Blog Smith is inspired by the myth of Hephaestus in the creation of blacksmith-like, forged materials: ideas. This blog analyzes topics that interest me: IT, politics, technology, history, education, music, and the history of religions.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Vatican: 'Outrageous'...
The Vatican described the act as outrageous, Petraeus said out troops would be at risk (aren't they already?), according to the NYPD: 'Dangerous,' Holder: 'Idiotic,' and Clinton: 'Disgraceful.' Yet, I can not help but wonder where the moderates are in Islam who would describe the burning of the American flag as outrageious, dangerous, idiotic, or disgraceful. Of course it is an insipid idea to burn a Koran but the condemnations are swift and clear from Western voices: not a peep against Islamism atrocities by the moderate Muslims.
"Burn, Baby! BURN!"
When rioters in Watts, California, began shouting "Burn, Baby! BURN!" in the turmoil of 1965, they were echoing the most popular cry on rhythm-and-blues radio: The trademark of Magnificent Montague. In Los Angeles on KGFJ Montague yelled "Burn!" whenever he was playing a record that moved him. His listeners followed suit, calling Montague and shouting "Burn!" on the air. The emotion in that exchange reverberated with as much excitement as the music of Stevie Wonder, Sam Cooke, and Otis Redding.
The slogan proved to be, dare I say it, so incindiery that "Bill" Epton Jr., a Maoist African-American activist, was "the first person convicted of criminal anarchy since the Red Scare of 1919"-—reportedly for the crime of uttering three words: "Burn, baby, burn."
The slogan proved to be, dare I say it, so incindiery that "Bill" Epton Jr., a Maoist African-American activist, was "the first person convicted of criminal anarchy since the Red Scare of 1919"-—reportedly for the crime of uttering three words: "Burn, baby, burn."
In any event, “Disco Inferno” is a 1976 hit by The Trammps. It became a success in 1978 after being included on the soundtrack to the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever.
English & History Inter-disciplinary Assignment: A Man For All Seasons and What Went Wrong?
A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS: SUMMARY
THEMES
“...to thine own self be true, and it shall follow, as the night the day, thou cans’t not then be false to any man.” ~Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act I, Scene III
Integrity is the major theme of A Man for All Seasons. Sir Thomas More stays true to his conscience even under threat of death.
Some minor themes are:
No man can serve two masters.
Every man has his price.
Look to your own conscience for what to believe and how to act.
Having serious concerns about your life and death does not preclude being lighthearted and sociable.
At roughly the same time as the setting for A Man for All Seasons, the Western world and the Arab Middle East diverged.
In What Went Wrong?, Bernard Lewis writes of the key role of the Middle East in the rise of science in the Middle Ages, before things went wrong:
And then, approximately from the end of the Middle Ages, there was a dramatic change. In Europe, the scientific movement advanced enormously in the era of the Renaissance, the Discoveries, the technological revolution, and the vast changes, both intellectual and material, that preceded, accompanied, and followed them. In the Muslim world, independent inquiry virtually came to an end, and science was for the most part reduced to the veneration of a corpus of approved knowledge. There were some practical innovations — thus, for example, incubators were invented in Egypt, vaccination against smallpox in Turkey. These were, however, not seen as belonging to the realm of science, but as practical devices, and we know of them primarily from Western travelers.
[. . .]
Another example of the widening gap may be seen in the fate of the great observatory built in Galata, in Istanbul, in 1577. This was due to the initiative of Taqi al-Din (ca. 1526-1585), a major figure in Muslim scientific history and the author of several books on astronomy, optics, and mechanical clocks. Born in Syria or Egypt (the sources differ), he studied in Cairo, and after a career as jurist and theologian he went to Istanbul, where in 1571 he was appointed munejjim-bash, astronomer (and astrologer) in chief to the Sultan Selim II. A few years later her persuaded the Sultan Murad III to allow him to build an observatory, comparable in its technical equipment and its specialist personnel with that of his celebrated contemporary, the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe. But there the comparison ends. Tycho Brahe's observatory and the work accomplished in it opened the way to a vast new development of astronomical science. Taqi al-Din's observatory was razed to the ground by a squad of Janissaries, by order of the sultan, on the recommendation of Chief Mufti. This observatory had many predecessors in the lands of Islam; it had no successors until the age of modernization.
The relationship between Christendom and Islam in the sciences was now reversed. Those who had been disciples now became teachers; those who had been masters became pupils, often reluctant and resentful pupils. They were willing enough to accept the products of infidel science in warfare and medicine, where they could make the difference between victory and defeat, between life and death. But the underlying philosophy and the sociopolitical context of these scientific achievements proved more difficult to accept or even recognize.
Contrast what you know and have read of The Man for All Seasons and What Went Wrong?
What are the differences of one's conscience, the role of science, and thinking along a skeptical, scientific manner, or not, between the West and the Middle East? The assignment should be limited to 250 words, about one page of standard type-written text. You are free to email the text as well.
For an open-ended assignment such as this please bear in mind that there is no right or wrong answer. The instructor grades on the quality and clarity of your writing. Are you using proper form? Do you support your ideas with evidence, logic, and is the prose coherently written?
