SSgt. Salvatore Giunta
25 years old from Ceder Rapid, Iowa
173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team
Yesterday, SSgt. Salvatore Giunta became the first living recipient of the Medal Of Honor since the Vietnam War.
From the official citation:
Then-Specialist Salvatore A. Giunta distinguished himself by acts of gallantry at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifle team leader with Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment during combat operations against an armed enemy in the Korengal Valley, Afghanistan on October 25, 2007. When an insurgent force ambush split Specialist Giunta’s squad into two groups, he exposed himself to enemy fire to pull a comrade back to cover. Later, while engaging the enemy and attempting to link up with the rest of his squad, Specialist Giunta noticed two insurgents carrying away a fellow soldier. He immediately engaged the enemy, killing one and wounding the other, and provided medical aid to his wounded comrade while the rest of his squad caught up and provided security. His courage and leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon’s ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow American paratrooper from enemy hands.
These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived
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.
In the last 40 years the world has seen a steady rise of Anti-Semitism. This rise coincides with the rise of Muslim immigration to European nations, Canada and the United States. This is not a coincidence. Anti-Semitism is not only rampant but is public policy in every Muslim nation in the world.
The Ottawa Protocol is an effort to combat it.
The Ottawa Protocol on Combating Antisemitism
Preamble
We, Representatives of our respective Parliaments from across the world, convening in Ottawa for the second Conference and Summit of the Inter-parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism, note and reaffirm the London Declaration on Combating Antisemitism as a template document for the fight against antisemitism.
We are concerned that, since the London Conference in February 2009, there continues to be a dramatic increase in recorded antisemitic hate crimes and attacks targeting Jewish persons and property, and Jewish religious, educational and communal institutions.
We remain alarmed by ongoing state-sanctioned genocidal antisemitism and related extremist ideologies. If antisemitism is the most enduring of hatreds, and genocide is the most horrific of crimes, then the convergence of the genocidal intent embodied in antisemitic ideology is the most toxic of combinations.
We are appalled by the resurgence of the classic anti-Jewish libels, including:
The Blood Libel (that Jews use the blood of children for ritual sacrifice)
The Jews as "Poisoners of the Wells" - responsible for all evils in the world
The myth of the "new Protocols of the Elders of Zion" - the tsarist forgery that proclaimed an international Jewish conspiracy bent on world domination - and accuses the Jews of controlling government, the economy, media and public institutions.
The double entendre of denying the Holocaust - accusing the Jews of fabricating the Holocaust as a hoax - and the nazification of the Jew and the Jewish people.
We are alarmed by the explosion of antisemitism and hate on the Internet, a medium crucial for the promotion and protection of freedom of expression, freedom of information, and the participation of civil society.
Yep. Those poor, oppressed Palestinians ....you know, those lovely people that the whole world has been trying to help out for decades, have decided that when their statehood finally becomes a reality the only Jews that would be allowed to live in their garden spot would be those that lived in Palestine prior to World War I. So, if you are a Jew who is 96 years old or older, you're in baby!
Oh, and the leaders of Hamas who made this statement have also decided that although the Iranians have paid for 95% of their weaponry over their existence, their dirty brand of Islam, that heretic form known as Shia, well those flea bags won't be allowed into the new country either.
If you don't know who Mary Robinson is, you should. This lady is a former president of Ireland (a ceremonial post-1990-1997) who was appointed by former UN Secretary General, the corrupt Kofi Annan, to be commissioner of the UN Office of the High Commission on Human Rights (1997-2002). Robinson is a critic of Israel and also the US-especially its military actions in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. Once, when asked if George W Bush should be prosecuted for war crimes, she opined that the matter was "premature" and should be studied by an independent body.
As UN high commissioner, Robinson oversaw the Durban Conference on Racism in 2001, which concentrated its fire on the state of Israel. Last year, President Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Here is John Bolton's take on that in the Wall Street Journal.
One thing must be pointed out in fairness to Robinson. During a meeting at Durban, someone handed her a cartoon book full of anti-Semitic images which was being handed out to attendees at the registration table. When she saw it, she stood up and protested, declaring (rhetorically), "I am a Jew."
