When ‘compassion’ threatens National Security: The landmines of illegal aliens entering military service

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In spite of its well-deserved reputation for wastefulness (and other foibles), Congress does have a “recycling program,” wherein failed legislative efforts are recycled by our politicians in Washington.

The ENLIST Act (H.R. 60), currently under consideration, failed to pass in 2014 but is back again.

The term “ENLIST” is an acronym for “Encourage New Legalized Immigrants to Start Training.”

Here is the summary of this bill as it appears on the Congressional Website:

This bill authorizes the enlistment in the Armed Forces of aliens unlawfully present in the United States on December 31, 2012, who: (1) have been continuously present in the United States since such date; (2) were younger than 15 years of age when they initially entered the United States; and (3) are otherwise eligible for original enlistment in a regular component of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard.

The Department of Homeland Security shall adjust the status of an alien enlisted under such authority to the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence under provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act applicable to aliens who entered the United States prior to January 1, 1972.

The bill rescinds such lawful permanent resident status if the alien is separated from the Armed Forces under other than honorable conditions before serving the term of enlistment.

The text of the bill provides additional important information.

On the face of it, H.R. 60 seems reasonable.

Joining the military is the ultimate act of patriotism, to go in harm’s way on behalf of the United States.

Foreign nationals, including aliens who were illegally present in the United States, have joined our military to defend our nation and some have made the “ultimate sacrifice” as a result of their service to our nation while others were seriously wounded.

I don’t seek to impugn their integrity or in any way demean their service or their loyalty to America.

It is possible that the members of Congress who support this bill sincerely believe that this a fair and effective way to address the problems created thought the presence of hundreds of thousands, if not millions of illegal aliens, who were brought illegally to the United States by their parents, being, in effect, captive to the actions of their parents.

Indeed several members of Congress who are supporting this legislation have, in the past, taken appropriate positions, where immigration law enforcement is concerned.  Some of these members of the House of Representatives have, themselves, served in our military.

I am, however, greatly concerned that transnational gang members and terrorists could exploit this program and this is, as you will see, more than conjecture.

Our nation’s military bases an integral component of national security.  Such bases contain advanced weaponry and often provide access to highly sensitive intelligence.

Time and again we have witnessed “insider killings” on our bases in the Middle East where terrorists join the military to have access to those bases, whereupon they carry out deadly attacks.

The training the members of our armed forces receive are second to none.  The ENLIST Act would provide illegal aliens including potentially transnational gang members and international terrorists with access to our military bases and that highly valued training.

Before we go further it is vital to note that under federal law 18 U.S. Code § 922(g)(5) it is a crime for illegal aliens:

“to ship or transport in interstate or foreign commerce, or possess in or affecting commerce, any firearm or ammunition; or to receive any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.”

The ENLIST Act would thus provide such aliens with the lawful authority to possess weapons and ammunition.

A disturbing documentary video explicitly reports on the growing numbers of transnational gang members having joined our armed forces and cited an FBI report.

My concerns about this are not limited to the findings of others, but are also based on my own first-hand knowledge and experiences I acquired during my 30 year career with the former INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service).

I called upon my experiences when, in October 2014 I wrote an article, Enlisting ‘DREAMERS’ Into Our Military May Create a Nightmare to explain my concerns about the first ENLIST Act that was proposed back then.

Here the relevant paragraph from my commentary:

As an INS agent, in the late 1970s, I worked closely with the NYPD, ATF and ONI (Office of Naval Intelligence) – currently known as NIS (Naval Investigative Service) – to track down and arrest aliens, predominantly from the Caribbean, who had used false ID to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps to acquire tactical training and firearms training with high-powered weapons. Their goal was to use that training and the weapons they stole to carry out a series of extremely violent, commando-style bank robberies in the New York City area. We literally followed a trail of blood and bodies.

My article also included information contained in an ABC News report:

On October 21, 2011, ABC News posted this report: “FBI Finds Gangs Expanding, Even to U.S. Military.” It stated that although FBI and members of law enforcement don’t have estimates on the number of gang members in the military, there is evidence of gangs operating in 100 jurisdictions in the U.S. and abroad, with members of more than 50 different gangs throughout the military.

Here is an excerpt from that FBI report:

  • Gangs encourage members, associates, and relatives to obtain law enforcement, judiciary, or legal employment in order to gather information on rival gangs and law enforcement operations. Gang infiltration of the military continues to pose a significant criminal threat, as members of at least 53 gangs have been identified on both domestic and international military installations. Gang members who learn advanced weaponry and combat techniques in the military are at risk of employing these skills on the street when they return to their communities.
  • Gang members are acquiring high-powered, military-style weapons and equipment which poses a significant threat because of the potential to engage in lethal encounters with law enforcement officers and civilians. Typically firearms are acquired through illegal purchases; straw purchases via surrogates or middle-men, and thefts from individuals, vehicles, residences and commercial establishments. Gang members also target military and law enforcement officials, facilities, and vehicles to obtain weapons, ammunition, body armor, police gear, badges, uniforms, and official identification.

The 2015 National Gang Report prepared by the National Gang Intelligence Center included this cautionary statement on page 33:

Military-trained gang members pose a serious threat to law enforcement and to the public. They learn combat tactics in the military, then return home to utilize these new skills against rival gangs or law enforcement. Military training of individual gang members could ultimately result in more sophisticated and deadly gangs, as well as deadly assaults on law enforcement officers.

While not all gang members are foreign nationals, many street gangs do consist of aliens who belong to transnational gangs from countries around the world.

Identity theft and the creation of false identities is the stock and trade of criminals, spies and terrorists.  The 9/11 terrorists used 364 false aliases.

Consider the 2016 Telegraph headline, Ukrainian man jailed after posing as child and attending high school.  In this case the man, Artur Samarin, aka Asher Potts, was in his 20’s yet spent several years attending a high school passing himself off as a teenager.  He was a high profile honor student who had been admitted into the United States with a work visa that expired in 2012.  He allegedly then created a false identity for himself.

He is additionally accused of having sex with a 15 year old female classmate and faces decades in prison and deportation upon the completion of his prison sentence.

I addressed this case in my article, Ukrainian National Infiltrates Harrisbur High School, How an illegal immigrant lied about his identity and age and embedded himself among PA children.

Immigration fraud was identified as a key entry and embedding tactic of terrorists who carried out or attempted to carry out terror attacks in the United States.

Under the auspices of the DACA (Deferred Action – Childhood Arrival) Program hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens were granted temporary authorization to live and work in the United States.  The number of applications was so great that there were no interviews and no field investigations conducted to determine the veracity of the information contained in those applications.

It is undeniable that when aliens enter the United States without inspection, thereby circumventing the vetting process conducted at ports of entry to prevent the entry of criminals and terrorists, no record of their entry is created.

Without the resources to conduct field investigations, it will be virtually impossible to determine when, where, how or why these aliens entered the United States in the first place, despite their claims that they entered illegally as children with their parents.

Given the continuing growing threats posed by transnational gangs and international terrorists, efforts to address the immigration crisis must not exacerbate our vulnerabilities.

If this bill, H.R. 60, becomes law, it is likely to facilitate the nefarious goals of those who see in our compassion weakness that could be easily exploited.

Suicide is not an act of compassion.

RELATED ARTICLES:

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Texas Sheriff Actively Promoting Visas for Illegal Immigrants

EDITORS NOTE: This column originally appeared in FrontPage Magazine.

VIDEO: Remembering the ISIS attack at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, FL on 6/12/2016

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Muslim Omar Mateen, who killed dozens of people inside the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., on Sunday, June 12, 2016. (MySpace via AP)

Milo Yiannopoulos speaks on the ISIS Terrorist attack at the gay nightclub Pulse in Orlando, FL.

‘Milo’ as he’s known to his cult gives a frank and honest assessment of the ISIS inspired terrorist attack in Orlando, FL.

Milo names the enemy who did this attack, their Islamic ideological motivations, without all the politically correct filters that defines our media today.

Milo is a gay conservative whose views are causing concern in the primarily liberal Democratic leaning gay community. Milo’s message is resonating with a large number of conservative and liberal gays who are shifting their support to conservative politicians and Donald Trump.

Sit down and enjoy one of the most impassioned warnings to America you will ever hear.

VIDEO: Dr. Sharifa Alkhateeb in 2009 states the goal of Muslim Education is to make America Muslim

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Sharifa Alkhateeb

Below is a C-SPAN video from 1989 taken at a conference hosted by the Islamic Society of North America featuring Sharifa Alkhateeb, a Muslim educator. In the video Alkhateeb shares the ultimate goal of Muslim education in America.

