Rocky Mountain News closes

If there's any major casualty of the loss of interest in mainstream papers, it looks like the Rocky Mountain News in Denver, Colorado, is just that. They're closing now, after almost 150 years in publication.

What else could this suggest? That even Scripps-Howard News Service, the communications corporation that owns them, is having financial problems of its own. I wonder just how many staffers have been let off at their division, and just how many nationally syndicated articles they distribute have had to be cancelled as a result?

I won't be missing the RMN, if they've ever resorted to the kind of leftism I've grown to find distasteful. I won't be surprised if more newspapers like them will soon follow on the trail of cancellation, as the public continues to lose interest in MSM outlets that refuse to do any real service for them.

Any chance that Keith Ellison can be voted out of office by 2010?

The Common Dreams website (via Jihad Watch) reports that Muslim Congressman Keith Ellison is unhappy about Geert Wilders's visit to Capitol Hill to screen Fitna. "Concern, disappointment," that's what he whines he's filled with.

WASHINGTON - February 26 - Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) took issue with the screening of a film by the controversial Dutch Parliamentarian, Geert Wilders, in the United States Capitol. The film being screened, "Fitna", is said to compare Islamic terrorism to Nazism. The screening is sponsored by Senator John Kyl (R-AZ).

"I am a strong an advocate of First Amendment free speech. However, this is not about free speech, but rather an issue of propriety, timing and venue," Ellison said. "Senator Kyl has every right to host anyone he chooses, however it becomes a question of propriety to use the United States Capitol as a venue for the condemnation of an entire religion," Ellison said.

He may be an advocate of the First, but here's an even more challenging question: is he a strong advocate of the Religion Clause? Guess not.

Minnesota, if that's where's he's a representative, should vote against Ellison in the next House elections. Until then, I recommend that conservative politicians in Minnesota follow Senator John Kyl's example by inviting Wilders to screen Fitna locally at Minnesota's own legislation house. Kyl is to be applauded for his courage and integrity, and other Republicans should invite Wilders to screen at their own locations as well.

Livni refuses to join Netanyahu-led government

That's okay, Livni, we'd be better off without you:

Kadima Chairwoman Tzipi Livni ended her meeting with Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday, after the latter refused to include the "two states for two people solution" in his government's basic guidelines.

"Two states (one for the Israelis and one of the Palestinians) is not an empty slogan," Livni said as she left the meeting. "Unity is not just sitting in a government together. It also means sharing a way."

The two officials met at a Tel Aviv hotel for about two hours.

"I came to meet with the Likud chairman for a second time in order to hear about his vision and the way he wishes to implement. Israel is facing challenges. I told him Kadima would support any right moves by the government.

And just what are those moves they'd consider right? Keep going, Livni, just keep squawking like a chicken. And her own words are what's empty around here, besides just the slogan.

"In order to deal with the challenges I wanted three fundamental things which you are aware of," she said. "Two states is not an empty slogan. It's the only way Israel can remain Jewish and fight terror. It's a matter of principle.

"We discussed the issues. I didn't see any commitment on Bibi's part to these issues. The meeting ended without any understandings, and we cannot be part of Netanyahu's government," Livni stated, vowing to act as "a responsible opposition".

Ho, I'll bet!

The Likud leader's associates made it clear before the meeting that he would not accept the "two states for two people" formula. Senior Kadima officials clarified that Netanyahu's commitment to a peace process was insufficient, stressing that the world now views the Annapolis process as the foundation of any negotiations.

And just what do they mean by the world, anyway? All those jokers are doing is providing more comedy.

Netanyahu is right not to accept a formula that's just another form of segragation, which fiends like Jimmy Carter ironically accuse Israel of doing. Livni can stay in the opposition all she wants as far as I'm concerned. But I doubt she'll do very well there. Gideon Saar, the head of Likud's negotiating team, says she's sabotaging discussion out of personal motives. Personally, I think she's holding a grudge because she wasn't chosen to form a government, notwithstanding how the left-wing was left with little chance in this election's results of doing so. This could make some sense, but then shows how she's not fit to be a politician.

Hamas resumes rocket attacks

One more reason why negotiations cannot continue with them, and why a protest must be raised against the Obama administration's willingness to talk with Hamas:

(IsraelNN.com) Gaza terrorists resumed their near-daily rocket fire on southern Israel Thursday morning with an attack on the nearby city of Sderot.

A short-range Kassam rocket exploded next to two houses in the Gaza Belt community at about 8:45 a.m., damaging both buildings and traumatizing a number of residents.

Several people were treated for severe emotional shock by Magen David Adom medics who raced to the scene following the attack. The house sustained considerable damage as a result of the rocket explosion.

Hamas has also been smuggling more Grad missiles into the Gaza strip. Ehud Barak, the outgoing defense minister, has parroted the tired declaration that a cease fire is on the way. Put a lid on it, please.

Arcady Gaydamak: no true loyalty to Israel

Arcady Gaydamak, the Russian businessman who ran unsuccessfully for Jerusalem mayor, has left the country to escape the debt collectors and prosecution for illegal arms dealing, and now, he's even willing to give up his Israeli citizenship:

(IsraelNN.com) The man who wanted to be mayor of Jerusalem a few months ago is now hoping to renounce his Israeli citizenship and return to being a full-fledged Russian citizen.

Arcadi Gaydamak has applied to the Russian government to restore his citizenship, according to his attorney, who told IDF Army Radio on Thursday that the Russian-Israeli billionaire would give up his Israeli citizenship if his request is granted.

[...]

The business tycoon is currently trying to escape a French lawsuit in connection with the sale of some $791 million worth of Russian weapons to Angola from 1993 to 2000, in violation of French laws.

Because Russia and France have no mutual legal agreement, Gaydamak will be safe from French justice – to be decided on March 4 -- if he becomes a Russian citizen.

Gee, I guess he's going to join the commie regime, eh? But even if he had been elected mayor, it's possible that he'd be forced to resign if a serious indictment were issued against him. I'm disappointed with him for descending into corruption, and I guess we won't be seeing him around here again in the forseeable future.

I assume he had French citizenship too, and maybe he'll be giving that up as well if that's what it takes to evade justice.

Just a month being in office...

...and Barack Obama is now even less popular than Dubya was during his days in the White House (Hat tip: Newsbusters and Freedom Dogs):

For the first time since Gallup began tracking Barack Obama's presidential job approval rating on Jan. 21, fewer than 60% of Americans approve of the job he is doing as president. In Feb. 21-23 polling, 59% of Americans give Obama a positive review, while 25% say they disapprove, and 16% have no opinion.

And it may not get much better as time goes by.

Geert Wilders to visit Washington on Friday

Persecuted Dutch politician Geert Wilders has been invited to the District of Columbia this week by Senator John Kyl to screen Fitna for the House. Here's a press release from the Intl. Free Press Society (via Michelle Malkin):

On Friday, February 27, 2009, Dutch Member of Parliament Geert Wilders, founder and floor leader of the Freedom Party (PVV), and the International Free Press Society (IFPS), in conjunction with the Center for Security Policy, will discuss recent attacks on free speech worldwide, especially the recent legal actions against Wilders and other political leaders and journalists.

The International Free Press Society will announce a global initiative to protect free speech from laws that criminalize any criticisms of Islam or the doctrines of Shariah.

The event will include a screening of Fitna, the controversial film which includes quotations from the Koran, documentary footage of Islamic leaders inciting violence (jihad) based on those quotations, and documentary footage of jihadist violence. The film can be viewed on the Internet here.

Mr. Wilders will discuss his efforts to show Fitna and to rally support for free speech and the right to criticize Islam.

Frank Gaffney, President of the Center for Security Policy, will discuss the dangers to America’s national security and civil liberties imposed by global oppression of free speech.

I think this is very good that in the US, you have politicians who're concerned about free speech issues, unlike in Britain, where they're clearly not concerned at all.

Update: Wilders told Glenn Beck that Europe needs a First Amendment. More precisely, they need a Religion Clause.

Durban 2 draft gets worse

According to the Israeli ambassador at the UN:

The draft document for the United Nations anti-racism conference, dubbed Durban II, is problematic both for Israel and western democracies in general, Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva Roni Leshno Yaar told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.

Besides issues relating to Israel, the draft has problematic paragraphs regarding free speech, defamation of religion and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, he said.

