◼ Russia sharply steps up criticism of U.S. over Syria - Will Englund/Washington Post
Putin said he was sure the attack was the work of rebels trying to provoke international — and especially American — involvement in the Syrian conflict. The regime of Bashar al-Assad, he said, would have had no reason to use chemical weapons at a time when it had gained the upper hand in the fighting.
“While the Syrian army is on the offensive, saying that it is the Syrian government that used chemical weapons is utter nonsense,” Putin said.
On top of that, he said, the Obama administration’s “claims that proof exists, but is classified and cannot be presented to anybody, are below criticism. This is plain disrespect for their partners.”
Saturday, August 31, 2013
George W. Bush Talks Syria on Fox: ‘I Was Not a Fan of Mr. Assad’
◼ “The president’s got a tough choice to make,” Bush said. “And if he decides to use our military, he’ll have the greatest military ever backing him up.” - Mediaite
President George W. Bush appeared on Fox News Channel on Friday where he discussed his recovery from a recent heart surgery and his charitable works for veterans. Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade asked Bush for his thoughts on the debate over whether to intervene in the Syrian civil war. Bush said that President Barack Obama has a hard decision to make, the hardest any president can make. While Bush said that he is not a fan of Bashar al-Assad, he refused to be “roped in” to giving an opinion as to whether a strike on Syria was justified.
OBAMA'S CAMPAIGN APPARATUS OFA’s pro-amnesty rally in Columbus reportedly draws crowd of six
◼ The organizer of this afternoon’s immigration reform rally outside the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus can take consolation in knowing the event dwarfed OFA’s attendee-free climate change rally that wasn’t. - Twitchy
6 attendees at today's Obama for America rally supporting illegal immigration. #OhRight pic.twitter.com/Vxpf8T3FHc
— Jesse Hathaway (@JesseInOH) August 30, 2013
@JesseInOH To be fair, infinitely more than their zero at DC climate rally.
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) August 30, 2013
When well-intentioned, community-spirited citizens make bad decisions, then double down on them.
◼ Brown Act Trampled In NHUHSD’s Damage Control Frenzy - Arcata Eye
When the high school board met July 26 to discuss Trustee Dan Johnson’s plagiarized June 13 commencement speech, Board President Mike Pigg apologized for the delay. He said the board hadn’t been able to meet over the summer.
“We’re restricted by the Brown Act so we can’t even discuss it until we have a meeting,” chimed Trustee Dana Silvernale.
However, according to internal school district documents, the board had already spent lots of time discussing the controversial speech and what to do about it – just not in public.
A Public Records Act request for internal memoranda and public correspondence regarding Johnson’s speech yielded numerous e-mail exchanges between Northern Humboldt Union High School District (NHUHSD) boardmembers and staff.
The messages include discussion of the imbroglio and how to respond, frustration with Johnson over his delayed response and sniping among boardmembers....
When the high school board met July 26 to discuss Trustee Dan Johnson’s plagiarized June 13 commencement speech, Board President Mike Pigg apologized for the delay. He said the board hadn’t been able to meet over the summer.
“We’re restricted by the Brown Act so we can’t even discuss it until we have a meeting,” chimed Trustee Dana Silvernale.
However, according to internal school district documents, the board had already spent lots of time discussing the controversial speech and what to do about it – just not in public.
A Public Records Act request for internal memoranda and public correspondence regarding Johnson’s speech yielded numerous e-mail exchanges between Northern Humboldt Union High School District (NHUHSD) boardmembers and staff.
The messages include discussion of the imbroglio and how to respond, frustration with Johnson over his delayed response and sniping among boardmembers....
New super PAC aims to get more Republican women elected
◼ A new super PAC, run by women to elect female Republican candidates, announced its official registration with the Federal Election Commission Monday. - Caroline May/Daily Caller
Women Lead PAC, founded by prominent Republican donor and Republican National Committee Finance Co-Chair for 2011-2012 Christine Torretti, will seek to bring more women to the Republican Party by offering more resources to Republican women candidates.
...“The best strategy for helping bring more women to the ranks of the Republican Party is to elect them one big race at a time,” Toretti said, noting that until Women Lead PAC there had been a limited number of vehicles to connect female donors with “the races that need them most.”
“Women in politics face the same daily challenges as other women who run small businesses or households, many while raising a family,” she added. “We want women who are willing to step up and run for office to know that someone is there working diligently to level the playing field for them.”
Johnson explained that unlike organizations such as the pro-choice EMILY’s List or the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List there will not be a “litmus test” for candidates....
Emken seeks Bera’s Congressional seat
◼ Republican finished second to Feinstein last fall Bryan M. Gold/Elk Grove Citizen
...“I come from a completely different viewpoint on what the role and function of government should be. I believe in a limited government,” she said. “I believe there is a role for government, but we don’t need the government we have now. We could be a lot more efficient.”
Emken did not mention Bera by name but said “the sitting Congressman” doesn’t share that view.
“There is no incentive there for him to reduce the scope and size of the federal government. That’s not where his caucus is,” she said. “He has shown that he will side with his caucus, and that is his right. I just believe that I offer a better alternative for people in the district in terms of what it takes to grow businesses and the economy and to get us back on track.”...
◼ elizabethemken.com
World Federation of Scientists changes its policy: “Climate change in itself is not a planetary emergency.”
◼ Summary: While climate scientists quietly work, the noisy action has been on the policy frontiers. Activists on both sides play for the crowds, often using the standard sales tools of exaggeration and misrepresentation. - Fabius Maximus
Advocates of action had more supporters among journalists, and were able to do this on a larger scale. Unfortunately Mother Nature responded with the pause, undercutting their forecasts of imminent doom (forecasts beyond anything in the IPCC’s work). Now come the consequences, as people defect from the cause.
Advocates of action had more supporters among journalists, and were able to do this on a larger scale. Unfortunately Mother Nature responded with the pause, undercutting their forecasts of imminent doom (forecasts beyond anything in the IPCC’s work). Now come the consequences, as people defect from the cause.
The World Federation of Scientists, at its annual seminars on planetary emergencies, has been advised by its own climate monitoring panel that global warming is no longer a planetary emergency. The President of the Italian Senate, Judge Pietro Grasso … and the President of the Federation, Professor Antonino Zichichi {emeritus professor of Physics, U of Bologna}, said that care should be taken to examine carefully the basis for concern about CO2 emissions as well as the relevance and cost-effectiveness of proposed mitigation measures....
Friday, August 30, 2013
Show of Farce
◼ Obama no longer commands respect - Jennifer Rubin/Washington Post
DRUDGE HEADLINES:
◼ KERRY'S MOMENT... - Jonathan Allen/Politico
◼ Syria says US evidence 'entirely fabricated'... - France24
◼ UN analysis of samples could take two weeks... - Reuters
◼ WHITE HOUSE PISSED AT LEAKS... - Glenn Thrush/Politico
◼ Experts: Don't bomb chemical weapon sites... - AP
◼ U.S. turns on Britain... - New York Times
◼ Cameron first to lose war vote in Parliament since 1782! - Reuters
◼ 'Embarrassing'... - NYT
◼ FLASHBACK: Assad hosts Pelosi in Damascus... - NBC
◼ Obama 'not made any decisions'... - Reid J. Epstein/Politico
◼ Willing to go it alone... - NYT
◼ PENTAGON CAN'T AFFORD WAR; MUST SEEK ADDITIONAL FUNDS - Washington Free Beacon
◼ SYRIA MOVES MISSILES, TROOPS... - Reuters
LUCIANNE HEADLINES:
◼ Obama´s Blundering Incompetence - Michael Reagan/Townhall
◼ The Audacity of the Haughty - Rush Limbaugh
◼ Frustrated Obama: I won´t be ‘paralyzed’ on Syria - Yahoo News, by Oliver Knox
◼ In Syria, U.S. goal ´not to get mocked´ - Orange County Register (Ca), by Mark Steyn
◼ Show of Farce - Wall Street Journal, by James Taranto
◼ Barack Obama is proving an embarrassing amateur on the world stage compared to George W. Bush - Nile Gardiner/Telegraph
◼ What Is the Point of a Syrian Intervention? - Victor Davis Hanson/National Review
If our attitude is that Obama screwed up, but that now the least-screwed-up remedy is to attack Syria, then we are indeed in bad shape.◼ Obama: Syria ´a challenge to the world´ - Reid J. Epstein/Politico
Of the bad and worse alternatives, the worse is attacking without specifying our aims, means, and desired results. Yet to do so would convince Obama to drop the idea.
If the objective is to weaken Assad without empowering al-Qaeda-like Islamists, then non-intervention serves that goal far better.
If the objective is to destroy WMD depots, and send a global lesson that they are taboo, where are they and how are we to take them out? And what of the irony that Assad is probably no worse a custodian of WMD than is the opposition that we would de facto aiding?
If the point is to save face after the empty rhetorical redlines, then at this late date a few hours of cruise missiles will be interpreted by those who count — Russia, Iran, China, North Korea — as a half-serious and pathetic attempt to restore credibility....
◼ Obama: No final decision on Syria, considering ‘a limited, narrow act’ - Washington Times, by Dave Boyer
◼ ´The British aren´t coming!´: US media mock Cameron´s failure to deliver on promise to back Obama in strikes against Syria - Daily Mail [UK], by Matt Chorley
◼ Nancy Pelosi the hawk tells President Obama to act on Syria - Jonathan Allen & Jake Sherman/Politico
◼ Sen. Rand Paul: Obama interested in ‘saving face’ on Syria - Seth McLaughlin/Washington Times (D.C)
◼ Why a nervous Hillary Clinton is remarkably silent on Syria - Nile Gardiner/Telegraph
◼ U.S. intelligence: Syrian government undertook deadly chemical attack - Ken Dilanian/LA Times
◼ Hollande says France is ‘ready’ to act against Syria; Kerry makes statement on situation - Anthony Faiola/Washington Post
(Headline appears to have changed to: John Kerry makes forceful case for U.S. military intervention in Syria)
◼ 5 Ways Obama’s Unseriousness Has Been Exposed by Syria Strike Chatter - Bryan Preston /PJMedia
1. Failure to consult Congress.◼ 10 Things Everyone Needs To Understand About A Military Strike In Syria - John Schindler/Business Insider
2. Failure to get buy-in from the American people.
3. No draft language for the UN to consider.
4. No military plan, no clear objective.
5. Lack of credible spokes men and women to obtain buy-in from the American people and the press.
MORE:
◼ Obama’s Absurd Pseudo Intelligence on Syria - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
◼ FOR IT AND AGAINST IT - Sultan Knish
◼ LATEST: Obama Discusses Possibilities of "Limited, Narrow" Act in Syria - IJ Review
GREAT! Krauthammer: Vindicating the Vanity and Ego of a President Who's Become a Laughingstock Around the World Is No Reason to Go to War
— Du Crusoe (@DuCrusoe) August 31, 2013
◼ Kerry's Syria Speech: All Emotion, No Mission Plan, and The POTUS is Backing Away (Includes Full Transcript) - Yid With Lid
So much for the element of surprise. Into his third year of dithering, two years after declaring Assad had to go, one year after drawing — then erasing — his own red line on chemical weapons, Barack Obama has been stirred to action.
