The Saudis Back Obama

Quickie link HERE at Infidel Bloggers Alliance to find out why

[END OF THIS POSTING]

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20/20!

This morning, I went to the ophthalmologist for my first post-op exam following yesterday's cataract surgery.



Perfect vision!

Just the week before surgery, the vision in my right eye was 20/80 and dropping.

Other than a few restrictions, such as no lifting and no swimming for a few weeks and applying three different kinds of drops three times a day, life returns to normal.

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And Now For The Second Eye (Updated)

I had my first cataract surgery, on my left eye, back in 1984, when I was a mere thirty-two years old. Now the ophthalmologist has decided that the other eye needs surgery as soon as possible so as to prevent hypermaturity. In fact, I knew of the necessity for surgery even before he delivered his opinion because my vision in the unoperated eye has deteriorated substantially the past few weeks.
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Surgery is scheduled for Friday morning (changed to an earlier time), some three months before I had anticipated. Typically, ophthalmic surgeons are not in a hurry to operate and schedule cataract surgery some several weeks or months after evaluation. This particular cataract, however, has some disturbing qualities, including brown spots and other defects causing distorted vision. Therefore, the surgeon, a renowned expert here in the D.C. Metro area, has recommended immediate action.

If all goes well, within a few days of the operation and for the first time in nearly twenty-five years, my brain won't have to reconcile images of different sizes: an operated eye sees objects 8%-10% larger than an unoperated eye. Also, color perception in both eyes will once again be the same or close to the same. And who knows? Maybe for the first time ever, I can wear Dollar Store reading glasses!

Barring complications and depending on my discomfort level, I won't be away from the web for long after my surgery.

Prayers gratefully appreciated!

The following video, about eight minutes in length, shows how the operation is performed:



YouTube link, which includes interesting comments

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The Pop-Up Mosque In Denver

Little Green Footballs has more photos and the story.

I am at a loss for a printable comment.

Addedum: More photos of "PICTURES OF YOU," the title of the exhibit. One of the photos, with this caption — View of mullah semi-transparent screen with Colorado State Capitol in background:

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Weekly Blog Talk Radio Show: August 29 — Stogie & John

Listen to The Gathering Storm Radio Show, which WC and I cohost. The show broadcasts live every Friday beginning at noon, Pacific Time.

The call-in number is (646) 915-9870.

Callers welcome!

Friday, August 29 (60 minutes): The guests today are Stogie from the Saber Point blog and John of the Infidels Are Cool blog.
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1. Stogie, the guest for the first half hour, is a man who loves America, life, classical rock, cool jazz and good cigars. He is also a graphics artist supreme and has designed special avatars to each of the hosts of VOICES OF FREEDOM. Below is the one Stogie designed for me, but yet to be added to my sidebar (Sorry for the delay):


You can see the other VOICES OF FREEDOM avatars designed by Stogie HERE, HERE, and HERE. Visit Stogie's site for more artwork and pithy political commentary.

2. John, full-blown conservative and staunch patriot — and supporter of individual liberty, national security, 2nd Amendment rights, our number one ally Israel, American culture and the English language, our military's mission, and victory, free market solutions, capitalism, limited government, strong border security, and the right to life — is the guest for the second half hour. He began blogging as his way of serving our country after 9/11. John's web site, Infidels Are Cool, has been favorably cited by Roger Hedgecock, who sometimes fills in for Rush Limbaugh. Read more about John HERE.

You can listen to the August 29, 2008 edition of The Gathering Storm Radio Show, live or later, by CLICKING HERE.

UPCOMING SHOWS
September 5: Resa The War Chick
September 12: Gordon Cucullo
September 19: Glen Jenvey
September 26: MK
October 3: Gayle

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Video: Obama's Strange Bedfellows

With a hat-tip to Reliapundit of THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and about 10 minutes in length:



YouTube link



Of course, the above will not be required viewing at this week's Democratic National Convention.
Instead, all week long, this is what we'll have on the part of the media and the Dems as a whole:

HERE is the complete text of Robert Browning's "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" — an allegory for our times.

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Al Qaeda's New Strategy

Oh, joy. NOT! From this August 21, 2008 article:

A newly discovered online Al Qaeda manual is giving intelligence officials new insight into how the group's leaders are training recruits to further move the organization from a centralized operation toward smaller global cells.

The manual, called “Method for Building the Personality of a Terrorist Mujahid” and written by an Islamist forum contributor nicknamed "Shamil al-Baghdadi," encourages militant followers to stop focusing on pulling off attacks on the scale of 9-11 and to start executing numerous smaller attacks.

It states that if for some reason the mission fails, the Jihadi must not abort, but instead carry on alone — as a one-man cell.

According to New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, it's a strategy of which domestic law enforcement agencies are well aware.

