Watch the World Blame Israel

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk






At this point, the number of dead in the Israeli attack on the "Free Gaza" flotilla stands somewhere between 10-15 with dozens injured-including several IDF troops. The initial tweets from Free Gaza claimed that IDF troops boarded the ships guns blazing and that some passengers were shot to death as they slept in their bunks. (I seriously doubt that.) In contrast, Israel says that the soldiers were attacked by passengers and/or crew members with clubs, knives and other weapons as they boarded. In addition, the IDF claims that some troops had their weapons taken away, at which point, gunfire was exchanged.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64U27020100531



At about the 20 second mark (above), you can see an IDF soldier landing on deck from a helicopter and immediately being attacked by three individuals (RT).


What is pretty obvious at this point is that no matter what details emerge, Israel will lose the world-wide public relations war. Forget that the Turkish aid organization, IHH, reportedly has ties to terrorist groups like al-Qaeda. Forget the IDF casualties. Forget whatever Israel discovers on board the ships. Israel's enemies are going to believe what they want to believe. The verdict of the UN is pre-ordained. The verdict of the Obama administration is pre-ordained. The verdict of the EU is pre-ordained. The verdict of the Arab world is pre-ordained. The verdict of western academia is pre-ordained. This will be interpreted as an unwarranted attack by the IDF on a humanitarian aid convoy consisting of peace activists and little old ladies like Hedy Epstein (who, two weeks ago, was speaking at UC-Irvine).

Here are some of those "peace activists" captured on Palestinian TV while en route to Gaza as they chant that old peace song, "Khaybar, Khaybar ah Yahud" (PalWatch.org):

That's not "Blowin' in the Wind" in Arabic, folks.

It is also noteworthy that Israel had offered to let the convoy sail into an Israeli port and after due inspection, allow legitimate relief supllies to enter Gaza. This was refused by the flotilla.

So I guess we can look forward to more "fun and games" on North American university campuses as the various Muslim Student Associations and their brethren in the anarchist groups, aided and abetted by all the radical professors, foment more unrest in "righteous indignation". More ominously, I shudder to think of what European Jews will be subjected to in the coming days and weeks.

Lest We Forget!

Two Names on the Wall-A Re-posting

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk


I've been thinking about what kind of posting I would put up to mark Memorial Day. I finally decided to re-post an essay I originally put up in December 2007 in connection with the Viet Nam memorial in Washington DC. It will always be appropriate. I hope you appreciate it.



Dorian Jan Houser (1946-1967)
Michael G Vinassa (1946-1966)


The recent news that someone had defaced the Viet Nam War Memorial in Washington served to bring back my memories of two of my childhood friends whose names appear on that wall. Mike Vinassa and Dorian Houser were both from west Los Angeles, where I also grew up. We belonged to the same high school social club. All three of us entered military service after high school. I was assigned to Germany; they were sent to Viet Nam. I returned and went on with the rest of my life. They died in Viet Nam. Forty years later, with our country once again at war and American soldiers sacrificing their lives for America, we should also remember those that gave their lives in Viet Nam.

Dorian

I first knew Dorian in the 1950s. He and his brother, Lee, played on my little league team. Their father was our coach. Later, my relationship with Dory continued in school. In high school, we both belonged to a club called the Chancellors of Venice. As was common in west LA, there were many (off-campus) clubs formed for social purposes. We all had our club jackets, with the name of the club and locale (Venice or WLA) embroidered on the back. The colors of the clubs varied (ours was green). As we ended our high school days, these clubs disbanded as we went our separate ways-off to college, work or military service. In Dory's case, he entered the Marines in 1966, and after training, was sent to Viet Nam. On May 10, 1967, one month before his 21st birthday, he was killed in Quang Tin. He was hit in the chest by shrapnel and killed instantly.

I happened to be home on leave from Germany when we got the news that Dory was dead. I was able to attend his funeral before returning back to Germany. I'm a little embarrassed to admit it after all these years, but I chose not to wear my uniform to the funeral, simply because I was afraid his family might react emotionally to it. I have always regretted that decision.

Dory was the kind of guy that no one could dislike. He was friendly and unassuming. Needless to say, his funeral was a sad and emotional event. In the last couple of years, I have visited his grave a couple of times since my mother-in-law is interred in the same cemetery. About a year ago, I came across a posting about Dory by his sister. She described her brother and was looking for anyone who knew Dory and remembered him. I answered her post, but the email is no longer valid. As yet, I have not been able to contact her.

Mike

Mike Vinassa was also a member of the Chancellors. He was a stout, barrel-chested kid with a big tattoo on his shoulder, something unusual at the time for someone so young (still in high school). Needless to say, he was tough and didn't mind a good fight. Most other kids knew not to mess with him, but among his friends, he was well-liked. I remember one night we were at a party and he wanted to (playfully) roughhouse with me. We started slap-fighting and wrestling on the front yard of the house, and (somehow) I was able to throw him to the ground and fall on top of him. As you may know, innocent roughhousing among teenagers can easily turn into a real fight, and I remember thinking that Mike might suddenly get mad, so I rolled over and let him get on top, thus letting him win the match.

After high school, I went on to complete 2 years of college before I entered the Army. I basically lost touch with Mike and Dory at that time.

I had recently arrived at my post of duty in Germany when I came across Mike's name while reading the Viet Nam obituaries in the Army Times. It wasn't until several months ago that I learned the circumstances of Mike's death, which occurred on May
22, 1966.

Mike was a member of C Co, Ist Bn, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cav Division (US Army). Ironically, Mike was a short-timer, soon to return to the US, and, on that day, assigned to non-combat duties. Yet he insisted on accompanying his unit on a final combat mission in the Vinh Thanh Valley. It was on that final mission, that Mike lost his life-under heroic conditions. He personally led a group of his comrades in charging and taking out a machine gun nest that was pinning down his unit, but was fatally shot in the process. For his actions, Mike was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. His sole survivor was his mother.

In subsequent years, I have been able to find both their names on the Viet Nam Memorial. (I was living in the Washington area at the time.) As stated, I have visited Dory's grave, but as yet, have not identified Mike's cemetery. When I look back at my life after the Army, I contemplate how I finished college, began my career, got married, had children, retired, and now find myself in my 60s. But as I looked down on Dory's grave, I realized that he and Mike are frozen in time-forever 20 years old. I wonder what became of their parents, the rest of the families.

In a sense, today's soldiers are more fortunate than those who went to Viet Nam. The overwhelming majority of the American people greatly respect them (with the notable exception of the usual mindless idiots who are not worth further mention in this essay). Soldiers returning from Viet Nam were often subject to despicable treatment from those of their own generation who did everything they could to avoid military service. Once the Viet Nam War ended, the country wanted to forget about it as quickly as possible-after all, it was just a tragic period in our history. We also forgot about our Viet Nam veterans who came back alive-in so many cases, as walking wounded. They deserved so much better from us. They are still among us, and in many cases, still wounded.

