In "Evading Arrest By Fleeing In A Car Should Be Made A Felony" (5-23-09), I wrote that "when a driver attempts to evade arrest, he turns his automobile into a deadly weapon. A person who points a gun at another is committing a felony – aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. And that is exactly what a fleeing driver is doing. The time is way past due for a change in our laws. Evading arrest by fleeing in a car should not be treated as a misdemeanor - it should be made a felony the same way that pointing a gun at someone is a felony."
To its credit, the Chicago Police Department tried to do something about these high speed car chases by authorizing officers to shoot at a fleeing car if the driver or passengers are suspected of committing a felony. But then the city council stepped in and nixed that new policy. It was all about the money – the fear of potential wrongful death, excessive force and other chase-related lawsuits.
The two stories follow:
POLICY WOULD ALLOW COPS TO SHOOT AT FLEEING CARS
By Mike Krauser
CBS -WBBM 780
July 29, 2009
CHICAGO --- The Chicago Police Department is considering a major change in policy regarding the use of deadly force.
The department is looking at allowing police officers to fire their guns under circumstances where they previously could not.
The new policy, from police Supt. Jody Weis and confirmed by WBBM Newsradio 780 Wednesday morning, would allow police officers to shoot at fleeing vehicles if the driver or passengers are suspected of committing a felony.
Earlier today, a police spokesman told Newsradio 780 that the policy would take effect on Monday.
"Now officers will be able to fire upon the driver or passenger in a vehicle if that person is a forcible fleeing felon, someone who has committed a very serious offense resulting in bodily harm or has threatened to commit great bodily harm," Drew told Newsradio 780.
The old policy allowed officers only to shoot at vehicles that pose a threat to them or others, such as if the driver were trying to run down the officer.
Later Wednesday, the department issued a statement saying the plan was under review.
The department is "currently reviewing the existing order [to] provide officers with more clear direction. The review process is ongoing and will not be rushed."
POLICE PULL BACK ON NEW DEADLY FORCE POLICY
Officers Would Be Allowed To Shoot At Fleeing Vehicles
CBS Broadcasting, Inc.
July 30, 2009
CHICAGO --- Chicago Police have pulled back a major policy change that would give officers much more leeway in using deadly force.
On Wednesday, the Chicago Police Department confirmed that Supt. Jody Weis gave an order allowing officers to shoot at drivers or passengers in fleeing vehicles if the driver or passengers are suspected of committing a felony.
A spokesman Wednesday told WBBM Newsradio 780 that the policy would take effect on Monday.
"Now officers will be able to fire upon the driver or passenger in a vehicle if that person is a forcible fleeing felon, someone who has committed a very serious offense resulting in bodily harm or has threatened to commit great bodily harm," police News Affairs Director Roderick Drew said.
But later in the day, it turned out that the change was not cleared with City Hall, and thus may not be instituted. An ordinance was also introduced Wednesday that would require the approval of the City Council for a change in policy regarding deadly force.
Mayor Richard M. Daley told reporters that Weis' policy group had "not changed anything" -- that they are simply attempting to reconcile conflicting general orders. "That's what they're trying to figure out. Nothing more. They're just looking at it. If you have general orders that conflict with one another, you should look at it," the mayor said.
Corporation Counsel Mara Georges said Weis is "reviewing language of existing general orders and just beginning that review. ... There has been no policy change. It is inaccurate to say anything has been issued or anything is going into effect."
Either way, aldermen are not taking any chances.
At Wednesday's City Council meeting, Police Committee Chairman Isaac Carothers (29th) introduced an ordinance that would require Council approval before any change in general orders concerning the use of deadly force. Carothers pointed to a pair of 1999 police shootings over a 24-hour period that killed two unarmed civilians in motor vehicles.
"Let's not forget what happened in the LaTanya Haggerty case, which cost the city a lot of money [$18 million], and the [Robert] Russ case, which cost an awful lot of money [$9.6 million] with police officers firing their weapons," Carothers said. "
They already have a right to fire weapons in their own self-defense and in the defense of others. To go further than that -- the liability could be tremendous."
Finance Committee Chairman Edward M. Burke (14th), a former Chicago Police officer, agreed that City Hall should have the final say.
"There's rarely a Finance [Committee] meeting that goes by without a settlement of a police case due to excessive force, wrongful imprisonment, false arrest. There's a plethora of these cases out there," he said.
"The corporate authorities -- certainly the corporation counsel -- ought to be consulted before there's any change in the policy."
A 26-year-old computer analyst, LaTanya Haggerty was shot to death on June 4, 1999, after her companion, Raymond Smith, led police on a 31-block chase through the South Side -- a chase that was not authorized by police officials.
Russ, a 22-year-old Northwestern University football player just 10 days short of his college graduation, was shot to death hours later during a traffic stop. He did not stop for three miles -- even after police ordered him to do so.
The back-to-back police shootings touched off a tension-filled summer of protests about alleged police brutality.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
A HATEFUL AND UNTRUTHFUL INDICTMENT OF AMERICAN POLICE OFFICERS
If you browse the internet, you will find hundreds of takes on the Professor Gates arrest. A surprisingly large number continue to condemn Sgt. Crowley and the Cambridge police while defending Gates and praising President Obama’s "Acted Stupidly" declaration.
Not only that, but now the Gates arrest is no longer just a racial profiling case, it is also a case of class warfare. Crowley is now accused of being a working class cop who put the screws to a member of the upper class. Gates’ black colleagues say that racial profiling is a class warfare weapon that is responsible for 70% of American prison inmates being black and Hispanic.
Crowley’s critics maintain that Gates could not have been charged with disorderly conduct because he was inside his house or on his property and that is why the charge was dropped. Wrong! The charge was dropped because the City of Cambridge wanted to be seen as politically correct since Gates was a prominent black Harvard scholar.
One of the most hateful and untruthful indictments of American police officers that I have ever read was made in response to the Gates arrest by Lawrence O’Donnell in a TIME.com column, part of which follows:
VIEWPOINT: THE STUPIDITY OF THE GATES ARREST
By Lawrence O’Donnell, Jr.
TIME.com
Jul. 25, 2009
"Here is what the absurdist, typically stilted police language of Sergeant James Crowley's official report on his arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates really means:
Gates: You're not the boss of me!
Crowley: I am the boss of you.
Gates: You are not the boss of me!
Crowley: I'll show you. You're under arrest.
There is no crime described in Crowley's official version of the way Gates behaved. Crowley says explicitly that he arrested Gates for yelling. Nothing else, not a single threatening movement, just yelling. On the steps of his own home. Yelling is not a crime. Yelling does not meet the definition of disorderly conduct in Massachusetts. Not a single shouted word or action that Crowley has attributed to Gates amounts to disorderly conduct. That is why the charges had to be dropped.
In classically phony police talk, Crowley refers to "[Gates'] continued tumultuous behavior." When cops write that way, you know they have nothing. What is tumultuous behavior? Here's what it isn't: he brandished a knife in a threatening manner, he punched and kicked, he clenched his fist in a threatening manner, he threw a wrench or, in the Gates house, maybe a book. If the subject does any of those things, cops always write it out with precision. When they've got nothing, they use phrases that mean nothing. Phrases like tumultuous behavior.
Unless you confess to a crime, or threaten to commit a crime, there is nothing you can say to a cop that makes it legal for him to arrest you. You can tell him he is stupid, you can tell him he is ugly, you can call him racist, you can say anything you might feel like saying about his mother. He has taken an oath to listen to all of that and ignore it. That is the real teachable moment here — cops are paid to be professionals, but even the best of them are human and can make stupid mistakes.
We have an uncomfortable choice with Sergeant Crowley. Either he doesn't know what disorderly conduct is or Crowley simply decided to show Gates who's boss the only way he knew how at the time — by whipping out his handcuffs and abusing his power to arrest. Police make the latter choice in this country every day, knowing that the charges are going to have to be dropped."
So who is this cop hater? Lawrence O'Donnell, Jr. is an actor and MSNBC Political Analyst and the author of Deadly Force: The True Story of How a Badge Can Become a License to Kill. He calls himself a "practical European socialist." His frequent interviews on TV are notable for his angry outbursts at those with whom he disagrees. Martin E. Marty, professor of religious history at the University of Chicago, said of O'Donnell's caustic comments, "criticism is one thing; hate-speech and untruths are another."
O’Donnell is being disingenuous when he writes that Gates' conduct "does not meet the definition of disorderly conduct in Massachusetts." While the state does not have a specific disorderly conduct offense, Massachusetts judges recognize that offense under section 250.2 of the Model Penal Code. Here is an analysis from TPM Media:
"…… this is the section (in the original police report) that directly recounts the arrest:
‘As I descended the stairs to the sidewalk, Gates continued to yell at me, accusing me of racial bias and continued to tell me that I had not heard the last of him. Due to the tumultuous manner Gates had exhibited in his residence as well as his continued tumultuous behavior outside the residence, in view of the public, I warned Gates that he was becoming disorderly. Gates ignored my warning and continued to yell, which drew the attention of both the police officers and citizens, who appeared surprised and alarmed by Gates’s outburst. For a second time I warned Gates to calm down while I withdrew my department issued handcuffs from their carrying case. Gates again ignored my warning and continued to yell at me. It was at this time that I informed Gates that he was under arrest.’
Now it makes sense to ask if the arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. matches the criteria of the Model Penal Code section 250.2: (1), and it seems to me that the most significant sub-section is 250.2: (1)(b)... makes unreasonable noise or offensively coarse utterance, gesture or display, or addresses abusive language to any person present...
If you believe the police report, then Professor Gates probably satisfied the criteria of Model Penal Code section 250.2: (1) by shouting insults at the cop from his front porch, and even though the front porch itself is not a public place, it was sufficiently close to the public sidewalk and street so that "persons in a place to which the public or a substantial group has access" were affected.
…… Professor Gates' house is unfenced and adjacent to Ware Street in Cambridge…… It also is possible that behavior occurring on purely private property may be shown to affect or be likely to affect persons in an adjacent or nearby 'place to which the public or a substantial group has access,' Model Penal Code section 250.2, such that a disorderly conduct charge would be appropriate."
O’Donnell goes on to insist that people have a right to call cops any derogatory names they want. It’s true that people don’t have to be nice to police officers, but when they continue to badmouth cops within sight and sound of the public, they have crossed the line from constitutionally protected speech to disorderly conduct.
Worst of all, O’Donnell also accuses the police in this country of abusing their power to arrest every day, "knowing that the charges are going to have to be dropped." He implies that making false arrests on purpose is a common practice. That’s simply not true and he damn well knows it!
This controversy is far from over because people on each side have planted their feet firmly in concrete. (That, obviously, includes me.) Although the courts have ruled that cops must tolerate some verbal abuse, those who don't like the police need to realize there is a limit to the amount of shit that an officer has to take. Gates clearly exceeded that limit. As for the cops, they don’t help their cause by making wisecracks about "attitude adjustment" or the one that goes, "you might beat the rap, but you won't beat the ride."
There are many reasons why people might not like cops. After all, they regulate human behavior and no one likes to have their behavior regulated. But for society's sake, hatred of the police cannot be tolerated! As for O’Donnell, his hatred of the police also comes across loud and clear in the title of his book, "Deadly Force: The True Story of How a Badge Can Become a License to Kill."
Not only that, but now the Gates arrest is no longer just a racial profiling case, it is also a case of class warfare. Crowley is now accused of being a working class cop who put the screws to a member of the upper class. Gates’ black colleagues say that racial profiling is a class warfare weapon that is responsible for 70% of American prison inmates being black and Hispanic.
Crowley’s critics maintain that Gates could not have been charged with disorderly conduct because he was inside his house or on his property and that is why the charge was dropped. Wrong! The charge was dropped because the City of Cambridge wanted to be seen as politically correct since Gates was a prominent black Harvard scholar.
One of the most hateful and untruthful indictments of American police officers that I have ever read was made in response to the Gates arrest by Lawrence O’Donnell in a TIME.com column, part of which follows:
VIEWPOINT: THE STUPIDITY OF THE GATES ARREST
By Lawrence O’Donnell, Jr.
TIME.com
Jul. 25, 2009
"Here is what the absurdist, typically stilted police language of Sergeant James Crowley's official report on his arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates really means:
Gates: You're not the boss of me!
Crowley: I am the boss of you.
Gates: You are not the boss of me!
Crowley: I'll show you. You're under arrest.
There is no crime described in Crowley's official version of the way Gates behaved. Crowley says explicitly that he arrested Gates for yelling. Nothing else, not a single threatening movement, just yelling. On the steps of his own home. Yelling is not a crime. Yelling does not meet the definition of disorderly conduct in Massachusetts. Not a single shouted word or action that Crowley has attributed to Gates amounts to disorderly conduct. That is why the charges had to be dropped.
In classically phony police talk, Crowley refers to "[Gates'] continued tumultuous behavior." When cops write that way, you know they have nothing. What is tumultuous behavior? Here's what it isn't: he brandished a knife in a threatening manner, he punched and kicked, he clenched his fist in a threatening manner, he threw a wrench or, in the Gates house, maybe a book. If the subject does any of those things, cops always write it out with precision. When they've got nothing, they use phrases that mean nothing. Phrases like tumultuous behavior.
Unless you confess to a crime, or threaten to commit a crime, there is nothing you can say to a cop that makes it legal for him to arrest you. You can tell him he is stupid, you can tell him he is ugly, you can call him racist, you can say anything you might feel like saying about his mother. He has taken an oath to listen to all of that and ignore it. That is the real teachable moment here — cops are paid to be professionals, but even the best of them are human and can make stupid mistakes.
We have an uncomfortable choice with Sergeant Crowley. Either he doesn't know what disorderly conduct is or Crowley simply decided to show Gates who's boss the only way he knew how at the time — by whipping out his handcuffs and abusing his power to arrest. Police make the latter choice in this country every day, knowing that the charges are going to have to be dropped."
So who is this cop hater? Lawrence O'Donnell, Jr. is an actor and MSNBC Political Analyst and the author of Deadly Force: The True Story of How a Badge Can Become a License to Kill. He calls himself a "practical European socialist." His frequent interviews on TV are notable for his angry outbursts at those with whom he disagrees. Martin E. Marty, professor of religious history at the University of Chicago, said of O'Donnell's caustic comments, "criticism is one thing; hate-speech and untruths are another."
O’Donnell is being disingenuous when he writes that Gates' conduct "does not meet the definition of disorderly conduct in Massachusetts." While the state does not have a specific disorderly conduct offense, Massachusetts judges recognize that offense under section 250.2 of the Model Penal Code. Here is an analysis from TPM Media:
"…… this is the section (in the original police report) that directly recounts the arrest:
‘As I descended the stairs to the sidewalk, Gates continued to yell at me, accusing me of racial bias and continued to tell me that I had not heard the last of him. Due to the tumultuous manner Gates had exhibited in his residence as well as his continued tumultuous behavior outside the residence, in view of the public, I warned Gates that he was becoming disorderly. Gates ignored my warning and continued to yell, which drew the attention of both the police officers and citizens, who appeared surprised and alarmed by Gates’s outburst. For a second time I warned Gates to calm down while I withdrew my department issued handcuffs from their carrying case. Gates again ignored my warning and continued to yell at me. It was at this time that I informed Gates that he was under arrest.’
Now it makes sense to ask if the arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. matches the criteria of the Model Penal Code section 250.2: (1), and it seems to me that the most significant sub-section is 250.2: (1)(b)... makes unreasonable noise or offensively coarse utterance, gesture or display, or addresses abusive language to any person present...
If you believe the police report, then Professor Gates probably satisfied the criteria of Model Penal Code section 250.2: (1) by shouting insults at the cop from his front porch, and even though the front porch itself is not a public place, it was sufficiently close to the public sidewalk and street so that "persons in a place to which the public or a substantial group has access" were affected.
…… Professor Gates' house is unfenced and adjacent to Ware Street in Cambridge…… It also is possible that behavior occurring on purely private property may be shown to affect or be likely to affect persons in an adjacent or nearby 'place to which the public or a substantial group has access,' Model Penal Code section 250.2, such that a disorderly conduct charge would be appropriate."
O’Donnell goes on to insist that people have a right to call cops any derogatory names they want. It’s true that people don’t have to be nice to police officers, but when they continue to badmouth cops within sight and sound of the public, they have crossed the line from constitutionally protected speech to disorderly conduct.
Worst of all, O’Donnell also accuses the police in this country of abusing their power to arrest every day, "knowing that the charges are going to have to be dropped." He implies that making false arrests on purpose is a common practice. That’s simply not true and he damn well knows it!
This controversy is far from over because people on each side have planted their feet firmly in concrete. (That, obviously, includes me.) Although the courts have ruled that cops must tolerate some verbal abuse, those who don't like the police need to realize there is a limit to the amount of shit that an officer has to take. Gates clearly exceeded that limit. As for the cops, they don’t help their cause by making wisecracks about "attitude adjustment" or the one that goes, "you might beat the rap, but you won't beat the ride."
There are many reasons why people might not like cops. After all, they regulate human behavior and no one likes to have their behavior regulated. But for society's sake, hatred of the police cannot be tolerated! As for O’Donnell, his hatred of the police also comes across loud and clear in the title of his book, "Deadly Force: The True Story of How a Badge Can Become a License to Kill."
