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Israeli technology:
https://www.facebook.com/
Chinese military weapon! (See 1 below.)
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Establishment Republicans prove, with the budget they passed, they are nothing but Democrats in sheep's clothing. At least Democrats truly believe in their nonsense. Establishment Republicans do it because they believe in taking the easy way out, have no principles and no guts..
Had they had the courage to send Obama a budget he did not like he would have vetoed it and shut the government down and blamed Republicans. What is so bad at having the government shut down? Most Americans believe government is not functioning anyway, spends more than it should and needs reigning.. (See 2 below.)
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Is Christie a Torjan Horse when it comes to Muslim empathy and connections? Can his words be believed or are they campaign rhetoric to get elected by appearing to be tough? If so is that good or bad? You decide. (See 3 below.
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As you know I love humor clean risque as long as it makes you laugh:
Click here: Tastefully Offensive: 84-Year-Old Man Surprises 'America's Got Talent' Judges with Naughty Original Song
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There is a growing trend in our educational facilities and institutions and on their various campuses where we are being told we must think correctly and if we do not think as instructed we are told we are racists, homophobic etc.
We are told we have to protect the sensibilities of people and when offended they need safe zones where they can go to nurse their bruised egos..
Students complain and make demands and administrators drop to their knees.
What is happening to this country, to our independent spirit? The PC Virus is ravaging our freedoms to be Americans, to enjoy the fact that we once protected free speech, outlandish as it may be.
We are being told that we exist to serve the demands of our government, every thing we have is because of government's beneficence.
Frankly, we have become an America I no longer recognize nor am I encouraged that these ominous trends will soon dissipate In fact, they seem to be growing and engulfing us with the passing of each day.
A court recently made an excuse for a punk who killed four people and the judge allowed him to go free because he was raised in a privileged home and thus, did not know right from wrong. He and his mother are now fugitives because he violated his parole.
Hypocrisy and double standards abound and dictate the rules by which people are judged and allowed to act.
We no longer consider being an American a privilege and willingly, open our borders to anyone who walks across them. Respect for and adherence to the law has gone the way of all flesh.
Our president believes racial bias is to blame for his failures not his failed policies. Obama praises a soldier as a hero who deserted his post yet, he and his former Sec.of State could not muster a force to rescue Americans under attack and then they proceeded to lie about the cause.
Americans are frustrated and dispirited and are buying guns as never before.
Where this all ends is anyone's guess but there is something rotten, not only in Europe but in America. Even Shakespeare must be turning over in his grave.
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Dick
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1) Chinese Military Using
BY:
On the cusp of a critical -- perhaps historic -- election year, House Republicans (the faction that rules) have declared independence -- on behalf of the GOP establishment. The omnibus budget deal that Republicans cut with President Obama was surrender, but underlying that was a portentous statement: establishment Republicans affirmed their intention to break away from the party’s conservative grassroots.
1) Chinese Military Using
Blinding Laser Weapons
Laser gun violates arms control accord
BY:
China’s military has equipped its forces with blinding laser weapons in apparent violation of an international agreement signed by Beijing.
“China has been updating its home-made blinding laser weapons in recent years to meet the needs of different combat operations,” the official military newspaperPLA Daily reported Dec. 9.
“Blinding laser weapons are primarily used to blind … targets with laser[s] in [the] short distance, or interfere [with] and damage … laser and night vision equipment,” the brief photo report stated.
A State Department official expressed concerns that the weapons appear to violate a provision of the United Nations 1980 Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons. The convention includes a 1998 Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons banning their use in combat.
WJG-2002 laser
“The United States is committed to the CCW and expects all parties to uphold the convention and its protocols,” the official told the Washington Free Beacon, using an acronym for the 1980 convention.
China agreed to follow the prohibition in 1998, according to the convention’s website.
A Chinese Embassy spokesman did not respond to an email request for comment about the laser weapons.
Jack Daly, a retired naval intelligence officer who suffered eye injuries in 1997 from a laser that was fired at his helicopter by a Russian intelligence-gathering ship near Port Angeles, Washington, said he is concerned the Chinese laser arms could end up in the United States.
“The U.S. already has a problem with laser pointers being directed at in flight aircraft,” Daly said. “If these laser guns make their way here, we are very likely to see aircrews actually blinded during flight and possibly worse.”
