Daily Archives: September 9, 2013
Australia Says: “Let Me Up – I’ve Had Enough!”

Down under, they call Conservatives Liberals, but that’s not terribly surprising given that water drains the opposite direction as well.
Saturday’s national election in Australia demonstrates that it’s always possible to energize citizens to reject statism in favor of smaller and more responsive government. Reuters reports:
Australia’s conservative leader Tony Abbott swept into office in national elections on Saturday as voters punished the outgoing Labor government for six years of turbulent rule and for failing to maximize the benefits of a now fading mining boom.
What precipitated this national rejection of Australia’s equivalent of our Democrat party, should be instructive to both wings of our national crime syndicate. What was it? It was a weary repudiation of ‘nanny state’ government. Australian’s collectively just said to the politicians, “Let Me up I’ve had enough!” And enough they have had. What was it that Aussie’s have had enough of? Paul Wallbank, a conservative blogger from down under, points out:
“Much of this nannyism is being driven by the media who drum up hysterical reports demanding ministers do something. In turn the government’s panicky PR obsessed apparatchiks respond with pointless and unnecessary laws and rules. Often duplicating those that already exist.”
Mr. Wallbank goes on to outline a litany of heavy handed government parentalism, in which a mania had caught fire at all levels of government – to box citizens and small businesses in with rules, laws and regulations. Apparently, it was as if a dark national angel imbued with the obsessive spirit of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, had held sway over the population. To compound matters, the government amassed a significant sum of debt and strangled new business growth with suffocating taxes, at the same time the economy was plunging into recession.
The new Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, campaigned on a platform of rolling back such universal vestiges of statism, including Carbon and Mining taxes, unregulated immigration and runaway spending. A cautionary note is in order, given the fact that in Australia, there is an internal battle within the Liberal National Party in much the same respect as there is between the Tea Party and Centrist Republicans in America. A rough comparison to Mitt Romney – or perhaps more aptly, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron, might be a helpful description of new P.M. Abbott. Abbott’s win was decisive but not overwhelming.
While Australia deals with an economic collapse precipitated by the inevitable contraction of the overheated mining trade with China, America is still reeling from the collapse of the asset bubbles that led to recession in 2008. Another commonality is the lingering expectation from a sizable percentage of the population of continued government entitlements.
Everyone has high expectations about what government can do for them, so it’s not surprising to find that Australia is in no way uniquely challenged by the demands from the lower social strata for more public welfare, while at the same time, relentlessly being pressed by big business for corporate welfare. Yet another common aspect of both of our economies emerges from Paul Wallbank’s analysis:
“More importantly, those regulations tend to favour incumbents making it harder for entrepreneurs and new entrants into markets making the economy even less flexible. The burden of regulation is also unfairly dropped upon the smaller business who don’t have the resources to comply with or challenge unfair rules. The Howard government was very good at this with slapping small business with the responsibilities of raising the GST and complying with draconian laws like Workchoices.
At this stage it’s worth noting that the Australian nanny state isn’t a Labor party creation, it’s come from both sides of politics and often because poorly drafted laws require mountains of regulations to overcome the legislative flaws.”
There it is – the traits of seemingly ideologically opposed political parties, are most often only superficial. The only path to progress is to understand the true nature of who these parties actually exist to serve and to press for measures to separate the political class from the ruling class.
There was a lot of exalted rhetoric, as one would expect from the leader of an incoming administration – along with many promises. But while Abbott declared the Australian government ‘under new management’, it is another of his themes from the acceptance speech that will trail him and his government like an Albatross, the promise of a government “judged by it’s deeds, not by it’s words”.
Does Australia’s national election give us any tea leaves (pardon the pun), with which to divine our next cycle of national elections? A lot of it depends on how successful conservatives are at demonstrating to our own low information voters, the unsustainability of nanny government.
Backfire! Washington, D.C. denial of 2-million bikers no-stop drive thru permit on 9-11-13 means all day stop and go ride.
By: Nelson Abdullah
Conscience of a Conservative
The same idiot politicians who thought creating “Gun Free Zones” would make our schools safe assumed they could stop a few million patriotic bikers from driving non-stop through Washington, D.C. by denying them a permit. As usual, the idea BACKFIRED. The bikers, from some far-away states are already on the road and they all still intend to be there but now, obeying every law, every stop light, every pedestrian, their two hour ride will last all day long.
The real patriots in America are the one’s willing to put down their personal business to join in a mutual effort to pay honor and tribute to our fallen heroes. To defend our rights to liberty and freedom and to confront those who choose to demean those heroes. Today those patriots are the millions of bikers in America who express their pride in their country and in their individualism every day they ride. Today they are on their way to Washington, D.C. to set the record straight. The numbers are not yet in but it may well be that 2-million bikers from across America are about to converge on our nation’s capitol on the 12th anniversary of the Islamic terrorist attack to confront a Muslim group who planned to organize a march to celebrate the day other Muslims hijacked four airliners and killed thousands of Americans. The sound of millions of bikers roaring through Washington on Wednesday, September 11, 2013 will be a sound to remember.
