Thursday, February 28, 2013

Human Rights Watch Report on Indonesia

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com



Someone alert the Organization of the Islamic Conference. There is religious defamation going on in Indonesia. Human Rights Watch has a report worth reading.

http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/02/28/indonesia-religious-minorities-targets-rising-violence

We all know that there is a deep split between Sunni and Shia, which often explodes into violence. In the case of Ahmadi Muslims, most Sunnis do not recognize them as Muslims. In Pakistan, they are also subject to persecution, and it is illegal for them to even call themselves Muslims.

This is timely because on March 6, there will be an Ahmadiya event at UC Irvine. I am curious to hear what they have to say.

A Few Funnies Before The End Of The World (Sequestration)

An Irish priest was transferred to Texas . Father O'Reilly rose from his bed one morning. It was a fine spring day in his new Texas mission parish. He walked to the window of his bedroom to get a deep breath of the fresh air.

He then noticed there was a jackass lying dead in the middle of his front lawn.

He promptly called the local police station......

The conversation went like this: 'Good morning. This is Sergeant Jones. How might I help you?'

'And the best of the day te yerself. This is Father O'Reilly at St. Ann's Catholic Church. There's a jackass lying dead in me front lawn and would ye be so kind as to send a couple o'yer lads over to take care of the matter?'

Sergeant Jones, considering himself to be quite a wit, replied with a smirk, 'Well now Father, it was always my impression that you people took care of the last rites!'

There was dead silence on the line for a long moment.......

Father O'Reilly then replied: 'Aye, 'tis certainly true; but we are also obliged to notify the next of kin.'



Today I swung my front door wide open and placed my Stevens 320 right in the doorway. I placed 6 shells beside it, and noticing that it had no legs, set it on my mom's old wheelchair to help it get around.

I then left it alone and went about my business. While I was gone, the mailman delivered my mail, the neighbor boy across the street mowed the yard, a girl walked her dog down the street, and quite a few cars stopped at the stop sign right in front of our house.

After a a couple of hours, I checked on the gun. It was still sitting there in the wheelchair, right where I had left it. It hadn't rolled itself outside. It certainly hadn't killed anyone, even with the numerous opportunities it had been presented to do so. In fact, it hadn't even loaded itself. Well you can imagine my surprise, with all the media hype about how dangerous guns are and how they kill people.

Either the media is wrong, and it's the misuse of guns by PEOPLE that kills people, or I'm in possession of the laziest gun in the world.

Alright, well I'm off to check on my spoons. I hear they're making people fat.


Wednesday, February 27, 2013

John Kerry Wows'em in Berlin


Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com


Hat tip PJ Media














Great choice, Obama

John Heinz-Kerry was in Berlin this week where he spoke to a group of schoolkids. We'll let PJ Media pick up the story.


http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2013/02/26/kerry-to-muslim-teen-in-america-you-have-a-right-to-be-stupid/

“In America, you have a right to be stupid if you want to be, and you have a right to be disconnected to somebody else if you want to be, and we tolerate it. We somehow make it through that. Now, I think that’s a virtue. I think that’s something worth fighting for.”

“Sehr gut, danke. Alles gut. Deine schuhe sind fantastisch, ja?” the secretary of State said. (Translation: “Very good, thank you. All is well. Your shoes are fantastic.”) He apparently meant to say the schools were fantastic.


                                                                             Fantastic shoes



He could have said, "Ich bin ein Berliner", which means "I am a jelly donut".

Next time, John, you better take that multi-lingual wife of yours along.

Too bad that kid never got his question answered. The correct answer is that our Muslim teenagers tend to be more assimilated than the ones in Europe, but John couldn't have said that, could he?

Big dope!




I Believe That The Little Dog Is Barking Too Much!

North Korea has no food for its people, no freedoms, no running water, electricity, or actual industry.  North Korea does have nuclear weapons and missiles.  2 commodities they sell all over the world to the world's nutcases and dictators.  (I know they are the same thing.)

Now North Korea is actually threatening to launch a nuclear attack on the United States.  Now normally this would be laughable at any other time.  North Korea has at the best 10 nuclear warheads while the United States has thousands of nuclear warheads.  But then again we have President Barack Hussein Obama.
North Korea is threatening the US with a nuclear attack, claiming it has long-range missiles with atomic warheads capable of reaching the American mainland.

The open threat appeared in an editorial posted this week on the country’s Uriminzokkiri state news and propaganda website, which recently posted a video depicting a North Korean dreaming of a nuclear attack on New York City and President Barack Obama in flames.

In the article written by a member of the “Korean National Peace Committee” the government claimed North Korea is a “fully independent rocket and nuclear weapons state.”

Moreover, “The United States should be acutely aware that the US mainland is now well within the range of our strategic rockets and nuclear weapons,” the editorial warned.

Although the threat is being taken seriously, analysts say Pyongyang still has far to go before it will be capable of carrying out such an attack.

Although North Korea successfully tested a small nuclear device last month, it must still be able to develop technology capable of protecting its equipment from being burned up upon re-entry into the atmosphere from space – “ an engineering challenge in itself,” according to the Russian RT news site.

“Without it, even a small nuclear device would not survive an intercontinental ballistic delivery system,” the website’s military writer observed, adding, “The Taepodong rocket is also far from perfect, as its only test in 2006 failed.”

The United Nations is currently discussing a resolution to impose additional sanctions on North Korea for its most recent nuclear test, the launch of a rocket into space that was more likely to have been a surreptitious test of a long-range ballistic missile.

Source
With any other President such an attack would result in a retaliatory strike that would level that nation to a glowing parking lot.  And China would do nothing to stop us.  But with Barack Hussein Obama we are assured that first he will talk to North Korea, then surrender to them.

Somebody must teach this upstart idiot Kim Jong-un a lesson in first manners than not to tempt a sleeping giant.  The Japanese learned that one the hard way.



Click here if the video will not load.

 I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.

--Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto

Hurray for Washington!

Sunday night Michelle Obama had a first for any First Lady.  No she didn't learn proper table manners.  No she hasn't learned to dress properly.  Our dear First Lady presented the Oscar for Best Picture.  Surrounded by female soldiers, she told the world that Argo had won.  What joy!  See how low the office of First Lady has sunk.



By Mary Theroux

The culmination of last night’s Oscars broadcast with a Live! feed from the White House with Mrs. Obama (hangin’ with her military BFs) marks the official recognition of the Presidency as theater: like the old Western sets, no substance required.

From the very beginning, President Obama was elected based on his strong delivery of stirring words, “Hope and change,” with no serious vetting of his record or policies. Having been awarded the presidency, as the Oscars follow the Golden Globes, Mr. Obama was next awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, solely for his well-scripted promises for peace.

And thus the facade continues: promising peace and delivering expanded war, with new frontiers broken for drone killings of children and other innocents, legal justifications crafted for killing Americans, and near-limitless executive power over nearly every aspect of our lives. Reciting the Progressive line while delivering impoverishment, decreased access and less-affordable healthcare, clearly it matters only what he says, not what is. His hoped-for next act: new goals of gun control that would make the most vulnerable more so, an increased minimum wage that would further exacerbate the inability of those with no work experience to get an entry-level job in which to hone the skills that will put them on the economic ladder, and “green” measures, based, like the Life of Pi, on computer-generated fantasy so much more appealing than dry real-world data.

But it’s OK. The Obamas make us feel good about ourselves, and, after all, that’s what Hollywood, er, Washington, is all about.

Of course, this didn’t start with this administration. Mr. Bush is still hailed a “conservative,” despite having perpetrated preemptive war based on an only-in-Washington scenario of mysterious WMDs, setting off the executive power avalanche that’s really rolling now, and quadrupling the size of the federal government.

But the trend certainly seems to be finding its culmination in the currently reigning stars of the White House—and it’s certainly not one that’s healthy for the ticket-paying audience.

Source
Could you imagine what the reaction from the Lame Stream Media would have been if Laura Bush had tried such a stunt.  Just because Michelle Obama is the First Lady doesn't entitle her to the perks and privileges of a queen.  In fact she is not fit for such a role by her demonstration of manners (Or lack of them.) during the inaugural luncheon.  And just imagine we will have 3 more years of these antics to cope with.  G-d help us!

