Saturday, June 30, 2018
Who Is "European Man"?
Hat tip Club Orlov, Vlad Tepes and Gates of Vienna
I do not know the name of the person who authored this piece, but it is well worth cross posting. The writer gives his/her opinion on why Western Europeans are literally caving into the destruction of their own civilizations. The writer also contrasts the stand being taken by East Europeans in refusing to allow swarms of people to come into their countries.
https://cluborlov.blogspot.com/2018/06/barbarians-rampage-through-europes.html
Put another way, I think that the contrast between the Eastern European countries and those of the West comes down to two factors. Since the end of World War II, the West Europeans have had it easy. The Marshall Plan paid for their reconstruction, and our military strength allowed them to build their socialist societies while we covered the military part. In short, the West is soft.
In contrast, the East did not benefit from the Marshall Plan. Nor did they enjoy democracy under the thumb of the USSR. Socialism (in their case, communism) produced little more than empty store shelves and autocratic rule enforced by secret state police agencies. They had a much tougher time of things in the second half of the twentieth century. Now free from the shackles of communism, they are not so willing to cast it all away by allowing tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands to storm into their countries.. In short, they are made of tougher stock than the West Europeans.
Within the EU, there is a conflict between the Eastern European nations and the Western European nations. Hopefully, the Eastern Europeans, who are not only tougher, but wiser, will lead the way.
Maxine Waters-My Classmate
I'll bet that got your attention.
I had never been aware, but apparently, Maxine Waters and I are both from the Class of 1970 at California State University at Los Angeles. (It was then called California State College at Los Angeles.)
That's right. The congresswoman who is making such a splash lately with her attacks against President Trump, was a classmate of Fousesquawk himself. At least according to this biographical sketch.
http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=w000187
"B.A., California State University, Los Angeles, Calif., 1970"
To be totally honest, there are other sites that give her year of graduation at 1971 or 1972. Thus, the whole thing is a bit mysterious. Who knows? Maybe she never went to CSULA at all.
But wait! Here is proof that Maxine and I were classmates. An old photo from our 1970 yearbook.
I had never been aware, but apparently, Maxine Waters and I are both from the Class of 1970 at California State University at Los Angeles. (It was then called California State College at Los Angeles.)
That's right. The congresswoman who is making such a splash lately with her attacks against President Trump, was a classmate of Fousesquawk himself. At least according to this biographical sketch.
http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=w000187
"B.A., California State University, Los Angeles, Calif., 1970"
To be totally honest, there are other sites that give her year of graduation at 1971 or 1972. Thus, the whole thing is a bit mysterious. Who knows? Maybe she never went to CSULA at all.
But wait! Here is proof that Maxine and I were classmates. An old photo from our 1970 yearbook.
The Uninformed "Intellectualism" of Juan Cole
Juan Cole and the Seven Exclusions
"Heigh ho, heigh ho
It's off to the States we go"
University of Michigan Professor Juan Cole, a big supporter of the Arab world and harsh critic of Israel, has-not surprisingly- weighed in on the decision by the Supreme Court that affirmed the Trump travel ban. In his blog, "Informed Comment", he lets loose against the court and, of course, President Trump-not to mention our entire history of immigration, which Cole terms, "racist". The title is:
The fact is that notwithstanding the above examples, this country has long allowed people to come to this country as tourists, students, temporary workers and immigrants from all over the world. In fact, one group that in recent years has found it very difficult to immigrate to the US are white Europeans. In addition, only recently have we found that some immigrants have come not to assimilate but to change our very system and in some cases to harm us. Any sensible country has the right to defend itself and its citizens from that.
Finally, Cole concludes by telling us that civility (among other things) won't save us. The use of the word "civility" is a dog whistle because it is mostly conservatives in places like university campuses that are calling for civility in the face of leftist disruptions and in-your-face tactics of intimidation and bullying, in many cases by the pro-Palestinian crowd that Cole sides with.
No, Folks. According to Cole, the solution is to go out and elect those open borders, socialist, and uncivil Democrats like Maxine Waters. And Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is leading the way?
"Heigh ho, heigh ho
It's off to the States we go"
University of Michigan Professor Juan Cole, a big supporter of the Arab world and harsh critic of Israel, has-not surprisingly- weighed in on the decision by the Supreme Court that affirmed the Trump travel ban. In his blog, "Informed Comment", he lets loose against the court and, of course, President Trump-not to mention our entire history of immigration, which Cole terms, "racist". The title is:
The Seventh Exclusion: Great Moments in American Racist Immigration History
The fact is that notwithstanding the above examples, this country has long allowed people to come to this country as tourists, students, temporary workers and immigrants from all over the world. In fact, one group that in recent years has found it very difficult to immigrate to the US are white Europeans. In addition, only recently have we found that some immigrants have come not to assimilate but to change our very system and in some cases to harm us. Any sensible country has the right to defend itself and its citizens from that.
Finally, Cole concludes by telling us that civility (among other things) won't save us. The use of the word "civility" is a dog whistle because it is mostly conservatives in places like university campuses that are calling for civility in the face of leftist disruptions and in-your-face tactics of intimidation and bullying, in many cases by the pro-Palestinian crowd that Cole sides with.
No, Folks. According to Cole, the solution is to go out and elect those open borders, socialist, and uncivil Democrats like Maxine Waters. And Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is leading the way?
Muslim Street Prayers: Why?
Hat tip Gates of Vienna, Vlad Tepes and Ava Lon for translation
The below French clip examines why Muslims in Paris take over entire streets to conduct their prayers.
https://gatesofvienna.net/2018/06/muslim-street-prayers-in-the-rue-jean-pierre-timbaud-the-message-is-that-faith-is-superior-to-the-law/#more-46082
Muslims, like any other religion, are entitled to their houses of worship, in this case, their mosques (although I question why in the US, they seek to build mega mosques way out of proportion to their local population). The public streets are not a proper venue for prayer especially when the purpose its not lack of space, but to show power. The French have every right to demand that their government enforce the laws that regulate public traffic.
The below French clip examines why Muslims in Paris take over entire streets to conduct their prayers.
https://gatesofvienna.net/2018/06/muslim-street-prayers-in-the-rue-jean-pierre-timbaud-the-message-is-that-faith-is-superior-to-the-law/#more-46082
Muslims, like any other religion, are entitled to their houses of worship, in this case, their mosques (although I question why in the US, they seek to build mega mosques way out of proportion to their local population). The public streets are not a proper venue for prayer especially when the purpose its not lack of space, but to show power. The French have every right to demand that their government enforce the laws that regulate public traffic.
Friday, June 29, 2018
Anti-Semitism's Resurgence-From Western Europe to American Campuses
It Is Time to Name the Real Perps
This week, Ari Lieberman posted a compelling article here on Frontpage Magazine on anti-semitism in Western Europe. I read it with great interest because I myself have lived in Europe a total of eight years, three in Germany (military service) and five in Italy. I love Europe greatly and return often to Germany. Due to my interest in Germany and my experiences being stationed just outside Nuremberg, I have immersed myself ever since in the history of the Third Reich. As a gentile, I have become very sensitive to anti-semitism because I realize that there is a resurgence going on worldwide in Jew hatred. I have often argued that Germany has tried very hard (at least since the late 1960s) to accept responsibility for the Holocaust and to make itself a decent country in spite of its horrible past. Recent events, however, cause me to question whether I was correct. Mr Lieberman's article pointed out instances where criminals have assaulted Jews and gotten off lightly by what admittedly is a lax justice system. The same can be said for several other Western European countries, such as Sweden, most notably.
