tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45604650727111806062024-03-17T10:37:41.794-07:00Sanford Speaks OutSanford Speaks Out is the latest blog sensation written, edited and produced by Sanford D. Horn, a writer and educator. Sanford will write about issues of the day covering myriad subjects: politics, education, culture, sports, religion and even food.Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.comBlogger588125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-55904333679647342542024-03-14T09:42:00.000-07:002024-03-17T10:36:57.125-07:00With Friends Like Biden and Schumer...<div style="text-align: left;">With Friends Like Biden and Schumer…<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />March 13, 2024</div><p>With so-called friends like Joe Biden, current occupant of the White House, and Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Israel certainly needs no more enemies. From both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue, Israel, the closest ally of the United States in the Middle East, is receiving terrible advice and veiled threats, which undoubtedly will be tossed into the circular file by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.</p><p>During his State of the Campaign shout fest, Thursday March 7, Biden stated so grandiosely that Israel has the right to defend itself, exactly five months to the day of the heinous Hamas invasion of Israel slaughtering more than 1,200 innocent Israeli children, women, and men. Without missing a beat, Biden all but called for a ceasefire and demanded Israel provide MORE humanitarian aid to Gaza. Lest Biden forget, and there’s a pretty damn good chance of that, a ceasefire existed on October 6, 2023. That ceasefire ended when Hamas invaded Israel, raping women and little girls - it only took a United Nations committee five months to begrudgingly come to that same obvious conclusion.</p><p>Hamas also murdered men, women, and children in such horrific fashion as decapitating babies while forcing parents to bear witness before executing the parents. Burning babies alive. And taking more than 200 people hostage from more than a dozen countries, including the United States, of which more than 100 are still in captivity, including five from the United States. Yet Biden, and much more often, Kamala Harris, continues demanding a ceasefire from Israel.</p><p>Hamas is also the elected body of Gaza. Hamas controls what comes in and goes out of Gaza - including humanitarian aid. Hamas has commandeered more of these supplies than most people could imagine, depriving those few Gazans not helping Hamas. That said, for Biden to say Israel must step up and provide more humanitarian aid, simply proves his lack of understanding of the situation there, as well as his lack of understanding of war. Did the US provide humanitarian aid to Nazi Germany during World War II? There’s always that double standard concerning Israel. Israel is expected to go above and beyond, but to be fair, Israel historically makes every bona fide attempt to limit civilian casualties. Succeeding is harder than the uninitiated would realize because Hamas infamously hides its terrorists within civilian homes and sites, uses those very civilians as human shields, as well as putting their weaponry amongst civilians in places such as hospitals, kindergartens, the underground tunnels, and even mosques.</p><p>And Hamas is not alone in its assault on Israel. Israel is under constant attack by Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, al-Aqsa Martyrs, the Palestinian Mujahideen Movement, and the Houthis from Yemen. These terrorist organizations are funded and sponsored by the Islamic Republic of Iran. Under Biden, billions of dollars have been released to Iran, that heretofore were never surrendered by the Donald Trump administration. </p><p>Both Biden and Schumer foolishly continue calling for a two-state solution, which anyone who pays attention, understands how untenable such a suggestion is, and how much at risk it puts Israel. There is no two-state solution to be had when Hamas and the Palestinians will not even recognize Israel and its right to exist. There is no two-state solution to be had when Hamas and Hezbollah have written in their charters the call to eviscerate Israel and slaughter the Jewish people, as they have continued doing since October 7. Netanyahu referenced a 99-9 vote in the Knesset. “That’s over 90 percent supported my policy of opposing a Palestinian state being rammed down Israel’s throat.”</p><p>The most obvious first step toward any kind of peace must begin with the release of all the hostages by Hamas. Has Biden suggested such a plan? Harris? Schumer? NO; and no one should hold their breath. But while Biden is merely a puppet, a stooge, doing the bidding of the radical, progressive, leftists, in desperate need of the Muslim votes from Michigan and Minnesota, Schumer should know better. </p><p>Instead Schumer continues playing politics. Speaking from the Senate chamber on Thursday, March 14, Schumer had the audacity to call anyone opposing a Palestinian state “bigots.” Schumer said new elections in Israel are necessary to bring about a two-state solution and because so many Israelis have lost confidence in their government. But that’s simply not true. Having spoken with numerous friends who live in Israel, to a person, as much as some of them absolutely do not like Netanyahu, they all support the decisions made by his government in its necessary quest to completely eliminate Hamas. They have said that it is vital the nation of Israel stand unified and strong in this common goal and put partisan politics aside - at least for now.</p><p>“Ultimately, I’m the Prime Minister of Israel. I’m responsible for the security and future of the Jewish state and I’m supported in my policies - the overwhelming majority of Israelis support my policies - that we have to eradicate Hamas as a terrorist and governing organization, get our hostages back, and we have to make sure Gaza doesn’t form a threat to us anymore,” said Netanyahu. </p><p>“Of course the US cannot dictate the outcome of an election, nor should we try,” said Schumer from the Senate floor. “That is for the Israeli public to decide; a public that I believe understands better than anybody that Israel cannot hope to succeed as a pariah opposed by the rest of the world. As a democracy, Israel has the right to choose its own leaders, and we should let the chips fall where they may. But the important thing is that Israelis are given a choice - there needs to be a fresh debate about the future of Israel after October 7,” said Schumer.</p><p>Here is where Schumer didn’t just cross a line, he pole vaulted over it. “In my opinion, that is best accomplished by holding an election. If Prime Minister Netanyahu’s current coalition remains in power after the war begins to wind down, and continues to pursue dangerous and inflammatory policies that test existing US standards for assistance, then the US will have no choice but to play a more active role in shaping Israeli policy by using our leverage to change the present course.”</p><p>Sounds like more than a veiled threat. Sounds like Schumer is calling for regime change by hook or by crook. This is not the way one ally treats another ally. Seems Schumer wants to install a puppet or stooge in the Israeli Knesset to take orders the same way Biden does. Seems Biden, Schumer, and the Democrat Party have the same visceral hatred of Netanyahu as they do of Trump. Seems Netanyahu and Trump are in good company.</p><p>But what Netanyahu said several days ago should remind Schumer of several immutable truths. “Our battle is your battle, and our victory is your victory…. We’re going to defeat Hamas. We’re going to do whatever is necessary to minimize civilian casualties - something we believe in, but we have to defeat this terrorist Nazi army, otherwise there’s no future for anyone in the Middle East,” said Netanyahu. Notice he referenced the entirety of the Middle East, and not just Israel. Netanyahu is not a megalomaniac. He knows the importance of future treaties and alliances as were accomplished under Trump with the Abraham Accords.</p><div style="text-align: left;">Retired army general Benny Gantz, a Netanyahu opponent but member of the Prime Minister’s war cabinet took exception to Schumer’s Senate chamber remarks just a few hours later. Gantz posted on X, “The US and Israel share common values and interests, and the citizens of Israel and its leadership are very grateful for the US standing by the state of Israel in its difficult and complex moments.<br /><span style="white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>“The leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate Chuck Schumer is a friend of Israel who helps her a lot even these days, but he made a mistake in his statement. Israel is a strong democracy, and only its citizens will determine its leadership and future. Any external intervention in the matter is incorrect and unacceptable,” concluded Gantz’s text.</span></div><p>No wonder Gantz is a diplomat - he offered much kinder, and more tactful words than Schumer deserved. Schumer’s words were offensive, threatening, contrary to appropriate behavior between allies, and a <i>shonda </i>- a disgrace.</p><p>Michael Herzog, Israeli Ambassador to the United States, also took issue with Schumer’s incongruous message on X. “Israel is a sovereign democracy. It is unhelpful, all the more so as Israel is at war against the genocidal terror organization Hamas, to comment on the domestic political scene of a democratic ally. It is counterproductive to our common goals,” wrote Herzog.</p><p>“There is no substitute for total victory - we’ll achieve it,” said Netanyahu. “It’s either Israel or Hamas, there is no middle way. We have to have that victory we can’t have ¾ of a victory. We can’t have ⅔ of a victory, because Hamas will reconstitute itself, reconquer the Gaza Strip and do the October 7 massacre over, and over, and over, again. For the people of Israel, that’s the Red Line. We can’t let Hamas survive,” Netanyahu said.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-1769339950641238092024-03-10T08:17:00.000-07:002024-03-11T20:34:53.970-07:00Biden's Angry State of the Campaign Address<div style="text-align: left;">Biden’s Angry State of the Campaign Address<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />March 10, 2024</div><p>To paraphrase former President Donald Trump, Joe Biden exhibited high energy during his delivery of what G-d willing will be the last State of the Union address of his occupation of the White House. But, much more is needed than a one dimensional shout fest of an inappropriate campaign speech set in the House chamber blaming Republicans for anything and everything, while taking no responsibility for anything himself.</p><p>But the hypocrisy began even before Biden left the White House to make the trip up Pennsylvania Avenue. So concerned about the safety of Biden, a huge fence was erected for the purpose of protecting the so-called leaders, yet those same elected officials can’t seem to construct a wall or fence at the southern border to protect the American citizens living in such a precarious state. A state that would not have existed had Biden not destroyed the Trump border policies and intentionally allowed eight to 10 million illegals from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe to invade this nation.</p><p>Some of those illegals and citizens alike were responsible for Biden’s delay in reaching the Capitol as they protested, what they believed to be, his pro-Israel policy. The protesters are pro-Palestinian, pro-Hamas, and pro-ceasefire. Reaching the Capitol past 9:10 PM, Biden took several more minutes to reach the Speaker’s podium being mobbed by Congressional well-wishers - much more so than usual State of the Union addresses. (Quite frankly, I think Biden took smaller and shorter steps so as not to fall down, and stopped for the members of the two houses in order to ask for directions getting down the aisle.) The Democrats did not seem so concerned with the state of the Union, but with the state of Joe Biden.</p><p>So charged up, Biden began his address as soon as he gave the customary copies of his speech to Kamala Harris and Speaker Mike Johnson, before Johnson even had the opportunity to introduce Biden as is conventional. Biden jumped in with both boots to tell the American people the state of Ukraine, not the state of OUR Union. Seeking to increase spending on Ukraine’s defense, Biden should have opened with seeking to increase spending on defending the United States and the permeable southern border - which he allowed on his so-called watch. The United States needs to suspend funding for Ukraine until Europe makes a more concerted effort to do their fair share. Biden so enjoys demanding Americans pay their fair share, so too should Europe, especially after saying that Europe is at risk.</p><p>After Biden demanded more aid for Ukraine he turned his attention to yelling at Americans who don’t love their country. “You can’t love your country only when you win.” I imagine he directed that barb at the Republicans, for what reason I could not fathom. Most Americans love their country and want the best for the nation and its citizenry. That said, Biden’s accusation should have been directed to the left wing, radical, progressive, America last Democrats - the ones who support open borders and a dissolution of the border patrol, freebies for illegals, putting illegals ahead of Americans, granting amnesty and ultimately citizenship and voting rights for illegals, those calling for the defunding of law enforcement. If Biden wants to condemn folks for not loving their country, he must start with every Democrat who voted against condemning anti-Semitism, and for calling for the removal of Trump from ballots, saving democracy, which couldn’t be further from the truth. (https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2024/03/scotus-rules-9-0-keeping-trump-on.html)</p><p>The gaslighting portion of the Biden “campaign” speech followed the criticizing Americans who don’t love their country section. Biden claimed 15 million new jobs have been created during his term in office, that the economy is strong, that crime is down, and that the GOP is responsible for the crisis at the border. Not once did Biden take responsibility for his many failings. How many of those so-called new jobs happened to be people returning to work following Covid (you know, the China virus)? Biden actually had the audacity to say the US economy is “the envy of the world.” Did Biden even bother to read the crime statistics, especially those in the biggest of American cities, those run by Democrats for decades and decades?</p><p>During the gaslighting, as if on a Kool-aid high, the Congressional Democrats began chanting “four more years,” something they did at least three times during the Biden “campaign” speech. Four more years? Four more years of what? An invasion at the southern border thus far having allowed more than eight million illegals into this country to rape, pillage, plunder, murder, attack, and assault at will? Illegals supplanting veterans from certain housing? Illegals supplanting American children from schools? Prices so high people have to hedge between buying groceries, medications, gas for their vehicles, or paying mortgage/rent? An administration telling students they don't have to pay back their college loans and forcing the rest of us to pay them? An administration supporting the bastardization of Title IX - recognizing biological males as so-called women? An administration trying to cut more freedoms from Americans - telling us what kind of car to buy, what kind of crappy working appliance to buy, what kind of food to eat? Four more years of out of control spending making the dollar worth less and less every year? Four more years of rampant Anti Semitism - especially on those college campuses Biden is so quick to force us to pay for that poor excuse of an education? Four more years of a military not making its quotas of new recruits? Four more years of the military worrying more about pronouns than protecting America?</p><p>As Biden continued his angry, get off my lawn rant, he turned his attention to the size of a Snickers bar, which seemed more important than the size of the holes at the southern border. Biden also seemed more concerned with snack chips infinitely more than China stealing US computer chip technology.</p><p>Soon thereafter, US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) stepped up, practically turning the State of the Union address into a session of the British Parliament. Attired in a Make America Great Again ball cap, a shirt reading “Say Her Name,” in memory of Laken Riley, and two buttons with Riley’s name and photo on her jacket. Riley was the 22-year-old Georgia nursing student beaten to death on February 22 by an illegal alien from Venezuela. Greene began to shout “say her name,” in an attempt to goad Biden into mentioning the victim of his own border policies. It worked.</p><p>Biden held up the button Greene gave him earlier that evening upon his arrival in the House chamber. Looking at it, he shouted, “Lincoln. Lincoln Riley, an innocent young woman that was killed by an illegal. That’s right. But how many thousands of people killed by illegals,” BIden asked derisively, meaning, by legals. Or did he say legals in the first place? Hard to tell; Biden didn’t have complete control of his speech and diction as has become his norm. And even holding the button, Biden couldn’t correctly say the name of Laken Riley. (https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2024/02/bidens-broken-border-claims-life-of.html)</p><p>That Biden called Laken Riley’s murderer an illegal stirred up more consternation within the legacy media than the actual slaughter of that innocent nursing student. For days since the State of the Union “campaign” speech Biden has had to answer for the “sin” of using the word illegal, which is exactly what this waste of space should be called. Biden has been verbally genuflecting over this egregious transgression, in an effort to assuage his base. Donald Trump, on the other hand, met with Laken Riley’s parents, not that the legacy media would report such information. </p><p>Biden sounded equally delusional when discussing Israel, and the war started by Hamas on October 7, 2023. To be fair, Biden did support Israel’s right to defend itself - he’s a real sport, as if Israel, a sovereign nation, needs any other nation’s permission to defend itself. It was all downhill from there, as Biden clamored for a two-state solution, which is completely untenable. There is NO two-state solution to be had when one of those states won't even recognize the existence of the other, when the same group wants to destroy the other, and continues slaughtering its people as it did on October 7.</p><p>There also has been an almost constant harangue, mostly from Kamala Harris, demanding a ceasefire in the war Hamas started against Israel. On October 6, 2023 a ceasefire existed. The very next day, on October 7, Israel was attacked. Hamas slaughtered more than 1,400 Israeli men, women, and children. Hamas is also the elected body of Gaza. Hamas controls what comes in and goes out of Gaza - including humanitarian aid. Hamas has commandeered more of these supplies than most people could imagine. That said, for Biden to say Israel must step up and provide more humanitarian aid, simply proves his lack of understanding of the situation there, as well as his lack of understanding of war. Did the US provide humanitarian aid to Nazi Germany during World War II? There’s always that double standard concerning Israel. Israel is expected to go above and beyond, but to be fair, Israel historically makes every bona fide attempt to limit civilian casualties. Succeeding is harder than the uninitiated would realize because Hamas infamously hides its terrorists within civilian homes and sites, uses those very civilians as human shields, as well as putting their weaponry amongst civilians in places such as hospitals, kindergartens, and the underground tunnels.</p><p>Biden sounded like a cranky, angry, demented, old man, delivering a partisan, rancorous, campaign speech, ignoring key issues, or not spending nearly enough time on them. He bellowed at the people as an old school marm looking down the nose of her spectacles. He was disrespectful, dithering, doddering, and downright disagreeable, May we the people be Blessed that this be the last State of the Union address he delivers.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield,, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-11589824153644574892024-03-04T15:42:00.000-08:002024-03-04T22:23:34.019-08:00SCOTUS Rules 9-0 Keeping Trump on State's Ballots<div style="text-align: left;">SCOTUS Rules 9-0 Keeping Trump on State’s Ballots<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />March 4, 2024</div><p>Less than 24 hours before the polls are due to open in 15 states for Super Tuesday primaries, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled unanimously on Monday, March 4 that the Colorado Supreme Court decision barring former President Donald Trump from their primary ballot cannot stand.</p><p>While the justices took various and in some cases circuitous routes to arrive at “yes,” their unanimity delivers a definitive and solid message that courts or singular individuals will not decide elections. More importantly, it is the will of the people - the legal, voting age, registered voting citizens of the United States who undertake the enormous responsibility of ensuring the preservation of the Constitution and all its protections.</p><p>When asked about the impact of the Supreme Court’s nine-nothing vote on the remaining states that have either decided to remove Trump from their ballots or are suing to do so, George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley responded, “I think they’re all dead as Dillinger.” Turley is certainly not known as a conservative, but a level-headed, fair thinker, capable of being objective.</p><p>“Colorado, Maine, most recently Illinois - those are the outliers. Many of those other people that rejected them were Democrats who did the right thing, like the three liberal justices on the court. They stood with their colleagues, spoke with one voice and said, enough; that we are not going to introduce what Justice Jackson referred to as ‘an undemocratic interpretation of the 14th Amendment.’ We should take some solace and encouragement from that. I think the court is showing this divided country that there are still things that bind us to each other - a certain covenant of faith that we can find in the Constitution,” said Turley.</p><p>According to Lawfare, the Supreme Court ruling reversed the ballot disqualifications of Trump in California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Of that group of 10 states, half of them - California, Colorado, Maine, North Carolina, and Virginia go to the polls on Super Tuesday.</p><p>Part of the Supreme Court ruling indicated it is up to Congress, not the states, to make such decisions impacting federal elections; that Section Three of the 14th Amendment is supported by Section Five of that same amendment. In the case of <i>Donald J. Trump, Petitioner v. Norma Anderson, et al</i>, (Anderson being one of six Colorado residents to officially call for Trump’s dismissal from that state’s ballot.) the Supreme Court reversed the decision issued by the Colorado state supreme court in December 2023. The Colorado state supreme court decided against Trump in a four to three vote by seven Democrat justices - a margin slim enough to understand the gravity of such a decision, that by a margin of one vote, one justice, one person decided for an entire state for whom the citizenry should have the opportunity to vote. That’s dangerous.</p><p>As Harvard law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz has oft-said, he wants Trump on the ballot because he wants the opportunity to vote against the man for the third time (2016 and 2020).</p><div style="text-align: left;">Section Three of the 14th Amendment reads, in its entirety:<br /><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>“No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice <span> </span><span> </span>President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or <span> </span><span> </span>as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support <span> </span><span> </span>the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of <span> </span><span> </span>each House, remove such disability.” </div><p>Nowhere does this section mention the office of the President of the United States. “We granted former President Trump’s petition for certiorari, which raised a single question: “Did the Colorado Supreme Court err in ordering President Trump excluded from the 2024 presidential primary ballot?” See 601 U. S. ___ (2024). Concluding that it did, we now reverse,” wrote the Supreme Court on pages three and four in its ruling <i>per curium</i>. (Per curium indicates the court’s ruling was written and issued by the court as a unit and not by any specific judge or justice.)</p><p>Section Five of the 14th Amendment, in support of Section Three, reads in its entirety: “The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.” </p><p>Page six of the March 4 Supreme Court ruling states definitively, “This case raises the question whether the States, in addition to Congress, may also enforce Section 3. We conclude that States may disqualify persons holding or attempting to hold state office. But States have no power under the Constitution to enforce Section 3 with respect to federal offices, especially the Presidency.”</p><p>US Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) said the Supreme Court decision is “monumental.” </p><p>Trump himself called the ruling, “very well crafted. …I think it will go a long way to bringing the country together. The voters can take the person out of the race very quickly. …A great day for liberty.”</p><p>“I think this was the right decision,” said former US Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. (D-TN). “I think it was important for the Court to speak declaratively with one voice. I agree, this will settle this issue, and leave it to the voters,” said Ford, a panelist on the Fox News program, “The Five.”</p><p>Lest anyone think this decision is about Trump, yes, he is the current beneficiary of the nine-nothing Supreme Court vote, make no mistake who the real victors are here: the American people, our Democratic-Republic, and quite frankly the world. The United States is the beacon of freedom - after all, why are millions upon millions of people trying to enter the United States by whatever means necessary (another issue for another column). Quite frankly, the words from the liberal justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elana Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, in their concurring opinion of March 4, speak volumes regarding the importance of not upholding Colorado’s decision. “Allowing Colorado to do so, would, we agree, create a chaotic state-by-state patchwork, at odds with our Nation’s federalism principles. That is enough to resolve this case.”</p><p>All those shortsighted people yelling that Trump is a Nazi and a threat to democracy and must be removed from all ballots far and wide are the true, genuine threats to democracy. Their visceral hatred of Trump, which clearly overshadows their respect and support of the Constitution, while legal, is dangerous. These are the people who believe one person - a state secretary of state - should decide for hundreds of thousands to millions of citizens for whom they should be allowed to vote. If they got their way on March 4 and the Supreme Court fostered an alternative ruling, imagine the chaos that would ensue as Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson suggest would invariably occur. </p><p>Suppose Trump is removed from ballots in Colorado, Maine, Illinois, and perhaps the entirety of the left coast and New England. Perhaps Biden is removed from ballots for cause - say faulty cognition, from the Deep South, the Plains region, and Big Sky country. Consider the Balkanization of the voting process or that the election could be decided by 50 individuals before Election Day itself. Does that sound like a Democratic-Republic?</p><p>No, that’s the slippery slope to becoming communist Russia. If Russia, under the despotic regime of Vladimir Putin, can’t ban opponents from the “ballot,” those opponents mysteriously fall prey to some malady a la the Soviet leaders who disappeared for days, then weeks before anyone learns he has a “cold.” A “cold” that ultimately claims his life. This is not a tale of fiction to be found in Chekov, Dostoyevsky, Pushkin, or Tolstoy. The February 16, 2024 questionable death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, 47, is being widely attributed to Putin in global circles. Navalny, born June 4, 1976 in the village of Butyn, in the Moscow region, attempted to challenge Putin, but summarily found himself barred from running in 2018 - deemed ineligible due to a prior conviction. This past August, already serving an 11.5 year sentence, a Russian court added an additional 19 more years, on what Navalny called trumped up charges - no pun intended. He died in a Russian penal colony two months after Putin’s announcement he would stand for reelection in 2024.</p><p>That is not how political opponents are “handled” in the United States. Or is it? How many opponents of the Biden administration are anonymously sitting in prisons because of alleged crimes committed on January 6, 2021? That is also not the American way. The First Amendment of the Constitution is designed to protect people’s right of free speech, as well as their right to assemble peaceably. </p><p>Even Eugene V. Debs, (1855-1926), born in Terre Haute, IN, where he served as city clerk and later as a member of the state legislature, ran for president - from jail. The perennial candidate for the Socialist Party of America, of which he was a co-founder, Debs ran for president five times in every election from 1900 through 1920, save for 1916. The advocate for organized labor and unionism grew in popularity with each campaign earning 94,768 votes in 1900 and by 1920 Debs garnered 917,799 votes from prison. Debs served time for criticizing the US government’s policy of prosecuting people accused of violating the Espionage Act of 1917.</p><p>If the likes of a Eugene V. Debs could run for president from a jail cell, certainly a candidate not having been charged with any crime, let alone convicted of one, should remain on the ballots across the nation. Those who continue to object, have the right to vote against that candidate, as Dershowitz looks forward to doing.</p><p>Trump’s lone remaining GOP rival, former South Carolina Governor and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, while speaking in Spring, TX , said “the Supreme Court ruled today that Donald Trump can stay on the ballot.” Followed by a light chorus of boos, Haley continued, “No, I think that was important. We don’t ever want some elected official in a state, or anybody else saying who can and can’t be on a ballot. This is America. This is America. Look, I’ll defeat Donald Trump fair and square, but I want him on that ballot.”</p><p>The White House should have the good sense to realize the bullet the nation, and the free world, dodged, and applaud the Supreme Court for their perspicacious ruling. The optics of the White House seeking the de-balloting of Biden’s future opponent would shout Putin.</p><p>In her concurring opinion of March 4, Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote, “In my judgment this is not the time to amplify disagreement with stridency. The Court has settled a politically charged issue in the volatile season of a Presidential election. Particularly in this circumstance, writings on the Court should turn the national temperature down, not up. For present purposes, our differences are far less important than our unanimity: All nine Justices agree on the outcome of this case. That is the message Americans should take home.”</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-86683803573560617642024-02-29T15:37:00.000-08:002024-02-29T22:35:15.923-08:00Biden's Broken Border Claims Life of Nursing Student<div style="text-align: left;">Biden’s Broken Border Claims Life of Nursing Student<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />February 29, 2024</div><p>Say her name: LAKEN HOPE RILEY</p><p>With the ever growing number of illegal aliens streaming across the southern border, invading the United States, understand that this nation used to be one of givers that is now most certainly replete with takers.</p><p>As pages of the calendar flipped from the 19th century to the 20th, the United States welcomed foreigners - legal immigrants (except for Jews during the Holocaust under President Franklin Roosevelt), under certain criteria. New immigrants underwent health and medical exams. Those deemed ill, diseased, or contagious could, at the very least be quarantined, if not possibly sent back to their country of origin.</p><p>New immigrants required a sponsor, typically a family member or a member of his or her ethnic or religious community who would ensure the newcomer would not be a miscreant or drain on society, but instead a productive member of society. In other words, a giver, not a taker.</p><p>Millions sought their fortunes or religious freedom in America with the promise of streets paved with gold. In those days, the streets were barely paved with asphalt. There were no safety nets. People either sank or swam. The socialist New Deal had not yet been created. (To be fair, the founding of FDIC turned out to be the best part of the New Deal.) Some who sank turned to less than honest ventures.</p><p>The overwhelming majority of new Americans took pride in their new country, their new homeland. They may have spoken Yiddish, Italian, Greek, Russian, or Polish at home, but outside, they spoke English - even if broken, accented English. These folks became part of the Melting Pot - getting jobs side by side with people from numerous other countries, sending their children to public schools, and many of whose grandchildren became the first in their families to graduate college.</p><p>These people became givers - donors to, or founders of charities, scholarships, builders of hospitals, arts centers. Businessmen and women who made fortunes also employed those who could work toward their own. As successes in their fields, they could participate in the above giving.</p><p>(This is not to paint a picture behind the disguise of rose-colored glasses. Before the end of World War II segregation continued unchecked, neither sports nor the military had yet to integrate, more than 125,000 Japanese-Americans suffered degrading internment thanks to FDR, and anti-Semitism was prevalent - although it has reached ever-growing highs over the last six months.)</p><p>The immigration criteria has simply been relaxed, ignored, or reduced to pulp fiction in the last four-plus decades. Illegal immigration has skyrocketed to new and appalling heights. While Barack Obama may or may not have earned the moniker of “Deporter in Chief,” and Donald Trump began building a wall that would be thwarted by a Democrat Congress, Joe Biden ended the Remain in Mexico policy and has flung open the doors to the United States in a brazen attempt to ensure Democrat rule in perpetuity. Estimates range from six to eight million illegals entering the United States since Biden occupied 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Diseased, unvaccinated - with no requirement to be so, unlike US citizens who lost jobs, or were kicked unceremoniously out of the military or schools in hypocritical fashion. Illegal aliens from numerous countries, and not just in Latin America, but also from the African and Asian continents are bringing with them “diphtheria, tetanus, polio, hepatitis C, measles, and chicken pox,” said Dr. Marc Siegel of Fox News.</p><p>Unvetted millions - single, military aged males who have no education, no promise of work, many with criminal records are invading the United States demanding “free stuff.” And the uniparty - Democrats and RINOS together are granting medical care, placement for children in schools, debit cards, ethnically appropriate food, housing in hotels many Americans could not afford - hotels in many cases were housing now supplanted military veterans in dire need. (Every administration is guilty of abandoning our veterans, for whom we should all be grateful every day.)</p><p>Many of these illegal aliens are miscreants who have raised the crime rates in the United States to disturbing levels. There are attacks and assaults on members of law enforcement, women and children, theft, and not just in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Southern California because all states have become border states; because all major and minor cities have become sanctuary cities.</p><p>The impact of the Biden open borders has struck far too many families across the fruited plain. There is even a name for those who have suffered the loss of a child - a club that which no one would ask for membership. These are the Angel Moms and just a week ago a new member was added - Allyson Phillips - grieving mom of Laken Hope Riley.</p><p>Laken Hope Riley met her fate allegedly at the hands of an illegal alien - Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, a Venezuelan national. This filthy animal beat Riley so terribly as to disfigure her skull. Because Ibarra had no reason to commit such a heinous crime, a 22-year-old nursing student savagely lost her life while simply enjoying a run outside the University of Georgia campus in Athens, GA. The cause of death is listed as blunt force trauma.