American Sniper - Some Thoughts

"If you find yourself in a fair fight, you didn't plan your mission properly." - David Hackworth

Blackfive "Before anything else, I want to note that I went to the first showing of the movie yesterday, and that the theatre was almost full.  It was clear that a number of people there were prior service, and that many of those attending had brought the family with them.  It was the most respectful, quiet, and polite audience I have ever experienced in a theatre, and once the movie started not a single cell phone rang, pinged, or made any noise.  It was also clear that the dust in the theatre got to most there, and even as the silent credits rolled, the politeness and respectful tones continued.  I noted more than one parent talking to their children afterwards, and that such conversations were exploring some very complex topics and helping children (and others) explore some difficult concepts and emotions.  

"The movie is powerful, extremely well done, and respectful to the subject and the subject matter.  It was fairly accurate to the book, and while some liberties were taken for dramatic purposes, it was done with respect and with consideration of the whole.  Frankly, they were small change in comparison to the faith given the true tale.  

"The acting is superb, and it was almost scary how much Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller look like Chris and Taya.  That, in many ways, was just the start of the level or realism to the film.  The directing and production were amazing, as was the cinematography.  The silence of the credits was a truly masterful touch, one of many in the movie.  

"As for those seeking to tear down the movie and Kyle, most of whom have not seen it (including one major reviewer), well, most here have sworn to (and fought for) their freedom of speech.  However, while their right to it is one paid for by those here, there is no obligation to respect ignorant and bigoted opinions, nor the miserable and degraded creatures that hold them.  The one review that matters to me comes from Taya, who says they got it right.  

"The movie is powerful, well done, and respectful.  It conveys almost frightningly(sp) well the cost and pain of war, and of coming home.  Bradley more than deserves his Oscar nod, and I have not seen an actor convey so much with just his eyes since Edward Woodward in his prime.  Both he and Sienna did so much with just eyes and expression, and in so doing made for truly powerful portrayals.

"Go. See. It. Now. "   Posted by Laughing Wolf

Chris Kyle

Gary Sinise Goes After Howard Dean For Insulting American Sniper Moviegoers…

. . . "I will admit that perhaps somewhere among the masses of people who are going to see the film there may be a few that might have some anger or have been angry at some point in their lives, but, with all due respect, what the hell are you talking about?”

Michael Moore Says He’s An Iraq War Hero Like Chris Kyle

‘American Sniper’ On Pace for Biggest Hit of 2014, All-Time Top-Grossing War Film

’BBC Describes Terrorists Killed In War By Chris Kyle as ‘Victims’

Inflate THIS!

U.S. Closes Embassy In Yemen Permanently After Shia Rebels Overrun Obama’s One-Time Anti-Terror Success Story…

U.S. citizens in Yemen remain vulnerable to kidnappings and terrorist attacks, especially when in transit to and from residences or workplaces. U.S. citizens should exercise caution and take prudent security measures in all areas, especially those areas frequented by Westerners. All U.S. citizens are reminded to vary their routes and times for all travel, maintain a high level of vigilance, keep a low profile, lock car windows and doors, carry a cell phone at all times, and report suspicious incidents to the Embassy.

http://comicallyincorrect.com/2015/01/22/deflate-gate/

Islamic Terrorism: The Taboo Topic

UPDATE:

President Obama in his State of the Union address Tuesday mentioned lesbians, he mentioned gays and he mentioned transgenders, but Obama didn't once mention al-Qaeda. That's easily explainable. Until al-Qaeda registers in California as a sexual preference, Democrats are going to pretend they don't exist. 

Comedian Argus Hamilton                                

Gatestone Institute  

"The political violence of the Koran is eternal and universal. The political violence of the Bible was for that particular historical time and place. This is the vast difference between Islam and other ideologies." — Bill Warner, Director, Center for the Study of Political Islam."The word has turned into a place where free speech is confused with hate speech, and people in positions of responsibility, who take that responsibility seriously, such as the Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders, are bullied, marginalized and brought to trial." . . .
"Every time Islamic terrorism is discussed, those who bring up the "Christian terrorism" of the Ku Klux Klan or anti-abortion violence simply block free speech, as if deliberately trying to scramble the main topic. They seem to be saying, "Whether the Islamic State is Islamic or not is irrelevant; there are Christian terrorists as well, so do not talk about Islamic terrorists." . . .That is why Islamic theology, ideology and goals desperately need to be discussed. They deeply affect the life choices most Muslims make.

