Saturday, April 3, 2010

The Left's Intolerance of, and Assault on Free (Conservative) Speech; and Obama vs. Israel Redux

1. So who are the 'fat cats' supporting? According to the 4/1/10 NBC Nightly News, Obama will be in LA on April 19 for a reception and dinner; the purpose of which is to raise money for Barbara Boxer's reelection campaign, and for the DNC in general. The cost for this event will be $35,000. per couple! But as noted in my 1/23/10 blog, Obama and the dems plan on doing all they can to reverse the effects of the Supreme Court decision allowing independent corporate campaign advertising. Because, as Obama said: the "...powerful interests...marshal their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans." I pointed out then that it was not "everyday Americans" attending $10,000. a plate fund raisers. I was wrong. This fund raiser is $35,000. for two.

However, the dems are dead serious about reversing the effects of the Supreme Court decision. According to the Investor's Business Daily 3/30/10 edition, Sen. Schumer is working with a Rep. Van Hollen to prepare a bill that they want to introduce in mid-April. According to IBD, they want to ban "expenditures by foreign-owned corporations, federal contractors, TARP recipients, (and require) greater disclosure of corporate political spending to shareholders and federal agencies and (include) requirements the CEO's appear in political ads and say they sanctioned the message." So, if you get any type of federal assistance - you must give up your right to free speech. And, if you choose to exercise your right to speak anyway, you will have greater reporting requirements to the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT! Anybody NOT think that this is a government gone mad with power? The FEDS get to monitor HOW MUCH corporations spend on speech!

Part of Obama's criticism of the Supreme Court decision was his concern that elections would be "bankrolled by America's powerful interests." Hello! Who's paying $35,000. a couple to see you Mr. President on April 19? Powerful interests, that just happen to be on YOUR side of the political fence. So, of course, that's OK. Following Obama's criticism of the Supreme Court at his State of the Union speech, the Chief Justice later opined that perhaps the Justices ought not attend future State of the Union speeches. He found Obama's comments, with the Justices sitting right in front, to be "troubling." But the White House did not let it go. As reported in the 3/30/10 IBD, the White House replied that what was "troubling is that this decision opened the floodgates for corporations and special interests."

We have seen that kind of 'in your face' attitude by Obama on numerous occassions now. Perhaps it is the Chicago approach. But if you cross him, watch out. Whether you are a tea-partier, clinging to your guns and religion, Fox News, the prime minister of one of our closest allies, or the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, it's all the same. If you are not with Obama - watch out! My guess is that Obama's 'enemies list' would put Nixon to shame. But it is not just corporate speech that those on the left want to put an end to; it is all conservative speech.

2. The assault on conservative speakers at universities continues. Anyone who believes that the university is the place for the free flow of ideas has not been paying attention. For that matter, conservative speech and speakers are under attack from virtually all fronts, including the mainstream media. We have previously chronicled the assault on Michael Oren's attempt to speak at UC Irvine (2/13/10 blog). Recall that the protesters said, among other things, that "propaganda is not an expression of speech." And Ann Coulter was told by the provost of Ottawa University that she should learn "what is acceptable in Canada" before coming to speak. (As reported in my 3/27/10 blog.) Recently, Karl Rove was shouted down by a group from Code Pink when attempting to give a speech.

And now, one of my readers has brought to my attention some disturbing events at USC. David Horowitz was invited to speak by the College Republicans. Specifically, he wanted to address a posting on an official USC website containing a quote attributed to Mohammed: that for the Day of Judgment to come muslims must "fight the Jews and kill them." The posting according to the article, was put up by the USC Muslim Student Union (MSU). The provost called it "disgusting" and ordered its removal last spring. But it was subsequently put on another USC site.

Before Mr. Horowitz even came and gave his speech, he claims that both he and the College Republicans were subject to vicious slanders, and false claims about what he said or wrote in the past. However, the Muslim Student Union said their members felt "threatened, unsafe, and betrayed." Or so said Michael Jackson (no, not that one, he's dead), V.P. for Student Affairs at USC. He repeated the false allegations made by the MSU against Mr. Horowitz and referred to the MSU as an "outstanding student organization" that has "never engaged in any campus activities that presented concerns for the university." Really? Calling for muslims to kill the Jews does not present a "concern" for the university!? What a moron!