THEMES
“...to thine own self be true, and it shall follow, as the night the day, thou cans’t not then be false to any man.” ~Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act I, Scene III
Integrity is the major theme of A Man for All Seasons. Sir Thomas More stays true to his conscience even under threat of death.
Some minor themes are:
No man can serve two masters.
Every man has his price.
Look to your own conscience for what to believe and how to act.
Having serious concerns about your life and death does not preclude being lighthearted and sociable.
At roughly the same time as the setting for A Man for All Seasons, the Western world and the Arab Middle East diverged.
In What Went Wrong?, Bernard Lewis writes of the key role of the Middle East in the rise of science in the Middle Ages, before things went wrong:
And then, approximately from the end of the Middle Ages, there was a dramatic change. In Europe, the scientific movement advanced enormously in the era of the Renaissance, the Discoveries, the technological revolution, and the vast changes, both intellectual and material, that preceded, accompanied, and followed them. In the Muslim world, independent inquiry virtually came to an end, and science was for the most part reduced to the veneration of a corpus of approved knowledge. There were some practical innovations — thus, for example, incubators were invented in Egypt, vaccination against smallpox in Turkey. These were, however, not seen as belonging to the realm of science, but as practical devices, and we know of them primarily from Western travelers.
[. . .]
Another example of the widening gap may be seen in the fate of the great observatory built in Galata, in Istanbul, in 1577. This was due to the initiative of Taqi al-Din (ca. 1526-1585), a major figure in Muslim scientific history and the author of several books on astronomy, optics, and mechanical clocks. Born in Syria or Egypt (the sources differ), he studied in Cairo, and after a career as jurist and theologian he went to Istanbul, where in 1571 he was appointed munejjim-bash, astronomer (and astrologer) in chief to the Sultan Selim II. A few years later her persuaded the Sultan Murad III to allow him to build an observatory, comparable in its technical equipment and its specialist personnel with that of his celebrated contemporary, the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe. But there the comparison ends. Tycho Brahe's observatory and the work accomplished in it opened the way to a vast new development of astronomical science. Taqi al-Din's observatory was razed to the ground by a squad of Janissaries, by order of the sultan, on the recommendation of Chief Mufti. This observatory had many predecessors in the lands of Islam; it had no successors until the age of modernization.
The relationship between Christendom and Islam in the sciences was now reversed. Those who had been disciples now became teachers; those who had been masters became pupils, often reluctant and resentful pupils. They were willing enough to accept the products of infidel science in warfare and medicine, where they could make the difference between victory and defeat, between life and death. But the underlying philosophy and the sociopolitical context of these scientific achievements proved more difficult to accept or even recognize.
Contrast what you know and have read of The Man for All Seasons and What Went Wrong?
What are the differences of one's conscience, the role of science, and thinking along a skeptical, scientific manner, or not, between the West and the Middle East? The assignment should be limited to 250 words, about one page of standard type-written text. You are free to email the text as well.
For an open-ended assignment such as this please bear in mind that there is no right or wrong answer. The instructor grades on the quality and clarity of your writing. Are you using proper form? Do you support your ideas with evidence, logic, and is the prose coherently written?
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Morgan Fisher - MO 30-1 CUT (13:43) (formerly of Mott The Hoople)
Morgan Fisher formerly played keyboards for Mott The Hoople.
Lessons learned from Lower Merion’s “Webcamgate”
Tech & Learning ran an update on the Web cam story.
“Ramadan is the month of JIHAD”
Yet another Ramadan dinner hosted by Obama. The Islamic Emirate is pleased to produce the Ramadam victory series here as depicted in the trailer. Saudi textbook council members verify jihad and the fact that slavery is integral to Islam. The Saudi states: "Slavery is part of Islam. Slavery is part of jihad and jihad will remain as long as there is Islam. It has not been abolished."
Should Generals Dictate Policy for Civilians?
Petraeus Condemns U.S. Church's Plan to Burn Qurans.
1. Free Speech should be protected at any cost;
2. The dogs of war should be unleashed so our military attains victory;
3. Generals should not dictate political positions for civilians.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Nanny State Intrudes Again
Any doubts we are living under the nanny state? Two stories caught my eye today. In Michigan, the State told a mom to stop baby-sitting neighbors' kids; this is something typically American, but, a state agency is telling a mother she can not be a good neighbor. In Florida, a mother is defying a school ban that prohibits kids from biking or walking to school. As a nation, how did we ever get to the point that state agencies know best how to parent our children? These are the good, helpful and caring parents that the state is interfering with. Moreover, there is no compelling state interest that would override the arrangements and preferences of our kids. The nanny state has got to go.
4 Previous Muslim Shootings Against Military
The shooting attack at Ft. Hood by a Muslim soldier is anything but an isolated incident.
1) On 23 March 2003 there was a grenade attack by Muslim Sgt. Hasan Karim Akbar that killed Army Captain Christopher Seifert and Air Force Major Gregory Stone and wounded 14 others. He was convicted of two counts of premeditated murder and three counts of attempted premeditated murder on April 21, 2005. Notably, during his trial Akbar smuggled scissors out of a conference room, then asked the Military Police Officer guarding him to remove his hand cuffs so he could use the restroom. When the officer removed Akbar’s restraints, he stabbed the officer in the neck and shoulder before being wrestled to the ground by another officer.