"If you can't do the big attacks, do the small attacks. Do smaller attacks and more of them," Kelly said.

The new manual, which allegedly surfaced on an Islamic Web forum sometime in March, outlines a number of lessons, from how to form a terror cell to fundraising efforts.

It advocates assassinations by shooting, poisoning and booby-trapping cell phones and computers. The manual prioritizes targets by ranking and lists categories such as "high profile," which represent presidents and prime ministers.

Targeted organizations have a similar ranking, in which state sponsored groups are listed as “high-potential” organizations.

Recruits are also told to organize credit card scams and to rob police stations in order to get weapons.

Most shocking are the lessons on kidnapping, with orders to slaughter hostages in a way that will terrify the public.

"I propose you start with those that have blood on their hands torturing and suppressing Muslims like high-ranking intelligence officers, the governor or any foreign official," writes al-Baghdadi.

Cell members are also persuaded to carry out attacks on cultural and business centers, taking warfare to the streets.

As Al Qaeda cells become localized and more autonomous, terror experts say the techniques outlined in the manual illustrate of changing the face of the organization itself.

Dr. Matthew Levitt, director of The Washington Institute's Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence, said the structure has shifted.

"You know, it used to be that the face of Al Qaeda was bin Laden and the core. That is still the case, but now we are reminded about Al Qaeda on a regular basis more because of the activities of the local cells."

Levitt said the manual is specifically tailored to its audience.

"What this does more than anything else is provides people who are inclined to carry out such attacks with the sense that they now have some information and pushes them to actually go through with it," said Levitt...

Read the rest.

The further in time we move from 9/11, the more complacent we become. The more we tell ourselves that wannabe terrorists are buffoons not to worry about. For example, consider the recent facts about Saleman Abdirahman Dirie:

Saleman Abdirahman Dirie was a 29-year-old Canadian citizen, a Muslim, and a former refugee from Somalia with no visible means of support and no money. He came to Denver from Ottawa by bus and checked into an upscale hotel (where the least expensive rooms rent for nearly $250 a night) for which he paid cash. There are reports that several thousand dollars in cash were also found in his room. He was not seen again until his body was found six days later next to a one pound jar of sodium cyanide crystals.

Read the rest of the essay by Ilana Freedman. I guarantee it will give you pause.

Also, consider Dirie's final arrangements, handled by the Muslim Society of America, despite reports of the man's not being particularly religious nor active in the adult Somali community.

Was Dirie a member of Al Qaeda? We don't know, and we may never know. The authorities have closed the investigation.

Nothing to see here, move right along.

Meanwhile, Al Qaeda and other Moslem terrorists are adapting, adapting, adapting. The inevitability of at least small attacks seems apparent. And if spectacular attacks occur, this will be the reaction from those who have blithely chosen to ignore the warning signs:

At some point our collective heads will come up out of the sand, probably by the force of an explosion; and we'll stand, mouths agape like so many fish out of water, trying to comprehend a situation we've done our best to ignore.
-Anonymous, 2005

(Crossposted to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS)

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More Islamic Legalism

Do you celebrate birthdays and anniversaries? Mother's Day? If so, you are an infidel and observing un-Islamic practices! I say, "Go for it!"
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From this Dhimmi Watch posting by Raymond Ibrahim, our August 22 guest on The Gathering Storm Radio Show:

Saudi Grand Mufti declares celebrating birthdays an infidel practice

And every major Muslim thinker agrees. Another clear instance of the doctrine of al-Wala' we al-Bara', as the issue at hand is the great need to differentiate oneself from non-Muslims and their infidel practices. "Grand mufti rejects Al-Oadah's fatwa," from Arab News, August 20:

Celebrating birthdays and wedding anniversaries has no base in Islam, Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Alsheikh has said.

[...]

Al-Alsheikh, who is the highest religious authority in the Kingdom, said Muslims only have two official celebrations — Eid Al-Fitr, which is celebrated at the end of Ramadan, and Eid Al-Adha, which is celebrated on Dhul Hijjah 10. He added that Muslims also have a weekly Eid, which is Friday.

The mufti said that the celebration of other occasions such as birthdays, wedding anniversaries and mother’s day were un-Islamic.

Several prominent Muslim scholars have supported the mufti, adding that celebrating such occasions is in imitation of people of the Jewish and Christian faiths.

And here is another way which Saudi makes sure to stay distant from us despised infidels, from an August 20, 2008 editorial in the Washington Post:

Olympic Embarrassment: Saudi Arabia's Olympic team has no women.

"THE PRACTICE of sport is a human right." So proudly affirms the International Olympic Committee in Principle 4 of the "Fundamental Principles of Olympism." "Every individual must have the possibility of practising sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit." And Principle 5 makes explicit that discrimination based on gender "is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic Movement." So what is an all-male Saudi team doing in Beijing?...

