Happy Anniversary Israel!

Jew.
Just one little word.
Just one little people.
Yet, such power, and such agony...

The world shrugged and said that Hitler was a Jewish problem. They told themselves that if the Jews hadn't been so rich, so powerful, so different, so poor, so weak, so assimilated, so universalist, so closed... they wouldn't have been killed. It was the Jews' fault. Quoted from Eternal Hatred at For Zion's Sake

From JEW:
http://radarsite.blogspot.com/2008/03/jew.html

In 1948, in a rare display of Arab unity, all of the surrounding hate-filled Arab states came together to wage a war of total annihilation against the tiny fledgling State of Israel. They mustered their huge supremely confident armies and, assured of a magnificent success, they savagely attacked the insignificant and ill-prepared Israeli forces.

And they lost.

Not only did all of the combined Arab states lose, but they suffered one of the most humiliating and ignoble military disasters in modern history.
And Israel continued to live and to thrive.

But the embittered Arab states never unconditionally accepted the awful reality of their defeat. Almost immediately after the disaster, the Arab world began their delusional retrospective qualifications and rationalizations, their absurd revisions of history. Year by year, war by disastrous war, they sank lower and lower into that dark hopeless world of self-pity and hatred. That irresponsible world of lies and denials, wherein nothing is your fault and everything is the fault of others. And as Israel prospered, the Arab world seethed with self-loathing and plotted revenge.

From AA for Islam
http://radarsite.blogspot.com/2008/03/aa-for-islam.html

And so, amazingly, after six turbulent decades, the miracle that is Israel still lives and prospers, and the Arab world still seethes with envy and resentment.

Still threatened, still surrounded by its vast and deadly enemies who only dream of its destruction, tiny Fortress Israel holds forth. And so long as our brave little Israel survives, this world's hopes for freedom and democracy will live on. More perhaps than any other nation in this world, tiny Israel represents the embodiment of the promise of the Western World, the promise of light, and hope and reason.

Bravo brave little Israel! May you live on and prosper. You are our faithful ally and our shining example. God bless you and keep you safe. -- rg

Note from Radarsite:
For a profound and moving tribute to Israel check out this from ~Snooper~ at A NEWT ONE

A sad state affairs this indictment is:

[...] Israel's monumental achievement, the fact that this tiny country with its neighbors hell-bent on eliminating it has somehow managed to survive, does not seem to be much of a story. Some would say this is appropriate. Israel is, after all, a Jewish state. Why should anyone else care? [...]

Read the rest here:
http://www.anewtone.com/2008/05/happy-60th-anniversary-israel.html

Voted by gophub

Civil Rights or Civil Life? Britain's "42-day" Debate

Al Qaeda wouldn't hesitate to blow away a city: That's why we need 42-day detention, says ex MI6 boss

From the Daily Mail
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=562276&in_page_id=1770
By JASON LEWIS

Warning: Sir Richard Dearlove says that in some serious cases the current 28-day limit is not enoughThe former head of MI6 is backing controversial Government plans to hold terror suspects for 42 days without charge, saying it might prevent a dirty-bomb attack on Britain.
MI6 prides itself on avoiding political debates but former chief Sir Richard Dearlove warns that the UK would "regret" not bringing in longer detention for terror suspects.