In Europe, as Mr Lieberman points out, the problem is primarily caused by Muslim immigrants, so many of whom are young with questionable skills and who bring with them their age-old Islamic hatred of Jews. This is a fact. Most anti-semitism in Europe is not coming from neo-Nazis or skinheads as many would like us to believe.
Today, Europe is back in the 1930s. Jews dare not walk the streets of major cities wearing Jewish garb lest they be insulted, spat upon, or assaulted by young Muslim males. In fact, Jews in countries like France and Sweden are leaving in droves. The problem has been especially acute in Malmö, Sweden's third largest city, where many of the Jews were descendants of Danish Jews snuck into the port of Malmö, by the Danes, whose own Jews were subject to deportation by the occupying Germans. Today, Malmö is not so welcoming of Jews. About 25% of the city's population is made up of restive Muslims, mostly living in the notorious Rosengård district. Crime and riots are a frequent occurrence, and you can imagine what happens when they encounter Jews. The city's Jews have been leaving for several years now-even encouraged by the former mayor, Ilmar Reepalu, who was so opposed to Israel, he invited the Jews to leave unless they would speak out against Israeli policies vis-a-vis the Palestinians.
One might ask, "How can Europeans allow this to happen on the very continent on which the Holocaust occurred?" I believe the answer is largely that they are afraid of and intimidated by their ever-restive Muslim population, many of whom are there as refugees, asylum-seekers, and just plain migrants. They know that anything related to the millions of Muslims who are already there with more arriving constantly is a powder keg ready to explode. The Europeans bend over backwards to demonstrate their tolerance for Islam and Muslims even when hate speech against Jews, Christians and infidels pours out of so many radical, largely Salafist mosques. This "tolerance" persists even in the face of violence not seen in Western Europe since the end of World War II. It seems every week, Germany is rocked by the rape and murder of some innocent German woman by some asylum-seeker. One of the most recent victims was a Jewish teenage girl. Yet, Angela Merkel cannot fathom the problem before her very eyes. As far as the problem with the Jews is concerned, the Europeans are tolerating intolerance in the very name of tolerance.
In the US, the picture is somewhat different. There is definitely a resurgence in anti-semitism, though not on the European scale, and granted, some of it comes from white racists, KKK, or neo-Nazi types. In my opinion, however, the focal point for the resurgence in Jew hatred in our country is on our college campuses. In our universities, it is not the above categories of people who are the perpetrators. It is first and foremost, the pro-Palestinian crowd, who have succeeded in turning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into one of the top hot button issues.
I say this based on my own experience as a part-time teacher (English as a Second Language) at the University of California Irvine Extension from 1998-2016. Around 2006 I became involved when I realized what the UC Irvine Muslim Student Union (MSU) was doing in their campaign of vilification against Israel. This campaign also included condemnation of the US and often, Jews as people. Every May, the MSU and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), an organization I consider to be no better than brown shirts, hold a week of events with a mock apartheid wall and speakers, many of whom are vicious anti-semites. Of course, the MSU and SJP always deny they are anti-semitic-only anti-Zionist. Then they will trot out speakers like the Oakland imam Amir Abdel Malik Ali, who will spit out the word, "Jew" just like the Nazis used to spit out the word, "Jude". He accuses people of being "Zionist Jews", some of whom, like Rupert Murdoch, are not even Jews. The last time Ali spoke at UC Irvine, (2010) he accused the Jews in the audience of being "the new Nazis". That actually drew a rebuke from then Chancellor Michael Drake. Unfortunately, Drake never mentioned what was said, by whom, who sponsored Ali, what the event was, and lastly, he did not mention the offended group (Jews). Ali has not spoken at UC Irvine since.
I could go on and on. In 2001, a Washington DC imam named Mohamed al Asi, came to UC Irvine and stated that, "You can take the Jew out of the ghetto, but you can't take the ghetto out of the Jew". In 2008, the apartheid wall featured a comic caricature of Ariel Sharon drawn in the style of the old Nazi weekly, Der Stuermer, whose editor, Julius Streicher, was hanged at Nuremberg as a major war criminal.
So when I became involved in the issue, I began attending these events, using the q and a to challenge the speakers, and eventually to videotape them over their objections-and to write about them in an effort to inform the community about what was going on in our universities. Sadly, few university administrators have shown the courage to defend their Jewish students. It is much like the failure of European leaders to protect their Jewish citizens..
I could mention the SJP-led disruptions of pro-Israel events. I have been present at a couple of such events at UCI. SJP's tactics are simple: Disrupt pro-Israel events and intimidate and bully Jewish students who support Israel. In 2010, I was present when the MSU disrupted the speech of the Israeli ambassador to the US, Michael Oren at UC Irvine. After the MSU was suspended (for 10 weeks), an SJP chapter was established at UC Irvine.
Then you throw in a leftist, anti-Israel faculty and various Middle East studies departments around the nation, and you can start to appreciate the scope of the problem. Middle East studies in our universities invariably consists of condemnation of Israel and the West coupled with Arab chauvanism.
Aside from cowardly university administrators, there is a refusal on the part of many Jewish leaders and national organizations to confront the truth that most anti-semitism is coming from Muslim quarters. Last year, I attended an inter-religious event after President Trump took office. It was held at a synagogue in Newport Beach and was organized by the Jewish Federation of Orange County with participation of other community leaders including law enforcement, and- Muslim community leaders. The theme of the evening was that anti-semitism and Islamophobia were a growing problem and were coming from the alt-right, KKK, neo-Nazis, and Trump supporters, There was no mention of Islam in connection with anti-semitism. For the q and a, we had to send up written questions, the usual tactic of controlling the discourse. When I sent up my written question on a piece of paper, I asked who they thought was responsible for anti-semitism at UCI. The chief organizer took my card, read it, and said they would not discuss it. By the way, the head imam from Orange County, Muzammil Siddiqi, was present with all his soft-spoken charm. Yet in recent years, he has allowed UCI MSU students to use his Garden Grove mosque to assemble the Apartheid Wall. I have personally witnessed them working on it in the mosque parking lot.
I could go on and on, but let me summarize this by saying that we need to closely follow the events in Europe so as not to make their mistakes. Anti-semitism is on the march once again, and given what we know about history, we (and the Europeans) must meet it head on. I am not condemning all Muslims as Jew haters. Yet, we must be honest as to who is primarily responsible. The truth is uncomfortable. On both sides of the Atlantic, our leaders would rather blame it all on white racists and Trump supporters (no matter how pro-Israel Trump has shown himself to be). To the extent that certain white nationalist groups may be culpable, we need to condemn them. But we cannot stand by and allow political correctness to force us to remain silent as to really is mostly responsible for this worldwide resurgence in anti-semitism.