All of us who lost friends or family members in Viet Nam should try to keep their memories alive and honor them. God rest their souls.

Michael G Vinassa- Panel 07E, line 104
Dorian Jan Houser- Panel 19E, line 082

Obama and Rahm at Man's Country - Frequently?

by Maggie at Maggie’s Notebook
Well, well, well. HillBuzz was visited in Chicago by a US journalist wanting information about Man’s Country in Andersonville, Illinois. This article states that Barack Obama was a frequent visitor until 2002 and Rahm Emanuel until 2008, according to their sources.

HillBuzz tagged this article “bath houses.”

Man’s Country (see bottom of sign above door)

HillBuzz tagged this article “bath houses.” A quick check on the Internet and what I find about Chicago’s Man’s Country is fairly disgusting. Read the reviews here, especially the one by Alberto M. who says Man’s Country is “a gay Chicago icon…,” but complains that there is always the chance of getting “cooties” in Man’s Country.
Now, the article goes on to question the rags so busily working to tie Obama to an affair with Vera Baker, and the writer says something is fishy, and doesn’t hesitate to explain. The side story is about Kal Penn, the actor who left House to serve the President. He also plays Kumar in the Harold and Kumar movies. In the White House, Penn goes by his real name, Kalpen Modi.

Why the sudden need to portray this current president as an insatiably heterosexual stud who just can’t get enough women?

Baker’s a diversionary tactic…designed to cover SOMETHING up…and we think that something is an affair Obama had with Kal Penn, which seems to have ended badly.  We also think Penn was mugged not by a street thug in Dupont Circle, but by someone working for either the DNC or Organizing for America (or any number of its umbrella thugs), because Penn’s phone had something in it that would prove some kind of romantic relationship between the president and a Hollywood actor with zero government experience who was plucked off a TV show unceremoniously and lifted into a high profile made-up position in the White House…so he could be close to Obama in Washington, where Obama wanted him.  Wanted in more than one sense.

Until he didn’t want him anymore.

And then someone needed to take his cell phone away, so that any pictures, texts, voicemails, or other interesting itts and bitts could be secured by those wishing to protect the current president.

Here’s a link to Penn/Modi’s mugging.
You know, this is an astounding and gutsy story, whether true or false. HillBuzz has stepped “out there.”  It is obvious from they have had some background on the story. Maybe they have blogged about this in the past, but the blog title is Someone in the national media is FINALLY interested in Man’s Country in Andersonville.

My disclaimer: I’m printing this because the report comes from Chicago. I don’t know if it’s true, but unless the writer is lying about the national media coming specifically for info about Man’s Country, it deserves to be known, and besides, HillBuzz is a reputable blog. I got to the HillBuzz story via Logistics Monster who indicates that many have known about this since 2007, so….

Read it all at HillBuzz

The Truth About Gaza

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

Is fancy restaurants and Olympic-size pools!

Yes that is the truth. Some Concentration Camp!  That is what the Main Stream Media and the pro-Palestinian anti-Semites in the Free Gaza Movement call Gaza: The World's Largest Concentration Camp!

What they (The Main Stream Media) won’t tell you about are the fancy new restaurants and swimming pools of Gaza, or about the wind surfing competitions on Gaza beaches, or the Strip’s crowded shops and markets. Many Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza live a middle class (and in some cases an upper class) lifestyle that western journalists refuse to report on because it doesn’t fit with the simplistic story they were sent to write.

Here, courtesy of the Palestinian Ma’an news agency, is a report on Gaza’s new Olympic-sized swimming pool . (Most Israeli towns don’t have Olympic-size swimming pools. One wonders how an area that claims to be starved of water and building materials and depends on humanitarian aid builds an Olympic size swimming pool and creates a luxury lifestyle for some while others are forced to live in abject poverty as political pawn refugees?)

If you pop into the Roots Club in Gaza, according to the Lonely Planet guidebook, you can “dine on steak au poivre and chicken cordon bleu”.

The restaurant’s website in Arabic gives a window into middle class dining and the lifestyle of Hamas officials in Gaza. And here it is in English, for all the journalists, UN types and NGO staff who regularly frequent this and other nice Gaza restaurants (but don’t tell their readers about them).

And here is a promotional video of the club restaurant . In case anyone doubts the authenticity of this video, I just called the club in Gaza City and had a nice chat with the manager who proudly confirmed business is booming and many Palestinians and international guests are dining there.

In a piece for The Wall Street Journal last year, I documented the “after effects” of a previous “emergency Gaza boat flotilla,” when the arrivals were seen afterwards purchasing souvenirs in well-stocked shops. (You can also scroll down here for more pictures of Gaza’s “impoverished” shops.)

But the mainstream liberal international media won’t report on any of this. Playing the manipulative game of the BBC is easy: if we had their vast taxpayer funded resources, we too could produce reports about parts of London, Manchester and Glasgow and make it look as though there is a humanitarian catastrophe throughout the UK. We could produce the same effect by selectively filming seedy parts of Paris and Rome and New York and Los Angeles too.

Of course there is poverty in Gaza. There is poverty in parts of Israel too. (When was the last time a foreign journalist based in Israel left the pampered lounge bars and restaurants of the King David and American Colony hotels in Jerusalem and went to check out the slum-like areas of southern Tel Aviv? Or the hard-hit Negev towns of Netivot or Rahat?)

But the way that many prominent Western news media are deliberately misleading global audiences and systematically creating the false impression that people are somehow starving in Gaza, and that it is all Israel’s fault, can only serve to increase hatred for the Jewish state – which one suspects was the goal of many of the editors and reporters involved in the first place.

Read it all here.

Olympic-sized swimming pools and fancy gourmet restaurants just like the type that Auschwitz and Dachau had.  And what about those starving children?

These children look starved, malnourished, and depressed!

Depression really has taken hold on these children of Gaza.

Compare those pictures to these of actual starving children.

These children starved to death. There have been no reports of massive starvation or malnutrition coming out of Gaza. If anyone can show me reputable source (None Palestinian or Free Gaza loonies.  WHO, or International Red Cross is acceptable.) I will post a retraction.  But they don't
acknowledge any incidents.

Before one condemns, one should learn all the facts.