Sir Richard, 63, who retired from MI6 in 2004, says that in some serious cases the current 28-day limit is not enough to build a case or to gather intelligence on the scale of the threat faced by Britain.
He says of Al Qaeda: "Should it ever obtain the means to blow away a complete city, I fear, with good intelligence that supports my fears, that it would not hesitate to try."
His intervention comes after Director of Public Prosecution Sir Ken Macdonald warned MPs on the Home Affairs Committee on Wednesday that any move to extend the period suspects can be held is unnecessary.
He said he had "managed quite comfortably" within the 28-day limit – and no suspect had been held longer than 14 days in the past nine months.
But writing in Contingency Today, a magazine for security professionals, Sir Richard says the increased complexity of terrorism cases, especially the need for help from spy agencies abroad, means investigators need more time.
"In some states simply establishing identity is a major investigative challenge," he says. "When we do need that extension, we will need it badly."
Al Qaeda "does not fight for a claim to territory, nor for a political agenda. It seeks to destroy our values and our way of life" – and it is "already pressing against the limits of our capabilities to contain it".
He adds: "It knows well how to exploit the vulnerability of the global village – how to pass unnoticed, cover its tracks, ride on our technology. In a recent prosecution, the investigation involved 270 computers, 2,000 disks and 8,224 exhibits spread across eight national jurisdictions."
He is "instinctively against the erosion of the basic liberties" but adds: "When I know that a few of my fellow citizens feel they are justified in the name of some greater purpose to attempt to kill their neighbours, then I want them, where and when necessary, to be effectively constrained.
"If 42 days is not adopted, regret it we will – and who in our blame culture will the media turn on when the uncharged terrorist, released after a month, turns out to have held the key to preventing the next major attack, and what bad law might we then, in haste, enact during the crisis-driven enquiry that would ensue?"

Note from Radarsite: Contained in that one small word "but" is the whole dilemma of the West. Recognizing the necessity of these crucial exceptions to our everyday rules of civility is the key to success in this ongoing war. We must win this war against this ruthless onslaught of militant Islam. But first we must win the war against the Ken Macdonalds of this world, these dangerously delusional PC libs, who still think that this is some sort of collegiate debate, to be governed by gentlemanly rules of conduct. We can only hope that the responsible voices of reason, like Sir Richard Dearlove's clear warning will be heeded in time.
rg

A Sad Day for London's Multiculturalists, a Great Day for London

Local elections: Boris Johnson wins the battle for London

From the Times: May 3, 2008
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article3657232.ece

Ben Macintyre in City Hall

Boris Johnson was declared the victor last night in London's fiercely-contested mayoral election, announcing a new era in which the Conservative Party had once again become “a party that can be trusted”. Rumpled but clearly ecstatic, the new mayor-elect paid tribute to his vanquished rivals, and proclaimed, in typically ebullient form: “Let’s get cracking tomorrow, and let’s have drink tonight.”
In the space-age surroundings of the City Hall chamber, before a bank of cacti after a prickly election, Mr Johnson was announced winner by 1,168,000 votes to 1,028,000 for Ken Livingstone, after an election count that extended deep into the night. The outgoing mayor, hoarse and emotional, gave a brief concession speech. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get the extra percentage points . . . the fault for that is entirely my own. This is the most amazing city to be elected mayor.”

Mr Johnson also paid tribute to the Liberal Democrat candidate, Brian Paddick, for his great “common sense and decency”. Mr Paddick won 235,000 votes in the first round of voting. Mr Johnson’s campaign involved the calculated repression of an exotic personality, but flashes of the Boris we know returned last night. The Tory mayor-elect has foresworn alcohol since the new year, but made two references to his desire to get off the wagon as soon as possible. His four children, some as flaxen-haired and shaggily-coiffured as their father, clapped and cheered as the result was announced.

Mr Johnson saluted Mr Livingstone for “the sheer exuberant nerve with which you have stuck it to your enemies — especially those within new Labour”. But as midnight struck, he also tied to build bridges with the many Londoners who had opposed his election. “To the vast millions who voted against me, I will work flat out to win your trust.”

London had waited for Boris through much of the night. As the hours of counting ticked by, and the long-awaited announcement was delayed and delayed, the assumption that Johnson would be the next mayor of London gradually took hold of the press, the pundits, and the public. The large turnout was cited as the reason for the delay, with voters streaming to the polls in record numbers. According to one estimate, at least half a million additional Londoners have voted this year, after an election that has gripped the capital for seven months.

In the plaza beneath City Hall, on the banks of the Thames, Romanian student Irina Paletscu asked one of the stream of journalists filing into the building: “It is The Boris, yes?” It is one level of fame to be known only by a first name, even among visiting tourists from Eastern Europe. It is another level of fame altogether to have developed a definite article, even before the results have been announced.
On the ninth floor of City Hill, the building Mr Livingston once referred to as the “glass testicle”, the journalists waited in a nervous scrum. There is nothing in the world more anxious than a group of journalists that thinks it knows the answer, but dare not yet write it.