</p><p>This is the epitome of a giver and a taker. Riley, a nursing student at Augusta University with no criminal record, chose a career of giving and caring for others. Riley would soon have been a saver of lives, but Ibarra is a taker of life. Ibarra, who illegally entered the United States on September 8, 2022, gained release from Border Protection. He was arrested in New York City on September 14, 2023 for child endangerment - a child under 10 years of age. Arrested again on February 23, 2024, this time on charges of felony murder, malice murder, kidnapping, false imprisonment, aggravated assault, and concealing the death of another. If found guilty, Ibarra deserves nothing less than the death penalty. As an aside, Ibarra's brother Diego is behind bars for possessing a counterfeit Green Card.</p><p>Laken Riley, from Woodstock, GA, graduated River Ridge High School in 2020, also in Woodstock, where she ran Cross Country. Her funeral is set for Thursday, February 29 and the burial on Friday, March 1.</p><p>Laken Riley’s family issued a statement. “Laken was an amazing daughter, sister, friend, and overall person in general. Her love for the L-rd was exemplified in every aspect of her life. She will be missed every day but we promise to honor her life moving forward in a very big way.”</p><p>Riley’s freshman year roommate Bianca Tiller described her friend as the “sweetest soul” she’s ever met, and that she’s infuriated that Riley’s murderer is here illegally. “We need to be careful who we’re letting in the United States. I know they’ve sent letters to the president and I hope everything gets taken seriously, and of course Laken was such an amazing person. I really do hope that everyone gets to realize who she is and that her legacy really lives on,” said Tiller.</p><p>Biden and recently impeached (but not yet tried by the Senate) Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, have blood on their hands. Not just for the death of Riley, but many others - some not yet even discovered.</p><p>Since Biden began his occupation of the White House, he has made it his continuing goal to dismantle the good works of President Trump, and this includes destroying the fabric of our nation with his open borders. Despite the constant messaging from Biden, Mayorkas, and Kamala Harris that the border is closed and/or that the border is secure, more than eight million invaders are proof to the contrary.</p><p>Government has but one obligation - protect its citizenry from all enemies foreign and domestic - period. This government is failing miserably on both counts because it is too focused on placating illegals, controlling the purchasing power of Americans whether via automobiles, dishwashers, or the food we eat, or the idiocy of pronouns and so-called microaggressions. How about worrying about, and combating MACROaggressions? Does this sound like consent of the governed? </p><p>Demonstrating the tone deafness of the Democrat Party, on February 1 of this year, 150 Democrat House members voted against a bill to deport illegals who commit DUIs - 150. Fortunately, 59 Democrats had the good sense to join the GOP in passing this bill. This is the bare minimum regarding the disposition of illegal aliens.</p><p>Even more callous is US Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA). Practically dismissing the tragedy of Laken Riley, Porter said “one instance shouldn’t shape our overall immigration policy, which has so many different facets including economic choices about what workers to allow in, to how to create prosperity in America. So the situation is tragic and it’s a loss and it’s important to acknowledge that, but also to recognize all the other parts of immigration policy fit together.” Is Porter’s word salad coming from the same salad bar as Kamala Harris’s?</p><p>Say her name: MOLLIE TIBBITTS</p><p>Sadly, as is so well known, the murder of Laken Riley at the hands of an illegal alien is not simply “one instance,” as Porter suggests. Coincidentally, Porter, 50, is a native of Fort Dodge, IA, the same state where another runner, Mollie Tibbetts, 20, lost her life - murdered at the hands of yet another illegal alien. Tibbetts, born in San Francisco and attending the University of Iowa disappeared on July 18, 2018. Her body was found a month later - stabbed repeatedly. Arrested in August 2018 after leading authorities to the cornfield where he buried Tibbetts’s body, was Mexican national Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24. In August 2021, then 27, Rivera earned a life sentence with no possibility for parole. Iowa does not have the death penalty at its disposal.</p><p>In some of the most irresponsible so-called journalism this journalist and writer has seen, the Associated Press all but blamed the victim in the Riley case. Its February 24 headline read, “The killing of a nursing student out for a run highlights the fears of solo female athletes.” Part of the article read, “...authorities Thursday found the body of Laken Hope Riley and arrested Athens resident Jose Antonio Ibarra.” Nowhere in the article is there a mention that Ibarra is an illegal alien with a criminal record.</p><p>Not to be left out for the award for irresponsible journalism, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution posted on X, “#BREAKING: A 26-year-old Athens man has been charged with murder in the death of a nursing student on the University of Georgia campus.” The Atlanta paper also ignored Ibarra’s immigration status and criminal record because for neither media outlet do the facts fit their narrative. Illegal aliens are, in fact, responsible for some of the worst killings in the United States.</p><p>But, in what has to be one of the biggest media lies, Axios posted on February 24, 2024, "by using the term 'open border,' conservatives are falsely suggesting that anyone can get into the United States without much hassle. But the southern border is more fortified than its ever been."</p><p>And just one day prior, US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) doubled down on the Axios lie with her own stupidity, saying on MSNBC, that the Republicans are "ginning up a false narrative about this thing [illegal immigration] being a crisis."</p><p>Say her name: LIZBETH MEDINA</p><p>On December 5, 2023 Lizbeth Medina lost her life at the hands of an illegal alien - stabbed to death in her Edna, TX home, and found in the bathtub by her mother Jacqueline. Lizbeth, a 16-year-old Edna High School student and cheerleader was murdered by Rafael Govea Romero, 23, later arrested on December 9. With sufficient evidence, Romero was indicted on capital murder charges.</p><p>Say her name: KAYLA HAMILTON</p><p>Kayla Hamilton, 20, of Aberdeen, MD lost her life on July 27, 2022 in Aberdeen, raped and strangled by an illegal alien. A 16-year-old illegal alien from El Salvador committed the murder and belonged to MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, one of the most violent gangs to rear their ugly heads. Thanks to DNA evidence, the murderer, still a minor at 17, was arrested on January 15, 2023.</p><p>Hamilton’s mother Tammy Nobles is suing both the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services. “Our young women aren’t safe. Our young women aren’t safe. I see our women being killed, murdered, and raped. Nobody’s standing up and doing anything. I’m trying to do what I can to bring awareness and keep this from happening and let government officials know something has to be done. This cannot keep happening. Where’s the outrage? Does citizenship mean anything anymore,” asked Nobles, appearing on The Ingraham Angle on Fox News.</p><p>Nobles is absolutely right. So too are Jacqueline Medina, Bianca Tiller, and Allyson Phillips. And Donald Trump is also right. Posting on Trump Social on February 26, he wrote, “When I’m your President, we will immediately Seal the Border, Stop the Invasion, and on Day One, we will begin the largest deportation operation of illegal CRIMINALS in American History.”</p><p>And deportation is what is so desperately needed. We the people support immigration - LEGAL immigration; givers, not takers - people who will make America a better place than they found it. Yes, we want people to make America great again. In order to do that, government, from all levels, must stop incentivizing foreign nationals from coming to the United States illegally. These foreign countries are not sending their best and brightest here, reminiscent of Fidel Castro’s Mariel Boatlift out of Cuba in 1980 where many of the 125,000-plus Cubans coming to ports in Florida had criminal records and mental instability.</p><p>Come legally the way my great grandparents did; the way my grandparents did; the way my mother-in-law did - all proud to be AMERICAN. Proud to wave the AMERICAN flag, not a foreign flag. Want to wave a foreign flag, stay in that country. Be a giver, not a taker. Serve your new country as numerous members of my family did, including a grandfather who worked on the Manhattan Project. Don’t know what that is? Look it up! We want new Americans who are not public health or public security risks. We want people who learn English, and become part of the Melting Pot, and not a Balkanization of peoples unable to communicate with one another, creating fear, loathing, criminal activities, and a further crumbling of the Republic. This is an imperative vital before the United States becomes even more unrecognizable. </p><p>May G-d save the Union.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-21140114350802045772024-01-17T18:40:00.000-08:002024-01-19T19:21:56.264-08:00First Timers Beltre, Mauer Lead Hall Class of '24<div style="text-align: left;">First Timers Beltre, Mauer Lead Hall Class of ‘24<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />January 17, 2024</div><p>While baseball fields and stadia across the fruited plains lay dormant under a shiny, pristine, white crust of crunchy, unpunctured snow, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) labored at determining who would be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame. This year, the announcement from Cooperstown to determine the Class of 2024 will be made on Tuesday, January 23. The Hot Stove season has been in full bloom as the ballparks enjoy the winter slumber.</p><p>Still at issue, those ballplayers tainted by substance allegations. The only way steroid/HGH-addled balloteers should be admitted to the Hall of Fame is with a paid ticket for admission to the museum.</p><p>“We hope the day never comes when known steroid users are voted into the Hall of Fame. They cheated. Steroid users don’t belong here,” wrote late Hall of Famer Joe Morgan in a November 2017 letter to the BBWAA, hoping to influence their Hall votes in 2018. Hopefully Morgan’s letter continues to resonate in 2024 as cheaters such as Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez (A-Roid) may inch closer to the magic number of 75 percent - the required minimum to grant one admission to the Hall.</p><p>The cloud of controversy has been dark and heavy, while initially eliminating some from Hall of Fame contention. In the cases of Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and Sammy Sosa, the BBWAA voters rejected those candidacies, and after 10 years, their eligibility expired. Votes for Ramirez, in his seventh year on the ballot moved slightly upward to 33.2 percent in 2023 from 28.9 percent in 2022, while Rodriguez checked in with 35.7 percent of the vote in his second year on the ballot, up from 34.3 percent of the vote in 2022. </p><p>I remain a consistent and virulent opponent of the steroid players and will continue to do so for the next eight years as Alex Rodriguez is on the ballot for the third year. The last thing to be said about A-Roid speaks volumes as to why he should never earn a plaque in Cooperstown. Admitting his use of steroids/banned substances, Rodriguez found himself suspended for 211 games from August 2013 through the entire 2014 season - a suspension well merited.</p><p>Ramirez, while expressing some sense of contrition during a 2019 interview with Boston 25 News, still should not be admitted to the Hall. On getting caught using steroids Ramirez said, “it was a good thing for me because it made me grow up. Maybe a lot of people didn’t get caught and they were doing maybe some crazy stuff and they’re not learning from it. So I think everything happens for a reason and everything is working for the good. I’m in a better place than I’ve ever been, even when I was playing, so I don’t regret it because it made me grow up.”</p><p>Players like Bonds, Clemens, Ramirez, Rodriguez, and Sosa, more than likely would have been enshrined in Cooperstown sans steroids.</p><p>Rodriguez banged out 696 home runs, good for fifth all time, 2,086 RBI, fourth all time, 2,021 runs scored, good for eighth place, 3,115 hits, for 23rd place, seventh place in both total bases with 5,813 and extra base hits with 1,275. Rodriguez won three MVP awards, appeared on MVP ballots in 15 seasons, and made it on to 14 All Star teams in a career spanning 1994-2016.</p><p>Ramirez, who played 1993-2011, hit 555 home runs - 15th all time, 1,122 extra base hits, good for 18th place all time, 1,831 RBI, 20th all time, a two-time World Series winner with the Red Sox, a 12 time All Star, and 11 times batted over .300. He cracked 2,574 base hits for a .312 career batting average - impressive for a power hitter.</p><p>The National Baseball Hall of Fame has a so-called character clause. “Voting shall be based upon the player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character and contribution to the team(s) on which the player played.” So-called because it has existed since 1945 and more than a fair share of miscreants have found their way to Cooperstown. (https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/bbwaa-rules-for-election)</p><p>With voting in mind, were I a privileged member of the BBWAA charged with the task of electing the Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2024, six former major leaguers would earn my votes - two holdovers, and four first timers, including a charity vote for Bartolo Colon. Twelve retirees are on the ballot for the first time with another 14 holdovers. Candidates who do not attain 75 percent of the vote must receive at least five percent of the vote or will be eliminated from future consideration. </p><p>Omar Vizquel, was the quintessential shortstop of a generation, having won 11 Gold Glove awards during his 24 year career, second most at that position all time. Vizquel was also the oldest shortstop to win a Gold Glove, having done so at age 39 in 2006. After five years with the Seattle Mariners, Vizquel took his talents to Cleveland continuing to be the defensive gem that will vault him into Cooperstown.</p><p>Vizquel was three times an All Star, overshadowed by Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees, elected to Cooperstown in a near-unanimous vote in 2020. On the field, Vizquel led the league in Fielding Percentage six times as a shortstop and is the all time leader in Fielding Percentage at .985. Vizquel shares the season record with Cal Ripken, Jr. for committing the fewest errors by a shortstop playing in at least 150 games with a paltry three. Additionally, Vizquel is first all time in double plays turned by a shortstop, third all time in assists at shortstop, and 11th all time in putouts made by a shortstop.</p><p>At bat, Vizquel compares rather favorably to Hall of Fame shortstops Ozzie Smith, Luis Aparicio, and Luke Appling. Vizquel hit more home runs than Smith and Appling, trailing Aparicio by only three. Vizquel drove in more runs than Smith and Aparicio, stole more bases than Appling, hit for a higher batting average than Smith and Aparicio, while collecting more hits than all three. This is the seventh year on the ballot for Vizquel, having dropped from 23.9 percent of the vote in 2022 to 19.5 percent in 2023. Vizquel’s numbers may dip even further in 2024 due to allegations of a rather serious nature. Until they are adjudicated, I will not traffic in rumors and/or innuendo. Should Vizquel be found guilty, I will withdraw my support of his entry into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.</p><p>While this is his sixth year on the ballot, Todd Helton had earned my support from his first year of eligibility. The 17-year MLB veteran played his entire career with the Colorado Rockies (1997-2013) batting .316 in 2,247 games with 2,519 hits, 369 home runs, scoring 1,401 runs, and driving in 1,406 runs. The Knoxville native finished second in the 1998 Rookie of the Year balloting, earning five All Star game selections in consecutive years, from 2000 through 2004. Appearing on MVP ballots in six years, Helton’s breakout season was in 2000, leading the National League in hits with 216 and all of MLB with 59 doubles, 147 RBI and a .372 batting average, yet could only manage a fifth place finish in the MVP race that season. Earning 52 percent in 2022, Helton enjoyed the largest leap of any returning candidate of 20.2 percent to 72.2 percent of the vote in 2023, but fell short of admission by 11 votes. Helton will more than likely earn induction this summer.</p><p>I’m throwing Bartolo Colon a vote when I doubt he will receive the requisite five percent to remain on the ballot. But, as a member of my New York Mets, Colon, larger than life, was a fan favorite. For a guy who batted .084 in a 21 year career, when Colon cracked his lone home run, a two-run blast in San Diego, on May 7, 2016, the baseball world turned upside down. Mets television broadcaster Keith Hernandez said of Colon’s trip around the bases, “I want to say that was one of the longest home run trots I’ve ever seen, but I think that’s how fast he runs!”</p><p>Colon hit that home run at age 42, and pitched until age 45. The Dominican-born right handed hurler won 247 games with 2,535 strikeouts and was named to four All Star teams. Colon pitched for 11 teams, and won the Cy Young award in 2005 with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, with a record of 21 and eight.</p><p>While Colon may only appear on the ballot for one year before being eliminated from contention, both Adrian Beltre and Joe Mauer could very well also appear on the ballot for one year. Beltre and Mauer both have excellent chances of gaining election to the Baseball Hall of Fame on their first ballot and head to Cooperstown this July.</p><p>In his 21 year career, which began at age 19, Beltre suited up with the Dodgers, Mariners, Red Sox, and Rangers. He struck for 3,166 base hits - 18th all time, 1,707 RBI - 25th all time, 477 home runs - 31st all time, 636 doubles - 11th all time, 5,369 total bases - 15th all time, and 1,151 extra base hits - 15th all time. Beltre earned spots on four All Star teams, and garnered five Gold Gloves at third base.</p><p>Beltre played 2,759 of his 2,933 Major League games at the Hot Corner - second all time behind only the late great Brooks Robinson who played 2,870 games at third base. If and when Beltre gets inducted at Cooperstown, he will be the fifth Dominican-born player to reach the Hall, after Juan Marichal (1983), Pedro Martinez (2015), Vladimir Guerrero (2018), and David “Big Papi” Ortiz (2022).</p><p>Joe Mauer, a St. Paul, MN native played his entire 15 year Major League career with his hometown Minnesota Twins. It might be a close call, whether or not Mauer will be a one and done on the ballot heading to Cooperstown, but no doubt he will be enshrined there. In the first two-thirds of his career, Mauer, as a full time catcher had his best years and by far should be enough to vault him into the Hall of Fame. Mauer won three batting titles - most ever for a catcher, batting .347 in 2006, .328 in 2008, and his career best .365 in 2009, also his MVP season. In that MVP season, Mauer reached career highs in hits, with 191, home runs, with 28, and RBI, with 96. In those first 10 years, Mauer earned three Gold Gloves, was named to six All Star teams, and batted .323, before closing out his career at .306.</p><p>Another player who stayed with one team his entire career, New York Mets third baseman David Wright, must be classified as a “what might have been.” And although Wright did not grow up in the environs of Shea Stadium, a childhood in Norfolk, VA proved the next best thing, as that, for 38 years, housed the Mets Triple-A team, for whom Wright rooted. As a Met for his 14 season career, Wright, like Mauer, both a fan favorite and had his best years in a 10 year stretch. During that time, Wright averaged 144 games played with a slash line of .301/.382/.506. He hit 216 home runs, drove in 899 runs, and scored 866, while being named to seven All Star teams, and earning two Gold Gloves at the Hot Corner. Wright played in 77 games during his last three seasons, giving way to severe Spinal Stenosis. It should be noted that Wright is but one of four third basemen with 350-plus doubles, 200-plus home runs, and 150-plus stolen bases. Each of the others, George Brett, Chipper Jones, and Michael Jack Schmidt, are in the Hall of Fame. While not expected to make the Hall, hopefully Wright can earn enough votes to warrant another year or two on the ballot.</p><p>Three other former players on the ballot of note are, Gary Sheffield, Billy Wagner, and Francisco Rodriguez. Sheffield is in his 10th and final year on the ballot. He played for eight teams in a 22 year career, driving in 1,676 runs and scoring 1,636 runs. The number of interest will be the home runs - 509, ranking Sheffield 27th all time. But 500-plus home runs is no longer an automatic ticket to the Hall of Fame - eight players who are above Sheffield - six not in the Hall due to steroids/PEDs allegations and two who have not yet appeared on Hall ballots, but are certain locks for the Hall. The nine time All Star appeared on 55 percent of the ballots in 2023, up 14.4 percent from 2022, but that same jump will not allow Sheffield to reach 75 percent. Sheffield did appear in the Mitchell Report that investigated steroid/PED usage. His only hope is the Veterans Committee, but for me, I pass.</p><p>Wagner and Rodriguez are an interesting study because of their similar stat lines. Both closers pitched in 16 seasons and played for five teams each. Wagner’s record is 47-40 with a 2.31 ERA and Rodriguez’s record is 52-53 with a 2.86 ERA. Wagner’s 422 saves ranks him sixth all time and Rodriguez’s 437 saves ranks him fourth all time. Wagner is in his ninth year on the ballot, and fell 27 votes short of induction in 2023. His 17.1 percent jump from 51 percent in 2022 was second highest behind only Helton. Wagner, a seven time All Star, appeared in 853 games, pitching 903 innings, and striking out 1,196 batters. Rodriguez, a six time All Star, appeared in 948 games, pitching 976 innings, striking out 1,142 batters. Rodriguez received 10.8 percent of the vote in 2023, as a freshman on the ballot. Wagner’s fate may very well be a harbinger for Rodriguez.</p><p>While it is important to not sully the Baseball Hall of Fame with the likes of Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez, the focus must be on the greats who may be enshrined this July 21 and how they will continue to be the true ambassadors to the game of baseball as so many before them have been. Sadly, this is an ever shrinking community as Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson passed away on September 26, 2023, at age 86.</p><p>Brooks Robinson (05/18/1937 - 09/26/2023) earned admission into the Hall of Fame in his first year on the ballot in 1983 with a commanding 92 percent of the vote. Known as the “Human Vacuum Cleaner,” Robinson could turn a certain double or triple smashed down the third base line into a putout at first with seamless relative ease. He played the entirety of his 23 year career with the Baltimore Orioles, winning the American League MVP in 1964. Robinson also won the MVP of the 1970 World Series, as the Orioles defeated the Cincinnati Reds in five games. Named to 18 All Star teams, Robinson also won 16 Gold Glove awards - in consecutive seasons, with a career fielding percentage of .971.</p><p>Robinson “was so beloved in Baltimore that sportswriter Gordon Beard wrote, ‘Brooks (Robinson) never asked anyone to name a candy bar after him. In Baltimore, people named their children after him.’” (The National Baseball Hall of Fame ® Almanac) I had the enormous pleasure of meeting Brooks Robinson in 1998 at a political function in Baltimore, MD.</p><p>May his memory be for a Blessing, may 2024 be a better, healthier year for one and all, and may the baseball season continue to excite its fans while earning new fans to discover the greatness of America’s national pastime.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He has been a Patron-level member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame since 2007.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-14846516472822790182024-01-04T20:25:00.000-08:002024-01-07T12:44:33.691-08:00Gay Is Out, But Not Gone<div style="text-align: left;">Gay Is Out, But Not Gone<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />January 4, 2024</div><p>Upon the resignation of President Richard M. Nixon, his successor, President Gerald R. Ford said, “Our long, national nightmare is over,” during his August 9, 1974 inaugural address. Claudine Gay resigned the presidency of Harvard University on Tuesday, January 2 after a tumultuous just shy of a month since her disastrous December 5 appearance before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and the discovery of myriad instances of plagiarism in her professional work.</p><p>While the nightmare only seemed long, Gay dragging out what should have been a decision made within days, not weeks, of her appearance on Capitol Hill, it is a national story. Harvard is considered the elite of the elites in college education - the producer of presidents - five (Yale is second with three), vice presidents - four (Princeton is second with three), Supreme Court justices - 18 (Yale is second with nine). Yet Harvard’s reputation has taken a beating during Gay’s six month tenure as president, the shortest in its nearly four century existence.</p><p>Gay appeared before the House Education Committee alongside M.I.T. president Sally Kornbluth and now former president of the University of Pennsylvania Liz Magill, regarding the horrific rising scourge of campus anti-Semitism. All three had equally repugnant performances before the committee, yet only Magill had sense enough to resign within days, on December 9. Not one could, or would, condemn the calls for genocide of their Jewish student populations, or anti-Semitism, hiding behind the First Amendment of the US Constitution, calling such incendiary language free speech and priding themselves as leading universities dedicated to the free and open exchange of ideas.</p><p>Such claims couldn’t be further from the truth. According to The FIRE (The Foundation for Individual Rights in Expression) Free Speech Rankings, Harvard bottomed out dead last at 248 out of 248 schools in terms of a free speech culture on campus. Penn has only Harvard beneath it, ranking 247th, and M.I.T., the “leader” of this group of least free in free speech at 136th. (https://rankings.thefire.org/rank) </p><p>“You get kicked out of places like Harvard for misgendering someone. You get kicked out of a school; you get expelled if you’re falsely accused of sexual assault with no due process. When you call for the genocide and somehow the president of the university acts as a human shield on your behalf - and I hope these wealthy donors of every stripe, every background, look at this and withhold their gifts - because this is what has been created in this disgusting laboratory,” said Kennedy on the December 6 Fox News noon program “Outnumbered.” The laboratory to which Kennedy referred is the Ivy League and quite frankly, numerous other campuses.</p><p>“Microaggressions are condemned with extreme moral outrage and yet violence against Jews, anti-Semitism, seems to have found a place of tolerance on the campus,” said Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan. Rowan is also a former Penn board member, and contributed more than $50 million to Wharton, the business school at Penn. </p><p>While some might suggest Kennedy’s words are hyperbole, that simply is not true. Students, professors, and coaches alike get “canceled” for the slightest of so-called infractions or microaggressions. “Harvard’s women’s [ice] hockey coach said after a loss, ‘too many chiefs, not enough Indians,’ and her job is in jeopardy but calling for global intifada is free speech?” queried former Secretary of Education Bill Bennett. More than a year after coach Katey Stone made that comment, there were calls for her resignation. After 29 years as head coach, Stone retired the first week of June 2023.</p><p>Presidents Gay, Kornbluth, and Magill made Bennett’s point for him during their shameful testimonies on December 5. US Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), as a member of the Education Committee, took each university president to task and took them apart for their inability to appropriately answer even the most simple question, with the most obvious answer.</p><p>Billionaire hedge fund CEO Bill Ackman posted the following on December 5, “The presidents of @Harvard, @MIT, and @Penn were all asked the following question under oath at today’s Congressional hearing on antisemitism: Does calling for the genocide of Jews violate [your university’s] code of conduct or rules regarding bullying or harassment? The answers they gave reflect the profound moral bankruptcy of presidents Gay, Magill, and Kornbluth… They must all resign in disgrace.”</p><p>A sampling of answers from each of these alleged leaders in higher education:</p><p>Stefanik: “Calling for the genocide of Jews does not constitute bullying or harassment?”</p><p>Kornbluth: “I have not heard calling for the genocide of Jews on campus.”</p><p>Stefanik: “But you’ve heard chants for intifada.”</p><p>Kornbluth: I’ve heard chants, which can be anti-Semitic, depending on the context when calling for the elimination of the Jewish people.”</p><p>Stefanik: “So those would not be according to the M.I.T. code of conduct or rules?”</p><p>Kornbluth: “That would be investigated as harassment if pervasive or severe.”</p><p>Intifada is the uprising against Israel and/or Jews. Could Kornbluth not put two and two together and understand what the pro-Hamas supporters called for at M.I.T.?</p><p>Magill: “Our approach to speech, as I have identified it, follows, and is guided by the United States Constitution which allows for robust perspectives.”</p><p>Stefanik: “You’re speaking out of both sides of your mouth. You’re defending it. You’ve allowed these professors to teach at your college. You create a safe haven for this kind of anti-Semitic behavior. Does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Penn’s rules or code of conduct?”</p><p>Magill: “If the speech turns into conduct it can be harassment, yes.”</p><p>Stefanik: “Conduct meaning committing the act of homicide?”</p><p>Magill: “It is a context-dependent decision, Congresswoman.”</p><p>Stefanik: “It’s a context-dependent decision? That’s your testimony today, calling for the genocide of Jews is dependent on the context? That is not bullying or harassment. This is the easiest question to answer yes, Ms. Magill.”</p><p>Stefanik: “You’re president of Harvard, so I assume you’re familiar with the term intifada, correct?</p><p>Gay: “I’ve heard that term, yes.”</p><p>Stefanik: “And you understand that the use of the term intifada in the context of the Israeli-Arab conflict is indeed a call for violent armed resistance against the state of Israel including violence against civilians and the genocide of Jews. Are you aware of that?”</p><p>Gay: “That type of hateful speech is personally abhorrent to me.”</p><p>Stefanik: “And there have been multiple marches at Harvard, with students chanting, quote, ‘there is only one solution - intifada - revolution,’ and quote, ‘globalize the intifada.’ Is that correct?”</p><p>Gay: “I’ve heard that thoughtless, reckless, and hateful language on our campus, yes.”</p><p>Stefanik: “So do you believe that type of hateful speech is contrary to Harvard’s code of conduct, or is it allowed at Harvard?”</p><p>Gay: “We embrace a commitment to free expression, and give a wide berth to free expression even of views that are objectionable…”</p><p>Stefanik: “You and I both know that’s not the case. You are aware that Harvard ranks dead last when it came to free speech; are you not aware of that report?”</p><p>Gay: “As I observed earlier, I reject that characterization…”</p><p>Stefanik: “The data shows it’s true…. So the answer is yes, that calling for the genocide of Jews violates the Harvard code of conduct. Correct. (The spoken word “correct” sounded like an affirmation, or statement, not so much a question.)</p><p>Gay: “Again, it depends on the context…”</p><p>Stefanik: “It does not depend on the context. The answer is yes, and this is why you should resign. These are unacceptable answers across the board.”</p><p>Quite frankly, these three miserable excuses for university presidents were tossed softballs the size of basketballs and should have hit them out of the park with their eyes closed. Instead, they issued testimony that was stiff and unemotional. Stefanik seemed to be the only person to have any sense of urgency regarding the shocking degree of campus anti-Semitism, not just at Harvard, M.I.T., and Penn, but on campuses all across the nation - at least 70 at last count, according to several sources. (Sadly, "Saturday Night Live," mocked Stefanik in an over exaggerated skit, and shame on SNL, a program that hasn’t been relevant in decades.)</p><p>This was an opportunity to reach moral clarity, but this triumvirate of feckless so-called university leaders failed terribly and disgracefully. The calls for the resignations of all three university presidents came swiftly and with alacrity. As noted above, Magill resigned four days after her appearance before the Education Committee, yet retains her teaching position with Penn Carey Law. Kornbluth has neither resigned nor been dismissed from her position at M.I.T.</p><p>But Gay’s circumstances traversed an all new direction as the allegations of plagiarism came fast and furious. It was due to this issue and not the issue of anti-Semitism on Harvard’s campus, that Gay poorly addressed, that became the bane of her existence.</p><p>“This is a moral failure of Harvard’s leadership and higher education leadership at the highest levels. And the only change they have made to their code of conduct, where they failed to condemn calls for genocide of the Jewish people, the only update to the code of conduct is to allow a plagiarist as the president of Harvard,” said Stefanik, herself an alumnus of Harvard.</p><p>Stefanik is absolutely correct in that assessment. As seems to be typical, campus anti-Semitism, more the norm than at any time since the Holocaust, is considered an aberration or treated as free speech. Calls for Gay’s ousting didn’t reach fever pitch until the revelations of severe plagiarism surfaced. And even then, it was couched as “duplicative language,” in the headline of a December 20 <i>New York Times</i> article written by Jennifer Schuessler. (Note to former president Gay - use of quotation marks and appropriate attribution and citation - not much of a challenge.)</p><p>From “The Fellows of Harvard College,” on Gay: “an independent review by distinguished political scientists… conducted a review of her published work. On December 9 the Fellows received the results, which revealed a few instances of inadequate citation.” Gay received praise for proactively seeking to correct two of the articles under review, according to The Ingraham Angle on December 21.</p><p>Yet, Aaron Sibarium wrote for <i>The Washington Free Beacon </i>on December 19, that “Harvard University on Tuesday received a complaint outlining over 40 allegations of plagiarism against its embattled president Claudine Gay… which comprise almost half of her scholarly output.”</p><p>Forty-plus instances of plagiarism over a 30-year academic career, including her Ph.D. dissertation at the outset of her career, through “her final academic paper before becoming dean and then president,” said Chris Rufo, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. As would eventually be discovered, 50 instances of plagiarism plagued Gay’s work, including in the acknowledgement of her dissertation. The acknowledgement? Smacks of severe laziness. Incredibly, Gay’s dissertation won her the Toppan Prize for best dissertation or essay at Harvard. Who conducted source verification?</p><p>“Students, who for whatever reason, submit work either not their own or without clear attribution to its sources will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including requirement to withdraw from the College.” This is a direct quote from the Harvard plagiarism policy. Rufo researched the policy from 1995 and 1998 when Gay wrote her Ph.D. dissertation and found Gay clearly violated Harvard’s plagiarism policy. (https://usingsources.fas.harvard.edu/harvard-plagiarism-policy) </p><p>Part of Harvard’s motto or credo includes the word veritas, truth in Latin. “Does Harvard value veritas, or truth, or does Harvard value DEI and having the right race or gender symbolism at the top of its university hierarchy? You can only pick one in this case,” said Rufo.</p><p>One of Gay’s plagiarism victims is esteemed academician Dr. Carol Swain, holder of five college degrees, including a B.A. from Roanoke College in criminal justice, an M.A. from Virginia Tech in political science, a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in political science, and an MSL from Yale. After earning tenure at Princeton University, Swain served as a full professor at Vanderbilt University teaching political science and law. Currently, Swain is a senior fellow at the Institute for Faith and Culture.</p><p>“From my perspective, if there was harm to me, it was because I lost out on a lot of citations, and in academia… it’s all about the citations. If people are not citing their work, that harms you. She [Gay] has one cit[ation], in most of the articles, but the work is clearly derivative of my research. It’s not pathbreaking. She did not meet the standard I had to meet to get tenure at Princeton,” said Swain during her December 20 appearance on Newsmax’s “National Report.”