03/23/14

Raul Grijalva (D-AZ 3) – KeyWiki Progressive/Marxist Profiles

By: Trevor Loudon
Editor: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton

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Election Facts for 2014:

• Party – Democrat
• State – Arizona
• Location – Arizona 3
• First Elected – 2002
• Candidates in 2014:
Raúl Grijalva – D
Gabriela Saucedo Mercer – R
Jaime Vasquez – R

Raul M. Grijalva is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing the 3rd District of Arizona. He is a Co-Chair on the Congressional Progressive Caucus, a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and an associate member of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

Background

Raul Grijalva’s father was a migrant worker from Mexico who entered the United States in 1945 through the Bracero Program and labored on southern Arizona ranches. Grijalva was born in Tucson, Arizona in 1948 and graduated from Sunnyside Magnet High School in 1967. He attended the University of Arizona and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology. At the time, he was inspired into activism by United Farmworkers leader Cesar Chavez – a man trained by the father of “community organizing,” Saul Alinsky.

Grijalva himself told the socialist journal, In These Times – “I’m a Saul Alinsky guy, you know, that’s where I learned this stuff… There’s gotta be some victories regardless of how small they are. Sometimes the victory with this group is going to be keeping the worst from happening.”

More than three decades later, in one of his first speeches as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Grijalva echoed the Communist Party USA (CPUSA) in calling for a national holiday to honor Cesar Chavez.

Grijalva was a young man at the peak of El Movimiento, the Chicano civil rights movement. He had been primed for activism by his experiences in public school. “I was actually made to feel I wanted to be an Anglo,” he told a Tucson newspaper in 1975. “I realized what I was doing and my embarrassment turned to anger.”

Grijalva wrote for the Movimiento newspaper Coraje! (the word means both “courage” and “anger”), whose logo was a clenched-fisted Chicano saying, “My race first” and the motto, “Better to die on your feet than live on your knees.” In 1969, the paper published a poem Grijalva wrote in outrage at a racist’s “clammy hand of hate.”

In 1970, Grijalva helped lead a confrontation with the Tucson City Council, demanding that a “people’s park” be carved out of a city-owned golf course in a largely Mexican-American neighborhood. After months of protests, some of which turned violent, the group prevailed and the city built a park and community center.

Grijalva became a leader in such radical groups as the Chicano Liberation Committee, which confronted the administration of the University of Arizona with demands for the establishment of a Mexican-American Studies program and the recruitment of Chicano students and faculty.

He was also active in MEChA, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, a pro-Cuban student group that called the Southwest “Aztlan,” the spiritual home of the Chicano people. The acronym, the Spanish word for “fuse,” was evocative of the group’s confrontational, nationalist ideology, which took its sharpest formulation in the group’s motto: “Por la raza todo, fuera de la raza nada” – “For the race, everything, outside the race, nothing.”

Grijalva was so militant that he alienated some members of Tucson’s Mexican-American community. After losing in his first bid for elective office, a 1972 run for a seat on the school board, he began to cultivate a less radical image. Grijalva “decided to dissociate himself from RUP” and adopted “a much more middle-of-the-road image and approach” that included outreach to non-Hispanics.

In 1974, Grijalva was elected to the Tucson Unified School District Board and served as a school board member until 1986. From 1975 to 1986, Grijalva was the Director of the El Pueblo Neighborhood Center and in 1987, he was Assistant Dean for Hispanic Student Affairs at the University of Arizona. Grijalva was a member of the Pima County Board of Supervisors from 1989 to 2002 and served as Chairman from 2000 to 2002.

While on the Board of Supervisors, Grijalva managed a $1 billion budget and “ensured that the county was at the forefront of issues such as domestic partner benefits, labor rights and transparent government. His leadership led to the creation of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan, an “innovative approach to species and habitat protection in concert with land-use planning in the community.”

Influence

Grijalva serves on the Committee on Natural Resources, which includes the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulations where he is a Ranking Member, the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs and the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources. He also serves on the Committee on Education and The Workforce, which includes the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education and the Subcommittee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. He is the the Vice-Chair on the House LGBT Equality Caucus. He is on several Task Forces/Coalitions including the Sustainable Energy & Environmental Coalition.

