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, May 25, 2016
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
See Something, Say Something
 WASHINGTON -- One day after a prominent U.S. Muslim leader reacted to the November 2015 Paris attacks with a declaration that the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, has nothing to do with Islam, President Obama made the same assertion.Who exactly is the enemy we face, not only in the Middle East but also within our borders? Is it "murderers without a coherent creed" or "nihilistic killers who want to tear things down," as some described ISIS after 130 people were brutally slain and another 368 injured in a coordinated attack on Western soil that authorities say was organized with help from inside France's Muslim communities. After the Paris attacks, Obama, himself, described ISIS as "simply a network of killers who are brutalizing local populations." But how much do words and definitions really matter? According to the legendary military strategist Sun Tzu, if "you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one (battle) and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle." When the Department of Homeland Security was founded in 2003, its stated purpose was "preventing terrorist attacks within the United States and reducing America's vulnerability to terrorism." The Bush administration's definition of the enemy as a tactic, terrorism, rather than a specific movement, proved consequential amid a culture of political correctness. By the time President Obama took office, Muslim Brotherhood-linked leaders in the United States were forcing changes to national security policy and even being invited into the highest chambers of influence. A policy known as Countering Violent Extremism emerged, downplaying the threat of supremacist Islam as unrelated to the religion and just one among many violent ideological movements. When recently retired DHS front-line officer and intelligence expert Philip Haney bravely tried to say something about the people and organizations that threatened the nation, his intelligence information was eliminated, and he was investigated by the very agency assigned to protect the country. The national campaign by the DHS to raise public awareness of terrorism and terrorism-related crime known as If You See Something, Say Something effectively has become If You See Something, Say Nothing. To be released by WND Books on May 24, 2016, in See Something, Say Nothing: A Homeland Security Officer Exposes the Government's Submission to Jihad, Haney ? a charter member of DHS with previous experience in the Middle East ? and co-author Art Moore expose just how deeply the submission, denial and deception run. Haney's insider, eyewitness account, supported by internal memos and documents, exposes a federal government capitulating to an enemy within and punishing those who reject its narrative. Haney discloses:
• How much the Obama administration knew in advance of the Boston Marathon bombing and how it launched an ongoing cover-up on behalf of a major ally; • The administration?s stealth policy to protect Islamic leaders with supremacist beliefs and violent-jihadist ties, allowing them to freely travel between the U.S. and the Middle East; • The scope of access to the White House and the classified information the Obama administration gave to members of Muslim Brotherhood front groups; • The damning intelligence on Muslim Brotherhood-linked leaders invited to sit at the table and help form national-security policy; • The "words matter" memo imposing the demands of radical U.S. Muslim leaders on the DHS, including stripping intelligence and official communications of any mention of Islam in association with terrorism; • The purging of training material that casts Islam in a negative light; • The erasing and altering of vital intelligence on terrorists and terror threats; • The fear-based tactics imposed by the Muslim Brotherhood front groups in the U.S. and their accomplices that paralyze officials, members of Congress and any Department of Homeland Security employee who dares to expose or resist their agenda; and • Much more ... In this well-documented, first-person account of his unique service with DHS, Haney shows why it's imperative that Americans demand that when they see something and say something, the servants under their charge do something to prevent a cunning, relentless enemy from carrying out its stated aim to "destroy Western Civilization from within." Philip Haney studied Arabic culture and language while working as a scientist in the Middle East before he was hired as a founding member of the Department of Homeland Security in 2003. After becoming an armed Customs and Border Protection officer, he served several tours of duty at the National Targeting Center near Washington, DC, where he quickly was promoted to its Advanced Targeting Team, an unprecedented accomplishment for an agent on temporary duty assignment. Officer Haney won numerous awards and commendations from his superiors for meticulously compiling information and producing actionable reports that led to the identification of hundreds of terrorists. He has specialized in Islamic theology and the strategy and tactics of the global Islamic movement. He retired honorably in July 2015. |
Monday, May 23, 2016
Sunday, May 22, 2016
Saturday, May 21, 2016
Friday, May 20, 2016
Foundations of the Islamic State
Islam
The authors conclude that according to the founders of the Islamic state it is "authentically Muslim (p. 32). "It also expected members to take religious obligations seriously" (p. 34).