Sunday, July 26, 2009
CALIFORNIA'S MOST PROFITABLE CASH CROP
330,000 marijuana plants were seized. One mature plant alone can be sold for $4,000.
CALIF. POLICE SEIZE $1 BILLION IN MARIJUANA PLANTS
By Nick Valencia
CNN.com
July 26, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. — Authorities have seized $1 billion worth of marijuana plants and have arrested 82 Mexican nationals with ties to drug cartels in the first week and half of an effort to eradicate marijuana fields from California's Fresno County, the county sheriff's office said Wednesday.
Operation Save Our Sierra began July 13 and involves local, state and federal agencies working together to remove marijuana growing operations, investigate and arrest drug traffickers, and remove infrastructure on public lands in Fresno County, a news release said.
"This is a high-intensity drug trafficking area," U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske said in a phone interview. "I think what should be highlighted here is the local authorities' work to reclaim the land from the drug traffickers."
The 82 suspects arrested so far have links to Mexican drug cartels, local authorities said, though they did not release further details.
Eastern Fresno County, where the seizures have been made, is mountainous and sparsely populated. Growers exploit the area's streams, rivers and lakes to create elaborate drip lines for their plants. A mature plant can be worth $4,000, said Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims.
"Fresno County is roughly the size of Connecticut, and the drug traffickers target these areas because they know there is not that significant of a law-enforcement presence," Mims said. "The chances of getting caught are slim."
"The bottom line is our public lands are being destroyed by foreign drug trafficking and heavily armed Mexican cartels," George Anderson of the U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday at a news conference highlighting the seizures.
The operation is the largest in Fresno County history and one of the largest in California, Mims said.
"What makes this operation unique is the approach: prevention, enforcement, eradication and reclamation," she said.
Intelligence gathered for the operation began in February, with community presentations about prevention. The effort is now focused on shutting down the at least 70 marijuana farms identified by local authorities.
The operation is expected to continue into November, when colder weather makes marijuana growing more difficult.
At least 330,000 marijuana plants have been seized, Mims said.
"This shows what can be accomplished at the local level when agencies work together," Kerlikowske said.
Kerlikowske, who flew to Fresno County on Wednesday and toured a marijuana farm, said his office is one of the primary sponsors of the operation.
CALIF. POLICE SEIZE $1 BILLION IN MARIJUANA PLANTS
By Nick Valencia
CNN.com
July 26, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. — Authorities have seized $1 billion worth of marijuana plants and have arrested 82 Mexican nationals with ties to drug cartels in the first week and half of an effort to eradicate marijuana fields from California's Fresno County, the county sheriff's office said Wednesday.
Operation Save Our Sierra began July 13 and involves local, state and federal agencies working together to remove marijuana growing operations, investigate and arrest drug traffickers, and remove infrastructure on public lands in Fresno County, a news release said.
"This is a high-intensity drug trafficking area," U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske said in a phone interview. "I think what should be highlighted here is the local authorities' work to reclaim the land from the drug traffickers."
The 82 suspects arrested so far have links to Mexican drug cartels, local authorities said, though they did not release further details.
Eastern Fresno County, where the seizures have been made, is mountainous and sparsely populated. Growers exploit the area's streams, rivers and lakes to create elaborate drip lines for their plants. A mature plant can be worth $4,000, said Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims.
"Fresno County is roughly the size of Connecticut, and the drug traffickers target these areas because they know there is not that significant of a law-enforcement presence," Mims said. "The chances of getting caught are slim."
"The bottom line is our public lands are being destroyed by foreign drug trafficking and heavily armed Mexican cartels," George Anderson of the U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday at a news conference highlighting the seizures.
The operation is the largest in Fresno County history and one of the largest in California, Mims said.
"What makes this operation unique is the approach: prevention, enforcement, eradication and reclamation," she said.
Intelligence gathered for the operation began in February, with community presentations about prevention. The effort is now focused on shutting down the at least 70 marijuana farms identified by local authorities.
The operation is expected to continue into November, when colder weather makes marijuana growing more difficult.
At least 330,000 marijuana plants have been seized, Mims said.
"This shows what can be accomplished at the local level when agencies work together," Kerlikowske said.
Kerlikowske, who flew to Fresno County on Wednesday and toured a marijuana farm, said his office is one of the primary sponsors of the operation.
FUN AND GAMES WITHIN THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY
REPORT: ARAFAT’S WIDOW FORCED TO DENY ASSASSINATION PLOT
According to Saudi newspaper, Suha Arafat blackmailed into denying any knowledge of Abbas and Dahlan's involvement in alleged plot to poison deceased Palestinian leader. Reportedly, Abbas' office threatened not to pay her monthly salary if she declined
By Ali Waked
Ynetnews.com
July 26, 2009
Accusations that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and others were part of a plot to poison deceased Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat are shaking the PA.
According to reports on Sunday, the late Palestinian leader's widow, Suha Arafat, broke out in tears after being forced to deny any knowledge of the alleged scheme.
The media storm started two weeks ago when the number two PLO figure, Farouk Kaddoumi, claimed in a Jordanian press conference that Abbas together with PA security chief Mohammad Dahlan collaborated in an Israeli-orchestrated plot to poison Arafat.
Kaddoumi asserted that Arafat had shown him documentation proving that Abbas and Hamas leaders met with top American and Israeli officials on the issue.
Fatah quickly went on the offensive against Kaddoumi and his statements, even pointing an angry finger at Jordan and the al-Jazeera news network for covering the affair.
Arafat's widow, Suha, told a Turkish newspaper last week that her deceased husband showed her the minutes of the same Israeli-American-Palestinian meeting of which Kaddoumi spoke. According to her, the ex-leader also said that he feared for his life in light of Dahlan's and Abbas' allegedly peculiar behavior.
Saudi newspaper Okaz quoted Palestinian sources claiming that Abbas' office, acting upon direct orders from the president, threatened to revoke Suha Arafat's monthly PA salary should she decline to deny what the statements she made to the Turkish newspaper.
According to the report, Suha, currently living in Malta near her brother, who is serving as Palestinian ambassador in the country, cried when she learned of the threats.
Pressure from Ramallah brought her to read a script to the media sent to her by Abbas' office denying that she had any knowledge of an assassination plot and attacking Kaddoumi for his statements against the PA.
According to Saudi newspaper, Suha Arafat blackmailed into denying any knowledge of Abbas and Dahlan's involvement in alleged plot to poison deceased Palestinian leader. Reportedly, Abbas' office threatened not to pay her monthly salary if she declined
By Ali Waked
Ynetnews.com
July 26, 2009
Accusations that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and others were part of a plot to poison deceased Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat are shaking the PA.
According to reports on Sunday, the late Palestinian leader's widow, Suha Arafat, broke out in tears after being forced to deny any knowledge of the alleged scheme.
The media storm started two weeks ago when the number two PLO figure, Farouk Kaddoumi, claimed in a Jordanian press conference that Abbas together with PA security chief Mohammad Dahlan collaborated in an Israeli-orchestrated plot to poison Arafat.
Kaddoumi asserted that Arafat had shown him documentation proving that Abbas and Hamas leaders met with top American and Israeli officials on the issue.
Fatah quickly went on the offensive against Kaddoumi and his statements, even pointing an angry finger at Jordan and the al-Jazeera news network for covering the affair.
Arafat's widow, Suha, told a Turkish newspaper last week that her deceased husband showed her the minutes of the same Israeli-American-Palestinian meeting of which Kaddoumi spoke. According to her, the ex-leader also said that he feared for his life in light of Dahlan's and Abbas' allegedly peculiar behavior.
Saudi newspaper Okaz quoted Palestinian sources claiming that Abbas' office, acting upon direct orders from the president, threatened to revoke Suha Arafat's monthly PA salary should she decline to deny what the statements she made to the Turkish newspaper.
According to the report, Suha, currently living in Malta near her brother, who is serving as Palestinian ambassador in the country, cried when she learned of the threats.
Pressure from Ramallah brought her to read a script to the media sent to her by Abbas' office denying that she had any knowledge of an assassination plot and attacking Kaddoumi for his statements against the PA.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
BLOWS FROM THOR'S HAMMER
OFFICER OF NO COLOR
By Dan Marcou
PoliceOne.com
July 25, 2009
"Racist!"
Every "Officer of no color" has been there. You’ve stopped a car at night for a violation. The windows are tinted to obscure the identity of the driver and when the contact is made it is learned that the person driving is a person of color. The yelling, the invectives, and the charges of racism begin immediately.
The officer will tell the driver the reason for the stop and even try at times to explain that the windows are tinted and jokingly point out a kangaroo could have been driving and you would not have been able to tell, but it is to no avail.
In the eyes of the driver he has judged the officer to be a racist even though the officer’s intentions were pure. The officer made the stop for the offense of the driver not the color of the driver.
You see, there are many officers out there who are "Officers of no color."
These officers enforce the law fairly and impartially and they pride themselves on doing so. They are White American Police Officers, African American Police Officers, Native American Police Officers, Asian American Police Officers, and Hispanic American Police Officers. They are simply American Police Officers.
They are professionals and exhibit fairness in the way they police.
The police professionals realize that criminals come in all colors and therefore to use color as an indicator would not only be unfair, but it would also hamper them in their efficiency. They aggressively pursue the criminal and arrest for the offense.
"Officers of no color" pride themselves on trying to police with a sense of fairness, but they face bigotry every day. They are treated rudely, prejudged, and even physically attacked because of their color -- not the color of their skin, but the color of their uniform.
Every "Officer of no color," has had to bear the burden of ugly words. Every "Officer of no color," has been called "stupid" or "racist" or much worse by people they protect and serve.
But what happens when the people who say these things about you are a "respected" college professor and his friend, the President of the United States? The words must strike like blows from Thor’s hammer.
These things were said about a widely respected police sergeant, who has spent his career as a role model, trying to set an example as an "officer of no color." He has taught other officers that they must pursue the criminal for the crime and not the color of their skin.
The President and the professor judged the noble heart of this officer by the color of his uniform. Considering the dizzying height from which this uninformed judgment came, it must have hurt the sergeant deeply.
The Sergeant will most certainly survive this verbal assault with the support of his family, his department, his community and his fellow officers. The Sergeant-trainer now has a real life example to share with his academy students about the ugly face of prejudice.
Sadly, the faces on the power point slide will belong to a president and a professor.
-----------
Dan Marcou retired as a highly decorated police lieutenant and SWAT Commander with 33 years as a police officer. He is a nationally recognized police trainer in many police disciplines and is a Master Trainer in the State of Wisconsin.
By Dan Marcou
PoliceOne.com
July 25, 2009
"Racist!"
Every "Officer of no color" has been there. You’ve stopped a car at night for a violation. The windows are tinted to obscure the identity of the driver and when the contact is made it is learned that the person driving is a person of color. The yelling, the invectives, and the charges of racism begin immediately.
The officer will tell the driver the reason for the stop and even try at times to explain that the windows are tinted and jokingly point out a kangaroo could have been driving and you would not have been able to tell, but it is to no avail.
In the eyes of the driver he has judged the officer to be a racist even though the officer’s intentions were pure. The officer made the stop for the offense of the driver not the color of the driver.
You see, there are many officers out there who are "Officers of no color."
These officers enforce the law fairly and impartially and they pride themselves on doing so. They are White American Police Officers, African American Police Officers, Native American Police Officers, Asian American Police Officers, and Hispanic American Police Officers. They are simply American Police Officers.
They are professionals and exhibit fairness in the way they police.
The police professionals realize that criminals come in all colors and therefore to use color as an indicator would not only be unfair, but it would also hamper them in their efficiency. They aggressively pursue the criminal and arrest for the offense.
"Officers of no color" pride themselves on trying to police with a sense of fairness, but they face bigotry every day. They are treated rudely, prejudged, and even physically attacked because of their color -- not the color of their skin, but the color of their uniform.
Every "Officer of no color," has had to bear the burden of ugly words. Every "Officer of no color," has been called "stupid" or "racist" or much worse by people they protect and serve.
But what happens when the people who say these things about you are a "respected" college professor and his friend, the President of the United States? The words must strike like blows from Thor’s hammer.
These things were said about a widely respected police sergeant, who has spent his career as a role model, trying to set an example as an "officer of no color." He has taught other officers that they must pursue the criminal for the crime and not the color of their skin.
The President and the professor judged the noble heart of this officer by the color of his uniform. Considering the dizzying height from which this uninformed judgment came, it must have hurt the sergeant deeply.
The Sergeant will most certainly survive this verbal assault with the support of his family, his department, his community and his fellow officers. The Sergeant-trainer now has a real life example to share with his academy students about the ugly face of prejudice.
Sadly, the faces on the power point slide will belong to a president and a professor.
-----------
Dan Marcou retired as a highly decorated police lieutenant and SWAT Commander with 33 years as a police officer. He is a nationally recognized police trainer in many police disciplines and is a Master Trainer in the State of Wisconsin.
POLICE OFFICERS AREN'T LIKE COLLEGE PROFESSORS
President Obama has been trying to wiggle out of the mess he made for himself in the Professor Gates arrest case. Now he says that both Sgt. Crowley and his friend Gates may have overreacted. WHAT A CROCK! Crowley didn’t overreact, it was his buddy Gates who went ballistic. Crowley was subjected to a lot of verbal abuse before he finally arrested the loud-mouthed professor.
Professor Gates and his supporters, including black professors Michael Eric Dyson and Lawrence Bobo, are milking the race card for all it’s worth. They must have earned their doctoral degrees at the Al Sharpton-Jesse Jackson College of Victimology.
Sharpton and Jackson were quick to pounce on the Gates case. Sharpton proclaimed, "This arrest is indicative of at best police abuse of power or at worst the highest example of racial profiling I have seen. I have heard of driving while black and even shopping while black but now even going to your own home while black is a new low." And Jackson said, "The charges have been dropped, but the stain remains. ... Humiliation remains. These incidents are so much of a national pattern on race."
The police did not humiliate Professor Gates - he humiliated himself. This was not a case of racial profiling, nor was it an example of how the police mistreat blacks in America. This was nothing more than a case wherein Gates took offense to the police investigation of a reported "Burglary in Progress" even though the cops were there to protect his property and possibly his life.
And contrary to what all the critics were saying, including Obama, the professor was not arrested inside his home - he was arrested for disorderly conduct only after he followed Sgt. Crowley out the front door and continued to rant and rave his racial crap before a crowd of onlookers and cops. .
"Don't Cop an Attitude" is a column by Rich Tucker that appeared in today’s Townhall.com. I have chosen to reproduce only a small part of Tucker’s column, excerpts that illustrate the milking of the race card in the Gates case and the absurdity of it all. Tucker wrote:
[Professor Gates’] friends plan to flog the supposed police racism for all it’s worth, too. "Ain’t nothing post-racial about the United States of America," wrote fellow Harvard prof Lawrence Bobo in the Post on July 22.
Bobo goes on to draw exactly the wrong lesson, lauding Gates for refusing to go along with the police. "I think my friend could have been physically injured by this police officer (if not worse) had he, in fact, stepped out of his home before showing his ID."
It’s difficult to believe that a Harvard professor would suggest that an American police officer would order a man into the front yard so he could beat or shoot the man. But that’s the gist of Bobo’s argument. Look: If the officer wanted to beat Gates up, he’d keep him in the house. The front yard, surrounded by witnesses and other officers, is the safest place to be if Gates is worried about being beaten.
There’s a reason the officer wanted Gates to come out of the house, and it’s not so he could pistol whip him (if not worse). It’s so the police could check the house and make sure there wasn’t anyone else -- an intruder -- there.
Police officers aren’t like college professors. They don’t have the luxury of being wrong. If the officer had simply left, and there was an intruder in Gates’s home who later attacked the professor ...... he wouldn’t have done his job.
EDITOR’S NOTE: With experience as both a cop and a professor, I can speak with some authority when I say, thank God police officers aren’t like college professors!
Professor Gates and his supporters, including black professors Michael Eric Dyson and Lawrence Bobo, are milking the race card for all it’s worth. They must have earned their doctoral degrees at the Al Sharpton-Jesse Jackson College of Victimology.
Sharpton and Jackson were quick to pounce on the Gates case. Sharpton proclaimed, "This arrest is indicative of at best police abuse of power or at worst the highest example of racial profiling I have seen. I have heard of driving while black and even shopping while black but now even going to your own home while black is a new low." And Jackson said, "The charges have been dropped, but the stain remains. ... Humiliation remains. These incidents are so much of a national pattern on race."
The police did not humiliate Professor Gates - he humiliated himself. This was not a case of racial profiling, nor was it an example of how the police mistreat blacks in America. This was nothing more than a case wherein Gates took offense to the police investigation of a reported "Burglary in Progress" even though the cops were there to protect his property and possibly his life.
And contrary to what all the critics were saying, including Obama, the professor was not arrested inside his home - he was arrested for disorderly conduct only after he followed Sgt. Crowley out the front door and continued to rant and rave his racial crap before a crowd of onlookers and cops. .
"Don't Cop an Attitude" is a column by Rich Tucker that appeared in today’s Townhall.com. I have chosen to reproduce only a small part of Tucker’s column, excerpts that illustrate the milking of the race card in the Gates case and the absurdity of it all. Tucker wrote:
[Professor Gates’] friends plan to flog the supposed police racism for all it’s worth, too. "Ain’t nothing post-racial about the United States of America," wrote fellow Harvard prof Lawrence Bobo in the Post on July 22.
