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.
In three instances (Suras 2:65, 5:60, and 7:166), the Quran tells of Allah turning Jews into apes and/or pigs.
Sura 2:65 “And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.’”
Sura 7:166 “So when they were insolent about that which they had been forbidden, We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.’"
Sura 5:60 “Say, ‘Shall I inform you of [what is] worse than that as penalty from Allah? [It is that of] those (i.e., the Jews) whom Allah has cursed and with whom He became angry and made of them apes and pigs and slaves of Taghut. Those are worse in position and further astray from the sound way.’"
"And remember, Children of Israel, when We made a covenant with you and raised Mount Sinai before you saying, "Hold tightly to what We have revealed to you and keep it in mind so that you may guard against evil." But then you turned away, and if it had not been for Allah's grace and mercy, you surely would have been among the lost. And you know those among who sinned on the Sabbath. We said to them, "You will be transformed into despised apes." So we used them as a warning to their people and to the following generations, as well as a lesson for the God-fearing."[Quran 2:63]
In his "wrath" God has "cursed" the Jews and will turn them into apes/monkeys and swine and idol worshipers because they are "infidels" (Schweitzer, Frederick M. and Perry, Marvin Anti-Semitism: myth and hate from antiquity to the present, Palgrave Macmillan, 2002, p. 266). Martin Kramer contends that Islamic tradition provides the sources for Islamic antisemitism. Thus, Kramer concludes that there is no doubt modern Muslims effectively make selective use of the Quran (Martin Kramer, The Salience of Islamic Antisemitism, Institute of Jewish Affairs Report (London), no. 2, October 1995).
Since the Palestinian Authority was established it has systematically indoctrinated young and old to hate Israelis and Jews. Using media, education, and cultural structures that it controls, the PA has actively promoted religious hatred, demonization, conspiracy libels, etc. These are packaged to present Israelis and Jews as endangering Palestinians, Arabs, and all humanity. This ongoing campaign has so successfully instilled hatred that fighting, murder and even suicide terror against Israelis and Jews are seen by the majority of Palestinians as justified self-defense and as Allah’s will. The PA presents Jews as possessing inherently evil traits. Jews are said to be treacherous, corrupt, deceitful and unfaithful by nature. These Jewish “attributes” and traditions are presented as the unchangeable nature of Jews. Forgeries and fiction masquerading as history are used to document and support the libel that Judaism is in essence racist and evil. Jews are said to be planning and executing heinous crimes, including burning Palestinians in ovens, murder, using prisoners for Nazi-like experiments, and more. If unchecked, these crimes constitute a mortal danger, not only to all Muslims and Arabs but to all of humanity.
The PA assigns responsibility to the Jews for all the problems in the world: Wars, conflicts and civil wars are all said to be triggered by Jews. Indeed, the oppression suffered by Jews throughout history is presented as the legitimate response of nations seeking revenge for the injury caused them by the Jews living among them. The creation of the State of Israel is said to have been a European plot, in order to be rid of their Jews and save Europe from the evil of Jewish presence in their countries.
The following are examples of Palestinian demonization:
Case Study: Portraying Jews as "Apes and Pigs"
In three instances (Suras 2:65, 5:60, and 7:166), the Quran tells of Allah turning Jews into apes and/or pigs.
Sura 2:65 “And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.’” Sura 7:166 “So when they were insolent about that which they had been forbidden, We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.’" Sura 5:60 “Say, ‘Shall I inform you of [what is] worse than that as penalty from Allah? [It is that of] those (i.e., the Jews) whom Allah has cursed and with whom He became angry and made of them apes and pigs and slaves of Taghut. Those are worse in position and further astray from the sound way.’"
(All Quran quotes from Sahih International translation)
There are two differing traditions in Islam regarding what happened to the Jews who were turned into pigs. One view maintains that all pigs alive today are descendants of the Jews who were turned into pigs by Allah. The other view holds that all the Jews who were turned into pigs by Allah died out without reproducing, and therefore there is no relationship between today’s pigs and Jews:
“There are two opinions among the Ulama [Islamic scholars] in this regard: The first is that the Jews, whom Allah transformed and turned into pigs, remained in that state until they died, without producing descendants. The other opinion is that the Jews who turned into pigs multiplied and produced descendants, and their line continues to this day.
Sheikh Othman [Ahmed Ali Othman, supervisor of the Da'awa (Islamic Indoctrination) of the Egyptian Waqf Islamic Holy places]: "I personally tend towards the view that the pigs that exist now have their origins with the Jews, and therefore their consumption is forbidden in the words of Allah: 'A carcass, and blood, and the flesh of a pig are forbidden to you....' Moreover, our master Jesus, peace be unto him - one of the tasks that he will fulfill when he descends to earth is the killing of the pigs, and this is proof that their source is Jewish. Sheikh Othman said that whoever eats pig, it's as if he ate meat of an impure person…
Sheikh Ali Abu Al-Hassan, head of the Fatwa Committee at Al-Azhar [Sunni Islamic university], said that the first view is accurate, because when Allah punishes a group of people he punishes only them. When Allah grew angry with the nation of Moses, He turned them into pigs and apes as an extraordinary punishment... but they died out without leaving descendants."
[Al-Moheet Arab News Network, May 10, 2009, Al-Hakika al-Dawliya, May 9, 2009]
PA religious representatives on numerous occasions have used this tradition to malign Jews, calling them “apes and pigs” in sermons and programs broadcast on Palestinian Authority television.
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Nov. 1, 2015
Official Fatah Spokesman in Jerusalem Raafat Alayan: "The heroic Palestinian people, including its children, women, and elderly, who have made intifada against the occupation and foiled [its plans]... I confirm that in this uprising, we in Jerusalem have succeeded in preventing 80% of the settlers, the sons of apes and pigs, from walking around the Old City and the stairs of the Damascus Gate.” Click to view video Click to view bulletin
In three instances (Suras 2:65, 5:60, and 7:166), the Quran tells of Allah turning Jews into apes and/or pigs. Sura 2:65 “And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.’” Sura 7:166 “So when they were insolent about that which they had been forbidden, We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised.’" Sura 5:60 “Say, ‘Shall I inform you of [what is] worse than that as penalty from Allah? [It is that of] those (i.e., the Jews) whom Allah has cursed and with whom He became angry and made of them apes and pigs and slaves of Taghut. Those are worse in position and further astray from the sound way.’"
