THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

GUESS WHO WINS?


I MEAN, ER... UM... IF DOVE/APPEASER LAMONT COULDN'T WIN IN CONNECTICUT, (WHICH HAS VERY FEW BITTER WHITE FOLKS), THEN HOW CAN OBAMA - WHO IS TO THE LEFT OF LAMONT - WIN IN THE USA!?!?

IT CAN NEVER HAPPEN.

OR LOOK AT IT THIS WAY: EVEN HILLARY WOULD BEAT OBAMA IN A GENERAL ELECTION; THEREFORE, MCCAIN CANNOT MISS.

TOO BAD HE'S A LIB... JUST LIKE DUBYA. AT LEAST HE'S A FISCAL HAWK.

SIGH.

The speech was delivered Thursday May 1 2008 at the 102nd annual dinner of the American Jewish Committee. Mr Downer is a former Australian Foreign Minister in the Howard government. I think the speech is comparable with the excellent speech to the Knesset recently delivered by George Bush.

The speech contrasts greatly with the outpouring of dishonesty and pure venom emanating from the Leftist end of the mainstream Australian media. See here, for instance. And our public broadcaster bewailed the fact that the venom concerned was not published more widely! Yet the reporting in the article concerned is so unbalanced that it is not even good propaganda.

"It is a great honour to be presented with this award by the American Jewish community. Indeed, I feel humbled that you have chosen me to be the recipient of an award which commemorates the extra-ordinary contribution to the American Jewish community by the Ramers.

The Australian and American Jewish communities have a lot in common. In both cases Jews have found in our countries the peace and tolerance which was denied them over the centuries in Europe and the Middle East: but they have not only found freedom and tolerance in Australia and America , they have contributed mightily to our two societies.

You haven't yet elected a Jewish President whereas we have had two Jewish Governors' General, the Governor General being the de facto head of state in Australia . But in both our cases the contribution Jewish people have made to science, academia, literature the arts and business has been magnificent.

An embattled, denigrated and persecuted people has come to our shores and in finding freedom has said 'let's build this place'. It's part of what makes our societies great.

In 1918, Australians and Americans went into battle together for the first time. We've done so many times since. It was at the Battle of Le Hamel, this being the first major American military action on European soil. Those of you with a sense of history may think the Americans fought under the redoubtable General Pershing but in this their first major battle in Europe they fought under the Australian commander, General Sir John Monash. Monash by the way was Jewish - so you won't be surprised to learn we won the battle!

In many ways, Australians and Americans are the most natural of allies. Our countries were settled by peoples fleeing persecution and discrimination and who sought the opportunity to achieve prosperity away from the class based elitism of the old world. We grew to love a life of individual freedom and to place equal value on every person.

We confronted and still confront three great adversaries over the last 100 years. We fought the bloody and heartless totalitarianism of fascism and we won. We fought the intolerance, cruelty and incompetence of communism and we won. And today we fight the fanaticism and ideological insanity of Islamic extremism - and we must win that fight as well.

Islamic extremism has several manifestations. There is Al Qaeda and its Asian variant, Jemaah Islamia. There is the Iranian theocracy. There is the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan .

These people are haters and many of them are killers. They hate our open, free societies that respect men and women equally. They want to destroy democracy and equality of opportunity in Iraq , in Afghanistan , in Indonesia and in Israel . They want to destroy modernity and plunge the world back into the Middle Ages. They want Taliban-style regimes not just in Afghanistan but throughout the world, particularly the Muslim world: regimes where girls are denied schooling, where the most powerful are chosen by a few zealots not the people, where the tools of modernity are disbanded and poverty becomes endemic.

Our great countries stand in their way. This is a tough fight because we are confronting people who have no concern for human life. No act of barbarism is beyond these people. To win we need to be clear eyed. This war is not popular with everyone, it's expensive and it's costing the lives of our young men and women.

But please, I implore you, contemplate the alternative: Victory for Al Qaeda in Sunni Iraq, the return of the Taliban in Afghanistan , Hamas in total control of both Gaza and the West Bank, a Hezbollah-dominated government in Lebanon and what then? The Moslem Brotherhood taking control in Egypt, the Gulf States swept up in the euphoria of a resurgent, extremist Wahabiism. Would newly democratic Indonesia - the world's largest Islamic country succumb to extremism? Would New York again and Sydney become front line cities in the great ideological battle of our time?

And let's think about democratic, freedom-loving Israel . For those of us who live in Australia or America it is hard to conceive of life in a tiny country a fraction the size of our own, living cheek by jowl with people who want to destroy you.

It is easy for Australians, Americans and Europeans in the relative security of our homes to lecture the Israeli government to be more accommodating with its enemies, to criticise Israel for erecting a security barrier, to complain that Prime Minister Olmet won't hug a Hamas leader, to deplore Israeli attacks on rocket bases in Southern Lebanon and Gaza and Israeli attacks on Hamas terrorist leaders in Gaza and the West Bank. It's easy to lecture. But it is harder to understand.

One of the lessons of history is to understand your adversary. The West professes with genuine sincerity to believe in Israel 's right to exist within secure borders. It argues for the two state solution as the only viable option for peace in the Middle East . They are right to do so. It is the only option.

But what some in the West, including a good number of Americans and Australians, don't understand is there are many in the Middle East who don't accept the two-state solution and Israel 's right to exist as a separate State. Hamas and Hezbollah believe in the destruction of the Israeli State . That is bad enough. But behind them lies the power, the finance and the weapons of Iran . When President Ahmadinejad says he wants to wipe Israel off the face of the earth, he means it. He believes there should be no Jewish State of Israel.