Yet, the entire conference that she ruled over was nothing but an exercise in bashing Israel, yet another in a long line of UN embarrassments. In my view, that conference should have been brought to an abrupt end by Robinson as soon as she saw that cartoon book.
So now (last year), our president awards this woman a medal. Doesn't that speak volumes about where his ideology lies?
So what ever became of Robinson? I'll give you one guess.
That's right. In 2004, she was given a teaching position at Columbia University, where she has lived happily ever after.
Regardless of your faith, good music will stir your soul. Especially this rendition of a classical favorite I just happen to stumble across. It left me with a deeply spiritual glow that I just had to share it with you.
I never expected to write this letter, but my Mom e-mailed me to get information about my career for a writeup on Veterans Day, and as this is the first such holiday in 22 years when I will not be on active duty, I felt compelled to let you know why I decided to quit.
Quit is a strong word, I know. Everyone I’ve talked to has repeated that I’ve had a marvelous career and that I’ve retired with honor. Maybe that’s true on paper; I guess that it’s reflected by the record. But that’s not how I feel. I feel like I’ve quit. And because I’m not a quitter, I feel I have to explain why — not that anyone is asking, but because perhaps they don’t know to ask.
Briefly, my career had been a representation of the promise of this country. Starting out on the lowest rung of the rank ladder as an F-4G Wild Weasel crew chief, continuing on F-16s and the F-117A Stealth fighter in Desert Storm, then a small part of Desert Fox as a nuclear Maintenance Officer and finally a pilot that took part in numerous deployments in Southern Watch, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. I finished up an awesome year on the ground in Iraq, and was selected to receive a coveted “Definitely Promote,” assuring me of promotion to lieutenant colonel. They don’t pass out many of those. My dreams were right in front of me. All I had to do was grab them. And then I retired. Why?
Atlas Shrugged.
I had chosen, freely, to place my life between those that would do harm to the U.S. and those whom I would protect: her citizens. I had always believed in the best of America and the people of her lands; that despite occasional missteps there was a general “rightness” to our way. I lived that belief for 22 years, leading and following warriors into combat. I’m certainly no war hero; my brothers in arms have seen far more combat, more intense and personal than I. But I have become acquainted with death in a way that I hope you never do. My last tour, on the ground in Iraq was where my heart started to be hardened towards you, the electorate, and culminated in this letter, written two days before our elections. And here’s why.
You’ve elected officials who, for partisan points, spoke openly that the “…war is lost.” I happened to be in a dining facility in Baghdad that day, filled with the (mostly) young faces of (mostly) Army men and women. CNN was on the TVs, and things got very quiet when this elected official continued on, railing that the mission that some of these very people were here to do, had “…failed.” Yet, they would be donning their body armor, strapping on med kits and weapons, mounting HMMVs or MRAPs and heading outside the wire, ensuring that the newborn democracy in Iraq, purchased with so many lives, would be safe another night. The newly re-invigorated insurgents would be waiting, teeth bared back in a hateful smile, gripping the IED detonator, the RPG launcher, or the AK-47s to ply their trade with new energy, because the Senate Majority Leader had said they were winning.
You elected officials who continually defame and berate military members, whether it is the observation that if you’re not too bright, you’ll get “…stuck in Iraq” (this from a guy who has two Purple Hearts for self-inflicted wounds, and known for throwing someone else’s medals away in protest), or the calling of combat Marines cold-blooded killers (in a war; before trial). You’ve elected officials in the role of commander-in-chief who “loathe” the military, while using ROTC deferments and special treatment to avoid military service that the less “connected” take as a responsibility. On the basis of “change,” you elected someone who had close, ongoing associations with people who were part of an organization that tried to kill us [U.S. military] on our own soil.
You elected officials that promised to take property from some Americans, and give it to you, merely because they had more than you did. Those Americans that these officials have labeled as the “rich” are your neighbors, who provide jobs and pay far more in taxes than you ever will. That means they are already subsidizing your lifestyle choices; you just want more of their property without the responsibility of risking your wealth and labor to get it. You would rather hire someone to take it from them. And you have.
Yet these same officials from this same party are the wealthiest group of people in both the House and Senate. They have offshore accounts, forbid unions in their businesses and use every tax loophole they can find with their armies of accountants. But you keep sending them back to those jobs, because they promise to steal from some Americans and give to you.
