October 7, 2023: Israel rediscovers ancient realities

Israelis learned to their horror and sorrow the police and army could not protect them. When seconds mattered and stretched into minutes, their protectors were hours away. Communities that had arms survived. Those that didn’t, were massacred. 

 Mike McDaniel - American Thinker   "There are some understandings universal to human nature. Perhaps the most ingrained is the will to live, which can prevail only if individuals have the ability, and means, of self-defense. Innumerable traditions around the world were inspired by this survival imperative, leading to the English tradition and common law, and ultimately, to the American Bill of Rights and its Second Amendment.

"It's unique among nations--the Second Amendment--not only because it acknowledges, but does not create, an individual right to keep and bear arms, but because no other nation has such a guarantee of the unalienable, natural right, securing the means to exercise that right. What’s truly unique, however, is that while the Second Amendment is arguably based primarily in the right to self-defense, the Founders also found compelling the individual and collective right of every American to rise up, armed as they please and might be, to overthrow a tyrannical government, like the one they had just overthrown." . . .

"Hard times produce hard men and women, and even alter tradition. Israel is a parliamentary democracy. It has no Second Amendment. Its martial tradition was birthed of necessity, and it’s not uncommon to see reserve and active-duty, off-duty, soldiers, male and female, carrying their issued arms in public. From those common images, Americans, as we tend to do, assume Israel too had widespread civilian armament. If not a Second Amendment, surely their laws allowed average Israelis, under constant threat of terrorist attack, to be armed?

"By October 8, 2023, we learned in this too, we were imposing American assumptions on the cultures of others. Israeli law made it very difficult for Israelis to own or carry arms of any kind, and the few citizens allowed weapons were limited to 50 rounds of ammo at a time, all of which had to be strictly accounted for. A wanton, barbaric slaughter of greater than 9-11 proportions tends to have a sobering effect:  . . ."

As was once mentioned in the Tunnel Wall, the one man in a Kibbutz with a key to the armory was killed by Hamas. TD

After Two Decades, the 9/11 War Cry Is Heard Again at the Scene of the Crime

 Robert Spencer – PJ Media   "Twenty-two years after the 9/11 jihad attacks, it has come to this: on Thursday, as anti-Israel protesters stormed the World Trade Center site in lower Manhattan, screams of “Allahu akbar” could be heard among the crowd. After two decades, the war cry of those who took down the Twin Towers has returned to the scene of the crime.

"Newsweek reported Friday that “a video of a pro-Palestine protester shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ outside New York City's World Trade Center has led to fury online.” That video does indeed feature a lone voice screaming “Allahu akbar,” as well as “Takbir,” which is a call to which people are supposed to respond with “Allahu akbar.” The only response this fellow apparently gets, however, is one person telling him to “shut the f**k up.” Another video, however, appears to show more than one person joining the cry.

"The sight of people screaming “Allahu akbar” at the World Trade Center site is jarring, as the phrase is inextricably bound up with 9/11. The most prominent 9/11 hijacker, Mohamed Atta, reminded himself before the attack to “shout, ‘Allahu Akbar,’ because this strikes fear in the hearts of the non-believers.”

"Newsweek, however, is eager to downplay all this. It tells its unfortunate readers that “Allahu akbar” is “an Arabic phrase meaning ‘God is great’ or ‘God is greatest.’” It says that the phrase “has significant meaning for Muslims and is often used as a call to prayer.” Imam Omar Suleiman, founder and president of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research, is brought in to pronounce fancifully that the phrase “Allahu akbar” is “a celebration of life, the first words fathers whisper in the ears of their newborns. They are used to indicate gratitude when God bestows something upon you that you would have been incapable of attaining were it not for divine benevolence.”. . .