2) While serving as a naval signalman on board the USS Benfoldin the months following the attack on the USS Cole, Hassan Abujihaad (a/k/a Paul R. Hall) actively provided Islamic terrorists with sensitive information about the location of Navy ships and their weaknesses. He also discussed sniper attacks on military personnel and attacks on U.S. military recruitment sites with Muslim terrorists as well. For his crimes, Abujihaad is currently serving a ten-(10) year sentence. On 5 March, 2008 Abujihaad was convicted by a jury and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
3) There is also the case of U.S. Army captain James “Yousef” Lee, the former Muslim chaplain charged with espionage while serving at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Lee was arrested at a U.S. airport on charges of espionage after he was caught in possession of detailed maps of the detention facility along with other classified materials. In addition to LEE, two other Islamic Arabic translators stationed at Guantanamo were convicted of unauthorized possession of classified documents.
Ultimately, the U.S. Army opted not to proceed with the espionage charges against YEE due to national security concerns arising from the evidence that would be made available to the public at the trial.
4) On 1 June 2009 there was a shooting attack at the Little Rock recruiting center by 23 year-old Muslim Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad, who killed two officers.
Obama Ally Group Code Pink Targets Children of Military Personnel
Dressed as ‘zombie soldiers’ killed in combat, ‘ghosts of war victims,’ witches and healthcare fairies, members of Code Pink menacingly paraded in front of a captive audience of children one block from the White House, who waited along the sidewalk in front of Decatur House just off Lafayette Park for a Halloween party hosted by Obama.
Obama hosted several hundred military families for trick or treating. Also invited were children of White House staff and about 2000 children from eleven D.C. area elementary schools.
In a press release published at their website, key Obama ally Code Pink – a group co-founded by one of Obama’s top funders Jodie Evans, announced they were targeting military families by conducting a macabre protest of the war in Afghanistan as the families waited in line to enter the White House grounds.
JAG Officer’s Account of Ft. Hood Shooting
JAG Officer’s Account of Ft. Hood Shooting
November 10, 2009 00:00
Author "Mr. Black" 11/09/09
Since I don’t know when I’ll sleep (it’s 4 am now) I’ll write what happened (the abbreviated version…..the long one is already part of the investigation with more to come). I’ll not write about any part of the investigation that I’ve learned about since (as a witness I know more than I should since inevitably my JAG brothers and sisters are deeply involved in the investigation). Don’t assume that most of the current media accounts are very accurate. They’re not. They’ll improve with time. Only those of us who were there really know what went down. But as they collate our statements they’ll get it right.
I did my SRP last week (Soldier Readiness Processing) but you’re supposed to come back a week later to have them look at the smallpox vaccination site (it’s this big itchy growth on your shoulder). I am probably alive because I pulled a ———- and entered the wrong building first (the main SRP building). The Medical SRP building is off to the side. Realizing my mistake I left the main building and walked down the sidewalk to the medical SRP building. As I’m walking up to it the gunshots start. Slow and methodical. But continuous. Two ambulatory wounded came out. Then two soldiers dragging a third who was covered in blood. Hearing the shots but not seeing the shooter, along with a couple other soldiers I stood in the street and yelled at everyone who came running that it was clear but to “RUN!”. I kept motioning people fast.
About 6-10 minutes later (the shooting continuous), two cops ran up. one male, one female. we pointed in the direction of the shots. they headed that way (the medical SRP building was about 50 meters away). then a lot more gunfire. a couple minutes later a balding man in ACU’s came around the building carrying a pistol and holding it tactically. He started shooting at us and we all dived back to the cars behind us. I don’t think he hit the couple other guys who were there. I did see the bullet holes later in the cars. First I went behind a tire and then looked under the body of the car. I’ve been trained how to respond to gunfire…but with my own weapon. To have no weapon I don’t know how to explain what that felt like. I hadn’t run away and stayed because I had thought about the consequences or anything like that. I wasn’t thinking anything through. Please understand, there was no intention. I was just staying there because I didn’t think about running. It never occurred to me that he might shoot me. Until he started shooting in my direction and I realized I was unarmed.
Then the female cop comes around the corner. He shoots her. (according to the news accounts she got a round into him. I believe it, I just didn’t see it. he didn’t go down.) She goes down. He starts reloading. He’s fiddling with his mags. Weirdly he hasn’t dropped the one that was in his weapon. He’s holding the fresh one and the old one (you do that on the range when time is not of the essence but in combat you would just let the old mag go). I see the male cop around the left corner of the building. (I’m about 15-20 meters from the shooter.) I yell at the cop, “He’s reloading, he’s reloading. Shoot him! Shoot him!) You have to understand, everything was quiet at this point. The cop appears to hear me and comes around the corner and shoots the shooter. He goes down. The cop kicks his weapon further away. I sprint up to the downed female cop.