The authors conclude that according to the founders of the Islamic state it is "authentically Muslim (p. 32). "It also expected members to take religious obligations seriously" (p. 34).
Thursday, May 19, 2016
Wednesday, May 18, 2016
Tuesday, May 17, 2016
Monday, May 16, 2016
Sunday, May 15, 2016
Obama Speechwriters Laugh at Keep Your Plan Lie
Obama Speechwriters Laugh at "You can keep your plan lie."
former-obama-speechwriters-laugh-at-you-can-keep-your-plan-promise
former-obama-speechwriters-laugh-at-you-can-keep-your-plan-promise
Saturday, May 14, 2016
Friday, May 13, 2016
Thursday, May 12, 2016
Wednesday, May 11, 2016
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
Monday, May 9, 2016
Sunday, May 8, 2016
Saturday, May 7, 2016
Friday, May 6, 2016
Thursday, May 5, 2016
Wednesday, May 4, 2016
Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Monday, May 2, 2016
Sunday, May 1, 2016
White House Comedy: Larry Gilmore Too
“Words alone do me no justice,” he said. “So, Mr. President, if I’m going to keep it 100,” Larry Wilmore said, before pounding his chest. “Yo, Barry, you did it, my nigga!”
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Friday, April 29, 2016
Declining Community College Enrollment
Despite all of the national focus on community colleges, enrollment in two-year institutions has been steadily declining, dropping 16 percent from 2010 to 2015, according to EAB, a research and technology group.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Monday, April 25, 2016
Saturday, April 23, 2016
Friday, April 22, 2016
Thursday, April 21, 2016
History of Rock
Introduction
About this Course
This course, part 1 of a 2-course sequence, examines the history of rock, primarily as it unfolded in the United States, from the days before rock (pre-1955) to the end of the 1960s. This course covers the music of Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Phil Spector, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Cream, and many more artists, with an emphasis both on cultural context and on the music itself. We will also explore how developments in the music business and in technology helped shape the ways in which styles developed.
Rock emerged in the mid 1950s as a blending of mainstream pop, rhythm and blues, and country and western--styles that previously had remained relatively separate. This new style became the music of the emerging youth culture and was often associated with teen rebellion. We will follow the story of how this rowdy first wave of rock and roll (1955-59) was tamed in the early 60s but came roaring back with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones and then went psychedelic by the end of the decade.
About this course
This course, part 1 of a 2-course sequence, examines the history of rock, primarily as it unfolded in the United States, from the days before rock (pre-1955) to the end of the 1960s. This course covers the music of Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Phil Spector, Bob Dylan, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Cream, and many more artists, with an emphasis both on cultural context and on the music itself. We will also explore how developments in the music business and in technology helped shape the ways in which styles developed. Rock emerged in the mid 1950s as a blending of mainstream pop, rhythm and blues, and country and western--styles that previously had remained relatively separate. This new style became the music of the emerging youth culture and was often associated with teen rebellion. We will follow the story of how this rowdy first wave of rock and roll (1955-59) was tamed in the early 60s but came roaring back with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones and then went psychedelic by the end of the decade.