Bobo goes on to draw exactly the wrong lesson, lauding Gates for refusing to go along with the police. "I think my friend could have been physically injured by this police officer (if not worse) had he, in fact, stepped out of his home before showing his ID."
It’s difficult to believe that a Harvard professor would suggest that an American police officer would order a man into the front yard so he could beat or shoot the man. But that’s the gist of Bobo’s argument. Look: If the officer wanted to beat Gates up, he’d keep him in the house. The front yard, surrounded by witnesses and other officers, is the safest place to be if Gates is worried about being beaten.
There’s a reason the officer wanted Gates to come out of the house, and it’s not so he could pistol whip him (if not worse). It’s so the police could check the house and make sure there wasn’t anyone else -- an intruder -- there.
Police officers aren’t like college professors. They don’t have the luxury of being wrong. If the officer had simply left, and there was an intruder in Gates’s home who later attacked the professor ...... he wouldn’t have done his job.
EDITOR’S NOTE: With experience as both a cop and a professor, I can speak with some authority when I say, thank God police officers aren’t like college professors!
Friday, July 24, 2009
A JEWISH MILITIA IN THE U.S.?
This will really give New York authorities a good dose of the shits. And America’s liberal Jews must be bristling at the suggestion they purchase, God forbid, their own firearms for self-defense. Oy vey!
IDF VETS TRAIN U.S. JEWS TO PROTECT THEIR COMMUNITIES
by Maayana Miskin
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 24, 2009
Starting in late July, a group of Israeli combat veterans will be holding a training camp in New York to teach advanced self-defense techniques to Jews in U.S. communities. An increasing number of American Jews have expressed interest in the program following a wave of anti-Semitic incidents worldwide over the past year, organizers report.
The group calls itself Kitat Konenut New York – a reference to the "rapid response teams" active throughout Judea and Samaria. Rapid response teams in Israel, comprised of local civilians who are IDF veterans, have often been the first on the scene of terrorist attacks and other emergencies, and have prevented casualties.
It was founded in 2006 in response to a shooting attack at a Jewish center in Seattle, Washington. One woman was murdered in the attack, and several others were wounded.
The group is apolitical, and does not take part in demonstrations. "Our agenda is to protect Jews," says group member Yonatan Stern.
However, the group does have a firmly held political belief. "We believe in the constitutional right to bear arms," Stern says. Kitat Konenut encourages all American Jews to learn how to use weapons, and to purchase their own firearms for self-defense.
Trainees learn the IDF's unique martial arts style, known as Krav Maga, and learn to identify suspicious objects and dismantle improvised explosives. They are also trained to use a variety of both non-lethal and lethal weapons, including assault rifles and sniper rifles. Trainers review techniques to deal with situations ranging from knife fights to urban warfare.
Training this year will begin on July 31 and conclude on August 9.
IDF VETS TRAIN U.S. JEWS TO PROTECT THEIR COMMUNITIES
by Maayana Miskin
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 24, 2009
Starting in late July, a group of Israeli combat veterans will be holding a training camp in New York to teach advanced self-defense techniques to Jews in U.S. communities. An increasing number of American Jews have expressed interest in the program following a wave of anti-Semitic incidents worldwide over the past year, organizers report.
The group calls itself Kitat Konenut New York – a reference to the "rapid response teams" active throughout Judea and Samaria. Rapid response teams in Israel, comprised of local civilians who are IDF veterans, have often been the first on the scene of terrorist attacks and other emergencies, and have prevented casualties.
It was founded in 2006 in response to a shooting attack at a Jewish center in Seattle, Washington. One woman was murdered in the attack, and several others were wounded.
The group is apolitical, and does not take part in demonstrations. "Our agenda is to protect Jews," says group member Yonatan Stern.
However, the group does have a firmly held political belief. "We believe in the constitutional right to bear arms," Stern says. Kitat Konenut encourages all American Jews to learn how to use weapons, and to purchase their own firearms for self-defense.
Trainees learn the IDF's unique martial arts style, known as Krav Maga, and learn to identify suspicious objects and dismantle improvised explosives. They are also trained to use a variety of both non-lethal and lethal weapons, including assault rifles and sniper rifles. Trainers review techniques to deal with situations ranging from knife fights to urban warfare.
Training this year will begin on July 31 and conclude on August 9.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
"ACTED STUPIDLY" - THE KETTLE CALLING THE POT BLACK
"I don’t know – not having been there and not seeing all the facts – what role race played in that, but I think it’s fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home."
That’s what President Obama told reporters during a press conference in response to a question about the arrest of his friend Henry Louis Gates Jr., director of Harvard University's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. Obama admitted that Gates "is a friend, so I may be a little biased here. I don't know all the facts."
Acted stupidly? That’s the kettle calling the pot black. The president acted even more stupidly than the Cambridge police when he made that statement without knowing the actual facts. A little biased? Now that’s an understatement if there ever was one.
When Gates returned home from a trip, he attempted to force open his front door but was unable to gain entrance because it had been jammed during a previous break-in. He and his driver then went to the back and jimmied their way in. They were observed by a woman who called the police to report what she thaught was a burglary being committed. The police responded to a "Burglary in Progress" call and were met at the front door by an outraged Harvard professor.
Instead of calming down while the officers tried to determine whether he was a burlar or not, Gates accused the officers of racism and the situation escalated until he was arrested for disorderly conduct after drawing a crowd of onlookers and cops. After he spent a couple of hours in the pokey, the charges were dropped.
In the arrest report, police said Gates initially refused to step onto his porch when approached by Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley. He then allegedly opened his door and shouted, "Why, because I'm a black man in America?"
"As Crowley continued to question Gates, the Harvard professor allegedly told him, 'You don't know who you're messing with.' When Crowley asked to speak with him outside, Gates allegedly said, 'Ya, I'll speak with your momma outside.'"
Crowley says he responded to a call of a possible break-in by a woman on the sidewalk, who said she'd seen a black male "wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry." Crowley reported he "could see an older black male standing in the foyer." He continued: "As I stood in plain view of this man, later identified as Gates, I asked if he would step out onto the porch and speak with me. He replied 'no, I will not.' He then demanded to know who I was. I told him that I was 'Sgt. Crowley from the Cambridge Police' and that I was 'investigating a report of a break in progress' at the residence. While I was making this statement, Gates opened the front door and exclaimed 'why, because I'm a black man in America?' I then asked Gates if there was anyone else in the residence. While yelling, he told me that it was none of my business and accused me of being a racist police officer."
Crowley's report, as well as that of another responding officer, describe Gates yelling repeated accusations of racism while asserting that the officer "had no idea who (he) was 'messing' with" and that the officer "had not heard the last of it."
After initially refusing to produce any identification confirming his residence, Gates finally supplied a Harvard ID. By that time, a crowd of officers and passers-by was outside. In front of the house and "in view of the public," Crowley states he twice warned Gates that he was becoming disorderly. But Gates' yelling and "tumultuous behavior" continued, causing "surprise and alarm" in the citizenry outside. Crowley then placed Gates under arrest.
Crowley "asked Gates if he would like an officer to take possession of his house key and secure his front door, which he left wide open." Gates said "the door was unsecurable due to a previous break attempt at the residence."
Professor Gates' version is that Sgt Crowley walked into his home without his permission and only arrested him as the professor followed him to the porch, repeatedly demanding the sergeant's name and badge number because he was unhappy over his treatment. Gates complained that he was victimized by a "rogue cop." To hear him tell it, Sgt. Crowley was out of control while he was calm, cool and collected throughout.
After his release from jail, Gates asserted that he was the victim of racial profiling. The Congressional Black Caucus quickly chimed in with the same accusation. And Michael Eric Dyson, a prominent black Georgetown University sociology professor, was all over the airwaves spouting off about the mistreatment of blacks by the police in America.
Could the Cambridge police officers have handled this case without making an arrest? Yes, but to accuse them of being racist is a real stretch. At least one of the arresting officers was black. And Crowley was a campus police officer at Brandeis University in July 1993 when he administered mouth to mouth resuscitation trying to save the life of Reggie Lewis, a black former Boston Celtics player, something a racist cop would be reluctant to do.
Police officers in most college towns tend to be well educated and, like campus cops, are instructed to tolerate verbal abuse and to avoid making any unnecessary arrests. Given the same circumstances, I believe that had Gates been white, he would still have been arrested. While I agree with Obama that any of us would be angry in a similar situation, that does not in any way excuse the professor’s abusive behavior.
Stupid is as stupid does. For the president, a graduate of Columbia University and Harvard law school, to make an accusatory public statement without knowing the actual facts is an extraordinary act of stupidity and makes him look like an educated idiot.
That’s what President Obama told reporters during a press conference in response to a question about the arrest of his friend Henry Louis Gates Jr., director of Harvard University's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. Obama admitted that Gates "is a friend, so I may be a little biased here. I don't know all the facts."
Acted stupidly? That’s the kettle calling the pot black. The president acted even more stupidly than the Cambridge police when he made that statement without knowing the actual facts. A little biased? Now that’s an understatement if there ever was one.
When Gates returned home from a trip, he attempted to force open his front door but was unable to gain entrance because it had been jammed during a previous break-in. He and his driver then went to the back and jimmied their way in. They were observed by a woman who called the police to report what she thaught was a burglary being committed. The police responded to a "Burglary in Progress" call and were met at the front door by an outraged Harvard professor.
Instead of calming down while the officers tried to determine whether he was a burlar or not, Gates accused the officers of racism and the situation escalated until he was arrested for disorderly conduct after drawing a crowd of onlookers and cops. After he spent a couple of hours in the pokey, the charges were dropped.
In the arrest report, police said Gates initially refused to step onto his porch when approached by Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley. He then allegedly opened his door and shouted, "Why, because I'm a black man in America?"
"As Crowley continued to question Gates, the Harvard professor allegedly told him, 'You don't know who you're messing with.' When Crowley asked to speak with him outside, Gates allegedly said, 'Ya, I'll speak with your momma outside.'"
Crowley says he responded to a call of a possible break-in by a woman on the sidewalk, who said she'd seen a black male "wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry." Crowley reported he "could see an older black male standing in the foyer." He continued: "As I stood in plain view of this man, later identified as Gates, I asked if he would step out onto the porch and speak with me. He replied 'no, I will not.' He then demanded to know who I was. I told him that I was 'Sgt. Crowley from the Cambridge Police' and that I was 'investigating a report of a break in progress' at the residence. While I was making this statement, Gates opened the front door and exclaimed 'why, because I'm a black man in America?' I then asked Gates if there was anyone else in the residence. While yelling, he told me that it was none of my business and accused me of being a racist police officer."
Crowley's report, as well as that of another responding officer, describe Gates yelling repeated accusations of racism while asserting that the officer "had no idea who (he) was 'messing' with" and that the officer "had not heard the last of it."
After initially refusing to produce any identification confirming his residence, Gates finally supplied a Harvard ID. By that time, a crowd of officers and passers-by was outside. In front of the house and "in view of the public," Crowley states he twice warned Gates that he was becoming disorderly. But Gates' yelling and "tumultuous behavior" continued, causing "surprise and alarm" in the citizenry outside. Crowley then placed Gates under arrest.
Crowley "asked Gates if he would like an officer to take possession of his house key and secure his front door, which he left wide open." Gates said "the door was unsecurable due to a previous break attempt at the residence."
Professor Gates' version is that Sgt Crowley walked into his home without his permission and only arrested him as the professor followed him to the porch, repeatedly demanding the sergeant's name and badge number because he was unhappy over his treatment. Gates complained that he was victimized by a "rogue cop." To hear him tell it, Sgt. Crowley was out of control while he was calm, cool and collected throughout.
After his release from jail, Gates asserted that he was the victim of racial profiling. The Congressional Black Caucus quickly chimed in with the same accusation. And Michael Eric Dyson, a prominent black Georgetown University sociology professor, was all over the airwaves spouting off about the mistreatment of blacks by the police in America.
Could the Cambridge police officers have handled this case without making an arrest? Yes, but to accuse them of being racist is a real stretch. At least one of the arresting officers was black. And Crowley was a campus police officer at Brandeis University in July 1993 when he administered mouth to mouth resuscitation trying to save the life of Reggie Lewis, a black former Boston Celtics player, something a racist cop would be reluctant to do.
Police officers in most college towns tend to be well educated and, like campus cops, are instructed to tolerate verbal abuse and to avoid making any unnecessary arrests. Given the same circumstances, I believe that had Gates been white, he would still have been arrested. While I agree with Obama that any of us would be angry in a similar situation, that does not in any way excuse the professor’s abusive behavior.
Stupid is as stupid does. For the president, a graduate of Columbia University and Harvard law school, to make an accusatory public statement without knowing the actual facts is an extraordinary act of stupidity and makes him look like an educated idiot.
Monday, July 20, 2009
ISRAEL'S PUBLIC ENEMY NO. 1
Recently I wrote that President Barack Obama was on the verge of becoming Israel’s Public Enemy No. 1. First he insists that Israel must stop all construction for natural growth in long established settlements. Now his administration "demands" that Israel not build any new Jewish housing in East Jerusalem because that part of the city is what the Palestinians want for their capital.
But in order to become public enemy no. 1, Obama has to push former President Jimmy Carter out of that lofty position. When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the establishment of a Palestinian state existing alongside a Jewish state, Jimmy Carter piped in by denouncing the concept of a "Jewish state."
Here is how the Simon Wiesenthal Center recounts the reaction to the speech Netanyahu gave in response to Obama’s Muslim embracing Cairo speech:
"It is increasingly clear that nothing will deter the enemies of a strong Israel. They are hard at work honing their newest tactic: CHALLENGING ISRAEL’S FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO EXIST AS A JEWISH STATE. It’s an insidious campaign that …… in the last few weeks, there have been a number of alarming developments that should have all friends of Israel deeply concerned.
The chorus is growing ever-louder, calling for Israel to do what no other country has ever been asked to do – PLACE ITS VERY IDENTITY AND CORE VALUES ON THE NEGOTIATING TABLE.
[Netanyahu's] words reflected Israel’s deep commitment to seeking a permanent end to the conflict – which will include the establishment of a Palestinian state – after the Palestinian leadership signals its people that it is finally time for a real peace.
But instead of lauding Netanyahu’s initiative, former President Carter, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and top Palestinian leaders declared NETANYAHU’S SPEECH HAD RUINED THE CHANCES FOR AN ACCORD!
Carter cited several ‘hurdles’ to peace in the speech, saying, ‘[Netanyahu) demands that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state even though 20% of Israel’s citizens are not Jews.’ And Mubarak declared that ‘the prime minister of Israel’s call to the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state thwarts the chances for peace.’
Palestinian Authority negotiations department head Saeb Erekat stated that ‘NOT IN A THOUSAND YEARS’ would the Palestinians agree to Israeli conditions. And Nabil Abu Rudeina, spokesman for the PA president declared, ‘The speech has destroyed all peace initiatives and [chances for] a solution.’
And an editorial in the Palestinian daily newspaper stated, ‘Netanyahu spat in the face of all those who counted on Obama’s magic wand to swallow the serpents of the settlements and to make Netanyahu change his skin and recognize the two state [solution].’
Hamas also issued a statement calling the demand to recognize a Jewish state a ‘racist position.’ And a senior Hamas official declared, ‘This speech proves that resistance is the only way for the Palestinian people to attain its legitimate rights.’
……The current challenges to Israel are many-faceted. Indeed, former President Carter used his recent visit to the region to bestow a measure of legitimacy on the Hamas government by meeting with its leaders – despite the fact that Hamas is still considered an official terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union. Carter is even going so far as to lobby the Obama administration to reward Hamas by removing it from the terrorist list.
This dangerous double-standard of befriending and accepting terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hizbollah while condemning democratic Israel serves only one goal – delegitimizing and isolating Israel in the international community, thus endangering her citizens and supporters worldwide."
I don’t know why Carter has taken such virulent anti-Israel and anti-Jewish positions. However, it has become very clear to me that President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are intent on bringing down Netanyahu's fragile government coalition, believing he will be replaced by a dovish leader like Tzipi Livni of the Kadima party.
Friends do not make "demands" of a sovereign nation, only enemies do. As I’ve said before, with friends like Obama and Carter, Israel doesn’t need any enemies.
But in order to become public enemy no. 1, Obama has to push former President Jimmy Carter out of that lofty position. When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to the establishment of a Palestinian state existing alongside a Jewish state, Jimmy Carter piped in by denouncing the concept of a "Jewish state."
Here is how the Simon Wiesenthal Center recounts the reaction to the speech Netanyahu gave in response to Obama’s Muslim embracing Cairo speech:
"It is increasingly clear that nothing will deter the enemies of a strong Israel. They are hard at work honing their newest tactic: CHALLENGING ISRAEL’S FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO EXIST AS A JEWISH STATE. It’s an insidious campaign that …… in the last few weeks, there have been a number of alarming developments that should have all friends of Israel deeply concerned.
The chorus is growing ever-louder, calling for Israel to do what no other country has ever been asked to do – PLACE ITS VERY IDENTITY AND CORE VALUES ON THE NEGOTIATING TABLE.
[Netanyahu's] words reflected Israel’s deep commitment to seeking a permanent end to the conflict – which will include the establishment of a Palestinian state – after the Palestinian leadership signals its people that it is finally time for a real peace.