Another captain (I think he was with me behind the cars) comes up as well. She’s bleeding profusely out of her thigh. We take our belts off and tourniquet her just like we’ve been trained (I hope we did it right…we didn’t have any CLS (combat lifesaver) bags with their awesome tourniquets on us, so we worked with what we had). Meanwhile, in the most bizarre moment of the day, a photographer was standing over us taking pictures. I suppose I’ll be seeing those tomorrow. Then a soldier came up and identified himself as a medic. I then realized her weapon was lying there unsecured (and on “fire”). I stood over it and when I saw a cop yelled for him to come over and secure her weapon (I would have done so but I was worried someone would mistake me for a bad guy). I then went over to the shooter. He was unconscious. A Lt Colonel was there and had secured his primary weapon for the time being. He also had a revolver. I couldn’t believe he was one of ours. I didn’t want to believe it. Then I saw his name and rank and realized this wasn’t just some specialist with mental issues.
At this point there was a guy there from CID and I asked him if he knew he was the shooter and had him secured. He said he did. I then went over the slaughter house. the medical SRP building. No human should ever have to see what that looked like. and I won’t tell you. Just believe me. Please. there was nothing to be done there. Someone then said there was someone critically wounded around the corner. I ran around (while seeing this floor to ceiling window that someone had jumped through movie style) and saw a large African- American soldier lying on his back with two or three soldiers attending. I ran up and identified two entrance wounds on the right side of his stomach, one exit wound on the left side and one head wound. He was not bleeding externally from the stomach wounds (though almost certainly internally) but was bleeding from the head wound. A soldier was using a shirt to try and stop the head bleeding. He was conscious so I began talking to him to keep him so. He was 42, from North Carolina, he was named something Jr., his son was named something III and he had a daughter as well. His children lived with him. He was divorced. I told him the blubber on his stomach saved his life. He smiled. a young soldier in civvies showed up and identified himself as a combat medic. We debated whether to put him on the back of a pickup truck. A doctor (well, an audiologist) showed up and said you can’t move him, he has a head wound. we finally sat tight.
I went back to the slaughterhouse. they weren’t letting anyone in there. not even medics. finally, after about 45 minutes had elapsed some cops showed up in tactical vests. someone said the TBI building was unsecured. They headed into there. All of a sudden a couple more shots were fired. People shouted there was a second shooter. a half hour later the SWAT showed up. there was no second shooter. that had been an impetuous cop apparently. but that confused things for a while. meanwhile I went back to the shooter. the female cop had been taken away. a medic was pumping plasma into the shooter. I’m not proud of this but I went up to her and said “this is the shooter, is there anyone else who needs attention…do them first”. she indicated everyone else living was attended to. I still hadn’t seen any EMTs or ambulances. I had so much blood on me that people kept asking me if I was ok. but that was all other people’s blood. eventually (an hour and a half to two hours after the shootings) they started landing choppers. they took out the big African American guy and the shooter. I guess the ambulatory wounded were all at the SRP building. Everyone else in my area was dead.
I suppose the emergency responders were told there were multiple shooters. I heard that was the delay with the choppers (they were all civilian helicopters). they needed a secure LZ. but other than the initial cops who did everything right, I didnt’ see a lot of them for a while. I did see many a soldier rush out to help their fellows/ sisters. there was one female soldier, I dont’ know her name or rank but I would recognize her anywhere who was everywhere helping people. a couple people, mainly civilians, were hysterical, but only a couple. one civilian freaked out when I tried to comfort her when she saw my uniform. I guess she had seen the shooter up close. a lot of soldiers were rushing out to help even when we thought there was another gunman out there. this Army is not broken no matter what the pundits say. not the Army I saw.
And then they kept me for a long time to come. oh, and perhaps the most surreal thing, at 1500 (the end of the workday on Thursdays) when the bugle sounded we all came to attention and saluted the flag. in the middle of it all. this is what I saw. it can’t have been real. but this is my small corner of what happened.
November 10, 2009 00:00
Author "Mr. Black" 11/09/09
Since I don’t know when I’ll sleep (it’s 4 am now) I’ll write what happened (the abbreviated version…..the long one is already part of the investigation with more to come). I’ll not write about any part of the investigation that I’ve learned about since (as a witness I know more than I should since inevitably my JAG brothers and sisters are deeply involved in the investigation). Don’t assume that most of the current media accounts are very accurate. They’re not. They’ll improve with time. Only those of us who were there really know what went down. But as they collate our statements they’ll get it right.
I did my SRP last week (Soldier Readiness Processing) but you’re supposed to come back a week later to have them look at the smallpox vaccination site (it’s this big itchy growth on your shoulder). I am probably alive because I pulled a ———- and entered the wrong building first (the main SRP building). The Medical SRP building is off to the side. Realizing my mistake I left the main building and walked down the sidewalk to the medical SRP building. As I’m walking up to it the gunshots start. Slow and methodical. But continuous. Two ambulatory wounded came out. Then two soldiers dragging a third who was covered in blood. Hearing the shots but not seeing the shooter, along with a couple other soldiers I stood in the street and yelled at everyone who came running that it was clear but to “RUN!”. I kept motioning people fast.