This week, Ari Lieberman posted a compelling article here on Frontpage Magazine on anti-semitism in Western Europe. I read it with great interest because I myself have lived in Europe a total of eight years, three in Germany (military service) and five in Italy. I love Europe greatly and return often to Germany. Due to my interest in Germany and my experiences being stationed just outside Nuremberg, I have immersed myself ever since in the history of the Third Reich. As a gentile, I have become very sensitive to anti-semitism because I realize that there is a resurgence going on worldwide in Jew hatred. I have often argued that Germany has tried very hard (at least since the late 1960s) to accept responsibility for the Holocaust and to make itself a decent country in spite of its horrible past. Recent events, however, cause me to question whether I was correct. Mr Lieberman's article pointed out instances where criminals have assaulted Jews and gotten off lightly by what admittedly is a lax justice system. The same can be said for several other Western European countries, such as Sweden, most notably.
In Europe, as Mr Lieberman points out, the problem is primarily caused by Muslim immigrants, so many of whom are young with questionable skills and who bring with them their age-old Islamic hatred of Jews. This is a fact. Most anti-semitism in Europe is not coming from neo-Nazis or skinheads as many would like us to believe.
Today, Europe is back in the 1930s. Jews dare not walk the streets of major cities wearing Jewish garb lest they be insulted, spat upon, or assaulted by young Muslim males. In fact, Jews in countries like France and Sweden are leaving in droves. The problem has been especially acute in Malmö, Sweden's third largest city, where many of the Jews were descendants of Danish Jews snuck into the port of Malmö, by the Danes, whose own Jews were subject to deportation by the occupying Germans. Today, Malmö is not so welcoming of Jews. About 25% of the city's population is made up of restive Muslims, mostly living in the notorious Rosengård district. Crime and riots are a frequent occurrence, and you can imagine what happens when they encounter Jews. The city's Jews have been leaving for several years now-even encouraged by the former mayor, Ilmar Reepalu, who was so opposed to Israel, he invited the Jews to leave unless they would speak out against Israeli policies vis-a-vis the Palestinians.
One might ask, "How can Europeans allow this to happen on the very continent on which the Holocaust occurred?" I believe the answer is largely that they are afraid of and intimidated by their ever-restive Muslim population, many of whom are there as refugees, asylum-seekers, and just plain migrants. They know that anything related to the millions of Muslims who are already there with more arriving constantly is a powder keg ready to explode. The Europeans bend over backwards to demonstrate their tolerance for Islam and Muslims even when hate speech against Jews, Christians and infidels pours out of so many radical, largely Salafist mosques. This "tolerance" persists even in the face of violence not seen in Western Europe since the end of World War II. It seems every week, Germany is rocked by the rape and murder of some innocent German woman by some asylum-seeker. One of the most recent victims was a Jewish teenage girl. Yet, Angela Merkel cannot fathom the problem before her very eyes. As far as the problem with the Jews is concerned, the Europeans are tolerating intolerance in the very name of tolerance.
In the US, the picture is somewhat different. There is definitely a resurgence in anti-semitism, though not on the European scale, and granted, some of it comes from white racists, KKK, or neo-Nazi types. In my opinion, however, the focal point for the resurgence in Jew hatred in our country is on our college campuses. In our universities, it is not the above categories of people who are the perpetrators. It is first and foremost, the pro-Palestinian crowd, who have succeeded in turning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into one of the top hot button issues.
I say this based on my own experience as a part-time teacher (English as a Second Language) at the University of California Irvine Extension from 1998-2016. Around 2006 I became involved when I realized what the UC Irvine Muslim Student Union (MSU) was doing in their campaign of vilification against Israel. This campaign also included condemnation of the US and often, Jews as people. Every May, the MSU and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), an organization I consider to be no better than brown shirts, hold a week of events with a mock apartheid wall and speakers, many of whom are vicious anti-semites. Of course, the MSU and SJP always deny they are anti-semitic-only anti-Zionist. Then they will trot out speakers like the Oakland imam Amir Abdel Malik Ali, who will spit out the word, "Jew" just like the Nazis used to spit out the word, "Jude". He accuses people of being "Zionist Jews", some of whom, like Rupert Murdoch, are not even Jews. The last time Ali spoke at UC Irvine, (2010) he accused the Jews in the audience of being "the new Nazis". That actually drew a rebuke from then Chancellor Michael Drake. Unfortunately, Drake never mentioned what was said, by whom, who sponsored Ali, what the event was, and lastly, he did not mention the offended group (Jews). Ali has not spoken at UC Irvine since.
I could go on and on. In 2001, a Washington DC imam named Mohamed al Asi, came to UC Irvine and stated that, "You can take the Jew out of the ghetto, but you can't take the ghetto out of the Jew". In 2008, the apartheid wall featured a comic caricature of Ariel Sharon drawn in the style of the old Nazi weekly, Der Stuermer, whose editor, Julius Streicher, was hanged at Nuremberg as a major war criminal.
So when I became involved in the issue, I began attending these events, using the q and a to challenge the speakers, and eventually to videotape them over their objections-and to write about them in an effort to inform the community about what was going on in our universities. Sadly, few university administrators have shown the courage to defend their Jewish students. It is much like the failure of European leaders to protect their Jewish citizens..
I could mention the SJP-led disruptions of pro-Israel events. I have been present at a couple of such events at UCI. SJP's tactics are simple: Disrupt pro-Israel events and intimidate and bully Jewish students who support Israel. In 2010, I was present when the MSU disrupted the speech of the Israeli ambassador to the US, Michael Oren at UC Irvine. After the MSU was suspended (for 10 weeks), an SJP chapter was established at UC Irvine.
Then you throw in a leftist, anti-Israel faculty and various Middle East studies departments around the nation, and you can start to appreciate the scope of the problem. Middle East studies in our universities invariably consists of condemnation of Israel and the West coupled with Arab chauvanism.
Aside from cowardly university administrators, there is a refusal on the part of many Jewish leaders and national organizations to confront the truth that most anti-semitism is coming from Muslim quarters. Last year, I attended an inter-religious event after President Trump took office. It was held at a synagogue in Newport Beach and was organized by the Jewish Federation of Orange County with participation of other community leaders including law enforcement, and- Muslim community leaders. The theme of the evening was that anti-semitism and Islamophobia were a growing problem and were coming from the alt-right, KKK, neo-Nazis, and Trump supporters, There was no mention of Islam in connection with anti-semitism. For the q and a, we had to send up written questions, the usual tactic of controlling the discourse. When I sent up my written question on a piece of paper, I asked who they thought was responsible for anti-semitism at UCI. The chief organizer took my card, read it, and said they would not discuss it. By the way, the head imam from Orange County, Muzammil Siddiqi, was present with all his soft-spoken charm. Yet in recent years, he has allowed UCI MSU students to use his Garden Grove mosque to assemble the Apartheid Wall. I have personally witnessed them working on it in the mosque parking lot.
I could go on and on, but let me summarize this by saying that we need to closely follow the events in Europe so as not to make their mistakes. Anti-semitism is on the march once again, and given what we know about history, we (and the Europeans) must meet it head on. I am not condemning all Muslims as Jew haters. Yet, we must be honest as to who is primarily responsible. The truth is uncomfortable. On both sides of the Atlantic, our leaders would rather blame it all on white racists and Trump supporters (no matter how pro-Israel Trump has shown himself to be). To the extent that certain white nationalist groups may be culpable, we need to condemn them. But we cannot stand by and allow political correctness to force us to remain silent as to really is mostly responsible for this worldwide resurgence in anti-semitism.