According to Raul Grijalva’s official Congressional Biography, accessed September 2011:

As Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), Raúl has championed affordable health care for every American and has pushed for job creation measures that focus on improving America’s infrastructure and economic base. He has announced his support in the 112th Congress for the Fairness in Taxation Act, which would create new tax brackets for millionaires and billionaires who currently enjoy generous loopholes that prevent them from contributing a proportionate amount to our economic recovery. He is a co-sponsor of the Fair Employment Act of 2011 to outlaw discrimination against the unemployed in hiring decisions, and wrote an op-ed in mid-March to explain his reasons.

In August 2008, the Obama Campaign announced the formation of its National Latino Advisory Council, highlighting the continued growth of support Senator Obama was receiving in the Latino community nationwide. Raul Grijalva was an important member of that Council.

In 2011, Raul Grijalva served on the Board of Directors of the Center for Progressive Leadership – a national civic training institute that “seeks to develop diverse leaders who can effectively advance progressive political and policy change.” The Center has trained over 6,000 leaders through intensive, leadership programs primarily in state offices in Arizona, Colorado, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Communist Connections

Raul Grijalva has a long history with the Arizona Communist Party USA.

Anti-NAFTA Article in Communist Paper

In 1993, Raul Grijalva, identified as a member of the County Board of Supervisors for Pima County, Arizona, wrote an anti-NAFTA article entitled: “North America needs ‘fair’ trade,” for the November 13th edition of the Communist Party USA’s People’s Weekly World.

Bohlke Connection

Raul Grijalva has worked in the past with Tucson CPUSA supporter Linda Bohlke, including during a campaign against a Tucson property manager.

In 1994, the communist-influenced Southern Arizona People’s Law Center listed one of J.C. Harry’s federally subsidized apartment complexes, Fry Apartments on S. Fifth Ave., as one of two complexes “in the worst overall state of repair with dangerous structural flaws that seriously threaten the health and safety of households who reside at these properties.”

“I think there’s a real problem with J.C. Harry in the sense that ultimately they’re responsible for the fact that the apartment has run into the ground over the last 20 years,” said Linda Bohlke, a community advocate with the Law Center, a “private, nonprofit group focusing on housing and economic rights.”

At the request of Pima County Supervisor Raul Grijalva, an item to extend the $25,000 contract of J.C. Harry & Associates, Inc. until next April was pulled from the Council’s agenda.

Griljalva wanted the company sanctioned under the county’s “Bad Boy Ordinance,” which essentially states that the county will not do business with companies accused of practices that harm others.

“I personally don’t think we should be doing business with them at all, and if it was solely up to me, we wouldn’t,” Grijalva said. “I think it’s important that we not do business with a company that has rundown apartments in the minority and poor areas while the ones in other areas of town are spotless. They aren’t dealing with all properties equally.”

In August, residents of the Fry Apartments planned a ‘victory’ party.

The property manager, J.C. Harry & Associates, resigned August 1st, after weathering two years of pressure.

Resident Joann Madrid, who was coincidentally involved in the CPUSA-dominated Tucson Tenants Union, said she hoped the new manager would invest in much-needed improvements.

Madrid and other residents, aided by the Southern Arizona People’s Law Center, had been demanding J.C. Harry clean up what they called slum conditions in the 48-unit complex. Linda Bohlke, who worked for the Law Center, was one of the main campaigners. By the time of the victory party, she had moved to assisting the Tucson Tenants Union.

Supervisor Raul Grijalva was among those who wanted to prevent the landlord from doing further work for the county.

“I felt they had a public responsibility on their part to provide safe living conditions. If they weren’t doing it for Fry residents, why should we let them manage property for the county?” Grijalva said.

A letter to the Tucson Citizen, October 15, 2002, on Raul Grijalva accused him of being aided by Tucson activist Linda Bohlke:

Grijalva is supported by AFSCME, the labor union for City of Tucson and Pima County employees. The principal spokeswoman for AFSCME is Linda Bohlke. Bohlke has supported Grijalva for a long time and collected nominating signatures for Grijalva in his congressional campaign. Bohlke identifies herself on her voter registration as a Communist.

