Displaying posts published in

August 2018

TOM GROSS ON ANTI-ANTISEMITISM IN ENGLAND

https://wp.tomgrossmedia.com/mideastdispatches/

In a tweet last week, Dan Hogan, who worked on the British Labour Party’s internal disciplinary inquiries (but has now quit), revealed the scale of allegations investigated. Hogan said: “I’ve done plenty of disciplinary cases against Labour members who compared Israel to the Nazis, peddled conspiracy theories about Israel, promoted Holocaust deniers, praised terrorists, and who questioned the Britishness or loyalty of British Jews.”

Other MPs from the party’s moderate wing said that the party does not have enough staff to handle all the anti-Semitic allegations coming in about Labour Party members.

This is another in an occasional series of dispatches about British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who continues to rise in some opinion polls (largely because of the government’s difficulties over Brexit) and is currently a favorite to be the next prime minister of the United Kingdom. The UK is, of course, a nuclear-armed power and a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

(This dispatch is primarily for readers in America and elsewhere since papers such as the New York Times have inadequately explained what is happening in the UK.)

The cover of yesterday’s Times of London comes is hardly surprising. The far left in many ways share the same anti-Semitic ideology of the extreme right. It led to the murder and persecution of Jews in Soviet Russia, for example. (Because there are laws against race hatred and anti-Semitism in many countries today, including the UK, they often disguise their anti-Semitism as anti-Zionism.)

John McCain Dead at 81 By Julie Kelly

https://amgreatness.com/2018/08/25/john-mccai

Senator John McCain (R-Ariz) died of brain cancer today. His family announced on Friday that he would discontinue treatment for the deadly disease he has battled for more than a year. He was 81.

McCain has assumed many titles over the past 50 years, including prisoner-of-war, presidential candidate, political maverick, and senator. His lasting legacy might be his latest role: An ardent foe of President Donald Trump. The two have exchanged barbs for the past few years, and this week will feature many recriminations about what Trump has said about the former senator, and how “pro-Trump” outlets and pundits handle the news of McCain’s death. In many ways, the Trump-McCain battle represents the fault lines of the contemporary Republican Party.

But tonight, most of us are remembering the pain of losing someone we love—particularly a parent—at the hands of a cruel and destructive disease. No one is immune from cancer’s unrelenting, agonizing, and humiliating rampage. When you watch someone you think is invincible succumb to an unyielding physical monster that the smartest people in the world cannot stop, it humbles you in a way that nothing else can. No title and no amount of money can insulate you from the doom prescribed by the most potent forms of cancer.

There will be a time to evaluate John McCain’s record, his impact on the Republican Party, and influence on national politics. But tonight is not the night. Tonight is the night to pray for Cindy McCain and his entire family. Even if you aren’t the praying type, it’s a time to remember your loved ones who have suffered from this horrific disease. And toast the days that you—and those around you—are cancer-free.

The Candidate By Karl Notturno

https://amgreatness.com/2018/08/26/th

He has a firm handshake and a confident smile. He is already planning his congressional run with his staff and advisors, but for now he will have to do with being the student government president and then a local politician. He is well versed in the conventional platitudes of political rhetoric, but also has an uncanny ability to tell you exactly what you want to hear. You can never really tell who he is or what he believes, but you’re still going to end up voting for him. After all, he is “the candidate.”

Growing up on a steady diet of “The West Wing” and Fox News, the candidate spent years perfecting his political persona. By the time he reached college, he had developed a false sense of modesty to mask his otherwise off-putting unbridled ambition. He’ll skillfully deflect questions about his political aspirations and will always deny that he wants to run for office. He’ll explain that politics is a dirty business that requires tremendous levels of personal sacrifice. Why would he put himself through all of that if he didn’t have to? But… of course… he has to. It’s his duty to work in public service—after all, he’s the only person who can fix all of the problems that we have. So, can he count on your vote?