"It's not as if there are no women from majority-Muslim countries competing in the Beijing Games....Algeria, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have women on their teams. In fact, Bahrain and the UAE even allowed women to carry their national flags....Brunei is the other Muslim country that does not allow women to play sports....

Saudi Moslems — What a bunch of party poopers!

Just what does the Grand Mufti consider acceptable "Islamic" fun?

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Weekly Blog Talk Radio Show: August 22 — Raymond Ibrahim

Listen to The Gathering Storm Radio Show, which WC and I cohost. The show broadcasts live every Friday beginning at noon, Pacific Time.

The call-in number is (646) 915-9870.

Callers welcome!

Friday, August 22 (60 minutes): Our guest today for the full hour will be scholar and expert Raymond Ibrahim.
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Raymond Ibrahim is a historian and writer of the Middle East and Islam, and the author of The Al-Qaeda Reader (2007), which exposes al-Qaeda's ultimate motives by showings the striking differences between statements published in English for Westerners and those in Arabic for Muslims...Al-Qaeda stresses Islam's compulsory demand for "offensive jihad," that is, not because Islam is "under attack," as they claim in messages to the West, but simply to offer the world the three sacred choices: accept Islam, live in total submission to Islamic overlords as marginal citizens of an Islamic state, or die. Mr. Ibrahim also contributes to Jihad Watch and Dhimmi Watch. Read more about Mr. Ibrahim and his credentials HERE.

You can listen to the August 22, 2008 edition of The Gathering Storm Radio Show, live or later, by CLICKING HERE.

UPCOMING SHOWS
August 22: Raymond Ibrahim
August 29: Stogie and John
September 5: Resa The War Chick
September 12: Gordon Cucullo
September 19: Glen Jenvey
September 26: MK
October 3: Gayle

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Ramadan Coca-Cola

The crescent moon and star — yes, the same symbol featured on the flags of so many Muslim countries — is an internationally-recognized symbol of the Islamic faith in much the same way as the cross represents Christianity and the star of David Judaism. When I learned the symbol of the Islamic faith will appear on Coca-Cola packaging during Ramadan 2008, I found myself wondering whether or not the Atlanta-based soft drink maker will soon include the Christian cross and Jewish star of David in future holiday packaging designs targeting people of those faiths....

Bob McCarty has the details, HERE and HERE.

I tell you this: I had better not find any Coca-Cola cans bearing the star and crescent in my pantry! I doubt that I will, because these oh-so-special Ramadan Coca-Colas (September 1-30 this year) are limited to the Middle East and Africa. For now.

(Crossposted to Infidel Bloggers Alliance)

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A Bitter Obituary

How will family and friends speak of you after you leave this life? What legacy will you leave?

Surely, they won't pen anything as bitter as the recent obituary of Dolores Aguilar!

From this page at Legacy.com, although the page has now been taken down (hat-tip to Kender, who emailed me the link):

Dolores Aguilar
1929 - Aug. 7, 2008

Dolores Aguilar, born in 1929 in New Mexico, left us on August 7, 2008. She will be met in the afterlife by her husband, Raymond, her son, Paul Jr., and daughter, Ruby.

She is survived by her daughters Marietta, Mitzi, Stella, Beatrice, Virginia and Ramona, and son Billy; grandchildren, Donnelle, Joe, Mitzie, Maria, Mario, Marty, Tynette, Tania, Leta, Alexandria, Tommy, Billy, Mathew, Raymond, Kenny, Javier, Lisa, Ashlie and Michael; great-grandchildren, Brendan, Joseph, Karissa, Jacob, Delaney, Shawn, Cienna, Bailey, Christian, Andre Jr., Andrea, Keith, Saeed, Nujaymah, Salma, Merissa, Emily, Jayci, Isabella, Samantha and Emily. I apologize if I missed anyone.

Dolores had no hobbies, made no contribution to society and rarely shared a kind word or deed in her life. I speak for the majority of her family when I say her presence will not be missed by many, very few tears will be shed and there will be no lamenting over her passing.

Her family will remember Dolores and amongst ourselves we will remember her in our own way, which were mostly sad and troubling times throughout the years. We may have some fond memories of her and perhaps we will think of those times too. But I truly believe at the end of the day ALL of us will really only miss what we never had, a good and kind mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. I hope she is finally at peace with herself. As for the rest of us left behind, I hope this is the beginning of a time of healing and learning to be a family again.

There will be no service, no prayers and no closure for the family she spent a lifetime tearing apart. We cannot come together in the end to see to it that her grandchildren and great-grandchildren can say their goodbyes. So I say here for all of us, GOOD BYE, MOM.