"Shhhh! We can talk today of all religions but one. We can question all religions but one today. We know that any question of Islam can be taken as a criticism, and put our lives at risk, as seen most recently in Paris with the murders of the staff of Charlie Hebdo magazine. It is the only religion that people -- including the apologists for "Islamophobia" -- have to think ten times before discussing. At the same time, it is the same religion that is perpetually associated with "peace."

"Why should anyone be afraid of a "religion of peace"? Because some of its supporters threaten to kill you, and often do." . . .Full article

Bibi’s Congressional Trip... A Necessary Risk Or A Major Blunder?

The Lid  "The dynamics of the Netanyahu visit is much more complicated than the U.S. and Israeli media try and make it out to be. It is more than one more breach in the Obama/Netanyahu relationship; it’s a reaction to the President’s attempt to go around the constitutionally mandated rules for Senate approval of treaties, Obama’s use of British Prime Minister David Cameron to lobby for Congress to submit to the President, and a fear that the President will agree to a deal that will naively give Iran a treaty that will put the United States and Israel in grave danger."
. . .
"But from the perspective of the Israeli Prime Minister there is no wiggle room, the Iranian nuclear program must be stopped at all costs. Netanyahu is not a worry-about-Iran-come lately. Whether you agree with him or not, Bibi has made the Iranian nuclear program a priority issue became Likud party leader the first time, in 1992."

Politics Club

Boehner: We gave White House heads up on Netanyahu  . . . "Boehner and Netanyahu were said to have agreed that the Israeli prime minister would speak in Washington on March 3 without consulting the administration — the customary policy on such things. "This gave rise to anger in Washington and to criticism in the media.

Asked about the White House’s statements that it had been blindsided by the plan, Boehner told CBS’s “60 Minutes,” “We gave them a heads up that morning.. ” 
Can  you say "fait accompli"?

"In a speech at an Israeli Bonds Dinner in Florida Sunday, Israeli Ambassador To the US Ron Dermer laid out the reasons Netanyahu was going to congress:"

Amb. Dermer

. . . "Now there may be some people who believe that the Prime Minister of Israel should have declined an invitation to speak before the most powerful parliament in the world on an issue that concerns the future and survival of Israel.

"But we have learned from our history that the world becomes a more dangerous place for the Jewish people when the Jewish people are silent.

"That is why the Prime Minister feels the deepest moral obligation to appear before the Congress to speak about an existential issue facing the one and only Jewish state.

"This is not just the right of the Prime Minister of Israel. It is his most sacred duty -- to do whatever he can to prevent Iran from ever developing nuclear weapons that can be aimed at Israel."

The Times of India catches Obama in "an ungainly sight" — chewing gum during the Republic Day parade in New Delhi.

Once again, Obama offends foreign hosts with inappropriate gum-chewing at a serious public event   "Embarrassing himself, his office, and the American people, President Obama has allowed the nicotine monkey on his back to get the better of his duty.  At least that’s the charitable interpretation of his public gum-chewing.  Why, other than a craving for nicotine causing him to chomp down on Nicorette Gum, would he reinforce an invidious stereotype of Americans as gum-chewers?"

Althouse  "He was also seen taking the gum out of his mouth while Prim Minister Modi was "trying to explain something." Was Modi trying to explain why you shouldn't chew gum during the Republic Day parade?

"The Times of India includes some Twitter commentary:

[A]uthor Shobhaa De...  said, "Barack bhai working his jaws overtime and chewing gum! At least it isn't gutka. But seriously - gum during a formal parade?".

           Barack Obama chews gum as parade marches on

"Glad to see @BarackObama is so human. Like most Americans, he chews gum. Anyone know what brand?," was how noted film-maker Shekhar Kapur reacted.

"Barack bhai" — what does that mean? Yahoo Answers says it means "brother," but:

"'Bhai' exactly means brother. But in Mumbai this term is used for gangster....

Strategic Culture Foundation writes:
"American media in past has commented about Obama's habit of chewing gum while referring to his medical report, according to which the US president was in excellent health except for a minor problem of "history of smoking". 

"But Obama was now "tobacco free" buoyed by the "occasional use" of "nicotine gum", said a report in Washington Post.

Perhaps the Times of India mentioned this because:
India welcomes Obama but really preferred Bush

A Christian Blogger Stopped Wearing Yoga Pants For Her Husband So She Wouldn’t “Entice” Men

Buzzfeed

Video from her blog


"Veronica Partridge’s blog post about her decision to stop wearing leggings or yoga pants in public is making a lot of people angry."