Alkhateeb states the objective of Muslim education in America is to make all of America Muslim.

According to Discover the Networks:

The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) was established in July 1981 by U.S-based members of the Muslim Brotherhood who also had a background as leaders of the Muslim Students Association (MSA). As author and terrorism expert Steven Emerson puts it, ISNA “grew out of the Muslim Students Association, which … was founded by Brotherhood members.” Indeed, Muslim Brothers would dominate ISNA’s leadership throughout its early years, when the Society was highly dependent upon Saudi funding. ISNA’s founding mission was “to advance the cause of Islam and serve Muslims in North America so as to enable them to adopt Islam as a complete way of life.”

On October 29, 2016 the Independent Sentinel reported:

Sharifa Alkhateeb was a friend of Huma Abedin’s and Hillary Clinton’s but she died of cancer in 2004. She referred to herself as a feminist and was an advocate for establishing Muslim culture in America and making America Muslim. She encouraged other Muslims to have patience setting up “our own Islam systems” and to think of all Americans as potential Muslims.

An active member of the Muslim Students Association in the 1960s, she last served as president of the North American Council for Muslim Women in northern Virginia. Both organizations are tied to Hamas.

[ … ]

She worked with US Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton to allegedly forge ties with other religious communities.

Alkhateeb was born and reared in the United States by immigrant parents–her father is from Yemen and her mother is from Czechoslovakia.

Hillary invited her to the White House in 1999 for a NARA conference when she was first lady. The event was organized by Huma Abedin.

During her address, Hillary said: “Sharifa Alkhateeb of the North American Council for Muslim Women has been largely responsible for working with the White House staff in bringing us here. As many of you may know, Sharifa was the chair of the Muslim Caucus in Beijing in 1995. And she is also a great friend to me and to my staff for many, many occasions when we call upon her for advice and counsel. And I am pleased that once again she could be so helpful, both on her own behalf and on behalf of the Council in helping us out.”

Muslim education has become standardized in public school textbooks, in America’s college and university departments of Middle East studies. Alkhateeb’s vision is bearing fruit today as American children are being indoctrinated to embrace Islam and become followers of Mohammed.

RELATED ARTICLE: Complaint Filed Against Pro-Islam Policy Of San Diego School Board

EDITORS NOTE: Hat tip to Anthony Küster for sending us this video clip.

 

15 Faceless Bureaucrats Will Decide what Health Care You’re Allowed to Have by Eric Peters

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President Trump and congressional Republicans have a second chance to take a whack at the Obamacare piñata – and the beauty of it is that this time, Democrats may want to take a swing at it, too.

“It” being the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), a.k.a the death panel that was much in the news during the debate over passage of the Affordable Care Act but which then quietly faded away. For the time being.

And for good reason – especially as far as Democrats are concerned.The IPAB/death panel is to be composed of 15 bureaucrats appointed to six-year terms by the President. Future tense because the 15 bureaucrats haven’t been appointed yet. Because the IPAB hasn’t been “constituted” yet. Thankfully.

It is, however, slated by statute to come online once Medicare spending reaches a certain threshold relative to the Consumer Price Index. Kind of like an alarm clock you hope never goes off.

Given the continued rise in health care costs, especially Medicare costs (the “Affordable” Care Act’s easy promises of reduced costs notwithstanding), this could happen as early as next year. As soon as the actuary for Medicare/Medicaid Services issues a report – already overdue for 2017 – that the “targets” have been exceeded, the IPAB automatically rises to life – in order to dispense death.

And that is what has Democrats worried.

Bureaucrats Directing Your Doctor

Nominally, the IPAB was created to control Medicare spending – supposedly by cutting red tape and so on. In practice, and notwithstanding assurance to the contrary, it would inevitably become a de facto price control/care-rationing body, cutting costs by unilaterally reducing “authorized” payments to doctors and other providers and by the simple expedient of declaring various treatments “not cost-effective,” thereby denying treatment outright.

To paraphrase Joe Stalin: No care, no problem.

It is Orwellian that the same Democrats who endlessly accuse Republicans of seeking to “deny care” to people have done exactly that by legislative and bureaucratic fiat.By statute, the IPAB is required to cut costs in line with arbitrary “targets” – regardless of the effect on care. There is no provision for judicial or administrative review. Even the President is powerless to remove IPAB bureaucrats, once they are appointed. The IPAB is effectively both omnipotent and unaccountable.

It is, in a very real sense, the not-yet-popped kernel of a UK-style single payer system in which neither you nor your doctor decide what care is needed, nor what care you’ll get. Instead, faceless bureaucrats – people neither you nor your doctor will ever meet or even talk with – would determine the care you’ll be allowed to get.

This, perhaps, is what former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi – an ardent backer of the Affordable Care Act – meant when she said, “You have to pass it in order to find out what’s in it.”

Well, surprise.

The Chance to End the IPAB Before It Happens

It’s no surprise that almost everyone who has found out – or will soon –  what the IPAB actually is either loathes it or is uneasy about defending it. Which presents a fantastic opportunity to do away with it.

Republicans have of course always objected in principle to the idea of empowering government bureaucrats to interpose themselves between patients and doctors and to the rationing of care – and to government death panels.

Democrats, on the other hand, are boxed into a corner. The whole point of Obamacare was to increase access to care – or so they claimed. But the ugly fact is that the IPAB will reduce access to care. Will ration care. Will deny people care. In particular, to older people – those dependent on Medicare.

This time, it won’t be hard-hearted insurance companies that pull the proverbial plug on grandma. It will be the much harder-hearted government. One can always change insurance policies. But there is no way to get away from government.

If the IPAB is ever “constituted,” it will be compulsory. You will not be allowed to say “no, thanks” to it. You will not even be asked. The 15 unelected bureaucrats will simply decree.

Democrats will have a tough time facing their constituents once they find out what the IPAB is all about.The good news – the huge news – is that it’s politically feasible to prevent the IPAB from ever being “constituted” if action is taken within the next couple of months. A provision was built into the arcana of the Affordable Care Act that makes it possible to hit the ”delete” button on the IPAB without broaching the broader issue of the ACA itself.

In other words, it is not necessary to repeal and replace Obamacare in order to get rid of the IPAB death panel. It’s an a la carte opportunity to nix a dangerous provision of Obamacare.

This must, however, be done by August 15, 2017 – just two months from now.

Republicans not only oppose the IPAB as a matter of principle, they very much need a legislative victory, particularly on the health care issue.

Democrats may not be particularly interested in helping them win one, of course. But they aren’t in a strong position to prevent one, either.

It will be very politically difficult for them to defend rationing health care – and denial of care outright – to their constituents. They may not smile and shake hands for the cameras over this, but it’s not likely they’ll mount a vigorous opposition, either. Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon has already joined with Republican John Cornyn of Texas on bipartisan legislation to repeal the IPBA – and there is a companion repeal measure in the House that has 124 co-sponsors.

Republicans could easily jump-start the effort to get repeal and replace Obamacare by getting rid of it one piece at a time.

And with the help of Democrats this time.

Eric Peters

Eric Peters is an automotive journalist. Eric started out writing about cars for mainstream media outlets such as The Washington Times, Detroit News and Free Press, Investors Business Daily, The American Spectator, National Review, the Chicago Tribune and Wall Street Journal.

God is Alive in Cuba!

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Catholic Church located in the Plaza de San Francisco in Havana, Cuba.

I wrote a column titled My Visit to Cuba — An American in Havana about my recent trip to Havana, Cuba.

As a Catholic I was most interested in the state of the Catholic Church in Cuba. While walking and riding a taxi in Havana I noticed dozens of Catholic Churches within walking distance of the Capitol building. While the Capitol building was under renovation, the Catholic Churches, in general, were in a sad state of disrepair on the outside but remained beautiful if not magnificent on the inside. Is this a message from God? Is God alive in Cuba?

Before the June 26th, 1953 Revolution 85% of Cubans were Catholics. Since then the work of the Catholic Church has been replaced by the Communist government. But the Communist government is continually failing its people, so who has stepped into the breach to fill the needs of the most needy, the followers of Jesus.

The God of Abraham and His Son Jesus, have been battling Cuba’s Communist Party for over 50 years.

During my visit to Cuba I noticed many women wearing necklaces with either a Crucifix or a wooden cross. The people still believe, it is their belief that keeps them alive and living with hope. They have the faith that God is testing them and His word and grace will protect them, no matter what they suffer thru in His name.

The Atlantic’s Jason Berry in a September 2015 article titled How the Catholic Church Survived in Cuba wrote:

More than five decades ago, Fidel Castro’s revolution triggered the sweeping seizure of Catholic Church properties in Cuba.