Christina Crawford's Mommie Dearest was a happily-ever-after read compared to the above!

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Musharraf Resigns

This morning's big story is the resignation of the president of Pakistan. I haven't included a link because the story is easily available on Internet news sites.


For good or ill, how will Musharraf's resignation affect world dynamics?

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The Simplicity Of Obama's Message (Bumped)

URL



Even a birdbrain understands Obama's message. LOL.

(Crossposted to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS)

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Saddleback Civil Forum

Quickie link: Check out Bob McCarty's observations.

[END OF THIS POSTING]

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Fiddler On The Roof A Zionist Plot?

This graphic depicts how I've been spending the past several days.

Enough is enough! I see the doctor today.

Prior to my falling ill with this cold from hell, or whatever this malady is, I had done some posting over at THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS. The following is drawn from one of those postings:
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Who knew? One of my favorite musicals has a hidden message, according to the following Moslem propaganda:



YouTube link

Moslem anti-Semitic paranoia and hatred are astounding and have been going on for fourteen centuries. In short, anything and everything not supporting the cause of the "oppressed" Pseudostinians are a Zionist plot.

Next thing you know, "Sunrise, Sunset" will be deemed offensive to Moslems and banned from Muzak.

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Guest Post By Martel Sobieskey: "The Misnomer of Radical Islam: America's Security Blunder"

About the author: Martel Sobieskey has 35 years research experience in the field of religious conditioning and its relationship to warfare. He is greatly alarmed that American politicians, educators, and security personnel have failed to comprehend the deeply entrenched Jihadist religious conditioning inherent in Islam.

His essay, received via email, is below the fold. As ever, your comments are invited.

The Misnomer of Radical Islam
America’s Security Blunder

There is the erroneous assertion that Radical Islam is not connected with mainstream (moderate) Islam in any way, that the religion of Islam has been “hijacked by a few extremists” that the vast majority of Muslims do not agree with the Islamofascists. Such thinking is a terrible error and a grave threat to America’s national security, especially in this age of nuclear terrorism.

So what is Radical Islam and what should it be properly named? Radical Islam is actually the Islamic Military. The so-called radicals are not a fringe element; they are fully supported by the worldwide Islamic community (Ummah). If they were a fringe element, they would have been defeated long ago. The fight rages on because of strong support from the moderates both covertly and overtly. This means the Islamic Military (wrongly labeled radicals) is intimately connected with moderate Muslims who we have mistakenly labeled as innocent bystanders.

Moderate Muslims are not innocent bystanders. Moderate Muslims provide the base of operations which makes it possible for the Islamic Military to continue their terrorist operations. Hate America, demands to replace constitution with the Koran, and outbursts for Sharia law are preached openly from nearly every Mosque in America under the guise of freedom of speech and religion. Freedom of speech and religion has morphed into a weaponized tool of Islamic psychological warfare which is defeating America’s will to protect her national security. Any American who says Islam is less than perfect may become the victim of an unfair lawsuit by a “moderate” Muslim organization.

Why can one be so certain about this fact? The answer is the Koran. The Koran fuses together both moderates and their military. No Muslim dares to contradict the Koran because the penalty is -- death and loss of personal salvation. The moderate Muslims of every nation, including those in America fully support their Islamic military because worldwide conquest is the primary religious duty of all Muslims. Fellow Americans if you believe that your local Muslims are not secretly harboring in their hearts an agenda for the conquest of America by Islam then you are dead wrong, and understand nothing about the Koran.

Moderate Muslims may not carry weapons and murder innocent people hands on, but they play the role of “wolves in sheep’s clothing”. Moderate Muslims use two primary strategies to make conquest for Islam. The first is dawa, which is influence peddling, “wining and dining” and manipulation. You make conquest by “pleasing” your opponent, “buttering them up” -- bribery and back room dealings are common place. There is a “ton” of Muslim oil money buying preferential treatment for Islam in America. The second is taqiyya, which is outright deception and lying. Deception and lying to infidels as a strategy of conquest is one of Islam’s most valued “weapons”, a precedent set by the prophet Mohammed himself. Americans hear this deception everyday with proclamations that “Islam is a religion of peace.” This phrase is an excellent example of successful psychological warfare which has caused Americans to let down their guard, and made us very vulnerable to future terrorist attacks, even possible nuclear attacks as several experts have pointed out.

Recent history proves that the “so called peaceful Muslims” work as a team with their Islamic Military. They immigrate to a country touting what peaceful law abiding citizens they are, establish themselves, build mosques, increase their numbers and “bingo” terrorists acts start occurring in the host country. Do the attacks in Spain, England, France, Thailand, Bali, the Philippines, Holland, Sweden and the USA ring any bells here? All these attacks have been preceded by the establishment of moderate mosque communities which in turn became footholds from which the Islamic military could launch their terrorist attacks. The larger the percentage of Muslims that occupy a country the greater the havoc they wreak. The situation is directly proportional. Reducing the percentage of Muslims that dwell in the host country is the most effect way of stopping terrorism. Western governments must evaluate this fact very seriously if they wish to win the war against Islamofascism long term.

