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Should The President of the United States Talk to Ahmadinejad? |
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Written by Cisco
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Thursday, 03 July 2008 |
 Patrick O'Brian wrote a series of twenty-one novels that are set in the Napoleonic wars and that have Captain Jack Aubrey and Dr. Stephen Maturin as the protagonists. Aubrey is an English naval captain who always sails with Maturin as his ship's surgeon. If you are not familiar with the O'Brian novels, perhaps you will recall a movie, Master and Commander of the Far Side of the World, which was loosely based upon these novels and starred Russell Crowe as Captain Aubrey. The eighth novel in this series is called The Ionian Mission, and it has Aubrey and Maturin sailing to Greece in order to fight the French. At the time of the Napoleonic wars, Greece was part of the Muslim Ottoman Turk empire. In The Ionian Mission, the French have taken possession of the fictional city Marga, and it is Captain Aubrey's responsibility to negotiate with the Muslim beys (tribal chieftains) in the area in order to most effectively accomplish the removal of the French troops from the Grecian peninsula. There are three Muslim beys who are vying for power in the region, and the one factor that will tip the balance of power is the guns that the English are willing to provide to whichever bey is most willing to assist the English in fighting the French. Jack Aubrey meets with each of the beys, and in the final bey that he meets with, he finds a kindred spirit. This bey, Sciahan by name, is “much more what Jack had expected of a Turk: a plain man, and one that he could trust.” Jack unilaterally determines that he will support Sciahan and tells him that he will immediately send a ship to bring the guns that Sciahan desires. Captain Aubrey makes his decision about which bey he will support without consulting with the politico who accompanied him, a Professor Graham. When Professor Graham realizes what Captain Aubrey has agreed to, he becomes irate and begins berating Captain Aubrey for being so naïve. Professor Graham insists that “In all negotiation, and a fortiori, all Oriental negotiation, each side was expected to extract all possible profit from the balance of forces: if either did not do so, it was because there was some hidden weakness – a plain unconditional acquiescence in a demand must be taken as the greatest proof of weakness.” Professor Graham goes on to say that Captain Aubrey should have insisted on taking as hostage one of Sciahan's nephews, and should have held the nephew until Sciahan had indeed fulfilled his verbal commitment. Professor Graham goes so far as to intimate that Captain Aubrey was not fully committed by the words that he had spoken to Sciahan, and that he could renege on his commitment by begging a misunderstanding. Captain Aubrey “replied coldly that he regarded his words as wholly binding, that he was convinced that he and Sciahan understood one another.” Captain Jack Aubrey personifies the English and American spirit. We people of the Western world, especially those of us who are American, are very much attached to the idea that if we can sit down with a person, look that person in the eye, and discuss a mutually beneficial relationship, then we tend to believe that the person into whose eye we are looking will fulfill their end of any agreement that is reached. You may call it American naiveté or English gullibility, but we people of the Western world tend to trust verbal, personal commitments. If we make an agreement without extracting the last ounce of blood from the other agreeing party, we do not care if we are are perceived as being weak for doing so. We tend to accept people at their word, rather than taking their family members as hostage in order to ensure that they will fulfill their word. |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 04 July 2008 )
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Democrats, Radical Islam and Communists an unholy alliance! |
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Written by Dr. Rich Swier
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Sunday, 29 June 2008 |
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 The Democratic Party has hired a group named Voting is Power (VIP) to register voters for the upcoming Presidential election. Voting is Power is under investigation by the Louisiana Secretary of State Jay Dardenne for voter fraud. So who is Voting is Power and why does that mean anything?
VIP is actually a Muslim American Society (MAS) organization. So who is the Muslim American Society?