"At this stage it is not possible to say what in the text would improve, if at all. In fact I expect the text to get only worse on all issues which are important for western democracy," Leshno Yaar said in a telephone interview from Geneva.

It sounds like a repeat of their earlier ban on "religious discrimination", among other horrible things.

He spoke as representatives from 190 nations have been meeting in Geneva to debate the language for a document in which Israel is alluded to as a "racist" and "apartheid" power.

The final draft will be presented at an April meeting in Geneva, which is the follow-up to the 2001 UN World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, which took place in Durban, South Africa.

Israel and the United States walked out of the 2001 conference to protest its disintegration into an anti-Semitic and anti-Israel hate-fest. Israel and Canada have already announced they do not intend to participate in this April's conference in Geneva.

The United States has yet to announce whether it will participate, but it has been present in Geneva this week with an eye toward helping to produce an acceptable draft.

I find it unlikely that the US government intends to do any good for anyone.

On Friday, the State Department stated that it had gone to the preparatory meetings in Geneva "to work with countries that want to achieve a successful review conference" and added that the United States had "strong reservations about the direction of the conference, as the draft document singles out Israel for criticism, places unacceptable restrictions on freedom of expression under the guise of defaming religion, and calls for payment of reparations for slavery."

While in Geneva, US representatives met with 30 national delegations to outline their concerns.

The initial draft of the Durban II text, posted on the United Nations Web site, spoke of the suffering of the Palestinians under occupation.

"A foreign occupation founded on settlements, laws based on racial discrimination with the aim of continuing domination of the occupied territories," it adds, is a "contemporary form of apartheid and a serious threat to international peace and security."

An alternative paragraph calls for the right of return for Palestinian refugees and refers to the "racial policies of the occupying power." Israel itself is not named in the document, although the reader can clearly understand where it is being referenced.

Israel has boycotted the preparatory meetings but has kept close tabs on the proceedings and has been lobbying countries to abstain, Leshno Yaar said.

In the last week, the Palestinians tried to introduce language into the document regarding the 2004 advisory ruling by the International Court of Justice at The Hague against the security barrier, said Leshno Yaar.

The Americans were present but did not appear to have made improvement in the document, which he said "is getting worse every day."

Irwin Cotler, a Canadian MP and former justice minister, told the Post that the conference had been initially designed to speak about global issues relating to racism without singling out any country or group.

Israel was the only country that was alluded to in this way, he said.

"Any reference to Israel, directly or indirectly, is wrong and illegitimate, not only in the eyes of Israel but also in the eyes of all western countries," said Leshno Yaar.

On Sunday the Jewish Agency's Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism held a meeting at the JA's Board of Directors Conference in Jerusalem.

While a briefing was given on the state of anti-Semitism worldwide, the focus was almost solely on Durban II.

While the task force has been following the plenary meetings currently being held in Geneva closely, a sense of doubt was expressed at the meeting that US efforts to change the conference's direction would be successful, while others doubted that the US delegation would walk away from the conference at all, as was the case at Durban I in 2001.

"As far as we believe, Durban II is going to be the anti-Semitic event of 2009," said Amos Hermon, the head of the task force. "It looks worse than we expected, even though it's not yet clear what the end result will be."

The meeting also broached the possibility of demonstrations, the use of Holocaust imagery to draw comparisons between Israel's recent military strike in Gaza and the systematic murder of millions during World War II and an all-out "hate-fest" on behalf of anti-Israel NGO's present at the conference.

"Operation Cast Lead is going to take center stage at Durban II, and we have to be ready for that." Hermon continued. "It was in everyone's homes, on everyone's television sets, and it's going to be everywhere in Geneva as well."

And it's one more thing that shows why the UN is irrelevant today, and should be abandoned by all democratic countries who value their freedom. I congratulate Canada if they're staying out of this, but it would be even better if they were to cancel their membership with the UN altogether in protest of these disgraceful scum.

The decline of the Labor party

Prof. Ephraim Inbar writes about the hows and whys of the Israel Labor party's decline over the years. Among the details here, he says:

Even many leftist Israelis that wanted to prevent the success of the much demonized Netanyahu cast their votes for centrist Kadima rather than strengthening Labor. Indeed, the once hegemonic party in the Israeli political system – the Israel Labor Party – ended up in 2009 as only the fourth largest party, with a meager 13 Knesset seats. Meretz, to the left of Labor, fared even worse, barely obtaining 3 seats in the Knesset.

Many of those leftists who voted for Kadima may sooner or later feel buyers remorse, because of the possibility that this party, whose exact standings are not clear, may be on the verge of going into a government with Likud. And some of them may go back over to the Labor and Meretz parties later on. Yet it does remain to be seen if Labor will ever be able to regain what it's lost over the past decades.

Maybe Ariel Sharon was once hawkish, but he abandoned it

Power Line usually has plenty I agree with, but I'm going to have to seriously disagree with this item written here in which Paul Mirengoff, apparently one of those kind of people who doesn't have proper insight on Israel, says:

Meanwhile, Kadima members reportedly have criticized Livni's refusal to consider joining Netanyahu. This is understandable, since many Kadima members probably do not share Livni's ideology. Indeed, I think it's fair to say that Kadima, formed a few years ago for pragmatic reasons by the hawkish former Likud chairman Ariel Sharon, has been essentially a party without an ideology. It is thus a bit much for Livni to insist that, in he name of her ideology, the party sit on the sidelines at this crucial moment in Israel's history.

"Hawkish"? In fairness, Sharon may have once been, but in the end, he betrayed just about anything and everything he ever stood for. I think the phrase "patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel" applies quite perfectly in a situation like this one, because, as I wrote a few years ago, Sharon had a very disturbing history of corruption.

And isn't "pragmatic" a positive word? Ariel Sharon, who should be remembered in history in disgrace and shame, did NOT form that pretentious party for any positive reasons. It was little more than a pathetic, selfish vanity project, which he did because he wanted to form what he thought could help to conduct "peace negotiations" with the PLO, and to make concessions, which also led to what Sderot now has problems with. How can Paul say that Sharon formed Kadima for any productive purpose? That's not just ill-informed, that's also misleading his audience. Many people in Israel believe that the reason for the "disengagement" was so Sharon could please the anti-nationalist camp and evade a prosecution that the attorney general was threatening him with. If that's so, Sharon was a pure coward.

Update: here's an older subject worth noting: Yisrael Medad had an op-ed published in the Forward about how the so-called Israeli prime minister is throwing away democratic values for the sake of political correctness.

While it was interesting to read about, the part about the newspaper themselves that annoyed me, as he explained on his own blog, was that they apparently have a policy that the description for Judea/Samaria should be "west bank". No kidding. That could explain why the Forward was never really my favorite weekly newspaper in print.

Obama appoints anti-Israel critics to jobs in government

Not too surprisingly, US president Barack Obama has appointed some very bad people to senoir jobs in the government. Here's a few articles, starting with this one from the JTA:

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- A former ambassador to Saudi Arabia with a history as a critic of Israel will reportedly be named to a top intelligence post in the Obama administration.

ForeignPolicy.com reported Thursday that Chas W Freeman Jr., who served as U.S. ambassador to the Saudi kingdom from 1989-1992 and is currently the president of the Middle East Policy Council, will be the chairman of the National Intelligence Council, which plays the leading role in producing national intelligence estimates. The publication reported Freeman has told associates that in the role, he would occasionally accompany director of national intelligence Adm. Dennis Blair to give the president his daily intelligence briefing.

In 2005 remarks to the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, Freeman said that "as long as the United States continues unconditionally to provide the subsidies and political protection that make the Israeli occupation and the high-handed and self-defeating policies it engenders possible, there is little, if any, reason to hope that anything resembling the former peace process can be resurrected. Israeli occupation and settlement of Arab lands is inherently violent."

That he was the ambassador to the House of Saud who'd rather blame Israel for violence and not criticize the Islamic religion for promoting violence is a clear sign he's bad news.

The Obama administration may also be planning to take part in a sequel to the anti-Israel Durban conference. Here's another report on this by Anne Bayefsky at NRO's The Corner (also via One Jerusalem).

Dept. of transportation rules that US Airways didn't discriminate against flying imams

A fortunate discovery, that those troublemakers in Minnesota have lost their complaint (Hat tip: Jihad Watch):

Imams lose complaint: The U.S. Department of Transportation said an airline didn’t discriminate against six imams when it removed them from a flight at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in 2006.