Portland ICE Protesters and National Lawyers Guild
Want ICE out of Oregon
Represented by National Lawyers Guild
This article first appeared in New English Review.
Note the green cap.
The open borders crowd has been camping out in front of ICE hqs in Portland, Oregon for over a week, and now, after four days of warnings, police have moved them.
I take note that the protesters say they are represented by the National Lawyers Guild. I have written about the NLG several times in the past. Their Los Angeles, director, Jim Lafferty, has spoken twice at UC Irvine on behalf of the Muslim Student Union and against Israel. As I have often pointed out, the NLG was founded in the 1930s as a legal arm of the Communist Party USA. Today, they still exist and stand ready to jump on any band wagon that is designed to make America look bad. Lafferty was the chief organizer of the Occupy LA camp out in front of City Hall a few years ago before the Occupy Movement morphed into Antifa.
In fact, if you watch the video included in the above news link, near the end (1:14) you can see someone in a bright lime-green baseball cap. I have seen that cap before at UC Irvine. For a couple of years now, the NGL chapter attached to the UC Irvine Law School has accompanied Students for Justice in Palestine as their "official legal observers" as SJP and their leftist allies disrupt Israeli events and as SJP and the Muslim Student Union hold their annual May bash Israel events. The NLG people wear those distinctive caps that read, "legal observer-National Lawyers Guild". In May 2016, they accompanied SJP et al when they marched from the Cross Cultural Center (de facto clubhouse of the MSU) and as the protesters were literally trying to crash through the door, they (NLG) reportedly demanded that the protesters be allowed in. I was not present that time, but I was present the following May when they disrupted a panel discussion by Israeli military veterans. In fact, I videotaped it and you can see a young woman in the green cap who was also recording on her cell phone. You can see them in action in 2017 at UCI here and here.
I wrote to the UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman and then law school dean Erwin Chemerinsky asking how people affiliated with their law school can disrupt events held by other students. Of course, I have never received a reply. Chemerinsky has moved on to the UC Berkeley Law School. Just yesterday, he wrote an op-ed in the LA Times complaining about the Supreme Court's "hypocritical" ruling on Trump's travel ban.
But here's a tip: If you ever encounter one of those Antifa mobs or a group trying to shut down an ICE facility or disrupt a campus event held by pro-Israel students, look for those people in the bright lime-green caps. Nat would be the National Lawyers Guild in action.
Represented by National Lawyers Guild
This article first appeared in New English Review.
Note the green cap.
The open borders crowd has been camping out in front of ICE hqs in Portland, Oregon for over a week, and now, after four days of warnings, police have moved them.
I take note that the protesters say they are represented by the National Lawyers Guild. I have written about the NLG several times in the past. Their Los Angeles, director, Jim Lafferty, has spoken twice at UC Irvine on behalf of the Muslim Student Union and against Israel. As I have often pointed out, the NLG was founded in the 1930s as a legal arm of the Communist Party USA. Today, they still exist and stand ready to jump on any band wagon that is designed to make America look bad. Lafferty was the chief organizer of the Occupy LA camp out in front of City Hall a few years ago before the Occupy Movement morphed into Antifa.
In fact, if you watch the video included in the above news link, near the end (1:14) you can see someone in a bright lime-green baseball cap. I have seen that cap before at UC Irvine. For a couple of years now, the NGL chapter attached to the UC Irvine Law School has accompanied Students for Justice in Palestine as their "official legal observers" as SJP and their leftist allies disrupt Israeli events and as SJP and the Muslim Student Union hold their annual May bash Israel events. The NLG people wear those distinctive caps that read, "legal observer-National Lawyers Guild". In May 2016, they accompanied SJP et al when they marched from the Cross Cultural Center (de facto clubhouse of the MSU) and as the protesters were literally trying to crash through the door, they (NLG) reportedly demanded that the protesters be allowed in. I was not present that time, but I was present the following May when they disrupted a panel discussion by Israeli military veterans. In fact, I videotaped it and you can see a young woman in the green cap who was also recording on her cell phone. You can see them in action in 2017 at UCI here and here.
I wrote to the UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman and then law school dean Erwin Chemerinsky asking how people affiliated with their law school can disrupt events held by other students. Of course, I have never received a reply. Chemerinsky has moved on to the UC Berkeley Law School. Just yesterday, he wrote an op-ed in the LA Times complaining about the Supreme Court's "hypocritical" ruling on Trump's travel ban.
But here's a tip: If you ever encounter one of those Antifa mobs or a group trying to shut down an ICE facility or disrupt a campus event held by pro-Israel students, look for those people in the bright lime-green caps. Nat would be the National Lawyers Guild in action.
Feds Are Looking at Issue of FGM Travel Abroad
Hat tip Creeping Sharia
With the attention brought to the issue of female genital mutilation by the arrests of two doctors in Michigan, the federal government is aware that some families from countries where this is practiced, and ICE agents are singling out travelers for warnings. Creeping Sharia has a report.
https://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2018/06/28/fgm-agents-patrol-us-airports/
This is a problem in Europe and we would be in denial if we didn't realize it is happening here. It is very difficult to enforce our laws when families take their daughters back to their countries of origin to have it performed on their daughters. We must make the effort, however, and use whatever laws we can. These young girls are entitled to the same rights in America as every other girl. We need to toughen our laws and improve our means of investigating and enforce those laws.
With the attention brought to the issue of female genital mutilation by the arrests of two doctors in Michigan, the federal government is aware that some families from countries where this is practiced, and ICE agents are singling out travelers for warnings. Creeping Sharia has a report.
https://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2018/06/28/fgm-agents-patrol-us-airports/
This is a problem in Europe and we would be in denial if we didn't realize it is happening here. It is very difficult to enforce our laws when families take their daughters back to their countries of origin to have it performed on their daughters. We must make the effort, however, and use whatever laws we can. These young girls are entitled to the same rights in America as every other girl. We need to toughen our laws and improve our means of investigating and enforce those laws.
Thursday, June 28, 2018
Ari Lieberman's Article in Front Page Magazine
I am cross-posting an article running today in Frontpage Magazine by Ari Lieberman concerning the problem of anti-semitism in Europe. Lieberman places the blame right where it belongs, first on the perpetrators who are overwhelmingly not neo Nazis or skinheads. They are overwhelmingly Muslim immigrants who bring an age old Jew hatred with them from the Middle East
Lieberman also blames the Europeans for their indifference, particularly the failure of the courts to adequately punish those who assault and even kill their Jewish fellow citizens.
https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/270580/western-europes-disconnect-islamic-antisemitism-ari-lieberman
Pretty depressing reading, isn't it? On the one hand, I do feel sorry for everyday Europeans, especially young women who are being attacked by these migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees. Many of them, ironically, are Syrian. Other prominent groups are Moroccans and Somalis.
