HEZBOLLAH 3, ISRAEL 0

Ralph Peters sums up the Israel Hezbollah war perfectly. Read the whole thing. There will be a test on this material.

HEZBOLLAH 3, ISRAEL 0 By RALPH PETERS: August 17, 2006 -- ISRAEL'S rep for toughness in tatters. Hezbollah trium phant. Iran cockier than ever. Syria untouched. Lebanon's government crippled. An orgy of anti-Semitism in the global media. Anti-Americanism exploding among Iraqi Shi'as inspired by Hezbollah.

Thanks, Prime Minister Olmert. Great job, guy.

The debacle in Lebanon wasn't even a war. It was only round one of a war. And Israel's back in its corner, dazed and punch-drunk.

August 16th: A Day that Will Not Live in Infamy

Yesterday, we remembered August 15th, which marks Victory over Japan Day and the official end of World War II.

Today, marks another victory in the war on terror. A victory which may go unsung by many, but one which offers superb lessons for ultimate victory in this latest war.

The plot to blow up multiple airliners between Britain and the United States was planned for this day, Wednesday, August 16, 2006.

Had it gone undetected, the death toll might easily have eclipsed September 11th and sunk the spirits of the West once again into tragedy and mourning.

The plot was foiled due to international cooperation of U.S., British and Pakistani governments aided by the tools of communication and financial monitoring the United States has undertaken in the wake of September 11th.

Yet, there are those who describe this plot as "alleged" and Democrats who announced in the wake of these events that somehow we are less safe and lack the international cooperation necessary to make us more safe.

Mark This Date Down: August 16, 2006. A Day When Nothing Bad Happened. Remember It in November!

Democrats rushed to the microphones last week to claim the Bush Administration has politicized the war. These are the same people who have politicized and obstructed, every effort that led to our successful foiling of what would have been another horror story in the sky.

Remember this day in the weeks ahead. Time is short and the Battle for Congress will be decided on November 7, 2006 and the outcome determines whether we continue the slow, yet steady, progress we have made or lurch back to political leadership with a mindset that has shown it does not understand the threat, nor does it have any practical or effective solutions to counter that threat.

August 16th is a VICTORY in the War on Terror!

Let's claim another VICTORY in November!

Ned Lamont's Communist Grandfather

The apples don't fall far from the tree do they? So when we learn that Ned Lamont's grandfather was an avowed communist we can better understand where Neddies defeat America tendencies come from. Democracy Project has the story.

Neddies grandfather was described as a "truth communist" opposed to the faction of "lie communists" that were willing useful idiots for Soviet propaganda.

But with levels of delusion, denial and deception running at pathologic proportions among left wing Democrats who supported Lamont in his successful primary bid to unseat Connecticut Senator Lieberman, some may wonder if whether the "lie communists" are not back in charge.

Demanding Islam Fix Itself

We're told that Mooslims didn't like it when President Bush referred to the terrorists as "Islamic fascists" the other day. Yesterday, in a meeting at the Counter Terrorism Center President Bush knuckled under to Mooslim pressure and announced: "America is engaged in a war against a extremist group of folks bound together by an ideology."

We here at Mike's America also wish to avoid offending Mooslims so we will refrain from using the term "Islamic fascists." But, in light of the fact that all these terrorists are Mooslims, we've decided to use the term Islam-Nazi, or alternately, Muslim-fascist terror murdering scum. Is that better?

All the carping from Mooslim groups brings up the point: When will they begin taking responsibility for the problem their fellow Mooslims have caused? Along those lines, Debbie Schlussel found this excellent commentary by Lord John Stevens, the recently-retired Metropolitan Police Chief of London/Scotland Yard Chief.

IF YOU'RE A MUSLIM - IT'S YOUR PROBLEM
News of the World:WHEN will the Muslims of Britain stand up to be counted?

When will they declare, loud and clear, with no qualifications or quibbles about Britain's foreign policy, that Islamic terrorism is WRONG?

Most of all, when will the Muslim community in this country accept an absolute, undeniable, total truth: that Islamic terrorism is THEIR problem? THEY own it. And it is THEIR duty to face it and eradicate it.

To stop the denial, endless fudging and constant wailing that somehow it is everyone else's problem and, if Islamic terrorism exists at all, they are somehow the main victims.

Because until that happens the problem will never be resolved. And there will be more 7/7s and, sometime in the future, another airplane plot will succeed with horrific loss of innocent life.