The department’s assistant general counsel, Samuel Podberesky, informed the Council on American-Islamic Relations of the department’s conclusion in a Jan. 14 letter.

But the department did fault US Airways for refusing to book the men on another flight after the FBI cleared them.

The letter is among several exhibits entered last week in a lawsuit the imams filed against the airline and the airport in federal court in Minneapolis. The trial is scheduled for August.

The men claim they were discriminated against because they appeared Middle Eastern and some of them prayed before boarding the flight.

While it's good to hear that justice has been done, there still needs to be a law protecting against frivolous lawsuits in the US. The Democrats killed the law proposal of the Republicans on that issue. It should be brought up again.

Peres gives Netanyahu the task of forming a government coalition

The great news has now arrived: president Shimon Peres has asked Benjamin Netanyahu to form a government.

Tzipi Livni, who must doubtlessly be humiliated, and deservedly so, at not being given the honor of doing so, doesn't want to join. Despite what the article says though, I don't know if she has the backing of her entire party to sit in the opposition. There is the possibility that several Kadima members may want to join. Or maybe they'll oust Livni like France's social party did with Segolene Royale.

Others on the subject include One Jerusalem, The American Thinker.

MSM resorts to apologia in case of the beheaded wife

The Buffalo News writes a most disgusting article about the TV producer Muzzammil Hassan who beheaded his wife in which they portray him as the victim instead of his wife (Hat tip: Jihad Watch):

Under arrest in his wife’s brutal death, Muzzammil Hassan is “almost in shock,” his attorney said Wednesday following a court appearance in Orchard Park.

“He’s having difficulty coping with this,” attorney James Harrington said.

And we're supposed to care about him? His lawyer is a disgusting lot too, IMO.

Hassan, 44, appeared briefly in the Orchard Park courtroom Wednesday for the first official proceeding since he was arrested last week and charged with seconddegree murder. His wife, Aasiya, was found beheaded at the office of their business in the Village of Orchard Park.

Tall and stout in a tan suit, he was led into the courtroom in handcuffs, blinking through his glasses at the approximately two dozen people gathered....

“If and when he’s indicted, he’ll plead not guilty,” said Harrington, adding, “It’s too early to know what approach we’ll take, but we’re exploring everything.”

That shouldn't be too surprising, if he shows no remorse over the murder of his wife.

Assistant District Attorney Colleen Curtin Gable said her office would seek an indictment against Hassan within 45 days on a charge of second degree murder. The first-degree charge is reserved for special circumstances, including torture or the death of police.

Conviction on second-degree murder carries penalties ranging from 15 years to life in prison, to 25 years to life, she said.

This is the part that's very seriously appalling, that the vermin wasn't charged with first-degree murder, especially considering just how graphic his actions were.

Harrington said that a history of domestic violence will be part of the case.

“They had their problems,” he said.

Orchard Park police said they had been called to the couple’s home on Big Tree Road because of domestic disputes previously. The most recent occasion was Feb. 6, the day Aasiya Hassan filed for divorce and obtained an order of protection barring Muzzammil Hassan from the house.

Although Hassan told police where to find his wife’s body, he has not confessed, Harrington said. Hassan went to Police Headquarters last Thursday evening and said his wife was dead at their business office, a Muslim-oriented television channel on Thorn Avenue.

It sounds like they're trying to portray even that in trivial terms.

Harrington rejected a connection between the beheading of Aasiya Hassan and the couple’s Muslim religion and culture.

“No, it does not [have any bearing],” he said, adding, “I think the media is doing a very great disservice to the Muslim community.”

I suggest you look carefully at the article written by the interviewing paper, cretin. They certainly aren't doing any "disservice".

The brutal nature of the crime has raised questions about whether it was a so-called “honor killing,” a possibility that the district attorney’s office is investigating. Harrington called questions about the extreme violence of the act inappropriate.

Advocates for women — some of them Muslims — have called for the community to acknowledge religious and cultural traditions that stigmatize divorce and heighten the danger of violence in divorce cases.

Well at least that's good to hear. But look at how they obligatorily use the phrase "so-called", although worse descriptions are needed in cases like these. Come to think of it, even saying that some women's advocates include Muslims is pretty morally equivalent too.

Newsbusters notes how, in contrast to how the MSM have dealt with the case of beheading of Aasiya Hassan, they reported almost instantly on the case of a Catholic priest who was falsely accused of child abuse 6 years ago.

Liberman recommends Netanyahu, Livni doesn't want to join

Avigdor Lieberman has, perhaps expectedly, recommended Benjamin Netanyahu for PM candidate:

(IsraelNN.com) Ending nine days of guessing around the country, Avigdor Lieberman, enjoying the kingmaker role as head of Israel’s third-largest party, recommends that Binyamin Netanyahu form the country’s next government.

In his meeting with President Shimon Peres Thursday morning , the head of Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home) added that this recommendation applies only if Netanyahu tries to form a national unity government with Kadima and Yisrael Beiteinu. This part of his recommendation, however, carries no official weight.

"Netanyahu and Livni must sit together in the government, without rotation," Lieberman told Peres. "A government of 65 MKs [with only the nationalist and religious parties, as well as Yisrael Beiteinu] will be nothing more than a 'survival' government. The three large parties must first form a government, and then the other parties will be invited to join."

Perhaps just as expectedly, Tzipi Livni has announced that Kadima will not sit in a government with Netanyahu, and even went so far as to incite against rightists:

Hours before President Shimon Peres was expected to complete his consultations with party representatives and decide who to task with forming the next government, and after Israel Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Lieberman said his party would back Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu, Kadima leader Tzipi Livni said that her party would not sit in a Likud-led government.

"Today, the foundations of a right-wing extremist government under Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu were set," Livni wrote in a cellular phone text message sent to Kadima members after she had met with party MKs. "Such a government is not our path and we have nothing to look for there."

"They didn't vote for us in order to provide authorization for a right-wing government and we need to provide an alternative of hope from the opposition," Livni continued. "Kadima will continue to fight for its beliefs and its path - an agenda based on two states for two peoples, and one that also includes dealing with vital civilian issues."

I don't know if Livni has really received the backing of her entire party on not entering a government with the Likud. But I do know that she has clearly shown her true colors, as someone who speaks out of pure contempt, and who advocates more defeatism.

Maybe, with any luck, they'll decided to oust her, just like France's social party did with Segolene Royale. Which would do them a lot of good.

Really, Shimon Peres? You mean it?

Shimon Peres claims that he was wrong about the disengagement, but still leaves a lot to be desired:

President Shimon Peres said Wednesday that he had erred in supporting Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza.

The revealing remarks come three years after Israel's evacuation of the volatile coastal strip which has since been seized by Hamas.

"Whatever will happen in the future, we shall not repeat the mistakes we made in leaving Gaza," Peres said in a question and answer session with a group of American Jewish leaders. "It should have been done otherwise. I was for leaving Gaza. I consider myself as one of the persons mistaken."

The dovish leader, who has long been a champion of Israeli territorial withdrawals, said that although "lessons must be drawn" from the 2005 unilateral Gaza pullout, demographic and democratic considerations still necessitate the creation of a Palestinian state.

"It doesn't change the fact that there is a [demographic] reality," he told the annual Israel meeting of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. "I want to make sure that the state we have remains Jewish."

I hate to say this, but if he's still supporting creation of a palestinian state, then he's just undermining any regret he claims to have. The verdict: he's still talking out of both sides of his mouth and being weak on the issue.

Roland Burris should resign

Both the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune are calling for his resignation (Hat tip: The American Spectator). That's certainly something when even MSM outlets like those show the decency to call for common sense.

British libraries surpass Borders books in how they shelve the Koran

Still more than enough dhimmitude going around in the blighty, I'm afraid. And this is the latest example (via Hot Air):

Muslims have complained of finding the Koran on lower shelves, saying it should be put above commonplace things.

So officials have responded with guidance, backed by ministers, that all holy books should be treated equally and go on the top shelf together.[...]

The report said the city’s librarians consulted the Federation of Muslim Organisations and were advised that all religious texts should be kept on the top shelf.

‘This meant that no offence is caused, as the scriptures of all the major faiths are given respect in this way, but none is higher than any other,’ the guidance added.[...]