Riders across the country are tweeting that their kickstands are up and their motors are revving. Others from more distant states are advising their riders are already on the way. Screen caps from Kickstands Up on Twitchy. http://twitchy.com/2013/09/09/kickstands-up-2-million-bikers-participants-head-to-d-c-for-911-photos/
Riders were also asked to post their own pictures to http://ureport.foxnews.com/assignment?groupId=40041&type=1,2


Report: DC denies permit for 9/11 bikers; Planners move ahead anyway
Posted at 2:45 pm on September 8, 2013 by Twitchy Staff
In response to the planned “Million Muslim March” in Washington, D.C., on 9/11, bikers announced their own rival 2 Million Biker Ride. This weekend, news surfaced on blogs and Twitter that D.C. had denied the bikers an event permit.

Washington DC has DENIED our permit for a no-stop ride through Washington DC. We find this regretful for the residents and businesses of that great city, and humbly offer our apologies. What could have been a one or two hour ride through will now likely be an all day event. We will be obeying all laws. We will be stopping at all stoplights, stop signs, and yielding to all pedestrians.
RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES OF WASHINGTON DC: On behalf of the National “2 Million Bikers to DC” Team, please accept our sincere apologies. We did the right thing and went through the proper channels to secure a no-stop permit to ride through your great city. We wanted to ride an established route, which would have taken us past the Viet Nam Memorial to the Lincoln Memorial, across the bridge into Virginia, and that’s it! We would have been completely out of Washington DC, and your city would have been back to normal.
The National Team fully expected our permit to be rejected, and have already drafted a Plan-B.
Participants are moving forward.
Sons of Liberty Riders reports that bikers from California and Texas were on the road Thursday, September 5th.
Permit Denied to 2 Million Bikers to DC on 9.11.13
- Posted by Eilana Caswell – Nat. Secretary on September 6, 2013 at 5:22pm in Sample Title
- View Discussions
from their facebook page:
FINAL DETAILS FROM THE NATIONAL “2 MILLION BIKERS TO DC” TEAM:Washington DC has DENIED our permit for a no-stop ride through Washington DC. We find this regretful for the residents and businesses of that great city, and humbly offer our apologies. What could have been a one or two hour ride through will now likely be an all day event. We will be obeying all laws. We will be stopping at all stoplights, stop signs, and yielding to all pedestrians.
RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES OF WASHINGTON DC: On behalf of the National “2 Million Bikers to DC” Team, please accept our sincere apologies. We did the right thing and went through the proper channels to secure a no-stop permit to ride through your great city. We wanted to ride an established route, which would have taken us past the Viet Nam Memorial to the Lincoln Memorial, across the bridge into Virginia, and that’s it! We would have been completely out of Washington DC, and your city would have been back to normal.
The National Team fully expected our permit to be rejected, and have already drafted a Plan-B. That Plan-B will be posted a little later today once the final details have been bolted down.
We know that California and Texas riders had kicks stands up yesterday. Many other western states have kickstand up today and throughout the weekend.
RIDERS: You are true, blue Patriots and we salute you for your participation in this event! Many of you have taken time off of work to be here. You have freely given of your time, your funds, and your bikes to ride shoulder to shoulder in this event. You have have left your families and your jobs to be here. Those of us who ride come from different clubs, chapters, and organizations. Some of us ride with family and friends and some ride alone. But on September 11th, we ride as one!! We ride to pay tribute and offer respect to those that lost their lives on that day 12 years ago, and to salute our troops engaged in the War on Terror. Riders!…we are the best of the best in America!! Our love for these people and this country is staggering, and we will make a display of Patriotism and solidarity America won’t soon forget!!
Riders!…we lift you up to the Lord and pray that His hand and divine protection will ride with you all.
Rubber side down, brothers! See you Wednesday morning!!
The ultra-liberal news media will likely ignore this visit to Washington, D.C. as they often do with other patriotic demonstrations. So one enterprising rider suggested that the loudest bikes spend some time riding around the television stations and drowning out their news programs. Sounds to me like a great idea, pun intended.
God speed, riders. Have a safe and satisfying trip. But don’t be too disappointed if you don’t encounter many Muslims when you get there. When news of your plans came out most of them probably cancelled theirs. And every one of us who ride with you in spirit but who do it at home in their armchairs are with you. God Bless these patriots.
UPDATE: The Facebook page for the 2-million bikers ride has gone from 47,825 on Saturday to 55,965 today.
Adjusting Sites
How sweet it was: Two days of Rosh Hashana and then Shabbat. Prayers, singing, time with family and friends, eating… No computer, no TV, no newspaper, no news…
Now, I return to the harshness of the world slowly, beginning with positive messages.