◼ SHAMED INTO WAR? - Charles Krauthammer/Human Events
◼ Video: Cameron stunned as Parliament rejects call for Syria strike - HotAir
◼ Pelosi Rallies Congress for War - Elizabethe Sheld/Breitbart
◼ Syrian Coalition media director Khalid Saleh: Crime with no consequence, the story of Assad and the international community - Syrian Coalition media director Khalid Saleh/The Hill
◼ WILL BOEHNER STOP OUR ROGUE PRESIDENT? - Patrick J. Buchanan/Human Events
Having leaked to the world, and thus to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a detailed briefing of the coming U.S. air attack on Syria — (1) the source (offshore warships and perhaps a bomber or two), (2) the weapon (cruise missiles), (3) the duration (two or three days), (4) the purpose (punishment, not “regime change”) — perhaps we should be publishing the exact time the bombs will fall, lest we disrupt dinner in Damascus.◼ Britain’s rejection of taking action against the Syrian regime is a “complete humiliation” for President Barack Obama, syndicated columnist and Fox News commentator Charles Krauthammer said Thursday. - Fred Lucas/The Blaze
So much for the element of surprise. Into his third year of dithering, two years after declaring Assad had to go, one year after drawing — then erasing — his own red line on chemical weapons, Barack Obama has been stirred to action.
Or more accurately, shamed into action. Which is the worst possible reason. A president doesn’t commit soldiers to a war for which he has zero enthusiasm. Nor does one go to war for demonstration purposes.
Want to send a message? Call Western Union. A Tomahawk missile is for killing. A serious instrument of war demands a serious purpose.
“It is a complete humiliation for the Obama administration,” Krauthammer said on Fox News. “Forget about the merits of what Obama wants to do which I think it’s a bad idea. But let’s assume it’s a good idea. This involves the elementary conduct of international diplomacy, trying to get some allies aboard so you don’t act unilaterally.◼ Syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer had some harsh words for the White House Thursday. - Noel Sheppard/Newsbusters
“So who’s the main ally in the world who’s been with us in every trench for the last 100 years? The British. And now the British have voted against us,” Krauthammer continued. “The other supposed ally was the French, President Hollande, and now he’s saying we got to wait for the report from the U.N. inspectors which will be early next week.”
He pointed out that Democrats, including Obama, previously ridiculed the Bush administration for supposedly taking unilateral action in Iraq.
“So here is Obama and the Democrats who railed against the Bush administration for its supposedly unilateral invasion of Iraq where we had 48 allies for a mission that involved boots on the ground, a real invasion, a real war. And here’s Obama trying to gather an ally or two for a pinprick and he gets nothing.”
◼ Video: Cameron stunned as Parliament rejects call for Syria strike - HotAir
◼ Pelosi Rallies Congress for War - Elizabethe Sheld/Breitbart
According to Politico sources, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) pushed Obama administration officials "to take military action to punish Syrian President Bashar Assad in response to reports that he used chemical weapons in his nation’s ongoing civil war."◼ Former President Carter warns US action on Syria without UN backing 'illegal' - Julian Pecquet/The Hill
Last night, Obama administration officials (sans Obama) held an unclassified 90 minute conference call after a growing number of Congress members demanded to be consulted regarding military action in Syria. Susan Rice, Chuck Hagel, John Kerry, Director of National Intel James Clapper and Sandy Winnefeld, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke for the administration.
After the call, Pelosi made a statement asserting: "It is clear that the American people are weary of war. However, Assad gassing his own people is an issue of our national security, regional stability and global security," Pelosi said in a statement after the call....
◼ Syrian Coalition media director Khalid Saleh: Crime with no consequence, the story of Assad and the international community - Syrian Coalition media director Khalid Saleh/The Hill
On Aug. 21, one year after President Obama’s infamous “red line” warning, Syrian President Bashar Assad launched rockets containing toxic agents at the opposition-held suburbs of Damascus, causing an unprecedented number of deaths in one day. During the four-hour attack that started at 3 a.m., Assad forces launched 29 rockets bombarding several cities in rural Damascus. Some of the cities were located less than 30 minutes away from the United Nations chemical weapons inspector’s hotel.◼ WHY DID SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN KERRY GIVE THAT SPEECH ABOUT SYRIA and NOT PRESIDENT OBAMA? - Greta
More than 1,300 people reportedly gassed to death.
This is the largest chemical weapons attack since Saddam Hussein gassed the Kurds in 1988. Assad thinks he will get away with this crime of monstrous proportions; he has dabbled in smaller scale chemical weapons deployments and suffered no consequences.
No consequences, even though the president of the most powerful nation in the world warned him not to cross his chemical weapons red line. No consequences, because of a flawed system that allows one nation to veto any U.N. resolution, debilitating the will and conscience of the international community. No consequences, because even though the United Nations inspectors are a mere 30-minute car ride from where Assad gassed civilians, the inspectors require his permission to travel to any site in Syria and are accompanied by handlers at every stop. The latest developments indicate that Russia and China have blocked the U.N. attempt to simply redirect the inspectors to these sites....
Say it with me, Beltway Bubblers: "Man, Clint Eastwood NAILED it with that empty chair routine. Why is Kerry giving this speech?"
— RB (@RBPundit) August 30, 2013
◼ WILL BOEHNER STOP OUR ROGUE PRESIDENT? - Patrick J. Buchanan/Human Events
The next 72 hours will be decisive in the career of the speaker of the House. The alternatives he faces are these:◼ FACEBOOK WAR: ASSAD SON TAUNTS OBAMA! - New York Times
John Boehner can, after “consultation,” give his blessing to Barack Obama’s decision to launch a war on Syria, a nation that has neither attacked nor threatened us.
Or Boehner can instruct Obama that, under our Constitution, in the absence of an attack on the United States, Congress alone has the authority to decide whether the United States goes to war.
White House Considers Awarding Obamacare Subsidies, Intended For The Uninsured, To Labor Unions
◼ A few weeks ago, I discussed the fact that labor unions have been increasingly vocal about their objections to certain provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Obamacare will “shatter not only our hard-earned health benefits, but destroy the foundation of the 40 hour work week that is the backbone of the American middle class,” wrote three labor leaders in July. - Avik Roy/Forbes
Now, according to a report from InsideHealthPolicy, the Obama administration is considering offering insurance subsidies—intended for the uninsured—to labor union members who already have employer-sponsored coverage.
Now, according to a report from InsideHealthPolicy, the Obama administration is considering offering insurance subsidies—intended for the uninsured—to labor union members who already have employer-sponsored coverage.
'Black budget' reveals a U.S. intelligence-gathering giant
◼ The Washington Post has obtained a "top secret" budget document that for the first time details spending by the U.S. intelligence community - Washington Post
The document, provided by former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, shows that U.S. spy agencies have built an intelligence-gathering colossus since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, but remains unable to provide critical information to the president on a range of national security threats.
The document, provided by former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, shows that U.S. spy agencies have built an intelligence-gathering colossus since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, but remains unable to provide critical information to the president on a range of national security threats.
Wow: Obama Denied Gas Masks to Syrian Opposition For a Year
◼ As President Obama gets ready to drop bombs over Syria, the Daily Beast's Josh Rogin just dropped a major bombshell. According to his exclusive report, President Obama repeatedly rejected requests for gas masks from Syrian opposition. This week we saw more than a thousand people killed as a result of a chemical gas attack. - KATIE PAVLICH/TOWNHALL
◼ Exclusive: Obama Refused to Send Gas Masks to Syrian Opposition for Over a Year - Josh Rogin/Daily Beast
...Following the harrowing attack that left more than 1,300 dead and more than 3,000 injured in East Ghouta and other Damascus suburbs, the Obama administration is contemplating a strike on the regime of Bashar al-Assad. But Syrian civilians are still trying to cope with the tragedy and treat the wounded, who include scores of children caught sleeping when the gas was dispersed. The attack zone has a fatal shortage of gas masks, chemical-weapons protection gear, and the nerve agent antidote atropine; civilians and activists have been forced to resort to crafting makeshift masks out of everyday household items.
More chemical-weapons attacks could come, and there is now an urgent demand in rebel-held areas for gas masks and other gear. But there is also anger and frustration among opposition leaders that despite more than a year of requests to the U.S. government, the Obama administration did not send any gas masks or chemical-weapons protection gear to opposition-controlled areas....
◼ Exclusive: Obama Refused to Send Gas Masks to Syrian Opposition for Over a Year - Josh Rogin/Daily Beast
...Following the harrowing attack that left more than 1,300 dead and more than 3,000 injured in East Ghouta and other Damascus suburbs, the Obama administration is contemplating a strike on the regime of Bashar al-Assad. But Syrian civilians are still trying to cope with the tragedy and treat the wounded, who include scores of children caught sleeping when the gas was dispersed. The attack zone has a fatal shortage of gas masks, chemical-weapons protection gear, and the nerve agent antidote atropine; civilians and activists have been forced to resort to crafting makeshift masks out of everyday household items.
More chemical-weapons attacks could come, and there is now an urgent demand in rebel-held areas for gas masks and other gear. But there is also anger and frustration among opposition leaders that despite more than a year of requests to the U.S. government, the Obama administration did not send any gas masks or chemical-weapons protection gear to opposition-controlled areas....
Thursday, August 29, 2013
British Parliament Debates War With Syria, U.S. Congress Vacations
◼ As chatter about the prospect of the United States going maverick in Syria continues, the Nation’s international peers are receiving praise from some U.S. lawmakers for taking a more thoughtful approach to intervening in the Middle Eastern conflict. - Personal Liberty
Representative Scott Rigell (R-Va.) lauded the British Parliament on Thursday, noting that U.S. lawmakers are still on recess— despite the President’s war rhetoric— while the Brit lawmakers have robustly debated a resolution on military intervention in Syria.
The Parliament, he said, is having a debate, while the United States is not. “Given the history our two Nations,’ he continued, “there is a bit of irony here.”
DRUDGE:
◼ UK: NO WAR - AP
British Parliament Votes Against Action in Syria...
U.S. Congress stays away...
Obama Willing to Go Solo...
Deploys fifth warship...
Playing into Moscow's hands...
Israelis hit out over gas mask shortage...
Representative Scott Rigell (R-Va.) lauded the British Parliament on Thursday, noting that U.S. lawmakers are still on recess— despite the President’s war rhetoric— while the Brit lawmakers have robustly debated a resolution on military intervention in Syria.