Fighting Anti-Semitism on Campus-The Community Must Get Involved

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk


This month's Israel Apartheid Week at UC-Irvine proved one thing to me beyond all doubt. It cannot be left up to the university or the students (Jewish or non-Jewish) to counter the invective that flies around the campus during the anti-Israel events put on by Muslim Student Associations. Nor can one rely on the major national Jewish advocacy groups. It must come from the local community, both Jewish and non-Jewish to stand up and take a stand.

Let me explain why. UCI, fairly or unfairly, has acquired a reputation across the land as the worst campus in the country when it comes to harassment and intimidation of Jewish students arising out of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. That is the opinion of David Horowitz and other observers. Whether you agree or not, it is pretty obvious that Jewish students on many many campuses in the US and Canada are in for a stressful college experience if they choose to assert their Jewish identity and support for Israel. The situation is getting tenser and tenser on many campuses at least during Israel Apartheid Week, which is an international movement.

I have written many times about the situation at UCI. Of course, attitudes among Jewish students are varied because they come from a wide variety of backgrounds, with different levels of religious devotion and support for Israel. Therefore, at UCI you will hear different opinions from Jewish students on how bad the problem is. I will repeat again that 99% of the students at UCI are not anti-Semitic and play no role in the problem. Enough said about that.

I want to address the issue that surfaced during Israel Apartheid Week when large numbers of the community showed up on campus with American and Israeli flags and posters to counter the MSU and their speakers-peacefully. It was an enormous success. Yet,it must be said that many Jewish students were not comfortable with the community presence. In fact, the position of Hillel, the Jewish support organization on campus, was that "The students did not want them" (the community protesters). That may be true for many students for different reasons including fear that it would just escalate the tensions on campus between Jewish and Muslim students. I know that many Jewish students prefer to engage in civil dialogue with their Muslim counterparts.

First of all, I reject any statement from Hillel or anyone else that implies that they speak for every Jewish student on any campus. They cannot. As for the students themselves, I have met many Jewish students and heard many opinions. I respect each and every one I have met. They are fine young people, who will contribute much to this country in the future. With all due respect, I have to say that the issue is bigger than just them-though the community is vitally concerned with their well-being on campus. Students come to college for a few years and they leave-to be replaced by another generation who will have to deal with the same issues.

In addition, to quote two of my colleagues, if they see anti-Semitism at the corner dry cleaners, they will be there. If they see it on a university campus, they will be there. UCI is a public university supported by tax-payer money. We all have an interest.

In addition, this problem does not exist just at UCI. It is spreading to campuses all over North America. As we all know, it is a problem that affects every person in America even beyond the campuses.

It has become clear that the universities-with few exceptions- cannot or will not deal with the problem. They talk about free speech and the Constitution. They also know that organizations like CAIR, the ACLU and the National Lawyers Guild are itching to file lawsuits if the university takes action. UCI is in that position as we speak. Countless letters and meetings with university officials go on for years and result in nothing concrete.

In Orange County, the Jewish community has been awakened, at least to a large extent, by the disruption of the Israeli ambassador's speech at UCI on February 8th. Prior to that, they had been assured for years by the OC Jewish Federation that everything was ok at UCI and that there was no anti-Semitism. Hillel told everybody the same thing.

Two things about the Jewish Federation. This is a big umbrella group that receives big bucks from donors and funnels it out to other smaller groups for various purposes. The university also depends on large donations from major donors, many of whom like to see their names plastered on university buildings. It's a big deal.

In addition, Hillel as a national organization supporting Jewish students, works within the university infrastructure and depends on the university to support their functions. That makes it pretty hard to make waves.

Having said that, it is a fact that in the past several years, the Jewish Federation of Orange County and OC Hillel have been an obstacle to efforts to bring public attention to the problems at UCI. They have been too connected to the university, and in the case of the Federation, to donors to want the university to look bad. There are some Jewish students who will tell you that they were advised to stand down when they wanted to complain to the university about anti-Semitic words and deeds. They were told that if they made a ruckus, prospective Jewish students would not want to come to UCI. (Don't worry, I can produce those students in a heartbeat if if I have to.)

This resistance extended to last week, when the Federation and Hillel opposed the presence of the community at the events. On Thursday, the principal organizer of the community turnout was angrily berated by "someone very high up in Hillel". The same week, protesters were asked by Hillel to move several yards away from the speaking area to an area set up by Hillel. They refused.

On Wednesday, that same organizer was mocked by "someone very high up in the Jewish Federation" because on that particular day, there was a low turnout. (Alison Weir was the speaker, which explained the low turnout.)

So you see, all week people from the community turned out with American and Israeli flags and posters saying "Don't bring hate to UCI". They conducted themselves peacefully. And in return, they get mocked by the Federation and berated by Hillel.

Message learned? The OC Jewish Federation and Hillel are part of the problem.

Oh, they are making a pretense of standing up since February 8th. The CEO of the Federation is running around making strong statements to any reporter who will listen that the university must take strong action against the Muslim Student Union. Why now? Obviously, he is under a lot of pressure from people who want to know what the Hell is going on at UCI. So now they (Federation, Hillel, American Jewish Committee and Anti-Defamation League all sign a joint letter to the chancellor, publicize it and cry, "Stand with the Four".

Gimme a break!

Where were they when the Orange County Independent Jewish Task Force on Anti-Semitism and the Zionist Organization of America were going public with their complaints? Where was the support? Now they all want to look like they are doing something. They are protecting their little empires, that's all.

I repeat, the lesson learned at UCI is that it is up to the community to get involved. Whoever wants to join among faculty, students or organizations is welcome. Those that don't support the community-stand aside and stay out of the way.

After all, the issue is way more important than who gets their name on a building.

American Hiker Sarah Shourd Ashamed of America

by Maggie at Maggie's Notebook

If American hikers Sarah Shourd was my daughter, or if Shane Bauer was my son, and was stashed away in the terrifying Evin prison in Tehran by the Iranian government, I would advise them to announce their engagement, since they have been lovers for some time now...long  before being arrested for breaching the Iranian border from Iraq. Being held in an Iranian prison is no longer news, but a love story is. Everyone loves a love story, maybe even Mahmoud Achmadinejad.

Josh Fattal, Sarah Shourd, Shane Bauer

Both Shourd and Bauer have lived together in Damascus, Syria.Shourd and a male friend, perhaps Shane Bauer...or not, visited Yemen and while there, Sarah Shourd told an Iraqi family she isashamed everyday of what "my country [United States], has done to [Iraq]."

She has obvious sympathies for Palestinians and their treatment by Israel. Ms Shourd visited Yemen and in 2009 and won third place in a writing contest about the country and people. She wanted to the trip to be "memorable:" 

Of course there were the security concerns, westerners being kidnapped and sometimes even killed, but I decided that it was more likely I would get hit by a car while riding my bicycle at home, and bought my plane ticket.