</p><p>Examples of Gay’s “work” and that of Swain’s side by side depict almost identical passages, save for some punctuation. Swain called for Gay to resign or for Harvard to fire her in mid-December. At the time the Harvard board stood by Gay, in spite of her appalling appearance before the Education Committee and what the board called “instances of inadequate citation,” which, in reality, was overwhelming and damning evidence of plagiarism.</p><p>Asked if she had heard from Harvard, Swain said, “no, I have not heard from Harvard. The focus I want to direct people’s attention to is the fact that Claudine Gay, and I’m not going to call her ‘Dr. Gay,’ because it’s clear she plagiarized her dissertation, and in academia you have to write a dissertation and successfully defend it before a committee before you become a doctor [Ph.D.], and that dissertation is supposed to contain some original work. You have to do something that hasn’t been done before…. She presented a dissertation that had plagiarism in it, she became a professor with research that… [was] plagiarized. No, she does not belong as the president of Harvard or any college and university,” said Swain.</p><p>Newsmax, during the same “National Report,” showed additional so-called work by Gay side by side with the writing of Lawrence Bobo and Franklin Gilliam entitled “Race, Sociopolitical Participation, and Black Empowerment.” The passages were virtually identical with merely cosmetic changes to a word or two.</p><p>“And now we know that she even plagiarized the acknowledgement of her dissertation. That’s where you thank the people that helped you. She has two sentences that are verbatim, pretty much, other than switching the names of the people you thank, from someone else’s work,” said Swain. “This is sad. It’s sad for American education. It’s bigger than me. That the implication of Harvard’s lack of action against Claudine Gay will affect American higher education as well as K through 12 because Harvard University [is trying to] redefine plagiarism. They’re trying to cover for her,” Swain concluded.</p><p>And in the category of “splitting hairs,” is the defense of Gay by CNN’s “News Central” reporter Matt Egan. “Claudine Gay has had to issue corrections; multiple corrections. Now, we should note that Claudine Gay has not been accused of stealing anyone’s ideas in any of her writings. She’s been accused of - sort of - more like copying other people’s writings without attribution,” said Egan, with a straight face on Tuesday January 2. Gay has, in fact, been accused of stealing, by Swain above, at the very least. This is a clear case of the theft of intellectual property. And, did Egan sleep in on the day plagiarism was taught in journalism school?</p><p>But to what end? Clearly the scandal of Claudine Gay is damaging to the reputation of Harvard University because that institution created Gay. Bowing at the altar of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and ensuring Gay checked the correct boxes, she found herself president of Harvard University. How carefully was her dissertation examined? Or any of her other writings? There don’t seem to be that many of them. There were also a number of honor’s students seeking Gay’s removal knowing the impact such a scandal could have on their own futures.</p><p>Yet an unrepentant Gay has decided to martyr herself on the throne of victimhood. From her letter of resignation, Gay writes, “...it has been distressing to have doubts cast upon my commitments to confronting hate and to upholding scholarly rigor - two bedrock values that are fundamental to who I am - and frightening to be subjected to personal attacks and threats fueled by racial animus.”</p><p>Lacking from Gay’s letter includes words of apology for violating both “confronting hate and… upholding scholarly rigor.” Attacks against Gay should not have been personal, but instead, professional, for which her works are fair game. Any racial animus Gay may have suffered does not seem to have been made public, yet if any exists either publicly or privately are completely uncalled for.</p><p>If Gay is a victim of anything, it is the DEI system that promoted her to Harvard president in the first place. Diversity for diversity’s sake is not progress. It’s an admission that box checking is more important than merit and bona fide credentials - verified and vetted to avoid such scandals as this one. The DEI model itself, akin to affirmative action, does more harm than good - propping up someone with expectations perhaps unreachable. Racism did not cost Gay her job, but it may have gotten it for her. But in the long run, Gay is a victim of her own making, responsible for her own actions; for taking easily discernible shortcuts.</p><p>On “Outnumbered” on Wednesday January 3, Dagen McDowell said, “let me quote Coleman Hughes who is a CNN analyst, who’s a terrific author: ‘Claudine Gay has no one to blame but herself. She chose an easy path of plagiarism - 50 times - over the hard path of writing original prose. It’s a pattern of serious fraud, plain and simple. This moment is a useful litmus test - anyone who is blaming Gay’s resignation on other factors, right wingers or racism, is nuts and can safely be ignored for the rest of time.’” Hughes, who is Black, is also a Manhattan Institute podcast host.</p><p>Joy Reid on MSNBC said on Tuesday January 2, “There is this, sort of, open war on Black progress, Black history. Claudine Gay, the president of Harvard University, at least up until she resigned, is now the latest casualty of that.”</p><p>Hughes is absolutely correct. This is not about right wingers or racism. This is on Gay. She did not condemn Hamas, the anti-Semitism on campus, or the student groups blaming the October 7 invasion of Israel and the slaughter of more than 1,400 innocent civilians on Israel itself, not to mention the deplorable answers she provided regarding anti-Semitism and context. Gay did not stand up for, or defend, the Jewish students on her campus either. </p><p>Rewarding Gay continuing her work as a professor of government and African and African American Studies is an insult to the other professors and students at Harvard. Keeping her nearly $900,000 salary? What a golden parachute. But allowing her to proceed with her teaching and indoctrinating more students is just wrong to its core - whether at Harvard, Hawaii, High Point, Hobart, Hofstra, Howard, or Hunter.</p><p>Race hustler Marc Lamont Hill said the next president of Harvard “MUST be a Black woman.” Well, Mr. Hill, you may not like this choice, but she certainly checks your boxes - Dr. Carol Swain. But would she really want to leave Nashville for the mess in Cambridge, Massachusetts?</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-44276839283152600962023-12-29T10:08:00.000-08:002023-12-29T10:08:23.097-08:00Bellows Bars Trump from Ballot in Maine<div style="text-align: left;">Bellows Bars Trump from Ballot in Maine<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />December 29, 2023</div><p>If four Colorado state Supreme Court justices was not a small enough number of unelected individuals to determine who an entire state should have the right for whom to vote, try one. Yes, in the state of Maine, one person, one person unelected by popular vote, the state secretary of state, unilaterally determined that the entire voting population of the Pine Tree State should be prevented from casting their ballot in their upcoming primary for former President Donald Trump. </p><p>Shenna Bellows, Maine’s secretary of state, singularly disqualified Trump, pending appeal, from appearing on the March 5, 2024 primary ballot. “I likewise conclude that Mr. Trump was aware of the likelihood for violence and at least initially supported its use given he both encouraged it with incendiary rhetoric and took no timely action to stop it,” wrote Bellows in her statement on Thursday, December 28.</p><p>Trump has five days to challenge the Bellows decision in Maine Superior Court. His campaign already announced the forthcoming challenge.</p><p>Bellows must be clairvoyant, citing her conclusion “Trump was aware… ” Does Bellows know what’s in the head or on the mind of the former president? She based her disqualification on a feeling, without any discernible evidence, and without either a charge or conviction of Trump of any lawbreaking. This flimsy case to remove Trump from the primary ballot in Maine is about as solid as a house of cards in front of an oscillating fan.</p><p>Bellows, a solid partisan Democrat who served in the Maine state senate before the state legislature selected her to be secretary of state, is not an attorney. She also served as one of the three Biden electors for the presidential election of 2020, and can be seen looking very chummy with Biden in a photo taken in March of this year. What is evident, is a pure case of election interference and the disenfranchisement of more than 832,000 registered voters in the state of Maine. (www.worldpopulationreview.com)</p><p>Yet, on Friday, December 29, the very next morning, Bellows suspended her ruling, pending the appeal by the Trump campaign, saying she doesn’t have the power to remove a candidate from the ballot. Her ruling is stayed until a ruling by the Maine Supreme Court.</p><p>Bellows, as also cited in the Colorado case, referenced Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution as the rationale behind her decision to exclude Trump from the primary ballot. Yet many, including legal expert Alan Dershowitz, noted Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which references “insurrection or rebellion,” had the intent of keeping former members of the Confederacy from the War Between the States from serving in elected office. </p><p>“It’s clearly unconstitutional. The Constitution provides for the disqualification of those who fought in the Civil War. Now Trump’s old, but not old enough to have fought in the Civil War…. I’m not a Trump supporter, but I want the right to vote against Trump, just like you have the right to vote for Trump, and that right can’t be denied us by a Colorado court, or a Michigan court, or by any court. It’s just not the way the Constitution operates,” said Dershowitz, professor emeritus at Harvard Law School.</p><p>And while the word “insurrection” from Section 3 of the 14th Amendment is bandied about so freely, and Trump has neither been charged with, or convicted of such, that same passage also says “or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.” In that case, why not disqualify Joe Biden from appearing on ballots for giving aid and comfort to enemies of the United States on at least three counts. Biden gave the Islamic Republic of Iran $16 billion, which has freed up the same amount to be used for expanding its potential nuclear capability - the likes of which has been threatened against the United States (the big satan) and Israel (the little satan). Biden has sold off oil reserves to the Chinese Communist Party, while Americans are being hammered at gas pumps all across the nation. Biden’s disastrous open border policy has allowed eight to 10 million illegal aliens into the United States, unvetted, of no known status, and a number of known terrorists have been captured. But, how many of the “got-aways” are terrorists plotting nefarious acts inside the borders of the United States?</p><p>Yet, neither Trump nor Biden have been charged or convicted. “If no convictions are required under Shenna Bellows’ rules then that’s why this is such a dangerous game she’s created,” said John Andrews, a Republican state representative. “She opened the door to election chaos. Even extremely progressive Democrat Jared Golden (ME-2) said she’s in the wrong, that he doesn’t like Trump, but he should be on the ballot. I applaud him for saying that because he’s correct; it’s the right move,” said Andrews.</p><p>In other words, before jumping to Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, don’t skip over Section 1. “...nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” Due process. How about that?</p><p>Due process may have been in the back of Bellows’ mind when tweeting the following on January 4, 2022: “The fundamental right of any American citizen to vote freely, fairly and to have their vote counted is the premise of our democracy. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights are not values to be compromised away. #FreedomToVoteAct” But somehow, she hypocritically forgot her own words - and smart words at that, when determining unilaterally, that the former president should not appear on Maine ballots. Bellows, a former executive director with the Maine ACLU, and a potential candidate for governor in 2026, seems more than a bit power hungry.</p><p>This sort of megalomania is being exhibited in 13 additional states who have lawsuits to bar Trump from their ballots: Alaska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Republicans are almost certain to carry Alaska, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming. That’s 58 potential electoral votes Trump would be excluded from garnering, and an almost certain defeat at the polls.</p><p>Attempts to remove Trump are “the M.O. of the Democrat elite,” said former US Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, adding that these kinds of tactics are just one reason she left the Democrat Party. “They will stop at nothing to try and maintain their power even if it means taking away the right to vote of Americans. There’s no issues taking Trump off the ballot. They have no issue in pursuing him, persecuting him through a weaponized and politicized Department of Justice. It’s ridiculous that we’re having this conversation here in the United States of America, when I have heard and seen how the warhawks in Washington - they will see this happen in other countries. They’ll be very quick to say, we must go and intervene, we must go and topple this banana republic or the dictatorship. Many of these same people are the people who are driving this. It’s not just Democrats. There are Republicans who are threatened by President Trump’s unwillingness to buy into their establishment ways,” said Gabbard.</p><p>Yet, even in a state as liberal as California, the secretary of state, Shirley N. Weber announced that President Trump will appear on the Golden State’s primary ballots. Michigan and Minnesota previously announced likewise. These left of center states understand what is at stake - making sure the voters, the people for whom the politicians work, have the greatest access possible to support the candidates of their choice.</p><p>This is not about liking Trump or disliking Trump. Nor is this about liking Biden or disliking Biden. This is about the will of the people to freely choose their elected officials, whether for president, the Senate, the House of Representatives, or any office down ballot to the candidates for the school board. For a single individual, or the slimmest majority of a state court to determine for millions of voters for whom they should be allowed to vote, is the kind of dangerous precedent seen in places like the Chinese Communist Party, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Russia, where roughly two dozen potential opponents to Vladimir Putin have been squelched from the ballot.</p><p>It is imperative for the United States Supreme Court to step up with a unanimous nine to nothing vote denying the states the ability to keep a presidential candidate off the ballot when there is no legal reason to do so. Anything short of total unanimity will send the wrong message. That a divided court, even at eight to one, leaves open the door for the possibility that a future court, one that leans in a different direction, will determine states can willy-nilly bar a candidate from its ballot in an effort to remain in power. This would be a most dangerous precedent, from which there is no turning back, and this republic would cease to exist. </p><p>When the voters lose their right to choose, which is sacrosanct, the nation loses itself, giving way to despots and dictators the likes of which have been seen in the Chinese Communist Party, Cuba, the Islamic Republic of Iran, North Korea, Syria, and Venezuela. When the United States of America ceases to be that “shining city on a hill,” that beacon of hope for the truly oppressed, when people lose their freedoms of speech and religion, their right to peacefully protest their government, we become those other despotic regimes and the world as we know it, is damned. As we head into 2024, let’s fight like hell, in unison - Democrats, Republicans, Independents, even the apathetic who don’t vote, to maintain the freedoms we cherish, and remember the words of the 40th president.</p><p>“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it along to our children in our bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” - President Ronald Reagan.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-192595948050967232023-12-24T16:32:00.000-08:002023-12-25T18:54:09.056-08:00Corrupt Colorado Court Cancels Trump<div style="text-align: left;">Corrupt Colorado Court Cancels Trump<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />December 24, 2023</div><p>In these United States it is the people who determine elections - who is nominated, and ultimately, who is elected. It is third world, despotic, totalitarian, banana republics where the will of the people is shunned.</p><p>And yet, in the Centennial State, the Supreme Court of Colorado, by the slimmest of a four to three majority, decided for all the people when they barred former President Donald Trump from appearing on the primary election ballots of Tuesday, March 5, 2024.</p><p>It’s shocking that four seemingly intelligent people with law degrees could make such a myopic ruling on Tuesday, December 19. But apparently not all law degrees are considered equal. Appearing on the Fox News noon program Outnumbered, Michele Tafoya aptly noted, “When you talk about the four judges who voted in favor of this - they’re from Penn Law School, Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, and Virginia. And the three who didn’t vote for this, were all, I think, from Denver - University of Denver.”</p><p>Tafoya thought and remembered correctly. The four justices voting to bar Trump from the Colorado primary election ballot were Richard L. Gabriel (University of Pennsylvania Law), Melissa Hart (Harvard Law), William W. Hood III (University of Virginia Law), and Monica M. Marquez (Yale Law). The three dissenting justices, Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright, Carlos Samour, Jr., and Maria E. Berkenkotter, are, in fact, University of Denver Law graduates - and kudos to them for putting politics aside when casting their all important votes. All seven Colorado Supreme Court justices are Democrats.</p><p>This is yet, “another reflection on the Ivy League mentality of judicial activism,” said Tafoya, a former NFL sideline reporter.</p><p>Chief Justice Boatman “wrote that he believes Colorado election law ‘was not enacted to decide whether a candidate engaged in insurrection,’ and said he would have dismissed the challenge to Trump’s eligibility.”</p><p>Opposition to this decision came from both sides of the aisle, swiftly and strongly, as well as from several key legal scholars and constitutional experts. </p><p>US Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) posted the following on X, on Wednesday, December 20. “Do I believe Trump’s guilty of inspiring an insurrection and doing nothing to stop it? I was there. Absolutely. Do I believe it’s wrong to ban him from the ballot in Colorado without a conviction? Absolutely. Do I believe SCOTUS must opine immediately? Absolutely.” </p><p>Phillips is mired in his own ballot battle. He has announced his candidacy for president as a Democrat challenging Joe Biden, but the Democrat Party has all but ruled out any primary elections. Talk about a serious disenfranchisement of the voters.</p><p>That is one of the reasons Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. opted to throw his hat into the presidential ring as an independent - lack of the democratic process amongst the Democrats and their so-called leadership. Kennedy also weighed in on the disastrous Colorado court decision.</p><p>“Every American should be troubled by the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision to remove President Trump from the ballot,” posted Kennedy on X, December 19. “The court has deprived him of a consequential right without having been convicted of a crime. This was done without an evidentiary hearing in which he is given the basic right of confronting his accusers. When any candidate is deprived of his right to run, the American people are deprived of their right to choose,” continued Kennedy, a graduate of the law school at the University of Virginia.</p><p>The Colorado Supreme Court issued a completely flawed decision… and we will swiftly file an appeal to the United States Supreme Court and a concurrent request for a stay of this deeply undemocratic decision,” said Steven Cheung, spokesman for the Trump campaign.</p><p>Vivek Ramaswamy, a candidate for the Republican nomination, posted the following on X on December 19. “I pledge to withdraw from the Colorado GOP primary ballot until Trump is also allowed to be on the ballot, and I demand that Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, and Nikki Haley do the same - immediately - or else they are tacitly endorsing this illegal maneuver which will have disastrous consequences for our country.”</p><p>Christie did likewise, adding, “Trump should be prevented from being President of the United States by the voters of this country,” in a December 19 X posting.</p><p>While DeSantis did not join Ramaswamy and Christie, he did post that the left is using “judicial power to remove a candidate from the ballot based on spurious legal ground. SCOTUS should reverse.”</p><p>“It’s truly unthinkable,” said GOP presidential hopeful Nikki Haley, for unelected judges to make such a decision. “The people of Colorado should be furious,” by their own state court’s ruling, said the former Ambassador to the United Nations. “We should have this race fair and square and have him on the ballot,” continued the former governor of South Carolina. Haley went on to say she will beat Trump fairly and squarely.</p><p>The Colorado Republican Party said, “we will withdraw from the Primary as a Party and convert to a pure caucus system if this is allowed to stand,” in a December 19 post on X.</p><p>As is typical, liberals, progressives, and Democrats, as evidenced by the Democrat Party’s reluctance or refusal to hold primary elections, believe less is more. That they have to emperil democracy in order to save democracy. This is a bizarre notion - burning down the house in order to preserve the house. Does this sound remotely logical to anyone? Limiting choices for the voters, not expanding the choices. Aren’t the Democrats all about choice? </p><p>No, they are not. The only choice they want for the American people is that of ending the lives of their unborn children. Liberals and progressives oppose choice when it comes to educating the children they allow to be born. They oppose choice when it comes to Americans and their health care options. They oppose choice when it comes to the right to either get a vaccine or not get a vaccine. Liberals and progressives are trying to end the people’s right to choose gas-operating vehicles, the right to choose gas-run stoves and ovens.</p><p>And the same is true of liberals and progressives trying to limit for whom the American people can vote. Noah Bookbinder, president of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said of the ruling, it is “not only historic and justified, but is necessary to protect the future of democracy in our country.” His organization and two law firms filed the lawsuit against Trump on behalf of six Coloradans: Norma Anderson, Christopher Castilian, Claudine Cmarada, Krista Kafer, Michelle Priola, and Kathi Wright.</p><p>In the Colorado Supreme Court ruling, the majority wrote, “we conclude that because President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of President under Section 3 [of the 14th Amendment] it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Secretary to list President Trump as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot. Therefore the Secretary may not list President Trump’s name on the 2024 presidential primary ballot, nor may she count any write-in votes cast for him.”</p><p>How obtuse. Such a decision will only harm democracy and the evidence has come fast and furiously. Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, a Republican, suggested that perhaps Texas should deny Joe Biden ballot placement for not securing the Southwestern border and allowing around 10 million illegal aliens to invade the United States. After all, according to the 14th Amendment, Section 3, which those supporting the banning of Trump from the ballot are clinging to, Biden has given aid and comfort to the enemies of the United States - in two ways. One, the allowance of millions of unvetted foreign nationals to take up residence in the United States, and two, giving the Islamic Republic of Iran at least $16 billion, to be used for nefarious purposes against American troops and the troops of American allies.</p><p>And back and forth it will go. There are an additional 14 states with lawsuits to bar Trump from those state ballots. Suits from Arizona and Michigan are pending appeal. The following states are filing lawsuits: Alaska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.</p><p>There are numerous faulty ideas within the majority statement. First of all, the Colorado Supreme Court has concluded that Trump is disqualified from holding office when no other legal entity has deemed such. Trump has neither been charged with, nor found guilty of engaging in insurrection, as per Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. When does the Election Code of a state supersede federal election law? And then there’s the point about not counting write-in votes cast for Trump. While the states typically each have their own rules and/or policies pertaining to write-in votes, to not count votes cast is to completely disregard the will of the voters, disenfranchising each one casting such a ballot.</p><p>Civil rights attorney Leo Terrell said, “the system is being challenged,” during an appearance on the Fox News program The Faulkner Focus on December 20. “What makes us unique is our rule of law and it’s being questioned. Trump haters are now supporting Trump on the issue that he deserves to be on the ballot. He deserves to face the voters, not four judges, and this is our problem right now - our legal system being tested. This is why the Supreme Court has to rule nine to zero - those judges know what is right and nine to zero is the only ruling that they could come up with,” said Terrell.</p><p>In commenting on the Colorado decision and opinion, legal expert Alan Dershowitz said, “It’s clearly unconstitutional. Any talk or accusation of insurrection would prove enough to bar someone, but Trump was never charged or found guilty. There is nothing to this argument - it’s just a political ploy. It is the most undemocratic decision imaginable, [the] most unconstitutional decision I’ve seen in a long time. Taking away the right to vote? It’s your right to vote,” said Dershowitz, professor emeritus at Harvard Law School. “I’m not a Trump supporter, but I want the right to vote against Trump, just like you have the right to vote for Trump, and that right can’t be denied us. The Supreme Court should reverse this and put an end to this nonsense, ” he said.</p><p>“It is strikingly anti-democratic, in my view,” said George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley, on The Ingraham Angle, on December 19. “In my view the court is dead wrong. This is the first major win for the challengers. I think the opinion is really chilling and I think the Supreme Court will make fast work of this - I hope that it does. I think this court did great damage to its own integrity with this opinion. When you read this opinion, the one thing that keeps on recurring is, where’s the limiting principle here? Each of these barriers, the court could have adopted a fairly moderate, or more narrow approach, but it didn’t. On every one of these issues it really took out all the fail safes and went to the broadest possible meaning. That means that states can engage in a tit-for-tat type of series of decisions - you could have red states blocking Biden on some ballots, and blue states blocking Trump.”</p><p>In light of the Colorado decision, California’s Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis (D) wants to follow suit. In a letter to California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Kounalakis wrote, “I urge you to explore every legal option to remove former President Donald Trump from California’s 2024 presidential primary ballot… this is a dire matter that puts at stake the sanctity of our Constitution and our democracy.”</p><p>Kounalakis couldn’t be more wrong. But then, this is the same person who said two of the qualifications to serve as president of the United States included reaching the age of 40 and not having committed insurrection. According to Article II, Section 1 of the US Constitution, “No person except a natural born Citizen,… shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty-five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.”</p><p>Even members of the so-called mainstream media understand the jeopardy the republic would be placed in should the Colorado decision be allowed to stand. Ruth Marcus, in her editorial for <i>The Washington Post</i> wrote, on December 20, “The Supreme Court should toss the Colorado case…. The best outcome, for the court and the country, would be for a unanimous court… to clear the way for Trump to run.”</p><p>In the far-left <i>Slate</i>, Lawrence Lessig wrote on December 20, “The Supreme Court must unanimously strike down Trump’s ballot removal.” These folks, and certainly Dershowitz, will not be lining up next November to cast their ballots for Donald Trump. But they are intelligent enough to know the damage to the system of elections many other countries turn to would create not just in the United States, but for the stability of elections the world over.</p><p>Removing a candidate from a ballot is what puts at stake the sanctity of our Constitution and democracy, to borrow Kounalakis’ words. Again, Trump has neither been charged nor convicted of encouraging, coercing, or engaging in an insurrection. The attempts to remove Trump or any candidate, from ballots in any state is what is truly deleterious to the future of the republic. When the party in power attempts to remove opposition candidates from any ballot, that partisanship is the work of despots and totalitarians, and is not limited to just supplanting Trump.</p><p>Trump has said the following on more than one occasion, but last week may never have been more poignant. “They want to silence me, because I will never let them silence you. And in the end, they’re not after me, they’re after you, I just happen to be standing in their way,” he said during a campaign speech in Waterloo, IA.</p><p>“This country is the most successful and stable constitutional system in history. Now, after two centuries of that, what these four justices have done was to introduce a destabilizing element in that system,” said Turley. “This may be the ultimate challenge for Chief Justice Roberts. I don’t have much question they will overturn this decision, but they should do it unanimously. They should do it in one voice - all nine - not divide on this - it’s too important not to speak as one,” concluded Turley.</p><p>When constitutional experts like Dershowitz and Turley speak in language with such gravity regarding the future of the electoral system of the United States, it is best to heed the messengers. The partisan machinations by liberals and progressives will most certainly tear down the current system. Today they are going after Trump, tomorrow maybe DeSantis, Haley, or any yet to be thought of candidate from either side of the aisle. The Democrats have already pushed RFK, Jr. out of the party and determined there would be no primaries. When no candidates are safe from removal from the ballot by the shortsightedness and hubris of a handful of unelected judges, the system will have crumbled under its own weight and the republic will cease to exist. It is up to we the people to prevent the death of the republic by speaking out and ensuring as many candidates as possible appear on the ballots in all 50 states and thus secure the preservation and salvation of our republic. OUR republic.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-58291142506433699252023-12-04T19:50:00.000-08:002023-12-04T19:50:52.087-08:00This Chanukah Shine a Brighter Light on Antisemitism<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This Chanukah Shine a Brighter Light on Antisemitism<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />December 4, 2023</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">While the war in Israel heats up once again, thanks to Hamas violating the cease fire, it is also time to focus our attention on the heat of a more serene nature. That would be the heat emanating from the lights to be kindled starting Thursday night as the Jewish community the world over ushers in Chanukah - the Festival of Lights.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Thursday night December 7 (also Pearl Harbor Day - lest we forget), Kislev 25 on the Jewish calendar is the commencement of a festival celebrating sovereignty, religious rights and freedom, as well as protecting and recapturing a homeland that had been many times invaded by Greeks, Persians, Romans, and Syrians.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The mere dates and locations of the history of Chanukah is proof positive that the Jewish people are the rightful residents in the Holy Land - the Land of Israel. The history of Chanukah dates back more than 2000 years - long before Palestinians or Muslims invaded the Jewish Biblical, ancestral, historical homeland of the Jewish people - the indigenous peoples of Israel. The history of Chanukah includes the lands of Judea and Jerusalem.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Chanukah - the Festival of Lights - where we do not hide behind masks as Israel’s and the Jewish people’s adversaries do, nor do we hide in the dark. The Jewish people shine a light as a beacon for the world to see the results of peace and freedom - the same freedom many Arab Israelis have attested that they enjoy as Israelis and not in any Arab/Muslim country.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This year, that beacon of light is ever more important to fight the ignorance that is mounting, virulent Antisemitism from coast to coast in the United States on far too numerous college campuses, in city streets, where violence and vandalism has been growing more frequent akin to Kristallnacht. (https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2023/11/jew-hating-like-its-1938.html)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This year, that beacon of light is ever more important to fight the arrogance that campus denizens who clearly have never learned a lick of history, deign to make demands of a foreign government (almost as arrogant as the Biden administration - see Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken). Their arrogance to clamor for a cease fire that heretofore existed on October 6 before Hamas shattered it with their invasion of Israel, their slaughter of 1,400 Israeli civilians, the rape of innocent girls and women, the decapitation of babies, and the kidnapping of more than 240 innocent people from Israel, the United States, Italy, Mexico, and many other nations ranging in ages from, then eight months, to 85 years old. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">It is beyond arrogance when there is video evidence of these crimes against humanity perpetrated by Hamas and uploaded by Hamas, which is then ignored by the useful idiots on campus and within the so-called mainstream media. And useful idiots they are, if they think for one second they themselves would be spared by Hamas - in their anti-Sharia dress, their signs of support for the gay and trans communities, and the self-loathing Jews siding with Hamas. Once again, this arrogance and ignorance stems from a paucity of historical data and knowledge. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">They are arrogant to think their calls for a two state solution will succeed - whether those calls come from campus or the White House - it is demonstrative of their lack of knowledge of history. All anyone need do is read the charters as established by both Hamas and Hezbollah to LEARN that a two state solution is untenable when one of the states only wants the eradication of the other state and the death of the people of that state. Those supporting a two state solution, those supporting Hamas, those chanting the death mantra of “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” only seek two things - the destruction of Israel and the death of the Jewish people. They may claim to be pro-Palestinian, but they, in reality, are anti-Zionist, anti-Semitic, anti-American, anti-capitalist, anti-democracy, and anti-Western Civilization. They have been indoctrinated to believe in a black and white set of options - oppressors and oppressed, that Israel with its success represents the West, represents white people, and therefore could not be the oppressed peoples, and could only be the oppressors. Once again, the lack of knowledge of history plays a key role.