Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Legal Insurrection
Legal Insurrection, a blog by Cornell Law Professor William Jacobson, has a good article on the dilemma faced by pro-Israel students on campus: Fight or flight. There are two videos. The first shows students describing the thuggery and intimidation they receive at the hands of pro-Palestinian supporters on campus. The second has recent video from encounters at Cornell.
http://legalinsurrection.com/2014/11/being-pro-israel-on-campus-fight-or-flight-spoiler-alert-fight/
These outrages, of course, could not go on if universities had administrators with an ounce of courage. Sadly, they do not. Secondly, these thugs are more often than not inspired and encouraged by leftist anti-Israel professors who have indoctrinated them in the classroom and at campus speaking events. It is a sad commentary in our universities today that places of learning have become places of indoctrination and intimidation.
And where are the national Jewish organizations that should be speaking out about these outrages and pounding on the desks of university presidents demanding an end to anti-Semitism and bullying of Jewish students on campus? They are missing in action. With the exception of a handful like the Zionist Organization of America, Stand With Us, and CAMERA, they are missing in action. Other organizations like Hillel, the Jewish Federation, and the Anti-Defamation League are afraid to upset the apple cart on campus. In the case of the first two, they are too embedded with the university and too dependent on same in order to operate on campus. They are also afraid that Jewish students will decide to attend other schools if their university is known for anti-Semitic agitation. The ADL will not complain about anti-Semitism when it comes from Islamic sources. It all adds up to a perfect storm.
What is needed is that groups like Students for Justice in Palestine, various Muslim Student Association chapters, radical professors on their soapboxes, gutless Jewish organizations, and university administrators need to be exposed to the community. Furthermore, it is time for campus police to cease their policies of "low profile" anytime a volatile situation is taking place on campus. The campus should be a safe place for all, and those that make it anything else should be removed from the campus.
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Thursday, November 27, 2014
Happy Thanksgiving!
Originally posted on Thursday, November 25, 2010
Here are some interesting Thanksgiving and Turkey facts:
What nation eats the most Turkey?
According to the National Turkey Federation, in 1998 Israel consumed 27.8 pounds per capita. The United States is in second place, at 18 pounds per capita, followed by France (14.3 pounds), the United Kingdom (11.5), Canada (9.7), Belgium-Luxembourg (7.5), and the Netherlands (3.9).
Here are some interesting Thanksgiving and Turkey facts:
Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States.
By the fall of 1621 only half of the pilgrims, who had sailed on the Mayflower, survived. The survivors, thankful to be alive, decided to give a thanksgiving feast.
Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October in Canada. So a belated Happy Thanksgiving to our Northern friends.
The Plymouth Pilgrims were the first to celebrate the Thanksgiving.
The Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving Day in the fall of 1621. They celebrated at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
The drink that the Puritans brought with them in the Mayflower was the beer.
The Wampanoag Indians were the people who taught the Pilgrims how to cultivate the land.
The Pilgrim leader, Governor William Bradford, had organized the first Thanksgiving feast in the year 1621 and invited the neighboring Wampanoag Indians also to the feast.
The first Thanksgiving feast was held in the presence of around ninety Wampanoag Indians and the Wampanoag chief, Massasoit, was also invited there.
The first Thanksgiving celebration lasted three days.
Congress passed an official proclamation in 1941 and declared that now onwards Thanksgiving will be observed as a legal holiday on the fourth Thursday of November every year.
At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the U.S. at Thanksgiving—that's one sixth of all turkeys sold in the U.S. each year. American per capita consumption of turkeys has soared from 8.3 pounds in 1975 to 18.5 pounds in 1997. Ten years later, the number has dropped slightly in 2007 to 17.5 pounds.
Age is a determining factor in taste. Old, large males are preferable to young toms (males) as tom meat is stringy. The opposite is true for females: old hens are tougher birds.
A turkey under sixteen weeks of age is called a fryer, while a young roaster is five to seven months old.
Turkeys are the only breed of poultry native to the Western Hemisphere.
Turkeys have great hearing, but no external ears. They can also see in color, and have excellent visual acuity and a wide field of vision (about 270 degrees), which makes sneaking up on them difficult. However, turkeys have a poor sense of smell (what's cooking?), but an excellent sense of taste.
Domesticated turkeys cannot fly. Wild turkeys, however, can fly for short distances at speeds up to 55 miles per hour. They can also reach speeds of 25 miles per hour on the ground.
Turkeys sometimes spend the night in trees.
Turkeys can have heart attacks: turkeys in fields near the Air Force test areas over which the sound barrier was broken were known to drop dead from the shock of passing jets
The ballroom dance known as the Turkey Trot was named for the short, jerky steps a turkey makes.
What nation eats the most Turkey?
ISRAEL
According to the National Turkey Federation, in 1998 Israel consumed 27.8 pounds per capita. The United States is in second place, at 18 pounds per capita, followed by France (14.3 pounds), the United Kingdom (11.5), Canada (9.7), Belgium-Luxembourg (7.5), and the Netherlands (3.9).
On this Thanksgiving, before you sit down to your feast, take a moment to Thank G-d for all the blessings in your life. And take a moment to remember the men and women serving in our Armed Forces, many of which are far from home in harms way.
May God bring blessings upon your families this holiday.
GO FEAST!
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Was it Something I Said, Professor?
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Note: I did not videotape the below event, and my writing is based on my handwritten notes.
On Monday, I attended an event at UC Irvine sponsored by the UCI Center for Global Conflict Studies. The speakers were UC Irvine professor Mark LeVine and former Swedish ambassador Mathias Mossberg. Both of them have co-edited a new book that puts forth a rather bizarre proposal to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That is not a two-state solution, not a one-state solution, but a parallel state solution. ("One Land, Two States:Israel as Palestine as Two States").
The event was notable for two things: First, your humble correspondent made a serious factual error when I asked Ambassador Mossberg during the q and a about an article I understood he had written for a Swedish blog in which I quoted him (erroneously) as having condemned Israel over the recent Gaza fighting and denying that Hamas had used its people as human shields and had actually wished for civilian deaths as a strategy. His response was that he had never written it, and as it turns out, he was correct. More about that later. The event was attended by Professor LeVine's students as well as several older attendees. Of course the book they had co-edited was available for purchase.
The presentation was supposed to be accompanied by a power point presentation, but it never came off since apparently neither LeVine or Mossberg knew how to operate the power point. An appeal was sent out to students in the audience to get it sorted out, but to make a long story short, the power point never happened.
At any rate, as Mossberg explained it, the basic points of the parallel states plan are that:
The state would respond to people as opposed to the state.
Free travel in the territories.
There would be two presidents, two parliaments, and everybody would have to cooperate.
There would be a joint external security force.
The different economies (Israel-West Bank-Gaza) would have to joined in an equitable manner.
There would also have to be legal harmony between the Palestinian and Israeli legal
systems.