In response to numerous incidents of laser pointers being used to illuminate commercial aircraft pilots in flight, the FBI last year launched a campaign offering rewards for people illegally firing laser pointers at aircraft cockpits.
laser drawing
“When aimed at an aircraft from the ground, the powerful beam of light from a handheld laser can travel more than a mile and illuminate a cockpit, disorienting and temporarily blinding pilots,” the FBI said in a statement.
The Air Force is reportedly developing airborne lasers for use against enemy aircraft, drones, or missiles. The Navy has deployed a Laser Weapon System to defend ships against drones, small boats, and submarines.
However, the military has no plans for laser rifles similar to the Chinese guns.
Rick Fisher, an expert on Chinese weapons systems, said the PLA has at least two types of laser guns and may be seeking to sell them abroad.
While not currently observed for sale at the global arms exhibitions, Fisher said Chinese arms sellers attending arms shows likely interacted with foreign customers for the lasers.
PY132A laser
“There is a strong possibility these new dazzlers are being marketed for foreign sale,” he said.
On the same day the PLA Daily report on blinding laser rifles was published, the Communist Party-affiliated newspaper Global Times produced a more detailed report that included drawings showing how the lasers are fired at enemy troops.
The Global Times report shows four different types of laser guns, including the BBQ-905 Laser Dazzler Weapon, the WJG-2002 Laser Gun, the PY132A Blinding Laser Weapon, and the PY131A Blinding Laser Weapon.
Fisher said the photos of the laser weapons appear to have been taken at a large civil-military integration exhibit held in early December.
“While they are being portrayed as police assist weapons, they could also be used on battlefields,” said Fisher, an analyst with the International Assessment and Strategy Center.
=================================================================================2) House Republicans Declare Independence
On the cusp of a critical -- perhaps historic -- election year, House Republicans (the faction that rules) have declared independence -- on behalf of the GOP establishment. The omnibus budget deal that Republicans cut with President Obama was surrender, but underlying that was a portentous statement: establishment Republicans affirmed their intention to break away from the party’s conservative grassroots.
Key provisions of the budget deal can be interpreted in no other way than a premeditated decision to dismiss conservatives on vital issues. The price might be the presidency in 2016, but it could well be a price the establishment is willing to pay for longer term realignment.
Much of the House Republicans’ eschewing touches on social issues, immigration, and refugees (Syrians this go-round). Their full funding of Planned Parenthood goes beyond crass political calculation to basely immoral. The Faustian deal with Democrats on illegals opens the way to vote-harvesting opportunities for Democrats in future elections, while giving establishment-aligned business interests the cheap labor they desire.
The budget deal is a dramatic departure for a party on the eve of a presidential election year. It represents a brazen effort to reposition the GOP. Boehner assuredly made his surrenders, but it’s the timing of this agreement that marks it as troubling.
More so than surrender to the Democrats on the budget, Republicans have clearly surrendered to the nation’s supposed move to the left. Generational and demographic shifts are typically cited. Establishment Republicans see a libertarian stance on social issues as better accommodating the social “progressivism” of millennials and younger cohorts generally, principles and values be damned.
Make no mistake, the other key takeaway from the budget deal was the Republicans full acceptance of big government. House Republicans swapped higher spending for special interest tax cuts -- and plenty of earmarks. Generous allowance was made for ObamaCare contrary to the oft-expressed -- and manifestly fallacious -- desire to end that misbegotten and choice-stealing federal program.
With the budget agreement, House Republicans demonstrated their willingness to play junior partners in what grassroots conservatives characterize as the “Washington Cartel,” simply defined as Democrats and Republicans in cahoots to accrue as much power, influence, and money for themselves as is possible. Certainly the GOP aims to contend with the Democrats for senior position in their relationship, but it’s in the framework set by the president and his Democrats.
There are those who will claim that House Republicans are merely guilty of fecklessness and a flawed but well-intentioned strategy of avoiding confrontation with the president, a confrontation he’s sure to win (so goes the cliché). Why should the GOP pick fights it’s sure to lose? Better to concede issues where the president and his party have advantages with voters. Better yet to pivot election contests on issues where Republicans have the edge.
But that begs the question: Given the massive capitulation that the omnibus budget deal represents, what issues are left for the GOP to contend? Unless establishment Republicans plan to campaign as Democrats do: through misdirection and outright lies.
Republicans have effectively blurred distinctions with Democrats on a host of critical issues. Why concede issues like Planned Parenthood funding and support for sanctuary cities when many Americans are in agreement with conservative positions? What do Republicans credibly take to GOP base voters and the broader electorate to contrast themselves with Democrats? National defense and foreign affairs?
