End Hamas' Violence

An impressive essay, from Molly Cornfield of UCLA's Bruins for Israel, at The Daily Bruin:

In 2005, Israel evacuated all Israeli citizens from Gaza. This peaceful gesture went unrecognized, and Hamas responded with an increase in rocket attacks. Hamas also retaliated by perpetrating 52 suicide bombings, killing 288 Israelis and wounding hundreds more.

Hamas refuses to pursue a peaceful coexistence between the Palestinian and Israeli peoples, despite the compromises Israel has made. Hamas’ charter and spokesmen continue to call for the destruction of Israel and the killing of Jews. What the international community had hoped would be a thriving Palestinian democracy has become a launching pad for terrorism. Efforts have been made by the international community to revive the peace process.

More at the link.

PHOTO CREDIT: Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Hassan Yassin, founder of Hamas, "Israeli Apartheid Week, Students for Justice in Palestine, UCLA, February 23, 2011."

Wisconsin State Capitol as Permanent Free Speech Zone

Althouse isn't thrilled by the idea, "Is it viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment for Wisconsin to permit the protesters to use the Capitol building as it has over the past 10+ days?":

The Capitol has for years and years been a solemn place. For 25 years, I have brought visitors there and walked slowly through the beautiful spaces looking at the different colored and patterned marble on the walls and gazing with awe up into the dome. This is the Capitol Wisconsinites know and treasure. It can't become an all-purpose free-speech forum.

And in related news, from Glenn Reynolds, "A NEW WEB AD targeting those fugitive Wisconsin legislators":

Also at Hot Air, "Perry: Fleebagging tactic “immature, juvenile”."

More news at New York Times, "In Wisconsin and Beyond, Rallying Behind Unions." And The Hill, "Labor secretary: GOP govs asking workers to give up their rights." (via Lonely Conservative and Memeorandum).

Gaddafi Massacres Protesters: U.N. Security Council to Meet on Libya

Some sources are claiming that thousands have been killed in Libya's protests. See Monsters and Critics, "Libya death toll mounts, officials warn of chemical weapons' use." Also, the Los Angeles Times reported earlier, "United Nations chief warns of escalating toll from violent crackdown." And The Lede is running updates with reports from Tripoli, "Latest Updates on Libya’s Revolt and Mideast Protests." Here's video (note security forces dragging a wounded protester at the second clip):

See also, Business Week, "Qaddafi Vows More Deadly Attacks as Army Units Defect." Plus, at New York Times, "Following U.S. Sanctions, U.N. Security Council to Meet on Libya."

And from last night, at Los Angeles Times, "Enough with the warnings, Obama finally sanctions Libya and Kadafi," and USA Today, "Obama: Gadhafi should leave Libya 'now'."

RELATED: At Big Peace, "U.S. Concerned Libya May Use Chemical Weapons."

Unions and Ventriloquist Journalism

A couple of entries worth sharing. For background, check Mark Steyn's essay, "STATES OF THE UNIONS." Following the links takes us to John Hinderaker at Power Line, "No Word From Eric Lipton." The Lipton in question is a New York Times correspondent and author of the recent report, "Billionaire Brothers' Money Plays Role in Wisconsin Dispute" (the article's previous title was even more explicit, "Koch Brothers' Money Fuels Wisconsin Fight." And it turns out that some of the statements at the article have been manufactured, or at least completely decontextualized from the actual statements of those on record, specifically Tim Phillips of Americans for Prosperity.

Here's Steyn's excellent summary:

The Times managed to get the salient feature of the story entirely wrong. They were not an “anti-government” mob, but a government mob, a mob of "public servants" objecting to austerity measures that would end, for example, the tradition of 14 monthly paychecks per annum. You read that right: the Greek public sector cannot be bound by anything so humdrum as temporal reality. So, when it was mooted that the “workers” might henceforth receive a mere 12 monthly paychecks per annum, they rioted. Their hapless victims - a man and two women - were a trio of clerks trapped in a bank when the mob set it alight and then obstructed emergency crews attempting to rescue them.

You don’t have to go to Athens to find "public servants" happy to take it out on the public. In Madison, politicized doctors provide fake sick notes for politicized teachers to skip class. In New York's Christmas snowstorm, Sanitation Department plough drivers are unable to clear the streets, with fatal consequences for some residents. On the other hand, they did manage to clear the snow from outside the Staten Island home of Sanitation Dept head honcho John Doherty, while leaving all surrounding streets pristinely clogged. Three hundred Sanitation Department workers have salaries of over $100,000 per year. In retirement, you get a pension of 66 grand per annum plus excellent health benefits, all inflation proofed.

That's what "collective bargaining" is about: It enables unions rather than citizens to set the price of government. It is, thus, a direct assault on republican democracy, and it needs to be destroyed. Unlovely as they are, the Greek rioters and the snarling thugs of Madison are the logical end point of the advanced social democratic state: not an oppressed underclass, but a spoiled overclass, rioting in defense of its privileges and insisting on more subsidy, more benefits, more featherbedding, more government.

Big Unions fund Big Government. The union slices off two per cent of the workers’ pay and sluices it to the Democratic Party, which uses it to grow government, which also grows unions, which thereby grows the number of two-per-cent contributions, which thereby grows the Democratic Party, which thereby grows government… Repeat until bankruptcy. Or bailout.

Well there you go.

It's endlessly fascinating how the New York Times is perfectly playing the hardline Soros-backed class warfare attack on capital. What's not reported by Think Progress and the other progressive goon outlets, is that unions have actually dominated political giving in recent election cycles, and it's the Democrat Party that's benefited from the huge public-sector sugar daddy. It's taken bloggers to cut through the bull and bring some real clarity to the issues. So it's worth checking Steven Hayward update at Power Line, "The 'Ventriloquist Journalism' Beat" (at Memeorandum).

Anyway, here's a palette cleanser from last year, featuring MSNBC's inveterate liar and progressive propagandist Rachel Maddow:

Pam Spaulding Promotes 'Barebacking' Blog Post With '1000 Load F**k (NSFW)' Videos

Call it milestones in gay rights.