The Parliament, he said, is having a debate, while the United States is not. “Given the history our two Nations,’ he continued, “there is a bit of irony here.”
DRUDGE:
◼ UK: NO WAR - AP
British Parliament Votes Against Action in Syria...
U.S. Congress stays away...
Obama Willing to Go Solo...
Deploys fifth warship...
Playing into Moscow's hands...
Israelis hit out over gas mask shortage...
Syria again throws spotlight on selective leak policy
◼ Obama is coming under fire from Republicans, editorialists and even civil libertarians for his seemingly selective outrage — and selective investigation — when it comes to the sharing of American secrets. - Jonathan Allen/Politico
President Barack Obama has defended his aggressive pursuit and prosecution of certain leakers by arguing that the release of national security secrets can endanger American forces.
But he and his aides have been silent so far on his own administration’s campaign to detail war plans for a series of strikes on Syria that are expected in the coming days. A National Security Council spokeswoman referred questions about whether Obama would launch an investigation into Syria leaking to the Justice Department....
One former Obama White House official said it’s too easy to reach the conclusion that the Syria plans were part of a coordinated leak by the administration.
“I think way too often reporters assume a leak is on purpose rather than just a leak,” the former official said. “Unless there’s evidence otherwise, it’s my experience that these things are rarely planned.”
Still, there’s been no talk of looking into who leaked. And some observers have little doubt.
“It’s remarkable. I haven’t seen anything like that in the past,” retired Gen. Paul Eaton of the National Security Network said of the Syria leaking, suggesting it may have been designed to see what reaction the plans would draw from various audiences at home and abroad.
“This administration has done a lot of trial balloon work,” he said.
◼ No Regime Change—and Maybe No Strike At All - Lee Smith/Weekly Standard
If Obama is now giving the impression that, in spite of all the press leaks early this week that made him look decisive and virile, he’s having second thoughts, the defiant Assad’s allies and supporters are rallying around the regime and puffing their chests. Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, threatened retaliation against Israel, a boast echoed in pro-Hezbollah corners in Lebanon. On a pro-regime Facebook page, a caricature of a bulked up Syrian soldier tells a trembling Uncle Sam, “Looks like you’ve forgotten what the Syrian Arab Army is.”
◼ Distinguished Admiral: The White House isn't just leaking(information), it's coming out through a hose. - Discussion at Lucianne
◼ In Syria, U.S. credibility is at stake - David Ignatius/Washington Post
Using military power to maintain a nation’s credibility may sound like an antiquated idea, but it’s all too relevant in the real world we inhabit. It has become obvious in recent weeks that President Obama, whose restrained and realistic foreign policy I generally admire, needs to demonstrate that there are consequences for crossing a U.S. “red line.” Otherwise, the coherence of the global system begins to dissolve.
President Barack Obama has defended his aggressive pursuit and prosecution of certain leakers by arguing that the release of national security secrets can endanger American forces.
But he and his aides have been silent so far on his own administration’s campaign to detail war plans for a series of strikes on Syria that are expected in the coming days. A National Security Council spokeswoman referred questions about whether Obama would launch an investigation into Syria leaking to the Justice Department....
One former Obama White House official said it’s too easy to reach the conclusion that the Syria plans were part of a coordinated leak by the administration.
“I think way too often reporters assume a leak is on purpose rather than just a leak,” the former official said. “Unless there’s evidence otherwise, it’s my experience that these things are rarely planned.”
Still, there’s been no talk of looking into who leaked. And some observers have little doubt.
“It’s remarkable. I haven’t seen anything like that in the past,” retired Gen. Paul Eaton of the National Security Network said of the Syria leaking, suggesting it may have been designed to see what reaction the plans would draw from various audiences at home and abroad.
“This administration has done a lot of trial balloon work,” he said.
◼ No Regime Change—and Maybe No Strike At All - Lee Smith/Weekly Standard
If Obama is now giving the impression that, in spite of all the press leaks early this week that made him look decisive and virile, he’s having second thoughts, the defiant Assad’s allies and supporters are rallying around the regime and puffing their chests. Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, threatened retaliation against Israel, a boast echoed in pro-Hezbollah corners in Lebanon. On a pro-regime Facebook page, a caricature of a bulked up Syrian soldier tells a trembling Uncle Sam, “Looks like you’ve forgotten what the Syrian Arab Army is.”
◼ Distinguished Admiral: The White House isn't just leaking(information), it's coming out through a hose. - Discussion at Lucianne
◼ In Syria, U.S. credibility is at stake - David Ignatius/Washington Post
Using military power to maintain a nation’s credibility may sound like an antiquated idea, but it’s all too relevant in the real world we inhabit. It has become obvious in recent weeks that President Obama, whose restrained and realistic foreign policy I generally admire, needs to demonstrate that there are consequences for crossing a U.S. “red line.” Otherwise, the coherence of the global system begins to dissolve.
Dan Rather and Jared Huffman Tour Pot Grows in a Helicopter
Rep. Huffman (left), news legend Dan Rather and Humboldt County Sheriff Mike Downey chat on the tarmac.
◼ Pick up this week's Journal for the full story, and enjoy these pics in the meantime. - Ryan Burns/The Journal
Here's how we got to the brink of war with Syria
◼ Timeline: Obama’s two-year attempt to avoid military action in Syria - Susan Crabtree/Washington Examiner
Since the Syrian uprising began in spring 2011, President Obama has been reluctant to get involved in the violent clashes between the government led by Bashar Assad and the rebel opposition.
Despite this caution, Obama shocked his own national security team by warning Assad in August 2012 that the use of chemical weapons would cross a “red line” and change his calculus toward Syria.
In the months following, even in the face of small-scale chemical weapons attacks, Obama dragged his feet in ordering a major U.S. response by saying that the intelligence community needed more evidence that chemicals were deployed or by putting off military action by agreeing to provide more support to the rebels.
But reports of a large-scale chemical attack by Assad’s forces in eastern Damascus last week left Obama little choice but to launch a military strike or face credibility concerns at home and abroad.
Here’s a timeline of how we got here... at the link.
◼ Originalism and the Constitutionality of Military Intervention in Syria - The Volokh Conspiracy
◼ The Syria decision: President Obamlet - Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion
On Syria, it seems Obama’s made up his mind about what to do but then again perhaps he’s not made up his mind at all.
Maybe it’s all a clever strategic head-fake on Obama’s part. I doubt it, however; his slowness to come to a decision in military matters has become legendary.
The whole thing is also an opportunity to visit Hamlet’s famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy on procrastination and the perils of decision-making and gear it to Obama’s predicament. Surprisingly little needed to be changed to make it fit...
◼ Actual quote in LA Times story: Obama seeking Syria response ‘just muscular enough not to get mocked’ - Doug Powers/Michelle Malkin
Being a Nobel Peace Prize winner trying to show you mean business is a tricky thing, because dancing that fine line between Rambo and Gandhi can be politically dicey. This quote in an L.A. Times story, while coming from the oft-quoted and occasionally unreliable “anonymous official,” does make sense because it best sums up the pickle Obama has put himself in over Syria...
Since the Syrian uprising began in spring 2011, President Obama has been reluctant to get involved in the violent clashes between the government led by Bashar Assad and the rebel opposition.
Despite this caution, Obama shocked his own national security team by warning Assad in August 2012 that the use of chemical weapons would cross a “red line” and change his calculus toward Syria.
In the months following, even in the face of small-scale chemical weapons attacks, Obama dragged his feet in ordering a major U.S. response by saying that the intelligence community needed more evidence that chemicals were deployed or by putting off military action by agreeing to provide more support to the rebels.
But reports of a large-scale chemical attack by Assad’s forces in eastern Damascus last week left Obama little choice but to launch a military strike or face credibility concerns at home and abroad.
Here’s a timeline of how we got here... at the link.
◼ Originalism and the Constitutionality of Military Intervention in Syria - The Volokh Conspiracy
◼ The Syria decision: President Obamlet - Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion
On Syria, it seems Obama’s made up his mind about what to do but then again perhaps he’s not made up his mind at all.
Maybe it’s all a clever strategic head-fake on Obama’s part. I doubt it, however; his slowness to come to a decision in military matters has become legendary.
The whole thing is also an opportunity to visit Hamlet’s famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy on procrastination and the perils of decision-making and gear it to Obama’s predicament. Surprisingly little needed to be changed to make it fit...
◼ Actual quote in LA Times story: Obama seeking Syria response ‘just muscular enough not to get mocked’ - Doug Powers/Michelle Malkin
Being a Nobel Peace Prize winner trying to show you mean business is a tricky thing, because dancing that fine line between Rambo and Gandhi can be politically dicey. This quote in an L.A. Times story, while coming from the oft-quoted and occasionally unreliable “anonymous official,” does make sense because it best sums up the pickle Obama has put himself in over Syria...
Only Black Senator Not Invited to MLK Event Because He's Republican?
◼ Sen. Tim Scott wasn’t invited to event commemorating MLK march on Washington - Joel Gehrke/Washington Examiner @joelmentum
Sen. Tim Scott, R.-S.C., the only African American serving in the United States Senate, wasn’t invited to the event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s march on Washington, though a host of Democratic luminaries spoke on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
The event organizers didn't completely exclude Republicans from the event — former President George W. Bush, for instance, received an invitation, but he couldn't attend as he is recovering from surgery — but the slate of speakers was filled with names such as former President Clinton, Gov. Martin O'Malley, D-Md., Oprah Winfrey, Jamie Foxx and others.
President Obama was the keynote speaker of the event, of course, which is held in honor of the achievements of Dr. King and other civil rights leaders. Wouldn't it have made sense to have the first black president joined by the first black senator from South Carolina, which was a Jim Crow state when the original march on Washington took place?
◼ O’Reilly on MLK Anniversary Speeches: ‘Uplifting’ but ‘Grievance-Mongering’ Won’t Advance Civil Rights - Mediaite
◼ Clean living, pure thought, and high aspirations - John Hayward/RedState @Doc_o
It has been sad, but predictable, to watch a parade of leftist hacks draft the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. into service this week, to promote some bit of Democrat Party dogma or other. Impeached former President Bill Clinton took the cake by uncorking a bizarre finger-wagging rant that was presumably intended to slam voter-ID laws by comparing them to the process of purchasing an assault weapon. Since Clinton is a lazy ideologue who assumes his audience is filled with idiots, he didn’t put a lot of thought behind his words, and ended up saying something that could be interpreted as a call for photo ID, background checks, and a waiting period before allowing voter registration....
Black conservatives were distinctly unwelcome at the MLK celebration today... That’s too bad, because I’ve seen no better discussion of what Dr. King might be saying today than the one offered by Dr. Ben Carson. #MLK #MarchOnWashington
Sen. Tim Scott, R.-S.C., the only African American serving in the United States Senate, wasn’t invited to the event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s march on Washington, though a host of Democratic luminaries spoke on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
The event organizers didn't completely exclude Republicans from the event — former President George W. Bush, for instance, received an invitation, but he couldn't attend as he is recovering from surgery — but the slate of speakers was filled with names such as former President Clinton, Gov. Martin O'Malley, D-Md., Oprah Winfrey, Jamie Foxx and others.