Source: Facebook page of the Abdallah Azzam Mosque in Gaza, Oct. 5, 2015
Sheikh Muhammad Abu Sa’ada, sermon at the Abdallah Azzam Mosque in Gaza. Posted on the mosque’s Facebook page. Sheikh Muhammad Abu Sa’ada: “The Al-Aqsa Mosque awaits its Mujahideen (i.e., Jihad fighters), and its Martyrdom-seekers. The Al-Aqsa Mosque is waiting, and it knows that even if the occupier desecrates the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the heroes of Gaza are making preparations and are digging tunnels that lead to Al-Aqsa, and one day they will emerge in the [Al-Aqsa Mosque] plaza, the streets, and alleys, and proclaim: Allah is great! And will announce general mobilization against the brothers of apes and pigs… The Al-Aqsa Mosque awaits the heroes of the West Bank to launch Jihad, and kill every settler and every traitor they come across. Al-Aqsa awaits heroes.
We will be victorious, Allah willing, because Allah is with us. We will be victorious, Allah willing, because it was promised by God’s Messenger [Muhammad]. We will win, Allah willing, because there are Mujahideen, Murabitin (i.e., those who carry out Ribat, religious conflict/war over land claimed to be Islamic) and Martyrdom-seekers. We will be victorious, Allah willing, because there are people among us who strap explosive belts on their bodies, and look forward to their journey to Paradise, to meet [Islam’s] Prophet Muhammad and his companions. By Allah we will be victorious, Allah willing… We await a decision from our leader, who will tell us: “None of you will pray the afternoon prayer anywhere but in Tel Aviv. We will be victorious. We can see this moment, it is imminent.”
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, May 29, 2015
Girl: "I do not fear the rifle
because your throngs are in delusion and are ignorant herds
Jerusalem is my land, Jerusalem is my honor
Jerusalem is my days and my wildest dreams
Oh, you who murdered Allah’s pious prophets (i.e., Jews in Islamic tradition)
Oh, you who were brought up on spilling blood
Oh Sons of Zion, oh most evil among creations
Oh barbaric monkeys
Jerusalem opposes your throngs
Jerusalem vomits from within it your impurity
Because Jerusalem, you impure ones, is pious, immaculate
And Jerusalem, you who are filth, is clean and pure
I do not fear barbarity
As long as my heart is my Quran and my city
As long as I have my arm and my stones
As long as I am free and do not barter my cause
I will not fear your throngs, I will not fear the rifle" PA TV host: "Bravo! Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Palestine, we will never forget it." Click to view video Click to view bulletin
Fatah-run Awdah TV program Personal Interview hosted Fatah Revolutionary Council member Muwaffaq Matar Fatah Revolutionary Council member Muwaffaq Matar recounts how, in 2007, after having written an article on the Gaza revolution, he was criticized by a group of Hamas-affiliated students.
Fatah Revolutionary Council member, Muwaffaq Matar: "They [Hamas] said [about me]: 'It seems that Muwaffaq Matar is a descendant of apes and pigs, physically and mentally.' This is racism... Naturally, they use this expression [to refer] to the Jews. This is unfortunate. We also reject these expressions, because they are not part of our values, absolutely not." Click to view video Click to view bulletin
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Jan. 30, 2015
PA cleric: “Many Muslims are being harmed these days by a group whose hearts were sealed by Allah. ‘He made of them [Jews] apes and pigs and slaves of deities’ (Quran, 5:60). They are harming the livelihood of the believers [Muslims]... They withhold their [the Palestinians'] money and collect interest on it.” Click to view video Click to view bulletin
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Sept. 12, 2014
"Jerusalem is my days and my wildest dreams
O, you who were brought up on spilling blood
O, you who murdered Allah’s pious prophets (i.e., Jews in Islamic tradition)
You have been condemned to humiliation and hardship
O Sons of Zion, O most evil among creations
O barbaric apes, O wretched pigs
As long as my heart is my Quran and my city
As long as I have my arm and my stones
As long as I am free and do not barter my cause
I will not fear your throngs
My belt is around my waist, and my rifle is on my shoulder.” Click to view video Click to view bulletin
Source: Facebook, Fatah - The Main Page, July 3, 2014
“Who is the source of terrorism?
By the poet of the homeland, Khaled Al-Issa
I opened the book
And found the answer:
The source of terrorism is the Zionist
Come and see what happened...
The Zionist, by Allah, is treacherous
O settler, O malicious one
Your time has ended
Read the papers, lawless settler
And hear, O settlers:
You have neither conscience nor religion.
Bastards, all of you
You were brought to this land
From [Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs Avigdor] Liberman’s Russia,
from Ethiopia and Sudan
And the settler is like a monkey...
O world, O sleepers
The birds alight on your heads
Look, see what has happened in Palestine
Where are the decision-makers?
This [West] Bank is protected
And the hearts in it are burning.
O Arabs, enough betrayal:
We wish for the blood to become rivers...
Sheikh Muhammad Al-Tawil teacher in Al-Aqsa Mosque school:
"What's happening at the Al-Aqsa Mosque (i.e., Temple Mount plaza) is a division of time [between Jews and Muslims]. The Israeli occupation authorities lock the Al-Aqsa Mosque from morning until afternoon. At this time, the assistants of the monkeys and pigs (i.e., Jews) and the herds of settlers (i.e., Israelis) can enter the Al-Aqsa Mosque (i.e., Temple Mount plaza) without anything stopping them." Click to view video
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, July 3, 2013
PA TV reporter: "Let's meet these girls who want to recite a short poem." Girl 1: “I do not fear the rifle because your throngs are in delusion and ignorant herds.
Jerusalem is my land, Jerusalem is my honor
Jerusalem is my days and my wildest dreams.
Oh, you who murdered Allah’s pious prophets (i.e., Jews in Islamic tradition)
Oh, you who were brought up on spilling blood
You have been condemned to humiliation and hardship.
Oh Sons of Zion, oh most evil among creations
Oh barbaric monkeys, wretched pigs Girl 2: Jerusalem is not your den
Jerusalem opposes your throngs
Jerusalem vomits from within it your impurity
Because Jerusalem, you impure ones, is pious, immaculate
And Jerusalem, you who are filth, is clean and pure.
I do not fear barbarity.
As long as my heart is my Quran and my city
As long as I have my arm and my stones
As long as I am free and do not barter my cause
I will not fear your throngs
I will not fear the rifle.” Click to view video Click to view bulletin
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Mar. 22, 2013
A young girl recites a poem filled with libels demonizing Jews on the weekly PA TV children's show The Best Home: Girl: "Allah created me and formed me
He made me prouder and made me a Palestinian
He made defiance flow like blood in my veins
And I made the revolution burst forth like clay stones
I raised the flags of certain victory:
Allah's book [the Quran] and the tradition of the most esteemed among prophets [Muhammad].