First is the news that the Obama administration has chosen the first-ever homosexual man to be the next White House Social Secretary. It's one thing for this to be about appropriate gender roles, but the dude's gay, so that complicates things a bit. Perhaps that's a sop to the radical gay left-wing lobby. Lord knows Obambi's been dealing these folks a cold cucumber since he took offfice. But second is Pam Spaulding's mainstreaming of the radical gay sex culture of "barebacking," which is the practice of condomless homosexual sodomy: "It's Time to Get Angry About the Promotion of Unsafe Sex in the Gay Community." The author claims to be upset by the breakdown of safe sex norms in the radical homosexual community, but what's quite revealing is the depth of this dude's expertise on the gay fringe sexual culture of non-commitment and the extreme left's bareback/rim-station hookup scene. I mean seriously. I'm reading the comments, at Pam's House Blend and at the cross-post to Daily Kos (natch). It turns out for the gay left, non-infected HIV-negative is the new virginity. There's progressive self-loathing for you. Let's just f**k until we're dead, y'all. But again, what really tripped me out is that if the diarist is so angry about the rejection of the healthy norms that followed the gay plague of the 1970s, you think he'd avoid links to the extreme gay porn websites that aggressively extol the culture. Labeling this stuff NSFW is hardly warning enough. Folks would be advised to rethink their kids' Internet usage after this. Just think, young middle school students looking for information on same-sex marriage might just pull this up and then find 1000 loads of cum dumped up some guy's behind. Is this the art and culture that new White House Social Secretary Jeremy Bernard is now going to promote?

“Jeremy shares our vision for the White House as the People’s House, one that celebrates our history and culture in dynamic and inclusive ways,” President Obama said in a statement, “We look forward to Jeremy continuing to showcase America’s arts and culture to our nation and the world through the many events at the White House.”

See that? Inclusive ways. Wouldn't want to alienate the gay radical barebacking community.

And for those who click through to Pam's House Blend, EXTREME RADICAL BUNGHOLE WARNING! TOTALLY NOT SAFE FOR ANYONE, MUCH LESS KIDS.

Naomi Houser Comments on Suspected Restaurant Hoax

Naomi Houser commented here, twice. It's an interesting story, mainly because it's so inexplicable --- and inexplicably dumb.

In contrast to the prank Koch brothers phone call to Governor Walker, the lamestream press hasn't taken up this story. But Houser's registered at Firedoglake, so that's a clue. FDL is widely read on the neo-communist left, and these folks have the most to gain by the politics of personal destruction. In fact, I mentioned the comments at FDL last night, and see this one, for example, with weird digressions on Governor Walker's appearance:

Blessings to the fine folks at “Madison Restaurant” who asked the scumbag to leave their fine establishment.

Walker may find that he has become a pariah, not only in Wisconsin, but across the country. Some have noted that he has a weird looking, beady-eyed face. It is not fair to judge people based on their appearance, but it is fair to judge people by their actions.

Scott Walker has lost. Hopefully, he will be removed from office (one way or another,) sending a big message to Rethug creeps like the Kochs.

We can hope.

And this one, suggesting that Governor Walker's equivalent to a murderer:

I believe this is referred to as the O.J. treatment. I remember when O.J. was persona non-grata at restaurants, golf courses and other public places virtually making him a public paria. One can only hope the Governor becomes a prisoner in the mansion and only ventures out where other conservative parasites congregate.

This stuff should be disseminated widely, for while progressives think they've got the moral high ground, they'll be destroyed in public opinion, where taxpayers outnumber the union thugs. It'll all come out at the ballot box, in any case.

Also Blogging: Da Tech Guy, "More Democratic Civility," Lonely Conservative, "Madison Restaurant Made Up Story About Denying Governor Walker Service," and Legal Insurrection, "Story About Gov. Walker Being Kicked Out of Restaurant Appears to Be a Hoax."

And see Althouse on Firedoglake, "Lefty blogger loves the idea of restaurants refusing to serve people that their other customers express open hatred toward":

Swopa loves that a Madison restaurant asked Governor Scott Walker to leave when customers booed him. He/she links to a Madison blogger who deleted the name of the restaurant after the restaurant received threats. (Threats? Were they reported to the police?) Swopa notes that he edited his post to delete the name of the restaurant, but he leaves in his "via Howie Klein on Twitter" link, and the name of the restaurant is right there.

Idiot. Don't rely on Firedoglake to protect you. They care. They want to protect you. But they just can't quite pull off the protectiveness they'd love to give you.

That's gold. More at the link.

Are You a State Senator From Wisconsin? Hideaway in Rockford!

At Michelle's, "Best tourism video ever: Rockford IL woos Fleebaggers":

Sandy Fonzo Lets Loose on 'Cash-for-Kids' Judge Mark Ciavarella

I watched Megyn Kelly's panel discussion yesterday of the emotional story of Sandy Fonzo, the Pennsylvania mom whose son killed himself after being jailed by Judge Mark Ciavarella. The Wall Street Journal has the story, "Judge Found Guilty in Cash-for-Kids Case; Mother of Child Not Pleased":

Last Friday, a jury found a former Pennsylvania judge accused of sending large numbers of children to detention centers in exchange for kickbacks from the builder of the detention guilty on 12 counts of money laundering and conspiracy.

The jury also acquitted the defendant, Mark Ciavarella, on 27 counts, including extortion. Click here for the AP story; here for the story from the Scranton Times-Tribune; here for the story from the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader.

But the jury verdict hardly ended the drama.

Ciavarella was allowed to remain free pending sentencing after the conviction Friday. And after the verdict, he made rather strident statements to the media outside the courthouse.

“Never took a dime to send a kid anywhere. … Never happened. Never, ever happened. This case was about extortions and kickbacks, not about ‘kids for cash,’” said Ciavarella, who plans to appeal.

