Janet Napolitano at UCLA

Gary Fouse

fousesquawk

http://garyfouse.blogspot.com

"I love the way you roll your eyes."


Tonight Janet Napolitano spoke at UCLA, and yours truly was in attendance. Let me sum up her speech in one word:

ZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

Yes, it was a classic, read from the rostrum, bureaucratic info blurb on what a great job the Department of Homeland Security is doing. She read through a list of new initiatives, full of acronyms I had never heard of. The young student sitting next to me fell asleep. I don't blame him. Janet basically lost the audience in the first 10 minutes. She talked about international cooperation. She talked about seeking great jobs in government. At least she didn't mention, "If you see something, say something."

Outside a group of no borders folks were chanting in protest. About ten of them came into the hall, and during the Q and A, stood up and did a neat imitation of the Irvine 11.

"Education. Not deportation". Then they left. Unfortunately, no arrests were made. What would they do, for crying out loud? They would have had to turn them over to Janet for deportation.

Did I mention LA Sheriff to the Stars Lee "Footballhead" Baca was there? He makes all these events looking for people to shake hands with.

"I don't think that's funny."



But let's get to the crux of the matter. During the Q and A, someone handed me the mic and here was my question: I identified myself a as retired DEA agent, and that my question was in connection with Operation Fast and Furious. I told Napolitano that during my career I had had occasion to work with ATF, and in my mind, there was no way any street agent could have concocted Fast and Furious. In my mind, this scheme  originated in the highest levels of the Justice Department. I then mentioned that one or possibly two of her own agents had been killed by guns linked to Fast and Furious (Brian Terry and Jaime Zapata). I went on that she had told Congress that she had no discussions with Eric Holder about Fast and Furious since the scandal broke. I finally said that, with all due respect, if it had been my agents who were killed, I would be pounding on Eric Holder's desk demanding answers, and I wanted to know why she had not.

In her answer, Napolitano briefly summarized Fast and Furious and described it as an operation in which there was insufficient control. She referred to controlled deliveries and (correctly) assumed that in DEA I had participated in controlled drug deliveries (under surveillance to arrest the ultimate recipients). She stated that she would not get into her conversations with Holder, but that the investigation was in the hands of the Inspector General of the DOJ. At that, I rolled my eyes, and she made a caustic comment, "You can roll your eyes"...

She was not amused.

But I was.

It was a weak response. Control? What control? There was no control. This was nowhere near a controlled delivery. The guns were allowed to cross the border and disappear into Mexico. She wasn't going to go into her conversations with Eric Holder? According to her testimony before Congress, there have been no discussions. And that reference to the inspector general was a joke. That is the same inspector general who is holding on to 80,000 documents requested by Congress.

That was it, crime fighters. There was absolutely nothing else of interest said. It was nothing more than an off-the-shelf stump speech that bored the audience. For me, it was a chance to tell Napolitano what I have been writing in print for months.

Saudi Grand Mufti calls for All Churches in Region to be Demolished

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com



In Saudi Arabia, there are no Christian churches nor Jewish synagogues. That is because it is illegal to practice any religion other than Islam-at least openly. So it is hardly surprising that the Saudi grand mufti, Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, recently called for the demolition of all Christian churches in the Middle East. There hasn't been much publicity about that, but the Zionist Organization of America has spoken out with a press release.

http://www.zoa.org/sitedocuments/pressrelease_view.asp?pressreleaseID=2174

Keep in mind that Saudi Arabia, with its huge oil wealth, finances many of the mosques in America and many new Middle East studies departments in American universities staffed with lots of radical professors who have as their major goal the demonization of Israel (and America as well). The Saudis also send Wahhabist imams to preach in US mosques. Wahhabism is considered the most intolerant of Muslim schools of thought.

Of course, it never occurred to the Saudis that the tens of thousands of college students they send to the US annually are able to practice their own religion here freely-as they should be. Yet, Saudi Arabia does not permit the (open) practice of any other religion.

This, of course, is not an isolated bigot speaking here. Christians are having a rough go of it in Egypt, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sudan, and several other countries. Yet, we have the 56-member Organization of  Islamic Cooperation making a strong lobbying effort within the UN to have all member nations observe an international law against "defamation of religions". Hillary Clinton has actually participated in two conferences with OIC on this subject. Don't ask me why "religions" is in plural because there is only one that would be protected against any critical discussion.