Demands that Israel negotiate with those who wish to destroy it are unreasonable and worse: those demands weaken Israel 's diplomatic strength and help to undermine community support for Israel in Western countries.

Indeed I will go further: there has been a constant stream of criticism of Israel particularly from Europe and elements of the United Nations for each and every one of the defensive measures it takes. Building a security barrier is wrong, destroying terrorist bases is wrong, attacking terrorist leaders and planners is wrong, trying to stop missile attacks on villages in Northern and Southern Israel is wrong. It doesn't leave Israel with too many options.

These criticisms have been particularly vehement in much of the Western media. That has had an effect on public opinion which has become increasingly hostile to Israel. But Israel is a democracy. No Israeli leader can turn his or her back on the struggle against those who wish to destroy Israel . The world needs to respect that.

We also need to send out again and again a simple and clear message to the international community that peace in the Middle East can never come until Israelis are allowed to sleep in peace. That message needs to be transmitted not just in Europe and America. Asia needs to hear and understand that message as well.

Today, as the balance of global power shifts to the Asia Pacific region, your campaigns to ensure people understand the truth of the Middle East conflict must extend to China, Japan, India, Korea and Indonesia. Those countries are going to count for a great deal more in international fora in the future. But at present they are hearing just one side of the argument. When I have spoken about the Middle East in Asia I have felt somewhat lonely!

When I first heard last year of the destruction of a North Korean-built nuclear facility in Syria , I thought its destruction was a triumph. It was a blow for peace. What horrors would have occurred years from now if that project had survived? But the existence of this project, discovered only at a relatively late stage of development, reminds us of the immense dangers Israelis live with day by day.

Ladies and Gentlemen, these are tough times.We have to prevail over Islamic extremism. Liberal democracy has, once more, to triumph. But it won't happen by wishing and hoping: it will only happen through courage and action.

I know what your public are saying, I know there is pain at the costs both human and financial. But the true test of the statesman is to do the right thing by a troubled world, not play to a gallery.

Thank you again for this great honour: whether our political leaders are popular or not, our two great countries will always be the great beacons of hope to billions of people around the world who crave the liberties we are blessed to enjoy. And make no mistake, we stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Israel in its struggle to secure peace and freedom".

Source

Posted by John Ray. For a daily critique of Leftist activities, see DISSECTING LEFTISM. For a daily survey of Australian politics, see AUSTRALIAN POLITICS Also, don't forget your roundup of Obama news and commentary at OBAMA WATCH

What I reproduce below is an unusual news summary but it comes from someone I know personally (I am slightly amazed that three of my old friends are in China these days) so I thought I would pass it on:

At HK airport Sunday night and also in the Herald Tribune I read some interesting details I bet you wont read in China daily. Apparently China stores all its nuclear bombs in this earthquake zone as it's so remote. Also there are a number of nuclear reactors there to make bomb grade plutonium. They are supposed to be all reported as suffering none or little damage.

There was another news item about 2 foreign disaster relief teams from Scotland and Canada who arrived in HK with all their equipment...specialist earthquake relief teams...they tried to join the rescue effort but were refused visas in HK , the visa office their telling them they were not required. They had their own tents , food and specialist equipment to find the living buried in rubble.

After hearing about a Beijing Govt International apeal for International specialist help, they had advised the embassies of China in both Canada and UK they were able to come but received no reply from these embassies. Frustrated they flew out to HK anyway with all their gear only to be refused visas . They were returning home Monday.

In other articles there are lots of stories about people being refused visas to China in HK . Apparently the China Govt is now asking all Nationals to return to their home countries to get visas. Multiple entry visas are no longer being issued. Many foreigners who own businesses in China are whinging [complaining] as they need to come and go at short notice and now there are huge queues at the only mainland HK visa issuing office in Wanchai.

The situation is obviously very confused because I flew to Beijing OK last Thursday night without a Hotel voucher requirement and using the multiple entry visa in my passport which expires October 2008. However the Dragon Air flight was alomost empty...I have never seen a plane more empty....an A330 airbus capable of carrying up to 350 people with about 50 people on it.

At the new airport in Beijing I was stamped in without any questions. The China Govt seems to be getting more paranoid as the Olympics approaches.

Posted by John Ray. For a daily critique of Leftist activities, see DISSECTING LEFTISM. For a daily survey of Australian politics, see AUSTRALIAN POLITICS Also, don't forget your roundup of Obama news and commentary at OBAMA WATCH

JUST ASKING...

UNBEFREAKINLIEVEABLE:

GUARDIAN:

An MI5 officer whose wife was one of the prostitutes who exposed a sex scandal involving the motor racing chief Max Mosley has been forced to resign because he was a potential security risk, a Whitehall official confirmed yesterday.

The officer's 38-year-old wife is understood to have gone to the News of the World with the story of how Mosley, the president of the FIA, the international governing body of motor sport, took part in a bondage session with five prostitutes in a basement flat in Chelsea.

A counter-intelligence official yesterday said of the officer: "His partner being involved in prostitution obviously raised questions about his judgment."

IRISH INDEPENDENT:

BRITAIN'S MI5 was accused last night of failing to vet recruits properly after it emerged that one of its surveillance officers was married to a prostitute who exposed Max Mosley's (right) involvement in a sado-masochistic orgy. The MI5 officer was forced to resign last month when his wife's "inappropriate job" became known. It is alleged that he had failed to disclose her work when he was vetted for a post in the security service.