I called in the voice of hidden justice
I lit a fire like volcanoes under their feet
I refused to be submissive and degraded
I rejected [everything] but dying with the honor that will give me life
From a nation that has forgotten the Muslims' heroism
- Omar ibn al-Khattab and Saladin - [Muslim fighters who conquered Jerusalem]
from between the whistles of the bullets I sing:
'Long live the nation of Fatah and Yasser Arafat'
Allah's enemies, the sons of pigs (i.e., Jews, in Islamic tradition)
Destroyed and uprooted the olive and fig trees
They murdered children with guns, like snakes
They cut off their limbs with stones and knives
They raped the women in the city squares
They defiled Allah's book [the Quran] in front of millions
Where is the nation of Islam?
Where are the nation of Islam and the Jihad fighters?
Where is the fear of Allah in Jerusalem, which has been defiled by the Zionists?" PA TV host: "Bravo, applause, applause, applause to Hadeel." Click to view video Click to view bulletin
Source: Official PA daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Dec. 21, 2012
In his weekly column in “Sermon,” the religious supplement to the official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Sheikh Taleb Al-Silwadi wrote:
“And here we have our Palestinian nation, engaged in Ribat, (religious conflict/war defending Islamic land), the strong Jihad fighter, adhering to its religion and faith, challenging the tyranny and oppression of the Zionists, those descendants of monkeys and pigs who thought they could deny us our strength. They forgot that Allah will rise up with us and that their policy is fraud and deceit."
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Jan. 9, 2012
Moderator at Fatah ceremony:
"Our war with the descendants of the apes and pigs (i.e., Jews) is a war of religion and faith. Long Live Fatah! [I invite you,] our honorable Sheikh."
PA Mufti Muhammad Hussein comes to the podium and says:
"47 years ago the [Fatah] revolution started. Which revolution? The modern revolution of the Palestinian people's history. In fact, Palestine in its entirety is a revolution, since [Caliph] Umar came [to conquer Jerusalem, 637 CE], and continuing today, and until the End of Days. The reliable Hadith (tradition attributed to Muhammad), [found] in the two reliable collections, Bukhari and Muslim, says:
"The Hour [of Resurrection] will not come until you fight the Jews.
The Jew will hide behind stones or trees.
Then the stones or trees will call:
'Oh Muslim, servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.'
Except the Gharqad tree [which will keep silent]."
Therefore it is no wonder that you see Gharqad [trees]
surrounding the [Israeli] settlements and colonies.." Click to view video Click to view bulletin
In October 2011, the Israeli government agreed to release 1,027 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prison in exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who had been held hostage by Hamas for more than 5 years. Hamas TV program Festival and Freedom marked the Festival of Sacrifice and the release of prisoners in the Shalit deal with the following song: "Today we fulfilled [our commitment] to those who are free...
We achieved what we hoped for
We destroyed the prisons of evil...
Abbas Al-Sayid insisted on
Being the last hero to be liberated
And closing the Ketziot prison, and Ofer
Closing the Ketziot prison, and Ofer
And Netanyahu committed suicide over the defeat
The ape, Israel, will remain sad
And the new Shalit [will be] humiliated at our hands
All the prisons will be emptied..."
Source: Official PA daily, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Apr. 19, 2011
"The spring carnival has retained its [Palestinian] flavor in towns such as Bethlehem, Beit Sahour and Ramallah... with the demonstrations of the Scouts, songs, dances, and popular Palestinian hymns about Christian-Islamic unity and internal Christian unity. These hymns carry meaningful messages, in response to the Israeli prohibition [to enter Jerusalem], as seen in the calls of the youth who lead the procession of light, waving swords and not caring if anyone accuses them of Antisemitism: ... 'Our Lord, Jesus Christ, Christ redeemed us, with his blood he bought us, and today we are joyous while the Jews are sad,' and, 'Jews, Jews! Your holiday is the Holiday of the Apes, while our holiday is the Holiday of the Christ.'" Click to view bulletin
"Jerusalem is exposed to every vagabond, and its parts belong to every nomadic traveler – and this since the settlers, the rabble descendants of apes and pigs began defiling the parts of Jerusalem…
Allah, raise up for Islam a state that will glorify Islam and its people, and will humiliate blasphemy and its people… Allah, we have entrusted you with the throats of the Jews; Allah, count them and kill them one by one, do not leave even one of them upon the land of Palestine."
Friday prayer and sermon, unidentified Hamas speaker:
"Today we look at Al-Aqsa as it sighs beneath the yoke of the Jews, beneath the yoke of the sons of apes and pigs, brothers of apes and pigs. Destroy the Jews and their helpers." Click here to view
"Sheikh Ahmed Ali Othman, supervisor of the Da'awa [Islamic Indoctrination] of the Egyptian Waqf [Islamic Holy places], has issued a Religious Ruling (Fatwa) that pigs in our time have their origins in Jews who angered Allah, such that He turned them into apes, pigs, and Satan-worshippers, and it is obligatory to kill and slaughter them [the pigs]. Othman based his ruling on the respected Quranic verse, 'Say [to the People of the Book - Jews and Christians], Come and I shall make known to you who receives the worst retribution of all from Allah: those whom Allah has cursed and upon whom He has poured His wrath, whom He has made into apes and pigs, and who have served abominations...' (Quran:5:60) Click to view bulletin
Hamas Cleric:
"I want to tell the residents of Gaza that the next captives' exchange deal will be stronger and more painful for the descendants of apes and pigs [i.e., Jews]... you [Israel] will pay dearly for this deal [prisoner exchange], and in the deals that will follow it, and in the deals that will follow those."
Bassem Al-Takrouri, Hamas suicide terrorist: "Angels of mercy, escort our souls to Heaven after we fulfill this duty of crushing the descendants of apes and pigs. Dear father and mother, blessings of honor and respect to you while you escort me to the Maidens of Paradise as a Martyr." Click to view video
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Nov. 5, 2004
Ibrahim Mudayris, PA religious official, Ministry of Religious Affairs:
“We are absolutely sure that the Zionist government is responsible for the attempt to kill the president [Arafat]. We have no doubt that it somehow poisoned him to kill him slowly. These are the cursed apes and pigs [Jews]. It is our right to pray to Allah to cure him, and to plant poison the hearts of those pigs. Have you seen them on TV embracing each other, singing and dancing, those apes, those pigs, on the news about the president’s death.” Click to view video
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Oct. 10, 2004
Ibrahim Mudayris, Official, PA Ministry of Religious Trusts and Religious Affairs:
"The Prophet said: The Resurrection will not take place until the Muslims fight the Jews, and the Muslims kill them. Rejoice in Allah's victory... Everything wants vengeance on the Jews... these pigs on the face of the earth. And the day of our victory, Allah willing, will come."