In one expropriation, someone decapitated the statue of Santo Tomás de Villanueva outside the chapel of the Havana university named for the saint. As the Cuban regime turned Villanueva into a trade school, the headless statue became an eerie symbol for a church shorn of influence. Graffiti scarred the walls of the decaying chapel.

“The Villanueva statue has been headless since 1963,” said Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami, who has steered aid to the Cuban Church for years. But the larger body of the Roman Catholic Church in Cuba has endured and, recently, grown stronger, despite the combination of careless neglect and open hostility it has suffered under communism.

Read more.

Berry noted, “Across the island [of Cuba], bishops, priests, nuns, and lay workers operate Cuba’s de-facto social safety net, which the cash-strapped government, whose revolution was founded on egalitarian principles, cannot deliver for all disabled, elderly, and impoverished Cubans.”

The Sarasota Baptist Church located in Sarasota, Florida is doing its part to bring God back into a godless Cuba. Christians strongly believe in Acts 1:8 which reads:

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

In order to “be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth” the Sarasota Baptist Church sent a mission to Cuba from April 29th to May 6th, 2017. Another Baptist Church, First Sarasota has made it their mission to establish a seminary and now has 60 Baptist congregations in Cuba.

God is not dead in Cuba. Visit a Catholic Church in Cuba to understand.

Pictures taken of the Catholic Church in the Plaza de San Francisco in Havana, Cuba.

Lawsuit Against Collier School Board To Halt Political Indoctrination Of Students

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When it comes to our children and their future, “Where is your line in the sand?”  FLCA has found ours, and we invite you to join with us.

After two years of trying to get the Collier School board to do the right thing, we are suing the Collier County School Board for violating Florida Sunshine law and multiple statutes that require them to teach our founding values and principles, and which require balanced, unbiased and factual material (see a copy of the filed complaint).  We issued a press release about the lawsuit on May 31st.  Here’s an excerpt from the press release:

Florida Citizens Alliance has decided,  “Enough is enough!”  We are now an active participant along with Collier parents in a lawsuit for an emergency injunction to stop this “flawed” textbook adoption process. This lawsuit was filed today, May 31st , 2017 in The Circuit Court for the 20th Judicial Circuit in and for Collier County. The Collier County School Board (CCPS) has violated Florida Sunshine Law and ignored at least four Florida statutes, all at the expense of our 46,000 plus students who deserve the “highest quality .instructional materials of professionalism and historical accuracy”.  Quote: FS 1003.42

[Full press release]

We strongly believe the School Board here in Collier County has violated Chapter 128, Florida’s sunshine law and at least four other Florida Statutes including FS 1003.42, FS 1006.28, FS 1006.31(2), and FS 1006.283.

UPDATE:video clips from the Collier County Public Schools “Special Hearing” meeting on June 1, 2017 show clearly that CCPS is NOT interested in community and parental input, nor are they interested in following Florida law.

RELATED ARTICLE: Florida Teacher Bans Cross Necklaces in Class, Promotes LGBT Day of Silence

The GOP and Identity Politics in the Black Community

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The Republican Party continues to miss the mark when it comes to engaging the Black community.

For those Republicans, who fastidiously claim they don’t believe in “identity politics (IP),” let me give you a piece of advice: Stop It!

Politically speaking, IP is a campaign that is based on the particular needs of a specific group of people that will give them the rationale or incentive to vote for your candidate.

For example, a Republican candidate would campaign in the Black community on issues like entrepreneurship, civil rights, voting rights, etc.; whereas the same candidate might campaign in the Hispanic community on issues like entrepreneurship, immigration, and cultural assimilation.

Far too many Republicans assert that “we are all Americans and all want the same things: jobs, education, safe neighborhoods, etc.” This is all true, but a ridiculously bland message when it comes to outreach in the Black community.

While core messaging should be a constant for all candidates, the way you communicate that message has to be crafted based on the audience you are addressing.

In business, we call this market segmentation. This is most often done with the S-T-P approach; which is segmentation, targeting, and positioning. Once you segment the voters, Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, etc., you then create a targeted campaign to speak directly to each individual group; finally, you position your messaging in a way that will resonate with that group.

McDonald’s is a classic example.

Their objective is to sell their Big Macs to the American people, so their TV commercials are all trying to convince the country to buy their product, but they also are smart enough to use IP or market segmentation to achieve their stated objective—selling more hamburgers.

So, it makes all the sense in the world for McDonald’s to use Black actors when advertising on BET and Hispanic actors when advertising on Univision. This is the commercial application of identity politics.
When have you ever seen men selling women undergarments in Victoria Secrets commercials? That’s right, you haven’t.

Republicans have become so data driven that they no longer have any vision.

It’s not enough for Republicans to reflexively spout out buzz words and phrases like: “We are the big tent party”; “the party of Abraham Lincoln”; “We believe in lower taxes, smaller government, more individual freedom,” yada, yada, yada.

Republicans must first and foremost persuade Blacks that conservatism is not incompatible with civil rights, voting rights, and equal opportunity, but rather these issues are a fundamental part of conservatism.

Republicans must, by their actions, demonstrate that Black businesses tend to flourish when Republicans control the levers of government compared to when Democrats are in power.

I wrote about this, in 2012, in a piece I did for Black Enterprise. Democrats and the Obama Administration have done very little for Black-owned businesses over the last eight years.

Republicans have a huge opportunity to engage directly with the Black community on the specific issue of entrepreneurship. Not only are these Black businessmen fervent supporters of abolishing the capital gains tax, accelerated depreciation (writing off all capital purchases in year one), and lowering the corporate tax rate, but they also want to be relieved of all the onerous regulations imposed on them by Obama’s reign of terror on small and minority businesses.

According to the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth, “Black buying power is $ 1.2 trillion; which would make Black America the 15th largest economy in the world in terms of gross domestic product (GDP).” That is equivalent to the size of Mexico.

Two years ago, the Aspen Institute and “The Atlantic” released a poll that was stunning. According to their poll, Blacks represent the largest group in the country that “believes that the American Dream is attainable with hard work.”

So, to those Republicans, who think that Blacks are just waiting for more government programs and more handouts, I say, you’re wrong.

The Black community is open for business and willing to engage with the Republican Party, but when will the party address the issues we are interested in, not the issues that they think we’re interested in?

We need access to capital, our fair share of government contracts, which is mandated by law, a seat at the decision-making table and input in to policies that affect the economy.

And what will the party get in return for doing business with the Black community? The party will see Blacks voting for Republicans in double digits. The party will see a growth in financial contributions from leading businessmen, who currently see absolutely no value in contributing to Republican campaigns or entities. The party will also get fresh perspectives and new ideas from the top thinkers in the Black community; who are also the “real” leaders within our community.

But most importantly, the party find that the Black community is already in sync with its business agenda; the GOP simply needs to extend a sincere invitation.

Come on Republicans. What in the hell do you have to lose?

Republicans must first and foremost persuade Blacks that conservatism is not incompatible with civil rights, voting rights, and equal opportunity.

EDITORS NOTE: This column originally appeared in Black Press USA.

First 50 Syrian families head home to ‘safe zone’ in Syria….

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….And, it has nothing to do with any Trump Administration plans. Other actors have stepped in to begin to make it happen and as the story tells us, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees had no comment.

Before critics jump in, it should be none of our business if these families want to put their lives in the hands of Hezbollah, it is not our role (or the UN’s!) to play the papa and tell them where to live and what to do with their lives (which is a large part of the psychology that drives refugee resettlement—the ‘we know what’s good for you’ mentality!).

From Lebanon’s Daily Star (hat tip: Joanne)

BEIRUT: Dozens of refugee families returned to Aasal al-Ward in southern Syria after leaving the Lebanese border town of Arsal over the weekend as part of a deal brokered by Hezbollah and Syrian rebel factions.

Photo accompanying Daily Star story.

The Lebanese Army said in a statement that 30 civilian vehicles carrying an estimated 50 families departed from the northern Lebanese town in the early hours of Saturday and a military escort accompanied them until the last military checkpoint.

According to the Army statement, the move was undertaken in response to a “keen interest of the families” to return to their homeland. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV circulated a video Sunday depicting the Syrian families celebrating their return to their hometown.

Local media estimated that 50 families chose to leave Lebanon for Syria Saturday. A total of 500 families are expected to relocate following negotiations earlier this year to establish small safe zones for civilians in the Qalamoun region, brokered by Hezbollah.

