Nothing to Do With Islam?

From Melanie Phillips, "Stiff Competition for 'Most Fatuous Reaction' Award."

Also, at Theo Spark's, "The Coming Death of England."

London Terror Attack: How Many Ignored Warnings Does It Take?

From Douglas Murray, at the Wall Street Journal, "The London Terror Attack Was More Than 'Unforgivable'":

How many ignored warnings does it take? That is one question that should hang over Britain after the horror of the daytime murder of a British soldier on the streets of south London. On Wednesday afternoon, Drummer Lee Rigby was killed in Woolwich by two men wielding large knives and shouting "Allahu akbar"—God is great.

Islamists have been saying for years they would do this. They have planned to do it. And now they have done it.

The attack itself is not surprising. What is surprising is that British society remains so utterly unwilling not just to deal with this threat, but even to admit its existence. Politicians have called the Woolwich killing "unforgivable" and "barbarous." But expressions of anger should not really be enough.

Read it all. It's likely that the suspects were on the dole, taking more money off the taxpayers than the soldier they killed:

This would not be the first time a country has paid both sides in a conflict. But if the reported figure is anywhere near accurate, it would surely be the first time in human history that a society has paid its opponents better than it pays its own.

VIDEO: #Woolwich Terrorists Shot by Police After Attempting to Ambush First Officers at Scene of Islamic Beheading

At the Mirror UK, "Woolwich attack: Watch shocking video of terrorists charging at police car in attempt to kill WPC":

The footage obtained by the Daily Mirror reveals how, after beheading the soldier, they hatched a plot to ambush and murder the first police officers to come to his aid.

Continue reading.

Graduate Student Matthew Werenczak Expelled From Syracuse Univeristy Over Facebook Comments

What's interesting is that the dude met all the left-wing conditions for readmission to the university, and the administration was still dragging its feet. But that was the last straw.

At FIRE, "Censorship at Syracuse, Part I: School Expels Student Over Facebook Comments (VIDEO)."

Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Political Islam: 'Why the U.S. Needs a New Loyalty Oath...'

I missed the chance to post this last weekend, but I'd be remiss now if I didn't, with all the news yesterday.

At the Wall Street Journal, "Swearing In the Enemy":

What is political Islam? It is not precisely the same as the spiritual dimension of the faith. Islam is multidimensional. It has a religious and social aspect but also a very strong political dimension. Political Islam is a comprehensive vision of ideas and ideals derived from Islamic scripture as interpreted by various scholars widely accepted as authorities on its meaning. Virtually all of these scholars agree that Muslim societies must accept Allah as the sovereign power and struggle to abide strictly by Shariah law as exemplified in the Sunna (the life, words and deeds of the Prophet). Political Islam prescribes a set of specific social, economic and legal practices in a way that is very different from the more general social teachings (such as calls to practice charity or strive for justice) found in the spiritual dimension of Islam, Christianity, Judaism and other world religions.

All of this, obviously, flies in the face of the American—and more broadly Western—ideals of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. But most Americans ignore the fundamental conflict between political Islam and their own worldview. Perhaps this is because they generally assume that "religion," however defined, is a positive force for good and that any set of religious beliefs, however unusual, should be considered acceptable in a tolerant society. I agree with that.

The problem arises when those who adhere to a particular faith use it as divine license to break the law. It is a wonderful truth about America—one of its powerful attractions for millions of immigrants like me—that you may think and say whatever you wish as long as you do not act on your beliefs in a way that harms others. Unfortunately, a minority of the adherents to political Islam wish to take violent action in support of their beliefs—threatening the lives of innocents like those killed and maimed as they stood watching the Boston Marathon.

It is reasonable to ask yourself: How many more young men like Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are already living a double life in America, ready to take up arms for the cause of political Islam? And how many more will be naturalized this year? None? That seems pretty unlikely.

In a 2011 Pew survey, 1% of American Muslims said that suicide bombings were "often justified"—a tiny proportion, to be sure. The overwhelming majority of American Muslims want to lead peaceful lives. But 7% of those surveyed said that suicide bombers were "sometimes justified," and 5% said they were "rarely justified." Taking Pew's conservative estimate that Muslims now constitute 0.6% of the adult population of the U.S., this means that more than 180,000 American Muslims regard suicide bombings as being justified in some way...