Ambassador Mossberg stated that since the two sides don't trust each other, it would be difficult but not insurmountable. As for reactions to the plan, he added that some people had positive reactions while others said it "was the most stupid idea they had ever heard."
But let's be fair. Ambassador Mossberg was having to ad-lib a bit because the power point presentation had not materialized. This article in The Guardian outlines it a bit better.
As for LeVine, he severely criticized the Oslo Accords even calling them "corrupt" at one point. At one point he said, "Don't Palestinians have rights?" and stated that the Israeli government acts like they don't know what they (?) are talking about.
Also, at one point Ambassador Mossberg said that Europe was likely to get more involved in the conflict and that Europeans were shocked by what they had seem from the recent Gaza fighting.
When the q an a came I got the first question, and it went something like this. (It was addressed primarily to Ambassador Mossberg.)
"If either party were to accept this plan they would want to be confident that the authors of the plan were impartial. With all due respect, professor LeVine is an anti-Israeli activist...
At this point Mossberg expressed disagreement and I added that LeVine would probably say that himself. LeVine then said that was not the case and that I had "disrespected" him. I was then allowed to continue with my question.
I continued with the article in question which came from a Swedish blog called Vänstra Stranden (Left Bank). I quoted the author (whom I erroneously thought to be Mossberg) as criticizing a previous article in Svenska Dagbladet by Israeli ambassador to Sweden Isac Bachman who had blamed Hamas for the recent Gaza war and charged that Hamas was using its own population as human shields and wishing for civilian deaths. The author of the Vänstra Stranden article had said there was no evidence that Hamas had used its people for human shields and absolutely none that they wished for civilian deaths. I countered those assertions by quoting reports from international journalists who had witnessed Hamas fighters firing from civilian sites and also a German film crew that filmed Hamas personnel forcing civilians back into buildings they were trying to evacuate after having been warned by Israel that an attack was coming. After being told by LeVine to come to the question instead of making points, I asked why should the Israeli government accept a plan whose authors were biased. Ambassador Mossberg asked for a copy of the article, took a look at it, and passed it back to me saying that he had never written it.
When the event concluded, I approached LeVine and said that I had intended no disrespect. I started to explain that Ambassador Mossberg might want to look into this further, but I was cut off. At this point, with many of his students and other attendees still in the room, a visably angry LeVine began to shout at me. He told me that my writing was "sh--" and he was not embarrassed to say that it was "sh--" in front of the room. He also shouted that if I ever called him "anti-Israel" again, I was going to have a problem-that it was "slander". He finished by saying that I was not qualified to teach at this university and that he didn't want to talk to me-"Goodbye."
Temper, temper.
As I listened to all this, I told him that I was not going to engage in a heated shouting match since it was not the appropriate place. That was true. His own students were standing there, and as a teacher, I was not about to engage in this behavior in front of students.
So I went over to Ambassador Mossberg and told him that we should look further into this article, which I again showed him. This time he took the article which had his name above the text as if he were the author. I said that if he didn't write it, I would apologize for bringing it up. He was very gracious, and we parted on good terms unlike the aforementioned Professor LeVine.
Later, I checked further into the blog and determined that misleading as the post was, it was not Mossberg who wrote the article. If you Google Vänstra Stranden and Mathias Mossberg, you come up with this posting with his name above the text. However, if you Google say, Isac Bachman (the Israeli ambassador to Sweden) and Vänstra Stranden, you get the same result-a page that appears as if Bachman wrote the same article. This is a misleading feature of the blog, but I have no excuses. I thought I had an article written by Mossberg, when in reality, it was written by the blog's editor, Marie Demker. It was my mistake, and I take full responsibility for not checking deeper.
As soon as I found the problem, I sent an explanatory e-mail to Ambassador Mossberg with the appropriate links and repeating my apology. Here is the text of that e-mail:
As for Professor LeVine, if I was in error in calling him "an anti-Israel activist", perhaps it was due to the time I saw him as part of the Whither the Levant event at UC Irvine in 2009-a veritable one-sided Israel bash.
Or perhaps, it was the time he brought a representative of the Muslim Brotherhood, Ibrahim el Hudaiby to his class in 2008. I was there also.
Or how about this article from Campus Report Online and cross-posted by Campus Watch in 2006?
Or could it be articles like this written by LeVine for Al Jazeera?
Or how about that letter LeVine signed calling for an academic boycott of Israel? No anti-Israel activist there.
I could go on and on, but maybe I just got the wrong impression from all of the above (and much more).
But I will say this: There will be no apology to Professor LeVine. He embarrassed himself in front of his class with his meltdown, and I would hope that the next time he chooses to explode at me he will do it when no students are around. Then we can have a "real discussion."
And as for that Utopian idea of his for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, it strikes me as well, Utopian.
As long as LeVine keeps signing blatant, one-sided petitions supporting boycotts of Israel academic institutions and placing disproportionate blame on Israel for all the problems in the Middle East, his credibility and ideas are not likely to be taken seriously by people who are truly interested in finding a peaceful resolution to this long-standing conflict. He may think his spoken and written words do not make him an anti-Israel activist, but others would disagree.
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Note: I did not videotape the below event, and my writing is based on my handwritten notes.
On Monday, I attended an event at UC Irvine sponsored by the UCI Center for Global Conflict Studies. The speakers were UC Irvine professor Mark LeVine and former Swedish ambassador Mathias Mossberg. Both of them have co-edited a new book that puts forth a rather bizarre proposal to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That is not a two-state solution, not a one-state solution, but a parallel state solution. ("One Land, Two States:Israel as Palestine as Two States").
The presentation was supposed to be accompanied by a power point presentation, but it never came off since apparently neither LeVine or Mossberg knew how to operate the power point. An appeal was sent out to students in the audience to get it sorted out, but to make a long story short, the power point never happened.
At any rate, as Mossberg explained it, the basic points of the parallel states plan are that:
The state would respond to people as opposed to the state.
Free travel in the territories.
There would be two presidents, two parliaments, and everybody would have to cooperate.
There would be a joint external security force.
The different economies (Israel-West Bank-Gaza) would have to joined in an equitable manner.
There would also have to be legal harmony between the Palestinian and Israeli legal
systems.
But let's be fair. Ambassador Mossberg was having to ad-lib a bit because the power point presentation had not materialized. This article in The Guardian outlines it a bit better.
As for LeVine, he severely criticized the Oslo Accords even calling them "corrupt" at one point. At one point he said, "Don't Palestinians have rights?" and stated that the Israeli government acts like they don't know what they (?) are talking about.
Also, at one point Ambassador Mossberg said that Europe was likely to get more involved in the conflict and that Europeans were shocked by what they had seem from the recent Gaza fighting.
When the q an a came I got the first question, and it went something like this. (It was addressed primarily to Ambassador Mossberg.)
"If either party were to accept this plan they would want to be confident that the authors of the plan were impartial. With all due respect, professor LeVine is an anti-Israeli activist...