The Muslim American Society is a front group for the Muslim Brotherhood whose militant credo states: "God is our objective, the Koran is our Constitution, the Prophet is our leader, struggle is our way, and death for the sake of God is the highest of our aspirations" In May 2005, Daveed Gartenstein-Ross reported in The Weekly Standard that [the Muslim American Society] MAS is a U.S. front group for the Muslim Brotherhood -- a claim supported by a September 19, 2004 Chicago Tribune story -- and, as such, wishes to see the United States governed by sharia, or Islamic law. "The message that all countries should be ruled by Islamic law," writes Gartenstein-Ross, "is echoed throughout MAS's membership curriculum. For example, MAS requires all its adjunct members to read Fathi Yakun's book To Be a Muslim. In that volume, Yakun spells out his expansive agenda: 'Until the nations of the world have functionally Islamic governments, every individual who is careless or lazy in working for Islam is sinful.'" Closely linked to MAS is the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation, whose Executive Director is Mahdi Bray, a former Students for a Democratic Society activist now affiliated with International ANSWER, an anti-war front group for the Communist World Workers Party. "Our mission," Bray has written, "is to build an integrated empowerment process for the American Muslim community." Toward this end, Bray and MAS have been involved in a voter-registration drive and an effort to train 1,000 "activists" in the "skills necessary for effective activism."
MAS also has close ties to Islamic American University, an unaccredited university in the Detroit suburb of Southfield, which teaches Islamic law and other subjects. (One IAU faculty member is Sheikh Yousef Al-Qaradhawi, who until at least June 2003 was also the Chairman -- in abstentia -- of the university's Board of Trustees. )
In addition, MAS operates programs for educating the young, providing fellowship for Muslim youth, creating its own network of Islamic schools, and sustaining a nationwide Council of Imams.
MAS was a signatory to a February 20, 2002 document, composed by the radical group Refuse & Resist, condemning military tribunals and the detention of immigrants apprehended in connection with post-9/11 terrorism investigations.
MAS strongly opposes the Patriot Act, which it says “strips away the fundamental checks and balances that safeguard many of our basic civil liberties,” and has “drastically infringed upon every American's rights by giving the government expanded powers to invade privacy, imprison and deport people without due process, and punish political dissent.”
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 29 June 2008 )
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Book Review: Medical Myths That Can Kill You |
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Written by Cisco
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Wednesday, 25 June 2008 |
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Book Review: Medical Myths That Can Kill You And 101 Truths That Can Save, Extend, and Improve Your Life, by Nancy L. Snyderman, M.D. Published by Crown Publishers, 2008. There are currently over 800,000 physicians practicing in the United States. By definition, some of these physicians are mediocre. That is to say, if we are to accept the idea that a particular physician is a superior physician, then we must also accept the idea that he or she is superior to other physicians who would, of necessity, be considered to be mediocre. But our acceptance of the idea of the existence of mediocre physicians within our health care system should in no way imply that we also accept, without challenge, the idea that these mediocre physicians should be allowed to write mediocre, irresponsible, and ill-informed books, and in Medical Myths That Can Kill You, And the 101 Truths That Will Save, Extend, and Improve Your Life we have just such a book. The book is written by Dr. Nancy L. Snyderman, the Chief Medical Editor of NBC News, and based upon the book's content, viewers of the NBC Nightly News may want to avoid taking seriously any advice that the doctor may provide. The irresponsible writing actually makes it's first appearance on the dust jacket of the book, where one finds the following statement: “Fact: Donating blood may lower your risk of heart disease.” It is understood that Dr. Snyderman is not the author of what is written on the dust jacket, but she should certainly be cognizant of what is found there, and one would hope that a medical doctor would have knowledge of the meaning of the word “fact.” Maybe in Dr. Snyderman's touchy-feely world of medical care, a doctor is allowed to state that a “possibility” is a “fact,” but here in the real world we draw distinctions between the two words. In the real world, I am not allowed to say “Fact: The Phoenix Lander may find three-eyed aliens on Mars tomorrow,” because I am not stating a fact. Some may say that I am being a bit too severe in a criticism that is largely semantical, but I would respond with a question: Are we not to expect a proper adherence to semantics in a book that is written by a physician and is purportedly written for the unwashed masses in an effort to set us misguided souls on the correct path