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Thursday, July 17, 2008

Obama and the Three Anchors


"Ooooosaaamaa- Ti aaaamo"

(OK, all you feminists, save your cards and letters. There were no women among the Three Tenors.)

Like a recent American college grad doing the obligatory summer tour in Europe, Barack Obama is about to "do" the Middle East this summer. The purpose? To give himself creds for knowing the region and what should be done in Iraq. Fine. I have no problem with Obama going to see the situation first-hand. Now, however, it has been announced that the three major news networks are sending their anchors along to cover the trip (Charles Gibson-ABC, Katie Couric-CBS and Brian Williams-NBC).

The question begs to be asked-why?

Did these three network superstars accompany John McCain to Iraq? Of course not. So why are they all going along on this trip? The answer is easy.

All three networks are doing this as part of a huge campaign rally for Obama.

That's right. Long ago, it was obvious that the mainstream news media wants Obama to be president. They wanted him to win the Democratic nomination, and now they want him to win the general election as well. Their coverage of his travels, activities and their interviews with the candidate will all be designed and programmed to show that Obama is presidential when it comes to national security and military matters-which he of course is not.

So here is what viewers should look for when the Three Anchors take turns interviewing Obama at the end of each day's activities: Will they ask him hard questions, such as what would he do if (after the troops are pulled out of Iraq) Iran moves in, Al Qaida takes over, Iraqi supporters of the US effort are massacred, etc? Will they hit him with hard follow ups when he starts to stumble his way around answers? Or will they throw up softballs designed to allow Obama to hit homers and return home in triumph after showing the public he is ready to be president and deal with the war issues?

Well, Gibson may do the right thing since he did hit Obama with some hard questions in the debates, but Couric and Williams? Don't bet on it.

To those who watch this exercise in propaganda on TV, I hope you will think long and hard about the propriety of the major news organizations brazenly promoting a particular candidate. I hope I will be proven wrong, but I don't think so.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Joe (The Jerk) Biden on "Wisdom"


Joe Biden, Wise Guy and Senator from the Great State of Delaware


Yesterday, John McCain made a statement to the effect that he "knows how to win wars". In response, Joe (the Jerk) Biden (D-DE), in an interview with CNN's John Roberts, took a shot at McCain. Acknowledging that McCain was a war hero, Biden stated that what America didn't need as president was a war hero, but wisdom.

One thing that has to said about Joe (the Jerk) Biden. He knows a thing or two about wisdom. In fact, he considers himself the smartest person in the world. No one who has ever watched him on C-Span during Senate hearings can come away with any other impression. But since he failed to win the Democratic nomination for president, Joe (the Jerk) apparently thinks that Barack Obama is the next best thing.

But if Joey the Jerk thinks that Obama has wisdom, perhaps he can explain the "wisdom" of Obama spending 20 years in a church listening to a racist, anti-American demogogue rant against America and white people-even after he became a state senator for Illinois and US senator. Perhaps, Joey the J can explain the wisdom of Obama's association with another lunatic minister, Michael Pfleger, for whom he procured government funds. Or how about the wisdom of Obama's (financial) association with convicted racketeer, Tony Rezko? Not enough examples of "wisdom"? Don't forget Obama's association with former Weather Underground fugitives, William Ayres and his wife, Bernadine Dohrn?

Granted, Senator JJ Biden might respond that those were personal issues, not related to policy positions. Perhaps, but if Obama has so much "wisdom", why is he constantly changing or "refining" his stances on virtually every issue including the war in Iraq? Does he have a clue as to what he thinks-or does he just adjust his positions as he goes along?

As he usually does, Joe the Jerk has put his foot in his mouth once again.

What Else Did Jesse Jackson Say About Obama?

Since the video came out with Jesse Jackson's comment about wanting to "cut off Barack Obama's nuts", there have been new revelations about other words that Jackson reportedly used.

First, a black New York DJ, James Mtume, came out on WRKS, KISS FM in New York claiming that "high authority and the most respected sources" had revealed that Jackson had referred to Obama as a "no good half-breed n......".