But instead of lauding Netanyahu’s initiative, former President Carter, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and top Palestinian leaders declared NETANYAHU’S SPEECH HAD RUINED THE CHANCES FOR AN ACCORD!
Carter cited several ‘hurdles’ to peace in the speech, saying, ‘[Netanyahu) demands that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state even though 20% of Israel’s citizens are not Jews.’ And Mubarak declared that ‘the prime minister of Israel’s call to the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state thwarts the chances for peace.’
Palestinian Authority negotiations department head Saeb Erekat stated that ‘NOT IN A THOUSAND YEARS’ would the Palestinians agree to Israeli conditions. And Nabil Abu Rudeina, spokesman for the PA president declared, ‘The speech has destroyed all peace initiatives and [chances for] a solution.’
And an editorial in the Palestinian daily newspaper stated, ‘Netanyahu spat in the face of all those who counted on Obama’s magic wand to swallow the serpents of the settlements and to make Netanyahu change his skin and recognize the two state [solution].’
Hamas also issued a statement calling the demand to recognize a Jewish state a ‘racist position.’ And a senior Hamas official declared, ‘This speech proves that resistance is the only way for the Palestinian people to attain its legitimate rights.’
……The current challenges to Israel are many-faceted. Indeed, former President Carter used his recent visit to the region to bestow a measure of legitimacy on the Hamas government by meeting with its leaders – despite the fact that Hamas is still considered an official terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union. Carter is even going so far as to lobby the Obama administration to reward Hamas by removing it from the terrorist list.
This dangerous double-standard of befriending and accepting terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hizbollah while condemning democratic Israel serves only one goal – delegitimizing and isolating Israel in the international community, thus endangering her citizens and supporters worldwide."
I don’t know why Carter has taken such virulent anti-Israel and anti-Jewish positions. However, it has become very clear to me that President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are intent on bringing down Netanyahu's fragile government coalition, believing he will be replaced by a dovish leader like Tzipi Livni of the Kadima party.
Friends do not make "demands" of a sovereign nation, only enemies do. As I’ve said before, with friends like Obama and Carter, Israel doesn’t need any enemies.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
PUSSY LEADS TO LYNCHING BY POSSE
When this report first came out I intended to blog it but got sidetracked. Even at this late date, this story is too good to leave out of my blog.
POLICE: CONN. TEENS MISHEAR SEX SCREEMS, BEAT MAN
By Dave Collins, Associated Press Writer
July 2, 2009
HARTFORD, Conn. – A 16-year-old girl thought she heard her mother being assaulted by her boyfriend and rounded up some friends who beat him up, only to learn later that the couple actually were having sex, the woman and police said. The girl misinterpreted the woman's amorous screams, and she and four other teens went to the woman's bedroom in the Torrington home on June 6, police Lt. Bruce Whiteley said Thursday.
One of the teens beat the 25-year-old man with a bat and others punched him, police said. He suffered a black eye and several bruises.
The girl, two 17-year-old boys and Dilyen Langdeau, 19, of Torrington, were arrested Tuesday night and arraigned in Bantam Superior Court on Wednesday. Langdeau was charged with assault and conspiracy; the teens face similar counts. The fifth teenager was not charged.
A judge sealed the police report. The names of the girl and the two boys were not released because of their ages.
The 34-year-old woman, Melanie Arnold, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the girl is her daughter. Arnold denied she was screaming, and said her daughter thought she heard a slap and believed an assault was happening.
"Instead of asking what was going on, they assumed and took matters into their own hands," Arnold said. "Now they have to learn a lesson."
The teens knocked on the bedroom door and Arnold opened it, according to the couple, who recently broke up.
The teens rushed into the room and the man, Roger Swanson, said he didn't have a chance to explain himself. He said he tried to get away, but the teens chased him down and started beating him in the house.
He said he knelt down over a chair and tried to protect his face, but got hit in the eye and in the back. He said Arnold covered his back to try to protect him, but the teen with the bat started hitting him in the legs. Then the youths left.
"What if they fight someone else and those guys don't walk away? What if they kill somebody?" he said. "Then they're going to spend the rest of their lives in jail. These kids need to learn, go through the court system and see if you do something to somebody, you see what happens."
POLICE: CONN. TEENS MISHEAR SEX SCREEMS, BEAT MAN
By Dave Collins, Associated Press Writer
July 2, 2009
HARTFORD, Conn. – A 16-year-old girl thought she heard her mother being assaulted by her boyfriend and rounded up some friends who beat him up, only to learn later that the couple actually were having sex, the woman and police said. The girl misinterpreted the woman's amorous screams, and she and four other teens went to the woman's bedroom in the Torrington home on June 6, police Lt. Bruce Whiteley said Thursday.
One of the teens beat the 25-year-old man with a bat and others punched him, police said. He suffered a black eye and several bruises.
The girl, two 17-year-old boys and Dilyen Langdeau, 19, of Torrington, were arrested Tuesday night and arraigned in Bantam Superior Court on Wednesday. Langdeau was charged with assault and conspiracy; the teens face similar counts. The fifth teenager was not charged.
A judge sealed the police report. The names of the girl and the two boys were not released because of their ages.
The 34-year-old woman, Melanie Arnold, told The Associated Press on Thursday that the girl is her daughter. Arnold denied she was screaming, and said her daughter thought she heard a slap and believed an assault was happening.
"Instead of asking what was going on, they assumed and took matters into their own hands," Arnold said. "Now they have to learn a lesson."
The teens knocked on the bedroom door and Arnold opened it, according to the couple, who recently broke up.
The teens rushed into the room and the man, Roger Swanson, said he didn't have a chance to explain himself. He said he tried to get away, but the teens chased him down and started beating him in the house.
He said he knelt down over a chair and tried to protect his face, but got hit in the eye and in the back. He said Arnold covered his back to try to protect him, but the teen with the bat started hitting him in the legs. Then the youths left.
"What if they fight someone else and those guys don't walk away? What if they kill somebody?" he said. "Then they're going to spend the rest of their lives in jail. These kids need to learn, go through the court system and see if you do something to somebody, you see what happens."
HOSPTIAL CHARGED EX-CON $6,792 FOR A POLICE-ORDERED RECTAL SEARCH
What really got my attention in this story was the audacity of the hospital in charging a man for a rectal search which had been ordered by law enforcement authorities.
Just as farfetched was the no search warrant "cover your ass" bullshit medical emergency justification put forth by the police and the hospital. Here is the whole story from the Times Union of Albany:
MAN SEDATED DRUING SEARCH GETS $125,000
Out-of-court settlement reached with ex-convict, Albany County, hospital
by Brendan J. Lyons, Senior Writer
timesunion.com
July 18, 2009
ALBANY -- A man who was forcibly sedated so his body could be searched for drugs that were never found will receive $125,000 under an out-of-court settlement reached recently with Albany County and Albany Medical Center Hospital.
The settlement stems from a federal lawsuit filed two years ago by Tunde Clement, an ex-convict arrested by sheriff's investigators on March 13, 2006, at the Albany bus terminal.
Clement was carrying a backpack when he stepped off a bus from New York City and was quickly confronted by investigators who suspected he may be carrying drugs.
Clement, 35, who police claim had an outstanding warrant for failing to appear in court in a neighboring city, was handcuffed and taken to a police station where he was strip-searched. No contraband was found, so Clement was taken to Albany Med, where doctors forcibly sedated him with powerful drugs against his will.
Sheriff's investigators did not obtain a search warrant for the procedure, and hospital officials did not require them to produce one. Police and hospital officials considered the matter a "medical emergency."
While Clement was under sedation, a camera was inserted in his rectum, he was forced to vomit and his blood and urine were tested for drugs and alcohol. Scans of his digestive system were performed using X-ray machines, according to hospital records obtained by the Times Union.
Clement spent more than 10 hours in custody before being released on an appearance ticket for resisting arrest -- a charge that was later thrown out by an Albany City Court judge.
"I think the settlement speaks for itself," said John F. Queenan, Clement's attorney in the federal lawsuit.
Clement's suit claimed his civil rights were violated. He filed the federal complaint against Albany Med and several doctors and nurses, and also sued Albany County and Sheriff James Campbell, Inspector John Burke, who heads the narcotics squad that arrested Clement, and eight investigators assigned to Burke's unit.
He claimed he was a victim of assault and battery when officials strapped him down and injected him with drugs against his will and with no medical need or emergency.
After being led from the bus station in handcuffs, Clement was taken to a holding cell in the county Judicial Center. He was forced to strip naked, squat and cough as investigators wrongly concluded he was hiding drugs inside his body.
He was then taken to the emergency room. Medical records indicate a doctor called the hospital's risk management director to assess the liability exposure of what they were about to do.
People under arrest normally cannot be forcibly sedated without a court order unless they are in imminent danger, such as when a bag of drugs bursts inside them and they have a seizure or fall unconscious. The hospital's records indicate Clement was behaving normally and showed no signs of any medical emergency.
"Spoke to Shirley of Risk Management," a physician wrote, documenting the medical decision-making that day. "OK to treat, sedate & remove FOB (foreign object body) against (patient's) will despite his personal refusal."
The following month Clement received a $6,792 bill from Albany Med for the procedures. Hospital records indicate the final diagnosis as "hemorrhoids."
"Every step of the way there was a factual basis for everything that was done by the law enforcement personnel in the case from the initial stop, and learning there was an arrest warrant, and then being advised there was a medical emergency," said Thomas J. O'Connor, an attorney for Investigator Douglas Vogel, who is assigned to the narcotics unit. "They were afraid for his life."
Lawyers for the hospital and Albany County could not be reached. The county's share is $65,000.
The sheriff's department's stop-and-frisk tactics at the downtown bus station have drawn harsh criticism from defense attorneys and civil rights advocates. Eight years ago, the state's highest court issued a searing rebuke of their methods while overturning the conviction of a passenger who'd been arrested carrying three ounces of cocaine.
The Court of Appeals said it was improper for the investigators to board buses from New York City and flash their badges, waiting for passengers to react. Now, sheriff's investigators said they no longer single out buses from New York City and simply approach passengers who appear to be acting suspiciously.
Clement was paroled from state prison last month after serving less than two years on a drug charge related to an arrest in Albany.
Just as farfetched was the no search warrant "cover your ass" bullshit medical emergency justification put forth by the police and the hospital. Here is the whole story from the Times Union of Albany:
MAN SEDATED DRUING SEARCH GETS $125,000
Out-of-court settlement reached with ex-convict, Albany County, hospital
by Brendan J. Lyons, Senior Writer
timesunion.com
July 18, 2009
ALBANY -- A man who was forcibly sedated so his body could be searched for drugs that were never found will receive $125,000 under an out-of-court settlement reached recently with Albany County and Albany Medical Center Hospital.
The settlement stems from a federal lawsuit filed two years ago by Tunde Clement, an ex-convict arrested by sheriff's investigators on March 13, 2006, at the Albany bus terminal.
Clement was carrying a backpack when he stepped off a bus from New York City and was quickly confronted by investigators who suspected he may be carrying drugs.
Clement, 35, who police claim had an outstanding warrant for failing to appear in court in a neighboring city, was handcuffed and taken to a police station where he was strip-searched. No contraband was found, so Clement was taken to Albany Med, where doctors forcibly sedated him with powerful drugs against his will.
Sheriff's investigators did not obtain a search warrant for the procedure, and hospital officials did not require them to produce one. Police and hospital officials considered the matter a "medical emergency."
While Clement was under sedation, a camera was inserted in his rectum, he was forced to vomit and his blood and urine were tested for drugs and alcohol. Scans of his digestive system were performed using X-ray machines, according to hospital records obtained by the Times Union.
Clement spent more than 10 hours in custody before being released on an appearance ticket for resisting arrest -- a charge that was later thrown out by an Albany City Court judge.
"I think the settlement speaks for itself," said John F. Queenan, Clement's attorney in the federal lawsuit.
Clement's suit claimed his civil rights were violated. He filed the federal complaint against Albany Med and several doctors and nurses, and also sued Albany County and Sheriff James Campbell, Inspector John Burke, who heads the narcotics squad that arrested Clement, and eight investigators assigned to Burke's unit.
He claimed he was a victim of assault and battery when officials strapped him down and injected him with drugs against his will and with no medical need or emergency.
After being led from the bus station in handcuffs, Clement was taken to a holding cell in the county Judicial Center. He was forced to strip naked, squat and cough as investigators wrongly concluded he was hiding drugs inside his body.
He was then taken to the emergency room. Medical records indicate a doctor called the hospital's risk management director to assess the liability exposure of what they were about to do.
People under arrest normally cannot be forcibly sedated without a court order unless they are in imminent danger, such as when a bag of drugs bursts inside them and they have a seizure or fall unconscious. The hospital's records indicate Clement was behaving normally and showed no signs of any medical emergency.
"Spoke to Shirley of Risk Management," a physician wrote, documenting the medical decision-making that day. "OK to treat, sedate & remove FOB (foreign object body) against (patient's) will despite his personal refusal."
The following month Clement received a $6,792 bill from Albany Med for the procedures. Hospital records indicate the final diagnosis as "hemorrhoids."
"Every step of the way there was a factual basis for everything that was done by the law enforcement personnel in the case from the initial stop, and learning there was an arrest warrant, and then being advised there was a medical emergency," said Thomas J. O'Connor, an attorney for Investigator Douglas Vogel, who is assigned to the narcotics unit. "They were afraid for his life."
Lawyers for the hospital and Albany County could not be reached. The county's share is $65,000.
The sheriff's department's stop-and-frisk tactics at the downtown bus station have drawn harsh criticism from defense attorneys and civil rights advocates. Eight years ago, the state's highest court issued a searing rebuke of their methods while overturning the conviction of a passenger who'd been arrested carrying three ounces of cocaine.
The Court of Appeals said it was improper for the investigators to board buses from New York City and flash their badges, waiting for passengers to react. Now, sheriff's investigators said they no longer single out buses from New York City and simply approach passengers who appear to be acting suspiciously.
Clement was paroled from state prison last month after serving less than two years on a drug charge related to an arrest in Albany.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
GUN OWNERS: BE WARY OF USING DEADLY FORCE TO PROTECT SOMEONE OTHER THAN A FAMILY MEMBER OR FRIEND
Bob Walsh, a regular contributor to PacoVilla’s Corrections Blog, posted some important information on Paco’s blog concerning the use of deadly force. I have chosen to reproduce the part that deals with the use of deadly force to protect someone other than a family member or friend. Gun owners beware! Use caution in coming to the defense of another because things may not be as they appear to be.
From Bob Walsh on PacoVilla’s Corrections Blog:
"………. using deadly force to protect others is an incredibly risky thing, legally speaking, for a private citizen to do.
When you are protecting yourself (and others immediately with you) you have a pretty good idea of what is going on. When you stick your nose into somebody elses business you can be surprised big time as to what the facts really are. If you do so you are risking your freedom and every nickle you own or can ever hope to own on you being right, and a judge and jury agreeing with you. A case in point.
A young girl, maybe 12 or 13 years old, is riding her bicycle down the street. A much older man in a ratty pickup truck pulls in front of her to stop her and has a few words with her. She appears to be yelling at him. He physically grabs her and forces her into the pickup truck, throws her bicycle in the back and drives off.
What really happened? What, if anything, do you do about it?
What actually happened is that her mother sent her uncle to bring her home for dinner and she didn't want to go, she wanted to keep riding her bike. This real incident kept most of the police force of a major California city busy for the better part of a day. The people involved were immigrants, did not speak English and didn't know every cop in the county was looking for them until a friend who saw the 6:00 o'clock news mentioned it to them in passing that evening.
Let's say for the sake of argument say that you elected to intervene. The uncle sees someone (you) trying to stop his truck, doesn't know what's going on and keeps going. You pull a gun. He tries to run you down in self defense, you shoot at him, maybe hit him, maybe hit the girl. Whose ass do you think is going to be in jail that night?"
From Bob Walsh on PacoVilla’s Corrections Blog:
"………. using deadly force to protect others is an incredibly risky thing, legally speaking, for a private citizen to do.
When you are protecting yourself (and others immediately with you) you have a pretty good idea of what is going on. When you stick your nose into somebody elses business you can be surprised big time as to what the facts really are. If you do so you are risking your freedom and every nickle you own or can ever hope to own on you being right, and a judge and jury agreeing with you. A case in point.
A young girl, maybe 12 or 13 years old, is riding her bicycle down the street. A much older man in a ratty pickup truck pulls in front of her to stop her and has a few words with her. She appears to be yelling at him. He physically grabs her and forces her into the pickup truck, throws her bicycle in the back and drives off.
What really happened? What, if anything, do you do about it?
What actually happened is that her mother sent her uncle to bring her home for dinner and she didn't want to go, she wanted to keep riding her bike. This real incident kept most of the police force of a major California city busy for the better part of a day. The people involved were immigrants, did not speak English and didn't know every cop in the county was looking for them until a friend who saw the 6:00 o'clock news mentioned it to them in passing that evening.
Let's say for the sake of argument say that you elected to intervene. The uncle sees someone (you) trying to stop his truck, doesn't know what's going on and keeps going. You pull a gun. He tries to run you down in self defense, you shoot at him, maybe hit him, maybe hit the girl. Whose ass do you think is going to be in jail that night?"