One of the candidates counted himself out long before the final result. “It was always going to be hard,” said Brian Paddick. “We were up against two giants. Someone who had already been mayor and a celebrity.”

Mr Paddick wore that resigned look of a policeman who has seen too much larceny to be surprised by anything. He did, however, take time to round up some of the usual suspects, and beat them up. He said: “If you have read the London print media this week you would have thought that there were only two candidates running.” A whiff of sour grapes was detectable around Steven Norris, the two-time failed Tory contender. “I’d have loved to have run, not least because I would have won.”

A tug floated on the river outside City Hall, with a banner reading “Working Together for a Tidal Thames” — a superbly meaningless slogan of the sort municipal governments have always favoured. Has the Thames become more tidal under Ken? Would it continue to ebb and flow with the same efficiency under Boris? These, and other questions, remained unanswered, but high in City Hall, the tide had turned.

Note from Radarsite: "the tide had turned" is this the signal we have been waiting for? Has Europe finally had enough of PC multiculturalism? If nothing else, it is certainly a great encouraging sign. This summer should be a real test of wills. Will there be more riots in the immigrant-dominated cities of Europe? Will the Muslim attacks on their host countries continue to escalate? Will the responses from these newly-elected governments be more effective this time around? We shall certainly be watching closely. At least we can see a ray of hope. Thank God for that. -- rg

A short statement from Radarsite

In the wake of today's wonderful news from London and Rome, I would like to make a short statement. As my regular readers well know, I have written many articles bemoaning the direction in which our Western Civilization seems to be heading. There is nothing that I would love more than to be completely and utterly mistaken. I would be absolutely thrilled to be proven wrong by unexpected events. And, who knows, but that this might just be the beginning of a new day. What a lovely thought. God bless the worthy Londoners and lovely Romans. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed and saying an extra prayer tonight for them. -- rg

Livingston is Out!

London falls as Gordon Brown bloodied in May Day election massacre

From The Times
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article3864666.ece

Hat tip to Findalis

May 3, 2008


Gordon Brown’s first electoral test turned into a nightmare last night as Labour lost an astonishing 331 council seats and Boris Johnson won the London mayoral election.

Boris Johnson ended the eight-year reign of Ken Livingstone, delivering another body blow to the Prime Minister as Labour lost a quarter of the councillors who stood for the party on Thursday.

Johnson took a total of 1,043,761 first preference votes against 893,877 for Livingstone and was declared the winner after taking a further 124,977 second preference votes.

Mr Johnson thanked his team and heaped praise on his opponents, particularly Mr Livingstone who he described as a “very considerable public servant”.

He appeared to offer a possible role for the former mayor in his new administration before pledging to make greater London “greater still”.

He finished with the words: “Let’s get cracking tomorrow - let’s have a drink tonight.”

Mr Livingstone said he accepted full responsibility for the defeat and ended his speech with his voice breaking with emotion and clearly holding back tears.

The bloodbath consumed victims across the country, including the North and Wales, leaving Labour’s local government and campaigning base severely weakened.

Ministers now fear for their chances of surviving the next general election and Mr Brown’s authority was further damaged.

He promised to “listen and lead” and will launch a fightback this weekend, hoping to prove to the country that he, rather than David Cameron, has the experience and stature to take it through difficult times. It had been a “bad night”, he accepted.

Yesterday’s huge reverses make it almost certain that the next general election will take place in 2010 rather than next year. Mr Brown has an electoral mountain to climb to get his party into a position to win it.

Personal criticism of Mr Brown from the Labour side was muted. Hazel Blears, the Communities Secretary, told him that the message was to “get a grip”; one MP said that he had suffered a “John Major moment”; and his closest ally Ed Balls said that the results could not be dismissed as a traditional midterm kick to the governing party.

The electorate was cross with Labour, Mr Balls said.