RTWT at the link.

Piers Morgan Bans Dana Loesch From His Show Over 'Glib' London Beheading Tweet

Mediaite, with a good amount of leftist spin, reports:

It’s hard to believe it, but CNN’s Piers Morgan was shocked to learn, Wednesday night, that conservative radio host and frequent Piers Morgan Tonight guest Dana Loesch says things that are horrible and/or make absolutely no sense. Loesch tweeted “Was the guy with the machete a member of the NRA?”, a reference to one of the two men who murdered a British soldier in what has been described as a terrorist attack in London today. Morgan chastised Loesch for being “glib” about the soldier’s death, and later announced that he was banning the conservative provocateur from his show.

The exchange is at the link.

There followed one of the more vicious and vile left-wing feeding frenzies I've seen. These ghouls were bloodthirsty, "'Drop dead, you C*NT': Vicious lefties attack Dana Loesch for believing in self-defense."

I had a brief exchange with Dana, offering words of support:

@ampowerblog Thank you :)

— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) May 23, 2013

Absolutely Barbaric Beheading of Soldier in London Shows New Normal of Terrorist Jihad

I've been following this story all day, as best I could.

Telegraph UK wasted no time in calling the barbarity a terrorist attack, "British soldier beheaded on busy London street in terror attack." Also, "'Soldier beheaded' in Woolwich machete attack: latest." And see the Wall Street Journal, "A Killing Puts U.K. on Guard for Terror."

And see Clive Irving's concise analyis, at the Daily Beast, "London Attack: The New Face of Terror":

A blood-splattered jihadist with a meat cleaver in one hand declaring to a bystander’s smartphone camera “Allahu Akbar” and “we will always beat you” in a pronounced south London accent?  While waiting twenty minutes for the police to arrive after he’s taken part in what seemed like a ritual assassination of a British soldier?  Exactly what terrorist profile does this conform to?

None.

And that’s what concerns British terrorism officials. Is this bizarre episode the beginning of a new, unpredictable pattern of loners operating without any organized backing behind them, or a one-off?

The two assailants could, indeed, just be a couple of deranged freelancers. But the guidance British ministers have been giving reporters assumes something much graver, a form of terrorism so unsophisticated and amateur that it can’t be detected by existing surveillance methods.

The fact that the wild, bloodied harangue to camera was delivered by a black man with no trace of a foreign accent – indeed, in an accent that seemed to originate in south London in particular – suggests homegrown militants, perhaps men radicalized via the Internet, through a form of widely dispersed propaganda rather than targeted brainwashing...

More at the link.

Plus, at Atlas Shrugs, "MUSLIMS SCREAMING "ALLAHU AKBAR" BEHEAD BRITISH SOLDIER ON PUBLIC STREET," and "BRITISH MUSLIM WHO BEHEADED SOLDIER ON WOOLWICH STREET: 'YOU PEOPLE WILL NEVER BE SAFE'."

More, "BRITISH MUSLIM WHO BEHEADED SOLDIER ON PUBLIC STREET: 'MANY MANY SURAS IN THE QURAN.......'."

Telegraph UK Hacked by Syrian Electronic Army

It was a phishing scam. A pretty sophisticated one, apparently.

At the Telegraph, "How the Telegraph was hacked."

Both the Financial Times and the Guardian were hacked by the Syrian Electronic Army as well. These are Assad loyalists retaliating on Western media outlets for their reporting on the civil war.

Stealth Marxist Eric Garcetti Wins Los Angeles Mayor's Race

Here's the Los Angeles Times article from February highlighting Garcetti's Marxist years at Columbia, "The L.A. City Council member and mayoral candidate was a committed young progressive known on campus for gliding between different worlds and liberal causes.

And now he's won election to City Hall, "Garcetti beats Greuel: Councilman big in central L.A., does well in the Valley."

Here's the headline at Capital News from the other day, "Menshevik vs. Bolshevik for L.A. Mayor—Greuel vs. Garcetti."

Well, Bolshevik is more appropriate for Garcetti than the writer probably intends. The dude was in all the "correct" progressive causes in college. He's spent his years since pulling off an Obama-style transformation to "political moderate."