Communists Paved the Way

Arizona Communist Party Chair Lorenzo Torrez was a “pioneer in the struggle for Mexican American political representation. According to fellow Party member Steve Valencia, “I always say: before Ed Pastor and Raul Grijalva, there was Lorenzo Torrez.”

Pastor and Grijalva are Arizona’s first two Mexican American members of the U.S. Congress. But Torrez ran for Congress before they ran and also boldly ran against Republican Senator Barry Goldwater.

“Lorenzo told us it is time for these majority Latino districts to be represented by a Mexican American,” said Valencia. “He wanted voters to see a Latino name on the ballot.”
When Pastor declared his candidacy, Torrez rallied the Tucson Communist Party club to join in the effort. Pastor’s victory in 1991 set the state for Grijalva’s election in 2002.”

“People Gain in Arizona Primaries”

The CPUSA paper People’s World, September 21, 2002 issue, carried an article on page 8: “People gain in Arizona primaries.” The article by local Party leader, Joe Bernick, dealt mainly with Raul Grijalva’s victory in the recent Democratic Party primary:

The tireless efforts of hundreds of grassroots volunteers dealt a blow to the corporate establishment here and their attempt to dominate Southern Arizona politics in the Sept. 10 primary election.

Long-time progressive Raul Grijalva routed seven other candidates to win the Democratic nomination for CD-7, one of Arizona’s two new Congressional seats.

Grijalva expects to become only the second Mexican American ever elected to Congress from Arizona, and the first from Southern Arizona. As a Pima County Supervisor and Tucson School Board member Grijalva consistently fought for working peoples’ interests.

The Grijalva campaign was a textbook example of how to conduct a peoples’ campaign, beginning with its name: “A whole lot of people for Grijalva.” Hundreds of people came out seven days a week, sometimes twice on Saturday, to wear out tons of shoe leather.

Starting in early summer, when temperatures routinely exceed 100 degrees, volunteers knocked on every door, conducted voter registration, signed people up to vote by mail and most importantly, they talked to people about the issues and Grijalva’s track record. Campaigners canvassed voters, often two or three times, at their homes.

Carloads of volunteers visited rural communities. Many more volunteered thousands of hours doing office time, phone work and preparing bulk mailings.

Communist Report on Grijalva Victory

At a meeting of the National Board of the CPUSA in South Chicago, on the last weekend of January 2003, an unnamed Arizona AFSCME activist stated: “Using street heat tactics, all of labor worked to back one candidate, Raul Grijalva, in Tucson… And we won!”

Thorpe on Grijalva Campaign

Tucson Communist Party supporter, Susan Thorpe, wrote an article covering the 2002 Grijalva campaign for the People’s World, November 8, 2003, page 5, entitled: “Arizona: Grassroots can beat big bucks.”

Nevertheless, here in Tucson, we are gearing up for local elections in 2003 and the presidential election ahead in 2004 by using the same tactics we did in 2002 to get Raul Grijalva elected to Congress…. Congressman Raul Grijalva is proving to be a wonderful voice for the people of Arizona. And our movement and those important connections made during his campaign are still alive in Tucson.

Arizona Together

Arizona made history on November 7, 2006, when its voters became the first in the nation to reject a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage – Proposition 107. Wrote Arizona Communist Party leader and Arizona Together activist, Joe Bernick:

Why Arizona? How come voters in more liberal states have voted for similar hateful laws while conservative Arizona voted no?

So how did we do it? The answer is: educating, organizing and mobilizing… Congressman Raul Grijalva appeared on radio ads calling Prop. 107 an attack on working families. The Grijalva campaign worked closely with Arizona Together, using its literature in their extensive door-to-door canvassing.

Grijalva’s Daughter Mixes with Communists

On Wednesday, September 15th, 2010, a reception in support of Sunnyside Unified School District School Board member and Communist Party affiliate, Eva Carrillo Dong, was held at Rigo’s Mexican Restaurant in Tucson.

