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Ruth King

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THE DONALD DUCKS CONSERVATIVE PRINCIPLES IN SPECULATING A CHOICE FOR VEEP

By on January 17th, 2016

Trump says liberal Republican Scott Brown would make a great VP By Ed Straker
Donald Trump says that former senator Scott Brown, one of the most liberal Republicans, would make a great vice president.

Donald Trump said Saturday that Scott Brown would be a vice president straight out of “central casting.”

“You know what? He’s central casting,” Trump replied, nodding. “Look at that guy! He’s central casting! A great guy and a beautiful wife and a great family. So important!”

So who is Scott Brown? First of all, Scott Brown is a big loser. He filled the partial term of Teddy Kennedy and was defeated for re-election in Massachusetts. Then he carpetbagged over to New Hampshire and lost a Senate race there. It’s inconceivable that Trump would call a two-time loser great VP material.

But even more, Scott Brown is extremely liberal:

Brown does not support President Obama’s health care reform plan in its current form as approved by the Democratic-led House and Senate. [But] Brown supported the 2006 Massachusetts health care reform, which requires all residents to have health insurance, with a state-subsidized plan created for those who cannot afford to insure themselves. Brown refers to the currently legalized same-sex marriage in New Hampshire as a settled issue, which he does not wish to change. Brown has said he personally believes marriage is between a man and a woman, but would still oppose a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. He is in favor of civil unions. Brown has stated that Roe v. Wade is settled law and is self-described as pro-choice.

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Obama’s Islamophilia By Michael Widlanski

By on January 17th, 2016

If Barack Obama is right, there is no Islamic terror wave today, just a few “incidents.”

Likewise, progressive politicians in Germany, Britain, Sweden and other parts of Europe say much the same thing: no need to worry — only isolated incidents.

The European progressives have been saying for years that reports of Muslim immigrants carrying out sexual assaults on non-Muslims, committing hate crimes against Jews, planning terror assaults on newspapers, cartoonists and authors are the products of “Islamophobia” — an unreasoning fear of Muslims.

The facts say that Obama and the European progressives are wrong. Indeed, the facts show that Obama and many European leaders — and leaders of public opinion such as newspaper editors and television directors — have been trying to hide the sad truth, by claiming that people who see the truth are suffering from a “phobia.”

The Soviet Union tried a similar tactic. For years, anyone who criticized Soviet policy was classified as a mental case, shipped off to a well-guarded mental asylum.

The recent New Year’s Eve rapes and assaults this year in in Cologne and other German towns by gangs of Muslim men were hidden by German politicians some of whom even tried to blame the women for bringing it on themselves.

In Britain, local authorities conspired for years to hide a wave of hundreds even thousands — of sexual abuse crimes committed by Muslim immigrants.

In France, police and media conspired to hide the rising tide of Muslim hate crimes against Jews, burying the stories or classifying them as property offenses. French newspapers began to take the terror a bit more seriously when the terrorists attacked a French magazine, Charlie Hebdo, a year ago.

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Barry and the Pirates By William A. Levinson

By on January 17th, 2016

It is particularly telling that Barack Obama spent part of his State of the Union speech telling us that the state of our Union is strong while Iranian pirates seized two U.S. Navy vessels and then, as pointed out by Rick Moran, violated the Geneva Conventions by publishing a photo of the captured sailors on their knees with their hands on their heads.

The Iranian action was both piracy and an intentional act of war against the United States. If the boats strayed into Iranian waters due to navigational or mechanical problems, Iran was obliged under international law to render them assistance. “Accidents in international air or sea traffic, even those involving military vessels, generally require nations to assist the victims and keep hands off the stricken planes or ships, the experts said.” Note also that “Iranian officials searched [the boats] for advanced technology and sensitive communications.”

If this is not enough to define Iran’s behavior as piracy and an act of war, Moran also pointed out that an Iranian general said openly that its purpose was to teach the United States a lesson. “‘This incident in the Persian Gulf, which probably will not be the American forces’ last mistake in the region, should be a lesson to troublemakers in the U.S. Congress,’ Major General Hassan Firouzabadi, head of Iran’s armed forces, was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.”