"Although many people online argued that her decision was “slut-shaming”, Partridge said her “conscience is clear”.

"The blog entry received both support and strong criticism. Some supporters quoted Bible passages and commended her for “honouring God and her husband”. One commenter said: 
“When a woman wears leggings and its all on show, they may as well not wearing anything from the waist down, in fact, it’s probably more sexually enticing than not wearing anything from the waist down in many cases.”

"Meanwhile, others criticised the entry for feeding into the idea that what a women chooses to wear dictates how men behave. “How about you learn to control your thoughts?” said one commenter. “Why do women constantly need to make it easier for men?' ”. . .

THE FREEDOM TO BE A CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

Biola Magazine  By Brett McCracken

As religious convictions are met with new legal challenges, what's at stake for schools like Biola?

 "What happens when the Christian conscience conflicts with the laws of the land? The U.S. Constitution protects the free exercise of religion, but what does “exercise” include? Does it encompass the expression of faith in a for-profit business? This was a question raised by Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, this summer’s landmark Supreme Court case that examined the scope of religion freedom for closely held for-profit corporations.

"What about religious nonprofits? Will relief organizations and Christian colleges maintain the freedom to define their Christian identity broadly – as a communal movement that calls us to live and serve the world for Christ, beyond a private home or a church’s walls? Religious freedom is increasingly a contested issue in our society, and it’s hitting close to home for communities like Biola University.

"Yet it’s less about politics than it is about principles. What’s at stake is the freedom to be who we are – to do life together in the manner we believe God has called us."     Read the full article

Digging deeper into the story of Nazi death camps.

Auschwitz staff enjoying life.

Video:  Rarely seen footage of Auschwitz death camp after its liberation by the Soviet Army.
Very moving. The video is claimed to show  the liberation of Auschwitz by the Russians, but the soldiers in the film are mostly American. Little issue here; this mere documents that every ally liberated camps, over and over.

Then there is this documentary:


Chilling: The only photo record of the process of annihilation

Auschwitz as seen through eyes of the SS there
"In January 2007, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Archives received a donation of a photograph album. The inscription "Auschwitz 21.6.1944" on its first page signaled the uniqueness of the album—there are very few wartime photographs of the Auschwitz concentration camp complex, which included Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi killing center. Though his name does not appear anywhere in the album, the dates of the photographs and various decorations including adjutant cords on the uniform of the album's owner, indicate that the album almost certainly belonged to and was created by SS-Obersturmführer Karl Höcker, the adjutant to the commandant of Auschwitz, SS-Sturmbannführer Richard Baer. " .

Inmate forced to use makeshift
toilet

The album  "Karl Höcker's photograph album includes both documentation of official visits and ceremonies at Auschwitz as well as more personal photographs depicting the myriad of social activities that he and other members of the Auschwitz camp staff enjoyed." . . 
... "Perhaps the most extraordinary photograph depicts an accordionist leading a sing-along for approximately 70 SS men taken at this gathering. In the front row of the group are Höcker, SS-Hauptscharführer Otto Moll (the supervisor of the gas chambers), Höss, Baer, Kramer, Franz Hössler (commander of the female prisoner compound at Birkenau), and Mengele. These are some of the only known photographs of some of these men, including Mengele, taken while they were stationed at Auschwitz." ...

Unaware Jewish mothers and children selected to die within the hour.

Never again.....? Come quickly, Lord.

.

Bay Area About to Ban Barbeques Because...

Downtrend

. . . "The problem is, the people of California’s Bay Area, which includes San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, have too much damn freedom. Sure, they can’t express their 2nd Amendment rights, are banned from using plastic bags, and are forbidden to own butterflies but the liberals in charge still think the people’s freedoms are running rampant. With that in mind, a ban on backyard barbequing is being floated.

According to the AP:

The booming popularity of outdoor kitchens among homeowners in the San Francisco Bay Area has an increasing number of their neighbors coughing and hacking from the smoke, leading air-quality officials to consider tightening rules on wood-burning pizza ovens and smokers.

 Full article...

Hollywood actor Rob Lowe: Obama prefers fruit loops over Netanyahu

Between Netanyahu and Obama, which national leader has demonstrated to you the most courage over the years?
Which of these two men has dithered most in deciding critical issues?
Which of them do you most trust the character of?
Which of these two men do you feel has the most foreign policy wisdom in dealing with Muslims?