President Obama was the keynote speaker of the event, of course, which is held in honor of the achievements of Dr. King and other civil rights leaders. Wouldn't it have made sense to have the first black president joined by the first black senator from South Carolina, which was a Jim Crow state when the original march on Washington took place?
◼ O’Reilly on MLK Anniversary Speeches: ‘Uplifting’ but ‘Grievance-Mongering’ Won’t Advance Civil Rights - Mediaite
◼ Clean living, pure thought, and high aspirations - John Hayward/RedState @Doc_o
It has been sad, but predictable, to watch a parade of leftist hacks draft the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. into service this week, to promote some bit of Democrat Party dogma or other. Impeached former President Bill Clinton took the cake by uncorking a bizarre finger-wagging rant that was presumably intended to slam voter-ID laws by comparing them to the process of purchasing an assault weapon. Since Clinton is a lazy ideologue who assumes his audience is filled with idiots, he didn’t put a lot of thought behind his words, and ended up saying something that could be interpreted as a call for photo ID, background checks, and a waiting period before allowing voter registration....
Black conservatives were distinctly unwelcome at the MLK celebration today... That’s too bad, because I’ve seen no better discussion of what Dr. King might be saying today than the one offered by Dr. Ben Carson. #MLK #MarchOnWashington
A U.S. official briefed on the military options being considered by President Obama told the Los Angeles Times that the White House is seeking a strike on Syria “just muscular enough not to get mocked.”
◼ "They are looking at what is just enough to mean something, just enough to be more than symbolic," the official told the paper, giving credence to similar reports describing a limited military strike in the aftermath of last week's alleged chemical weapons attack. - The Hill
◼ In other words, the Administration would like a mini-series that perhaps can serve as a pilot for a later series run should the public reception prove favorable, and should the right cast and producers show an interest in pursuing the thing. In the meantime, though, it’s just a pleasant distraction, a bit of escapism. But that doesn’t mean it won’t find its long-run audience down the road a bit with the right marketing campaign. - Protein Wisdom
◼ In other words, the Administration would like a mini-series that perhaps can serve as a pilot for a later series run should the public reception prove favorable, and should the right cast and producers show an interest in pursuing the thing. In the meantime, though, it’s just a pleasant distraction, a bit of escapism. But that doesn’t mean it won’t find its long-run audience down the road a bit with the right marketing campaign. - Protein Wisdom
Climate Science Exploited for Political Agenda, According to Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons
◼ Climatism or global warming alarmism is the most prominent recent example of science being coopted to serve a political agenda, writes Richard Lindzen of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the in the fall 2013 issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons. He compares it to past examples: Lysenkoism in the Soviet Union, and the eugenics movement. - Watts Up With That?
Lindzen describes the Iron Triangle and the Iron Rice Bowl, in which ambiguous statements by scientists are translated into alarmist statements by media and advocacy groups, influencing politicians to feed more money to the acquiescent scientists.
In consequence, he writes, “A profound dumbing down of the discussion…interacts with the ascendancy of incompetents.” Prizes and accolades are awarded for politically correct statements, even if they defy logic. “Unfortunately, this also often induces better scientists to join the pack in order to preserve their status,” Lindzen adds.
Lindzen describes the Iron Triangle and the Iron Rice Bowl, in which ambiguous statements by scientists are translated into alarmist statements by media and advocacy groups, influencing politicians to feed more money to the acquiescent scientists.
In consequence, he writes, “A profound dumbing down of the discussion…interacts with the ascendancy of incompetents.” Prizes and accolades are awarded for politically correct statements, even if they defy logic. “Unfortunately, this also often induces better scientists to join the pack in order to preserve their status,” Lindzen adds.
OBAMA EYES 'SHOT ACROSS THE BOW' IN SYRIA...
DRUDGE:
OBAMA EYES 'SHOT ACROSS THE BOW' IN SYRIA...
Dem. Rep: 'Constitution Requires Congressional Authorization on Use of Force in Syria'...
AP: INTELLIGENCE ON CHEMICAL WEAPONS USE NO 'SLAM DUNK'...
NYT: 'No smoking gun' that links Assad to attacks...
UK Cameron: No 100% certainty Syria used CW -- 'This is a judgment'...
... Backs down on urgent strikes amid Parliament revolt
France changes tone, seeks 'political solution'...
Israelis rush for gas masks, brace for retaliation...
Allies face fight over timetable...
◼ The worst, least-bad scenarios.. - CNBC
Pope condemns strikes...
Russia sends warships...
◼ UK DEBATE LIVE...
OBAMA EYES 'SHOT ACROSS THE BOW' IN SYRIA...
Dem. Rep: 'Constitution Requires Congressional Authorization on Use of Force in Syria'...
AP: INTELLIGENCE ON CHEMICAL WEAPONS USE NO 'SLAM DUNK'...
NYT: 'No smoking gun' that links Assad to attacks...
UK Cameron: No 100% certainty Syria used CW -- 'This is a judgment'...
... Backs down on urgent strikes amid Parliament revolt
France changes tone, seeks 'political solution'...
Israelis rush for gas masks, brace for retaliation...
Allies face fight over timetable...
◼ The worst, least-bad scenarios.. - CNBC
Pope condemns strikes...
Russia sends warships...
◼ UK DEBATE LIVE...
Kim Jong-un's ex-lover 'executed by firing squad'
◼ Kim Jong-un's ex-girlfriend was among a dozen well-known North Korean performers who were executed by firing squad nine days ago, according to South Korean reports. - Telegraph
All 12 were machine-gunned three days later, with other members of North Korea's most famous pop groups and their immediate families forced to watch. The onlookers were then sent to prison camps, victims of the regime's assumption of guilt by association, the reports stated.
“They were executed with machine guns while the key members of the Unhasu Orchestra, Wangjaesan Light Band and Moranbong Band as well as the families of the victims looked on,” said a Chinese source reported in the newspaper.
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
10 fascinating facts about the “I Have A Dream” speech
"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."
◼ The speech was delivered to an estimated 250,000 people who came to Washington, D.C., to march for civil rights. And they weren’t disappointed by the iconic event. 10 fascinating facts... - Yahoo
◼ Why You Won't See Or Hear Much of Speech Today... - Josh Schiller/Washington Post
◼ MLK would be alarmed by black-on-black violence, lack of family values - Dr. Ben Carson/Washington Times
◼ MLK III BEMOANS 'STAGGERING' JOBLESSNESS AMONG BLACKS... - AP via Drudge
◼ At RNC event, speaker says African Americans have taken a back seat to gays, immigrants - Washington Post
“Everybody has come in front of them on the bus — gays, immigrants, women, environmentalists,” Woodson said. “You never hear any talk about the conditions confronting poor blacks and poor people in general.”
◼ 22 Racially Divisive Comments by Democrats & Left-Wingers This Year - IJ Review
◼ REMINDER: The Republican Party was born in the early 1850's by anti-slavery activists
It all started with people who opposed slavery. They were common, everyday people who bristled at the notion that men had any right to oppress their fellow man. In the early 1850’s, these anti-slavery activists found commonality with rugged individuals looking to settle in western lands, free of government charges. “Free soil, free labor, free speech, free men,” went the slogan. And it was thus in joint opposition to human enslavement and government tyranny that an enterprising people gave birth to the Republican Party....
The Republican Party also played a leading role in securing women the right to vote. In 1896, the Republican Party was the first major political party to support women's suffrage. When the 19th Amendment finally was added to the Constitution, 26 of 36 state legislatures that had voted to ratify it were under Republican control. The first woman elected to Congress was a Republican, Jeanette Rankin from Montana in 1917. So it was by hardworking Republican hands that color and gender barriers were first demolished in America...
◼ The speech was delivered to an estimated 250,000 people who came to Washington, D.C., to march for civil rights. And they weren’t disappointed by the iconic event. 10 fascinating facts... - Yahoo
◼ Why You Won't See Or Hear Much of Speech Today... - Josh Schiller/Washington Post
◼ MLK would be alarmed by black-on-black violence, lack of family values - Dr. Ben Carson/Washington Times
◼ MLK III BEMOANS 'STAGGERING' JOBLESSNESS AMONG BLACKS... - AP via Drudge
◼ At RNC event, speaker says African Americans have taken a back seat to gays, immigrants - Washington Post
“Everybody has come in front of them on the bus — gays, immigrants, women, environmentalists,” Woodson said. “You never hear any talk about the conditions confronting poor blacks and poor people in general.”
◼ 22 Racially Divisive Comments by Democrats & Left-Wingers This Year - IJ Review
◼ REMINDER: The Republican Party was born in the early 1850's by anti-slavery activists
It all started with people who opposed slavery. They were common, everyday people who bristled at the notion that men had any right to oppress their fellow man. In the early 1850’s, these anti-slavery activists found commonality with rugged individuals looking to settle in western lands, free of government charges. “Free soil, free labor, free speech, free men,” went the slogan. And it was thus in joint opposition to human enslavement and government tyranny that an enterprising people gave birth to the Republican Party....
The Republican Party also played a leading role in securing women the right to vote. In 1896, the Republican Party was the first major political party to support women's suffrage. When the 19th Amendment finally was added to the Constitution, 26 of 36 state legislatures that had voted to ratify it were under Republican control. The first woman elected to Congress was a Republican, Jeanette Rankin from Montana in 1917. So it was by hardworking Republican hands that color and gender barriers were first demolished in America...
IS CALIFORNIA THE NEXT DETROIT?
◼ “When did Californians become Stupid?” - Human Events and CalWatchdog
Californians, due to their golden history, live in unique oblivion. When the Tea Party movement caused a political tsunami that swept more than 60 incumbents from political office in 2010, the wave petered out at California’s state line. There was no effect on the 2010 election that saw Democrats take every elected office in the state.
California voters rejected Meg Whitman, the billionaire founder of Ebay, in favor of Jerry Brown. Gov. Brown signed into law a “high-speed rail” bill that will spend $6 billion (the state does not have) to build a train between Fresno and Bakersfield — not Los Angeles and San Francisco, as promised. There was little outcry.
California has a $16 billion deficit that no one seems to notice. Brown’s budget “assumes” that California voters will pass massive tax increases on themselves. If they do not, the 2013 deficit becomes a mind-numbing $20 billion. The budget, mandated to balance by the Calfornia Constitution, has been billions in the red for 10 straight years. How could Californians re-elect the same politicians year after year that produce budgets with multi-billion dollar deficits?