to avoiding the medical myths that will kill us? I would think that a book about medical myths should be very clear and concise about what is an actual fact. If Dr. Snyderman is allowed to say that “possibilities” are “facts,” then are we not allowed to conversely treat the so-called “facts” in her book as mere “possibilities?” Unfortunately, the book is not an improvement upon it's dust jacket. One of Dr. Snyderman's “truths” that is found in the book proper is the following: “Truth: Statin drugs help fight cancer.” The foregoing statement demonstrates that either Dr. Snyderman is an irresponsible person or that she has a rather vague understanding of the word “truth.” In explaining this “truth,” Dr. Snyderman says the following: Taking statins “may halve your risk of developing colon and advanced prostate cancer while reducing the risk of pancreatic and esophageal cancer more than 50 percent.” Once again, Dr. Snyderman provides us with a possibility masquerading as a fact. Does she not see the difference between the definitive statement, “Statin drugs help fight cancer,” and the follow-up statement that they “may” decrease the risk of certain cancers? Dr. Snyderman cannot say definitively that statin drugs help fight cancer because even the National Cancer Institute is unwilling to make such a ridiculous statement. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 25 June 2008 )
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The Love Guru ... Mariska Hargitay |
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Written by Written by Jared Mobarak
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Friday, 20 June 2008 |
 I’ve always been told that if you have nothing good to say, don’t say anything at all. So, I have to tell you all the best parts of the new Michael Myers vehicle, The Love Guru. You’ve got one really funny joke about Guru Pitka’s mom getting a job that kills even though it was in the trailer, Stephen Colbert finally hits one out of the park as a robot cyborg after failing three previous times to elicit any laughs, Jessica Alba is gorgeous as always if you overlook her atrocious acting abilities, and Justin Timberlake shows he has no shame and steals every single second of screentime he is given. If Jacques “le coq” Grande had his own film, I’d pay to see it. Being that he is included in one that relies on physical humor, asinine wordplay, sexual innuendo, and Myers making a complete idiot of himself as he kills the funny out of every only slightly funny gag he does, Timberlake becomes the only reason I can say it was worth going to a free preview. The Love Guru is quite possibly the worst film I have ever seen and once I’m done writing this review I am going to crawl into bed and cry as I remember So I Married an Axe Murderer and the times when Myers could do no wrong (thanks for the Wayne’s World callback Mike, you actually made me realize how inferior this film is more).
There is truly no point in describing a plot because there isn’t one. The film exists as a series of set-pieces allowing Myers to act up his schtick and try to cause uproarious laughter in the audience. Besides some faint giggles at the fact that Myers himself smiles and winks at the camera, telling us he just told a joke, there is not too much to go on here. Sure there is a ton of uncomfortable laughter and gasps of awe at the wordplay—“can’t face” said real fast to sound like…ahem—that you are shocked to hear in a PG-13 film, but does that really make you think the this was a success? I mean, the main focus is supposed to be the idea that Pitka has been hired to get the star player on the Toronto Maple Leafs back with his ex-girlfriend so that his hockey skills will return and win his owner, the second generation of a cursed family, “Stanley’s Cup”. You almost believe this thread has some merit until the resolution is glossed over quickly and rectified without the bat of an eye. The thing is held together by concert interludes of Myers singing in his way over-the-top Indian accent for entire songs. Can you say filler? (Although I will admit, “More Than Words” was fantastic, especially the visual nods to the actual Extreme video.)
I might be wrapping this review up quickly to rest. My neck has some pain from too much shaking out of embarrassment for those collecting their paychecks on the screen. You could literally see the ca-ching dollar signs popping out of their eyeballs with every awkward moment. Some of the sight gags were funny, the first time they were used. I enjoyed the motorized magic carpet, the utter stupidity of Verne Troyer’s office being half size, and the “Kelestrator” of course, (I wonder why they didn’t TM that one). Admittedly, though, this is not my kind of comedy. While I enjoy a good low-brow laughfest like the next guy, I still would rather have a somewhat decently constructed story, something this tale lacks completely. Had the gags been separated and shown on a tv skit show, I might be calling them genius, however, when you string them together with the only common denominator being that the same characters are used, it gets old fast. Unfortunately, this film will work for a good chuck of America, but I just can’t condone the spending of millions of dollars on something so trite and unenjoyable as this packaged and sold mess.