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The reality is that when Israel vacated Gaza in 2005, it left intact the infrastructure - buildings, green houses, schools, hospitals, that would in turn be razed by Hamas, the ruling faction elected in 2006. Hamas has not held a single election since. Hamas has prevented its own people from relocating. Hamas hides behind its children and most vulnerable using them as human shields. Hamas has used billions of dollars worth of materials designated for the infrastructure of Gaza to build more than 300 miles of rather intricate tunnel systems from which to wage war, store weapons, and ammunition under and in hospitals, children’s bedrooms, even mosques - their own holy house of worship. From the category of good versus evil, they could have used their engineering smarts for the betterment of the Gazan people and live life instead of worshiping a cult of death as Hamas does. Learning this and additional genuine history would be a great 2023 Chanukah miracle.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Israel is neither an occupier nor a colonialist as is incorrectly bandied about during the less than peaceful protests and on signs. The Greeks and Syrians occupied present day Israel more than 2000 years ago - including during 222-186 BCE (Before the Common Era), under Antiochus III, king of Syria - oppressing the Jewish people in their Biblical and ancestral homeland. Upon the death of Antiochus III, his son Seleucus IV took the reins, imposing even greater taxes on the Jewish people in an effort to pay his own debt to the Romans. Hellenists attempted to force the Jewish people to worship Hellenist idols, but the Jews resisted as “Judaism emphasizes truth and moral purity, as commanded by G-d in the Holy Torah.” (chabad.org) Seems the anti-Israel, anti-Semitic, pro-Hamas crowd, “can’t handle the truth,” to borrow from Jack Nicholson’s Col. Nathan Jessep in <i>A Few Good Men</i> (1992).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Upon the death of Seleucus, his brother Antiochus IV began his reign (174 BCE) - a worse tyrant than his brother before him - responsible for the slaughter of thousands of Jews in the Holy Land. Antiochus IV inflicted numerous Antisemitic laws against the Jewish people, such as forbidding Jewish worship (confiscation of, and burning of Torahs), prohibition of Shabbat observance, circumcisions, and kashrut (observance of dietary laws), all under penalty of death.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This occupation and the Draconian laws imposed upon the Jewish people lead to a series of military battles. The Jewish people won the war for their sovereignty and religious freedoms. (This is something the people of Gaza can do as well for themselves - against Hamas - their de facto masters.) The victory by the Jewish people came under the leadership of Judah, son of Mattityahu, the old priest. Mattityahu instructed the people to “follow the counsel of… Shimon the Wise,” and “their leader should be Judah the Strong,” a.k.a. Judah the Maccabee. (chabad.org)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Judah and his fellow Maccabees returned to Jerusalem, freed their people, and restored their Holy Temple to the Jewish people - only after clearing it of idols, properly cleaning it, and built a new altar dedicated on 25 Kislev 139 BCE. When lighting the new menorah, there seemed to be only enough oil for one night, but “by a miracle of G-d, it continued to burn for eight days,” until new oil became available. (chabad.org)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This very brief history of Chanukah includes the freeing of Judea - recovered by the Jewish people having been overrun by Syrian armies. The Jewish people celebrated their victory with gratitude to G-d, with Psalms and offerings in a period of thanksgiving.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This second Holy Temple stood for another 210 years (420 in total) until its destruction in 70 CE (Common Era) by the Roman invaders. Jews lived under foreign rule and occupation by Greeks, Persians, Romans, and Syrians.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There are two schools of thought regarding the lighting of the Chanukah menorah. One starts with eight candles and removes one each night until there is but one candle on the eighth night. The other school of thought, and the one followed by global Judaism, is to add a candle each night until there are eight on the eighth night, thus adding to the light, making it brighter, not depleting it, making it darker. There is one additional candle for each night, plus a “leader” candle - the shamash - designated to light all the others.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This year it has been suggested that Jewish people either not light their menorahs or keep them hidden so as not to be seen from the outside in light of the war and the exponential rise in rabid Antisemitism (up 388 percent since October 7 - as per the ADL) around the globe. When the menorah is lit, it should be either in a doorway or on a windowsill so as to BE visible. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In 2023 that tradition will be upheld once again. We will not be deterred by ignorance. In fact, there have been postings on social media that non-Jews also put a menorah or candles in their doorway or on their windowsill to demonstrate their support of Israel and their Jewish friends and neighbors. Let’s shine a brighter light to rid the world of the oldest hatred - Antisemitism, and create yet another Chanukah miracle. Wishing all a happy, healthy, and meaningful Festival of Lights with plenty of <i>latkes </i>(potato pancakes) and <i>sufganiyot </i>(jelly doughnuts), while praying for the miracle of the return of the remaining 137 hostages held by Hamas.</span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He last visited Israel in 2019 with his wife.</span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">For proper Blessings for Chanukah, menorah, and candles, please visit: https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/5746657/jewish/Menorah-Blessings.htm </span></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-14275016093968784892023-11-16T10:41:00.000-08:002023-11-16T18:54:22.879-08:00Rally Against Antisemitism is Peaceful<div style="text-align: left;">Rally Against Antisemitism is Peaceful<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />November 16, 2023</div><p>The oft-heard chants of “bring them home,” and “no cease fire,” that permeated the picture perfect Autumn air Tuesday in our nation’s capital presented a familiar tone conjuring up memories of another great gathering of the masses of G-d’s chosen people.</p><p>Myriad speeches given in support of an oppressed people simply wanting to live in peace; to live their lives without fear of intimidation, without fear of being silenced, without fear of being terrorized, and without fear of being slaughtered because we choose to live our lives freely as Jewish people around the world. Thousands of people carrying flags, banners, posters, and signs, then as now put forth that same message. The roughly 290,000 people who attended the rally against Antisemitism on Tuesday, November 14 did so peacefully, without incident.</p><p>Nearly 36 years ago, December 6, 1987, on a cold, bleak-looking, DC Sunday afternoon, about 250,000 people from around the globe, gathered in support of Soviet Jewry - a great concern for almost two million people trapped behind the Iron Curtain - refused permission to either live and worship as Jews, or leave the Soviet Union for the freedoms they yearned. Refuseniks, they were called in those days. </p><p>“Those days,” like it occurred in ancient times. Perhaps to the multitude of young people rallying in Washington, DC on Tuesday, 1987 IS ancient times. That said, it warmed the heart verily to see such a throng of young people gathered to fight a seemingly never ending hate - the vituperative evil of Antisemitism - prejudice against and/or hatred of Jews, simply because we are Jewish.</p><p>Jew hatred, in all its forms, verbal abuse, verbal and written tropes, mocking, bullying, threats via social media, physical threats, physical violence, vandalism, destruction of property and reputation, desecration of synagogues, Jewish cemeteries, Jewish owned businesses and homes, as well as murder, are fears Jews face on a daily basis. These fears are not just faced in far away places, chants of “gas the Jews” at an Antisemitic march outside the Sydney (Australia) Opera House, for example, but throughout the United States. This is most prevalent on the nation’s college and university campuses.</p><p>Since the October 7 invasion by the terrorist group Hamas of Israel and their slaughter of more than 1,400 innocent Israeli civilians, Antisemitism in the United States has not just risen, but pole vaulted an astronomical 388 percent. In “normal times” the Jewish people are subjected to nearly 60 percent of all hate crimes perpetrated in the United States - 60 percent upon a people totaling 1.7 percent of the nation’s population. </p><p>While the feckless Biden administration, feckless on so many levels, has given lip service to condemning Antisemitism it does so with the condemnation of Islamophobia with the very next breath. The two are not interchangeable, and acts of Antisemitism are six times more likely to occur than acts of Islamophobia.</p><p>The rally to support Israel and to bring home the more than 240 hostages of Israeli, American, Italian, Mexican, and a cadre of other nationalities that took place on November 14, just like the rally for Soviet Jewry in 1987, demonstrated the best of behaviors - peaceful rallying and chanting, sans violence, vandalism, graffiti, or arrests. The polar opposite has been the behaviors exhibited during the dozens and dozens of campus protests supporting Hamas, calling for the evisceration of Israel and the deaths of all Jews. Their rallying cry of “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” calls for just that. </p><p>This, along with false information still on the social media pages of members of the US Congress - Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) - who still have yet to condemn the decapitation of Israeli babies by Hamas. Jews rallying in DC chanted “bring them home,” regarding the more than 240 hostages held by Hamas - many women and children - babies as young as, now, 10 months, and even an elderly Holocaust survivor.</p><p>Meanwhile, Hamas, the Palestinians who elected them in 2006, with nary an election since, and the thousands of campus denizens are calling for barbarism and death. Jewish students from coast to coast are frightened - afraid to go to class, dining halls, or just be on campus, either alone or in groups. (https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2023/11/jew-hating-like-its-1938.html)</p><p>There is a kind of irony between the 1987 rally, in which I participated proudly as a University of Maryland senior - a volunteer to help the tens of thousands of visitors to their nation’s capital traverse the DC streets and Metro stations around the Mall where the rallies then and now occurred, and that of this past Tuesday.</p><p>In 1987 we rallied in support of Soviet Jews not allowed to leave the USSR. In 2023, while rallying against virulent Antisemitism on campuses, and for Hamas-held hostages to be released - given their freedom, there are hundreds of thousands of Gazans also not permitted to leave Gaza - by Hamas, not by Israelis. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as is their history, gives warnings to Gazans - telling civilians to leave northern Gaza - while the IDF roots out Hamas terrorists and searches for hostages, both above ground, as well as underground in the labyrinth of more than 300 miles of tunnels engineered by Hamas. This sophisticated system houses caches of munitions, armaments, AK-47s, under homes, hospitals, and mosques, as well as in hospitals, in schools, even in mosques, knowing Israelis won’t attack hospitals, schools, or mosques. These tunnels contain bathroom and kitchen facilities, sleeping quarters, and evidence that hostages have been or are still being held there. These tunnels even have a ventilation system strong enough to not asphyxiate terrorists who are burning victims alive.</p><p>It is Israeli troops helping Gazans flee Hamas. It is Israeli troops assisting with the humanitarian aid that, once they are gone, much of the aid will end up in the hands of Hamas, and not civilians.</p><p>Sadly, the supporters of Hamas, Palestinians, and so-called Palestine, are so radically indoctrinated with lies told by professors and the so-called mainstream media, their level of Antisemitic vitriol and violence stems from ignorance of epic proportions. Ignorance of real, true history about Israel, the Biblical, ancestral, historical homeland of the Jewish people. Ignorance of the facts that Israel is neither a colonizer nor an apartheid state. Ignorance of the fact that there was a cease fire on October 6, shattered by Hamas. And ignorance of the facts that if Israel were to lay down its weapons, Israel would cease to exist, but if Hamas set down their weapons, there would be peace.</p><p>Israel loves life and wants peace - witness the Abraham Accords during the Trump administration; while Hamas opposes peace, and worships death - witness their murderous behavior, or read their charter calling for the eradication of Israel and the deaths of the entirety of the Jewish people.</p><p>Peace and freedom - the rallying cries of the 1987 rally, and the 2023 rally. Sadly, a difference between the two, while then Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush spoke at the 1987 rally, neither Joe Biden nor Kamala Harris would show their faces - either in person or via video from Air Force One. Biden chose Xi Jingping of the Chinese Communist Party over the Jewish people of the United States of America. Air Force One waits for the president, not the other way around. Had Biden or Harris opted to be there they would have been welcome. His lack of leadership (on this and so many key issues) sends a message loud and clear to the myriad college and university presidents - some of whom are Jewish - who have sat on their hands as Antisemitism runs rampant under their domain, while the slightest microaggression regarding pronouns et al, are punished with impunity. The time is now to step up, squash Antisemitism like the cockroach it is, and deliver a strong message that never again is NOW.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He last visited Israel with his wife in 2019.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-17874267645708780052023-11-07T10:30:00.023-08:002023-11-07T17:13:28.304-08:00Setting the Record Straight<div style="text-align: left;">Setting the Record Straight<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />November 6, 2023</div><p>As the war against Israel enters its second month, following the October 7 invasion into, and slaughter of 1,400 Israeli civilians, tens of thousands rallied for so-called Palestine over the weekend in the nation’s capital - rife with vandalism and graffiti - including on White House property. The anti-Semitic, pro-Hamas rally included shouts and chants of “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and “Globalize intifada.” </p><p>To support such a notion, as US Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) does, as she still refuses to condemn Hamas decapitating Israeli babies, is to support the evisceration of Israel and the death of the entirety of the Jewish population. Tlaib, as did fellow Squadite US Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) posted on her social media pages the proven lies that Israel was responsible for bombing Al Ahli hospital in Gaza killing 500 civilians. None of that actually happened. The truth was known within hours, yet the false accusations remain on the two US House members’ social media pages.</p><p>To support so-called Palestine is to support Hamas - the Arab/Muslim population of Gaza voted overwhelmingly in 2006 for Hamas to be its governing body. That was their one and only free election, as none have been held since. Israel evacuated Gaza in 2005 leaving its infrastructure intact for the Gazan/Arab/Muslim people as Israel is not a colonizer, as is also falsely reported ad-infinitum. To support Hamas is to support, as is written in their own charter, the eradication of Israel and the murder of the Jewish people. (Hezbollah has the same goals written into their charter as well.) To support Hamas is to support the Islamic Republic of Iran. </p><p>The Islamic Republic of Iran is the puppetmaster pulling the strings of Hamas and Hezbollah. The Islamic Republic of Iran is also the training ground for thousands and thousands of Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists. (Hezbollah operates out of Lebanon and fired 30 rockets into northern Israel, some reaching the outskirts of Haifa.) This is the same Islamic Republic of Iran whose government under Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is feverishly working to build nuclear bombs - not for defense, but for offense. Israel’s Iron Dome, on the other hand, is for defense. This is the same Islamic Republic of Iran that consistently refers to the United States of America as the “Great Satan” and to Israel as the “Little Satan” as its supporters regularly chant “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.” Those who want you dead do not wish to negotiate a two-state solution, they only seek the Final Solution as did the Nazis during the Holocaust. </p><p>And again, those calling Israel a colonizer, have never learned actual history. The land designated as Palestine by the British turned into what would have been the original two-state solution - Israel for the Jewish people - a return to their Biblical, historical, ancestral homeland, and Transjordan for the Arab/Muslim people - who subsequently rejected that plan. Jordan is Palestine. These were not colonies, but individual nations. This was not and is not about land, for if it had been, the Jewish people would have a genuine beef as the original Palestine, designated as the Jewish homeland, would eventually be divided into the two nations referenced above, with the Jewish people receiving but 20 percent of that land, and the Arab/Muslims the motherlode of 80 percent. This is not about land, but about a people who willingly fled what became Israel - they were never expelled, to become, what they have labeled themselves for 75 years - refugees. None of the 48 Arab/Muslim nations expressed a willingness to take in these “refugees,” why should Israel, or worse yet, why should the United States as some members of the Hamas-supporting Squad in Congress have demanded. </p><p>Did the scant numbers of survivors of the Holocaust decry refugee status from Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Soviet Union, and Yugoslavia? There literally was nothing for them to go home to, if there was even a home at all. Europe lay waste to the barbarism perpetrated by Hitler and Stalin. </p><p>And while on the subject of lies the media likes to endorse, Israel is not an apartheid state. Its 1.5 million Arabs (700,000 in 1948) have equal rights - including women, to serve in the Knesset, to work as lawyers, as doctors, even serve on the Supreme Court. On the other hand, Jews in almost all Arab/Muslim nations had been reduced to Dhimmi status - second class citizens - in apartheid circumstances, and experienced rabid anti-Semitism. Textbooks in Arab/Muslim nations, as well as maps, would not even mention Israel. And what happened to the Jewish populations of these Arab/Muslim nations?</p><p>Nation<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1948 Jewish Population<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> Recent Jewish Population</p><p>Afghanistan<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 5,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0 (2021)</p><p>Algeria<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>140,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>50-200 (2021)</p><p>Bahrain<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 500-600<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>36 (2007)</p><p>Egypt<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>75,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 100 (2022)</p><p>Iran<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 65,000+ (1956)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 9,200 (2022)</p><p>Iraq<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 135,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span></span>5-7 (2014)</p><p>Lebanon<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 5,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 100 (2022)</p><p>Libya<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 38,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0 (2020)</p><p>Morocco<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 265,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 2,100 (2020)</p><p>Oman<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>0 (1900)<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0 (1900)</p><p>Pakistan<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 2,000-2,500<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <span> </span><span> </span>800 (2017)</p><p>Sudan<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 350<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 0</p><p>Syria<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 30,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 100 (2022)</p><p>Tunisia<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 100,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 1,000 (2020)</p><p>Turkey<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 80,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 12,000-16,000 (2022)</p><p>Yemen<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 63,000<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> 6 (2020)</p><p>What happened to all those Jewish populations? They were not welcome in those countries, thus relegated to Dhimmi status in those apartheid nations. Most fled to the new State of Israel, while many others either immigrated to the United States or ended up in France.</p><p>Still confused? Here’s a checklist to consider.</p><p>Subject<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>Israel<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Palestinians/Hamas</p><p>Unilaterally invading the other<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Intentionally targeting civilians<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Warning civilians to get out of harm’s way<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>YES<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>NO</p><p>Tearing down posters of hostages<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Taking hostages<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Supporting charters calling for death<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Vandalism and graffiti of property<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Support from the United Nations<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Equal rights for women<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> YES<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>NO</p><p>Equal rights for minorities <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>YES<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>NO</p><p>Equal rights for homosexuals<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>YES<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>NO</p><p>Using its own people as human shields<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Beating up opposing protesters<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Intentionally raping and slaughtering women<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Intentionally decapitating babies<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>NO<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>YES</p><p>Giving escort to safety to Gazan civilians<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>YES<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span></span>NO</p><p>Even Joe Biden is cognizant enough to say Hamas is worse than ISIS. Yet his former boss, Barack Obama, said both sides are to blame, despite the facts that Hamas unilaterally and without provocation, invaded Israel, slaughtered 1,400 Israeli civilians, and took more than 250 Israelis, Americans, and foreign nationals hostage. And there’s a demand for a cease fire? First of all, there was a ceasefire on October 6 until Hamas shattered it with their barbarism. And, if the same attacks occurred on American soil, on a per capita basis, there would have been roughly 48,000 murdered and roughly 7,000 hostages taken. Would the United States capitulate to calls for a cease fire? Probably not even under Biden.</p><p>“I want to make clear Israel’s position regarding a cease fire. Just as the United States would not agree to a cease fire after the bombing of Pearl Harbor or after the terrorist attack of 9/11, Israel will not agree to a cessation of hostilities with Hamas after the horrific attacks of October 7,” assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu. Nor should there be, at the very least, until all hostages are released and returned safely to their homes.</p><p>Netanyahu is absolutely right about not calling for a cease fire. He is also right about not listening to Biden, the perpetually useless and virulently anti-Semitic United Nations, the Hamas caucus of the Democrat Party, or the anti-Israel, pro-Hamas protesters. None of them are actually Prime Minister of Israel, responsible for the life and death decisions such as sending young men and women into a war - even a justified war. Israel does not start wars, but they do finish them - successfully. Israel has every right to defend its G-d given, Biblical, ancestral, and historical homeland and all its people. For the day Israel loses a war, they cease to exist. Every war is a fight for survival. Israel is the one and only one Jewish state on the planet and without Israel, what guarantee of a homeland do the Jewish people have? What truly safe space do the Jewish people have to take refuge, to live, and to prosper should the need arise. While the United States has been a haven and beacon for religious freedom since before its founding, the visceral, sinister spate of anti-Semitism is akin to precious little ever experienced in this country. If need be, without Israel where will the Jews of America go to live their best Jewish lives?</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He and his wife last visited Israel in 2019.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-69076236322094474372023-11-05T01:10:00.012-08:002023-11-05T10:03:52.456-08:00Jew Hating Like it's 1938<div style="text-align: left;"><div>Jew Hating Like it’s 1938</div><div>Commentary by Sanford D. Horn</div><div>November 3, 2023</div><div><br /></div><div>For Jewish citizens in Germany and its “annexed” territories of Austria and the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia, 1938 could have been a hell of a lot better. Finishing what they started in 1933, the Nazis expelled all Jewish children from German schools. (https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/judaism/holocaust/children_1.shtml) And then, adding literal injury to insult, any delusions of humanity were officially shattered with the rampage known as Kristallnacht. The literal translation is Night of Crystal, but it is more historically known as the Night of Broken Glass.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now 85 years later, almost to the day, the world is called upon to remember that grizzly period, and precursor to the infinitely worse times to be inflicted upon the Jewry of Europe. During the night of November 9-10, a wave of anti-Semitic pogroms authorized and carried out by Nazis and their Brown Shirt thugs, as synagogues, homes, and businesses owned and/or operated by Jews were vandalized to the point of utter destruction - most with smashed windows, but many set aflame. Police stood by bearing witness to the malfeasance, and firefighters on hand only to extinguish any fire that reached the business or home of a non-Jew. </div><div><br /></div><div>Other orders included the removal of “all synagogue archives prior to vandalizing synagogues.” The German government blamed the Jews for the Kristallnacht pogroms and fined the collective Jewish community one billion Reichsmark (roughly equivalent to $400 million US Dollars in 1938). The Reich also confiscated all insurance payouts for property destruction, thus rendering the Jews personally financially responsible.</div><div><br /></div><div>More than 1,000 synagogues were burned or damaged. More than 7,500 businesses were destroyed or looted. Nearly 100 Jews were murdered that night with many more over the succeeding days. “During the pogrom, some 30,000 Jewish males were rounded up and taken to concentration camps. This was the first time Nazi officials made massive arrests of Jews specifically because they were Jews, without any further cause for arrest.” (https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/kristallnacht) The majority of the arrested Jewish men were dispatched to Buchenwald, Dachau, or Sachsenhausen.</div><div><br /></div><div>On November 12, 1938 the Nazi regime added additional restrictions on the Jewish population. Specifically, Jews were barred from economic life. This included, but was not limited to Jews being “forbidden to operate retail stores or carry on a trade. The law also forbids Jews from selling goods or providing services at any kind of establishment.” Jewish doctors were forbidden from treating non-Jewish patients. Jews were also barred from having a driver's license or even owning an automobile. </div><div><br /></div><div>And as stated above, further banishment of Jews from public life included expelling Jewish children from schools - those that were still attending at this late date. April 7, 1933 saw the passage of the “Law for the Restoration of Professional Civil Service.” Most Jewish professors lost their jobs - fired without cause. Those few retained had value to the Reich based upon the research being conducted. Just 18 days later, on April 25, 1933, the Reich passed the “Law against Overcrowding in Schools and Institutions of Higher Learning.” This set strict limitations on the numbers of Jewish students attending public and private schools, as well as colleges and universities. At their height, 75 percent of Jewish students attended public schools in Germany. It was at those very public schools where Jews faced increased anti-Semitism from peers - fellow students, and adults - teachers/administrators alike. Students were part of the Hitler Youth; teachers instructed students in “obedience to state authority, militarism, racism, and anti-Semitism.” (https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/kristallnacht)</div><div><br /></div><div>As a point of reference, on or about June 13, 1933 the Jewish population of Germany could be set at about 500,000 out of a total population of 67 million, or 0.8 percent.</div><div><br /></div><div>But this is no ordinary annual commemoration, because 85 years later, anti-Semitism has reached fever pitch on college and university campuses all across the fruited plain of these United States. As of this date, more than 70 alleged institutions of higher learning have experienced anti-Semitic and/or pro-Palestinian/Hamas protest marches and/or rallies since the October 7 invasion into Israel, the historical homeland of the Jewish people, by Hamas and the slaughter of more than 1,400 Israeli civilians by Hamas. There are still more than 200 Israeli, American, and other foreign nationals held hostage by Hamas, presumably in Gaza. Hamas is an Islamic extremist terrorist organization whose charter literally calls for the evisceration of Israel from the planet, and the murder of all Jewish people. Hamas, like fellow terror organization Hezbollah, is a puppet of Iran. The Islamic Republic of Iran, the puppeteer, is the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism. In fact, Iran served as the training ground for thousands of Hamas terrorists.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is an “information Kristallnacht,” stated former George W. Bush press secretary Ari Fleischer on Wednesday October 25, on the Fox News noon program Outnumbered. “What’s happening on these campuses and what’s happening in the protests, is a modern day Kristallnacht - and that’s the warning. This is an information Kristallnacht in America. They don’t have to break glass and break into a store to show the future if America doesn’t stand up to them. And this is a time of choosing - for Americans of good heart. Why do we have people coming into this country who reject American values and carry out pro-Hamas protests. If people from Charlottesville came onto American campuses and protested, I assure you, every university would throw them out - from the Charlottesville protesters - the people who said that ‘Jews would not replace us.’ These protesters [current] are saying we will replace the Jews,” said Fleischer.</div><div><br /></div><div>This “information Kristallnacht” includes Hamas’s own admission that October 7 is merely the tip of the iceberg. Hamas, worse than ISIS, if that is even possible, has promised to repeat the terror attacks of a month ago, in their own words, from their own “political bureau.” In an interview on LBC TV (Lebanon) on October 24, Ghazi Hamad said "Israel is a country that has no place on our land. We must remove that country, because it constitutes a security, military, and political catastrophe to the Arab and Islamic nation, and must be finished. We are not ashamed to say this, with full force. We must teach Israel a lesson, and we will do this again and again. The Al-Aqsa Flood is just the first time, and there will be a second, a third, a fourth, because we have the determination, the resolve, and the capabilities to fight. Will we have to pay a price? Yes, and we are ready to pay it. We are called a nation of martyrs, and we are proud to sacrifice martyrs.”</div><div><br /></div><div>When asked by the interviewer, “Does that mean the annihilation of Israel?” the response from Hamad: “Yes, of course. Everything we do is justified.” (MEMRI-TV [The Middle East Media Research Institute])</div><div><br /></div><div>Does this sound like a cease fire makes sense? It begs the most fundamental of questions: Does Israel have a fundamental right to exist? Do the Jewish people have a fundamental right to exist? Israel, the known, proven, historical homeland of the Jewish people, roughly the size of New Jersey, is the only Jewish state on the planet. With the extreme and exponential rise in anti-Semitism in the United States, the land promising a guarantee of freedom of religion in the First Amendment of the US Constitution, if the Jewish people are not safe in the United States, and without its own Biblical/historical homeland, what becomes of the Jewish people?</div><div><br /></div><div>Quite frankly, anyone supporting Hamas, which also means supporting the Islamic Republic of Iran, and those chanting “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” calling for the eradication of Israel and the slaughter of the Jewish population, should be expelled from school. Any foreign national attending school on a student visa, with these same views, should have their visa revoked, and should be deported to their home country. This is not free speech. Speech designed to incite violence, such as these protests, and signs such as “Please keep the world clean” depicting a Star of David in a trashcan, are not protected speech. The names of these anti-Semites should be made public so potential employers know who they are considering for gainful employment and to represent their company or firm.</div><div><br /></div><div>But these protests and rallies are going on with the silent, tacit approval of dozens and dozens of college and university presidents, provosts, boards of directors, and boards of governors. And this complicit behavior is being fomented by and in Washington, DC. The Biden administration, whenever it mentions anti-Semitism, feels compelled to refer to Islamophobia as though they are interchangeable. On Wednesday, October 25, the House voted to pass H. Res. 771, to support Israel and condemn Hamas by an overwhelming margin of 412 in favor, 10 opposed, and six cowards voting present. Of the 10 nay votes, nine are Democrats and the lone Republican being Thomas Massie (R-KY) who has made more than one borderline, if not actual anti-Semitic remarks during his House tenure. The nine Democrats include so-called Squad members Jamaal Bowman (NY), Cori Bush (MO), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY), Ilhan Omar (MN), and Rashida Tlaib (MI) virulent anti-Semites, as well as Andre Carson (IN) who should be an honorary squad member, Al Green (TX), Summer Lee (PA), and Delia Ramirez (IL). Those voting Present, all Democrats, include squadite Ayanna Pressley (MA), Gregorio Casar (TX), Joaquin Castro (TX), Chuy Garcia (IL), Pramila Jayapal (WA), and Nydia Velazquez (NY).</div><div><br /></div><div>These are the 16 House members, 15 Democrats and one Republican, who don’t have the moral temerity to condemn the rape and butchering of girls and women, the decapitation of babies - BABIES - in their homes and beds, the kidnapping of more than 240 men, women, and children, including an elderly Holocaust survivor, and the slaughter of more than 260 young men and women attending a music festival. The dead and the kidnapped represent Israelis, Americans, Italians, Mexicans, and countless other foreign nationals. These House members, some more than a little outspoken, are sending messages of approval to the tens and tens of thousands of students protesting, rallying, shouting anti-Semitic, anti-Israeli, even anti-American epitaphs on the campuses from Brown in Rhode Island to the University of Southern California, and from the University of Florida to the University of Washington-Seattle, and, sadly, all points within. </div><div><br /></div><div>And beyond the shielded walls of the campuses, in cities across the nation, radical Muslim, Hamas supporters are tearing down posters of pictures of the myriad kidnapped regardless of where they call home. In its infinite stupidity, The New York Times defends the Muslims tearing down these posters of the Hamas-held hostages from Israel, the United States, and elsewhere by attempting to equate the suffering of Muslims/Arabs with that of Jews/Israelis in the current strife. There is no moral equivalence, and the history speaks truthfully to that question.