RUTHFULLY YOURS

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/17/john-kerry-benghazi_n_3101643.html

WASHINGTON (AP) — Seven months after the attack on a U.S. diplomatic mission in Libya, the Obama administration on Wednesday insisted that it was making progress in holding accountable those responsible for killing Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.

Testifying before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Secretary of State John Kerry said the U.S. has identified people it believes were involved in the Benghazi attack. FBI investigators are still combing through video and other evidence gathered from largely lawless eastern Libya, he said.

Kerry, however, didn’t say if any suspect has yet been arrested, detained or otherwise targeted by American or Libyan authorities — a lingering black eye for an administration that has repeatedly promised justice.

“We are making progress,” Kerry said. “There’s video, as you all know. We have identified people. And they are building a case. You know, we’re going through the tedious, laborious and very difficult process of gaining evidence from a part of the country which is dangerous and working in a place where the standards are different and the expectations are different. We’re working through that.”

The former Massachusetts senator, testifying before Congress for the first time as secretary of state, fielded several angry questions from Republican lawmakers over the administration’s diplomatic security posture ahead of the attack and its real-time response to violence in a city that served as the base for the U.S.-backed rebels who overthrew dictator Moammar Gadhafi a year-and-a-half ago. They included President Barack Obama’s oft-repeated but until now entirely unfulfilled declaration to hold Benghazi’s perpetrators accountable.

http://politicalmavens.com/

In Thomas Friedman’s op ed on the Boston marathon massacre (Bring On the Next Marathon, NYT 4/17), the boldface caption insists “We’re just not afraid anymore.” Perhaps this is true for a traveling journalist who doesn’t use the subway daily or who isn’t forced to spend all his days in the 9/11 city of New York, but for most thinking people who work and live here, there is a great deal to fear. We live in a porous society where criminals roam free yet politicians complain about the “discriminatory” stop and frisk policies of the police, even though they have successfully reduced crime precisely in the neighborhoods that most affect the complaining minorities and their liberal champions. If you ride the subways, you know how many passengers wear enormous back-packs, large enough to conceal an arsenal of weapons. These are allowed to be carried into movie theaters, playgrounds, parks, sports arenas, shopping centers, department stores and restaurants with no security checks whatsoever. On the national front, immigration policies are more concerned with politically correct equality than with the reality of which groups are fomenting most of the terror around the world today. Our northern and southern borders are infiltrated daily by undocumented people slipping in beyond the government’s surveillance or control.

Despite the numerous declarations of Islamist hatred of the U.S. and the exhortation to seek revenge through jihad, despite the number of successful and thwarted incidents of Muslim violence in our own country since 9/11, we continue to allow a questionable population of students and young adults to enter our country legally, without the means to keep tabs on what they are doing once they are here. We do little to stem the successful, extremist Muslim infiltration of our prison system, preying on an already violent population with the dangerous filter of seeing the expression of this violence as religiously ordained. Though no one has yet claimed responsibility for the Boston bombings, the modus operandi is exactly the same as many Islamist terrorist groups, from the type of bomb to the location of its detonation. If you or your family were victimized by this grotesque apparatus stuffed with nails to maximize its lethal thrust, why shouldn’t you be afraid, as well as agonizingly heartbroken? If you were a bystander who came withinl a hair’s breadth of being a victim, why shouldn’t you question what our government can do to actually protect us from another such incident?

http://www.algemeiner.com/2013/04/17/einsteins-never-before-seen-israel-independence-day-speech-revealed/ Einstein’s Never Before Seen Israel Independence Day Speech Revealed A newly published document from the Israel State Archive and the Albert Einstein Archive at Hebrew University offers insight into famed physicist Albert Einstein ‘s view of Israel and the Middle East. The document is of a speech Einstein was to give on Israel’s Independence […]

http://www.timesofisrael.com/supermans-75th-puts-spotlight-on-cleveland-roots/

Superman’s 75th puts spotlight on Cleveland roots

Creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, sons of Jewish immigrants, devised the superhero to escape harsh times during the Depression

CLEVELAND (AP) — The tough, blue-collar roots of Superman’s creators are getting a fresh look on the superhero’s 75th anniversary.

Creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster lived just a few blocks apart in the Cleveland neighborhood that shaped their teenage lives, their dreams and the imagery of the Man of Steel.

In the city’s Glenville neighborhood, still in the throttling grip of the Great Depression, Siegel and Shuster labored on their creation for years before finally selling Superman to a publisher.

The Man of Steel became a Depression-era bootstrap strategy for the Siegel/Shuster team, according to Brad Ricca, a professor at nearby Case Western Reserve University who uses Superman in his classes.

“They really just saw it as a way out,” he said.