Have we Americans become gullible fools? As long as we fail to deal aggressively and comprehensively with the intimate Koranic connection between the moderate Muslims and their Islamic military we can never stop the terrorist attacks. Have you ever wondered why, so numerous the complaints worldwide, that Muslims are not assimilating into their host nation? It is because they are not there to assimilate -- they are there to conqueror the host country for Islam as their Koran requires. Fellow Americans please read the Koran for your self. Don’t take my word on it. You will learn first hand that anyone who tells you that Islam is a religion of peace is insulting your intelligence. The Penguin Classic edition, The Koran, translated by the Arab Scholar N. J. Dawood is a well respected version having sold over a million copies worldwide.

The best description of the symbiotic Koranic relationship between the moderates and their military comes from the Muslims themselves. They have a saying, “the poisonous fish swim in the sea”. The “poisonous fish” are the militants and the “sea” is the moderate mosque community. For example, for their 9/11 operation, the Islamic Military (poisonous fish) used the Al Farouq mosque in New York as the “sea” from which they “swam” to pulverize the trade towers. The next poisonous fish may be swimming from the sea of your local Mosque community with a nuclear explosion. Wake up Americans we are not fighting with bows and arrows anymore. We must take aggressive preventative measures to stop the Islamic military’s “euphoric” obsession to make a nuclear attack on American soil.

It is a great mistake to continue calling the Islamic military radicals because the term “radicals” has blinded us to think that the moderates are not in cahoots with their Islamic Military. In so doing we have violated the primary dictum of warfare which is to know and understand one’s enemy. Consequently, we have failed to understand that the Islam of Osama Bin Laden is main stream Islam – not a radical fringe. Osama Bin Laden is one of the generals of the Islamic military which is fully supported by the worldwide community of moderate Muslims, including American Muslims. Both moderate Muslims and their military have the same goal which is the Islamic conquest of the entire world -- this is the primary religious duty of all Muslims as required by the Koran. Americans desperately need to understand this fact if they wish to protect their country from great harm.
--Martel Sobieskey

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Laid Low For A Few Days (Bumped & Updated)

Despite our best efforts to the contrary, Mr. AOW has managed to give me the miserable cold he had last week. I'll be spending most of my online time visiting other sites for the next few days.

When I come down with a cold, my attention span is short, and I spend some time at YouTube. My sense of humor also gets quirky.

Below the fold, you can check out two "Islamic miracles" I found yesterday. If you're cynical about such miracles, set down your beverage before proceeding.

The bird from "Night's Plutonian shore" cries out for Allah:



YouTube link

Now for some bovine bellowing:



YouTube link

So, what do you hear coming from the rooftops and the barnyard in your neighborhood?

UPDATE: Still feeling miserable! I may be laid low for longer than I originally foresaw when I posted the above on Monday. Nonetheless, I have an essay by Martel Sobiesky queued up for tomorrow.

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Weekly Blog Talk Radio Show: August 15 — Ilana Freedman & Layla Elizabeth Gonzalez

Listen to The Gathering Storm Radio Show, which WC and I cohost. The show broadcasts live every Friday beginning at noon, Pacific Time.

The call-in number is (646) 915-9870.

Callers welcome!

Friday, August 15 (90 minutes): Our guests today will be Ilana Freedman and Layla Elizabeth Gonzalez.
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1. Ilana Freedman is a member of Gerard Group International and is an expert on counter-terrorism. We will discuss with her current events and developments in her field of expertise.

2. Layla Elizabeth Gonzalez, of the web site The Hill Chronicles, will be our guest for the last hour of the show. We will discuss with her the dangers and consequences of marrying a Muslim man as she shares with us her own experiences in that regard.

You can listen to the August 15, 2008 edition of The Gathering Storm Radio Show, live or later, by CLICKING HERE.

UPCOMING SHOWS
August 22: Raymond Ibrahim
August 29: John

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Bulletin! Allah Arrested!

Hat-tip to Kender, who emailed me the link:

Allah Arrested On Drug Charges

POSTED: 6:12 pm EDT August 8, 2008
UPDATED: 6:18 pm EDT August 8, 2008

SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn. -- South Windsor police arrested Almighty Supremebeing Allah on drug charges.

Police received a tip that he was about to take part in a drug transaction, police said. He was arrested Thursday night on John Fitch Boulevard.

Almighty Supremebeing Allah, who lives in West Hartford, was accused of cocaine possession with intent to sell.