While in Sana'a, Shourd noticed that the "love of God keeps people in line."

The separation of the sexes is widely understood as an attempt to protect women, and I have to admit, the streets do feel safe. Men leave you alone as long as you are covered; in a bizarre way it is less of a hassle being a woman here than anywhere I've ever been.

While in Yemen, Ms. Shourd visited Aden. She speaks of a male friend with her who is reading "The Shia Revival." Sarah and her friend are invited to dinner at the home of an Iraqi family who fled the country. Shourd apologizes to the family for what the United States has done to the country.

Shourd says she took risks in Yemen, as does everyone in "this brazen, tumultuous corner of our world."

In Damascus, Shourd teaches English in the Iraqi Student Project. She is reportedly learning the Arabic language. Sarah is a writer. A bio on one of her articles says she is a "teacher-activist-writer from California currently based in the Middle East."

The mothers of Shourd and Bauer, along with Laura Fattal, the mother of Josh Fattal who is held in Iran with his friends, were granted a visa to visit to their children. Of course, they hoped to bring the three back home with them, but predictably, that didn't happen. Instead, they brought back the news that Sarah and Shane will marry as soon as their freedom is granted. Josh will be the best man.

The best way to get these three home is to talk of the love story. I hope it works. I hope these three return safely to the US and their families soon. When that happens, I hope they pay their respects to the many, many Americans who have prayed for them, and worried about them by re-examining the meaning of freedom, democracy and decency. This unmarried western woman who lived with her boyfriend in an Arab country, must know that she is despised there; and outside of the American program she works for, she has no respect. Islam frowns on western women, let alone unmarried western women living in their midst with any man. Her shame for her country will gain her no favor in the eyes of Iranians. At the tender age of 31, Ms. Shourd and her friends are learning the difficult lesson that no matter where their sympathies lie, they are blessed to be citizens of the greatest and most benevolent country ever on the face of the earth, but...they are still infidels.

Related and Background:
Sarah Shourd is American Held in Iran
Shane Bauer is American Held in Iran

Obama and Daniel Pearl

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk


Last week, President Obama signed the Daniel Pearl Freedom of Press Act in the Oval Office in the presence of the family of Daniel Pearl, Wall Street Journal reporter who was murdered by beheading in Pakistan in 2002 by Islamic extremists.




Some have criticized Obama for refusing to take questions from the press immediately after signing the bill. Ironic as that is, there is another side of the story that the media is not addressing.

Daniel Pearl was not beheaded because he was a reporter. He was not beheaded by the government of Pakistan. He was beheaded by Muslim terrorists because he was an American Jew. In fact, those were the last words Pearl spoke before he was beheaded.

"I am an American Jew."

Regrettably, the President said nothing about that fact in his words. He said not one word about who the killers were or why they really did their foul deed. I can well understand his not wanting to speak too graphically with Pearl's young son next to him. However, not to state the true reason behind Pearl's murder and who the perpetrators were is shameful.

"I am an American Jew."

Phil Gordon-Phoenix's Sanctuary Mayor

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk


In the debate about the Arizona immigration law, you may have seen Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon opining about how unfair the law is. Gordon is the mayor of a city that has become the kidnap capital of the US. And we're not talking about the Lindburgh baby, folks. We are talking about kidnappings in relation to the smuggling of human beings (illegal aliens)from Mexico. Yet, here is what Gordon has to say (Hat tip to Kathy Shaidle and Frontpage Magazine Newsreal blog):

http://www.newsrealblog.com/2010/05/22/phoenix-mayor-blames-new-immigration-law-on-talk-radio-lack-of-fairness-doctrine/

So you see, according to Mayor Gordon, the bad guys in this whole sordid mess are those right-wing hate mongers on talk radio.

In case you don't know the details about Phoenix's kidnapping problem, it works something like this; illegal aliens pay a few thousand dollars (in many cases, their life savings) to the coyotes to guide them across the border. Once in the US, many of them fall prey to other Mexican kidnappers, who then keep them under guard in homes until the victims' families can cough up a few more thousand dollars to get them released. Nice, huh? And that's not even talking about the kidnappings, murders and other violence associated with Mexican drug smuggling.

Yet, Gordon apparently is ok with the fact that his city is the capital of this evil enterprise. Hey, maybe he figures it's good for the economy. What he needs is a Fairness Doctrine so we will remain uninformed.

Here's another aspect of Arizona's illegal immigration situation you may not be aware of if you don't live there. I want you environmental activists out there to pay close attention. Here are some photos from the Sonora Desert area south of Tucson. They were forwarded to me by a friend whose wife is a (legal) Mexican immigrant and US citizen from Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. (I don't know the actual originator of the photos.)







These pictures were taken in a wash about 1.5 miles long along the smuggling route south of Tucson. Along with the clothes, bottles and other trash, you can imagine the human waste. It is an environmental disaster area. Have you seen these images in the news? Of course not. The media doesn't want you to see them. Our government doesn't want you to see them.

Phil Gordon doesn't want you to see them.

A Message to my Readers

Two years ago Roger W. Gardner reposted the Mission Statement for Radarsite.  I feel that it should be reposted again, to remind us all of why we are keeping this site open and strong.  --  Findalis

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Perhaps this would be a good time to reiterate Radarsite's primary mission.

Radarsite is a conservative pro-American, pro-Western, pro-Israel, pro-military website. Radarsite was developed as an attempt to counter the self-loathing, self-destructive leftist anti-Americanism rampant in today's Western culture. Our skewed MSM is overflowing with it. To be considered knowledgeable in today's ungrateful topsy-turvy world one must be loudly and proudly anti-American. Patriotism is now to be considered some lower form of life, a weakness demonstrating a lack of intellectual capacity or historical awareness. In this current environment it takes more courage to be patriotic than to be a dissenter. In fact, if one is unabashedly patriotic, one automatically becomes a dissenter.

America and the democratic West are presently at war-- and not just in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Western world is in the midst of great cultural upheavals, virtual civil wars that will ultimately determine the nature of our civilizations for decades to come. Our traditional democratic Judeo/Christian values are arguably in more peril at this particular moment in history than ever before. We are even more imperiled because half of our Western societies refuse to acknowledge this imminent peril and hide under a blanket of lies and euphemisms.

Daily we are besieged by enemies from both without and within. We are battling against ruthless fanatics who seek to dominate or destroy us, and against delusional multiculturalists who would gladly give our great societies away. We are fighting against terrorists, collaborationists, propagandists, appeasers, apologists and deniers. Our enemies have innumerable resources at their disposal and innumerable venues from which to expound their negativities. They find themselves warmly welcomed at our most prestigious universities, in the hallowed halls of Congress, and at trendy Beverly Hills cocktail parties.