Regarding those concerns, the GOP suffers factional differences. Among all GOP factions there’s general agreement on the need for a strong national defense. But intraparty blocs range from “Big Stick” Republicans -- that may include Rand Paul libertarians -- to neocon interventionists. The role the U.S. should play overseas is contentious internally. Definitions of “national interest” vary. Growing segments of the party -- led by the libertarian-oriented -- reject Wilsonian democracy-building and military interventions without clear-cut national interests at risk. A crisis or crises (terrorist attacks on the homeland) could unite factions.
So insular and cynical are Washington Republicans that they believe they can yet again dupe conservative voters with conservative rhetoric in House and Senate races across the nation. Perhaps they can. After all, they did so in the past three elections. They’ve suffered no consequences for broken promises. From the establishment’s standpoint, why should 2016 be any different?
In fact, Republicans are likely to retain the House in 2016. The science of redistricting has made many Republican and Democratic seats “safe.” Moreover, by many accounts, the Democrats have had a poor recruiting year, so in “swing” districts where Democrats could take open seats or upend Republican incumbents, the quality of candidate is poor. Primary challenges are impeded by incumbent advantages in fundraising, principally.
The Senate, however, is very much in play. There will be enough statewide contests where a grassroots rebellion could cost Republicans seats, thereby giving the Senate back to the Democrats.
Yet another important reason -- admittedly supposition at this point -- that House Republicans are willing to alienate the grassroots in the budget deal is a calculation that an establishment candidate is unlikely to win the party’s nomination. Trump, Cruz, and a fading Ben Carson still command 61.5% in national polling (RCP average as of this writing).
That combined percentage is part of a trend line that may have caused House Republicans to hedge, reasoning that they need to stake out stronger ground that separates them from an “outsider” nominee.
Inside-the-Beltway, the conventional wisdom holds that Trump or Cruz would surely go down in flames come the General Election. Of course, the CW emanating from Washington has been wrong many times before. It not only underestimates both men, but cannot possibly account for unforeseen developments that will intervene to impact the dynamics of next November’s elections. Moreover, it overestimates a damaged and maladroit Hillary Clinton in a matchup with either Trump or Cruz. Hillary will have the MSM shilling for her, regardless.
On the other hand, if a GOP convention (deadlocked or not) affords Marco Rubio the nomination, the omnibus budget deal provisions gives Rubio running room to the left. It may seem smart, but a leftward lurch by Rubio on critical issues provides little in the way of a mandate for conservative policies come January 2017. The likelihood is that Rubio would work with a Republican Congress (or House, if the Democrats take the Senate), to satisfy the agenda made apparent in the budget deal, particularly those elements that he brought into his campaign. Conservatism -- genuine conservatism, not a sham variety -- will be given short shrift.
We should never discount stupidity and myopia among establishment Republicans and their consultants. But, nowadays, we likewise shouldn’t dismiss cynicism and a flagrant self-interest that guides their actions. Principles will not be allowed to block routes to maintaining or expanding the establishment’s grip on power.
At a deeper level the budget deal was a startling declaration: establishment Republicans are going their own way. Conservatives can follow if they like -- or not.
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3)Chris Christie's Pro-Islamic Views Worry Israel Supporters
By Todd Beamon |
Chris Christie is rising in New Hampshire polls, thanks to tough talk on fighting terrorism and ISIS — but some national security critics say he has a weak record as New Jersey's governor in confronting Muslim extremism.
"This issue definitely has the potential to hurt his credibility on national security in the presidential campaign without a doubt," Ryan Mauro, a national security analyst for the Clarion Project, told Newsmax in an interview. Clarion monitors Islamic terrorism and their supporters in the U.S.
Mauro has written extensively on Christie's strong ties to the Muslim community, a growing force in New Jersey politics with an estimated 3 percent of the state's population.
Christie has been close to some questionable New Jersey Muslim leaders, including Mohammad Qatanani, an imam who has been fighting deportation by the Department of Homeland Security for not disclosing that Israel convicted him of being a member of the Hamas terrorist group.
And one of Christie's judicial appointees, Sohail Mohammed, represented the imam and a Muslim group whose leader has voiced support for the terrorist organization.
Qatanani, whom Christie praised at a 2012 Ramadan event at the governor's mansion, and three other Islamists sit on a Muslim Outreach Committee Christie formed in the wake of reports that New York City police were investigating Muslims in his state for possible ties to radical Islam.
"Christie has honored imams with either terrorist ties or who have sympathies for radical Islam," Susan Rosenbluth, the long-time publisher and editor of The Jewish Voice told Newsmax.