AP:

To a sordid story already dripping with sex and allegations of Nazi role-playing, add a dash of espionage.

British newspapers reported yesterday that a hooker involved in a five-girl sex romp with auto racing boss Max Mosley was married to an agent from Britain's domestic intelligence service MI5.

The Sunday Times said the agent left MI5 in April after admitting his wife was one of five prostitutes who took part in the sex acts, the details of which were splashed across the pages of Britain's biggest-selling Sunday paper two weeks straight.

The ensuing scandal has Mosley struggling to cling to his job as the president of Formula One's governing body.

The story, backed by a videotape which shows a man said to be Mosley speaking in German and being whipped, was particularly arresting because of the allegation there was a Nazi theme.

Mosley is the son of an infamous British fascist leader, Oswald Mosley. Max Mosley hotly denies the allegation of Nazi role-play and is suing the News of the World's parent company for breach of privacy.

XINHUA:

A mind-boggling sex scandal involving a top motor sports official and the prostitute wife of a British spy has raised urgent questions about the screening procedures employed by the MI5 security service.

The Sunday Times and Sunday Telegraph reported an MI5 officer had been forced to resign after it came to light his wife was one of five prostitutes who took part in an orgy with Max Mosley, president of Formula One's governing body, the FIA.

A security source contacted by Reuters did not dispute the reports but said any suggestion the orgy had been an MI5 'sting' operation to entrap Mosley was "nonsense."

"The service is very busy and constantly stretched by the demands of the threat from AQ (al-Qaida) and other terrorist organizations ...This is not how they're spending their time," he said when asked about the Mosley affair.

• WHAT SO FREAKIN WILD ABOUT THIS IS THAT THE AGENT WASN'T VETTED PROPERLY.
  
• THIS IS JUST LIKE THE CIA HERE IN THE USA, WHICH HAD A HIZBALLAH AGENT WORKING FOR THEM.
• THESE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THE SUPER-DUPER AGENCIES PROTECTING US, AND THEY CAN'T EVEN TELL A GOOD PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEE FROM A BAD.
• CIA & MI5: IDIOTS AND INCOMPETENT AS**HOLES.

LISTEN. DOWNLOAD NOW AND LISTEN.

KRUGMAN:

Still, if we’re heading for a prolonged era of scarce, expensive oil, Americans will face increasingly strong incentives to start living like Europeans — maybe not today, and maybe not tomorrow, but soon, and for the rest of our lives.

OBAMA:

"We can't drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times ... and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK," Obama said.

ET AL.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT EUROPE THEY LOVE SO MUCH!?

WHY DON'T THEY LOVE AMERICA AS MUCH AS THEY DO EUROPE!?

I THINK THE LEFT THINKS THAT EUROPEANS ARE SMARTER AND MORE SOPHISTICATED AND LEFTISTS WANT TO BE ACCEPTED BY THEM.

• IOW: THE LEFT'S IMAGE OF THEMSELVES AND THE USA IS OUTER-DIRECTED. IT IS OUTER-DIRECTED BECAUSE THEY ARE POSTMODERN RELATIVISTS.

• IOW: BECAUSE AMERICA'S FOUNDING PRINCIPLES ARE UNIVERSALIST AND VALORIZE INDIVIDUALISM, THEY ARE ANTITHETICAL TO SOCIALISM AND RELATIVISM AND NIHILISM. AND LEFTISM.

• EUROPE IS THOROUGHLY LEFTIST - ASK BAWER. (NO COINCIDENCE THAT SO IS ANTI-AMERICANISM AND ANTISEMITISM!)
  

• HENCE, EUROPE IS WHAT THE AMERICAN LEFT IDOLIZES - AS ROMNEY SAID ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL MANY TIMES.

• DEMOCRATS WANT TO FRENCHIFY THE USA. AND IF THEY WIN, THEY MIGHT SUCCEED IN AT LEAST ONE WAY: MAKING US THE FIFTH BIGGEST ECONOMY, INSTEAD OF THE BIGGEST!

VOTE ACCORDINGLY.

[ASIDE: I LOVE PARIS. BUT NEARLY EVERYTHING THAT I LOVE IS PRE-20TH CENTURY, AND NON-POSTMODERN.]

WHAT'S AT GLENN'S TONIGHT...

WAS HERE LATE LAST NIGHT.

• REGULAR READERS KNOW THAT WE DA BESS!
• SPREAD THE WORD.
• BLOGROLL US!

DUELING HEADLINES FROM HAARETZ:

Gaza cease-fire could take effect later this week
Israel to hear from Egypt if Hamas will agree to stop terrorist activities, in return for end to IDF attacks. 02:57
Tags: Hamas, Israel
IDF kills would-be bomber at West Bank checkpoint
Troops fire at Palestinian man carrying 3 pipe bombs after he refuses to identify himself in Nablus. 23:27
Tags: Islamic Jihad, Hamas, Israel

• THE ARABS ARE PLAYING A DOUBLE-GAME.
• NO ONE SHOULD BE FALLING FOR IT.
• EVIDENTLY BUSH AND CONDI AND OLMERT ARE, THOUGH...
• IDIOTS.
• PEACE IS A BY-PRODUCT OF VICTORY.
• UNTIL THE ARABS ACCEPT DEFEAT THERE WILL BE NO PEACE.
  
• IF ARABS WANTED PEACE, THEN THEY COULD HAVE IT IN A SECOND: JUST STOP ATTACKING ISRAEL AND RECOGNIZE HER RIGHT TO EXIST.