ALARMING CRIME PREDICTIONS
While California is experiencing a financial meltdown, other states are suffering from some serious budget shortfalls as well. In order to reduce expenditures, those states are resorting to the early release of state prison inmates, the same as California. While early releases will result in significant savings over the short term, they will put the public at great risk and eventually cost the states far more money than they saved.
The Los Angeles Police Protective League, LAPD’s union, released some alarming crime predictions on the early release of felons. According to independent research organizations, for every 5,000 felons who receive an early release, 45,500 new crimes will be committed over a three-year period, and 9,000 of those crimes will be violent felonies. Those predictions apply to all states, not just the State of California.
LA POLICE PROTEST PROPOSED EARLY RELEASE OF PRISON INMATES
Los Angeles Daily News Wire Services
July 17, 209
The union that represents the Los Angeles Police Department rank-and-file issued a protest today against what it said was a plan by state lawmakers that would result in a "massive release of felons to achieve budget savings."
"The early release of felons from state prison is one of the `strategies' to score budget savings," the Los Angeles Police Protective League said in a statement.
"Our sources inform us that the proposed budget will result in a reduction of $1.2 billion in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (budget). Although no one in the Legislature has made any of this public, we can safely guess that numbers like this translate into the early release of about 20,000 felons."
Citing "information from independent research organizations," the union continued:
"For every 5,000 felons who receive an early release, 45,500 new crimes will be committed over a three-year period, and 9,000 of those crimes will be violent felonies. Applied to the 20,000 felons set for release under the budget proposal, this would result in an estimated 182,000 new crimes being committed over the next three years -- 35,000 of them violent felonies!"
LAPPL President Paul M. Weber urged voters in a statement to contact legislators "and warn them of the dire public safety consequences of a mass early release of felons from state prisons..."
The Los Angeles Police Protective League, LAPD’s union, released some alarming crime predictions on the early release of felons. According to independent research organizations, for every 5,000 felons who receive an early release, 45,500 new crimes will be committed over a three-year period, and 9,000 of those crimes will be violent felonies. Those predictions apply to all states, not just the State of California.
LA POLICE PROTEST PROPOSED EARLY RELEASE OF PRISON INMATES
Los Angeles Daily News Wire Services
July 17, 209
The union that represents the Los Angeles Police Department rank-and-file issued a protest today against what it said was a plan by state lawmakers that would result in a "massive release of felons to achieve budget savings."
"The early release of felons from state prison is one of the `strategies' to score budget savings," the Los Angeles Police Protective League said in a statement.
"Our sources inform us that the proposed budget will result in a reduction of $1.2 billion in the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (budget). Although no one in the Legislature has made any of this public, we can safely guess that numbers like this translate into the early release of about 20,000 felons."
Citing "information from independent research organizations," the union continued:
"For every 5,000 felons who receive an early release, 45,500 new crimes will be committed over a three-year period, and 9,000 of those crimes will be violent felonies. Applied to the 20,000 felons set for release under the budget proposal, this would result in an estimated 182,000 new crimes being committed over the next three years -- 35,000 of them violent felonies!"
LAPPL President Paul M. Weber urged voters in a statement to contact legislators "and warn them of the dire public safety consequences of a mass early release of felons from state prisons..."
Friday, July 17, 2009
JUSTICE, TEXAS STYLE
Unlike California’s "three strikes and you’re out" law, Texas juries meet out justice on the merits of each case. Take the case of Brian Keith Balentine who was just sentenced to life in prison for shoplifting five compact discs from a Wal-Mart store.
Now, before you descent into an apoplectic mode, you need to know a little bit more about poor Mr. Balentine. 25 years ago Brian and his older brother shot to death a man trying to protect his bride during a kidnapping. The newlyweds had stopped to help with what they believed was the pair’s disabled car at a highway rest stop. The bride, who was shot twice while escaping from the Balentine brothers, survived the ordeal.
The brothers were arrested, tried and convicted and received life prison sentences. Why they were not sentenced to death is beyond belief. Worse yet, Brian was released on parole in August 2006. His brother remains in prison.
Brian has been involved in at least three thefts since his release from prison. He had completed a 30-day jail sentence for a theft in Harris County just days before he stole the compact discs in the Montgomery County city of Conroe.
The authorities in Montgomery County charged Baleninte with robbery rather than theft because he had injured a Wal-Mart security officer who had tried to detain him. And because of his murder background, they charged him with first-degree robbery rather than second-degree robbery. After learning of the murder during the sentencing phase of the trial, a wise jury gave Brian a life sentence.
Brian’s parole has yet to be revoked, but when that happens as it surely will, the original life sentence is to be served consecutively with the latest life sentence. That is what the judge in Montgomery County ordered to ensure that Balentine will never again see the light of day outside the prison walls.
Balentine pleaded for leniency because, according to his reasoning, he had already paid his debt to society. Some nerve! Of course, neither the jury nor the judge were swayed by that farfetched absurd argument.
Life for five discs. OK, so you didn’t go apoplectic. But you’re either laughing or shaking your head in disbelief. Well, you go right ahead ‘cause that’s Texas justice and, by God, it works!
Now, before you descent into an apoplectic mode, you need to know a little bit more about poor Mr. Balentine. 25 years ago Brian and his older brother shot to death a man trying to protect his bride during a kidnapping. The newlyweds had stopped to help with what they believed was the pair’s disabled car at a highway rest stop. The bride, who was shot twice while escaping from the Balentine brothers, survived the ordeal.
The brothers were arrested, tried and convicted and received life prison sentences. Why they were not sentenced to death is beyond belief. Worse yet, Brian was released on parole in August 2006. His brother remains in prison.
Brian has been involved in at least three thefts since his release from prison. He had completed a 30-day jail sentence for a theft in Harris County just days before he stole the compact discs in the Montgomery County city of Conroe.
The authorities in Montgomery County charged Baleninte with robbery rather than theft because he had injured a Wal-Mart security officer who had tried to detain him. And because of his murder background, they charged him with first-degree robbery rather than second-degree robbery. After learning of the murder during the sentencing phase of the trial, a wise jury gave Brian a life sentence.
Brian’s parole has yet to be revoked, but when that happens as it surely will, the original life sentence is to be served consecutively with the latest life sentence. That is what the judge in Montgomery County ordered to ensure that Balentine will never again see the light of day outside the prison walls.
Balentine pleaded for leniency because, according to his reasoning, he had already paid his debt to society. Some nerve! Of course, neither the jury nor the judge were swayed by that farfetched absurd argument.
Life for five discs. OK, so you didn’t go apoplectic. But you’re either laughing or shaking your head in disbelief. Well, you go right ahead ‘cause that’s Texas justice and, by God, it works!
ASSHOLE COP OF THE YEAR NOMINEE
If Travis Peterson’s version of this incident is the correct one, then the Wisconsin State Trooper who chased him out of a parking lot only to arrest him for DUI once he left, gets my well-deserved nomination for Asshole Cop of the Year.
COPS FORCE DRUNK TO DRIVE, THEN GIVE HIM DUI
By Edecio Martinez
CBS/AP
July 16, 2009
MADISON, Wis. Walking to a parking lot after seeing Dave Matthews Band live in concert south of Milwaukee, an Illinois teen knew he was too drunk to drive home. So he fell asleep in his car, only to be awoken by a state trooper.
Travis Peterson, 19, of Dixon, Ill., said even though he told the officer he was drunk and sleeping it off, the trooper ordered him to leave because the lot was being cleared.
Once out of the parking lot, Peterson was arrested for drunken driving.
He was subsequently found guilty and ordered to spend 60 days in jail.
But on Wednesday a Wis. appeals court commended Peterson for doing the right thing by trying to sleep it off, and said the trial court was wrong not to let him argue that police had entrapped him.
During his trial, the state had successfully argued that people who choose to drink too much can't say they've been entrapped when stopped for drunken driving. The 2nd District Court of Appeals disagreed. "
Drinking alcohol to excess, while inadvisable and unhealthy, is not unlawful by itself," the appeals court said.
It did not address the fact that Peterson was underage. Peterson's attorney, Andrew Mishlove, said that was irrelevant given the other issues at stake.
The trooper testified he checked on Peterson's car because Alpine Valley staff thought there was a dead person in it. The trooper said he had to bang on Peterson's car window for up to seven minutes, shine a flashlight in his face and turn on the his siren and lights before Peterson woke.
The trooper said he told Peterson he would come back later to check on him. Two hours later, the trooper was asked to assist another officer who had pulled over Peterson for drunken driving.
Because Peterson and the trooper told different stories, a jury should have been allowed to determine whether Peterson had been entrapped, the appeals court said.
COPS FORCE DRUNK TO DRIVE, THEN GIVE HIM DUI
By Edecio Martinez
CBS/AP
July 16, 2009
MADISON, Wis. Walking to a parking lot after seeing Dave Matthews Band live in concert south of Milwaukee, an Illinois teen knew he was too drunk to drive home. So he fell asleep in his car, only to be awoken by a state trooper.
Travis Peterson, 19, of Dixon, Ill., said even though he told the officer he was drunk and sleeping it off, the trooper ordered him to leave because the lot was being cleared.
Once out of the parking lot, Peterson was arrested for drunken driving.
He was subsequently found guilty and ordered to spend 60 days in jail.
But on Wednesday a Wis. appeals court commended Peterson for doing the right thing by trying to sleep it off, and said the trial court was wrong not to let him argue that police had entrapped him.
During his trial, the state had successfully argued that people who choose to drink too much can't say they've been entrapped when stopped for drunken driving. The 2nd District Court of Appeals disagreed. "
Drinking alcohol to excess, while inadvisable and unhealthy, is not unlawful by itself," the appeals court said.
It did not address the fact that Peterson was underage. Peterson's attorney, Andrew Mishlove, said that was irrelevant given the other issues at stake.
The trooper testified he checked on Peterson's car because Alpine Valley staff thought there was a dead person in it. The trooper said he had to bang on Peterson's car window for up to seven minutes, shine a flashlight in his face and turn on the his siren and lights before Peterson woke.
The trooper said he told Peterson he would come back later to check on him. Two hours later, the trooper was asked to assist another officer who had pulled over Peterson for drunken driving.
Because Peterson and the trooper told different stories, a jury should have been allowed to determine whether Peterson had been entrapped, the appeals court said.
GETTING STRAIGHT
Say what?! Homosexuals not born that way? Homosexuality curable? A mental health issue? Wow, how politically incorrect!
HOMOSEXUALITY TO HETEROSEXUALITY: CAN THE TRANSITION BE MADE?
by Baruch Gordon
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 17, 2009
Is it possible for men and women who experience unwanted same sex attraction to change from homosexuality to heterosexuality? Or were such individuals born that way and efforts to change their sexual orientation are harmful?
These questions have been the subject of raging debate amongst therapists and researches, and the Summer 2009 newsletter of JONAH (Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality) discusses a new study that delivers a major blow to those who maintain that homosexuality is untreatable.
JONAH Co-director Elaine Silodor Berk reports that the Scientific Advisory Committee of NARTH (The National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality) spent 18 months reviewing and documenting the professional literature to determine whether commonly stated objections to providing psychological care to those who are distressed by unwanted homosexual attractions have validity.
NARTH found such objections to be scientifically unsupportable, providing a landscape review of 125 years of scientific literature involving more than 600 studies - primarily from professional and peer-reviewed scientific journals.
Entitled "What Research Shows: NARTH's Response to the APA Claims on Homosexuality," the study concludes that over a century's worth of experiential evidence, clinical reports, and research documentation demonstrate that it is possible for both men and women to change from homosexuality to heterosexuality; that psychological intervention motivated by efforts to change sexual orientation are beneficial and not generally harmful; and that actively homosexual men and women do indeed have greater risk factors for medical, psychological and relational pathology than do the general population.
The study states, "Based on our review of 125 years of reports by clinicians, researchers, and former clients, we conclude that reorientation treatment has been shown to be beneficial--and not harmful--and therefore should continue to be available to those who seek it. ... [Moreover,] clients who seek sexual reorientation deserve properly informed and competent psychological care from therapists who use interventions that have been scientifically demonstrated as helpful for achieving this goal."
The study highlights nearly a dozen different treatment modalities and provides an exhaustive 26-page reference list for those desirous of looking at the underlying literature.
At one time, the focus of the anti-therapeutic intervention strategy of gay advocates and their allies was to simply state that people are born that way and that any form of therapeutic intervention was useless - a myth that is still widely believed by large numbers of citizens in Western society. However, recognizing that no scientific basis exists for this canard, the anti-healing camp invented three additional concerns about the ethics, efficacy, benefits, and potential harm of therapies that seek to reduce or eliminate same-sex sexual orientation.
NARTH systematically deconstructs the following three major objections, finding each of them to be false: (1) There is no conclusive or convincing evidence that sexual orientation may be changed through reorientation therapy. (2) Efforts to change sexual orientation are shown to be harmful and can lead to greater self-hatred, depression, and other self-destructive behaviors. (3) There is no greater pathology in the homosexual population than the general population. To the contrary, the monograph shows:
I. There is substantial evidence that sexual orientation may be changed through reorientation therapy.
II. Efforts to change sexual orientation have been shown to be beneficial and not shown to be harmful or to regularly lead to greater self-hatred, depression, and other self-destructive behaviors.
III. There is, in fact, significantly greater medical, psychological, and relational pathology in the homosexual population than in the general population.
JONAH compliments the principal authors of this study, Drs. James E. Phelan, Neil Whitehead, and Philip Sutton: "They have performed an immense service to the mental health profession and to the healing ministries by gathering the pertinent information documenting the lack of any credible evidence proving that anyone is born gay while simultaneously summarizing the literature showing how so many different therapeutic modalities have proven effective for those who are unhappy feeling same-sex attractions (SSA)."
HOMOSEXUALITY TO HETEROSEXUALITY: CAN THE TRANSITION BE MADE?
by Baruch Gordon
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 17, 2009
Is it possible for men and women who experience unwanted same sex attraction to change from homosexuality to heterosexuality? Or were such individuals born that way and efforts to change their sexual orientation are harmful?
These questions have been the subject of raging debate amongst therapists and researches, and the Summer 2009 newsletter of JONAH (Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality) discusses a new study that delivers a major blow to those who maintain that homosexuality is untreatable.
JONAH Co-director Elaine Silodor Berk reports that the Scientific Advisory Committee of NARTH (The National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality) spent 18 months reviewing and documenting the professional literature to determine whether commonly stated objections to providing psychological care to those who are distressed by unwanted homosexual attractions have validity.
NARTH found such objections to be scientifically unsupportable, providing a landscape review of 125 years of scientific literature involving more than 600 studies - primarily from professional and peer-reviewed scientific journals.
Entitled "What Research Shows: NARTH's Response to the APA Claims on Homosexuality," the study concludes that over a century's worth of experiential evidence, clinical reports, and research documentation demonstrate that it is possible for both men and women to change from homosexuality to heterosexuality; that psychological intervention motivated by efforts to change sexual orientation are beneficial and not generally harmful; and that actively homosexual men and women do indeed have greater risk factors for medical, psychological and relational pathology than do the general population.
The study states, "Based on our review of 125 years of reports by clinicians, researchers, and former clients, we conclude that reorientation treatment has been shown to be beneficial--and not harmful--and therefore should continue to be available to those who seek it. ... [Moreover,] clients who seek sexual reorientation deserve properly informed and competent psychological care from therapists who use interventions that have been scientifically demonstrated as helpful for achieving this goal."
The study highlights nearly a dozen different treatment modalities and provides an exhaustive 26-page reference list for those desirous of looking at the underlying literature.
At one time, the focus of the anti-therapeutic intervention strategy of gay advocates and their allies was to simply state that people are born that way and that any form of therapeutic intervention was useless - a myth that is still widely believed by large numbers of citizens in Western society. However, recognizing that no scientific basis exists for this canard, the anti-healing camp invented three additional concerns about the ethics, efficacy, benefits, and potential harm of therapies that seek to reduce or eliminate same-sex sexual orientation.
NARTH systematically deconstructs the following three major objections, finding each of them to be false: (1) There is no conclusive or convincing evidence that sexual orientation may be changed through reorientation therapy. (2) Efforts to change sexual orientation are shown to be harmful and can lead to greater self-hatred, depression, and other self-destructive behaviors. (3) There is no greater pathology in the homosexual population than the general population. To the contrary, the monograph shows:
I. There is substantial evidence that sexual orientation may be changed through reorientation therapy.
II. Efforts to change sexual orientation have been shown to be beneficial and not shown to be harmful or to regularly lead to greater self-hatred, depression, and other self-destructive behaviors.
III. There is, in fact, significantly greater medical, psychological, and relational pathology in the homosexual population than in the general population.
JONAH compliments the principal authors of this study, Drs. James E. Phelan, Neil Whitehead, and Philip Sutton: "They have performed an immense service to the mental health profession and to the healing ministries by gathering the pertinent information documenting the lack of any credible evidence proving that anyone is born gay while simultaneously summarizing the literature showing how so many different therapeutic modalities have proven effective for those who are unhappy feeling same-sex attractions (SSA)."
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
STUDENTS LOVE THOSE RADICAL PROFESSORS
Academia is infested with radical leftist professors who attempt to indoctrinate students into sharing their anti-American and anti-capitalist agenda. With the demise of Eastern European communism and China’s current transformation to capitalism, these ideologues are left only with Cuba and North Korea as examples of communism and with faint praise for semi-socialist societies like Sweden and the socialized medicine programs of Canada and Europe. Thus, these rogues have been relegated to denouncing America and capitalism, which they do with a relish.