Wednesday's Hero: Watertender First Class Elmer Charles Bigelow

This Weeks Post Was Suggested By Michael

Watertender First Class Elmer Charles Bigelow

Watertender First Class Elmer Charles Bigelow
24 years old from Hebron, Illinois
USS Fletcher (DD-445)
July 12, 1920 - February 15, 1945

U.S. Navy

The Son of German immigrants, Elmer Bigelow joined the U.S. Navy in 1942 and was assigned to the U.S.S. Fletcher in 1943. In 1945 Watertender Second Glass was killed when his boat was hit by enemy fire which ignited several powder cases. With little regard for his own safety, Bigelow rushed below with two fire extinguishers to put out the fires before they could cause anymore damage. In doing so he forwent the breathing apparatus that would have saved his life because it would have taken too much time to put on. He was able to extinguish the fires but his lungs were seared and he succumbed to his injuries the following day. For his heroics that day, Watertender Second Glass Elmer Bigelow was posthumously awarded the rank of Watertender First Class, the Medal Of Honor and in 1957 a destroyer, USS Bigelow (DD-942), was named in his honor.

You can read more about Elmer Bigelow 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.

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.

Wednesday Hero Logo

Monday, February 25, 2013

Serious Business: National Retirement Accounts

I've written about this twice, first in January 2011, and again on February 4th, 2013. When Bloomberg News reports the government is "weighing" a role in "helping Americans manage" their 401(k)s and when that government arm, The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, says it is "exploring and are interested in terms of whether and what authority we have," it's reason to pay attention. The following is from Rush Limbaugh today, and following his statement are other confirming information and links:

...from Bloomberg News: "The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is weighing whether it should take on a role in helping Americans manage the $19.4 trillion they have put into retirement savings, a move that would be the agency's first foray into consumer investments. 'That's one of the things we've been exploring and are interested in in terms of whether and what authority we have,' bureau director Richard Cordray said in an interview. 
"He didn't provide additional details. The bureau's core concern is that many Americans, notably those from the retiring Baby Boom generation, may fall prey to financial scams, according to three people briefed on the CFPB's deliberations who asked not to be named because the matter is still under discussion... 
This Consumer Bureau set up by Dodd-Frank wants to claim jurisdiction over 401(k)s. "The bureau could claim jurisdiction through its Office for Older Americans..." There actually is a bureaucracy called that, the Office for Older Americans, "which was established by Dodd-Frank with a mandate to improve financial literacy. It is run by Hubert H. Humphrey III," ranking member of the ruling class, "the former attorney general of Minnesota," and the son of the former Democrat presidential candidate. Source: Rush Limbaugh
The Senate held RECESS hearings in October 2010 - only Senators Harkin (D-IA) and Socialist Bernie Sanders (D_VT) were in attendance, representing the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. First up to testify before Harkin and Sanders was a Ross Eisenbrey, the Vice President of the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), which "is housed on the third floor of the building occupied by the George Soros-funded Center for American Progress."
Democrats in the Senate on Thursday held a recess hearing covering a taxpayer bailout of union pensions and a plan to seize private 401(k) plans to more “fairly” distribute taxpayer-funded pensions to everyone. 
Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee heard from hand-picked witnesses advocating the infamous “Guaranteed Retirement Account” (GRA) authored by Theresa Guilarducci… (You can find the blistering interview with Guilarducci by radio talk show host Mark Levin in 2007 at the link). 
In a nutshell, under the GRA system government would seize private 401(k) accounts, setting up an additional 5% mandatory payroll tax to dole out a “fair” pension to everyone using that confiscated money coupled with the mandated contributions.  This would, of course, be a sister government ponzi scheme working in tandem with Social Security, the primary purpose being to give big government politicians additional taxpayer funds to raid to pay for their out-of-control spending. Read the entire story at Human Events, 10/8/2010 – with testimony you will want to know about.
As I discussed earlier this month, part of this is about bailing out union pensions with your retirement.
Brett McMahon, spokesman for the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), a trade association, warns this hearing exposed part of a process that may come as early as the November lame duck push to bailout union pensions by attaching the bailout to an across-the-board extension of the current tax rates. 
“I am deeply concerned that they will try to attach something like the Casey bill or the Casey bill in and of itself to tax cut extensions bill that is inevitably going to have to be dealt with at some point during the lame duck session,” McMahon told HUMAN EVENTS. 
As reported in HUMAN EVENTS the Casey bill from Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.) is a new entitlement program that would set up a permanent bailout of the union multi-employer pension plans that are desperately underwater through a new “fifth fund” at the government Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC).  Casey’s bill would create a line item on the federal budget through the PBGC to fund these union pension bailouts annually — union pensions that are underwater as a result of mismanagement that pre-dates the 2008 financial upheaval. Source: Visit the Human Events link above
Also from the Human Events article linked above:
Shareen Miller, a personal care assistant and a member of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local Number 5 in Falls Church, Virginia, offered testimony about the need for wealth redistribution to fund her pension. “I make $12 an hour and receive no healthcare benefits, retirement benefits, sick time or vacation,” the SEIU union member said. Which begs the question: why is she paying union dues?  Not exactly a sterling recommendation for SEIU membership.
IBD November 28, 2012 ZeroHedge January 2010 quoting Rick Santelli:
This “proposal” can only mean one thing – Treasury smells smoke. Maybe you should pay attention to what they’re huffing! And before you say “oh they’d never do that” I want you to read this: “Here is a warning to us all. The Argentine state is taking control of the country’s privately-managed pension funds in a drastic move to raise cash.
ZeroHedge updated on February 2, 2013:
The obvious concept is that when the government runs out of money, or they face a drying up in interest for its debt, they will come for the $19.4 trillion in American’s retirement accounts.  It seems that day may be finally drawing near.
As I said in my February 2013 article, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, the first elected female President of Argentina, could be Barack Obama’s twin sister any day of the week (and I’m not speaking of skin color).

She is a good match for Obama's narcissism and lust for power. (Obama hugging Marxist power-monger who grabbed pensions!)

President of Argentina Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and U.S. President Barack Obama

As Kirchner stepped into her second term:
…is once again ready to face a rather disastrous domestic situation, with a severe economic crisis, galloping inflation and a widening unemployment. Source: Vogue
Madam Kirchner’s husband preceded her in the presidency. (See, it does happen).

When public comment has already been asked for, something is brewing, and it doesn’t matter what we want. They pander and then ignore us. I cannot find the comments, but did find one on a .gov website. We can see that the Senate found this matter worthy of their time. It’s coming. Read about the seized pensions in France, Hungary, Argentina, Ireland, Poland, and Bulgaria. From The Lonely Conservative, November 30, 2012 (read her full commentary here):
Notice both TIME Magazine and The Atlantic are calling the 401(k) tax deduction now a subsidy.  It’s a government subsidy.  That’s important because that means it’s the government’s money.  You didn’t earn it, the government allowed you to have it, and  calling it a “subsidy” is a dog whistle term for people.  “Why are we subsidizing the rich?” is the shout from middle America and central California.  “Why are we subsidizing the rich, Mabel?”  So a tax deduction is now a subsidy. Source: Rush Limbaugh - Details: The Plan to Steal Your  401(k)
On January 1, 2013, Investment News reported on the fiscal legislation passed on New Year's Day - another way to con the unthinking invester:
The Senate approved an agreement by an overwhelming bipartisan margin at 2:07 a.m. on New Year's Day that would avert the so-called fiscal cliff in part by encouraging investors to roll over 401(k) plans into Roth versions of those accounts.... 
The retirement-savings provision was included as a way to help pay for a two-month delay in about $110 billion of domestic spending cuts slated to go into effect on Jan. 1. The offset also involved other spending cuts. 
Currently, 401(k) plan participants can only roll their money into a Roth 401(k) after three qualifying events: changing jobs, retirement, or reaching age 59 and 1/2. But under the Senate plan, workers with 401(k)s, 403(b)s and similar defined contribution plans would be able to convert to a Roth 401(k) designated in their benefit plan at any time. Lawmakers believe that easing restrictions on the conversions will produce federal funds because participants must pay tax on the money when they put it into the plan. Disbursements paid during their retirement years are made tax-free.
Don't take your eye off how powerfully attractive bailing out union pensions is to Democrats. Their give-aways are the only thing keeping them in office, and they have won on everything in the past. You and I have lost. Put nothing past them.

