The Last Crusade

Frank Salvato, New Media Journal

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“So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss. If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you may win or may lose. If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself.” – Sun Tzu, 6th Century, BC.

One way to tell how effective the Tea Party movement has been is to gauge the severity of the attacks on the movement by its detractors. It is fair and logical to deduce that the more severe the attacks, the more threatened the attackers feel. Judging from the most recent attacks on the Tea Party movement – and because the Progressives and Liberal Democrats are completely invested in “feelings” instead of facts – those opposed to limited government and the constitutional rule of law are feeling quite threatened.

Anyone paying attention to the mainstream news media has noticed a recent uptick in the number of news stories about the Tea Party movement. While media outlets such as FOX News, The Washington Times, BigGovernment.com, NewsMax.com and talk radio portray the Tea Party movement in a favorable light, the “alphabet media,” its cable brethren and the Progressive blogs are painting the movement as having emanated from the fringe; a group consisting of a bevy of Timothy McVeigh’s on steroids. Truth be told, this isn’t because they are grossly ideological in their reporting – although that lends to the zealousness of their actions – as much as it is a coordinated tactic to neuter the power of the Tea Party movement. The Progressive’s attacks on the Tea Party movement are straight from Rules for Radicals; they are a textbook Saul Alinsky play…and they are only going to get more vicious as the 2010 and 2012 elections approach.

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Republican shouts “baby killer” at turncoat Stupak

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Pro-life activists condemn Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) for caving into pressure from President Obama and voting “yea” to the health care reform bill which provides public funding for abortion.

Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote.org, said Stupak’s decision to accept the promise of a presidential executive order as a solution to the abortion-funding issue is “unconscionable.”

“The Executive Order fix is a band-aid solution that fails to solve the fundamental problems in this bill, and can be repealed at any time, for any reason, by the president or future presidents. The order is likely to be challenged by pro-abortion groups, and could be struck down by the courts,” Mr. Burch said in a news release issued Sunday night.

“The Catholic Bishops along with CatholicVote.org and every major pro-life organization oppose this ‘fix.’ We have defended Rep. Stupak for months, but today we stand in protest of his decision,” Mr. Burch added.

Stupak’s last-minute decision to vote in support of the health care bill was a key factor in the House Democrats obtaining enough votes for passage of the controversial legislation.

“Since I was first elected to Congress I have fought to provide quality, affordable health care for all Americans and I am proud to be able to vote for this historic legislation,” Stupak said Sunday in a message posted on his Web site.

The Congressman said he’s witnessed the struggles that families and employers in his northern Michigan congressional district face under the current system.

“Although this legislation is not perfect and does not do everything I believe is necessary to reform our health insurance industry, it is a tremendous step forward for northern Michigan residents and for our nation,” Stupak said. He said he looks forward to the president signing the health care bill into law.

Stupak had insisted from the beginning of the health care debate that he would never vote in favor of federal funding to subsidize insurance plans that cover abortion. Abortion should not be recognized as a benefit in federal health plans, he said.

To mollify Stupak, President Obama announced he would sign an Executive Order reaffirming that the Hyde amendment can not be circumvented and that no taxpayer dollars would be used to pay for health plans that cover abortion.

“I have said from the start I would not vote for health care reform without adequate protections in place to make sure the current law of no federal funding for abortion is maintained,” Stupak said on Sunday. “The president’s Executive Order upholds the principle that federal funds should not be used to subsidize abortion coverage.”

President Obama promised to sign the Executive Order following passage of H.R. 3590.

But pro-life activists maintain the Executive Order on abortion funding will further politicize the issue. It will put decisions on taxpayer funding for abortion as well as conscience protections in the hands of Obama, future presidents, and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Mr. Burch said.

“We are convinced Rep. Stupak will come to deeply regret today’s decision,” the Catholic spokesman added.

WHITE EUROPEANS NOW THE ENEMY!

SPREADING SHARIA GETS U.S. APPROVAL

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In her annual report on human rights, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton takes to task white Europeans for manifesting increased discrimination against Muslims.

Mrs. Clinton and her staff denounce not only Switzerland for its ban on the construction of new minarets but also the restrictions on wearing burqas and head scarves in France, Germany, and the Netherlands.