Now I don’t want to leave Timberlake as the only good thing here. That would be doing a disservice to Manu Narayan who played Myers’ assistant. With spot-on timing and perfect facial expressions, it was good to see someone having fun playing off of the grotesque guru. A nice companion, he actually makes Pitka better each time they are doing a skit together. I’m not really sure what to say about Myers himself. On one hand, he totally commits to this character and must be given credit for that fact. The problem is, though, that the role itself is paper-thin and very, very tiresome. As for Romany Malco, our second lead—although he got the shaft of no top-billing—he does well for what he has been given. Come on man, you were in the amazing 40-Year Old Virgin and have a hit tv show “Weeds” for which you are a big part of its success. Please take the time to do some work that has merit. I mean, wow, who’d have thought I’d be saying Get Smart might be your best movie option this weekend.
Oh, and Ben Kingsley…can I have a word? I am going to have to take away your knighthood. Yes, I know how much you like it and how hard you worked to achieve the title, but I can’t allow someone with as little self respect as you keep the “Sir”. Why, oh why, would you continue to do drivel like this? You are an Academy Award winning thespian. I can only hope The Wackness is as good as it seems so you may redeem a little bit of that respect in my eyes.
The Love Guru 1/10 |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 20 June 2008 )
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Drill offshore? Yes we can! |
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Written by Dr. Rich Swier
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Wednesday, 18 June 2008 |
 The editorial in today's Sarasota Herald-Tribune (SH-T), a New York Times Company, titled, "Drilling for votes" is stereotypical liberal lies. The editorial boards environmentalist roots are showing and they just can't help themselves.
Environmentalists (read the SH-T) always put the "environment" above the good of the humans who have domain over it. In fact environmentalist policies have killed millions and done more harm to the environment than any other political movement in America. Iain Murray in his book "The Really Inconvenient Truths" points out, "American values like property [rights], enterprise, and freedom work well to protect the environment; and that the environment suffers when these values are replaced by contrary values like nationalization, central planning, and control."
A Federal ban on off shore drilling is nationalization, centralized planning, and control to the highest degree.
The rights to the oil and natural gas off the shores of Florida belongs to Floridians. There are in fact billions of barrels of oil and billions of cubic feet of natural gas just 50 miles off of our shores. We Floridians have the right to this off shore property and the right to exploit the resources contained there in. We all understand that we must extract this precious resource in an environmentally sensitive way but we must extract it.
China and Cuba are exploring and drilling for Florida's oil right now. Why can't we?
Now for the lies.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 19 June 2008 )
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Help lower gas prices - sign the petition and write your members of Congress |
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Written by Dr. Rich Swier
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Tuesday, 17 June 2008 |
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 This article is from Freedom's Watch. Rising oil prices are playing havoc with our economy. Continental Airlines just announced it's laying off 3,000 workers; Ford is considering slashing about 2,000 jobs. And now what you pay for electricity is going up as much as 29 percent. If you've had enough, please sign our petition and email your representative. Since the new majority took control of Congress in January 2007 on a pledge to bring down gas prices, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have not sent a single bill that would lower fuel costs to the President. Just the opposite. Reid tried to get the Senate to pass a "cap and trade" bill that could have actually raised the cost of gasoline by as much as $1.10/gal. Meanwhile, Senator Chuck Schumer's solution to skyrocketing gas prices is to bully Saudi Arabia into increasing production and lowering their price of oil. It doesn't have to be this way. Believe it or not, America may hold more oil than Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Venezuela - but it is closed off to exploration by our own government. So why bully Saudi Arabia when, in terms of oil production, we could become Saudi Arabia? The good news is that Congressman Mac Thornberry has introduced the No More Excuses Energy Act (H.R. 3089), which would allow for more oil drilling here at home, increase wind energy, encourage the construction of new refineries, and expand clean nuclear power. If 218 House members sign the discharge petition on the bill, it will be brought to the floor for a vote. |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 19 June 2008 )
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Calf Injuries and Magnesium Deficiency |