The intolerance, the hate and the violence is overwhelming, and yet the world is afraid to call attention to the 800 pound gorilla standing in plain sight, not in the back of the room, but front and center, on the stage, and in front of the microphone.

It is not hateful to call out hate. It is not an attack on all Muslims to stand up to the preachers of hate and violence. The longer it takes the West to elect strong leaders who will protect us from this threat, the more radical the future leaders will have to be.

Education Under Fire: The Plight of the Baha'i in Iran

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com



On April 9, I attended a presentation at UC Irvine entitled, "Education Under Fire", which is the title of a documentary film describing the persecution of the Baha'i religious minority in Iran, a subject of which I have previously written. Briefly stated, the Baha'i faith was founded in Iran in the 19th century and is not recognized in Iran. It is considered as apostasy from Islam. Under the Islamic regime, Baha'i are actively persecuted by the government. They are subject to arrest and imprisonment for "treason". Their homes have been burned. Some have been hanged by the government. In addition, they are denied higher education.

Other smaller Baha'i communities in countries like Egypt and Iraq also suffer varying forms of discrimination.

The film we watched also focused on the efforts of Baha'i to educate their youth in the face of the ban on higher education. This resulted in 1987 in the establishment of the Baha'i Institute of Higher Education (BIHE), a clandestine system of classes throughout the country, largely held in secret in members' homes with homework assignments literally being mailed in to special addresses in different cities and towns. Originally, the subjects were science and math, which branched out into sub-subjects and have now grown to other courses. More recently, with advanced technology, instruction is conducted largely online. Since the entire enterprise is clandestine, those who have completed the study have found that universities in other countries have no knowledge of BIHE. Thus, they do not recognize the credits for admission and further study. (Two departments in Harvard and Stanford have recently agreed to accept credits from BIHE. More on this later.)

I had not anticipated much of a crowd, but upon arriving at the hall, was surprised to find it packed with students and some faculty. The reason was that one of the panelists was a well-known comedic actor named Rainn Wilson (a Baha'i), who appears in a sit-com called, "The Office". (I must confess I had never heard of him or his show.) Also speaking on the panel was Ms. Nezanin Boniadi, an Iranian-born British actress, who is also active with Amnesty International. There was Ms. Safineh Tahmassebi, an Iranian Baha'i immigrant, now a US citizen, who teaches in the UCI Extension with yours truly. In addition, there was a young Baha'i student who himself had completed the BIHE course and spoke of his difficulty getting a US university medical school to accept his class credits.

At the conclusion of the film, Pastor David Woods from San Juan Capistrano spoke for a few minutes then introduced Wilson. Wilson spoke for a few minutes and described how he became active in the Baha'i cause. (As soon as Wilson finished, about 30 or so students got up and left.) Then a panel discussion ensued in which the moderator asked specific questions of each panelist. The topics basically reflected what was shown in the film as to the plight of the Baha'i-particularly in educating themselves. Wilson told a second-hand story told to him by an Iranian Baha'i recounting how as a student, a "cleric"  came to speak to the students one day and told them that "it would be OK if the students made sure there were no Baha'i in the school". That day, the Baha'i students were all chased home from school by other students who beat them and spit on them.

"It comes from the top on down", stated Wilson.

Here are some other items I noted down from the speakers and/or the film.

Under the Shah's regime prior to the revolution, Baha'i were persecuted, but to a lesser degree.

Some Muslim professors took the risk of teaching BIHE classes.

The Iranian government has actually carried out raids against the classes and arrested participants. The second such raid took place in May 2011.

Then there was time for question and answer. Myself and about 5-6 others stepped up to the microphone to ask questions. I asked the panelists whether they had received any support from American Muslim organizations like CAIR, the Muslim Public Affairs Council, the Islamic Society of North America or the Islamic Circle of North America, or if they had reached out to these organizations for support, moral or otherwise. I added that these organizations in no way were connected to the events in Iran, but that perhaps they could at least add a moral voice. (I am paraphrasing from memory.)

None of the panelists were aware of any such support or contact. One of them did state that certain Muslims headed human rights organizations which supported the Baha'i cause and mentioned one from an Iranian human rights organization. Wilson emphasized that this was about the actions of the Iranian government and not the one billion peace-loving Muslims in the world.

