Displaying posts published in

November 2018

How Extremist Scholars Promote Terrorism, Violence by A. Z. Mohamed

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/13073/scholars-terrorism-extremism

“I would like to pay tribute to the sincere scholars of Al-Azhar and the Ministry of Awqaf [Endowments] who are working to correct the misconceptions about the tolerant Islamic religion and its moderate middle approach, to address and counter extremism and deviant ideology and to uphold the human, moral and love values among all human kind.” — Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, June 11, 2018.

The Grand Imam conspicuously chose to ignore the fact that many Muslims hate and despise non-Muslims. These Muslims are acting in accordance with what the Quran and the Hadith tell them about the disbelievers.

Prominent Muslim scholars continue to argue that the Quran and Prophet Mohammed do not incite intolerance or killing Christians and Jews. Many scholars, however, seem prepared to do their utmost to hide this “inconvenient truth.”

Take, for example, Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Egypt’s preeminent Sunni university, who recently claimed that “there is no single verse in the Quran that calls for killing Jews or Christians.”

While it is true that the Quran does not specifically call for killing Christians and Jews, the Hadith — a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval of Prophet Mohammed — does refer to killing all Jews.

The Quran, however does refer to Christians and Jews as disbelievers, and calls on Muslims to fight and kill disbelievers.

The Grand Imam of Al-Azhar made his claim in a speech delivered in Cairo, Egypt, in the presence of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, senior government officials and Al-Azhar clerics on June 11 during the annual celebration of Laylat al-Qadr (“Night of Decree”).

At State Level, Democrats Are Still Lagging By Rick Moran

https://pjmedia.com/trending/at-state-level-democrats-are-still-lagging/
“Despite their House takeover, Democrats only picked up a paltry 6 state legislative chambers, leaving Republicans in control of 21 states. ”

Democrats may have taken over the House, but the party didn’t progress much in reversing the decade-long trend of Republican dominance at the state level.

Democrats gained complete control of only four state legislatures, while flipping six chambers. That leaves 61 chambers in Republican control while Democrats are in charge in only 37. (Note: Nebraska’s unicameral legislature is non-partisan.)

National Conference of State Legislatures:

In terms of overall legislative control (both House and Senate), Dems gained control of four on Tuesday. Republicans will control 30 versus the Democrats’ 18 when sessions convene in January. Minnesota is now the only state where legislative control is divided. It’s the lowest number of divided legislatures in more than 100 years, matching 1914 when Montana was the only state with a split legislature.

As for state control, which includes the governor along with the legislature, Democrats went from controlling eight to 14.

The GOP still completely controls 21 state governments with 13 now having divided government and Georgia still undecided.

More facts from NCSL:

No surprise. The party of the president lost seats (and chambers) in this midterm as usual. That’s par for the course—in 28 of the midterm elections held since 1900, that’s been true.
More than 330 seats nationwide shifted from Republican to Democrat. That is short of the typical losses suffered by the party in the White House. The average loss to the president’s party in midterms since 1902 is 424 legislative seats.
Among the six chambers won by Ds were the New Hampshire House, the Maine Senate and the Minnesota House. Those three chambers have been very volatile in recent years. They have all switched party control in four of the last five elections.
The Connecticut Senate went from tied to Democratic control. Since 1900, the Connecticut Senate has changed hands 23 times—more than any other state legislative body in the United States.
No chambers will be tied going into next year’s sessions. At least one legislative chamber was tied from 1966 until 2011, and then Connecticut wound up tied in 2016.
Two top legislative leaders lost their elections, North Dakota House Majority Leader Al Carlson and New Hampshire House Speaker Gene Chandler.
The Republican caucus in the Hawaii Senate took a huge leap forward, from zero members to one.
It is very likely that more women will serve in state legislatures come January than at any point in American history. The numbers are still being crunched.
In the Nevada Assembly, women will hold a majority of all seats—22 out of 42.
As occasionally happens, a legislative candidate passed away shortly before Election Day, but the name remained on the ballot. Nevada brothel owner Dennis Hof, who died Oct. 15, won his race on Tuesday, getting more than 17,000 votes. CONTINUE AT SITE

Exit Polls Show Suburbs as Likely 2020 Battlefield By Adele Malpass

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2018/11/07/exit_polls_show_suburbs_as_likely_2020_battlefield_138582.html

The battleground for the 2020 presidential election may have been mapped out by Tuesday’s midterms and exit polling shows it lies smack dab in the middle of America’s suburbs.