At this point Mossberg expressed disagreement and I added that LeVine would probably say that himself. LeVine then said that was not the case and that I had "disrespected" him. I was then allowed to continue with my question.
I continued with the article in question which came from a Swedish blog called Vänstra Stranden (Left Bank). I quoted the author (whom I erroneously thought to be Mossberg) as criticizing a previous article in Svenska Dagbladet by Israeli ambassador to Sweden Isac Bachman who had blamed Hamas for the recent Gaza war and charged that Hamas was using its own population as human shields and wishing for civilian deaths. The author of the Vänstra Stranden article had said there was no evidence that Hamas had used its people for human shields and absolutely none that they wished for civilian deaths. I countered those assertions by quoting reports from international journalists who had witnessed Hamas fighters firing from civilian sites and also a German film crew that filmed Hamas personnel forcing civilians back into buildings they were trying to evacuate after having been warned by Israel that an attack was coming. After being told by LeVine to come to the question instead of making points, I asked why should the Israeli government accept a plan whose authors were biased. Ambassador Mossberg asked for a copy of the article, took a look at it, and passed it back to me saying that he had never written it.
When the event concluded, I approached LeVine and said that I had intended no disrespect. I started to explain that Ambassador Mossberg might want to look into this further, but I was cut off. At this point, with many of his students and other attendees still in the room, a visably angry LeVine began to shout at me. He told me that my writing was "sh--" and he was not embarrassed to say that it was "sh--" in front of the room. He also shouted that if I ever called him "anti-Israel" again, I was going to have a problem-that it was "slander". He finished by saying that I was not qualified to teach at this university and that he didn't want to talk to me-"Goodbye."
Temper, temper.
As I listened to all this, I told him that I was not going to engage in a heated shouting match since it was not the appropriate place. That was true. His own students were standing there, and as a teacher, I was not about to engage in this behavior in front of students.
So I went over to Ambassador Mossberg and told him that we should look further into this article, which I again showed him. This time he took the article which had his name above the text as if he were the author. I said that if he didn't write it, I would apologize for bringing it up. He was very gracious, and we parted on good terms unlike the aforementioned Professor LeVine.
Later, I checked further into the blog and determined that misleading as the post was, it was not Mossberg who wrote the article. If you Google Vänstra Stranden and Mathias Mossberg, you come up with this posting with his name above the text. However, if you Google say, Isac Bachman (the Israeli ambassador to Sweden) and Vänstra Stranden, you get the same result-a page that appears as if Bachman wrote the same article. This is a misleading feature of the blog, but I have no excuses. I thought I had an article written by Mossberg, when in reality, it was written by the blog's editor, Marie Demker. It was my mistake, and I take full responsibility for not checking deeper.
As soon as I found the problem, I sent an explanatory e-mail to Ambassador Mossberg with the appropriate links and repeating my apology. Here is the text of that e-mail:
Dear Ambassador Mossberg, I am the one who brought up the question today at UCI about an article in Vanstra Stranden that bore your name. Upon returning to my office I did further checking into the blog in question and have confirmed that as you stated, you did not write the article. For that I repeat my apology for bringing it up. The reason your name is attached to the article is due to some feature in the blog which can lead to confusion. I originally found the article by Googling your name and came up with an entry from Vanstra Stranden. As you can see from the copy I gave you the page would indicate that you are the author of the article when it is actually Marie Demker the blogger herself. Your name appears also at the bottom in a footnote by Demker that caused the problem. http://vanstrastranden.wordpress.com/tag/mathias-mossberg/ For example, if you Google the name Isac Bachman, the Israeli ambassador to Stockholm, and Vanstra Stranden you will get the same page with his name at the top suggesting he is the author. http://vanstrastranden.wordpress.com/tag/isac-bachman/ I hope that clears up the confusion, and once again I apologize for the error. Best regards, Gary Fouse
As for Professor LeVine, if I was in error in calling him "an anti-Israel activist", perhaps it was due to the time I saw him as part of the Whither the Levant event at UC Irvine in 2009-a veritable one-sided Israel bash.
Or perhaps, it was the time he brought a representative of the Muslim Brotherhood, Ibrahim el Hudaiby to his class in 2008. I was there also.
Or how about this article from Campus Report Online and cross-posted by Campus Watch in 2006?
Or could it be articles like this written by LeVine for Al Jazeera?
Or how about that letter LeVine signed calling for an academic boycott of Israel? No anti-Israel activist there.
I could go on and on, but maybe I just got the wrong impression from all of the above (and much more).
But I will say this: There will be no apology to Professor LeVine. He embarrassed himself in front of his class with his meltdown, and I would hope that the next time he chooses to explode at me he will do it when no students are around. Then we can have a "real discussion."
And as for that Utopian idea of his for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, it strikes me as well, Utopian.
As long as LeVine keeps signing blatant, one-sided petitions supporting boycotts of Israel academic institutions and placing disproportionate blame on Israel for all the problems in the Middle East, his credibility and ideas are not likely to be taken seriously by people who are truly interested in finding a peaceful resolution to this long-standing conflict. He may think his spoken and written words do not make him an anti-Israel activist, but others would disagree.