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jewish students at Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City experienced a shocking display of anti-Semitism being chased through a building having to take refuge in a library for nearly an hour with anti-Semitic slogans being shouted at them while trying to get through the barricade into the library. Adding to their harrowing experience, the Jewish students were told, for their safety, they should hide in the library attic. The ATTIC? Anyone having Anne Frank flashbacks? Shameful. Has anyone heard any public comments from President Laura Sparks?</div><div><br /></div><div>At Columbia University, also in New York City, Joseph Massad, a professor of politics and history, expressed publicly and in an article (publication not to be promoted here), his exhilaration by the Hamas attacks on Israel and the slaughter of more than 1,400 Israeli civilians. Massad called it “awesome…, a stunning victory” for Hamas. A petition to have Massad fired garnered 45,000 signatures. A letter of solidarity with Massad received a scant 600 signatures. In addition to rallies both pro- and anti-Israel, one Israeli student was beaten. (www.nypost.com) More than 100 professors signed a letter supporting Palestinian students, calling the invasion of Israel a “military action.” Columbia president Nemat Shafik has been silent on these matters.</div><div><br /></div><div>It’s “devastating. I’m in my environment, in my home, and I’ve been told now, that this acceptance that I was feeling, is conditional,” said Columbia University graduate student Noa Fay. “The propaganda has become so insidious. Social media is the reason, if not one of the reasons why we are seeing what we are seeing. This is what happens when you get your education and your information on Instagram and Tik Tok,” she said. “We don’t get educated, we become susceptible to infiltration, and I’ve heard people use the word ‘brainwashed,’” said Fay.</div><div><br /></div><div>Columbia University is no stranger to controversy, having hosted former president of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for speaking engagements. Ahmadinejad is a Holocaust denier, calling it “a myth,” and repeatedly calls for “Israel to be wiped off the map.” He served from 2005-13 . (www.britannica.com)</div><div><br /></div><div>A cousin of United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on social media she is withdrawing from New York University due to the increased amount of anti-Semitism and a sense of not feeling safe on and around campus. “We don’t feel safe. It’s honestly scary,” she said via an Instagram video, according to The Jerusalem Post.</div><div><br /></div><div>Projections shining anti-Israel messages on the outside of the library at George Washington University have read, “Your tuition is funding genocide in Gaza,” “GW the blood of Palestinians is on your hands,” “Divestment from Zionist genocide now,” and “Glory to our martyrs.”</div><div><br /></div><div>GW issued a statement. “The projections on the university’s library violated university policy and leadership intervened to ensure these projections were removed. The statements made by these individuals in no way reflect the view of the university. We are reviewing this incident and will take any appropriate steps with respect to the individuals involved in accordance with university policies.” (Fox News Outnumbered October 25, 2023)</div><div><br /></div><div>On October 29, the Cornell Daily Sun reported “Posts online threaten Jewish students and Center for Jewish Living…,” and “...including one that threatened a shooting at 104 West,” which is home to the Center for Jewish Living and the kosher dining hall.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some of the texts included: (sic) “”israel” deserved 10/7… the genocidal fascist zionist regime will be destroyed. rape and kill all the jew women, before they birth more jewish hitlers. jews are excrement on the face of the earth. no jew civilian is innocent of genocide…. Posted By hamas warrior Oct. 28, 2023 9:17:49 AM”</div><div><br /></div><div>Another text reads: (sic) “jewish people need to be killed if you see a jewish “person” on campus follow them home and slit their throats. rats need to be exterminated from Cornell…. Posted By jew evil Oct. 28, 2023 5:39:06 PM”</div><div><br /></div><div>And yet one more text reads: (sic) “watch out jews. watch out pig jews. jihad is coming. nowhere is safe. your synagogues will become graveyards. your women will be raped and your children will be beheaded. glory to Allah…. Posted By hamas soldier Oct. 28, 2023 7:34:27 PM”</div><div><br /></div><div>“Students are just absolutely terrified to see the threat calling out the Jewish buildings,” said Jeremy Zarge, co-president of the Cornell Center for Jewish Living. “Students are afraid to walk around campus, afraid to go about their daily lives,” Zarge said.</div><div><br /></div><div>“Even with police, it’s still frightening, but we’re trying to go about our daily lives, and we’re trying to continue to be proud and strong as our Jewish selves, but it’s still scary,” said Molly Goldstein, co-president of the Cornell Center for Jewish Living.</div><div><br /></div><div>New York Governor Kathy Hochul spoke at Cornell on October 30 in a show of support for the embattled Jewish community. “No one should be afraid to walk from their dorm or their dining hall to a classroom. When speech crosses over into hate speech and into hate crimes, that’s when we have to make sure that students know we’ll step up and protect them,” she said. Why wait? Students should feel safe and secure on their campuses 24/7. “If you’re going to engage in these harmful actions, hate crimes, breaking our laws, you will be caught, and you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Hochul.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let’s see how true Hochul’s words are. On Tuesday, October 31 the Broome County Sheriff’s Department reported the arrest of Patrick Dai, 21, from Pittsford, NY, a junior attending Cornell. According to the Justice Department, Dai threatened to “stab and slit the throat of any Jewish males he sees on campus, to rape and throw off a cliff any Jewish females, and behead any Jewish babies.” Dai also threatened to bring “an assault rifle to campus to shoot all you pig Jews,” the Justine Department reported. The FBI tracked Dai via his IP address, who then allegedly admitted to authoring the threatening online posts. Dai is charged with “posting threats to kill or injure another using interstate communications.” Dai could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine up to $250,000, and up to three years supervised release, according to the press release issued by the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of NY. Dai, like any of those tearing down posters of hostages, and calling for the evisceration of Israel and the death of the Jewish people should all be charged as domestic terrorists.</div><div><br /></div><div>“Universities have a legal responsibility to ensure that the environment is not hostile and target Jewish people. We are working at the Lawfare Project to provide pro-bono legal counsel to students and professors who are suffering Title VI Civil Rights violations right now,” said Brooke Goldstein, attorney and founder of the End Jew Hatred movement.</div><div><br /></div><div>“People like me in the counter-terrorism world and in the… pro-Israel advocacy world have been warning for the last 10 years about the infiltration of our academia by pro-terror and terror-affiliated groups. Students for Justice in Palestine… who are pro-terror or terror-affiliated are operating with impunity and the Department of Education and the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI are not doing enough to contain this. Because this is not just a threat for Israel of Jewish people - this is a national security threat for the United States of America - our academia is radicalized and they’re radicalizing them to be anti-Jewish, anti-Israel, and anti-American. These same people who are cheering for dead Jewish babies, are also the same people who were cheering on 9/11 and they’re going to be cheering when there are further attacks, G-d forbid, on the United States,” said Goldstein, also founder of the Lawfare Project.</div><div><br /></div><div>Interestingly, the overwhelming majority of the anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian/Hamas protesters, on and off campuses, are so liberal, so progressive that they are seen carrying signs at these rallies saying ridiculous things like “Allah loves equality,” “Queers for Hamas.” These are the same far-left progressives demanding safe spaces on campus away from conservatives, demanding charges against anyone misgendering them with the wrong pronouns, but they will side with Hamas terrorists, worse than ISIS, against the only safe space they would experience in the Middle East - Israel, the historical homeland of the Jewish people.</div><div><br /></div><div>Do these supporters of Hamas not realize that Hamas, like Iran, would kill the homosexuals, the members of the transgender community - they have a history of dropping homosexuals off of the rooftops of buildings to their demise. Do these liberal, progressive anti-Israel protesters think feminists and the female protesters would be treated equally or even fairly? A 16 year old girl, Armita Geravand, and a 22 year old woman, Mahsa Amini, both suffered fatal injuries through encounters with “officers enforcing the mandatory Islamic dress code” in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Geravand died October 1, and Amini died September 16, 2022 having been beaten by so-called “morality police.” The dress code has been in place since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. These two young women were caught sans hijabs. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/28/iranian-teenager-armita-geravand-dies-after-alleged-hijab-encounter-with-officers-reports-say) Are these the terrorists with whom the anti-Israel protesters have aligned themselves?</div><div><br /></div><div>Hamas does not recognize the rights of their own people to have freedom, security, property, the rule of law - beliefs cherished in Israel and by Judeo-Chrisitan civilization. Another sad irony is that these protesters would be welcomed in Israel, live more productive and safer lives there, which is the most democratic, egalitarian, free nation in the Middle East. There are about 1.5 million Arabs living in Israel. Arabs have voting rights, they can be elected to the Knesset (Parliament), work in the professions, even serve on the supreme court. Women have equal rights, as do gays and lesbians, demonstrative of Israel not being an apartheid state. How many of the 48 Arab/Muslim nations can make the same claim? Israel is the antithesis of the Arab/Muslim world, but it is painfully obvious the anti-Israel protesters have been severely indoctrinated to believe the lies that are imparted rather liberally, in the schools, by the so-called mainstream media, and via the radical Islamic propaganda machine, instead of learning true facts and history. People may have differences of opinions, but they may not have their own set of facts and manufactured history. And thus an “information Kristallnacht,” as Ari Fleischer said, absolutely drives that point home. In The Guardian, September 16, 2020, Harriet Sherwood noted “nearly two-thirds of US young adults are unaware six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust.”</div><div><br /></div><div>For greater detail on real facts and history: https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2023/10/israels-911-biden-has-blood-on-his-hands.html </div><div><br /></div><div>Students for Justice in Palestine, with chapters on more than 200 campuses across North America, have rejected the notion that they support Hamas. They are even more insidious, actually calling themselves Hamas. Their values include the requirement to “struggle against state violence, colonialism, capitalism, and imperialism, in all of their forms.” </div><div><br /></div><div>Fascinating. Israel does not brutalize its citizenry. In fact Israel goes out of its way to warn civilians of their foes to seek shelter out of harm's way. Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, al-Qaeda, and other terrorist organizations do just the opposite in using its most vulnerable as human shields, turning women and children into suicide bombers, paying families to have their children martyred. Israel is neither a colonizer nor an apartheid state, more often than not, surrendering land for peace, but this is not about land or peace. The current strife is about survival as a people in its homeland. For all the talk and demands of a cease fire, there was a ceasefire on October 6, 2023 that was unilaterally and without provocation, shattered by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s pawn, Hamas who invaded Israel, slaughtered more than 1,400 innocent civilians, at which point, global anti-Semitism called for restraint by Israel. Israel, who was attacked mercilessly - women and children butchered in their beds; a pregnant woman whose stomach was sliced open, her baby murdered in front of her, and finally to be slaughtered herself by the Hamas terror agents. Yes, these words depict difficult to hear scenes, and even more difficult to see, but the depravity of Hamas must be made known and understood. This is not hyperbole - there is video evidence of this, and many other acts of barbarism committed by Hamas - video filmed by Hamas terrorists. This is what Students for Justice in Palestine supports and celebrates.</div><div><br /></div><div>As for their disdain of capitalism, that pairs well with the fact that Gazans elected Hamas as their ruling government in 2006, following the 2005 departure of Israelis from Gaza proving Israel is not a colonizer. Hamas has not held another election since. Israel seems to call for new elections every 10 minutes. The power structure of Hamas, economically and politically, begins and ends at the top. Less than a third of all the humanitarian aid sent into Gaza for their suffering people - yes, there are plenty of suffering Gazans who Hamas itself prevents from leaving Gaza - actually reaches the people. Hamas established roadblocks to prevent its own people from evacuating out of the northern part of Gaza to the southern part or even out of Gaza altogether in an effort to fit their narrative that the Israel Defense Forces are responsible for the deaths of more Gazan/Palestinians. This garners, for Gaza, media sympathy, and allows Hamas to engage in more heinous barbarism.</div><div><br /></div><div>According to a Globes article, “Poor Gaza, Rich Hamas,” “the Hamas leadership built its wealth mainly through the booming tunnel industry, with Hamas officials imposing taxes, generally 20 percent on all goods smuggled through the tunnels.” Hamas has woven together an intricate, subterranean menagerie of 300 miles of tunnels under Gaza for which to carry out its terrorist machinations. Not to praise Hamas, but this sophisticated system is smart engineering - from a strictly structural standpoint, and not a commentary on its use, which, of course, is for demonic purposes. And that speaks to an enormous problem inside Gaza. Hamas is getting rich while starving its own people. Materials meant for Gazan infrastructure have gone straight into the tunnels. “Today more than half of the residents of Gaza live in severe poverty, but… there were reports of some 600 millionaires living in Gaza.” (https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-Poor-Gaza-rich-Hamas-1001461154) </div><div><br /></div><div>The plight of the Gazans is not on Israel. Upon exiting Gaza in 2005, those who </div><div>remained, and there are more than two million living in Gaza, again, many of whom would like to leave, are being prevented from doing so by Hamas. Under Hamas’s auspices the infrastructure, including greenhouses, were destroyed from within. Why? Why haven’t those with their engineering capabilities not built up Gaza? There’s prime beachfront real estate upon which hotels and resorts could be built for enormous profits, which can be turned into funding for legitimate schools.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jared Kushner, son-in-law of former President Donald Trump, who spent many days and weeks in multiple Middle East countries working on the successful Abraham Accords, keenly noted that, “one of the ironies is that as an American Jew, you’re safer in Saudi Arabia right now than you are on a college campus like Columbia University.”</div><div><br /></div><div>“I remember when I was in elementary school and I asked my teacher could something like the Holocaust ever happen again, and I remember she specifically told me, ‘I guarantee you, I promise you, nothing like this can ever happen,’ and I thought that was true. What we are starting to see today and ever since October 7, that might not be a guarantee anymore,” lamented Zarge at Cornell.</div><div><br /></div><div>“A group that makes up 2.4 percent, roughly, of the American population, it should be jarring to everyone that that same population counts for something like 60 percent of all religious-based hate crimes. And so, they need our help,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray about the Jewish people. Wray also confirmed that terror threats have increased under Biden.</div><div><br /></div><div>And thus made the remarks of Israeli President Isaac Herzog all the more poignant. “If it starts with Israel, if it starts with the Jews, it will never end there. Europe will be next and that is why we are fighting a battle on behalf of the entire world.”</div><div><br /></div><div>Continue to pray for the survival of Israel and the safe return of all the hostages to their homes in whatever corner of the world they may live.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He last visited Israel with his wife in 2019.</i></div><div><br /></div><div>There has been a 388 percent increase in anti-Semitism in the United States since October 7. At least 70 college and university campuses have held anti-Israel and/or pro-Palestinian/Hamas protests and/or rallies. These are many of those schools.</div><div><br /></div><div>Appalachian State University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Saint Xavier University</div><div>Arizona State University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>San Diego City C.C.</div><div>Boston University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Stanford University</div><div>Brown University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>SUNY Binghamton</div><div>Columbia University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>SUNY Buffalo</div><div>Cooper Union<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>SUNY Stony Brook</div><div>Cornell University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Tulane University</div><div>CUNY Campuses<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of California, Berkeley</div><div>DePaul University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of California, Davis</div><div>Emory University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of California, Santa Barbara</div><div>Florida Atlantic University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Chicago</div><div>Florida International University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Cincinnati</div><div>George Mason University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Colorado</div><div>George Washington University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Connecticut</div><div>Georgia Tech University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Florida</div><div>Grinnell College<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Georgia</div><div>Harvard University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Illinois</div><div>Howard University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Illinois-Chicago</div><div>Illinois Wesleyan University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Louisville </div><div>Indiana University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Mass-Amherst</div><div>Kent State University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Michigan</div><div>Lafayette College<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of NC Chapel Hill</div><div>Loyola University New Orleans<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Pennsylvania</div><div>Miami (OH) University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Richmond</div><div>Michigan State University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of South Florida</div><div>Minnesota State University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Southern California</div><div>MIT<span style="white-space: pre;"> <span> </span><span> </span></span>University of Texas, Arlington</div><div>New Mexico State University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Texas, Dallas</div><div>New York University/NYU Law<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Utah</div><div>Northeastern University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Virginia</div><div>Northwestern University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>University of Washington, Seattle</div><div>Ohio State University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Vanderbilt University</div><div>Penn State University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Virginia Tech University</div><div>Purdue University <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Washington University, St. Louis</div><div>Rutgers University<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Yale University </div><div><br /></div><div>If anyone reading this column knows of a college or university that should be on this list, please contact me. Thank you.</div><div><br /></div></div>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-74313739511074191502023-10-22T17:49:00.020-07:002023-10-23T11:27:31.684-07:00An Attack of Literal Biblical Proportions<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">An Attack of Literal Biblical Proportions<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />October 22, 2023</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This past Shabbat, October 21, 2023, also Chesvan 6, 5784 on the Hebrew calendar, in shuls (synagogues) the world over, the Jewish people read from the Torah (the Five Books of Moses/Scripture), Parshah Noach - the weekly portion about Noah and the Great Flood from Genesis 6:9 - 11:32. This is part of the Covenant between G-d and the Jewish people.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Noah, deemed the only righteous man, is instructed by G-d to “build a large wooden teivah (ark).” G-d informs Noah that “a great deluge will wipe out all life from the face of the earth, but the ark will float upon the water, sheltering Noah and his family, and two members (male and female) of each animal species.” (www.chabad.org)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">But why? Because the Torah says, in Genesis 6:11-13, “And the earth was corrupt before G-d, and the earth was filled with violence. And G-d saw the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. And G-d said unto Noah: ‘The end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them, and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.’” Because the L-rd saw His own creation and what it had become, and it most certainly was not good in His eyes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There’s more to this than the study of this past Shabbat’s Torah portion, but it is derived linguistically. The word violence, used several times in the Torah reading, in Hebrew, phonetically, is hamas - yes, pronounced the same as the radical, militant, Islamic terrorist group of the same spelling - Hamas. With the number of people, young, old, Jewish-Israeli, Arab-Israeli, Christian-Israeli, male, female, within the government, not part of the government, military, non-military saying Hamas is worse than ISIS, speaks volumes. A militant, Islamic terrorist organization with a name translating to mean “violence” is not coincidental - names have meanings, and dates are chosen for significance.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The heinous acts of barbarism meted out by Hamas have been compared to the savagery that was the Holocaust. The slaughter of innocent women, children, elderly, the rape of women and children, the beheading of babies on October 7, reaching beyond 1,400 murdered Israelis - non-combatants, civilians, more than 260 music festival attendees, wheelchair-bound Holocaust survivors - the enormity not seen since the Holocaust itself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This invasion of Israel, this attack of Jewish Israelis, for one reason, and one reason only, because they believe in, and worship, the G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has been celebrated en masse on college campuses and on city streets the world over. Cities including, but not limited to Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco in the United States, as well as Brussels, London, Paris, Sydney, and Tehran to the tune of hundreds of thousands took to the streets supporting Palestinians and Hamas, many disbelieving the realities of Hamas’s brutal crimes against humanity. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">And let’s not forget Washington, DC - where hundreds protested in the Cannon Office Building and thousands more outside the Congressional building. There are many who would call the behavior of this group an insurrection, but that won’t be reported by the so-called mainstream media. This rabid anti-Israel group is called Jewish Voice for Peace - that’s right - Jewish. This radical group of self-hating Jews supports the propaganda peddled by Hamas and their Palestinian pawns. It is the “largest Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world.” (www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org) </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This dangerous radical group of, it’s hard to call them Jewish, supporters of the Palestinians, calling Israel Palestine on their website, supports a Palestinian homeland, and fell prey to the propaganda arm of Hamas, as did the so-called mainstream media, falsely calling Israel an apartheid state, falsely calling Israel a colonizer. Ponder this question: If Israel is surrounded by foes, and surrenders land when signing peace treaties, what land have they colonized? Hearing crickets. And why? Because Israel does not colonize land.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Hamas, as well as the militant Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah, attacking Israel from Lebanon in the north (both funded proxies of the Islamic Republic of Iran), have the same goals emblazoned into their charters - the eradication of Israel and the annihilation of global Jewry. With objectives and aspirations like these, there are no negotiations to be had with these murderers. There is no two-state solution for terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah, only the Final Solution - just as the Nazis designed.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Many of the protesters against Israel and for the Palestinians and Hamas are college-educated, middle-upper class, white liberals indoctrinated on the very campuses that also held rallies. Schools such as, but not limited to Arizona State, Columbia, CUNY campuses, Harvard, Indiana, Kent State, NYU Law, Penn State, Purdue, UC Berkeley, U. of Chicago, U. of Cincinnati, UConn, U. of Louisville, U. of Michigan, U. of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, U. of Pennsylvania, USC, U. of Virginia, and Yale. Jewish students on these, and many other campuses, are reporting an exponential rise in anti-Semitism, and have expressed fear in walking around campus. Pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas supporters hide behind masks while those rallying for Israel do so openly and with pride.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Supporters of Palestinians and Hamas deny that Hamas uses both its enemies and its so-called brethren as human shields - placing their rockets, and other weapons in schools, hospitals, civilian residential areas, even mosques. Holding more that 220 hostages supports the human shield notion. This is not the sign of a religion of peace. There would be no war had Hamas not invaded and attacked Israel. But the Hamas philosophy includes “a jihad for victory or martyrdom.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">"To Hamas: if you're not a coward, then give back every single hostage because you wouldn't need them. You would fight like a man. You would fight eye to eye, you wouldn't need human shields to do the job," said Senator Katie Britt (R-AL).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In addition to the propaganda war Hamas is waging, its hypocrisy knows no limits. The supporters of Palestinians and Hamas demanded proof when told about the Hamas dastardly, heinous slaughter of women, children, and elderly. This includes the rape of children, the decapitation of babies and the kidnapping of wheelchair-bound Holocaust survivors. Yet there is absolute rejection of proof - even video proof by Hamas itself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Yet, when Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza is allegedly bombed, all the same people above including the so-called mainstream media, leap in a single bound to take as gospel, the words of a terrorist organization - Hamas. As Hamas blames Israel, the media genuflects, all the protestors become apoplectic, and do not demand the same proof they expected regarding the horrifying barbarism perpetrated by Hamas. And while the proof became patently clear that Israel did not bomb the Gazan hospital, and that it was Islamic Jihad’s own misfired rocket that took out the parking lot next to the hospital, and 500 Palestinians, as initially, wrongly reported died, were not killed.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Both US Reps Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) posted immediately to social media their blame of Israel for the bombing of the hospital. Even after proof Israel did not bomb the hospital, neither Omar nor Tlaib have yet to remove their posts from social media blaming Israel. In fact, Tlaib went one step beyond her initial blame. At a Palestinian rally in Washington, DC, Tlaib ranted hysterically, “I can cry. We can cry. If we’re not crying, something is wrong,” on October 18. Just days before, Tlaib walked stone faced, and stone cold silent when asked about the Hamas decapitation of Israeli babies. She would utter nary a syllable - not even to condemn the decapitation of babies.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Tlaib, Omar, and the rest of the anti-Semitic so-called squad have also demanded that the United States allow about a million Palestinian so-called refugees into the country. So-called refugees because history proves otherwise. https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2023/10/israels-911-biden-has-blood-on-his-hands.html </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A million unvetted Palestinians? Consider that Jordan’s King Abdullah II said neither Jordan nor Egypt would allow any of the wayward Palestinians into their countries. There are 48 Arab/Muslim nations, and none of them have agreed entry to any of the Palestinians. Yet, Israel, the lone Jewish state also says no, and Israel is blamed for all the evil in the world. Most certainly the United States should follow Egypt, Jordan, and Israel, especially with the growing number of illegals flooding the southern border of the United States coming from roughly 100 countries, including Iran, Lebanon, and Syria.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Going back to the protesters and supporters of Palestinians and Hamas, each one of them should be asked these simple questions. Do Jewish people have the right to live? Do Jewish people have the right to a Jewish homeland? Perhaps those are not simple questions as more and more of the younger supporters of the Palestinians and Hamas in the United States and overseas believe Hamas had the right to invade Israel and commit the acts of butchery they executed.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Israel does not start wars. The day Israel loses a war, G-d forbid, Israel ceases to exist. Israel is in a constant battle for survival, and that is not hyperbole. Golda Meir, Israel’s fourth Prime Minister said “we Israelis have a secret weapon - we have nowhere else to go.” Where do the Jewish people go when the rising anti-Semitism becomes too arduous under which to live in countries outside Israel, in the Diaspora? If not Israel, where?</span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. </span></i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-23116638759020552792023-10-13T13:03:00.026-07:002023-10-15T02:14:41.659-07:00Israel's 9/11; Biden has Blood on His Hands<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Israel’s 9/11, Biden has Blood on His Hands<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />October 13, 2023</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A peaceful Shabbat morning, which would usher in Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, a period of joy and celebration among the Jewish people the world over suffered a violent shattering by an invasion into Israel by the fanatical, militant, radical, Islamic Palestinian terrorist group Hamas from Gaza.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">As of this writing, the slaughter that saw more than 1,300 Israelis murdered on October 7, 2023 is the deadliest day, the single greatest loss of Jewish life, murdered simply for being Jewish and/or Israeli, since Hitler’s Holocaust of European Jewry. The Israeli cabinet declared war for the first time almost 50 years to the day of the Yom Kippur War - October 6, 1973. For a brief history of the Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) War: https://www.history.com/topics/middle-east/yom-kippur-war And as they did 50 years ago, and every other time Israel has been attacked and invaded, Israel will once again, rise up, swiftly dispatch their foes, and live another day, year, generation, millenia.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Shemini Atzeret literally means eighth day stop. It immediately follows the seven day celebration of Sukkot - the Feast of Tabernacles. This eighth day is designed to celebrate and observe one more day more privately - between Man and G-d. That observance leads directly to the very public and festive celebration of Simchat Torah - the Joy of the Torah. Jews dance with the Torah and sing as the conclusion of the reading of the Torah is observed, followed immediately by beginning a new cycle of Torah reading, starting of course, with Genesis. And it’s not just the reading of “G-d’s infinite wisdom,” but the study and learning of “new and loftier interpretations.” (www.chabad.org)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“We are entering a new day of fighting the terrorists, fighting those barbarics, the evil,” said Danny Danon, former Ambassador to the United Nations and former member of the Knesset. “You faced it with 9/11,” the attack “was unprovoked. But the Israeli people, we are strong, we are willing to fight. We are united. We support the Prime Minister.” We are “in the fight for our lives,” continued Danon, who was also asked about the current protests in a divided Israel. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“When we are under attack, we put our differences aside. We don’t have any arguments. We are one people together. We mobilized the reserves - my son, entire families - the people want to fight. We stand together. Fifty years ago we fought the Yom Kippur War - it was much harder than today, and we showed our ability to come together, and that is what is happening now. The Israelis are coming together in order to fight against the evil force of Hamas,” said Danon.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “Israel is at war with Hamas.” The Hamas terrorists launched a surprise, sneak attack from Gaza across the border into southern Israel. Hamas perpetrated ground attacks on Ashkelon, Be’ eri, Erez Crossing, Kfar Aza, Magen, Nir Am, Nir Oz, Ofakim, Re’ im Army Base, Sderot, and Zikim Base. Additional assaults found their targets Tel Aviv, Israel’s largest city, and Jerusalem, Israel’s capital, as well as Be’ er Sheva, Kerem Shalom, Kibbutz Re’ im, Kibbutz Sufa, Kissufim, Nahal Oz, Netiv Haasara, and Yakhini. Within 72 hours the fanatical, militant, radical, Islamic Palestinian terrorist group Hezbollah launched a dozen rockets into Israel from Lebanon. This is now a two front conflagration with Hezbollah attacking from the north along with Hamas invading from the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu’s response has been swift and impudent - that Israel would “crush and destroy Hamas.