Is ISIS Right on Islam?
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Every time ISIS commits another heinous atrocity in the name of Allah, we hear the Western apologists tell us that they are not true Muslims because Islam forbids such acts. I am talking about people like CAIR, the numerous Western-based imams, and even President Obama himself. Of course, those of us who have taken the time to study the teachings of the Koran, the hadith, and the life of Mohammad often come to a different conclusion.
This is not to suggest that all or even most Muslims approve of ISIS or agree with their ideas. Most Muslims do not engage in violent jihad. Yet we in the non-Muslim world must come to grips with this phenomenon because we are all threatened by it. Thus, we have the right to openly discuss it, and we should without having to worry about being called Islamophobes or bigots.
But in discussing ISIS, Al Qaeda, Hamas, Hizbollah and other Islamic terror groups, there are certain questions that keep popping up in my mind. Let me focus on ISIS in particular.
We already know that literally thousands of Muslims residing in Western countries have traveled to Iraq and Syria to join ISIS. My question is how many Western Muslims have we documented that have gone to Iraq or Syria to fight against ISIS? I am unaware of any. I am only aware of a few non-Muslim Westerners who have gone to join forces with fighters such as the Iraqi-Kurdish Peshmerga.
It is true that ISIS has killed many more Muslims than Christians or other minority religions. One reason is that ISIS is made up of Sunni Muslims, and they have an age-old hatred of Shi'ite Muslims, witness the Sunni-Shi'ite split in Iraq or the Sunni-Alawite split in Syria. Among the Alawites, a division of Shia Islam, is the Assad ruling family.
Then there are the various Muslim armies fighting against ISIS. Here I include the Syrian army, the Iraqi army, and the Iranian army, the latter of whom are Shia. Of course, these soldiers are not fighting to take back Islam from those who have "hijacked" it. They are fighting because their rulers have sent them to fight in order to maintain their political power, or in the case of Iran, to exert hegemony in the region.
In addition, there are the Kurds, who are fighting for their independence. The Peshmerga is the fighting force of Iraqi Kurdistan. They are engaged in battle against ISIS and badly need our weaponry. Instead, Obama prefers to supply the Iraqi army, but that is another topic.
So my question returns to the point: If ISIS is made up largely of previously non-military types who have joined the jihad fighting under no national banner, where are their civilian Muslim adversaries? Where are the armies of Mohammad who have banded together to rescue Islam from this evil force that has given it such a bad name? If jihad is such a positive concept in Islam, where are the anti-ISIS jihadis? If one definition of jihad is defending Islam, where are the jihadis defending Islam against the "perversions" of ISIS, perversions that are doing so much damage to Islam's reputation in the world?
Or does ISIS really represent the pure teachings of Islam?
Brussels: The "Religion of Peace" Strikes Again
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
The latest attack has taken place in Brussels. Just days after the Paris attack ringleader was arrested in Brussels, ISIS has struck again. Between 30-34 people are dead at the Zavandam Airport and a metro station downtown, and ISIS is taking credit.
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/03/22/isis-claims-credit-for-terror-attacks-at-brussels-airport-metro-station.html?intcmp=hpbt1
Of course, we know that there will be more attacks. What we don't know is when our leaders will finally conclude the obvious: That ISIS must be exterminated. That will not stop terror altogether, of course, because the ideology that drives ISIS will live on. It is an ideology with a veneer of religion.
Yes, it is the very ideology of militant Islam that is the ultimate root behind all this. Not radical Islam because the agents of this inhumanity are following the dictates of the Prophet Mohammad and the Koran. "Kill the unbelievers wherever you find them". "Strike terror into their hearts". "Cut off their limbs..." It's all there in front of us, but too many of us refuse to believe their our lying eyes.
This is not to say that all Muslims are terrorists. There are millions of Muslims who are secular. A few are reformists. Most just want to get on with their lives. As always, we must resist the impulse to retaliate against them. But we cannot allow their feelings to silence us.
But first and foremost, we must defend ourselves, our lives and our liberties. We must face the truth about Islam. It is not a religion of peace. It is a political ideology built on violence and hate. It believes in conquest. It does not recognize a separation between religion and the State.