From there, the story slowly spread that there were other comments attributed to Jackson beyond those initially reported by Fox News. Fueling the fire was the comment by Bill O'Reilly that there were other comments made by Jackson which he did not want to disclose since they were "irrelevant" to the issue and he (O'Reilly) had no wish to make Jackson look bad.

My reaction is that the details held back by O'Reilly, if as reported above, were not substantially different from those which Fox released. Then, once the additional remarks began to hit the news, O'Reilly, far from denying them, explained that someone (presumably from Fox News)had taken it upon him/herself to leak the other remarks.

At this point, variations are being spread about on what exactly Jackson said. In one version, Jackson is reported as saying that Obama "was talking down to n.......s". Again, if true, is that so much more embarrassing than what has been shown to the public on tape? A matter of opinion, perhaps.

Whatever the truth is, it would seem that the entirety of the "hot mike" is available through Fox News. Also available is the gentleman to whom Jackson was talking on the tape. Has anyone contacted him for his explanation? If so, why not?

Leaving aside the whole question of whether black people should be casually using a word that society has been trying so hard to make disappear from the English lexicon, the question now must be asked if the mainstream news media has any interest in digging out everything that Jackson said about Senator Obama.

Not that any of this is a slam against Obama. Rather, it represents another embarrassmant for Jesse Jackson, one more in a long line of actions and statements that can only discredit this man as a public figure. Had some white Republican or conservative figure made these kinds of comments about Obama, there would be a firestorm in the media and among Civil Rights groups. No stone would be left unturned to dig out every word that was uttered. Will this be the case with Jesse Jackson?

Don't hold your breath. Apparently, not even Bill O'Reilly was willing to take that extra step.

The Israel-Palestinian Swap

Now that the details of the prisoner swap between Israel and the Palestinians have been made public, the exchange should provide an education for those in the West who think the Palestinians are the "good guys".

Basically, Israel exchanged 5 prisoners for the bodies of two Israeli soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, who had been abducted two years ago. The soldiers, plus one other, who is still held by Hezbollah (if not already killed), had became a cause celeb among Israelis, who had prayed with their families for their safe return. Instead, what Israel received were two coffins containing the bodies of the soldiers-who, it is believed, were captured alive.

How cynical, how sadistic of Hezbollah.

Meanwhile, who did Israel release to the Palestinians? Most notable was Samir Kantar, a Lebanese who had been imprisoned for the 1979 murder of an Israeli family, in which the father was killed before the eyes of his 4-year-old daughter, subsequent to which, Kantar killed the girl by smashing her skull with a rifle butt.

None of which matters to the Palestinian public which has greeted this animal's release with celebrations and a red carpet welcome home.

Leaving aside the question of why Israel should engage in these prisoner exchanges, which seem to invite more kidnappings, this should highlight the evil of Hezbollah and the mis-directed sympathies of Palestinians. If this animal, Kantar, is a hero to the Palestinian populace, what does that say about the Palestinians?

For several decades, they have hitched their wagon to hijackers, terrorists, and other assorted murderers to further their cause.

Those who sympathize with the Palestinians or see shades of gray in this conflict, should pay close attention to this latest "exchange", in which Israelis exchange imprisoned murderers for the bodies of their dead soldiers and citizens.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

While LA Burns


LA Crackdown


Lately, I have been reporting on the efforts to get Jamiel's Law passed in Los Angeles so that LAPD could start getting known illegal alien gang members off the streets. A sensible common sense move, right? Well not according to the overwhelming majority of the LA City Council, the mayor, the police chief and whoever else draws a paycheck from the City.

But not to worry. While LA burns under the violence of gang warfare, its mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa has time to go to Washington to give a warm up speech for Barack Obama at the League of United Latin American Citizens convention (now that his first favorite, Hillary Clinton, has flamed out).