Did CAIR over play their hand when they were able to convince an Clinton-era appointed Dhimmi Judge to temporarily block the new Oklahoma State Constitutional Amendment prohibiting the Shar'ia Law from being used to decide a court case.
Islamofascism: The Council on American-Islamic Relations may wish it never sued to overturn an Oklahoma ban on Shariah law. Now the entire nation will get to see it and other Islamists' true anti-American colors.
CAIR is thumping its chest over persuading a Clinton-appointed federal judge to temporarily block Oklahoma from enacting a state constitutional amendment that prohibits state courts from considering Islamic law when deciding cases. Fully 70% of Oklahoma voters passed the landmark measure.
But CAIR has ignited a legal firestorm that will likely rage all the way to the Supreme Court. Thanks to CAIR's latest bit of lawfare, Americans will get to hear a long overdue debate not just about the constitutionality of such bans on Shariah law but about the constitutionality of Shariah law itself.
This is not a debate CAIR wants to have, since it ultimately will have to defend the indefensible. It claims in a press release that Shariah law is "a dynamic legal framework" derived from Islamic scripture "and analytical reasoning."
In fact, there's nothing reasoned about it. It's a medieval legal code that administers cruel and unusual punishments such as stonings, amputations and honor killings. Think the Taliban.
Shariah can be seen in action this week with Pakistan's death sentence on a Christian woman for blasphemy. Between 1986 and 2009, at least 974 people have been charged for defiling the Quran or insulting the Muslim Prophet Muhammad.
Shariah also permits wife-beating, something CAIR also knows about. Its sister organization, the Islamic Society of North America, condones it in its fatwas (or religious rulings) for Muslim Americans. More, CAIR distributes a book, "The Meaning of the Holy Quran," which authorizes men to hit their wives.
CAIR says it's just a "civil rights advocacy group." But the Justice Department says it's a front group for Hamas and its parent, the radical Muslim Brotherhood, a worldwide jihadist movement that has a secret plan to impose Shariah law on the U.S.
"From its founding by Muslim Brotherhood leaders, CAIR conspired with other affiliates of the Muslim Brotherhood to support terrorists," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Gordon Kromberg in a recent court filing.
U.S. prosecutors in 2007 named CAIR an unindicted co-conspirator in a criminal scheme led by the Holy Land Foundation to funnel millions to Hamas suicide bombers and their families.
"CAIR has been identified by the government at trial as a participant in an ongoing and ultimately unlawful conspiracy to support a designated terrorist organization, a conspiracy from which CAIR never withdrew," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Jacks, who recently won an award from Attorney General Eric Holder for convicting the Holy Land terrorists.
Federal courts found "ample evidence" linking CAIR to the conspiracy and are expected to unseal the dossier in coming weeks.
The Holy Land revelations prompted the FBI to sever ties with CAIR until it can demonstrate it's not a terror front. "Until we can resolve whether there continues to be a connection between CAIR or its executives and Hamas, the FBI does not view CAIR as an appropriate liaison partner," advised Assistant FBI Director Richard Powers in a 2009 letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
CAIR's leaders don't want a ban on Shariah law, because they have a secret agenda to institutionalize Shariah law in America.
"I wouldn't want to create the impression that I wouldn't like the government of the United States to be Islamic sometime in the future," CAIR Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper let it slip out to a Minneapolis Star-Tribune reporter in 1993, before CAIR was formed.
CAIR's founding chairman, Omar Ahmad, wants Shariah law to replace the Constitution. "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant," he told a Muslim audience in Fremont, Calif., in 1998. "The Quran should be the highest authority in America."
CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad is an Islamic supremacist who thinks Muslims should run Washington: "Who better can lead America than Muslims?"
Islamizing America also happens to be the agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood — the radical, Cairo-based outlaw group the government says CAIR is fronting for. The founding archives of its U.S. branch, seized in an FBI raid and introduced as evidence in the Holy Land trial, reveal a "strategic goal" of "eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and sabotaging its miserable house ... so that Allah's religion is made victorious over all other religions." The Brotherhood calls its plan a "grand jihad."