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Wednesday's Hero
Cpt. Nathan J. Nylander
35 years old from Hockley, Texas
438th Expeditionary Wing
Jan. 23, 1976 - Apr. 27, 2011
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Army Award) (Posthumously) to Captain Nathan J. Nylander, United States Air Force, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in connection with ground combat operations as an Advisor, NATO Air Training Command-Afghanistan/438th Air Expeditionary Wing, NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan and Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan during Operation ENDURING FREEDOM on 27 April 2011. On the morning of 27 April, an assailant opened fire upon United States personnel shooting seven U.S. Air Force Airmen and one American civilian contractor. Despite an extremely uncertain tactical situation, and with disregard for his own safety, Captain Nylander went to the Air Command and Control Center (ACCC), Afghan Air Force (AAF) Headquarters in response to the shooting. He responded when the gunman began shooting as he was with four other Airmen and eight Afghan personnel in a conference room adjoining the ACCC. Captain Nylander could have exited the building to safety, but chose instead to return and assist his fellow Airmen. Captain Nylander then engaged the gunman, wounding the assailant and when he remained on the floor motionless, Captain Nylander approached the other rooms. The gunman arose and went into a room across the hall from the conference room. When the gunman re-emerged into the hallway, Captain Nylander engaged the assailant again and during this exchange of gunfire, Captain Nylander sustained wounds to his left and right thighs. Although seriously wounded and bleeding heavily, he continued to engage the gunman until his weapon jammed. When he attempted to exit the rear entrance of the AAF Headquarters, he was killed by the gunman. Captain Nylander's brave actions degraded the gunman's capability and likely prevented further loss of life, including that of other U.S. personnel who remained in the AAF Headquarters. By his bold initiative, undaunted courage, and complete dedication to duty, Captain Nylander gallantly gave his life for his country and reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan and Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, and the United States Air Force. NARRATIVE TO ACCOMPANY AWARD: Captain Nathan J. Nylander, United States Air Force, distinguished himself by gallantry performed with marked distinction as an Advisor and member of the NATO Air Training Command-Afghanistan/438th Air Expeditionary Wing, NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan and Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan during OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM. On the morning of 27 April 2011, a renegade Afghan Air Force officer entered the Air Command and Control Center (ACCC), Afghan Air Force (AAF) Headquarters and opened fire with a 9-mm. pistol, shooting seven U.S. Air Force Airmen and one American civilian contractor. When the gunman began shooting, Captain Nylander was with four other Airmen and eight Afghan personnel in a conference room adjoining the ACCC. At the sound of the gunshots, he moved toward the door between the AAAC and the conference room. With Captain Bradley and Captain Cheslak providing cover, Captain Nylander evacuated the conference room. After exiting the conference room, he could have continued to safety, but chose instead to return and assist his fellow Airmen. He took up a firing position next to Captain Bradley in the hallway when the gunman emerged from the ACCC. Captain Bradley and Captain Nylander engaged the gunman with their 9-mm. pistols, wounding him at least once and possibly twice. When the gunman remained on the floor and did not move, Captain Bradley made eye contact with Captain Nylander, gave him a signal to withdraw, and then exited the building. Although the tactical situation was extremely uncertain, Captain Nylander chose to remain in the building and did not withdraw. While Captain Nylander was likely in the conference room or ACCC, the gunman got up and went into a room across the hall from the conference room. When the gunman re-emerged into the hallway, Captain Nylander engaged the gunman again with his 9-mm.. During this exchange, Captain Nylander was shot in the left thigh and sustained a grazing wound to his right thigh. Bleeding from his wounds, Captain Nylander began to move toward the rear entrance of the AAF Headquarters. Although seriously wounded and bleeding heavily, Captain Nylander continued to engage the gunman until his 9-mm. jammed. He cleared two rounds from his weapon and the final round was found jammed in the chamber. When Captain Nylander attempted to exit the rear entrance of the AAF Headquarters, he was killed by the gunman. Of his own volition, Captain Nylander chose to return to an extremely dangerous and unknown tactical situation and engage an attacker who had taken the lives of eight fellow Americans. After an initial exchange of gunfire, Captain Nylander again chose to stay, with the likely intent of aiding the fallen. Captain Nylander's brave actions degraded the gunman's capability and likely prevented further loss of life, including that of other U.S. personnel who remained in the AAF Headquarters. His distinct gallantry while engaged with a hostile attacker, exemplifies loyalty, selfless service, and personal courage. By his bold initiative, undaunted courage, and complete dedication to duty, Captain Nylander gallantly gave his life for his country and reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the NATO Training Mission–Afghanistan and Combined Security Transition Command–Afghanistan, and the United States Air Force.
You can read more here
These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives just so others may get to enjoy freedom. For that I am proud to call them Hero.
Those Who Say That We're In A Time When There Are No Heroes, They Just Don't Know Where To Look
Wounded Warrior Project - Because So Many Have Come Back With Injuries, Seen And Unseen.
This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.
Saturday, November 22, 2014
Joe Biden Buttering Up the Turks
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Memri and Janet Ellen Levy
Joe Biden, America's secret diplomatic weapon, is in Turkey this weekend trying to mend fences with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and praising Turkey for its humanitarian aid to Syrian and Iraqi refugees.
"That's a big f*****' deal."
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-30155496
Well, that's all well and good, Mr Biden, but are you discussing US concerns with the rise of religious intolerance in Turkey?
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/8304.htm
"In addition to statements by government officials, the pro-AKP media regularly accuse Turkey's Jews of "treason,"[2] and other accusations are also levelled, including connecting Jews with the use of Ebola as a biological weapon in "global occupation" that "knows no borders"; in addition, a professor tweeted about sending Jews to Treblinka."
Is that being discussed. Mr Biden?
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Memri and Janet Ellen Levy
Joe Biden, America's secret diplomatic weapon, is in Turkey this weekend trying to mend fences with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and praising Turkey for its humanitarian aid to Syrian and Iraqi refugees.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-30155496
Well, that's all well and good, Mr Biden, but are you discussing US concerns with the rise of religious intolerance in Turkey?
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/8304.htm
"In addition to statements by government officials, the pro-AKP media regularly accuse Turkey's Jews of "treason,"[2] and other accusations are also levelled, including connecting Jews with the use of Ebola as a biological weapon in "global occupation" that "knows no borders"; in addition, a professor tweeted about sending Jews to Treblinka."
Is that being discussed. Mr Biden?
"At the same time that President Erdogan was denying, in his September 22, 2014 speech at the Council of Foreign Relations, that he or his government were in any way antisemitic, members of his party back home were tweeting praise for Hitler, and shops in Istanbul were displaying signs reading "No Admittance To Jewish Dogs."
On November 9, 2014, a sign reading "This Location To Be Demolished" was hung on the entrance to Istanbul's Neveh Shalom Synagogue; the synagogue has already been the target of two major terrorist attacks in which many congregants at prayer were killed and wounded."
Is that being discussed, Mr. Biden?
"Islamist columnist Ibrahim Tenekeci of the pro-AKP daily Yeni Safak wrote in a July 23, 2014 column titled "Of Men and Jews" (in which he refused to capitalize the term "Jew" except where he quotes another author):[3] "This title, reminiscent of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, belongs to [Islamist author] Nurettin Topcu, not me. Topcu wrote three articles in 1967: 'The Islamic Cause and Judaism,' 'Money and the Jew,' and 'Of Men and Jews.' These articles define jews as the eternal curse of mankind. 'Those that attack to destroy the building of absolute truth,' 'those who reject all moral values,' 'the bloody and sinful hands,' 'the evil that replaces the good' – All these are the jews."
Are these statements by mr ibrahim tenekeci being discussed, Mr. Biden? (Forgive me if I don't capitalize mr. tenekeci's name.)
"Bilecik University Physics Department Head: "Treblinka Will Be Ready Soon; [We Are] Constructing The Railway To Transport Jews At The Moment"
Is that being discussed, Mr. Biden?
Mr. Biden, these are big f****' deals, too. It is time for the US to stop sucking up to Erdogan as he drags his country down the path of radical Islamism.
What Happens When A Fly Falls Into A Cup Of Coffee At A Coffee Shop?
Stolen From Bare Naked Islam
The Italian throws the cup, breaks it, and walks away in a fit of rage.
The German carefully washes the cup, sterilizes it and makes a new cup of coffee.
The Frenchman takes out the fly, and drinks the coffee.
The Chinese swats the fly and throws away the coffee.
The Russian drinks the coffee with the fly, since it was extra with no charge.
The Israeli sells the coffee to the Frenchman, sells the fly to the Chinese, sells the cup to the Italian, drinks a cup of tea, and uses the extra money to invent a device that prevents flies from falling into coffee.