Meanwhile, savor this piece of pending legislation offered up by City Council member Jan Perry, who represents South LA. It seems Ms Perry is alarmed about the rate of obesity of her constituents (how she knows is beyond me). It also seems that 45% of the eating establishments in her district are fast food joints. Solution to this clear and present danger? Ms Perry is proposing a moratorium on allowing any more fast food restaurants in South LA.

Well done, Ms Perry. Now the city leadership is micro-managing what its citizens should eat. Talk about a nanny state gone wild. But on the positive side, if the LA City Council can't prevent its citizens from being killed by gangs, they sure can prevent them from dying of coronary disease-if they live long enough without being killed by the gangs, that is.

One Congressman Who Passes on Earmarks


Congressman John Campbell (R-CA)


In one of my past postings, I urged that Republican politicians campaign on a pledge not to bring pork back to their districts in the form of earmarks-which tax-payers all over the country have to pay for. Today in the Orange County Register, I read an article about one congressman who has turned his back on earmarks. Coincidentally, he is the congressman for my district in Orange County-John Campbell (R-CA).

According to the tone of the article, Campbell has incurred the wrath of many in Orange County who feel that Campbell has failed to bring in needed projects. One big example is a projected $46 million dredging project of upper Newport Bay which has stalled due to the lack of federal funding. Campbell is taking no action to get the funding released because of his pledge to not engage in earmarks until the process is reformed to permit more transparency.

I applaud the congressman's stance, whether or not the project would help my region. The whole earmark system has been corrupted and is in need of reform. It's a small step, but if more people in Congress would follow Campbell's example, perhaps we could start cleaning up our political system.

Let's Play" Name Those Marchers"


The above photograph shows:

a German troops entering Paris during World War II

b German rodeo performing in Paris

c Undocumented German workers marching for "Comprehensive
Immigration Reform" and a "path to (French) citizenship"

d The German Clydesdales carrying a load of Becks to grateful French consumers

e All of the above

f None of the above, and this is an utterly tasteless posting

Monday, July 14, 2008

Barack Obama's Outrageous Comments on ICE


"When communities are terrorized by ICE immigration raids, when nursing mothers are torn from their babies, when children come home from school to find their parents missing, when people are detained without access to legal counsel, when all that is happening, the system just isn’t working, and we need to change it."

(Barack Obama speaking before the National Council of La Raza July 13, 2008 in San Diego.)

It should not surprise anyone that Barack Obama would pander before La Raza when it comes to the subject of illegal immigration. If he had limited his remarks to platitudes of "comprehensive immigration reform", it wouldn't be such a big deal. But when he calls ICE agents people who terrorize communities and tear babies from the arms of nursing mothers, he is engaging in false libel against those who would be working for him in an Obama administration.

After hearing other prominent Democratic leaders like John Kerry, John Murtha and Dick Durbin make inflammatory charges against our troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, why should we be shocked? If they have such disdain for our troops, what kind of respect should federal law enforcement agents expect.

Obama's comments are false, repeating canards we have heard for years from the open borders crowd. The truth is that ICE agents take every precaution they can not to separate mothers from children. Enforcing the law and arresting illegal aliens is not terrorizing. It is bad enough that ICE receives so little support in the way of manpower and resources from the government (Democrats and Republicans). Now they have to contend with inflammatory and false accusations from a presidential candidate-one who is, as we speak, raising bloody murder (and rightfully so) over a New Yorker Magazine cover depicting him and his wife as Al Qaeda sympathizers.

I can only hope that everyone who wants our borders secured and an end brought to illegal immigration is made aware of Obama's comments before an organization whose very name means "The Race" in Spanish. It is clear that under a President Obama, there will be little support for border enforcement, law enforcement in general and for those we entrust with enforcing the laws.

Now will the mainstream media make a big deal of it and ask him (in his characteristically stumbling manner) to clarify those remarks? Don't bet on it.

As-Sabiqun and the Muslim Student Associations in America



top to bottom: Abdul Alim Musa, Amir Abdel Malik Ali














Thanks to the courtesy of my friend and colleague, Ms Reut Cohen, I am re-producing her posting on the As-Sabiqun movement in the US. Two principal figures in this radical, Sunni movement are American imams, Abdul Alim Musa and Amir Abdel Malik Ali, who are also frequent speakers at the University of California at Irvine and other universities on behalf of the Muslim Student Associations.