Victor Davis Hansen wrote recently about “The Israeli Spring” (emphasis added):
“…Yet these tragic Arab revolutions swirling around Israel are paradoxically aiding it, both strategically and politically — well beyond the erosion of conventional Arab military strength.
“In terms of realpolitik, anti-Israeli authoritarians are fighting to the death against anti-Israeli insurgents and terrorists. Each is doing more damage to the other than Israel ever could…
“The old nexus of radical Islamic terror of the last three decades is unraveling. With a wink and a nod, Arab dictatorships routinely subsidized Islamic terrorists to divert popular anger away from their own failures to the West or Israel. In the deal, terrorists got money and sanctuary. The Arab Street blamed others for their own government-inflicted miseries. And thieving authoritarians posed as Islam’s popular champions.
“But now, terrorists have turned on their dictator sponsors. And even the most ardent Middle East conspiracy theorists are having troubling blaming the United States and Israel.
“Secretary of State John Kerry is still beating last century’s dead horse of a ‘comprehensive Middle East peace.’ But does Kerry’s calcified diplomacy really assume that a peace agreement involving Israel would stop the ethnic cleansing of Egypt’s Coptic Christians? Does Israel have anything to do with Assad’s alleged gassing of his own people?
“There are other losers as well. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan wanted to turn a once-secular Turkish democracy into a neo-Ottoman Islamist sultanate, with grand dreams of eastern Mediterranean hegemony…
“Yet if Erdogan has charmed President Obama, he has alienated almost everyone in the Middle East…
“The oil-rich sheikdoms of the Persian Gulf once funded terrorists on the West Bank, but they are now fueling the secular military in Egypt. In Syria they are searching to find some third alternative other than Assad’s Alawite regime and its al-Qaeda enemies. For the moment, oddly, the Middle East foreign policy of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the other oil monarchies dovetails with Israel’s…
“Israel no doubt prefers that the Arab world liberalize and embrace constitutional government. Yet the current bloodletting lends credence to Israel’s ancient complaints that it never had a constitutional or lawful partner in peace negotiations…
“In comparison to the ruined economies of the Arab Spring — tourism shattered, exports nonexistent, and billions of dollars in infrastructure lost through unending violence — Israel is an atoll of prosperity and stability. Factor in its recent huge gas and oil finds in the eastern Mediterranean, and it may soon become another Kuwait or Qatar, but with a real economy beyond its booming petroleum exports.
“Israel had nothing to do with either the Arab Spring or its failure. The irony is that surviving embarrassed Arab regimes now share the same concerns of the Israelis.
“In short, the more violent and chaotic the Middle East becomes, the more secure and exceptional Israel appears.”
http://www.jewishworldreview.com/0813/hanson082913.php3#.Uh80CtJOPVo

Credit: films42
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Reflecting similar themes, Dr. Efraim Inbar has done a study for BESA Center, “Time is on Israel’s side” — Middle East Security and Policy Studies No. 103. Its 25 pages can be viewed here:
http://besacenter.org/mideast-security-and-policy-studies/time-israels-side/
The Executive Summary of Dr. Inbar’s work (emphasis added):
“Israel is a small country, and the national security of small countries is more precarious than that of large countries. Indeed, since Israel’s establishment it has dealt with existential threats from its neighbors. This study argues that – despite the need for constant political prudence – not only is Israel a big success story, time is definitely on Israel’s side. A review of the variables that influence Israel’s ability to successfully withstand protracted conflict leaves room for optimism. A survey of the military balance between Israel and her enemies, internal factors that influence national power – such as the economy, social cohesiveness, and the political system – and Israel’s standing in the international community indicate long term processes that favor Israel over its regional foes. After sixty-five years of existence, the State of Israel can be confident in its ability to overcome the challenges that stand in its path.”
A powerful retort to the naysayers. And reason to direct words of gratitude Heavenward.

Credit: cjnews
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Right here, in a spirit of positive thinking, I want to turn to news of the two boys with serious medical conditions about whom I’ve written so many times, and for whom some of you are praying.
First, Zakkai, who has the benign tumor that behaves like a malignant tumor, in that it keeps coming back on his spine. Not yet three, he has had multiple surgeries to remove tumor tissue, and has a damaged spine as a result.

Now he is about to undergo treatment again to remove the latest spot identified on his spine. But this time it will be via cryoablation (freezing the tumor via a rod inserted in his back) instead of invasive surgery.
Consultations with the doctors tomorrow. The procedure will be done on Tuesday and he will be released on Wednesday. Zakkai’s father writes:
Zakkai’s full Hebrew name is Refael Zakkai Avraham ben Yakira Avigael. In whichever language and manner you pray, please pray extra hard, especially on Tuesday, for an uneventful & successful procedure that kills the tumor and for Zakkai to heal and recover quickly and painlessly. And, most importantly, please pray that this will be the last medical intervention of any sort that Zakkai will ever need.
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And then, Noam ben Inbar, the young boy who does have a rare cancer in his chest cavity — inoperable because of location. He has been on an experimental drug — the first child in Israel to be on this drug. His family sent out an update recently for the first time in a long time.