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Written by Cisco
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Saturday, 14 June 2008 |
 As often happens, I did not notice the trend until it affected me, personally. A few nights ago, in a game against the Cincinnati Reds, Albert Pujols had to be carried off the field due to a strained calf muscle. He pulled up lame in the seventh inning. This affects me personally because I am an Albert Pujols fan. I should also point out that, while I was a St. Louis Cardinals fan for many years, and I hope to be a Cardinals fan again in the future, I will not be a Cardinals fan as long as they have as their manager Tony LaRussa, the guy who personally ushered in the steroids era by turning a blind eye to what was demonstrably happening with the players that he managed. But we will devote another article to an invective against Tony LaRussa. For now, I will just say that I wish Albert Pujols all of the success in the world, but I root for the failure of the Cardinals, because one more year of failure might cause the permanent exit from baseball of the vegan lawyer who fancies himself a manager, but who is truly a blight upon Major League Baseball. Referring back to the first paragraph, the injury to Pujols caused me to think of all the similar injuries that have recently occurred. Here are just a few, with links to the web articles on each of them: Alfonso Soriano of Chicago Cubs Injures Calf Sean Casey of Detroit Tigers Injures Calf Thomas Jones of New York Jets Injures Calf Ronnie Belliard of Washington Nationals Injures Calf Moises Alou of New York Mets Injures Calf Jack Wilson of Pittsburgh Pirates Injures Calf Maria Sharapova Injures Calf Felix Hernandez of Boston Red Sox has Tightness in Calf Anthony Thomas of Buffalo Bills Injures Calf Brent Barry of San Antonio Spurs Injures Calf The potential list of all of the calf injuries in professional sports could fill several pages. Indeed, my Google search, which I limited to just professional baseball, basketball, and football, returned over three thousand results. We all know that some of those returned results are duplicates, but the search does demonstrate that there is something of a trend, if not an epidemic, in calf muscle injuries. Why are the calves of athletes attracting so much attention? |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 15 June 2008 )
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Quality 2007 TV Shows That Survived the Writer's Strike to Return in 2008 |
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Written by Jared Mobarak
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Thursday, 12 June 2008 |
2007 proved to not be the ideal year for a television show’s debut. The always looming writer’s strike caused many to fold under early and others to wrap up stories on bad nights with bad ratings in order to somewhat satisfy the fans as their demise was all but certain. Stations needed to start picking and choosing what shows to push and put their money behind for commercials and advertisements, hoping to at least save a couple in order to serve them full seasons next year. Some of the ones I found myself enjoying didn’t make the cut, but the tears have ceased and I’ve decided to look to the future with those that will continue on and not wallow in the past. With that said, I say my prayers are with you “October Road,” “New Amsterdam,” and “Journeyman,” you all died too young. Don’t be too jealous for those that live to fight another year (at least).
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Last Updated ( Friday, 20 June 2008 )
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Written by Dr. Rich Swier
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Thursday, 12 June 2008 |
 This article consists of excerpts from a recently declassified intelligence assessment from Canada's Integrated Threat Assessment Center written on June 29, 2007.
A "lone wolf" is an individual who is inspired by a terrorist ideology or organization to conduct attacks, but acts independently, without established ties or accountability. Lone wolves do not associate with fellow-conspirators.
The Internet has become an important catalyst for inspiring homegrown extremists, including "lone wolves", by providing ideological motivation, encouragement, justification, target information, and instruction on techniques, all in an anonymous environment. Lone wolves motivated by Islamist extremism are a new concern. Several incidents carried out or planned by these extremist-inspired individual attackers have occurred in the US.
For the purpose of this assessment, a "lone wolf" is an individual who is inspired by a terrorist ideology or organization to conduct independent attacks. They may receive support from friends, but plan and conduct the attack alone. Lone wolves in North America have traditionally taken their inspiration from right-wing groups, single-issue causes, or national liberation movements. Lone wolves motivated by Islamic extremism are a recent development. Islamist terrorist strategists are now advocating that Muslims take action at a grassroots level, without waiting for instructions. Non-ideological factors, such as personal revenge, greed or coercion, do not appear to be motivators.