Reut Cohen is an Israeli-American,a recent graduate of UCI and former member of Anteaters for Israel, a UCI-based Jewish student group. She has been at the forefront of exposing the hatred and radicalism of the MSU at UCI, an effort in which she received little or no support from university officials.

In addition, Reut has just produced a video on As-Sabiqun, which can be accessed on her blog (Reut Cohen- there is a link on this site) as well as Red County blog (Campus Watch), edited by Jonathan Constantine-also linked on this site).

http://reutcohen.blogspot.com/2008/07/as-sabiqun-blatent-terror-support-on.html

"Abdul Alim Musa and Amir Abdel Malik Ali, two radical imams, are no strangers to UC Irvine where they regularly spread their seething hatred of America, Israel and Jews on behalf of the Muslim Student Union (MSU). These speakers are involved with the As-Sabiqun movement which aims for Islamic revivalism and enabling Islam to take "complete control of ... the lives of all human beings on Earth." Below is information about both speakers and the radical and hateful As-Sabiqun movement.

DiscovertheNetworks.org includes the following information about Musa:

Imam Abdul Alim Musa is the founder and director of the As-Sabiqun movement, which aims to “enable Islam to take complete control of … the lives of all human beings on Earth.” He serves as director of Masjid Al-Islam in Washington, DC, and is a senior member of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought (ICIT) -- a pro-Iranian, pro-Hezbollah, Islamist think tank. Musa also sits on the governing body of the Muslim Alliance of North America, which is headed by Siraj Wahhaj. In addition, Musa is a frequent speaker on American college campuses, often at the invitation of the Muslim Student Union and chapters of the Muslim Students Association. In 2004 the San Francisco Bay View described Musa as “one of the highest-ranking Islamic leaders in the Black community, nationwide and specifically in the Islamic movement.”

Two days before 9/11 -- at a September 9, 2001 fundraiser at UC Irvine on behalf of the cop-killer Jamil Al-Amin -- Musa said:

“Imam Jamil coined a phrase, and that phrase meant this: ‘If you don't give us justice. If you don't give us equality. If you don't give us our share of America. If you don't stay out of our way and leave us alone, we’re gonna burn America down.”

During a May 9, 2007 “Islamic Revival” event at UC Irvine Musa discussed his belief that the U.S. carried out the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon:

“When you hear about some bomber that blew up the World Trade Center or blew up this or blew up that, I'm telling you brothers and sisters, that is your CIA. That is your government blowing up people, blaming it on us … Didn't Adolph Hitler burn the Reichstag, blame it on the people and he became the Fuhrer and what happened? He could suspend civil liberties. And he could wipe out and he could war against all of his enemies. That's what Adolph Hitler did, isn't that right? He burned the Reichstag himself.... They blew up the World Trade Center, blamed it on us, and then come out with the PATRIOT Act and all these criminal laws. Right?”

At the same event, Musa said:

“Who ran the slave trade … who funded [it]? You’ll study and you will find out: the Jews … It was the Jewish bankers … in Vienna, with pockets full of money, funding and insuring, that’s who did it…. you can’t tell us about no holocaust. Between the African Americans and the Native Americans, everybody else’s stuff was [supposedly] small potatoes [according to Jews].”

Here is a bio for Amir Abdel Malik Ali:

Amir-Abdel Malik-Ali (also known as Abdul Malik Ali and Abd Al-Malik) is a black Imam associated with the Masjid Al Islam mosque in Oakland. A graduate of San Francisco State University and a former Nation of Islam member, he is a frequent guest lecturer at Muslim Student Union and Muslim Students Association events. A passionate supporter of Hamas and Hezbollah, he helped organize a July 1999 rally in San Francisco at which Imam Abdul-Alim Musa proudly displayed a cashier’s check made out to “Hamas, Palestine.” Malik-Ali endorses suicide bombings as a legitimate “resistance” tactic: “Palestinian mothers are supporting their children who are suicide bombers, saying, ‘Go honey, go!’ That ain’t suicide; that’s martyrdom.”

