IT’S A WAR, DAMNIT!

        I was irked by a detail in this otherwise inspirational story. Two soldiers earned the Soldier’s Medal for heroic actions following the attack on the Pentagon on 9/11. Army Sgt.1st Class Donald S. 'Steve' Workman rescued a badly burned Navy Lt. Kevin Shaeffer from the wreckage, while Colonel George Zahaczewsky, at risk of life and limb, helped others to evacuate.




        My problem is with the specific award they received: the Soldier’s Medal. In 1922, the Soldier’s Medal was established as an Army recognition, “for acts of heroism not involving actual conflict with an enemy.” 9/11 was an attack by an enemy. This is a war and we need to treat it as such, especially in the recognition we give our heroes.
Combat ribbons have been awarded for heroism done in the foe’s aftermath.



        Sgt. Workman and Colonel Zahaczewsky should have received the appropriate ribbon for their courageous actions in the combat zone the foe created in northern Virginia. Anything else belittles both their actions and the enormity of 9/11.

CHURCH OF NATIVITY FIREFIGHT AND OTHER CONSPIRACIES

        So, Israel, after compromising with Arafat gets violence as a reward. There is no way the Pals are not responsible for the fires and gun battle. Arafat was in communication with the gunmen who stormed the church while he was cornered in Ramallah. Apparently he encouraged their intransigence.


        So, why order this battle when things were finally getting calmer? PR.


        With the Jenin Massacre proved to be an urban legend, his six buddies off to Ad Seg in Jericho [2 point ref] and his gunmen’s depredations (stealing of crosses and holding kids hostage in the basement) sure to come out, Arafat needed to give the Jews a black eye. I can easily imagine him ordering his men to start the fires and then shoot at the Israelis. That way he could scream about the holy places for the cameras now that he could be in front of them.


        Even before there was a CNN Yassir’s stratagems were made for TV. He has the Al-Jazeera lumpen in their normal, shrill blood crazed frenzy. Now he wants to inspire the same hate among the Christians.

        That having been said, I generally do not belive in conspiracy theories. I am substitious, not superstitious [5 point ref]. I use Saran Wrap and not aluminum foil for my fine chapeau [2 point ref]. So here are two of my anti-conspiracy theories.

1. bin-Laden is likely dead and has been for months. Al Qeada can not admit it because the truth would be devastating for morale. Also possible is that they do not know he is dead because… well, imagine him traveling with a small group under a communications blackout for security. Then imagine an AC-130 seeing the party making their way through a pass one night. Chunky Salsa effect. [4 point ref]
   
   
2. The cover-ups in the Catholic Church are not because of any sinister blackmailing pedophilic cabal. The problem is with an institution which has to discipline its own will be biased towards its insiders. The issue is not the fox guarding the chicken coop but the vulpine jury that follows. This is true of almost any institution, be it a state bar ethics committee, the armed forces, Congress or an archdiocese.
   
   

STUBBORNNESS IS A FAULT…TENACITY IS A VIRTUE

(2 point ref)

        Looks like the Jenin Clouseau squad did not reach its third trimester. Sharon deftly wielded a coat hanger of Israeli demands that the world body could not accept.

“Israel initially agreed to the formation of the fact-finding U.N. team, but then raised a number of concerns. Israel wants a say over who can be called as a witness and what documents will be presented to the panel, and insists that Israeli soldiers be protected from prosecution. Israel wants more counterterrorism experts to be added to the group, and demands that activities by Palestinian militants in the camp also be scrutinized. “

        My spider-sense tells me the last was the deal-breaker. As David Tell points out the U.N. was intimately involved with the Jenin terror apparatus. The Palestinians are the clientele of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and, in the best Sir Humphrey Appleby tradition, the problems have increased to meet the demands of the social workers. That, and the fact the Arabs need a stick with which to beat the Jews, has kept hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in refugee camps fifty four years after Al Naqba and almost a decade after the formation of the Palestinian Authority.

And from Todd Zwacko, whose five points are coming...

It is a transition to another, more beautiful world, because he knows
very well that within seconds he will see the light of the Creator.

Crow: and be crushed beneath the the wheels of his oncoming ford
taurus.

 

Remove the Apache [helicopter] from the equation,

Servo: <Albert Einstein voice> Eureka, the thzeory of
relativity.

 

leave them one-on-one with the Palestinian people

Joel: I never realized the Palestinian people were so into
basketball.

 

None in the [Western] world sacrifices his life for his homeland. If
his homeland is drowning, he is the first to jump ship

Crow:  I'm confused Joel.  If his homeland is drowning why
would the cowardly western dog leave his ship?