Inayat Bunglawala, of the Engage think tank, which encourages Muslims to play a greater role in public life, said: ‘If Muslims wish to see the Koran placed on a higher shelf, and library rules say it should be there, then that is a welcome and considerate gesture.

‘But one size does not fit all. If Christians do not want to see the Bible treated in the same way, I do not see why it has to be dealt with the same.'

I can't remember clearly just now, but Borders may have suffered some financial slumps recently. Whether or not it was because of their own dhimmitude I have no idea, but they did deserve it.

Finally, Britain can deport abu Qatada UPDATE: and then again, maybe not

But then again, will they actually do so? Well first, let's take a look at the following news excerpt (via Hot Air):

In a victory for the Home Office, law lords today decided that Qatada - who is wanted in Jordan on terror charges - could be deported from the UK.

The Government had appealed against a court decision preventing his deportation on the grounds he may face unfair treatment in Jordan.

The 48-year-old, once dubbed Osama bin Laden’s right-hand-man-in Europe, has claimed evidence against him was extracted by torture. [...]

Human rights groups condemned the decision, which also favoured the Home Office in its efforts to deport two Algerians.

Amnesty International urged ministers not to take the judgment as a “green light” to deport more people to regimes where they risked unfair trial and torture.

Ahem. These are savage criminals in focus here. Who cares what happens to them? I've got a feeling that, depending on what circumstances come up next, those regimes might not do anything to such scum in the end. And yet, why do I get the feeling that, even with this victorious ruling, they won't actually deport the vermin? It ain't over till its over.

Update: quite predictable, I'm telling you (Hat tip: Jihad Watch):

Radical cleric Abu Qatada will stay in Britain for months despite a House of Lords ruling that he should be deported to Jordan where he faces terror charges.

The Law Lords said Qatada, dubbed "Osama Bin Laden's right hand man in Europe", could be sent back to Jordan where he faces terror charges after overturning a Court of Appeal decision.

But the extremist could still remain in the country for many months if he takes his case to the European Court of Human Rights.

And one can only guess how that'll turn out. Right? He'll appeal to the overlording court of Europe, we can be sure, but even if they don't reverse the verdict, it's possible that Britain may just forget to bring him to the airport, and he'll go into hiding within the country. And to make matters worse:

The move is likely to delay any moves to deport him for months and even years.

I figured as much.

Update 2: well this is atrocious. The European court of "Human Rights" has rewarded Qatada monetary compensation for his detention (also via Jihad Watch). And that's your tax money at work.

Canterbury archbishop coughs up dhimmitude again

Rowan Williams, the archbishop who raised controversy last year by claiming that Britain should adopt shari'a into its system, now says that more people are coming around to his POV (Hat tip: Jihad Watch):

The Archbishop of Canterbury has defended his controversial comments about the introduction of Islamic law to Britain and claimed that public opinion is now behind him.

On the anniversary of the interview in which Dr Rowan Williams said it "seems inevitable" that some parts of sharia would be enshrined in this country's legal code, he claimed "a number of fairly senior people" now take the same view.

Well he's right about that. A judge mentioned here and below took his view, some MPs do, and so too do some cabinet secretaries.

He added that there is a "drift of understanding" towards what he was saying, and that the public sees the difference between letting Muslim courts decide divorces and wills, and allowing them to rule on criminal cases and impose harsh punishments.

However critics insist that family disputes must be dealt with by civil law rather than according to religious principles, and claim the Archbishop's comments have only helped the case of extremists while making Muslim women worse off, because they do not have equal rights under Islamic law.

The Archbishop, the most senior cleric in the Church of England, faced calls to resign last February when he said it was likely that elements of the religious principles based on the Koran, concerning marriage, finance and conflict resolution, would be enshrined in British legislation one day.

But in July he was supported by Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers, who was then the Lord Chief Justice, while it later emerged that five sharia courts are already operating mediation systems under the Arbitration Act, and that the Government allows Islamic tribunals to settle the custody and financial affairs of divorcing couples and send their judgements to civil courts for approval.

When asked at a recent conference of Anglican leaders in Egypt whether he feels he has been vindicated, Dr Williams replied: "It's been quite interesting to see how a number of fairly senior people have observed that certain kinds of limited aspects of Muslim law are imaginable within a British legal framework, without upsetting the apple cart of undermining human rights.

"People are maybe beginning to distinguish the general question of Muslim law, and the extremes of appalling practice which disfigure it in so many parts of the world or the extremes of trying to push Sharia law upon an entire society.

"So I think there is a drift of understanding of what I was trying to say, perhaps I like to think so."

But Douglas Murray, the director of the Centre for Social Cohesion, said: "He has started a process which is deeply dangerous, damaging to Britain and to Muslim women in Britain."

You got that right, pal. The archbishop also doesn't seem to know just what "harsh punishments" could mean under Islam.

"It was a wicked move because it undermines the progressives and gives succour to the extremists.

"How does the Archbishop of Canterbury know, sitting in Lambeth Palace, that a woman in Bolton has volunteered to give up half her inheritance to her brother?"

Neil Addison, a barrister who specialises in religious discrimination cases, said: "I think the Archbishop has failed to give a justification for sharia law. What's the advantage it would bring to British Muslims and to British law?

"I believe his speech was deeply harmful to British Muslims because it helps the separation of them from the rest of society.

"What he was asking for was sharia dealing with wills and divorce, which are public areas of law, not private ones."

Harmful to Muslims? Not exactly. It's harmful to Muslim women, that's for sure, but it's also harmful to the indigenous society in Britain, because segragation is exactly what the Islamists want, until they can bring the rest of the population under their influence as well.

Livni tells AP just what they want to hear

What an incredibly stupid woman she is. She does not deserve to be a politician. I assume however, that she does want to wear a hijab.

Hat tip: Jihad Watch.

Roland Burris was part of Blagojevich scandal

No sooner did Blago appoint him and then get ousted as Illinois governor, the man he appointed senator has also been discovered to be part of a scandal. Here's some more at the Chicago Tribune (via Hot Air).

Burris should resign just as quickly as he came, if he too is going to do little than prove himself as dishonest as the man who appointed him.

New charges leveled at Olmert

Corruption charge 1,000,000 looks to be filed:

(IsraelNN.com) Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has been implicated in a new corruption scandal. A report put out Monday by State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss accuses Olmert of using his political pull to get an irregular loan approved.

Olmert pressured then Treasury Accountant-General Yaron Zehalka to approve a loan for the Jerusalem Engineering College, Lindenstrauss found. The alleged incident took place while Olmert served as Finance Minister.

I hope that a new government will be formed soon, so that then, he'll really have to step down and face them.

Possible merger between Likud and Jewish Home party

They've been talking about it for a few days now. Personally, if that's what they're thinking of doing, I think it would be a good idea.

Update: it's just a rumor.

Turkey irkey over Israeli general's remarks about their assault on Armenia

I think the general actually did the right thing to say just what the problem is with the Turks:

Turkey's foreign ministry summoned Israel's ambassador on Saturday to complain about a comment a senior Israeli general had made criticizing Turkey. It was the latest development in a growing war of words between the two US allies.

After the meeting, the IDF issued a statement saying the remarks that Israeli Maj. Gen. Avi Mizrahi had made on Tuesday did not reflect Israel's official view.

Turkish officials were not immediately available for comment to respond to the Israeli military's statement.

Turkey's foreign ministry summoned Israeli Ambassador Gabby Levy to ask for an urgent explanation over comments that Mizrahi had made on Tuesday at a military base in Israel. Turkish media said Mizrahi had accused Turkey of killing Armenians in 1915, and of oppressing Kurds and occupying Cyprus.

Turkey has long been Israel's closest ally in the Muslim world, and it has worked hard to try to mediate for peace in the Middle East, along with Egypt and France.

Mizrahi's remarks concerned very sensitive issues in Turkey and angered its government.

They apparently were made in response to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan who had sharply reprimanded President Shimon Peres over civilian casualties during the Gaza war at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"While referring to the criticism of Israel by Turkey, Gen. Mizrahi made statements that could be interpreted as criticism of Turkey's past," said a statement by Brig. Gen. Avi Benayahu, spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces. "The IDF spokesperson wishes to clarify that this is not the official position of the IDF."

Turkey's foreign ministry issued a statement calling Mizrahi's remarks "baseless" and saying they contained "unacceptable allegations and ravings" and that they were "directed against our prime minister."