Also among Malik-Ali’s notable quotes and positions are the following:
“The enemies of Islam know that when we come back to power we’re gonna check ’em.”
“Stay conscious and ask Allah to raise the Muslims and give us victory over the disbeliever.”
“When it’s all over, the only one standing is gonna be us [Muslims].”
“Sooner or later, today’s Muslim students will be the parents of Muslim children. And they should be militants.”
“Neo-cons are all Zionist Jews.”
Israelis ought to return “to Germany, to Poland, to Russia. The Germans should hook y’all up. You [Israelis] should go back to Germany.”
“In America, you’re mostly fighting with your tongue, but you should also learn how to fight with the sword.”

At the Sixth Annual Muslim Student Association Conference held at UC Berkeley in February 2004, Malik-Ali denounced “the white man, who is the enemy.”

At the Universal Heritage Foundation’s December 2003 Islamic Conference in Florida, he warned moderate American Muslims that their desire to be “liked” was turning them into “‘house slaves’ in the mansion of a racist, imperialistic and destructive America.”

He has described Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a “pretty good guy.”
DiscovertheNetworks.org notes the following about As Sabiqun:

Founded in the early 1990s by Imam Abdul Alim Musa, As-Sabiqun (whose name means “The Vanguard” in Arabic) is a Sunni endeavor that seeks, through “an organized Islamic movement,” to establish Islam “as a complete way of life in America” -- “in total, complete, and uncompromised service of Allah.”

On July 4, 1994, As-Sabiqun enumerated its major organizational objectives in a document that stated, most notably:

"We resolve to work with other communities (movements) … toward the end of harnessing the power of Muslims and their resources for the purpose of reestablishing the system of governance known as Khilafah, or the Caliphate, patterned after the leadership exemplified by Prophet Muhammad."
"We resolve to utilize all the tools of Islam to develop an analysis and plan of action to totally and completely obliterate the hold of jahiliyyah [spiritual ignorance] and enable Islam to take complete control of our lives, and ultimately, the lives of all human beings on Earth."

"We resolve to shape the ideas, beliefs, and moral viewpoints of the people into an Islamic mold. Toward this end we will … develop the comprehensive educational system that is necessary to inform, inspire, and direct the society toward Islamic revolution (or evolution)."

"We resolve to make Islam a living force by challenging and breaking the hold of social and political forces seeking to suppress and destroy Islam."
Believing that “Islam is fully capable of producing a working and just social, political, economic order,” As-Sabiqun “does not advocate participation in the American political process as an ideal method for advancing Islamic issues in the U.S.” Instead, it calls for “a strong and active outreach to the people of the U.S.” -- an effort aimed at persuading Americans to embrace Islamic beliefs, customs, and institutions. The movement endorses “cooperation on domestic social issues with like-minded non-Muslim groups,” but only “as long as Islamic ethics and morality are not compromised.”

As-Sabiqun’s major ideological influences include the writings and crusades of Malcolm X, Maulana Mawdudi, Shaikh ‘Uthman dan Fodio, Sayyid Qutb, Kalim Siddiqui, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, and Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan al-Banna.

Though As-Sabiqun is a Sunni entity, it has publicly voiced support for such Shi’a movements and organizations as the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran and the Lebanon-based terrorist group Hezbollah. According to Abdul Alim Musa, Muslims today ought not engage in the "counter-productive" habit of focusing on the differences between Sunni and Shi’a Islam; rather, they should aim to unite in their struggle against non-Muslims."