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Sept. 12, 2004
PA cleric, Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim Madi:
“We are waging this cruel war with the brothers of the apes and pigs, the Jews and the Sons of Zion. The Jews will fight you and you will subjugate them. Until the Jew will stand behind the tree and the rock. And the tree and the rock will say: oh Muslim, oh servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.” Click to view video
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Sept. 10, 2004
Ibrahim Mudayris, official, PA Ministry of Religious Trusts and Religious Affairs:
"The Prophet said: 'The resurrection will not take place until the Muslims fight the Jews, and the Muslims kill them. The Muslims will kill the Jews, rejoice [in it], rejoice in Allah’s victory. The Muslims will kill the Jews, and he will hide.' The Prophet said: 'The Jews will hide behind rock and tree, and the rock and tree will say: 'Oh servant of Allah, oh Muslim, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him!' Why is there this malice? Because there are none who love the Jews on the face of the earth: not man, not rock, and not tree. Everything hates them. They destroy everything. They destroy the trees and destroy the houses. Everything wants vengeance on the Jews, on these pigs on the face of the earth, and the day of our victory, Allah willing, will come." Click to view video
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Sept. 29, 2003
Girl on phone to TV show: Girl: "My name is Alaa, I am from Rafah, ten years old." Host: "Yes, please, Alaa." Girl: "Let the pigs and the apes know, and their leaders Sharon and Bush, that we shall stay on this land, our birth place and origin. And we shall be buried there, Shahids (Martyrs) for Palestine.”
Source: Official Palestinian Authority TV, Nov. 1, 2002
Dr. Mahmoud Mustafa Najem, PA religious figure:
"Praise unto Allah, Who cursed our enemies; curse upon curse up to Judgment Day. And He has cursed them as well through the words of His prophets and emissaries… The Jews, however, as is their nature, and as Allah described them in His Book, [characterizing them] by conceit, pride, arrogance, rampage, disloyalty and treachery... They have a single common trait: enmity of Islam and Moslems... Note [their] deceit and cunning. Thus, it is not an exception to their nature, for which Allah transformed them to apes and pigs. [Quran] "We said to them: Be apes, despised and loathed."" Click to view video
Source: Radio Voice of Palestine (Fatah), July 11, 1997
Ikrima Sabri, Head of the [Palestinian] Organization of Clerics and Disseminators of Islam and former Mufti of Jerusalem, in sermon: "Oh, Allah, destroy America as it is controlled by Zionist Jews... Allah will avenge, in the name of his Prophet, the colonialist settlers who are the descendents of apes and pigs...
In his song, "Seein' Red, Ian Hunter refers to Gary_Webb who was an investigative reporter. Webb examined the origins of the crack cocaine trade in Los Angeles and claimed that members of the anti-government Contra rebels in Nicaragua had played a major role in creating the trade, using cocaine profits to support their struggle. It also suggested that the Contras may have acted with the knowledge and protection of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Under unusual circumstances Webb's death was ruled a suicide.
Some groups and individuals believe that the requirement to obtain a marriage license is unnecessary or immoral. The Libertarian Party, for instance, believes that marriage should be a matter of personal liberty, not requiring permission from the state.[7][8] Individuals that align with this libertarian stance argue that marriage is a right, and that by allowing the state to exercise control over marriage, it falsely presupposes that we merely have the privilege, not the right, to marry. As an example of a right (as opposed to a privilege), those that are born in the US receive a birth certificate (certifying that they have been born), not a birth license (which would give them license so they could be born). Some Christian groups also argue that a marriage is a contract between a man and a woman presided over by God, so no authorization from the state is required. Some US states have started citing the state specifically as a party in the marriage contract[9] which is seen by some as an infringement.[10]
Relief panel showing The Spoils of Jerusalem being brought into Rome, Arch of Titus, Rome, after 81 C.E., marble, 7 feet,10 inches high. Speakers: Dr. Steven Fine and Dr. Beth Harris.Created byBeth Harris and Steven Zucker.
The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (Pub.L. 82–414, 66 Stat.163, enacted June 27, 1952), also known as the McCarran–Walter Act, restricted immigration into the U.S. and is codified under Title 8 of the United States Code (8 U.S.C.ch. 12). The Act governs primarily immigration to and citizenship in the United States. It has been in effect since December 24, 1952.
Speaking in the Senate on March 2, 1953, the Democrat, McCarran, said (Senator Pat McCarran, Cong. Rec., March 2, 1953, p. 1518):
I believe that this nation is the last hope of Western civilization
and if this oasis of the world shall be overrun, perverted, contaminated
or destroyed, then the last flickering light of humanity will be
extinguished. I take no issue with those who would praise the
contributions which have been made to our society by people of many
races, of varied creeds and colors. ... However, we have in the United
States today hard-core, indigestible blocs which have not become
integrated into the American way of life, but which, on the contrary are
its deadly enemies. Today, as never before, untold millions are
storming our gates for admission and those gates are cracking under the
strain. The solution of the problems of Europe and Asia will not come
through a transplanting of those problems en masse to the United States.
... I do not intend to become prophetic, but if the enemies of this
legislation succeed in riddling it to pieces, or in amending it beyond
recognition, they will have contributed more to promote this nation's
downfall than any other group since we achieved our independence as a
nation.
America is the last hope of Western Civilization and if overrun by any creed (such as Islamism) or any race (i.e., Hispanic or others) that does not assimilate or are enemies the nation will decline as a result.
In fact, Federal law does permit a president to ban those who are deemed security risks from entering the country. The relevant passage states:
"Whenever the President finds that the entry of any aliens or of any class of aliens into the United States would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, he may by proclamation, and for such period as he shall deem necessary, suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate. Whenever the Attorney General finds that a commercial airline has failed to comply with regulations of the Attorney General relating to requirements of airlines for the detection of fraudulent documents used by passengers traveling to the United States (including the training of personnel in such detection), the Attorney General may suspend the entry of some or all aliens transported to the United States by such airline." Cf. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1182
During the latest controversy over immigration, Khizr Khan spoke alongside his wife Ghazala Khan at the Democratic National Convention. On behalf of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Democratic nominee for president, Khizr Khan questioned Donald Trump’s policies on immigration—specifically his plan to bar Muslim migration from regions afflicted with rampant terrorism into America temporarily until the United States can figure out the situation.