How many Moslems were insulted?

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Dhimmitude At Random House

(hat-tip to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS)

Fear of retaliation and political correctness have led to yet another Twenty-first Century book burning — not in the literal sense, of course. Today, the West is much more sophisticated.

Random House Inc., the world's largest English language trade publisher of fiction, nonfiction, and children's books, has backpedaled from publishing The Jewel of Medina, even though the author had received an advance of $100,000.

The following is the entire essay "You Still Can't Write About Muhammad," published on August 6, 2008, in the Wall Street Journal (emphases mine):

Starting in 2002, Spokane, Wash., journalist Sherry Jones toiled weekends on a racy historical novel about Aisha, the young wife of the prophet Muhammad. Ms. Jones learned Arabic, studied scholarly works about Aisha's life, and came to admire her protagonist as a woman of courage. When Random House bought her novel last year in a $100,000, two-book deal, she was ecstatic. This past spring, she began plans for an eight-city book tour after the Aug. 12 publication date of "The Jewel of Medina" -- a tale of lust, love and intrigue in the prophet's harem.

It's not going to happen: In May, Random House abruptly called off publication of the book. The series of events that torpedoed this novel are a window into how quickly fear stunts intelligent discourse about the Muslim world.

Random House feared the book would become a new "Satanic Verses," the Salman Rushdie novel of 1988 that led to death threats, riots and the murder of the book's Japanese translator, among other horrors. In an interview about Ms. Jones's novel, Thomas Perry, deputy publisher at Random House Publishing Group, said that it "disturbs us that we feel we cannot publish it right now." He said that after sending out advance copies of the novel, the company received "from credible and unrelated sources, cautionary advice not only that the publication of this book might be offensive to some in the Muslim community, but also that it could incite acts of violence by a small, radical segment."

After consulting security experts and Islam scholars, Mr. Perry said the company decided "to postpone publication for the safety of the author, employees of Random House, booksellers and anyone else who would be involved in distribution and sale of the novel."

This saga upsets me as a Muslim -- and as a writer who believes that fiction can bring Islamic history to life in a uniquely captivating and humanizing way. "I'm devastated," Ms. Jones told me after the book got spiked, adding, "I wanted to honor Aisha and all the wives of Muhammad by giving voice to them, remarkable women whose crucial roles in the shaping of Islam have so often been ignored -- silenced -- by historians." Last month, Ms. Jones signed a termination agreement with Random House, so her literary agent could shop the book to other publishers.

This time, the instigator of the trouble wasn't a radical Muslim cleric, but an American academic. In April, looking for endorsements, Random House sent galleys to writers and scholars, including Denise Spellberg, an associate professor of Islamic history at the University of Texas in Austin. Ms. Jones put her on the list because she read Ms. Spellberg's book, "Politics, Gender, and the Islamic Past: The Legacy of 'A'isha Bint Abi Bakr."

But Ms. Spellberg wasn't a fan of Ms. Jones's book. On April 30, Shahed Amanullah, a guest lecturer in Ms. Spellberg's classes and the editor of a popular Muslim Web site, got a frantic call from her. "She was upset," Mr. Amanullah recalls. He says Ms. Spellberg told him the novel "made fun of Muslims and their history," and asked him to warn Muslims.

In an interview, Ms. Spellberg told me the novel is a "very ugly, stupid piece of work." The novel, for example, includes a scene on the night when Muhammad consummated his marriage with Aisha: "the pain of consummation soon melted away. Muhammad was so gentle. I hardly felt the scorpion's sting. To be in his arms, skin to skin, was the bliss I had longed for all my life." Says Ms. Spellberg: "I walked through a metal detector to see 'Last Temptation of Christ,'" the controversial 1980s film adaptation of a novel that depicted a relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. "I don't have a problem with historical fiction. I do have a problem with the deliberate misinterpretation of history. You can't play with a sacred history and turn it into soft core pornography."

After he got the call from Ms. Spellberg, Mr. Amanullah dashed off an email to a listserv of Middle East and Islamic studies graduate students, acknowledging he didn't "know anything about it [the book]," but telling them, "Just got a frantic call from a professor who got an advance copy of the forthcoming novel, 'Jewel of Medina' -- she said she found it incredibly offensive." He added a write-up about the book from the Publishers Marketplace, an industry publication.

The next day, a blogger known as Shahid Pradhan posted Mr. Amanullah's email on a Web site for Shiite Muslims -- "Hussaini Youth" -- under a headline, "upcoming book, 'Jewel of Medina': A new attempt to slander the Prophet of Islam." Two hours and 28 minutes after that, another person by the name of Ali Hemani proposed a seven-point strategy to ensure "the writer withdraws this book from the stores and apologise all the muslims across the world."