Equally important, those British politicians who have seemed obsessed with pandering to, and even encouraging, this state of denial, must throw off their politically-correct blinkers and recognise the same truthÂ?that Muslim terrorism in Britain is the direct responsibility of British Muslims.
...
In all my years at the front line of fighting terrorism, one truth was always clear: communities beat terrorists, not governments or security forces. But communities can't beat terrorism unless they have the will to do so. My heart sank this week as I saw and read the knee-jerk reaction of friends and neighbours of those arrested in this latest incident, insisting it was all a mistake and the anti-terrorist squad had the wrong people.

I have no idea whether those arrested are guilty or not. But neither have those friends and neighbours. They spoke as if it was inconceivable such a thing could happen in their community; that those arrested were all good Muslims; that Islam is a religion of peace so no Muslim could dream of planning such an act.

But we heard the same from the family and friends of the 7/7 bombers, didn't we?

And the two young British Muslims who died as suicide bombers in Israel. Then there are the British Muslims known to have become suicide bombers in Iraq.

There is currently a huge, long-running and complex alleged Islamist bomb plot being tried at the Old Bailey. And a fistful of other cases of alleged Muslim terrorism plots such as the 21/7 London Underground case are also awaiting trial.

All this would suggest the blindingly obvious, that terrorism is a major problem for the Muslim community of Britain. Of course, there will be instant squealings that this is racism. It's not. It's exactly the same as recognising that, during the Northern Ireland troubles that left thousands dead, the IRA were totally based in the Catholic community and the UVF in the Protestant.

And that, most importantly, IRA terrorism only began to draw to a close when that Catholic community it was based in decided as a whole that it was no longer prepared to back violence as the only way forward. Interestingly, it was Catholic revulsion over republican terrorist atrocities such as Enniskillen and Omagh that fuelled that change.

Well, Muslim terrorism in Britain is based in, has its roots in, and grows in, our Muslim community. The madmen of 7/7 and other suicide bombings didn't hide among the Hindu communities, worship in the Sikh temples, recruit at Catholic churches, did they? It may be true that events in Iraq have angered sections of the Muslim community. I have no doubts, whatever Tony Blair says, that it was a catalyst. I also think it's entirely fair for Muslims, if they wish, to vocally oppose Britain's continuing involvement there.

I can recognise, too, that recent events in Lebanon inflame some people, and they want their voices of protest heard. The absolutely unacceptable problem is that this opposition is used by too many to turn a blind eye to, or excuse, terrorists in their midst.

Blasting a passenger airliner out of the sky, killing hundreds of innocent men, women and children, is NEVER acceptable. Under any circumstances. There is NEVER an excuse.

A terrible tragedy costing Muslim lives in Lebanon or Iraq or Afghanistan is never ever an excuse for terrorism here.

It is totally unacceptable, totally wrong. What one party perceives as a wrong, no matter how strongly they feel, does not, in turn, justify another wrong being done to avenge it.

And until every single member of the Muslim community believes that and preaches that, from an ordinary parent to imam or madrassa teacher, terrorism can't be beaten.
...
Plainly, Muslim terrorism isn't going away. We need to consider everything in our battle to defeat it. But that's the responsibility of all.

Not least the community where, sadly for them, it is festering.

As Hezbollah, the Iranians and Syrians hold their victory celebrations, the calls in Israel for a change in political leadership grow.

Here's a sample from CAROLINE GLICK writing in the Jerusalem Post today:

...The Olmert government must go.

...
OLMERT'S DECISION Friday to begin the ground offensive was by all accounts motivated not by a newfound understanding that this is a real war, but by the headlines in the newspapers that morning calling for his resignation. Yet, by Friday, the IDF had only 48 hours to achieve the objectives it had waited a month to receive Olmert's permission to accomplish.

Diplomatically, in the space of five weeks the government managed to undermine Israel's alliance with America; to hand Syria, Hizbullah and Iran the greatest diplomatic achievements they have ever experienced; and to flush down the toilet the unprecedented international support that US President Bush handed to Israel on a silver platter at the G-8 summit.

The UN cease-fire that Olmert, Livni and Peretz applaud undercuts Israel's sovereignty; protects Hizbullah; lets Iran and Syria off the hook; lends credibility to our enemies' belief that Israel can be destroyed; emboldens the Palestinians to launch their next round of war; and leaves IDF hostages Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev in captivity.
...
THE AMERICANS have lost faith in Israel as an ally. After he gave Israel every opportunity to win this war, even signaling clearly that Israel should feel free to go as far as Beirut if necessary, President Bush was convinced that Olmert simply didn't want to fight. The Americans were shocked by Israel's performance. They know that we can win when we set our mind to it and were flummoxed when presented with an Israeli leadership that refused to even try.
...
There will be time to inquire into what has gone wrong in the IDF. There will be time to fire the generals that need to be fired. But we don't need a commission to determine what we need to do. Because of the Olmert government's failures, ever greater battles await us. As the dangers mount by the hour, we must replace this misbegotten government with one that can defend us.