So conservative speech is seriously under attack. However, the most vile and hateful comments are still permissable at universities and in the mainstream media, and even in the democratic party - as long as it comes from the left, or those they side with. So Ahmadinejad was welcomed to speak at Columbia University. One Mike Malloy, who apparently has a nationally syndicated radio talk show, has called for Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh and Karl Rove to kill themselves! He apparently suggested that Beck blow his own brains out! (As reported by Dennis Prager this past week, with actual excerpts from Malloy's show.) Who on the left condemned him? Where was the mea culpa that all conservatives must engage in for any slip of the tongue? And what nationally syndicated conservative talk show host comes even close to the vile spewed by this idiot Malloy?

Think this kind of rhetoric is limited to a few nut jobs? How about this: "You're damn right; Dick Cheney's heart's a political football. We ought to rip it out and kick it around and stuff it back in him," said Ed Schultz, MSNBC and radio host. And how about this one: The contest between Democrats and Republicans is a "struggle of good and evil. And we're the good." The same moron who said "the difference between us and the Republicans is we don't want kids to go to bed hungry at night." One Howard Dean, former HEAD of the DNC. And last but not least: "The Bush administration and the Nazi and communist regimes all engaged in the politics of fear...Indeed, the Bush administration has been able to improve on the techniques used by the Nazi and communist propagand machines," according to George Soros, billionaire contributor to the Democratic Party! (Quotes in this paragraph - except the one about kids going to bed hungry - from an article by Larry Elder in the
4/5/10 IBD.)

Clearly, the left and the dems today do not believe in a quote attributed to Voltaire: "I may not agree with what you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it." This is not surprising since so many on the left are pure ideologues. That is why Obama does NOT respect those who oppose him. As we have seen with the passage of Obamacare, they have no respect for the truth either, as they believe that the ends justify the means. And we know, as a student of Saul Alinsky, what he learned. Alinsky taught a "strategy of working within the system until you can accumulate enough power to destroy it." (Quote attributed to David Horowitz by Aaron Klein and posted 3/29/10 on the Jewish Press website.) So one must LIE to get the power needed to destroy the system - otherwise, the people would never elect such a person. The kind of strong language that other presidents have reserved for America's enemies, Obama and his cronies use against Americans who disagree with them.

3. Obama versus Israel, redux. Caroline Glick, columnist for the Jerusalem Post, is the clearest thinker and writer on the Middle East of any columnist in any of the various papers and magazines this writer reads. In a 4/2/10 posting, she notes that Obama's open hostility towards, and lack of support for, Israel, gives Israeli leaders a certain freedom to speak the truth. The truth is that Abbas and Fayyad, the two Palestinian Authority leaders, both refuse to accept Israel's right to exist - just like Hamas. They are NOT moderates. They support terrorism just like Hamas does, when it suits their interests.

The two state solution will bring peace. Another LIE! Arafat rejected it when offered by Barak and Clinton. Abbas rejected it when offered by Olmert and Bush. Jewish building in Jerusalem must stop for there to be peace. Another LIE! How come the Arabs don't have to stop building in Jerusalem? The Arabs NEVER insisted on cessation of Jewish building in Jerusalem - until Obama made it an issue. Turkey is an ally of the West. No they are NOT! In fact, Turkey announced this past week that it SUPPORTS Iran's nuclear ambitions. We have opened relations with the dictator of Syria because Assad can be weaned away from Iranian influence. NO HE CAN'T! He gets significant amounts of armaments from Iran and Russia. Are we going to offer him the same? Are we going to tell Israel that if they give up the Golan Heights they will get peace with Syria? Just like giving up Gaza led to "peace" with Hamas, and giving up southern Lebanon led to "peace" with Hezbollah. Lebanon says they will never make peace with Israel.

Attitudes in the arab world toward Israel and the Jews have not changed since this quote from over a generation ago: "When the State of Israel was established and was recognized by many, in both East and West, one of the reasons for this recognition was the desire of the people in the East and West to get rid of as many as possible of the representatives of that human error known as the Jews. Behind this motive was another, secret purpose: to concentrate them in one place, so that it would be easier to strike at the right moment." (Quote from Louis Rene Beres in a 3/29/10 posting of The Jewish Press.) No different really than Ahmadinejad's desire to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Or the palestianians teaching their kids in their schoolbooks and on their maps that ALL the land is called "Palestine." Israel is nowhere to be seen.