But not here.

Here we still believe in the American dream. Here we fight back against those who would destroy that dream. Many of our readers are veterans, all are patriots. We do not come together here to debate the merits of America, but to protect her. We have studied the issues and have worked hard to understand just what is at risk. Our opinions are not borrowed, but are the results of our studies. We defend our opinions only so long as we believe them to be true. The moment we begin to doubt them, we will abandon them.

I am so immensely proud of our readership. I believe we have accumulated some of the most intelligent, knowledgeable and most honest writers and thinkers on the web. We believe in America and we believe in each other. And we will not give in to negativity and despair, no matter how popular it becomes.

I humbly thank you all for your loyal encouragement and support. - rg

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------


How I miss my friend and how he inspired me!

I do hope the readers here at Radarsite will continue to continue to strive for what Roger Gardner ws trying to accomplish  A world in which Political Correctness is replaced by Common Sense.  A world in which the Rule of Law is based on the Judeo-Christian concept of Justice and fairness, not on Shar'ia or other barbaric practices.  A world in which America and Americans  are thanked for the sacrifices we have done to rid the world of evil (Remember that one Europe on the anniversary of D-Day this year!).

We as a nation have nothing to apologize for!  Roger knew that, and so do we, the contributors to this site.

Our Founder, Our Mentor, How We Miss You!!

Roger W. Gardner

1936-2009

The Strangling Of American Hospitals

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

That is what is happening in many of the smaller Hospitals in the United States these days.  So it is being reported by Dr. Thomas M. Hamilton MD, better known as The Grouch.

We had staff meeting yesterday at the hospital. A topic of discussion was RAC audits and a specific case affecting our hospital.

If you don't know what RAC audits are, do a Google Search on it and read about it for yourself. I betcha most of you have never heard of such a thing.

Anyway, I felt compelled to write my Congresswoman, Marsha Blackburn, and my two Senators, Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander over this issue. I know I'll probably get the standard form reply, but it made me feel better anyway. Here it is:

Dear Senator/Congresswoman:

I feel the need to make you aware of the serious situation created for small hospitals under the RAC (Recovery Audit Contractor) program created by Medicare.

I am a physician at our local hospital. During staff meeting yesterday, we discussed a situation concerning a recent surgical case. A patient had a lesion surgically removed. The doctor’s note read as follows, “an eleven blade scalpel was used to remove the lesion”.

The RAC auditor reviewed this chart and stated that the note should have read, “an eleven blade scalpel was used to EXCISE the lesion”.

Because the word REMOVE was used instead of the word EXCISE, the RAC auditor declared that the hospital should refund Medicare an amount of $11,000. The hospital appealed and pointed out to the auditor that there was essentially no difference in the words EXCISE and REMOVE. To no avail, the auditor stated the hospital owed Medicare $11,000.

Senator/Congresswoman, these RAC audits are an exercise in pure lunacy. I hope you can see the obvious stupidity imposed on hospitals by the intrusion of the United States Government by this example above. I would also hope that you would take steps to relieve us of the burden of these nonsensical RAC audits. If you don’t, many hospitals like ours simply will not survive and will end up closing the doors.

It is my understanding that the bureaucrats involved in the RAC audits are entitled to a third of the funds they recover from hospitals. So out of that $11,000 dollars they are squeezing from our hospital over the definition of a single word, the auditors themselves stand to collect $3666.66 for themselves. Senator/Congresswoman, can you truly believe that hospitals will be treated fairly under such a system? If a private entity conducted itself in a manner similar to the RAC auditors, the people in that entity would be jailed.

Of course if Barack Obama has his way we will end up with single payer health care for all which will no doubt be broke like Social Security and Medicare. More and more hospitals will close. So much for universal health care.

Right now our hospital makes about 46 cents for every dollar billed to Medicare. We make 24 cents for every dollar billed to Tenncare (Tennessee Medicaid). I am told under the proposed Medicare cuts and RAC audits we can see our reimbursement fall to 32 cents for every dollar billed to Medicare. You can see we are slowly but surely being strangled by Uncle Sam. Our doctors, nurses, and other hospital staff work hard to provide health care to some very old and very sick people. We deserve honest payment for our efforts rather than a bunch of shenanigans invented by Medicare designed to avoid payment.

Senator/Congresswoman, I implore you to look into this thing called RAC audits. Talk to your constituents in the health care field. They will tell you the same thing I am telling you. We are being strangled by this government nonsense.

I am looking for a personal and thoughtful reply from you on this matter, not the usual form reply provided by a staffer.

Sincerely,

Thomas M. Hamilton MD.

Finish reading here.

I find it troubling that the "auditor" receives a "reward" of 1/3 of all monies collected, thus discouraging a true audit of books since it is in the auditor's best interest to "find" fault in every search.

Thus the word Excise, meaning to cut out or off, as a tumor. And the word Remove, meaning to take away, withdraw, or eliminate is not considered equal in intent.  This auditor has taken it upon his/herself to become the standard exemplary of the English Language.

This is only one example of what is happening now and will happen when Obamacare is implemented in its full force.

Is it no wonder that thousands of doctors are planning to leave the profession.  Where will the government find their replacements?

Will a doctor trained in one of those nations instill confidence in you?

Pass this along to others, this corruption has to be stopped!

Norman Finklestein Refuses to Sign Letter Against Anti-Semitism

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk


Last Tuesday at UC-Irvine, that great "Independent Scholar with a PHD from Princeton", Norman Finklestein, spoke on behalf of the Muslim Student Union during Israel Apartheid Week. During the Q&A, I asked him if he would add his name to a letter of about 40 Jewish faculty members asking for an end to anti-Semitism on the UCI campus. Below is the non-answer I got. (You will have to download the video).


http://rcpt.yousendit.com/875042031/49315488ea701047fcd87f24e688360e

Of course, Finklestein was referring to the MSU disclaimer about anti-Semitism that was read before every event last week including the tirade by Amir Abdel Malik Ali, which many of those present are calling anti-Semitic. For the life of me, I have no idea what Richard Goldstone had to do with any of this.

Too Horrible To Contemplate!

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

I received this via an e-mail and did some checking up on the facts I am about to present to you.  Most of this I have been able to confirm through my own sources.

Earlier today I posted about the warning Maj. Gen. Paul Vallely issued about the grave danger Israel is in. Following that, I received this from a colleague who has close friends in Israel. Here’s what she wrote:

I have just received this: from my friend in Israel who moves in high circles there.

No attribution possible. It’s from a very trustworthy source who was himself the recipient and knows these people. They send him information clandestinely and they remain incognito, so that they can safely inform Americans of what is actually happening. I’m sure that they would be pleased to have the information disseminated.