The Palestinian blames the Israeli for the fly falling into his coffee, protests the act of aggression to the UN, takes a loan from the European Union to buy a new cup of coffee, uses the money to purchase explosives and then blows up the coffee house where the Italian, the Frenchman, the Chinese, the German and the Russian are all trying to explain to the Israeli that he should give away his cup of tea to the Palestinian.
The Italian throws the cup, breaks it, and walks away in a fit of rage.
The German carefully washes the cup, sterilizes it and makes a new cup of coffee.
The Frenchman takes out the fly, and drinks the coffee.
The Chinese swats the fly and throws away the coffee.
The Russian drinks the coffee with the fly, since it was extra with no charge.
The Israeli sells the coffee to the Frenchman, sells the fly to the Chinese, sells the cup to the Italian, drinks a cup of tea, and uses the extra money to invent a device that prevents flies from falling into coffee.
The Palestinian blames the Israeli for the fly falling into his coffee, protests the act of aggression to the UN, takes a loan from the European Union to buy a new cup of coffee, uses the money to purchase explosives and then blows up the coffee house where the Italian, the Frenchman, the Chinese, the German and the Russian are all trying to explain to the Israeli that he should give away his cup of tea to the Palestinian.
Thursday, November 20, 2014
The Official Flag of Palestine
"Until the 1960s, name “Palestine” resonated as something Jewish to peoples ears. The 4,000 year old Jewish homeland or “Land of Israel” or the “Holy Land” were all synonymous!! The British as legal Mandatory over the Mandate managed or mismanaged the state partially with Jewish Auxiliary until Jews regained official sovereignty in 1948, by declaring independence. The U.N. did not recreate Israel as some people claim." the full story of the flag
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Choosing To Be Offended
The latest from Pat Condell
Click here if the video fails to load.
It's a Muslim thing.
Bid to end suffering of chickens blocked after Muslims complain it would undermine their rights
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic...
Restaurant removes bacon sign after Muslims complain
http://nation.foxnews.com/2014/08/24/...
Egypt’s vegetarians dread the arrival of Eid el-Adha, the festival of sacrifice
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014...
Click here if the video fails to load.
It's a Muslim thing.
Bid to end suffering of chickens blocked after Muslims complain it would undermine their rights
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/artic...
Restaurant removes bacon sign after Muslims complain
http://nation.foxnews.com/2014/08/24/...
Egypt’s vegetarians dread the arrival of Eid el-Adha, the festival of sacrifice
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014...
Monday, November 17, 2014
In Memory
Of my friend Jim Bader who passed away a few hours ago.
Jim was a liberal, a kind-hearted man and a USAF veteran.
His death from a heart attack was totally unexpected.
I will miss you!
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Obama's Nancy Pelosi Moment in Brisbane
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Breitbart and Gateway Pundit
"Himmler? He was just some adviser who never worked on our staff."
As President Obama spoke before the press as part of the G-20 conference in Brisbane, Australia, the subject of Jonathan Gruber came up in a question. Obama tried to downplay Gruber's role in formulating Obamacare.
http://www.breitbart.com/InstaBlog/2014/11/16/Obama-Just-Stepped-In-A-Pile-Of-Gruber
"...just some adviser who never worked on our staff."
Not only was this guy paid close to $400,000 for his services, but according to Gruber's account on video, he was in the Oval Office with Obama when the problem of the so-called Cadillac Tax was "worked out".
Nancy Pelosi this past week claimed she didn't know who Gruber was even though she brought up his name, his analysis of Obamacare, and the fact that he was from MIT in 2009. That's all on tape as we now know. Now Obama tells reporters in Brisbane that Gruber was "just some adviser who never worked on our staff".
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Breitbart and Gateway Pundit
"Himmler? He was just some adviser who never worked on our staff."
As President Obama spoke before the press as part of the G-20 conference in Brisbane, Australia, the subject of Jonathan Gruber came up in a question. Obama tried to downplay Gruber's role in formulating Obamacare.
http://www.breitbart.com/InstaBlog/2014/11/16/Obama-Just-Stepped-In-A-Pile-Of-Gruber
"...just some adviser who never worked on our staff."
Not only was this guy paid close to $400,000 for his services, but according to Gruber's account on video, he was in the Oval Office with Obama when the problem of the so-called Cadillac Tax was "worked out".
Nancy Pelosi this past week claimed she didn't know who Gruber was even though she brought up his name, his analysis of Obamacare, and the fact that he was from MIT in 2009. That's all on tape as we now know. Now Obama tells reporters in Brisbane that Gruber was "just some adviser who never worked on our staff".
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Mia Love Gets the Aunt Jemima Treatment From Wichita State University Professor
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Campus Reform
It is really ugly how the Democrats and the left are dismissing the elections of black Republicans like Mia Love (UT) and Tim Scott (SC). Here is what Asst. Professor Darren Smith of Wichita State University has to say about Ms Love.
http://www.campusreform.org/?ID=6049
“Unlike most of them, Mia gets to walk through the hallowed doorways of white institutions controlled by elite, powerful men"
Kinda like you, right Professor Smith?
This is pure racist garbage designed to keep blacks on the liberal, Democratic plantation and punish those who think for themselves. It is the same type of disgusting treatment handed out by people like Smith to Thomas Sowell, Shelby Steele, Larry Elder, and so many others.
It also puts the lie to the mantra that American who op[pose President Obama are racists who could not bring themselves to vote for or accept a black man in the White House. Yet here we have voters in South Carolina overwhelmingly electing Scott and voters in, gasp, Mormon Utah electing Love.
You see, Professor Smith, it is not about the race; it is about the policies of the candidate. Conservative white voters are happy to vote for a conservative black candidate who reflects their beliefs. How else would you explain the popularity of Allen West with the Tea Party?
Yet, this is the type of trash that our students in college are being subjected to. Do parents who foot the tuition costs really want to pay for their kids to be indoctrinated by professors who get up on a soapbox and preach their own opinions-especially when they are so hateful and divisive as this?
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Campus Reform
It is really ugly how the Democrats and the left are dismissing the elections of black Republicans like Mia Love (UT) and Tim Scott (SC). Here is what Asst. Professor Darren Smith of Wichita State University has to say about Ms Love.
http://www.campusreform.org/?ID=6049
“Unlike most of them, Mia gets to walk through the hallowed doorways of white institutions controlled by elite, powerful men"
Kinda like you, right Professor Smith?
This is pure racist garbage designed to keep blacks on the liberal, Democratic plantation and punish those who think for themselves. It is the same type of disgusting treatment handed out by people like Smith to Thomas Sowell, Shelby Steele, Larry Elder, and so many others.
It also puts the lie to the mantra that American who op[pose President Obama are racists who could not bring themselves to vote for or accept a black man in the White House. Yet here we have voters in South Carolina overwhelmingly electing Scott and voters in, gasp, Mormon Utah electing Love.
You see, Professor Smith, it is not about the race; it is about the policies of the candidate. Conservative white voters are happy to vote for a conservative black candidate who reflects their beliefs. How else would you explain the popularity of Allen West with the Tea Party?