On the other hand, you could argue that Europe is making its own bed. They are trading off their Jewish citizens for the Muslim newcomers. The former group has made major contributions to European culture, life, medicine and in so many other areas. The latter group is living on public welfare, hanging out on street corners, and many are committing violent crimes as a means to show their gratitude.
Some trade off.
Lieberman also blames the Europeans for their indifference, particularly the failure of the courts to adequately punish those who assault and even kill their Jewish fellow citizens.
https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/270580/western-europes-disconnect-islamic-antisemitism-ari-lieberman
Pretty depressing reading, isn't it? On the one hand, I do feel sorry for everyday Europeans, especially young women who are being attacked by these migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees. Many of them, ironically, are Syrian. Other prominent groups are Moroccans and Somalis.
On the other hand, you could argue that Europe is making its own bed. They are trading off their Jewish citizens for the Muslim newcomers. The former group has made major contributions to European culture, life, medicine and in so many other areas. The latter group is living on public welfare, hanging out on street corners, and many are committing violent crimes as a means to show their gratitude.
Some trade off.
"No $$ for Terrorism" Conference in Paris Invites Palestinian Authority
Hat tip Palestinian Media Watch and The Israel Group
"Good news, mein Fuehrer. We have been invited to go back to Paris."
France is a country that is falling off the cliff into a sea of insanity. Always eager to placate their restive Muslim population, the Frenchies are holding a conference called, "No Money for Terrorism". Sounds good, but when they invite the Palestinian Authority to attend, you know something is wrong.
http://palwatch.org/main.aspx?fi=157&doc_id=25928
Is this somebody's idea of a joke?
"Good news, mein Fuehrer. We have been invited to go back to Paris."
France is a country that is falling off the cliff into a sea of insanity. Always eager to placate their restive Muslim population, the Frenchies are holding a conference called, "No Money for Terrorism". Sounds good, but when they invite the Palestinian Authority to attend, you know something is wrong.
http://palwatch.org/main.aspx?fi=157&doc_id=25928
Is this somebody's idea of a joke?
Professor Soliciting Photos of Penises
This one takes the cake
Hat tip The College Fix
“The photographs are only required for the survey portion,” is her reply. “This is because we ask for specific measurements of length and girth and to ensure data validity and uniform measurement we must ensure all participants are correctly using the bone press method.”
Over the years, I have posted a lot of stories about wacky professors. Some of the stories have to do about sex seminars on college campuses. I have to admit, however, that Professor Alicia Walker of Missouri State University is the champ. As part of her university-approved research project, she is asking males to send her pictures of their penises, in uh, both forms, at ease and at full attention, as we used to say in the Army.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/post/46164/
"The study is open to all types of “men,” including “[Assigned Male At Birth], [Assigned Female At Birth], Post-Phallo, Intersex, Genderqueer, etc.”
"How 'bout me?"
"....approved by the Missouri State University Institutional Review Board."
In case any of my readers are interested, you can send your "submissions" to Dr. Alicia Walker at :
Missouri State University
Hat tip The College Fix
“The photographs are only required for the survey portion,” is her reply. “This is because we ask for specific measurements of length and girth and to ensure data validity and uniform measurement we must ensure all participants are correctly using the bone press method.”
Over the years, I have posted a lot of stories about wacky professors. Some of the stories have to do about sex seminars on college campuses. I have to admit, however, that Professor Alicia Walker of Missouri State University is the champ. As part of her university-approved research project, she is asking males to send her pictures of their penises, in uh, both forms, at ease and at full attention, as we used to say in the Army.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/post/46164/
"The study is open to all types of “men,” including “[Assigned Male At Birth], [Assigned Female At Birth], Post-Phallo, Intersex, Genderqueer, etc.”
"How 'bout me?"
"....approved by the Missouri State University Institutional Review Board."
In case any of my readers are interested, you can send your "submissions" to Dr. Alicia Walker at :
Missouri State University
Sociology and Anthropology
901 S. National Ave.
Springfield, MO 65897
Strong Hall 466
Just don't use my name.
Wednesday, June 27, 2018
One Fine Day Driving Your Kids to School in Paris
Hat tip Gates of Vienna, Vlad Tepes and Ava Lon for translating
On the below link you can see a video of what it is like for a French mother driving her kids to school in Paris. She filmed this with her own commentary, which YouTube, naturally, removed.
https://gatesofvienna.net/2018/06/an-unauthorized-tour-of-paristan/
Thank you, US Supreme Court for your decision yesterday on President Trump's travel ban.
On the below link you can see a video of what it is like for a French mother driving her kids to school in Paris. She filmed this with her own commentary, which YouTube, naturally, removed.
https://gatesofvienna.net/2018/06/an-unauthorized-tour-of-paristan/
Thank you, US Supreme Court for your decision yesterday on President Trump's travel ban.
Assault Charges Filed Against Maxine Waters
Hat tip Gateway Pundit
"Stay woke, Maxine!"
More bad news for Maxine Waters. A reporter has filed assault charges against the ill-tempered California congresswoman based on a recent incident when the reporter was trying to ask Maxine a question at the Capitol building. The video of the incident can be viewed at the below link.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/06/conservative-reporter-laura-loomer-presses-assault-charges-against-maxine-waters/
You'd better "stay woke", Maxine. Things are creeping up on you fast.
"Stay woke, Maxine!"
More bad news for Maxine Waters. A reporter has filed assault charges against the ill-tempered California congresswoman based on a recent incident when the reporter was trying to ask Maxine a question at the Capitol building. The video of the incident can be viewed at the below link.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/06/conservative-reporter-laura-loomer-presses-assault-charges-against-maxine-waters/
You'd better "stay woke", Maxine. Things are creeping up on you fast.
Tuesday, June 26, 2018
Supreme Court Upholds Trump Travel Ban
Bad News for CAIR
For the past couple of weeks the Council on American Muslim Relations (CAIR) has been advising its followers that they would hold a news conference and/or rally once the Supreme Court announced its decision on the Trump travel ban. The Southern California chapter had originally planned to hold a rally on a street corner in the Little Arabia section of Anaheim. That was later changed to the CAIR office in Orange County.
Unfortunately for CAIR, it will not be a victory rally. Today, the Supreme Court announced that by a 5-4 vote, it had upheld the travel ban, overturning several lower court decisions that had declared it unconstitutional.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/06/26/supreme-court-upholds-trump-travel-ban-on-some-muslim-majority-nations.html
Since CAIR will allow only accredited news organizations to attend their press conference in Anaheim, this writer will not be able to attend. It would be nice to see their hot-headed SoCal director, Hussam Ayloush, throw a hissy fit. No doubt he will insult Trump and call him an Islamophobe, CAIR's default term for anyone who opposes them and their subversive agenda. Maybe he will hold true to form and ask why Jews from Israel are not being excluded from the US. That's his style.
Below is the announcement from CAIR-National.
https://www.cair.com/cair_decries_u_s_supreme_court_s_decision_allowing_muslim_ban_to_remain_in_effect
"Today's ruling sits alongside other similarly shameful Supreme Court decisions allowing Japanese American internment and segregation,” said CAIR National Litigation Director Lena Masri."