Turkey's Radikal newspaper reported Saturday that Mizrahi also responded to Erdogan's call that Israel should be barred from the United Nations by saying that Turkey should be barred as well.

The Turkish military said Mizrahi's remarks "deviate from the truth and cannot be accepted under any condition" and "can harm national interests between the two countries," underlining the importance relations between the two countries.

The Turkish military's harsh reaction on Saturday reflected its deep uneasiness, given its close defense ties with Israel. They include training agreements and Turkish defense purchases from Israel worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Well those ties are likely to deteriorate very soon in the future, as this rather degrading country backtracks to Islamofascism once again. And what's this about Turkey's mediating peace in the middle east? They haven't done much of anything, I don't think. And Erdogan is a disgraceful character too, I might add.

Muslim who wanted to "improve" religion's image murders wife in Buffalo, NY

A Muslim who ran a television station in Buffalo beheaded his wife (H/T: Michelle Malkin):

Orchard Park police are investigating a particularly gruesome killing, the beheading of a woman, after her husband — an influential member of the local Muslim community — reported her death to police Thursday.

Police identified the victim as Aasiya Z. Hassan, 37. Detectives have charged her husband, Muzzammil Hassan, 44, with second-degree murder.

“He came to the police station at 6:20 p.m. [Thursday] and told us that she was dead,” Orchard Park Police Chief Andrew Benz said late this morning.

Muzzammil Hassan told police that his wife was at his business, Bridges TV, on Thorn Avenue in the village. Officers went to that location and discovered her body.

Muzzammil Hassan is the founder and chief executive officer of Bridges TV, which he launched in 2004, amid hopes that it would help portray Muslims in a more positive light.

The killing apparently occurred some time late Thursday afternoon. Detectives still are looking for the murder weapon…

Daniel Pipes has written about Hassan's station for almost 5 years. Nobody with common sense should ever tune into the savage's channel. Hassan actually wanted to portray his barbaric Religion of Peace in a positive light? He's proven otherwise now.

Update: The American Thinker reports that the Bridges TV website has been shut down. As well it ought to be. More here on the possible Saudi money that was bankrolling the propaganda station.

Others on the subject include The Chronicles of Two Rogue Jews, Democrat = Socialist, Northern Thoughts and Reflections, Hot Air Headlines.

Democrats want to bring back the "fairness doctrine"

Translation: they want to impede upon a private radio company's right to choose what programs will serve it well. Here's an article from Radio Iowa (via Michelle Malkin). Don't believe anything those leftists say about fairness. All they want is to destroy all that Reagan sought to improve during his time as president. Conservatives who care about their rights must speak out.

Others on the subject include Sister Toldjah, The Daily Conservative, BitsBlog, Hot Air.

Le Pen is welcome in Britain, but Wilders isn't?

Paul Belien notes in Trouw (via Jihad Watch) that in sharp contrast to Geert Wilders, the disgusting anti-semite and racist Jean-Marie Le Pen is allowed into Britain as a guest of honor for the BNP, his UK-based counterparts. Good to see that Belien may have since come to realize that Le Pen is bad news. And that someone like Le Pen is allowed into Britain should tell that there's more than meets the eye about him. Some very complex indeed. There are many good questions this raises.

Disgrace: Friday the 13th gets another installment

I'm not sure if this is another sequel or a "remake", but I do know that it's disgusting that horror flicks like these keep getting made. Especially when, as Debbie Schlussel describes, this is what happens in the story:

A brother is looking for his sister who disappeared weeks earlier at the former Camp Crystal Lake grounds, where legend has it that Jason came back to life after being killed by a camp counselor who fought back. His sister and her friends were at the site to find a massive pot crop, which they planned to sell.

If my estimates about the minds of the filmmakers are correct, we the audience are supposed to be completely okay with all those folks being offed because they're doing things like making money off of illegal drugs? I'm sorry, but there comes a time to draw the line, and they've crossed it. Let me also say that heavily implanted women and sex scenes don't belong in a horror movie, especially not, if I'm correct, they too are on Jason Voorhees' list of people to assassinate. (Seems like years ago, there were quite a few horror movies about teenage couples being offed for daring to be in love. The Orwellian mindset behind movies like these is just sickening.)

And just what kind of parents have the gall to actually take their children to see repulsive movies like these? This certainly does give me a low opinion of single parents, though I suspect that even duo parents could be just as irresponsible these days.

Muslims responsible for attacks on Chicago synagogues

Earlier, there were some acts of vandalism committed against 5 synagogues in the Chicago area. Now, the FBI has raided the home of a Muslim family circa West Rogers Park in connection with the offenses.

Suspect arrested and charged in arson attack in Australia

Strangely enough, they're not releasing that many details here:

MELBOURNE, Australia – Authorities charged a man Friday with lighting one of Australia's deadly wildfires and whisked him into protective custody amid national fury that arsonists may be to blame in the blazes that left more than 180 people dead.

Police said the man was charged with one count of arson causing death and lighting a wildfire near the town of Churchill, one of hundreds that raged through southeastern Victoria state last weekend, police said. He also was charged with possessing child pornography.

More than 180 people died and more than 1,800 homes were destroyed in the blazes. The official toll for the Churchill fire is 21 dead.

The suspect's identity was being kept secret for his own safety, Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Dannye Moloney told a news conference. He was brought from Morwell, near the fire zone, to the state capital of Melbourne, Moloney said.

Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported that the man was charged in court in Morwell on the three charges, but that he did not appear. He was ordered to undergo psychiatric evaluation, the broadcaster said.

The suspect faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison for the deadly arson charge, and a maximum of 15 years on the second arson charge.

As told in this article, there's a suspicion that jihadists could be behind the attack here:

(IsraelNN.com) As more than 31 major fires continued to rage in the Australian state of Victoria and the death toll approached 200, there was speculation on Tuesday that some of the blazes may have been set by Islamists waging a "holy war", or jihad.

No official has come out and voiced this suspicion, and most of the fires were attributed to lightning strikes during one of Victoria's hottest days on record. However, investigators have determined that some of the fires were deliberately set by arsonists, prompting Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to say that whoever was responsible for lighting the fires had committed "mass murder".

But bloggers have pointed to a report from September 2008 which warned that Australia had been singled out as a target for a "forest jihad" by a group urging Muslims to deliberately light bushfires as a weapon of terror.

According to the report in The Age five months ago, "U.S. intelligence channels earlier this year identified a website calling on Muslims in Australia, the U.S., Europe and Russia to 'start forest fires,' claiming 'scholars have justified chopping down and burning the infidels' forests when they do the same to our lands.'"

The website, reportedly run by a group called the Al-Ikhlas Islamic Network, "argues in Arabic that lighting fires is an effective form of terrorism justified in Islamic law under the 'eye for an eye' doctrine."

'This Terror Will Haunt Them'
The posting instructs jihadis to remember "forest jihad" in summer months. The article in The Age reported, "It says fires cause economic damage and pollution, tie up security agencies and can take months to extinguish so that 'this terror will haunt them for an extended period of time.'"

"Imagine if, after all the losses caused by such an event, a jihadist organisation were to claim responsibility for the forest fires," the website allegedly says. "You can hardly begin to imagine the level of fear that would take hold of people in the United States, in Europe, in Russia and in Australia."

The September report in The Age added that "Australian intelligence agencies are treating the possibility that bushfires could be used as a weapon of terrorism as a serious concern" and that "Attorney-General Robert McClelland said the Federal Government remained 'vigilant against such threats,' warning that anyone caught lighting a fire as a weapon of terror would feel the wrath of anti-terror laws."

The internet posting claimed the idea of forest fires had been attributed to imprisoned Al Qaeda leader Abu Musab Al-Suri. It said Al-Suri had urged terrorists to use sulphuric acid and petrol to start forest fires.

Could it be possible that the suspect's name is being withheld because he's of Arabic/Pakistani descent, and would draw more suspicion that way that his actions were jihad related?

Voting percentage was higher than reported

According to this news clip, 72 percent of eligible voters took part in Israel's election. Yes, that's definitely higher than 3 years ago.

UK government bans Geert Wilders from coming to screen Fitna in House of Commons

First, they invite him, then they withdraw the invitation. Then they restore it, but the government, if anyone in that madhouse, decides to ban Wilders from entering the country, and deems him - not the Islamofascists who go around inciting racial hatred - a threat to safety.