Fousesquawk comment:

I would encourage my readers to go to the above websites and learn more about this group. These are the invited speakers of the MSU at UCI. What does that tell you about this student organization? I have heard both of the referenced speakers at UCI over the years. Theirs is a message of hatred-hatred against Israel, hatred toward America-and hatred toward Jews ("Zionist Jews" as they call them). Ali appears at UCI virtually every quarter, courtesy of MSU-and a cowardly administration that will not stand up to a bunch of racist, anti-Semitic, anti-American agitators.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Random Shots in the Dark (3)


Catching up on current events, here are some random observations, comments and questions.

Are William "Cool Cash" Jefferson, Larry Craig, and David Vitter still in Congress? Yes? OK, just checking.

I noted this week that the LA City Council, on the motion of Councilmember, Eric Garcetti, has renamed the intersection in front of the CNN Building, "Larry King Square". One would think that the council had more pressing actions-such as amending or doing away with Special Rule 40-that keeps LAPD officers from taking pro-active action against illegal alien gang members.

Does anyone still take Jesse Jackson seriously anymore? Yes? Just asking.

Sure seems quiet lately without Hillary's shrill voice telling us how we need a president who is "ready on day one".

Which presidential candidate pandered more this past week to the Latin American group, LULAC?

If Brett Favre unretires and comes back to Green Bay next year, at what point does back-up quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, tell the Packers adios?

If the Cubs don't go to the World Series this year, then that stuff about the "Billy Goat Curse" has to be real. Does anyone have a more logical explanation to explain a century of futility? If they maintain this year's hot streak, will it be blamed on Global Warming?

Is it just me, or has there been a rash of NFL players getting busted lately? What the hell is goin' on?

There also seems to be a rash of Hollywood types getting divorced lately? What the hell is goin' on?

Speaking of the Windy City, I see Michael Pfleger is back preaching at St Sabina Catholic Church in Chicago (no pun intended).

Remember beautiful Catalina Island 26 miles off the coast of LA? Guess what? Avalon, which is about 2 blocks long, is having problems with an illegal alien gang.

How's that border fence that Congress approved coming along?

I see Congress is still trying to nail Karl Rove for something-anything.

Meanwhile up at the state capital in Sacramento (or Excremento, if you prefer), our political leaders are bemoaning a 15 billion dollar budget shortfall (due to their wild over-spending) and saying only way to fix it is to (drumroll).........raise taxes. The two principle architects of this madness are Fabian Nunez and Don Perata, both of whom are under various investigations for financial shenanigans. Nunez lives the life style of a Fortune 500 CEO while Perata is under FBI investigation and has reportedly spent 2 million on his legal defense. No wonder they want to raise our taxes.

And remember "America's Sheriff", Mike Carona of Orange County? He is scheduled to go on trial on federal corruption charges in Santa Ana this August along with his mistress. (His wife was granted a separate trial.)

Who named Mike Carona "America's Sheriff"? Larry King on Life Support Square, that's who.

Isn't it amazing to listen to Barack Obama try to give a speech without a teleprompter? ("er, uhh, but listen to this, uh, I tell ya' I uh, didn't get much sleep uh, last night")

The next time someone reminds you of GW's low approval ratings, you might ask them if they know Congress' approval ratings, as of the last poll (9%).

9 PER CENT!!

Meanwhile, Erwin Chemerinski, the in-coming new law school dean of my school, UC-Irvine, was interviewed recently and stated that he had never witnessed the slightest evidence of anti-Semitism at UCI. Of course not. How could he? He has spent the past several years at USC and Duke. No one has that good eyesight.

I haven't watched Keith Olbermann's "Meltdown" show for over a week, but I would bet my mortgage that every night, he has had the same guests, Rachel Maddow, Chuck Todd, Richard Wolffe, Eugene Robinson, and the little guy who has gone bald in the past year, whose name escapes me (all ruminating on what a bad guy Bush is). Also, I figure Bill O'Reilly has racked up another half dozen "Worst Person in the World" awards. He's going to need to buy a bigger house soon to hold all his trophies.

Well, that wraps up another edition of "Random Shots in the Dark". If anything interesting happens in the next month or so, I'll crank up another edition. Hopefully, it won't be necessary.

PS I just remembered. That little guy who is going bald? Jonathan Alter. That's him.