Mr Brown’s main worry will be whether party discipline holds up as MPs fret about their re-election prospects. Last night’s results show that Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, and Ruth Kelly, the Transport Secretary, are highly vulnerable in their seats.

The Prime Minister is facing a further battle in three weeks’ time. Labour will try to hold Crewe & Nantwich in a by-election on May 22, which yesterday’s results suggest will be a tight race.

A challenge to his leadership can virtually be ruled out, but one MP said that he would give Mr Brown six months to get back on track.

It was Labour’s worst election night for 40 years, its councillors left almost defenceless in the face of the 10p tax row and economic worries. Labour finished in third place overall, with just 24 per cent of the vote. The Conservatives secured 44 per cent on an evening of unbridled triumph and the Liberal Democrats 25 per cent.

The Conservatives gained 256 seats and the Liberal Democrats a modest 34, with Nick Clegg voicing satisfaction over his party’s advances in the North, including his home city of Sheffield.

Labour lost key councils such as Southampton and Reading and was hit hard in its Welsh heartlands, losing Blaenau Gwent, Merthyr Tydfil, Torfaen, Caerphilly and Flintshire. It also lost Wolverhampton and Hartlepool. Tory gains included Bury and North Tyneside.

Mr Brown blamed “difficult economic circumstances” and claimed that measures taken by the Government to counter problems would become clear in the coming months.

He said: “I think people want to be assured that the Government will steer them through these difficult times. The test of leadership is not what happens in a period of success but what happens in difficult circumstances.”

Mr Cameron said: “This is a very big moment for the Conservative Party, but I don’t want anyone to think that we would deserve to win an election on the back of a failing government. I want us to really prove to people that we can make the changes that they want to see, in terms of schools and hospitals and crime and the other issues that really matter to all of us.

Mr Clegg said: “We were 13 per cent a few months ago, we’re now 25 per cent. We’ve overtaken Labour, we’ve taken seats off the Conservatives, we’ve taken seats off Labour. I am delighted, we are regaining momentum.”

Derek Wyatt, the Labour MP for Sittingbourne & Sheppey, who has one of the smallest majorities in the Commons at 79, said that the party had had a “John Major moment”. He said: “How many more Northern Rocks can there be? Look at the situation with fuel prices, the non-doms and the 10p tax band. Gordon has committed spectacular own-goals and the public is punishing him for it.”

The Labour leftwinger Ian Gibson said that Mr Brown was running out of time to prove that he was capable of leading the party to victory at a general election. “I’ll give him six months to do it or there will be really hard talking,” he said.

David Blunkett, the former Home Secretary, said that the Government had to re-engage with voters’ day-to-day concerns. “We’ve got to get a grip and we’ve got to build on the progress we’ve made, but we can’t rest on what we’ve done,” he said

Note from Radarsite: Merry Christmas, everybody!! I don't believe it! Just when I started writing my obituary for the West, the sleeping giant wakes. This, after the good news for Italy is just mind-boggling. We surely are living in interesting times. Radarsite will keep you posted. WOW!!!

The Right Conquers Rome

The Right Conquers Rome. Is Italy about to Break the Mold?

Cross posted fromBrussels Journal.com
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/3221

Hat tip to Hans at USA Partisan:
http://usapartisan.blogspot.com/

From the desk of John Laughland on Thu, 2008-05-01 15:27

Different languages have different words for a major defeat or rout. They are often borrowed from the most inglorious episodes in respective national histories. Thus the French word for a terrible defeat is “bérézina”, a reference to the disastrous Battle of Berezina in present-day Belarus in 1812 when Napoleon’s already retreating troops were decimated by Marshal Kutuzov. The Germans often use the term “Stunde Null” (“Zero Hour”) for the same purpose: this was the term used to denote Germany’s state of total devastation after the unconditional surrender on 8 May 1945. The British, rather eccentrically, use the word “Waterloo” to mean “defeat”, even though they were the victors in that Belgian village in 1815. In Italian, the expression is “Caporetto”,in memory of the Battle of Caporetto fought at what is now Kobarid in Slovenia in 1917, the subject of Hemingway’s Farewell to Arms. The expression has been much used in the newspapers in recent days to denote what happened to the Italian Left at the recent parliamentary and local elections.