Nearly 50 percent of the electorate is suburban, which this year was evenly split between Republicans and Democrats — at 49 percent each — according to the National Election Poll, the exit poll of almost 19,000 respondents often cited by the national media. For the last two decades, suburban voters have leaned slightly Republican, as was the case in 2016 when Donald Trump outpolled Hillary Clinton by four percentage points. In contrast, urban voters supported Democrats by a 33-point margin in this year’s midterms, while Republicans carried rural areas by 14 points.

“There’s an old adage in demographics that density equals Democrats, but the Democrats are starting to show significant strength in the less dense suburbs,” said Karlyn Bowman, a demographics expert at the American Enterprise Institute. She predicted that “the suburbs will continue to be a competitive area of focus” in 2020.

Sarah Chamberlain, president of Main Street Republican Partnership, noted that “Republicans won or lost by a little bit — it wasn’t a blow-out in the suburbs.”

One of the biggest shifts in suburban voting patterns involves married women. In 2016, for the first time since exit polling began in 1980, married women slightly supported the Democratic presidential candidate, 49 to 47 percent. That shift became more pronounced this year with married women supporting Democrats by 54 percent to 44 percent. “Trump’s temperament and demeanor has exacerbated the movement of married women towards the Democrats,” said Bowman.

Brazil: We won’t yield to Arab pressure, embassy will move to Jerusalem Ariel Kahana

http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/11/07/brazil-we-wont-yield-to-arab-pressure-embassy-will-move-to-jerusalem/

After Egypt reportedly rescinds invitation of Brazilian foreign minister in protest of Brazil’s plan to relocate its embassy, President-elect Jair Bolsonaro’s son, Eduardo, insists embassy will move • Jewish leader: Israel suffered but held its head high.

The new administration in Brazil has reiterated its position that despite mounting pressure from the Arab world, it will remain true to its word and relocate its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

“We’re going to move the Brazilian Embassy to Jerusalem,” Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of newly elected President Jair Bolsonaro, wrote on Tuesday to Jane Silva, president of a leading pro-Israel organization in Brazil.

Silva had approached Eduardo Bolsonaro in the wake of reports in the Brazilian press indicating that Egypt had called off the Brazilian foreign minister’s upcoming visit to Cairo in protest of the planned embassy transfer.

In her letter to Bolsonaro, Silva wrote: “Jerusalem was always the capital of Israel. … There was a partition plan; the Arabs rejected it and launched wars against Israel and persecuted Israel. Israel has suffered, but it held its head high. Israel has seized every opportunity and established a nice home for the sole and legitimate owners of the land of Israel – the Jewish people.”

Virtue Broadcasting Julie Bindel

http://standpointmag.co.uk/counterpoints-november-2018-julie-bindel-virtue-broadcasting

The BBC’s new policy on “equality and diversity”, reading as though it is straight out of the W1A comedy series, aims to combat “heteronormative culture”. According to their chief radio and education honcho, the former Labour cabinet minister James Purnell, just over half (51 per cent) of 18- to 21-year-olds identify as heterosexual. There is no doubt that the BBC needs to engage younger viewers, and prise them away from their iPhones and laptops, but is the problem it seeks to address really about more “heteronormativity”, bearing in mind most of us don’t know what that even means?

In order to encourage more “woke” viewers, the Beeb commissioned an internal survey of 300 LGBT staff, which found that there are areas “requiring improvement, including a heteronormative culture, a need for inclusive non-binary language, insufficient support for trans staff, and a need to adopt LGBTQ or LGBTQ+.”

I wonder how many lesbians, as opposed to gay men or transgender individuals, took part in the survey. As is fashionable these days, the focus seems to be disproportionately on men and the transgender community. The identity list keeps on growing: it currently stands at LGBTQQIPA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Polyamorous, and Asexual).

However, much of this new wave of identity politics obsessing the Beeb and others appears to be largely about members of the “snowflake generation” wanting to be seen as that little bit special. Indeed, the few people who are not included in the ever-growing list, and who cannot even claim to have once worn an adult nappy at a fancy-dress party, can wear badges identifying as “straight allies”. Aside from the fact that some people do not wish to display their sexual preferences on a lapel, as an out and proud lesbian, I am dead against this idea, not least because it takes far more than a declaration of support to identify someone who will stand up for a gay colleague in the face of bigotry and abuse.