The report turns a harsh eye on the Netherlands, where Muslims number about 850,000, and criticizes the insensitive Dutch Prosecutor’s Office for dismissing complaints over the dissemination of a series of controversial cartoons, including those of a Danish artist depicting the Prophet Mohammed, and determining that the cartoons were neither offensive to Muslims as a group nor the cause of discrimination against Islam.

The contents of the report, which have failed to capture widespread national attention, also decry the authorities in Denmark for continuing to provide protection to Kurt Westergaard.

This criticism has caused some political analysts, including Edward Hopkins, to wonder if Mrs. Clinton and the State Department are calling upon the Danes to allow the irate Muslims, who assassinated Theo Van Gogh, to behead Mr. Westergaard.

Other pronouncements in the report are equally provocative.

Mrs. Clinton and the drafters of the report censor the Austrian Education Ministry for refusing to recognize the Alevi association – - reportedly a group comprised of Islamic militants – - as either a religious society or a religious community on the grounds that the state already officially recognizes one Muslim group: the Islamic Belief Community.

They further condemn the United Kingdom for its “Terrorism Act,” which imposes a range of restrictions on individuals suspected of terrorism-related activities.

“Discrimination against Muslims,” the report proclaims, “is an increasing concern.”

The report has little to say about the expulsion and persecution of Christians in Iran; the genital mutilation of women and children in Somalia and other Muslim countries, and virulent anti-Christian and Jewish rhetoric in mosques within Europe and throughout the world.

Nor did the report address the realization that every conflict throughout the world, from Chechnya to China, from Indonesia to India, from Afghanistan to Argentina, from Somalia to the Sudan, and from the Balkans to the Philippines, involves a manifestation of Islam.

Throughout her career, Mrs. Clinton has been an ardent admirer and defender of Islam. On one occasion, she praised Islam for its “universal values – - love of family and community, mutual respect, education, and the deepest yearning of all – - to live in peace – - values that can strengthen us as people and strengthen the United States as a nation.”

On October 3. 2009, the Secretary of State visited the Igbad Memorial in Pakistan, where, wearing a hijab, she joined with the imam and the Muslim dignitaries in Islamic prayer. The service included the Surah al-Ikhlas, which Mrs. Clinton recited. This surah contains the following four ayahs:

1. Say He is Allah, the One clear of all partners and similars.

2. Allah is the One needed by all and He needs none.

3. Allah does not beget children and He is not begotten.

4. And, there is none, in any way, similar to Him.

A Celebration of Repression

Hillary and Michelle Overlook Gala Gathering

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Today’s the day for women in Afghanistan to don their bright blue burqas, obtain the services of male companions, and head off to Herat to take part in International Women’s Day.

Thousands showed up for the gala event where they were treated to readings from the Koran and assurance from imams that they will remain subservient to males under the Karzai government, although they might (if they are beyond their child-bearing years) obtain permission to work in the poppy fields.

Hillary Clinton, who championed the event, failed to make an appearance in her latest hijab, and Michelle Obama, who expressed her concern for the plight of Afghan women, was nowhere in sight (unless, of course, she was concealed by her black burqa).

The speakers at the event – - Islamic scholars and male government officials – - made no mention of the slave markets in Nangarhar where women are sold to the highest bidder and of the refusal of the current regime to protect women from rape and murder.

The reaction of the women, for the most part, was difficult to discern since the majority wore full facial coverings.

No questions arose from the audience over the public floggings and stonings of women for suspected acts of adultery, let alone demands for suffrage and equal rights.

Still and media, the media treated the event as a ground-breaking celebration, despite the fact that the women have little to celebrate.

According to the U.N.’s Human Rights Watch, 87.2% of the Afghan women are subjected to physical, sexual, and psychological violence.

55% of all brides have not reached their 16th birthday. Many are married to men who are over 60.

70% of all marriages are forced, with no possibility of annulment or divorce.

89% of the Afghan women are illiterate and unschooled – - most deprived of even an elementary school education.

The women are not permitted to appear in public without a male companion and without head to toe coverings.

They are permitted neither to drive nor to seek employment.

The UN further reports that the plight of women may have worsened since the US invasion and occupation.

The women who sat patiently during the long-winded male orations and Islamic exhortations appeared to appreciate a day from the drug and dung heap of their villages, even though the event failed to include a fashion show of the latest Islamic styles, including the increasingly popular burqaini bathing suit.