. . ."That effort has been going on for years. Back in 2017, Zainab Chaudry of the Hamas-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) argued that non-Muslims shouldn’t “believe the worst” about “Allahu akbar” because Muslims don’t just scream it while murdering non-Muslims, but use it in a variety of contexts. CNN featured Suleiman’s benign explanation of the phrase. And the New York Times actually tweeted that the phrase “Allahu akbar” had “somehow” become “intertwined with terrorism.” Somehow!

"The incident at the World Trade Center on Thursday was a fresh reminder of the fact that all that, however comforting, was balderdash. Besides “Allahu akbar,” the demonstrators were chanting “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free,” which is a thinly veiled call for the destruction of Israel and a new genocide of the Jews. 

"The phrase “Allahu akbar” should not be normalized or sanitized in the West. It is a statement of Islamic supremacy at best and one of war and aggression all too often. Those who treat it as a simple expression of Islamic piety are, unfortunately, in for a rude awakening from those who, like Atta, think of it as a means to terrify and terrorize the infidels."

On the sexual atrocities Hamas committed on Oct. 7

 Infidel Bloggers  "On Thursday, The New York Times recounted in awful detail the sexual atrocities the men of Gaza committed during Hamas’s October 7 raid into Israel.

"I know Jeffrey Gettleman, who had the piece’s lead byline. He is a serious reporter who served with distinction for many years in Africa. He doesn’t exaggerate.

"Which is good, because the Times’s descriptions of these crimes nearly beggar belief. They go beyond rape, or gang rape, or even the execution of prisoners. As described by witnesses who survived, and confirmed by video and forensic evidence, Hamas’s attackers turned murder and torture into can-you-top-this sport:

"The first victim she said she saw was a young woman with copper-color hair, blood running down her back, pants pushed down to her knees. One man pulled her by the hair and made her bend over. Another penetrated her, Sapir said, and every time she flinched, he plunged a knife into her back.

Surviving Captivity| Mia's Harrowing Testimony of Terror and Survival: "I cooked for three terrorists. It was either this - or to be raped."

Involuntarily, Mia Schem became one of the well-known abductees. In an interview with "Olpan Shishi," she recounts the loneliness,… pic.twitter.com/O4uOlKmDC5

— Adam Albilya - אדם אלביליה (@AdamAlbilya) December 29, 2023

Israeli hostage opens up about Gaza captivity | National Post

'I felt like an animal in a zoo': Israeli hostage talks about abduction from music festival, Gaza captivity

 Israeli Mia Shem opens up about the abuse she  suffered at the
hands of Palestinian residents of the coastal enclave.

“ 'I went through a Shoah,” Shem told the broadcaster, adding: “Everyone there (in Gaza) is a terrorist.

“ 'Entire families are under Hamas. I realized I was staying with a family. I started to ask myself, why am I in a family home? Why are there children here? Why is there a wife here?” she explained.

"In a separate interview with Channel 12 News scheduled to air on Friday, Shem recalls how Hamas terrorists abducted her to the Strip during the Islamist group’s Oct. 7 massacre at the Supernova music festival in Israel’s northwestern Negev.

“ 'The floor was splattered with blood and I yelled in pain, ‘I lost my arm!'” she told the network’s primetime “Ulpan Shishi” program, according to a clip posted to X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.

“ 'He (a Hamas terrorist) started touching the upper part of my body. Suddenly, someone grabbed my hair, pulled me in a car and drove to Gaza. I felt like an animal in a zoo.' ”

NY Times: Hamas Weaponized Sexual Violence on 10/7 – HotAir  "A mile away, another witness saw members of Hamas rape and murder another woman.

He said he then saw five men, wearing civilian clothes, all carrying knives and one carrying a hammer, dragging a woman across the ground. She was young, naked and screaming.

“They all gather around her,” Mr. Cohen said. “She’s standing up. They start raping her. I saw the men standing in a half circle around her. One penetrates her. She screams. I still remember her voice, screams without words.”

“Then one of them raises a knife,” he said, “and they just slaughtered her.”