MUST SEE: DOCUMENTARY “THE CREEPY LINE”

Yesterday I attended a private screening of a documentary “The Creepy Line” by Peter Schweizer and director M.A. Taylor which reveals the insidious way that Google harvests information from e-mails and searches by individuals who use it. It further discloses the subtle ways in which Google and Facebook manipulate information to influence the behavior, choices and political opinions of their subscribers and users by recondite and difficult to trace means.

The film features commentary by Peter Schweizer, Dr. Jordan Peterson, and Dr. Robert Epstein.

Peter Schweizer is author of many books:
Secret Empires: How the American Political Class Hides Corruption and Enriches Family and Friends Mar 20, 2018
Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich Jul 26, 2016
Compromised: How Money and Politics Drive FBI Corruption Aug 16, 2018 With co author Seamus Bruner

See the film. It is available on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Creepy-Line-Dr-Jordan-Peterson/dp/B07JQSZN6D/ref=sr_1_2?s=instant-video&ie=UTF8&qid=1541644975&sr=1-2&keywords=the+creepy+line+documentary

Mosul and The True Face of Islam Those pesky verses of abrogation that just won’t go away. Kenneth R. Timmerman

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/271855/mosul-and-true-face-islam-kenneth-r-timmerman

I have lived and worked in the Muslim Middle East for the past thirty-five years, and have many dear friends who are Muslims. Most recently, I prayed with a 38-year old Muslim man in the ruins of his house in the old city of Mosul, as he told me his story of surviving the ISIS occupation.

I stumbled upon Azam Nejim Abdallah by accident, while inspecting the devastation wrought upon the magnificent 4th and 5th century churches of West Mosul with an Iraqi police brigadier general and activists from the Hammurabi Human Rights Organization, a local group dedicated to protecting Iraqi minorities.

Azam and an older neighbor, Abu Ibrahim Mohsen, were among the hardy few who had returned to the ruins and were attempting to rebuild. Their problem on this particular day was that they had no water, and no electricity. “People just three blocks down the street have water,” they complained to the brigadier general. Why not us?”

To us, the answer was obvious. The fact that Azam and his neighbors were alive was nothing short of miraculous. One neighbor’s house was just a pile of rubble. Bomb squads were still combing through the neighborhood, more than a year after the liberation, for ISIS booby-traps and unexploded ordinance. There was not a single house left standing in the neighborhood. Water? Electricity? Really?

When Azam saw me, he wanted to tell me the story of how his four-year son and father were killed in the final days of the ISIS occupation. He kept pointing to an alleyway, and in the end, I let him take me by the hand to his house a bit further away. He had already started to rebuild the walls, but that wasn’t what he wanted to show me: it was a picture of his four-year old son, Omar, and the jagged hole a coalition bomb had torn through a metal door. “I was crouching, right there,” he pointed. “Omar was crouching here, with my father. They were both killed,” he wept. All I could do as he showed me a photograph of his son was to pray with him.

I am reminded of this story by an encounter with a pastor in an Anglican church in Europe recently, who commented that ISIS and all their barbarity were “such a distortion of true Islam.”

Incoming Democrat Chairman: Dems Will Go ‘All-In’ On Russia, Impeach Kavanaugh For ‘Perjury’ Also laments that elite Republicans are joining Democrats.By Mollie Hemingway

http://thefederalist.com/2018/11/07/incoming-democrat-chairman-dems-will-go-all-in-on-russia-impeach-kavanaugh-for-perjury/

Judiciary Committee ranking member Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., revealed plans for House Democrats to investigate and impeach Justice Brett Kavanaugh for alleged perjury and investigate and impeach President Donald Trump for alleged treasonous collusion with Russia.

In post-election chats with various callers while riding the Acela train from New York to Washington, Nadler gave advice to a newly elected representative and discussed potential 2020 Democratic presidential nominees with another. He also lamented identity politics and the thriving economy and worried about Democrats losing working-class voters while gaining elite former Republicans and suburban women.

Nadler was headed to DC for a two-day planning session with his staff and Judiciary Committee staff. “We’ve got to figure out what we’re doing,” he explained in a phone call with a friend. Nadler requested that the friend’s name be concealed on the grounds he is a private citizen.