Also in today's Jerusalem Post, this from Barry Rubin:

IT IS important to note that the Syrians and Iranians were able to engage in one of the biggest terrorism-sponsorship events in history, at no cost whatsoever - a point that will surely not escape the attention of those countries' leaders. Not only did they avoid any direct material damage to their countries, there was no serious international criticism or call for sanctions.

Those with a macabre sense of humor might note that paragraph 15 of the UN cease-fire resolution calls on member countries - including Syria and Iran - to ensure that arms are not smuggled into Lebanon.

Does anybody believe anything will be done when Syria and Iran inevitably break that provision? Will such a violation even be reported, much less punished?

On the public relations front, Israel came in for far more condemnation than Teheran and Damascus. This in itself is a victory for the latter. Imagine being able to arm, train and incite a terrorist group to violate an international border and deliberately target another country's civilians, suffer no cost, and make your victim come out looking worse!

In the terrorism sponsorship business it doesn't get any better than that.

MOST IMPORTANT of all, the stock of Iran and Syria has risen across the Arab world. They are now the heroes of the resistance. For the first time, the Persian/Arab, Shi'ite/Sunni wall has been breached. Within Syria, though not Iran, the adventure also increased the regime's domestic popularity. This is a definite win/win situation.

To our friends in Israel: Know that regardless of controversy regarding this episode, we Americans continue to stand with you now as always. We will never desert you. Likewise, you will find any moves to enhance your political leadership have our firm support.

August 15: Victory Over Japan Day

Monument to the First Division of the Army, the BIG RED ONE in President's Park outside the White HousePhoto by Mike's America.

Celebrating VJ Day in Times Square, New York

Tuesday, August 15th marks the 61st anniversary of V.J. day commemorating our victory over Japan and the end of World War II.

It was a war that could easily have been prevented, perhaps without firing a shot had we been awake to the danger in time. For a historical reflection on that, see this post from March.

The death toll for all of World War II, including the holocaust (see country by country chart here) may have topped sixty million lives lost.

To the brave men and women who served in the United States Armed Forces during World War II: our thanks and undying gratitude. You served your country at a time of maximum peril and kept us safe from the horror that ravaged much of the rest of the world. We will never forget your sacrifice and we honor your memory by standing up today for the principles of freedom for which you fought.

As the end of World War II loomed, the victorious nations gathered in San Francisco and signed the Charter of the United Nations in June 1945.

The Charter promised: " To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace."

Whether or not the U.N. lives up to it's charter, Americans must remain dedicated to these principles, even if that means accomplishing the goals expressed through other means.

History will never forgive us if we once again fail to address the threat until it is too late.

Lamont Liberals Support Invading Pakistan, Saudi Arabia???

Ned Lamont, who defeated Senator Joe Lieberman in the loony Democrat primary in Connecticut last week was on Fox News Sunday interviewed by Chris Wallace.

Lamont tells Wallace:

Here you are talking about the failed terrorist plot today. It originated in Pakistan, goes through London, and here we have 132,000 of our bravest troops stuck in the middle of a civil war in Iraq.
...
what we ought to be doing is fighting the War on Terror in a serious way. I think we've gotten a little bit complacent, to tell you the truth. Maybe we've had a wake-up call in the last couple of days.

Well at least he didn't refer to the foiled airliner plot as "alleged" as Muslim groups and loony Lamont supporters in the U.S. continue to do.

But, Liberals like Lamont have been insisting for a while now that the Iraq war is a distraction from the real danger which they claim is present in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

I have yet to hear one of them suggest that our troops in Iraq should have been sent to Pakistan instead. Nor have they offered one positive suggestion on how the problem in those Muslim nations should be addressed.

Nothing new there!

Lamont goes on:

We ought to be focused on homeland security. We ought to be focused on our ports, on our airports and public transportation, a lot of which you were talking about here today.

We also are much stronger when we work in concert with our allies, when we have shared intelligence. And I think that we've taken our eye off the ball there a little bit, and I think it's time to focus.