The Left, and especially the extreme Left, has indeed suffered a historic defeat, losing control of the government, both houses of parliament, and the City of Rome, which it has held for most of the last quarter century. Apart from the return to power for a third term in office of the vigorously anti-Left Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, the Right’s victories in Italy include spectacular successes for the (admittedly reformed) extreme right. Gianfranco Fini, who was Deputy Prime Minister in the last Berlusconi administration, and who rose to power by taking over the old fascist party and “democratising” it to create the Alleanza Nazionale, is now President of the Parliament. The Mayor of Rome is Gianni Alemanno, also formerly of the Movimento Sociale Italiano, Mussolini’s party; Alemanno is the son-in-law of Pino Rauti, a veteran politician from the extreme right. There were apparently fascist salutes on the Campidoglio (the Capitoline hill where town hall of Rome is situated) on Tuesday in celebration of his victory.

This is in addition to the very high score achieved by the Northern League (9% of the national vote): in many ways the Northern League is more right-wing than Fini’s Alleanza Nazionale, campaigning much more vigorously against immigration and Europe than Fini does. The Northern League leader, Umberto Bossi, indeed once called the EU a “Stalinist” organisation, the only minister in any European government ever to use such vigorously anti-EU rhetoric since the EEC was created in 1957.

Italian politics is often dismissed (in Britain at least) as nothing but a combination of opera buffa and artful corruption. It is true that the country’s political life seems chaotic when viewed from outside; but that is true of Italian life in general, where the appearance of chaos in fact masks the reality of extremely professional organisation. Anyone who has taken a train or a bus in Italy will know this to be true (the contrast with Britain, for instance, is very unfavourable to the British). The Italians are masterful businessmen and very hard-working professionals, who continue to produce some of the world’s best products, from cars and kitchens to fashion and food. In politics, the Italians combine their well-known flair and kindness with a Latin proclivity for interesting political ideas. Above all, Italian politics are profoundly original: it has often been remarked that the country which appears to have no significant international profile is, in fact, a laboratory for political movements which then catch on elsewhere. No Bismarck without Cavour; no Hitler without Mussolini.

If Italy is indeed in the political avant-garde, there is surely no thinker whose work has had greater political influence in the post-war politics of Europe than the great Italian Marxist, Antonio Gramsci. Like many Marxists an excruciatingly boring writer, Gramsci famously formulated the idea that the Left should grasp and consolidate its power by establishing cultural hegemony. Whereas Marx and Engels thought that the revolution would come about as a result of impersonal and inevitable historical processes, and whereas Lenin argued that instead the revolution needed to be directed by a highly disciplined, centralised and violent revolutionary party, Gramsci argued that the Left should wield power not only by means of violence and coercion but also by infiltrating the cultural institutions of the state in order to be able to dictate the very terms of reference of the political debate itself. We are all familiar with what this means in practice. Huge swathes of political discourse are kept off limits by taboos established by the Left. Immigration is perhaps the most obvious of these; those politicians in Europe who have campaigned against mass immigration, like the Front national in France or the Vlaams Blok (now Belang) in Flanders, are demonised as extremists. Some people have managed to campaign against immigration without being so demonised – Sir Andrew Green of Migration Watch in the UK, the Conservative Party and large sections of the British media are examples – but their campaigns have been either muted or unsuccessful or both. This is in spite of the fact that Western Europe continues to suffer from very high levels of net immigration, which are putting huge strains on social relations and the state. Is Italy about to break the mould?

I have always regarded Gianfranco Fini, the leader of the Alleanza Nazionale, as a dismal opportunist. But judging by the language coming out of the mouth of the new Mayor of Rome, as of other Italian politicians, this will soon change. Alemanno has said that any foreigners convicted of crimes in Italy will simply be deported. The temperature has been rising steadily in Italy, and especially in Rome, as vast camps of Romanian gypsies have sprung up in the capital city and elsewhere, from where petty and serious crimes are systematically committed. One would have thought that a promise to apply the law as it stands was a fairly uncontroversial proposition, but when the Front national said it would do the same thing in France, it was denounced as extremist. Italy has already started applying these measures and one can only assume that, with the new political hegemony of the Right, they will continue and be amplified.