...Brown’s budget will first slash money to schools and raise tuition on its students, while leaving all 519 state agencies intact. He apparently will protect political patronage at all costs. Jobs, and job creators, are fleeing the state. Intel, Apple, Google and others are expanding out of the state. The best and brightest minds are leaving for Texas and North Carolina. The signs are everywhere. State revenues are declining during many years. Meanwhile, the voters sleep and blindly send the same cast of misfits back to Sacramento each year — just as Detroit did before them.
The beaches are still beautiful. The mountains are still snow capped and the climate is still the envy of the world. Detroit never had that. But will California’s physical attributes be enough? If the people of California want to glimpse their future, they need look no farther than once proud City of Detroit. It can happen here.
Californians, due to their golden history, live in unique oblivion. When the Tea Party movement caused a political tsunami that swept more than 60 incumbents from political office in 2010, the wave petered out at California’s state line. There was no effect on the 2010 election that saw Democrats take every elected office in the state.
California voters rejected Meg Whitman, the billionaire founder of Ebay, in favor of Jerry Brown. Gov. Brown signed into law a “high-speed rail” bill that will spend $6 billion (the state does not have) to build a train between Fresno and Bakersfield — not Los Angeles and San Francisco, as promised. There was little outcry.
California has a $16 billion deficit that no one seems to notice. Brown’s budget “assumes” that California voters will pass massive tax increases on themselves. If they do not, the 2013 deficit becomes a mind-numbing $20 billion. The budget, mandated to balance by the Calfornia Constitution, has been billions in the red for 10 straight years. How could Californians re-elect the same politicians year after year that produce budgets with multi-billion dollar deficits?
...Brown’s budget will first slash money to schools and raise tuition on its students, while leaving all 519 state agencies intact. He apparently will protect political patronage at all costs. Jobs, and job creators, are fleeing the state. Intel, Apple, Google and others are expanding out of the state. The best and brightest minds are leaving for Texas and North Carolina. The signs are everywhere. State revenues are declining during many years. Meanwhile, the voters sleep and blindly send the same cast of misfits back to Sacramento each year — just as Detroit did before them.
The beaches are still beautiful. The mountains are still snow capped and the climate is still the envy of the world. Detroit never had that. But will California’s physical attributes be enough? If the people of California want to glimpse their future, they need look no farther than once proud City of Detroit. It can happen here.
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TARGETS PRIVATE SCHOOLS
◼ The Obama administration’s Louisiana lawsuit is part of a habit of seeking to control states and private institutions. - Joy Pullmann/Human Events
It is increasingly clear that, voucher regulations or no voucher regulations, private schools offer no safe place to tuck children as long as the federal government persists in overstepping the bounds of law and rationality to impose autocrats’ wills on everyone.
It is increasingly clear that, voucher regulations or no voucher regulations, private schools offer no safe place to tuck children as long as the federal government persists in overstepping the bounds of law and rationality to impose autocrats’ wills on everyone.
Suddenly liberals are comfortable with monarchical war-making powers.
◼ Obama Embraces the Imperial Presidency - John Fund/National Review
Report: Anthony Weiner Paying Phony Supporters $15 Per Hour
◼ Anthony Weiner is allegedly paying a firm to provide him with “supporters” at some events, a source has told The New York Post.The New York mayoral candidate used the California firm Crowds on Demand to deliver paid actors to some events, the Post’s report Wednesday claims. - Politico
The actors were asked by the campaign to seem “like either supporters or people who met him and became supporters as a result of that encounter,” the source told the Post. “The people would initially be skeptical and then they ask him various questions but would appear then to be convinced by his spiel.”
The actors were asked by the campaign to seem “like either supporters or people who met him and became supporters as a result of that encounter,” the source told the Post. “The people would initially be skeptical and then they ask him various questions but would appear then to be convinced by his spiel.”
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Glenn’s dad-to-dad message to Billy Ray Cyrus
This happened at the #VMAs. We're not sure what to say about it, but figured you should know http://t.co/spkpCMHYI7 pic.twitter.com/hUSmvLJ8Ho
— USA TODAY Life (@usatodaylife) August 26, 2013
◼ Last night, Bill Ray Cyrus tweeted “Thanking God for so many blessings tonight. Continue to pray for world peace. More love …less hate.”. A follow up tweet suggested he was talking about Syria, but Glenn said he needed to focus on helping his daughter more than anything else. - Glenn Beck
...“Can we talk dad to dad here? Your daughter is screaming for help. Your daughter is screaming for help. Just like Angelina Jolie was screaming when she had a little vial of blood around her neck, screaming for help. And her best friend is not what she needs.”
“She needs her dad. And I don’t know you as a dad and I’m certainly not one to judge, but based on what you told me in the interview that’s we posted, this is in 2006 or 2007 – You knew you weren’t a dad back then. You wanted to be her best friend and I warned you, this is exactly what would happen.”
“Stop being her friend. Start being her dad. It may be too late. But this is a cry for help. And we certainly don’t hate you or your daughter by any stretch. This is a cry of help from Viacom. Please watch me. Please notice us. And it is a cry of help from Miley Cyrus, and it is a sad commentary on today’s America.”...
It could always be worse, Billy Ray: http://t.co/CZX7kSOExU
— GregGutfeld (@greggutfeld) August 26, 2013
◼ Does the ‘power of twerking compel her’? Greg Gutfeld slams Miley, consoles Billy Ray Cyrus as only he can [pics] - Twitchy
◼ ‘What the hell am I watching?’ Twerking Miley Cyrus, giant teddy bears, Robin Thicke and more
◼ ‘Sweet Jesus!’ Did Miley Cyrus spark a new definition for ‘twerking’? Is there a cure?
◼ After his daughter twerks at VMAs, Billy Ray Cyrus thanks God, prays for world peace
◼ #Ew: Yes, Robin Thicke is old enough to be twerking buddy Miley Cyrus’s dad
◼ From Sweet to Sordid: The corrupting of a DISNEY starlet... - Daily Mail
◼ Miley, Go Back to School - Cyrus’ derivative stunt reveals an artistically bankrupt music culture - Camille Paglia/TIME
◼ Does Anyone Really Still Want Their MTV? - TIME
Islam’s Now vs. Then War
◼ Lesley Hazleton’s most readable biography of Muhammad, “The First Muslim.” - Peter Hannaford/American Spectator
That world, they think, was a perfect one in which all lived according to the Koran and the hadith, the writings and sayings attributed to Muhammad. If you have not yet explored the beginnings of Islam and its founder a good book to begin (but not end) with is Lesley Hazleton’s The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad. A British historian, Ms. Hazleton is both a good storyteller and writer. Here she has brought to life a man about whom much has been written and whom millions revere, yet about whose actual life very little is known.
Relying heavily on the first biography of Muhammad, by Ibn Ishaq in 787 — 154 years after Muhammad’s death, Ms. Hazleton gives us a man with real feelings and life, based upon the accepted information about him that was passed down by oral tradition.
He was born c. 570 and died c. 632. His father died before his birth; his mother about five year later. In the interim, he was cared for by his Bedouin wet nurse and her family. Called back from the desert to Mecca by his mother, he went under the protection of his uncle Abu Talib after his mother’s death. As a young man, he became a caravan organizer and was good at it. He married Khadija, a wealthy widow older than he and thereby gained social stature. He was a member of a tribe of Mecca’s ruling clan, the Qurayshi, but many in it considered him to be of lower status.
Muhammad took to going up Mount Hira, outside the city, for night time contemplation. One night, when he was about 40, he was visited by the angel Gabriel who announced that Muhammad had been chosen to receive and spread the true word of God. At the time, Meccans worshipped pagan idols, all represented by statues around the Kaaba, then — as now — the center of life in Mecca.
According to Ms. Hazleton, it took time for Muhammad to absorb the profundity of the revelation. It emphasized, above all, the importance of worshipping the one, true god.
He began to preach to small groups in Mecca, mostly young people. He emphasized that “God is One” and that the individual must surrender to him. Some elders were alarmed by this and even instituted a boycott against Muhammad’s tribe. It didn’t last for long, but ultimately he felt sufficiently unwelcome in Mecca that he led his followers to Medina in 622. Once there, he spread the word further until he had united the nearby tribes. They fought intermittently with the Meccans, finally winning and taking control of the city in 630. He destroyed the pagan idols there and his followers did the same throughout Arabia.
By the time he died, c. 632, most of the Arabian Peninsula had converted to Muhammad’s new religion, Islam, and for the first time was united.
The revelations received by Muhammad over several years were remembered by his followers. repeated many times and later copied down by them to became the Quran, the basic document of Islam.
As the author points out, with Muhammad the Arabs finally had their own prophet. The Christians had Jesus, the far off Indians their various gods, and the Buddhists, Buddha. With their new-found unity, the Arabian Muslims who followed Muhammad formed armies to go forward to conquer the lands along the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean, and, later, most of the Iberian Peninsula. Islam was thus, not only a “religion of peace,” but when it was desirable, also a religion of conquest.
Ms. Hazleton has given us a very readable book, although the feelings and personal responses she attributes to Muhammad are conjectural. What cannot be denied is that his persistence led to the formation of a huge worldwide religion which today is undergoing great stresses between those who want peace and to be left alone and those who want violent struggle in order to remake the world back into a replica of what they believe were the perfect days of Muhammad. The struggle for the soul of Islam is the main event; the jihad against the West in general and the United States in particular is because we stand in the way.
__________________
Peter Hannaford was closely associated with the late President Reagan for a number of years. He is a member of the board of the Committee on the Present Danger. His latest book is ◼ "PRESIDENTIAL RETREATS"
Available locally at Eureka Books
The First Muslim: The Story of MuhammadEgypt’s violence should be seen as the latest chapter in a titanic struggle between Muslims who want to live in the 21st century and a much smaller group who want to return to what they believe was the ideal world of the 7th Century, the world of the Prophet Muhammad.
By Lesley Hazleton
(Riverhead Books, 320 pages, $27.95)
That world, they think, was a perfect one in which all lived according to the Koran and the hadith, the writings and sayings attributed to Muhammad. If you have not yet explored the beginnings of Islam and its founder a good book to begin (but not end) with is Lesley Hazleton’s The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad. A British historian, Ms. Hazleton is both a good storyteller and writer. Here she has brought to life a man about whom much has been written and whom millions revere, yet about whose actual life very little is known.
Relying heavily on the first biography of Muhammad, by Ibn Ishaq in 787 — 154 years after Muhammad’s death, Ms. Hazleton gives us a man with real feelings and life, based upon the accepted information about him that was passed down by oral tradition.
He was born c. 570 and died c. 632. His father died before his birth; his mother about five year later. In the interim, he was cared for by his Bedouin wet nurse and her family. Called back from the desert to Mecca by his mother, he went under the protection of his uncle Abu Talib after his mother’s death. As a young man, he became a caravan organizer and was good at it. He married Khadija, a wealthy widow older than he and thereby gained social stature. He was a member of a tribe of Mecca’s ruling clan, the Qurayshi, but many in it considered him to be of lower status.