Whenever one of these professors is attacked for their classroom activities, they are joined by non-radical faculty members, with everyone screaming that "Academic Freedom" is being attacked. And more significantly, students come out of the woodworks to defend their far-left teachers. They love the radical faculty members because those professors cater to the rebellious spirit of young college students.
The radical left in academia has a long history of teaching their students that capitalism exploits the workers and oppresses the masses, that American foreign policy is imperialistic, that our government favors the rich at the expense of the poor, that our criminal justice system is racist, etc., etc., etc. These far-left ideologues organize or belong to organizations which use the words "justice" or "peace" in their names. Back in the days of the old Soviet Union similar justice and peace groups were directed and financed by Moscow.
Since the founding of Israel in 1948, the academic left has had a love affair with the Palestinians – students are taught that the Israeli treatment of Palestinians is akin to the Nazi treatment of Jews. These professors have been in the forefront of calling for an international boycott of Israel and for the divestiture of all shares in Israeli companies and in American companies that do business with Israel which may be included in a university's investment portfolio.
An example of how students come to the defense of their professors can be found in an April 29th article by radical leftist Dana Cloud, an Associate Professor of Communication Studies. University of Texas, Austin. Writing in The Rag Blog, a "non-profit internet newsmagazine produced by activist journalists committed to progressive social change," Cloud took up the cause of Margo Ramlal-Nankoe, a professor who was denied tenure and was about to be fired.
Cloud wrote: "Opposition to scholars who expose and critique the treatment of Palestinians by Israel has been front and center in the case against Professor Margo Ramlal-Nankoe.
Margo Ramlal-Nankoe is an assistant professor seeking tenure in Ithaca College's Sociology Department. Her tenure process became a struggle when a small number of influential faculty and administrators began campaigning against her. She became a target of their negative campaign because she spoke out against sexual harassment within her department and challenged students and community members to think critically about US and Israeli policy in the Middle East. Ithaca College's Board of Trustees has denied Professor Ramlal-Nankoe tenure and she is scheduled to be fired on May 12th.
Despite the campaign being waged against her, Professor Ramlal-Nankoe's tenure review file is full of glowing letters from her students and colleagues. The Chair of the Sociology Tenure and Promotion Committee summarized the content of the numerous letters of support Professor Ramlal-Nankoe received from her students: ‘Most students tell us that working with Dr. Ramlal-Nankoe has transformed their views, their life, and/or their plans for the future’."
Here is another example from 2002. When an avowed Marxist government professor at College of the Mainland, from which I retired in 1993 and which I refer to as "College of the Marxists," was recommended for tenure, I joined several civic leaders in opposition to granting him tenure. The civic leaders were upset over his Marxist teachings and over his public opposition to the war against Al Qaeda and the Taliban which followed the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and on the Pentagon.
While I agreed with those civic leaders, I took a different approach to the tenure controversy. Because those who came to the professor’s defense did so in the name of academic freedom, I submitted a well documented paper to the college’s trustees spelling out how he had violated the restraints required by the principles of Academic Freedom which were formulated by the American Association of University Professors. The principles of Academic Freedom clearly prohibit a faculty member from injecting a personal agenda into the classroom and prohibit the indoctrination students.
After several months, the trustees called for a public meeting to resolve the controversy. We were set up because their decision was already cut and dried well before that meeting. After five or six of us spoke up, dozens of students followed us with profuse praise for the professor and condemning us as reactionaries opposed to academic freedom. Those students were not just highly impressionable young kids fresh out of high school. Several students in their thirties and beyond talked about what a privilege it had been to for them to be taught by such a wonderful teacher.
While Ramlal-Nankoe’s students may not have been able to save her bacon, that was not the case at College of the Marxists. Before the end of the public meeting, the trustees voted unanimously to grant the Marxist tenure.
Some months later, while I was attending a Veterans Day ceremony, one of the trustees went out of his way to approach me and actually apologized for what the trustees had done. He told me, "I’m sorry, but we had no choice because he was so popular with the students." My response was, "So what! Hitler was very popular with the German people." His face turned a purplish red, he spun around and made a hasty retreat for the exit. Needless to say, we have not spoken since.
"Most students tell us that working with Dr. (fill in the name of any far-left professor) has transformed their views, their life, and/or their plans for the future." That’s what happens when students are indoctrinated rather than educated.
The radical ideologues in academia thrive on student popularity while relying on "academic freedom gunslingers" to fight off their critics. What really astounds me is that most college professors, college administrators and college trustees seem to be ignorant of the prohibitions academic freedom places on classroom teachers. It is obvious that few of them have ever read the AAUP’s principles of Academic Freedom.
Whenever one of these professors is attacked for their classroom activities, they are joined by non-radical faculty members, with everyone screaming that "Academic Freedom" is being attacked. And more significantly, students come out of the woodworks to defend their far-left teachers. They love the radical faculty members because those professors cater to the rebellious spirit of young college students.
The radical left in academia has a long history of teaching their students that capitalism exploits the workers and oppresses the masses, that American foreign policy is imperialistic, that our government favors the rich at the expense of the poor, that our criminal justice system is racist, etc., etc., etc. These far-left ideologues organize or belong to organizations which use the words "justice" or "peace" in their names. Back in the days of the old Soviet Union similar justice and peace groups were directed and financed by Moscow.
Since the founding of Israel in 1948, the academic left has had a love affair with the Palestinians – students are taught that the Israeli treatment of Palestinians is akin to the Nazi treatment of Jews. These professors have been in the forefront of calling for an international boycott of Israel and for the divestiture of all shares in Israeli companies and in American companies that do business with Israel which may be included in a university's investment portfolio.
An example of how students come to the defense of their professors can be found in an April 29th article by radical leftist Dana Cloud, an Associate Professor of Communication Studies. University of Texas, Austin. Writing in The Rag Blog, a "non-profit internet newsmagazine produced by activist journalists committed to progressive social change," Cloud took up the cause of Margo Ramlal-Nankoe, a professor who was denied tenure and was about to be fired.
Cloud wrote: "Opposition to scholars who expose and critique the treatment of Palestinians by Israel has been front and center in the case against Professor Margo Ramlal-Nankoe.
Margo Ramlal-Nankoe is an assistant professor seeking tenure in Ithaca College's Sociology Department. Her tenure process became a struggle when a small number of influential faculty and administrators began campaigning against her. She became a target of their negative campaign because she spoke out against sexual harassment within her department and challenged students and community members to think critically about US and Israeli policy in the Middle East. Ithaca College's Board of Trustees has denied Professor Ramlal-Nankoe tenure and she is scheduled to be fired on May 12th.
Despite the campaign being waged against her, Professor Ramlal-Nankoe's tenure review file is full of glowing letters from her students and colleagues. The Chair of the Sociology Tenure and Promotion Committee summarized the content of the numerous letters of support Professor Ramlal-Nankoe received from her students: ‘Most students tell us that working with Dr. Ramlal-Nankoe has transformed their views, their life, and/or their plans for the future’."
Here is another example from 2002. When an avowed Marxist government professor at College of the Mainland, from which I retired in 1993 and which I refer to as "College of the Marxists," was recommended for tenure, I joined several civic leaders in opposition to granting him tenure. The civic leaders were upset over his Marxist teachings and over his public opposition to the war against Al Qaeda and the Taliban which followed the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and on the Pentagon.
While I agreed with those civic leaders, I took a different approach to the tenure controversy. Because those who came to the professor’s defense did so in the name of academic freedom, I submitted a well documented paper to the college’s trustees spelling out how he had violated the restraints required by the principles of Academic Freedom which were formulated by the American Association of University Professors. The principles of Academic Freedom clearly prohibit a faculty member from injecting a personal agenda into the classroom and prohibit the indoctrination students.
After several months, the trustees called for a public meeting to resolve the controversy. We were set up because their decision was already cut and dried well before that meeting. After five or six of us spoke up, dozens of students followed us with profuse praise for the professor and condemning us as reactionaries opposed to academic freedom. Those students were not just highly impressionable young kids fresh out of high school. Several students in their thirties and beyond talked about what a privilege it had been to for them to be taught by such a wonderful teacher.
While Ramlal-Nankoe’s students may not have been able to save her bacon, that was not the case at College of the Marxists. Before the end of the public meeting, the trustees voted unanimously to grant the Marxist tenure.
Some months later, while I was attending a Veterans Day ceremony, one of the trustees went out of his way to approach me and actually apologized for what the trustees had done. He told me, "I’m sorry, but we had no choice because he was so popular with the students." My response was, "So what! Hitler was very popular with the German people." His face turned a purplish red, he spun around and made a hasty retreat for the exit. Needless to say, we have not spoken since.
"Most students tell us that working with Dr. (fill in the name of any far-left professor) has transformed their views, their life, and/or their plans for the future." That’s what happens when students are indoctrinated rather than educated.
The radical ideologues in academia thrive on student popularity while relying on "academic freedom gunslingers" to fight off their critics. What really astounds me is that most college professors, college administrators and college trustees seem to be ignorant of the prohibitions academic freedom places on classroom teachers. It is obvious that few of them have ever read the AAUP’s principles of Academic Freedom.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
OBAMA IS ON THE VERGE OF BECOMING ISRAEL'S PUBLIC ENEMY NO. 1
A bunch of American Jewish "leaders" met with President Obama to hear his assurances that he is a good friend of Israel. Because most of those leaders probably supported his candidacy for president, they would not have been hard to persuade. With friends like Obama, Israel doesn’t need any enemies.
Obama and his gullible audience is in denial of the fact that time after time the "moderate" leaders of the Palestinian Authority and of Fatah have made it quite clear that there will be only one state - Palestine. Obama's "vision of Middle East peace" is not the vision Palestinians have imbedded in their minds. At the rate he’s going, Obama is on the verge of becoming Israel’s public enemy no. 1.
OBAMA: PRESSURE ON ISRAEL TO COTINUE
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 14, 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama assured 15 leaders of Jewish American organizations of his commitment to Israel, but he also insisted he would continue to publicly press the Jewish State to conform to his vision of Middle East peace.
Hosting the Jewish delegates in the White House on Monday, Obama said that Israel needs "to engage in serious self-reflection" if it is to succeed in reaching a resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict. The American president repeatedly made it clear that in his view this can only mean the creation of an Arab state within Israel's current borders. He presented the "two-state solution" as a solution he wishes to promote to deal with Israel's purportedly precarious demographic situation.
President Obama also said that he will continue to press his administration's demands on Israel urgently and publicly, regardless of opposition from the Netanyahu government. Keeping American disputes with Israel from the public eye, as he claimed was done in the past, has not served the interests of peace, Obama informed his guests. He likened this decision to the open and honest conversation needed among close friends.
The hour-long meeting included the heads of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, AIPAC, the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, the National Council of Jewish Women, the UJC, the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Hadassah, the Orthodox Union, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, the Union for Reform Judaism, the National Jewish Democratic Council, Americans for Peace Now, and the far-left J Street lobby. The president excluded from the meeting the strongly pro-Land of Israel National Council of Young Israel, a synagogue federation, and the Zionist Organization of America.
Obama and his gullible audience is in denial of the fact that time after time the "moderate" leaders of the Palestinian Authority and of Fatah have made it quite clear that there will be only one state - Palestine. Obama's "vision of Middle East peace" is not the vision Palestinians have imbedded in their minds. At the rate he’s going, Obama is on the verge of becoming Israel’s public enemy no. 1.
OBAMA: PRESSURE ON ISRAEL TO COTINUE
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 14, 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama assured 15 leaders of Jewish American organizations of his commitment to Israel, but he also insisted he would continue to publicly press the Jewish State to conform to his vision of Middle East peace.
Hosting the Jewish delegates in the White House on Monday, Obama said that Israel needs "to engage in serious self-reflection" if it is to succeed in reaching a resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict. The American president repeatedly made it clear that in his view this can only mean the creation of an Arab state within Israel's current borders. He presented the "two-state solution" as a solution he wishes to promote to deal with Israel's purportedly precarious demographic situation.
President Obama also said that he will continue to press his administration's demands on Israel urgently and publicly, regardless of opposition from the Netanyahu government. Keeping American disputes with Israel from the public eye, as he claimed was done in the past, has not served the interests of peace, Obama informed his guests. He likened this decision to the open and honest conversation needed among close friends.
The hour-long meeting included the heads of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, AIPAC, the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, the National Council of Jewish Women, the UJC, the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Hadassah, the Orthodox Union, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, the Union for Reform Judaism, the National Jewish Democratic Council, Americans for Peace Now, and the far-left J Street lobby. The president excluded from the meeting the strongly pro-Land of Israel National Council of Young Israel, a synagogue federation, and the Zionist Organization of America.
AMERICANS
An old friend of mine from California sent me an e-mail about Americans that was supposedly written by an Australian dentist. Because I am somewhat suspicious of articles written about us by foreigners, I checked it out with Snopes. Sure enough, the article was not penned by an Australian.
The article itself is genuine but the author is an American law professor and his article was published as a guest column on the NationalReviewOnline in 2001. It is a really great piece though and that is why I have chosen to reproduce it in this blog.
WHAT IS AN AMERICAN?
A primer
By Peter Ferrara
Associate professor of law at the George Mason University School of Law
NationalReviewOnline
September 25, 2001
You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper there an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American.
So I just thought I would write to let them know what an American is, so they would know when they found one.
An American is English…or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan.
An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them choose.
An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.
An American is from the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God-given right of each man and woman to the pursuit of happiness.
An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need. When Afghanistan was overrun by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country. As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.
An American does not have to obey the mad ravings of ignorant, ungodly cruel, old men. American men will not be fooled into giving up their lives to kill innocent people, so that these foolish old men may hold on to power. American women are free to show their beautiful faces to the world, as each of them choose.
An American is free to criticize his government's officials when they are wrong, in his or her own opinion. Then he is free to replace them, by majority vote.
Americans welcome people from all lands, all cultures, all religions, because they are not afraid. They are not afraid that their history, their religion, their beliefs, will be overrun, or forgotten. That is because they know they are free to hold to their religion, their beliefs, their history, as each of them choose.
And just as Americans welcome all, they enjoy the best that everyone has to bring, from all over the world. The best science, the best technology, the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes.
Americans welcome the best, but they also welcome the least. The nation symbol of America welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed.
These in fact are the people who built America. Many of them were working in the twin towers on the morning of September 11, earning a better life for their families.
So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo and Stalin and Mao Tse-Tung, and every bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world.
But in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.
So look around you. You may find more Americans in your land than you thought were there. One day they will rise up and overthrow the old, ignorant, tired tyrants that trouble too many lands. Then those lands too will join the community of free and prosperous nations.
And America will welcome them.
The article itself is genuine but the author is an American law professor and his article was published as a guest column on the NationalReviewOnline in 2001. It is a really great piece though and that is why I have chosen to reproduce it in this blog.
WHAT IS AN AMERICAN?
A primer
By Peter Ferrara
Associate professor of law at the George Mason University School of Law
NationalReviewOnline
September 25, 2001
You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper there an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American.
So I just thought I would write to let them know what an American is, so they would know when they found one.
An American is English…or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan.
An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them choose.
An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.
An American is from the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God-given right of each man and woman to the pursuit of happiness.
An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need. When Afghanistan was overrun by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country. As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.
An American does not have to obey the mad ravings of ignorant, ungodly cruel, old men. American men will not be fooled into giving up their lives to kill innocent people, so that these foolish old men may hold on to power. American women are free to show their beautiful faces to the world, as each of them choose.
An American is free to criticize his government's officials when they are wrong, in his or her own opinion. Then he is free to replace them, by majority vote.
Americans welcome people from all lands, all cultures, all religions, because they are not afraid. They are not afraid that their history, their religion, their beliefs, will be overrun, or forgotten. That is because they know they are free to hold to their religion, their beliefs, their history, as each of them choose.
And just as Americans welcome all, they enjoy the best that everyone has to bring, from all over the world. The best science, the best technology, the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes.
Americans welcome the best, but they also welcome the least. The nation symbol of America welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed.
These in fact are the people who built America. Many of them were working in the twin towers on the morning of September 11, earning a better life for their families.
So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo and Stalin and Mao Tse-Tung, and every bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world.
But in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.
So look around you. You may find more Americans in your land than you thought were there. One day they will rise up and overthrow the old, ignorant, tired tyrants that trouble too many lands. Then those lands too will join the community of free and prosperous nations.
And America will welcome them.
Monday, July 13, 2009
LEONARD GONZALEZ, JR. AND WAYNE COLDIRON: POSTER BOYS FOR THE DEATH PENALTY
Byrd and Melanie Billings were found shot to death last Thursday in their Beulah, Florida home. The Billings were prominent business owners who had four children of their own and who had adopted 12 children, most of them with special needs. The Billings were victims of a home invasion. Robbery appears to have been the motive, although that has yet to be determined.
Leonard Patrick Gonzalez, Jr., 35, and Wayne Coldiron, 41, have been charged with their murder. Gonzalez’s father, Leonard Sr., 56, has been arrested for driving the getaway van and for tampering with evidence by trying to repaint the van. The father admitted driving his son and Coldiron to the Billings home, letting them out of the van armed with guns, and driving them away from the scene after they returned from the house.