Thank you very very much for your tefillot [prayers]. Day to day Noam is doing great. He takes his medications and rarely has had medical emergencies.
He had a CT done a couple weeks ago and his cancer is the same which means the drugs are continuing to keep it from growing. He will be starting fifth grade on Tuesday!
He really does still need the tefillot. We firmly believe that the tefillot are a huge part of the miracle that he is with us today. Thank you to each and every one of you who continue to think of Noam Shalom ben Inbar and keep him in your prayers.
(I regret I have no picture of Noam.)
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What is being referred to as “the moment of truth” will soon be upon us, as Congress convenes tomorrow, debates the issue of hitting Syria, and then votes, possibly as early as Tuesday — but maybe not for another week or more.
Reports about and assessments of the possibilities are as confused and varied as ever, and I have no intention of tracking all of the various thoughts being advanced.
What I am seeing is that, on the one hand, CNN has run footage that seems to make it quite clear that gas was used, while others are saying that evidence is not yet definitive and action should wait until a UN assessment is complete. It does get wearisome. Especially as there are reports that the UK actually brought a couple of victims of the attack in Syria under review, and that tests on them confirm that they were hit with gas.
At the same time, it has been revealed that, according to the Daily Mail, as reported in the Times of Israel, “between 2004 and 2010, the British government issued licenses to sell sodium fluoride, an essential component of sarin gas, to Assad.”
http://www.timesofisrael.com/uk-tests-on-victims-said-to-confirm-sarin-gas-use-in-syria/
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All of the delays are maddening, not only because they indicate a lack of American resolve, but also because they provide Assad with additional time to protect his military assets. I have already written about hundreds, if not thousands, of human shields he has had moved to military sites. But now there is another wrinkle:
A group known as the ‘International Human Shields’ movement, founded by American and British “activists,” is working to bring international civilian volunteers to Syria to serve as additional human shields to block US military efforts.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/171654
They are demented: furious at America for plans to hit Syria, they, ironically, at the same time depend upon the essential morality of the American military with regard to avoiding hits on civilians.
When all of these stumbling-blocks have been put in place, it remains to be seen how much will be left for American forces to hit and whether the operation will have any meaningful effect.
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Secretary of State Kerry was in Vilnius, Lithuania, for a G20 summit last week; once the meeting had ended, he spent a day lobbying ministers of 28 EU nations with regard to an attack on Syria. Moving on to Paris today, he declared:
“There are a number of countries, in the double digits, who are prepared to take military action.
“We have more countries prepared to take military action than we actually could use in the kind of military action being contemplated.”
Well, sort of… It seems much more a matter of EU countries saying that they agree that the evidence points to Assad having used gas than their rushing to send their ships out, armed with missiles. Several nations want to wait and see what the UN says.
http://news.sky.com/story/1138356/syria-john-kerry-claims-boost-in-us-support
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The USS San Antonio was in port in Haifa for a couple of days at the end of the week, and some 1,000 sailors and marines went touring. The ship has now taken off for destination unknown. Unofficial comments by the military visitors led to a reasonable assumption that they may have been headed for Syria, but this was not official or explicit.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4426990,00.html

Credit: Ynet
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Before moving to other subjects, I want to share portions of two commentaries on the issue of the strike on Syria.
Zalman Shoval, former Israeli ambassador to the US, writes (emphasis added):
“Israel does not have a firm position, here or there, on the matter, aside from its essential and immediate need to neutralize Syria’s chemical weapons and missile stockpiles.
“But Jerusalem cannot be indifferent to the prospect of Obama losing the vote in Congress, after which elected officials in countries around the globe will conclude that there will be no repercussions for following the lead of their American counterparts. The main consequence could be a nuclear Iran, because the vote in Congress will also influence Tehran’s response to American attempts, whether through diplomatic measures or threats of military action, to put an end to its nuclear ambitions.”
http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=5623
The Israeli government, on instructions from Netanyahu, has been decidedly quiet with regard to any position on the US strike. But where there have been statements by those in the government, they have indicated support for the American strike.
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Taking a broader — and in my opinion very important — view, Clifford May, president of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, says (emphasis added):
“It’s not just President Barack Obama’s ‘red line’ that Syrian dictator Bashar Assad has crossed. Civilized people have long set limits on armed conflicts. Using chemical weapons has been a war crime since 1925. Targeting innocent women and children has been taboo since at least the Middle Ages. Are we now giving up these efforts and saying, what the hell, boys will be boys, barbarians will be barbarians, and it’s none of our business anyway?
“…The Brits now join U.N. Security Council members Russia and China — leading members of the so-called ‘international community’ — in favoring cost-free state terrorism. That’s tantamount to licensing it. The rulers of Iran and North Korea are among those taking notice.