Overcoming Their Own Worst Enemy



Stolen from  Faultline USA

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet
 
Liberal guilt created a permanent underclass of citizens in America about one hundred and fifty years ago and still there is no light at the end of the tunnel for that underclass to claw their way towards IF they ever hope to crawl out of the societal hole liberals tossed them into at the end of America's "War Between the States."  

There is another entirely different commentary to be written about the way liberals have suckered the black race in America and taken credit for any and all advances American blacks have made since the Civil War.  Most of the left's claims are pure bovine scatology but their willing accomplices in the intellectual community, the halls of academia, and the Mainstream Media have taken those lies and transformed them them into what is recognized today as history.  Never mind that that so-called "history" is mostly lies.  It IS the official record.  And that, dear reader, is THAT.

It is the national leadership of the black community in America where, I think, the problem lies.

But there is a crying need for leadership at a much more critical level.  In the home, in the family, and in the black neighborhoods.

The black family desperately needs two parents at the head of the family unit ... a mother and a FATHER.  That young black male can learn much from his mother --  but -- how to be a responsible, disciplined, self-respecting man, a masculine contributor to society,  can be learned ONLY from a father.  The home is where real leadership begins, where it is born, and where respect for leadership is taught.  It is also where accountability is learned and where one learns to take responsibility for one's own actions or inactions.

It is jaw-dropping to realize that an entire race of people in America were given freedom over 150 years ago and so little progress has been made as a race, as a class, in bettering themselves, taking advantage of the blessings of this country,  seizing the guilt offerings from white America and using all of it to make their way up the ladder of progress  until they truly stand on a level societal field. It just has not happened. 

If anything, with exceptions, of course, the vast majority of American blacks seem to take pride in their victimhood, assumed or real.  See, little is expected of victims.  It is SAFE to play the part of the victim. And besides, white America loves to "rescue" victims by lavishing all sorts of goodies on them if only to assuage the guilt they (white America) feel for having victimized the poor "victim" in the first place.

Then along comes someone like Dr. Ben Carson and blows a hole the size of the moon through all the BS the leaders of the black community have thrown up the past 150 years -- and what happens?  Well, of course, he is attacked for it.  He's not "down" with the "cause."

See, Ben Carson is an embarrassment to the black community.  That alone should tell you just how convoluted the thinking within that hapless community of people really is.

Here's a man who made the most of every opportunity he found, or came his way, or that he himself could create. Ambitious?  HELL, Yes!  But ambition is a necessary element in striving to better your lot in life.

"Black people created their own stereotype. Now its hard for me to be a educated young black man without being labeled as 'acting white." (Quote from "unknown.")

Nobody seems to know who actually created or verbalized the quote above but it is unarguably true.

Mychal Massie, in an Article for WND entitled: "Blacks: Their own worst enemy" said the following: "If you are black, when was the last time you applauded the accomplishment of another black who didn’t play victim or have an edge of militancy earmarking said accomplishment?

Blacks are inculcated from the womb to believe that whites, especially conservatives, are out to get them. Living under that onus creates a debilitating vestige of rage, resentment and inferiority. In reality, whites, apart from liberals who trade on black immiseration, are not interested in holding blacks down or treating them unfairly. And in no way do they reference blacks in the same disparaging ways blacks do them."
  SOURCE

(Mr. Massie is, himself, black. He is the former chairman of the National Leadership Network of Black Conservatives-Project 21 – a conservative black think tank located in Washington, D.C. He was recognized as the 2008 Conservative Man of the Year by the Conservative Party of Suffolk County, N.Y. He is a nationally recognized political activist, pundit and columnist. He has appeared on Fox News Channel, CNN, MSNBC, C-SPAN, NBC, Comcast Cable and talk-radio programming nationwide. A former self-employed business owner of more than 30 years, Massie's website is mychal-massie.com.)

In the very same article Mr. Massie goes on to say: "Many blacks may not like it, but all too often, when they’re not being their own worst enemies, they are giving their tacit stamp of approval for others to portray them that way."  SOURCE

For evidence of the truthfulness of Mr. Massie's statement above simply look at the leaders the American black community has chosen to represent it and consider how those very same leaders embellish the victim-hood label.

I agree with Mr. Massie who says in the same article:  "It is time to stop feigning insult over nothing, and over that which could be avoided by appropriate behavior, and start promoting positive stories of blacks, regardless of their party affiliation. It is time to stop honoring malevolent anti-social behavior and victimology."  Read more at here
  
The self-appointed leaders of America's black community continue to play the "blame game" and continue to preach hatred and divisiveness when they ought to be preaching a message of repentance and turning away from immorality.   As a result, American blacks have simply traded one enslavement for another.

At some point, blacks are going to have to relinquish their death grip on the battles of the past, accept that most of those battles have actually been won, and join with the rest of us battling today's problems and preparing as best we can to face the unknown problems about to assail us from the future.

Look. Bigots and racists are EVER with us,  have always BEEN with us,  and will always BE with us.  Unfortunately, it is a part of the human condition.  It is a part we can choose to allow influence us -- or -- we can choose to ignore it/them and move forward.   I hope we as a people, both black and white, choose the latter.

America is facing an uncertain future in which she will need all her children, black, white, brown, whatever,  dedicated to her survival.


WE can do this, but we can do it so much better TOGETHER!

JudicialWatch Sues for Benghazi Talking Points

Judicial Watch Seeks the “Speaking Points” Intelligence Memo Referencing Link to Terrorism that was Allegedly Scrubbed by Obama Administration Officials

Bodies of Libyan Ambassador Chris Stevens, Sean Smith and former Navy SEAls Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty arrive in U.S.
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the Obama Administration’s Office of the Director of National Intelligence seeking access to records detailing the September 11, 2012, terrorist attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, which killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. Specifically, Judicial Watch seeks a controversial “speaking points” memo indicating that intelligence officials believed from the outset that terrorists were behind the attack despite public statements to the contrary issued by Obama administration officials, including UN Ambassador Susan Rice and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  The lawsuit was filed on February 14, 2013 (Judicial Watch v. Office of the Dir. of National Intelligence (No. 13-0198)). 
Judicial Watch seeks the following records pursuant to its October 19, 2012, FOIA request: 
Any and all memoranda, assessments, analyses, and/or talking points regarding the September 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya and/or the killing of U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens produced by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence between September 11, 2012 and September 20, 2012. This request includes, but is not limited to, the “speaking points” memorandum referred to by Senator Dianne Feinstein during a televised interview on October 17, 2012, (see http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2012/10/17/ feinstein-intelligence-flaw-lax-security-to-blame-for-libyan-terror-attack/). 
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence acknowledged receiving JW’s request on October 19, 2012, and was required by law to respond by November 26, 2012.  As of the date of Judicial Watch’s lawsuit, the agency has failed to produce any records responsive to the request, indicate when any responsive records will be produced, or demonstrated that responsive records are exempt from production. 
Regarding the “speaking points” memorandum requested by Judicial Watch, according to the CBS Affiliate in San Francisco: “When asked by CBS 5 if there was an intelligence flaw, the senior California senator [Feinstein] who hails from San Francisco replied: ‘I think what happened was the director of intelligence…put out some speaking points on the initial intelligence assessment. I think that was possibly a mistake.’” 
Former CIA Director General David Petraeus reportedly testified before Congress that the initial speaking points produced by the CIA “stated there were indications the attack was linked to al Qaeda,” and suggested the terrorism reference was removed sometime during an interagency review process. In the days and weeks following the Benghazi attacks, the Obama administration blamed the incident on a rudimentary Internet video deemed offensive to Muslims. This false claim was repeated by both Ambassador Rice and Secretary Clinton in multiple public statements and press interviews. For example, at a September 14, 2012, event honoring the four victims of the Benghazi attack, Secretary Clinton made the following statement: “We’ve seen the heavy assault on our post in Benghazi that took the lives of those brave men. We’ve seen the rage and violence directed at American embassies over an awful video that we had nothing to do with.” 
Later, when asked about the alleged discrepancy between the intelligence community’s assessment and the Obama administration’s public statements during congressional testimony, former Secretary of State Clinton shouted, “What difference does it make?” “I personally was not focused on talking points,” she stated. Read more at Judicial Watch

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Purim! What The Heck Is Purim?