In response to the judge’s being able to walk pending sentencing, Sandy Fonzo, whose son was jailed by Ciavarella — and committed suicide last year at age 23 — screamed obscenities at the judge and even poked him as he and his attorneys held a news conference on the courthouse steps. (Click here for the video, which contains obscenities).

“My kid’s not here anymore!” yelled Fonzo. “He’s dead! Because of him! He ruined my f——- life! I’d like him to go to hell and rot there forever!”

Ciavarella glanced at Fonzo, then turned his back ....

Also at Bloomberg, "Grieving Mom Screams at Pa. Judge, Becomes Symbol."

Conflicting Reports on Governor Scott Walker Being Denied Service at Madison's Merchant Restaurant

Firedoglake's still going with the story, "Late Night: You’ll Never Eat Dinner in This Town Again." But the original post at Mind Stain has been taken down, "Scott Walker Asked to Leave Local Restaurant." And it turns out the Badger Blogger contacted the restaurant and claims that this audio is evidence that progressives tried to pull another punk job:

Well my friends, this is the case of a Madison restaurant trying to gain liberal credibility by making up a total lie about how they booted out Scott Walker out of their establishment. When BadgerBlogger called them to confirm the story, the staff refused to confirm or deny, and continued to obfuscate until they hung up the phone… But in fact, they didn’t hang up, it appears that they accidentally put the phone on speaker…. And BadgerBlogger tapes continued to roll.

Our audio captures the restaurant staff talking about how they have to take down the blog posting because people are starting to call about it, you can actually hear them logging into the blog and deleting it. Too late.

We confirm with Governor Walker’s staff that the Governor has never been to that restaurant, this was an attempted “punking” by employees of The Merchant Restaurant, but look who got punked… In the words of Joe Wilson, You Lie!

You can listen to our audio, and judge for yourself. Do not turn it off after the hang-up, that’s when it gets good.

I Googled "Merchant Restaurant" and no newspapers had reported this story. And I'd say this comment from the Badger thread sounds about right:

Who knows what to believe? For all I know, it’s just the 8th year UW undergrads humping tables and not the owner who came up with this half-baked scheme. True or not. I’m still surprised a business would invite controversy like this.

What gets me, if you go back to the Firedoglake entry, is that for progressives, discriminating against Governor Walker would be a cool thing to do --- that they would applaud the kind of action they would vehemently denounce if done to a minority, or even a progressive Democrat. This is not how students learn about democracy in school. And frankly, this isn't how politics should be conducted. Governor Walker is not an arch segregationist. His programs are not about to exterminate the sick and aged. Progressives know this but they've shown they'll do anything to distract from the issues at hand: the sweetheart deals between the unions and the Democrats and the fiscal sinkhole the State of Wisconsin is facing. Public opinion doesn't favor the Democrats. And refusing the governor's budget will only delay the reckoning and further blemish the left's reputation.

Unreal, in any case. Check all the links at Memeorandum.

Protesters Disrespect Wisconsin Capitol

I e-mailed Ann last week thanking her for her coverage, and mentioned that I wished I was in Madison. And now this bugs the heck out of me, "At the Capitol today... there were signs taped up everywhere":

More pics at that top link, and video here: "Protesters at the Wisconsin Capitol disrespectfully have taped signs on and piled junk against the Veterans Memorial."

Southern Poverty Law Center Slurs Pamela Geller's SIOA as 'Hate Group'

The story's at New York Daily News, but notice how the designation includes Geller's "followers."

Hey, badge of honor. I hung out with both Pamela and Robert Spencer on the first day at CPAC. I'm probably more than a "follower." Maybe an "evil" co-conspirator for the preservation of American freedom. Oh, that sounds terrible. Can't stand up for liberty these days without being slurred as racist, that's for sure. Anyway, PR Newswire has this, "Human Rights Organization SIOA Vows to Fight Far-Left Propaganda Group's 'Hate Group' Designation":

A prominent national human rights and advocacy organization has vowed to fight against its designation by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a hard-Left propaganda group, as a "hate group."

The day after yet another deadly Islamic jihad terror plot involving weapons of mass destruction was thwarted in Texas, the SPLC issued its latest list of hate groups, including Stop Islamization of America (SIOA).

SIOA Executive Director Pamela Geller declared in a statement: "It's outrageous that the SPLC designates a group dedicated to protecting the freedom of speech, the freedom of conscience, and legal equality for all Americans as a 'hate group.' The SPLC, instead of standing for those freedoms, is carrying water for the real haters, the real neo-Nazi Jew-haters: the forces of Islamic supremacism and jihad. The SPLC doesn't even have a category for Islamic jihadi groups. The greatest threat facing our nation, our people, our world, and they are shilling for them."

SIOA Associate Director Robert Spencer pointed out that the Islamic supremacist hate group known as the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which the Justice Department designated an unindicted co-conspirator in a Hamas terror funding case and has had several of its officials convicted of jihad terror activity, is not listed by the SPLC as a hate group. "That the SPLC would list SIOA and not CAIR as a hate group shows the hollowness and political motivation of the SPLC's classifications," Spencer said.

The Washington Times reported in November 2010 that "the SPLC is a small, hard-left political activist outfit known for promoting a panoply of radical liberal causes. The Center holds itself out as an objective monitor of potentially violent or subversive hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, skinheads and other white supremacists.

"But in recent years - and with increasing abandon - the SPLC has leveraged (abused, really) its rapidly decreasing political capital and waning credibility to target and undermine organizations that, rather than dealing in the business of genuine 'hate,' instead pose a direct threat to the advancement of postmodern secular-socialism generally - and to the Democratic Party specifically. ... In sum, the SPLC has become an extremist wolf in 'watchdog' clothing."

"My group is a human rights group," Geller said. "And these people are taken seriously? This is the morally inverted state of the world."

And see Pamela's, "Southern Poverty Law Center Maligns SIOA as 'Hate Group'."

I'm looking at the list at SPLC, and it includes the 9/11 Christian Center at Ground Zero. Seriously. A Christian Center at Ground Zero is designated as a hate group, but the Park51 jihadis are in the clear. It's like Pamela says, "This is the morally inverted state of the world."