“Obama, by contrast, says he wants to hold Assad accountable. ‘We cannot turn a blind eye to what happened in Damascus,’ he said on Saturday. He has asked Congress to authorize him to take military action — something he did not request prior to intervening in Libya.
“Should Congress refuse, it will confirm an ominous trend. At the conclusion of World War II, the West said ‘never again’ to genocide. Yet genocides have been carried out in Cambodia, Rwanda (for which President Bill Clinton later apologized on behalf of the ‘international community’), and Darfur.
“There also was Saddam Hussein’s genocidal Al Anfal campaign against Iraq’s Kurds, and the gassing of thousands of Kurdish civilians in Halabja…
“The Islamic Republic of Iran is the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism…
“Iran’s rulers threaten Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. They incite genocide against Israelis in clear violation of the U.N.’s Genocide Convention. That they also are developing a nuclear weapons capability in violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty is indisputable…
“Deciding precisely what to do is hard work. A few ideas to build on: 1) At the end of the exercise, Assad should conclude that using chemical weapons against civilians was a mistake, one he would not repeat. Other dictators should see it similarly. 2) To achieve that, serious consideration should be given to destroying Assad’s air power. Planes, helicopters and major airfields are difficult to hide. So are port facilities. 3) Kerry correctly said that Iranian forces in Syria are ‘contributing significantly to this violence.’ Hitting those forces would send a clear message.”
http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=5625
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Moving to other subjects, I did want to mention the terrorist plot foiled last week: Two Israeli Arabs, recruited by Hamas in Gaza, were going to transport a bomb to the open air Mamila Mall, immediately outside the Old City of Jerusalem — in order to detonate it on Rosh Hashana, when people would have been strolling about. The two were employed as cleaners at the Mamila Mall, and were planning to use this fact for ease of access.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4424886,00.html
Those who operate at the Mall were exceedingly upset that the Mall, which is frequented by Arabs and prides itself on being a place where Jews and Arabs can mingle comfortably, was the planned location for an attack. The fact that the two were employees of the Mall simply exacerbated the outrage.
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A report from the Shin Bet (Israeli security forces) indicates that incidents of terror were up in August over July.
“Commander Liran Hajbi of the Giv’ati Brigade’s Tzabar battalion told the Israel Defense Forces’ Website, ‘We pay attention to the fact that there is an escalation in terrorist infrastructure and the battalion carries out arrests and raids every night to reduce the [terrorists’] ability to carry out the attacks.'”
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/275717
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There was difficulty on the Temple Mount on Friday, the second day of Rosh Hashana, when hundreds of Palestinian Arabs began to throw stones. (Whether those stones were directed at Jewish worshippers at the Kotel below, or at people on the Mount is not clear.)
Fifteen rioters were arrested and the crowd was dispersed by police.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/171653
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And so we can hardly say all is sweetness and light here.
To further complicate matters, there are the stirrings of the Tamarod protest movement that fueled street protests in Cairo coming to the Palestinian Arab world. Most significantly, there are voices of protest now against a corrupt Hamas, by an amalgam of groups of young people. The fact that they are anti-Hamas does not make them pro-West by a long shot.
Fatah has visions of returning to Gaza, something that is thought to be very unlikely. And, in fact, there are Tamarod stirrings against a corrupt PA as well.
See here for information on some of this:
http://www.investigativeproject.org/4149/tamarod-targets-hamas-rule-in-gaza
This will be tracked in additional detail over time. Great time for a “peace process,” is it not?
Progressive Republicans Apply Their War Paint

Other Questions:
- Does this color go with my burka?
- Do these missiles make me look fat?
- Is yellow a fashion statement?
- Is radioactive hair in these days?
- Do Iran’s colors match my eyes?
Progressive Republican war paint… it’s all the rage in elitist circles these days!!
Forum: A Syria Roundup

Every week on Monday morning, the Council and our invited guests weigh in at the Watcher’s Forum with short takes on a major issue of the day. This week’s question is a bit different than usual, as it features a number of opinions and information on Syria from various sources:
Conrad Black: Not since the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, and before that the fall of France in 1940, has there been so swift an erosion of the world influence of a Great Power as we are witnessing with the United States.
The Soviet Union crumbled jurisdictionally: In 1990-1991, one country became the 16 formerly constituent republics of that country, and except perhaps for Belarus, none of them show much disposition to return to the Russian fold into which they had been gathered, almost always by brute force, over the previous 300 years.
The cataclysmic decline of France, of course, was the result of being overrun by Nazi Germany in 1940. And while it took until the return of de Gaulle in 1958 and the establishment of the Fifth Republic with durable governments and a serious currency, and the end of the Algerian War in 1962, and the addition of some other cubits to France’s stature, the largest step in its resurrection was accomplished by the Allied armies sweeping the Germans out of France in 1944.
What we are witnessing now in the United States, by contrast, is just the backwash of inept policy-making in Washington, and nothing that could not eventually be put right. But for this administration to redeem its credibility now would require a change of direction and method so radical it would be the national equivalent of the comeback of Lazarus: a miraculous revolution in the condition of an individual (President Obama), and a comparable metamorphosis (or a comprehensive replacement) of the astonishingly implausible claque around him.