Muhammad took to going up Mount Hira, outside the city, for night time contemplation. One night, when he was about 40, he was visited by the angel Gabriel who announced that Muhammad had been chosen to receive and spread the true word of God. At the time, Meccans worshipped pagan idols, all represented by statues around the Kaaba, then — as now — the center of life in Mecca.
According to Ms. Hazleton, it took time for Muhammad to absorb the profundity of the revelation. It emphasized, above all, the importance of worshipping the one, true god.
He began to preach to small groups in Mecca, mostly young people. He emphasized that “God is One” and that the individual must surrender to him. Some elders were alarmed by this and even instituted a boycott against Muhammad’s tribe. It didn’t last for long, but ultimately he felt sufficiently unwelcome in Mecca that he led his followers to Medina in 622. Once there, he spread the word further until he had united the nearby tribes. They fought intermittently with the Meccans, finally winning and taking control of the city in 630. He destroyed the pagan idols there and his followers did the same throughout Arabia.
By the time he died, c. 632, most of the Arabian Peninsula had converted to Muhammad’s new religion, Islam, and for the first time was united.
The revelations received by Muhammad over several years were remembered by his followers. repeated many times and later copied down by them to became the Quran, the basic document of Islam.
As the author points out, with Muhammad the Arabs finally had their own prophet. The Christians had Jesus, the far off Indians their various gods, and the Buddhists, Buddha. With their new-found unity, the Arabian Muslims who followed Muhammad formed armies to go forward to conquer the lands along the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean, and, later, most of the Iberian Peninsula. Islam was thus, not only a “religion of peace,” but when it was desirable, also a religion of conquest.
Ms. Hazleton has given us a very readable book, although the feelings and personal responses she attributes to Muhammad are conjectural. What cannot be denied is that his persistence led to the formation of a huge worldwide religion which today is undergoing great stresses between those who want peace and to be left alone and those who want violent struggle in order to remake the world back into a replica of what they believe were the perfect days of Muhammad. The struggle for the soul of Islam is the main event; the jihad against the West in general and the United States in particular is because we stand in the way.
Peter Hannaford was closely associated with the late President Reagan for a number of years. He is a member of the board of the Committee on the Present Danger. His latest book is ◼ "PRESIDENTIAL RETREATS"
Available locally at Eureka Books
Obama administration sources: President has no constitutional authority to unilaterally attack another country
◼ There’s obviously a lot of discussion this week in regards to whether the administration led by a recent Nobel Peace Prize winner has constitutional authority to attack Syria without congressional approval. Some say an attack could be launched today or within days. - Doug Powers/Michelle Malkin & WeaselZippers
Certain administration sources say the president can’t legally attack another country without congressional approval unless an attack on the U.S. is imminent — and those administration sources are none other than President Obama and VP Joe Biden.
In 2007, Barack Obama made it clear that a president must have congressional approval to attack another country:
According to Joe Biden, also in 2007, not only is a U.S. president constitutionally forbidden from attacking another country that doesn’t present an imminent threat to America, but he said it is an impeachable offense:
Certain administration sources say the president can’t legally attack another country without congressional approval unless an attack on the U.S. is imminent — and those administration sources are none other than President Obama and VP Joe Biden.
In 2007, Barack Obama made it clear that a president must have congressional approval to attack another country:
According to Joe Biden, also in 2007, not only is a U.S. president constitutionally forbidden from attacking another country that doesn’t present an imminent threat to America, but he said it is an impeachable offense:
RUSSIA, CHINA WARN AGAINST SYRIA STRIKE
And you have to wonder – where are the anti-war protesters?
◼ As tensions rise over Syria’s alleged use of chemical weapons and it becomes obvious the US and some of its allies intend to act militarily, Russia and China are issuing warnings against any sort of military strike - HotAir
Of course it is interesting that our Nobel Peace Prize winning president would, if he can manage it, bypass both Congress and the UN’s Security Council. It seems eons ago that Mr. Obama was bashing then President Bush for supposedly ignoring the UN. In September of 2009, he announced:
Funny how the worm turns sometimes, isn’t it? Interesting how a side that was lambasting a former president over supposed violations of international law are now silent as they watch as precisely what they previously condemned becomes reality.
And you have to wonder – where are the anti-war protesters?
◼ Russia and China have stepped up their warnings against military intervention in Syria, with Moscow saying any such action would have "catastrophic consequences" for the region. - BBC
On Monday, Mr Cameron spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin who said there was no evidence yet that Syria had used chemical weapons against rebels, Mr Cameron's office said.
The official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, said Western powers were rushing to conclusions about who may have used chemical weapons in Syria before UN inspectors had completed their investigation.
Both the Syrian government and rebels have blamed each other for last Wednesday's attacks.
Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said three hospitals it supported in the Damascus area had treated about 3,600 patients with "neurotoxic symptoms", of whom 355 had died.
US officials said there was "little doubt" that President Bashar al-Assad's government was to blame.
◼ America’s Military Delusions - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
...Flummoxed over the rise of Iran in the Middle East, which was made possible by US policy in Iraq and our “success” in getting rid of Saddam Hussein, the Obama Administration is pursuing a proxy war against Tehran by going after their ally–Syria. However, in pursuing this policy the Obama Administration is siding with the Sunni extremists. This is the foreign policy of an Alzheimer’s patient. No memory of the past. No understanding of context. Only the burning desire to quench an immediate thirst for action of some sort. But what is the end game? Not a damn clue....
DRUDGE:
WASHPOST: Obama mulls 2-day attack using cruise missiles or long-range bombers...
REUTERS: Western powers tell rebels expect strike 'within days'...
US warplanes begin arriving in Cyprus...
UK armed forces 'making contingency plans' for military action...
CAMERON RECALLS PARLIAMENT...
JITTERS: Dow plunges...
Of course it is interesting that our Nobel Peace Prize winning president would, if he can manage it, bypass both Congress and the UN’s Security Council. It seems eons ago that Mr. Obama was bashing then President Bush for supposedly ignoring the UN. In September of 2009, he announced:
“We’ve re-engaged the United Nations… We have sought…a new era of engagement with the world.” He would “begin a new chapter of international cooperation” and he promised “we will work with the U.N.”Of course, both China and Russia have made it clear they won’t approve a strike on Syria via the UN Security Council which complicates matters for our supposedly UN oriented President...
Funny how the worm turns sometimes, isn’t it? Interesting how a side that was lambasting a former president over supposed violations of international law are now silent as they watch as precisely what they previously condemned becomes reality.
And you have to wonder – where are the anti-war protesters?
◼ Russia and China have stepped up their warnings against military intervention in Syria, with Moscow saying any such action would have "catastrophic consequences" for the region. - BBC
On Monday, Mr Cameron spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin who said there was no evidence yet that Syria had used chemical weapons against rebels, Mr Cameron's office said.
The official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, said Western powers were rushing to conclusions about who may have used chemical weapons in Syria before UN inspectors had completed their investigation.
Both the Syrian government and rebels have blamed each other for last Wednesday's attacks.
Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said three hospitals it supported in the Damascus area had treated about 3,600 patients with "neurotoxic symptoms", of whom 355 had died.
US officials said there was "little doubt" that President Bashar al-Assad's government was to blame.
◼ America’s Military Delusions - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
...Flummoxed over the rise of Iran in the Middle East, which was made possible by US policy in Iraq and our “success” in getting rid of Saddam Hussein, the Obama Administration is pursuing a proxy war against Tehran by going after their ally–Syria. However, in pursuing this policy the Obama Administration is siding with the Sunni extremists. This is the foreign policy of an Alzheimer’s patient. No memory of the past. No understanding of context. Only the burning desire to quench an immediate thirst for action of some sort. But what is the end game? Not a damn clue....
DRUDGE:
WASHPOST: Obama mulls 2-day attack using cruise missiles or long-range bombers...
REUTERS: Western powers tell rebels expect strike 'within days'...
US warplanes begin arriving in Cyprus...
UK armed forces 'making contingency plans' for military action...
CAMERON RECALLS PARLIAMENT...
JITTERS: Dow plunges...
Back in May: Retired FBI Counter-Terrorism Agent Confirms NSA Whistle-Blowers: Feds are Recording All Cell Phone Conversations (+videos)
◼ 06 May 2013 - Joe Miller/Restoring Liberty
During an interview with CNN this past week, a retired FBI counter-terrorism agent let it slip that the U.S. government is recording all cell phone conversations.
The interview concerned the FBI’s investigation of Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s widow, Katherine Russell, and what, if anything, she knew about the Boston Marathon bombings. The CNN panel speculated on the FBI’s efforts to determine if Russell were a part of the conspiracy....
The CNN host, Erin Burnett, thinking that the feds could gain access to Russell’s old voice mails but couldn’t actually listen to her old phone calls, observed, “there’s no way they actually can find out what happened, right, unless she tells them.”
The former agent, Tim Clemente, disagreed:
Clemente answered, “No, welcome to America. All of that stuff is being captured as we speak whether we know it or like it or not.”
...We have little time to turn this around. The enormous, unlawful power that the central government is accumulating is a real threat to the constitutional freedoms entrusted to us by our Founders.
◼ Congress Pressing Holder Over Use of NSA Info For Drug Busts- YID WITH LID
Three weeks ago Reuters revealed that the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has created a special unit which illegally uses data from intelligence intercepts, wiretaps, informants and a massive database of telephone records to launch criminal investigations of Americans. Most of these investigations have little or nothing to do with the national security which was the rationale for obtaining the source information in the first place.
To hide the program they are teaching agents how to hide how such investigations truly begin - not only from defense lawyers but also sometimes from prosecutors and judges:
During an interview with CNN this past week, a retired FBI counter-terrorism agent let it slip that the U.S. government is recording all cell phone conversations.
The interview concerned the FBI’s investigation of Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s widow, Katherine Russell, and what, if anything, she knew about the Boston Marathon bombings. The CNN panel speculated on the FBI’s efforts to determine if Russell were a part of the conspiracy....
The CNN host, Erin Burnett, thinking that the feds could gain access to Russell’s old voice mails but couldn’t actually listen to her old phone calls, observed, “there’s no way they actually can find out what happened, right, unless she tells them.”
The former agent, Tim Clemente, disagreed:
No, there is a way. We certainly have ways in national security investigations to find out exactly what was said in that conversation. It’s not necessarily something that the FBI is going to want to present in court, but it may help lead the investigation and/or lead to questioning of her. We certainly can find that out.Burnett knew immediately that Clemente was referring to Russell’s old phone calls and asked incredulously, ” So they can actually get that? People are saying, look, that is incredible.”
Clemente answered, “No, welcome to America. All of that stuff is being captured as we speak whether we know it or like it or not.”