CAIR argues in its suit that "the Shariah ban's purpose is to stigmatize, denigrate and segregate plaintiff's faith in the public's mind as something foreign and to be feared."
No, the goal is to make sure no Oklahoma judge considers Shariah law in rulings on domestic violence, family law, probate, free speech, contracts and other matters, as judges have in other states, to a wider degree in Canada and now on a routine basis in Britain. The ban is to prevent courts from legitimizing a religious legal system antithetical to the U.S. Constitution in the areas of freedom of speech, equality and humane punishment, among other bedrock Western principles.
Thanks to CAIR's lawsuit, all this can now be aired out for the public.
Is Europe beyond redemption? Beyond hope? Has Europe fallen to the Muslim hordes and the proponenets of Shar'ia Law to the point where Resistance is Futile? I pray not so.
And although Pat Condell does not pray, he does speak out in support of Free Speech. Here is his latest:
Free speech in Europe
I thank G-d for our First Amendment, something no European Nation ever thought of adopting. (They do have Socialism, the Nanny State, and Multiculturalism though.)
On this day 35 years ago a great ship and her crew were lost at sea. The Edmund Fitzgerald really was the "Pride of the American Fleet".
On February 1, 1957, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin contracted Great Lakes Engineering Works (GLEW), of River Rouge, Michigan, to design and build a taconite bulk carrier laker for Northwestern. The contract contained the stipulation that the boat be the largest on the Great Lakes. GLEW laid the keel on August 7 of that year, and some time between then and its christening and launch on June 7, 1958, Northwestern announced their decision to name the boat for its President and Chairman of the Board, Edmund Fitzgerald, whose father had been a lake captain.
The completed vessel had a capacity of 26,600 short tons (24,100 t). Its large cargo hold loaded through twenty-one watertight hatches, 11.6 by 54.1 feet (3.5 by 16.5 m) of 5⁄16-inch (7.9 mm) steel. The boat's boilers were originally coal-fired, but would be converted to burn oil during the 1971–72 winter layup. With a length of 729 feet (222 m), it met the demanding stipulation of the contract and until 1971 was the largest boat on the Great Lakes.
More than 15,000 people attended the Fitzgerald's launch. The event was troublesome. When Mrs. Edmund Fitzgerald christened the boat by smashing a champagne bottle over the bow, it took her three swings to break the bottle. The launch was delayed 36 minutes while the shipyard crew struggled to release the keel blocks. Upon launching sideways into the water, the boat crashed violently into a pier. Was it an omen of the violent end of the ship?
(CNN) -- The vicious, swirling storm that battered the Great Lakes region in late October inspired talk of a similar gale that brought about one of the great mysteries of the 20th century.
The mighty ore carrier Edmund Fitzgerald, one of the largest ships on America's inland seas, seemed invincible in its bulk and mass, but it was no match for a howling Lake Superior gale on November 10, 1975.
A day earlier, the 729-foot behemoth, operated by mineral company Oglebay Norton, had chugged away from port in Superior, Wisconsin, on a course that would take it across the length of Lake Superior, through the Soo Locks and down Lake Huron to Detroit, Michigan, a journey that should have taken about 48 hours.
With the storm bearing down on them the next morning, the Fitzgerald and another freighter, the Arthur M. Anderson, took a northerly route, hoping the Canadian shore would provide a buffer. Icy rain was driven sideways by hurricane-force wind and monstrous 25-foot waves crashed over the main deck, which rode less than 12 feet above the waterline.
Capt. Ernest McSorley, a 37-year veteran on his last sail before retirement, stayed in radio contact with the Anderson and another ship, the Avafors. At 3:30 p.m., he reported his ship had suffered minor damage and was listing, or leaning to one side, in the storm, according to the Coast Guard report on the accident.
Things only got worse as the afternoon dragged on.
"I have a bad list, lost both radars. And am taking heavy seas over the deck," McSorley radioed around 6 p.m. "One of the worst seas I've ever been in."
The Lost Fitzgerald Search Tapes
He tried to make a run for the safety of Whitefish Bay on Michigan's Upper Peninsula. But about 7:10 p.m., the ship suddenly disappeared from radar and radio, without a call for help.
