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September 2020

MY SAY: Comments turned off

MY SAY: A MEMORABLE ROSH HASHANA POST 9/11

By on September 17th, 2020

On 9/11, 2001 my husband and I were in Brussels, Belgium.  As the horrific events unfolded, our  ship made its way to Dover, England where we waited anxiously for a flight to New York which was scheduled for September 17th, 2001.

Two hours into our flight the pilot announced that a credible threat to our craft had been discovered and we would reroute to Canada at maximum speed.  After a harrowing couple of hours, we landed on a grass field in Goose Bay, Labrador a Canadian Air-Force base with no access by car and ultra-tight security. We were permitted to take only essential medications, and rushed to waiting buses.

On the way to the base, the pilot explained that the bomb threat was serious and under investigation and urged us to cooperate fully with officials.

At the base, after we were thoroughly searched and endlessly interrogated , we were ushered to a large room where we  made closely monitored short calls to reassure families, followed by snacks, cocktails, soft drinks, dinner and CNN broadcasts. Our overnight accommodations were spare but comfortable soldiers’ bunks underground.

At breakfast on September 18, the first day of Rosh Hashanah, the pilot assured us that our plane had been thoroughly searched by a special anti-terror team from Ottawa, and was safe for departure. It was a tense flight.

At J.F.K. airport a stone faced and sullen immigration officer asked endless questions and stared at our faces and passports repeatedly. Suddenly, he stamped our passports, smiled broadly and said:

“Welcome home to the United States and have a very happy New Year.”

We made it home in time for a festive and memorable celebration of the holiday with our entire family.

Whatever your faith I wish you and all people of good will a happy, healthy and sweet New Year. God bless America now and forever!

שנה טובה

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ISRAEL, WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

Arabs: Israel Is Not Our Enemy by Khaled Abu Toameh

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16518/arabs-israel-enemy

“Times change, everything has changed, except for the Palestinian mood that rejects anything and everything.” — Saudi writer Amal Abdel Aziz al-Hazany, Asharq al-Awsat, September 15, 2020.

“Palestinian leaders are the main cause for the suffering of their people. They have achieved nothing for the Palestinians. They only care about power and achieving personal and partisan gains at the expense of the Palestinian issue.” — Emirati political analyst Issa bin Arabi Albuflasah, Al Bayan, September 12, 2020.

“We were told that Israel’s slogan was [to expand] ‘From the Euphrates to the Nile.’ Iran, however, does not hide its expansionist ideological trend, which it is already practicing through its militias in Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen. Turkey, on the other hand, is seeking to seize new sources of energy in Libya and has sights on Africa along the Red Sea. These developments prompted the moderate Arabs to start reconsidering previous their political positions.” — Saudi writer Fahd al Degaither, Okaz, September 14, 2020.

“The Palestinian issue concerns the Arab peoples who want a solution, but the leaders benefit from the status quo. These leaders benefit from the problems and suffering of their people. There is no solution under corrupt leaderships.” — Saudi writer Osama Yamani, Okaz, September 11, 2020.

Al-Shkiran also advised the Palestinians to hold their leaders accountable on two levels: “The first is political accountability: The reasons and causes of the continued rejection of all realistic deals that were offered to them since the beginning of the problem until today. Second: Opening the files of corruption. The Palestinian has the right to ask about the billions of dollars paid by the Gulf states for the Palestinian cause. All that money has disappeared.” — Saudi writer and researcher Fahd al-Shkiran, Asharq Al-Awsat, September 16, 2020.

A growing number of Arabs, particularly those living in the Gulf, say they finally understand that Israel is not the enemy of the Muslims and Arabs. This change of heart manifested even before the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed peace agreements with Israel during a ceremony at the White House on September 15. It is the direct result of the expansionist ambitions of Iran and Turkey in the Arab world and the feeling among Arabs that those two states pose the real threat to their national security.