Yet, this is the type of trash that our students in college are being subjected to. Do parents who foot the tuition costs really want to pay for their kids to be indoctrinated by professors who get up on a soapbox and preach their own opinions-especially when they are so hateful and divisive as this?
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Obamacare : The Smoking Gun
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
"Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage. And basically, call it the 'stupidity of the American voter' or whatever, but basically that was really, really critical to getting the thing to pass.”
-Jonathan Gruber
Economist Jonathan Gruber was one of the principle architects of Obamacare. Now a 2013 video has surfaced in which he acknowledges the lack of transparency, deceit, and creative writing that was involved to get Obamacare passed thanks to "the stupidity of the American voter"-to use Gruber's own words. The below link has the smoking gun video. Watch and listen as this arrogant big mouth runs his mouth out of control and lets the cat out of the bag.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2014/11/11/obamacare-consultant-under-fire-for-stupidity-of-the-american-voter-comment/
Now I'm no legal expert here, but as a retired DEA agent who testified hundreds of times, I know one thing:
When you find the smoking gun, you must convict.
Thanks to Mr Big Mouth Gruber, we have evidence of what we have known all along: Obamacare was built on a foundation of lies. The question now is what do we do about it? Congress can start by sending a subpoena to this guy to testify. No doubt the White House will try to block that in the name of executive privilege or something like that. Fine; force him to do that in full public view.
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
"Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage. And basically, call it the 'stupidity of the American voter' or whatever, but basically that was really, really critical to getting the thing to pass.”
-Jonathan Gruber
Economist Jonathan Gruber was one of the principle architects of Obamacare. Now a 2013 video has surfaced in which he acknowledges the lack of transparency, deceit, and creative writing that was involved to get Obamacare passed thanks to "the stupidity of the American voter"-to use Gruber's own words. The below link has the smoking gun video. Watch and listen as this arrogant big mouth runs his mouth out of control and lets the cat out of the bag.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2014/11/11/obamacare-consultant-under-fire-for-stupidity-of-the-american-voter-comment/
Now I'm no legal expert here, but as a retired DEA agent who testified hundreds of times, I know one thing:
When you find the smoking gun, you must convict.
Thanks to Mr Big Mouth Gruber, we have evidence of what we have known all along: Obamacare was built on a foundation of lies. The question now is what do we do about it? Congress can start by sending a subpoena to this guy to testify. No doubt the White House will try to block that in the name of executive privilege or something like that. Fine; force him to do that in full public view.
For Those Who Have Served
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
To Those Who Have Served In War and Peace,
THANK YOU!
Monday, November 10, 2014
76 Years Ago Today
It started with this:
Click here if the video fails to load.
Given a voice loud enough how many more Jews will be murdered by the left to appease their Muslim Masters?
Kristallnacht!
Followed by this:
For 70 years we have screamed NEVER AGAIN! Today Europeans, Muslims and Americans are screaming for Jews to be gassed.
For 70 years we have screamed NEVER AGAIN! Today Europeans, Muslims and Americans are screaming for Jews to be gassed.
Click here if the video fails to load.
Given a voice loud enough how many more Jews will be murdered by the left to appease their Muslim Masters?
Friday, November 7, 2014
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Can Islam Change?
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Gates of Vienna
Yesterday ( on Fousesquawk), I posted a video of Geert Wilders' speech in Copenhagen. In the latter part of that video during the q and a (at about the 37 minute mark), Wilders had an exchange with fellow panelist Daniel Pipes on the question of whether Islam can change. Briefly stated, Wilders said that there is no moderate Islam; there is only one Islam. Pipes on the other hand maintained that Islam has changed over centuries and can change for the better.
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2014/11/geert-wilders-speech-in-denmark.html
Below is Pipes' own speech to the audience before the q and a. Here he describes how support for an open discussion of Islam has declined since the time of Salmon Rushdie's, The Satanic Verses, when Rushdie had wide support from the left to now when the left does not really support criticism of Islam, partly due to the rise of multi-culturalism.
What I want to address here is Pipes' idea that Islam can change for the better, which he argued during the q and a. Let me start by conceding that Pipes has probably forgotten more about Islam than I know. In addition, I admittedly need to learn more about Ahmadiya Islam and Sufi Islam because it seems to me that these two branches of Islam appear not to be involved in the violence and terror that we see among Sunnis and Shi'ites. At the same time, the former two branches do not represent any majority and indeed are often the target of rejection from the latter two groups if not outright persecution.
But can Islam itself change (without most Muslims embracing Sufism or Ahmadiya Islam)?
First of all, what would it take for Islam to change? Sure Muslims could simply ignore the hateful and violent aspects of the religion and/or the political ideology that is also Islam. But that would leave the Qu'ran and the life of the Prophet Mohammad as they are.
Many argue that the problem with Islam is that unlike Judaism or Christianity, Islam has never been exposed to a Reformation or the Enlightenment. One could answer that it is being exposed to the "enlightenment" of the modern world now. As for a Reformation, keep in mind that Martin Luther never rejected the Bible or the teachings of Jesus Christ. He rejected the corruption of the Vatican.
It seems to me that for any meaningful change to occur, Muslims would have to come to grips with many of the verses in the Qu'ran that non-Muslims view with alarm. It is not enough to try and convince non-Muslims that this or that verse has been misinterpreted or to quote contradictory verses that speak of peace and forgiveness. Those who are knowledgeable of the religion are aware of the principle of abrogation, which in effect means that contradictions are resolved in favor of the latter verse in time, and it is those that are more violent reflecting the time that Mohammad was a warrior.
In addition, for Islam to really change, there must be a coming to grips on the life, especially the Medina period, of the Prophet Mohammad. Indeed, those who are committing acts of terror are following what they perceive as the teachings of Mohammad and the teachings of the Qu'ran.
So I am skeptical. Yes, individual Muslims can live peaceful lives in mutual respect with non-Muslims and millions do. Many would call them, "bad Muslims".
I tend to come down here more on the side of Wilders. Islam is what it is. Mohammad is what he is and the Qu'ran is what it is. One of the members of the Copenhagen audience, in disagreeing with Pipes, said that we cannot wait for Islam to change. By the time that happens, they may well have already destroyed Western civilization. I couldn't agree with that more.
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Gates of Vienna
Yesterday ( on Fousesquawk), I posted a video of Geert Wilders' speech in Copenhagen. In the latter part of that video during the q and a (at about the 37 minute mark), Wilders had an exchange with fellow panelist Daniel Pipes on the question of whether Islam can change. Briefly stated, Wilders said that there is no moderate Islam; there is only one Islam. Pipes on the other hand maintained that Islam has changed over centuries and can change for the better.
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2014/11/geert-wilders-speech-in-denmark.html
Below is Pipes' own speech to the audience before the q and a. Here he describes how support for an open discussion of Islam has declined since the time of Salmon Rushdie's, The Satanic Verses, when Rushdie had wide support from the left to now when the left does not really support criticism of Islam, partly due to the rise of multi-culturalism.