A repeat from last year.

It all began in Ancient Persia in the 4th century BCE. The Holy Temple that had stood in Jerusalem was destroyed more than 50 years earlier, and the Jews were subjects of the mighty Persian empire (Now known as Iran.) which extended over 127 lands.

Three years after King Ahasuerus ascended the Persian throne, when he felt secure in his new position, he celebrated by throwing a grand 180-day-long party for all his subjects. Following this extravagant gala, Ahasuerus hosted a smaller week-long party for the residents of the capital city of Shushan. In the palace's women's quarters, Ahasuerus' wife, Queen Vashti, hosted her own party for the Shushanite womenfolk.

On the seventh day of this party, Ahasuerus' heart "was merry with wine," and he commanded his wife Vashti to appear before all the partying men—he wanted to show them all her exquisite beauty. Vashti balked at this request, and at the advice of his advisor Memuchan, Ahasuerus ordered Vashti's execution.

When Ahasuerus' wrath dissipated, he was lonely for a wife. His servants suggested that he orchestrate a beauty pageant. Officers would be appointed in all the king's lands, and all beautiful girls would be brought to Ahasuerus. And the girl who would find favor in the king's eyes would be the new queen.

The leader of the Jews at that time was a Shushanite resident named Mordechai. He had a cousin, Esther, who was orphaned as a young girl. Mordechai raised her and treated her as a daughter. Though she had no desire to be the queen, Esther was forcibly taken to the king's harem, to participate in the contest. While all the other contestant beautified themselves with perfumes and lotions, Esther did nothing. But G‑d had His own plans. When Esther appeared before the king, he immediately liked her, and Esther became the new Queen of Persia. But as per Mordechai's directive, Esther refused to divulge her nationality—even to the king.

Shortly after Esther became queen, Mordechai overheard two of the king's chamberlains discussing a plot to assassinate the king. Mordechai had them reported, and the traitors were hanged.

Meanwhile, Haman, one of Ahasuerus' ministers, was promoted to the position of Prime Minister. Haman was a virulent Jew hater; in fact he was a descendant of the notoriously anti-Semitic nation of Amalek.

Immediately after his promotion, the king issued a decree ordering everyone to bow down whenever Haman appeared. Now Haman would walk around with a large idol hanging from a chain around his neck. When Mordechai, a proud Jew, refused to bow down, Haman was infuriated. He resolved to take revenge against all the Jews and threw lots to determine the "lucky" day when he would implement his plan. The lot fell on the 13th day of the Hebrew month of Adar.

Haman approached Ahasuerus and offered him 10,000 silver talents in exchange for permission to exterminate the Jews. Ahasuerus, who was no friend of the Jews either, told Haman, "The money is yours to keep, and the nation is yours to do with as you please."

Haman immediately sent proclamations to all the king's land. These declarations, sealed with the royal signet ring, ordered the people to rise up against the Jews and kill them all – men, women, and children – on the following 13th of Adar.

Mordechai became aware of the decree. He rent his garments and donned sackcloth. He sent a message to Esther, asking her to approach the king and beg him to spare her people. Esther responded that according to the rules anyone who entered the king's presence un-summoned would be put to death—unless the king extended to that person his golden scepter. "And I," Esther said, "have not been summoned by the king for thirty days already!"

Mordechai sent another message: "Do not think that you will escape the fate of all the Jews by being in the king's palace. For if you will remain silent at this time, relief and salvation will come to the Jews from another source, and you and the house of your father will be lost. And who knows if it is not for just such a time that you reached this royal position."

Esther agreed to approach the king. But she asked Mordechai to gather all the Jews in Shushan and let them all fast for three days and nights. And after this fast Esther would put her life in her hands and approach the king.

Mordechai complied with Esther's request. He gathered the Jews of Shushan – especially the children, 22,000 of them – and they fasted, repented and prayed to G‑d.

After three days of fasting, Esther donned royal garb and entered Ahasuerus' chambers. Immediately, the king extended his scepter. "What is it?" Ahasuerus asked. "What is your request?"

"I would like to invite the king and Haman to a small feast I have prepared," Esther responded.

So the king and Haman joined Esther for a wine-feast. During the feast, the king again asked Esther whether she had anything to request. "Yes," Esther responded. "I would appreciate if tomorrow, again, the king and Haman would join me for a feast. And then I will tell the king my request.

Haman left the party a happy and proud man. Oh the honor he was being accorded! But standing at the king's gate was Mordechai – who still refused to bow to Haman – and Haman was enraged. When he arrived home, his wife and wise advisors counseled him to erect a gallows, and then to go to the king and request permission to hang Mordechai. Haman excitedly went ahead and put up the gallows.

Sleep eluded the king that night, so he asked his servants to read for him from the Royal Chronicles. They complied with the king's orders. They read from the Chronicles how Mordechai saved the king's life when two of his chamberlains hatched a plot to kill him.

"Was he rewarded for this fine act?" Ahasuerus asked. "No he was not," the servants responded.

At that moment Haman entered the king's courtyard. His purpose? To ask the king's permission to hang Mordechai! Before Haman could utter a word, Ahasuerus addressed him: "My Haman, in your estimation, what shall be done to a person whom the king wishes to honor?"

Haman, who was certain that the king wished to honor him, responded: "Bring royal garment and a royal horse. And let one of the king's nobles dress the man and lead him on the horse through the city streets, proclaiming before him, 'So is done for the man whom the king wishes to honor!'"

"Great idea," Ahasuerus responded. "Now go get the garments and the horse and do so for Mordechai the Jew!"

Haman had no choice but to comply. On the next day he went and honored Mordechai as the king had ordered, and then immediately rushed to join the king and Esther for...

"What is your request?" a curious King Ahasuerus asked Esther at the feast.

"If I have found favor in your eyes, O King," Esther pleaded, "and if it pleases the king, let my life be granted me by my plea, and the life of my people by my request. For my people and I have been sold to be annihilated, killed and destroyed!" Esther then identified Haman as the evil person who wished to perpetrate this atrocity.

The king was greatly angered. When he was then informed that Haman had built a gallows for Mordechai, he ordered that Haman be hanged on that very gallows.

On that day, Haman's estate was given to Esther, and Mordechai was appointed Prime Minister in Haman's stead.

But Esther was far from satisfied. Haman was dead, but his evil decree was still in effect. According to Persian law, once a king issues a decree it can not be rescinded. But the king gave Mordechai and Esther permission, and they promptly wrote up a decree that countermanded Haman's edict. The decree granted the Jews permission to defend themselves against their enemies. And by this time, considering that all knew that the queen and Prime Minister were both Jewish, no one would prevent the Jews from doing just that!

And the Jews in Shushan were oh so happy. Celebrations abounded!

On the 13th of Adar that year, the Jews throughout the Persian Empire mobilized and killed the enemies who had wanted to kill them. In Shushan, among the dead were Haman's ten sons.

Esther asked the king's permission for the Jews in Shushan to have one more day to destroy their enemy—and the king acceded to her wish. On that day, the 14th of Adar, the Jews worldwide celebrated, and the Jews of Shushan killed more of their enemies, and also hung Haman's sons. The Jews of Shushan then rested and celebrated on the 15th of Adar.

Mordechai and Esther established a holiday to commemorate these amazing events. Jews worldwide celebrate on the 14th of Adar, while residents of walled cities – like Shushan – celebrate on the 15th of Adar. This holiday, called "Purim," is the most joyous holiday on the Jewish calendar.
All these events happened in Ancient Persia, today's Iran. And like ancient Persia there is a Haman ready to kill the Jews. He is Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a man who threatens to wipe out Israel and the Jewish people world wide. But like every despot that has tried to destroy the Jewish people, he will fall by the wayside.