"There’s a lot more to the article all of which is hard to read. Witnesses saw the bodies of many women who were found naked and alone, often with signs of sexual violence.". . .

. . ."And one more:

This article should be required reading for every woman who dares to protest in support of Hamas and that begins with AOC. It should be posted in the common area of every dorm at Harvard , Penn , MIT. It makes you wonder what happened to all the female hostages. I don’t even want to think about… but as a human being I have to. I have to bear witness. So do you.

"I’d like to think most people are this sensible. That they can see what Hamas is and stop defending them and chanting their slogans, i.e. from the river to the sea. The fact that these brutal, theocratic, anti-Semitic, misogynist murderers have become heroes to many on the left should be shocking to every sane person in the world."

Maine, Colorado, and the Democrats May Have Just Handed Trump 2024

 RedState    

"Last week I wrote about how a good deal of former President Donald Trump's popularity is fueled by pure spite by the people whose lives have been damaged or made harder by the Biden administration's destructive policies. 

"His popularity has risen in part because the Democrats have made it very clear to the American people that they fear Trump, and if the people who've made your life miserable are telling you that they're afraid of someone, you're probably going to gravitate toward that figure and attempt to put him between yourself and them: 

My theory is that as Biden and the Democrats cause more suffering, they create a byproduct of spite which people will then use to select which opponent of the administration they'll end up voting for. Combined with the fact that the entirety of the Democrat Party attack machine has been aimed at Trump, including endless media reports, a weaponized justice system, and a mugshot that gave Trump "outlaw" status, you can bet that the Democrats have effectively told people who the party is afraid of. 

This has caused the people to infuse Trump with even more support, causing him to only grow in influence despite never having appeared on a debate stage. In fact, I'm willing to bet that a lot of the people now supporting Trump haven't actually seen anything he's had to say over the past few years with the exception of random clips they accidentally came across. I think many people just remember that things were much better under him and got much worse when he was gone.

 "Keep in mind that the people who now support him aren't all GOP voters. Many of them are Independents and former Democrats who feel Reagan's old saying about not leaving the party but the party leaving him. 

"Every single attack on Trump has only increased his power. Trump has yet to step on a debate stage this election season and he's been the runaway choice for the GOP primary since the word "go." If the Democrats had never mentioned Trump again after 2020, he wouldn't be half as popular as he is now, but the Democrats couldn't stop obsessing over him. 

"And for some reason, Democrats never learned this lesson. 

"Many Democrats in positions of power have attempted to get their names on the books by attempting to be the stone that finally trips Trump and stops him from running in the 2024 election against Joe Biden. Each attempt has failed to do what it was supposed to, which brings us to the latest one." . . .

Watch out for those predictions of a landslide for Trump. TD

Migrant caravan 6,000-people strong splinters as it works its way through Mexico: those beginning to arrive at the US border are bussed north to Democrat-run cities

 Daily Mail Online 

"A migrant caravan 6,000-people strong was working its way up north through Mexico on Friday as an initial wave of 1,300 people began arriving at the Texan city of El Paso - with many of them being immediately bussed north to Democrat-run cities.

"Dramatic footage shared on social media showed migrants walking through the Mexican state of Chihuahua, bound for the border. Others were seen clinging to the top of 'La Bestia' - the freight train known as The Beast, which runs from Mexico City up to Ciudad Juarez, the border town with El Paso.

"The migrants have been heading towards the international boundary for the last few days.

"After they trickle into Ciudad Juarez almost all will try and cross into the U.S." . . .

REPORT: Biden Tried to Bully Netanyahu (and Failed) During Recent Phone Call, Then Hung Up on Him

 Nick Arama – RedState

"Biden himself has been making comments that haven't been helpful such as terming Israel's response to Hamas as "indiscriminate" and saying they need to change the government. “They’re starting to lose that support by indiscriminate bombing that takes place,” Biden said."