Incidentally, in my opinion, this is what appears to be happening. Obama has made secret deals with the Iranian mullahcracy to facilitate the weakening of both the USA and Israel, even the planned destruction of Israel, in exchange for promises from Iran and now the Turkish leadership that ‘all they want’ – à la Munich, 1938 – is their individual MidEast Sudentenland, each of them.

Turkey and Iran have decided to split the ME between them – East and West. Turkey will recreate a new Sunni-controlled Ottoman Empire, and Iran will be allowed its own ‘greater Iran’ hegemony…i.e. a new Shiite Caliphate stretching beyond its current borders.

Obama, who is a Muslim, agrees with this plan and has pledged to help throw Israel – along with all American national security interests – to the wolves.

This appears to me to be what is currently happening, and Americans had better awaken to this reality long before November, 2012, or we won’t have a country, or an Israel, to save any longer.

***

Tonight Clive and I heard very disturbing information – we heard it from a consultant to the United States who meets once a month with the President in the White house. He is in the know. This is what actually has happened with the relationship with Israel and the USA and it is not pretty:

1. Israel during the Bush and Clinton Administrations – had landing rights in Turkey, and in the USA bases in the middle east and more recently under George Bush, in Iraq. This was in case they were invaded by Iran , or Saudi or any other Arab country. Obama has withdrawn those landing rights. Israel now has nowhere to refuel in the Middle East.

2. Netanyahu was instructed to come to the White House for a meeting. He was brought in through a servants entrance – the only head of state ever in US history to be given that disgraceful treatment. He was not offered even a cup of tea – but was lectured to by Obama who told him that he is not permitted to attack Iran and that he has to withdraw all forces from the West Bank and may not build any more settlements ( neighborhoods) in East Jerusalem.

3. Israel found out that there were four terrorists meeting in Dubai . As they have done for the past 62 years, they informed the US of that and said that these terrorists had to be dealt with. Obama said under no circumstances. Israel decided to go ahead. They killed the one terrorist who showed up. However the CIA was sent there to film the entire event by Obama – and then a concerted PR campaign was waged by the White house to discredit Israel and what they did – this kind of action has taken place with US support for the past 62 years since we have common enemies.

4. Obama has refused to oppose Syria’s rearming of Hezbollah and Hamas – Israel now sits in imminent danger from the amounts of missiles that can be sent into her territory.

5. Israel will never tell the US again of its plans – since they cannot trust us.

6. Israel intends to attack Iran –there are over 30 installations of which 4 have underground bunkers that contain nuclear weapons. Israel cannot wait any longer. The US is no longer supporting Israel ’s self defense.

7. This is the same man that gave the White House a full file on the 9.11 attack – his warnings and proof were laughed at.

8. He believes that the next attacks in the USA will be mass transportation – subways and malls – especially the largest malls where the most people can be killed – and that Vegas and wherever there are conventions of employees will be a huge target. We are not prepared and are naive in our lack thereof.

9. Once Israel attacks Iran , every Jew and Jewish institution will be at risk – temples, religious schools etc. We must be prepared.

10. This kept a room of 200 people spellbound. It is not fiction. It is fact.

What can be done?

It is essential that everyone who doesn’t know yet, now understands that the protection and survival of Israel is not on Obama’s list – and he is now taking ACTUAL steps to move all protections away – no more landing rights, negotiating with Iran and Syria, making nice to the Muslim World in the face of allies of long standing and he is no friend of the Jewish people and Israel.

We must be sure that we elect politicians who protect Israel as well as the USA – our interests are intertwined. Please forward to everyone you know.

I was able to verify through my own sources every one of the 10 points cited here. Yet Barack Hussein Obama is sending his Kapos

With this happening, no wonder Netanyahu is on edge!

Something for all of us to remember:

On this date, 5 Sivan 5741 (June 7, 1981), Israel bombed and destroyed the Iraqi nuclear reactor in Baghdad. Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had pronounced himself as the reincarnation of Babylonian tyrant Nebuchadnezzar, and named the nuclear reactor "Tammuz" -- the name of the calamitous Jewish month when Nebuchadnezzar's troops laid siege on Jerusalem 2,500 years earlier. Ilan Ramon (later to become Israel's first astronaut, who died in the explosion of the Space Shuttle Columbia) and seven other pilots executed the daring raid -- flying over enemy Arab territory for hours, and avoiding detection with their tight formation that emitted a radar signal resembling a commercial airliner. However, even as Israel celebrated the successful raid, condemnation was nearly universal. One prominent U.S. senator called it "one of the most provocative, ill-timed and internationally illegal actions taken in that nation's history." Two decades later, as the world feared Saddam's weapons of mass destruction, the Israeli action was vindicated.

Operation Opera

Israel will do what is necessary to survive regardless of what Barack Hussein Obama want them to do, even if it costs them funding and/or support.

David Horowitz and Mark Levine (UC-Irvine Professor) Go at it on Hannity

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk


Last night on Fox's Sean Hannity Show, David Horowitz and UC-Irvine Professer Mark LeVine were interviewed in regards to Horowitz's appearance this week at UC San Diego, in which a member of the Muslim Student Association made a controversial remark in answer to Horowitz's question. This led to an angry exchange between LeVine (a Palestinian supporter)and Horowitz, in which charges of dishonesty were thrown back and forth. At one point, Horowitz referred to a seized document purporting to show a connection between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Muslim Student Association. As one who also teaches at UC-Irvine, I watched the segment with more than passing interest.





On October 8, 2008, I attended a presentation at UC-Irvine, which was held in Mr LeVine's class (and open to the public)by Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Ibrahim Al-Houdaiby of Egypt. Mr Al-Houdaiby's theme was that the Muslim Brotherhood opposes violence, condemned 9-11, is trying to achieve understanding with the West, and is trying to bring democratic reform to Egypt. During the Q&A, I presented Al-Houdaiby with English and Arabic copies of a document seized by the FBI and presented as evidence in the Holy Land Foundation trial. In this document, a representative from the MB (Mohamed Akram)is writing to the "North American brothers" telling them that their role in North America is to work to destroy its "miserable house" from within. (It appears that this is the same document Horowitz was referring to last night on Hannity.)