Hello, hello, hello!!! If nothing else, the foiled plot which many Islamists and Lamont supporters claim is "alleged" demonstrates a victory for the cooperation among our allies in Britain and Pakistan and the intelligence methods like NSA monitoring and SWIFT financial monitoring that has caused so much opposition among Demcorats that support Lamont.

Less than 90 days to go before the November 7th Congressional elections. If you're planning to take a trip to London in the next year, who would you prefer to be in charge: Lamont and the Democrats or President Bush?

Making Excuses Muslim Style

In the wake of what the Council on American-Islamic Relations repeatedly calls an "alleged airline terror plot" (notice they never refer to Israeli attacks in Lebanon as "alleged") Muslim groups in Britain, the United States and around the world continue to trumpet the big lie that US/UK foreign policy and support for Israel and stealing Muslim oil (while paying a record $75+ per barrel) is the root cause of terrorism.

The British blog, Making Headlines, runs down the latest excuse making from Muslims in Britain who push a subtle version of the false claim that radicalism is caused by scenes of Israeli bombings in Lebanon in particular and overall Western foreign policy in general.

None of this is new of course. Both Al Queda #2, Ayman Zawahiri and And American Leftist Cindy Sheehan have stated that the cause of terrorism is support for Israel and "infidel armies"occupying the land of Mohammed. This "occupation" means all of the Middle East (later the world) and would also mean the destruction of Israel.

Contradictions Ignored

It won't surprise anyone paying the slightest attention that this stated goal is nothing more than the typical big lie propaganda that is so eagerly lapped up by delusional lefties in denial and their comrades in the lamestream "news" media.

We could go down the list of attacks against fellow Muslims targeted in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Sudan, Algeria. And let's not forget the bombing of a Muslim wedding at a Jordanian hotel last year.

The British Broadcasting Corporation reported less than three weeks ago on the murder of a Buddhist teacher in Thailand; killed in front of a classroom of children. More than 1,300 Buddhists have been murdered by Islamic fascists in Thailand in the last two years. No one, not even Muslim apologists have attempted to accuse the Buddhists of supporting Israel or US/UK foreign policy.

Indoctrination of Hate Root Cause of Terrorism

If you've viewed the movie "Obsession" you had a pretty good primer into indoctrination of the culture of hate and death that permeates radical and fascist Islam. The roots of this problem go back centuries, long before Israel existed as a state. And more recently, military ties between Muslim groups and the Nazis (photos here) where Muslims were recruited to fight for Germany make it clear that the problem isn't anything new.

Children are inculcated at an early age to embrace jihad and die for Allah. The toddlers shown at right were "playing" jihad during protests in London over the Danish cartoons in February. But this is mild compared to what happens every day in places like Gaza (photo presentation here).

The Goal: Islam Rules the World

The ultimate goal of jihad as practiced by those who embrace the culture of death and hate is Muslim domination of the entire world. A world where Sharia law is paramount over all.

Not all Muslims believe this, but their voices are increasingly harder to find. One voice of clarity is that of Tashbih Sayyed who in July writes:

Who is a moderate Muslim?

Muslims who oppose theocracy, who seek democracy, who want equal rights for women and an end to child labor, honor killings, and child marriages are moderates. But there is much more to the concept than just these basics. Before enlisting an apparently moderate Muslim group in the war on Islamist terror, we must know a bit more. Do they believe that non-Muslims are inherently inferior? Do they consider religious or national identity pre-eminent? What do they believe about Jews and Israel? How do they characterize Arab terrorism in Israel? What is their opinion about Osama bin Laden's long list of grievances? Do they consider the war on terror a war on Islam?

This entire article is a must read.

It would be an understatement to say that is a minority viewpoint.

The more radical voices which, President Bush accurately described as "Islamic fascism,"( a term strongly opposed by Muslim groups like CAIR) seem to be heard above all others. And it's this tolerance in the Muslim community for those who espouse the culture of hate and death which makes it all the more difficult to eradicate the problem.

Here's an American example of where this culture leads. A video from the Islamic Thinkers Society, whose web site proudly proclaims: "We invite you to Islam," presumably before it is too late. One fine day not long ago on the streets of New York, the Thinkers gathered and shot a video that pretty much unmasks who they are:

In accented English, these hometown terrorists trampel an American flag underfoot while holding a Koran high and declaring : "Our loyalty does not belong to this flag but to the laws of Allah...[the goal of Islam is] to dominate all other religions, to dominate the United States, to dominate the world." This monster goes on to encourage fellow American Muslims to join their Jihad "Do not be afraid, this is not so much like your countries at home where you raise your voice and they come after you and they take you in for torture. No! One of the loopholes in this country is that they allow the freedom of expression. "

What? No torture? Someone tell the Democrats!