So what can be done? The panelists had some suggestions. For one, we can support the right of Baha'i to an education, a basic human right. I am enclosing below a link to the Education Under Fire website, where we can all sign a petition to the Iranian government. One may think that the Iranian government cares nothing for world opinion, but the panelists maintain that is not the case.

http://educationunderfire.com

Second, we can support efforts to get US universities to accept BIHE course work for admissions. Most universities are not even aware of BIHE.

Of course, educating others about what is happening is crucial. You don't hear about this in the news media. If you write your elected represntatives, they need to be aware as well. Sadly, many are not.

Finally, I am adding Education Under Fire as a link to this site under, "Worthy of Our Support".

What is happening to the Baha'i in Iran is part of what is happening to religious minorities in varying degrees in many Islamic countries. It is happening to Baha'i and Coptic Christians in Egypt, Christians in Iraq, Christians in Pakistan, Christians and animists in Sudan, Jews in Yemen, and on and on. Mr Wilson pointed out that it doesn't mean that the one billion Muslims in the world are engaged in persecution of other religions. That is true. Yet, religious persecution is taking place on a large scale. It is also happening in Europe, where Jews are being assaulted, insulted and harassed by young male Muslim immigrants (as well as skin-heads and neo-Nazi types).  The Europeans have been unable or unwilling to deal with it, largely because they are loathe to name the main culprits. That is the crux of the problem, shall we say, the 800 pound gorilla in the back of the room. If you want to combat persecution, you have to be willing to name the perpetrators.

Center for Security Policy Alert on ICNA

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com



The Center for Security Policy (CSP) has issued the below alert in regards to a campaign by the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) to promote Sharia in the United States.

http://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/p18956.xml

The president and founder of CSP is Frank Gaffney.

Below is ICNA's announcement of the drive.

http://www.icna.org/national-shariah-education-campaign-launched/


ICNA, in my view, is one of the more insidious of the so-called mainstream Muslim organizations in America. This is the same outfit that held that so-called charity dinner in Yorba Linda in February 2010 that drew a large protest. The ICNA speakers were Siraj Wahhaj, who has implicitly called for giving uzis to black ex-cons and turning them loose in the neighborhoods, and Amir Abdel Malik Ali, who has made dozens of incendiary speeches on California campuses in support of suicide bombers, Hamas, Hizbollah, Islamic Jihad, as well as  suicide bombers who commit terror against Israel. He has insulted Jews in many of his speeches. These men are both anti-American jihadists. No truly moderate and patriotic organization would have them as speakers.

So now comes this propaganda campaign to convince gullible Americans that sharia law is, as Muslim leaders Abdul Faisal Rauf and Muzammil Siddiqi assure us, perfectly in conformance with the US Constitution.

Wrong.

Killing homosexuals is not in conformance with our Constitution.

Killing apostates or those who criticize any aspect of Islam (blasphemy) is not in conformance with our Constitution.

Wife beating is not in conformance with our Constitution.

Honor killings and stoning women is not in conformance with our Constitution.

Any denial of women to equal rights with men is not in conformance with our Constitution.

Denying women equal weight in court testimony is not in conformance with our Constitution.

Yes, there are aspects of sharia that are innocuous, however, it is the legal code of Islam and governs all aspects of a Muslim's life and sets out punishments which include death. It does not respect separation of the state from the religion.

Yes, they will tell you that Muslims living in a non-Muslim country are to obey the local laws-as long as they do not contradict Islam. However, as the Muslim percentage of the population increases, thus do the demands for accommodation. You need look no further than Europe to see where this is heading.

It is a long-range plan. Contrary to groups like al Qaida, many realize that bringing about a world-wide caliphate under Shariah law is a long term project, which can be achieved peacefully through immigration, demographic change, Da'wa (outreach) and finally, if necessary when Islam holds the power, forced conversions or violence (jihad). Today, in almost every predominately Muslim country, religious minorities are being persecuted.

ICNA is nothing more than another arm of the Muslim Brotherhood and Jamaat e Islam. Like other organizations, such as CAIR, they are engaged in in a massive taqiyya campaign of deception. In addition, they are indoctrinating the jihadists of tomorrow and making sure that Muslim youth in America stay within the fold rather than assimilate and become full-fledged Americans. What is sad is there are Muslims who came here to escape the stifling lives they led in their countries of origin. Now they see an effort right here at home to bring that stifling control here to America. We cannot let that happen. To allow sharia within the US is to tell Muslims that they cannot enjoy the freedoms to change religion, be gay, live your sex life as you wish, leave a marriage (if you are a woman), and other rights that we take for granted.