About 6-10 minutes later (the shooting continuous), two cops ran up. one male, one female. we pointed in the direction of the shots. they headed that way (the medical SRP building was about 50 meters away). then a lot more gunfire. a couple minutes later a balding man in ACU’s came around the building carrying a pistol and holding it tactically. He started shooting at us and we all dived back to the cars behind us. I don’t think he hit the couple other guys who were there. I did see the bullet holes later in the cars. First I went behind a tire and then looked under the body of the car. I’ve been trained how to respond to gunfire…but with my own weapon. To have no weapon I don’t know how to explain what that felt like. I hadn’t run away and stayed because I had thought about the consequences or anything like that. I wasn’t thinking anything through. Please understand, there was no intention. I was just staying there because I didn’t think about running. It never occurred to me that he might shoot me. Until he started shooting in my direction and I realized I was unarmed.
Then the female cop comes around the corner. He shoots her. (according to the news accounts she got a round into him. I believe it, I just didn’t see it. he didn’t go down.) She goes down. He starts reloading. He’s fiddling with his mags. Weirdly he hasn’t dropped the one that was in his weapon. He’s holding the fresh one and the old one (you do that on the range when time is not of the essence but in combat you would just let the old mag go). I see the male cop around the left corner of the building. (I’m about 15-20 meters from the shooter.) I yell at the cop, “He’s reloading, he’s reloading. Shoot him! Shoot him!) You have to understand, everything was quiet at this point. The cop appears to hear me and comes around the corner and shoots the shooter. He goes down. The cop kicks his weapon further away. I sprint up to the downed female cop.
Another captain (I think he was with me behind the cars) comes up as well. She’s bleeding profusely out of her thigh. We take our belts off and tourniquet her just like we’ve been trained (I hope we did it right…we didn’t have any CLS (combat lifesaver) bags with their awesome tourniquets on us, so we worked with what we had). Meanwhile, in the most bizarre moment of the day, a photographer was standing over us taking pictures. I suppose I’ll be seeing those tomorrow. Then a soldier came up and identified himself as a medic. I then realized her weapon was lying there unsecured (and on “fire”). I stood over it and when I saw a cop yelled for him to come over and secure her weapon (I would have done so but I was worried someone would mistake me for a bad guy). I then went over to the shooter. He was unconscious. A Lt Colonel was there and had secured his primary weapon for the time being. He also had a revolver. I couldn’t believe he was one of ours. I didn’t want to believe it. Then I saw his name and rank and realized this wasn’t just some specialist with mental issues.
At this point there was a guy there from CID and I asked him if he knew he was the shooter and had him secured. He said he did. I then went over the slaughter house. the medical SRP building. No human should ever have to see what that looked like. and I won’t tell you. Just believe me. Please. there was nothing to be done there. Someone then said there was someone critically wounded around the corner. I ran around (while seeing this floor to ceiling window that someone had jumped through movie style) and saw a large African- American soldier lying on his back with two or three soldiers attending. I ran up and identified two entrance wounds on the right side of his stomach, one exit wound on the left side and one head wound. He was not bleeding externally from the stomach wounds (though almost certainly internally) but was bleeding from the head wound. A soldier was using a shirt to try and stop the head bleeding. He was conscious so I began talking to him to keep him so. He was 42, from North Carolina, he was named something Jr., his son was named something III and he had a daughter as well. His children lived with him. He was divorced. I told him the blubber on his stomach saved his life. He smiled. a young soldier in civvies showed up and identified himself as a combat medic. We debated whether to put him on the back of a pickup truck. A doctor (well, an audiologist) showed up and said you can’t move him, he has a head wound. we finally sat tight.
I went back to the slaughterhouse. they weren’t letting anyone in there. not even medics. finally, after about 45 minutes had elapsed some cops showed up in tactical vests. someone said the TBI building was unsecured. They headed into there. All of a sudden a couple more shots were fired. People shouted there was a second shooter. a half hour later the SWAT showed up. there was no second shooter. that had been an impetuous cop apparently. but that confused things for a while. meanwhile I went back to the shooter. the female cop had been taken away. a medic was pumping plasma into the shooter. I’m not proud of this but I went up to her and said “this is the shooter, is there anyone else who needs attention…do them first”. she indicated everyone else living was attended to. I still hadn’t seen any EMTs or ambulances. I had so much blood on me that people kept asking me if I was ok. but that was all other people’s blood. eventually (an hour and a half to two hours after the shootings) they started landing choppers. they took out the big African American guy and the shooter. I guess the ambulatory wounded were all at the SRP building. Everyone else in my area was dead.
I suppose the emergency responders were told there were multiple shooters. I heard that was the delay with the choppers (they were all civilian helicopters). they needed a secure LZ. but other than the initial cops who did everything right, I didnt’ see a lot of them for a while. I did see many a soldier rush out to help their fellows/ sisters. there was one female soldier, I dont’ know her name or rank but I would recognize her anywhere who was everywhere helping people. a couple people, mainly civilians, were hysterical, but only a couple. one civilian freaked out when I tried to comfort her when she saw my uniform. I guess she had seen the shooter up close. a lot of soldiers were rushing out to help even when we thought there was another gunman out there. this Army is not broken no matter what the pundits say. not the Army I saw.