Are the MPs going to protest this? The International Free Press Society has issued a letter to the British government stating the following:

The British Home Office has further stated that in barring Geert Wilders from the UK it is stopping “extremism, hatred and violent messages” from coming to its country. The British Home Office is wrong. These things are already there. With this crude rebuff of Mr. Wilders, the Netherlands, and freedom of speech, the British government has all but ensured that such extremism, hatred and violent messages will continue to flourish in British soil, taking root and taking over.

Absolutely correct. All they're doing is ensuring more hatemongering continuing throughout the blighty. According to Jihad Watch, Wilders is supposed to be flying to Heathrow in defiance of the ban, so it remains to be seen if the UK is going to respect his right to free speech in defense of democracy or not.

Update: well, it looks like the question's been answered: the authorities arrested him and plan to deport him back to Holland (via Hot Air Headlines). In an interview with the Times (also via Hot Air Headlines), he summed up a few things about the British government:

Mr Wilders told The Times on the flight that the British Government was “the biggest bunch of cowards in Europe”.

”It is easy to invite people you agree with, it is more difficult to invite people you disagree with and this is the proof of the pudding," he said.

"I am going to Great Britain because I was invited by another politician (Lord Pearson of Rannoch). I am a democrat, I am serving freedom of speech. They are not only being nasty to me they are being nasty to freedom of speech.

He added: "They (the British government) are more Chamberlain than Churchill."

Yep, that's what they're like now.

Update 2: National Review sums up just what's the matter with Britain (via Jihad Watch).

Close race, but right-wing bloc is majority

I'm going to add more to this topic later, but for now, the result is: while Kadima has one seat more than Likud (28-27), the right-wing bloc itself has more than the left-wing bloc (65-55).

More on this later.

Update: okay, now I'm ready to say more. As Alison Kaplan Sommer tells here, any celebrating that Tzipi Livni and company may be doing at their HQ could be short-lived. Because as told already, the right-wing bloc is the real winner here, and could have an easier time forming a coalition. The army vote does need to be counted yet though.

Of course, one has to wonder just where Avigdor Lieberman is headed, and if he'll cooperate at his end. But even if he and his party were to go with Kadima, it'd still be hard to form a stable coalition, because even with Labor, it's not enough to form a coalition.

Speaking of which, Labor suffered the worst defeat of their entire existence in the Knesset, falling to barely 13 seats. That's not good news for Ehud Barak, who could be facing a backlash in his own party.

Likud, while they may be a seat behind Livni, did manage to double their Knesset representation back to a good number, and have some good members on their list now, including Tzipi Hotobeli, a religious-Zionist member who used to work as a reporter.

Now, it remains to be seen just where things are headed from here.

More at Hot Air.

Update 2: Newsbusters reports that CBS correspondent Richard Roth is being a "rightophobe" in talking about all this. Predictably.

Leicestershire police incorporate hijab into uniforms

All part of the increasing Islamization of the police, what else. From This is Leicestershire (via Dhimmi Watch):

Police have opened the door to female Muslim recruits by incorporating the hijab into the uniform.

The force has become the latest to approve a design for a headscarf suitable for officers on patrol.

Senior officers believe the lack of the option has deterred applications from the considerable number of Muslim women who choose to wear the hijab.

The police hijab is plain black and made of a flame-retardant material.

Officers will be able to wear a standard police hat on top of it.

A small number of forces nationwide have taken a similar step, including Thames Valley and the Metropolitan police.

Superintendent Geoff Feavyour, who leads the Leicestershire Constabulary recruitment team, compared the development to the incorporation of the turban several years ago, which removed a barrier to the recruitment of male Sikhs.

The police's annual report for 2007/08 showed women made up about 23 per cent of the force's officers.

The number of officers from black and Asian communities stood at about six per cent – short of the 15 per cent target.

Mr Feavyour said: "Clearly, we want people from all walks of life to join the force and the fact we have the hijab available now shows our commitment to that. It's an extension to our uniform which will, hopefully, show people they are welcome.

"It is very important to us that the force reflects the community it serves."

The move has also been welcomed by officers, including the Leicestershire branch of the National Association of Muslim Police.

Sgt Yakub Ismail, chairman of the branch, said: "Leicestershire Constabulary is always understanding and supportive of the religious needs of its staff.

"It has always encouraged applicants from all communities and religious denominations.

"I firmly believe neighbourhood policing can only be truly achieved by having officers from within those neighbourhoods being part of the police family."

Sughra Ahmed, a research fellow at the Islamic Foundation, in Markfield, said: "Not every Muslim woman who wants to join the police would want to wear the hijab, but that choice is there now and that is a very important step.

"There may also be women who are already with the force who do not wear the scarf but choose to later. Again, this will be positive for them."

Sabrina Khan, a 19-year-old student from Evington, Leicester, said: "I don't wear the veil, but a lot of my family and friends do.

"I have seen Sikh officers wearing turbans and if I saw a female officer wearing the hijab, I would feel that the police respected the Muslim faith."

Osob Osman, an 18-year-old student from North Evington, said: "The hijab has had a lot of bad press during the past couple of years.

"This will give women more career opportunities and, hopefully, change people's attitudes to Muslim people."

I don't think so. I think all it'll do is make people wonder why they're not allowed to see the officers' faces properly, which is something most sensible police forces usually believe should be done.

Did the UK Muslim population increase?

According to a reporter for the Australian writing in the London Times (via Daniel Pipes), yes, it did in the past 4 years:

The Muslim population in Britain has grown by more than 500,000 to 2.4 million in just four years, according to official research collated for The Times.

The population multiplied 10 times faster than the rest of society, the research by the Office for National Statistics reveals. In the same period the number of Christians in the country fell by more than 2 million.

Experts said that the increase was attributable to immigration, a higher birthrate and conversions to Islam during the period of 2004-2008, when the data was gathered. They said that it also suggested a growing willingness among believers to describe themselves as Muslims because the western reaction to war and terrorism had strengthened their sense of identity.

[...]

There are more than 42.6 million Christians in Britain, according to the Office for National Statistics, whose figures were obtained through the quarterly Labour Force Survey of around 53,000 homes. But while the biggest Christian population is among over-70s bracket, for Muslims it is the under-4s.

[...]

Professor Peach said that the high number of Muslims under the age of 4 — 301,000 as of September last year — would benefit Britain's future labour market through taxes that would subsequently contribute to sustaining the country's ageing population. He added, though, that it would also put pressure on housing and create a growing demand for schools. “I think housing has traditionally been a difficulty because the country is simultaneously short of labour and short of housing. So if you get people to fill vacancies in your labour force you also need to find places for them to live,” he said.

Muhammad Abdul Bari, general secretary of the Muslim Council of Britain, predicted that the number of mosques in Britain would multiply from the present 1,600 in line with the rising Islamic population. He said the greater platform that Muslims would command in the future should not be perceived as a threat to the rest of society.

That's what he says. We who understand the nature of Islam better would argue otherwise. And I'm sorry to say, but I think all those infant Islamists are going to benefit is socialism and welfare for Muslim families who'd rather lazy around than get an honest job.

Daniel Pipes says that you shouldn't expect this to last forever. But it's still very disturbing, and suggests where England is headed in the future.

I voted early today

Here we are on election day in Israel, and I went to my local polling station to vote, casting my ballot for the Likud. And I sure hope that more people are learning their lesson this year, and besides going to vote, that they're doing so responsibly, though I have a feeling that there will be those who don't, which is a shame.

Now, let us see what the results will be tonight.

Massive fire in Australia costs lives

A horrifying fire erupted in Victoria, Australia, taking more than 100 lives. Here is a report about it:

WHITTLESEA, Australia (AFP) – Huddled under a dampened blanket as Australia's deadly bushfires roared over her head "like a jet engine," Sonja Parkinson was convinced she and infant son Sam would die.

Instead, the flimsy shelter saved them from an inferno that claimed at least 32 lives in their town of Kinglake, one of many stories of heroism and miraculous escapes to emerge from the country's worst fire disaster.

"I thought we were going to die," she told The Australian newspaper, explaining how she ran for her life as her home in Australia's southeastern Victoria state was engulfed.

"The two front rooms were ablaze. I couldn't see. It was black. We went down to the creek and we hid," she said.

A shallow puddle proved to be their salvation, as Parkinson doused a blanket and awaited their fate.