Khan brought out a pocket Constitution, claiming inaccurately that Trump’s plans were unconstitutional. That’s not true, as Congress has already granted such power to the presidentunder the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952—allowing the president to bar migration of any alien or class of aliens the president sees as a threat to the United States for any reason at any time. Such a class of aliens could be Muslims, or it could be people from a specific region of the world, or any other class—such as someone’s race, weight, height, age, national origin, religion, or anything else.
Zoroastrianism,[n 1] or more natively Mazdayasna,[1] is one of the world's oldest religions, "combining a cosmogonic dualism and eschatological monotheism in a manner unique... among the major religions of the world."[2] Ascribed to the teachings of the Iranian Prophet Zoroaster (or Zarathustra),[3] he exalted their deity of wisdom, Ahura Mazda, (Wise Lord) as its Supreme Being.[4]
Leading characteristics, such as messianism, heaven and hell, and free will influenced other religious systems, including Second Temple Judaism, Gnosticism, Christianity, and Islam.[5] With possible roots dating back to the second millennium BCE, Zoroastrianism enters recorded history in the 5th-century BCE,[4] and including a Mithraic Median prototype and Zurvanist Sassanid successor it served as the state religion of the pre-Islamic Iranian empires from around 600 BCE to 650 CE.
Zoroastrianism was suppressed from the 7th century onwards following the Muslim conquest of Persia.[6] Recent estimates place the current number of Zoroastrians at around 2.6 million, with most living in India and Iran.[7][8][n 2] Besides the Zoroastrian diaspora, the older Mithraic faith Yazdânism is still practised amongst the Kurds.[n 3]
The religious philosophy of Zoroaster divided the early Iranian gods.[9] The most important texts of the religion are those of the Avesta.[10] In Zoroastrianism, the creator Ahura Mazda, through the Spenta Mainyu (Good Spirit, "Bounteous Immortals")[11] is an all-good "father" of Asha (Truth, “order, justice,")[12][13] in opposition to Druj (“falsehood, deceit”)[14][15] and no evil originates from "him".[16] "He" and his works are evident to humanity through the six primary Amesha Spentas[17] and the host of other Yazatas, through whom worship of Mazda is ultimately directed. Spenta Mainyu adjoined unto "truth"[18] oppose the Spirit's opposite,[19][20] Angra Mainyu and its forces born of Akəm Manah (“evil thinking”).[21]
Zoroastrianism has no major theological divisions, though it is not uniform; modern-era influences having a significant impact on individual and local beliefs, practices, values and vocabulary, sometimes merging with tradition and in other cases displacing it.[22] In Zoroastrianism, the purpose in life is to "be among those who renew the world...to make the world progress towards perfection". Its basic maxims include:
Humata, Hukhta, Huvarshta, which mean: Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds.
There is only one path and that is the path of Truth.
Do the right thing because it is the right thing to do, and then all beneficial rewards will come to you also.
The most important texts of the religion are those of the Avesta, which includes the writings of Zoroaster known as the Gathas, enigmatic poems that define the religion's precepts, and the Yasna, the scripture. The full name by which Zoroaster addressed the deity is: Ahura, The Lord Creator, and Mazda, Supremely Wise.
He proclaimed that there is only one God, the singularly creative and sustaining force of the Universe. He also stated that human beings are given a right of choice, and because of cause and effect are also responsible for the consequences of their choices.
Zoroaster's teachings focused on responsibility, and did not introduce a devil, per se. The contesting force to Ahura Mazda was called Angra Mainyu, or angry spirit. Post-Zoroastrian scripture introduced the concept of Ahriman, the Devil, which was effectively a personification of Angra Mainyu.[23]
Zoroastrianism was founded by Zoroaster (or Zarathustra), later deemed a prophet, in ancient Iran. The precise date of the founding of Zoroastrianism is uncertain. Zoroaster was born in either Northeast Iran or Southwest Afghanistan. He was born into a culture with a polytheistic religion, which included animal sacrifice[69] and the ritual use of intoxicants, quite similar to early forms of Hinduism in India. Zoroaster's birth and early life are little documented. What is known is recorded in the Gathas—the core of the Avesta, which contains hymns thought to be composed by Zoroaster himself. Born into the Spitama clan, he worked as a priest. He had a wife, three sons, and three daughters.
Zoroaster rejected the religion of the Bronze Age Iranians, with their many gods and oppressive class structure, in which the Karvis and Karapans (princes and priests) controlled the ordinary people. He also opposed animal sacrifices and the use of the hallucinogenic Haoma plant (possibly a species of ephedra) in rituals, but held the rooster as a "symbol of light"[70] and associated it with "good against evil"[71] because of his heraldic actions.
Vision of Zoroaster
According to Zoroastrian belief, when Zoroaster was 30 years old, he went into the Daiti river to draw water for a Haoma ceremony; when he emerged, he received a vision of Vohu Manah. After this, Vohu Manah took him to the other six Amesha Spentas, where he received the completion of his vision.[72] This vision radically transformed his view of the world, and he tried to teach this view to others. Zoroaster believed in one creator God, teaching that only one God was worthy of worship. Some of the deities of the old religion, the Daevas (Devas in Sanskrit), appeared to delight in war and strife. Zoroaster said these were evil spirits, workers of Angra Mainyu.
Zoroaster's ideas were not taken up quickly; he originally only had one convert: his cousin Maidhyoimanha.[73] The local religious authorities opposed his ideas, considering that their faith, power, and particularly their rituals, were threatened by Zoroaster's teaching against over-ritualising religious ceremonies. Many did not like Zoroaster's downgrading of the Daevas to evil spirits. After 12 years of little success, Zoroaster left his home.
In the country of King Vishtaspa in Bactria, the king and queen heard Zoroaster debating with the religious leaders of the land and decided to accept Zoroaster's ideas as the official religion of their kingdom. Zoroaster died in his late 70s. Very little is known of the time between Zoroaster and the Achaemenian period, except that Zoroastrianism spread to Western Iran. By the time of the founding of the Achaemenid Empire, Zoroastrianism was already a well-established religion.
A video that the life of the Iranian prophet Zoroaster and the essence of his teachings.
This is a product of Mexus Education Pvt. Ltd., an education innovations company based in Mumbai, India.