Much to the candidate’s chagrin, there is an age requirement to run for national office. And so, he settles in for his runs at student and local government. Realizing that conservatives are social pariahs on campus, he cultivates his image as a well-meaning pragmatic practitioner who won’t drag ideology into his decision making. He works hard to solve the practical problems that affect average students on a day-to-day basis and he runs one hell of a ground game on campus. And because of this, everyone knows him. And though many know that he’s a conservative, he doesn’t make it central to his identity. Instead, he makes it easy for liberals to excuse away his political affiliation. “Oh, he’s from a small town in a rural state… he’ll come around eventually.” “Oh, he means well and he is so devoted to his religion… besides, look at his dreamy eyes.”

Sweden Takes a Chance on New Populist Wave By Christopher Gage

https://amgreatness.com/2018/08/26/sweden

American progressives are often beside themselves when extolling the apparent and deceptive wonders of the Scandinavian model.

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) doesn’t stop yapping about Denmark. Indeed, whenever “democratic socialists” are asked to enumerate a country in which their creed has actually worked and not ended in the repression and slaughter of countless people, or the immiseration of many more, they always point to one of the Scandinavian countries.

Trouble is, those countries are certainly not socialist.

Swedish Social Democrats Are In Trouble
Sweden is often the first pick. And for good reason. The consensual, unashamedly egalitarian high-tax, high-spend Nordic model has been the darling of Western progressives for decades. Even The Economist once said the Nordic model was the future.

The Swedes are cosseted from cradle to grave. They’re some of the happiest people on earth. And some of the most trusting. The Swedish economy is booming. Strong collaboration-minded unions ensure wages are high. Those willingly steep taxes fund “free” healthcare and “free” college. Lose your job in Sweden, and the government will pay 80 percent of your previous salary for the first 200 days of your unemployment. Sweden, in the progressive mind at least, works.

John McCain, War Hero, Dies at 81, after Succumbing to Brain Cancer By Tyler O’Neil

https://pjmedia.com/trending/john-mccain-dies-at-81-war-hero-finally-claimed-by-brain-cancer/

On Saturday, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) passed away at the age of 81. His family announced on Friday that he had decided not to continue medical treatment for his glioblastoma. A prisoner of war in Vietnam for five and a half years, McCain launched a powerful presidential bid in 2008 and served 31 years in the U.S. Senate.

An aide told the Associated Press that McCain had passed away around 8:30 p.m. EST Saturday.
The Associated Press
✔ @AP

BREAKING: Aide says senator, war hero and GOP presidential candidate John McCain has died.

Long dubbed a “maverick,” McCain often bucked political trends. He tussled with Donald Trump, and ultimately voted against the Republican effort to repeal Obamacare. That vote made him a hero among liberals and Democrats, and anathema to many Republicans.

Despite their disagreements in the past, President Donald Trump expressed his “deepest sympathies and respect” to McCain’s family. “My deepest sympathies and respect go out to the family of Senator John McCain. Our hearts and prayers are with you!” Trump tweeted. CONTINUE AT SITE

The War Continues: ISIS Searching for New Land By Veronika Kyrylenko

https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/08/the_war_continues_isis_searching_for_new_land.html

In his first State of the Union address in January 2018, President Donald Trump declared ISIS militarily defeated and reminded the Congress of his 2017 pledge to work with America’s allies to extinguish ISIS from the face of the Earth. He declared that “one year later, I’m proud to report that the coalition to defeat ISIS has liberated very close to 100 percent of the territory just recently held by these killers in Iraq and Syria.” Indeed, since President Trump took office, ISIS has lost around 21,400 square miles, or 96%, of its territory.

Tremendous progress in fighting ISIS was made in May, when a Coalition strike that was a part of Operation Roundup, which began on May 1 to accelerate the defeat of ISIS in the Middle Euphrates River Valley and Iraq-Syria border region, killed ISIS leader Abu Khattab al-Iraqi, who oversaw revenue generation through the illicit sale of oil and gas. Overall, during the last two years, ISIS oil revenue was slashed by more than 90%.

Moreover, Operation Roundup recently resumed in mid-August to gain ground and remove terrorists from the battlefield through offensive operations coupled with precision coalition strike support, Department of Defense officials said.