Wrong. That is hyperbole. Japanese-Americans living on the West Coast were deprived of their liberty during World War II. It was a shameful episode, but for too long, CAIR has exploited that issue to draw attention to Muslims. However, Muslims have not been rounded up and put in internment camps, and there has been no serious suggestion that they should be. As for segregation, another shameful chapter in our history, Muslims in America do not have to use different facilities, schools, restaurants and water fountains. They enjoy full rights.
But nobody who is not a citizen of this country has the constitutional right to enter the US. Every sovereign nation has the right and the obligation to decide who can enter and who can get a visa. During the Cold War, we denied entry to communists because they believed in an ideology that was determined to end our democracy. Consular officers world wide make decisions every day on whether to give or deny a visa. For example, if they have reason to believe that the person in question has no intention of returning, rather intending to stay in the US and find work, the visa is denied.
Unfortunately for Ms Masri, CAIR's litigation director, she has nothing left to litigate.
This is another victory for President Trump. True the ban has been watered down and includes N Korea and Venezuela, non-Muslim countries. For some reason, Sudan was removed from the list. I hope that miserable country will be put back on it.
The bottom line is that this is about protecting Americans. To be truly effective, it should include all Muslim countries, but that would be diplomatically impractical.
God, how I wish I could be there today to see Hussam Ayloush at the Anaheim press conference.
For the past couple of weeks the Council on American Muslim Relations (CAIR) has been advising its followers that they would hold a news conference and/or rally once the Supreme Court announced its decision on the Trump travel ban. The Southern California chapter had originally planned to hold a rally on a street corner in the Little Arabia section of Anaheim. That was later changed to the CAIR office in Orange County.
Unfortunately for CAIR, it will not be a victory rally. Today, the Supreme Court announced that by a 5-4 vote, it had upheld the travel ban, overturning several lower court decisions that had declared it unconstitutional.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/06/26/supreme-court-upholds-trump-travel-ban-on-some-muslim-majority-nations.html
Since CAIR will allow only accredited news organizations to attend their press conference in Anaheim, this writer will not be able to attend. It would be nice to see their hot-headed SoCal director, Hussam Ayloush, throw a hissy fit. No doubt he will insult Trump and call him an Islamophobe, CAIR's default term for anyone who opposes them and their subversive agenda. Maybe he will hold true to form and ask why Jews from Israel are not being excluded from the US. That's his style.
Below is the announcement from CAIR-National.
https://www.cair.com/cair_decries_u_s_supreme_court_s_decision_allowing_muslim_ban_to_remain_in_effect
"Today's ruling sits alongside other similarly shameful Supreme Court decisions allowing Japanese American internment and segregation,” said CAIR National Litigation Director Lena Masri."
Wrong. That is hyperbole. Japanese-Americans living on the West Coast were deprived of their liberty during World War II. It was a shameful episode, but for too long, CAIR has exploited that issue to draw attention to Muslims. However, Muslims have not been rounded up and put in internment camps, and there has been no serious suggestion that they should be. As for segregation, another shameful chapter in our history, Muslims in America do not have to use different facilities, schools, restaurants and water fountains. They enjoy full rights.
But nobody who is not a citizen of this country has the constitutional right to enter the US. Every sovereign nation has the right and the obligation to decide who can enter and who can get a visa. During the Cold War, we denied entry to communists because they believed in an ideology that was determined to end our democracy. Consular officers world wide make decisions every day on whether to give or deny a visa. For example, if they have reason to believe that the person in question has no intention of returning, rather intending to stay in the US and find work, the visa is denied.
Unfortunately for Ms Masri, CAIR's litigation director, she has nothing left to litigate.
This is another victory for President Trump. True the ban has been watered down and includes N Korea and Venezuela, non-Muslim countries. For some reason, Sudan was removed from the list. I hope that miserable country will be put back on it.
The bottom line is that this is about protecting Americans. To be truly effective, it should include all Muslim countries, but that would be diplomatically impractical.
God, how I wish I could be there today to see Hussam Ayloush at the Anaheim press conference.
Dutch Newspaper Office Hit by Flaming Van
Hat tip Breitbart
Early Tuesday morning, an unidentified man rammed a VW van into the offices of De Telegraaf, a conservative newspaper in Amsterdam (which is linked on this site). After two attempts to ram the van into the front door, the driver got out and set the van on fire before escaping. Dutch officials are calling it an attack on the Netherlands' democracy and freedom of the press.
http://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/06/26/populist-amsterdam-paper-stuck-van-attack/
The below link from De Telegraaf is in Dutch but has a video that opens with video of the actual attack as filmed by security cameras.
https://www.telegraaf.nl/nieuws/2221861/amsterdam-gaat-redacties-beveiligen-na-aanslag-telegraaf
As yet, the identity of the man, still at large, is unknown. Keep in mind, however, that De Telegraaf is a conservative newpapaper.
Early Tuesday morning, an unidentified man rammed a VW van into the offices of De Telegraaf, a conservative newspaper in Amsterdam (which is linked on this site). After two attempts to ram the van into the front door, the driver got out and set the van on fire before escaping. Dutch officials are calling it an attack on the Netherlands' democracy and freedom of the press.
http://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/06/26/populist-amsterdam-paper-stuck-van-attack/
The below link from De Telegraaf is in Dutch but has a video that opens with video of the actual attack as filmed by security cameras.
https://www.telegraaf.nl/nieuws/2221861/amsterdam-gaat-redacties-beveiligen-na-aanslag-telegraaf
As yet, the identity of the man, still at large, is unknown. Keep in mind, however, that De Telegraaf is a conservative newpapaper.
Monday, June 25, 2018
Turks in Netherlands Celebrate Erdogan's Victory
:quality(50)/cdn-kiosk-api.telegraaf.nl/c2b91338-78b7-11e8-b2d7-2f52ee469f84.jpg)
-De Telegraaf
Turkish president/dictator Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has won another "election" cementing his presidential powers. In the Netherlands, Turks turned out on the streets of Dutch cities to celebrate. Apparently, Rotterdam witnessed the biggest celebration leading many Dutch to question where their Turkish communities' loyalties really lie. The below article in De Telegraaf is translated from the Dutch by Fousesquawk.
https://www.telegraaf.nl/nieuws/2217938/zeventig-boetes-voor-rotterdamse-turken-die-overwinning-erdogan-vierden
70 Fines for Rotterdam Turks who celebrated Erdogan's win
Rotterdam- Seventy fines were given out Sunday evening to Turkish Rotterdammers because they caused a nuisance. That is what Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb told RTV Rijmond.
The Turks have been fined for horns, wrong parking and blocking traffic. They took to the streets on Sunday evening to celebrate the victory of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Turkish presidential election.
In order to involve the Turks more in Rotterdam, Aboutaleb wants to sit around the table with them. "I am ready to talk to everyone, but I can not do that on my own. That also requires the other side
Win celebrated en masse
On Sunday, Erdogan's victory was also celebrated en masse in Amsterdam, Arnhem, Zaandam and Deventer, among others, while reports from celebrating Turks also came in from other cities.
Approximately a quarter of a million Turkish Dutch citizens were able to vote in the Netherlands. Over 70 percent are believed to have voted for Erdogan.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just Who Is "The Perfect Man"?
Who could it be?
Above is a billboard that was put up on a highway outside Indianapolis last year. Many Muslim groups have objected, calling it racist and hurtful.