Saudis Vow to Boost Oil Production: Potential Unrest Threatens World's Biggest Petroleum Exporter

At Los Angeles Times, "Saudi Arabia's move to keep oil flowing brings crude prices down":

Reporting from Washington - Crude oil prices pulled back from highs not seen since 2008 as leaders from Saudi Arabia to the White House offered fresh assurances that the world wouldn't run short of oil despite violence in the Mideast and North Africa.

Oil futures hit $103 a barrel in New York trading Thursday but ended the day at $97.28, down 82 cents. In Europe, oil also fell in electronic trading after nearing $120 a barrel.

Petroleum prices had surged on fears that political unrest in Libya, Egypt and other countries could reduce global supplies — pushing fuel costs higher and throwing the fledgling global economic recovery into reverse.

But energy traders were calmed Thursday by news that Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter and OPEC's de facto leader, was in talks with European refiners to fill the gap caused by the disruption in Libya, which pumps about 2% of world oil consumption.

In addition, the International Energy Agency, a Paris-based energy advisor to industrialized countries, said it would tap oil reserves if needed. And the White House said the U.S. and other countries had the ability to act if world oil supplies were constrained.

Saudi Arabia's promises to rein in prices by boosting production might appear surprising given that its economy is almost entirely dependent on oil revenue. And Saudi leaders, finding themselves surrounded by unnerving populist revolts, have been frustrated that the U.S. seems sympathetic to the uprisings.

But the latest assurance makes public what the Saudis have been doing quietly since the fall: gradually increasing production to keep up with growing demand and to damp prices.

Like much of the rest of the world, the Saudis fear runaway oil prices. They understand that prices over $100 a barrel threaten to sap global economic growth and with it, demand for oil. With its vast reserves and infrastructure, Saudi Arabia is uniquely positioned to put a lid on prices, an imperative that politics so far has not derailed.

More at the link.

Mostly, the Saudis are worried about losing the support of Washington amid regional instability. Excellent discussion at the clip above. If Saudi Arabia topples, that'd be on the scale of the Egyptian revolution.

RELATED: At PACNW Righty, "Oil Prices Surge on Middle East Unrest."

Union Fight Could Reshape American Politics

Well, I hope so. This is getting ridiculous. Crush the bastards.

See Mark Barabak, "Republican Governors Are Going Up Against Organized Labor, Hitting at the Heart of the Democratic Party, Which Depends Heavily on Union Money and Manpower":

The labor fight blazing in Madison, Wis., and other state capitals is more than a feud over budgets or the rights of government employees. It is a battle that could fundamentally change the practice of politics in this country, with enormous consequences in 2012 and beyond.

By striking at organized labor, a pugnacious group of Republican governors is hitting at the heart of the Democratic Party, which banks heavily on union money and manpower. That explains the resistance from the White House, Democrats in Congress and, most fiercely, their liberal allies from New York to California.

"This is all about pure political power," said Paul Maslin, a party strategist whose office is just a block from Wisconsin's Capitol. "If they break the unions here, it will spread state by state, nationwide."

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has proposed deep cuts in benefits for most state workers, saying the belt-tightening is necessary to help close a projected $3.6-billion deficit. Labor unions have agreed to cuts in retirement and healthcare plans; if givebacks were the only issue, the impasse would presumably have ended by now.

But Walker, a newly elected Republican, has gone further by seeking to strip state employees of most of their collective bargaining rights. He would also make it harder for unions to organize state workers and collect dues, moves that could diminish labor's clout and deplete its coffers, ultimately hurting Democrats who lean on that support.

Republican governors in Ohio and elsewhere are eyeing similar moves, in what amounts to the greatest threat to organized labor since President Reagan fired striking air traffic controllers in the early 1980s.

More at the link.

See also Charles Krauthammer, "Rubicon: A River in Wisconsin" (via Memeorandum):

Obama's Democrats have become the party of no. Real cuts to the federal budget? No. Entitlement reform? No. Tax reform? No. Breaking the corrupt and fiscally unsustainable symbiosis between public-sector unions and state governments? Hell, no.

Ouch!

Rule 5 Roundup — Two Door Cinema Club Edition

Okay, I've been out of the loop on Rule 5, so here goes, c/o Two Door Cinema Club:

First up is Bruce Kesler's "Jawohl Mein Professor." Bruce has been doing some outstanding blogging on the progressive destruction of the university, so read that in full.

And visit some friends of American Power: Astute Bloggers, Blazing Cat Fur, Bob Belvedere, CSPT, Dan Collins, Gator Doug, Irish Cicero, Left Coast Rebel, Mind-Numbed Robot, Lonely Conservative, PA Pundits International, Pirate's Cove, Proof Positive, Saberpoint, Snooper, WyBlog, The Western Experience, Yankee Phil, and Zion's Trumpet.

BONUS: American Perspective, Amusing Bunni's Musings, Eye of Polyphemus, and Maggie's Notebook.

And top that off with Theo's Saturday Night Bath Totty.

As always, drop your link in the comments to be added to the roundups.

More blogging this afternoon.

Big Labor and the Rabid Outbreak of Progressive Incivility and Violence

Michelle's got another excellent update on union thuggery, "Hate-a-rama: The vulgar, racist, sexist, homophobic rage of the Left."

My new syndicated column today does the reporting the Tea Party-bashing national media won’t do on the rabid outbreak of progressive incivility and violence at Big Labor protests across the country. On Saturday, the grievance convergence will descend on all 50 state capitols spearheaded by the smear merchants of MoveOn.org — who will stoke further hatred and class warfare against America’s taxpayers, job creators, and wealth producers:

On Saturday, February 26, at noon local time, we are organizing rallies in front of every statehouse and in every major city to stand in solidarity with the people of Wisconsin. We demand an end to the attacks on worker’s rights and public services across the country. We demand investment, to create decent jobs for the millions of people who desperately want to work. And we demand that the rich and powerful pay their fair share.

