"Nobody could have anticipated the consequences of our October 7th attack."

Hamas official: We couldn't have anticipated Israel's October 7 response - The Jerusalem Post (jpost.com)  "Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk claimed that Hamas did not anticipate Israel’s response to its October 7 massacre, according to a translation of an interview given to Egypt’s Alghad TV on Thursday by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).

“When the [al-Qassam] brigades did what they did on October 7," the interviewer asked, "did they have any expectations regarding the consequences of the attack?” Marzouk responded that nobody had anticipated Israel’s response. 

“Nobody in the whole world expected them to be so barbaric,” Marzouk said. “And in such violation of all international laws, treaties, and norms. Nobody expected the [Israeli response] to be so barbaric because, ultimately, the resistance fights soldiers. It is not fighting civilians with planes and tanks.”

"The same Hamas official claimed in October that terror tunnels had been constructed to protect Hamas terrorists and that it was Israel's and the United Nation's responsibility to protect Palestinian civilian lives.

"The IDF has been forced to fight on Gazan terrain as Hamas has a large amount of military infrastructure built within civilian areas of Gaza. Notably, terror tunnels used by Hamas have been located under hospitals and the UNRWA headquarters. " . . .

Who could expect Israel to be angry over their families; their women being burned to death and having body parts, including breasts amputated during rape? How could they mind Palestinians being gleeful while breaking the bones of captured Israelis?

Was cooking infants in ovens a problem for them? 

Gazans raped Israeli women, then shot them in the head during the act of rape; how would we have thought that was a problem for Jews?

Horrific new stories of Hamas attacks in Israel surface, including rape of woman who screamed to be killed (nypost.com)   "A “beautiful woman with the face of an angel’’ was raped by eight to 10 Hamas terrorists in Israel on Oct. 7, while another tragic victim was beheaded with a shovel while trying to defend herself, a stricken survivor says.

Yoni Saadon, a 39-year-old father of four, told the UK’s Sunday Times that he is still haunted by the horrific scenes he witnessed at the Nova Music festival, when the Hamas fiends slaughtered at least 364 festival-goers, including the gang-raped woman, who begged to be killed.

“I saw this beautiful woman with the face of an angel and eight or 10 of the fighters beating and raping her,” recalled Saadon, a foundry shift manager. “She was screaming, ‘Stop it already! I’m going to die anyway from what you are doing, just kill me!’

“ 'When they finished, they were laughing, and the last one shot her in the head,” he said.

"Saadon said he witnessed the gruesome act after pulling over him the body of a slain woman who had also been shot in the head — and smearing her blood on himself so it looked like he, too, was dead."

“I will never forget her face,” he said. “Every night I wake to it and apologize to her, saying, ‘I’m sorry.’ “. . .

"I cannot wait to call Momma and tell her what I did to this Jew!"

Hamas hostages: Stories of the people taken from Israel (bbc.com)

IDF shows foreign press Hamas bodycam videos, photos of murder, torture, decapitation | The Times of Israel

. . ."In the second segment, captured through a call recording application on a victim’s phone, a different son reaches out to a different father. “Dad, I killed 10 with my bare hands,” the terrorist excitedly tells his father in Gaza. “Their blood is on my hands, let me speak to Mom.”

“ 'Please be proud of me, Dad,” he adds."

The voice of evil.
A Hamas terrorist murders TEN JEWS and calls home to brag about it. He made the call using a phone belonging to one of those he killed.
Listen to the pride in his voice. Hear how proud his parents are.#HamasworsethanISIS #HamasMassacre pic.twitter.com/lvoiHAhGEu

— COGAT (@cogatonline) October 24, 2023

 Watching the terrified faces of the four bloodstained teenage girls being paraded by Hamas gunmen was beyond their parents' worst nightmare. The haunting images were taken just hours after they were kidnapped and Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Daniela Gilboa and Agam Berger appeared shadows of their former selves."     "Three months have passed since that recording of them lined up against a wall in Gaza, their hands bound behind them – and still they are in captivity."