Key attendees included Sunnyside board member Magdalena Barajas, the Hon. Dan Eckstrom, County Supervisor Richard Elias, Tucson City Council Member Richard Fimbres, TUSD board member and daughter of Raul Grijalva, Adelita Grijalva, Tucson City Council member Regina Romero, Joe Bernick, Janet L. Valencia and Steve Valencia. Bernick and both Valencias were all affiliated with the Arizona District Communist Party USA.

“Progressive” Connections

21st Century Democrats Support

Grijalva was endorsed by 21st Century Democrats in the 2002 election cycle – the PAC founded by Institute for Policy Studies and Democratic Socialists of America affiliates and run by DSA member Jim Scheibel for many years.

Take Back America Conferences

Raul Grijalva was on the list of 129 speakers at the 2003, Take Back America conference, which was organized by the Institute for Policy Studies and Democratic Socialists of America-dominated Campaign for America’s Future.

Grijalva was back in 2004 and addressed the newly named America’s Future Now! Conference in 2009.

IPS Awards Ceremony

Every year, the Institute for Policy Studies gives two awards – one domestic and one international – to what are described as “heroes of the progressive movement.”

In 2011, the International Award was presented by Raul Grijalva to Bethlehem, The Migrant’s Shelter (Mexico). The award ceremony was presented at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on October 12th, 2011.

Progressive Democrats of America

In 2009, Raul Grijalva served on the Advisory Board of the Democratic Socialists of America/Institute for Policy Studies-dominated Progressive Democrats of America.

Progressive Democrats of America Endorsement

In 2012, Raul Grijalva (AZ-3) was one of fourteen leftist Congressional and Senate candidates endorsed and supported by Progressive Democrats of America.

The Peoples’ Inauguration

Progressive Central: The People’s Inauguration was held Saturday, January 19, 2013, at the UDC David A. Clarke School of Law in Washington, D.C.

The event was sponsored by Progressive Democrats of America, The Nation, National Nurses United, Democrats.com and Busboys and Poets. The event was advertised and promoted by the IPS.
The 1:00 pm – 2:10 pm session: “Organizing the Progressive Movement Inside and Outside the Democratic Party,” was moderated by socialist, John Nichols and featured Rep. Raul Grijalva; Rep. Mark Pocan; Thom Hartmann, PDA National Board/Radio/TV Host and Author; and Lori Wallach, Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch.

Rep. Raul Grijalva, “Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus,” told the socialist journal, In These Times, at the event that he was worried his Party leadership might agree to a future budget deal that could include cuts to Social Security.

“I’m concerned. I’m concerned,” Grijalva said. “But none of that’s going to pass without Democrats, so I think for the Progressive Caucus and our 70-odd members, holding the line can be huge leverage in this discussion. I’m optimistic about the role we can play. This is where the outside-inside [strategy] is so critical, because the pressure from the outside, not just on progressive members of Congress, but on all members of Congress, is going to be critical to holding the line.”

Foreign Policy/National Security

Staffers’ 2010 Trip to Latin America

Rep. Grijalva sent Daniel Brito to Honduras and El Salvador for three days in May/June 2010. The trip was courtesy of a $4,107.39 grant from the Institute for Policy Studies-connected Center for Democracy in the Americas, to “assess the situation in Honduras and El Salvador and current U.S. policy implications in the countries.”

Council for a Livable World

The Council for a Livable World, the anti-military, pro-disarmament PAC, founded by reported Soviet agent, Leo Szilard, supported Grijalva in his 2010 Congressional election campaign.

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This research is part of KeyWiki.org’s ongoing efforts to expose Progressives throughout our political system. Funding for KeyWiki furthers our efforts to bring true transparency to American politics and hold our leaders responsible for their past actions. Donations can be made at Trevor Loudon’s site: New Zeal – http://www.trevorloudon.com/. More information on the Enemies Within can be found in Trevor Loudon’s latest book, “The Enemies Within: Communists, Socialists and Progressives in the U.S. Congress.” Trevor’s books can be purchased at http://www.pacificfreedomfoundation.com.


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03/23/14

Bad Scene on Several Fronts

Arlene from Israel

Motzei Shabbat (After Shabbat)

Where to start? Last Tuesday, four IDF soldiers on the Golan Heights were injured – one severely – by an explosion near the border. The IDF, convinced that Assad’s forces and not rebels were responsible, retaliated with several “strategic” hits on Syrian army sites – reportedly attacking the headquarters of the 68th and 90th Divisions of the Syrian army in Quneitra, as well as other locations.