A security source in the town of Arsal told The Daily Star Saturday that the return of dozens of displaced families was the result of behind-the-scenes negotiations between Hezbollah and the Syrian regime on one hand, and armed factions present in the area on the other.

[….]

The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, had no comment when contacted Sunday evening.

There is more, but you may have to subscribe to get it.

Truth be told, most ‘refugees’ just want to go home and that should be our number one goal—to get them there—not move them around the world like pieces on a chessboard.

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Two cases of refugees beating family members: no one told me it was against the law in the west

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Idaho refugee sexual assault case: boys get probation

After initial disappointment, Ohio resettlement agency getting excited for higher refugee influx

Americas LOST Generations

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As millions of Americans scratch their heads trying to make sense of anything they see going on in America today, the answer may be easier than they think. Truth will set us free, but no one said it would be fun or politically correct. To be very clear, when I say “lost,” I mean unsalvageable.

America is more ideologically divided than at any point in history and the two opposing ideologies are entrenched in their positions, unable to change or even communicate with each other. Contrary to popular theory, facts are not subjective. But the facts also have very little to do with individual ideological beliefs.

It is undeniable that at all times in history, the state of our government is a mirror image of the country at large. But it is a mirror image of those born 25-50 years earlier, the group in political and private power at any given time. Generational datelines can shift slightly one direction or another, but the datelines offered here are as close to reality as it gets.

Much has been written about America’s “Greatest Generation,” those born between 1901-1924. The Greatest Generation is a term made popular by journalist Tom Brokaw to describe the generation who grew up in the United States during the deprivation of the Great Depression, and then went on to fight in World Wars, as well as those whose productivity within the war’s home front made a decisive material contribution to the war effort, for which the generation is also termed the G.I. Generation.

The Greatest Generation was not born great… They were raised to be great and forced to become great under pressure as a result of socio-economic conditions and global conflicts of their time. They grew up in tough circumstances and were forced to become tough as a result.

Unfortunately, now we must discuss America’s “Lost Generations,” those born between 1963-1993, today, ages 24-54. Before discussing the majority in this group, I must state for the record that there are exceptions to every general rule. Not every American born during this period is “ideologically lost.”

In this case, the exception to the rule pertains to those who were born and raised in a traditional family home, with both parents engaged in the parenting process and almost without exception, raised with some form of moral code and sense of fundamental decency. However, this is a minority within this age group due to the increasing divorce rate and two income households, the latch-key era, wherein children were often raised by the community rather than their parents.

American conservatives tend to be those born sometime prior to 1963, before the 60s peaceniks started giving birth to their generation. The era of free sex, drugs and rock-n-roll produced the “lost generations” that no sane individual can understand or communicate with today. Within the broader group born between 1963-1993 – we find the “millennials,” born 1983-1993, now age 23-33.

Rather than further discussing exceptions to the rule, we should look much closer at the lost generation-and-a-half (1963-1993) responsible for all of the insanity we see in our country and around the globe today.

THE FIRST LOST GENERATION

The first lost generation in America are those born between 1963-1983. These are the children of the 60s revolutionaries who saw America as a horrible imperialist conqueror of nations, a popularized view which began with the anti-war campaign in opposition to U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. That view was perpetuated well beyond Vietnam and persists within this generation still today in a popularized objection to the use of military or law enforcement actions anywhere, for any reason.

The children raised by anti-American revolutionaries are today’s revolutionaries responsible for violent and destructive acts across the country, wherein they believe that rioting is a form of protected free speech, even as they violently work to silence the free speech of their ideological opposition groups.

The mind-bending that this generation was subjected to growing up now manifests itself in increasingly violent anti-American revolts against all things fundamentally American.

The vast majority of this generation exhibits a psychological condition known as transmarginal inhibition (TMI). Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov is well-known for his acclaimed studies in animal behavior and dog training. But his much more critical work was in his similar study of human behavior and conditioning, or conditioning, which he proved to be identical in nature to that of basic animal behavior.

Pavlov identified the three stages of transmarginal inhibition –

Stage 1 – equivalent phase: when the response matches the stimuli, which is considered the

normal baseline behavior.

Stage 2 – paradoxical phase: associated with quantity reversal, occurs when small stimuli receive major responses and major stimuli elicit small responses.

Stage 3- the final stage – ultra-paradoxical: the final stage, associated with quality reversal in which negative stimulation results in positive responses and vice versa.

“The significance of the paradoxical phase is not limited to pathological states such as those previously observed, and it is highly probable that it plays a part in normal men too, who often are apt to be much more influenced by words than by actual facts of surrounding reality.” – Ivan Pavlov

“Pavlov demonstrated that when Transmarginal Inhibition began to take over a dog, a condition similar to hysteria in a human manifested. The applications of these findings to human psychology suggest that for a “conversion” to be effective, it is necessary to work on the subject’s emotions until s/he reaches an abnormal condition of fear, anger or exaltation. If such a state is maintained or intensified by any of various means, hysteria is the result. In a state of hysteria, a human being is abnormally suggestible and influences in the environment can cause one set of behavior patterns to be replaced by another without any need for persuasive indoctrination. In states of fear and excitement, normally sensible human beings will accept the most wildly improbably suggestions.” (SOURCE)

In essence, this conditioning turns the subject’s world upside-down. As we watch college kids act out in violence as they call for peace – act in racist fashion while protesting racism – destroy property while complaining about trashing the planet and behaving like fascists while protesting fascism – we search for reasons why the world view children seems 180-degress upside-down and entirely backwards. Even in the face of massive ongoing Islamic terror everywhere, they fight on behalf of Islam.

Individuals in stages 1 and 2 can be reached, with a great amount of effort to drum lies out of them and the truth in. But once an individual reaches stage 3, they cannot be reached. Their world is entirely inside-out. Their reaction to truth and fact at this stage will be to shut down or resort to violent behavior to defend their belief system. The “shut down” is the key indicator that someone has reached stage 3.

The answer to why we see these extremely odd behaviors is complex, but not at all complicated. They have been conditioned to behave in this manner and they are completely unaware of just how backwards their world really is, to any sane person. In fact, they are incapable of ever seeing or understanding. They are past the point of no return – they are unreachable – hence my use of the term “lost generation.”

As former KGB agent and Russian defector Yuri Bezmenov explained in great detail in a 1984 live interview, none of this is accidental or a coincidence. (The entire interview here) Of course, those effected by the slow programming are entirely unaware and resistant to the notion that they have been programmed. Only those who have not been programmed can see the programming.

According to Bezmenov, the four steps to “winning the hearts and minds” of an entire country are as follows;

  1. Destroy Moral Foundations
  2. Re-educate the young “mush minds” (20-year process)
  3. Teach the young to yearn for Marxism under an acceptable terminology (progressive)
  4. Move the conditioned into political and economic power

Part of that programming includes conditioning that prevents the programmed person from ever accepting the reality that they have been programmed. Instead, they believe that everyone else has been programmed. As a result, anything that challenges their belief system at all will be immediately rejected out of hand without any consideration whatsoever.

In this group, there are two sub-groups, those in stage 1 or 2 of transmarginal inhibition and those who have reached stage 3. Stage 3 members of the 1963-1993 group are beyond the reach of fact or reason. They are very dangerous to themselves and others.

Those in stage 1 or 2 of this group often experience something called cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort (psychological stress) experienced by a person who simultaneously holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values. They were raised in a good family home and were instilled with good fundamental values, but were later introduced to and influenced by family outsiders and now struggle internally with the two divergent belief systems.

This condition can often cause symptoms similar to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). They simply cannot choose between the two divergent belief systems and are caught between the two, usually materializing in great turmoil and conflict between themselves and their closest loved ones.

Yuri Beznenov refers to this group as “drop-outs and half-baked intellectuals” otherwise known as “useful idiots.” Beznenov is correct, this group is beyond salvation or redemption.

THE HALF-GENERATION ALSO LOST

The half-generation, the millennials, born between 1983-1993, are the children of the lost generation born between 1963-1993, including the millennials in this timeline. Had only millennials voted in the 2016 election, the outcome of that election would have looked like this…

Because the millennials are projected to be the single largest voting bloc in upcoming elections, future election results could look exactly like this, unless we reach the reachable, the millennials. Dealing with this group can be a challenge, but very rewarding.

The totally lost generation, a majority born between 1963-1983, are unreachable. They exist in stage 3 (ultra-paradoxical) and are responsible for all of the damage done to this country. They are the “global Marxists” who saddled the millennials and all future generations with trillions in debt and have stolen their future in the process. Parents of the millennials are the “lost generation” that we can only ignore or retire.