Reaction From the Far-Left Blogosphere to Tony Snow's Passing

While I was composing my own remarks to the passing of Tony Snow, I also took the time to see what some of the far-left blogs were saying. As I write this, MoveOn.org seems to be ignoring the story. The Huffington Post put up a wire release with reader comments. I guess I would have to say that the comments were mixed, some proper, giving condolences to the family, but several others not at all kind.

As for the Daily Kos, one really has to wonder about their readership. While the Kos put up a lead post by someone who knew Tony's pastor and reported positive things, the overwhelming majority of the Kos' readership wrote in with negative words, several being vicious, vile, and not worth repeating here. Unfortunately, this seems all too typical for the far-left and reminiscent of when President Reagan passed on.

I don't want to waste too many words on those folks. Rather we should grieve for Tony's early passing, pray for his family and celebrate the good he did with his life.

The White Rose


L-R Hans Scholl, Sophie Scholl, Cristoph Probst


From all the horror and evil that came out of the Third Reich in Germany, there is a story of heroism that many today outside of Germany may not be aware of. The principal figures were Hans and Sophie Scholl, brother and sister, who were students at the University of Munich during World War 2. They were involved in a small group of anti-Nazis at the university, which was called Die Weisse Rose (The White Rose). For their opposition, they paid with their lives.

As a student-soldier, Hans Scholl had served in the German Army in France. He returned home turned against the war by the things he had experienced. Later, he was told a first-hand account of atrocities on the Eastern Front. Together with his sister, Sophie, they became involved with a small group of like-minded youth and a university professor, Kurt Huber. Later, after the group had begun its activities, Hans and two other members of the group served a short tour of duty on the Eastern Front, an experience which only solidified their opposition.

Of course, in the Third Reich, public anti-government demonstrations were impossible. Clandestinely, the group printed anti-war flyers which they posted in the dead of night or mailed to random addresses around the country. They also rode trains to other universities in Germany, where they left their posters. Of course, the Gestapo was feverishly trying to identify the authors.

On February 18, 1943, Hans and Sophie were caught distributing leaflets at a lecture hall at the University of Munich. Follow-up investigation quickly resulted in Probst's arrest. For them, punishment was swift. At a hastily arranged trial, which was presided over by the notorious Nazi judge, Roland Freisler, who was specially brought in from Berlin, the Scholls remained defiant. Sophie made a statement in court that,"Somebody, after all, had to make a start. What we wrote and said is also believed by many others. They just do not dare express themselves as we did."

On February 22, just 4 days after their arrests, the Scholls and Probst were found guilty of treason and sentenced to die. From the courthouse, they were taken to Munich's Stadelheim Prison. Hans and Sophie were permitted a final visit with their parents, after which (the same afternoon) all three were beheaded by guillotine. They went to their deaths with courage and dignity. Hans' final words as the blade fell, were "Es lebe die Freiheit!" (Long live freedom). Sophie was not yet 22. Hans was 25, and Christoph was 24.

In quick order, three other members of the group, Willi Graf, Alexander Schmorell and Professor Kurt Huber, were also arrested and executed for their roles against the Nazi regime. For the latter three, their eventual executions were delayed for months due to the formal appeals process-a process denied to Sophie, Hans and Christoph. Nonetheless, the executions were eventually carried out.

Today, the names of the Scholls and the other members of the White Rose are known to all in Germany as national heroes. Several books and films have been made about them, both in German and English. The plaza in front of the lecture hall where they were arrested has been named Geschwister Schollplatz (Sibling Scholl Plaza). A small room on the ground floor of the lecture hall has been converted to a memorial exhibit of the White Rose.

In 2005, a film about the Scholls was released in Germany entitled, "Sophie Scholl-The Last Days"- Sophie Scholl-Die letzten Tage). The film is based on court transcripts and was filmed at the locations where the events actually happened. It has won numerous awards.

Hans and Sophie Scholl and Christoph Probst lie buried together in the Perlacher Cemetery next to Stadelheim Prison in Munich.