Lecture transcript
Welcome to the History of Rock, Part One. I'm John Covach. I just want to take a few minutes as we begin the course to talk a little bit about the use of the book and some of the musical materials that we'll be talking about over the course of these seven weeks. the, the philosophy of Coursera is to make these courses as widely available, and as close to free to people as they can possibly be. So it shouldn't cost you anything to take this course. So the course has been designed so that if you should do nothing more than participate in watching the lectures and the quizzes, you should have a perfectly satisfactory experience studying the history of rock with us here. but if you want to deeper experience, one that goes into more detail one that's able to cover things that we don't have time to cover in the video and other artists and songs. the textbook is actually pretty good supplement to that. I've worked with my publisher and they're, they're making an online version of the text available to you for a lot less than it would cost to buy the paper text. so you might want to consider that, even you don't even have to start with that. But if you, if, if we start to get into the course and you start to feel like yeah, this is something maybe I'd like to do, I'd like to know more about that. then you can, you can purchase that text at anytime. In fact, if you can find a used copy of the first or second edition of my book, What's That Sound, that would really work just fine too. The current edition is the third edition, of course we think that's the, the best and most improved edition. But the first and second edition's are almost very, very close to the, the same kind of thing, of, some certain sort of small changing around that we've done. But I recommend the textbook with the course, but you don't have to. One of the things about the textbook that is offered though, and that Norton is offering if you buy their subscription, is you'll be able to see the listening guides for a lot of the songs that fit with each of the chapters. And these listening guides lead you through some of the most important songs, representative songs in, in each of the chapters with each of the weeks. there also will be video guides to those listening guides on the Norton sites so you can hear me talking about each of the song saying a little bit about them before you listen to them. That brings us to the, to the topic of the songs themselves. In the music business, as we'll study during the course of these cour-, these seven weeks people in the music business have never really had a habit of wanting to wait for their money. They want to be paid now. And when it comes to being able to play music to you here over the internet through Coursera, that's something that we can't do unless we would pay eh, exorbitantly high in licensing fees to do it. And since the idea is to keep this as close to free as possible, I'm going to leave it to you to find the music. It shouldn't be too hard to do. People have all ki-, got all kinds of ways of being able to find this music. It's widely available on the internet, but it's going to be on you to find that. We will create a playlist on iTunes. So if you want to download and pay for the exact versions that I'm talking about in the listening guides if you happen to use the books that would be, in fact the way to do that. There are some differences in, in versions of these tunes. So you gotta be careful that you're actually getting the original version. The one that was originally recorded during the historical period that we're talking about. A lot of times, artists were able to re-record the same song. A Chuck Berry may have, you know, recorded a Roll Over Beethoven in the 50s but he may have also recorded it in the 70s. And you happened to get the 70s version of it. And you say, golly, that sounds just like a 70s band. Well, actually it is a 70s band, because that's the recording he did then. So, we really want to get the right recordings. After we get past about Sergeant Pepper and start to get into the late 60s and early 70s, the only variants you're going to find are live versions versus the original studio versions. But anyway, I wanted to say take a moment just to talk about the recordings. So you decide for yourself whether or not you'd like to you'd like to use the book and whether you'd like to get deeper into the material as we go along.
General Overview This page is meant to provide a general overview of the course, with suggestions for how to use the videos and other materials. You should also consult the Syllabus and Course Schedule for more detailed information. Video Lectures You should view each video in the order listed, stopping to take notes. You may also slow the video down to aid in comprehension or use the closed captioning. Each video concludes with an in-line quiz. I have used these quizzes as a kind of summary of each video, so even if you make a mistake in a particular quiz, the mistakes can help you spot the points you may have missed in that video. These in-line quizzes do not count as part of your score for the course; they are meant only to improve your comprehension of the material included in the videos. Listening I discuss a lot of music in the course and we can't post any of it, due to copyright laws and licensing expenses. Fortunately, you'll be able to find most of this music on the web without too much trouble. When I mention a song, the title comes up on the screen along with the date of the recording. Please be careful to listen to the right version of each song; sometimes artists recorded the same song later