Until recently, it was unimaginable to see Arabs openly admitting that they had been mistaken in their belief that Israel was the enemy of the Muslims and Arabs. Now, Arabs seem to have no problem saying that they were wrong all these years about their attitude toward Israel. These Arabs now are saying out loud that Iran and its proxies in the Arab world, and not Israel, are the real enemies of Arabs and Muslims.

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WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

The Possible Limits of China-Russia Cooperation by Lawrence A. Franklin

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16517/china-russia-cooperation

China even recently claimed that Vladivostok, the most prominent city in Russia’s Far East, is historically Chinese territory.

China seems to see Russia less as an economic partner than as a source for extraction of energy and raw materials.

While disapproving Russia’s assaults on sovereign states, China seems to have no problem asserting its own will in and around other states, for instance, in the South and East China Seas, India, and the Galapagos Islands.

China is already successfully challenging Russia for influence among the post-Soviet states in Central Asia, particularly in Tajikistan.

Mainly, this bilateral condominium might be doomed to collapse because there is no trust in the relationship.

China and Russia’s coordinated policies in foreign affairs and economic endeavors belie deep-seated fissures that might well prevent their current period of cooperation from evolving into a sustained alliance.

Despite China’s planned participation in Russia’s annual Caucus 2020 exercises on September 21-26, Sino-Russian history is so replete with war, unequal treaties and racism, there seems little probability that their present military cooperation will succeed in developing into a military alliance.

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HOMELAND SECURITY Comments turned off

An October Surprise in the Waiting President Trump should take his shot for a hat trick on terrorism. By Lloyd Billingsley

By on September 17th, 2020

https://amgreatness.com/2020/09/16/an-october-surprise-in-the-waiting/

At the Republican National Convention last month, Carl and Marsha Mueller told the nation how in 2013 their daughter Kayla was kidnapped by Islamic State terrorists, tortured, and repeatedly raped by the Islamic State’s Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. During this 18-month ordeal, Kayla’s father explained, the government let them down, but “if Donald Trump had been president when Kayla was captured, she would be here today.”

That is uncertain, but another reality is undeniable.

Under President Trump, the U.S. military set up Task Force 814, named for Kayla’s August 14 birthday. In Operation Kayla Mueller last October, the task force took out al-Baghdadi. The ISIS chieftain was not the only terrorist in Trump’s sights. 

As Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the RNC, “the president approved a strike that killed the Iranian terrorist Qasem Soleimani. This is the man most responsible for the murder and maiming of hundreds of American soldiers and thousands of Christians across the Middle East.” That went down on January 3, but President Trump still has unfinished business on the terrorism front. 

On November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, Texas, U.S. troops prepared for deployment to Afghanistan. U.S. Army Major Nidal Hasan, a self-described “soldier of Allah,” shouted “Allahu Akbar” and opened fire on the unarmed Americans. Hasan killed 13, including, Private Francheska Velez, 21 and pregnant. The soldier of Allah wounded 42 others, including Sargeant Alonzo Lunsford, an African American who took seven bullets from Hasan. 

The killer was never described as a racist, and the Obama Administration passed off the mass murder as “workplace violence,” not even gun violence. Vice President Joe Biden issued a 58-word statement expressing sympathy for the families of “the brave soldiers who fell today.” No word from the vice president about who killed the brave soldiers, in the “senseless tragedy.” 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) lamented the “unspeakable tragedy,” and “the losses of those who were killed.” On the other hand, the San Francisco Democrat failed to number the victims or name any of them. Pelosi also failed to call out Hasan and offered no thoughts on what might have motivated “the gunman” to murder 13 Americans.

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HOMELAND SECURITY Comments turned off

Front Line Dispatch from China’s Economic War Against the U.S. We are engaged in an economic war with the CCP and the future of our nation is more important than any company’s quarterly earnings report. By Curtis Ellis

By on September 17th, 2020

https://amgreatness.com/2020/09/16/front-line-dispatch-from-chinas-economic-war-against-the-u-s/

The Chinese Communist Party’s economic war against the United States continues.

The CCP is preparing to launch a major campaign to fleece American investors of billions of dollars to fund its drive for global hegemony.