Subsequently, Hezbollah (which operates in support of Assad’s army in Syria) took responsibility for the attack on the four soldiers, saying that it was “ready for war.” The attack, Hezbollah leadership is reported to have said, was in retaliation for Israel’s alleged attack last month designed to take out high-end ballistic missiles designated for Hezbollah.

http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Hezbollah-takes-responsibility-for-bombing-in-Golan-says-they-are-ready-for-war-346050

The expectation from our side is that their saber-rattling talk about being ready for war aside, Hezbollah, stretched thin, is not truly contemplating “war.” At this time, at any rate.

~~~~~~~~~~

On Thursday morning, there were media reports about “intense” Israeli activity over southern Lebanon. It was said that Israeli jets performed mock raids, and a drone was involved. Additionally, a huge Israeli air balloon carrying surveillance equipment was launched over Lebanon. (See URL above.)

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Last night, a joint force made up of the IDF, Shin Bet, and the Border Police’s elite Counter-Terrorism Unit entered Jenin to arrest much sought-after Hamas member Hamza Abu Aleija – the son of Jamal Abu Aleija, a head of Hamas’s military in Judea and Samaria (note: Judea and Samaria, not Gaza!) who is serving a life sentence in an Israeli prison for acts of terrorism.

Intelligence had revealed that Hamza Abu Aleija was about to begin a campaign of attacks on a community and on army positions in Judea and Samaria.

Abu Aleija’s campaign was being orchestrated by Hamas in Gaza. “Hamas members released in the Gilad Schalit prisoner release deal played a role in the terror plot, according to intelligence gathered by security forces.” (Emphasis added) The implications here could not be more obvious.

The sort of operation described here is routine – many people don’t realize that this is what guards Israel from major attacks by terrorists. In this instance, because Abu Aleija was on the verge of acting, it was considered “an immediate terror alert.”

Many times, a terror suspect is apprehended without incident. Although sometimes there is a furor, as local Palestinian Arab residents of the area attempt to protect the suspect.

On this occasion, “the suspect barricaded himself in his home and refused to surrender himself, the IDF said. After ignoring calls to end the stand off peacefully, the suspect, armed with an M-16, opened fire on security forces, injuring two soldiers lightly, and attempted to escape.
“Soldiers returned fire, killing the armed suspect.

“Soon afterwards, a violent disturbance broke out, in which armed Palestinian rioters fired on security forces, and hurled explosives, firebombs, and rocks.” The army considers this a most serious incident. Two SWAT team members were injured in the confrontation.

“Security forces returned fire, killing two rioters, and injuring six others. Three Palestinians were arrested during the disturbance.”

http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Police-special-forces-kill-Hamas-operative-in-Jenin-346146

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Following this incident, the army released a brief statement: “The IDF will continue to act to defend Israeli civilians.” This is exactly what should be said, and done.

Border Police Commander, Major General Amos Ya’akov, visited the two injured SWAT team members on Saturday night, giving them encouragement and congratulations.

“’You have manifested courage, professionalism and extraordinary determination This operation joins many others which have prevented terrorist organizations from getting what they want – and have proven that the long arm of Israeli security will catch up with them. The entire people of Israel owe their lives to the unit and its fighters, who risk their lives every day.’” (Emphasis added)

And Amen to this comment. Everyone should understand what these brave fighters do, day in and day out.

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See how the PLO news agency WAFA, reporting from Ramallah, described the above situation:

”Spokesperson, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, condemned Saturday the ongoing Israeli escalation of targeting Palestinians…

”…Abu Rudeineh said that Israel is pursuing a systematic policy of murder against the Palestinian people that is meant to cause the destruction of everything.

“Abu Rudeineh held the Israeli government fully responsible for this escalation and called upon the US Administration to ‘act quickly to prevent the collapse of everything.’”

http://imra.org.il/story.php3?id=63493

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Speaking of Ramallah, Abbas returned there on Thursday, after his visit to the White House, behaving as if he had secured great things. He pledged to the crowd that greeted him that he would not surrender their rights, i.e., he would not compromise on anything no matter what Obama said. “Be assured, we will be victorious.”