HAARETZ:

... researchers from Tel Aviv University (TAU) claim to have created a prototype of a photovoltaic cell by genetically engineering proteins that produce energy using photosynthesis. If successful, this would enable energy production on a commercial scale through the construction of "artificial leaves." The cells would even appear green, because of the wavelength of the light that they collect.

... The new photovoltaic device is based on a genetically engineered dry protein, photosystem I (PS I), created from bacteria that carry out photosynthesis.

... In the first stage, the researchers grew cells that can produce large quantities of the PS I protein. "We introduced genetic changes into bacteria so that the proteins they create can bond to a substrate bottom metal and be suited for use," Carmeli explained. The most complex stage involved placing the protein molecules on the substrate, all facing the same direction. Next, the surface was coated with a suitable conducting material. Electrical wires were then connected to the cells, which produced an electrical charge when exposed to light.

... The research is still in its early stages, and so far the team has only created a microscopic cell that produces a tiny amount of energy. ... it is too early to talk about the total cost of producing electricity on a commercial scale using the new method.

GEE: IF IT WORKS, THEN IT COULD OUT THE ARABS OUT OF THE ENERGY BUSINESS!

OH THOSE JOOOOOOZE!

AP:

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy's hospitalization after a seizure stretched to a third day Monday, raising questions about the severity of his illness.

The senator's office announced that he is not expected to return to Washington this week, and a spokeswoman said the Massachusetts Democrat had not been available to take a call from President Bush earlier in the day.

"Take care of my friend," the president told Vicki Kennedy, who answered the call from the White House to Massachusetts General Hospital, according to Kennedy spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter. ...

BUT...

... Over the weekend, Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., visited his colleague, but he declined public comment about his condition.

Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, the leading Democratic presidential contender, told reporters he was surprised by Kennedy's vigor during a phone call Saturday.

HE TOOK CALLS FROM KERRY.

AND OBAMA.

HMMM...

AND TEDDY WAS EVEN WELL ENOUGH TO PLACE A CALL TO DODD...

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said Kennedy's voice "couldn't have been stronger" when he called Sunday.

"My cell phone rang and I picked it up and here was this voice that sounded terribly familiar to me talking about how those nurses were picking on him up in that hospital. It had me laughing," Dodd told reporters.

"His voice was robust and strong and full of that laughter we've all heard a million times. He sounded great."

(WHY'D HE CALL DODD? COULD IT BE BECAUSE DODD IS AN OLD DRINKING BUDDY OF TEDDY'S? PROBABLY.)

BUT... TEDDY JO WASN'T WELL ENOUGH TO TAKE A CALL FROM THE POTUS.

WHAT AN AS**OLE.

MAYBE TEDDY JO WAS AFRAID HE'D GET A LECTURE FROM BUSH ABOUT LAYING OFF TE SAUCE? (BUSH IS A RECOVERING ALCOHOLIC HIMSELF. A SUCCESSFUL ONE!)

I NOTE THIS BECAUSE I SUSPECT THAT TEDDY'S CONDITION IS BOOZE-RELATED.

Via the most recent newsletter from America's Truth Forum:

Islamist forums and jihadi media have been promoting and threatening to perpetrate naval terrorism as an important strategic trend in the jihadi path....

[...]

The Jihad Press deems it essential to take the battle to the sea now that the final fight to subdue the enemy is closing in. When the mujahideen have won the final battle they will impose on the Crusaders and Zionists an unconditional withdrawal from Muslim countries, leaving behind the weapons they brought to kill Muslims. Similar to jihadi ground formations, the maritime mujahideen must commence marine training programs to prepare naval units capable of controlling the sea and restoring the Islamic caliphate. According to the author of the article, the mujahideen should start the naval jihad operations along the Yemeni coastal area...

Source

This idiocy will serve to embolden the naval jihad even further:

Piracy used to be a one way ticket to the gallows. With the Royal Navy these days, it may be a one way ticket to the pirates’ port of choice; or worse for the people of Britain, the chance for freebooters to claim asylum in the UK.

Last month, Britain’s Foreign Office instructed the Royal Navy not to return pirates to jurisdictions sporting Islamic law for fear that their human rights might be violated. It has even been discouraged from capturing pirates, because they might demand asylum in Britain, a request with which the UK might have to comply under international human rights law.

It isn’t that bad in the U.S. -- yet -- but things are getting worse. Welcome to the brave new world of “lawfare,“ the soft jihad that uses international organizations and treaties, but especially the courts, in an effort to undermine the ability of the West to fight Islamofascism; directly by making military action and law enforcement more difficult, and indirectly by suppressing free discussion of ideas that are crucial to understanding and confronting the Islamist threat....

Labels: Always On Watch, dhimmitude, jihadism, terrrorism

Just asking...

• OBAMA SAYS WE HAVE TO CURTAIL OUR PERSONAL FREEDOM IN ORDER TO BE MORE LIKED BY FOREIGNERS.

• HE SPECIFICALLY MENTIONED THAT WE SHOULD BUY SMALLER CARS, AND USE LESS AIR CONDITIONING. SHEESH.

• HE IS TELLING US, WHEN IT COMES TO SPENDING OUR OWN HARD-EARNED MONEY THE WAY WE WANT TO... "NO, YOU CAN'T!"

• HIS RACIST, ANTI-AMERICAN WIFE HAS SAID SIMILAR THINGS:

To provide a good education for all children and universal health care, people will have to give something up for the greater good. There’s no easy fix, but it starts with "us," she said.