Published in Englewood, New Jersey, the influential Jewish Voice has covered Christie's tenure as U.S. attorney and governor.
"This issue definitely has the potential to hurt his credibility on national security in the presidential campaign without a doubt," Ryan Mauro, a national security analyst for the Clarion Project, told Newsmax in an interview. Clarion monitors Islamic terrorism and their supporters in the U.S.
Mauro has written extensively on Christie's strong ties to the Muslim community, a growing force in New Jersey politics with an estimated 3 percent of the state's population.
Christie has been close to some questionable New Jersey Muslim leaders, including Mohammad Qatanani, an imam who has been fighting deportation by the Department of Homeland Security for not disclosing that Israel convicted him of being a member of the Hamas terrorist group.
And one of Christie's judicial appointees, Sohail Mohammed, represented the imam and a Muslim group whose leader has voiced support for the terrorist organization.
Qatanani, whom Christie praised at a 2012 Ramadan event at the governor's mansion, and three other Islamists sit on a Muslim Outreach Committee Christie formed in the wake of reports that New York City police were investigating Muslims in his state for possible ties to radical Islam.
"Christie has honored imams with either terrorist ties or who have sympathies for radical Islam," Susan Rosenbluth, the long-time publisher and editor of The Jewish Voice told Newsmax.
Published in Englewood, New Jersey, the influential Jewish Voice has covered Christie's tenure as U.S. attorney and governor.
She said Christie wasn't anti-Israel. "He just doesn't seem to know the difference as to who can be dangerous and who isn't."
Mauro said Christie has "a poor record" in confronting extremist Muslim leadership in New Jersey, and, in some cases he "has chosen to become close to" them.
In 2013, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) named Christie to their "Best List," identifying him as one of the most outstanding public officials in the nation for his work to enhance relations between Muslims and other Americans.
Mid-East Expert Daniel Pipes, writing in National Review, says CAIR has ties to terrorist groups, and has even been banned by the United Arab Emirates for its ties to such organizations.Pipes argues that CAIR has declined to denounce terror organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah, and has close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.
On the campaign trail and in the recent CNN Republican debate, Christie repeatedly cited his record as a "federal prosecutor" after the 9/11 attacks in dealing with terrorists. Christie was U.S. Attorney for New Jersey from January 17, 2002, to Dec. 1, 2008.
Here are some examples of Christie's comments or activities that have security experts worried:
· In 2008, as a federal prosecutor, Christie defended Qatanani, who was undergoing DHS deportation hearings for not disclosing on a green card application that he had been convicted by Israel in 1993 for being a member of Hamas.
Christie defended the imam in an agency court filing as a "man of great goodwill" and had sent Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles McKenna to the hearing as a character witness.
Qatanani was granted legal permanent residency, but it was later reversed. The case is still pending.
He came to the United States in 1996 to head up the Islamic Center of Passaic County, a mosque based in Paterson, in the northern part of the Garden State.
Qatanani was granted legal permanent residency, but it was later reversed. The case is still pending.
He came to the United States in 1996 to head up the Islamic Center of Passaic County, a mosque based in Paterson, in the northern part of the Garden State.
· Shortly after becoming governor in 2010, Christie invited Muslim leaders to break the daily Ramadan fast at his official residence.
He has since hosted other Ramadan gatherings, including one in July 2012 in which the governor pointed out Qatanani in the audience and praised him.
An attendee posted video of Christie's remarks on YouTube, but it was removed, Mauro told Newsmax.
An attendee posted video of Christie's remarks on YouTube, but it was removed, Mauro told Newsmax.
· Christie has attended several events sponsored by the American Muslim Union, also based in Paterson.
In 2001, the group's president, Mohamed Younes, slammed the United States as hypocritical for condemning Hamas but not Israel.Mohammad El-Mezain, who has raised money for Hamas, addressed the AMU in 1994. Other members have ties to radical Islam
· In August 2010, Christie slammed Republicans who opposed plans to build an Islamic center in lower Manhattan, near the site of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
He also warned GOP legislators against tarring "all of Islam with the Mohamed Atta brush," referring to one of the 9/11 hijackers. Christie later advised against demagogy regarding immigration reform.
· In 2011, Christie appointed Sohail Mohammed, a Muslim lawyer, to a Superior Court judgeship in Passaic County.
Mohammed was general counsel to the American Muslim Union, and he represented Qatanani during his deportation hearings.