We are all Wisconsin. We are all Americans.

Yeah, except for all of us “Koch whores” and “garbage pail kids” and “bad Jews” who defend the American Dream against insatiable entitlement-mongers who claim a “right” to our money.

I second John Hinderaker: “No retreat, no surrender.”

On the Wisconsin front, the Assembly early this morning passed GOP Gov. Scott Walker’s budget/union repair bill. Troopers are still searching for the Fleebagger State Senators. One of them, Democratic state sen. Joe Erpenbach, who is in Chicago (natch), said all 14 senators remained outside of Wisconsin. “It’s not so much the Democrats holding things up,” Erpenbach he told the AP. “It’s really a matter of Gov. Walker holding things up.” Deflecting blame, delaying reform. Like I said the other day, there are no adults left in the Democrat Party. They’re stuck in their Huggies pull-ups crying all the way.

Video of the mob at the Madison capitol building after the Assembly vote this morning:

RTWT at the link.

RELATED: At Founding Bloggers, "A Warning to Tea Party Patriots Everywhere," and Midnight Blue, "Blogging While Female – Protest Safety Tips."

Canadian Expert Says Pedophilia a Sexual Orientation Just Like Heterosexuality or Homosexuality

Good news for Alex Knepper and his enablers, from Professor Hubert Van Gijseghem of the University of Montreal. See Brian Lilley, "'Experts' Running the Asylum in Canada" (via Blazing Cat Fur):

I was shocked a few weeks ago to show up to listen to the Commons Justice Committee debate a bill on tougher sentences for sexual predators who target children. At that hearing, the Criminal Lawyers’ Association said Bill C-54, also known as the Protecting Children from Sexual Predators Act, was too tough because it had mandatory minimum sentences.

The bill seeks to raise some existing mandatory minimums from 14 days to 90 days while others would go up to one year for people who sexually abuse children. Of course, the lawyers think any minimum sentence is wrong for their clients because it ties the hands of judges, and politicians, they say, shouldn’t do that.

Funny, I don’t hear them arguing against maximum sentences using the same arguments.

Of course, the criminal lawyers are not the only ones arguing against a bill that targets pedophiles and perverts. There’s the opposition parties, all three of them.

But what really shocked me was the Universite de Montreal professor, Dr. Hubert Van Gijseghem, who showed up to tell MPs pedophilia was a sexual orientation just like heterosexuality or homosexuality.

Leave it to the experts.

Normal, everyday Canadians wouldn’t reward thugs who take land by force or say perverts are just like everyone else. Nor would most Canadians let convicted terrorists ordered deported spend more than 20 years appealing to the courts.

But that’s what the expert class would have us do.

RELATED: "The Liar Alex Knepper Wasn’t Fired for Criticizing Ann Coulter, He Was Fired for Being An Intemperate, Unmanageable, Perverted, Impulsive, Narcissistic Child."

Wisconsin Assembly Passes Governor Walker Budget

At Hot Air, "WI Assembly passes budget-repair bill," and Los Angeles Times, "Wisconsin Assembly approves controversial collective-bargaining measure."

In a late-night vote that caught Wisconsin Assembly Democrats by surprise, Republicans pass Gov. Scott Walker's plan, which would strip most government workers of collective-bargaining rights. The measure's fate remains uncertain as Senate Democrats remain out of state to forestall a vote.

I guess it's the end of the world, "OMG! These People Are Nuts!.. Leftist Protester Wails About Losing Chemo Benefits After GOP Assembly Vote" (via Memeorandum):

Yep, the end of the world. Althouse has more, "UW professor retires after only 21 years to "protect" herself from "depressing and threatening" clauses in Gov. Walker's bill."

The 9 Most Annoying Sky-is-Falling Clichès in American Foreign Policy

From Michael Lind, at Foreign Policy, "So Long, Chicken Little." It was hard to decide, but I'm sampling "4. The rain forests are about to disappear":

This is yet another case of exaggeration in defense of a good cause. Remember the 1980s, when it seemed the Amazon rain forest wasn't long for this world -- and that humanity was threatened as atmospheric oxygen levels correspondingly declined? The World Wildlife Fund's Thomas Lovejoy in 1980 predicted 50 percent deforestation in Latin America by 2000. And Al Gore famously claimed in Earth in the Balance that rain forests "are disappearing from the face of the earth at the rate of one and a half acres a second, night and day, every day, all year round."

But as the New York Times reported in 2009, "new 'secondary' forests are emerging in Latin America, Asia and other tropical regions at such a fast pace that the trend has set off a serious debate about whether saving primeval rain forest -- an iconic environmental cause -- may be less urgent than once thought." For every acre of rain forest chopped down annually, more than 50 acres are growing back on previously ravaged tropical land, according to one estimate. Meanwhile, thanks to advanced agricultural technology that permits more food to be grown on fewer acres, Northern Hemisphere countries like the United States, Canada, and the nations of Europe are being regreened rapidly, as former farmland returns to forest.

Assemblymember Donald Wagner's 'Taxpayers Caucus' Stands Firm for Tea Party Principles in Sacramento

I met Assemblyman Wagner a couple of times last year during the tea party events in the O.C. He's replaced Chuck DeVore in the legislature, and he's wasting no time in laying down a bedrock conservative agenda for the assembly session. I recall at the Republican Central Committee meeting I attended, in January 2010, local big shots were tripping over each other to see who'd be the most genuine anti-tax crusader. The O.C.'s still pretty conservative, in an overwhelming Blue State, so it was refreshing. And so is the news from Sacramento on Wagner's new "Taxpayers Caucus." See the Los Angeles Times, "California GOP group takes hard-line stance against tax hikes":

More than two-thirds of the Republicans in the Legislature took a hard-line stance Wednesday against Gov. Jerry Brown's budget plan, forming a new group and pledging to block the governor's efforts to let voters extend tax hikes.