It is true that so many Muslims in America remain silent out of fear. Unfortunately, that makes them irrelevant to the debate. It is Muslims like Zuhdi Jasser, Stephen Schwartz, Tawfik Hamid, and others who dare to speak out and expose the threat in our midst. Yes, there are painfully few of them, but they deserve our support.

But to the 5th column at ICNA, ISNA, CAIR, MPAC and MAS, we must stand up and say no to sharia. If they want to live in sharia, they know where they can go back to.

Suppressing the Truth About Anti-Semitism in Europe

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com


Hat tip to Miggie

One of my readers (Miggie) commented on the latest post about Toulouse and the French reactions by pointing out a 2003 report by the EU that identified Muslims as being among the perpetrators of anti-Semitism in Europe. The report was suppressed by the EU. Here is an article on the story by the Jewish Daily Forward from 2003.

http://forward.com/articles/7158/eu-accused-of-burying-report-on-antisemitism-point/

As you can see, the suppression of the report caused a firestorm of protest even among some members of the US Congress.

On March 31, 2004, the same EU office did release a report on rising anti-Semitism in Europe for the years 2002-2003. In its summary it assigned chief blame to young, disaffected white Europeans and secondary blame to young Muslims of Asian and North African extraction. ("Asian" in European parlance would include the Middle East and the sub-continent including India and Pakistan.)

http://europa-eu-un.org/articles/en/article_3341_en.htm

The entire report is here.

http://fra.europa.eu/fraWebsite/attachments/AS-Main-report.pdf


That was almost a decade ago, and it would be worthwhile to see how these reports have progressed since then. I think it would be safe to say, however, that Muslim anti-Semitism in Europe has, indeed, been under-stated. The case of Malmo is important to point out. As I have reported so many times on this site, the sizable and restive Muslim immigrant population of Malmo, which has created a dangerous "no-go zone" in the neighborhood of Rosengard, is literally driving the Jewish population out of the city, implicitly encouraged by Mayor Ilmar Reepalu, an opponent of Israel.

It is true that certain other elements have participated including skin-heads, neo-Nazis and other disaffected indigenous populations. The participation of the anti-Israeli left, which is much more influential, has contributed as well. Sweden, for example, is a hotbed of anti-Israeli-pro-Palestinian NGOs that have links world-wide.

When it comes to issues of hate, it is crucial that both perpetrator and victim groups be reported accurately and without fear of the results. If whites are guilty of racial or religious persecutions, as they certainly have been over the centuries, it must be reported-and it is. Indeed, there is no fear of blow back in that case. It is when another minority, especially one that is restive, is guilty that people get nervous about stating what is clear to all. We see it not only in Europe, but here in America as well. As the Trayvon Martin case has illustrated, white on black violence is wrong, black on white violence is wrong and black on black violence is wrong. Which gets the bigger play?

Similarly, in Europe, white on immigrant violence is wrong, immigrant on white violence is wrong, Christian on Jew violence is wrong, Muslim violence on Jew is wrong. Which gets the bigger play? Jew violence on Christian or Muslim? Virtually non-existent. That itself should tell you volumes.

If you are unwilling to define the problem, don't expect to ever fix it

Just Blame The Jews!

By Findalis
Monkey in the Middle

Those nasty Jews.  They are the fault that gas is over $4 a gallon.  It is all their fault.  So says President Barack Hussein Obama.  It is not the fault that this idiot of a President closed the Gulf to US drilling (The Chinese, Mexicans, etc are all drilling away.).  It is not the fact that all government controlled lands are closed to drilling and exploration.  It is not the fact that he nixed the Keystone Pipeline.  No to Barack Hussein Obama it is the fault of the Jews.  Those evil Jews of Israel.

The Obama administration is blaming Israel for the recent rise in global crude oil prices, according to a Sunday report in The World Tribune. The rise in fuel prices is deemed as harming the U.S. economy and has also hurt Obama in the polls as he seeks re-election in November.

The report cited a leading U.S. analyst, Robert Satloff, who returned from talks with Israeli officials.