and such a later version could cause confusion. The dates help keep that straight. Please make it a point to listen to all the music discussed, not just the music you like. I'll bet if you listen to everything, you'll discover music you didn't know about and also end up liking music you thought you wouldn't. Be brave--give music that is new to you a fresh listen!! Reading (optional) A textbook is not required for this course, and this is keeping with Coursera's goal to make all courses available to all with no economic obstacles. The entire course (both parts 1 and 2) are, however, based on my textbook, What's That Sound? An Introduction to Rock and Its History, 3rd ed. You may choose to use this book to enhance the experience of the course. The book deals with the material discussed in the lectures in greater depth and provides discussion of several songs per chapter. The listening guides in the book provide a chance to listen to the music in a way we cannot in the videos (see Video Listening Guides below). My publisher, W.W. Norton, offers an online streaming version of the book at a discount price. This is the least expensive option, though some may want to purchase the paper one. Here's the link to the Norton site and the e-book version: http://books.wwnorton.com/books/detail.aspx?Id=24604 Video Listening Guides (optional) I have posted several videos dedicated to a detailed discussion of many of the songs that I mention in the course. Strictly speaking, these videos are keyed to listening guides in my book, but you can still use them if you do not have the book. These videos are optional and are included simply to enhance your learning experience: no quiz or exam questions will be based on these videos. Here's the link to a YouTube playlist containing these videos: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deUmTmUkYCGxhUjuXRjEYVdT Discussion Forum The course discussion forums are organized in several sections. For the discussion of the course material, we will focus on the general forum and the weekly ones. The general forum is the place for you to discuss the broader issues that come up in the course; the weekly forums are devoted to that week's video and music. I will start thread on various discussion topics as we go, but other ones are also possible. There need to be a few ground rules about the discussion forums. First and foremost, we must treat one another's views with respect. No flaming, please! Secondly, I want you to check your "fan mentality" at the door for these discussions. We all love some of the music we'll be discussing; and most likely there's also some we don't like nearly as much. That's natural and positive. But as students of rock history, we need to be as objective as we can be (realizing that total objective is probably impossible). Try to cast your comments in terms of a reasoned statement or argument. It's not very useful to say "this band is awesome, the best ever!" or "these guys suck." There are plenty of other forums for that kind of discussion. Here I want to keep it as scholarly as we can. I will pop in and contribute from time to time, but these forums are designed primarily for students to discuss topics with one another. Quizzes and Final Exam There will be three quizzes throughout the course. The final exam will incorporate a for the final module along with questions that draw from all previous modules. Bear in mind that the quiz questions are mostly more demanding than those at the end of each video. I don't want you to be surprised or angered by the fact that all of a sudden it seems like things got a lot harder, so please be prepared for this. You will be able to retake each quiz, so if the level of difficulty catches you by surprise, you can re-take the quiz. Announcements and emails Watch the Announcements page for additional information as the course unfolds. I will also send out emails as the situation warrants.
Modules and Themes: View the video lectures listed for each module. Students have the option of using the textbook or not; the video lectures are designed to be self-contained. The textbook provides increased depth, context, and background, as well as dozens of listening guides. [Additional assignments for those using the book are given in brackets below.] Consult the Course Schedule for information regarding lectures, quizzes, and the final exam. "The World Before Rock and Roll (1900-1955)" The Role of Tin Pan Alley in mainstream pop, the formation of a national audience through radio and the rise of television, the pre-rock pop of Frank Sinatra, Patti Page, and Les Paul and Mary Ford; rhythm and blues in the years before rock and roll; country and western and the rise of Nashville. [Read introduction and Chapter 1, along with the listening guides for each.] "The Birth and First Flourishing of Rock and Roll (1955-59)" Chart crossover and cover versions, the first hits of Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and Little Richard, the rise of Elvis Presley, the music of Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly, the rise of American Bandstand, the payola scandal and the "death of rock and roll." [Read Chapter 2 and work through the listening guides in that chapter.] **Quiz for Modules 1 & 2** "The Demise of Rock and the Promise of Soul (1959-63)" Was this era the dark ages for rock music or was it a golden era cut short by the British invasion? The music of teen idols, the folk revival, early surf music, sweet soul, rockabilly pop, and girl groups. The Brill Building songwriters and the rise of the producer. Playlets and splatter platters. [Read Chapter 3 