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Kfar Aza saw perhaps the most barbaric, monstrous, unconscionable measure of depravity one could imagine - or not imagine - 40 babies slaughtered, many beheaded - decapitated, left strewn about, among the more than 200 corpses discovered by the IDF (Israel Defense Forces). Some of the parents witnessed the executions of their babies, just before the Hamas terrorists killed those very parents. More stories of man’s inhumanity to man could be witnessed on the very videos shot by the Hamas terrorists themselves as acts of pride. (It seems Hamas took a page out of the Nazis playbook as to this day there are films of the Nazis slaughtering Jews en masse.) Entire families burned alive. A murdered woman with her newborn baby still attached to the mother’s umbilical cord could be found. These reports were multi-sourced. Israeli soldiers invited the media to bear witness to the unspeakable carnage and report the truth. A truth that included what many said was the “smell of death.” Additional atrocities as reported by i24 News Israel included 70 Hamas terrorists butchering their way through a town of 700.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">These horrifying scenes, this level of depravity, knows no bounds with these subhuman monsters, and it is difficult to accept and absorb, and harder even to bear witness. Yet, it is imperative for civilized people to see and hear these accounts in order to understand the level to which these monsters will sink. The taking of hostages - women and children of all ages from infants to the elderly and infirmed in wheelchairs, even an 85 year old Holocaust victim - victimized again, for the second time in her life, this time by Palestinian Nazis. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The mendacity of Hamas representatives and spokesmen, as if we should believe a single syllable emanating from their filthy mouths, suggesting the Israelis killed were all soldiers. Evidence to the alternative suggests otherwise. Should we believe their words or their videos? Videos of kidnappings, shootings - bodies found with a dozen, 20, or more bullet holes. These Hamas terrorists kept killing the Israelis even after they were dead. These soulless ghouls pulling people out of their vehicles, invading their homes, dragging people out of their beds, conducting house to house and apartment to apartment searches reminiscent of the methodical searches for Jewish people masterminded by the Nazis during the Holocaust.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">And the wanton massacre of 260 young people simply attending and enjoying a music festival in the Negev Region near Kibbutz Re’ im as bullets rained down upon them in droves. Additionally, an unknown number of these young people have been kidnapped into Gaza. Were these young people uniformed soldiers hell bent on the destruction of anyone, anywhere? Certainly not; so, again, more lies from Hamas. ZAKA, a non-governmental “Jewish charity that provides humanitarian aid and rescue in Israel” (www.zakaworld.org) removed bodies from the site of the SuperNova Music Festival.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“My heart is filled with concern and passion,” said Shahar Azani, a former spokesman for the Israeli consulate in New York. “Even though our eyes may be tearing at this point, they’re also filled with the fire of determination and resilience - resilience that manifests in this small note of a four year old girl to a soldier on the front,” continued Azani as he held up a note of thanks written in Hebrew to IDF soldiers from his niece.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Just about anyone interviewed, whether Israeli civilians, American civilians in Israel, American civilians with family in Israel, members of the Israeli government or the government of the United States has said this unprovoked attack on Israel by the terrorist group Hamas is, in effect, Israel’s 9/11, some have suggested a comparison to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Babies, women, elderly, were dragged outside of their homes; were taken hostage. This is our 9/11,” declared Gilad Erdan, Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations. Erdan equated the murder of 1,300 Israelis to the potential slaughter of 45,500 Americans on 9/11. Such an atrocity would have made a nation of greater than 340,000,000 completely apoplectic and more out for blood than they already were on that fateful day. “We should all understand this - from today on, things will never be in Israel as they were. But we are strong. We are resilient people. We’ve gone through hardships and we will win also, this war. We will prevail,” assured Erdan.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“This is a grotesque act of war. Watching the videos of what is happening - these Hamas terrorists are targeting civilians. They’re murdering women. They’re murdering children. They’re murdering the elderly,” said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) “They’re firing into a rock concert. They are brutally raping women and they are brutally raping children, and they’re dragging them back to Gaza. These are horrific war crimes, and what is infuriating, is that this attack was paid for by billions of dollars that Biden sent to Iran, sent to the Ayatollah. Hamas is a proxy for Iran. I lead a group of senators calling on the administration to stop sending money to these terrorists,” said Cruz.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“We’ve compared this attack to 9/11 and we’ve talked about the Yom Kippur War of 1973. To me, it harkens back to Pearl Harbor,” said Dan Hoffman, former CIA Station Chief. “This was a massive incursion, attack on Israel’s border, land, air, and sea, with thousands of missiles, some of which penetrated the Iron Dome. Palestinian terrorists, Hamas terrorists, cut the perimeter fence and terrorized Israel, Israeli citizens. There will be time for the forensics to determine where the intelligence failure took place and why, but right now Israel has to take the fight to the enemy. Israel has no choice but to defend themselves and rid the planet of Hamas. What scares the Ayatollah the most - peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia; the Abraham Accords,” said Hoffman.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“First of all, we’re praying for the people of Israel. This is an absolute disaster for the people of Israel in terms of the attacks on these great people, our allies and our friends,” said US Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX). “We stand, I stand fully behind Prime Minister Netanyahu, and there needs to be a united strong message from the people of this country that we will fully back Israel. The videos that I’ve had sent to me from sources inside of Israel make the stuff y’ all are showing on Fox look like child’s play. It is an absolute abomination. What we’re seeing is savagery. What we’re seeing is direct attacks on civilians. Prime Minister Netanyahu is 100 percent correct to say that he’s going to take buildings in the Gaza Strip down to rubble, where Hamas is using to hide behind civilians,” said Roy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“The world must allow Israel to defeat Hamas - they’ve committed atrocities the likes of which I don’t think we’ve seen since the Holocaust. So, this has shaken the country to its core,” said David Friedman, former US Ambassador to Israel. “This is very difficult to watch - painful to watch. I’m here in Jerusalem, in and out of shelters all day long. Jewish people murdered, civilians murdered, pulled out of their homes and murdered and all through a very carefully planned, highly expensive, sophisticated act by Hamas with lethal and advanced equipment. How did Hamas get all that stuff? They don’t earn any money - they’re a terrorist organization. They get money from Iran, which we are now appeasing, and facilitating, and lifting sanctions, and emboldening them, and making them richer. So we’re giving Iran money to help Hamas. The Palestinian Authority gives a lot of money to Hamas. The Palestinians put on plays to teach their children in Gaza to hate Israel. Children five, 10 years old dress up as terrorists, and others dress up as Jews, and they kill the Jews and the parents all applaud. We’re funding that,” said Friedman.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The word “allow” spoken by Ambassador Friedman is troublesome, and this is not the first time words like, allow, permit, authorize, sanction are bandied about as though Israel, an independent sovereign nation, needs any other nation’s permission to defend itself - defend - as in having already been attacked. The next set of instructions Israel is typically offered is to proceed with caution, to resist full-scale retaliation, to delay further actions - even before any response has been given. Joe Biden advised Israel to adhere to the “rule of war” regarding its response, which, quite frankly, is rather insulting considering that Hamas started this war, invading Israel and committing acts of barbarism so heinous they are comparable to the Nazis and Isis.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">And with regard to exercising restraint, US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, put her ignorance on full display, when, after condemning the Hamas attacks, called for “an immediate ceasefire and de-escalation is urgently needed to save lives.” Lives would never have been in danger or lost if not for the Hamas invasion of, and attack on, Israel, as well as the murder, rape, and kidnapping of Israeli women, children, and the elderly, including a wheelchair-bound female Holocaust survivor.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“It’s basically about keeping your border safe - that’s the lesson I think America can gain from as well. You’ve got to know who’s in your country. You’ve got to know what’s on your border. You’ve got to protect your border from bad people and unfortunately [this] may be the most painful lesson in its 75 year history,” said Freidman, making a solid observation about the sieve of a border in the United States Southwest.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Joe Biden has blood on his hands, for, aside from the $6 billion unnecessarily unfrozen for Iran, the southwest border of the United States, in its porous condition, has attracted more and more illegals from more and more countries including Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Mauritania, Pakistan, Syria, Turkey, and Yemen, who continue pouring across our southern border unvetted, unchecked, uncompromised who are unabashedly un-American - it's just a matter of time.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“People call it Israel’s 9/11 - it’s more like Israel’s Pearl Harbor. The difference between 9/11 and Pearl Harbor is that in Pearl Harbor we knew exactly who the enemy was; 9/11 took some time to figure out who the enemy was. This we knew in advance exactly who the enemy was, that they were trying to kill us, and we still failed to stop it from happening. So, it’s a crushing blow to Israel, I think, and I hope and I pray that this lesson will now be internalized within Israel. I hope among Israel’s allies around the world, including my country, America, to get back to basics - you can’t win a football game with a quarterback and a wide receiver. You need a guard. You need a tackle. You need a running back. You need the whole package, and even the old fashioned security devices and practices are both important. Let Israel defend itself and eradicate this scourge. The whole world will be a safer place - not just Israel,” said Friedman.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Israel is a small country of less than 10 million people - the size of New Jersey - so we’re dealing with something that is very similar to the United States’ 9/11 or Pearl Harbor, with a few differences,” said Noa Tishby, an Israeli activist who served in the IDF. “Around 9/11 and Pearl Harbor, the enemy was far away. The enemy - we had to go and chase down the enemy in Afghanistan in caves. And this, the enemy was in our homes, in our bedrooms, among our children. And the enemy, we know exactly where that enemy is. So, sadly, we’re going to have to do what needs to be done, in order to take care of this problem,” she continued. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The use of the adverb “sadly,” speaks volumes, as just about everyone, when they speak of war or armed conflict, uses such words - sadly, unfortunately, glumly, mournfully - because Israelis would prefer not to enter into armed conflict. They don’t suffer from the same maniacal bloodlust as Hamas, Hezbollah, Isis, the Taliban, and al-Qaeda, among, sadly, many others who have mastered depravity and moral turpitude to an art form.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Everybody that I know, knows somebody that was affected in one way or another,” said Tishby, who is Israel’s first Special Envoy for Combating anti-Semitism and Delegitimization. “The stories are horrific. I personally am praying for my members of the family that are fighting right now, that are literally fighting Hamas on the border and within Israel, right now as we speak. What we are witnessing now, what has happened in Israel in the past few days, is nothing short of the worst day in Jewish history since the Holocaust. This is the largest number of Jews that have been slaughtered in one day since the Holocaust. And as a Special Envoy for Combating anti-Semitism and Delegitimization of Israel, I have been warning for a very long time that the slow erosion of Israel’s standing in the world, this demonization, dehumanization, vilification of Israel is going to allow for a massacre. And this is sadly, what we’re seeing right now,” said Tishby.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Responding to a question about civilian casualties and global criticism, Tishby said, “this is one of those times in history where my country really shouldn’t care about what the world is saying, but of course, we do care. Israel can do no right in terms of some fractions of American society. When we look at representatives like Rashida Tlaib, that are watering down what happened in the past couple of days and equivocating it and using ‘what-about-ism,’ when you talk about a massacre of women, children, the elderly, babies that are kidnapped - I don’t know if you’ve seen the video of the two-year-old that is now in the hands of Hamas, when you’re equivocating that, in any way shape or form, you are yourself the problem.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Tishby referenced US Rep. Tlaib (D-MI), one of the most virulent anti-Semitic, anti-Israel members of Congress. Tlaib flatly blames Israel unilaterally, placing no blame on Hamas, for the slaughter of innocent Israeli civilians. In fact, Tlaib is so supportive of the heinous actions of Hamas, she refuses to condemn the slaughter of babies, many of whom were decapitated. Hillary Vaughn of Fox News peppered Tlaib with questions about those Hamas murdered babies down a long hallway in one of the Congressional office buildings until they reached a “members only” elevator when she and two staffers disappeared having uttered not a single syllable. The slaughter of babies. Tlaib wouldn’t even condemn that. In an unconscionable statement, Tlaib said “I am determined as ever to fight for a just future where everyone can live in peace, without fear and with true freedom, equal rights, and human dignity. The path to that future must include lifting the blockade, ending the occupation, and dismantling the apartheid system that creates the suffocating, dehumanizing conditions that can lead to resistance.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There is so much to unpack in Tlaib’s tale of fiction. The lives that she invisions for her people is more likely to be achieved in Israel than in Gaza. Israel is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East. For as tiny as Israel is, it is an oasis of freedom, equal rights, and human dignity. As is mentioned elsewhere, Israel gave a 24 hour advance warning to the civilians to evacuate north Gaza. Hamas prevented that from happening in order to use their own people as human shields, the same way Hamas stores its weapons and munitions in or under hospitals, elementary schools, even mosques - knowing Israel’s IDF would not target such places. The same can be said of alleged suffocating and dehumanizing conditions, that it is Hamas that is guilty of these charges. Again, who uses whom as a human shield?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">If Gaza is not considered part of Israel, and the sources of the statistics presented below indicate Gaza and the West Bank are independent of Israel, then what blockade is Tlaib talking about? If Gaza and Israel are independent of one another, for Palestinians in Gaza to enter Israel, they would need permission the same as any American would need to visit Canada or Mexico. If Gaza and Israel are independent of one another, there is no occupation because Israel disengaged from Gaza in 2005. And perhaps the biggest lie of all, calling Israel an apartheid state. In Israel, the Knesset (Parliament) is comprised of Jews and non-Jews, Israelis and Arabs. There are no mandatory race laws or segregation. There’s a reason the gay pride parade in Tel Aviv is one of the biggest in the world. In 15 of the 18 “official” Arab countries, homosexuality is punishable with prison, or in some cases, execution. There are horror stories of gays being thrown from rooftops of buildings to their deaths in these countries. That Tlaib has both a Palestinian and a pride flag outside her Capitol Hill office is counterintuitive. Tlaib faced questions about having the Palestinian flag and was defended by longtime US Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), who said, “she’s Palestinian.” Hoyer did not say she’s Palestinian-American. If Tlaib is simply Palestinian, she has no business serving in the United States Congress. The ideals Tlaib is seeking for her people can be found in Israel for people who are able to live peacefully. They most certainly are not available under Hamas’ iron fist in Gaza.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The same answer can be offered to US Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) who said “we must do our part to stop this violence and trauma by ending US government support for Israeli military occupation and apartheid.” There are neither.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“This is what we’ve been saying for a long time - the Palestinian people are oppressed. They are oppressed by their own people. They are oppressed by Hamas. Hamas, just so we are clear, is a radical Islamist genocidal organization that is hell bent on one thing, and one thing only - and that is destroying, killing, and slaughtering as many Jews as they possibly can. This is something I’ve been talking about for many years. The reason I know this, is because this is in the Hamas charter. They are not hiding that they are about slaughtering Jews. Israel needs to do what it needs to do, and has every single right to defend herself. Right now, there is pretty much support from wall to wall because this event is so evidently horrible, that the support is there. Israel uses its weapons to protect her citizens. Hamas uses its citizens to protect their weapons,” concluded Tishby, the founder of Act for Israel.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In addition to the more than 1,300 murdered Israelis, a number that includes at least 29 slain Americans, more than 150 people are being held hostage including at least 20 Americans, and Italy reported that Hamas has at least 10 Italian nationals. People the world over visit Israel for many reasons, and unfortunately with the unpredictability of militant Islamic terrorists, there’s no good or bad time to visit, so people visit. For years I debated when to go to Israel. There comes a point where you have to just commit to making the pilgrimage to one of the most transcending places on G-d’s green earth. We did. Suffice it to say I could write another column on that phenomenal experience. We felt safe; we were safe. Our tour guides had an IDF background, and whether by bus or on foot we truly felt safe. Granted there are members of the military on practically every street corner, but that works for me, and I publicly thank them again for their service to a great and grateful nation.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">As for the current struggles, Prime Minister Netanyahu said it best. “Although Israel did not start this war, Israel will finish it.” Now it's time for the IDF to do their jobs, eliminate Hamas from existence and turn Gaza into a parking lot. This can be done with the aid of the 360,000 Reservists called up for duty. So important is it for Israel to vanquish this enemy that Israeli airline El Al, with the blessing of the Orthodox community, is breaking with tradition and flying on Shabbat for the first time since 1982 in order to transport reservists. Israel, in spite of its size, is not asking the United States for manpower. The US is sending munitions, aircraft carriers, and fighter jets, as well as moving several warships closer to Israel, the Pentagon reported.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Hamas and Hezbollah are bought and paid for proxies of the Islamic Republic of Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism since the days of the Iranian Revolution that saw the Shah of Iran deposed and Ayatollah Khomeini installed as the fanatical Islamic despotic ruler of Iran from 1979 until his death on June 3, 1989, at age 86. On November 4, 1979 a group of radical Iranian students stormed the US Embassy in the Iranian capital of Tehran, taking, initially, 66 hostages. For various reasons, 14 hostages were released. The remaining 52 extended their imposed stay for a total of 444 days until January 21, 1981, thus ending the Iranian Hostage Crisis hours after President Ronald Reagan’s inauguration. (Pray this is not the commencement of history repeating itself.)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In the decades since, the Islamic Republic of Iran ratcheted up its fanatical behavior with the imposition of “Classic” Sharia Law. They have been madly attempting to acquire the components necessary to build nuclear bombs, regularly threatening the United States and Israel, which Iran refers to as the “Great Satan” and the “Little Satan” respectively. The Islamic Republic of Iran has employed the likes of Hamas and Hezbollah as their pawns to do the dirty work they, themselves, are not willing to do. “We need to listen to what they say. They want to wipe the state of Israel off the map. When the Islamic Republic of Iran chants ‘death to Israel,’ they also chant ‘death to America,’” said Morgan Ortagus, former spokesperson for the State Department under Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, as well as a US Navy Reserve Officer. Pompeo himself said Iran is the greatest threat to civilization itself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Iran is the biggest danger to the future of the free world - it doesn’t want to see normalization,” said Erdan. There is no doubt Iran was strongly disenchanted with the possibility of Israel and Saudi Arabia moving toward normalized relations, much the way Israel solidified with Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates during the Trump administration, under the Abraham Accords. “We are committed to destroying Hamas’ infrastructure - dozens of Americans are among the hostages,” said Erdan.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">This was a “coordinated, expensive, detailed sneak attack,” said foreign policy expert Lisa Daftari. “This is not just Hamas - this is Iran wanting an all out war against Israel. It’s not just Hamas - it’s [Iran] using a multi-pronged approach - by sea, by land, by air - they’ve been working on this for a very long time. Look at Iranian media - you look at the leaders inside Iran - they’re not only celebrating, they’re bragging about having a hand in this. They literally are saying, if you think we weren’t behind this, we were behind it. Not only that, it would be very naive to think that the Biden administration in the last three years going back to the negotiating table multiple times removing vital sanctions from Iran’s regime, and, of course, unfreezing $6 billion just a few weeks ago. Just to talk about giving $6 billion to the regime gave them confidence to do so, so we know that Iran’s regime was absolutely behind this, and we emboldened them to do so,” concluded Daftari, host of the Foreign Desk podcast.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Biden’s fecklessness and weakness were on full display in the major foreign policy blunder, authorizing the unfreezing of $6 billion worth of Iranian assets. This should have been a simple swap - our prisoners for Iran’s prisoners. No muss, no fuss. No money should have been part of the deal. US Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), also in the running for the GOP presidential nomination said that such an unprecedented deal would create “a market for hostages,” and that it would be open season on every American leaving the country, making them vulnerable to kidnapping for enormous ransoms and political blackmail.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Biden has blood on his hands by virtue of unfreezing that $6 billion which, although both Iran and the US State Department say has not been touched and is in a bank in Qatar, a third party, gave Iran the opportunity to free up a different $6 billion, already in Iran’s coffers, to carry out their heinous and nefarious plots with Hamas as their surrogate, as has become evident. As so many have correctly avered, that money is fungible, and would not necessarily be earmarked for food, medicine, and humanitarian relief, as intended. Knowing the money exists and is within reach is a game changer for Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Scott is working within the Senate to refreeze those very assets. “You can’t make a good deal with a bad actor,” said Scott. Knowing that money would be used for evil rather than good, that Iran could inch ever closer to achieving their goal of a nuclear reality, that money must be refrozen, and all sanctions must actually be enforced. Those sanctions include thwarting Iran from gaining profits in the energy sector. Iran has not demonstrated its worthiness to rejoin the community of civilized nations. Biden and his administration are complicit with the Islamic Republic of Iran by unfreezing assets Iran doesn’t deserve, and capitulating on Iran’s ability to rake in upwards of $60 billion in energy sales to the Chinese Communist Party.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">On Wednesday October 11 Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) announced they will introduce legislation and seek unanimous consent to refreeze the $6 billion Biden released to Iran, via a bank in Qatar, in August. This should pass 100-0, but maybe not.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Iran is the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism. In addition to funding Hamas’s devastating terrorist attacks against Israel, the regime’s proxies have attacked dozens of American targets in the region in recent years. The Biden administration’s decision to let Iran access the $6 billion immediately freed up other money for the regime to fund its attacks in Israel. The Biden administration should immediately freeze the funds,” said the press release from Cotton’s office. The bill itself is but two pages. As of Thursday night October 12, the funds were re-iced.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Hamas, founded in 1987 in the Gaza Strip as an Islamic resistance movement, won Gaza’s 2006 election. No elections have been held since. Hamas is funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, who provides the terror group with training and weapons. Hamas is Sunni Muslim, as are 87-90 percent of all Muslims. The Hamas charter labels Arabs who negotiate peace with Israel as a traitor to the Arab world and to Islam - that every Jewish man, woman, and child is a legitimate target for their nefarious agenda. Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by Australian law, British law, Canadian law, European Union law, and Japanese law.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Hezbollah, founded in 1982 in Lebanon following the Lebanon War, also received training from the Islamic Republic of Iran. Hezbollah ascribes to the Shia branch of Islam, just as their benefactor Iran does, but they are in the minority, as only 10-13 percent of Muslims are adherents to Shia.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Where the two terrorist organizations agree, is in their charters. Both Hamas and Hezbollah have language in their charters calling for the complete and total destruction and elimination of Israel and the entirety of the Jewish people in perpetuity. With that being said, it is complete ignorance for anyone to suggest either Hamas or Hezbollah want or would agree to a two-state solution, as has been recommended by just about every politician under the sun.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The sentiments presented by LeElle Slifer from Texas in an interview with Steve Doocy on Fox & Friends on Wednesday morning October 11 were nothing short of brilliant. She was discussing the murder of her mother’s cousin by Hamas and other family members being held hostage by the Hamas thugs. “Calling it war crimes is even charitable. This is jihad. There are no rules in jihad,” said Slifer. “They’re raping women in fields. They’re beheading babies. They’re executing the elderly in the streets. It’s appalling, and the world has to step up and get these hostages out. It’s the worst nightmare possible. And not only that, my cousin [and] my friends have been called up to the Reserves, into Gaza, to try to extract them. This is not the end of the death toll. There will be more to come. It’s unimaginable. I pray; I pray that [her two relatives] will come home safely. Hamas will stop at nothing. They’re using these people as pawns. They don’t want a two-state solution - they want the FINAL SOLUTION, and they don’t care how many Jews, how many Americans, how many of their own people have to die, in order for them to wage their jihad,” said a justifiably impassioned Slifer. We must pray for the safe return of her family and all the family members still missing or in captivity.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Slifer rightly called for the world to step up. “When the Emergency Security Council of the UN convenes, we expect everyone who supports democratic values, liberal values - we expect all of them to support Israel, to condemn explicitly Hamas, and say that they support 100 percent, our right to defend ourselves. We are going to use every means at our disposal. We are fighting the way you fought against Isis, against al-Qaeda - these barbaric terrorists have the same ideology. We should all understand, Hamas is not looking to compromise, to have a dialogue with Israel. They only want to annihilate the one and only Jewish state. Their charter says loud and clear - you should butcher every Jew that you meet,” said Ambassador Erdan.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Heading into week two of the war, the tables are beginning to turn. Rockets being fired into Israel have been defended by the Iron Dome, as the IDF readies itself for a ground assault in Gaza. Unlike Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran, IDF soldiers will not intentionally seek out women, children, the elderly or the infirmed to torture and savagely attack, then kill. Instead, as has long been Israel’s tradition, warnings will be given to civilians to flee homes, apartments, other buildings, while military missions can be carried out limiting the amount of brutality, carnage, and collateral damage that may befall a limited number of civilians. Who does that? Israel does. But, Hamas and other Gazans prevented Palestinians in Gaza from fleeing - their own people. This is an intentional ploy to get their own people killed, and once that begins to happen, global media, the UN, anti-Semites, and anti-Zionists the world over will condemn Israel most vociferously. This is not a guess, but instead the M.O. of the terrorists to martyr their own people. And make no mistake, from the first Palestinian civilian to get killed, Israel must prepare for an onslaught of criticism from the mainstream media, the United Nations, the White House - in spite of Biden’s speech agreeing that Israel has the right to, and must, defend herself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“The United States stands with the people of Israel in the face of these terrorist assaults. Israel has the right to defend itself and its people - full stop,” said Joe Biden, more than 48 hours after the Hamas terrorist attacks began. “There’s never a justification for terrorist attacks and my administration support for Israel is rock solid and unwavering. Let me say this as clearly as I can - this is not a moment for any party hostile to Israel to exploit these attacks to seek advantage. The world is watching,” said Biden.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">At no point did Biden say that his administration would stand beside and support Israel for as long as it takes - the oft repeated mantra pertaining to his support for Ukraine. At no point did Biden mention the Islamic Republic of Iran - the largest state sponsor of terror, and the brains and muscle behind the October 7 brutal Shabbat assault on the people and land of Israel. Yet, there were celebrations in Iran. And making matters worse, Biden, in his infinite stupidity, is now, on October 13, advising Israel to delay the ground effort.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">And as former South Carolina Governor and United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley (R-SC) aptly stated, “this should be personal for every woman and man in America. Why? Because when they did this surprise attack, when they took these hostages, when they murdered these families they were celebrating. And what were they celebrating? They were saying ‘death to Israel, death to America.’ This is not just an attack on Israel, this is an attack on America because they hate us just as much. And what we have to understand is this is the reason we have to unite around making sure our enemies do not hurt our friends. America can never be so arrogant to think that we don’t need friends, just like we needed them on 9/11… that’s why Israel needs us when Hamas and Iran are doing this. And I’ll say this to Prime Minister Netanyahu, FINISH THEM! FINISH THEM! Hamas did this, you know Iran’s behind it. FINISH THEM! They should have hell to pay for what they’ve just done,” said an ever supportive of Israel Haley who is seeking the GOP nomination for president in 2024.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“These attacks were dastardly, driven by Tehran, and America needs to stand by Israel - not just rhetorically, but we need to do everything we can to help Israel,” said Robert O’ Brien, former National Security Advisor under President Trump. O’ Brien suggested the US send the Hostage Rescue Team of the FBI and the hostage rescue elements of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) to Israel to help recover the more than 150 hostages - Israeli, American, and others. “The Israelis are very capable of hostage rescue, but this is just going to be overwhelming. They need our support, and we should send our hostage rescue specialists to Israel tonight,” O’ Brien said on Saturday.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">It is not hyperbole when Israelis speak of every battle or war as the fight of their lives, the fight for their lives, or the fight simply to exist. Every day is a fight for survival of the state of Israel. Every day. The day Israel loses a war, Israel ceases to exist. There is but one Jewish state on the entire planet - ONE. Following the Holocaust the Jewish people said, and continue to say, never again. We will stand by that and we will stand with Israel.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">At 8,522 square miles, Israel ranks number 152 out of 223 countries, globally, in size. By comparison, Israel is between the size of New Jersey and New Hampshire. Compared to the 18 nations considered “Arab countries,” that surround Israel, Israel is smaller than all but four, one of which Bahrain, is part of the Abraham Accords. Arab Countries are defined as speaking Arabic and adhering to Islam. (www.worldatlas.com) The 18 Arab countries total 4,565,648 square miles - a whopping 535.75 times larger than Israel. Again, to compare, the United States is 3,797,173 square miles. (www.britannica.com) This excludes Iran, which although more than 99 percent of its population are Muslim, their main spoken language is Farsi, thus not a part of the Arab countries list, but does weigh in at 629,674 square miles, and is a perpetual threat to Israel, as demonstrated by their overwhelming and irrefutable connection to Hamas and Hezbollah.