• THEY THINK THEY KNOW HOW TO SPEND YOUR MONEY BETTER THAN YOU DO.

VOTE ACCORDINGLY.

GOD BLESS THEM!

TAT:

The National Press Club in Washington will today release the names of as many as 32,000 American Scientists who reject not only Kyoto-style greenhouse gas limits, but the very premise of manmade global warming itself.

... these dissenting scientists - over 9,000 of whom hold Ph.Ds -- now outnumber the environmentalists that attended the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio that actually kicked off the global warming craze.

And, I might add, far exceed the count of UN IPCC "scientists" whose calamitous predictions lie at the very heart of climate hysteria and what Solomon calls "the Kyoto Protocol's corruption of science."

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? SIMPLE: AGW = BS.

• SOMEONE TELL MCCAIN.
• AND SOMEBODY WLES TELL AL GORE TO STFU.

Excerpt:

John McCain is America's favorite kind of candidate. With his record of extraordinary patriotism and his distinctive Senate tenure, McCain is a nominee whom voters from both parties -- and independents, too -- could easily support. But he has been dealt a terrible hand: a tanking economy, an unpopular war, a Republican incumbent whose approval ratings are at their all-time low and a gloomy national mood, with 82 percent of Americans saying in a Washington Post-ABC News poll last week that the country is on the wrong track. Political scientists add all that up and predict that the Democrats are destined to win the White House. But I don't do political science; I do politics, and I'm convinced that McCain can still win -- if he's willing to follow the road map below.

McCain needs to not run as a traditional Republican, which is easy, since he's not one. After all, how did an anti-torture, anti-tobacco, pro-campaign finance reform, anti-pork, pro-alternative-energy Republican ever emerge from the primaries alive? Simple: The GOP electorate, along with the rest of the country, has moved somewhat to the left. (In Florida, for example, exit polls showed that only 27 percent of Republican primary voters described themselves as "very conservative," while 28 percent said they were "moderate" and 2 percent said they were "very liberal.")

In this environment, McCain can win by running to the center. His base will be there for him; indeed, it will turn out in massive numbers. Wright has become the honorary chairman of McCain's get-out-the-vote efforts. It would be nice to think that race isn't a factor in American politics anymore, but it is. The growing fear of Obama, who remains something of an unknown, will drag every last white Republican male off the golf course to vote for McCain, and he will need no further laying-on of hands from either evangelical Christians or fiscal conservatives.

So McCain doesn't have to spend a lot of time wooing his base. What he does need to do is reduce the size of the synapse over which independents and fearful Democrats need to pass in order to back his candidacy. If the synapse is wide, they will stay with Obama. But if they perceive McCain as an acceptable alternative, there is every chance that they will cross over to back him in November.

Earlier in the race, Iraq might have been a deal-breaker. But a kinder, gentler war has emerged. U.S. combat deaths are way down, and the de facto U.S. alliance with Sunni tribal leaders in Anbar province against al-Qaeda in Iraq seems to have dramatically improved the security situation. Still, most Americans don't like the war, and McCain must deal with their opposition if he wants to win. The solution is to draw Obama out -- to ask the untested senator what he would do if al-Qaeda in Iraq took over the country . . . or if Iran did . . . or if the Iraqis who backed the U.S. mission were being slaughtered by the thousands . . . or if Islamist terrorists seized control of the country's oil wealth.

Obama, not wanting to appear weak, would no doubt rise to the bait and agree that he might need to send troops back in under certain conditions. He would assure us that sufficient forces would be available at nearby bases to get the job done. To avoid coming across as indecisive and timid, he would put on a sufficiently hawkish face to reassure the voters. And in doing so, he would blur the war issue vis-a-vis McCain. It will make little difference to most Americans whether our troops are in Iraq (as McCain wants) or in Kuwait (as Obama can be pushed to suggest), so long as U.S. casualties are dropping. And with the economy in tough shape, Iraq will fade as the election's be-all and end-all issue.

Meanwhile, McCain should highlight his credentials as a reformer and a maverick to attract Democrats and independents who worry about Obama.

More here


Posted by John Ray. For a daily critique of Leftist activities, see DISSECTING LEFTISM. For a daily survey of Australian politics, see AUSTRALIAN POLITICS Also, don't forget your roundup of Obama news and commentary at OBAMA WATCH

The Muslim-loving British police get madder every day

He was the poster boy for jihadist extremism who become one of its most vocal opponents, meeting a government minister and being offered Home Office funding to support his deradicalisation work among young Muslims. But now Hassan Butt is under arrest and at the centre of a high-stakes legal battle that goes to the core of Britain's fight against terrorism.

Hassan Butt sent dozens of British Muslims to training camps in Pakistan, raised money for the Taleban and once boasted of his desire "to kill or be killed for the sake of Allah". His words and deeds in support of Islamist terrorism were reported widely between 2001 and 2004, yet he was never charged with any offence.

After the suicide attacks on London in July 2005, he embarked on a lengthy and painful reexamination of his beliefs, eventually repudiating violence and emerging as a passionate critic of the cause he once espoused. Since early 2007 Mr Butt, 28, has denounced al-Qaeda in numerous newspaper articles, in international television interviews and in debate at the Cambridge Union. However, he has been labelled a traitor to Islam by his former comrades and in April last year was stabbed in the street by two assailants.

Ten days ago, as he prepared to board a flight to Pakistan, Mr Butt was arrested - and is still detained - under the Terrorism Act. If his rejection of violence was not a sham, then Greater Manchester Police - whose investigation is being carried out independently of Counter Terrorism Command at Scotland Yard - may be about to face more than a few tough questions.