We must speak openly and without fear about this scourge. We must proclaim that we will never submit to Islam.
Secondly, we must face the reality that we have to defeat ISIS where it is. We must combine with NATO and our Arab allies to go in and root it out in Syria, Iraq and Libya.
And finally, we must realize that these animals cannot kill us if they are not in our countries, This continued immigration of Muslims into the West must cease. That includes these so-called refugees and migrants who are streaming into Europe.
When will we say that enough is enough?
What Obama Must Do in Cuba
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Joanna Chesimard aka Assata Shakur
If President Obama accomplishes one important thing in Cuba this week, he should demand the extradition of US terrorists who are wanted and have found refuge in Cuba. That includes cop-killer Joanna Chesimard aka Assata Shakur.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/03/21/nj-police-renew-call-for-escaped-domestic-terrorists-in-cuba-to-return-to-us.html?intcmp=hpbt1
Just recently, one of the men who helped break Chesimard out of prison, Sekou Odinga, aka Nathaniel Burns, spoke at UC Irvine, hosted by the African-American Studies Department and the School of Humanities. Without question, the above entities advertised Sekou as a former "US political prisoner of war" (He served 33 years in prison for attempted murder of police officers.) It also referred to the "liberation" of Shakur.
It appears that the above announcement has now been taken down. I don't know if this had anything to do with my letter of protest to the dean of the School of Humanities.
At any rate, President Obama has a moral duty to press the Cubans for the extradition of these criminals back to US justice. I will be pleasantly surprised if he does.
Operation Fast and Furious Rises Again
Gary Fouse
Fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Eric Holder-2011 Fousesquawk "Jerk of the Year"
Once again the ghost of Operation Fast and Furious comes back to haunt us. Recently, we learned that one of the weapons involved in the scheme was recovered in conjunction with Joaquin "Chapo" Guzman's arrest in Los Mochis. Now we learn that one of the weapons involved in the "Draw Mohammad" event attack in Garland, Texas was-you guessed it- connected to Fast and Furious.
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/430043/drug-kingpin-el-chapo-had-rifle-fast-furious-gunwalking-program
It is amazing how the highest officials in President Obama's cabinet, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Attorney General Eric Holder, and DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano, knew nothing about this bizarre operation. It's the same ignorance professed by Clinton when her ambassador in Libya was pleading for more security before he was killed in the attack on our mission in Benghazi.
This is truly a national disgrace.
BDS and Anti-Semitism on College Campuses
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
For several years now, we have been documenting anecdotal evidence based on incidents on US college campuses that anti-Semitism is a growing problem and there is a direct link between the Boycott, Divest and Sanctions movement against Israel. We have also been reporting on incidents involving anti-Semitic expressions by Students for Justice in Palestine. Now, thanks to the AMCHA Initiative, we have empirical evidence. What is linked below is the result of a year-long study.
http://www.amchainitiative.org/antisemitic-activity-schools-large-Jewish-report-2015
Once again, to my great consternation, the University of California is prominent on the list. Among its campuses. UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, and UCLA are all among the leaders. At least, UC Irvine doesn't appear. A few years ago, it would have. I am sure people like former Israeli ambassador Michael Oren and Daniel Pipes are pleasantly surprised that UCI is not among the leaders. Both have had their speeches at UCI disrupted in recent years.
And what accounts for UCI's slipping off the list? No doubt the hacks from Hillel and the Jewish Federation of Orange County will be quick to claim credit. For what? For their stand down orders to Jewish students? Because they attacked Jewish students and community members who stood up and spoke out? Because they tried to get people to put away their US and Israeli flags when the UCI I-Fest was disrupted?
I would rather think it is because the pro-Palestinian crowd and their invited speakers have learned that they will not be met by indifference and submission when they come to UCI. Ask Amir Abdel Malik Ali. Ask Norman Finkelstein. Ask Ysroel Dovid Weiss. Ask William Robinson. Ask Sohail Daulatzai. Ask Omar Barghouti. Ask David Palumbo-Liu. Ask (whatever happened to) Rabab Abdulhadi. (We still don't know if she actually made it down to UCI last May. I have a sneaking suspicion she was hiding behind the curtain on the stage waiting to learn if the Muslim Student Union/SJP would be able to keep me from videotaping.)