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">With a population of 9.18 million people, Israel ranks 98th out of 234 countries. The city of Cairo, Egypt has a population of 10.9 million people, topping Israel by itself by 1.7 million people. The combined population of the 18 Arab countries is 455.87 million people - good for 49.66 times Israel’s population. Population figures are as of 2023. (www.worldpopulationreview.com) </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">On the faith front, the global Jewish population is 13,850,000 or 0.2 percent of the global population. The Muslim population is 1,598,510,000 or 23 percent of the global population, or 114.21 times greater than the global Jewish population. The population of Israel is 75.22 percent Jewish. Put in perspective, the population of the United States is 1.77 percent Jewish. There are 48 countries with Muslim populations greater than 55 percent, 32 of those nations have Muslim populations above 90 percent, including Iran at 99.5 percent, which, as stated earlier, is not counted among the Arab nations on account of its language. Of the 18 Arab countries, 12 have Muslim populations above 90 percent. (www.worldometers.info)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">What is the point of all this mathematical gymnastics? To demonstrate that Israel is outsized and outnumbered by such extreme percentages as though the lone Jewish state is adrift on a tiny island surrounded by sharks who have not eaten in an overextended period of time. Make no mistake, Israel is far from helpless and is a First World country, but when dwarfed by such extremes and with a target on their backs by millions and millions of people who wish to rid the world of Israel and the Jewish people, a nation of their own, tiny that it is, must continue to exist and thrive - which Israel does. Terrorists have a goal to disrupt society as well as murder Jews and eliminate Israel. Clearly, the notion of yet another agreement to normalize relations, this time with Saudi Arabia, was unacceptable to Iran, and since the war began a week ago, that agreement has been shelved. Under the Abraham Accords during the Trump administration, relations were normalized between Israel and Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, and the UAE. Treaties with Egypt and Jordan were inked decades prior in 1978 and 1994 respectively.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Having spent time in Tel Aviv, a vibrant, thriving, modern (I think too modern) First World city looking as it did, to then see the footage from Tel Aviv this week, portions of it bombed out like a Third World city, is rough. It’s sad and depressing, and it didn’t have to be that way. When Israel vacated Gaza in 2005 they left its infrastructure intact. What did the Palestinians do - tore down virtually every installation and even destroyed the agriculture/vegetation that started to thrive. If you want to talk about a miracle, visit Israel and see their brilliant irrigation systems - brilliant because of what they can grow in a desert.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">These people have chosen to live like vagabonds because they need the refugee standing to keep their insidious fight alive, however disingenuous it is. The Balfour Declaration, issued in 1917, for the purpose of establishing a Jewish homeland, reestablishing would be more accurate given the Biblical edicts handed down from G-d, packs a wallop of a punch for such a short document.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There appeared an introductory sentence above the following as well as a concluding sentence below the following. The text that follows, while brief, should raise no questions regarding the declaration and the disposition of all who lived there, and that is exceptionally important.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.” https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/text-of-the-balfour-declaration </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Beginning with the fact there were no Palestinians in the land of Israel before the Jewish people, and Judaism predates Islam by centuries, Islam was founded in Mecca, Saudi Arabia in the 7th Century, half a millennia after Christianity, and the Jewish calendar just hit 5784 last month. If anything, the Palestinians have a greater issue with the Saudis rather than the Israelis. Alternatively, the Palestine of the Balfour Declaration eventually became two lands - Palestine, for the Jews, and Transjordaan for the Arabs. Quite frankly, the Jewish people should have been more disgruntled than the Arabs/Palestinians because the land of Transjordan calculated to nearly 80 percent of the initial Palestine.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The Arab/Muslim populations were never exiled from the land of Israel, unlike the Jews throughout the ages having been expelled from numerous countries. The Arabs/Muslims have chosen refugee status for generations to garner global and media sympathy, which simultaneously allows for a direct reaction of laying blame on Israel and the Jewish people around the world. Here’s the dirty little secret the media, the progressives, the supporters of Palestinians, Hamas, and Hezbollah don’t want decent society to learn and understand. All the Arab and Muslim nations referenced above - another reason for the mathematical gymnastics - denied entrance to the Palestinian refugees. In 1948, the year of the birth of Israel, there were 700,000 Palestinians living there. They were not asked to leave. They were not forced to leave. Yet, they made their choice. But, if each of those 48 nations could have allowed 14,600 to immigrate over a period of time, this problem would have been resolved 75 years ago. And if 48 Arab/Muslim countries didn't welcome their brethren, why should Israel be obligated in the one and only one Jewish nation. To whom does this make sense? (Even in today’s crisis Egypt worried that if they opened their border to the Palestinians seeking to flee Gaza there would be terror reprisals from Hamas.)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There comes a point where it is time to move on. Following WWII and the Holocaust of European Jewry there were six to eight million “displaced persons,” regardless of who or where, their homes either ceased to exist or belonged to others after various governments took them from people. By the end of 1945, there remained about one million displaced persons, who either couldn’t or wouldn’t return home, of whom some 250,000 were Jewish. DP camps were established, primarily in Germany, and, strange as it may sound, at some of the concentration camps. Reluctantly, the United States accepted 50,000, and another 150,000 settled in Israel - nowhere near the 700,000 Palestinians already there. The last of the DP camps shut down in 1957 (it was the last one since 1952). </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The post WWII refugees were not refugees for the rest of their lives or into future generations. They moved on, as difficult as it may have been - considering the number of DPs who had absolutely nothing and absolutely no one in their lives - all property taken or stolen, all family members murdered, but they moved on. The so-called Palestinian refugees have chosen not to move on. They live in squalor because they have relegated themselves to a tiny place with one of the densest populations per square mile. They live under the iron fists of Hamas terrorists who deprive their own people of food, water, electricity, medicine. Virtually all monies Hamas garners is used for weapons, munitions, and digging intricate tunnels under Gaza. They teach hatred of Jews, Israel, and the United States to their children as young as three and four years old. They are not above strapping bombs to their children or turning women into suicide bombers. They could have chosen to build legitimate schools, maintain the infrastructure that remained when Israel left Gaza in 2005, create a livable and perhaps thriving society, and become genuine neighbors as a member of the community of civilized nations. They chose not to.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">A sampling of countries that exiled their Jewish populations: Algeria 1963, Austria 1422, Bohemia 1640, Bulgaria 1352, Cuba 1959, Ecuador 1939, France 1394, Hungary 1360, Iraq 1948, Jamaica 1665, Libya 1935, Moldova 1831, Netherlands 1442, Persia (Iran) 1656, Portugal 1497, Russia 1772, Spain 1492, West Bank 1948, Uganda 1972, and Yemen 1678. This is far from an exhaustive list. And in a number of cases, the Jewish people experienced multiple exiles and returns from many of the countries. (www.docdroid.net) Those experiences, multiple pogroms in Russia and Eastern Europe, and of course the Holocaust of European Jewry lent credence to the 1948 founding of the State of Israel. Is there any wonder Israel is prepared to fight to the last individual for the sake of preserving the one and only one Jewish state on the planet? After all, to paraphrase Golda Meir, where else will the Jewish people go? Meir, the fourth Prime Minister of Israel said “We Israelis have a secret weapon - we have nowhere else to go.” The long standing enemies of Israel and the Jewish people would simply prefer there be no Israel and that there be no Jewish people remaining on earth. This is not dramatic hyperbole, because as has been noted above, the language of the charters of Hamas and Hezbollah call for just that.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Eretz Yisrael - the Land of Israel in Hebrew, is the Biblical, ancestral, G-d given, eternal home of the Jewish people. The tables are turning as the war enters its second week. The IDF is doing its job, which in this case includes warning the 1.1 million civilians living in northern Gaza to evacuate before the IDF does what it must to restore order, eliminate its enemies, and pray that they do not need to pick up arms again. Is there any other military entity that tips its hand before taking action? It’s demonstrative of the vast difference between Israel and each and every one of its enemies. Israel’s enemies seek the total destruction of Israel and of the Jewish people. Israel doesn’t even seek to destroy anyone, they simply just want to be left alone in peace. They are armed to the rafters out of necessity. It’s called “peace through strength,” as President Ronald Reagan famously stated.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">If Hamas would lay down its arms, there would be no more war. If Israel would lay down its arms, there would be no more Israel. That is a paraphrase from Israel’s own Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who often says: “If the Arabs put down their weapons today, there would be no more violence. If the Jews put down their weapons today, there would be no more Israel.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">With so many mentions of, and comparisons to, the Yom Kippur War of 1973 it conjures up more Meir, subject of a rather popular movie this year, and her waxing philosophical. “When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons. Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">May the memories of the murdered Israelis be for a Blessing. Never again, means never again. Am Yisrael Chai! (The people of Israel live!)</span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Three time "land, sea, and air" were mentioned by three people above. Those words are also used in the prayer for the well being of the Israel Defense Forces recited each Shabbat. This is that prayer: </span></i><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/prayer-for-the-well-being-of-the-israel-defense-forces </i></span></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-87538573246792923392023-10-06T11:09:00.002-07:002023-10-06T14:03:38.020-07:00Speaker Vacancy Stymies House Work<div style="text-align: left;">Speaker Vacancy Stymies House Work<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />October 6, 2023</div><p>For the first time in American history the Speaker of the House of Representatives has been removed from the Speakership. While Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) maintains his seat in the House, he, by virtue of being on the short end of a 216-210 vote, is no longer Speaker of the House. A small insurgency, lead by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) fostered the removal of McCarthy along with the backing of the entirety of the Democrats present on Tuesday, October 3.</p><p>As though the struggle for McCarthy to become Speaker in the first place, a draining 15 rounds of voting in January, wasn’t challenging enough, a rule imposed that any single House member could seek the removal of the Speaker, put McCarthy in a position of tap dancing on the head of a pin. Just because someone has the right to do something, doesn’t mean he or she should exercise that right. Good judgment is often the better part of valor and Gaetz picked an inopportune time to display his poor judgment. </p><p>Hopefully upon selection of the next Speaker of the House the power of one member to seek the ousting of the Speaker and upend all other House business will be rescinded. It is not healthy to have a revolving door in the Speakership simply because one House member is disgruntled or has an axe to grind - this did not seem to be the intent of the Founders and Framers of the United States government upon inception more than 240 years ago.</p><p>Gaetz pulled the trigger on removing McCarthy because Gaetz claimed McCarthy did not keep his word regarding appropriations bills - wanting 12 separate bills instead of an omnibus bill lumping all expenditures into one behemoth of a bill. With 12 individual appropriations bills it would be more efficient and easier to exact deeper cuts to the spending, which has been out of control for decades, regardless of which party is in the majority.</p><p>But in a effort to stave off a government shutdown once the deadline for the appropriations passed, McCarthy worked with Democrats to pass a short-term spending bill - another deadline of November 17 looms on the horizon. The temporary stopgap, known as a “clean Continuing Resolution,” simply continues spending at the current levels - not necessarily a good thing, but it keeps the government functioning (which, granted to some, is not a good thing).</p><p>Gaetz held his ground and followed through with his effort to have McCarthy removed over what Gaetz felt was disloyalty to the party. “A vote for a continuing resolution is a vote to continue the Green New Deal, a vote to continue inflationary spending, and the most troubling of fashions, a vote for a continuing resolution is a vote to continue the election interference of Jack Smith. We told you how to use the power of the purse: individual, single-subject spending bills that would allow us to have specific review, programmatic analysis and that would allow us to zero out the salaries of the bureaucrats who have broken bad, targeted President Trump or cut sweetheart deals for Hunter Biden,” said a somewhat grandstanding Gaetz from the House floor on September 12. Somewhat grandstanding, because what Gaetz said is true and accurate, but the more immediate issue at hand, avoiding a government shutdown took immediate precedence, which McCarthy defended.</p><p>“At the end of the day, keeping government open and paying our troops was the right decision. I stand by that decision. If I have to lose my job over it, so be it,” said McCarthy.</p><p>And as politics makes strange bedfellows, it took eight Republicans - seven strong conservatives and all 208 voting Democrats to sink McCarthy. Those eight Republicans are Andy Biggs (AZ), Ken Buck (CO), Tim Burchett (TN), Eli Crane (AZ), Matt Gaetz (FL), Bob Good (VA), Nancy Mace (SC), and Matt Rosendale (MT).</p><p>Mace, the more moderate of the anti-McCarthy octet, said her vote was “about trust and keeping your word.” McCarthy “has not lived up to his word on how the House would operate.” Mace supported McCarthy for Speaker in January. Even conservative stalwarts such as, Lauren Bobert (CO), Byron Donalds (FL), Paul Gosar (AZ), Anna Paulina Luna (FL), Mary Miller (IL), Ralph Norman (SC), Scott Perry (PA), and Chip Roy (TX) who voted against McCarthy for Speaker in January, voted to retain him now, except Luna who is on maternity leave. Six other members also did not vote due to absentia: Cori Bush (D-MO), John Carter (R-TX), Lance Gooden (R-TX), Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) - attending the funeral of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Mary Sattler Peltola (D-AK), and Emilia Strong Sykes (D-OH).</p><p>While there were some Democrats who supported the recent spending bill, all 208 Democrats present voted to oust McCarthy. This is a GOP civil war and it is not up to the Democrats to save McCarthy, yet had four Democrats voted with the 210 Republicans, McCarthy’s Speakership would have survived by a vote of 214-212. Four Democrats with solid bona fides in their districts that could survive some pushback could have worked with McCarthy behind the scenes for a future quid pro quo. Jerry Connally (VA), James Clyburn (SC), Debbie Dingell (MI), Lloyd Doggett (TX), Steny Hoyer (MD), Ro Khanna (CA), James McGovern (MA), Frank Pallone (NJ), Bill Pascrell (NJ), and Dean Phillips (MN) come to mind. Any four of them could have made some backroom deal with McCarthy to save his bacon with little consequence at home.</p><p>Now, thanks to Gaetz and his shortsightedness, the House is closed for business until a new Speaker is elected. Gaetz is being vilified by Republicans in and out of Washington and he did not come armed with a plan. Gaetz should have had one or two GOP members willing to stand for a vote to become Speaker that same day. Instead, no sooner than Tuesday October 10 or Wednesday October 11 will the Republican caucus begin the process of selecting a new Speaker. Gaetz, in this instance, is not being self-serving, announcing he has no desire to become Speaker. </p><p>Gaetz did suggest a few members, including House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (LA), as “the type of person I could see myself supporting. I could see myself supporting Tom Emmer (MN). I could see myself supporting Mike Johnson of Louisiana. I could see myself supporting Jodey Arrington of Texas. I could see myself supporting Kevin Hern of Oklahoma,” said Gaetz.</p><p>As of this writing both Scalise and Jim Jordan (OH) have tossed their hats into the ring for Speaker. Both received votes in January for this post, yet neither was a nominated candidate. It begs the question, what changed for these two House members since January? I like both Scalise and Jordan, but Scalise is recovering from blood cancer, thus my support would be with Jordan, who I would have preferred in January in the first place. Former President Donald Trump announced his endorsement of Jordan.</p><p>The bottom line is, Gaetz may have had good intentions based upon why he wanted McCarthy out, yet the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and as the New York Post reported on Wednesday, “The Gaetz of Hell,” seemed an apt headline, given the predicament the GOP now finds itself. Jordan will be a stronger Speaker; a stronger leader who is more fiscally conservative - to which the GOP must aspire. </p><p>Serious spending cuts must be made starting with every penny dedicated to the millions of illegal aliens roaming around this country. Cuts to duplicate programs, cuts to unnecessary research programs that could be funded by universities or the private sector in general, cuts to those government personnel deemed “non-essential,” government funded public-private projects such as electric vehicles and any other government sponsored corporate welfare initiatives/bailout funding should all be sliced and diced. It is high time the GOP stop behaving like Democrat-lite, get spending under control, stop printing money as though it were bathroom tissue, stop being afraid of the Democrats and their media lapdogs - they don’t like us to begin with, pandering to them will change nothing but to make the GOP weaker, which it can ill afford. Unite behind one strong Speaker candidate and get back to the business of protecting this country, fixing the economy, sealing the border, and yes, making America great again. If not now, when? If not us, who?</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p><p>*A failed attempt to dislodge the House Speaker occurred in 1910. https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/the-revolt-of-1910-against-speaker-joseph-cannon/ </p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-35127409965651522023-10-02T20:31:00.004-07:002023-10-02T20:31:38.956-07:00Is Theft Even a Crime Any Longer<div style="text-align: left;">Is Theft Even a Crime Any Longer?<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />October 2, 2023</div><p>If theft is no longer prosecuted is it still stealing? Theft and/or stealing, by definition, is the illegal taking of goods/items/merchandise/things that do not belong to the person taking them - whether by force or not. It is morally wrong, but it may no longer be legally wrong. Apparently, retail theft has become de facto legal.</p><p>In states like the People’s Republic of California, where theft of goods below $950 goes unprosecuted, it is the honest law abiding consumers who ultimately pay the freight. So why shop at all? At least why shop in stores? There’s an enormous black market, growing each and every day that rampant theft continues out of control and unchecked. </p><p>And it’s profitable - just do the math. For a person working five days a week and 50 weeks a year, allowing for the standard two weeks of vacation time, a person stealing the maximum $950 worth per day without being prosecuted and then selling said merchandise at a 50 percent “discount,” could net $118,750 - tax free. Someone must have done those calculations. Apparently many someones have done those calculations as according to the National Security Research Survey, in 2021 retail theft industry losses reached $94 billion, and in 2022 they rose to $112 billion.</p><p>The higher the percentage of shrinkage causes stores to close, whether anchor stores in malls such as Nordstrom, that recently closed in San Francisco, or the corner CVS or Walgreens. When stores close, unemployment rises, which taxes the system when people file for unemployment resources - money paid for by the taxpayers. </p><p>When stores close, neighborhoods are impacted multi-fold. The residents in those neighborhoods suffer from a lack of resources - groceries, prescription medicines, and even gasoline. Typically those residents are older, retired, living on fixed incomes with a lower level of mobility. When stores close, neighborhoods are also impacted by a loss of tourism. A loss of tourism impacts hotels and restaurants deleteriously, which once again claims jobs. Big box stores/department stores can afford to close - they exist in multiple locations and those consumers too far from the stores physically, can shop online, which is safer these days. Target alone is shuttering nine stores in New York City, St. Louis, and San Francisco.</p><p>But mom and pop businesses cannot afford to close and they also are having a harder and harder time paying their ever-rising insurance bills. The more stores are robbed, the less likely they can keep their doors open. There have been videos where criminals literally tell shopkeepers and store owners “you have insurance,” as they fill giant lawn/trash bags full of merchandise and nonchalantly walk out the door. The increasing rash of smash and grabs are even more costly.</p><p>Employees are specifically told not to confront the criminals. In cases where some employees have attempted to do so, successfully or unsuccessfully, they have routinely been fired, much to the objections of the public. Yet while theft continues unchecked, stores put more and more of its merchandise under lock and key behind a plexiglass protector. This creates a 30 percent loss of sales, according to Kevin O’ Leary, chairman of O’ Leary Ventures.</p><p>“No, it’s not sustainable,” said O’ Leary when asked on the Fox News noon hour program “Outnumbered.” Grocery margins are typically three to five percent and shrinkage used to be 1.5-2 percent, and profits could still be earned, explained O’ Leary. Today, shrinkage is over five percent, sometimes up to seven percent. “It’s completely unprofitable,” said O’ Leary, also a co-host of the popular television program ‘Shark Tank.”</p><p>A place like “San Francisco is probably the case study for this whole situation - everybody’s pulling out - the grocery stores are pulling out, the hotels are pulling out, convention centers are shut down - there’s nobody there - it’s not safe to walk at night - the place has become a war zone. It’s not politics, it’s bad policy, and it’s not sustainable,” continued O’ Leary.</p><p>Actually, it is politics - bad policies are created and implemented by bad politicians and supported by corrupt district attorneys (appointed or elected) who refuse to prosecute the habitual reprobates who make a living stealing on a daily basis. Increased cost of security measures, whether human or material (locks, glass cases), increased cost of insurance premiums, and other theft prevention methods are simply passed along to the consumers - those honest, law abiding schmucks who continue voting for those same useless politicians who clearly do not have the best interest of their constituents at heart. And when these miscreants are not prosecuted they are not sent to jail, nor is there a police record of their crimes, thus no proof of recidivism. No cash bail, in places like Illinois, is also a disastrous policy.</p><p>This growing trend of not prosecuting theft only leads to an increase in other crimes as criminals push the envelope of the limits of what they can get away with. Law enforcement is not supported by the politicians therefore they are reluctant to pursue thieves. The men and women in blue either don’t want to end up with black and blues, they don’t want to be sued, nor do they want to lose their jobs because the powers that be don’t have the temerity to do what is right, support their officers and let the people know theft is still a crime punishable by law.</p><p>Election Day 2023 is one month away. Use your voices at the ballot boxes and elect responsible citizens who will protect the rights and property of the innocent while pursuing and prosecuting the guilty, making the quality of life so much better for everybody. A return to civility is imperative. Efficient and productive law and order is one step in the right direction. The people owe it to themselves.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-39318028275242456732023-09-19T23:25:00.012-07:002023-10-02T11:54:33.554-07:00The Dressing Down of the Senate<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Dressing Down of the Senate<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />September 19, 2023</span></div><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The United States Senate dress code has been flushed down the commode simply to accommodate the nonconformity of ONE senator. Freshman Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) is disgracing the history of the United States Senate. While many may feel the dress code is not important, a senator is not only representing him/herself, but the entirety of his/her state/commonwealth. Fetterman, in his signature gym shorts and hoodie, is an embarrassment to himself and the Senate. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Quite frankly, the ending of the dress code is part of the continuing decline of America. It demonstrates a pathetic lack of discipline and leadership, sending a bad message that slovenly appearance is acceptable. This is not a decline of standards, but a secession of standards. Elected officials who work in one of the most austere and iconic buildings in the history of this nation should lead by example, take pride in their appearance, and dress in a manner befitting their chosen job.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Former Michigan Congressman Justin Amash, a Republican turned Libertarian agrees. “Awful. The Senate chamber isn’t your home, a gym, or an outdoor park. If you can’t dress professionally for work on the floor of the Senate of the United States, then do us all a favor, and get a different job,” posted Amash on September 17 on X, formerly known as Twitter.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">And it’s not as though the Senators work 24/7 or a grueling schedule so oppressive that business attire is impairing their ability to work. (Their lack of ability to work can be attributed to so many other legitimate reasons.) In fact, according to www.SenateCalendar.gov on September 19, the date of this writing, since the current session of the Senate convened on January 3, the Senate entered its 123rd day of work. The average American working a five-day work week would have already clocked in and out on 187 days. For the entirety of 2022, the Senate was in session for a grand total of 177 days while the average American labored 250 days, assuming two weeks vacation time. Fetterman can suck it up, put on a suit and represent himself and his constituents like a grown up.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“I think this is a step forward,” said senior reporter for The Root, Jessica Washington, on MSNBC. “I just don’t understand why you have to do the business of Congress - incredibly long hours, incredibly demanding - I don’t think it requires a suit,” continued Washington.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“This is about someone not taking it seriously,” said Emily Compagno, co-host of the Fox News Channel noon program “Outnumbered,” on Monday, September 18. “The decorum, the luxury of wearing a suit before the people and while you represent the people. Anyone can wear a hoodie,” continued Compagno.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“The Senate no longer enforcing a dress code for Senators to appease Fetterman is disgraceful. Dress code is one of society’s standards that set etiquette and respect for our institutions. Stop lowering the bar,” posted US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) on September 17 on X.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The current rules, in place for about 20 years, calls for business attire - a suit and tie, and concomitant attire for the female senators. It should be noted that this has been an unwritten dress code. Former Colorado Republican Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell (1933 - ) required special dispensation to wear his traditional Bolo tie during his two terms in the Senate (1993-2005).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">For those who think Fetterman’s stroke, suffered May 15 - two days prior to the May 17, 2022 primary, is an excuse for him to dress in shorts and a hoodie, he has been dressing this way since before he was the mayor of Braddock, PA. He has yet to grow up and buy himself a pair of big boy pants. Current Senators Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), as well as former Senators Tim Johnson (R-SD) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) all suffered strokes and returned to work appropriately clad. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The United States Senate is often considered the most exclusive club in the world, and one should dress in a manner befitting such a position with dignity. “The US Senate is the world’s most deliberative body. To see it completely downgraded - no dress code now, I just think it’s another step in the wrong direction,” said Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Senate Majority "Leader" Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is shameful for making this unilateral decision allowing Fetterman and, quite frankly, any of the other 99 senators to treat the Senate chamber like a gym or their own backyard raking leaves on a crisp fall afternoon. Schumer ordered the Senate Sergeant of Arms to suspend the dress code. “Senators are able to choose what they wear on the Senate floor. I will continue to wear a suit,” said Schumer on Sunday, September 17 to Axios.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">But others took advantage of their new wardrobe freedom with relaxed attire on Monday, the first day of the current unwritten policy. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) donned jeans and boots, sans tie, while Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) simply opted for no tie. Across the aisle, the gender aisle, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) wore a “quarter-zip and sneakers,” according to Forbes reporter Sara Dorn. And thus it begins.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Fetterman shows absolutely no respect for himself, his constituents, and the institution that is the Senate itself. Fetterman proved he simply doesn’t get it. “It’s a little more freedom, which I feel should be bi-partisan. I don’t know why the right side seems to be losing their minds over it - like - AAH (Fetterman screams with his hands over his ears) - dogs and cats are living together, like the world’s spinning off its axis. I think it’s a good thing,” he said.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">And Schumer, occupying his Senate seat just shy of a quarter-century, is more to blame - placating a single senator, who, heretofore had been voting by standing in the Senate chamber’s doorway with one foot on the actual floor. Why change what apparently has been working?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Is that all you’ve got to worry about, Chuck?” asked former House member Doug Collins (R-GA). “Let John Fetterman explain why he wants to dress this way to the American people. Why does everything have to go through the lowest common denominator? He has trouble answering questions. He has trouble making speeches. He has trouble performing the function of the job,” continued Collins on “Outnumbered” on Monday. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“We live in the United States of Attention, and I want the America part back,” said “Outnumbered” co-host Harris Faulkner.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">While Senate staffers are still required to adhere to the now defunct dress code, Fetterman looks like a bum, a reprobate, or worse, a drug dealer in North Central Philadelphia. “I was a Capitol Hill staffer. You wear a suit, you look nice, you don’t want to embarrass your boss,” said Lisa Boothe, on “Outnumbered” on Monday. But, isn’t it just a testament to the lowering of standards in America? Nothing works anymore. People don’t go to the office. I just think it speaks to something deeper,” continued Boothe.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">It does. Boothe is absolutely correct. It’s about the coarsening of America, the lack of respect people have for themselves, each other, and the institutions of this country as well as the flag and the founding documents that propelled this country on a path toward greatness. It didn’t happen overnight, but it sure seems to be slipping away in the blink of an eye. The out of control crime, an administration weaponizing its own justice department to attempt to silence and/or imprison its political opponents and their supporters like a banana republic are symptoms of a greater sickness - the loss of freedom. People had best remember the words of President Ronald Reagan from 1961. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. The only way they can inherit the freedom we have known is if we fight for it, protect it, defend it, and then hand it to them with the well fought lessons of how they in their lifetime must do the same. And if you and I don’t do this, then you and I may well spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it once was like in America when men were free.”</span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</span></i></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #383838; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ADDENDUM:</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #383838; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #383838; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ten days following the commencement of the dress code kerfuffle, the United States Senate officially adopted a dress code. In a letter sent to Schumer by 46 GOP senators, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"The world watches us on that floor and we must protect the sanctity of that place at all costs."</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #383838; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: arial;">With breakneck speed, as government goes, the resolution issued jointly by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) says: “...the term ‘Senate floor dress code’ means a requirement that business attire be worn on the floor of the Senate, which for men shall include a coat, tie, and slacks or other long pants…”</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Prior to the vote Schumer, in part, said, “</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #121420; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">I appreciate Senator Manchin and Senator Romney’s leadership on this issue.” Of course, none of this would have been necessary had Schumer not unilaterally made the change in the first place.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #121420; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Sanford D. Horn</span></span></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-48186838860502598822023-09-06T12:48:00.024-07:002023-09-06T12:56:08.919-07:009/11 at 22 - Are We Forgetting?<div style="text-align: left;">9/11 at 22 - Are We Forgetting? <br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />September 6, 2023</div><p>On Monday, September 11, for the 22nd consecutive year the names of the 2,977 innocent souls, murdered by 19 Muslim extremist terrorists who skyjacked four American airplanes with the express purpose of inflicting as much damage as possible against people, property, and the body politic, will be read.</p><p>The reading of those names will only be interrupted by the peal of bells serving as a reminder of the exact time the dastardly deeds of evil were perpetrated. But most of us need no reminder - we bore witness to these homicidal tragedies, lost friends and/or loved ones. Undoubtedly there isn’t a person who was alive on that fateful September 11, 2001 who hasn’t a connection to that day and who doesn’t carry the scars of history with them.</p><p>For the 22nd year we will pay homage and respect to the fallen who were murdered by Muslim extremist terrorists on that clear, crisp, Tuesday morning when the screaming airplanes permeated the sunshine, penetrated their steel and glass targets, plunging the world into darkness and chaos.