And it’s getting help from some of the biggest names on Wall Street, a virtual fifth column for the brutal Marxist-Leninist regime.

Here’s the latest dispatch from the front: Ant Technology Group (Ant Group), formerly known as Ant Financial Services Group, is a subsidiary of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding, the e-commerce giant that made Jack Ma one of the world’s richest men. 

Ant provides financial technology (fintech) products and services. It’s expected soon to issue an initial public offering in Hong Kong and Shanghai to raise $30 billion—the largest IPO in history.

It’s important to reiterate the risks involved with investing in any CCP-controlled or affiliated company—which means any Chinese company. Even “private” Chinese companies are beholden to the Chinese government according to its National Intelligence Law and security laws and regulations.

When President Trump barred the pension funds of civilian and military employees of the federal government from investing in index funds that include Chinese companies, National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow and National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien explained: 

The financial impact of this risk is significant: scandals involving Chinese companies in recent years have cost investors billions of dollars. In addition, the Chinese Government currently prevents companies with Chinese operations listed on U.S. exchanges from complying with applicable U.S. securities law, leaving investors without the benefit of important protections.

The Obama-Biden Administration struck the deal that exempts Chinese companies from U.S. securities laws. 

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WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

Horton Hears a WHO By Allan J. Favish

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2020/09/horton_hears_a_who.html

The editor-in-chief of the United Kingdom-based medical journal The Lancet, Richard Horton, continues to mislead the world, this time about the Communist Party of China’s and the World Health Organization’s responsibility for the worldwide spread of the Wuhan virus, aka the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).  I have written about their responsibility for AT here, here and here.

Several months ago Horton mislead the world about a drug being used to treat the virus. On June 5, 2020 The Lancet retracted an article that falsely maligned the use of the drug hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for the Wuhan virus.  The article was used by the propaganda division of the Democratic Party, aka the mainstream media, to attack President Donald Trump.

It is time for another retraction, but this time, for statements made during an interview.  On September 4, 2020, at 17:57 into an interview on C-SPAN, Horton praised the performance of the Chinese government and the World Health Organization regarding their response to the virus.  This exchange occurred:

Q: You have, as you mentioned, been at this field for 30 years.  You think back to the earlier pandemics, Ebola, SARS, that have come into being, and your own publication’s response to it.  You say it’s been nine months.  It feels like to all of us like it’s been a lifetime, I think.  But can you comment about the speed with which the scientific community is responding to this compared to even recent past?

A:  Yes, you know, it’s interesting because there’s been a lot of, so much criticism of China and the World Health Organization.  And I understand why because this virus has turned all of our lives and our children’s lives upside down.  And it’s understandable that we’re angry about it.

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ELECTIONS Comments turned off

LATINOS FOR TRUMP-ARIZONA

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2020/09/15/arte-moreno-angels-donald-trump-president-election/5803862002/

Angels owner Arte Moreno says it’s ‘very necessary’ to vote for Donald Trump
Gabe Lacques Tom Schad

In a year where the apolitical sports figure is increasingly an endangered species, Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno on Monday jumped into the fray – publicly reiterating his support to incumbent President Donald Trump.

Moreno, the former outdoor advertising magnate, was among the speakers at the president’s “Latinos For Trump” event in Phoenix, and the fourth-generation Mexican American said Trump would boost small-business dreams like the ones he harbored.

“We all know where we’ve been,” Moreno said at the event, according to the Arizona Republic. “It’s necessary to focus on today and the future, and it’s very necessary to vote for President Trump.”

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WORLD NEWS Comments turned off

Europe As Coronavirus Rebounds, Europe Rejects New Lockdowns European countries bet on personal responsibility and targeted measures, instead of sweeping restrictions that froze their economies in the spring

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.wsj.com/articles/as-coronavirus-rebounds-europe-rejects-new-lockdo

As a second wave of coronavirus infections gathers momentum across Europe, the Continent’s governments are determined to avoid large-scale lockdowns and instead seek less disruptive ways to live with the new disease.