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The roots of Zoroastrianism are thought to have emerged from a common prehistoric Indo-Iranian religious system dating back to the early 2nd millennium BCE.[33] The prophet Zoroaster himself, though traditionally dated to the 6th century BC, is thought by many modern historians to have been a reformer of the polytheistic Iranian religion who lived in the 10th century BC.[34] Zoroastrianism as a religion was not firmly established until several centuries later. Zoroastrianism enters recorded history in the mid-5th century BCE. Herodotus' The Histories (completed c. 440 BCE) includes a description of Greater Iranian society with what may be recognizably Zoroastrian features, including exposure of the dead.
The Histories is a primary source of information on the early period of the Achaemenid era (648–330 BCE), in particular with respect to the role of the Magi. According to Herodotus i.101, the Magi were the sixth tribe of the Medians (until the unification of the Persian empire under Cyrus the Great, all Iranians were referred to as "Mede" or "Mada" by the peoples of the Ancient World), who appear to have been the priestly caste of the Mesopotamian-influenced branch of Zoroastrianism today known as Zurvanism, and who wielded considerable influence at the courts of the Median emperors.
The Zoroastrian Achaemenid Empire at its greatest extent was the largest ancient empire in recorded history at 8.0 million km2 (480 BCE).[35]
Following the unification of the Median and Persian empires in 550 BCE, Cyrus the Great and, later, his son Cambyses II curtailed the powers of the Magi after they had attempted to sow dissent following their loss of influence. In 522 BCE, the Magi revolted and set up a rival claimant to the throne. The usurper, pretending to be Cyrus' younger son Smerdis, took power shortly thereafter.[36] Owing to the despotic rule of Cambyses and his long absence in Egypt, "the whole people, Persians, Medes and all the other nations" acknowledged the usurper, especially as he granted a remission of taxes for three years (Herodotus iii. 68).
Darius I and later Achaemenid emperors acknowledged their devotion to Ahura Mazda in inscriptions, as attested to several times in the Behistun inscription, and appear to have continued the model of coexistence with other religions. Whether Darius was a follower of Zoroaster has not been conclusively established, since devotion to Ahura Mazda was (at the time) not necessarily an indication of an adherence to Zoroaster's teaching. A number of the Zoroastrian texts that today are part of the greater compendium of the Avesta have been attributed to that period. This calendar attributed to the Achaemenid period is still in use today. Additionally, the divinities, or yazatas, are present-day Zoroastrian angels (Dhalla, 1938).
According to later Zoroastrian legend (Denkard and the Book of Arda Viraf), many sacred texts were lost when Alexander the Great's troops invaded Persepolis and subsequently destroyed the royal library there. Diodorus Siculus's Bibliotheca historica, which was completed circa 60 BCE, appears to substantiate this Zoroastrian legend (Diod. 17.72.2–17.72.6). According to one archaeological examination, the ruins of the palace of Xerxes bear traces of having been burned (Stolze, 1882). Whether a vast collection of (semi-)religious texts "written on parchment in gold ink", as suggested by the Denkard, actually existed remains a matter of speculation, but is unlikely. Given that many of the Denkards statements-as-fact have since been refuted among scholars, the tale of the library is widely accepted to be fictional (Kellens, 2002).
The religion would be professed many centuries following the demise of the Achaemenids in mainland Persia and the core regions of the former Achaemenid Empire, most notably Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and the Caucasus. In the Cappadocian kingdom, whose territory was formerly an Achaemenid possession, Persian colonists, cut off from their co-religionists in Iran proper, continued to practice the faith [Zoroastrianism] of their forefathers; and there Strabo, observing in the first century B.C., records (XV.3.15) that these "fire kindlers" possessed many "holy places of the Persian Gods", as well as fire temples.[37] Strabo furthermore relates, were "noteworthy enclosures; and in their midst there is an altar, on which there is a large quantity of ashes and where the magi keep the fire ever burning."[37] Through and after the Hellenistic periods in the aforementioned regions, the religion would be strongly revived as a major thing.
Most of the Sassanid Empire was overthrown by the Arabs over the course of 16 years in the 7th century. Although the administration of the state was rapidly Islamicized and subsumed under the Umayyad Caliphate, in the beginning "there was little serious pressure" exerted on newly subjected people to adopt Islam.[43] Because of their sheer numbers, the conquered Zoroastrians had to be treated as dhimmis (despite doubts of the validity of this identification that persisted down the centuries),[44] which made them eligible for protection. Islamic jurists took the stance that only Muslims could be perfectly moral, but "unbelievers might as well be left to their iniquities, so long as these did not vex their overlords."[44]
The Arabs adopted the Sassanid tax-system, both the land-tax levied on land owners and the poll-tax levied on individuals,[44] called jizya, a tax levied on non-Muslims (i.e., the dhimmis). In time, this poll-tax came to be used as a means to humble the non-Muslims, and a number of laws and restrictions evolved to emphasize their inferior status.
Under Abbasid rule, Muslim Iranians (who by then were in the majority) increasingly found ways to taunt Zoroastrians, and distressing them became a popular sport. For example, in the 9th century, a deeply venerated cypress tree in Khorasan (which Parthian-era legend supposed had been planted by Zoroaster himself) was felled for the construction of a palace in Baghdad, 2,000 miles (3,200 km) away.
In the 10th century, on the day that a Tower of Silence had been completed at much trouble and expense, a Muslim official contrived to get up onto it, and to call the adhan (the Muslim call to prayer) from its walls. This was made a pretext to annex the building.[45]
Another popular means to distress Zoroastrians was to maltreat dogs, as these animals are sacred in Zoroastrianism. Such baiting, which was to continue down the centuries, was indulged in by all; not only by high officials, but by the general uneducated population as well.
The first edict, adapted from an Arsacid and Sassanid one (but in those to the advantage of Zoroastrians), was that only a Muslim could own Muslim slaves or indentured servants. Thus, a bonded individual owned by a Zoroastrian could automatically become a freeman by converting to Islam. The other edict was that if one male member of a Zoroastrian family converted to Islam, he instantly inherited all its property.
Despite economic and social incentives to convert, Zoroastrianism remained strong in some regions, particularly in those furthest away from the Caliphate capital at Baghdad. In Bukhara (in present-day Uzbekistan), resistance to Islam required the 9th-century Arab commander Qutaiba to convert his province four times. The first three times the citizens reverted to their old religion. Finally, the governor made their religion "difficult for them in every way", turned the local fire temple into a mosque, and encouraged the local population to attend Friday prayers by paying each attendee two dirhams.[48] The cities where Arab governors resided were particularly vulnerable to such pressures, and in these cases the Zoroastrians were left with no choice but to either conform or migrate to regions that had a more amicable administration.[48]
Due to Islamic oppression and bigotry, Zoroastrians have fled to India, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Persia, and an expatriate community has formed in the United States (some from India), and to a lesser extent in the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.