The Iranian pirates then drove this point home by publishing humiliating images of our service members on their knees with their hands over their heads (a war crime) as well as captured American weapons. In addition, we have to ask how the pirates managed to capture the boats in the first place.

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Cruz, Iowa, and the Hidden GOP Base Vote BY Rich Baehr

By on January 17th, 2016

Texas Senator Ted Cruz, unlike pretty much all of his rivals for the Republican nomination for president, has had a disciplined and careful plan for winning.

Other contenders were thrown off course by the emergence of Donald Trump as the clear poll leader nationally and in virtually every state, and seemed unable to handle Trump’s ability to overwhelmingly dominate media coverage of the race while sprinkling in putdowns of the other candidates. Cruz, on the other hand, continued to do what he has done since his election to the Senate in 2012, and with his immediate forays into the early 2016 caucus and primary states in the winter of 2013. His approach has been to stay to the right of every other possible Republican contender, and to claim the leadership role in the conservative base’s war with the party’s establishment and leaders in the House and Senate.

When neurosurgeon Ben Carson became a favorite of evangelicals, Cruz’ strategy to win Iowa based on his own strong ties to evangelicals and conservative voters was in jeopardy. With Trump leading the pack and competitive in Iowa, a Carson victory in that state would have relegated Cruz to third place or worse, and damaged any ability to build on Iowa elsewhere. Cruz seemed to understand from the start that taking on Trump was likely to be a loser for whichever candidate took this approach. So Cruz played nice with Trump, and waited for the evangelicals infatuation with Carson to run its course.

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Students Demand that Rhodes Statue at Oriel College, Oxford University be Removed…Please Read a Pointed Reply By Roland Paterson-Jones

By on January 17th, 2016

“There is a typically juvenile, lamely PC, Leftist student and staff demand at Oriel College that a statue of Cecil John Rhodes — a large benefactor of the College and Oxford University (the Rhodes Scholarships as one example) — be removed because he was seen as an instrument of British colonialism in Southern Africa many years ago. The college fecklessly has suggested a disclaimer notice of any support for Rhodes’ actions be placed next to the statue.. This is a pointed reply… (Hat tip to AP) ” Dr. John A

“Reply to the POO throwers & the “Rhodes Must Fall ” activists , From Oriel College Oxford .. By Roland Paterson-Jones December 29, 2015 at https://www.facebook.com/rolandpj/posts/10153197336611646 ·

“Dear scrotty students, Adjective. (comparative more scrotty, superlative most scrotty). (slang) grotty; dirty; unpleasant). Cecil Rhodes’s generous bequest has contributed greatly to the comfort and well-being of many generations of Oxford students – a good many of them, dare we say it, better, brighter and more deserving than you. This doesn’t necessarily mean we approve of everything Rhodes did in his lifetime – but then we don’t have to. Cecil Rhodes died over a century ago. Autres temps, autres moeurs2.( If wishes were fishes we’d all cast nets. … Translation 2: One good turn deserves another)

If you don’t understand what this means – and it wouldn’t remotely surprise us if that were the case – then we really think you should ask yourself the question: “Why am I at Oxford?”

Oxford, let us remind you, is the world’s second oldest extant university. Scholars have been studying here since at least the 11th century. We’ve played a major part in the invention of Western civilisation, from the 12th century intellectual renaissance through the Enlightenment and beyond. Our alumni include William of Ockham, Roger Bacon, William Tyndale, John Donne, Sir Walter Raleigh, Erasmus, Sir Christopher Wren, William Penn, Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), Samuel Johnson, Robert Hooke, William Morris, Oscar Wilde, Emily Davison, Cardinal Newman.

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Bill ( City Council not De Blasio) would allow new cabbies to skip written English test in New York City

By on January 17th, 2016

Yellow-cab rides could soon be driving New Yorkers completely crazy if the City Council passes a new bill that would eliminate written English tests for aspiring hacks.

The proposal would allow drivers to get their hack licenses with just a cursory oral exam and without offering any proof they can read or write the language, including traffic signs.

Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez (D-Manhattan), chair of the council Transportation Committee, introduced the bill amid an exodus of yellow-cab drivers to app-based car services like Uber and Lyft.

He insisted cab riders wouldn’t notice a difference.

“Effective communication between rider and driver is key for any ride and this is not in jeopardy with this bill,” Rodriguez said.

Cab riders were skeptical on Friday Nicholas Grimaldi, a development specialist from Chelsea, said hacks need to be more than just barely conversational in English.

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GOOD NEWS FROM AMAZING ISRAEL FROM MICHAEL ORDMAN

By on January 17th, 2016

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

Rabies vaccine is ready for US market. Following successful trials, Israeli biotech Kamada has launched its KamRAB anti-Rabies vaccine in 10 countries, including Israel. Kamada will now apply for a Biologics License Application (BLA) from the US FDA – the last step before offering a remedy for sale in the United States.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-firm-seeks-to-take-bite-out-of-rabies-vaccine-shortage/

Collagen wound treatment final trials success. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s CollPlant announced positive final trial results for Vergenix FG (Flowable Gel), designed for the treatment of chronic, hard to heal wounds and surgical wounds. 4 weeks after a single application, average wound closure was 80% with 45% fully closed.
http://www.collplant.com/userfiles/1a9b1870-e5f1-4d4c-bacc-9e18ea96183f.pdf

Blood test for Alzheimer’s. Israeli biotech NeuroQuest is to begin clinical trials of its blood test for early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. Human trials in Israel have already proved 87% accurate – with blood tests, anything over 70% is considered medically significant.
http://www.israel21c.org/blood-test-for-alzheimers-begins-clinical-trials/

Non-implant heart valve treatment. Israel’s Pi-Cardia has developed the Leaflex Catheter System – a novel non-implant based technology for treating patients with aortic valve stenosis, rather than replacing the heart valve. Pi-Cardia has just raised $10 million to help complete development of a second-generation device.
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-israeli-catheter-co-pi-cardia-raises-10m-1001094130

Faster diagnosis of a heart attack. Dr Amos Danielli, now of Israel’s Bar Ilan University, developed technology at Tel Aviv University to identify minute quantities of chemicals using magnetic particles attached to fluorescent molecules. One use is to detect the protein Troponin, an indicator of an imminent heart attack. Dr Danielli has founded the company MagBiosense which has won a NIS 900,000 grant from the BIRD foundation. http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-magbiosense-to-shorten-heart-patients-er-wait-time-1001093195

Israel hosts emergency response conference. Israel hosted hundreds of delegates from 30 countries, plus the World Health Organization, at the Fourth Israeli International Conference on Healthcare System, Preparedness and Response to Emergencies and Disasters in Tel Aviv and Beersheva.
http://www.israel21c.org/200-international-er-specialists-gather-in-israel/

Helping us get to 120. Israeli-born Technion graduate Dr Nir Barzilai is now director of the Institute for Aging Research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. As he approaches his 60th birthday himself, he is working with the US FDA on treatments that could make everyone live a lot longer.
http://www.timesofisrael.com/want-to-live-till-120-this-professor-works-on-drugs-that-could-get-you-close/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK_1HKRnoe0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnMmtr2uAcM

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MY SAY: AN IDEA WHOSE TIME HAS COME FROM RAEL ISAAC

By on January 16th, 2016

A Modest Proposal to Buttress the Constitution, Restore Confidence in Government and Promote Domestic Tranquility By Rael Jean Isaac

Nothing is more melancholy than to see the level of contempt directed at one of the three key institutions of government established by our Constitution. A Rasmussen poll in December 2015 found only 9% of likely voters thought Congress was doing a good or excellent job-down from 56% in 2001. Strikingly, Republicans and Democrats are in agreement on these miserable approval ratings. Contrast this with the public’s approval level of the President and the Supreme Court: 46% rate Obama’s job performance favorably and 36% think the Supreme Court is doing a good or excellent job (both also according to 2015 Rasmussen polls). To be sure, these approval ratings are nothing to boast about, but even the Supreme Court is four times as well-regarded as Congress.

