Dann Todd's 'Dain Bramage'^**

The British Airline Plot

The Wall Street Journal has a story about how the bombing plot was foiled by using techniques that our leftists oppose when they are employed by our government.

Let's emphasize that again: The plot was foiled because a large number of people were under surveillance concerning their spending, travel and communications. Which leads us to wonder if Scotland Yard would have succeeded if the ACLU or the New York Times had first learned the details of such surveillance programs.

Emphasis in the original. Food for thought....for people that are still thinking, that is.

by Dann 

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Terrorist Propaganda

Also via the Blogfather, comes word of a German report on how Hezbollah's media wing is manipulating images of the war that are then passed on to various news services as news when they are in fact staged events. There is raw video of an "aid worker" setting up shots of a dead Lebanese boy being loaded into an ambulance. This guy sets up the shot, clears spectators out of the camera's way, dresses the corpse for maximum effect, and they shove the boy in and out of that ambulance more times than nymphomaniac's vibrator while she's at orgasm.

The acceptance of such fake news by the MSM is a large part of my chief complaint about their work. They don't embed with the military because that would be seen as having a bias in their reporting. They discount military reports of successes and other events because the US military is not to be believed. That rule must be taught on day two of Journalism 101.

Yet they willingly accept propaganda films masquerading as news that are provided by terrorist agents.

The media questions letters from our military in the combat zone as being "real" in spite of the fact that real names are always attached for reference purposes. Yet un-sourced reports of mass civilian deaths are accepted as fact until the military [the one that they have been taught not to believe in the first place] can prove otherwise.

The outcome of this war against Islamic extremism matters. The outcome of the various campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and elsewhere also matter. And it is time that the media understood and respected that fact.

by Dann 

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Amiercans and American Immigrants Supporting Hezbollah

This is disturbing. Residents of Dearborn, MI are funnelling money to Hezbollah. They claim to love America yet are sending money to a terrorist organization that killed several hundred Americans in the 1980s. Specifically 220 Marines stationed in that country as a "peace keeping" force along with 21 other servicemembers. That doesn't include another 63 people killed in a Hezbollah attack on our embassy in 1983.

Hezbollah is part of the problem. Syria and Iran's use of Hezbollah is the larger problem. If Hezbollah would get out of the militia/terrorism business, then supporting Hezbollah would not be a problem for these immigrants and US citizens.

But that is something that they just don't see.

The Red Cross doesn't pack howitzers. Hezbollah shouldn't pack rockets if they want to be similarly viewed as a charitable organization.

by Dann 

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Glenn and Helen Podcast

This weeks podcast from Glenn Reynolds and his wife Helen Smith features Austin Bay, veteran of OIF, and Jim Dunnigan of Strategypage.com. The two talk about recent and long term developments in the larger war against Islamic extremism and the 52 minute program is well worth your time if you are interested in facts that the MSM barely covers.

I love listening to these two guys talk. I also hate it.

Jim has a nasty habit of talking while someone else is talking. That sort of behavior is more suited to the ill-behaved and ill-informed Chris Matthews of MSNBC than it is to a podcast. There is plenty of time, Jim. Plenty of time.

The other disturbing part of this show is that while they are talking about very serious issues, there are occasional moments of inappropriate frivolity. I keep hearing "but of course this isn't actually funny", and yet the comments that make light of a very serious situation keep coming.

The show is worth your time. Don't let the distractions get in the way of this valuable information.

by Dann 

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Mob Rule From The Left

Lanny Davis, noted liberal lawyer and esteemed gentleman, has an article in today's Wall Street Journal where he points out the unhealthy level of vitriol present among the left; specifically among the Netroots folks.

But the issue is not just emotional outbursts by these usually anonymous bloggers. A friend of mine just returned from Connecticut, where he had spoken on several occasions on behalf of Joe Lieberman. He happens to be a liberal anti-war Democrat, just as I am. He is also a lawyer. He told me that within a day of a Lamont event--where he asked the candidate some critical questions--some of his clients were blitzed with emails attacking him and threatening boycotts of their products if they did not drop him as their attorney. He has actually decided not to return to Connecticut for the primary today; he is fearful for his physical safety.

There were similar problems during the 2004 campaign with gunfire being directed towards GOP offices in Kentucky and Florida, GOP "get out the vote" vehicles with slashed tires, and other abusive behavior by a segment of Democratic supporters.

Thuggery from segments of Democratic support isn't exactly new. For references, check the union history of the 1930s and 1940s as well as some of the folks in the South that abused blacks on a regular basis.

I know, I know. The GOP isn't exactly clean on this issue.

But the problem currently is predominant on the left and it is getting worse, not better.

by Dann 

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Justice Scalia

I have long been a 'fan' of Justice Scalia. He has continually claimed that his desire is to make decisions based on what the Constitution says rather than what he would prefer it to say. In lectures he has claimed that this position compels him to adopt positions as a Supreme Court Justice that he would otherwise oppose.

In the news today comes word that the GOP in Texas has failed in their bid to replace Tom Delay on the ballot for this fall's election. Tom's in a bit of hot water legally and his candidacy is in deep trouble. He has become a resident of another state just to give the GOP in Texas a better argument for replacing him on the ballot.

The man to shut them down?? Justice Antonin Scalia. The man the puts the law ahead of his personal partisan interests.

by Dann 

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Honoring The Fallen

A recent op-ed in the NYTimes described part of the trip of one of our fallen Marines, his honor guard, and his parents. A moving tribute to those that sacrifice on our behalf.

h/t to Mike Peterson [who got it from Ronnie]

Read the rest of Mike's blog entry while you are at it. He's a bit of a quandary for me. This post isn't the time or the place for the details, but it is his thoughts like these that give me great pause when I consider our differences.

Now if we could just get the NYTimes to correct its style book. The word is spelled "Marine", not "marine". It is a title, like Senator, President, or Ambassador. An individual name is not required for the most part. Our families know them as do those closest to us in the brotherhood that is the Marine Corps. Everything else is icing on the cake, just remember to call us Marine....and capitalize it correctly....and we will be grateful forevermore.

by Dann 

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