Jerusalem Post  "PM formally accepts invitation to address special joint session of Congress, but will do so as a part of two-fold trip to Washington."

"Rob Lowe can't believe that Obama won't meet with Netanyahu, but will meet with YouTube star

"How is it that a woman famous for eating cereal in a bathtub can get an audience with US President Barack Obama, when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to do so? asked Rob Lowe on Twitter.

"Among the Hollywood actor’s famous roles, is that of Deputy White House Communications Director in the television show The West Wing.

"On Friday, Lowe entered a real-life diplomatic drama, when he weighed in on one of the mostserious crises in the often infamous series of political battles that have raged between Obama and Netanyahu in the last six years.
"A GloZell video that garnered 9.7 million hits on YouTube showed her eating fruit loops in a milk filled bathtub for what she called the cereal challenge." ...

. . .

“For those who aren't up to speed, here is the woman who had an official meeting with POTUS yesterday,” Lowe wrote." 

70 years ago: the extermination camp Auschwitz liberated

70 years after Auschwitz liberation, a survivor remembers

A picture taken just after the liberation by the Soviet army in January,1945, shows a group of children wearing concentration camp uniforms behind barbed wire fencing in the Auschwitz Nazi concentration camp. 

The theme music from "Schindler's List"

Aerial Photography of Auschwitz Concentration Camp : The Archival Research Catalog (ARC) is the online catalog of NARA's nationwide holdings in the Washington, DC area, Regional Archives and Presidential Libraries. ARC replaces its prototype, the NARA Archival Information Locator (NAIL).

"Nearly 100 hundred aerial photographs of the Auschwitz death camp are available from the NAIL datatabase. Search NAIl and type in "NWDNC-263-AUSCHWITZ" or "NWDNC-373-AERIALFILM" in the ditigal copies box."

NY Times: How Auschwitz Is Misunderstood  AUSCHWITZ was liberated 70 years ago, on Jan. 27, 1945, and news of its existence shocked the world. With its principal killing center at one of its main camps, Auschwitz-Birkenau, becoming fully operational in 1942, it was Germany’s largest and the most notorious extermination site. There the Germans slaughtered approximately 1.1 million people, a million of whom were Jews. Its mention evokes notions of evil and instant horror. Auschwitz was a death factory, an oxymoron that would have made no sense before the Holocaust, but that now is effortlessly comprehensible.

Below: the iconic image of Auschwitz:

"Shoah" 'Oskar Schindler's List' AUSCHWITZ-Speilberg-Williams-Stafford,Piano Rendition Theme 

The "Shoah", or "the Holocaust" "The Holocaust (from tthe Greek ὁλόκαυστος holókaustos: hólos, "whole" and kaustós, "burnt"), also known as theShoah (Hebrew: השואה, HaShoah, "the catastrophe"), was a genocide in which approximately six million Jews were killed by the Nazi regime and its collaborators. An additional five million non-Jewish victims of Nazi mass murders are included by some historians bringing the total to approximately eleven million. Killings took place throughout Nazi Germany and German-occupied territories".

Yad Vashem; The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority

"And to them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name (a "yad vashem")... that shall not be cut off."

(Isaiah, chapter 56, verse 5)

More  on this coming...

the Oxford Union debate with the subject, is America racist?

The debate will be taped and aired on David Webb’s SiriusXM Patriot radio show Monday, January 26 at 9PM Eastern time. Additional coverage by Breitbart News, Fox News Network, and worldwide media is expected. The Oxford Union YouTube channel will have the full debate following its conclusion.  Breitbart

US Racism Debate : Al Sharpton   Description

Instead of the Emergency Debate prior to the US Racism Debate this evening, there will be an individual address by Rev Al Sharpton as a precursor to the main Debate. 

A prominent civil rights activist,  Barack Obama referred to Rev Sharpton as "the voice of the voiceless and a champion for the downtrodden".  Rev Sharpton hosts NBC's PoliticsNation and a radio talk show called 'Keepin' It Real', and makes regular guest appearances on Fox News.

Trust the Rev. Al Sharpton to go for the old bait-and-switch when he thinks he might have to answer for his positions.

Sharpton Speaks at Oxford, Addresses Whether America’s ‘Institutionally Racist’

“The America under Barack Obama is not the same America that it was under James Madison or Thomas Jefferson, and it will not be the same 100 years from now, if we keep on fighting. So as you wrestle with this question of ‘Is American institutionally racist?’ my answer is: America is in transition. And that transition will occur, and continue to occur.”

From the Canada Free Press