There is only one surefire step that can buttress the Constitution and restore public confidence in our institutions. Abolish Congress. Admittedly it is counter-intuitive to argue that we strengthen our Constitution by abolishing one of its crucial provisions. But hear me out. It is undisputed that, to quote Dr. Joseph Postell, writing for the Heritage Foundation, “over the past 100 years our government has been transformed from a limited, constitutional, federal republic to a centralized administrative state that for the most part exists outside the structure of the Constitution and wields nearly unlimited power.” This bureaucratic web of agencies and departments is frequently referred to as a “fourth branch” of government. By eliminating Congress we will in fact be returning to the vision of the founders, restoring a three part system of governance.

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Fact-Checking Rubio’s Attacks on Cruz By Jim Geraghty

By on January 16th, 2016

In the closing minutes of Thursday night’s GOP presidential debate in South Carolina, Marco Rubio unleashed a torrent of accusations against Ted Cruz after Cruz slammed his participation in the “Rubio-Schumer amnesty bill.”

“[You] had no fewer than eleven attacks there,” Cruz said, pleading for response time. “I appreciate you dumping your opposition research folder on the debate stage.”

“No, it’s your record,” Rubio shot back.

“At least half of the things Marco said are flat-out false,” Cruz snapped.

Not quite. Most of Rubio’s statements about Cruz’s past positions check out, with a few wild exaggerations tossed into the mix. To the tape . . .

1. “Ted Cruz, you used to say you supported doubling the number of green cards. Now you say that you’re against it.”

In May 2013, Cruz introduced an amendment to double “the overall worldwide green card caps from 675,000 visas per year to 1.35 million per year (not including refugees and asylum-seekers).” Cruz’s current immigration plan only mentions “green cards” in the context of punishing companies that misuse the H-1B visa program.

2. “You used to support a 500 percent increase in the number of guest workers. Now you say that you’re against it.”

Indeed, another amendment Cruz offered in May 2013 would have “immediately increase[d] the H-1B cap by 500 percent from 65,000 to 325,000.” But as a presidential candidate, he has called for suspending “the issuance of all H-1B visas for 180 days to complete a comprehensive investigation and audit of pervasive allegations of abuse of the program” and greatly limiting the circumstances in which companies can hire H-1B visa immigrants.

H-1B visas are for “high-skilled temporary workers,” so Rubio could have been a little more precise in characterizing the “guest workers” in question.

3. “You used to support legalizing people that were here illegally. Now you say you’re against it.”

This point is hotly disputed by Cruz and his campaign. Cruz did introduce an amendment that would establish a path to legalization for those here illegally, but he insists he never actually supported the amendment’s substance, and it was meant as a poison pill. But Cruz spent spring 2013 touting the measure, which would have preserved the larger bill’s path to legal status, but not its path to citizenship.

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David Singer: “Obama Got it Wrong from the Start & Nothing was Going to Save Him from Failure in the End”

By on January 16th, 2016

President Obama enters his final year as President having given up on trying to resolve the Jewish-Arab conflict – following in the footsteps of so many other American Presidents whose similarly-shared lofty and noble aspirations ended in abject failure.

In Obama’s case his inability to fully comprehend Jewish history and the connection of the Jewish people to the land of Israel was the catalyst for his inevitable failure – as tellingly illustrated in his landmark speech in Cairo on 4 June 2009:

“Around the world, the Jewish people were persecuted for centuries, and anti-Semitism in Europe culminated in an unprecedented Holocaust. Tomorrow, I will visit Buchenwald, which was part of a network of camps where Jews were enslaved, tortured, shot and gassed to death by the Third Reich. Six million Jews were killed – more than the entire Jewish population of Israel today. Denying that fact is baseless, ignorant, and hateful. Threatening Israel with destruction – or repeating vile stereotypes about Jews – is deeply wrong, and only serves to evoke in the minds of Israelis this most painful of memories while preventing the peace that the people of this region deserve.”

Israel’s current Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dore Gold, has now revealed how Israel’s then leadership viewed Obama’s above remarks in this frank exchange published in Frontline on 6 January:

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