The Arthur M. Anderson made it to Whitefish Bay, but Capt. Bernie Cooper and his crew agreed to go back out into the maelstrom to search for survivors, as did the William Clay Ford. The searchers "went out and got the hell beat out of them," one observer said, but all they found were two splintered lifeboats and a single, unoccupied life jacket.
Nearly a week later, a U.S. Coast Guard sonar ship found the Fitzgerald. It had been wrestled to the ice-cold lake bed 530 feet below, its steel hull ripped into pieces, its 26,000 tons of taconite pellets spilled, McSorley and his 28 crewmen entombed forever.
Not one body was ever recovered, and no one knows exactly what caused the Mighty Fitz to founder. The mystery grew into legend over the years, helped along by a National Geographic special and a haunting popular song by Canadian folk singer Gordon Lightfoot.
29 men lost their lives that night. Each year on the anniversary of the wreck, the ship's bell is rung in their memory.
The Crew:
Michael E. Armagost 37 Third Mate Iron River, Wisconsin
Frederick J. Beetcher 56 Porter Superior, Wisconsin
Thomas D. Bentsen 23 Oiler St. Joseph, Michigan
Edward F. Bindon 47 First Assistant Engineer Fairport Harbor, Ohio
Thomas D. Borgeson 41 Maintenance Man Duluth, Minnesota
Oliver J. Champeau 41 Third Assistant Engineer Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
Nolan S. Church 55 Porter Silver Bay, Minnesota
Ransom E. Cundy 53 Watchman Superior, Wisconsin
Thomas E. Edwards 50 Second Assistant Engineer Oregon, Ohio
Russell G. Haskell 40 Second Assistant Engineer Millbury, Ohio
George J. Holl 60 Chief Engineer Cabot, Pennsylvania
Bruce L. Hudson 22 Deck Hand North Olmsted Ohio
Allen G. Kalmon 43 Second Cook Washburn, Wisconsin
Gordon F. MacLellan 30 Wiper Clearwater, Florida
Joseph W. Mazes 59 Special Maintenance Man Ashland, Wisconsin
John H. McCarthy 62 First Mate Bay Village, Ohio
Ernest M. McSorley 63 Captain Toledo, Ohio
Eugene W. O'Brien 50 Wheelsman Toledo, Ohio
Karl A. Peckol 20 Watchman Ashtabula, Ohio
John J. Poviach 59 Wheelsman Bradenton, Florida
James A. Pratt 44 Second Mate Lakewood, Ohio
Robert C. Rafferty 62 Steward Toledo, Ohio
Paul M. Riippa 22 Deck Hand Ashtabula, Ohio
John D. Simmons 63 Wheelsman Ashland, Wisconsin
William J. Spengler 59 Watchman Toledo, Ohio
Mark A. Thomas 21 Deck Hand Richmond Heights, Ohio
Ralph G. Walton 58 Oiler Fremont, Ohio
David E. Weiss 22 Cadet Agoura, California
Blaine H. Wilhelm 52 Oiler Moquah, Wisconsin
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
Some time during today will you take a moment and say a prayer for the men of the Edmund Fitzgerald!
Capt. George Vujnovich
95 years old from Queens, New York
66 years after he was instrumental in the rescue of almost 500 bomber pilots who had been shot down over Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia, Capt. George Vujnovich was finally awarded the Bronze Star in October.
You can read the rest of Capt. George Vujnovich's story here.
These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived
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.
Recently UNESCO declared (Without Proof) that The Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel's Tomb were not Jewish Heritage Sites, but in fact they were designated Mosques. This is being done to destroy any ancient connection between the Jewish people and the Nation of Israel by the Muslims who will stop at nothing to destroy every Jew in the World.
There's a petition online against UNESCO's actions in declaring Rachel's tomb to be a 'mosque' and trying to deny that the tomb and the Machpeila cave in Hebron are part of Israel's Jewish heritage.