Meanwhile back in New York City, Jane Garrett, an editor at Random House's Knopf imprint, dispatched an email on May 1 to Knopf executives, telling them she got a phone call the evening before from Ms. Spellberg (who happens to be under contract with Knopf to write "Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an.")

"She thinks there is a very real possibility of major danger for the building and staff and widespread violence," Ms. Garrett wrote. "Denise says it is 'a declaration of war . . . explosive stuff . . . a national security issue.' Thinks it will be far more controversial than the satanic verses and the Danish cartoons. Does not know if the author and Ballantine folks are clueless or calculating, but thinks the book should be withdrawn ASAP." ("The Jewel of Medina" was to be published by Random House's Ballantine Books.) That day, the email spread like wildfire through Random House, which also received a letter from Ms. Spellberg and her attorney, saying she would sue the publisher if her name was associated with the novel. On May 2, a Ballantine editor told Ms. Jones's agent the company decided to possibly postpone publication of the book.

On a May 21 conference call, Random House executive Elizabeth McGuire told the author and her agent that the publishing house had decided to indefinitely postpone publication of the novel for "fear of a possible terrorist threat from extremist Muslims" and concern for "the safety and security of the Random House building and employees."

All this saddens me. Literature moves civilizations forward, and Islam is no exception. There is in fact a tradition of historical fiction in Islam, including such works as "The Adventures of Amir Hamza," an epic on the life of Muhammad's uncle. Last year a 948-page English translation was published, ironically, by Random House. And, for all those who believe the life of the prophet Muhammad can't include stories of lust, anger and doubt, we need only read the Quran (18:110) where, it's said, God instructed Muhammad to tell others: "I am only a mortal like you."

Ms. Nomani, a former Wall Street Journal reporter, is the author of "Standing Alone: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam" (HarperOne, 2006).

You'll note that the above commentary was written by a Moslem and, therefore, provides an important perspective on yet one more Twenty-first Century book burning, one akin to what happened to Alms for Jihad and very nearly to Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld. But in the case of The Jewel of Medina, objections from a powerful Saudi weren't needed. All that was needed: fear, dhimmitude, and political correctness.

The West is committing cultural suicide, inch by inch.

For a fictional take on what the West is doing to itself, read or reread Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. That 1953 work of dysopian science fiction is no longer fiction and actually seems prophetic now.

(Crossposted to Infidel Bloggers Alliance)

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Dhimmitude In Tennessee

Video - Tyson Replaces Labor Day With Muslim Holiday (hat-tip to The Tedland Daily):



YouTube Link

The MSNBC story is here.

And what is Eid al-Fitr?
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Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan. The last day of Ramadan celebrates the Battle of Badr, the first significant military victory by the forces of Muhammad.

The Battle of Badr of March 17, 624, is one of the few military conflicts specifically mentioned in the Qur'an and holds a great deal of significance in Islam. Specifically, this battle marked the turning point for Islam, both politically and ideologically.

Having earlier fled to Medina along with followers who accepted him as their prophet whereas most of the tribes of Mecca did not, early on that morning in 624, Muhammad got word that a rich Quraish caravan from Syria was returning to Mecca. He therefore assembled the largest army he had ever been able to muster, some 300 men, with the original intent of raiding the caravan. After his men successfully overtook the caravan and brought back the booty, Muhammad then conveniently received a new "revelation" from Allah — a "revelation" which not only included rejoicing in having captured an enemy's caravan but which also called "proved" that Muhammad had been preaching the true way all along. Fulfilling Destiny, Muhammad and his forces proceeded to trounce the Quraish as punishment for having earlier rejected the prophet's teachings. From this Islamic source:

In the name of Allah, the Beneficient, the Merciful.

The battle of Badr was the most important among the Islamic battles of Destiny. For the first time the followers of the new faith were put into a serious test. Had victory been the lot of the pagan army while the Islamic Forces were still at the beginning of their developments, the faith of Islam could have come to an end.

No one was aware of the importance of the outcome of the Battle as the Prophet (S.A.W.) himself. We might read the depth of his anxiety in his prayerbefore the beginning of the Battle when he stood up supplicating his Lord:

God this is Quraish. It has come with all its arrogance and boastfulness, trying to discredit Thy Apostle. God, I ask Thee to humiliate them tomorrow. God, if this Muslim band will perish today, Thou shall not be worshipped.

[...]

This battle laid the foundation of the Islamic State...

In other words, victory at the Battle of Badr proved to Muhammad and his adherents that Islam should from that time forth take on a militant aspect because such is the will of Allah.