And then they kept me for a long time to come. oh, and perhaps the most surreal thing, at 1500 (the end of the workday on Thursdays) when the bugle sounded we all came to attention and saluted the flag. in the middle of it all. this is what I saw. it can’t have been real. but this is my small corner of what happened.
President Reagan's Remarks to Harley-Davidson Company employees in York, Pennsylvania on May 6, 1987
President Reagan's Remarks to Harley-Davidson Company employees in York, Pennsylvania on May 6, 1987
Just Like China: Sebelius Calls for Re-education
Just as in China, the Socialist organization member, Sebelius, says it it Time for 'Reeducation' on Obama Health Care Law.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
When Will We Have Another Black President?
The black president will really be black. Obama is half-white, half-black which states the factual truth overlooked by political pundits. However, far more important is the fact that he is not a natural born citizen and does not relate to Americans. His haughtiness and holier than thou demeanor is off-putting at best. Obama's politics have resulted in the mish-mash of mistaken policies and failed political positions that have plagued the country lo' in the glacial pace that his one-term administration has damaged the country. An actual black president will love his native country, even if people disagree with him or her just as the real and actual presidents have done up to this time. At least they are really one of us voters can exclaim. The damage that Obama has done to African-Americans in this country is incalculable. The genuine talents among American blacks is impressive and unfortunately they will be thwarted by Obama's mistakes. Racial progress has taken a giant leap backwards because of Obama. This harms the country aching for a sincere, genuine step forwards such as would have been possible if Colin Powell would have materialized into a credible presidential candidate. Imagine if a Colin Powell type had been elected instead of Obama. That election would have united the country probably as never before in a time of international uncertainty and crisis. I hope Obama has not harmed out country's sensibilities so much that voters overlook the many fine and exceptionally well-qualified American blacks running for office now.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
NY mosque investor also Hamas terrorist supporter
Tax records show $6,050 donated to a charity later shut down for links to Hamas. The tax filing listing the donation was provided to The Associated Press by The Investigative Project on Terrorism, a nonprofit group headed by Steven Emerson.
Scheuer on Osama Bin Laden
Michael Scheuer ist ein amerikanischer Historiker, politischer Analytiker und früherer CIA Mitarbeiter. In seiner 22 jährigen Karriere war er der Chef der "Bin Laden Einheit" von 1996-1999. Danach arbeitete er als spezieller Berater das Chefs der "bin Laden Einheit" von September 2001 bis 2004.
Scheuers kritisiert die Anschauungen der USA zu Islamistischen Aufständischen, im speziellen Osama Bin Laden. Er beschreibt Bin Laden als rational, der hauptsächlich gegen die USA kämpft in dem er ihre Wirtschaft schwächt, als dass er Amerikaner bekämpft und tötet. Ausserdem ist er der Annahme, dass Terror die größte Bedrohung der USA darstellt, und bezeichnet es als "islamischen Aufstand" (nicht Terrorismus), der weltweit nicht nur um Unabhängigkeit geführt wird, sonder gegen institutionelle Barberei
Osama Bin Laden bestätigte 2007 in einer Erklärung, dass Scheuers Buch die "Gründe für das Verlieren des Krieges gegen uns" aufdeckt.
2009 wurde Scheuer von seiner Stelle bei der Jamestown Foundation (Think Tank) gekündigt, als er sagte, dass "die momentane Beziehung zwischen USA und Israel die nationale US Sicherheit untergrabe.
Miss Muslim Moral Beauty Pageant Held in Saudi Arabia
Following are excerpts from a TV report on a Saudi moral beauty pageant, which aired on Al-Arabiya TV on August 2, 2009.
Reporter: Female beauty is no longer dependent on looks alone. This has been replaced by moral values and conduct the new criteria in the first contest of moral beauty queens in Saudi Arabia. In the contest, which was organized by a womens festival, several girls competed for the title.
Contest supervisor Khadhraa Al-Mubarak: In our contacts with girls in general, we noticed that they follow false notions, due to the purposeless Western notions, conveyed by some TV channels. The girls are preoccupied with their external appearance only. This is how we came up with the idea of creating an alternative. So we thought of a contest for the title of moral beauty queen. The goal is, first and foremost, to spread virtue, even if through different means. In this contest, we focus on the theme of honoring ones parents.
[...]
Moral beauty queen Aya Al-Mula: We were like sisters in a family. It was very nice. The contest focused on external skills, such as home design or skin care, and internal abilities, such as interpersonal skills and personal improvement.
First runner-up Hawraa Al-Mahdi: I entered the contest and the courses, which were very nice. They judged my personality, both externally and internally.
Second runner-up Fatima Al-Tarouti: I was the youngest contestant. Even though I didnt win the contest, its enough that I made it to the finals.
Reporter: The contestants acquired many social and interpersonal skills, before the elimination process began and the winner was announced. The contestants who lost did not leave the contest empty-handed. Their very participation in the contest was rewarding.
Troops Ticked at Obama, Lamestream Lies: Support the Troops
From someone who is deployed, and . . . BETTER THAN CNN!!!!