If so, Italy will indeed have contributed to what I hope will be sea change in European politics. By breaking the taboo in Rome, the taboo may be broken across Europe.

Note from Radarsite: All this good news in one day! It's just too much! lol
rg

London Bridge Is Falling Down: Diversity or Invasion?

London's Multiculturalist Mayor, Ken Livingstone

London Bridge Is falling down,
Falling down, Falling down.
London Bridge Is falling down,
My fair lady.

Diversity or Invasion?

Cross posted from I Am An Englishman

On 15 April 2008, London's Mayor, Ken Livingstone, launched his community relations manifesto, saying:"I regard one of my greatest achievements of my administration ... (as) the way it has pursued policies that have consciously promoted... the policy of multiculturalism."
On the same day, the BBC described Livingstone's manisfesto thus:"London mayor Ken Livingstone has vowed to put multiculturalism at the heart of his bid to be re-elected to office. He said he would boost numbers of black and Asian police officers, promote cultural events and set diversity targets on boards he appoints.

He said ending multi-culturalism could mean a return to 1980s race riots."The RISE Anti-Racist Festival is a free event organised by Ken Livingstone, Mayor of London and Chairman of Unite Against Fascism.

Introducing his pet project in 2006, Red Ken said:
"London is built on the diversity of its population and this anti-racist festival… sends a very clear message that racism is not welcome in this city… There will be no let-up in celebrating London’s real character as a diverse and open city.
Each successive generation that has come to London has helped to shape the city we live in, bringing new ideas, skills and cultures... From the great racist crimes in history to bullying in the school playground and vicious tabloid news coverage, racist ideas have to be opposed because they disfigure our society... Policies to combat racism and celebrate our diversity are a permanent part of the work of London government."

At the following year’s festival, the Mayor was in even better form.
On 15 July 2007, Livingstone said this:
"London's fortunes are tied up with our stand against racism and prejudice... Fighting racism is a daily fight and a political priority for our city and the Rise: London United festival is a clear statement of that fact.

Read this whole disturbing article here:
http://www.iamanenglishman.com/page.php?page=1&iCategoryId=917&iParentId=889

In 1926, the year the Queen was born, there were 4 mosques in Britain. There are now more than 1,100

In June 2007, The Times told us that Muhammad is now the second most popular name for baby boys in Britain and is likely to rise to no 1 by next year. The name was shared by 5,991 newborn boys in 2006.

SHARIA STORM GROWS

25th February 2008
By Tom Hutchison
http://www.dailystar.co.uk/posts/view/30484/Sharia-storm-grows

MUSLIM radicals have demanded Sharia law across Britain “without compromise”. Extreme Islamics said the hardline system – where people are punished by stoning and beheading – is the future.
Speaking at a meeting in Birmingham, Abu Ibraheem said: “Let us make this absolutely clear. Islam is not subject to dilution, compromise or relegation.“The behaviour of some Muslims is failing miserably to meet these commands.”

About 50 activists held the meeting in the same town where terrorist Parviz Khan, 3, plotted to behead a British soldier. Ten thousand leaflets were distributed to attract moderate Muslims. They criticised comments by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, 58, who suggested parts of Sharia law may be good for the UK.

Abu Abdullah, who spoke at the meeting, added: “The purpose of this was not to discourage Muslims from following English laws. “It is to educate people about Sharia and its meanings.”

...to educate people about Sharia and its meanings

London Bridge Is falling down,
Falling down, Falling down.
London Bridge Is falling down,
My fair lady.

We must build it up again,
Up again, Up again.
We must build it up again,
My fair lady.
Build it up with iron and steel,
Iron and steel, Iron and steel.
Build it up with iron and steel,
My fair lady.

God bless Britain

Voted by Fox News at GOP Hub