However, a majority of the millennials themselves can be saved. An increasing number are beginning to figure out the hellish future that is theirs, thanks to the generation before them.

There is little time, but there is time to reach the millennials and younger generations. It’s a fact that people my age and older are America’s past. These kids are Americas future… they must be reached and they can be reached.

HOW TO REACH THE REACHABLE

At the foundation of Pavlov’s findings is the reality that all living organism must eat. Pavlov called it the “daily bread” theory. Control the “daily bread” and you can control the organism, be it plant, animal or human.

The effort to “fundamentally transform America” into something it should never be, has been done by a multitude of strategic initiatives, not the least of which is a form of mass mind control. Watch the Beznenov interview again…

The mind is like a digital recorder with unlimited storage capacity. But it only records data being pushed in its direction. Today, massive amounts of data are being forced in through every channel – music, movies, TV, fake news, politicians, video games, social media, formal education and even church. You almost never see a kid who isn’t on their smart-phone no matter the time of day or night.

We know who controls all of these data venues today and we know exactly what data is being pumped into these kid’s digital recorder, their minds. Because we also know that the way to transform (control) any society is to “control their daily bread,” or their daily diet of data, we know that to reach these kids, we have no choice but to cut off the flow of that data. Simply stated, junk in means that you will only get junk out…

Because we do not control the venues of mass data flow into the minds of our young, we must control their access to it. Before their minds can record anything good, we must stop the pumping of bad data from other sources. We have to “parent” again.

The way out is the same as the way in… Based upon Bezmenov interview

  1. Reverse mass demoralization – Before you can convince an entire society that up is down and down is up, you must first remove the moral absolutes. To turn the world right-side-up again, you must return to moral absolutes. Remember that the global mind-controllers had to destroy the church first. The church is not a safe haven in America today.
  2. Reverse exposure to anti-American programming – stop the pumping of Marxism into the minds of our youth. Like an empty glass on the table, when we force water (truth) in, we are forcing air (lies) out.
  3. Reverse the un-education system – End public sector union control over the public education system and replace false educational materials with truthful education materials designed to raise a decent society of free adults rather than lifelong slaves of the federal government.
  4. Drain the political swamp – The individuals born 1963-1983 are the people currently in political and private power today. Their destructive nature is the result of their upbringing in youth. They are entrenched in that belief system and cannot be turned around. They simply must be removed from the equation and replaced by a new generation of pro-American leaders grounded in American principles, values and ideas.

Who should do it?

All of us who know that a mass deprogramming must be done. We must do it within our own families, our local churches and schools, local, state and federal government and reach outward to our communities and entire society.

Face it… everyone is a “patriot” today until you mention words like “action” – “solution” or call upon them to get up and do anything. Most wait for someone else to do it, which is why it never gets done.

But as has always been the case, the future of our country rests in the hands of its people, those willing to take appropriate action. The future of this country depends entire upon our ability and willingness to reach the reachable. Do it now, or our country will soon be lost forever.

Religious Protection Gone Wild

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The First Amendment guarantees Americans the freedom of religion in the “establishment” clause:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Words matter, so the first question that must be answered is a matter of definition. What is religion?

The dictionary defines religion as:

  1. The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.
  2. A particular system of faith and worship.
  3. A pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes superhuman importance.

Dictionaries have been used for centuries to help codify the meaning of words in an attempt to make language useful. Without accepted specific meanings for words it is impossible to communicate through language effectively. Language is the common denominator of speech. Even biblical stories express the importance of the meaning of words as they are understood or misunderstood in any language. The most famous example is the biblical story of The Tower of Babel that begins with everyone on Earth speaking the same language and able to understand each other. Whether the scattering of people around the world was a punishment for hubris or not, the consequence was that people began speaking different languages and could no longer understand each other.

But what happens when people speaking the same language no longer understand each other because they interpret the meaning of the same words differently? That is the situation we are facing in contemporary American society today.

The second question that must be answered is a matter of interpretation. What does religion mean to you?

Thomas Jefferson wrote eloquently on the subject in an 1802 letter to the Danbury Baptists who worried about their minority status in Connecticut. Jefferson was reassuring the Baptists that being a minority religion would not be a problem in a Protestant majority state as far as the federal government was concerned.

“Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof’, thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties.”(Wikipedia)

Jefferson’s letter clearly indicates that for Jefferson, religion was a matter of Man and God. Jefferson’s interpretation was the widely accepted and understood view of religion in the early 18th century. By the 20th century the U.S. Supreme Court “incorporated” the Establishment Clause and expanded its application from the federal government to the state governments as well.

The practical application of the freedom of religion also requires a uniform understanding of the meaning and interpretation of the word religion. The Exercise Clause clarifies the supremacy of Constitutional laws and freedoms over religious laws and freedoms. This is particularly important in contemporary America because we are facing “religious” practices of Islam that threaten our Constitutional freedoms.

The Free Exercise Clause distinguishes between religions beliefs and religious practices. It is the equivalence of distinguishing between thinking and doing. In America an individual is free to think murderous thoughts but he is not free to murder. Islam is a religion governed by religious Sharia Law that endorses honor killings, female genital mutilation, murder of apostates, murder of homosexuals, wife beatings, child marriage and pedophilia. American jurisaprudence does not have the will or authority to change people’s beliefs whether they are citizens of the United States, guests in this country, here illegally, or citizens of other countries, but we most certainly have the right and legal obligation to disallow any and all practices in conflict with the U.S. Constitution and our cultural norms. Free Exercise Clause (Wikipedia)

“Freedom of religion means freedom to hold an opinion or belief, but not to take action in violation of social duties or subversive to good order.”[28] In Reynolds v. United States (1878), the Supreme Court found that while laws cannot interfere with religious belief and opinions, laws can be made to regulate some religious practices (e.g., human sacrifices, and the Hindu practice of suttee). The Court stated that to rule otherwise, “would be to make the professed doctrines of religious belief superior to the law of the land, and in effect permit every citizen to become a law unto himself. Government would exist only in name under such circumstances.”[29] In Cantwell v. Connecticut (1940), the Court held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment applied the Free Exercise Clause to the states. While the right to have religious beliefs is absolute, the freedom to act on such beliefs is not absolute.

In Jefferson’s time as in Truman’s time the meaning of the word religion was understood as items 1 and 2:

  1. The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.
  2. A particular system of faith and worship.

Seventy years later in 2017 we must reconsider the meaning of the word religion and ask the question What is Islam?

Islam is not a religion like Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, or Judaism. Islam is a unified supremacist socio-political system with a military wing and a religious wing. Islam is governed by religious sharia law. The goal of Islam since the 7th century is to make the world Islamic and impose sharia law worldwide.

Islam is tyrannical in its demand for conformity to its barbaric sharia laws. Islam is intolerant. Islam is a political force seeking world dominion and cannot be allowed religious protections like the Baptists in Connecticut during Jefferson’s times.

Islam is far more like the Nazis during Hitler’s time. Consider this question. What if Hitler declared Nazism to be a religion. It certainly qualifies as a religion according to Item 3. A pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes superhuman importance.

If Adolph Hitler declared his Nazism a religion would the left-wing liberal apologists for Islam defend Nazism and its determination to rule the world and rid the Earth of every Jew? Would the lefty-wing liberals declare murder of Jews protected by religious freedom? How is this different from allowing Muslims to perpetrate honor killings, female genital mutilation, murder of apostates, murder of homosexuals, wife beatings, child marriage, and pedophilia.

There is no difference.

If, as apologists for Islamic barbarity claim, Islamists have perverted their religion – then it is also true that they have perverted our concept of religious freedom. Islam is not a religion like any other and its savage practices do not deserve protection under our religious freedom laws and the free exercise clause.

Energy & Environmental News – 6/12/17

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The newest edition of the Energy and Environmental Newsletter is now online.

Despite all the news you’ve heard over the last few weeks, you’re probably unaware of one of the most significant national developments. Last week Texas (the most wind friendly state in the US) signed into law a bill that effectively prohibits wind projects from being closer than 30± miles to a military facility. (See this and this.) This law should give encouragement to similar federal legislation, as well as military-protective measures in NY and NC.

You’ve also heard a lot about the US bowing out of the Paris Agreement — most of which is rather irrational. The Newsletter has a special section on worthwhile articles (like here) on this important international topic.

Some of the more interesting Global Warming articles in this issue are:

“Climate Change” used to Create Totalitarian State

Anatomy of a Deep State

Renounce Climate Alarmism

Can we discuss the climate without the hysteria?