On Adar 13, during the biblical story of Purim, the 10 sons of Haman were hanged (Esther 9:7). This would find eerie parallel over 2,000 years later when 10 top Nazi officials were hanged at the Nuremberg Trials. Incredibly, the Hebrew year of the hangings at Nuremberg, 5707, is encoded in the Book of Esther: In the listing of Haman's 10 sons, three Hebrew letters -- taf, shin and zayin, representing the year 5707 -- are written unusually small. (This anomaly appears in every authentic Megillah scroll, written that way for over 2,000 years.)


The Maccabeats - Purim Song




In honor of Purim, jokes practical and not are played on each other. Gifts of food and wine to friends and family are given. Gifts to charity to help the poor and destitute are to be given. (Normally through a third party.)

Tonight starts the Holiday of Purim. Enjoy the day. Enjoy the jokes.




Happy Purim To All!!!!

Caliphate on the March in India

The Caliphate is marching forward, leaving Hindus in its wake, an easier target today than Americans. The Indian Mujahideen" is suspected in two bombings in Hyderabad, one outside of a bus station and one outside of a movie theater, each attached to bicycles. Sixteen are dead, 70 injured. In a letter reported today, several days after the two Hyderabad bombings, Lashkar-e-Taiba is claiming responsibility, and are believed to be a front for the Indian Mujahideen. As you'll read below, Hyderabad executed a Muslim militant convicted of a 2001 attack on India's parliament. After 3,000 died in the U.S. in 2001, we haven't executed a single terrorist through our Department of Justice - but perhaps we would have had Capitol Hill been attacked, or the Obama DOJ. Echoes of August 2007 when 42 died in two separate bomb blasts in Hyderabad.

India has been under a heightened state of alert over the hanging of Mohammed Afzal Guru, a Kashmiri militant killed nearly two weeks ago. He was executed for his involvement in a 2001 attack on India's parliament that killed 14 people, including five gunmen. Since the execution, near-daily protests have rocked Indian-ruled Kashmir, where many people believe Guru did not receive a fair trial. Anger in a region where anti-India sentiment runs deep was further fuelled by the secrecy with which the execution was carried out. Source: The Guardian
August 2007 in Hyderabad, two bombs exploded 5 minutes apart, one at an amusement park and one at a restaurant. Forty-two died, 54 injured.Two unexploded bombs were found the same day, 19 unexploded bombs found the day after. A young Hyderabad man was injured in the 2007 attacks as well as this week's bombings:
Hyderabad: Abdul Wasey Marzey, 23, is at the Yashoda hospital in Hyderabad, being treated for rib and leg injuries. He was injured in the blasts that ripped through the city's congested Dilsukhnagar area last evening. This is not the first time that Mr Marzey has been injured in a terror strike. In 2007, when he was 18, he was hurt in the leg in the blast at Hyderabad's Mecca masjid, which killed 17 people. Source NDTV
Pam Geller, Atlas Shrugs:
It is not a bomb blast in Hyderabad. It is pure Jihad. Muslims are exhorted by Islam to keep fighting till the rule of Allah is established in India. Muslims have already taken in 1947 one third of India from Hindus by force. Now they are planning to take two third of India from Hindus. Hindus made a blunder that they did not send all the Muslims to Pakistan or Bangladesh. Now Muslims will not allow Hindus to live in peace till they enslave them again... 
Two bomb blasts in Hyderabad today in which 13 people are dead and 70 injured are a part of the supremacist pan-Islamic movement which is guided by Quranic concepts of war to dominate entire world and establish Islamic Caliphate. They use multi-pronged methods to achieve their aim. Some of them indulge in terrorist activities. Others support them financially and politically. Some act as their front organizations. Some of them use selfish and mean Hindu leaders endowed with myopic vision like Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Praad Yadav, Mumta Banerjee and others to advance the cause of Islam. 
The dangerous variety among them are the Muslims who pretend to be secular but tacitly side with their co-religionists. In order to hoodwink naïve Hindus, they, once in a while write articles and issue statements in national newspapers against Islamic fundamentalists to give the impression that they are neutral. But in fact they are playing Al Taquia, the Islamic doctrine which mandates Muslims to use subterfuge and chicanery to lie and cheat infidels (Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Christians, Jews, etc). In reality, they are wolves in sheep’sclothing. Be aware of them.
Terresa Monroe Hamilton at Noisy Room is also writing about this "Islamic Coup," "Peace be upon Him," and all that."

Begum Bazaar in Hyderabad, now threatened, is the largest market in the city.

JudicialWatch: Cultural Sensitivity Training Happening Throughout Govt - Even in Military

This is one of Bill O'Reilly's better Talking Points memos. Listen as he first interviews Alexis McGill Johnson, Executive Director of the American Values Institute about the USDA's 'cultural sensitivity training.' She thinks it is "very forward" for the U.S. Government to be telling government workers that the Pilgrims were illegal aliens, but admits Betances is "a little hokey," as if that's the issue. What he is, is overtly anti-American and you and I paid him for turning USDA employees into anti-American sheeple. Johnson says this diversity awareness is NOT mandatory. Tom Fitton, President of JudicialWatch says these cultural sensitivity training get-togethers ARE mandatory and they are happening throughout the U.S. Government, including many times at the Department of Defense (Betances "has made over $2.8 million for programs like this from the Department of Defense) and in our Military. Fitton says the USDA has "plenty" of tapes they haven't yet turned over to JudicialWatch. He appears in the video below at 5:44 min-in. 
“I want you to say: ‘If we work for a federal agency.’ Say that. [Audience repeats] ‘We have discriminated in the past.’ [Audience repeats] Say: ‘Every federal agency,’ [Audience repeats] ‘has discriminated against African Americans,’ [Audience repeats] ‘Hispanics,’ [Audience repeats] ‘Native American Indians,’ [Audience repeats] ‘and other groups’ [Audience repeats],” Betances coaches. “See, if you work for a federal agency, it doesn’t matter if it’s DOD, Commerce, Labor, Education, Housing, every agency has discriminated, because every agency reflects the values of the generation in charge,” he adds. Source: Daily Caller
Bill O'Reilly with JudicialWatch President Tom Fitton - Cultural Sensitivity Training (video)

Friday, February 22, 2013

Immigration Loopholes to Pay Attention To

In 2007 as the Kennedy-McCain Immigration Shamnesty bill from the Senate was being rammed through the Senate (and failed), Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) published Twenty Loopholes in the legislation. Today, we haven't a clue what the Senate is planning. We have some details of what Obama plans if the Senate doesn't act, but no real details. As routine, Obama provided his plan not to Congress for discussion, but to USA Today, saying if the Senate fails to act, he will. Here is what we know about Obama's plan, and below are the 20 dishonorable loopholes revealed by Senator Sessions in 2007. The 20 dishonorables can be used as a measuring device against any details we might get from the Gang of 8. Obama's plan was leaked anonymously as the leaker didn't have the authority to leak. Mmmm hmmmm. The bullet marks below are mine: Senator Jeff Sessions on today's Gang of 8 plan:

“Unfortunately, the leaked plan is little different in its substance from the Gang of Eight plan,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., who has emerged as a leader of the Senate opposition to current comprehensive proposals. “Crucially, both plans confer legal status and work authorization on day one in exchange for promises of future enforcement on which the administration will never deliver.”
The Gang of 8 consists of 4 Republicans and 4 Democrats: Senators Rubio (R-FL), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), John McCain (R-AZ), Sindsey Graham (R-SC), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Chuck Schumer (D-NJ), Michael Bennet (D-CO)