You gotta root these people out, freakin' anti-American thugs.

Jodi Arias Sentencing: Death Penalty Would Cause More Pain

She's a convicted murderer. But she deserves a "second chance." Right.

At Fox News, "Jodi Arias, in jailhouse interview, says her lawyers let her down."

Ibragim Todashev, Friend to Boston Bombing Suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, Killed in FBI Shootout

At the Wall Street Journal, "Associate of Boston Bombing Suspects Is Killed: Orlando Man Connected to Tsarnaev Brothers Fatally Shot After Trying to Attack FBI Agent."

And the New York Times, "Man Being Queried on Tsarnaev Ties Is Killed by Officer":

BOSTON — A man in Orlando, Fla., who was being interviewed early Wednesday morning by an agent from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a Massachusetts state policeman about his ties to the deceased Boston Marathon bombing suspect, was fatally shot after he tried to attack them with a knife, according to a senior law enforcement official.

The authorities were questioning the man — who was identified by a law enforcement official as Ibragim Todashev — about whether he had played a role in a triple murder on Sept. 11, 2011, in Waltham, Mass.

“The investigators were working on the theory that he and Tamerlan had done the murder,” said the official, referring to Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the deceased marathon bombing suspect. One of the victims was a friend of Mr. Tsarnaev.

The F.B.I. agent, who was from the Boston field office, sustained minor injuries in the episode, the official said.

The official said that the authorities had spoken to Mr. Todashev at least twice since the April 15 bombings, which killed three and injured about 200.

Continue reading.

Lois Lerner Pleads the Fifth: 'I Haven't Done Anything Wrong...'

A weaselly freakin' POS.
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And a discussion from Carol Platt Liebau, at Townhall, "Taking the Fifth — What It Does (& Doesn't Do) for Lerner" (via Memeorandum).

French Nationalist Dominique Venner Commits Suicide in Paris Notre Dame Cathedral

I'm not sure what good it'll do. He was supposed to be protesting France's move to legalize homosexual marriage, but frankly, I'd bet a lot of people are cheering the dude's death.

At Independent UK, "Far-right French historian, 78-year-old Dominique Venner, commits suicide in Notre Dame in protest against gay marriage":

Mr Venner, a prolific author of books and tracts on extreme nationalist themes, has been one of many vociferous critics of the law. Some of his work as a historian has been well-received, incuding a 1981 book on the Red Army which won a prize from the Académie Française. Much of his work has been steeped in the racist ideology of the far-right, apologising for the pro-Hitler regime in Vichy in the Second World war and warning of conspiracies to destroy European civilisation and to swamp the white race.

Mr Venner was also an expert, and the author of several books, on hunting and fire-arms. In the 1960s, he was a member of the Organisation de l'Armée Secrète - the extreme nationalist terrorist movement which opposed the French withdrawal from Algeria and attempted several times to assassinate President Charles de Gaulle.

More at the Astute Bloggers, "WILL DOMINIQUE VENNER'S POLITICAL SUICIDE IN NOTRE DAME SET OFF A REVOLT LIKE MOHAMMED BOUAZIZI'S DID IN TUNISIA?"

Nah. This is a last gasp from a long gone era of French politics, a weird throwback that reminds me of what real ideological politics looks like.

Desperate Minutes in School Razed by Tornado

At WSJ, "Oklahoma Tornado: Long Minutes of Desperation Inside School Razed by Storm."

And about the erroneous death toll, at LAT, "Chaos after tornado led to double reporting in death toll."

#IRS Toady Lois Lerner to Take the Fifth

A very significant development, at the Los Angeles Times, "Top IRS official will invoke Fifth Amendment."

The Times buried the story at the bottom of the homepage, apparently. Pirate's Cove has it, "Lois Lerner to Plead 5th at IRS Hearing." And at Big Government, "Gee, It's Almost Like the LA Times Is Trying to Hide Its Own Huge Scoop."

.@charlescwcooke Precisely. People take the 5th when they have something to hide or someone to protect. @aceofspadeshq #IRS
— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) May 21, 2013

'Stop #IRS Abuse of Power': Tea Party Swarms Santa Ana on National Day of Protest

Villa Park City Councilwoman Deborah Pauly organized today's IRS protest in downtown Santa Ana.