Their plight is minimized by pro-Hamas commenters by telling us they are IDF soldiers. I have to consider every supporter of Hamas who entered Israel on Oct 6th - no matter their age - to be a Hamas fighter and has no consideration Israel is bound to respect. The Tunnel Dweller

Does Biden Even Understand Why He Wasn’t Charged? –

Years before all this, I and so many others recognized in Joe Biden a pronounced lack of intelligence and wisdom. TD

"Four more years!" Brit Hume: Biden Is 'Palpably Senile and the Country Sees It'  

 "Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume said Tuesday on Fox News Channel’s “Special Report” that he believed voters can see President Joe Biden is “senile.”

"Anchor Bret Baier said, “You wonder how the State of the Union is going to set up on the issue of Israel, for example.”

"Hume said, “Exactly right. He came out strong and basically stuck to his guns in terms of continuing the shipments to help Israel and so on. Rhetorically, he has moved away from Israel.”

"Baier said, “Last thing just going back to tonight if you thought back a year ago, even six months ago that we would be here looking at the poll numbers we are looking at Independents trending toward President Trump on a number of issues. Would you have believed that?”

"Hume said, “I have always thought the age and acuity issue was a ticking time bomb. I was saying when it was not at all fashionable to say it that he was senile.”

"He added, “Now I think he is palpably senile and the country sees it. And one of his challenges on Thursday night, Bret, would be whether he can assuage the concerns of those even within his own party, who think and say that he is too old for the job.”

Issues & Insights (issuesinsights.com)

Politically, this report would be catastrophic in a typical reality as it plainly states that Biden is suffering from some form of dementia … at best. . . .But it shouldn’t have to – Joe Biden, no matter the politics, is simply mentally incapable to be President of the United States. 

Personal file photo

"Joe Biden, even though he did take and secrete away secret documents and such, will not be charged with any crime related to what are acts quite similar to those for which Donald Trump was charged with crimes.

In his report explaining his decision, Special Counsel Robert Hur said today that Biden was too far removed from reality for a jury to convict him of a crime.

In other words, Biden did it, Biden broke the law, but he is too mentally deficient for anyone to believe he either really did it on purpose or, after the fact, could possibly have remembered what he did, let alone pass along the information (of course, that does leave aside Hunter’s possible use of the documents but maybe that will come up in his tax case.)

The report read, in part, as follows:

“In his interview with our office, Mr. Biden’s memory was worse. He did not remember when he was vice president, forgetting on the first day of the interview when his term ended (‘if it was 2013 – when did I stop being Vice President?’), and forgetting on the second day of the interview when his term began (‘in 2009, am I still Vice President?’),” Hur wrote. “He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died. And his memory appeared hazy when describing the Afghanistan debate that was once so important to him.”

Because of his obvious inability to think coherently, Hur wrote that a jury would merely see a  “sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” rather than be able to see him as an intentionally bad-acting criminal.

Putting on my public relations hat and warping myself into the White House, I will state clearly and succinctly: The administration would have preferred Biden be charged with a crime it could fight rather than be publicly outed as non compos mentis.

“How do we pull a crooked Biden across the finish line?” is a question his team has prepared for. “How do we drag a Biden who has been called a mental basket case by his own Department of Justice across the finish line?” is not.

The same goes for the Praetorian Media, which has steadfastly assured the nation that Joe is hale and hearty and at the top of his game. That becomes more difficult now, though outlets such as the AP, which glancingly mentions the issue in paragraph 30 of a 40-graf story, are already trying. NBC is toplining Biden’s own comments about why he was forgetful:  he was dealing with Hamas.

Washington Post inadvertently tells the truth about Israel?

 Michael Berenhaus - American Thinker

Unlike almost every Washington Post article regarding the war, Ignatius plainly admits that “Hamas has so far refused to accept the cease-fire that’s on the table.”  With all the coverage nationwide — even worldwide — supporting the pro-Hamas protests that call for a ceasefire, absent from the reporting is the obvious: Hamas refuses to accept a ceasefire.

Member of US Congress, Rashida Tlaib. Sorry: "The Honorable"...

“ 'Israel has done more to prevent civilian casualties in Gaza than any other known army in the world has,” according to John Spencer, chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point and retired U.S. military officer.  His extensive thread is posted on X (formerly Twitter), according to the Jerusalem Post.