"This little one was so brave under the blanket," she said.

"We had a blanket over us in the creek and we huddled with the dog and two neighbours and two lyrebirds.

"It was shallow, a summer creek, but there was just enough water, a puddle. We sat in a muddy puddle under a wet blanket and the fire went through us."

Further to the east, near Healesville, teenager Rhys Sund used a tiny tractor and trailer to save his sister Rhiannon and a group of frightened women and children from an isolated farmhouse in the path of the firestorm.

"I'm so proud of the young bloke," the 19-year-old's father Mark told Melbourne's Age newspaper. "He cut down the fences in his way and went in.

"Rhys hasn't been to bed yet. He's been fighting the fire all night."

Swimming pools, dams and even puddles became last-resort refuges for residents desperate to escape the flames, which sent showers of burning embers raining on homes.

"They call it 'ember attack,' those words don't do it justice," reported The Australian newspaper's Gary Hughes, who narrowly escaped with his life when his home northeast of Melbourne was destroyed.

"It is a fiery hailstorm from hell driving relentlessly at you. The wind and the driving embers explore, like claws of a predator, every tiny gap in the house."

Christine Halls and her family ran for their lives when flames bore down on their Kinglake home, barely able to see in the thick smoke.

"It was just terrifying," she said. "They say a bushfire sounds like a freight train coming, but it sounded like a freight train as big as the entire space you could see, the entire horizon.

"It was that much noise and force. The sound was incredible."

Halls and her family survived after taking shelter in a car but many others were not so lucky, with the twisted wreckage of vehicles on the outskirts of the town yielding at least six bodies.

Victims also perished in their homes. Police discovered five bodies in one Kinglake house that were so charred that officers could reportedly tell four of the victims were children only from the size of their skulls.

Bendigo resident Jill Kane's boyfriend Michael Ryan had to do the unthinkable and leave her unconscious brother Mick on the ground because he could not carry him from his home in time to escape the firestorm.

"He'd got to him and grabbed him but couldn't get him the last 20 or 30 metres to the road," a devastated Kane told the Herald Sun newspaper.

Amid the tragedy there was also defiance, including 72-year-old Jean Perkins, whose Bendigo home was reduced to ashes even though her neighbour's was left standing.

"I said a couple of prayers yesterday -- 'please keep my home, Lord' -- but He wanted to take mine for some reason," she said.

"But I will rebuild."

As fires continued to burn the threat was still looming for some residents, including inhabitants in Yackandandah, in Victoria's northeast.

"People are nervous, we are at the mercy of the weather," said businessman James Lacey. "If we get southerly winds we might be in trouble."

My condolences to the families of the victims of this awful incident.

Update: Jihad Watch wonders if this could have been caused by terrorists, something that may indeed be possible.

Anti-Semitism in Britain reaches serious level

The Observer reports that anti-Semitism has reached new levels of horror:

Police patrols have been stepped up in Jewish neighbourhoods following the most intense period of antisemitic incidents to have been recorded in Britain in decades.

Safety fears are so acute that reports have emerged of members of Britain's Jewish community fleeing the UK with antisemitic incidents running at around seven a day this year.

Around 270 cases have been reported in 2009, according to figures compiled by the Community Security Trust (CST), the body that monitors anti-Jewish racism, with most blamed on anti-Israeli sentiment in reaction to hostilities in Gaza. Attacks recorded during the first Palestinian intifida of the late 1980s averaged 16 a month.

If my estimates are correct, looks like the Observer couldn't resist trying to blame the Israelis for the hostility rather than the Muslims in Gaza. Yech.

Scotland Yard is understood to have placed prominent Jewish communities on heightened alert, while the Association of Chief Police Officers' national community tension team is responding to intelligence by issuing weekly patrol directives to chief constables instructing them of threats to Jewish communities in their areas.

Incidents recorded by the CST include violent assaults in the street, hate emails and graffiti threatening "jihad" against British Jews. One disturbing aspect involves the targeting of Jewish children. A Birmingham school is investigating reports that 20 children chased a 12-year-old girl, its only Jewish pupil, chanting "Kill all Jews" and "Death to Jews". In another incident a Jewish schoolgirl reported being bullied at a non-Jewish school because of the Gaza conflict.

CST spokesman Mark Gardner said the current fear of persecution was so profound that some members of the Jewish community were seeking to emigrate to countries where they felt more secure, such as Israel, the United States or Australia. "I know two families, one of which has already moved and the other which is in the process of moving, who don't see the point of putting up with this," he added.

It's time for British Jews to move on out of the blighty. London's Tower Bridge has truly fallen down, and few seem to care, if the following is any indication:

Veteran director and actor Steven Berkoff recently explained the anti-Israeli reaction over Gaza by saying: "England is not a great lover of its Jews. Never has been".

I didn't think so. And as Melanie Phillips is reporting, the Royal Court theater house isn't making things any better by producing a play that's yet one more blood libel. Also today, the Daily Mail (also via Melanie Phillips) reports that a Foreign Office "diplomat" named Rowan Laxton mouthed off with an anti-Jewish tirade while using an exercise bike in a gymnasium. See what kind of disgusting, off-their-rocker people are littering that place? It's just not worth your time to be there.

MSM and UN lied about Israeli attack on palestinian school

The American Thinker (via Molten Thought) points to an article in Haaretz that reveals the real picture.

No surprise at all, and hasn't been in an eternity.

A fateful election

Caroline Glick writes about the latest Israeli election, surely the most fateful the country has ever had, and about the latest discoveries of Iran's technological activities:

Monday Iran successfully launched a domestically manufactured satellite on a ballistic missile called the Safir-2 space rocket. Since the launch, experts have noted that the Safir-2 can also be used to launch conventional and non-conventional warheads. The Safir-2 has an estimated range of 2000-3000 kilometers. And so the successful satellite launch showed that today Iran is capable of launching missiles not only against Israel, but against southern Europe as well.

Many Israeli leaders viewed Monday's launch as a "gotcha" moment. For years they have been saying that Iran's nuclear program is a threat to global security - not merely to Israel's security. And Monday's launch just demonstrated that they were right all along. Israel isn't the only country on Iran's target list.

Israel has to consider that this, as well as the Hamas' own close threat, are reasons why we have to change the country's government. So is the public going to think wisely, and to vote for the Likud on Tuesday? And no matter what Avigdor Lieberman's standings, we can't concern ourselves with the idea of voting for Yisrael Beitenu at a time like this. It has to be the Likud, especially if the public wants there to be a stable coalition formed.

Here's more on the Israeli election on One Jerusalem.

I suppose if there's any really good news to note here, it's that unlike 3 years ago, many more people are likely to vote in the election, and the percentage will be significantly higher.

Haveil Havalim #203

Here is the latest entry in the Haveil Havalim carnival, which also includes one of my own postings. Check it out.

Ya'alon warns voters that Lieberman could recommend Livni for PM

Moshe Ya'alon of the Likud has warned voters of what Avigdor Lieberman might do after the election:

Three days before the national elections, Likud candidate for Knesset and former IDF chief of staff Lt.-Gen. (res.) Moshe Ya'alon warned voters that after the elections, Israel Beiteinu Avigdor Lieberman could recommend to the president that Tzipi Livni build the coalition, Army Radio reported.

Ya'alon therefore urged supporters of Likud chairman Binyamin Netanyahu to vote for Likud.

"If you want Netanyahu as prime minister, you must vote for Likud, and not for other right-wing parties," he reportedly said at a meeting in Shoham Saturday.

Lieberman continued to rise in nearly every poll published on Friday, hitting a peak of 21 seats in a poll taken by the Geocartographic Institute for the Globes newspaper.

Netanyahu expressed concern on Thursday that if too many right-wing voters cast ballots for the Likud's satellite parties, his party could end up losing the election despite leading the entire campaign.

"Most of the people in the national camp want to see me as prime minister and want the Likud's policies," Netanyahu told a packed audience of some 250 English-speaking Likud supporters at Jerusalem's Crown Plaza Hotel.

Voters are going to have to make some hard decisions now. Do they want to throw away their vote by casting the ballot for a tiny party that might not even get much of a result, if at all, or, do they want the Likud to be able to form a government? And, most importantly, do they want the threat imposed by Iran to be dealt with effectively, as well as foreign affairs?

The FBI learned its lesson about CAIR, but will Obama understand it?