I made it down there a little after Noon and hundreds of patriots were lining the sidewalks to demonstrate their outrage with this criminal clusterf-k administration.

Out on Civic Center Drive, Councilwoman Pauly protests the tyranny, at right:

"Stop IRS Abuse of Power":

More patriots:

More patriots on the North side of the street:

And more on the protests from around the country, at Michelle Malkin's, "Photos from IRS protests around the country today."

And at Director Blue, "40 PHOTOS: Conservatives March on the IRS Building; IRS Agents Respond by Mocking Protesters."

Also at London's Daily Mail, "Angry tea partiers rally at IRS headquarters in Washington with stern warnings: 'They're going to have to produce all the documents' on targeting scandal."

Instapundit has huge roundups here (in Tennessee) and here (nationwide).

More at Instapundit, "AP: Protesters Rally Over IRS’ Tea Party Scrutiny," and "VIDEO: TEA PARTY PATRIOTS PROTEST OUTSIDE IRS."

Drop your protest inks in the comments and I'll update...

UPDATE: Instapundit links. Thanks!

Storm Over 'Swivel-Eyed Loons' Engulfs British Prime Minister David Cameron

At Independent UK, "'Swivel-gate': David Cameron goes to war with the press over 'swivel-eyed loons' slur":

PM backs his friend as Tory co-chairman Lord Feldman denies he is source of damning remarks about local party members.

David Cameron risked a major blow to his authority after he defended one of his closest friends over claims that he had described Tory activists as "mad, swivel-eyed loons".

The Conservative co-chairman Lord Feldman, a tennis partner of the Prime Minister, was forced to deny making the remarkable attack on party members, which reportedly arose during a conversation with journalists at an event in London.

The peer, who attended Oxford University with Mr Cameron, said it was "completely untrue" that he made the derogatory remarks that several newspapers reported as being made by an unnamed member of Mr Cameron's inner circle. Downing Street later announced that the Prime Minister was backing his friend.

But both The Times and The Daily Telegraph, which put the incendiary remarks on their front pages yesterday without naming Lord Feldman as the alleged source, last night said they stood by the story – threatening an extraordinary stand-off between Downing Street and newspapers.

The row deepened the bitter internal schism between Mr Cameron's inner circle and the rest of the party – particularly over issues including the European Union and gay marriage.

The UK Independence Party, which has been mopping up support from disenchanted Tory voters in recent months, immediately seized on the dispute. Its leader, Nigel Farage, remarked: "If you are a Conservative supporter who believes in Ukip ideas then your party hates you. Come and join us."

And see historian Tim Bale, at Telegraph UK, "Swivel-eyed loons, or seeing clearly?"

Sounds like Britain's elite needed some shaking up. Good for those loons!

'You're All I Got Tonight'

From yesterday morning, on the Sound L.A.:

Accidents Will Happen - Elvis Costello: 10:20am

Abracadabra - Steve Miller: 10:09am

About a Girl - Nirvana: 10:06am

Abacab - Geneis: 9:59am

Sunshine of Your Love - Cream: 9:54am

Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Queen: 9:52am

Stairway To Heaven - Led Zeppelin: 9:44am

Shadow of a Doubt - Tom Petty: 9:37am

Everybody Wants Some!! - Van Halen: 9:32am

Born on the Bayou - CCR: 9:26am

You're All I've Got Tonight - The Cars: 9:22am

Notice at 10:00am, "A to Z" week kicked in: "You won't hear a song repeated for over a week."

I got to work when "Accidents Will Happen" came on --- and weird, but what a blast from the past.

Well, Yeah. Damned Tyrant

Via Knuckledragging.

'We know who you are. You cannot hide. You cannot escape. We are legion. We never forget. We never forgive. We are everywhere. And we are better than you...'

From Mandy Nagy, at Legal Insurrection, "Israeli counter-hackers claim to expose #OpIsrael hackers":

It appears that the battle between Anonymous hackers embroiled in the #OpIsrael campaign and Israeli counter-hackers continues.

A video posted at a new website titled “Anon Bastards” claims to have exposed those behind the last round of #OpIsrael attacks.