If you’ve been reading my blogs, you know that I am a strong proponent of capital punishment. The Billings murders scream out for the ultimate punishment! Although they have yet to be convicted, Gonzalez, Jr. and Coldiron are poster boys for the death penalty. With these senseless killings that deprived 16 children of their parents, it is beyond my comprehension how anyone can be opposed to the death penalty.
Leonard Patrick Gonzalez, Jr., 35, and Wayne Coldiron, 41, have been charged with their murder. Gonzalez’s father, Leonard Sr., 56, has been arrested for driving the getaway van and for tampering with evidence by trying to repaint the van. The father admitted driving his son and Coldiron to the Billings home, letting them out of the van armed with guns, and driving them away from the scene after they returned from the house.
If you’ve been reading my blogs, you know that I am a strong proponent of capital punishment. The Billings murders scream out for the ultimate punishment! Although they have yet to be convicted, Gonzalez, Jr. and Coldiron are poster boys for the death penalty. With these senseless killings that deprived 16 children of their parents, it is beyond my comprehension how anyone can be opposed to the death penalty.
PEACE IS ONLY A MEANS TO DESTROY THE JEWISH STATE
To all you liberal American Jews and to President Obama, please take note:
FATAH OFFICIAL: "OUR GOAL IS NOT PEACE, BUT RATHER PALESTINE"
by Hillel Fendel
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 13, 2009
"Our goal has never been peace," says a Fatah official in a PA TV panel. "Peace is a means; the goal is Palestine" – meaning the conquest of Israel.
Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), directed by Itamar Marcus, reports on a panel discussion on a television program of the Fatah organization broadcast this past week. Headed by Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah is considered the more moderate wing of the Palestinian Authority, compared with Hamas.
The panel discussion shows that in actuality, Fatah is no less firm than Hamas in seeking the goal of Israel’s destruction. Kifah Radaydeh, the deputy head of the Jerusalem chapter of Fatah, says openly that the PA will resume violence and terror against Israel when Fatah is "capable," and "according to what seems right."
"It has been said that we are negotiating for peace," she further stated, "but our goal has never been peace. Peace is a means; the goal is Palestine."
Radaydeh is considered a "promising and rising young force" in Fatah, according to a PMW source, "and this report will likely give her extra prominence. But we have to publicize her words in order that the truth about the PA and Fatah be known."
PMW was established in 1996 to "gain an understanding of Palestinian society through the monitoring of the Palestinian Arabic language media and schoolbooks," its website states. The organization "analyzes Palestinian Authority culture and society from numerous perspectives, including studies on summer camps, poetry, schoolbooks, religious ideology, crossword puzzles, and more. [It plays] the critical role of documenting the contradictions between the image the Palestinians present to the world in English and the messages to their own people in Arabic."
Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik, writing this latest PMW report, emphasize that when Fatah refers to "Palestine," as when Radaydeh says the "goal is Palestine," the reference is to all of Israel. As proof, it is noted that the Fatah flag still shows the map of Israel under rifles.
In addition, Fatah MP Najat Abu Bakr said in a PA TV interview last year that Fatah's goal remains the destruction of Israel, but that their political plan is to focus on returning to the 1967 borders. "It doesn't mean that we don't want the 1948 borders," Abu Bakr said, referring to all of Israel," but rather that "our current political program is to say that we want the 1967 borders."
Just four months ago, senior PA official Mohammed Dahlan stressed that Fatah adamantly refuses to recognize Israel, and that even the Palestinian Authority’s recognition is only for the sake of receiving foreign aid:
"…the Fatah movement does not recognize Israel, even today... [such recognition is] required of the government but not of the Fatah, so that this government will be able to offer the necessary assistance, to carry out the necessary reconstruction, to offer assistance to the sick, to bring relief to needy families... This can be dealt with [only] by a government that has relations with the international community, one that is acceptable to the international community, in order that we can work together and benefit from the international community."
FATAH OFFICIAL: "OUR GOAL IS NOT PEACE, BUT RATHER PALESTINE"
by Hillel Fendel
IsraelNationalNews.com
July 13, 2009
"Our goal has never been peace," says a Fatah official in a PA TV panel. "Peace is a means; the goal is Palestine" – meaning the conquest of Israel.
Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), directed by Itamar Marcus, reports on a panel discussion on a television program of the Fatah organization broadcast this past week. Headed by Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah is considered the more moderate wing of the Palestinian Authority, compared with Hamas.
The panel discussion shows that in actuality, Fatah is no less firm than Hamas in seeking the goal of Israel’s destruction. Kifah Radaydeh, the deputy head of the Jerusalem chapter of Fatah, says openly that the PA will resume violence and terror against Israel when Fatah is "capable," and "according to what seems right."
"It has been said that we are negotiating for peace," she further stated, "but our goal has never been peace. Peace is a means; the goal is Palestine."
Radaydeh is considered a "promising and rising young force" in Fatah, according to a PMW source, "and this report will likely give her extra prominence. But we have to publicize her words in order that the truth about the PA and Fatah be known."
PMW was established in 1996 to "gain an understanding of Palestinian society through the monitoring of the Palestinian Arabic language media and schoolbooks," its website states. The organization "analyzes Palestinian Authority culture and society from numerous perspectives, including studies on summer camps, poetry, schoolbooks, religious ideology, crossword puzzles, and more. [It plays] the critical role of documenting the contradictions between the image the Palestinians present to the world in English and the messages to their own people in Arabic."
Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik, writing this latest PMW report, emphasize that when Fatah refers to "Palestine," as when Radaydeh says the "goal is Palestine," the reference is to all of Israel. As proof, it is noted that the Fatah flag still shows the map of Israel under rifles.
In addition, Fatah MP Najat Abu Bakr said in a PA TV interview last year that Fatah's goal remains the destruction of Israel, but that their political plan is to focus on returning to the 1967 borders. "It doesn't mean that we don't want the 1948 borders," Abu Bakr said, referring to all of Israel," but rather that "our current political program is to say that we want the 1967 borders."
Just four months ago, senior PA official Mohammed Dahlan stressed that Fatah adamantly refuses to recognize Israel, and that even the Palestinian Authority’s recognition is only for the sake of receiving foreign aid:
"…the Fatah movement does not recognize Israel, even today... [such recognition is] required of the government but not of the Fatah, so that this government will be able to offer the necessary assistance, to carry out the necessary reconstruction, to offer assistance to the sick, to bring relief to needy families... This can be dealt with [only] by a government that has relations with the international community, one that is acceptable to the international community, in order that we can work together and benefit from the international community."
Sunday, July 12, 2009
A SOLDIER KILLED IN ACTION VS. THE DEATH OF A CHILD MOLESTER
While the national media wasted, and continues to waste, tons and tons of newsprint and hour after hour after hour on television covering the death of a child molester, Martha Gillis lamented the sad fact that the deaths of U.S. soldiers and marines killed in action are barely noted. Gillis, whose nephew, Army Lt. Brian Bradshaw, was killed by an IED in Afghanistan, presented the following heartfelt and tearful op-ed rendition on today’s CBS Sunday Morning television program:
A LIFE LOST OUT OF THE SPOTLIGHT
While a Nation and World Paid Tribute to a Passing Singer, a Small Town Mourned a Young Soldier Killed in Afghanistan
CBS Sunday Morning
July 12, 2009
Millions around the world will remember the day Michael Jackson died. Martha Gillis will, too - but she'll be thinking of someone else. She shares her Opinion with us now:
My 24-year-old nephew, Brian Bradshaw, died in Afghanistan on June 25, killed by an IED, but you'd never have known it from the national media.
I cannot tell you how that silence added to the pain of losing this bright, funny, thoughtful young man, whom I remember so vividly as a toddler, wandering the house in cowboy boots and hat (and nothing else).
I suspect it's a pain shared by many of the 4,000-plus grieving families whose loved ones have sacrificed their lives in two wars that have largely disappeared from the news.
When I flew West for Brian's funeral, the mayor of his small home town personally met each of dozens of flights of arriving family members. Flags flew at half-staff. Six hundred people attended the funeral service.
That is partly a testament to Brian's remarkable capacity to connect with people and leave a lasting impression - his lopsided grins were so infectious. It is also a testament to the level of caring and support the town offered to my bereaved sister and her husband.
Even the desk clerk who checked us into our hotel attended, as a simple gesture of common humanity.
Along the route from the church to the cemetery, people came out of their houses to stand with their hands over their hearts or to wave small American flags. Cars going in the opposite direction stopped. Some drivers got out to stand in respect.
To all of them, I say "Thank you. You know how to honor those who serve to protect you."
Once I left town, though, soldier's deaths once again became invisible.
Because of the incredible kindness of the people of Steilacoom, Wash., however, I wonder how many other people, in Maine or Texas or New York City, would also have honored Brian and the other soldiers who have died in the last two weeks if the media had simply let them know:
Somebody's little boy died today. Someone's little girl found out today that Daddy is never coming home.
That news is hard to bear; when the nation they died for barely notices, it's crushing.
A LIFE LOST OUT OF THE SPOTLIGHT
While a Nation and World Paid Tribute to a Passing Singer, a Small Town Mourned a Young Soldier Killed in Afghanistan
CBS Sunday Morning
July 12, 2009
Millions around the world will remember the day Michael Jackson died. Martha Gillis will, too - but she'll be thinking of someone else. She shares her Opinion with us now:
My 24-year-old nephew, Brian Bradshaw, died in Afghanistan on June 25, killed by an IED, but you'd never have known it from the national media.
I cannot tell you how that silence added to the pain of losing this bright, funny, thoughtful young man, whom I remember so vividly as a toddler, wandering the house in cowboy boots and hat (and nothing else).
I suspect it's a pain shared by many of the 4,000-plus grieving families whose loved ones have sacrificed their lives in two wars that have largely disappeared from the news.
When I flew West for Brian's funeral, the mayor of his small home town personally met each of dozens of flights of arriving family members. Flags flew at half-staff. Six hundred people attended the funeral service.
That is partly a testament to Brian's remarkable capacity to connect with people and leave a lasting impression - his lopsided grins were so infectious. It is also a testament to the level of caring and support the town offered to my bereaved sister and her husband.
Even the desk clerk who checked us into our hotel attended, as a simple gesture of common humanity.
Along the route from the church to the cemetery, people came out of their houses to stand with their hands over their hearts or to wave small American flags. Cars going in the opposite direction stopped. Some drivers got out to stand in respect.
To all of them, I say "Thank you. You know how to honor those who serve to protect you."
Once I left town, though, soldier's deaths once again became invisible.
Because of the incredible kindness of the people of Steilacoom, Wash., however, I wonder how many other people, in Maine or Texas or New York City, would also have honored Brian and the other soldiers who have died in the last two weeks if the media had simply let them know:
Somebody's little boy died today. Someone's little girl found out today that Daddy is never coming home.
That news is hard to bear; when the nation they died for barely notices, it's crushing.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
HAIL BRITANNICA'S HEALTH CARE
Sentences actually typed by qualified Medical Secretaries in the Greater Glasgow National Health Service. Nos. 17 and 21 are particularly remarkable. Courtesy of the Personnel Assessment Testing service.
1. The patient has no previous history of suicides.
2. Patient has left her white blood cells at another hospital.
3. Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with only a 40 pound weight gain in the past three days.
4. She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was very hot in bed last night.
5. Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year.
6. On the second day the knee was better and on the third day it disappeared.
7. The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be depressed.
8. The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993.
9. Discharge status:- Alive, but without my permission.
10. Healthy appearing decrepit 69-year old male, mentally alert, but forgetful.
11. Patient had waffles for breakfast and anorexia for lunch.
12. She is numb from her toes down.
13. While in ER, she was examined, x-rated and sent home.
14. The skin was moist and dry.
15. Occasional, constant infrequent headaches.
16. Patient was alert and unresponsive.
17. Rectal examination revealed a normal size thyroid.
18. She stated that she had been constipated for most of her life until she got a divorce.
19. I saw your patient today, who is still under our care for physical therapy.
20. Both breasts are equal and reactive to light and accommodation.
21. Examination of genitalia reveals that he is circus sized.
22. The lab test indicated abnormal lover function.
23. Skin: somewhat pale, but present.
24. The pelvic exam will be done later on the floor.
25. Large brown stool ambulating in the hall.
26. Patient has two teenage children, but no other abnormalities
27. When she fainted, her eyes rolled around the room.
28. The patient was in his usual state of good health until his airplane ran out of fuel and crashed.
29. Between you and me, we ought to be able to get this lady pregnant.
30. She slipped on the ice and apparently her legs went in separate directions in early December.
31. Patient was seen in consultation by Dr. Smith, who felt we should sit on the abdomen and I agree.
32. The patient was to have a bowel resection. However, he took a job as a stock broker instead.
33. By the time he was admitted, his rapid heart had stopped, and he was feeling better.
1. The patient has no previous history of suicides.
2. Patient has left her white blood cells at another hospital.
3. Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with only a 40 pound weight gain in the past three days.
4. She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was very hot in bed last night.
5. Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year.
6. On the second day the knee was better and on the third day it disappeared.
7. The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be depressed.
8. The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993.
9. Discharge status:- Alive, but without my permission.
10. Healthy appearing decrepit 69-year old male, mentally alert, but forgetful.
11. Patient had waffles for breakfast and anorexia for lunch.
12. She is numb from her toes down.
13. While in ER, she was examined, x-rated and sent home.
14. The skin was moist and dry.
15. Occasional, constant infrequent headaches.
16. Patient was alert and unresponsive.
17. Rectal examination revealed a normal size thyroid.
18. She stated that she had been constipated for most of her life until she got a divorce.
19. I saw your patient today, who is still under our care for physical therapy.
20. Both breasts are equal and reactive to light and accommodation.
21. Examination of genitalia reveals that he is circus sized.
22. The lab test indicated abnormal lover function.
23. Skin: somewhat pale, but present.
24. The pelvic exam will be done later on the floor.
25. Large brown stool ambulating in the hall.
26. Patient has two teenage children, but no other abnormalities
27. When she fainted, her eyes rolled around the room.
28. The patient was in his usual state of good health until his airplane ran out of fuel and crashed.
29. Between you and me, we ought to be able to get this lady pregnant.
30. She slipped on the ice and apparently her legs went in separate directions in early December.
31. Patient was seen in consultation by Dr. Smith, who felt we should sit on the abdomen and I agree.
32. The patient was to have a bowel resection. However, he took a job as a stock broker instead.
33. By the time he was admitted, his rapid heart had stopped, and he was feeling better.
CROWD CONTROL STINKER
Leave it to those damn Jews to come up with a real stinker. Seriously though, it looks like the "skunk bomb" is a really terrific and effective device for crowd control. America’s police, please take note!
Israel has recently developed a chemical bomb for crowd control and dispersing rioters that some are referring to as the "skunk bomb."
The skunk bomb is touted as the smelliest weapon in the world, and has been developed as an alternative to using rubber bullets or tear gas for crowd control. Wired.com reports that the new chemical device emits an overpowering smell that is similar to raw sewage.
To add insult to injury, the intense smell of the skunk bomb attaches quickly to the skin and clothes and is very difficult to wash out. The stench is described as so intense, that even hardened activist and protesters who can withstand tear gas, usually turn and run after just one sniff.
The horrible smell of the skunk bomb is caused by a particularly foul smelling chemical. It is in fact an artificial recreation of the fluid emitted by skunks to scare off predators. Scientist from the Israeli Ministry of Defense analyzed the chemical compound skunks release when threatened, and used reverse engineering to create a synthetic version of the liquid.
The resulting chemical bomb has to be handled with care, and used at a safe distance to prevent back draft. The goal of the skunk bomb is to disperse protesters or rioters, though once they have been sprayed with a smelly liquid, police would likely be unable to arrest them because of the intense stench.
Israel has recently developed a chemical bomb for crowd control and dispersing rioters that some are referring to as the "skunk bomb."
The skunk bomb is touted as the smelliest weapon in the world, and has been developed as an alternative to using rubber bullets or tear gas for crowd control. Wired.com reports that the new chemical device emits an overpowering smell that is similar to raw sewage.
To add insult to injury, the intense smell of the skunk bomb attaches quickly to the skin and clothes and is very difficult to wash out. The stench is described as so intense, that even hardened activist and protesters who can withstand tear gas, usually turn and run after just one sniff.
The horrible smell of the skunk bomb is caused by a particularly foul smelling chemical. It is in fact an artificial recreation of the fluid emitted by skunks to scare off predators. Scientist from the Israeli Ministry of Defense analyzed the chemical compound skunks release when threatened, and used reverse engineering to create a synthetic version of the liquid.
The resulting chemical bomb has to be handled with care, and used at a safe distance to prevent back draft. The goal of the skunk bomb is to disperse protesters or rioters, though once they have been sprayed with a smelly liquid, police would likely be unable to arrest them because of the intense stench.
OUR FOUNDING FATHERS FOUND THE COST OF FREEDOM TO BE VERY HIGH
My friend Jay wrote, "Freedom isn't and never will be Free, there's always a price to pay!" He sent along the following facts to think about:
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.
Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.
John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.
So, take a few minutes to silently thank these patriots for all their sacrifices. It's not much to ask for the price they paid. Remember: Freedom is never free!
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.
Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.
John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.
So, take a few minutes to silently thank these patriots for all their sacrifices. It's not much to ask for the price they paid. Remember: Freedom is never free!