The Washington Post Editors: An attack that weakened regime forces could, of course, help the jihadists gain ground — but only if the United States and its allies failed to simultaneously bolster the mainstream Free Syrian Army. That’s why it is essential that Mr. Obama couple any strikes with a stepped up train-and-equip program for vetted rebel units.
Long War Journal: “If we wanted to cut the supply lines it is easier for us to take the warehouses of the FSA. Anyhow we are buying weapons from the FSA. We bought 200 anti-aircraft missiles and Koncourse anti tank weapons. We have good relations with our brothers in the FSA. For us, the infidels are those who cooperate with the West to fight Islam.” – (al-Qaeda commander in Syria, as quoted.)
NBC News: Defense officials estimate that al Qaeda and related extremists groups now constitute “more than 50 percent” of the rebel force, which is made up of at least 70 different factions, “and it’s growing by the day,” according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Charles Lane, WAPO: Today, the question before Congress is ostensibly narrow: whether to give President Obama a green light to use military force against the Assad regime in Syria to enforce the international norm against using chemical weapons. […]
For all that, Congress should think long and hard before denying Obama the authority he seeks. This would be true even if Republicans occupied the moral high ground with respect to political polarization — which they do not. It would be true even if Americans were not justifiably war-weary — which they are. And it would be true even if Obama were not sounding such an uncertain trumpet.
Those Republicans, and Democrats, tempted to vote no need to consider the precedent they may be setting and the signal they would send not only to Syria, or Iran, or North Korea — but also to allies from Jordan to Japan.
Joshuapundit: The Obama Administration has announced that regime change isn’t the objective, so why exactly should we intervene on the rebel side? And make no mistake, if we go in, we’re putting U.S. blood and treasure on the line to help them defeat Assad. Let’s go there, since after all, this is an act of war. Cui bono, who benefits?
The two main Sunni insurgent factions with actual boots on the ground are Jamat al-Nusra, the Syrian National Council and the Syrian Free Army, or to label things more correctly, al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood. Even the Obama endorsed Syrian Opposition Coalition is Muslim Brotherhood dominated. So taking out Assad will result in the ethnic cleansing of Syria’s Alawites, Shi’ites and what’s left of the Christians, and will simply put Assad’s weapons in the hands of another Hamas-style reichlet. That’s exactly what happened in Libya and we’ve seen the results in Benghazi, Sinai, Algeria and Mali.
How is putting another Hamasistan in Syria armed with Assad’s weaponry beneficial to the U.S.?
Or Israel, for that matter? I mention that because one of the excuses Secretary of State John Kerry is cynically using to sell this is that we ‘have to act to protect Israel’… as if the Obama Administration has ever been all that concerned over Israel’s security, or if Israel has ever had problems dealing with Basher Assad and Syria when necessary on their own.
Another factor no one seems to be mentioning is Jordan, a U.S. client state right next door to Syria and a country where, due to tribal factors, the Muslim Brotherhood is extremely strong and King Abdullah is hanging on by his fingernails. Imagine a Muslim Brotherhood enclave right next door to Jordan armed with Assad’s weaponry. How long do you think King Abdullah would last? King Abdullah has obviously considered it, since he’s adamant that no attacks on Assad be launched from Jordan’s soil. Why haven’t we?
Nor does the humanitarian angle hold water. This president sat by and did nothing during the genocide in Darfur by Sudan, whose president Omar al-Bashir has actually been indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity. President Obama sat by and watched the aggression and ceasefire violations by Sudan against the new nation of South Sudan, and paid no attention to the ethnic cleansing of Syria’s Christians that was almost exclusively carried out by the Islamist insurgents. He did nothing. Why the urgency now?
President Obama has talked a lot about the Middle East, but there’s one question he’s never been asked, and it’s about time someone demanded a straight answer from him. Why is he constantly championing the Muslim Brotherhood? We’ve lost one strategic asset in Egypt, strained our relations severely with the Saudis, gotten involved in one war on the Brotherhood’s behalf and are now being urged to get into a second one. What does the president find so beneficial to America in backing these Nazis with a crescent instead of a swastika?
Diana West: As war on Syria is weighed, it is perverse to imagine that Americans must now die to legitimize presidential posturing in the White House pressroom. I refer, of course, to the president’s comments on Aug. 20, 2012, when he told the White House press corps regarding Syria that “a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized. That would change my calculus. That would change my equation.”
Going to war without an American interest at stake to uphold such a statement is a downright monarchical concept – “L’Etat, c’est moi,” (“I am the state”), as King Louis XIV is supposed to have said. Worse, it sounds like a news flash from a country ruled by a Dear Leader, whose very word is law.