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.] "The Beatles and the British Invasion (1964-66)" The Beatles transform the UK music scene and then invade America. Other Beatles-type British bands. The London blues scene and the Rolling Stones. Other Stones-type bands. The Who and the Kinks. [Read Chapter 4 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.] **Quiz for Modules 3 & 4** "American Responses (1965-67)" Dylan, the Byrds and folk rock. Garage bands in the northwest. Sonny and Cher and the legacy of Phil Spector. TV rock, Paul Revere and the Raiders, and the Monkees. Music in New York and Los Angeles. [Read Chapter 5 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.] "Motown Pop and Southern Soul (1960-69)" Berry Gordy and the rise and first flourishing of Motown. Atlantic, Stax, and southern soul (Memphis, Muscle Shoals, New York). Parallels between Motown and Stax. James Brown and the roots of funk. [Read Chapter 6 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.] **Quiz for Modules 5 and 6** "Psychedelia (1966-69)" How can music be psychedelic? Underground psychedelic scenes in San Francisco and London. Psychedelia in LA. The Summer of Love and the rise of hippie culture. The birth of FM rock and rock magazines. Woodstock and Altamont. [Read Chapter 7 and work through the listening guides for that chapter.] **Final exam**
Music Fundamentals (3 videos) These three videos were originally produced several years ago to accompany the first edition of my college textbook, What's That Sound? An Introduction to Rock and Its History (W.W. Norton). They cover elements of music theory from a rock perspective and are meant for students with no previous musical training. Here's the link to playlist on my YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deV6JSk_bFLmqM8k6lbKIGDk
Listening Guides (19 videos) The link below leads to a YouTube playlist of 19 Listening Guide videos. Each of these video guides corresponds to a Listening Guide in my textbook, What's That Sound? These Listening Guides are not required for the course, though I hope they will enrich your study. No previous knowledge of music theory is required to understand the content of these videos. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBbhpV63deUmTmUkYCGxhUjuXRjEYVdT
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/8cOrQ/the-music-business-in-the-first-half-of-the-20th-century
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/9jtZC/radio-and-regional-vs-national-audiences
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/7P1tf/the-stars-of-pop-music-before-rock-and-roll
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/TAhBr/les-paul-inventor-the-role-of-technology
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/ynDPU/origins-of-country-western-pre-wwii
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/hvhXf/the-rise-of-nashville
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/HNeor/rhythm-and-blues-pre-1945
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/C7OWr/rhythm-blues-post-1945
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/yn7OY/regional-r-b-radio-in-the-1950s
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/hNcKD/doo-wop-and-gospel
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/QlGv4/hokum-blues-and-sexual-lyrics
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/a0AIu/the-rise-of-youth-culture-in-the-1950s
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/EsGEd/radio-and-records
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/cags0/the-first-rock-and-rollers-cross-over
The Birthplace of Rock and Roll - Sun Studio in Memphis, TN - Randomland, 6:27
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=f39JLmAGCUY
Elvis: The Mini Series (Complete Movie), 2:43:40
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4rD9PzSAmWk
13:00-18:53, Sun Studio calls
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/4e13G/sam-phillips-selling-elvis-contract
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/zwkxs/rockabilly-in-the-wake-of-elvis
https://www.coursera.org/learn/history-of-rock/lecture/Hnxld/the-day-the-music-died
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
Obama Promotes Islamist Invasion
With Islamism on the rise in the United States and Western Europe, it’s worth mentioning that the Obama administration issued around 680,000 green cards to foreigners from Muslim countries during a five-year period, according to data published by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The stats, the latest made available by DHS, also show that the U.S. government admits more than double the number of immigrants from Muslim nations than from the European Union.
This disturbing information was circulated by the Senate Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on Immigration, which assesses that if there’s no change in the current policy, the U.S. will likely grant another 680,000 migrants—possibly more—from Muslim-majority countries green cards in the next five years. According to the DHS figures cited by the panel, Uncle Sam issued approximately 680,000 green cards to immigrants from 49 Muslim nations from fiscal year 2009 through fiscal year 2013. Over the same period, the U.S. issued only 270,000 green cards to migrants from the European Union, according to a committee announcement that reminds us “a green card entitles recipients to access federal benefits, lifetime residency, work authorization, and a direct route to becoming a U.S. citizen.” Some of the recipients are admitted to the U.S. as refugees so they immediately qualify for federal welfare benefits like food stamps and Medicaid.