"Tensions are increasing between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to a new report at Axios, a frustrated Biden hung up on Netanyahu after a dispute about how to handle tax revenues the Israeli government collects for the Palestinian Authority. 

"I wrote earlier this week about a report that Biden allegedly talked Netanyahu out of a "preemptive strike" on Hezbollah that Israel was reportedly planning in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas. That report comes at a time when Biden needs to be seen as more of a competent leader, and Netanyahu shot it down. 

---

"Now we learn from "unnamed sources" that the two had a call last Saturday in which Biden was basically trying to tell Netanyahu what to do, and when he wasn't going for it, Biden hung up on him. U.S. officials are now dinging Bibi, terming it one of the most difficult and "frustrating" conversations the two have had. 

"The phone call was part of an attempt to resolve the question of how to get that tax revenue to the Palestinian Authority in light of Israel's very legitimate concern that the money would just go to fund attacks against them. The PA refused to accept any of the money unless they got it all. But, they say that if they don't get the money, there might be a collapse in the West Bank. So the U.S., Israel, and the PA, according to Axios' report, worked out a deal where Israel would give Norway the disputed portion of the funds until the parties worked out a long-term answer. Supposedly Bibi agreed and then changed his mind to appease hardliners in his coalition government -- or at least that's the Biden administration's narrative." . . .

READ MORE: Netanyahu Denying, Biden Not Talking About New Report He Talked Bibi Out of a Preemptive Hezbollah Strike

Maine Secretary of State Makes Legal Ruling Striking Trump from Ballot Based on YouTube Videos

 Breitbart

"Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows unilaterally ruled that former President Donald Trump is unqualified to appear on the 2024 primary ballot despite lacking a law degree and substituting YouTube videos for due process.

"Bellows, who previously worked as Executive Director of the Maine Chapter of the ACLU but is not an attorney and did not attend law school, made the legal conclusion in her ruling that “the declaration on [Trump’s] candidate consent form is false because he is not qualified to hold the office of the President under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment.”

"The secretary of state, a Democrat whose social media is littered with photos of President Joe Biden, justified her ruling based on Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment’s “Insurrection Clause.” The statute has never been used to disqualify a president from the ballot and has generally been understood not to apply to the office of the president, although left-leaning plaintiffs have sued across the country in long-shot hopes of keeping Trump from appearing on primary ballots.

"Bellows’ ruling that Trump engaged in the crime of insurrection comes despite Trump having never been convicted of that — or any other — crime, or even been charged in court with the crime of insurrection. He was acquitted by the U.S. Senate of charges of engaging in insurrection and continues to deny wrongdoing.

"Her decision has met with widespread scrutiny.

"CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig said Thursday on Anderson Cooper 360 that Bellows’ decision to bar Trump from the ballot was based on “YouTube clips, news reports” and “things that would never pass the bar in normal court.' ” . . .

In Pete Buttigieg's reality, EVs dominate

"Unlike in Buttigieg’s reality, in real reality many EV buyers are unloading their EVs at a loss.  Only the wealthy who have all the ICE vehicles they need and buy EVs as toys, are not.  Unsurprisingly, there is virtually no used EV market." . . .

 Mike McDaniel- American Thinker    "Real reality-based Americans have been watching the increasingly downward spiral of electric vehicles and their associated PR machine with relief and pleasure. The venerable axiom “what cannot go on, won’t” applies. However, one of the fruits by which democrats/Socialists/Communists may be known is also their defining characteristic: they create their own reality and try to force others to live in it. So it is with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who is, by the way, gay. You don’t have to ask him; he’ll tell you.  Here’s his current reality: 

“[T]he share of EVs has been dramatically increasing every single year, and that’s continuing. Now, our goal is, by the end of this decade, to be about half-and-half. We think that that can and will happen. But what isn’t guaranteed is, first of all, is that EV revolution going to continue to be made in America? During the Trump administration, China really built a major advantage on EVs. But as somebody who comes from the industrial Midwest, sees how the auto industry creates so much by way of livelihoods where I come from and really around the country, I’m much more excited about the jobs being created on U.S. soil, and that doesn’t just happen. We’ve got to make sure that the U.S. leads the way as this technology changes. I don’t know a lot of people who think that Americans in 2050 are still going to be driving that old technology, that combustion technology that we inherited from the 20th century.”