...We have little time to turn this around. The enormous, unlawful power that the central government is accumulating is a real threat to the constitutional freedoms entrusted to us by our Founders.
◼ Congress Pressing Holder Over Use of NSA Info For Drug Busts- YID WITH LID
Three weeks ago Reuters revealed that the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has created a special unit which illegally uses data from intelligence intercepts, wiretaps, informants and a massive database of telephone records to launch criminal investigations of Americans. Most of these investigations have little or nothing to do with the national security which was the rationale for obtaining the source information in the first place.
To hide the program they are teaching agents how to hide how such investigations truly begin - not only from defense lawyers but also sometimes from prosecutors and judges:
The undated documents show that federal agents are trained to "recreate" the investigative trail to effectively cover up where the information originated, a practice that some experts say violates a defendant's Constitutional right to a fair trial. If defendants don't know how an investigation began, they cannot know to ask to review potential sources of exculpatory evidence - information that could reveal entrapment, mistakes or biased witnesses.This collection and use of personal data is much worse than the NSA scandal revealed in June. In that case while the ends (national security) may not have justified the means, but in this latest revelation there is no justification for either. It is an simply an "illegal search" for a criminal case. The DEA must know their methodology is tainted, why else would they be training their agents to cover it up?
"I have never heard of anything like this at all," said Nancy Gertner, a Harvard Law School professor who served as a federal judge from 1994 to 2011. Gertner and other legal experts said the program sounds more troubling than recent disclosures that the National Security Agency has been collecting domestic phone records. The NSA effort is geared toward stopping terrorists; the DEA program targets common criminals, primarily drug dealers.
"It is one thing to create special rules for national security," Gertner said. "Ordinary crime is entirely different. It sounds like they are phonying up investigations."...
...The unit of the DEA that distributes the information is called the Special Operations Division, or SOD. Two dozen partner agencies comprise the unit, including the FBI, CIA, NSA, Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Homeland Security.
POLL: MAJORITY OF AMERICANS HAVE NEVER HEARD OF COMMON CORE
◼ Close to two-thirds of the American public doesn’t know what Common Core is, according to a recent poll. The Obama administration has been pushing the education initiative that seeks to achieve a core curriculum in the nation’s schools, despite strong resistance from several states. - THE BLAZE
The poll found that 62 percent of respondents had never heard of Common Core, and even among parents with children in public schools K-12, only 45 percent of parents had heard of it....
Historian and author David Barton says Common Core represents a key problem with progressivism. “It doesn’t matter how well something is already working, or how long it’s been working well — they’re always wanting change,” he said.
“You’ve heard about it, and over the coming months it’ll be in the news even more as new parts of it continue to unfold,” Barton added. “Common Core is something that is not going away, even though it sure needs to…”
The poll found that 62 percent of respondents had never heard of Common Core, and even among parents with children in public schools K-12, only 45 percent of parents had heard of it....
Historian and author David Barton says Common Core represents a key problem with progressivism. “It doesn’t matter how well something is already working, or how long it’s been working well — they’re always wanting change,” he said.
“You’ve heard about it, and over the coming months it’ll be in the news even more as new parts of it continue to unfold,” Barton added. “Common Core is something that is not going away, even though it sure needs to…”
Monday, August 26, 2013
Western Warplanes Begin Arriving In Cyprus
◼ Remember what the 2012 leaked Stratfor memo said about the focal point of western airborne power? - ZEROHEDGE
This was the May rehearsal. Now, it's the real thing.
◼ Questions Obama Must Answer on Syria - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
◼ Weapons of Mass Deja Vu - ED DRISCOLL/PJMEDIA
WELCOME TO 1998:
FLASHBACK: Obama in 2007
◼ Obama Mulls Over Air War in Syria - by JAVIER MANJARRES/BREITBART
Obama has been hedging, or more accurately putting it, is afraid to man up and back his 2012 “Redline” ultimatum against the Assad regime. With Americans being war-weary from years of fighting Terrorism in Afghanistan and Iraq, Obama will likely employ a similar air campaign President Bill Clinton implemented during the 1999 Kosovo campaign.
◼ Should the United States have pre-empted the Syrian chemical attack? - Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion
Obviously there is a lot that we don’t know. But if David Martin is correct and the United States didn’t act when it could have prevented a huge loss of life, what is the point of “red lines?” Having a “red line” and daring a tyrant to cross it will never be as effective as proactively taking action against the tyrant.
President Obama said:
This was the May rehearsal. Now, it's the real thing.
◼ Questions Obama Must Answer on Syria - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
◼ Weapons of Mass Deja Vu - ED DRISCOLL/PJMEDIA
WELCOME TO 1998:
FLASHBACK: Obama in 2007
◼ Obama Mulls Over Air War in Syria - by JAVIER MANJARRES/BREITBART
Obama has been hedging, or more accurately putting it, is afraid to man up and back his 2012 “Redline” ultimatum against the Assad regime. With Americans being war-weary from years of fighting Terrorism in Afghanistan and Iraq, Obama will likely employ a similar air campaign President Bill Clinton implemented during the 1999 Kosovo campaign.
◼ Should the United States have pre-empted the Syrian chemical attack? - Le-gal In-sur-rec-tion
Obviously there is a lot that we don’t know. But if David Martin is correct and the United States didn’t act when it could have prevented a huge loss of life, what is the point of “red lines?” Having a “red line” and daring a tyrant to cross it will never be as effective as proactively taking action against the tyrant.
President Obama said:
But Obama added that “the notion that the [United States] can somehow solve what is a sectarian complex problem inside of Syria sometimes is overstated.”If we’re looking at the big picture, the President is correct. But if the question is whether the United States had the ability to prevent a catastrophe and didn’t act, the answer is not as clear.
John Kerry to make statement on Syria at 2 pm... Updated: WMD DECLARED
DEVELOPING:
DRUDGE Headlines:
◼ WMD DECLARED - CBS
BOMBING 'IN DAYS'...
Israel distributes gas masks..
Russia: No Proof Syrian Gov't Behind Chemical Weapons Attack...
Force without UN 'blatant violation of int'l law'...
ASSAD: American military will 'fail' like in Vietnam...
Damascus, Tehran issue stark warning to Jerusalem...
Strikes would trigger 'chaos,' threaten world security...
Chemical attack evidence 'may have been destroyed'...
KERRY DECLARES WMD...
Chemical weapons 'undeniable'...
Obama 'undecided'...
Press corps blurs president's 'red line'...
Middle East alliances cracking...
Peace envoy Blair on super-yacht in Med...
POLL: 9% support military action...
Israel distributes gas masks...
◼ Fearing a U.S. strike, Syria warns of global "chaos" - CBS News/AP
Lucianne Headlines:
Syria: the moral case for military intervention is now overwhelming
Telegraph [UK], by Toby Young
David Cameron cuts short holiday over Syria crisis
Telegraph [UK], by Tim Ross
Syria will require more than cruise missiles
Washington Post, by Elliot A. Cohen
Twitter:
◼ IDF intercept shows Syrian army used chemical weapons - HotAir
A minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet publicly asserted that Bashar al-Assad and his forces used chemical weapons, and not the rebels in the Damascus suburb, and used them on a mass scale. International Relations Minister Yuval Steintz said it was “crystal clear” that the Syrian army used chemical weapons in the attack last week, arguing that this demonstrates why it is important to stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons...
◼ House Dem: White House Credibility on the Line with Syria Red Line - Bridget Johnson/PJMedia
“I think, you know, the White House has drawn a red line. And in terms of the credibility of the White House, the cost of not acting now I think exceeds the cost of acting. But they have to be careful to do this in concert with our allies. They have to be careful to limit the scope of what they’re trying to achieve. They have to make sure they make it clear." --Rep. Adam Schiff
◼ Barack Obama Ready to Out Bush Bush - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
I wonder if the Nobel Committee now realizes how badly Barack Obama duped them. Did not do a goddamn thing and yet got the Nobel Peace Prize. Now, eight years later, Obama is going to try to start a war in Syria, using the pre-text of a highly questionable chemical weapon threat. But Obama’s impending use of military force is far more cynical and far more dangerous than anything George W. Bush did. A man of peace? I think not.
Bush at least believed, albeit foolishly, that removing the rule of Saddam Hussein would usher in the birth of democracy and justice in the Middle East. Totally delusional, but he believed it and the military action was backed by a myopic strategic vision.
Not so with Obama. His only reason to act is to deflect domestic political pressure. He does not like being perceived as weak and feckless. But he is weak and feckless. Pathetically weak at that. So now he will flex his military muscles and hit Syrian military sites. An act of war on par with Hitler’s invasion of Poland and Czechoslovakia. Entirely based on political theater. And he is egged on by three women–Valerie Jarrett, Susan Rice and Samantha Power. None of these ladies have a clue about military strategy or tactics. For them, it is all about the superficial and temporary demonstration of power.
◼ Syrian rebels used Sarin nerve gas, not Assad’s regime: U.N. official - Washington Times
Testimony from victims strongly suggests it was the rebels, not the Syrian government, that used Sarin nerve gas during a recent incident in the revolution-wracked nation, a senior U.N. diplomat said Monday.
Carla del Ponte, a member of the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, told Swiss TV there were “strong, concrete suspicions but not yet incontrovertible proof,” that rebels seeking to oust Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad had used the nerve agent.
DRUDGE Headlines:
◼ WMD DECLARED - CBS
Press corps blurs Obama's 'red line' on Syria... http://t.co/mFcOzt6EMh
— DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) August 26, 2013
BOMBING 'IN DAYS'...
Israel distributes gas masks..
Russia: No Proof Syrian Gov't Behind Chemical Weapons Attack...
Force without UN 'blatant violation of int'l law'...
ASSAD: American military will 'fail' like in Vietnam...
Damascus, Tehran issue stark warning to Jerusalem...
Strikes would trigger 'chaos,' threaten world security...
Chemical attack evidence 'may have been destroyed'...
KERRY DECLARES WMD...
Chemical weapons 'undeniable'...
Obama 'undecided'...
Press corps blurs president's 'red line'...
Middle East alliances cracking...
Peace envoy Blair on super-yacht in Med...
POLL: 9% support military action...
Israel distributes gas masks...
◼ Fearing a U.S. strike, Syria warns of global "chaos" - CBS News/AP
Lucianne Headlines:
Syria: the moral case for military intervention is now overwhelming
Telegraph [UK], by Toby Young
David Cameron cuts short holiday over Syria crisis
Telegraph [UK], by Tim Ross
Syria will require more than cruise missiles
Washington Post, by Elliot A. Cohen
Twitter:
Arab Media Shaming Obama Into Syria Intervention: The Jerusalem Post reports "Gulf backed pan-Arab media [is l... http://t.co/Xh23rXzL6S
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) August 26, 2013
◼ IDF intercept shows Syrian army used chemical weapons - HotAir
A minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet publicly asserted that Bashar al-Assad and his forces used chemical weapons, and not the rebels in the Damascus suburb, and used them on a mass scale. International Relations Minister Yuval Steintz said it was “crystal clear” that the Syrian army used chemical weapons in the attack last week, arguing that this demonstrates why it is important to stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons...