Author Brad Ricca says Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster reflected Cleveland’s ethnic mix: both were sons of Jewish immigrants, struggled during the Depression and hustled to make something of themselves. (photo credit: AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

In his upcoming book “Super Boys,” Ricca says the story of Superman’s creation is mostly about their friendship: two boys dreaming of “fame, riches and girls” in a time when such dreams are all the easier to imagine because of the crushing economic misery.

Ricca said Siegel and Shuster reflected Cleveland’s ethnic mix: both were sons of Jewish immigrants, struggled during the Depression and hustled to make something of themselves.

“The Depression is all about, you know, if nobody is going to give you a job, you make your own, you find your own niche and we find that’s what they are doing,” Ricca said.

I share the outrage of every American citizen with regard to the terrorism in Boston. We don’t know who did it…what group or lunatic or sleeper cell….let the FBI and CIA do the work and investigation.

I think of Israel whose towns and citizens have been subject to this type of carnage every single year of its 65 year history. Rockets from Gaza, bombs in buses, cafeterias, markets, hotels, celebrations…..endless terrorism.

Now, when the murderers who are responsible for the deadly explosions in Boston are apprehended, will anyone dare suggest that they get an independent state in the heartland of Massachusetts?

Just asking…..rsk

http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/bloody-boston

In his short statement following the bombing of the Boston marathoners on Monday, the President did not say either “terror” or “terrorist.” This is an administration that has virtually banished these words, but an unidentified “White House official” did say that it was an act of terrorism within hours after the blast.

On June 1, 2009, Abuljakim Muhammed, a Muslim convert from Memphis, Tennessee, was charged with shooting two soldiers outside a military recruiting center in Little Rock, Arkansas. One died and the other was wounded. He claimed ties to al Qaeda and said the attack was “to fight those who wage war on Islam and Muslims.”

Later that year, on December 25, a Nigerian on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, attempted to ignite an explosive device hidden in his underwear. It failed to detonate and, when taken into custody, instead of being treated as a combatant in war, he was read his Miranda rights. It is noteworthy that he was already on a government watch list thanks to a warning from his father!

In 2010, a car bomb was discovered in Times Square, New York City. It had ignited but failed to detonate. Faisal Shahzad pleaded guilty to the bomb attempt and ten other terrorism and weapons charges.

Since September 11, 2001, America has been remarkably free of terrorist acts on our soil. I wish I could credit the Department of Homeland Security and the other intelligence agencies we maintain at the cost of billions annually, but it only takes one incident like Boston to remind us that one terrorist can wreak havoc with a bomb or two. Reportedly, New York City detected and deterred sixteen comparable plots since 9/11.

So, in effect, it is now September 12, 2001 all over again.

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/kerry-meeting-with-saudi-foreign-minister-abruptly-closed-to-the-press/

Kerry’s previous rounds of meetings with foreign ministers had been open to the press. And the meeting with the Saudi Foreign Minister should have been far less controversial than his meetings with foreign ministers in Asia where the North Korean crisis was still underway.

The meeting with the Saudi Foreign Minister should have been open to the press as well. But then suddenly, it wasn’t.

A meeting Secretary of State John Kerry was to hold with Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Saud Al-Faisal was abruptly closed to press coverage Tuesday morning.

The State Department provided no reason for the change, which was announced just 15 minutes before the scheduled 10 A.M. session, but media reports have said that a Saudi national in the U.S. on a student visa is a “person of interest” to investigators probing the bombings at the Boston Marathon on Monday.

“Apologies for short notice,” the State Department’s press office told reporters as it announced the change. A spokesperson did not immediately respond to a query about the closure of the meeting, which had been scheduled to include a so-called “camera spray” at the top of the session.

The Saudis tend to be aggressive in protecting their nationals, even when they are involved in terrorism. And Kerry clearly is trying to avoid any kind of public exchange or questions at the topic.

The abrupt shutdown suggests that the State Department left the window open as long as possible in the hopes that the Saudi national would become a non-issue. The shutdown suggests that whatever direction the FBI investigation is headed in, its people are unable to tell State that the Saudi national in custody is not a player. Otherwise Kerry could have easily shot down the question.

It also suggests that the Saudis might want to press Kerry privately on their usual agenda of exculpating Saudi Arabia for its terrorist backing and transferring over the Saudi national to their custody.

Article printed from FrontPage Magazine: http://frontpagemag.com

URL to article: http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/kerry-meeting-with-saudi-foreign-minister-abruptly-closed-to-the-press/

http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/the-post-american-world-war/print/

World War III may already be here. The left spent decades warning that our warmongering would bring on a new global war; but it was their peacemongering that did it instead.

World War II did not begin when the German army entered Poland, but when Britain and France began to appease Hitler. The war was only a matter of waiting around for the inevitable. And now we are the ones watching and waiting for the inevitable.

For half a century, the United States kept the peace through the force of its existence. There were some difficult times, but for the most part it was the sheer bulk of its military budgets and the ranks of nuclear warheads that prevented not only the big war, but also most of the little wars.