USA Today - leaked Obama proposal:
● A draft of a White House immigration proposal...would allow illegal immigrants to become legal permanent residents within eight years. ● ...would provide for more security funding and require business owners to check the immigration status of new hires within four years. In addition, the nation's 11 million illegal immigrants could apply for a newly created "Lawful Prospective Immigrant" visa, under the draft bill being written by the White House. ● If approved, they could then apply for the same provisional legal status for their spouse or children living outside the country, according to the draft... 
...mirrors many provisions of the bipartisan 2007 bill that was spearheaded by the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and ultimately failed... ● ...people would need to pass a criminal background check, submit biometric information and pay fees to qualify for the new visa. If approved, they would be allowed to legally reside in the U.S. for four years, work and leave the country for short periods of time. After the four years, they could then reapply for an extension. ● Illegal immigrants would be disqualified from the program if they were convicted of a crime that led to a prison term of at least one year, three or more different crimes that resulted in a total of 90 days in jail, or if they committed any offense abroad that "if committed in the United States would render the alien inadmissible or removable from the United States." 
● People currently in federal custody or facing deportation proceedings also could be allowed to apply for the Lawful Prospective Immigrant visa. Application forms and instructions would be provided in "the most common languages spoken by persons in the United States," but the application and all supporting evidence submitted to the federal government would have to be in English. 
● ...be given a new identification card to show as proof of their legal status in the country. 
● ...immigrants could then apply for legal permanent residence, commonly known as a green card, within eight years if they learn English and "the history and government of the United States" and pay back taxes. That would then clear the path for them to apply for U.S. citizenship. 
● To combat fraud, the draft proposes a new Social Security card be developed that is "fraud-resistant, tamper-resistant and wear-resistant." The Social Security Administration would be required to issue the new cards within two years. 
● ...calls for an unspecified increase in the Border Patrol, allows the Department of Homeland Security to expand technological improvements along the border and adds 140 new immigration judges to process the heavy flow of people who violate immigration laws. 
● ... orders U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to study whether a land-border crossing fee should be implemented to help offset border security costs. The draft also proposes raising many inspection fees that border-crossers already pay. 
● ...proposes a new plan to allow Homeland Security to "accept donations" from citizens, businesses and local and state governments to improve ports of entry and security features along the border. And it would require CBP to begin collecting statistics on deaths along the border and report them quarterly. 
● ...expands the E-Verify program that checks the immigration status of people seeking new jobs. Businesses with more than 1,000 employees must begin using the system within two years, businesses with more than 250 employees within three years and all businesses within four years. 
● Homeland Security, working with the U.S. departments of Labor and Agriculture, the attorney general and other agencies, would engage in a $40 million-a-year program to educate business owners and workers about the program. 
● Homeland Security also would be required to submit a report within 18 months showing how the worker verification system is working, and specifically explain how it is affecting the nation's agriculture industry, which relies heavily on illegal immigrant workers. 
● ...draft obtained by USA TODAY does not include sections that would alter the nation's legal immigration system to adjust the future flow of legal immigrants, which is expected to be a critical component of any immigration overhaul.
The 20 Dishonorable Loopholes in 2007 Kennedy-McCain Legislation, via Senator Jeff Sessions...The 20 Loopholes

* Loophole 1 – Legal Status Before Enforcement: Amnesty benefits do not wait for the “enforcement trigger.” After filing an application and waiting 24 hours, illegal aliens will receive full “probationary benefits,” complete with the ability to legally live and work in the U.S., travel outside of the U.S. and return, and their own social security card. Astonishingly, if the trigger is never met and amnesty applications are therefore never “approved,” the probationary benefits granted to the illegal alien population never expire, and the new social security cards issued to the illegal alien population are not revoked. [See pp. 1, 290-291, and 315].

* Loophole 2 – U.S. VISIT Exit Not In Trigger: The “enforcement trigger,” required to be met before the new temporary worker program begins, does not require that the exit portion of U.S. VISIT system – the biometric border check-in/check-out system first required by Congress in 1996 that is already well past its already postponed 2005 implementation due date – to be in place before new worker or amnesty programs begin. Without the U.S. VISIT exit portion, the U.S. has no method to ensure that workers (or their visiting families) do not overstay their visas. Our current illegal population contains 4 to 5.5 million visa overstays, therefore, we know that the U.S. VISIT exit component is key to a successful new temporary worker program. [See pp. 1-2].

* Loophole 3 – Trigger Requires No More Agents, Beds, or Fencing Than Current Law: The “enforcement trigger” does not require the Department of Homeland Security to have detention space sufficient to end “catch and release” at the border and in the interior. Even after the adoption of amendment 1172, the trigger merely requires the addition of 4,000 detention beds, bringing DHS to a 31,500 bed capacity. This is far short of the 43,000 beds required under current law to be in place by the end of 2007, or the additional 20,000 beds required later in the bill. Additionally, the bill establishes a “catch, pay, and release” program. This policy will benefit illegal aliens from countries other than Mexico that are caught at the border, then can post a $5,000 bond, be released and never show up for deportation hearings. Annual failure to appear rates for 2005 and 2006, caused in part by lack of detention space, doubled the 2004 rate (106,000 – 110,000 compared with 54,000). Claims that the bill “expands fencing” are inaccurate. The bill only requires 370 miles of fencing to be completed, while current law already mandates that more than 700 miles be constructed [See pp. 1-2, & 10-11, and EOIR’s FY2006 Statistical Yearbook, p. H2, and The Secure Fence Act of 2004].

* Loophole 4 -- Three Additional Years Worth of Illegal Aliens Granted Status, Treated Preferentially To Legal Filers: Aliens who broke into the country illegally a mere 5 months ago, are treated better than foreign nationals who legally applied to come to the U.S. more than two years ago. Aliens who can prove they were illegally in the U.S. on January 1, 2007, are immediately eligible to apply from inside the U.S. for amnesty benefits, while foreign nationals that filed applications to come to the U.S. after May 1, 2005 must start the application process over again from their home countries. Last year’s bill required illegal aliens to have been here before January 7, 2004 to qualify for permanent legal status. [See pp. 263, 282, and 306].

* Loophole 5 – Completion of Background Checks Not Required For Probationary Legal Status: Legal status must be granted to illegal aliens 24 hours after they file an application, even if the aliens have not yet “passed all appropriate background checks.” (Last year’s bill gave DHS 90 days to check an alien’s background before any status was granted). No legal status should be given to any illegal alien until all appropriate background checks are complete. [See pp. 290].

* Loophole 6 – Some Child Molesters Are Still Eligible: Some aggravated felons – those who have sexually abused a minor – are eligible for amnesty. A child molester who committed the crime before the bill is enacted is not barred from getting amnesty if their conviction document omitted the age of the victim. The bill corrects this loophole for future child molesters, but does not close the loophole for current or past convictions. [See p. 47: 30-33, and p. 48: 1-2]

* Loophole 7 – Terrorism Connections Allowed, Good Moral Character Not Required: Illegal aliens with terrorism connections are not barred from getting amnesty. An illegal alien seeking most immigration benefits must show “good moral character.” Last year’s bill specifically barred aliens with terrorism connections from having “good moral character” and being eligible for amnesty. This year’s bill does neither. Additionally, bill drafters ignored the Administration’s request that changes be made to the asylum, cancellation of removal, and withholding of removal statutes in order to prevent aliens with terrorist connections from receiving relief. [Compare §204 in S. 2611 from the 109th Congress with missing §204 on p. 48 of S.A. 1150, and see missing subsection (5) on p. 287 of S.A. 1150].

* Loophole 8 – Gang Members Are Eligible: Instead of ensuring that members of violent gangs such as MS 13 are deported after coming out of the shadows to apply for amnesty, the bill will allow violent gang members to get amnesty as long as they “renounce” their gang membership on their application. [See p. 289: 34-36].

* Loophole 9 – Absconders Are Eligible: Aliens who have already had their day in court – those subject to final orders of removal, voluntary departure orders, or reinstatement of their final orders of removal – are eligible for amnesty under the bill. The same is true for aliens who have made a false claim to citizenship or engaged in document fraud. More than 636,000 alien fugitives could be covered by this loophole. [See p. 285:19-22 which waives the following inadmissibility grounds: failure to attend a removal proceeding; final orders of removal for alien smuggling; aliens unlawfully present after previous immigration violations or deportation orders; and aliens previously removed. This appears to conflict with language on p. 283:40-41. When a direct conflict appears in a statute, the statue is interpreted by the courts to the benefit of the alien.].