" 'The Times of Israel reported three weeks ago, when there were fewer overall casualties, “Israel has said it killed some 12,000 Hamas members in Gaza fighting, in addition to some 1,000 killed in Israel in the aftermath of the terror group’s October 7 invasion and onslaught.”

"That would mean that about half of all the casualties that the highly suspect Gaza Health Ministry has listed were civilians.  All tragic, and all the fault of Hamas.  These low civilian casualty figures are commendable, compared with the ratio of civilians to combatants killed by American forces in the Iraq war in Fallujah and Mosul.

"In summary, the mainstream media, and The Washington Post especially, are guilty of propagating lies about the Hamas-Israel war.  These are the unreported facts:

• The lack of a ceasefire is the responsibility of Hamas, not Israel.
• The Israeli public is currently galvanized by a unity government, so there is no reason to portray Netanyahu as a “far-right” bogeyman.
• Israel is fighting the most humane, careful urban war in history.  The only genocide is what Hamas has vowed to inflict on the Jewish state again and again until it succeeds.
• Israel has been a strong ally of the United States.  The mainstream media are trying to drive a wedge between the two.  It won’t work.  The relationship between the two countries has value to both.  Both countries share intelligence; Israel spends its aid on American products, helping the American economy; Israel tests, in combat, American innovations; and most importantly, Israel is an island of allegiance in a dangerous yet critically important part of the world.

"When will the mainstream media get the Israel story right, when they have been so wrong for so long?"

Reject the despicable Rashida Tlaib, remember Israel and their tortured women

 Remembering the women Hamas brutally slaughtered, captured - Ethel C. Fenig  

"There are still Israeli women — and men — in dire captivity in Muslim Gaza who are being ignored even after International Women’s Day, while many still shed their crocodile tears over the plight of the starving Gazans.  On this, the day after International Women’s Day, the hypocrisy of the women — and men — who “celebrate” this day grows.  Decent women — and men — will truly celebrate the spirit of “International Women’s Day” by demanding the return of all Israeli hostages — now!" ECF 

 "Hey there, people born with women’s parts: yesterday was International Women’s Day.

Imagine a gender equal world. A world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. A world that’s diverse, equitable, and inclusive. A world where difference is valued and celebrated. Together we can forge women’s equality. Collectively we can all #InspireInclusion.

Celebrate women’s achievement. Raise awareness about discrimination. Take action to drive gender parity.

IWD belongs to everyone, everywhere. Inclusion means all IWD action is valid.

"I’m still imagining.  Probably you are, too.  Meanwhile, the “Palestinian” 99.99% Muslims in Hamas-governed Gaza definitely didn’t honor the day, especially the international part, as this New York Times investigative report from last month sickeningly demonstrates.

"(Warning: Normal individuals will have nightmares after reading this, so below is a minute excerpt.)

‘Screams Without Words’: How Hamas Weaponized Sexual Violence on Oct. 7

A Times investigation uncovered new details showing a pattern of rape, mutilation and extreme brutality

"The Times interviewed several soldiers and volunteer medics who together described finding more than 30 bodies of women and girls in and around the rave site and in two kibbutzim in a similar state as Ms. Abdush’s — legs spread, clothes torn off, signs of abuse in their genital areas.

"Indeed, “Palestinian” Hamas attacks beginning on October 7, 2023 and continuing to this day, especially against women, were so brutal, so savage, that some shocked reporters were willing to delicately authenticate them, forcing the U.N. to finally respond.  Sort of. " . . .

On International Women’s Day, it's time to believe Israeli women– The Forward

Protesters wearing fake blood makeup and holding placards take part in a demonstration outside BBC
 headquarters in London on Feb. 4.

"On Oct. 7, Hamas raped, tortured, assaulted, murdered and kidnapped women.

"Why has it been so hard for the world to wake up to that fact?

"Just look at the United Nations, which took five months to assemble and release “clear and convincing” evidence that Hamas committed sexual violence on Oct. 7 — the most tragic day in modern Israeli history. Forwarding thThis, despite Israeli authorities and multiple news outlets revealing mere days after the attack that sexual violence had taken place. The truth was evident five months ago, and yet, the U.N. stayed silent. 