Christie exploded when Republicans resisted Mohammed's appointment, implying that he might be influenced by Shariah law.
Christie called Mohammed an "extraordinary American" — labeling any concerns about Shariah "crap" and bashing attackers as "crazies."
Christie exploded when Republicans resisted Mohammed's appointment, implying that he might be influenced by Shariah law.
Christie called Mohammed an "extraordinary American" — labeling any concerns about Shariah "crap" and bashing attackers as "crazies."
· In 2012, after news reports that the New York Police Department had Muslims in his state under surveillance, Christie slammed authorities for overstepping its boundaries.
He also established a Muslim outreach committee headed by the New Jersey attorney general.
Qatanani, Younes, and two other Muslims with Islamist ties are on the panel — and it has met several times with top law-enforcement, even obtaining information on how to secure Homeland Security grants slated for nonprofit organizations.
The four remain on the committee, despite a Clarion Project report in November 2012 on their Islamist affiliations.
"You don't want the leaders who are praised and upheld to be individuals linked to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood and a history of extremist rhetoric," Mauro told Newsmax.
Qatanani, Younes, and two other Muslims with Islamist ties are on the panel — and it has met several times with top law-enforcement, even obtaining information on how to secure Homeland Security grants slated for nonprofit organizations.
The four remain on the committee, despite a Clarion Project report in November 2012 on their Islamist affiliations.
"You don't want the leaders who are praised and upheld to be individuals linked to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood and a history of extremist rhetoric," Mauro told Newsmax.
· In September 2013, the fallout over the NYPD controversy led Christie to sign legislation requiring law-enforcement agencies outside his state to inform New Jersey state police and prosecutors about surveillance plans in counties 24 hours before entering their borders.
The law also requires Garden State officers or agencies that learn of out-of-state counter-terrorism investigations to inform county prosecutors.
"We must protect and maintain civil liberties, especially those of the citizens in New Jersey's Muslim community," Christie said.
"We must protect and maintain civil liberties, especially those of the citizens in New Jersey's Muslim community," Christie said.
· In March 2014, Christie upset some potential donors at a meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas:
"I took a helicopter ride from the occupied territories across and just felt personally how extraordinary that was to understand, the military risk that Israel faces every day," he said.
After he spoke, Morton Klein, head of the conservative Zionist Organization of America, approached Christie and suggested that he use a "more accurate" term like "disputed territories" or "West Bank."
"Christie responded brusquely and dismissively with a scowl and a non-answer," Klein said online after the incident. "I asked him again if he would use one of the more appropriate terms.
"He again responded with the same non-answer refusing to say he misspoke," he said.
Later, Christie did, however, say that he "misspoke" after meeting with Sheldon Adelson, the Las Vegas casino mogul who heads the coalition.
Many 2016 GOP candidates are courting the mega-donor, seeking his support.
"What the governor didn't say is that he sincerely apologizes, or that he now understands Israel has a legitimate claim to this land, or that Jews have every right to live there," Klein said in the post. "He only said that he 'misspoke' after speaking to a major donor whose support he was seeking."
After he spoke, Morton Klein, head of the conservative Zionist Organization of America, approached Christie and suggested that he use a "more accurate" term like "disputed territories" or "West Bank."
"Christie responded brusquely and dismissively with a scowl and a non-answer," Klein said online after the incident. "I asked him again if he would use one of the more appropriate terms.
"He again responded with the same non-answer refusing to say he misspoke," he said.
Later, Christie did, however, say that he "misspoke" after meeting with Sheldon Adelson, the Las Vegas casino mogul who heads the coalition.
Many 2016 GOP candidates are courting the mega-donor, seeking his support.
"What the governor didn't say is that he sincerely apologizes, or that he now understands Israel has a legitimate claim to this land, or that Jews have every right to live there," Klein said in the post. "He only said that he 'misspoke' after speaking to a major donor whose support he was seeking."
Christie spoke earlier this month at the Republican Jewish Coalition's meeting in Washington.
Mauro told Newsmax that he doesn't believe that Christie's Muslim ties reflect any anti-Israel sentiment, but that "it's not enough to identify the enemy as radical Islam and say that's your strategy."
"He claims to be pro-Israel but at other times hugs Obama," Rosenbluth said.
She suggested that Jewish voters and those concerned about security issues would be "silly" to back Christie. She noted his unusual anger that in the wake of Sept. 11 New York City Police were monitoring extremists in nearby New Jersey.
"Why in the world would he oppose that?" she asked.
The Christie campaign declined to offer comment for this report.
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