Presidential remarks do not constitute a declaration of war. Nor should ill-considered presidential remarks send a nation to war. Obama’s credibility may be at stake, but that’s by no means an American interest, and therefore not a cause to ask Americans to die for.
Meanwhile, Obama’s calculations have changed again. This week in Sweden, the president said, “I didn’t set a red line. The world set a red line.”
Could Obama possibly have forgotten what he said a year ago? Of course not. It may be more polite to describe such talk as “walking away from his earlier comments,” but I think it’s more accurate to say the president told a whopper – a lie. So much for Obama’s “credibility” right there. He went on: “The international community’s credibility is on the line. And America and Congress’ credibility is on the line because we give lip service to the notion that these international norms are important.”
Presidential flailing isn’t a casus belli, either.
Jeffrey Goldberg: So what exactly is the most telegraphed missile strike in history meant to achieve? Such a strike — now in the works at the White House — clearly isn’t meant to speed regime change in Syria, where the government killed more than 1,300 people using chemical weapons last week, according to opposition groups. There’s no indication that regime change is President Barack Obama’s goal, and a limited attack probably couldn’t accomplish such a thing anyway.
John Kass, Chicago Tribune: The problem is, Obama’s war plans keep changing, and they’re rather ambiguous. Axelrod says the dog has caught the car, but there’s no telling when the car will take off again, twisting and turning and leaving that poor dog dizzy.
Obama’s plan for Syria is almost like Obamacare: We’re not supposed to know what we’re getting until after he gets the votes.
In his news conference on Friday at the G-20 meeting in St. Petersburg, Obama was asked repeatedly if he would go to war even if Congress voted no. Rather than answer, he dodged, although in avoidance his meaning was plain. By rhetorically voting “present,” he was saying “yes.”
If this is true, then what is the political exercise about? Mere theater? Or is it a Chicago Way political trick to spread the blame, avoid direct ownership and make Congress the fall guys before the next election?
Jonah Goldberg: …from the vantage point of foreign brutes, bullies, and buffoons, it’s understandable that America’s methods could be confused for stupidity. This is why I love the old expression, “America can choke on a gnat, but swallow a tiger whole.”
So I am trying very hard to hold onto this perspective as I watch the president of the United States behave in a way you don’t have to be a pan-Arab autocrat to think is incredibly stupid.
Where to begin? Perhaps with Obama’s initial refusal to support the moderate rebels seeking to overthrow Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, a puppet of Iran and bagman for Hezbollah. Or we might start with Obama’s refusal to support the Green Movement in Iran, which sought to overthrow the Iranian regime, which would have been a triumph for both our principles and our national interests.
These were odd choices, particularly given his decision to help depose Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, an indisputably evil man, but also a dictator who posed no threat, who abided by our demands to relinquish WMDs, and whose domestic death toll was a tiny fraction of Assad’s.{…}
Obama doesn’t believe he needs authorization from Congress to strike Syria, he just wants it. He’s like a kid desperate for a prom date, but too vain to admit it. In Libya, Obama had the U.N. and NATO on each arm, so he didn’t bother with asking the dog on Capitol Hill for a date. But now, faced with the prospect of going it alone, he’s in effect telling Congress, “Hey, it’s not like I need your company, but you’d be crazy not to go to war with me.” {…}
Meanwhile, according to numerous accounts, Assad is moving military assets into civilian areas and civilians into military areas, even as the Obama administration insists it makes no difference militarily to wait for Congress to debate. That’s not just stupid; it’s an outright lie that will be fact-checked with blood.
I understand the attraction the buddy system has for a man who, as a state legislator, perfected the art of voting “present” on hard questions. But it’s hard to see this as anything other than rank political cowardice.
The buck stopped with Truman. For Obama, the buck is kryptonite.
Stephen Hayes: But non-interventionism or neo-isolationism or whatever it’s called these days doesn’t explain the Republicans on Syria.
The vast majority of congressional Republicans are not so much opposed to intervention as a matter of principle as they are opposed to this intervention, at this time, under this president. Their argument is simple: President Obama has failed to lead on Syria for more than two years and we don’t trust him to do so now.
Certainly there are some congressional Republicans who oppose the president because they believe that what happens in Syria is none of our business. But it’s a small minority of the Republicans in Congress. And Senator Marco Rubio, who sits on both the Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees, is not one of them.
“What’s happening in Syria is a consequence of disengagement,” he says. “The reason why we don’t have better options in Syria is because we haven’t been more engaged. If two years ago we had made the decision we’re going to find some rebel groups in Syria who are moderate, we’re going to do everything we can to make sure they’re the most capable, effective and organized fighting force on the ground, I’d think that a military strike right now would be a much better option than it is. Because now we don’t know who the beneficiaries of a military strike are going to be but it’s very possible that it could be radical al Qaeda elements who now control significant portions of that country.”
Rubio gave a speech at the Brookings Institution in April 2012 laying out the case for the continued projection of American power and values.
