You might also want to read http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4637/isis-is-to-america-as-hamas-is-to-israel ...by an anti-terrorist intellectual of great stature, relevant to this post.
President Barack Obama has rightfully condemned the ISIS beheading of American James Foley in the strongest terms. This is what he said:
"There has to be a common effort to extract this cancer so it does not spread. There has to be a clear rejection of the kind of a nihilistic ideologies. One thing we can all agree on is group like (ISIS) has no place in the 21st century. Friends and allies around the world, we share a common security a set of values opposite of what we saw yesterday. We will continue to confront this hateful terrorism and replace it with a sense of hope and stability."
At the same time that President Obama has called for an all-out war against the "cancer" of ISIS, he has regarded Hamas as having an easily curable disease, urging Israel to accept that terrorist group, whose charter calls for Israel's destruction, as part of a Palestinian unity government. I cannot imagine him urging Iraq, or any other Arab country, to accept ISIS as part of a unity government.
Former President Jimmy Carter and Bishop Desmond Tutu have gone even further, urging the international community to recognize the legitimacy of Hamas as a political party and to grant it diplomatic recognition. It is hard to imagine them demanding that the same legitimate status be accorded ISIS.
Why then the double standard regarding ISIS and Hamas? Is it because ISIS is less brutal and violent than Hamas? It's hard to make that case. Hamas has probably killed more civilians — through its suicide bombs, its murder of Palestinian Authority members, its rocket attacks and its terror tunnels — than ISIS has done. If not for Israel's Iron Dome and the Israeli Defense Forces, Hamas would have killed even more innocent civilians. Indeed its charter calls for the killing of all Jews anywhere in the world, regardless of where they live or which "rock" they are hiding behind. If Hamas had its way, it would kill as least as many people as ISIS would.
Is it the manner by which ISIS kills? Beheading is of course a visibly grotesque means of killing, but dead is dead and murder is murder. And it matters little to the victim's family whether the death was caused by beheading, by hanging or by a bullet in the back of a head. Indeed most of ISIS's victims have been shot rather than beheaded, while Hamas terrorists have slaughtered innocent babies in their beds, teenagers on the way home from school, women shopping, Jews praying and students eating pizza.
Is it because ISIS murdered an American? Hamas has murdered numerous Americans and citizens of other countries. They too are indiscriminate in who they kill.
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When you run after your thoughts, you are like a dog chasing a stick: every time a stick is thrown, you run after it. Instead, be like a lion who, rather than chasing after the stick, turns to face the thrower. One only throws a stick at a lion once. Milarepa “Just as it is known t hat an image of one's face is seen d epending on a mirror b ut does not really exist as a face, s o the conception of "I" exist d ependent on mind and body, b ut like the image of a face t he "I" does not at all exist as its own reality." Nagarjuna "Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible." Nagarjuna
When you run after your thoughts, you are like a dog chasing a stick: every time a stick is thrown, you run after it. Instead, be like a lion who, rather than chasing after the stick, turns to face the thrower. One only throws a stick at a lion once. Milarepa “Just as it is known t hat an image of one's face is seen d epending on a mirror b ut does not really exist as a face, s o the conception of "I" exist d ependent on mind and body, b ut like the image of a face t he "I" does not at all exist as its own reality." Nagarjuna "Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible. Nagarjuna
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Liberty -v s- Tyranny For a President that has talked about unifying in the past it certainly seems this segment of the Presidents recent remarks focus more on divisiveness than unity. I guess politics are, after all just politics. It is more about building a base, telling people what you think they want to hear, and getting reelected than it is about telling the truth. Unfortunately this can be said about both party's. The President: "The Republican plan comes down to this, ‘Dirtier air, dirtier water, less people with health insurance.” h/t: Real Clear Politics "My plan says we’re going to put teachers back in the classrooms, construction workers back to work," President Obama said at a campaign event today. "Tax cuts for small businesses, tax cuts for hiring veterans, tax cuts if you give your workers a raise –- that’s my plan." "The Republicans plan, Obama says, boils down to this: 'Dirtier a
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Liberty -v s- Tyranny OWS, the movement lacking leadership as well as defined objectives having a reasonable chance of success. The longer it grinds on the more it look like a bunch of misfit radicals looking for the free ride. However, on the other hand there are certainly those who have a clear vision as to what and why Wall Street needs to change. The reasonable people supporting OWS are doing so to end crony capitalism, corporatism, the unethical practices of banking executives and mortgage lenders, as well as government bailouts of businesses. They also recognize corporate lobbyist must become a extinct group. Given the majority of people would tend to agree with the above someone ought to be asking the question, why doesn't the reasonable Tea Party folks and the reasonable OWS folks come together and pool resources so to speak? Tea Party individuals want more fiscal discipline and restraint so as to bring balance to national fis
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace of Independent Conservatism Liberty -vs- Tyranny Learn Liberty . org For more on the Libertarian Party . Via: The Daily Caller Via: Memeorandum
BY: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace of Independent Conservatism Liberty -vs- Tyranny From the inbox at RN USA . I am sure there are many who remain unaware of this provision of ObamaCare. E-mail is reproduced here in full with appropriate linkage. Do you know that if you sell your house after 2012 you will pay a 3.8% sales tax on it? That's $3,800 on a $100,000 home etc. When did this happen? It's in the health care bill. Just thought you should know. SALES TAX TO GO INTO EFFECT 2013 (Part of HC Bill) REAL ESTATE SALES TAX So, this is "change you can believe in"? Under the new health care bill - did you know that all real estate transactions will be subject to a 3.8% Sales Tax? The bulk of these new taxes don't kick in until 2013 if you sell your $400,000 home, there will be a $15,200 tax. This bill is set to mess with the retiring generation who often downsize their homes. Does this stuff make your November and 2012 vote