Joel:  Yeah, I think Dr. Sadeq may have mixed his metaphors
a little.  Oh, and don't say western dog.

 

I equate your stupidity with mercilessness and inhumanity, and swear
that I knew you were stupid long before it became known to the entire world, and
before your cronies admitted it.

Servo: <nasally, whiney voice> I did.  I really did. 
Just ask anyone.

 

Vegard Valberg throws down the proverbial gauntlet with his MSTing of the egregious Dr. Sadeq’s comments of President Bush's intelligence and the mental makeup of suicide bombers.

You’ve probably seen this photo of Cristie Kerr celebrating her triumph at the LPGA Longs Drugs Challenge. All I have to add is speculation if Longs Drugs is a euphemism for Viagra.

And I won’t ask if it brings a new meaning to the word ‘FOREskin!’

GETTING THEIR POINTS!

        Well, lurkers! I smell you and I feel your air. I hear your breath. Come along! Help yourself again, there is plenty and to spare! [1 point ref.]

        I’ve handed out my first points. The first two head to Damian J. Penny of the Great White North and he get two points so long as he’s not a fan of the Canadiens. But I kid you. I only discriminate against fans of the Jets and Yankees. Besides, the Broons (sic) had much to be ashamed about, between the thugishness and self-immolation. Mr. Penny provides an excellent ref (noted on his site). Somewhere I MUST mention Dr. Sadeq’s training at the Lovenstein Institute of Scranton, Pennsylvania.

        Hot on his heels came a missive from Norwegian Blogger Vegard Valberg, who took the half-point ref for the 1984 ref and mentioned his own related comments on this crisis.

        And they were both kind enough to mention that I’ve been bookmarked. More pressure to perform.

        JOY!

VICIOUS THOUGHT OF THE DAY

        When the Mossad/IDF whacked Abu Jihad in Tunisia in 1988, everyone knew the Israelis were responsible, despite their automatic denials. The clue? They did not kill his wife who was in bed next to him. Why do I bring this up? Well, when Palestinian 'activists' (as the New York Times likes to call them) attacked the Adora settlement they murdered five-year-old Danielle Shefi in her crib.




        Then, when danger raised it's ugly head, the boldly turned their tails and fled.[1 point ref.]

        People say, 'One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter.' My freedom fighters do not TARGET civilians. Your terrorists do.

INMATES RUNNING THE MUSLIM ASYLUM

        MEMRI continues its vital translating services by providing the ravings of Dr. Adel Sadeq, chairman of the Arab Psychiatrists Association and head of the Department of Psychiatry at Ein Shams University in Cairo. After reading his nonsense, you have to wonder if this is a shrink, what are his patients like?

       There are two entries from under his smogberry trees [1 point ref]. The first claims that his expert diagnosis, from thousands of miles away and on TV is that Bush is 'Stupid.' And to dive home his conclusion he puts 'stupid' in every sentence so it reads like a temper tantrum. The next entry is an interview where he proves War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength [.5 point ref, everyone should know this!] and "The psychological structure [of the perpetrator of a suicide attack] is that of an individual who loves life." It is a diagnosis that is reminiscent of the Soviet shrinks who claimed that dissidence was a mental illness.

        After reading this crapola, I asked myself 'Where are Mike (or Joel, you darn purists) when you need them?' (That's the segue…)

Although you invest a lot of effort in proving yourself,


Crow: Louis Rukeyser meets Dale Carnegie!

you are not successful in doing so because you are stupid and understand nothing about what is happening in the world.


Mike: The voices in his head keep him up to date...

'Stupidity' and 'idiocy' are synonyms…


Crow: I prefer peppermints!

and if you don't like the word 'stupid,' you are an evil person with an ugly soul.


Tom: Us tools of Satan prefer 'foolish.'

I equate your stupidity with mercilessness and inhumanity,


Mike: Sure. Only dumb people are evil.

… and swear that I knew you were stupid long before it became known to the entire world, and before your cronies admitted it.


Crow: He believes everything Michael Moore says?

        And that's just the opening two paragraphs! The rest is as target rich an environment!

Don't you understand, stupid, that Israel does not want peace?

Tom: That's why they aggressively returned the Sinai to Egypt. Hmmm?

When the martyr dies a martyr's death, he attains the height of bliss…

Mike: 'Bliss' being defined as the agony of your body being torn to shreds.

As a professional psychiatrist, I say that the height of bliss comes with the end of the countdown: ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. And then, you press the button to blow yourself up.

Tom: And he also prefers auto-erotic asphyxiation to Viagra.

None in the [Western] world sacrifices his life for his homeland.

Mike: Rodger Young is so climbing out of his grave to pimp-slap this bozo!