Subject: Update 8-20-2010
Date: Friday, August 20, 2010, 5:41 PM
Hey everybody I just wanted to send a quick update and give Yall the REAL story on what's going on over here with the troop withdrawal. The picture is of my crew and I on a break during a mission. The guy to the far left is my gunner (Burks) and the guy in the middle is my driver (Mizell). They go with me on every mission and are great guys. The reason I'm sending this out is because I have had a few people ask if I left Iraq early because all of the combat troops are out of Iraq and I wanted to let everyone know the real deal. It's kind of ridiculous how the news is saying that the last of the "combat" troops are out of Iraq because of Pres Osama ( I mean Obama ). He says that it was his campaign promise. Take our Brigade for example. We were originally called a HBCT ( Heavy Brigade Combat Team). Well since Obama said he would pull all of the "combat" troops out by Aug all they did before we left was change our name from a HBCT to a AAB ( Advise and Assist Brigade ). We have the same personnel/equipment layout as before and are doing the same missions. The ONLY difference is that they changed our name from a HBCT to an AAB and that's how he is getting away with saying that he has pulled all of the "combat" troops out. It is really ridiculous what he's doing and he has ticked alot of people off. And it's funny how the media is buying all of it to. So no the last combat troops are not out of Iraq we are still here. There are other Brigades just like ours that are doing the same missions that are still over here. Sorry for going on about it but we are just sitting over here watching it and are like "You've got to be kidding me!" So anyway now you know the REAL story so that's why I'm not coming back early. Anyways I hope everyone is doing well and I'll see you soon!
Travis
--
Travis L
Jack Webb Schools Eric Holder on Arizona
Paul Babeu is Sheriff of Pinal County, Arizona. With the help of the Pinal County Justice Foundation he is asking for donations to buy assault weapons for his deputies to match the firepower required to provide border security. At http://www.pinalcountyjusticefoundati... click on the "PayPal" link and designate line item 2-C-1 Patrol Rifles.
At http://www.hulu.com/dragnet you can watch the original Dragnet episodes. (This clip is from "D.H.Q. - The Victims"
Season 4: Ep. 26. Most of this comes from the great dialog starting at 14:05.
http://BulletPeople.com is our blog.
Friday, September 3, 2010
"Maxime Lepante:" Islamization of Paris
A hidden camera shows streets blocked by huge crowds of Muslim worshippers and enforced by a private security force.
This is all illegal in France: the public worship, the blocked streets, and the private security. But the police have been ordered not to intervene.
Privileged status of Islam in Paris.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Reich Tells Audience in 2007 that Old People Should Die
Robert Reich, Clinton’s Secretary of Labor and Obama advisor, wants to deny health care to old people. He states that they are not worth the expensive technology. He also told an audience in 2007 that most people will not live longer than their parents because this is too expensive. The audience applauds his death care option. You can’t make this stuff up.
Obama Gives $25 to $150 Million Dollars to Muslims
Obama offers $25 to $150 million to Muslims in technology funds. Eligible projects would advance economic opportunity and create jobs in areas like technology, education, telecoms, media, business services and clean technology.
Obama's Teleprompter Tales
Live by technology; die by technology.
"I jumped the gun here; go ahead and move it up."
Obama apparently calling one of his daughter's Maya. Obama's daughter is named Malia. His half-sister's name is Maya.
The Obamas at home.
Web 2.0 Tools
Some Web 2.0 tools that you can start the year with:
Wallwisher is an online notice board maker.
Voki
is a tool to create animated speaking avatars. You can create class
pet/mascot/puppet that can ask questions of the students or talk about
weather, day, month, the activities that the children will be doing in
class that day. You can also ask students to create their own avatars
that talk about themselves. If you have a class website, it's also a
good idea to have a Voki avatar that introduces you to the kids and the
parents.
You can start a talk group using Voxopop. You can talk about yourself or ask questions to the kids that you want them to talk or start a discussion on any topic.Voicethread
can be an alternative to Voxopop. If you give the students a book
report assignment for the summer, you can ask them to leave their
comments on a Voicethread by using different commenting styles. The
activities that you can do with Voicethread throughout the year truly
endless.
Online
surveys or polls can be an interesting and a fun way to engage your
children. You can use them to get to know them better or you can design a
survey to learn their opinions about school or what activities they do enjoy in class. SurveyMonkey, Polldaddy, PollEverywhere can be the tools where to start!
If you want to give a quiz at the first days, you can choose a more techie way and use some online quiz generators. EasyTestMaker, HotPotatoes, QuizEgg and QuizMaker are my favourites.
What about asking students to create timelines? Xtimeline or OurStory can be some examples of these tools.
Creating
an animated film may seem difficult to produce, luckily we have Web 2.0
tools to make it very easy and fun for us and for our students. Zimmertwins, Xtranormal and DVolver are
my favourite tools.You can create a film starter and ask the children
to guess the ending or create their own films on any topic you've given
them. These sites are new ways to engage your kids and improve their
creativity.
EduGlogster can
be an awesome way to use in class all throughout the year. You can
create a colourful glog for your children with links, pictures, animated
pictures, colourful background, audio or with a video. You can create a
glog to introduce yourself/your lesson, brainstorm ideas with students or
simply ask them to create a glog to introduce themselves to
each other.