We the undersigned protest The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) ruling that Israel has no right to add the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron, where almost all of Israel’s patriarchs and matriarchs are buried, to the National Heritage list. The Tomb of the Patriarchs, the oldest Jewish shrine and the second holiest site in Judaism, centers around the Cave of Machpelah, an ancient double cave revered for almost 4,000 years as the burial site of the Hebrew patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives. The connection of the Jewish people to the Cave of Machpelah was established some 3,800 years ago, when Abraham, the first Hebrew, purchased it for the express purpose of using it as a burial site for himself, his wife Sarah, and their future generations. It is the cradle of Jewish history and the focal point of Jewish identity. The rectangular enclosure over the caves is the only fully surviving Herodian structure. Thus the Tomb of the Patriarchs is of inestimable historical value as well as great sacred significance for the Jewish people.
We also protest the decision by UNESCO to re-label as an Islamic mosque the tomb of Rachel, Israel’s other matriarch, and to demand that Israel remove the site from its National Heritage list. The Tomb of Rachel, Judaism's third-holiest site, has been the scene of prayer and pilgrimage for more than three thousand years, and has an especially meaningful connection for Jewish women. Rachel, the matriarch who died in childbirth and was buried at that spot on the road to Hebron, has been a comfort and hope to Jews since biblical days. “Thus says the Lord, 'Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded…and they shall return from the enemy's land and there is hope for the future'… 'Your children shall return to their own country.” Jeremiah 31:16-17. Until 2000, the Palestinians recognized the site as Rachel’s Tomb. It was called “Rachel’s Tomb” in Al-mawsu'ah al-filastiniyah, the Palestinian encyclopedia published after 1996 and in PALESTINE, THE HOLY LAND, a Palestinian publication, with an introduction by Yasser Arafat. However, during the second intifada, Al-Hayat al-Jadida, a Palestinian daily, announced a new-found historical connection to Rachel’s Tomb, declaring that is was "originally a Muslim mosque.”
In an effort to erase Jewish history and supersede Jewish religious sites with Islamic institutions, Muslims have intentionally built mosques upon numerous synagogues and Jewish holy sites. The clearest examples are the Al-Aqsa mosque which sits on Jerusalem's Temple Mount, and the Dome of the Rock, which was built on Judaism’s holiest site of the two biblical Jewish Temples. This pattern repeats itself at the second and third holiest sites. Thus at the Tomb of the Patriarchs, there are domes over the tombs of Abraham and Sarah and a mosque over the tombs of Isaac and Rebecca. Photos from the early 1900's show no Muslim cemetery near the Tomb or Rachel. After 1948 Muslims built their own cemetery surrounding three sides of Rachel’s tomb and now claim that Rachel's Tomb is one of their burial plots and that it contains a Muslim rather than Jewish notable.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office decried the ludicrous nature of the UNESCO decision:
“The attempt to detach the Nation of Israel from its heritage is absurd. If the nearly 4,000-year-old burial sites of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs of the Jewish Nation – Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah –are not part of its culture and tradition, then what is a national cultural site?”
“Sites such as the Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel’s Tomb (which sits on the edge of Bethlehem) present an inconvenient truth for the pro-Palestine movement and its supporters, who want to claim that the Jews have no historic ties to this land.”
In cooperating with efforts to erase Jewish historical ties to Israel, UNESCO is aiding and abetting those who hope to and obfuscate Israel’s Jewish past and undermine Israel’s Jewish future.
The UNESCO mission states: “Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural heritage are both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration.”
We demand that there be no exception to UNESCO’s mission when it comes to Jewish heritage. Israel’s Jewish legacy must be recognized and preserved and not swept away to conform with the pro-Palestinian narrative. In attempting to sever the Jewish cultural, religious and natural heritage bond with the Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel’s Tomb, UNESCO denies the history it is mandated to preserve, engages in a political maneuver designed to weaken a member UN nation, and undermines its own principles. It aims to rob the Jewish people not only of two sacred sites, which are irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration, but also of their past and a legacy to pass on to future generations. We demand that UNESCO, whose purpose it is to protect heritage, also protect Jewish heritage, rather than deny it.
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
Please sign the petition. This destruction of Jewish Heritage is taken directly from Hitler's playbook. If this angers you as it did me, then in addition to signing the petition, you can send a letter to your Congressman and Senator protesting the use of US funds for anti-Semitic actions.
"One person's hate speech is another person's education."