If his homeland is drowning, he is the first to jump ship. In our culture it is different.

Crow: Yeah, that's why all the Americans are leaving Detroit and starting Seven-Elevens throughout Dar-Al-Islam.

There are no Israeli civilians.

Tom: Every Zionist fetus is armed!

The child who threw a stone in 1993 today wraps himself in an explosive belt.

Crow: And won't have kids to throw stones or blow himself up.

Remove the Apache [helicopter] from the equation, leave them one-on-one with the Palestinian people with the only weapon [for both sides] being dynamite. Then you will see all the Israelis leave, because among them there is not even one man willing to don a belt of dynamite...
Mike: Like the great Arab victory in 1948?

Tom: He'll start bitching again when Israelis use the unfair tactic of THROWING the dynamite at the Pals.

Crow: Adel, there's this general outside, want to discuss the concept of making the other poor bastard dying for his country…

       OK folks, you have the link. I want to post a full MSTing of this bozo's gibberings, so I ask for your help. Read the mad shrink's entry. I will award one point per riff. Two or more if they're really good. Good luck!

THE NAME OF THE ENEMY

        Glenn Reynolds, discussing a Ralph Peters piece in OpinionJournal.com, writes, "The Arabs were hopeless before Islam, they were hopeless at Islam's peak, and they're hopeless today."


        I would have to disagree somewhat. Before the Ottomans took it all over, there were powerful Arab empires.


        But this brings up the important point that Islam and Arabs are not the same sets, though they cover the same ground. Peter notes…


       

"Three non-Arab countries, Indonesia, India and Pakistan, contain nearly half the world's Muslims. Add those of Central Asia, Turkey, the Philippines, Malaysia, Kosovo, Bosnia, Azerbaijan and that struggling, vilified democracy, Iran, and the Arab states begin to look as overvalued as they are recalcitrant. Even Nigeria is more promising in the long term than Egypt."

        But Islamofascism is popular even in non-Arab states. Bin-Laden is adored in Pakistan and Bangladesh. A Christian village was attacked and 14 Christians were murdered in Indonesia. Nigeria is ripped apart by civil war as the corrupt central government tries to impose Shia'ria.


        Yes, Turkey can be counted as at least demi-Western and there are others who pray to Mecca who are not the enemy, but confronting our civilization is a hydra with heads labeled Fatah, Hizbouallah, Al Qaeda, Iraq, Iran, Syria and others. They are not all Arab, but all part of the aggressive, expansionistic and totalitarian. That is why I prefer the term 'Islamofascist.'

WELL THAT DIDN`T TAKE LONG.

        Yassir is already reneging on his deal to spring his sorry hide from the Ramallah hoosegow. The original understanding was the four assassins of tourist minister Rechavam Ze'evi, their boss and Fuad Shubaki, the man responsible for the Karine-A, were to be imprisoned under US/UK turnkeys.


        Oh, and the breakthrough at the Church of the Nativity seems to be going up in smoke as well.


        Yassir is the kind of guy who’d insert a dummy hand into Fenris’ mouth then call himself honorable.

BRAVO TO BRAVO, A&E, ETC…

        The House of Sod (Thank you James Lileks for that perfect phrase…) AKA Muddle Incorporated has hit a snag in Operation Desert Smokescreen. Not only are Americans not buying their ‘Forget the 15 of 19,’ spin, the Sand fascists are not able to buy air time at nine cable networks, including A&E, AMC, Bravo, History Channel, Lifetime, USA Network and The Weather Channel.

        The most telling bit from the article came from Barbie Johnson, CEO of Creative Cable Television, the agency trying to purchase airtime for the Sods.

“Ms. Johnson said she is not placing her Saudi spots in New York or Washington. Both of those cities were targets of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack.”

        Facts can be inconvenient. Or is that inconwenient, Prince Ludwig? (4 point ref!)

        From creeps to class acts. Drew Bledsoe took out full-page ads in the Boston dailies thanking the fans and team owner Robert Kraft.

KRAUTHAMMER HAMMERS SOMMARUGA

        Sommaruga is worse than I thought. Charles Krauthammer, proving why he's the best columnist around, reminds us....

As former head of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Sommaruga spent 12 years ensuring that the only nation on earth to be refused admission to the International Red Cross is Israel. The problem, he said, was its symbol: "If we're going to have the Shield of David, why would we not have to accept the swastika?"

Some people have complained that the quote was taken out of context. What context would make it better?

        German law enforcement officials have egg on their ruddy bratwurst-stuffed faces. Seems that in the wake of recent anti-Semitic, some soon to be unemployed official took time out from the usual Euroweenie practice of deploring Israel for ensuring its survival and suggested the Jews not look so... well, Jewish, lest it attract malign attention from 'guest workers.'