Top Ten Social Networks for Education
David Kapuler
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Top Ten Social Networks for Education by David Kapuler
Permanent linkI'm a huge advocate of Web 2.0 in general, and social networking in
particular. Here are my favorite networks for education that targets
technology literacy.
1. Twitter
- Far and away one of the most popular social networks around. This
micro-tweeting platform is used worldwide and especially in education
(search hash tags, edchat or edtech).
2. Classroom 2.0
- Created by Steve Hargadon and used by thousands of educators on a
daily basis. This site alone changed the way I viewed education and
ignited my passion for Web 2.0.
3. Facebook -nuff said!!
4. Plurk - A social network similar to Twitter with a timeline view and fun karma-based platform.
5. Educator's PLN
- Built by Thomas Whitby, this social network is one of the fastest
growing around and some of the top technology based innovators can be
found here.
6. Learn Central - Sponsored by elluminate, Learn Central is an ideal place for educators to host or learn through its virtual conferences.
7. ISTE Community - International Society for Technology & Education is a great place for educators to collaborate on technology issues.
8. Edutopia - A very popular organization created by the George Lucas foundation.
9. Collaborative Translation - Created by well renowned educator James O'Reilly, CT is a great place to learn and share innovative ideas.
10. IT4ALL
- Integrating Technology 4 Active Life-Long Learners is a nice place
for educators to share best practices for technology integration.
David Kapuler was the media
and technology specialist at Greendale (Wis.) School District. Read his
blog at cyber-kap.blogspot.com.
Posted by Tech Learning Blog Staff at 08/31/2010 05:26:47 PM |
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Black Conservatives Refuse the Plantation Mentality
The Runaway Slave movie crews were at Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor Rally” and at Al Sharpton’s “Reclaiming the Dream March” on Aug 28th. As the two ideologies clashed in DC, movie crews were on the scene. In this raw footage, shot near the future MLK memorial site, Black Conservatives leaving the “Restoring Honor” rally encounter Sharpton’s protesters who were holding signs claiming “Tea Party Racism.” This is one debates captured after the rally had ended.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Victory Mosque Imam is a Slumlord
National Review Online went visited an apartment building in New Jersey owned by Park51 project head Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, and spoke with tenants about the terrible living conditions there.
The Consequences of Graduating in a Bad Economy
“The Long-Term Labor Market Consequences of Graduating from College in a Bad Economy” by Lisa Kahn concludes that
"those graduating in worse economies may take longer to find work. Those who graduated in the recession also had less prestigious jobs and stayed in those jobs slightly longer, which suggests that workers who graduate in a bad economy are unable to fully move into better jobs after the economy picks up."
CAIR - `Democracy a Tool to Gain Power'
Image posted for educational purposes only; copyright remains in the hands of the legal owner.
Potty for Muslims Only
At Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze, a restaurant installed a toilet for Muslims only.
Painful Viewing: Barry Soetoro Talking with Heroes
Without a teleprompter it is painful to watch Barry mouth the words that are so meaningless to him. The heroes who were forced to sit through the charade are about the least enthusiastic crowd I have ever seen. Soetoro is in real trouble when all he can articulate are downcast words of sacrifice, victimization, and additional difficulties. He could unleash the dogs of war and reap the benefit.
And now for something different.
14 August 2010: Former President George W. Bush and Laura Bush and a group from Slant 45 were on hand at DFW Airport in Dallas Texas greeting Troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Don't be deceived New York Times and CNN miss critical analysis of overhyped Muslim counter-radicalization video
The critical analysis is missing from the video especially after reading the transcript. The video
is misleading to say the least. There is no discussion of the ends of the Islamic state, jihad, sharia, and within the ummah the video will have no impact on the war of ideas within the House of Islam. Moderate and secular Muslims receive no recognition in this latest salvo in the war of ideas.
Islamism is not simply a problem of "violence"; rather, there is a deeper ideological discontinuity between political Islam and classical liberalism. For the ideological war to be successful we would need to see someone of the intellect and stature, within the Islamic community, of a Voltaire or a Diderot, an equivalent reformer or movement akin to the Reformation or the Enlightenment.
As Zuhdi Jasser notes:
The entire cause of political Islam will ultimately need to be intellectually defeated. Political Islam is a theocratic system of shariah law that is anathema to Western secular liberal democracies and an impediment to the genuine practice of a spiritual Islam. The Muslim consciousness needs a separation of mosque and state, which these Islamist imams will deeply fight.
Felons by the thousands among infiltrating hordes
Documentary also uncovers alarming link between illegal aliens and Islamists.
"There is a belief by law enforcement and former border law enforcement that there's a nexus of some kind between Palestinians and what's happening on the border with the drugs and the illegals," said Misner. "Law enforcement has been studying the situation for a long time and this brutality is not endemic to Mexican criminals."
Monday, August 30, 2010
The Hatch Act forbids federal employees from participating in political campaigns
Education secretary rallied employees to attend Sharpton's political rally to counter Glenn Beck's Restoring Honor event in Washington, D.C.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
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