The unusual effort highlighted the deep partisan divisions in the statehouse as Brown and lawmakers race to pass a state spending plan. So far, 22 of the 27 GOP Assembly members and eight of the 15 GOP state senators have signed on to the new "taxpayers caucus."

At a news conference on the Capitol steps, Assemblyman Donald Wagner (R-Irvine), a co-chairman of the caucus, said the message to Brown was clear: "You're not getting Republicans to go for tax increases."

Brown has proposed deep cuts in state services and wants to ask voters to agree to extend for five years billions of dollars in sales, income and car taxes. The governor needs at least four GOP votes, two in the Assembly and two in the state Senate, to place a tax measure on the ballot.

Conservatives are already branding the group's nonmembers as potential GOP traitors. The two chairmen of the caucus, Sen. Tony Strickland (R-Moorpark) and Wagner, went on the popular John and Ken radio show Wednesday as the conservative KFI-AM (640) duo posted phone numbers and photos of the non-signers and rallied listeners.

"You're going to see very intensified grassroots efforts" turning up the heat on nonmembers, said Jon Fleischman, an influential GOP blogger who attended Wednesday's news conference.

This is going to be interesting, especially since California is the nation's budget basket case. And Jerry Brown's playing for keeps on this. See the breaking update, "Gov. Jerry Brown tells legislators he will push for a $25-billion cut in California's budget unless voters OK tax extension."

RELATED: Check this column from progressive George Skelton, who makes the comparison between California and Wisconsin, "The pension haves vs. the have-nots":

A statewide poll in December by Democratic pollster Jim Moore found that 62% of likely voters — including 54% of Democrats — considered "the escalating cost to taxpayers" of public employee pensions to be a "very serious" issue.

In a January 2010 poll by the Public Policy Institute of California, 70% of likely voters — including 61% of Democrats —favored changing government retirement benefits from pensions to 401(k)-type plans.

The legislative analyst has suggested that the state consider adopting a "hybrid" retirement program that would include less generous "defined benefit" pensions combined with a "defined contribution" 401(k).

"In defined contribution programs," the analyst continued, pointing out something private-sector workers already are painfully aware of, "if the investment returns don't materialize, that risk is placed on the employee, not on the employer or the taxpayer."

Actually, free enterprise employees should be rooting for government workers in hopes that at least some retirement security can be retained in America.

Actually, that's the wrong takeaway here. Those "free enterprise employees" are also the taxpayers financing the public-sector. If the system's truly unsustainable, what matters most is economic growth creating a rising tide that lifts all boats and fattens investment portfolios. But like I said, it's going to interesting how things turn out.

Democrats Need a Reality Check

From the House Republican Conference:

RELATED: At Gallup, "Issues Divide Republicans' Views of Potential 2012 Contenders" (via Memeorandum and Riehl World View).

Anti-Union Letter From a Conservative Public School Teacher

At Michelle's:

Hello Michelle,

I wanted to share some of my own thoughts and frustrations with being a teacher in public education. Unfortunately, I am unable to do this openly for fear of reprisal from the very union that is supposedly in place to protect me.

Let me begin by saying that there are a lot of good teachers in my district and throughout the country whose top priority is the education of students. Sadly from my own experiences in the day to day life of being an educator there are an awful lot of teachers who are focused on anything but education.

As events have unfolded in Wisconsin, I have been reflecting on my nearly 10 years in public education. My parents were both teachers and I greatly admired the work they did with their own students. I began with that same passion for teaching that they instilled in me, but am finding it more and more difficult to keep that flame alive.

The hold that unions have over the public educational system is nothing short of toxic. Year after year, I have a lot of money taken out of my paychecks for union dues. What do I get for my money? I am bombarded with emails and flyers “urging” us to vote for candidates that coincidentally always have the letter (D) after them. I get to be lectured to by union reps about the evil Republican candidates are and why they know what is best for me.

Now I am being hit with email after email “urging” me to stand with the teachers of Wisconsin. One teacher who is very tight with our union replied to our district making fun of Republicans directly. You might ask why I don’t forward this to human resources, but the repercussions would be brutal.

The truth is that any teacher who does not hold down the talking points of the unions, DNC or Obama White House needs to keep quiet to keep their job. The vitriol I heard over the Bush years was deafening but acceptable and expected. I can hardly remember a week that went by where teachers, sometimes in front of students, were not making fun of Republicans. I’ve personally been the subject of much ridicule and scorn from fellow teachers and will continue to be as long as I am in public education. I believe in what I am doing in my own classroom by focusing on educating students, but as time goes by it is becoming more and more likely that I will leave education all together. Not because of students, but because of the unions and the teachers that support them.

Frustrated in Minnesota

'I'll F**k You in the Ass, You Faggot'

Man, I gotta start doing video reports!

This is gold.

At Michelle's, "Video: Rhode Island union supporter to cameraman – “I’ll f**k you in the ass, you faggot”" (via Memeorandum):

At AFSCME’s “solidarity” rally in Providence, Rhode Island on Tuesday, a cameraman was accosted by a fuming pro-union protester. The cameraman had his back to the goon, who appears to accost him unprovoked. The goon screams:

“I’ll f**k you in the ass, you faggot!”

His shouting escalates and other union supporters try to intervene as he threatened the cameraman, but he continues to foam at the mouth.

The “solidarity” mob finally starts chanting “Hey, hey, ho, ho, union-busting’s got to go” to drown out the goon’s snit fit. He yells that he will “follow you out of here.”

The eruption starts at 7:32 in this video.

Man, these guys are goons.

But hey, REPSAC = CASPER's down with that! He's a union lovin' guy!

RELATED: At Founding Bloggers, "OUTRAGE: Tea Party Thug Assaults Camera Man, Shouts Homophobic Slurs! ALL CAUGHT ON TAPE!"

No Questions Allowed: Islamic Terrorism and the Suppression of Speech on America's Campuses

Following up on last night's post, "Israeli Apartheid Week, Students for Justice in Palestine, UCLA, February 23, 2011."