Michael McCaul, a Republican from Texas who serves as chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, shares those concerns. “The president has brought us to this situation by failing to show any leadership, failing to have any strategy for Syria and for the Middle East,” he says. “The president is talking about driving by and lobbing some bombs. It doesn’t work that way. There is no clearly defined mission, so I don’t see this achieving anything.” The president’s case, he adds, “makes no sense.”
Clifford May: It’s not just President Obama’s “red line” that Syrian dictator Bashar Assad has crossed. Civilized people have long set limits on armed conflicts. Using chemical weapons — that’s been a war crime since 1925. Targeting innocent women and children — that’s been taboo since at least the Middle Ages. Are we now giving up these efforts, saying what the hell, boys will be boys, barbarians will be barbarians, and it’s none of our business anyway?
That’s not an unreasonable interpretation of what the British Parliament said last week. A majority voted not to support — not even in principle — a military strike against the Assad regime as condign punishment for its use of chemical weapons, gassing residential neighborhoods, and murdering babies, girls, boys, old men, and women by the hundreds. The Brits now join U.N. Security Council members Russia and China — leading members of the so-called international community — in favoring cost-free state terrorism. That’s tantamount to licensing it. The rulers of Iran and North Korea are among those taking notice.
President Obama, by contrast, says he wants to hold Assad accountable. “We cannot turn a blind eye to what happened in Damascus,” he said Saturday. He has asked Congress to authorize him to take military action — something he did not request prior to intervening in Libya.
Should Congress refuse, it will confirm an ominous trend. At the conclusion of World War II, the West said “never again” to genocide. Yet genocides have been carried out in Cambodia, Rwanda (over which President Clinton later apologized on behalf of the “international community”), and Darfur. {…}
In remarks last week, Secretary of State John Kerry did a creditable job of explaining the seriousness of Assad’s transgressions. “Some cite the risk of doing things,” he said. “We need to ask what is the risk of doing nothing.”
Deciding precisely what to do is hard work. A few ideas to build on: (1) At the end of the exercise, Assad should conclude that using chemical weapons against civilians was a mistake, one he would not repeat. Other dictators should see it similarly. (2) To achieve that, serious consideration should be given to destroying Assad’s air power. Planes, helicopters, and major airfields are difficult to hide. So are port facilities. (3) Kerry correctly said that Iranian forces in Syria are “contributing significantly to this violence.” Hitting those forces would send a clear message.
Well, there you have it.
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Trevor Loudon Presents “The Enemies Within…The U.S. Congress,” Sept. 10th in Gainesville, FL
The Gainesville Tea Party is Proud to Welcome Author, Political Researcher and Activist, Trevor Loudon.

What’s Loudon’s new book “The Enemies Within: Communists, Socialists and Progressives in the U.S. Congress” all about? JOIN US AND FIND OUT.
Trevor Loudon’s newly published “The Enemies Within: Communists, Socialists and Progressives in the U.S. Congress” is like no other book written on American politics. The book exposes, in layman’s terms, the comprehensive communist, socialist and extreme progressive infiltration of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate.
“The Enemies Within” profiles fourteen Senators and more than fifty Representatives and Their ties to the Communist Party USA, Democratic Socialists of America, Workers World Party and The Institute for Policy Studies, Council for a Livable World and other radical anti-American organizations.
Don’t miss this opportunity to get your signed copy of Trevor’s latest book!
Trevor has done the hard work to connect the dots of why the US Congress has moved further and further left over our lifetime and you won’t want to miss him.
We look forward to seeing you there!
The Gainesville Tea Party
7:00 pm
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Hilton University of FL Conf Center
1714 SW 34th St,
Gainesville FL 32607
Contact: Regina Thompson
SCHEDULING CHANGE: Trevor Loudon’s Book Tour Continues With The Highlands Tea Party in Sebring, FL
Monday, September 9: The Highlands Tea Party Welcomes Author, Political Researcher and Activist, Trevor Loudon to Sebring, FL.

What’s Loudon’s new book “The Enemies Within: Communists, Socialists and Progressives in the U.S. Congress” all about? JOIN US AND FIND OUT.
Trevor Loudon’s newly published “The Enemies Within: Communists, Socialists and Progressives in the U.S. Congress” is like no other book written on American politics. The book exposes, in layman’s terms, the comprehensive communist, socialist and extreme progressive infiltration of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate.
“The Enemies Within” profiles fourteen Senators and more than fifty Representatives and Their ties to he Communist Party USA, Democratic Socialists of America, Workers World Party and The Institute for Policy Studies, Council for a Livable World and other radical anti-American organizations.
Don’t miss this opportunity to get your signed copy of Trevor’s latest book!
Trevor has done the hard work to connect the dots of why the US Congress has moved further and further left over our lifetime and you won’t want to miss him.
We look forward to seeing you there!
The Highlands Tea Party
6:00–8:00 pm
Monday, Sept 9, 2013
Homers Smorgasbord
1000 Sebring Sq. Sebring, FL
Contact: Regina Thompson