The left complained incessantly about those budgets and those missiles. It draped itself in peace signs and slapped on bumper stickers like “Cukes Not Nukes”. Its entertainers made movies ridiculing generals who believed in the balance of power as maniacs. Its pundits wrote books explaining why every problem in the world was caused by American power being used to aid fascist dictators and keep down progressive rebels like Che and Pol Pot.

And then American power finally collapsed. There had been early warning signs under Carter and Clinton, but with Obama it finally happened. The message went out that there was no longer a great power to serve as a stabilizing influence. If anyone wanted to discuss global warming or a fund to empower women in Southeast Asia, they could come down to Washington, but if they wanted to discuss how to use the balance of power keep the world from falling apart, they were out of luck.

The message was received. It was received in Cairo where the Muslim Brotherhood got to work overthrowing allied governments and replacing them with theocracies. It was received in Asia where China and North Korea set to work moving in on American allies.

The Middle East is burning. Asia looks like it might be next. The experts offer all sorts of proposals from giving more free stuff to North Korea to giving free stuff to the Syrian rebels instead, but stability against aggression can’t be achieved with giveaways. Even soft power requires hard power behind it. When there’s no hard power then the soft power is helpless.

URL to article: http://pjmedia.com/blog/boston-mystery-deepens-as-new-one-unfolds-in-d-c/

A frustrating day of no leads or suspects emerging from the FBI’s quest to track down the Boston Marathon bomber took a strange turn Tuesday in Washington as a letter to a Republican senator tested positive for ricin.

Mail making its way to the Hill has been screened off-site for toxic substances ever since the 2001 anthrax letters, and it was here that the letter to Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) was intercepted.

“Earlier today the United States Capitol Police was notified by the Senate mail handling facility that it received an envelope containing a white granular substance. The envelope was immediately quarantined by the facility’s personnel and USCP HAZMAT responded to the scene. Preliminary tests indicate the substance found was Ricin,” said Public Information Officer Shennell S. Antrobus in a statement.

“The material is being forwarded to an accredited laboratory for further analysis. The USCP is partnering with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate this incident. This is an ongoing investigation.” Lab tests in Maryland and field tests were positive.

Wicker, who has been placed under protection, simply added it was an ongoing investigation and said he and his wife “appreciate everyone’s thoughts and prayers.”

“I want to thank our law enforcement officials for their hard work and diligence in keeping those of us who work in the Capitol complex safe,” the senator added.

Senators were told about the incident at an early evening briefing led by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and FBI Director Robert Mueller that was expected to focus on information about the Boston terrorist attack. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) wrongly told reporters that a suspect was in custody for the ricin letter, which had a Mempis postmark and no return address.

For apparently having so little information about the bombing, the administration tried to convey the message that Americans didn’t need to fear a follow-up attack — even as a nervous White House briefly evacuated today because of a suspicious package.

“What I’ve indicated to you is what we now know. We know it was bombs that were set off. We know that, obviously, they did some severe damage. We do not know who did them. We do not know whether this was an act of an organization or an individual or individuals. We don’t have a sense of motive yet,” President Obama said during a morning statement. The daily press briefing with spokesman Jay Carney was canceled, and Obama didn’t take questions from reporters after his remarks.

http://pjmedia.com/andrewmccarthy/2013/04/16/as-white-house-utters-the-t-word/?print=1

The Obama administration, which generally chokes on the word “terrorism” and fought against applying it to the jihadist atrocities at Fort Hood and Benghazi, is calling yesterday’s Boston Marathon bombing “terrorism.” Its reasoning, coupled with the way the term was rolled out, is intriguing.

Initially, President Obama made a brief statement to the nation last night in which, characteristically, he did not use the word “terrorism.” Moments afterward, however, an unidentified “senior administration official” pronounced that the bombing was a terrorist attack, telling Fox News, “When multiple devices go off, that’s an act of terrorism.”

In point of fact, while bombing is a common tactic of terrorists for obvious reasons, the choice of attack-method is not what makes violence “terrorism.” If, say, the mafia were to use two or three car bombs to rub out several rival gangsters at the same time, that would not be terrorism even though “multiple devices” would be involved. Terrorism is violence directed at political communities — usually, nations and their governments. It is carried out for the specific purpose of intimidating the political community into submitting to the terrorists’ preferred policies, and, significantly, it is almost always ideologically motivated.

That last attribute of terrorism is the cause of the Obama administration’s paralyzing misgivings about the T-word. The president is mulishly determined to cultivate Islamic-supremacist governments and movements like the Muslim Brotherhood. The stubborn problem is that al Qaeda — the only Muslim outfit the administration seems willing to hang the “terrorist” label on — is also Islamic-supremacist. That is, al Qaeda is adherent to the same ideology — based on sharia, Islam’s legal code and societal framework — as the groups the administration considers “allies” and “moderates.”