Thursday night, I attended a speech by University of California President Mark Yudof at Temple Bat Yahm in Newport Beach. The topic was "Civil Discourse on College Campuses". The event was sponsored by the Orange County Jewish Federation. As previously reported, the Federation, in their inimitable style, attempted to tightly control the attendance of the event and the questions asked. Prior to the event, Yudof met with a group of Jewish UCI students for a private discussion and dinner. There is reason to suspect they were hand-picked.
The topic that was on everbody's mind was the on-going controversy involving the Muslim Student Union, their sponsored speakers and charges of anti-Semitism on the UCI campuses. The question that was hanging over the event was just how bad is it or isn't it for Jewish students at UCI. As I have said repeatedly, 99% of the students at UCI are not anti-Semitic in any way, yet, a tiny minority and their sponsored speakers have succeeded in dragging the reputation of the school into the mud. It was clear from the outset that one purpose of the event was to assure the audience that Jewish life is "thriving at UCI". Though the opening address by Bat Yahm's rabbi, Mark Miller, laid out in stark and unmistakable terms the anti-Semitism he had experienced while giving a lecture on the UCI campus, a student speaker from Hillel made it a point to state that the situation was by no means as bad as certain outside groups and individuals were describing it.
Then came a movie produced by Hillel, called "Jewish life at UCI" or something like that. It showed interviews with Jewish students talking about all the positive aspects of life on campus, happy Jewish students frolicking at parties and the "I-Fest" (the annual pro-Israel week of events.)
They might as well have called it "Springtime in Germany".
Then came Yudof. Briefly summarized, the thesis of his talk was that while he was not happy with many of the events that have gone on at UCI and other campuses, he explained that it was constitutionally protected expression. Other than that, he said nothing.
That left a central question hovering over the audience; was there anti-Semitism at UCI? If so, how bad was it? Did the film dispel those concerns?
While Yudof was speaking, there was a stir. A young female was being taken out of the room by one of the OC Federation security guards followed by the CEO of the Federation. What had this young woman done? She had begun to start filming the speech. (others were filming as well, but they were apparently filming for the Federation.) I happen to know the young woman. She has filmed many of the MSU events on campus, and a couple of years ago, was followed back to her car by several MSU males after an evening speech at UCI by Amir Abdel Malik Ali. She was blocked from leaving as the males tried to write down her license number. That incident has been previously described here on this blog. When the UCI campus police arrived, they refused to assist the young woman and another female who witnessed the event. It was a classic case of campus police acting like potted plants in the face of thuggery.
But I digress. Back to last night.
Another lady went to vouch for the woman's presence since she was registered and posed no security threat. Yet, there was the CEO of the Federation rudely demanding to know who the woman was and who she "was working for". Eventually, she was allowed to re-enter the room after agreeing not to film. (I am unaware of there having been any posted restrictions on filming the talk.) The whole affair was outrageous and spoke volumes about the nature of the Orange County Jewish Federation.
I told you this was a controlled event. Note to OC Jewish Federation; this is not the Soviet Union.
Then came the questions. As requested by the Federation, many questions were pre-submitted by audience members when they registered for the event online. As those questions were being asked, audience members could write down their own questions, which were collected by officials and delivered to the stage for selection by two moderators. Not surprisingly, most of the questions were about the UCI campus, the Muslim Student Union, their so-called suspension and questions of anti-Semitism on campus. A couple of questions were in connection with UC professors who used their classroom as a soapbox to shove their personal views down students' throats. (Some of the questions received more applause then Yudof's responses.)
If you are wondering at this point what Yudof's responses were, I can't help you much here. To summarize, I would say his answers were pretty mushy. Answers to questions regarding the MSU "suspension" were purposely avoided-as he mentioned-due to legal concerns. Many UCI-related questions were simply answered by saying it was a local matter (I am paraphrasing.)
Other than that, he said nothing. At times, his answers came across as cavalier, in my view. Judging from the audience's reaction and body language, I would guess that perhaps half of them were not impressed by Yudof's answers. I know I wasn't. How does one reconcile the images of the happy Hillel film with the one issue that brought nearly everyone to hear Yudof speak, that is, the incidents over almost a decade that have brought notoriety to the school. Finally, it was Yudof himself, seemingly realizing the tone of the audience who called for the "last question".
In case you are wondering if my question (which I signed) was read..........
the answer is, of course not.