Lindzen: In the future, people will marvel how hysterical mankind has been

CO2 Can’t Cause the Warming Alarmists Claim it Does

CO2 Facts vs Alternative Facts

58 New Papers Invalidate Claims Of Unprecedented Modern Global Warming

mgh, Not Greenhouse Gases, Provides a Warm Earth

Some of the more informative energy articles in this issue are:

The Princess and the Pea

Human Health, Rights and Wind Turbine Deployment

A startling case of two schools in proximity to wind turbines

Wind company dealt blow by Indiana Supreme Court

Why There’s No Such Thing As a Free Market for Electricity

Offshore Wind Turbines Blamed For Killing Family Of Whales

The Private Benefit of Carbon and its Social Cost

Scientific Peer-Review is a Deeply Tainted System

PS: Our intention is to put some balance into what most people see from the mainstream media about energy and environmental issues. As always, please pass this on to open-minded citizens, and on your social media sites. If there are others who you think would benefit from being on our energy & environmental email list, please let me know. If at any time you’d like to be taken off the list, simply send me an email saying that.

PPS: I am not an attorney, so no material appearing in any of the Newsletters (or our WiseEnergy.org website) should be construed as giving legal advice. My recommendation has always been: consult a competent attorney when you are involved with legal issues.

Islam Is The Enemy

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Islam is the enemy.

Apparently these four words are the most difficult for anyone in elected positions to utter, yet they hold the key to victory over an entrenched adversary who intends to destroy our way of life.

Those Americans who understand the necessity of honestly naming the enemy are increasingly frustrated by the willful blindness on the part of leadership to address an indisputable Islamic strategy of global conquest. This blindness thus handicaps the majority of elected officials and their advisors. No wonder we see them stumbling in the dark trying to find politically correct adjectives so as not to offend the liberals, establishment, and Muslim advocacy groups.

When Islam is not named as the enemy, it results in the placement of Muslims and others complicit and/or ignorant of their doctrine into sensitive jobs. Some of these jobs actually entail overseeing what is acceptable training for our law enforcement and military. One weighty example was when John Brennan took advice from a Muslim woman, Ms. Farhana Khera, regarding specific training given to those groups just mentioned.

Ms. Khera, president and executive of Muslim Advocates, wrote a letter to Brennan who was then the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism and Deputy National Security Advisor to Obama. In the letter, dated October 19, 2011, she proceeded to lay out all the “offensive” material the FBI and military trainers were using, and demanded they be purged.

Fifty-seven Muslim groups signed Khera’s letter, the same number of members in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). This is probably no coincidence; but, someone would have to understand the Islamic movement to recognize it. Those working to undermine our Constitution in order to pave the way for a Caliphate don’t normally act randomly, but with purpose.

Brennan obliged Khera like a dutiful subordinate, and purged what any rational person would agree to be factual teaching, not biased, false, or offensive. If the material had been allowed to remain within law enforcement and military training, it would have undoubtedly saved American lives.

Obviously leadership that goes along with the Islamic Movement narratives, don’t seem to do any homework on Islam itself, or they wholly are in line with its objectives of subversion. See John Brennan’s response to Khera here.

Some objections of Khera were quotes in an Army Command and General Staff College report dated May 21, 2009, which states:

“Moderate Muslims are not exercising moderation; they are simply applying other means to accomplish the same goal of establishing global Islamic dominance.”

And, “Islamic doctrine is based upon the establishment of its culture in dominance of all others. In essence, all other cultures must not only accept, but convert or submit, to Islam.”

The Koran 9:29 proves those statements have relevance as it states,

“Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.”

And in Koran 60:4, which was used by Bin Laden to remind other Muslims what their relationship should be with non-Muslims, or infidels says,

“We renounce you. Enmity and hate shall forever reign between us-till you believe in Allah alone.”

Few elected officials, like Senator Ted Cruz, have educated themselves on these issues. He presided over a Subcommittee on Oversight, Agency Action, Federal Rights and Federal Courts in June of 2016, called, “Willful Blindness: Consequences of Agency Efforts to Deemphasize Radical Islam in Combating Terrorism.”

“Willful Blindness,” was taken from the title of a book by Andrew McCarthy, federal prosecutor and lead investigator of the Blind Sheik, Omar Abdel Rahman. McCarthy sat on the panel of expert witnesses.

The description of the hearing included the qualifier, “radical,” even though McCarthy’s work revealed to him that these mastermind terrorists were simply following Islamic doctrine, not some bastardized version. Strangely enough, in addition to McCarthy and notable others on the panel, was the very Ms. Khera who had written the infamous letter that was largely responsible for the cleansing of factual training necessary to understand our enemies.

“Radical”, “extreme”, and other words used to describe Islam allow for an established premise.  The premise is based on an assumption that something in Islamic doctrine is being hijacked, or used against its original intent. However, this is not so. For instance, the Koran has over one hundred verses advocating violence against non-Muslims or kaffirs. Muslims are to behave just like Mohammad did, and follow their doctrinal books to the letter, which necessarily places them in the category of our enemy.

How can we rely upon leadership to make the right decisions for America when they are uninformed, willfully blind, to the threat Islam poses to our free Republic?

There are brave counter terrorism experts who’ve researched and studied this threat – why won’t our elected representatives (at all levels of government) accept their assistance rather than relying on the afore mentioned Islamic advocacy groups?

These experts spend their lives studying this enemy and desire to protect our Constitution, something authentic Muslims are working directly to undermine. Any reasonable person briefed on the reality of Islam has no other choice but to come to the conclusion that Islam is the enemy.

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My Visit to Cuba — An American in Havana

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I had the opportunity to visit Cuba. I flew via Southwest Airlines from Tampa International Airport to the José Martí International Airport in Havana, Cuba on June 4th and returned on June 9th, 2017.

After my short visit to Cuba I now fully understand why I spent my entire 23 years in the U.S. Army fighting against Communism.

Cuba is the poster child for Communism (i.e. socialism). It is a country with full control of its people by their government. Arriving was like an episode of the Twilight Zone where I was transported back to the 1950s. The 26th of July Movement began in July 1953 and ended when rebels finally ousted Cuban President Fulgencio Batista on 1 January 1959. Not much has improved for the Cuban people since then.

The graffiti, in the featured image above, reads, “Cuba, socialism or death!” I saw this graffiti along with pictures of Fidel Castro and Che Guevara throughout the country. On highway billboards, on the walls of buildings, in government museums and in the public square. It is a constant reminder to the Cuban people of where their loyalty lies – to defend Communism at all cost, and the cost is high, very high.

The greatest threat to the survival of the Cuban people is “socialismo.”

ITS THE ECONOMY STUPID!

As former Bill Clinton said, “It’s the economy stupid!” For the Cuban people it truly is the economy, stupid.

Perhaps a few of my first hand experiences in Cuba will help those who favor big government understand where “socialismo” leads.

One of the things some people, many of whom have never visited Cuba, tout is their “excellent” healthcare system. Let me explain about the Cuban single payer government healthcare system. First, every visitor to Cuba must purchase health insurance from the Cuban government. For example, the cost of my health insurance was automatically included in the price of my plane ticket. So how much does the Cuban government pay its doctors to provide universal healthcare? The salary of a doctor is $30 a month.

In 2013 Brazil hired 4,000 doctors from Cuba to “work in areas where medical services and physicians are scarce.” These Cuban doctors were to be paid approximately $30,000 a year to provide medical services to remote areas of Brazil. According to U.S. News & World Report, “Analysts say the export of medical services adds about $6 billion a year to Cuba’s economy.”

How does this work? Brazil paid the Cuban government the $30,000 annual salaries of the Cuban doctors and the Cuban government then paid the doctors $30 a month or $360 a year. This equates to an 83% profit for the Cuban government. Not surprisingly many of these Cuban doctors sought asylum in Brazil to be paid what they actually earned, $30,000.

In socialist governments the “minimum wage” inextricably becomes the prevailing wage.

It’s the economy stupid.

WORKING IN THE CUBAN TOURISM INDUSTRY

In 1991, after the fall of the former Soviet Union, the Cuban economy collapsed because economic aid provided by the Russians ended. More recently Cuba’s main international commercial partners—Venezuela, Brazil, China—have lost their appetites for subsidizing the anemic Cuban economy, lending a new urgency to grow perennially lethargic exports, and forcing the Cuban authorities to look for new sources of foreign exchange – tourism.

As U.S. News & World Report noted, “[T]ourism, the official No. 1 source of incoming cash, brought in $2.5 billion in 2011, according to the most recent statistics available.”