In fact, there is a fund raising campaign designed to put this billboard up all over the country.
What is intriguing is that the billboard itself does not identify who this person is. There are no names. For all we know, it could be....
Seriously, this billboard does, in fact, stimulate debate. To many, the answer is obvious. To some, maybe it is Alfred E Neuman. Is this an example of free speech? Or is it so objectionable to some that it should be censored? Remember, no names are given.
This is protected speech in my opinion. Even most liberal constitutional scholars agree that there is no constitutional right not to be offended. On the other hand, there is no guarantee that my blog provider won't remove the above photo. (I have already gotten that mixed content warning.)
Maybe they know who this man is.
The Incivility of Maxine Waters
This article first appeared in New English Review.
First it was DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen driven from a Washington DC restaurant by hostile, pro-illegal immigration diners. Others showed up in front of her house chanting. White House press spokeswoman Sarah Sanders was ordered out of a Virginia restaurant. Then it was Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi being confronted at a Florida theatre. Now it is Congresswoman Maxine Waters actually calling for people to get in the faces of Trump administration officials on the street. It matters not one whit that Trump himself has ordered a halt to separating children from their parents when they are arrested crossing the border illegally.
The mainstream news media also has its share of responsibility for this ugliness. This week, Time Magazine, on its cover, is running a doctored image of Trump staring down at a Hispanic toddler who is looking up at him and crying. In all the hysteria over family separation, nowhere is there any criticism of parents who drag their children across a border in violation of our sovereign laws.
But it is Waters' language that sets the bar so low. Here you have a member of Congress advocating that government officials be confronted and harassed in public because they work in the Trump administration. Before she was calling for impeachment. At least that has a constitutional foundation. This latest outburst has the potential to lead to violence. But what does she care? She is in a safe district. The more she embarasses herself with her language, the more votes she gets. Her constituency is blind to her intemperate language and blind to her corruption.
In February 2012, I actually had a chance to see and hear this pathetic woman speak in Orange County. She was part of a panel hosted by the Orange Country Islamic Center in Garden Grove, California. This is the same mosque, where in 1992, head imam Muzammil Siddiqi actually hosted the so-called Blind Sheikh, Omar Abdel-Rahman and translated his sermon into English.
On this occasion in 2012, the topic was sharia law. Also present on the panel were Democratic congresswomen Judy Chu and Loretta Sanchez as well as now disgraced former LASD Sheriff Lee Baca and Michael Downing, then chief of the LAPD Counter Terrorism unit. (How deceiving titles can be.) It was a town hall event, open to the public, and devoted to the lie that sharia law is perfectly compatible with the US Constitution. It was an amazing exercise in public deception as each of the panelists repeated the lie including Waters. Of course, much of the discourse was devoted also to bashing Republicans.
Maxine Waters' resume is one that should guarantee defeat in any election for normal candidates. But it is an exercise in futility in hoping that the citizens of Waters' district will one day "woke up", to borrow a phrase and vote her out of office. Even if worse comes to worse and this call to go after administration officials in public should lead to bloodshed, it would only result in another landslide re-election for this joke of a member of Congress.
First it was DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen driven from a Washington DC restaurant by hostile, pro-illegal immigration diners. Others showed up in front of her house chanting. White House press spokeswoman Sarah Sanders was ordered out of a Virginia restaurant. Then it was Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi being confronted at a Florida theatre. Now it is Congresswoman Maxine Waters actually calling for people to get in the faces of Trump administration officials on the street. It matters not one whit that Trump himself has ordered a halt to separating children from their parents when they are arrested crossing the border illegally.
The mainstream news media also has its share of responsibility for this ugliness. This week, Time Magazine, on its cover, is running a doctored image of Trump staring down at a Hispanic toddler who is looking up at him and crying. In all the hysteria over family separation, nowhere is there any criticism of parents who drag their children across a border in violation of our sovereign laws.
But it is Waters' language that sets the bar so low. Here you have a member of Congress advocating that government officials be confronted and harassed in public because they work in the Trump administration. Before she was calling for impeachment. At least that has a constitutional foundation. This latest outburst has the potential to lead to violence. But what does she care? She is in a safe district. The more she embarasses herself with her language, the more votes she gets. Her constituency is blind to her intemperate language and blind to her corruption.
In February 2012, I actually had a chance to see and hear this pathetic woman speak in Orange County. She was part of a panel hosted by the Orange Country Islamic Center in Garden Grove, California. This is the same mosque, where in 1992, head imam Muzammil Siddiqi actually hosted the so-called Blind Sheikh, Omar Abdel-Rahman and translated his sermon into English.
On this occasion in 2012, the topic was sharia law. Also present on the panel were Democratic congresswomen Judy Chu and Loretta Sanchez as well as now disgraced former LASD Sheriff Lee Baca and Michael Downing, then chief of the LAPD Counter Terrorism unit. (How deceiving titles can be.) It was a town hall event, open to the public, and devoted to the lie that sharia law is perfectly compatible with the US Constitution. It was an amazing exercise in public deception as each of the panelists repeated the lie including Waters. Of course, much of the discourse was devoted also to bashing Republicans.
Maxine Waters' resume is one that should guarantee defeat in any election for normal candidates. But it is an exercise in futility in hoping that the citizens of Waters' district will one day "woke up", to borrow a phrase and vote her out of office. Even if worse comes to worse and this call to go after administration officials in public should lead to bloodshed, it would only result in another landslide re-election for this joke of a member of Congress.
More Syrian Horror Stories Out of Germany
Hat tip Vlad Tepes
"Wanna take him home?"
As President Trump awaits the Supreme Court's ruling on his travel ban (which includes Syria), the Europeans keep learning the hard way that Syrian refugees are a big headache. Here are the latest two horror stories.
First, in Kassel (Hesse) where a Syrian refugee threw boiling hot water in a janitor's face.
https://vladtepesblog.com/2018/06/25/kassel-germany-syrian-refugee-throws-boiling-oil-into-janitors-face/
I guess that's what the weapon of choice is when you don't have a bomb, a gun, a knife, or a vehicle. Boiling water.
This week, I had dinner with a German friend, and he told me this lovely story about his brother, a retiree who lives alone in Germany. ( I am withholding the city.) The brother, who is in his 70s, lives in an apartment building. Directly above him, the authorities placed a family of Syrians, apparently, a very large family. All day and night, there is constant noise coming from the apartment apparently with children running around and all. Of course, nobody is working, so the noise goes on constantly. In addition, the family keeps pigeons on its terrace. The pigeons were constantly pooping onto the unfortunate man's balcony. He made a complaint, so the Syrians clipped the pigeons' wings. Of course, there is little that the city will do to alleviate the poor man's suffering.
This is life in the new Germany. Women can't go out alone at night with young, Middle Eastern guys all hanging around on every street corner. Rapes and homicides abound. Yet Time Magazine this week is running an article by Ian Bremmer claiming that Germany's crime rate is the lowest since 1992, an absurd claim with no source to back it up.
It's bad enough when governments force these problems onto their citizens. It's even worse when the media refuses to tell their readers the dangers they are facing.
"Wanna take him home?"