* Loophole 10 – Learning English Not Required For A Decade: Illegal aliens are not required to demonstrate any proficiency in English for more than a decade after they are granted amnesty. Learning English is not required for an illegal alien to receive probationary benefits, the first 4-year Z visa, or the second 4-year Z visa. The first Z visa renewal (the second 4-year Z visa) requires only that the alien demonstrate an “attempt” to learn English by being “on a waiting list for English classes.” Passing a basic English test is required only for a second Z visa renewal (the third 4-year Z visa), and even then the alien only has to pass the test “prior to the expiration of the second extension of Z status” (12 years down the road). [See pp. 295-296].

* Loophole 11 – Earned Income Tax Credit Will Cost Taxpayers Billions In Just 10 Years: Current illegal aliens and new guest workers will be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit, a refundable tax credit designed to encourage American citizens and legal permanent residents to work. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that this loophole will cost the U.S. taxpayer up to $20 billion dollars in just the first 10 years after the bill’s enactment. To be consistent with the intent of the 1996 welfare reforms – which limited new immigrants from receiving public benefits until they had been legal permanent residents for five years – the bill should withhold EITC eligibility from amnestied aliens until they become legal permanent residents. Closing this loophole will save the taxpayers billions of dollars. [See p. 293 after S.A. 1190 was adopted, p. 307, p. 315, §606. All that is required for EITC eligibility is a social security number and resident alien status. Nothing in the bill’s tax provisions limit EITC eligibility. The issuance of social security numbers to aliens as soon as they apply for amnesty will ensure they are able to qualify for the EITC.]

* Loophole 12 – Affidavits From Friends Accepted As Evidence: Records from day-labor centers, labor unions, and “sworn declarations” from any non-relative (acquaintances, friends, coworkers, etc) are to be accepted as evidence that the illegal alien has satisfied the bill’s amnesty requirements. This low burden of proof will invite fraud and more illegal immigration – even aliens who are not yet in the U.S. will likely meet this burden of proof. DHS will not have the resources to examine whether the claims contained in the “sworn declarations” of the alien’s friends (that the alien was here prior to January 1, 2007 and is currently employed) are actually valid. [See p. 293: 13-16].

* Loophole 13 – Taxpayer Funded Legal Counsel and Arbitration: Free legal counsel and the fees and expenses of arbitrators will be provided to aliens that have been working illegally in agriculture. The U.S. taxpayer will fund the attorneys that help these individuals fill out their amnesty applications. Additionally, if these individuals have a dispute with their employer over whether they were fired for “just cause,” DHS will “pay the fee and expenses of the arbitrator.” [See p. 339:37-41, and p. 332: 37-38.]

* Loophole 14 – In-State Tuition and Student Loans: In-state tuition and other higher education benefits, such as Stafford Loans, will be made available to current illegal aliens that are granted initial “probationary” status, even if the same in-state tuition rates are not offered to all U.S. citizens. This would normally violate current law (8 U.S.C. §1623) which mandates that educational institutions give citizens the same postsecondary education benefits they offer to illegal aliens. [See p. 321: 8-31].

* Loophole 15 – Inadequacy of the Merit System: The “merit system,” designed to shift the U.S. green card distribution system to attract higher skilled workers that benefit the national interest, is only a shell of what it should have been. Though the merit system begins immediately, it will not increase the percentage of high skilled immigrants coming to the United States until 2016, 8 years after enactment. Of the 247,000 green cards dedicated to the merit based system each year for the first 5 years, 100,000 green cards will be reserved for low-skilled guest workers (10,000) and for clearing the current employment based green card backlog (90,000). From 2013 to 2015, the number of merit based green cards drops to 140,000, and of that number, 100,000 green cards are still reserved each year for low-skilled guest workers (10,000) and for clearing the current employment based green card backlog (90,000). Even after 2015, when the merit system really begins (in 2016) by having 380,000 green cards annually, 10,00 green cards will be reserved specifically for low skilled workers, and points will be given for many characteristics that are not considered “high-skilled.” For example, 16 points will be given for aliens in “high demand occupations” which includes janitors, maids, food preparation workers, and groundskeepers. [See p.260: 25 – p. 261: 20, p. 262, and The Department of Labor’s list of “occupations with the largest job growth” available at www.bls.gov/emp/emptab3.htm].

* Loophole 16 – Visas For Individuals That Plan To Overstay: The new “parent” visa contained in the bill which allows parents of citizens, and the spouses and children of new temporary workers, to visit a worker in the United States is not only a misnomer, but also an invitation for high rates of visa overstays. This new visa specifically allows the spouse and children of new temporary workers who intend to abandon their residence in a foreign country, to qualify to come to the U.S. to “visit.” The visa requires only a $1,000 bond, which will be forfeited when, not if, family members of new temporary workers decide to overstay their 30 day visit. Workers should travel to their home countries to visit their families, not the other way around. [See p. 277:1 – 33, and p. 276: 38-43].

* Loophole 17 – Chain Migration Tippled Before Being Eliminated: Though the bill will eventually eliminate chain migration (relatives other than spouses and children of citizens and legal permanent residents), it will not have full effect until 2016. Until then, chain migration into the U.S. will actually triple, from approximately 138,000 chain migrants a year (equal to 14% of the 1 million green cards the U.S. currently distributes on an annual basis) to approximately 440,000 chain migrants a year (equal to 45% of the 1 million green cards the U.S. currently distributes on an annual basis). [See pp. 260:13, p. 270: 29 – pp. 271: 17]

* Loophole 18 – Back Taxes Not Required: Last year’s bill required illegal aliens to prove they had paid three of their last five years of taxes to get amnesty. This year, payment of back taxes is not required for amnesty. The bill requires taxes to be paid at the time of application for a green card, but at that time, only proof of payment of Federal taxes (not state and local) is required for the years the alien worked on a Z visa, not the years the alien has already worked illegally in the United States. Though Senator McCain’s S.A. 1190, adopted by voice vote, claimed to “require undocumented immigrants receiving legal status to pay owed back taxes,” the amendment actually only required proof of payment of taxes for “any year during the period of employment required by subparagraph (D)(i).” Since the bill does not contain a subparagraph (D)(i), nor require any past years of employment as a prerequisite for amnesty, the amendment essentially only requires proof of payment of taxes for future work in the U.S., not payment of “back taxes.” [See p. 307, and p. 293 as altered by S.A. 1190, amendment p. 2: 19-20.]

* Loophole 19 – Social Security Credits Allowed For Some Illegal Work Histories: Aliens who came to the U.S. on legal visas, but overstayed their visas and have been working in the U.S. for years, as well as illegal aliens who apply for Z visa status but do not qualify, will be able to collect social security credits for the years they worked illegally. Under the bill, if an alien was ever issued a social security account number – all work-authorized aliens who originally came on legal visas receive these – the alien will receive Social Security credits for any “quarters of coverage” the alien worked after receiving their social security account number. Because the bill requires social security account numbers to be issued “promptly” to illegal aliens as soon as they are granted “any probationary benefits based upon application [for Z status]” (these benefits are granted 24 hours after the application is filed), an illegal alien who is denied Z visa status but continues to work illegally in the U.S. will accumulate Social Security credits. [See pp. 316:8 – 16, and pp. 315: 32-39]

* Loophole 20 – Criminal Fines Not Proportional To Conduct: The criminal fines an illegal alien is required to pay to receive amnesty are less than the bill’s criminal fines for paperwork violations committed by U.S. citizens, and can be paid by installment. Under the bill, an illegal alien must pay a $1,000 criminal fine to apply for a Z visa, and a $4,000 fine to apply for a green card. Eighty percent of those fines can be paid on an installment plan. Under the bill’s confidentiality provisions, someone who improperly handles or uses information on an alien’s amnesty application can be fined $10,000. Administration officials suggest that the bill’s “criminal fines are proportionate to the criminal conduct.” Why, then, is the fine for illegally entering, using false documents to work, and live one-tenth the fine for a paperwork violation committed by a government official? [See p. 287: 34, p. 317: 9, p. 315:6-8, & remarks made by Secretary Gutierrez on Your World with Neil Cavuto, 4:00 May 31, 2007] End 20 Loopholes It's useless to try to make a comparison between 2013 and 2007 without more detail, but we can see that some gang members, and other lawbreakers will be allowed to stay. File it away. If we get a look at legislation before it's voted on (doubtful) we'll have something to compare.