With the opening of tourism to U.S. citizens this incoming cash has increased. According to the Brookings Institute, “In the wake of the December 2014 rapprochement, the United States significantly relaxed restrictions on U.S. travel to the island, and prospective tourists in other nations saw Cuba in a new light. As a result, tourist arrivals jumped by over 16 percent in 2015 to 3.5 million. U.S. travelers, including those from the Cuban diaspora, now amount to roughly 14 percent of new arrivals, and are expected to nearly double in 2016.”

Our party was nine individuals, all U.S. citizens. We stayed in a large villa, owned by a Spanish citizen, located near embassy row in Havana. The villa could accommodate up to 14 people and came with a staff of five. The cost, including breakfast, for the villa was $10,000. We also hired two drivers with vans to take our party to various sites within Cuba. The cost to hire the two drivers amounted to an additional $2,000.

The manager of the villa was paid $15 a month, with individual staff members paid less. The manager went to Havana University and became a statistician. The manager for a number of years was a professor but decided to work in the tourism industry because the pay was better.

During our stay I went on a one-hour carriage ride through the heart of Havana. I paid the driver of the carriage $30 for two people to ride in his horse drawn carriage. The driver made $30 in one hour. This one carriage driver made as much in one hour as does a doctor working in a Havana hospital who earns $30 a month.

Given the price our party paid to rent the villa and the clear disparity between the wages of those in the tourism industry and the prevailing wage, in Communist Cuba it truly is the economy, stupid.

WORKING IN THE FARMING INDUSTRY

Tobacco rancho in the Vinales valley. Note the picture of Che Guevara on the water tank. Photo: Author.

To meet the Cuban people we decided to travel outside of Havana. Our group visited a tobacco rancho (farm) about 200 kilometers west of Havana located in the Vinales Valley, the heart of tobacco growing in Cuba. It is in Vinales Valley that Cuban farmers grow what is considered the finest cigar tobacco in the world.

The farm we visited has been owned by a Cuban family for generations. We went into a tobacco curing barn and we received a talk about how the tobacco seeds were planted, how the plants were cultivated and how the tobacco was grown, harvested and then cured for a full year or more. We then went to another gazebo type structure to see how cigars are rolled.

The tobacco farmer told us that every year he must send 90% of his tobacco crop to the government where it is processed and made into Cuban cigars for sale and export.

So how does the farmer survive with just 10% of his crop as his reward for all of his and his families hard work?

He produces his own cigars and sells them to tourists. This is a limited form of capitalism in a repressive socialist society. The farmer partnered with a local tour guide to bring foreign visitors to his farm to see his work, try and buy his cigars. His cigars do not have a label like the government brand Cohiba. The government forbids him from branding his cigars and putting them into boxes. This farmer sells his cigars in packets made from palm leaves holding 14 or 20 cigars.

A Cohiba cigar sold in Cuban government stores costs from $20 to $30 per cigar. This farmer sells his cigars for $3 each. His cigars are no different than those made in government factories, except his are better. His cigars are cured longer, he removes the stem of the tobacco leaf, which contains all of the nicotine, and wraps them in paper for five days to further age them.

This one farmer selling one pack of 20 cigars makes $60 or twice the monthly salary of a doctor. While there our party alone bought 6 packs of 20 cigars or $360 worth of cigars. There were a dozen other tourists at the farm when we arrived. Many of them also bought his cigars. Capitalism works, even in a socialist society.

It’s the economy stupid.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The Cuban people I spoke with were friendly toward us Americans. Those who provided us with personal services whether in local restaurants, while on tours, our drivers and those who took care of us where we stayed were professional, hard working and kind.

But Cuba’s desire to be a tourist attraction is waning. MarketWatch’s Kari Paul reports:

A flash of excitement about travel to Cuba after the country opened its borders to the U.S. in 2016 for the first time in decades may have lost some of its shine.

Americans are less interested in travel to Cuba this year than they were in 2016, a survey from insurance provider Allianz Global Assistance found. Some 76% of the 1,514 respondents said they were not likely to plan a trip to Cuba in 2017 compared to 70% in 2016. Only 2% of those surveyed planned to visit Cuba in the next six months or by the end of 2017, the same as 2016 despite a projected increase in travelers from the country’s ministry of tourism. It also found that 60% of Americans said “would not like to travel to Cuba” compared to just 58% in 2016.

[ … ]

Indeed, the initial excitement about the formerly closed off country gave way to moral dilemmas over food shortages and other problems caused by tourism, as well as disappointment over limited working internet, lower hotel standards, and lack of running water there. The Allianz study found lack of travel infrastructure was a major cause of anxiety about traveling to Cuba for 13% of Americans.

The slide in demand has led a number of airlines to reduce or completely eliminate flights to the country, including Silver Airways, a Florida-headquartered domestic airline that dropped all nine of its planned routes to Cuba. Frontier is dropping its Miami-Havana route by June 4, after costs in Havana “significantly exceeded our initial assumptions,” a spokesman told MarketWatch. Spirit Airlines will drop its last flight to Cuba by June 1: “The costs of serving Havana continue to outweigh the demand for service,” Spirit Airlines  president and chief executive officer of Bob Fornaro said in April.

Sumers suggested confusion over the approved reasons to go to Cuba is keeping the average American visitor away still. As of May 2017, visitors to the country have to select one of 12 categories for their visit, which include religious activities, humanitarian projects, “support for the Cuban people,” and journalistic activities. “You can’t go to Cuba to sit on the beach and have fun and that’s what Americans like to do on vacation,” he said. “Cuba is a bit of an outlier still — it is not easy to visit and for a lot of people it’s still a pain. You have to really want to go there.”

What I observed is that the Cuban people have great potential if they are unleashed and allowed to earn what they are truly worth. Socialismo is slowly but surely killing their lives and doing them great harm. I noticed on the ride West of Havana through the rural areas of Cuba hundreds of people waiting along the road trying to get a ride. Some were nurses in their white uniforms thumbing rides to the hospital where they are needed. I saw horse drawn carriages along the major highway carrying people because the public transportation system cannot keep up with the demand. The horses and cattle we saw were emaciated. The roads were in poor shape including the national highway system.

As one Cuban man put it, “the people have no love for their work.” They have no love for their work because Cuba needs a change in direction. Raul Castro has announced that he will step down as President of Cuba in February 2018. This is a chance for Cuba to change direction. To move to a capitalistic society where the individual benefits from what he or she produces, not the government. However, the Selous Foundation for Public Policy Research reports:

The Cuban media has been emphasizing that Raul Castro is leaving power. He announced in 2016 that he would be stepping down as President in 2018. Yet, he was reelected for five years as Secretary General of Cuba’s Communist Party and will remain as head of Cuba’s Armed Forces. The position of President, which will become mostly ceremonial, will be held by Miguel Diaz Canel, a low-level Communist Party bureaucrat with little military or public support.

In Cuba, power resides in the military and the Politburo of the Communist Party, both of which will continue to be controlled by Raul and his military comrades.

We shall see what happens in February 2018. The great fear among those to whom I spoke with is the new leadership will keep the ways of the old regime.

Socialismo o Muerte (socialism or death) must be replaced with Liberar al pueblo cubano (free the Cuban people).

RELATED ARTICLES: 

United Nations Honors Che Guevara—Yet Again 

Castro’s Killing Fields: A Pattern of Disregard for Human Life Lasting Six Decades (February)

Trump Tightens Cuba Embargo, Restricting Access to Hotels and Businesses

The Twelve Reasons Why Cuba Is A Terrorist Nation And Is A Security Treat To The USA

Cuban Doctors Revolt: ‘You Get Tired of Being a Slave’ – New York Times

American Diplomats Were Attacked in Cuba by Sonic Wave Weapons

Cuba Has “Occupying Army” in Venezuela, OAS Secretary General Claims – VIDEO

Trump’s New Foreign Policy of “Principled Realism”

Trump’s ‘Active Leadership’ Reverses Course on Obama’s Cuba Policy

Report: Trump Poised to Reverse Obama’s Cuba Policies – Townhall

Myths About Cuba

This is why American tourists don’t want to travel to Cuba

Courtney Love calls out Linda Sarsour: ‘You’re a vile disgrace to women and all mankind’

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At last, someone who is on the cultural Left calls out this pro-Sharia anti-Semite — in this case, for making money off a fake hate crime.

“Courtney Love Rips Linda Sarsour: ‘Vile Disgrace to Women and All Mankind,’” by Charlie Nash, Breitbart, June 7, 2017:

Musician and alternative icon Courtney Love has blasted anti-Donald Trump Women’s March leader and Muslim activist Linda Sarsour, calling her a “vile disgrace to women and all mankind” in a message on social media Wednesday.