"So much delusion. So much waste.

“Well, no, you’re not going to meet a lot of people who ever go back after they’ve got electric, and I think that really tells you something. That shows you that the lower maintenance, the fact that it costs less to maintain, the fact that they break down [with] less frequency, and the cost savings that you get by not having to buy gas or diesel are I think why you almost never meet somebody who has an EV who says, I want to back to the old technology.”

Replacing Claudine Gay

 Robyn Dolgin - American Thinker   "Harvard president Claudine Gay is giving America an education as to why she’s still on the job.

"She’s proven to be a spectacular failure in her position, but that’s not enough to show her the door (more on her pathetic performance later). Her saving grace is being the perfect substandard DEI hire (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity).

"If she’s dismissed, the Harvard governing board -- all 12 members -- would be forced to face the embarrassing spectacle of calling into question the dismal failure of the entire DEI enterprise.

"It’s a delicate situation.

"They have remained steadfastly loyal to the first Black, female president of Harvard, but the winds are shifting and nearly blowing them off their academic perches, now that prestigious alumnae are calling for their resignation.

"What about a compromise?

"Perhaps they could return to their next stack of underqualified, race-obsessed DEI candidates to replace the embattled Gay. There is one promising candidate who -- unlike Gay -- doesn’t come with the controversial baggage as a confirmed plagiarist in academic circles.

"If the bar is going to be lowered to an all-time low for integrity and academic standards, they may wish to consider the Reverend Al Sharpton.

"He cannot boast of a fancy degree from an Ivy League school, having dropped out of Brooklyn College after two years, but he’s a favorite with the White House.

"He can even attach a letter of recommendation from Vice President Kamala Harris, who gives her seal of approval to the “political activist,” ignoring his reputation as a race hustler.

“ 'The Rev. Sharpton has spent his life fighting for what’s right and working to improve our nation, even in the face of hate,” then Senator Harris wrote @Kamala Harris in 2019. 

"It’s best not to scrutinize too closely what she meant about “working to improve our nation.' ” . . .

The Abolition Of Man?

 Eric Utter- American Thinker   

"C.S. Lewis famously wrote of “The Abolition of Man.” He did so in an attempt to illustrate what happens when we no longer believe in the divine spark that makes us human, in the ability to reason, in the existence of truth — and in the ability to determine right from wrong. And in the idea that humans are fallen by their nature and therefore imperfectible.

"All of which is being almost perfectly illustrated and demonstrated today.

"On so many levels. More, likely, than even Lewis anticipated.

"We are witnessing the deliberate attempted destruction of the Christian religion at the hands of leftists. We are in the throes of an almost total destruction of our “higher education” system, with universities “fundamentally transformed” into stupefyingly illiberal indoctrination centers preaching nihilism and hatred of America and everything for which she once stood. We are in the throes of a sometimes violent revolution against God and nature, one in which young people’s genitalia is being mutilated and discarded as if it were nothing but a cancer to be removed. We are witnessing an unprecedented attack on the very idea and essence of man, as clearly shown by the nearly ubiquitous attack on “toxic masculinity.” Moreover, all too soon, mankind may be subjected to—and subjugated by—“pseudo man,” or artificial intelligence.

"There are even those who say that every breath humans take contributes to the scourge of global warming. Obviously, implicit in that notion is the idea that the fewer humans the better…at least for the planet. In this case, the honorable thing to do would be to end one’s own life, a concept quite at odds with Genesis.