The JPost on Friday cited an Israeli government source as saying that Abbas’s behavior was “reminiscent of the return from Camp David in 2000, when it appeared that the Palestinians were celebrating the failure of the peace talks. The second intifada broke out shortly thereafter.”

http://www.jpost.com/Diplomacy-and-Politics/Abbas-returns-to-Ramallah-promising-Palestinians-they-will-be-victorious-346093

At a Fatah emergency meeting today, Abbas told those assembled that nothing less than a fully sovereign state with east Jerusalem as its capital is acceptable.

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According to news reports, one of the things Abbas asked of Obama during their meeting is that he intervene with Israel for the release of Marwan Barghouti – who was instrumental in the launching of the second intifada and is serving five life sentences for his role in multiple terror attacks – and Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) leader Ahmad Saadat – who orchestrated the assassination of Tourism Minister Rehavam Ze’evi in 2001.

He can ask, but these releases are not going to happen.

In fact, the release of Israeli Arabs from our prisons, at the behest of the PA, is looking as if it, too, is not going to happen. It had better not.

For some while, we had been seeing conflicting reports in the media regarding Israel’s commitment to let out Israeli Arabs. What now appears to be the case is that the Americans promised the PA that these releases would take place when Israel had not agreed to them. (This is what can happen when the two parties speak separately to the US, and are not speaking directly to each other.)

Dr. Aaron Lerner of IMRA has tracked the fascinating sequence of events, for which Kerry is directly responsible:

http://imra.org.il/story.php3?id=63480

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But with all of this, it is the beginning of a new week, and we should seek what is uplifting, as well.

Yesterday, Jerusalem pretty much shut down, in order to make way – with great fanfare and sense of fun – for the Jerusalem Marathon. The weather was fantastic; the colors of the official shirts of the participants were eye-catching. People came out to cheer the runners – over 25,000 in all, some 2,500 of whom hailed from close to 55 different countries.

The winner was Ronald Kimeli Kurgat from Kenya, who completed the course in two hours and sixteen minutes, the fastest time yet for this Marathon.

Athletes participate in the fourth international Jerusalem marathon March 21, 2014.


Credit: Reuters

03/23/14

Note To Obama: This Is What Resistance and Courage Really Looks Like

By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton


Ukrainian servicemen line up and applaud after singing the national anthem outside a fleet air base after members of pro-Russian self-defence units took over in the Crimean village of Novofyodorovka Photo: REUTERS

In a move that seemed to befuddle the media and those on the Left, Ukrainian servicemen and women showed the world what resistance and true courage looked like yesterday. In actions labeled as ‘bizarre’ and ‘strange,’ the Ukrainians defiantly showed that they may fall to the brutish force of Russian Communists, but not without a voice:

Troops at one of the last major Ukrainian bases in Crimea defiantly sang their national anthem on Saturday as Russian forces stormed their compound and demanded their surrender.

Russian soldiers and armed pro-Kremlin toughs assaulted the base just after lunchtime, backed by armoured vehicles that smashed through the compound’s gates.

The raid came after the Ukrainians had pointedly ignored a deadline from the Russians to surrender, even holding a wedding celebration at the base for a newly-married serviceman and his bride.

As the Russian force, bristling with heavy machine guns, over-ran the base, the Ukrainians realised it was pointless to try to fight back. Instead, they lined up on the parade ground and burst into song as the intruders held them at gunpoint.

The symbolic gesture of defiance took place at the Belbek air base near Sevastopol, which was the scene of one of the first stand-offs in Crimea last month when the base’s commander had a face-to-face confrontation with Russian troops.

Yesterday’s assault on the Belbek airbase, took place around 4 pm their time. A large contingent of Russian Cossacks, backed by regular troops, arrived outside in armored vehicles and jeeps mounted with heavy machine guns. Accompanying them were masked militiamen armed with Kalashnikovs, who threw up a cordon around the compound. They proceeded to fire shots and there are unconfirmed injuries. But the Ukrainians have something Progressives can’t seem to find — a spine. They stood their ground, knowing that they could not win. They stood — they didn’t talk it to death, or run in abject fear. That is what real bravery looks like.