Brigitte Gabriel reports that while the FBI has finally cut off ties with CAIR, Barack Obama may not be acting as responsibly when it comes to the ISNA, another unindicted co-conspirator named in the HLF trial:

Why then, is President Obama treading down the same well-worn path the FBI did? He’s embracing Ingrid Mattson, and by extension ISNA, the same way the FBI embraced CAIR.

Like CAIR, ISNA was an unindicted co-conspirator in the aforementioned Holy Land Foundation trial. It is difficult to imagine the Obama Administration calling upon a professed Christian or Jew to deliver a prayer if those individuals were leaders of organizations that the Justice Department had designated “unindicted co-conspirators.”

But there is much, much more the FBI and other government agencies know about ISNA. ISNA’s co-founder, Sami Al-Arian, is a convicted terrorist. Declassified documents link ISNA to the Muslim Brotherhood, the radical organization that is responsible for the Muslim Brotherhood Project, a document outlining how Islam can destroy the West from within. Al-Arian has admitted he was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood during the same year he helped co-found ISNA.

The Obama Administration certainly must be aware of this. Will it learn the same lesson the FBI did, before it’s too late?

The early indications are not promising. What appears to be driving the Obama agenda is a greater concern about rehabilitating our image in the Muslim world than about protecting us from Islamists who would infiltrate, subvert and harm our nation.

Not that it's really surprising.

There's more appalling news. The charges against a suspect in the USS Cole bombing have been dropped:

The Pentagon’s senior judge overseeing terror trials at Guantanamo Bay dropped charges Thursday against an al-Qaida suspect in the 2000 USS Cole bombing, upholding President Barack Obama’s order to freeze military tribunals there. The charges against suspected al-Qaida bomber Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri marked the last active Guantanamo war crimes case.

The legal move by Susan J. Crawford, the top legal authority for military trials at Guantanamo, brings all cases into compliance with Obama’s Jan. 22 executive order to halt terrorist court proceedings at the U.S. Navy base in Cuba.

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Crawford dismissed the charges against al-Nashiri without prejudice. That means new charges can be brought again later. He will remain in prison for the time being.

“It was her decision, but it reflects the fact that the president has issued an executive order which mandates that the military commissions be halted, pending the outcome of several reviews of our operations down at Guantanamo,” Morrell said late Thursday night.

The ruling also gives the White House time to review the legal cases of all 245 terror suspects held there and decide whether they should be prosecuted in the U.S. or released to other nations.

Here's more on this from NRO's The Corner (via Michelle Malkin). It may be possible to bring up more charges later, but even so, the charges leveled against al-Nashiri currently should not have been dropped.

Here's also an ad from Move America Forward protesting the move to close Gitmo:

Others on the subject include Sma' Talk Wi'T, The American Pundit, Hennessey's View, Scared Monkeys.

Avigdor Lieberman won't garuntee he'll recommend Netanyahu as PM

In today's Makor Rishon issue, it says that Avigdor Lieberman won't garuntee that he'll recommend that Benjamin Netanyahu be prime minister when he's invited to the president's office to make recommendations. And the president is none other than Shimon Peres.

Even Uzi Landau and Danny Ayalon, who're on the Yisrael Beiteinu list, refrained from answering the question. And the party isn't ruling out going with Tzipi Livni either.

Is that not a reason to be worried about Yisrael Beiteinu then?

US tried to promote Likud-Fatah parley a decade ago

A short time ago, there was a scandal of an auction sale of US Consulate documents discovered (and I'm guessing the MSM hasn't reported it yet). Now, some more has been discovered: the US was trying to interfere in the Likud's internal affairs:

(IsraelNN.com) Documents found in the bungled United States Consulate auction sale reveal a mammoth American effort for an overseas tour of Likud and Fatah youth leaders in 1997-1998 while the Fatah-led Al Aksa Martyrs' Brigades terrorist group carried out a series of suicide bombings in Jerusalem.

The Americans paid out more than $185,000 for the tours, which included trips to Cyprus and the United States, complete with meetings with senior Congressmen and provisions for enjoying the World Cup on television.

Ten years later, the American government still is trying to promote joint meetings. Last December, ACYPL hosted six young PA leaders - without a Jewish party - in Washington for a 10-day State Department-funded program "following Phase I of the Likud-Fatah dialogue."

[...]

American officials engineered the event despite protests from Likud officials that it directly intervened in Israel's political affairs and that it worked around Likud opposition to the event's taking place outside Israel.

A USIA document shows how the Americans pressed ahead with the program despite objections from Likud Youth Wing leader Gilad Erdan, now a Likud Knesset Member.

In April 1998, a USIA document states, "Arden [sic] said it would be a big problem to move ahead on this seminar…We then discusses the situation with Arden's predecessor [Uri Aloni who] felt strongly that his response should not be permitted to derail the overall initiative."

All six of the Fatah participants had been imprisoned from two to eight years for links with terrorist attacks on Israelis. The USIS pointed out that ineligibility should be waived for one of the participants because "no one was hurt" in his firebombing attacks although a judge had stated, "It was only luck that no one hurt."

[...]

The series of dialogues included a meeting in Ramallah, which was called off due to a suicide bombing in Jerusalem.

Erdan complained at the time to then-American Ambassador that the Jerusalem Consulate intervened in Likud's affairs.

"The consul assured me that the program would be frozen for the moment" because of the event's taking place outside of the U.S. Erdan wrote. "To my astonishment, I learned…that your Embassy has arranged travel to the U.S…. Young Likud protests strongly against this deliberate intrusion by the Consulate into the internal affairs of the Likud."

Erdan was correct to object to this throughly unacceptable intrusion. Of course, all members of the Likud youth movement should flatly object to such meetings, and refuse to attend any of them, if what the Clinton administration was doing was drawing moral equations.

South Korea provides something to learn from

According to Chosun Ilbo (via One Free Korea), South Korea is ending subsidies to violent "civic" groups:

The government cut financial aid to non-profit organizations by half this year. Civic groups hosting or participating in illegal violent demonstrations will have their aid scrapped, and the government has asked the National Police Agency for background checks.

It took a while for them to do it, but I suppose better late than never. A few years ago, the Roh government provided funding for extremist groups that performed violent demonstrations against US installations. The president of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions went to jail for organizing violent demonstrations and strikes.

But aside from that, other countries should be learning from this, and cutting off any kind of funding to groups that engage in violent demonstrations, like those Islamofascists who went on a violent spree in London, throwing construction cones at police officers (who were too few to be effective), and even smashing windows of cafes. This is assuming that the UK, for example, is providing any funding for such groups, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were.

Another unfeminine Muslim women: she organized rapes to get victims to commit suicide bombings

A most repugnant case has come up of one Samira Jassam, a Muslim women who was involved in a terrorist racket to have Muslim women raped and then recruited for jihad. From the Australian (via Jihad Watch):

A WOMAN suspected of recruiting more than 80 female suicide bombers has confessed to organising their rapes so she could later convince them that martyrdom was the only way to escape the shame.

Samira Jassam, 51, was arrested by Iraqi police and confessed to recruiting the women and orchestrating dozens of attacks.

In a video confession, she explained how she had mentally prepared the women for martyrdom operations, passed them on to terrorists who provided explosives, and then took the bombers to their targets.

"We arrested Samira Jassim, known as 'Um al-Mumenin', the mother of the believers, who was responsible for recruiting 80 women'', Major General Qassim Atta said.

What that disgusting creature did is an obscenity and betrayal of her own sex. Absolutely awful, and this is another example of what I call unfeminine women under Islam.

Could Israeli elections be delayed?

David Bedein has some interesting info in the Bulletin on the possibility that elections could be delayed because the Hamas is planning an attack on February 10:

Ashkelon, Israel — The Middle East Newsline has learned from Israeli security sources that there is a distinct possibility that Hamas has achieved the capability to torpedo Israel’s parliamentary elections on Feb. 10.

Israeli government sources confirm that Hamas could fire salvos of missiles and rockets that would prevent hundreds of thousands of people in central and southern Israel from voting in Knesset elections.

They're absolutely correct to be concerned. Does this signal the possibility that next week's election could end up being postponed because of the danger the Hamas is now imposing? We'll have to wait and see.

Update: whether or not the election is delayed, I thought to link to this entry at West Bank Mama, where she explains why she'll be voting for the Likud and not for the religious parties, which is recommended for reading.