have to watch.

The soundtrack is a German rock song — I hear the words “fire and water” in it, but otherwise can’t tell you what it’s about. Maybe some of our German-speaking readers can help with a translation.

Better watch this video now — you know it won’t be up for long!

"Big Surprise" Coming, Claims Al Qaeda Web Ad

They sure can churn out the propaganda.

New Al Qaeda Web Ad Threatens 'Big Surprise'

A new al Qaeda propaganda ad, headlined "Wait for the Big Surprise" and featuring a digitally altered photograph of President George Bush and Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf standing in front of a burning White House, was posted on the Internet today.


The brief clip from al Qaeda's "as Sahab" propaganda arm juxtaposes the doctored photo of Bush and Musharraf along with previously seen images of al Qaeda's top leadership -- Osama bin Laden, Ayman al Zawahri and Adam Gadahn -- as well as a photo of an SUV in a motorcade.

There is no additional information provided in the ad, and it closes with the words, "Soon -- God willing," written across the screen and repeated several times.

Supposedly a full video is forthcoming. Maybe femme fatale Adam Gadahn will lisp his way through some more trashtalk.

Of course, the leftards smell another "inside job" coming.

The Terrorist have left the United States in fear since we are doing such a good job of destroying ourselves and our economy.

Posted by: Jeff C | Aug 1, 2007 8:33:03 PM

Even if OBL exists at all, if something "big" happens, it will just be another false flag operation like 9/11.

Forget about the POTUS '08 campaign. '08 will be marked by martial law and suspended elections following simultaneous "big surprises" in three or more locations. And our own government's fingerprints will be all over it, just like 9/11.

Posted by: York "Budd" Durden | Aug 1, 2007 8:36:26 PM

Even the bridge collapse in Minneapolis is under suspicion.

Nothing is a surprise anymore. Not this, not the bridge collapse in MN. We sould really be paying attention to terror

Posted by: Drums of War | Aug 1, 2007 8:39:02 PM

George Bush is an idiot and the real terrorist.

Absolutely amazing that we allow a dictator to rule......where have all the intelligent Americans gone? All that seems to be left are close minded, racist, bible thumping numb-brains....so sad...

Posted by: John Smith | Aug 1, 2007 8:40:42 PM

Good grief.

Terrorist Front Group CAIR Threatens YAF, Robert Spencer

These thugs are getting daring.



The appropriate response:

“CAIR can go to Hell and they can take their 72 virgins with them.”

Finally, someone tells them where to go.

Saudis to Behead Teenage Girl

Ah, the joys of Islam.

Teenage Girl Faces Beheading in Saudi Arabia

The family of a 19-year-old Sri Lankan girl is pleading for her life after a Saudi Arabian court sentenced her to death by beheading.

The court found Rizana Nafeek, 19, guilty of murdering a child in her care while working in the country. Her family (Nafeek's parents pictured above) has appealed the sentence, and human rights groups are calling for the Saudi government to overturn it.

At 17, Rizana Nafeek was sent to Saudi Arabia after the tsunami to work as a maid and make money for her family in Sri Lanka. But after only a few weeks and no child care training, her employers put her in charge of their 4-month-old baby. The baby died, and Nafeek was charged with murder, tried without an attorney and sentenced to death.

Nisha Varia of Human Rights Watch says the case is the latest egregious example of the harsh conditions migrant workers face in Saudi Arabia.

"This case raises many troubling questions about the treatment of children and foreigners in Saudi Arabia's criminal justice system," says Varia. "Foreigners simply do not receive the same treatment in the Saudi justice system. This includes having translation during the interrogation and during court proceedings and having an attorney."

Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Saudi-funded unindicted co-conspirators at CAIR, was unavailable for comment.

Magic Negro May Send Troops into Pakistan

One has to figure in order to burnish their foreign policy credentials, by the time the primaries actually roll around, the Democrats will probably be threatening to nuke every country on the planet.

This one is particularly pathetic. In order to not to appear naive, Barack Obama comes off more naive than ever.

Obama might send troops into Pakistan

WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Wednesday that he would possibly send troops into Pakistan to hunt down terrorists, an attempt to show strength when his chief rival has described his foreign policy skills as naive.

The Illinois senator warned Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf that he must do more to shut down terrorist operations in his country and evict foreign fighters under an Obama presidency, or Pakistan will risk a U.S. troop invasion and losing hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. military aid.

So, he just expects we can saunter in at will, with no repercussions for Musharraf, who already is in a rather tenuous position?

The Bush administration has supported Musharraf and stressed the need to cooperate with Pakistan, but lately administration officials have suggested the possibility of military strikes to deal with al-Qaida and its leader, Osama bin Laden.

Analysts say an invasion could risk destabilizing Pakistan, breeding more militancy and undermining Musharraf. The Pakistani Foreign Office, protective of its national sovereignty, has warned that U.S. military action would violate international law and be deeply resented.

No kidding.

Still, he's unvelievably stupid to still not recognize the major battleground in the war on Islamofascist terrorists is in Iraq. Naturally, he wants to cut and run from there.