While the US makes faux moves of sanctioning Russia (that fool and intimidate no one) and a clueless Europe looks on, impotently mouthing threats while Russian tanks roll into Crimea, I have watched the humble bravery of a people who know what it is to be oppressed. A people who know the truth of the Soviet Union… a people who have had millions starved to death by the likes of Stalin within the span of a year. The actions of the military singing their national anthem, as Russian miliitiamen outside jeered and shouted “go home” and held them at gunpoint, brought tears to my eyes… the vows of two couples marrying on the military base before the tanks stormed their perimeter, brought joy and profound sadness to my heart.

Witness the reality of the history of Mother Russia and the likes of Vladimir Putin:


The Soviet Story – The People’s Cube

Elitists across the globe, but especially on the Left here in the US, sit in their pampered wealth and proclaim that the Ukrainians have no rights – that they belong to Russia. They feel they are above, apart from this mess — that it can never touch them. They should rethink that premise as the Russian bear and the Chinese dragon stalk the planet and mark their territories for future conquest. The Communists are restless and a weakened America must look very, very tempting to them. But of course, Obama knows this. He pretends to punish Russia, while cuddling with Putin, a monster cut from Obama’s own cloth. They court the Chinese and dine together, while oppressing their people and making plans to bring the masses into line for their own collective good. To claim that the US is really doing anything, is a very bad joke.

We are repeating the horrors of yesteryear. The world is intent on making excuses for Russia and their expansionism. They did this when Hitler and Stalin raged as well, slaughtering millions. It’s all intellectual foreplay until it directly affects the elitists. What they always overlook though, is that in the end, justice is a full circle that comes back to deal harshly with those who would so casually throw away the lives of those they subjugate. Payback is a bitch historically.

As we watch the drama in the Ukraine as if it was an episode of Survivor, Putin is making his move to establish military bases in South and Central America. I would remind Americans, this is with the blessing of Obama and company who have declared the Monroe Doctrine dead. There is no other way to view that – the only reason to do so, would be to invite Communists and radical Islamists to take up shop next door. Incredibly, America is only now considering the threat of Russia, China and Iran launching cruise missiles from the Gulf of Mexico. Well, duh. Senator Ted Cruz is one of the few even bringing this up. America better pray for a leader such as Cruz to take the reins, before an unspeakable catastrophe descends upon our nation. Just sayin’.

But even as Cruz is ringing the alarm bells, evidence points to the fact that America is actively covering up military moves by Russia. Wrap your head around that one and tell me that spells anything but treason:

Two senior House leaders on Friday requested an investigation by Congress’ General Accountability Office (GAO) into the State Department’s failure to report Russian violations of a 1987 nuclear missile accord.

“It is clear from my subcommittee’s oversight that the administration did not fully disclose what it knew about Russian arms control violations when it was trying to get the New START treaty ratified,” said Rep. Mike Rogers (R., Ala.), chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee on strategic forces.

“Its all-consuming drive to protect its Russia reset policy has gutted our missile defenses, alienated allies, and only encouraged Vladimir Putin’s lawlessness,” he said in a statement.

Of course, the State Department declined to comment. Their silence speaks volumes:

The letter grew out of recent disclosures that Russia violated the INF treaty by developing a new missile with a range banned under the 1987 pact. The treaty bans building or testing missile with ranges between 300 and 3,400 miles.

“The Russians have basically violated every major treaty they’ve ever entered into, certainly every major weapons treaty,” said Sen. Marco Rubio (R., Fla.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees and co-leader of a Senate arms control group.

Rubio said during a meeting at the Heritage Foundation Feb. 25 that State Department officials have dismissed Moscow’s arms violations by asserting that continuing to hold talks was more important the pressing the Russians to abide by agreements.

The Washington Free Beacon first reported June 25 that Russia violated INF treaty by flight-testing a new RS-26 long-range missile, also known as Yars M to INF range.

Then the New York Times reported in January that a new ground-launched cruise missile, the R-500, violates the INF treaty and that tests of the missile had been carried out since 2008.