Just for the heck of it, here is what I wrote (inspired by having watched the happy Hillel film);
"If things are so great at UCI, why did a group of Jewish students go to the Student Government and complain about anti-Semitism earlier this year. Also why did a group of 60+ Jewish professors at UCI write an an open letter complaining about anti-Semitism on the UCI campus (last May)?"
Somehow, there seem to be conflicting messages, would you not agree?
New technology to hit surface and land targets is being developed by a Russian company, and will allow rogue nations like Iran to purchase cruise missiles built into standard 40' shipping containers. The containers can travel by 18-wheelers, rail and sea. See an excellent video below, showing clearly what these missiles can do.
Missiles in Shipping Containers
This weapon is clearly intended for anti-American countries or individuals. In the video below you'll see how Iran, Syria and Palestine might even the playing field with the Club-K Container Missile Program. How about Yemen? How about al-Qaeda?
Priced at an estimated £10 million, each container is fitted with four cruise anti-ship or land attack missiles. The system represents an affordable "strategic level weapon"...
"This is ballistic missile proliferation on a scale we have not seen before because now you cannot readily identify what's being used as a launcher because it's very carefully disguised.
"Someone could sail off your shore looking innocuous then the next minute big explosions are going off at your military installations."
The Russian company Concern Morinformsystem-Agat is marketing a deadly new weapon, one that can allow a rogue state to overcome the technological superiority of Western militaries. The system can even be used to carry out devastating attacks on the U.S. homeland with little means of defense...
In addition, these vehicles can cross borders, making it more difficult to identify the perpetrator of an attack and impossible to predict where an attack might come from. The missiles might from a shipping vessel off the coast or a truck that crossed via the Mexican border. With a range of 220 kilometers, or about 136 miles, they can either be fired from a safe distance from the border or the distance can be minimized by getting close to the target by being hidden.
It was just 24 hours ago when President Obama and the Democrats held both the Executive and Legislative branches of the US Government. Plus with many Governorships going to Tea Party endorsed candidates, it has been a good night for the Republican Party.
This Weeks Post Was Suggested And Written By Michael
Lt. Wilson W. Brown
Company F, 21st Ohio Volunteer Infantry
Dec. 25, 1839 - Dec. 26, 1916
Private Wilson W. Brown was part of "The Great Locomotive Chase" or Andrews' Raid. It was a military raid that occurred April 12, 1862, in northern Georgia during the American Civil War. Volunteers from the Union Army commandeered a train and took it northwards toward Chattanooga, Tennessee, doing as much damage as possible to the vital Western & Atlantic Railroad (W&A) from Atlanta, Georgia to Chattanooga as they went, pursued by other locomotives. Because they had cut the telegraph wires, no warning could be sent to Confederate forces along their route. The raiders were eventually captured and some were executed as spies. Some of Andrews' Raiders became the first recipients of the Medal of Honor, including Pvt. Wilson Brown who was able to escape and later promoted to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. His citation read:
"One of the 19 of 22 men (including 2 civilians) who, by direction of Gen. Mitchell (or Buell), penetrated nearly 200 miles south into enemy territory and captured a railroad train at Big Shanty, Ga., in an attempt to destroy the bridges and track between Chattanooga and Atlanta".
These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived
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.
Today is Election Day. It could be the start of a new beginning or a big thumbs up to the same lies of the Obama Regime. Either way it will be an eventful day.
Instead of the usual postings, today I give you music to vote on.
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in San Francisco, California, which currently plays in the National League West Division. They are the current World Series champions. As one of the older baseball teams, the Giants have won the most games of any team in the history of American baseball, and any North American professional sports team. They have won 21 National League pennants and appeared in 18 World Series championships, both tied with rivals Los Angeles Dodgers for most in the league. The Giants have been invited to the World Series an NL record 19 times, but boycotted the event in 1904.
The Giants played in New York City through the 1957 season, after which they moved west to California to become the San Francisco Giants. As the New York Giants, they won 14 pennants and 5 World Championships, from the era of John McGraw and Christy Mathewson to that of Bobby Thomson and Willie Mays. The Giants have won four pennants and the 2010 World Series since arriving in San Francisco.