What I want to address here is Pipes' idea that Islam can change for the better, which he argued during the q and a. Let me start by conceding that Pipes has probably forgotten more about Islam than I know. In addition, I admittedly need to learn more about Ahmadiya Islam and Sufi Islam because it seems to me that these two branches of Islam appear not to be involved in the violence and terror that we see among Sunnis and Shi'ites. At the same time, the former two branches do not represent any majority and indeed are often the target of rejection from the latter two groups if not outright persecution.
But can Islam itself change (without most Muslims embracing Sufism or Ahmadiya Islam)?
First of all, what would it take for Islam to change? Sure Muslims could simply ignore the hateful and violent aspects of the religion and/or the political ideology that is also Islam. But that would leave the Qu'ran and the life of the Prophet Mohammad as they are.
Many argue that the problem with Islam is that unlike Judaism or Christianity, Islam has never been exposed to a Reformation or the Enlightenment. One could answer that it is being exposed to the "enlightenment" of the modern world now. As for a Reformation, keep in mind that Martin Luther never rejected the Bible or the teachings of Jesus Christ. He rejected the corruption of the Vatican.
It seems to me that for any meaningful change to occur, Muslims would have to come to grips with many of the verses in the Qu'ran that non-Muslims view with alarm. It is not enough to try and convince non-Muslims that this or that verse has been misinterpreted or to quote contradictory verses that speak of peace and forgiveness. Those who are knowledgeable of the religion are aware of the principle of abrogation, which in effect means that contradictions are resolved in favor of the latter verse in time, and it is those that are more violent reflecting the time that Mohammad was a warrior.
In addition, for Islam to really change, there must be a coming to grips on the life, especially the Medina period, of the Prophet Mohammad. Indeed, those who are committing acts of terror are following what they perceive as the teachings of Mohammad and the teachings of the Qu'ran.
So I am skeptical. Yes, individual Muslims can live peaceful lives in mutual respect with non-Muslims and millions do. Many would call them, "bad Muslims".
I tend to come down here more on the side of Wilders. Islam is what it is. Mohammad is what he is and the Qu'ran is what it is. One of the members of the Copenhagen audience, in disagreeing with Pipes, said that we cannot wait for Islam to change. By the time that happens, they may well have already destroyed Western civilization. I couldn't agree with that more.
Muslim Persecution of Christians, July 2014
The purge of ancient Christian communities throughout Iraq that started in June culminated in great intolerance in July.
Among other Islamic attacks, a Christian church that had stood Iraq for 1,800 years -- a church that was erected less than 200 years after Christ -- was reportedly torched by the Islamic State, according to countless news agencies, including Al Arabiya.
 |
| A fire rages in the compound of Mosul's 1800 year-old church, July 2014. |
Islamic State jihadis also stormed and took over an ancient monastery in northern Iraq. St. Behnam monastery had stood since the fourth century and was one of Iraq's best-known Christian landmarks. It was built by an Assyrian king as a penance for executing his children Behnam and Sarah for converting to Christianity.
The jihadis expelled its few monks; they said, "You have no place here anymore, you have to leave immediately." The monks pled to be allowed to save some of the monastery's ancient relics, but the jihadis refused and ordered them to walk miles along a deserted road with nothing but their clothes.
The Islamic State issued a July 19 deadline for Mosul's Christians either to convert to Islam or face execution. Islamic State members also singled out Christian homes by placing the Arabic letter for "N" -- based on the Arabic word Nasara, or "Nazarenes," the Koran's pejorative for Christians -- on the sides of their homes. The result, in the words of Patriarch Louis Sako, is that, "For the first time in the history of Iraq, Mosul is now empty of Christians."
In response to the Islamic State's latest atrocities against Iraq's Christian minorities, the Syriac Orthodox Bishop of Mount Lebanon and Tripoli, George Saliba, denounced not just the Islamic State but Muslims in general for their long "history of violence and oppression against Christians":
What is happening in Iraq is a strange thing, but it is normal for Muslims, because they have never treated Christians well, and they have always held an offensive and defaming stand against Christians.... We used to live and coexist with Muslims, but then they revealed their canines [teeth].... [They don't] have the right to storm houses, steal and attack the honor of Christians. Most Muslims do this; the Ottomans killed us and after that the ruling nation-states understood the circumstances but always gave advantage to the Muslims. Islam has never changed...Islamic organizations responded by denouncing the Syriac bishop's words as "hateful" and Islamophobic, demanding an apology.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also made some telling remarks concerning the plight of Christians, especially in those Mideast countries the U.S. is involved in. When asked if he was "troubled" by the Presbyterian Church USA's decision to withdraw $21 million worth of investments from Israel on behalf of the Palestinian people, the prime minister said:
You know I would suggest to these Presbyterian organizations to fly to the Middle East, come and see Israel for the embattled democracy that it is, and then take a bus tour, go to Libya, go to Syria, go to Iraq, and see the difference. And I would give them two pieces of advice; one is, make sure it's an armor plated bus, and second, don't say that you're Christians.The rest of July's roundup of Muslim persecution of Christians around the world includes (but is not limited to) the following accounts, listed by theme and country in alphabetical order, not necessarily according to severity.
Muslim Attacks on Churches and Carnage
Central African Republic: At least 27 Christians were slaughtered during a July 7 attack on the St. Joseph's Cathedral compound in Bambari, where thousands of people, mostly Christian, were receiving sanctuary. The attackers were fighters from the Islamic Seleka rebel movement and Muslim civilians. The armed attackers entered the grounds at around 3pm and began shooting indiscriminately. Women and children were among those killed; over 20 people were injured. The Islamic attackers burned down 20 buildings within the church compound, set fire to three cars, and stole two others as well as a number of motorbikes. Weeks earlier, on May 28, another attack on a church compound in Bangui, the capital, left around 20 people dead.
Kenya: On July 5, Muslims attacked the Covenant Church, three kilometers north of Hindi, just as Bible study was closing. As the Bible study participants fled, two men chose to hide inside the church building -- and were burned alive after the Islamic attackers set the building on fire. On the same night, a Catholic church building in the village of Gamba, in neighboring Tana River County, was also destroyed by attackers. Two days earlier, 15-20 assailants armed with guns and knives attacked Gamba and the village of Hindi. The assailants killed at least 13 people, including a 12-year-old student and a 30-year-old man, "who was found in a pool of blood with a Bible on his back," according to Morning Star News. One survivor of the attacks said the invaders were heard "saying non-Muslims should get out, and if not they should convert to Islam." Another survivor said, "I was removed with my daughter from the house while the attackers tied my husband to the bedside before setting the house on fire. The attackers, who spoke mainly in Somali, targeted non-Muslims, whom they tied with ropes before slitting their throats." (Gamba is about 28 miles from Mpeketoni, another Christian town where gunmen killed at least 57 people in a June 15 attack.)