More here

Posted by John Ray. For a daily critique of Leftist activities, see DISSECTING LEFTISM. For a daily survey of Australian politics, see AUSTRALIAN POLITICS Also, don't forget your roundup of Obama news and commentary at OBAMA WATCH

BBC:

Hurricanes and tropical storms will become less frequent by the end of the century as a result of climate change, US researchers have suggested.

But the scientists added their data also showed that there would be a "modest increase" in the intensity of these extreme weather events.

The findings are at odds with some other studies, which forecast a greater number of hurricanes in a warmer world.

The researchers' results appear in the journal Nature Geoscience.

HUH?! ER, UMM... YOU MEAN THERE ISN'T NEAR UNANIMITY IN THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY, NO CONSENSUS!?!?

• THERE NOTHING TO SEE HERE.
• MORE HURRICANES. LESS. WHO CARES. SAME DIFFERENCE.
• THE MAIN THINGS IS AGW IS REAL AND ONLY HIGHER TAXES AND CARBON SCHEMES WILL SAVES US.

IOW: AGW FREAKS CAN HAVE THEIR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO. AS LONG AS THE TAX-PAYER PICKS UP THE BILL!

No Quarter asks, "Will Obama Throw Mama From The Train?"

I now have it from two three four sources (three who are close to senior Republicans) that there is video dynamite–Michelle Obama railing against “whitey” at Jeremiah Wright’s church. Republicans may have a lousy record when it comes to the economy and the management of the war in Iraq, but they are hell on wheels when it comes to opposition research.

Someone took the chance and started reviewing the recordings from services at Jeremiah Wright’s United Church of Christ. Holy smoke!! I am told there is a clip that is being held for the fall to drop at the appropriate time. The last thing Barack and Michelle need is a new clip that raises further questions about her judgment and temperament.

When the ugly video tapes about Jeremiah Wright’s racist ravings first broke Barack Obama told us he could no more disown Jeremiah Wright than his own Grandmother. Well, we all know how that turned out. So will Barack stand by Michelle when the tape emerges of her verbally attacking “whitey?” Republicans, who are otherwise gloomy about prospects in November, recognize that this recording will create real problems for Barack and give them a shot at the White House. It is their October surprise.

Does Barack have an obligation to tell the Democrats, super delegates in particular, about this tape? Did Barack and his campaign do their basic homework and identify this tape as a potential problem? And, more importantly, do they have a copy? Probably better to deal with this issue before the convention rather than wait for October. What do you think?

Reliapundit adds: Oh... Obummer I mean OBAMA will just say he never heard her ever say anything controversial before...

It doesn't matter to Barack Obama whether we can afford these products. He says we can not continue to buy them. And, why not? Because, he's afraid of how it will look to the rest of the world.

From AFP:

"We can't drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times ... and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK," Obama said.

"That's not leadership. That's not going to happen," he added.

So, what is he going to do about it? Make a law that we can not spend our money as we please?

Is Barack Obama out of his freaking mind?

Reliapundit adds: he's not crazy; just a leftie. And it's for the common good, dontchya kno'.

ALCOHOL WITHDRAWAL SEIZURES AREN'T RARE.

DID TEDDY HAVE ONE?

JUST ASKING.

HE'S DOING OKAY NOW. HE JUST HAS TO LAY OFF THE SAUCE, I GUESS...

Barry Rubin talks about how the wishes of those who'd wish for Israel to perish are greatly exaggerated, and how they only end up hurting the Arabs they supposedly support too.

Labels: Israel

First he thought there were at least 57 states.

Now he claims that HRC is 27 points ahead of him in Kentucky, because Arkansas is close to Kentucky:

Obama conceded that he has a steep challenge to get his message and background to voters in states such as Kentucky — where he trails Sen. Hillary Clinton by 27 points, according to a poll published earlier this week — and West Virginia, where voters chose Clinton over Obama by 40 points on Tuesday.

"What it says is that I'm not very well known in that part of the country," Obama said. "Sen. Clinton, I think, is much better known, coming from a nearby state of Arkansas. So it's not surprising that she would have an advantage in some of those states in the middle."

Obama is from Illinois. Illinois & Kentucky share a border. Arkansas is separated from Kentucky by Tennessee and Missouri.

What a pathetic alibi. Obama's already showing flop sweat. Just wait, should he receive the Democrat nomination, for a complete rout in November.

Hat tip: Scott Johnson.

All the wars fought against Israel were always called "Arab-Israeli" wars. Never "Palestinian-Israeli wars."

WHY?!

Because the enemies of Israel had ALWAYS seen themselves as Arabs - the Ummah - not "Palestinians."

Prior to 1967, the ONLY people to call themselves "Palestinians" were the Jews of British Palestine.

The "Palestinian Liberation Organization" was founded BEFORE the 1967 war, BEFORE "occupation" of the West bank and Gaza.

It was founded to liberate ALL of British Palestine from Jews, and not just the "occupied territories".

This in fact has never changed: Fatah and Hamas BOTH really want to eradicate Israel - just like Hizballah and Iran. Fatah just is a little better at playing the "peace-process" game.

Despite this, Bush and Rice continue down the "peace-process" road. Bush AGAIN reiterated his belief in the two-state solution.

I'd like to ask a question of all the doves/appeasers/two-staters:

If Fatah and Israel agree on all terms (including refugees, and Jerusalem - the ONLY outstanding issues, really) - then... WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT GAZA!?!?!