Satloff, executive director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said, according to The World Tribune, that the Israeli leadership saw Washington as attributing the higher gas prices to “Israel’s posturing” on Iran.

“They think the Iranians should be held responsible for the higher gasoline prices,” Satloff was quoted as having said.

He added that the officials told him the Obama administration was staging a campaign to undermine Israel.

“I cannot underscore how deep and visceral the [Israeli] comments of the leaking that came out of Washington were,” Satloff said, noting Israel is alarmed by what officials determined were leaks by the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama of purported Israeli preparations to attack Iran.

The Israeli concerns come in the wake of a report in Foreign Policy magazine last week, according to which Israel has purchased an airfield in Azerbaijan on Iran's northern border, prompting the United States to watch very closely.

Journalist Mark Perry wrote that the Obama administration is monitoring Israel's relations with Azerbaijan, particularly its military ties.

The Americans believe Israel may use the site as a springboard for an attack on Iran's nuclear plants, or as a landing and refueling spot following one. The site could also be used for aircraft needed for search, rescue and recovery in the wake of an attack.

“We're watching what Israel is doing in Azerbaijan. And we're not happy about it,” an official told the Foreign Policy writer.

Azeri president Ilham Aliyev later dismissed the speculation and said, “Azerbaijan's territory will never be used to launch an attack against its neighbor, Iran.”

Source

I guess that since Barack Hussein Obama has now excepted money from the Evil Oil Companies, he must find another scapegoat to pin his problems on.  And Jews are the classic scapegoat for all anti-Semites.  And after spending 20 years as a disciple of Jeremiah Wright, screaming AMEN! every time the good 'Reverend' spoke about the destruction of Israel and the genocide of the Jews, we can call this President a rabid anti-Semite bent on finishing the job that his idol Adolf Hitler started.

The Leftist Indoctrination in the University of Claifornia

Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com



Hat tip to Townhall

Debra Saunders, who has been a columnist for many years for the San Francisco Chronicle, has written an important piece that is appearing on Townhall, in which she explains the domination of leftist professors within the University of California system.


http://townhall.com/columnists/debrajsaunders/2012/04/01/ucs_leftist_echo_chamber_drowns_out_diverse_voices

Having been an adjunct teacher at the University of California at Irvine since 1998, I have followed this
phenomena for quite some time-especially as it pertains to the Israel-Palestine conflict, which is the major point of contention on UC campuses-as well as other campuses across North America (including Canada).

As far as the disparity of conservative professors, I think a large part of the problem is that those with a conservative mindset are not usually attracted to an academic career. (I wasn't until I retired from DEA.) They usually go out in the real world to make a living and acquire real life experiences. The liberals who dominate academia usually are those who go from BA/BS to Masters to Doctorate and right into teaching. Do I have the empirical evidence for that at my fingertips? No, but I would bet my mortgage that the above statement would be borne out by any study.

The university is a friendly environment for the left-indeed the far-left. The problem is that it carries over into the classroom, where leftist professors see their job as indoctrinating their students rather than providing them with a balanced or neutral education as to world issues. It used to be bashing conservatism and Republican politicians in order to further the "progressive cause". Now it is also  focused on bashing Israel and promoting the Palestinian cause.

But one might ask; why such emphasis on an issue half a world away? It is largely because American universities have accepted millions of dollars from Middle East interests including Saudi Arabia to establish Middle East departments staffed with anti-Israel zealots who use their classrooms as soapboxes to deligitimize Israel as a nation that doesn't even have the right to exist as a Jewish state free from attack from a hostile Arab/Muslim collection of dysfunctional dictatorships that themselves have no regard for human rights. Plus, it also fits nicely into the overall anti-America, anti-Western civilization, post colonial philosophy that is prevalent in virtually all universities. If you criticize it, you are accused of being racist or "Islamophobic."

So what is the result within the UC system, where the problem is acute? Today, we see a collection of campuses with humanities and social sciences dominated by leftist ideologues posing as professional educators. Add to that a collection of feckless chancellors hiding under their desks and supervised from above by an equally feckless president (Mark Yudof), who has allowed his campuses to become places where Jewish students who support Israel and assert their Jewish identity are subjected to intimidation and harassment.

Saunders' article is welcome, but it only scratches the surface of the problem. Here is the scary point: Every single one of our future educators, university administrators, and political leaders are today walking through the hallways of these campuses.