Here is the link to the document, both in Arabic and English. On page 18, there is a list of affiliated organizations, which includes the Muslim Students Association (number 2).

http://www.investigativeproject.org/documents/misc/20.pdf


Mr Al Houdaiby denied the authenticity of the document and stated it must have been a forgery. In his remarks and subsequent comments to my below-linked article, he referred to Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan al-Banna and Muslim Brotherhood scholar and writer, Yusef Al-Qaradawy, as being against terrorism. Here is my posting from October 8, 2008.

http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2008/10/muslim-brotherhood-speaker-appears-at.html

Subsequently, I wrote another post entitled, "Where is Ibrahim El Houdaiby?". That led to another exchange of comments (see below).

http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2008/10/where-is-ibrahim-el-houdaiby.html

Another previous posting of mine featured LeVine's written statement of defense of the Muslim Student Union members who were arrested for disrupting the speech by the Israeli ambassador on February 8, 2010.

http://garyfouse.blogspot.com/2010/02/professor-mark-levine-comments-on-uci.html


I write this because much of the exchange between Horowitz and LeVine last night revolved around alleged connections between the MB and the Muslim Students Association and anti-Israel events on college campuses. (Israel Apartheid Week just concluded Thursday at UC-Irvine.)

UC-Irvine Hate Fest-A Post Mortem

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk






Now that the 2010 Israel Apartheid Week at UC-Irvine is behind us, I think it is time to pass on a few comments about the past week. I believe-and I hope- that this week marked a seminal event in the history of these hateful events. Those of us who support Israel, love our own country and stand up to anti-Semitism have learned a few lessons this week, which I will expand on in an upcoming posting. I strongly believe, however, no matter how much the UCI Muslim Student Union, their supporters, the New University campus newspaper and the local Orange County Register try to interpret or spin this, the forces of Israel Apartheid Week took a whipping this week at UCI.

The major story to come out of this week's events is that after the outrage of the disruption of the Israeli ambassador's speech on February 8th, many segments-not all-of the Jewish community have awakened from their slumber. Thus, members of the local Jewish community determined at the grass roots level that if another hate week was to go forward, their voices were going to be heard.It was not going to be just another one-sided bashing of Israel, America and American Jews. Not without a response.

When I say grass roots, I mean individuals from the community-both Jewish and Christian- who decided enough was enough. They realized that, with only a couple of exceptions, they could not pin their hopes on the national Jewish organizations to fight for them. Right now, from my viewpoint as a Christian, the major two Jewish organizations at the national level who have stepped up to the plate at UCI are the Zionist Organization of America and Stand With Us. Add to that, at the local level, the Orange County Independent Task Force on Anti-Semitism and Act for America.

The largest draws that the MSU brought to our campus were Norman Finklestein, who even the MSU could only advertise on their fliers as "independent scholar with a PHD from Princeton University", Professor William Robinson of UC Santa Barbara and old stand-by Amir Abdel Malik Ali. They all flopped.

Finklestein was showed up for what he is in the Q&A. First, yours truly came to the mike and asked him to add his signature to that of 40 mostly-Jewish professors at UCI who had issued a letter pleading to an end to anti-Semitic words and actions on the UCI campus. It took the great independent scholar about 5 minutes of a winding answer, mostly talking about Richard Goldstone, to essentially decline-without saying so (see my posting). Then, when a Jewish student called him "Norm", Finklestein threw another one of his famous temper tantrums showing everybody that he is nothing but a bully.



William Robinson gave a lecture basically recounting the Radical's Handbook from memory and putting even the MSU members to sleep. When it was over, I told him I considered him neither a professional nor an educator, but an indoctrinator. Have a nice trip back to Santa Barbara, Dr Robinson.

(Just follow the coastline due north.)

Then yesterday, Amir Abdel Malik Ali came and gave his standard thunder and lightening speech as some one hundred pro-Israel (and pro-America) folks walked around with Israeli and American flags. In the Q&A, Roz Rothstein, Director of Stand With Us drew some interesting admissions out of Ali that will make a lasting sound-bite. Ali admitted that he was pro-Hamas, pro-Hezbollah, and pro-Islamic Jihad. As to the question of whether he was pro-Jihad on (the UCI) campus, he answered insofar as it pertains to "speaking truth to power". He then called (the Jews in the audience) "Nazis". Sweet.



Thank you, Mr Ali. Welcome to your YouTube moment.

If one can read body language, and I can, the MSU was taken aback by the presence of so many pro-Israel demonstrators. (So were a few folks who one would think would be on our side, which I discussed in a previous article-and will discuss again).

As I said before, the pro-Israel folks were boisterous but observed the proper rules of behavior. There were two exceptions, a married couple who showed up independently and acted like jerks in spite of our requests to act civilly.

As I remarked earlier, I regret that two earlier speakers Hedy Epstein and Alison Weir had stayed to hear Ali yesterday. It might have given them pause. In addition, it must now be publicly asked; where were Chancellor Michael Drake, who has the weight of the university crashing down on him-from both sides- all because of this controversy? Is is incredible that he would not see and hear for himself. Same for Erwin Chemerinsky, our law dean, who has repeatedly denied anti-Semitism at UCI-both before and after he came here.

Initially, I was encouraged that the Orange County Register showed up. Reporter Ian Hamilton briefly interviewed me earlier in the week. It is obvious, however, from his writing, that the Register is not going to take a stand one way or another.

Or is it? Hamilton was reportedly overheard this week telling MSU members that he was going to get "their story to the world". If that is incorrect, Mr Hamilton, please feel free to correct the record, as they say in the media.

In addition, OC Register reporter Mary Jo Fisher, who used to cover the beat at UCI, has just requested the Independent Task Force to remove her from their e-mail list. Strange behavior from a reporter who is supposed to strive to get all sides of a story, wouldn't you say, Ms Fisher? Personally, I think she is much better suited in her present role as a columnist writing articles about washing dishes as the "Frumpy Old Mom".

All in all, this week was a victory for the good guys, one that can be duplicated in other places.

Day 4 of Hate Week at UC-Irvine

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk



Amir Abdel Malik Ali




Amir Abdel Malik Ali and I sharing a laugh at the expense of Norman Finklestein and William Robinson's speaking styles.


Today, Hate Week at UC-Irvine came to a crashing thud of an end. Today's speaker was firebrand Amir Abdel Malik Ali. I only wish the nice ladies Hedy Epstein and Alison Weir, who spoke earlier this week, had stayed around to hear Ali. It might have given them pause.

I was happy to note that today, we had the largest turnout of community Jewish protesters who came with posters, Israeli and American flags. They were orderly as we expected them to be.

(OC Register)

Overheard from one Muslim Student Union guy as the protesters came marching over the bridge and onto campus,

"What the F---?"

Ali, as expected, was quite in contrast to the style of Weir and Epstein as he excoriated Israel and made his usual implications about the coming end of said state. In contrast to the ridiculous statements of the Great Independent Scholar with a PHD from Princeton (Norman "don't call me Norm") Finklestein, who told us that every Arab and Palestinian entity wanted to reach a peace deal with Israel, Ali took a different tone, as expected. Ali is not interested in peace.