Hamas - which controls Gaza - won't agree to ANY permanent settlement. The MOST they will agree to is a hudna of 10 years. SO: Does Gaza become part of this new Arab state? Does Fatah invade?

MY ANSWER:

It's INSANE to think that giving Fatah or Hamas more autonomy will makes things better. It will makes things worse. Left alone to their own devices they will only become more belligerent and antisemitic. The withdrawal from Gaza proves this beyond ANY reasonable doubt.

SO: the goal of this so-called "peace-process" - another Arab state living side-by-side with Israel in peace- is not only unattainable in practical terms (YOU CAN'T MAKE A FINAL DEAL WITH FATAH AND NOT GAZA) --- it can't bring real peace.

So far, the only thing which has made Israel safer is the security fence.

SO, WHAT IS TO BE DONE?

Israel should annex the "territories" and treat Arab towns in the West Bank and Gaza as autonomous "reservations". And the Arabs there should be disarmed:

• Any Arab owning any weapon would be convicted of sedition and sent into permanent exile.
• And their schools and media would be monitored for antisemitism - a crime which would be legally considered SEDITION - all teachers and writers convicted of promoting sedition would be sent into permanent exile.
• Mosques would be forbidden from teaching nakba and antisemitism; any imam teaching this would be sent into permanent exile.
• Arabs would be sent "home": nation-states which are part of "the ummah".
  

And if the Arabs there don't like it then they can leave voluntarily - as they did in 1948.

Post below recycled from Big dog. See the original for links

Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa is a bonehead who has insulted John McCain because McCain served in the military. According to Harkin, McCain's service and the generations of service from his family has wired him differently and renders him unfit to serve as president. Imagine that, Harkin thinks military service makes one unfit for the Presidency. Remember when service was a good thing and when most of our presidents served or came from military families? Perhaps liberals look at this differently because it is getting harder and harder to find liberals who served and they know this.

Republican presidential candidate John McCain's family background as the son and grandson of admirals has given him a worldview shaped by the military, "and he has a hard time thinking beyond that," Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia., said Friday.

"I think he's trapped in that," Harkin said in a conference call with Iowa reporters. "Everything is looked at from his life experiences, from always having been in the military, and I think that can be pretty dangerous."

Harkin said that "it's one thing to have been drafted and served, but another thing when you come from generations of military people and that's just how you're steeped, how you've learned, how you've grown up." Des Moines Register

Harkin is absolutely, without a doubt a complete idiot. He believes that being in the military and that havng a family history of serving makes one unfit to be the president. I guess the idea of discipline, selfless service to the country, duty, honor, and integrity (all values taught in the military) are not what Harkin would call positive attributes. And why would he? Just look who he backs for president. Barack Obama.

Barack Obama lived the ideal liberal life. He was born to a black man and white woman. His father left when Obama was very young so he was left in a single parent household. Eventually he ended up being shipped off to his typical white grandmother. Obama benefitted from affirmative action and used the benefits provided by the government to attend law school and then he became a politician and has lived off the government. Barack Obama has lived a liberal life of handouts and socialism. He is not fit to be president. His life experiences are ingrained in him and he will try to run the country based on his liberal ideas of income redistribution.

It seems to me that Democrats are positioning themselves for the general election. They know that Obama has NO military experience whatsoever and his life shows he has little leadership experience. The left is trying to make this a non issue now by claiming it is McCain whose life experiences make him unfit to serve. There are a lot of problems with John McCain that might call into question his qualifications for the presidency but his military experience is not among them and Senator Harkin should be slapped around for suggesting such stupidity.

Think about it America. The Democrats want you to believe that military experience and a family history of service makes people unfit to be president. Barack Obama is supposed to be the next coming of JFK. As I recall Kennedy was in the Navy. His service failed to make him unfit to be president. Only in the mind of liberal idiots could military experience disqualify a person from serving AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF OF THE ARMED FORCES.

And this is the kind of logic that wants to run this country. It might be a good idea for the liberals to come up with another line of attack. This whole military issue will backfire. Harkin has already insulted a lot of people who have served and whose families have a history of service and these insults will not go unnoticed.

GM Roper also has some good comments. Hark to some basic background on the dishonest Harkin here and also below:



(click to enlarge)

For more postings from me, see OBAMA WATCH, TONGUE-TIED, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, GUN WATCH, SOCIALIZED MEDICINE, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN.

Seattle Times editorial writer Bruce Ramsey, in an effort to defend Barack Obama against President Bush's "appeasement" speech, actually ends up defending Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler, and the Anschluss (the annexation of Austria): Bush, and His Use of `Appeasement'.

Democrats are rebuking President Bush for saying in his speech to the Knesset, here, that to "negotiate with terrorists and radicals" is "appeasement." The Democrats took it as a slap at Barack Obama. What bothers me is the continual reference to Hitler and his National Socialists, particularly the British and French accommodation at the Munich Conference of 1938.

What Hitler was demanding was not unreasonable. He wanted the German-speaking areas of Europe under German authority. He had just annexed Austria, which was German-speaking, without bloodshed. There were two more small pieces of Germanic territory: the free city of Danzig and the Sudetenland, a border area of what is now the Czech Republic.

We live in an era when you do not change national borders for these sorts of reasons. But in 1938 it was different. Germany's eastern and western borders had been redrawn 19 years before-and not to its benefit. In the democracies there was some sense of guilt with how Germany had been treated after World War I. Certainly there was a memory of the "Great War." In 2008, we have entirely forgotten World War I, and how utterly unlike any conception of "The Good War" it was. When the British let Hitler have a slice of Czechoslovakia, they were following their historical wisdom: avoid war. War produces results far more horrible than you expected. War is a bad investment. It is not glorious. Don't give anyone an excuse to start one.