See the spread of the religion known as Zoroastrianism. It also includes Manichaeism but not any of the other religions that are associated with Zoroastrianism.
https://youtu.be/CuEGCNw3S_8
Zoroastrianism is often compared with the Manichaeism. Nominally an Iranian religion, it has its origins in the Middle-Eastern Gnosticism. Superficially such a comparison seem apt, as both are dualistic and Manichaeism adopted many of the Yazatas for its own pantheon. Gherardo Gnoli, in The Encyclopaedia of Religion, says that "we can assert that Manichaeism has its roots in the Iranian religious tradition and that its relationship to Mazdaism, or Zoroastrianism, is more or less like that of Christianity to Judaism".[66]
They are however quite different.[67] Manichaeism equated evil with matter and good with spirit, and was therefore particularly suitable as a doctrinal basis for every form of asceticism and many forms of mysticism. Zoroastrianism, on the other hand, rejects every form of asceticism, has no dualism of matter and spirit (only of good and evil), and sees the spiritual world as not very different from the natural one (the word "paradise", or pairi.daeza, applies equally to both.)
Manichaeism's basic doctrine was that the world and all corporeal bodies were constructed from the substance of Satan, an idea that is fundamentally at odds with the Zoroastrian notion of a world that was created by God and that is all good, and any corruption of it is an effect of the bad. From what may be inferred from many Manichean texts and a few Zoroastrian sources, the adherents of the two religions (or at least their respective priesthoods) despised each other intensely.
Zoroastrians believe that there is one universal, transcendent, supreme god, Ahura Mazda, or the "Wise Lord". (Ahura means "Being" and Mazda means "Mind" in Avestan language).[25] Zoroaster keeps the two attributes separate as two different concepts in most of the Gathas and also consciously uses a masculine word for one concept and a feminine for the other, as if to distract from an anthropomorphism of his divinity. Zoroaster claimed that Ahura Mazda is almighty, though not omnipotent.
Other scholars assert that since Zoroastrianism's divinity covers both being and mind as immanent entities, it is better described as a belief in an immanent self-creating universe with consciousness as its special attribute, thereby putting Zoroastranism in the pantheistic fold where it can be easily traced to its shared origin with Indian Brahmanism.[26][27] In any case, Ahura Mazda's creation—evident is widely agreed as asha, truth and order—is the antithesis of chaos, which is evident as druj, falsehood and disorder. The resulting conflict involves the entire universe, including humanity, which has an active role to play in the conflict.[28]
In Zoroastrian tradition, the "chaotic" is represented by Angra Mainyu (also referred to as "Ahriman"), the "Destructive Principle", while the benevolent is represented through Ahura Mazda's Spenta Mainyu, the instrument or "Bounteous Principle" of the act of creation. It is through Spenta Mainyu that transcendental Ahura Mazda is immanent in humankind, and through which the Creator interacts with the world. According to Zoroastrian cosmology, in articulating the Ahuna Vairya formula, Ahura Mazda made His ultimate triumph evident to Angra Mainyu. As expressions and aspects of Creation, Ahura Mazda emanated the Amesha Spentas ("Bounteous Immortals"), that are each the hypostasis and representative of one aspect of that Creation. These Amesha Spenta are in turn assisted by a league of lesser principles, the Yazatas, each "Worthy of Worship" and each again a hypostasis of a moral or physical aspect of creation.
Zoroastrian theology includes a duty to protect nature. This has led some to proclaim it as the "world's first ecological religion." Scholars have argued that, since the protections are part of a ritual, they stem from theology rather than ecology. Others have responded that, since the scripture calls for the protection of water, earth, fire, air, as once of its strongest precepts, it is, in effect, an ecological religion: "It is not surprising that Mazdaism (another term for Zoroastrianism) is called the first ecological religion. The reverence for Yazatas (divine spirits) emphasizes the preservation of nature (Avesta: Yasnas 1.19, 3.4, 16.9; Yashts 6.3-4, 10.13)." [29]
One of the worlds last and largest communities of Zoroastrians celebrates its annual fire festival in Iran, where the government has recently been more accepting of its pre-Islamic Persian heritage. WSJ's Bill Spindle reports.
"Zoroastrian rituals and prayers are solemnized in the presence of a Fire, which is scrupulously tended with sandalwood and frankincence and kept buning in a silver urn in the inner sanctum of every Zoroastrian "fire-temple" also called a Darbe Mehr (door of devotion). Fire is revered as a visual symbol of the Inner Light, the devine spark, that burns in each and every heart; a physical representation of the Illuminated Mind, Enlightenment and Truth. It is important to note that Zoroastirans do not "worship fire" as the religion denounces the worship of any idols or dieties." The mobed (priest) wears a mouth veil to prevent contamination of the fire.
"Ashem Vohu, vahishtem asti, Ushta asti, ushta ahmai Hyat ashai, vahishtai ashem
-To think a good thought, to speak a good word, to do a good deed, is the best. Everlasting happiness to those who follow the Path of Asha"
The World Religions class observing this prayer are wearing hats and head coverings as a sign of respect to the sanctity of the place of worship. It is very special and rare for nonpractitioners to be allowed into the inner sanctum.
BBC News Keeping Zoroastrianism alive after 3,000 years
https://youtu.be/a4ezRTvDrqw
Cosmogony
Creation of the universe
According to the Zoroastrian story of creation, Ahura Mazda existed in light in goodness above, while Angra Mainyu existed in darkness and ignorance below. They have existed independently of each other for all time, and manifest contrary substances. Ahura Mazda first created seven abstract heavenly beings called Amesha Spentas, who support him and represent beneficent aspects, along with numerous yazads, lesser beings worthy of worship. He then created the universe itself in order to ensnare evil. Ahura Mazda created the floating, egg-shaped universe in two parts: first the spiritual (menog) and 3,000 years later, the physical (getig). Ahura Mazda then created Gayomard, the archetypical perfect man, and the first bull.[74]
While Ahura Mazda created the universe and humankind, Angra Mainyu, whose instinct is to destroy, miscreated demons, evil yazads, and noxious creatures (khrafstar) such as snakes, ants, and flies. Angra Mainyu created an opposite, evil being for each good being, except for humans, which he found he could not match. Angra Mainyu invaded the universe through the base of the sky, inflicting Gayomard and the bull with suffering and death. However, the evil forces were trapped in the universe and could not retreat. The dying primordial man and bull emitted seeds. From the bull's seed grew all beneficial plants and animals of the world, and from the man's seed grew a plant whose leaves became the first human couple. Humans thus struggle in a two-fold universe trapped with evil. The evils of this physical world are not products of an inherent weakness, but are the fault of Angra Mainyu's assault on creation. This assault turned the perfectly flat, peaceful, and ever day-lit world into a mountainous, violent place that is half night.[74]
Enlarge this image.Female Shinto spirit, Heian period (794–1185) or Kamakura period (1185–1333), approx. 1100–1200. Japan. Wood with traces of pigment. Courtesy of the Asian Art Museum, Transfer from the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Gift of Mrs. Herbert Fleishacker, B69S36.This figure represents a Shinto goddess; her name is not known. She is depicted as an aristocratic woman, dressed in a thick kimono-like garment. Shinto images like this one were not meant to be seen but were kept hidden in movable cabinets in a special part of shrines, where they were privately worshiped. Since ancient times, the Japanese worshiped spirits (kami) who were believed to exist abundantly in such forms of the natural world as mountains, rocks, waterfalls, and trees. As such, they were not depicted in human form, male or female. It was only in the ninth century, under the strong influence of Buddhist image-making, kami began to be depicted in human form.