The DHS stats include a breakdown of the countries where the migrants came from. Pakistan and Iraq sent over the most with 83,000 apiece and Bangladesh had 75,000. Seventy-three thousand came from Iran, 45,000 from Egypt, 31,000 from Somalia, 24,000 from Uzbekistan, Turkey and Morocco had 22,000 each, Jordan and Albania 20,000 each and Lebanon and Yemen each had 16,000. Rounding out the five-digit club is Indonesia (15,000), Syria (14,000), Sudan (13,000), Afghanistan (11,000) and Sierra Leone (10,000). The rest, including Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Kosovo and Libya, only sent over a few thousand during the five-year period covered by the DHS data. By contrast, only 65,000 green cards were granted to migrants from the European Union country (United Kingdom) with the highest number during this period. The Senate committee reveals that DHS has not yet published statistics covering fiscal year 2014 and fiscal year 2015 so we’ll be on the lookout for that.
National security has never appeared to be a priority for the Obama administration, but this is downright alarming as the U.S. encounters burgeoning threats from radical Islamists. The president’s ongoing effort to befriend and protect Muslims in the U.S. hasn’t put a dent in these eminent threats. Over the years Judicial Watch has reported on a number of initiatives, including programs at key federal agencies, launched by the administration to reach out to or protect Muslims. DHS even met covertly with a group of extremist Arab, Muslim and Sikh organizations to discuss national security matters and the State Department sent a controversial, anti-America Imam (Feisal Abdul Rauf) to the Middle East to foster greater understanding and outreach among Muslim majority communities. The president also hired a special Homeland Security advisor (Mohamed Elibiary) who openly supports a radical Islamist theologian and renowned jihadist ideologue and a special Islam envoy that condemns U.S. prosecutions of terrorists as “politically motivated persecutions” and has close ties to radical extremist groups.
As if this weren’t bad enough, the administration caved into a terrorist front organization’s demands to purge FBI anti-terrorism material determined to be offensive to Muslims. The group, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), was founded in 1994 by three Middle Eastern extremists and JW obtained hundreds of pages of FBI documents with details of the outrageous deal. Read all about it in this special report. More recently, the administration followed the orders of Islamic activists in suspending an FBI internet program aimed at preventing the radicalization of youth because Muslim and Arab rights groups determined that it discriminates against Muslims and will lead to bullying. After the San Bernardino terrorist attacks the administration issued a warning regarding workplace discrimination “against individuals who are, or perceived to be, Muslim or Middle Eastern.” The directive orders American businesses to accommodate the religious needs of Muslims and assure they aren’t being harassed or intimidated.
Hillary Telephone Lies About Benghazi
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today it has obtained new documents from the Department of State containing the telephone transcripts from the evening of September 11, 2012, in which then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton informs then-Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil that the deadly terrorist attack on the U.S. compound in Benghazi “had nothing to do with the film.” The documents include previously unreleased telephone transcripts with world leaders about the Benghazi attack.
Clinton’s admission to Kandil was first produced to the Select Committee on Benghazi on October 13, 2015 and publicized on the day of Mrs. Clinton’s testimony, October 22, but court filings in Judicial Watch litigation show that the record was only produced after two federal court judges ordered the State Department to produce more Benghazi-related records to Judicial Watch. Similarly, Judicial Watch litigation also forced the release of the September 11, 2012 email in which Secretary of State Hillary Clinton informed her daughter by email that the attack had been staged by an “Al Qaeda-like group,” rather than as the result of “inflammatory material posted on the Internet,” as Mrs. Clinton had claimed in her official public statement one hour earlier.
The State Department previously told a federal court that the Kandil document wasn’t responsive to Judicial Watch’s request and resulting lawsuit (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of State (No. 1:14-cv-01511)) seeking:
Any and all records concerning, regarding, or related to notes, updates, or reports created in response to the September 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. This request includes, but is not limited to, notes taken by then Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton or employees of the Office of the Secretary of State during the attack and its immediate aftermath.
But the State Department then produced this information last month to Judicial Watch. The records, the State Department told the Court, were found among thousands of new Clinton State Department records supposedly only discovered in December, 2015 – again, two months after the key Kandil document was first produced to the Benghazi Committee.
Under court order, the State Department released 11 documents responsive to the Judicial Watch request with large blocks of information redacted. The documents also include phone conservations between Clinton and other foreign dignitaries and heads of state during the period of the deadly terrorist attack on the Benghazi consulate.