"It’s no surprise, considering the U.N.’s history of discriminating against Israel. Not to mention its dreadful recent record on women: It added Iran, governed by a regime that’s notoriously brutal toward women, to serve on the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women as recently as 2022. Iran was removed from the commission after the murder that same year of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died after being arrested for allegedly violating Iran’s laws making headscarves mandatory. But the fact that such an oppressive, anti-woman, extremist government was allowed to join this commission in the first place speaks volumes about the U.N.’s morals.

"It’s been overwhelming to see, especially when it comes to sexual violence, how determined so many people and institutions are to frame Israel as an oppressor, even when it is a victim. Even major women’s groups, including some associated with the U.N., have accepted this false framework, either because they harbor a deep hatred of Jews, or because they are so ignorant of the real situation on the ground that they are easily convinced by the deception." . . .

Grumpy Old Man Mumbles State of the Union (Entire text)

 

Image courtesy of Ken Swope.

The American Spectator | USA News and Politics    "Joe Biden, like Adolf Hitler and Axl Rose, arrived late. He entered the House of Representatives at 9:16 p.m. and began delivering his State of the Union nine minutes later. Unlike Christmas, it was not worth the wait.

"He addressed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine first and at great length. The invasion of America’s Southern border came later, precisely at 10:06 p.m. Citizens in McCallen, Texas, watching their city overrun, or in Roxbury, Massachusetts, seeing a local recreation center repurposed as a shelter for immigrants, did not enrich his family’s coffers as did the Ukrainian interests paying his son, after all.

" 'Freedom and democracy are under attack at home and overseas,” he said in juxtaposing the dual threats of Vladimir Putin with Donald Trump, who the president found, unlike Putin, so loathsome that he refused to say his name. President Biden called him “my predecessor” and “a former American president” and used pronouns. Republicans demanded he say murder victim Laken Riley’s name. He eventually did invoke “Lincoln Riley” — the head football coach at the University of Southern California — at heckler Marjorie Taylor Green’s instigation. But he never did say “Laken Riley” or “Donald Trump.”

"For different reasons he did the same with abortion. He referenced a woman in the audience who “had a fetus of a fatal condition,” whatever that meant, and needed to leave Texas “to get what she needed.” What she needed he did not say. He went on to euphemistically talk of abortion as the “treatment they need,” “reproductive freedom,” and the “right to choose.” Like the words “Donald Trump,” he could not say its name or accurately describe it. He instead characterized easier access to killing unborn children as a way to “stand up for families.”

"The president lashed out at “Big Landlords,” “Big Pharma,” and “Big Oil.” Left out of his tirade? Big Government. “I want to give public school teachers a raise,” “a future of paid leave,” “homecare and elder care,” “affordable high-speed internet for every American no matter where you live,” and “raise the federal minimum wage.” He spoke of “fiscally responsible ways” to pay for his wish list, including “making big corporations and the very wealthy finally begin to pay their fair share.” He would, presumably, determine what share amounted to fair.

“ 'My message to transgender America: I have your back,” he remarked in homage to diversity inspiring diverse interpretations. He name-dropped Native Americans. He highlighted African-American civil rights activists. It all sounded obligatory.

"The biggest lie of the night came from a woman who said nothing. Kamala Harris, whose office pursued almost 2,000 marijuana convictions when she served as district attorney in San Francisco, stood up and cheered Biden when he boasted of “expunging thousands of convictions for mere possession” of marijuana. One would need to expunge “thousands” just to undo what Harris did. A close second occurred when President Biden added the postscript, after pledging to ban assault weapons and impose other firearms restrictions, that “none of this violates the Second Amendment.' ”

"Biden displayed unusual energy and vigor early. As the speech progressed, he spoke with marbles in his mouth and read the teleprompter with an odd cadence. He appeared angry and shouted as much as talked. He attempted to bait the right-leaning contingent to his left, demagogued on wealthy Americans, and attacked the captive audience of the Supreme Court. The speech probably played well to his base, but presidents feeling it necessary to play to their base in an election year generally do not perform well in November.

" 'Let me close with this,” elicited the greatest applause from Republicans. One suspects the viewers at home cheered along with them. The speech ended, mercifully, one hour and 17 minutes after he entered the room."