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Stair, John Bettridge, Old Samoa; Or, Flotsam and Jetsam From the Pacific Ocean;
Starr, Chester G., The Roman Empire, 27 B.C.-A.D. 476: A Study in Survival;
Starr, John Bryan, Understanding China: A Guide to China's Economy, History, and Political Culture;
Stauffer, John, Giants: The Parallel Lives of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln;
Steyn, Mark, America Alone: The End of the World As We Know It;
Strassler, Robert B., The Landmark Herodotus: The Histories;
Strassler, Robert B., The Landmark Thucydides: A Comprehensive Guide to the Peloponnesian War;
Strassler, Robert B., The Landmark Xenophon's Hellenika;
Strategy + Business;
Streete, Gail, Redeemed Bodies: Women Martyrs in Early Christianity;
Sullivan, James, The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved the Soul of America;
Sumner, Graham, Roman Military Clothing (1) 100 BC-AD 200;
Sumner, Graham, Roman Military Clothing (2) AD 200-400;
Suskind, Ron, The One Percent Doctrine: Deep Inside America's Pursuit of Its Enemies Since 9/11:
Swanston, Malcolm, Mapping History Battles and Campaigns;
Swiderski, Richard M., Quicksilver: A History of the Use, Lore, and Effects of Mercury;
Swiderski, Richard M., Quicksilver: A History of the Use, Lore, and Effects of Mercury;
Swift, Jonathan, Gulliver's Travels;
Syme, Ronald, The Roman Revolution;
Talley, Colin L., A History of Multiple Sclerosis;
Tawil, Camille, Brothers In Arms: The Story of al-Qa'ida and the Arab Jihadists;
Tech Briefs: Engineering Solutions for Design & Manufacturing;
Tech Net: The Microsoft Journal for IT Professionals;
Tech Partner: Gain a Competitive Edge Through Solutions Providers;
Technology & Learning: Ideas and Tools for Ed Tech Leaders;
Tenet, George, At the Center of the Storm: The CIA During America's Time of Crisis;
Thackeray, W. M., Vanity Fair;
Thompson, Derrick & William Martin, Have Guitars ... Will Travel: A Journey Through the Beat Music Scene in Northampton 1957-66;
Tolstoy, Leo, Anna Karenina;
Trento, Joseph J., The Secret History of the CIA;
Twain, Mark, The Gilded Age: a Tale of Today;
Ungar, Craig, House of Bush House of Saud;
Unterberger, Richie, The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film;
VAR Business: Strategic Insight for Technology Integrators:
Virgil, The Aeneid
Virtualization Review: Powering the New IT Generation;
Visual Studio: Enterprise Solutions for .Net Development;
VON Magazine: Voice, Video & Vision;
Wall Street Technology: Business Innovation Powered by Technology;
Wallace, Robert, Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA's Spytechs, from Communism to al-Qaeda;
Wang, Wallace, Steal This Computer Book 4.0: What They Won’t Tell You About the Internet;
Ward-Perkins, The Fall of Rome and the End of Civilization;
Warren, Robert Penn, All the King's Men;
Wasik, John F., Cul-de-Sac Syndrome: Turning Around the Unsustainable American Dream;
Weber, Karl, Editor, Lincoln: A President for the Ages;
Website Magazine: The Magazine for Website Success;
Weiner, Tim, Enemies: A History of the FBI;
Weiner, Tim, Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA;
West, Bing, The Strongest Tribe: War, Politics, and the Endgame in Iraq;
Wharton, Edith, The Age of Innocence;
Wilcox, Peter, Rome's Enemies (1) Germanics and Dacians;
Wise, Terence, Armies of the Carthaginian Wars 265 - 146 BC;
Wissner-Gross, What Colleges Don't Tell You (And Other Parents Don't Want You To Know) 272 Secrets For Getting Your Kid Into the Top Schools;
Wissner-Gross, What High Schools Don't Tell You;
Wolf, Naomi, Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries;
Wolf, Naomi, The End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot;
Woodward, Bob, Plan of Attack;
Woodward, Bob, The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House;
Wright, Lawrence, The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11;
Wright-Porto, Heather, Beginning Google Blogger;
Xenophon, The Anabasis of Cyrus;
Yergin, Daniel, The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, & Power;
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A tax on toilet paper; I kid you not. According to the sponsor, "the Water Protection and Reinvestment Act will be financed broadly by small fees on such things as . . . products disposed of in waste water." Congress wants to tax what you do in the privacy of your bathroom.
and Jews. Using media, education, and cultural structures that it controls, the PA has actively promoted religious hatred, demonization, conspiracy libels, etc. These are packaged to present Israelis and Jews as endangering Palestinians, Arabs, and all humanity. This ongoing campaign has so successfully instilled hatred that fighting, murder and even suicide terror against Israelis and Jews are seen by the majority of Palestinians as justified self-defense and as Allah’s will. The PA presents Jews as possessing inherently evil traits. Jews are said to be treacherous, corrupt, deceitful and unfaithful by nature. These Jewish “attributes” and traditions are presented as the unchangeable nature of Jews. Forgeries and fiction masquerading as history are used to document and support the libel that Judaism is in essence racist and evil. Jews are said to be planning and executing heinous crimes, including burning Palestinians in ovens, murder, using prisoners for Nazi-like experiments, and more. If unchecked, these crimes constitute a mortal danger, not only to all Muslims and Arabs but to all of humanity.
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