At 10:08 p.m. on September 11, Mrs. Clinton issued an official State Department press statement, approved by the White House, placing the blame for the attack on an Internet video:
Some have sought to justify this vicious behavior as a response to inflammatory material posted on the Internet. The United States deplores any intentional effort to denigrate the religious beliefs of others. Our commitment to religious tolerance goes back to the very beginning of our nation. But let me be clear: There is never any justification for violent acts of this kind.
Yet the next day, in her 7:49 PM September 12 conversation with Kandil, Clinton said, “We know the attack in Libya had nothing to do with the film. It was a planned attack – not a protest.” Kandil responded, “You’re not kidding. Based on the information we saw today we believe that group that claimed responsibility for this is affiliated with al-Qaeda.”
On September 15, in a telephone call with then-Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Amr, Clinton emphatically portrayed the “stupid, very offensive film” as the root cause of the Benghazi violence. Clinton told Amr, “I have repeatedly, as has the President and other officials in our government, deplored not only the content of this stupid, very offensive film… But we have to exercise more self-discipline… otherwise we’ll be in a vicious downward circle against everyone who has ever felt offended, particularly on the internet….”
Clinton’s telephone call with Amr also contained a curious reference to what the former secretary referred to as a “very successful investment visit led by my deputy Tom Nides, and on the very day they left this series of incidents began to unfold.” According to the Washington Post, Nides, who was deputy secretary for management and resources at the State Department, was at the same time responsible for “communications with donors” to the Clinton Foundation. Nides was also involved in the scandal involving Clinton’s efforts to provide special access to State Department officials for hedge fund clients of her son-in-law, Marc Mezinsky.
In a September 12 call with the Afghan President Hamid Kharzi, Clinton says at some point they need to talk about “about religious feelings and insults and defamation.” Islamists seeks to criminalize criticism (“defamation”) of Islam. The Obama administration worked closely with advocates for restrictions on free speech as part of their Benghazi video pr campaign.
The documents also show that Clinton referenced the “actions of a mob” to Tunisian Prime Minister Jebali on September 14. Jebali responded that he condemned “these terrorist actions.”
“There are two scandals here. The first is Hillary Clinton was telling different stories to different foreign leaders about the Benghazi attack – including an admission that it was a terrorist attack,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The second is the State Department’s cover-up of these documents. The State Department is forcing Judicial Watch to play ‘whack-a-mole’ with Clinton and Benghazi documents. It is no wonder that two frustrated federal court judges granted Judicial Watch discovery into the Clinton FOIA issues.”
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Monday, April 18, 2016
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Obama Protecting Saudi 9/11 Killers, Bandar
Some information has leaked from the redacted section, including a flurry of pre-9/11 phone calls between one of the hijackers’ Saudi handlers in San Diego and the Saudi Embassy, and the transfer of some $130,000 from then-Saudi Ambassador Prince Bandar’s family checking account to yet another of the hijackers’ Saudi handlers in San Diego.
An investigator who worked with the JTTF in Washington complained that instead of investigating Bandar, the US government protected him — literally. He said the State Department assigned a security detail to help guard Bandar not only at the embassy, but also at his McLean, Va., mansion.
The source added that the task force wanted to jail a number of embassy employees, “but the embassy complained to the US attorney” and their diplomatic visas were revoked as a compromise.
Former FBI agent John Guandolo, who worked 9/11 and related al Qaeda cases out of the bureau’s Washington field office, says Bandar should have been a key suspect in the 9/11 probe.
“The Saudi ambassador funded two of the 9/11 hijackers through a third party,” Guandolo said. “He should be treated as a terrorist suspect, as should other members of the Saudi elite class who the US government knows are currently funding the global jihad.”
But Bandar held sway over the FBI.
After he met on Sept. 13, 2001, with President Bush in the White House, where the two old family friends shared cigars on the Truman Balcony, the FBI evacuated dozens of Saudi officials from multiple cities, including at least one Osama bin Laden family member on the terror watch list. Instead of interrogating the Saudis, FBI agents acted as security escorts for them, even though it was known at the time that 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi citizens.
Saturday, April 16, 2016
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