Lebanon: A shadowy group known as the Free Sunnis of Baalbek Brigade, which had only recently pledged its allegiance to the Islamic State, announced on its twitter account that a "specialized group of free jihadists were tasked with cleansing the Islamic state of Bekaa in particular and in Lebanon in general from the churches. We will target crusaders in the state and in Lebanon to silence the ringing of the bells." (According to Islamic Sharia law, churches under Islamic authority are forbidden from ringing their bells.) The Brigade has claimed responsibility for several rocket and bomb attacks inside Lebanon, the last of which were the suicide blasts in Dahr al-Baydar and Raouche's Duroy Hotel.
Nigeria: A bomb blast inside the Saint Charles Catholic Church left five people dead and eight injured. The attack came shortly after Sunday mass ended, when an improvised explosive device was thrown in the city of Kano, which has a strong presence of Boko Haram, the local Islamic terrorist organization. On the same Sunday, also in Kano, a woman suicide bomber blew herself up outside a university after police prevented her from carrying out an attack. Five officers were injured. According to a police spokesman, "A female suicide bomber was isolated (by police) as she was walking towards the gate of the university." She had hidden the bomb under her "long black hijab" and was singled out for behaving strangely, said the spokesman. Police were about to ask a female colleague to frisk the woman when she detonated the bomb, killing herself and injuring the police officers. Also in July, Nicholas Okoh, primate of the Church of Nigeria, said in an interview that, despite Boko Haram's nonstop attacks on Christians and their churches, for long "the United States did not come out to say anything about Boko Haram. They kept talking about economic problems, [saying] that Boko Haram is fighting because of economic problems. That is not true ... The United States deliberately ignored the fundamental issues of religious ideology."
Sudan: In adherence to Islamic law, the east African nation formally announced a ban on the construction of any new Christian churches in the country. This move came after the authorities bulldozed several churches to the ground. Some had been in existence for decades. The most recent one destroyed was the Sudanese Christ Church at El Izba residential area in Khartoum North, on July 1. According to Pravoslavie, "The Sudanese Minister of Guidance and Religious Endowments Shalil Abdullah announced that the government will henceforth not issue permits for the building of churches in the country. Minister Shalil Abdullah told the press on Saturday [July 12] that the existing churches are enough for the Christian population remaining in Sudan after the secession of South Sudan in 2011." Since 1989, Sudan has been governed by an Islamic regime that enforces Sharia law. Reverend Kori El Ramli, the Secretary-General of Sudan Council of Churches, criticized this move as contradicting the nation's Constitution, adding, "Yes, we are a minority, but we have freedom of worship and belief just like the rest of the Sudanese as long as we are Sudanese nationals like them."
Turkey: A band of Muslims attacked the Saint Stephanos Church in Istanbul during a baptismal service held on July 15. Yelling obscenities, and with one waving a knife and threatening to stab a parishioner, they pushed their way into the baptismal service. The attack occurred during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which often sees a rise of intolerance in Muslim majority areas. Two months earlier, men in their late teens and 20s had entered the church at night, ripped out most of its audio equipment and destroyed what they could not carry away. They also took some of the ceremonial candles, lit them and started setting items in the back of the building on fire. They stacked all remaining candles into a pile, lit them and left.
Uganda: A gang of Muslims armed with machetes stormed a church during services. They hacked one 18-year-old woman to death and left three others, including a one-year-old baby, injured. A group of approximately 20 Christians had gathered at Chali Born Victory Church in Kyegegwa district for their regular Friday night prayer session when armed Muslims burst into the building around 2 am. Pastor Jackson Turyamureba was preaching when he saw somebody looking through a window. According to the pastor,
I thought he was a drunkard and told him to either enter or go away. Shortly after that I heard doors being banged and men shouting 'Allahu Akhbar' ('Allah is Greater') as they stormed the church brandishing pangas (machetes) and beating worshippers…. One of the attackers followed me and threw a panga which went over my head. I ran through a garden and the man who was pursuing me fell down and gave up the chase.The Muslim attackers then fled to a nearby mosque. Police surrounded the mosque; one officer was killed when the attackers opened fire. Two suspects were arrested. According to the pastor, the church has had problems in the area with a group of Muslims who had unsuccessfully tried to convert its members to Islam. Church member Polly Tashobya added that members of the group had said they wanted to transform Uganda into an Islamic nation and would kill anyone who refused to convert.
Muslim Attacks on Christian Freedom and 'Dhimmitude'
Separately, a judge sentenced a Christian man to have his lips burnt with a cigarette for eating during the day in the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims are required to abstain from food and drink during daylight. The punishment was carried out in public in a square in the city of Kermanshah. Five Muslim men were also flogged in public with 70 lashes for not fasting during Ramadan. A spokesperson from The National Council of Resistance of Iran, a political coalition which opposes the government, denounced the treatment as 'savage' and called on Western countries to respond: "The silence of the world community, especially of western countries, vis-à-vis these medieval punishments under the excuse of having nuclear talks with Iran has intensified the brutal and systematic violation of human rights in Iran."
Somalia: Muslim converts to Christianity who fled Somalia and reside in Kenyan refugee camps remain in mortal danger. One convert, known only as "Abubakr," and his wife reportedly held each other under their bed in their refugee camp as gunmen suspected to be from the Islamic terrorist organization Al Shabaab pounded on their door. They ordered the man to come out and called him an "infidel" (in both the Arabic and Somali languages), saying, "We need your head." When the apostate refused, they opened fire through the spaces of the poles of the couple's hut, striking their legs. Then they heard the attackers say, "We have killed the infidels" as they shot into the air while leaving. The Christian couple was found two days later lying in their own pool of blood. According to Abubakr, far from providing security for the hiding apostates, Muslim guards at the refugee camp actually help Al Shabaab militants locate them. Another Somali convert from Islam, Abdikadir, saw Muslim relatives and other Somalis burn down his home in one of the Dadaab refugee camps in April. In the course of destroying his home, they took away his wife and four children. He fled the camp and is now living elsewhere.
United Kingdom: According to the Telegraph, "Children were taught that all Christians are liars and attempts were made to introduce Sharia law in classrooms as part of an alleged 'Trojan Horse' takeover plot of Birmingham schools, an inquiry has found." Commissioned by Birmingham City Council, the inquiry found "evidence of religious extremism in 13 schools as school governors and teachers tried to promote and enforce radical Islamic values." Among other anti-Christian and pro-Islamic measures, schools canceled Christmas festivities, put up posters warning children that they would "go to hell" if they did not pray, and girls were taught that women who refused to have sex with their husbands would be "punished" by angels "from dusk to dawn." The report found that the extremism went unchecked because the council "disastrously" prioritized community cohesion over "doing what is right."
About this Series
It documents what the mainstream media often fails to report.
It posits that such persecution is not random but systematic, and takes place in all languages, ethnicities and locations.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)