End 20 Loopholes
It's useless to try to make a comparison between 2013 and 2007 without more detail, but we can see that some gang members, and other lawbreakers will be allowed to stay. File it away. If we get a look at legislation before it's voted on (doubtful) we'll have something to compare.

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Hungarian Univ List of Jewish Students: US Sponsors Budapest Gay Pride Parade - Where's the Parade for Jewish Students?

When I began this article, the number of outrages just piled on. Before getting to the anti-Semitism story, here's a question: If the U.S. can sponsor the Gay Pride Day parade in Budapest, because U.S. Ambassador Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis wants to (she always did when she lived in San Francisco, after all), while she acknowledges the Budapest parade is "more a feeling of protest than celebration," where is the U.S. sponsored parade against anti-Semitism and young university students finding their names on a list of Jewish students (don't miss below how the "great seal" of the U.S. is now used by Gay Pride organizers). To the original story: The student council of Hungary's largest university, Eötvös Loránd (ELTE), has set up a database of Jewish Freshman students, and has been doing so for at least 6 years. This is all about Palestine and the willingness of at least one of Hungary's parliamentarians to support anti-Semitism and to support Nazi-like paramilitary units.

   
U.S. Ambassador Elini Tsakopoulos Kounalakis makes decision for U.S. to sponsor unpopular Gay Pride Parade in Budapest. U.S. Embassy staff join her.

I am rereading Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. If you haven't read it, you should. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was not Jewish. He was a German Christian living through World War I as a boy, and put to death by Hitler as a young man in 1945 at only 39 years of age. As I read the story below at Pam Geller's, it gave me chills as so many signs just like these were ignored by good people in Dietriech Bonhoeffer's day.
The files were compiled annually on freshmen by the student council of the Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), according to a list obtained by Hungarian television network ATV and seen by BosNewsLife. Referring to Jewish origins, the 2009 list shows the letters I of the Hungarian word Igen ("Yes") and N for Nem ("No"). The practice resembled prewar Hungary, which introduced Europe's first antisemitic legislation as early as 1920.
In Hungary, 600,000 Jews were put to death during World War II. That was then.
This is today:
Recently, a prominent legislator of Jobbik suggested to draw up lists of Jews "who pose a "national security risk". Jobbik's Marton Gyöngyösi said the lists were needed following the brief conflict in Gaza and should include members of parliament. HUNGARIAN JEWISH ANCESTRY  "I know how many people with Hungarian ancestry live in Israel, and how many Israeli Jews live in Hungary," he told parliament in November. "I think such a conflict makes it timely to tally up people of Jewish ancestry who live here, especially in the Hungarian Parliament and the Hungarian government, who, indeed, pose a national security risk to Hungary." Jobbik has also supported several paramilitary groups, wearing uniforms and waving flags resembling the Nazi-era.
From the original source, BosNewsLife:
It comes amid growing pressure on Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's center right government to tackle antisemitism, which also included recent threats against Jewish people and attacks against Holocaust memorials and Jewish cemeteries... Yet, the United States Embassy in Budapest recently warned that, "The recurrence of anti-Semitic and other racist statements in the Hungarian parliament demonstrates the need to further empower voices of tolerance and peaceful coexistence in Hungary."
The U.S. Ambassador to Hungary is Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis. She is, of course, a huge Obama supporter, and fundraiser. She was offered four countries to choose from and her publisher husband Markos Kounalakis chose Budapest,  Hungary. In an interview with SFGate the Ambassador said:
The United States is a young country with an old democracy. We have a lot we can continue to bring to the table. ... It's all about what's happening here in Central Europe, where the U.S. still has a lot of work to do, and can make a difference."
After the Ambassador's gay pride remarks and U.S. sponsorship, the Gay Pride organization uses the "great seal of the United States on their literature.
In Budapest, however, the parade has "more a feeling of protest than a celebration," and local police asked ambassadors not to march. "They said there was enough of a security challenge that our being there only complicates it. ... I had to respect that it was the case." But because "promoting tolerance is the policy" of the government abroad, and it's her role to interpret how to implement that, she decided that the United States should sponsor the parade. As a result, the organizers have used the great seal of the United States on literature for the past two years.
Is promoting anti-Semitism in governments we support with our foreign aid a policy of the U.S.? If so, where's the U.S. sponsored parade supporting Jewish students? With all due respect, it's far past time to "bring it to the table." This is about Palestine. I think the table will stay bare, no pro-Jewish parade on the horizon.

by Maggie @ Maggie's Notebook

New NRA Video Stand and Fight

Bill Clinton: "A lot of these people...all they've got is their hunting and their fishing. They've been listening to this stuff for so long they believe it all."

Barack Obama: "It's not surprising then, they get bitter. They cling to guns and religion"

Watch the powerful NRA video below.

They don't rule us 
They don't give us rights 
We grant them power 
They don't make us safe 
We pay to protect them 
They don't make us free 
We're free already and as long as we have the Second Amendment, 
We always will be 
We are American  
Our politicians are only as powerful as We the People allow them to be

NRA: Stand and Fight - We are America (video)

by Maggie @ Maggie's Notebook

John McCain Calls Constituent Untruthful and "Wrong" - Remember McCain's 2007 Quote About Muslims and US Illegals?

John McCain had a testy Townhall last night in Phoenix and things exploded as they often do when illegal aliens are the topic in Arizona. The real message of residents is getting lost in what is being referred to as a "joke," about McCain being "in bed" with Ted Kennedy when they tried to pass the 2007 Shamnesty bill. Don't be distract with that distraction - the real issue was "build the dang fence." Residents made their points well. Keith Smith, who made the Kennedy remark apparently tread too heavily on McCain and McCain called him a liar and told him he was "wrong."

MCCAIN: Again sir, you're not telling these people the truth. They wash our...they mow our lawns, they care for our babies...they clean...they wash our...that's what those people do sir, so you're wrong again.
Someone, and I think it's Keith Smith says:
cut off their welfare and they'll go back
Mediate is also quoting McCain saying in the 75 minute Townhall:
“There are 11 million people living here illegally,” he said. “We are not going to get enough buses to deport them.”
and...
Some audience members shouted out their disapproval. One man yelled that only guns would discourage illegal immigration. Another man complained that illegal immigrants should never be able to become citizens or vote. A third man said illegal immigrants were illiterate invaders who wanted free government benefits. McCain urged compassion. “We are a Judeo-Christian nation,” he said.
In an Iowa townhall as a presidential candidate in 2007, when McCain was trying to ram through his Shamnesty bill co-sponsored with Ted Kennedy, the Arizona Senator, with a hot-headed attitude, compared the unfortunate illegals in this country to the poor Muslims in France "relegated to ghettos" who had "risen up and burned cars in France...." McCain's point was that the French Muslims had been mistreated, rose up against intolerance and McCain finished with "I don't want that in the suburbs of America." In Iowa, it got worse. He told the crowd in France the situation was so bad the French police could not enter some area in some cities - as though American police, and American citizens, are on the same wavelength as the French. Outrageous. Here's the LaMar, Iowa exchange, June 2, 2007:
He asked McCain why the U.S. couldn’t execute large-scale deportations, as he had heard they did in France and other countries.
McCain fired back:
“In case you hadn’t noticed, the thousands of people who have been relegated to ghettos have risen up and burned cars in France,” McCain said. “They’ve got huge problems in France. They have tremendous problems. The police can’t even go into certain areas in the suburbs of Paris. I don’t want that in the suburbs of America.” Source: USBorderPatrol.com
I don't understand how McCain continues to be re-elected when he is so often opposed on the most important issues to Arizonans - illegal aliens.
John McCain on Current Amnesty Legislation (video)

by Maggie @ Maggie's Notebook