In addition, Ali went off on his customary rant about prominent American figures whom he identifies as "Zionist Jews".

"Alan Greenspan-Zionist Jew!"
"Timothy Geithner-Zionist Jew!"
"Larry Summers- Zionist Jew!"

Thank you, Mr Ali.

In the Q&A, I complemented Ali by saying that after having to listen to William Robinson and Norman Finklestein, he was a "breath of fresh" air, which he knew was a left-handed compliment. I told him that we had heard Epstein and Weir, both nice ladies with a passion for the Palestinian cause; we then heard "that great independent scholar with a PHD from Princeton, Finklestein tells us that everybody in the Middle East wanted peace except Israel, backed by the US and a couple of atolls in the Pacific. Now comes Ali, who doesn't speak of peace but wants an end to the Jewish state.

"Zionist state", he corrected me.

I also reminded him that, once again, he had ranted about Americans whom he calls, "Zionist Jews", which I consider anti-Semitic. I said that to me, there had been mixed signals from the week's speakers. My question was "What is it you guys want-is it a peaceful solution or the end of the Jewish state?

Usually, in my exchanges with Ali, he quietly gives me an answer, which I have respected. This time, he went back into speech mode and started talking about "oppressors and the oppressed" with references to the Israeli Defense Forces. If there was an answer in there, I missed it.

Then there was this question from Roz Rothstein, Director of Stand With Us:
(Hat tip to Rabbi Drew and Orange County Independent Task Force on Anti-Semitism)




After the event, Jewish school pupils (I don't know from which school they were from) participated in a lively series of Jewish dances and song. It was my impression that the MSU folks were, what's the word....discombobulated. (Is that right?)

Oh yeah. There was one other event in the early evening. Some graduate student named Omar Shakir from Georgetown was speaking. I decided enough was enough. Why should I give up my happy hour to go listen to and argue with some grad student from Georgetown? Small potatoes.

I am very disappointed that Chancellor Michael Drake did not come out-especially today-and see and hear for himself what is going on on his campus especially in light of all the contoversy that has given his university a very negative reputation when it comes to this issue. I would have hoped that Law School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky, who continues to deny anti-Semitism at UCI, would have come out and listened to Ali. Ditto for Vice Chancellor Manuel Gomez-wherever he was.




In my view, this week was a victory for the friends of Israel, those who love America, and those who wish to stand up to anti-Semitism on university campuses. I hope it will spread to other campuses in the US and Canada. I know many of UCI's Jewish students would have preferred that the demonstrators not come to campus, but with all due respect, this issue is bigger than just them. This concerns everybody.

One City, Never Again To Be Divided!

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

In the 20th Century Judaism added 4 new holidays:  Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Memorial Day), Yom HaZikaron (Israel's Memorial Day), Yom Ha-Atzmaut (Israeli Independence Day) and Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day).  The last one, Yom Yerushalayim celebrates the re-unification of Jerusalem. Yom Yerushalayim is celebrated on the 28th of the month of Iyar. The liberation of Jerusalem in 1967 marks the first time in thousands of years that the entire city of Jerusalem, the holiest city in Judaism, was under Jewish sovereignty. The destruction of Jerusalem was a watershed event in Jewish history that began thousands of years of mourning for Jerusalem, so, it follows, that the reunification of Jerusalem should be a joyous celebration that begins the process of reversing thousands of years of destruction and exile. Jerusalem is central to the Jewish tradition. Jews face in the direction of Jerusalem and all of the prayer services are filled with references to Jerusalem.

Now with that in mind, it is a wonder why Barack Hussein Obama, President of the United States, and supposed friend of Israel would try to force Israel to partition the city once more.

Recent days have seen conflicting reports on construction in Jerusalem. While Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu states that construction in Jerusalem will continue, reports indicate that in practice, Jews are barred from building in some parts of the capital city. Arutz Sheva's Hebrew news service spoke to Jerusalem Construction and Building Planning Committee member Yair Gabbai to clarify the situation.

According to Gabbai, there is definitely a distinction being made between “west” Jerusalem, meaning the territory that has been under Israeli sovereignty since 1948, and “east” Jerusalem, the lands that were under Jordanian control from 1948 until 1967. Recently, officials have begun making a distinction between Jews and Arabs, allowing Arabs to build in neighborhoods where Jews are turned down for construction permits, he said.

"The most recent meetings have taken on a certain apartheid-like quality,” he said. “Construction permits in eastern Jerusalem are given exclusively to Arabs, while in the western half of the city there's no discrimination.”

United States President Barack Obama is behind the de facto construction freeze, Gabbai believes. “[Obama] is the source of the pressure on the prime minister and the government to freeze construction in eastern Jerusalem, even though it's not good for Jerusalem,” he said.

Finish reading here.

When Jerusalem was cut in two, not one Jewish place of worship was allowed to stand erect under Jordanian rule.  Even the Kotel was turned into a latrine for the amusement of the degenerate Arabs.  And this was done even though the world assured Jews that their sacred places would be safe and Jews would have access to these places.

From Wikipedia:

The Hurva Synagogue, also known as Hurvat Rabbi Yehudah he-Hasid ("Ruin of Rabbi Judah the Pious"), is a historic synagogue located in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem.

The synagogue was founded in the early 1700s by followers of Judah he-Hasid, but it was destroyed a few years later in 1721. The plot lay in ruins for over 140 years and became known as the Ruin, or Hurva. In 1864, the Perushim rebuilt the synagogue, and although officially named the Beis Yaakov Synagogue, it retained its name as the Hurva. It became Jerusalem's main Ashkenazic synagogue, until it too was reduced to rubble by the Arab Legion during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

After the site came under Israeli control in 1967, a number of plans were submitted for the design of a new building. After years of deliberation and indecision, a commemorative arch was erected instead at the site in 1977, itself becoming a prominent landmark of the Jewish Quarter. The plan to rebuild the synagogue in its 19th century style received approval by the Israeli Government in 2000 and the newly rebuilt synagogue was dedicated on March 15, 2010. The company involved with its reconstruction believes that restoring the synagogue to its former glory will once again allow it to serve as a center for World Jewry.

Hurva Synagogue restored - 2010

I wonder if this will be the last year Yom Yerushalayim will be celebrated in a unified city.  Under Obama's proposal orders the city will once again be divided (I wonder what Germans would do if Berlin was divided again?).  Will we then see signs like these:

43 years have passed since Jerusalem, City of David, City of Gold, was divided.  Will it remain whole in the next 43 years, or will it be divided forever?

Let us pray that the answer is NO!

One city forever united!