◼ House Dem: White House Credibility on the Line with Syria Red Line - Bridget Johnson/PJMedia
“I think, you know, the White House has drawn a red line. And in terms of the credibility of the White House, the cost of not acting now I think exceeds the cost of acting. But they have to be careful to do this in concert with our allies. They have to be careful to limit the scope of what they’re trying to achieve. They have to make sure they make it clear." --Rep. Adam Schiff
RT @chucktodd: It appears we're in the "drumbeat" stage re: Syria w/U.S. officials. It's coming, question is when, how hard & how long #tcot
— slone (@slone) August 26, 2013
◼ Barack Obama Ready to Out Bush Bush - Larry Johnson/No Quarter
I wonder if the Nobel Committee now realizes how badly Barack Obama duped them. Did not do a goddamn thing and yet got the Nobel Peace Prize. Now, eight years later, Obama is going to try to start a war in Syria, using the pre-text of a highly questionable chemical weapon threat. But Obama’s impending use of military force is far more cynical and far more dangerous than anything George W. Bush did. A man of peace? I think not.
Bush at least believed, albeit foolishly, that removing the rule of Saddam Hussein would usher in the birth of democracy and justice in the Middle East. Totally delusional, but he believed it and the military action was backed by a myopic strategic vision.
Not so with Obama. His only reason to act is to deflect domestic political pressure. He does not like being perceived as weak and feckless. But he is weak and feckless. Pathetically weak at that. So now he will flex his military muscles and hit Syrian military sites. An act of war on par with Hitler’s invasion of Poland and Czechoslovakia. Entirely based on political theater. And he is egged on by three women–Valerie Jarrett, Susan Rice and Samantha Power. None of these ladies have a clue about military strategy or tactics. For them, it is all about the superficial and temporary demonstration of power.
◼ Syrian rebels used Sarin nerve gas, not Assad’s regime: U.N. official - Washington Times
Testimony from victims strongly suggests it was the rebels, not the Syrian government, that used Sarin nerve gas during a recent incident in the revolution-wracked nation, a senior U.N. diplomat said Monday.
Carla del Ponte, a member of the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria, told Swiss TV there were “strong, concrete suspicions but not yet incontrovertible proof,” that rebels seeking to oust Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad had used the nerve agent.
OFA Fail: No Immigration Reform Activists Show Up For Republican´s Town Hall
◼ Republicans are getting very little heat on comprehensive immigration reform at their August town halls, reports USA Today. - Debra Heine/Breitbart
One example cited is Rep. Frank LoBiondo, who represents a South Jersey congressional district with a large Hispanic population and farmlands that employ migrant workers. He said in an interview, "it's not coming up. It is a big issue nationally, but in this district it's just not something on people's minds."
LoBiondo is exactly the type of congressman immigration advocates like Senator Lindsey Graham said should be targeted over the August recess.
But people in his district are more concerned with "the economy, the implementation of Obama's health care law, unrest in the Middle East and even how to improve local infrastructure to ease traffic to the Jersey shore."
One example cited is Rep. Frank LoBiondo, who represents a South Jersey congressional district with a large Hispanic population and farmlands that employ migrant workers. He said in an interview, "it's not coming up. It is a big issue nationally, but in this district it's just not something on people's minds."
LoBiondo is exactly the type of congressman immigration advocates like Senator Lindsey Graham said should be targeted over the August recess.
But people in his district are more concerned with "the economy, the implementation of Obama's health care law, unrest in the Middle East and even how to improve local infrastructure to ease traffic to the Jersey shore."
Well, well, well. Shades of the IRS scandal.
◼ What’s missing from this gem of a story that typifies the Obama-loving media? - Jeffrey Lord/American Spectator
This…buried in an earlier-in-the-week news story from the Wall Street Journal about President Obama’s about-to-take-place tour of New York State colleges. Say again…that word would be colleges.
Wrote the WSJ, again, bold print provided:
What do we have here?
The President of the United States — whose IRS is up to its eye-lids in a scandal involving the targeting of the President’s political enemies — spends the last few days touring colleges in New York State. The reason for this tour — the political point of it all — is summed up in this story by the New York Times headlined:
Two days later? This headline in Politico:
Right....someone has noticed:
If anybody out there thinks this lawsuit is anything else than a presidential vendetta to get another enemy on the White House list.…
This…buried in an earlier-in-the-week news story from the Wall Street Journal about President Obama’s about-to-take-place tour of New York State colleges. Say again…that word would be colleges.
Wrote the WSJ, again, bold print provided:
Later Thursday, before he is scheduled to speak in Syracuse, Mr. Obama will meet privately with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, according to an aide in the attorney general’s office.So.
What do we have here?
The President of the United States — whose IRS is up to its eye-lids in a scandal involving the targeting of the President’s political enemies — spends the last few days touring colleges in New York State. The reason for this tour — the political point of it all — is summed up in this story by the New York Times headlined:
On Bus Tour, Obama Seeks to Shame Colleges Into Easing CostsThen on Thursday, Obama himself meets “privately” with his buddy the Attorney General of New York, Eric Schneiderman.
Two days later? This headline in Politico:
N.Y. sues ‘Trump University’Coincidence?
Right....someone has noticed:
Wow, l just found out that A.G. Schneiderman met with President Obama in Syracuse on Thursday --- and sued me on Saturday! Same as IRS etc.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2013
If anybody out there thinks this lawsuit is anything else than a presidential vendetta to get another enemy on the White House list.…
Amazing! AG Schneiderman sues a school w/ a 98% approval rating but doesn’t go after billion $ fraudsters all over Wall St.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 26, 2013
Why isn’t AG Schneiderman going after Democrat Jon Corzine and the $1.4 billion that is “missing?”
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 26, 2013
VIDEO: THOUSANDS LINE UP FOR MARK LEVIN BOOK SIGNING; CROWD CIRCLES TOWN...
◼ The Liberty Amendments: Restoring the American Republic at Amazon
◼ Mark Levin--#1 in All Categories - Joel Pollak//Breitbart
The week's results are in--and Mark Levin's The Liberty Amendments is ◼ #1 on the New York Times bestseller list in both the hardcover and combined hardcover and e-book categories. Not bad for a "radical" idea!
◼ Liberty Amendments debuts at #1 on NYT bestseller lists - Thomas Lifson/American Thinker
◼ Restoring federalism - Canada Free Press
◼ The Constitution's blueprint for liberty - Washington Times
◼ Levin Book #1 at NYT: "You can bet they're grinding teeth at the New York Times" - Jeffrey Lord/American Spectator
◼ Instapundit: I talk with Mark Levin about his new book, The Liberty Amendments: Restoring the American Republic. (Watch) - PJMedia
◼ The Liberty Amendments awakening the nation to the Constitution - Richard Mourdock
◼ USA TODAY BEST SELLER LIST - USA Today
◼ Bookscan - top of the list - Reuters
◼ WALL STREET JOURNAL BEST SELLER LIST - ABC News
◼ David Limbaugh: the battle to restore the republic has begun
◼ Calling Americans back to their Constitution - Ricochet
SCHOOL YEAR 2013: Armed guards, cameras, door buzzers, card-swipe entry systems...
◼ Eight months after the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown left 26 people dead, many schools across the state are preparing to welcome students back from summer break with increased security measures in place. - The Courant
But which types of safety measures and how they should be funded has been a source of debate, with no clear consensus on the best way to protect children and staff members.
But which types of safety measures and how they should be funded has been a source of debate, with no clear consensus on the best way to protect children and staff members.
Sunday, August 25, 2013
“This is one of the fundamental problems with progressives – it doesn’t matter how well something is already working, or how long it’s been working well — they’re always wanting change,” Barton said. “They’re always wanting to move forward or lean forward, and they want to leave the old things behind. Progressives are all about progress, after all. They want to implement the new, even if the old works well, and the new doesn’t.”
◼ DAVID BARTON EXPLAINS HOW COMMON CORE POSES ‘SERIOUS PROBLEMS FOR THE FUTURE OF THE REPUBLIC’ - Erica Ritz/The Blaze
Author and historian David Barton guest hosted the Glenn Beck Program on TheBlaze TV Friday, dedicating the hour to the controversial education guidelines known as “Common Core.”
“You’ve heard about it, and over the coming months it’ll be in the news even more as new parts of it continue to unfold,” Barton began. “Common Core is something that is not going away, even though it sure needs to… Today we are going to cover some of the new problems that have emerged since we covered this topic three months ago.”
The hour spanned issues from the lowering of academic standards to alarming data mining techniques.
“It’s already blowing up. Daily assassinations, bi-weekly prison escapes, we waited way too long.”
◼ Hillary’s Infamous Benghazi Outburst given new meaning - I Own The World
Even Hillary Clinton’s Accountability Review Board (ARB), headed by Thomas “I schmoozed with the Muslim Brotherhood in Qatar this past June” Pickering, acknowledged lapses. The problem was that the dead Ambassador bore the brunt of the responsibility for his own death and not one State Department employee faced consequences.
Now, with no suspects in custody, it appears that Special ops personnel, whose job is to provide intelligence on the ground in Benghazi right now, are being pulled out of the region… for good.
Via Fox News:
Greg Marra, the artist who created the statue for fallen Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle, has begun working on the statue to commemorate the 4 fallen in Benghazi.
This tribute statue will be a reminder to politicians, that while they play their political games with people’s lives, the American people won’t forget and we will hold those responsible accountable.
Even Hillary Clinton’s Accountability Review Board (ARB), headed by Thomas “I schmoozed with the Muslim Brotherhood in Qatar this past June” Pickering, acknowledged lapses. The problem was that the dead Ambassador bore the brunt of the responsibility for his own death and not one State Department employee faced consequences.
Now, with no suspects in custody, it appears that Special ops personnel, whose job is to provide intelligence on the ground in Benghazi right now, are being pulled out of the region… for good.
Via Fox News:
“We put American special operations in harm’s way to develop a picture of these suspects and to seek justice and instead of acting, we stalled. We just let it slip and pass us by and now it’s going to be much more difficult,” one source said, citing 1,200 prisoners escaping two weeks ago. “It’s already blowing up. Daily assassinations, bi-weekly prison escapes, we waited way too long.”◼ WHILE OBAMA SLEPT: A Tribute to Benghazi's Heroes - Doug Ross
Greg Marra, the artist who created the statue for fallen Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle, has begun working on the statue to commemorate the 4 fallen in Benghazi.
This tribute statue will be a reminder to politicians, that while they play their political games with people’s lives, the American people won’t forget and we will hold those responsible accountable.
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