Lone-wolf attacks stem from the strategy of Leaderless Resistance (LR). LR emphasizes having no organizational structure and no formalized leadership. Small cells, or individuals, are self-sustaining, driven by ideology and capable of independent judgement and action. Fictionalized scenarios of LR, written by right-wing theorist William Pierce in his books, The Turner Diaries and Hunter, inspired lone wolves. Scenarios described in Hunter were later acted out by individuals such as:
Eric Robert Rudolph (1996 Atlanta Olympic bomber, also targeted abortion providers and gay bars, killing two and injuring over 100)
James Kopp (targeted abortion providers, killing one doctor in Amherst, New York)
Bufford Furrow (targeted a Jewish community centre in Los Angeles, killing one and injuring five)
Right-wing "lone wolves" have also attempted to obtain and use chemical and biological agents in their attacks. In April 2006, white supremacist Demetrius "Van" Crocker was convicted of trying to obtain Sarin nerve gas and C-4 explosives, which he intended to use against black residents in Jackson, Tennessee.
Extremists motivated by single issues such as the environment or the animal rights movement have also adopted the lone-wolf strategy. Radicals within these two movements have claimed responsibility for more than $100 million in damage in North America during the past two decades. Activists can become part of the eco-terror movement simply by carrying out an illegal action on its behalf. David Barbarash, a supporter of the Canadian Animal Liberation Front (ALF), claimed that the ALF "is not a group or a club that you can join, but a concept which is only realized when an action takes place under that name". Modeled after ALF, the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) consists of people described on its website as "anonymous not only to the public but also to one another".
Growing Regard for Lone-wolf Tactics among Islamist Extremists
Similar to the shift that occurred in right-wing groups to lone wolves and small cells, the success of counterterrorism security forces against AQ and its affiliates may be bringing about another evolution in Islamist extremist strategy. Islamist extremists now promote a model that encourages independent, grassroots extremists to conduct their own attacks.
One of the most important advocates of acts of terrorism carried out by small, autonomous cells or individuals is Abu Musab al-Suni (Mustafa bin Abd al-Qadir Setmariam Nasar), a prominent terrorist lecturer, trainer and military instructor. In his book The Call for an International Islamic Resistance, al-Suni outlined a strategy for a global conflict on as many fronts as possible and taking the form of resistance by small cells or individuals, rather than traditional guerrilla warfare. To avoid penetration and defeat by security forces, he advised that organizational links be kept to an absolute minimum.
Other more anonymous calls for spontaneous Islamist extremist action (which may include lone-wolf attacks) appear on the Internet. For instance, in a 2003 article on a extremist Internet forum, Sada al Jihad (Echoes of Jihad), Usama bin Laden sympathizers were encouraged to take action without waiting for instructions.
As a subset of homegrown Islamist terrorism in North America, lone-wolf attacks or planned attacks seem to be on the increase. Several such cases have been recorded since 9/11:
Extremists and terrorists worldwide use the Internet for a variety of purposes. For the lone wolf, it provides instruction and provides inspiration and motivation, all within an anonymous environment.
Islamist extremist web sites offer not only theoretical and religious instruction but also practical on-line training courses that urge visitors to take action on their own. For example, the comprehensive Encyclopedia of Preparation for Jihad is available online. Professional, video-formatted instructional materials detailing various explosive manufacturing recipes have also begun to circulate widely on the web in the past two years, along with at least 22 other separate audio-visual terrorist manuals.
Lone-wolf Attacks in Canada
So far there have been no Islamist-inspired lone-wolf attacks in Canada. However, a number of lone-wolf and small-cell attacks motivated by other causes have occurred since the 1970s. Ideologies motivating attacks in Canada are primarily: race-based hate; eco-terrorism; animal rights; and the anti-abortion movement. Political and religiously motivated issues in the Sikh, Armenian and Sri Lankan communities, stemming from their countries of origin, have also inspired lone-wolf attacks. The religiously motivated "Sons of Freedom" Doukhobors have inspired uniquely Canadian lone wolves. Canada has been named on at least four occasions, by AQ or its affiliates, as a legitimate target. Further, in June 2006, Canadian police and security forces disrupted an AQ-inspired homegrown cell (the Toronto 17).
ITAC Assessment
Lone wolves act without established ties or accountability to leadership. As they are self initiating and carry out their attacks individually,
The Internet is helpful to an individual who may be preparing to conduct a lone-wolf attack, providing ideological motivation, encouragement, justification, all within an anonymous environment. |
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Last Updated ( Monday, 16 June 2008 )
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