The two discussed two routes for investigating new Supreme Court Justice Kavanaugh. The first is to go after the FBI for how they handled the investigation into unsubstantiated claims he sexually assaulted women. “They didn’t even do a half-ass job,” he said. “They didn’t interview 30 witnesses who said ‘Interview me! I’ve got a lot to say!’” he said, while mimicking people waving their hands to be called on.

His other plan is to go after Kavanaugh because “there’s a real indication that Kavanaugh committed perjury.” He claimed that The Atlantic published an article about the allegations of a third woman. Then he claimed that when Kavanaugh was “asked at a committee hearing under oath when he first heard of the subject, he said, ‘When I’d heard of the Atlantic article.’ But there is an email chain apparently dating from well before that from him about ‘How can we deal with this?’” Nadler told the caller.

Dems Vow to Probe Sessions’ Resignation, Demand Russia Recusal of Interim Replacement By Bridget Johnson

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/dems-vow-to-probe-sessions-resignation-demand-russia-recusal-of-interim-replacement/

WASHINGTON — Republican lawmakers reacted to news of Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ resignation with little surprise, while Democrats vowed to use their new House power in the upcoming Congress to dig into the president’s reason behind the move.

President Trump tweeted the news after his press conference, several hours after a tweet calling special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s campaign influence operation a “witch hunt.”

“We are pleased to announce that Matthew G. Whitaker, Chief of Staff to Attorney General Jeff Sessions at the Department of Justice, will become our new Acting Attorney General of the United States. He will serve our Country well,” Trump tweeted. “We thank Attorney General Jeff Sessions for his service, and wish him well! A permanent replacement will be nominated at a later date.”

Whitaker, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa during the George W. Bush administration, vied for the GOP Senate nomination in Iowa in 2014 but lost to Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa). In August 2017, he wrote a CNN op-ed arguing that “Mueller has come up to a red line in the Russia 2016 election-meddling investigation that he is dangerously close to crossing” by reportedly looking into Trump’s finances. He also made comments on TV about how Trump could starve the Mueller investigation of resources, and in 2014 led the unsuccessful campaign of Sam Clovis, Trump’s 2016 campaign co-chairman, for Iowa state treasurer; Clovis is now a grand jury witness in the Mueller probe.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement this afternoon that “given his previous comments advocating defunding and imposing limitations on the Mueller investigation, Mr. Whitaker should recuse himself from its oversight for the duration of his time as acting attorney general.”

“It is impossible to read Attorney General Sessions’ firing as anything other than another blatant attempt by @realDonaldTrump to undermine & end Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation,” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tweeted. “Given his record of threats to undermine & weaken the Russia investigation, Matthew Whitaker should recuse himself from any involvement in Mueller’s investigation. Congress must take immediate action to protect the rule of law and integrity of the investigation.”

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), expected to be the incoming chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, tweeted, “Americans must have answers immediately as to the reasoning behind @realDonaldTrump removing Jeff Sessions from @TheJusticeDept. Why is the President making this change and who has authority over Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation? We will be holding people accountable.” CONTINUE AT SITE

Trump all but announces trade deal with China US president touts success in getting Beijing to moderate Made in China 2025 target

http://www.atimes.com/article/trump-all-but-announces-trade-deal-with-china/

In a press conference at the White House this afternoon, following better-than-expected results for his party in midterm elections, President Trump all but declared that he had concluded a trade deal with China.

“They got rid of ‘China 25,’” the president said in response to a reporter’s question, in an apparent reference to China’s Made in China 2025 program to eliminate dependence on imports in several key high-tech industries by the year 2025.

“China would have superseded us in two years as an economic power. Now they’re not even close. China got rid of their ‘China 25’ because I found it very insulting. I told that to them. That means in 2025 they’re going to take over – economically – the world,” Trump told reporters.

Significantly, Trump used the past tense, as if referring to a deal that was already well on its way to completion.

He went on to tout progress that he has made in pressuring Beijing, adding: “we’re going to try to make a deal with China because I want to have a great relationship with President Xi – as I do – and also with China.”

I reported from Beijing last month that China was willing to back away from the “Made in China 2025” program in the context of a trade deal with the United States:

By backing off from the 2025 target, Chinese officials believe, Beijing can placate the US Administration, and give President Trump a coup in public relations while keeping its own industrial program intact. The government is exploring a number of ways to present such a deal.