“You’re a vile disgrace to women and all mankind [Linda Sarsour],” posted Love, the former partner of the late Nirvana musician Kurt Cobain, before engaging in an argument with Women’s March social media head Alyssa Klein.

“Linda is the kindest, most generous, most incredible woman I know. She makes me proud to be a woman. I am forever proud to be her sister,” responded Klein, prompting Love to reply “Well that’s a shame, count me out of anything else related to her. Shes a fraud.”

Sarsour quickly responded to Love’s post, commenting “[Courtney Love is] trying to make a name for herself amongst Trump supporters I guess. Denying a woman justice who was brutally beaten.”

Another Women’s March activist also attacked Love, accusing her of directing hate “at a woman of color and feminist leader.”

Sarsour, a prominent Palestinian activist, has frequently praised Sharia law and Saudi Arabia, attempting to convince the public that women’s rights in the Middle East are better than in the United States.

In 2011, Sarsour also expressed her desire to “take the vagina away” from Ayaan Hirsi Ali, an ex-Muslim activist and a victim of female genital mutilation.

“I wish I could take their vaginas away,” Sarsour declared, referencing Ayaan Hirsi Ali and ACT for America founder Brigitte Gabriel for their criticism of Islam. “They don’t deserve to be women.”

According to Alex VanNess, director of the Middle East Peace & Security Project at Secure Freedom, Sarsour “also has a long history of criticizing Israel in ways that cross the line into anti-Semitism and terrorist sympathizing.”…

RELATED ARTICLE: Canada: Muslim migrant beats wife with hockey stick for half an hour, says he didn’t know it was against the law

The Serpent in the Grass

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Our first part titled The Hatching of a Serpent gave a brief overview of George Soros, his upbringing, his imprinting of a nefarious idea of his social Camelot. This started in his home country of Hungary where he willingly worked for hand in hand to capture, confiscate and control the very group of people he was born from. As if the torment and unjust war crimes were not enough against his own citizens, almost three-quarters of a century later, he has brought the same filthy ideas to OUR country. We have done an exceptional job of keeping socialism out and capitalism thriving. Soros is sinking his teeth into everything he can to influence and make socialism the norm in the United States of America.

The Clintons were the first well-known and direct recipients of Soros financial backing. Many reports suggest direct ties between George Soros and former Pres. Bill Clinton’s policy in Eastern Europe throughout the 90s. The same reports indicated distinct line to his State Department and Soros’ NGOs, more blatant in Central America in the 90s.

The Soros/Clinton relationship continued to prosper and grow, culminating in a very close direct relationship between Soros and Mrs. Clinton as of late. While Soros controlled PACs who backed Obama in 2008, they began funding a restructuring of Mrs. Clinton’s campaign machine as early as 2012. Soros NGOs have many ties with the Clinton Foundation.  The very organization that funnels campaign finances, grease payments for government contractors and most notable as of recently, payrolls for many of the bigger anti-constitutionalist/capitalist obstructionist groups. A lot of the same organizations who are speaking out against free speech, and many other unalienable rights found within our Bill of Rights and Constitution that we hold so close. Look deeper into the newest group of idiots who call themselves “ANTIFA”. Other than laughing hysterically, their messages are in line with Soros and Clinton ideas of utopia!

The Clinton Foundation and Soros NGOs work closely together in Haiti, Czechoslovakia, Libya and Egypt. Mrs. Clinton often speaks highly of Soros at public functions. Horowitz and Poe’s book, the “Shadow Party” describes a unique Soros introduction from Hillary Clinton. “We need people like George Soros, who is fearless and willing to step up when it counts.” Says Hillary Clinton. Her outspoken support was well rewarded as Mrs. Clinton, her super PACs and other groups received well over $15 million from Soros and his foundations.

012508_mccain2_webAll the contributions and accolades do not stop to the left. “Republican” folks who publically identify with conservatism and capitalism are also on the Clinton bankroll! All signs are pointing to a couple prominent GOP leaders; Senators Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and John McCain of Arizona have received notable contributions from the Clinton Foundation to “clear the path for 2020”. As much as it pains me in saying, The Bush family have shown support for the Clintons throughout this election cycle…Could it be because Patriots threw a wrench into their family plan of a Bush trilogy in the white house? Or is it because they support the crooked, social scumbags?! In either case, it is still very disheartening!  Every penny spent by Soros and the Clintons is aimed at dismantling the GOP and everything that the United States stands for as we know it!

Soros’ causes have evolved over time but have included scholarships to black South Africans, copiers to Eastern bloc countries, accountability and transparency in Democratic governments, medical marijuana and same-sex marriages. Soros’ stated that an ideal society would be “one that is equal for all, but often ignores the concept of free will and self- determination”. What in the hell does that mean?? It means that everyone gets the same, regardless of work and efforts. In the US, Soros donations have been exclusively hardcore left wing causes such as La Raza, Acorn, the Southern Poverty Law Center, now and the Tides Foundation. Currently, over $7 billion had been donated to these causes under the umbrella of the Open Society Foundation. He’s become increasingly active throughout the Obama administration, and Soros is expanding his donations to direct partisan organizations such as MoveOn.org. He also directly funds the Black Lives Matter movement, NOW and the Center for American Progress. These groups are continuing to accelerate their activity in the post ‘16 election period.

Demonstrators burn flags and peddle other Anti American messages throughout protests throughout the United States

The election of Trump has emboldened several Eastern European countries and their efforts to diminish or eliminate Soros’ reach within their borders through his NGOs. As stated, Hungary, Poland, and Russia have enacted legislation banning Soros and his non-governmental organizations from any activity within their borders. Soros, however, continues to push social unrest and his open borders agenda. Remembering that one of Soros’ fundamental goals is the destruction of national borders, he’s recently been very active with his funding of the European refugee crisis. The refugee crisis has been blamed on the civil war currently raging in Syria. But one must ask how all these refugees suddenly were inspired to fleeting Europe and how they knew that Europe would open their borders and let them in?

This illustration shows the flooding of migrants and thoroughfares into Europe, inevitably flooding our country!

This illustration shows the flooding of migrants and thoroughfares into Europe, inevitably flooding our country!

The refugee crisis is not naturally occurring. It coincides directly with open society foundation donating money to the US-based Migration Policy Institute and the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants. Both Soros sponsored, funded and supports. Both groups advocate the resettlement of third world Muslims into Europe. In late 2015, Sky News reported finding “migrant handbooks” on the Greek island of Lesbos. Investigating the Handbooks, which are written in Arabic, it was discovered that they were given to refugees before they crossed the Mediterranean by a group called “Welcome to the EU, ” and as you guessed, I’m sure, funded by Soros’ Open Society Foundation. Soros is not only advocating resettlement of third world Muslim’s, but he was also responsible for the “Merkel Plan” (The Merkel Plan was created directly by the European Stability Initiative whose Chairman, Gerald Knaus, a Senior Fellow at the Open Society Foundation.) All of this while following his model of using his NGO’s to foment unrest, destabilize local governance and profit from the instability. Still working toward his goal of eliminating borders and establishing his one world government.

The inclusion of the United States in Soros’ agenda has revealed that Soros has changed his investment portfolio. He now is heavily invested in rare earth metals and gold.  This will provide stability for his wealth if US markets turn bearish and begin a sharp decline. Coincidentally, the Clinton’s too have started to shift their money away from traditional investments and more toward rare earth metals and gold. There is no indication that the 86-year-old Soros has any intention of slowing down or altering his goals. To that end, Soros’ son Jonathan is working closely with his father and the NGO’s to further the Soros plan after the old war criminal finally kicks the can.

Soros has become one of the richest men in the world while believing he is a god. The creator of everything. This wealth on the back of civil wars, death and financial ruin of entire countries. All of this to promote a global governance system in which he is the ultimate leader. Europe is not handling the massive influx of refugees, and many European cities are up in flames, and their citizens are being told to adjust to the culture of the refugees with no expectation of the refugees assimilating. Women are sexually assaulted and raped. ISIS fighters are being welcomed back to these cities and being provided with welfare and housing. Soros NGO’s are on the ground working diligently toward his vision of the world, and here in the US, they are trying to bring more and more refugees here without vetting. In many cases, it’s Soros operatives who are doing to background for the lawsuits over Trump’s Immigration Executive Order’s and policies. We racked our brains coming up with a good parallel for George Soros, and a serpent is the most fitting.

He is evil, his minions are worse, and the number of Americans beside them grows to astounding numbers. What are we doing to ensure these ideals do not progress further than ill-informed hipsters being obstructionists?!

EDITORS NOTE: This column originally appeared on the Black Rifle Coffee Company blog.