"So we are potentially on the cusp of the spiritual abolition of man, the intellectual abolition of man, the hormonal and physical abolition of man, the figurative abolition of man, and the technological abolition of man." . . .

In the same Vein: A Year in Review: KJP's Most Embarrassing Takes

 Spencer Brown (townhall.com)

"While Karine Jean-Pierre assumed the role of White House Press Secretary last May, 2023 marked her first full year as Biden's chief spokesperson and hoo, boy was it a year of gaffes, ignoring inconvenient facts, storming out of the briefing room, and refusing to answer questions. 

"From Biden's classified document scandal to the Chinese spy balloon affair, denial of a border or inflation crisis, and plenty of "I'm just not going to go there" non-answers, 2023 was a tour de force in obfuscation and opaqueness.

"Before the leftist trolls have a chance to get triggered: No, this doesn't have anything with Jean-Pierre being a woman, black, or "queer" as she identified herself from the podium this year. It's about her being unable or unwilling to be honest with the American people or to acknowledge reality. 

"In chronological order beginning in January, here are KJP's most laughable and inexplicable takes from 2023." . . .

A real winner: "Adam Schiff, Eric Swalwell, and Ilhan Omar are brilliant individuals who deserve access to sensitive information on the Intelligence Committee. "

Joe Biden's Top 5 Worst Moments in 2023 (breitbart.com)   "President Joe Biden, 81, continued his record in 2023 of awkward and embarrassing moments, as well as alarming incidents demonstrating cognitive decline.

"Below are the five top worst moments for Biden in 2023:" . . .

Fireworks at the WH Press Briefing: Reporter Tells KJP She Should Be 'Ashamed' for Ducking Questions – RedState    "We’ve written dozens and dozens of stories about White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre because she’s irritable, evades any questions she doesn’t like, and is just generally incompetent at her job. Few besides Fox News’ Peter Doocy and Today News Africa's Simon Ateba ever call it out; most of the other WH press corps sheep just go along with it." . . .

"But Jean-Pierre is in a class by herself and treats reporters with as much or even more contempt than the Big Guy does. There are so many examples to choose from, but here are just a few:

WATCH: Karine Jean-Pierre Flips out When Faced Down by Peter Doocy Over the Border Crisis

Karine Jean-Pierre Swiftly Flees Presser When Asked About Hunter Biden's Business Partners

Karine Jean-Pierre Gets Snippy When Asked About Claims That Biden Is Treated Like a ‘Baby’

WATCH: Journalist Simon Ateba Announces Filing of First Amendment Suit Against WH, Karine Jean-Pierre

Dianny’s Ten Most Tiresome People of 2023

 

The annual year-end tradition continues…   "I started the Ten Most Tiresome People feature in 2013 at the now-defunct conservative blog All the Right Snark and have continued the tradition every year since.

"It is never easy narrowing the list down to ten. You’d be amazed at how many people seem to go out of their way to dance on my last nerve every year, and this year was no different. It took me the better part of a week to winnow the list down to ten, but I managed it.

"But then, as I was putting the finishing touches on the column this morning, I made a last-minute change, removing one of the original ten in exchange for someone I had initially rejected. That rarely happens. And no, I won’t tell you who got removed. I’d rather keep you guessing.

"Anyroad.

"Here is my list of the Ten Most Tiresome People of 2023."

He starts with....

10. Karine Jean-Pierre

. . ."Then again, sucking at her job is incidental. For Democrats, incompetence is often a resume-enhancer, especially if you check the right boxes.

"The Biden administration was so determined to hire and appoint people based solely on skin color and who they sleep with that America is now stuck watching an incompetent muppet struggle to answer questions every day while furiously rifling through her binder of crib notes.". . . 

. . ."I keep waiting for Karine to announce her imminent departure. But since the Biden White House is where people go when they aren’t qualified to work anywhere else, I expect Karine to hang around until Biden leaves office.

"Unless she starts stealing luggage from airports."