This really hits home with me, considering my experience dealing with UCLA's Muslim student thugs. See John Guandolo, at Big Peace, "University of Central Florida Stifles Discussion of Terrorism and Muslim Brotherhood." And the clip features ACT! for America's Randy McDaniels, who is forcibly removed from the panel discussion for asking a pointed question. At the video's summary, McDaniel's indicates that Muslims in attendance coordinated to suppress any tough questions of Islam and forced critical participants to leave:

The MSA toes closely to the model. At UCLA yesterday, the moment I posed some tough questions, Hamzah Baig became extremely uncomfortable, then hostile. The police were called eventually, and I stood away until they were gone.

More from Ben Howe at Red State, "University of Central Florida Hosts Terrorists & Forcibly Removes Their Detractors."

RELATED: Speaking of free speech, UC Irvine's MSA is getting a lot of sympathy from the New York Times, "Charges Against Muslim Students Prompt Debate Over Free Speech":

For years, Jewish and Israeli advocacy groups have said that the Muslim Student Union has fostered a hostile environment on campus. In 2007, the Office of Civil Rights of the federal Department of Education examined complaints from the Zionist Organization of America that the university was not doing enough to respond to the problem. The investigation cleared the campus administration of any wrongdoing. In 2009, the same organization complained that an event sponsored by the Muslim Student Union was used to raise money for an organization that helps Hamas, the Islamic militant group, in Gaza. The university asked the F.B.I. to investigate, but no charges were ever filed.

Much of the controversy on campus centers on Palestinian Awareness Week, which the Muslim Student Union has sponsored each spring. In the past, the week has included bloody Israeli flags and speeches delivered under signs that read “Holocaust in the Holy Land” and “Israel — the Fourth Reich.”

Many students came to dread the events, which some began to refer to as “hate week.” A few students have said they felt uncomfortable walking across campus wearing a Star of David or any other overtly Jewish symbol during the week. Some have had loud shouting matches, while others have chosen to stay home and avoid campus altogether.

By last winter, it seemed that the talk had been toned down and that much of the discomfort for Jewish students had subsided. But students said they caught wind of plans to interrupt Mr. Oren’s speech. The students who were arrested said that the protest had not been a Muslim Student Union activity, but an investigation by university officials concluded that that the group had coordinated the protest in an effort to shut down the event.

Similar outbursts have occurred during speeches by Israeli officials on other college campuses. But it appears that none prompted disciplinary actions from either the college or law enforcement officials.

But read the whole thing. After Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas filed criminal charges against the MSA's "Irvine 11," an outcry arose around the university alleging the MSA's free speech rights had been violated:

Reem Salahi, a lawyer who represented the students in their administrative hearings, said that the decision to suspend the Muslim group was “very harsh” and that prosecutors were acting in a “very selective manner.”

“It’s not only the punishment, but the vilifying of these students that’s concerning,” Ms. Salahi said. “Whether it was rude or disrespectful is not the issue, the issue is that they were trying to air their grievances in a peaceful way.”

Always the victims. Here's a radical Islamist faction that shut down the Israeli Ambassador, and when faced with the consequences we get pathetic pleading to the airing "grievances in a peaceful way." I guess that's more of the new tone of progressive politics. As long as you aren't wearing a suicide vest, no amount of thuggery will excuse you from claims of being victimized.

'I Am ... Shaken Up By the Level of Sheer Hatred I Experienced Today...'

That's Tabitha Hale, from her report yesterday on the union thugs who showed up at her place of work, "Union Thuggery Descends On FreedomWorks":

Basically, it’s ridiculous. I’m a 5′1 female in a dress, and he was standing up on a garden wall above me in the courtyard. He hardly felt threatened. I was stunned, because generally protesters are there to, you know, get their message out. They don’t normally shy away from the camera.

I’m very much okay, and very appreciative of the support from my fellow bloggers and activists today. I am, however, shaken up by the level of sheer hatred I experienced today. The look of fury on his face in the close up is appalling. I had not exchanged a word with him. He didn’t know who I was. He didn’t even know my name, what I do. He had probably surmised that I was with FreedomWorks and that was enough.

This just can’t be tolerated anymore. It’s one thing to be called a violent teabagger. It’s another to be called a violent teabagger while you’re being assaulted. They’ve been comparing themselves to the Egyptians ousting Mubarak. Looks like they’re not too far off, given that they share the tendency to assault women with cameras.

Word.

More from Red State, "Union Thugs: This Time It’s Personal…" And Glenn Reynolds has a roundup. Plus, at Da Tech Guy's, "If the goal of Unions is provocation..."

Elsewhere, Demon TBogg slurs Tabitha Hale as a "pudgy FreedomWorks Warrior For Freedom," and says she had it coming. As do the freaks at Wonkette.

Stay classy, progs.

Photo Credit: Looking at the Left, "Racism and Incivility Aimed at Tea Party in Denver."

Israeli Apartheid Week, Students for Justice in Palestine, UCLA, February 23, 2011

The recent crackdown against the Muslim Students Association at UC Irvine has obviously influenced the planning for this week's events at UCLA. The "Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA" is simply another name for the university's Muslim Students Association (MSA). Last year, MSA shouted down Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren at UCI, and the university administration subsequently suspended the organization until August 31st, 2011. Plus, at UC San Diego, David Horowitz smacked down local MSA activist Jumanah Imad Albahri, who endorsed a new Holocaust for Jews in Israel. So, in an apparent effort to avoid scrutiny, the latest events at UCLA are called "Palestine Awareness Week," and the MSA is calling itself "Students for Justice in Palestine." But the Apartheid Wall hasn't had a makeover, as far as I can tell. Despite a number posters claiming "non-violent resistance," this Islamist militant with the Kalashnikov and keffiyeh belies the Muslim students' allegedly peaceful motives:

And of course, the "arch" over the wall's center opening announces the real purpose of the events, BDS: "Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions: A Strategy for Israel’s Destruction."

UCLA's Daily Bruin has the background, "UCLA students hope to educate campus about human rights issues with Palestine Awareness Week." And on Facebook, Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA (SJP at UCLA).