The newspaper reported that Rose Gottemoeller, the State Department’s senior arms control official has held discussions with Russian officials on the treaty violation since May and was rebuffed by Moscow.

The treaty violations threaten to further undermine the administration’s arms control-center national security policies.

The administration has made the 2010 New START arms treaty a centerpiece of such polices and is seeking further talks on non-strategic nuclear weapons.

This is all happening because Obama wants to finish ‘de-nuclearizing’ the US, putting us at the mercy (or lack thereof) of our enemies. He’s not stupid, he knows exactly what he is doing by gutting us militarily. Don’t kid yourself otherwise.

Russia, China and Iran have a bag full of weapons now to use against us. Yes, the physical military option is very real, but it is definitely not the only one and perhaps not the deadliest. Russia wants the Ukraine badly because of oil and gas lines that flow through that territory. They will control Europe by using resource extortion. This could also be used against us as our enemies gain more and more control of vital resources across the planet. The New Axis of Evil could also use EMPs and/or cyber warfare against us. It would not be hard to do as it stands. Then there is the dollar and this is taking shape. Russia and China are getting ready to dump the dollar as the reserve currency for the world. Once they do, it’s over. Our stock market will crash spectacularly. Inflation will skyrocket into hyperinflation. Food and supplies will either be unaffordable and/or non-existent on shelves. Russia plans on using our own warfare tactics against us, only in a much more final way.

So, as the world avidly views the fall of Crimea to their Cossack overlords… the gulags await the Ukrainians as punishment for flouting the power of Putin. Crimea is having their very own Red Dawn and we are pretending it can’t happen here. America take note at what may one day await us at the hands of our own government. But in the midst of all of this, Obama should remember what real resistance and courage look like, because Americans are made of the stuff that fights back. I’ll close with pictures of the Ukrainians and a prayer for their safety and freedom, as well as ours.


Wedding: Galina Volosyanchik, left, and Ivan Benera, right, are welcomed to the surrounded Belbek airbase by senior officers


Lieutenants Galina Volosyanchik, right, and Ivan Benera, left, walk away from the base after their union


Earlier in the day: Two members of the Ukrainian air force dance as they celebrate a comrade’s wedding


One of the soldiers appeared to be drinking champagne as they celebrated the nuptials of medic Galina Volosyanchik and communication officer Ivan Benera


The armoured vehicle storms through the gates while troops smash through the walls in other parts of the compound


Soldiers in unmarked uniforms sit atop an armoured patrol vehicle at the gate of the Belbek base as troops prepare to storm the compound


Members of pro-Russian self-defence units take cover behind cars outside the military base while Russian forces take it over


Stand off: A Russian military officer (back) talks to Colonel Yuli Mamchur (left) demanding Ukrainian servicemen to leave a military base in the Crimean town of Belbek near Sevastopol


Prepared: Ukrainian servicemen guard the military base in the Crimean town as tensions in the region heighten


Armed men, believed to be Russian servicemen, gather on a hill near the military base


Troops are seen gathering in the top left of the picture outside the base with as an armoured vehicle blocks the road


Final unit: The troops in Ukraine’s last military base in the Crimea keep updated by watching a small television set


The troops in the base have been waiting for orders as thousands of other troops are withdrawn from the region as tensions with Russia heighten


A Ukrainian soldier holds the picture of Sergey Kokurin, 35, during his funeral. He was shot in the Crimea last week


A soldier looks up standing between the coffins of Ukrainian soldier Sergey Kokurin, right, and Russian Cossack militiaman Ruslan Kazakov, 34, left, during the service in Simferopoll


Devastated relatives of the dead Ukrainian soldier mourn next to his coffin


Russian Navy sailors prepare the surrendered Ukrainian submarine ‘Zaporozhye’ so it can be towed it from the former Ukrainian Navy base to the Russian Black Sea Fleet base in Sevastopol, Crimea


A sailor holds the Russian St Andrew flag on top of the submarine which was taken over


Military personnel board the vessel as a number of ships were taken over by Russian forces and handed over to the Black Sea Fleet


The Ukrainian state emblem is taken down from the side of the submarine


A military cap thrown by a Ukrainian submariner as a last farewell flies in the air