Obama said that as commander in chief he would remove troops from Iraq and putting them "on the right battlefield in Afghanistan and Pakistan." He said he would send at least two more brigades to Afghanistan and increase nonmilitary aid to the country by $1 billion.

UPDATE: More from Sister Toldjah, Michelle Malkin, Texas Rainmaker, JustOneMinute, NRO, Blue Crab Boulevard, Strata-Sphere, Captain's Quarters, Clayton Cramer, Wizbang!, Riehl World View.

Hypocritical Democrats Want More Eavesdropping Powers

Forget about pandering to the kook fringe nutroots base and their masters at the ACLU, it's all about appearances for the Democrats. Since they obviously are pathetically weak on national security and fighting terrorism, they need to pretend to be tough. So there goes another principle out the window.

Democrats Scrambling to Expand Eavesdropping

WASHINGTON, July 31 -- Under pressure from President Bush, Democratic leaders in Congress are scrambling to pass legislation this week to expand the government?s electronic wiretapping powers.

Democratic leaders have expressed a new willingness to work with the White House to amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to make it easier for the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on some purely foreign telephone calls and e-mail. Such a step now requires court approval.

Of course, they're all for domestic eavesdropping when they're in power. Just ask Newt Gingrich and John Boehner about that.

Of course, now that they're scrambling to appear tough, Mr. 19%, Dingy Harry, is seeking comity and bipartisanship.

“We hope our Republican counterparts will work together with us to fix the problem, rather than try again to gain partisan political advantage at the expense of our national security,” Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, said in a statement Monday night.

Naturally, the terrorist supporters at the ACLU won't stand for any of it.

Some civil liberties groups oppose the proposed changes, expressing concern that there might be far-reaching consequences.

“Congress needs to take its time before it implements another piece of antiterrorism legislation it will regret, like the Patriot Act,” said Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. “The Bush administration clearly has abused the FISA powers it already has and clearly wants to go back to the good old days of warrantless wiretapping and domestic spying. Congress must stop this bill in its tracks.”

Sorry, not going to happen.

As a sidenote, the paper of record ought to do a better job proofreading, as they misspell the name of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales three times.

Ambulance Chasers Bankrolling Breck Girl

Despite all the mealy-mouthed palaver about Two Americas and pretending to be a man of the people, when it comes down to raising real money, the Silky Pony knows where his real base lies.

Attorneys still bankroll Edwards effort

RALEIGH, N.C. - In his time off between presidential bids, Democrat John Edwards courted Wall Street financial gurus and Main Street labor leaders.

But when it comes to the money backing his second campaign, the wallets of wealthy attorneys who propelled the former trial lawyer's first run for the White House still open more than most. More than half of the Edwards donors who listed their occupations said they are attorneys, and they have given seven times more than any other profession, according to an Associated Press analysis of campaign finance data.

No doubt another lame pitch is forthcoming from the Pit Yorkie, campaign hack David Bonior, telling us the right-wing smear machine, led by the Associated Press, is out to assassinate the character of His Silkiness.

Underscoring how desperate Edwards is for cash, without support from lawyers, he'd be down with the also-ran Democrat candidates.

In the first six months of the year, Edwards raised $23 million. But without the roughly $7 million collected from donors identified as attorneys, his numbers would fall closer to that of lower-tier candidates, such as New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd. Edwards already trails Clinton and Obama by $35 million to $40 million in total funds raised.

There just aren't enough lawyers available to make up the difference.

Novak Endorses Ron Paul

Maybe he just crushed a few too many cocktails. Or perhaps he missed his afternoon nap.

Then again, he may just be looking for the Ron Paul loons to buy his book.

If he's serious, then it's way past time he eased himself into retirement.

Novak likes the idea of President Paul

When asked to rate the current field of Republican presidential candidates, Novak didn't have any kind words for the current top-tier field of Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney and John McCain. But when pressed as to who he thinks will be the eventual nominee, Novak said he expects Thompson to get the nod.

However, Novak offered his own personal endorsement of Texas congressman Ron Paul. "He's a very engaging person... I'd like to see him as president," Novak said. "Can you imagine him at the United Nations?"

Of course, I can imagine him at the UN. The place is filled with lunatics, why not let one more in?

Memo To Dubya

On the first day of her Middle East tour, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday signed a joint statement with Egypt, Jordan and six Persian Gulf states, endorsing the 2002 Arab peace initiative as one of the foundations for Middle East peace.

Cool. How many dead Jews will be required for the other foundations?

Visiting the region with Rice is Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.

The initiative offers Israel normalized relations with all Arab countries in return for full withdrawal from the territory Israel captured in 1967.

I know some Jewish folks who were going to switch parties and vote Republican in 2008. For some reason, they've just been persuaded that the party of Abe Lincoln and Ronald Reagan exists no more.

James "F**k the Jews" Baker Reinhard Heydrich is laughing his ass off.

Video by Mike Kaminski.

Also at LGF