When I first arrived I looked around and noticed two opposing groups in the immediate area. The most conspicuous were the Muslim students, although I first went over and said hello to the young folks from Bruins for Israel:

They were just hanging out, enjoying themselves. And they didn't mind being photographed at all:

It was the exact opposite with the Students for Justice in Palestine. I said hello to a couple of the young ladies, and I asked if I could speak with their lead organizer. I was pointed in the direction of a burly young man named Hamzah Baig. I introduced myself and asked if he'd take questions. He asked "Who's this for"? And I told him I was a blogger with David Horowitz's NewsReal Blog. That didn't seem to phase him at first, so the interview started out pretty casually. I asked him what the goals were for Palestinian Awareness Week. He said that the group wanted to stop Israeli settlements of Palestinian lands and to "end the occupation." Then I asked, "what occupation"? And he said "the West Bank." Okay, I thought, hmm, how about a couple of more challenging questions? So I said "Does your group support terrorism against Israelis?" And Baig practically choked on his Arafat scarf. He told me he wanted to be quoted precisely, and then enunciated very slowly, "our group provides no support for terrorism whatsoever." And I said, oh yeah? What about Hamas? Do you support them? He said, "yeah, sure." And I said, but Hamas is a known terrorist organization. I then mentioned David Horowitz's confrontation with Jumanah Imad Albahri at UC San Diego. And I noted that she wouldn't denounce Hamas and called for the extermination of the Jews. But by this time Baig was getting uptight. He said that "our group has nothing to do with the MSA at UC San Diego. They're totally separate for us." And I said, but aren't you guys MSA here at UCLA? And he said, "yeah, sure, were MSA, but we're separate." I said fine, "will you renounce Hamas right now, will your reject Hamas"? He said "we support Hamas programs of education, food and medicine." "What about terrorism"?, I said. And he again hestitated to respond. I thanked him and asked him if I could take his picture, but he refused. By now he was getting hostile at the questioning and wanted to be away from me. I said, "Why"? "This is a public event, at a public university --- why don't you want to be photographed"? And he just waved me away with his arms and said "no pictures."

I walked around a bit and took a picture of one of the Palestinian women, but then a few minutes later she ran back up to me and said, "I'm uncomfortable that you took my picture. I'm uncomfortable with that." I asked her why, but she just repeated that line, and then Baig came over and gave her the crossed-throat sign not to talk to me, again warning me not take pictures. He walked away for a while and I took a picture from a distance anyway:

I won't post the young woman's picture although she's featured at the group's Facebook page, at 8 seconds at the Palestinian Awareness Week 2010-11 video. That said, I continued to take pictures of the information table, arguing that this was a public event. I suggested to Baig that he was trying to suppress honest reporting about his organization. He alleged: "You are harassing my people." I told him he was harassing me and trying to suppress the truth. He obviously wasn't pleased at the attention to his pro-terror racket:

Arafat scarves were on sale for $10.00:

In any case, here's some photos from the wall. I was pressed for time. I had to head back to the O.C., so I wasn't able to examine the display as closely as I'd have liked. What I did notice wasn't surprising at all. It's all anti-Israel propaganda, completely one-sided, with a few sops to human rights thrown in. The Israeli Apartheid Wall is designed to influence young minds with little knowlege of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Seeing these pictures, it's a 10-to-1 bet that the uninitiated would be horrified at the "brutality," but since there's absolutely no context, it's worthless:

Again, my photography wasn't as organized as I'd like. But I did dwell on this panel featuring American Rachel Corrie, who was killed in 2003:

Corrie's a martyr to the global anti-Israel jihad, but common sense tells you not to lie down in front of a bulldozer. See, "The Case Against Rachel Corrie," and "Rachel Corrie, Again."

And here's the big Hamas panel. So much for "peaceful resistance":

Democratically-elected social workers, but of course the Students for Justice in Palestine weren't handing out copies of the Hamas Charter:

And notice Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Hassan Yassin, founder of Hamas, assassinated by Israel, and obviously a martyr to global jihad. But according to Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs:

Yassin was the dominant authority of the Hamas leadership, which was directly involved in planning, orchestrating and launching terror attacks carried out by the organization. In this capacity, Yassin personally gave his approval for the launching of Qassam rockets against Israeli cities, as well as for the numerous Hamas terrorist bombings and suicide operations. In his public appearances and interviews, Yassin called repeatedly for a continuation of the 'armed struggle' against Israel, and for an intensification of the terrorist campaign against its citizens. The successful operation against Yassin constitutes a significant blow to a central pillar of the Hamas terrorist organization, and a major setback to its terrorist infrastructure.

That data wasn't included at the Students for Justice in Palestine information table.

And these panels must be especially repellent to Jews, "ZIONISM IS NOT JUDAISM":

A couple more photos before I head back home: And note that in all my 25 years as an undergrad, as a graduate student, and a professor, I can't ever recall this prominent of a scriptural banner on the grounds of any campus. This is along the main walk up from the Apartheid Wall. A passage from the Koran (and notice the sponsoring group in the bottom-left corner, "Muslim Union at UCLA"):

About to head out, here's the group of Muslim students. The women are wearing head coverings and red "Free Palestine/End the Occupation" shirts:

This sweet young lady said she was majoring in communications and was thinking about Jewish studies:

Looking back at the wall, on my way to the parking structure:

More later ...

Union Thug Strikes Tabitha Hale of Freedom Works

The guy's from the Communications Workers of America. This clip shows just how vicious these goons are, especially at the slow-mo replay:

Freedom Works sponsored the Blog Bash CPAC on February 11, and Tabitha Hale organized bloggers' row at the convention. This is more personal than the routine union beatings we've seen these last few years. See Michelle's post for all the details, "Video: CWA union thug strikes young female FreedomWorks activist" (via Memeorandum).

More at The Other McCain, "Thugs for Social Justice: Union Goon Gets Rough With Tabitha Hale on Video."