Rapidly Declining Mainline Church Seeks to Require Ministers to Support Transgenderism, Gay Marriage -

 The American Spectator | USA News and PoliticsThe American Spectator | USA News and Politics

"Should mainline Protestant denominations continue down the path of making support for progressive ideologies fundamental tenets of revealed faith, many other Christians may come to believe a religion separate from Christianity has developed."

According to the Christian Post , March 9, 2015, “The largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States
 is only seven votes away from having enough regional bodies favor changing its official definition of marriage to include homosexual unions.”

"The Presbyterian Church (USA) has permitted, but not required, its ministers to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies since 2014. But that allowance is no longer sufficient for the progressive denomination; it now aims to mandate that future ministers affirm transgenderism and same-sex marriage as prerequisites for ordination. At its General Assembly this June, the denomination will take up legislation that would implement that requirement.

"The Presbyterian Church (USA)’s proposed requirement stands out for its inclusion of affirmation for transgenderism alongside same-sex marriage. Specifically, it does so by adding “gender identity” and “sexual orientation” to its list of groups protected from discrimination, included in “worship, governance, and emerging life.” The proposal would also change the denomination’s “[s]tandards for ordained service” to make it obligatory for ministry candidates to pledge adherence to this principle of “non-discrimination.”

"It is becoming a trend among liberal Protestant denominations to move from a model of respecting people’s consciences on LGBTQ issues to mandating affirmation. Another example is the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which is planning to consider a resolution to oust its current social statement at its 2025 Churchwide Assembly. This statement currently acknowledges and respects the consciences of members who hold opposing views on same-sex marriage. When Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton announced the passage of a motion to vote on the issue in 2025, church members broke out in applause.

"In explaining the proposed changes, the Presbyterian Church (USA) asserted that it “feel[s]” it is being called to be “ever more faithful to the most inclusive and affirming statements of Scripture and promptings of the Holy Spirit.” The denomination added that the amendment would serve “the children of God” because “[s]tudies show that LGBTQIA+ youth who have religious parents that share negative views on being LGBTQIA+ have higher rates of suicide attempts.” In a concurrence upholding the recommendation of the amendment, a group of presbyteries wrote that the denomination’s “so-called ‘local option’ should not be construed to allow for discriminatory practice.” . . .

And to add to the joy of it all: On Drag Queens and the Methodist Breakup

Fox News Should Fact Check the Story Biden Just Told About Them as His Brain Malfunctions Again

 I question that story, but did you ever imagine finding cocaine in the White House? Did you ever imagine the occupant of the White House demonizing millions of Americans as "extremists" and as a threat to democracy because they support his political opponent? Did you ever imagine the occupant of the White House attacking the Supreme Court at the State of the Union? Did you ever imagine lawfare being used against political opponents? We see all these things now and yes, Joe Biden and the Democrats are demeaning who we are.

RedState    "As we reported, after his angry and bizarre State of the Union, Joe Biden followed that up with a campaign trip to Philadelphia. 

"The SOTU was bad enough for some to speculate about whether he had taken anything. But the come down the next day was pretty bad as well, with Biden's brain malfunctioning all over the place. 

"This is one of those things that he tries to say about gun manufacturers that isn't quite true, but here he messes it up so badly he can't even get the order of what he's talking about right and he's missing words. 

" 'Imagine if tobacco had the same limitations companies that gun manufacturers!" Biden rants. 

"Huh? 

"[Is] He trying to say imagine if gun manufacturers had the same limitations as tobacco companies[?]. That's how mixed up his brain is at this point. This is of course a nonsensical comparison anyway. If you stab someone with a knife, they don't sue the knife manufacturer. Plus, gun manufacturers are under constant attack from Democrats. 

"Yet these people still clap, despite Biden not making any sense at all. This is a cult, and there are endless examples of this for all the Democrats who think reading a teleprompter and not falling off the stage at the SOTU means you are competent. 

"Then Biden threw a hissy fit saying that people were holding up signs at him saying "FU" and that a little kid would be giving him the finger. " . . .

 Biden mocked over bizarre video of him 'demonically whispering'