All that aside, the AMCHA Initiative has provided an important contribution to the study of Jew hatred on American college campuses. The hack university administrators don't put much stock in anecdotal evidence no matter how egregious it is. They favor empirical evidence. Well, here it is.
Mizzou: The Chickens Come Home to Roost
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
Hat tip Eagle Rising
"What happened to the tigers?"
This is an example of what happens when weak college administrators allow student agitators and unruly professors to run amok on campus. The University of Missouri is now forced to cut budget because of dropping student enrollment.
http://eaglerising.com/31353/poetic-justice-liberal-university-caves-to-black-lives-matter-protesters-loses-millions-of-dollars-and-more-than-a-thousand-prospective-students/
What did they expect after the Black Lives Matter crowd destroyed the school's reputation? What did they expect when administrators dropped to their knees? The university chancellor actually resigned. What did they expect when a journalism professor, no less, showed that not only was she an out of control agitator, but also had no clue about the First Amendment?
Mizzou hasn't seen this drastic reduction in enrollment because certain students decided they were not safe from white racists on campus and lacking of sufficient "safe spaces". Nor was it because current students were outraged at the firing of Melissa Click. They were predominantly new enrollees that the school lost.
So what happened? Students decided that they needed to go somewhere else where they could study in peace without aggressive, obnoxious students getting in their faces and asking if they believed that black lives mattered (and you'd better say yes). Parents decided they didn't need to be paying tuition to a university that had become a national joke and a poster child for all that has gone horribly wrong in academia.
Like my friend, Onan Coca, who wrote the above article, I find it hard to feel sympathy for Mizzou. I can hope, however, that Mizzou will become a teaching moment for university administrators everywhere; if you don't want to see the same thing happen to your school, you'd better get it under control.
More Bad News for Hillary
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
"The source, who is not authorized to speak on the record due to the sensitivity of the ongoing investigation, said Pagliano has provided information allowing investigators to knit together the emails with other evidence, including images of Clinton on the road as secretary of state."
According to this Fox News report, Bryan Pagliano is turning out to be a "devastating witness" in the Hillary Clinton email scandal.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/03/11/source-clinton-it-specialist-revealing-server-details-to-fbi-devastating-witness.html?intcmp=hpbt1
Then there is this:
"Clinton recently told CBS, “I'm delighted that [Pagliano] has agreed to cooperate, as everyone else has. And I think that we will be moving toward a resolution of this.”
Yeah right.
"Gotti recently told CBS, “I'm delighted that Sammy the Bull has agreed to cooperate, as everyone else has. And I think that we will be moving toward a resolution of this.”
And kudos to Univision's Jorge Ramos for throwing hard questions at Mrs Clinton in the Miami debate this week-questions that others have been unwilling to do. Hillary was clearly upset about the questions about being indicted and the reference to Benghazi showing a video clip of Patricia Smith, the mother of Sean Smith, one of the victims of Benghazi.
DOJ Grants Immunity to Key Hillary Email Figure
Gary Fouse
fousesquawk
http://garyfouse.blogspot.com
"What does this mean?"
Things just got a lot more ominous for Hillary Clinton in regards to her email investigation. The Department of Justice has granted immunity to Bryan Pagliano, the State Dept. employee who set up Clinton's email server. Pagliano had previously invoked the 5th Amendment at his Congressional appearance.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/in-clinton-email-investigation-justice-department-grants-immunity-to-former-state-department-staffer/2016/03/02/e421e39e-e0a0-11e5-9c36-e1902f6b6571_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_clintonemail830p%3Ahomepage%2Fstory
Here is why this is a big development beyond what Pagliano can tell investigators. The FBI does not grant immunity to witnesses. The Department of Justice prosecutors do. Of course, everyone is speculating that even if the FBI recommends criminal charges against Mrs Clinton, that the politically charged Justice Department in the person of Attorney General Loretta Lynch will decline to prosecute for obvious political reasons. On the other hand, federal prosecutors don't grant immunity to witnesses unless they are serious about prosecuting someone. If Mrs Clinton is counting on political protection from being indicted, the decision of DOJ to grant immunity to this key witness should make her feel a lot less easy.
I consider this a major development.
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