As President Trump awaits the Supreme Court's ruling on his travel ban (which includes Syria), the Europeans keep learning the hard way that Syrian refugees are a big headache. Here are the latest two horror stories.
First, in Kassel (Hesse) where a Syrian refugee threw boiling hot water in a janitor's face.
https://vladtepesblog.com/2018/06/25/kassel-germany-syrian-refugee-throws-boiling-oil-into-janitors-face/
I guess that's what the weapon of choice is when you don't have a bomb, a gun, a knife, or a vehicle. Boiling water.
This week, I had dinner with a German friend, and he told me this lovely story about his brother, a retiree who lives alone in Germany. ( I am withholding the city.) The brother, who is in his 70s, lives in an apartment building. Directly above him, the authorities placed a family of Syrians, apparently, a very large family. All day and night, there is constant noise coming from the apartment apparently with children running around and all. Of course, nobody is working, so the noise goes on constantly. In addition, the family keeps pigeons on its terrace. The pigeons were constantly pooping onto the unfortunate man's balcony. He made a complaint, so the Syrians clipped the pigeons' wings. Of course, there is little that the city will do to alleviate the poor man's suffering.
This is life in the new Germany. Women can't go out alone at night with young, Middle Eastern guys all hanging around on every street corner. Rapes and homicides abound. Yet Time Magazine this week is running an article by Ian Bremmer claiming that Germany's crime rate is the lowest since 1992, an absurd claim with no source to back it up.
It's bad enough when governments force these problems onto their citizens. It's even worse when the media refuses to tell their readers the dangers they are facing.
Sunday, June 24, 2018
Time to Blow Up the Cubs
It is not easy for this old Cub fan (since 1963), who will always be grateful for seeing them win a World Series in 2016 and making a dream come true, to write this. As I write, the Cubs have just been swept by the last place Reds in embarrassing fashion. Oh yes, they are still only two games behind the Milwaukee Brewers and there is over a half a season to go. It is clear, however, that the current makeup of this team is a mess. Almost everyone with the notable exception of Albert Almora, is under-performing. Five players will strike out more than 100 times this year. Only one starting pitcher, John Lester, is having a truly good year. (Can you say, "Yu Darvish"?) In addition, the team has shown a amazing inability to get runners home when in scoring position with less than two outs. In short, this is a poorly coached team. With all the fanfare of hiring hitting coach Chili Davis, they still have not taught Javy Baez any plate discipline. The only things missing from this team are Alfonso Soriano and Carlos Zambrano.
And it is a poorly managed team as well. Joe Maddon may run the happiest clubhouse in baseball, but his game management skills are atrocious especially when it comes to using his pitchers. Had the Cubs lost game 7 of the 2016 World Series, it would have been on Maddon trying to win the game with a three inning rotation of Kyle Hendricks, John Lester, and the arm weary Aroldis Chapman. Just when Hendricks and Lester found their groove, Maddon took them out. It was a classic case of over-managing that caused them to blow a 4-run lead before winning in the 10th inning.
Look at the way, "genius" Maddon makes out his lineup. Does he just draw the names out of a hat when it comes to who bats leadoff, cleanup, or 8th? And why does he not have Almora, who is hitting over .320 and gives you excellent defense, in center field more often? Half the time, Maddon prefers to put the underperforming Ian Happ in center field, a position he does not even handle well.
Meanwhile, the farm system, which was built up so beautifully through trades and the draft, is barren. The prospects are now in the Cubs lineup with varying degrees of success.We had two blue chippers in Gleybar Torres, now starring for the Yankees (the Chapman trade), and Eloy Jimenez traded to the White Sox for the so-so performing Jose Quintana. Jimenez is tearing up with the White Sox double A team. Even the "genius" of Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer, which built the 2016 team, is open to question.
And we have these quandries:
Addison Russell. Good fielder whose power output has fallen off the map. In 2016 he hit 21 homers and drove in 95. Even though he is hitting in the .280s this year, his promise is still largely unfulfilled.
Kyle Schwarber. Yes, he will hit his 30 homers this year, but his average is still in the .230s with a projection of 50-60 rbis for the year. Big deal.
Javier Baez. He will hit 25-30 homers and his batting average is respectable in the .260s. He may even drive in 100 and he makes spectacular plays in the field. But what will he be five years from now-the same thing? He has so much potential.
Jason Heyward. An admirable performer, great in the field and a clubhouse leader. He has never lived up to his potential with the bat, hit horribly in 2016, and has worked hard to get his average into the .270s (with little power).
Willson Contreras. A potential superstar catcher with a great arm. Last year he had over 20 homers and over 70 rbis. He will not come close to that this year though his average remains in the .270s-respectable.
Kyle Hendricks. The "professor" The "next Greg Maddux". His ERA is respectable, but he is giving up early homers-7 first inning homers just this year.
What is so frustrating is that if all these young players were playing up to their potential instead of just tantalizing us, the team should be unbeatable. But there is something missing in this team-a certain spark that they had in 2016. What I see now is a bunch of fat cats who are living off their 2016 press clippings. Anthony Rizzo is hitting in the .230s, and Kris Bryant has forgotten how to hit home runs and drive in runs as he inexplicably bats leadoff half the time. What's that all about?
There are options. No doubt the Cubs are considering trading Russell and possibly Happ and/or Schwarber to the Orioles for Manny Machado, who will be a free agent after this season. There is Bryce Harper's looming free agency next year and speculation he wants to play in Chicago with his pal Kris Bryant. Yet Harper is hitting in the .230s this year just like Rizzo.
If they want to make a deal that would save this season, they could make the Machado deal. Of course, if he signs elsewhere for 2019, once again the Cubs will be left with nothing next year a'la Chapman.
Or they could simply say thank you for 2016 and start unloading guys like Russell, Schwarber, Happ, Hendricks, Quintana, Darvish, and maybe the whole gang for the next round of blue chip prospects.
The first step, however, is to get rid of the quirky Maddon and bring some order to that fancy new clubhouse at Wrigley Field. The next step is to shake up the roster even if they sink to the bottom of the division behind the lowly Reds, who just swept them in four games.
The truth is I don't like this roster. I didn't like the way they mugged for the camera in front of the pitcher's mound in the 2015 playoffs after beating the Cardinals. They did it again in the 2016 playoffs. I didn't like the way some of them acted in the victory parade in Chicago after winning the World Series. Did you see Travis Wood standing on the stage shirtless with a beer can in his hand?
And there is something else I didn't like. A couple of weeks ago, on Mark Levin's radio show, he was discussing the national anthem issue involving NFL players who refused to stand. An older man called in who, like me, had been a Cub fan for many decades. He told of watching the Cubs play at St Louis on television recently. He stated that when they played the national anthem, the Cardinal players stood in front of the dugout with their caps over their chests while the Cubs sat in the dugout chatting. Coincidentally, the below picture is apparently from 2017.
Apparently, Maddon, in interviews, has stated that he leaves it to his players how to observe the anthem. So I don't know all the facts here, but if it is like the above picture, it just goes along with my perception of this team, with a few exceptions.
If I were Tom Ricketts (the owner), I would get rid of most of this roster including the manager. And if Epstein and Hoyer can't or won't do it, get rid of them too.
Now I feel better.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