        Naturally, when word leaked the scatological material struck the air circulation device and the asinine remark is currently inoperative.


        I'm going to give the German cops some free advice....

GROW A DAMN PAIR! THEN GO AFTER THE BAD GUYS!

        Now, I do realize the Germans, still bearing the Mark of Cain, have reason to be tentative when asked to clobber someone. So I will offer a useful definition. The bad guys are the ones committing the violent crimes.


        Bad guys also support violent crime, like this sleazy creep photographed at an anti-Israeli demo in *ahem* Berlin.

        Us primitive `Mericans feel the best way to prevent crime is to go after potential perps. Europeans are so much more enlightened.
Europe is increasingly crime ridden. While the US homicide rate fell over 40% in the 90s, it has increased all over Europe, including Germany.

        In America we understood the 'broken windows' theory. In Europe it remains Kristallnacht.

        (OK, it was a cheap shot, but the pun was irresistible.)

        Glenn Reynolds continues to suggest the Polish partition of the West Bank. I remain agnostic. It may be a good idea, but back in 1970, the current monarch's daddy had to boot Yassir's goons out when they threatened his Bedouin power structure. I doubt the son wants more Palestinians as subjects.

        Finally after too long a drought in the feminine companionship department, I finally get a blind date. C and I met for dinner and a movie. (Hey, first meeting... I will be conservative). We went to John Harvard's then to the Cineplex. Normally I do not go to 'chick flicks' without a date. My Y chromosome is not mocked.

        Interestingly C. was up for watching 'The Scorpion King.' Having wrestled in high school, I dislike the goofy yet grotesque farce of pro-wrestling. I voiced a disparaging comment about 'The Rock.' She blew the paper covering off her straw, hitting me on the head in retaliation for my effrontery.


        C. is definitely a keeper. <G>


        Fortunately, she enjoyed the movie I chose... Kissing Jessica Stein, a very cute New York comedy about love, lust and friendship. It is so nice to see a good-natured flick.


        Now for the rant. Before the previews the theater showed a few commercials. The first time I saw commercials in a movie theater was in 1982 at a crummy hole-in-the-wall theater in Boston, which, unfortunately, was the only one showing 'Dune.'


        Recently it has restarted. Commercials on TV are a necessary evil. But I paid to get into the theater and paid their exorbitant prices for the concessions. Do I, a member of a captive audience, have to be subjected to pitches? Gah!

The Islamofascist slave traders in Sudan are launching a new offensive against the perennially recalcitrant south. M. Sommaruga and pals send their regrets, but they have smaller first to fry.

Israel sends a big Francis Urqhart [1.5 point ref] to the UN, rejecting the team they wish to send to investigate Jenin.

Sharon is saying, ‘Bleep you, world community.’ And he can get away with it because of the previous, incessant hypocritical and unwarranted attacks on the Jewish state. The UN and similar collections of clowns are like the doctors who find their antibiotics useless from over-presription. Israel has built up a tolerance from criticism that emanates from the Turtle Bay Sewage Plant. I look forward to more naked contempt of the UN as well as its increasing impotence.

Perhaps Kofi would care to send the troika to Zimbabwe.

        Well, the UN is sending its ‘fact finders’ to Jenin. Cynicism is merited. Among the three wise guys heading there is Cornelio Sommaruga of Switzerland, former head of the International Committee of the Red Cross. M. Sommaruga symbolizes much of the problem of reflexive anti-Israel bias among international institutions.


        In Israel the ambulance service is the Magen David Adom (Red Star of David). Because of objections by Arab members, the IRC will not let the Israelis use the symbol and be members of the ICRC. So the MDA remains unrecognized, even though Israel is a signatory to the 1949 Geneva Convention.


        M. Sommaruga has noted, “It is a matter of regret that the issue of the emblem prevents formal recognition of the MDA.” He proposed a red circle be used by the Israeli first aid society. I’ll give the man credit. He seems genuinely clueless as to why it would be an insult.


        It is pathetic that an institution that lists “Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Unity, and Universality,” as its fundamental virtues still singles out Israel for discrimination and second-class status.


        Dr. Bernadette Healy of the American Red Cross declared, "This situation is something we must correct lest the exclusion of Magen David Adom be perceived as partial, biased, discriminatory or politically driven."


        Too late.


M. Sommaruga and the ICRC could increase their moral stature if they at least condemned the Palestine Red Crescent Society’s practice of using ambulances to smuggle explosives and terrorists. Or would that go against "Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Unity, and Universality?"

        For more information on this subject, try this study by the American Jewish Congress.