From the day of the Battle of Badr on, the tone of the verses in the Qur'an changed. According to many Islamic scholars, the more recent revelations, sometimes referred to as the Medinan verses, abrogated the earlier and peaceful Meccan ones. Because preaching and tolerance had not brought Muhammad the following which he needed in order to establish himself and Islam as political forces to be reckoned with, Allah, via a military victory, showed the prophet a more effective way to spread Islam. Therefore, Muhammad's victory at the Battle of Badr and the celebration of Eid al-Fitr symbolize, for at least some Moslems, both the way to bring about the will of Allah and the will of Allah itself.

Somebody, please tell the Tysons Plant in Shelbyville what they are really recognizing and celebrating! Moslems yearning for the caliphate won't miss the symbolism, even if the union at Tysons doesn't understand the connection.

Additional reading: Robert Spencer on the above topic.

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Weekly Blog Talk Radio Show: August 8 — Blogger "Z"

Listen to The Gathering Storm Radio Show, which WC and I cohost. The show broadcasts live every Friday beginning at noon, Pacific Time.

The call-in number is (646) 915-9870.

Callers welcome!

Friday, August 8 (60 minutes): Our guest today for at the bottom of the hour will be "Z" of the blog geeeeeZ! Read her profile HERE. We will discuss with "Z" the dangers of blogging about Islam and the consequences of losing freedom of speech.
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You can listen to the August 8, 2008 edition of The Gathering Storm Radio Show, live or later, by CLICKING HERE.

UPCOMING SHOWS
August 15: Ilana Freedman and Layla Elizabeth Gonzalez
August 22: Raymond Ibrahim
August 29: John

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Hypocrite Al Gore

A little inconvenient truth about Al Gore, from this source, in an article entitled "Al Gore, Oilman":

It was two weeks ago, that Al Gore challenged Americans to “move quickly and boldly to shake off complacency, throw aside old habits and rise, clear-eyed and alert, to the necessity of big changes” by jumping on his alternative energy bandwagon. In a much-hyped speech July 17, the former vice president urged the nation “to commit to producing 100 percent of our electricity from renewable energy and truly clean carbon-free sources within 10 years.”

Gore acknowledged that achieving his ambitious goal would be difficult: “To be sure, reaching the goal of 100 percent renewable and truly clean electricity within 10 years will require us to overcome many obstacles.”

[...]

Ironically, one of the many obstacles to “reaching the goal of 100 percent renewable and truly clean electricity within 10 years” is none other than the wily Al Gore himself.

That’s because even though he claims Americans must work to end their dependence on oil and must stop generating electricity using fossil fuels within a decade or face certain catastrophe, Gore continues to have a financial interest in fossil fuels....

Read more details HERE.

Image credit, with essay

(Text of this posting crossposted to THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS)

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Obama & Fidel

A comparison:



YouTube Link

Here is where I found the above, which led to the following:

Beware Charismatic Men Who Preach 'Change'
Editor, Times-Dispatch:

Each year I get to celebrate Independence Day twice. On June 30 I celebrate my independence day and on July 4 I celebrate America's. This year is special, because it marks the 40th anniversary of my independence.

On June 30, 1968, I escaped Communist Cuba and a few months later I was in the United States to stay. That I happened to arrive in Richmond on Thanksgiving Day is just part of the story, but I digress.

I've thought a lot about the anniversary this year. The election-year rhetoric has made me think a lot about Cuba and what transpired there. In the late 1950s, most Cubans thought Cuba needed a change, and they were right. So when a young leader came along, every Cuban was at least receptive.

When the young leader spoke eloquently and passionately and denounced the old system, the press fell in love with him. They never questioned who his friends were or what he really believed in. When he said he would help the farmers and the poor and bring free medical care and education to all, everyone followed. When he said he would bring justice and equality to all, everyone said "Praise the Lord." And when the young leader said, "I will be for change and I'll bring you change," everyone yelled, "Viva Fidel!"

But nobody asked about the change, so by the time the executioner's guns went silent the people's guns had been taken away. By the time everyone was equal, they were equally poor, hungry, and oppressed. By the time everyone received their free education it was worth nothing. By the time the press noticed, it was too late, because they were now working for him. By the time the change was finally implemented Cuba had been knocked down a couple of notches to Third-World status. By the time the change was over more than a million people had taken to boats, rafts, and inner tubes. You can call those who made it ashore anywhere else in the world the most fortunate Cubans. And now I'm back to the beginning of my story.

Luckily, we would never fall in America for a young leader who promised change without asking, what change? How will you carry it out? What will it cost America?

Would we?

Manuel Alvarez Jr. Sandy Hook.

Food for thought: What will be the consequences of America's electing a candidate who promises ambiguous and nebulous change?

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Tolerance 101

Click directly on the image to enlarge it:


[With a hat-tip to GM Roper, who emailed me the above image]

(Crossposted a few days ago to Infidel Bloggers Alliance)

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