Source

Our Lefty copped a lot of flak over those words and he has now revised them somewhat. As with a lot of Leftist writing, what he has said is half true. A lot of people of the prewar era DID think Hitler's demands were reasonable. To them, he was after all merely attempting to regain a small portion of the German territory that had been lost to Germany in the aftermath of WWI.

But people who thought that way were wishful thinkers. They were ignoring evidence that they did not want to see. As far back as Volume I chapter 4 of Mein Kampf, Hitler had made clear his intention to grab for Germany the territory of other nations. But people just did not want to believe that he really meant it.

Similarly today, President Ahmadinejad of Iran has made clear his intention of wiping the "tumour" of Israel off the map but again people are blocking their ears. Again they just do not want to believe it -- even though Ahmadinejad has expressed himself most forcefully on the matter. It is clear that our Leftist editor thinks it is defensible for Obama to join the blocked-ears brigade but we must all fervently hope that whoever wins next November WILL learn from history. The clearly expressed aggressive intentions of extremists DO have to be taken seriously and prepared against.

Posted by John Ray. For a daily critique of Leftist activities, see DISSECTING LEFTISM. For a daily survey of Australian politics, see AUSTRALIAN POLITICS Also, don't forget your roundup of Obama news and commentary at OBAMA WATCH

BUMPED...


FREEDOM ISN'T FREE.

IT WAS WON, AND IT MUST BE DEFENDED.

WE SALUTE OUR DEFENDERS ON ARMED FORCES DAY - THE THIRD SUNDAY IN MAY; ORIGINALLY, IN 1949, ON 5/19; THIS YEAR TOMORROW - ON THE 17TH.



I LOVE THIS SONG - THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT IT THAT'S AS JOYFUL AS IT IS PATRIOTIC AND STIRRING.

ENJOY!

Things don't look too great for the GOP or conservatives right now. But that will change.

WHY ARE THINGS SO TOUGH? Simple: The MSM has been relentlessly negative on Iraq, the economy and climate change.

But NONE of these are real threats. We are winning in Iraq. The economy is NOT in recession and might not fall into one. And AGW is BS.

The biggest threats facing the USA and the West are global jihad, energy-exploration and energy-use constraints, and the general threat of more taxes, more government spending and redistribution schemes if a Democrat wins the White House.

As the truth leaks out, the chances of any Democrat winning become smaller and smaller.

Their big issues are disappearing:

• It's VERY obvious now that we are winning in Iraq - even Pelosi has admitted as much.
• The economic news isn't very bad, and it's improving: Housing starts bounced-back last month, the markets are up, oil inventories are up, unemployment isn't burgeoning.
• And global warming ain't happening, babe!

The only climate that will change between now and November, is the political climate.

It will become increasing cloudy for Democrats. Their only issue will be healthcare, and that won't be enough.

All the the GOP needs a simple and bold plan.

A PLATFORM TO RENEW AMERICA:

1. Reduce and simplify taxes.
2. End earmarks and pork barrel-spending.
3. Expand domestic energy exploration.
4. End illegal immigration.
5. Grant vouchers or tax-breaks for privately purchased healthcare.
6. Stay on the offensive against our national security enemies.
   

Can't miss.

As long as McCain doesn't try to run as Dem-lite and make a bad pick for his Veep.

The Yomiuri Shimbun:

The active fault zone that caused a powerful earthquake Monday in Sichuan Province, China, is believed to have made the land to shift by as much as 13 meters, according to seismic wave analysis by Tokyo University's Earthquake Research Institute.

The largest shift occurred in a mountainous area in Wenchuan County, about 50 kilometers northeast of the epicenter, according to the institute. Strong jolts and landslides may have caused massive damage in the county, although the extent of the damage in the area is not yet known.

AWESOME.
WHAT IF ONE THAT BIG HIT SF OR LA?

Well... we're lucky our infra-structure wasn't "made in China" because part of the tragedy over there is that theirs was!

ESTONIA IS FOLLOWING NEW ZEALAND'S LEAD!

DOES AL GORE GET A CUT!?!?

WE FIRST COVERED COW FLATULENCE HERE - IN 2006.

ACE HAS THE VIDEO.

"STEPPING UP AND DOING THE RIGHT THING AT THE RIGHT TIME."

PRIDE IN DOING SO.

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

NOW... PLAY BALL!

NO SURPRISE HERE; HE'S A FREAKIN' SOCIALIST; THIS IS WHAT THEY DO; NYTIMES:

Faced with shortages of foods, building materials and other staples, President Hugo Chávez is intensifying state control of the Venezuelan economy through a new wave of takeovers of private companies and the creation of government-controlled ventures with allies like Cuba and Iran.

The moves come just months after voters rejected a referendum to give the president sweeping constitutional power over the economy and public institutions, leading to new accusations that Mr. Chávez is more interested in consolidating power than in fixing Venezuela’s problems.

And while he has argued that aggressive action against the private sector is needed to correct social injustices and fight soaring inflation, his critics say his moves are instead compounding those troubles.

MUGABE DID THE SAME STUFF.

OBAMA IS SIMILAR: HE'D RAISE THE CAP GAINS TAX DESPITE THE FACT THAT IT WOULD HURT THE ECONOMY AND REDUCE REVENUES.

LEFTISM IS A ONE NOTE SONG, AND IT'S FLAT.