TEDDY ROOSEVELT ON IMMIGRANTS
'In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin.
But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American...There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all.
We have room for but one flag, the American flag... We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language. And we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people.'
Theodore Roosevelt, 1907
But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American...There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all.
We have room for but one flag, the American flag... We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language. And we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people.'
Theodore Roosevelt, 1907
I AM EXTREMELY SORRY (NOW THAT I'VE BEEN CAUGHT)
"No words can adequately express her remorse and the family's regret for what happened ... She intends to cooperate fully with the police and prosecutors in their investigation of this case ... She hopes to have an opportunity in the future to apologize personally to the children, as well as to their families." That in part was the statement released by the attorney for Chelsea Steele, a 17-year-old high school cheerleader who robbed four girls between the ages of seven and eleven of the money they collected during a fund raiser.
"She is just torn up about what happened," the attorney later explained during a televised interview, "She'd like to express to the children who were involved in this and had to experience it, as well as their parents, that she is extremely sorry for what happened and wants an opportunity down the road to say that to their faces."
Remorse and regret? Yeah, remorse and regret over having been caught. Extremely sorry? Ditto! Just torn up? Yeah, because her ass is in jail. The only expression missing from those phony statements is that Steele made a "mistake." Steele's mother has contacted the victim’s families, offering to repay the stolen money if the charges against her daughter were dropped.
Lawyers for criminals from respectable families are fond of reducing a crime to a mistake. Driving drunk is a mistake. Shoplifting is a mistake. Burglary is a mistake. Joyriding in a stolen car is a mistake. Vandalism is a mistake. And an apology and restitution for those "mistakes" is supposed to make everything OK. God forbid that those "mistakes" would leave the drunk driver, the thief, the burglar, or the vandal with a criminal record.
Let's be very clear on this! What lawyers like to call mistakes are not mistakes - they are crimes, pure and simple. The only mistake the perpetrator made was that he or she got caught.
As a former law enforcement officer, I do not believe that saying I’m sorry and giving back the money makes everything OK. I may be hard-nosed, but when a person commits a crime, there must be a price to pay - and by that I don’t mean making restitution and paying for a lawyer. And that goes double for some spoiled brat from a privileged background.
Here is a report on the robbery:
CHEERLEADER ACCUSED OF ROBBINGCHILDREN
$147 stolen from pool party was to benefit a father’s struggling business
Cox Newspapers
July 9, 2009
ATLANTA — A high school cheerleader is in jail after police say she robbed children at a pool party.
Chelsea Steele, 17, was arrested after she stole a box containing $147 from a group of children, including a wheelchair-confined child, at a neighborhood pool in Marietta, Ga., according to the arrest warrant.
The children were selling T-shirts and hats to benefit a father’s struggling embroidery business when the incident took place on July 3.
After taking the cash, Steele fled the suburban Atlanta subdivision in a white Ford Taurus with three other girls, said Cobb County police spokesman Joe Hernandez. She was arrested later that night and has been in Cobb County Jail since July 4 on felony charges of robbery and a misdemeanor charge of underage possession of alcohol.
A $5,000 bond was set Wednesday, though it’s unclear whether Steele has posted bond.
Calls to her attorney were not immediately returned.
The names of the other girls have not been released because of their age. Charges against them are pending, Hernandez said.
Joe Green said his two daughters, ages 9 and 11, organized the sale of Fourth of July gear to earn summer money and help his company, JAG Designs, which has struggled in recent months.
Green’s family was grilling out with friends Friday when the unknown teens came to the pool. As he returned from his house on an errand, he saw a white car with two teen girls parked outside the pool area, and another teen holding open the gate, which locks when closed. He then saw a girl later identified as Steele talking to his children at their table, he said.
He chatted with the teen and explained why his girls were selling the merchandise, he recalled. But a few minutes after he left their side, he heard shouts that their money had been snatched.
Two children helped identify Steele, who is listed as a varsity sport cheerleader on Sprayberry High’s Web site.
Green said the worst part of the ordeal isn’t the money lost.
"We knew we’d never get the money back. The money isn’t the issue, it’s what they did to our girls.’’
"She is just torn up about what happened," the attorney later explained during a televised interview, "She'd like to express to the children who were involved in this and had to experience it, as well as their parents, that she is extremely sorry for what happened and wants an opportunity down the road to say that to their faces."
Remorse and regret? Yeah, remorse and regret over having been caught. Extremely sorry? Ditto! Just torn up? Yeah, because her ass is in jail. The only expression missing from those phony statements is that Steele made a "mistake." Steele's mother has contacted the victim’s families, offering to repay the stolen money if the charges against her daughter were dropped.
Lawyers for criminals from respectable families are fond of reducing a crime to a mistake. Driving drunk is a mistake. Shoplifting is a mistake. Burglary is a mistake. Joyriding in a stolen car is a mistake. Vandalism is a mistake. And an apology and restitution for those "mistakes" is supposed to make everything OK. God forbid that those "mistakes" would leave the drunk driver, the thief, the burglar, or the vandal with a criminal record.
Let's be very clear on this! What lawyers like to call mistakes are not mistakes - they are crimes, pure and simple. The only mistake the perpetrator made was that he or she got caught.
As a former law enforcement officer, I do not believe that saying I’m sorry and giving back the money makes everything OK. I may be hard-nosed, but when a person commits a crime, there must be a price to pay - and by that I don’t mean making restitution and paying for a lawyer. And that goes double for some spoiled brat from a privileged background.
Here is a report on the robbery:
CHEERLEADER ACCUSED OF ROBBINGCHILDREN
$147 stolen from pool party was to benefit a father’s struggling business
Cox Newspapers
July 9, 2009
ATLANTA — A high school cheerleader is in jail after police say she robbed children at a pool party.
Chelsea Steele, 17, was arrested after she stole a box containing $147 from a group of children, including a wheelchair-confined child, at a neighborhood pool in Marietta, Ga., according to the arrest warrant.
The children were selling T-shirts and hats to benefit a father’s struggling embroidery business when the incident took place on July 3.
After taking the cash, Steele fled the suburban Atlanta subdivision in a white Ford Taurus with three other girls, said Cobb County police spokesman Joe Hernandez. She was arrested later that night and has been in Cobb County Jail since July 4 on felony charges of robbery and a misdemeanor charge of underage possession of alcohol.
A $5,000 bond was set Wednesday, though it’s unclear whether Steele has posted bond.
Calls to her attorney were not immediately returned.
The names of the other girls have not been released because of their age. Charges against them are pending, Hernandez said.
Joe Green said his two daughters, ages 9 and 11, organized the sale of Fourth of July gear to earn summer money and help his company, JAG Designs, which has struggled in recent months.
Green’s family was grilling out with friends Friday when the unknown teens came to the pool. As he returned from his house on an errand, he saw a white car with two teen girls parked outside the pool area, and another teen holding open the gate, which locks when closed. He then saw a girl later identified as Steele talking to his children at their table, he said.
He chatted with the teen and explained why his girls were selling the merchandise, he recalled. But a few minutes after he left their side, he heard shouts that their money had been snatched.
Two children helped identify Steele, who is listed as a varsity sport cheerleader on Sprayberry High’s Web site.
Green said the worst part of the ordeal isn’t the money lost.
"We knew we’d never get the money back. The money isn’t the issue, it’s what they did to our girls.’’
Friday, July 10, 2009
BLACK TEENS CELEBRATE THE FOURTH
We are all aware that there are terrible hate crimes against racial and religious minorities and against gays and transsexuals. What about hate crimes against whites? Apparently there is no such thing. From the Akron Beacon Journal:
AKRON POLICE INVESTIGATE TEEN MOB ATTACK ON FAMILY
By Phil Trexler
Beacon Journal staff writer
Jully 7,2009
Akron police say they aren't ready to call it a hate crime or a gang initiation.
But to Marty Marshall, his wife and two kids, it seems pretty clear.
It came after a family night of celebrating America and freedom with a fireworks show at Firestone Stadium. Marshall, his family and two friends were gathered outside a friend's home in South Akron.
Out of nowhere, the six were attacked by dozens of teenage boys, who shouted ''This is our world'' and ''This is a black world'' as they confronted Marshall and his family.
The Marshalls, who are white, say the crowd of teens who attacked them and two friends June 27 on Girard Street numbered close to 50. The teens were all black.
''This was almost like being a terrorist act,'' Marshall said. ''And we allow this to go on in our neighborhoods?''
They said it started when one teen, without any words or warning, blindsided and assaulted Marshall's friend as he stood outside with the others.
When Marshall, 39, jumped in, he found himself being attacked by the growing group of teens.
His daughter, Rachel, 15, who weighs about 90 pounds, tried to come to his rescue. The teens pushed her to the ground.
His wife, Yvonne, pushed their son, Donald, 14, into bushes to keep him protected.
''My thing is,'' Marshall said, ''I didn't want this, but I was in fear for my wife, my kids and my friends. I felt I had to stay out there to protect them, because those guys were just jumping, swinging fists and everything.
''I'm lucky. They didn't break my ribs or bruise my ribs. I thank God, they concentrated on my thick head because I do have one. They were trying to take my head off my spine, basically.''
After several minutes of punches and kicks, the attack ended and the group ran off. The Marshalls' two adult male friends were not seriously hurt.
''I don't think I thought at that moment when I tried to jump in,'' Rachel Marshall said. ''But when I was laying on the ground, I was just scared.''
Marshall was the most seriously injured. He suffered a concussion and multiple bruises to his head and eye. He said he spent five nights in the critical care unit at Akron General Medical Center.
The construction worker said he now fears for his family's safety, and the thousands of dollars in medical bills he faces without insurance.
''I knew I was going to get beat, but not as bad as I did,'' Marshall said.
''But I did it to protect my family. I didn't have a choice. There was no need for this. We should be all getting along. But to me, it seems to be racist.''
Akron police are investigating. Right now, the case is not being classified as a racial hate crime. There were no other reports of victims assaulted by the group that night.
The department's gang unit is involved in the investigation, police said.
''We don't know if it's a known gang, or just a group of kids,'' police Lt. Rick Edwards said.
The Marshalls say they fear retaliation at home or when they go outside. They are considering arming themselves, but they're concerned about the possible problems that come with guns.
For now, they are hoping police can bring them suspects. They believe they can identify several of the attackers.
''This makes you think about your freedom,'' Marshall said. ''In all reality, where is your freedom when you have this going on?''
AKRON POLICE INVESTIGATE TEEN MOB ATTACK ON FAMILY
By Phil Trexler
Beacon Journal staff writer
Jully 7,2009
Akron police say they aren't ready to call it a hate crime or a gang initiation.
But to Marty Marshall, his wife and two kids, it seems pretty clear.
It came after a family night of celebrating America and freedom with a fireworks show at Firestone Stadium. Marshall, his family and two friends were gathered outside a friend's home in South Akron.
Out of nowhere, the six were attacked by dozens of teenage boys, who shouted ''This is our world'' and ''This is a black world'' as they confronted Marshall and his family.
The Marshalls, who are white, say the crowd of teens who attacked them and two friends June 27 on Girard Street numbered close to 50. The teens were all black.
''This was almost like being a terrorist act,'' Marshall said. ''And we allow this to go on in our neighborhoods?''
They said it started when one teen, without any words or warning, blindsided and assaulted Marshall's friend as he stood outside with the others.
When Marshall, 39, jumped in, he found himself being attacked by the growing group of teens.
His daughter, Rachel, 15, who weighs about 90 pounds, tried to come to his rescue. The teens pushed her to the ground.
His wife, Yvonne, pushed their son, Donald, 14, into bushes to keep him protected.
''My thing is,'' Marshall said, ''I didn't want this, but I was in fear for my wife, my kids and my friends. I felt I had to stay out there to protect them, because those guys were just jumping, swinging fists and everything.
''I'm lucky. They didn't break my ribs or bruise my ribs. I thank God, they concentrated on my thick head because I do have one. They were trying to take my head off my spine, basically.''
After several minutes of punches and kicks, the attack ended and the group ran off. The Marshalls' two adult male friends were not seriously hurt.
''I don't think I thought at that moment when I tried to jump in,'' Rachel Marshall said. ''But when I was laying on the ground, I was just scared.''
Marshall was the most seriously injured. He suffered a concussion and multiple bruises to his head and eye. He said he spent five nights in the critical care unit at Akron General Medical Center.
The construction worker said he now fears for his family's safety, and the thousands of dollars in medical bills he faces without insurance.
''I knew I was going to get beat, but not as bad as I did,'' Marshall said.
''But I did it to protect my family. I didn't have a choice. There was no need for this. We should be all getting along. But to me, it seems to be racist.''
Akron police are investigating. Right now, the case is not being classified as a racial hate crime. There were no other reports of victims assaulted by the group that night.
The department's gang unit is involved in the investigation, police said.
''We don't know if it's a known gang, or just a group of kids,'' police Lt. Rick Edwards said.
The Marshalls say they fear retaliation at home or when they go outside. They are considering arming themselves, but they're concerned about the possible problems that come with guns.
For now, they are hoping police can bring them suspects. They believe they can identify several of the attackers.
''This makes you think about your freedom,'' Marshall said. ''In all reality, where is your freedom when you have this going on?''
Thursday, July 09, 2009
BOOT CAMP
Letter home from a farm kid at the San Diego Marine Corps Recruit Training Center.
Dear Ma and Pa
I am well. Hope you are. Tell Brother Walt and Brother Elmer the Marine Corps beats working for old man Minch by a mile. Tell them to join up quick before all of the places are filled.
I was restless at first because you get to stay in bed till nearly 6 a.m. But I am getting so I like to sleep late. Tell Walt and Elmer all you do before breakfast is smooth your cot, and shine some things. No hogs to slop, feed to pitch, mash to mix, wood to split, fire to lay. Practically nothing. All the guys got to shave but it is not so bad, there’s warm water.
Breakfast is strong on trimmings, like fruit juice, cereal, eggs, bacon, etc., but kind of weak on chops, potatoes, ham, steak, fried eggplant, pie and other regular food, but tell Walt and Elmer you can always sit by the two city boys that live on coffee. Their food, plus yours, holds you until noon when you get fed again.
It’s no wonder these city boys can’t walk much. We go on ‘route marches,’ which the platoon sergeant says are long walks to harden us. If he thinks so, it’s not my place to tell him different. A ‘route march’ is about as far as to our mailbox at home. Then the city guys get sore feet and we all ride back in trucks.
The sergeant is like a school teacher. He nags a lot. The Captain is like the school board. Majors and Colonels just ride around and frown . They don’t bother you none.
This next will kill Walt and Elmer with laughing. I keep getting medals for shooting. I don’t know why. The bulls-eye is near as big as a chipmunk head and don’t move, and it ain’t shooting at you like the Higgett boys at home. All you got to do is lie there all comfortable and hit it. You don’t even load your own cartridges. They come in boxes.
Then we have what they call hand-to-hand combat training. You get to wrestle with them city boys. I have to be real careful though, they break real easy. It ain’t like fighting with that ole bull at home. I’m about the best they got in this except for that Tug Jordan from over in Silver Lake. I only beat him once. He joined up the same time as me, but I’m only 5'6" and 130 pounds and he’s 6'8" and near 300 pounds dry.
Be sure to tell Walt and Elmer to hurry and join before other fellers get onto this setup and come stampeding in.
Your loving daughter,
Alice
Dear Ma and Pa
I am well. Hope you are. Tell Brother Walt and Brother Elmer the Marine Corps beats working for old man Minch by a mile. Tell them to join up quick before all of the places are filled.
I was restless at first because you get to stay in bed till nearly 6 a.m. But I am getting so I like to sleep late. Tell Walt and Elmer all you do before breakfast is smooth your cot, and shine some things. No hogs to slop, feed to pitch, mash to mix, wood to split, fire to lay. Practically nothing. All the guys got to shave but it is not so bad, there’s warm water.
Breakfast is strong on trimmings, like fruit juice, cereal, eggs, bacon, etc., but kind of weak on chops, potatoes, ham, steak, fried eggplant, pie and other regular food, but tell Walt and Elmer you can always sit by the two city boys that live on coffee. Their food, plus yours, holds you until noon when you get fed again.
It’s no wonder these city boys can’t walk much. We go on ‘route marches,’ which the platoon sergeant says are long walks to harden us. If he thinks so, it’s not my place to tell him different. A ‘route march’ is about as far as to our mailbox at home. Then the city guys get sore feet and we all ride back in trucks.
The sergeant is like a school teacher. He nags a lot. The Captain is like the school board. Majors and Colonels just ride around and frown . They don’t bother you none.
This next will kill Walt and Elmer with laughing. I keep getting medals for shooting. I don’t know why. The bulls-eye is near as big as a chipmunk head and don’t move, and it ain’t shooting at you like the Higgett boys at home. All you got to do is lie there all comfortable and hit it. You don’t even load your own cartridges. They come in boxes.
Then we have what they call hand-to-hand combat training. You get to wrestle with them city boys. I have to be real careful though, they break real easy. It ain’t like fighting with that ole bull at home. I’m about the best they got in this except for that Tug Jordan from over in Silver Lake. I only beat him once. He joined up the same time as me, but I’m only 5'6" and 130 pounds and he’s 6'8" and near 300 pounds dry.
Be sure to tell Walt and Elmer to hurry and join before other fellers get onto this setup and come stampeding in.
Your loving daughter,
Alice
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