France and Spain are on the leading edge of a resurgence in Covid-19 cases across Europe in the wake of the summer travel season, in some cases reaching levels of incidence on par with those in the U.S.

In response, authorities are enacting tailored, localized measures to combat outbreaks, while exhorting citizens to protect themselves and others by behaving prudently.

That marks a contrast with the broad shutdowns imposed when Covid-19 first hit Europe earlier this year. Those moves eventually contained the spread of the virus, but sent the region’s economies into their sharpest economic contraction since World War II.

The new wave of infections is concentrated among younger people. Most of those testing positive in recent weeks have no or only mild symptoms. Health experts caution that the pandemic could turn more dangerous in the winter, as people spend more time indoors.

Still, politicians are largely ruling out new lockdowns.

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ELECTIONS Comments turned off

Democrat Madness Political insanity can be defined as refusing to admit the reality of destructive violence. Daniel Henninger

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.wsj.com/articles/democrat-madness-11600296765?mod=opinion_featst_pos1

How crazy does the violence have to get before it costs the Harris-Biden campaign the election? (Nomenclature update: On Monday, Kamala Harrisreferred in public to something she called the “Harris administration.” In a speech the next day, Mr. Biden himself referred to “a Harris-Biden administration.” If that’s how they want it, fine by me. From now on, it’s “the Harris-Biden campaign.”)

For weeks, analysts have been pondering whether the “law and order” issue elevated by President Trump and the Republican convention could have a material effect on voting this fall. Generally, they have minimized the issue. But like the hurricanes rolling in from the Atlantic Ocean, the waves of urban violence have apparently become impossible to ignore.

A Monmouth poll out this week finds 65% of respondents say “maintaining law and order” is a big problem. The poll’s self-identified party affiliations are 28% Republican, 41% independent and 31% Democratic. Here’s the election’s ticking time-bomb: Among “non-Republican” blacks and other minorities, more than 60% agree that civil disorder has become a big issue, while just 46% of white non-Republicans see it as a problem. Looks like where one lives explains a lot about the Democratic worldview.

There’s more bad news at the wrong moment for Harris-Biden: Conclusive evidence has emerged that the American left is certifiably insane.

After the shooting this week of two cops in Compton, south of Los Angeles, a small contingent of antipolice protesters stood outside a hospital chanting, “We hope they die!” Mr. Biden tweeted criticism of both incidents as “unacceptable” and “entirely counterproductive.”

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NATIONAL NEWS & OPINION Comments turned off

The UAE and the Democratic-Muslim Extremist Partnership Can you visualize Biden strengthening America’s allies in the Middle East? Caroline Glick

By on September 17th, 2020

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/09/uae-and-democratic-muslim-extremist-partnership-caroline-glick/

The U.S.-brokered peace deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, which is scheduled to be finalized this week at the White House, strikes a major blow to the twin forces of Islamic imperialism and terror in the Middle East: the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood and the Shi’ite regime in Iran.

The tripartite alliance between the United States, Israel and the UAE, openly supported by Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco, gives an institutional structure to a pro-American regional bloc of moderate, anti-jihadist governments all with proven track records of action against the Muslim Brotherhood, Iran and their surrogates.

Based as it is on shared interests, the Israel-UAE alliance is likely to persevere in the years to come. But America’s continued participation in the alliance is significantly tied to the outcome of the presidential elections.

In 2014, the UAE published a list of 82 designated terrorist groups. Nestled between al-Qaeda and Islamic State (ISIS) was the Council on American Islamic Relations, or CAIR, a group with deep ties to the Democratic Party.

The UAE designation was not a slander. As former U.S. prosecutor Andrew McCarthy chronicled in his 2010 book, “The Grand Jihad: How Islam and the Left Sabotage America,” CAIR was founded in 1994 as a front organization for the Muslim Brotherhood and its Palestinian branch, Hamas. In conjunction with other Hamas/Muslim Brotherhood front groups and fundraising arms, CAIR’s job was to promote political Islam. Its operations, based in Washington, were to focus on political influence. To achieve this end, it presented itself as a civil rights organization.

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