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace of Independent Conservatism Liberty -vs- Tyranny Intellectual honesty... A concept worth aspiring to. Unfortunately the philosophic regimen and discipline to achieve this lofty goal has been lost on the current generation of self serving and single issue driven politicians. Make no mistake folks the preceding statement applies to both parties. Neither can get past ideological differences to solve common problems. This site markets itself as an Independent Conservative/Libertarian blog with a strong focus on Constitutional and Randian principles. Understanding the full depth of either requires a bit of study as well as an open mind. Both are attributes that our founding fathers, and the principles that they stood for, require. Maybe this site was naive in its inception as it launched its maiden voyage. It believed, incorrectly so, that conservatives and liberal alike understood the basic and central concepts that lead to the birt
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace of Independent Conservatism Libe rty -vs- Trya nny
Rep. Andre Carson - Democrat Indiana
Allegations of racism being leveled at the Tea Party have been there since the beginning. Anyone who denies the existence of racism, whether from the right or the left is either naive or blind. Both conservatives and liberals should come together and denounce any form of racism, wherever it rears its ugly head. However, the use of race baiting to further the political agenda of an individual or group is as reprehensible as actual racism. Rep. Andre Carson recent remarks with respect to the Tea Party amount to nothing more than over heated race baiting at its worst. From Politico : A top lawmaker in the Congressional Black Caucus says tea partiers on Capitol Hill would like to see African-Americans hanging from trees and accuses the movement of wishing for a return to the Jim Crow era. Rep. Andre Carson, a Democrat from Indiana who
By: Les Carpenter III Rational Nation USA All political movements start with a cause. That is to say they have a purpose and an agenda which the supporters of the cause believe will make their society a better place to live. History has shown that societies with the most intrusive and leviathan governments are the least effective and restrict the liberties of individuals too the greatest degree. The classical liberals, whose philosophy of governance was anchored in the Enlightenment and The Age of Reason , believed in maximum liberty for the individual. They were wary of government, believing it was as much a force for evil as good. Classical Liberalism was about the individual, the rights of the individual, and the belief that the individual was not a vassal of the state, but rather should be the master of the state, limiting it's interference in the lives of the people. I have been accused of not being able to recognize liberty or individualism if it bit me in the ass.
by: Les Carpenter Rational Nation USA Birthplace of Independent Conservatism Liberty -v s- Tyranny Okay, call me confused, or whatever the F anyone would like to characterize me. It really doesn't matter. You see, the the right is full of sh*t and the left is even more full of sh*t.. To which I have determined to say... SO WHAT. It's a game people. And the name of the game is who who will gain the upper hand and ultimately have control of the people. It is sickening, it is unethical, it is immoral, it is life sapping, it is irrational, and it is contrary to the principals this nation was founded on. To which the MODERN day democratic party, as well as the republican party respond by saying... So What? Both parties feel they must force acceptance of their statist anti individual and anti liberty agendas on the people. What is interesting, putting all the hyperbole aside is this... Our country will continue to accept the same old BS from both parti
You might also want to read
ReplyDeletehttp://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4637/isis-is-to-america-as-hamas-is-to-israel
...by an anti-terrorist intellectual of great stature, relevant to this post.
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Short excerpt from your linked article dmarks:
ReplyDeletePresident Barack Obama has rightfully condemned the ISIS beheading of American James Foley in the strongest terms. This is what he said:
"There has to be a common effort to extract this cancer so it does not spread. There has to be a clear rejection of the kind of a nihilistic ideologies. One thing we can all agree on is group like (ISIS) has no place in the 21st century. Friends and allies around the world, we share a common security a set of values opposite of what we saw yesterday. We will continue to confront this hateful terrorism and replace it with a sense of hope and stability."
At the same time that President Obama has called for an all-out war against the "cancer" of ISIS, he has regarded Hamas as having an easily curable disease, urging Israel to accept that terrorist group, whose charter calls for Israel's destruction, as part of a Palestinian unity government. I cannot imagine him urging Iraq, or any other Arab country, to accept ISIS as part of a unity government.
Former President Jimmy Carter and Bishop Desmond Tutu have gone even further, urging the international community to recognize the legitimacy of Hamas as a political party and to grant it diplomatic recognition. It is hard to imagine them demanding that the same legitimate status be accorded ISIS.
Why then the double standard regarding ISIS and Hamas? Is it because ISIS is less brutal and violent than Hamas? It's hard to make that case. Hamas has probably killed more civilians — through its suicide bombs, its murder of Palestinian Authority members, its rocket attacks and its terror tunnels — than ISIS has done. If not for Israel's Iron Dome and the Israeli Defense Forces, Hamas would have killed even more innocent civilians. Indeed its charter calls for the killing of all Jews anywhere in the world, regardless of where they live or which "rock" they are hiding behind. If Hamas had its way, it would kill as least as many people as ISIS would.
Is it the manner by which ISIS kills? Beheading is of course a visibly grotesque means of killing, but dead is dead and murder is murder. And it matters little to the victim's family whether the death was caused by beheading, by hanging or by a bullet in the back of a head. Indeed most of ISIS's victims have been shot rather than beheaded, while Hamas terrorists have slaughtered innocent babies in their beds, teenagers on the way home from school, women shopping, Jews praying and students eating pizza.
Is it because ISIS murdered an American? Hamas has murdered numerous Americans and citizens of other countries. They too are indiscriminate in who they kill.
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