Are these minority Muslim viewpoints? Here's a reminder from the chart describing Muslim allegiance to their religion, not the nation to which they reside.

Our Choice: Resist, Submit or Die

Cuban Fauxtos Prove: Fidel Lives!

Just in time for his big birthday bash (he turned 80 Sunday) The above fauxto of Fidel pops up in Juventud Rebelde, a Cuban newspaper wearing an Adidas red, white and blue sweat suit holding a printed page of a recent Cuban newspaper.

Forgive me for being skeptical. But after weeks of Hezbollah propaganda fauxtos being accepted as truth (initially at least) I'm a tad reluctant to endorse the product of Communist "news" editors.

Enlarge the thumbnails from Getty Images to compare Fidel Photos from his July 21 appearance in Argentina for a Latin American trade summit. Here's a comparable profile photo to the shot above. In the shot above, Fidel looks rested with good skin color even the gray in his hair is not as noticeable. A pretty remarkable achievement for someone who underwent serious abdominal surgery.

Raul Castro Comes Out of Hiding to Welcome Hugo Chavez

Fidel's brother Raul, who took over before Fidel's surgery has also surfaced for the first time today. Above, he greets Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez wearing his trademark red shirt letting all of us know just exactly what his political philosophy is all about.

Dumb, Dumber, Dumbest: How Israel Lost the War against Hezbollah, Syria and Iran

Dumb:
Three weeks ago, Ralph Peters in the New York Post warned that the Israelis were in danger of losing the war against Hezbollah: "All Hezbollah has to do to achieve victory is not to lose completely...Israel has to pull itself together now, to send in ground troops in sufficient numbers, with fierce resolve to do what must be done: Root out Hezbollah fighters and kill them."

At the time, the conflict was still in it's early stages and there was plenty of opportunity to mount a more vigorous offense. But the Israeli Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Olmert could not agree to launch a decisive attack. Then the phony media hype over the "massacre" at Qana hit the "news" further undermining Israeli efforts.

The Israeli cabinet continued to discuss possible large scale operations. Meanwhile, their army sat idle in Lebanon and on the Israeli side of the border like sitting ducks, giving Hezbollah fighters with advanced anti-tank weapons the opportunity to inflict mounting casualties on the forces in Lebanon and the chance of a lucky hit with inaccurate rockets.

Dumber: On August 9, former US Secretary of State and the king of Middle East shuttle diplomacy, Henry Kissinger, noted that :

"What the Israelis are doing with their military is sometimes inexplicable to me," Kissinger said.

"If Hezbollah is not disarmed, then the moderates in the Middle East are going to be discouraged," he said. "Lebanon is likely to be taken over by Hezbollah sooner or later, and this whole crisis will repeat itself. That is the fundamental issue, and not all of these tactical moves."

Again, the Israeli cabinet met and this time, we were told, THIS time there was going to be a massive offensive that would be decisive.

DUMBEST: But again, Prime Minister Olmert and the Israeli Cabinet met and held up plans for a full scale military solution.

And on Friday, the U.N. (Useless Nations) gathered in New York and passed another toothless resolution in the Security Council to demand a cease fire. Israel has agreed to stop the fighting on Monday. The Useless Nations promise (wink, wink, nudge, nudge) that a second resolution dealing with the more thorny matters of implementation will soon follow.

During that time, expect Israel to sit idle while Hezbollah rearms. You may have heard radio host Roger Hedgecock descibe that "ceasefire" in Arabic means "rearm."

Both President Bush and Secretary of State Rice have made repeated statements saying they reject business as usual in the aftermath of this conflict. And we hope they are right. History has yet to show an agreement to end hostilities that was not used as a figleaf for terrorists set free to kill again.

Even in a relatively restrained response to Hezbollah aggression Israel did not win world opinion. And by offering Hezbollah the opportunity to claim partial victory by surviving as a fighting force they undermine the best tool Israelis have to insure their survival: the fear their enemies have of defeat at the hands of Jews.

Smarter? Finally, the lesson from the handling of this war is clear: never let politicians dictate military strategy. And moves are underway in Israel to hold Prime Minister Olmert accountable for his indecisiveness.

Muslims Arrested in Michigan with 1000 Cell Phones

What the hell is going on???

Will we wait until the next attack succeeds before we wake up?