Obama and His Generals

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean has said military experience is a vital qualification for the presidency. Having absolutely no such experience, Barack Obama has recruited senior retired military as campaign advisors. But what sort of advisors has he been able to recruit?

One key advisor and surrogate denigrates the service of a man who has faced challenges that advisor cannot even conceive of:

"Well, I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president."     — General (Ret.) Wesley Clark, military advisor to Barack Obama

Another key advisor has called John McCain weak on national security. He has also commented on the courage and commitment of the American fighting man:

"I never made a plan that relied on the courage of my own troops. You hope that -- and they generally will -- fight bravely. Your plan ought to be predicated on more realistic assumptions."     — General (Ret.) Merrill "Tony" McPeak, co-chairman of the Obama campaign

These statements — particularly Clark's — have produced responses. One I like is

Barack H. Obama and his pony-pal, Weasley Clark: With fiends like these, who needs enemas?

But my favorite is from Confederate Yankee, who says

The saddest thing about Barack Obama's available military expertise is that though he has Wes Clark in his corner, the only person he knows with the experience of getting a bomb on target is Bill Ayers.

Hillary Proves She Can Fake It

Why does Tammy Wynette's Stand By Your Man keep running through my head?

Environmental Extremists

NASA's Dr James Hansen called today for the thought police to arrest and punish those CEOs of energy corporations that don't hew to his global warming orthodoxy. He said the heads of fossil fuel companies who "spread disinformation" (i.e., disagree with him) about global warming should be "tried for high crimes against humanity and nature."

This evening I saw a spokesman for the National Resources Defense Council being interviewed about Hansen's testimony and statements. She did say three things that were true:

• Dr Hansen testified before Congress today.
• He has been in the government for more than 20 years.
• He was the first "major scientist" to warn of the dangers of global warming and assert the need for a massive and immediate response to save the earth.

Everything else she said in the prepared speeches she used, as answers to the questions she was asked, was false. And most of it was slanderous, like her explicit claim that all the scientists and researchers who don't accept Hansen's orthodoxy are bought and paid for by the oil companies.

No wonder she had no response to the question of why we should listen to politicians (several were named) who are beholden to environmental extremists.

My only question is whether these people are being deliberately dishonest — that is, are they lying only to us or are they lying to themselves as well?

Terror Attack in Jaipur, India

A significant terror attack occurred on May 13^th in Jaipur, India. It was the first terror attack in that city. The attack involved at least ten bombs — reports indicate there were nine coordinated detonations and at least one additional bomb was found and defused. Depending on the report you read, there were something like 63 or 80 people killed (most reports say 80), and at least a couple hundred injured. Initial suspicion fell on Pakistan-based terror organizations, who have been responsible for a number of prior attacks, but it now appears the attack was the work of Bangladeshi illegal aliens with an intent to "demolish the faith (Hinduism)" of the "infidels of India".

It appears this terror attack has been totally ignored by the primary media and news organizations in the United States. It was covered in the Indian media, of course, and in parts of the Arab media, where it was noted that Indian Muslims are joining with other Indians calling for measures to deal with Islamist terror. It was also covered in at least two British newspapers. In this country, however, it's apparently only been reported in places like the Infidel Blogger Alliance and Wikipedia.

These extremists are not attacking only the US and its interests, or just the West and its interests — these extremists are attacking anyone and anything that is not Islamist, in their extremist version. The American press needs to recognize this, and report on these terrorist atrocities. And we all need to pay attention because, when these extremists have the ability, they will attack us, too.

Osama bin Laden is Dead

Osama bin Laden is dead — and has been for some time — according to an article in the Pakistan Daily (cited in an entry at Jihad Watch).

A top Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud has rejected reports that al-Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden, and other leaders are hiding in his region.

"The al-Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden is dead, and the Afghan Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, are not in our territory," he said in an interview broadcast by a satellite television network.

Good to hear, but I'll feel better with a confirmation by DNA.

One Courageous Lady

Not everyone knuckles under to Hezbollah. A courageous woman at Lebanon's Future TV spoke out in early May against actions by Hezbollah and their protectors in the Lebanese Army. The video can be seen (with English subtitles) on Gateway Pundit; the transcript is there and on MEMRI. Here are some extracts:

I am asking who represents my own voice, after I represented your voices? My voice, the voices of the people of Beirut, the voices of the people who fled their homes, the voices of the people who said "There is no god but Allah," when you were wearing ski masks on the streets of Beirut. What for? People who are proud of their actions do not wear ski masks.

...

I was objective, but I'm sad to say, you have made me regret my objectivity. I felt I was a victim of my objectivity, when I was defending you for a year and a half. Is there a conscience out there to defend us?

You are silencing our voice – the voice Allah made untouchable. Have you asked yourselves why? You are defying the will of Allah. Allah made only two things in the human body untouchable – the soul and the voice. This is the wisdom of Allah. Did you really think about what you are doing? You did not just break the law, but you also broke with the hearts of the people. You broke with hearts that truly loved you, even when your political leaders kept telling me that we hated you. No! Today, you abandoned people like me, and there are many like me in the Mustaqbal movement. This is the voice whose offices you came to destroy. We prepared food for you with love during the July 2006 aggression, yet you threw it on the ground.

Read/watch it all! The world needs more like this lady!