</p><p>But are we forgetting?</p><p>On August 23, 2023 - less than three weeks ago, DailyMail.com reported that the “architect of 9/11 Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and fellow co-conspirators may be spared the death penalty under a new plea deal being considered by the federal government.” They would plead guilty - actually admit their guilt in exchange for having their lives spared.</p><p>How, after 22 years, does this piece of human debris still breathe air? For that matter, how are any of these stains on humanity still living? Walid Bin Atash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, Ramzi Bin al Shibh, Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi, and of course Mohammed should have been executed two decades ago. Instead, we the people, the American taxpayers, are paying the freight to keep these terrorists alive, fed, and healthy. </p><p>Yes, the American system of justice is a compassionate one, but not everybody deserves compassion. Just ask Frank Siller, founder and Chairman/CEO of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation. “They deserve no leniency. No plea deal should be entertained,” said Siller. “I, personally, want to see them rot in jail for the rest of their lives, but not in the luxury that they’re in - in a small prison cell with absolutely no amenities whatsoever. They’re going to burn in hell for what they have done,” continued Siller.</p><p>“I don’t represent everybody’s feelings on this, but I talked to many 9/11 family members, and they are outraged - to say the least. It’s not just the 2,977 souls that were taken from us on 9/11. There was a firefighter that died the other day - Kevin Kelly - he was the 338th firefighter [who] died since 9/11 - and there’s been thousands of other men and women who were down there, trying to recover my brother and their brothers - that have died of 9/11 illnesses,” said Siller.</p><p>Frank’s youngest brother, Stephen, was a firefighter who, having just come off the previous night’s shift, heard about the towers being struck and he did what any loyal firefighter would do - headed right back to work. Upon reaching the closed to traffic Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, Stephen Siller strapped on his gear and ran the remaining three kilometers through that tunnel. He successfully made one trip in and out of the South Tower. Unfortunately, his second trip into the South Tower was less successful. Stephen Siller, 34, was one of more than 330 firefighters to lose their lives on and since September 11, 2001.</p><p>To this day, there are thousands of first responders who have contracted life-threatening illnesses related to the many weeks spent working at Ground Zero. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation is perhaps best known for providing “mortgage-free homes to catastrophically injured veterans and first responders, Gold Star and fallen first responder families with young children, and families with young children that lost a parent in the line of duty or to 9/11 illness.”</p><p>A brief timeline of the harrowing and disturbing events of September 11, 2001:</p><p>Between 7:59 AM and 8:42 AM four flights depart Boston’s Logan, Washington’s Dulles, and Newark airports, headed for Los Angeles except the Newark flight, headed to San Francisco.</p><p>8:46 AM: American Airlines flight #11 is flown into #1 World Trade Center - the North Tower - by five Muslim extremist hijackers murdering the 11 crew, 76 passengers and hundreds inside the tower instantly. </p><p>9:03 AM: United Airlines flight #175 is flown into #2 World Trade Center - the South Tower - by five Muslim extremist hijackers murdering the nine crew, 51 passengers, and hundreds inside the tower instantly. </p><p>9:05 AM: President George W. Bush is alerted to what is now believed to be terrorist attacks. “Terrorism against our nation will not stand,” said Bush.</p><p>9:37 AM: American Airlines flight #77 is flown into the Pentagon in Arlington, VA by five Muslim extremist hijackers murdering the six crew, 53 passengers, as well as 125 military and civilian personnel on the ground.</p><p>9:59 AM: The South Tower collapses in 10 seconds after burning for 56 minutes. More than 800 civilians and first responders are murdered. </p><p>10:03 AM: United Airlines flight #93 crashes into a field in Shanksville, PA when passengers and crew storm the cockpit. There are no survivors of the seven crew and 33 passengers due to the murderous plot by the four Muslim extremist hijackers. Flight #93 was 20 minutes from Washington, DC where the White House or the Capitol Building were the presumed targets. </p><p>10:15 AM: The damaged section of the Pentagon E-Ring collapses.</p><p>10:28 AM: The North Tower collapses after burning for 102 minutes. More than 1,600 civilians and first responders are murdered. </p><p>8:30 PM: President George W. Bush addresses the nation.</p><p>Tunnel to Towers (www.t2t.org) is a most worthy charity which to contribute. I do not work for the charity. I do not benefit in any way from this charity other than to know that as a contributor, my donation and yours, should you make one, is used at a rate of 95.1 percent for the programs, such as paying the aforementioned mortgages. Don’t take my word for it - visit www.charitynavigator.org. </p><p>May the memories of the 2,977 murdered on September 11, 2001 always be for a blessing. This must never be forgotten.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He grew up in northern New Jersey in the shadow of the Twin Towers. On September 11, 2001, he was writing for a newspaper in northern Virginia, 10 minutes from the Pentagon.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-39319407767735615442023-08-23T14:28:00.006-07:002023-08-23T15:04:08.613-07:00Is Eight Enough? First GOP Debate in Hours<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Is Eight Enough? First GOP Debate in Hours<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />August 23, 2023 5:20 PM EDT</span></div><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The first 2024 Republican presidential debate from Milwaukee, WI is coming up on Fox News in a few hours. Normally, I tell people, I watch so you don't have to. DO watch. DO tune in tonight at 9 PM EDT.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">A few pre-game thoughts:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The RNC has screwed conservative political commentator and one-time candidate for governor of California, Larry Elder. Apparently he had the requisite qualifications to appear on tonight's debate stage, but for whatever reason, he is not being permitted to appear. I like Elder and he is in my top five of the 13 announced GOP candidates.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I'm glad President Trump will not be participating. Make no mistake, if Trump is the GOP nominee, I will work hard to help get him elected, and vote for him in the general election.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Trump's presence would suck the oxygen out of, not just the debate stage, but all of Wisconsin. The eight candidates appearing tonight on the debate stage should collude to not answer a single question asked about Trump. Something like: "President Trump is not here tonight. I am running for the office of President of the United States, and am happy to answer any question about my candidacy, my policies, my plans for the future of our great nation."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">As much as I like Newsmax, and I do, (probably a 50-50 split with Fox) I think they were wrong to criticize Fox for seemingly, initially, barring Trump surrogates from appearing during the post-debate Spin Room. They should be barred. If Trump is a no-show, not putting in the work, his people should not be rewarded with free media time.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Vivek Ramaswamy may be the "flavor of the month," and he has a future with the GOP, but he is painfully naive, and while he may be ready for prime time (remains to be seen), he is not ready for the White House. (I don't want to hear about how Richard Nixon was elected VP at age 39 - sworn in at 40 - he had previously served as an elected Congressman and Senator.) Ramaswamy must get his head straight on Israel. He also needs to answer for his link to the Soros family - something just doesn’t sound kosher in his explanation: https://www.newsmax.com/politics/2024-vivek-ramaswamy-donors/2023/08/22/id/1131678/ </span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum tore his Achilles tendon during a pick-up basketball game last night. He WILL appear on the debate stage tonight. I like Burgum, he’s done a very good job as ND governor, and hope he can stand for the two hour debate. Burgum will, as they say in the Peace Garden State, “Cowboy Up!”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-0afeb40b-7fff-2f3e-899d-dd494fccfe13"><span style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">All eight GOP debate participants MUST be genuine, MUST explain what sets them apart from the other candidates, especially Joe Biden, MUST explain how they will accomplish any goal they mention, and MUST NOT whine about anything - especially about being shorted 10 seconds compared to their competitors.</span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Going into tonight's debate, how I rank the GOP candidates - not electability, just my opinion:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Amb. Nikki Haley</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Sen. Tim Scott</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Gov. Doug Burgum</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">VP Mike Pence</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Larry Elder</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Gov. Ron DeSantis</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Pres. Donald Trump</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Vivek Ramaswamy</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Perry Johnson</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Gov. Chris Christie</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Rep. Will Hurd</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Gov. Asa Hutchinson</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Mayor Francis Suarez</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">PRAY FOR THE PEOPLE OF HAWAII.</span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He would like to serve as the next Secretary of Education.</span></i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-5248390372740533152023-06-01T01:42:00.005-07:002023-06-01T01:51:06.004-07:00Dodgers Strikeout with Catholics<div style="text-align: left;">Dodgers Strikeout with Catholics<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />May 31, 2023</div><p>“The Dodgers have become the Bud Light of baseball,” said Brian Burch, President of Catholicvote, an organization that launched a $1 million campaign to boycott the Los Angeles Dodgers over an anti-Catholic group to be honored at Dodger Stadium on Pride Night.</p><p>Initially the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence were invited by the Dodgers to participate in Pride Night, being held around Major League Baseball on Friday June 16. After some grumbling, the group was disinvited. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is not just an anti-Catholic organization, they are drag queens dressed as nuns in the most disrespectful manner possible. Following additional grumbling from the other side, the Sisters were not only reinvited, but they are slated to be presented with a Community Heroes Award. The Los Angeles Dodgers have surrendered to the woke mafia and sided with evil over good.</p><p>“They picked a side,” said retired MLB pitcher Curt Schilling, who was outspoken in his playing days, and some believe it cost him enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame. “We would rather offend Catholics than the Sisters of Whatever Bad Dancing on Poles they call themselves - I don’t even know. Point being, they picked a side,” said Schilling.</p><p>Fox News showed a clip of some of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence’s antics. To call them horrific is an understatement of epic proportions. Too revolting for words in this column, the scene, so offensive, should send a message that the United States of America is in the throes of, not just a culture war, but a battle royale for the soul of America - a war of good versus evil. People of all faiths, not just Catholics, will be offended by this organization hell bent on bastardizing faith and religion.</p><p>Burch sent a letter to the Dodgers objecting to “not just inviting this group - vile, detestable, anti-Catholic hate group to participate, they are going to bestow on them an honor and a community award. So the Dodgers are saying this group in some way represents someone worthy of celebration - that they deserve an award. This group dresses up as Catholic nuns - they aren’t nuns - they’re homosexual men, whose purpose is to mock and defile the Christian religion. We sent this letter alerting them [the Dodgers] that we’re planning this million dollar campaign in hopes that we might have a conversation with them, a meeting, where we might convince them this is a terrible idea and they need to reconsider,” said Burch.</p><p>Conservative Catholic attorney, businessman, and philanthropist Tim Busch reminds people that the bottom line is still the bottom line. “...now it’s spreading to sports, and if you’re a shareholder of one of these companies, you should be very upset - why they’re in business in the first place, but this is what’s happened to America. This wokeness is kind of a pagan religion itself. People don’t have a faith, so they create one and this is what it is. I just don’t think we should be dividing people in business or in sports. They need to be united regardless of their faith or their politics,” said Busch, an unconfirmed minority owner of two sports teams - one in the United States and one in the United Kingdom.</p><p>As millions of Americans have already made their financial voices heard regarding Bud Light and Target, clearly the Dodgers have learned nothing. Since March 21 of this year, Bud Light’s parent company Anheuser-Busch has lost $27 billion. In about two weeks since mid-May, Target has lost $13.8 billion. Both figures come from Fox Business. Other companies, such as Kohl’s, are facing similar potential losses, and for the same reasons - a woke agenda catering to a tiny minority with the biggest and loudest mouths. But, the silent majority is not staying silent any longer.</p><p>“Capitalism is a wonderful thing,” said Schilling. “What we’re doing to the companies that are going woke and the value that they’re dropping billions and billions of dollars needs to be the wake up call. In the last two years, have you seen a liberal-trans boycott that has negatively impacted the bottom line of a company to the point it’s been reported in the news? I haven’t. Do you know why? Because there’s not that many of them. I don’t care, I don’t watch it. But, I sure as hell know baseball fans don’t go to the game to see this crap, much less honoring these people,” concluded Schilling.</p><p>Conservatives and religious people of many faiths have expressed offense at the manner in which these companies are conducting business. Apparently, these companies and others are doubling down, as the Dodgers seem to have done, in emphasizing their support for the immoral, the depraved, and the offensive.</p><p>“They mock Catholicism and religion in general,” said Burch. This is more than just what they’re wearing. “They’ve turned Jesus on the Cross into a sexual prop. They’re motto is ‘go and sin some more.’ That tells you all you need to know. This is not the kind of group that should be honored. This is not a charitable group…. We now have the star pitcher of the Dodgers saying that he is against mocking the religion of anybody,” Burch said of future Hall of Fame hurler Clayton Kershaw.</p><p>Via the <i>Los Angeles Times</i> on Monday May 29, Kershaw said “I don’t agree with making fun of other people’s religions. It has nothing to do with anything other than that. I just don’t think that, no matter what religion you are, you should make fun of somebody else’s religion.</p><p>Kershaw’s Dodgers teammate, pitcher Blake Treinen, posted on Twitter on May 30: “I am disappointed to see the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence being honored as heroes at Dodger Stadium. Many of their performances are blasphemous and their work only displays hate and mockery of Catholics and the Christian faith.”</p><p>Also on Twitter, on May 30, Washington Nationals pitcher Trevor Williams as well expressed his dislike with the Dodgers’ decision. “To invite and honor a group that makes a blatant and deeply offensive mockery of my religion, and the religion of over four million people in Los Angeles County alone, undermines the values of respect and inclusivity that should be upheld by any organization.”</p><p>The goal in any game is to score points and win. These points should be made on the field of play and not political points - from either side of the aisle. People want to go to the ballpark, have a beer and a hot dog, be entertained and to “forget about life for a while,” not be lectured to or at.</p><p>In an effort to mollify the religious crowd, the Dodgers announced they are relaunching their “Faith and Family Day.” Too little, too late - seems they are putting the proverbial lipstick on the pig. Quite frankly, all of these “group” days - Pride, various ethnic heritage days, even bringing your pet to the ballpark, should be discontinued. The teams should simply welcome all fans to the ballpark every day.</p><p>Being neither a Catholic nor a Dodgers fan, the question of why do I care is raised. Aside from being offended simply as a person of faith, I’m reminded of the words of Lutheran Pastor Martin Niemoller (1892-1984) of Germany, found prominently on a wall at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC:</p><div style="text-align: left;">“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist.<br />Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist.<br />Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew.<br />Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak for me.”</div><p>Granted, the circumstances are nowhere remotely equal, but Niemoller’s words are more than a little poignant. </p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and an educator living in Westfield, IN. He is a charter member of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. </i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-70795219951871434462023-05-25T20:39:00.001-07:002023-05-25T20:39:42.357-07:00Is DeSantis the Anti-Trump or Trump Lite?<div style="text-align: left;">Is DeSantis the Anti-Trump or Trump Lite?<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />May 25, 2023</div><p>Florida Governor Ron DeSantis officially launched his campaign for president of the United States last night, Wednesday May 24. He rolled the dice on an unusual format and method, and came up snake eyes - DeSantis was snakebit by the failure of technology to provide him a smooth transition from will he or won’t he to I’m in.</p><p>While I have nothing against DeSantis, and should he be the Republican nominee in 2024 I will certainly vote for him. I have to ask, is this his time? Just reelected governor of Florida in 2022, he would complete his second and current term in office in early 2027, giving him an entire year before the Iowa caucuses and first in the nation primary, New Hampshire. With two successful terms as governor, DeSantis, currently only 44, will have concluded his electoral obligations to the people of Florida and have nothing but time to launch his campaign for 2028. While most of the 2024 candidates will have been vanquished in that election cycle, and less likely to run again, save for Vivek Ramaswamy, who at 37 years old today, could sit out even two DeSantis terms and still be one of the younger candidates in 2036, at 51.</p><p>If this is DeSantis’s time, with a growing field of GOP nomination seekers, his opportunity to catch and surpass former President Donald Trump becomes increasingly slim. Trump already has, depending upon which poll one reads, anywhere from a 25 to 35 percentage point margin over the Florida governor. On the other hand, with DeSantis officially in the race, voters may be more willing to support him and be able to close the gap with Trump. But it begs the question, if DeSantis is considered the best possible GOP alternative to Trump, wouldn’t it make sense for the rest of the field to bow out? That’s not to say the field won’t shrink organically, and as history dictates, the early frontrunner is guaranteed nothing. After all, was former Florida Governor Jeb Bush elected president in 2016? Or former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in 2012? Or former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee in 2008? Or former New York Senator Hillary Clinton in 2008?</p><p>But the 2024 election campaign will be an unusual one - of course that goes without saying as it involves Trump, hoping to do his best impersonation of former President Grover Cleveland. And as anyone with a pulse knows, Trump is more than a bit polarizing. Make no mistake, if Trump is the GOP standard bearer in 2024, he will garner my vote. I voted for him in the general elections of 2016 and 2020. I just don’t see him winning a national race next year, in spite of Joe Biden’s glaringly, painfully, excruciatingly, miserable time in the White House - failures aplenty - gas prices, prices in general, weakening military, embarrassing Afghanistan surrender, mortgage equity debacle, a return to energy dependence, and of course, the invasion at the southern border.</p><p>All that said, Trump can’t get out of his own way - he’s still harping on the 2020 election, a “perfect phone call,” and will forever be blamed for January 6, 2021. While I agree there was chicanery and a less than honest outcome in the 2020 election, sans hardcore proof, there’s virtually nothing that can be done, and certainly not now, two and a half years into the next administration.</p><p>And the juxtaposition of Trump continues. He’s bombastic and more direct than might typically be expected of the diplomacy of a politician. On the other hand, as I told so many people who didn’t like Trump’s antics, but knew what a good job he had done as president, we’re not electing Miss Congeniality. And if history is fair, Trump will go down as one of the best one term presidents in American history, with, in my opinion, the likes of John Adms and James K. Polk.</p><p>So the question remains, can DeSantis close the gap and overtake Trump? Can DeSantis, a decorated Navy veteran with both legislative and executive experience as a member of Congress and governor, govern as successfully as Trump, but without the circus atmosphere that sometimes befell his administration? DeSantis has experienced tremendous success as governor of Florida, keeping the state open and vital during Covid, and welcoming more than 580,000 new legal Floridians in 2022. </p><p>Even lifelong New Yorker Trump became a Florida resident in 2019, so all his grandstanding about Florida failing under DeSantis is Trump posturing as a candidate would. Yet, by doing so, by going after DeSantis with a sledgehammer, Trump is repeatedly violating Ronald Reagan’s 11th Commandment: “Thou shalt not speak ill of thy fellow Republican.” Sadly, Trump is not the only candidate to violate that commandment over the last many election cycles. Yet while Trump assails DeSantis, DeSantis in his kickoff speech, directed his criticisms appropriately after Biden; after all, it’s Biden that the GOP, whoever the nominee is, wants to defeat in 2024.</p><p>If not Trump, if not DeSantis, the GOP scorecard is fast filling up as South Carolina Senator Tim Scott declared his candidacy on Monday May 22 to join fellow Palmetto Stater Nikki Haley, the former governor and United Nations ambassador. Also declared are radio talk show host and attorney Larry Elder, who unsuccessfully challenged Gavin Newsom in the California recall for governor, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, and the aforementioned Ramaswamy - any of this septet would be a far cry better than the current occupant of the White House.</p><p>I happen to be wavering in my support between the two South Carolinians, Haley and Scott, but Elder and Ramaswamy have solid ideas as well. But do any of that quartet have enough gas in the tank to get them across the finish line? And there’s still the possibility of former Vice President Mike Pence throwing his hat in the ring. I like Pence personally, but see the previous question. If it’s a choice between DeSantis and Trump for the GOP nomination, DeSantis can beat Biden. Isn’t that the goal in 2024?</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Indiana.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-57811688759658159422023-05-22T10:35:00.001-07:002023-05-22T10:35:58.604-07:00The Good Penny in the Subway<div style="text-align: left;">The Good Penny in the Subway<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />May 22, 2023</div><p>On Monday May 1 Daniel Penny and Jordan Neely were two among thousands of New Yorkers, commuters, and tourists alike to climb aboard a subway car in New York City, not knowing at the time their lives would intersect in perpetuity. When the F train reached its destination both men were on the floor of the subway car surrounded by witnesses.</p><p>Those very witnesses reported that Penny’s heroics saved many innocent subway riders from a menacing, threatening, erratic Neely who had to be subdued by Penny via a temporary chokehold, as well as by two other passengers who assisted Penny. Video footage supports the witness's statements.</p><p>Neely said, according to corroborating witnesses, “I would kill a motherf…er. I don’t care. I’ll take a bullet. I’ll go to jail,” as reported by a 66 year old female passenger to the <i>New York Post</i>. She also indicated Neely said he was “ready to die,” and “I don’t care if I die.” This same woman publicly thanked Penny for his heroics.</p><p>Other witnesses said Neely flailed his arms around wildly, slammed his jacket down on the floor, claimed he was hungry and thirsty while threatening other passengers. “He was hungry. He was thirsty. That he didn’t care about anything, he didn’t care about going to jail, he didn’t care that he gets a big life sentence, it doesn’t even matter if I died, he said,” reported Juan Alberto Vazquez whose viral video shows Penny and two other passengers restraining Neely. “He was trying to help,” Vazquez said of Penny.</p><p>Neely, 30, although unconscious when help arrived, still had breath in his body. He was pronounced dead at the hospital. Afterward, Penny, 24, went to the police station, answered questions, and no arrest was made. </p><p>When Penny did not face arrest, protesters took to the streets - or more accurately - to the subway tracks. On May 6 protesters literally lowered themselves into the subway tracks causing stoppages and delays preventing people from getting to their destinations. There is plenty of video footage that can be reviewed to determine who the scofflaws are as they should be arrested and charged to the fullest extent of the law. These are not peaceful protests, but instead obstreperous - designed to disrupt innocent people’s lives. </p><p>The ever hypocritical US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) called Penny a murderer, demanding he be arrested and charged with murdering Neely. AOC’s fellow “Squad” member, US Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) called the death of Neely a “lynching.” In the case of AOC and her hypocrisy, she shouts from the mountaintop for the defunding of police, yet she and her ilk become apoplectic when the inevitable happens - ordinary citizens protect themselves and others when in harm’s way. She wants to defund the police, then demands the police step up and arrest Penny for murder.</p><p>This is not a murder; that was neither the intent nor goal of Penny - he simply wanted to get Neely under control for the betterment of the other passengers. Even the bought and paid for by George Soros District Attorney Alvin Bragg understood that as Penny surrendered himself on May 12 facing charges of second degree manslaughter. Penny voluntarily surrendered himself at the Fifth Precinct. He “did so with dignity… that is characteristic of his history of service to this grateful nation,” said Penny attorney Thomas Kenniff of the former United States Marine. Penny, from West Islip, NY (Long Island) served four years in the US Marines, earning seven medals.</p><p>While Penny, having no arrest record, served his country, Neely, in a juxtaposition, served time - arrested 44 times. Among the violent career criminal’s greatest hits, Neely attempted to kidnap a seven year old girl. Additionally, Neely punched a 67 year old woman in the face breaking her nose and fracturing her orbital bone. But, as Neely family attorney Donte Mills correctly asserted, Penny did not know of Neely’s excessive arrest record, calling it “a non-factor,” and called for more stringent charges against Penny.</p><p>It’s true - Penny did not know of Neely’s extensive arrest record. Penny acted in response to Neely’s erratic, harassing, menacing, behavior frightening fellow passengers. But, the City of New York certainly knew of Neely’s aberrant behavior and arrest record. According to the <i>New York Post</i>, Neely appeared on New York City’s Top 50 homeless people in need of urgent help. With 44 arrests and a history of mental illness, why was Neely on the streets in the first place? Where was the Neely family attorney Donte Mills?</p><p>Penny’s attorney Steve Raiser described the scene in the subway car. It’s a “small area underground where the doors are closed and locked. It’s a scary situation because there is no escape. When you see someone who’s being threatened and you have nowhere to run, the only thing you could do is to wait for the police. But it could be too late by the time the train stops, the doors open, and you get a police officer. In fact some people won’t even have cell service down there to even call a police officer. And no policeman is just going to show up there at that moment. It’s just not going to happen. So they’re stuck there with this threat.</p><p>So when Danny [Penny] stepped forward, he didn’t know what was going to happen. He didn’t know if he was going to be successful in restraining Neely or not. He didn’t know if he would become the victim. He didn’t know if he’d be overpowered or even if Jordan Neely had a weapon. He didn’t know. But he took a chance… to save those other people on that train. He took that chance and he is the one who put himself in danger. To save who? All the people on that train - black people, brown people, white people - it didn’t matter to Danny,” said Raiser.</p><p>On May 12, New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams - the first black speaker in New York City - commented on the charge of second degree manslaughter, and chalked it up to systemic racism. It’s “systemic racism that robs us of our basic humanity in life and death should no longer be denied after being on full display for the past 11 days… This should be an inflection point for our city to focus on ensuring New Yorkers have access to the essential services needed to be healthy and safe, and we make the budget investments and policy changes necessary to achieve this,” said Adams.</p><p>Yet, with billions of dollars spent by New York City, Adams insults the residents of the city with her statement, especially after city leaders called for defunding the police, making subways and other public spaces unsafe. And how does a man with 44 arrests walk free among the people?</p><p>Civil rights attorney Richard St. Paul took issue with Adams’ statement. “We’ve got to stop that narrative of race here in this particular situation because there are a lot of other things at play that come before race just because Penny happened to be white and Neely happened to be black. Penny was arrested, so let’s kill that narrative. It really boils down to mental health issues and what the city is doing to keep people out of the subways who have mental health [issues]. This could have been prevented. It’s politicians who make irresponsible statements about race - it’s just not responsible…. As a New Yorker we’ve got to stop and take account of what we’re doing to combat mental illness and crime in this city,” said St. Paul. </p><p>Perhaps New York City, and quite frankly, all of the United States, should stop spending money on services for illegal aliens - hotels, food, drugs, and put money into the schools and mental health services for citizens and legal residents.</p><p>Ron Kuby, an attorney who represented one of the teens shot by Bernhard Goetz in a New York City subway on December 22, 1984, debased the entirety of the Penny-Neely interaction to race. “Penny is a white Marine and his victim was a mentally ill, homeless, queer black man. So that’s the agenda of white supremacy playing out right there,” said a clearly convoluted Kuby.</p><p>“Danny put his life at risk to save all those people - it had nothing to do with race,” said Raiser.</p><p>Neely no more knew Penny was a Marine, than Penny knew Neely was homeless, queer, mentally ill, or a 44 time arrestee. Neely suffered from depression following the 2007 murder of his mother by his step-father, but Penny could not have known that either. Clearly, the system failed Neely (partial solution above), but he didn’t do himself any favors with his recalcitrant behavior either.</p><p>Released on $100,000 bail, Penny is expected back in court on July 17 to face the grand jury. Whether a grand jury, or juries from potential civil or criminal trials, a jury of Penny’s peers should be chock full of subway riders. Public opinion certainly seems to side with Penny as more than $2.7 million has been raised for his legal defense as of May 22.</p><p>“I know Manhattan very well. The reality is that there is not a single living, breathing New Yorker, particularly anyone who rides the subways who can’t relate to exactly the sort of situation that my client was in,” said Kenniff on May 12 on WABC radio.</p><p>Penny, who potentially saved numerous lives, does not deserve to be punished for stepping up instead of standing down and acting like an emasculated bystander. More Daniel Pennys should ride the subways of New York City and elsewhere. Good Samaritans are few and far between these days, and that’s to the detriment of honest law abiding citizens.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. Born and raised in North Jersey, he is no stranger to the NYC subways.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-42934571356453307832023-04-27T21:04:00.006-07:002023-04-28T21:12:45.171-07:00Biden-Harris Insult Memories of Nashville Six<div style="text-align: left;">Biden-Harris Insult Memories of Nashville Six<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />April 27, 2023</div><p>In the wake of the Nashville, Tennessee Christian school shooting tragedy, when given the opportunity to do the right thing, count on Joe Biden to do just the opposite. With emotions and tensions strained, instead of quelling them, Biden fanned the flames by inviting the “Tennessee Three” to the White House on Monday April 24 instead of any members of the families of the six slaughtered Christians. Lost in the slaughter at Covenant School: Evelyn Dieckhaus, William Kinney, and Hallie Scruggs, each age nine, as well as school employees Mike Hill, Katherine Koonce, and Cynthia Peak.</p><p>On Monday March 28, in a premeditated act, a former student of Covenant School armed with multiple firearms entered the school, slaughtered six people - three nine year old babies and three school employees, before police killed the murderer. Arriving in under 10 minutes, Nashville police prevented an even greater loss of life. https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2023/03/trans-slaughter-of-christians-sends.html</p><p>Two days later, on March 30 a raucous protest took place at the Capitol Building in Nashville calling for greater gun control and reform. Three members of the Tennessee House of Representatives, Gloria Johnson, Justin Jones, and Justin Pearson - all Democrats - not only participated in the protest in the Capitol, but their protest spilled over into the House chamber where Jones and Pearson took to bullhorns, bellowing, among other rants, “power to the people.” Their actions, “knowingly and intentionally bring[ing] disorder and dishonor to the House of Representatives,” as well as not having been recognized to address the chamber is what led to the resolutions to expel the members.</p><p>HR-63 ousted Pearson by a vote of 69-26 in a House that has 99 members and 66 votes required for expulsion. HR-64 spared Johnson an expulsion by a one vote margin, 65-30, and HR-65 ousted Jones by a 72-25 vote. These votes were cast on April 6, and the oustings created the need to fill the two vacancies, which, in both cases, returned Jones and Pearson to their seats - temporarily. They must both stand for a special election to fill the seats through the end of the term. This is the fourth time since the War Between the States that Tennessee House members have suffered expulsion.</p><p>Jones, 27, a freshman representative, represents District 52 which includes parts of Nashville and Davidson County. The Oakland, CA native attended Fisk University in Nashville is an activist who supports CRT - Critical Race Theory. He won the 2022 Democratic primary by a 53.2 to 46.8 margin and skated to victory in the general election facing no opposition. In 2019 Jones led sit-ins and protests to remove a statue of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forest. Governor Bill Lee (R) supported the removal, which after a lengthy process finally occurred in 2021 - long overdue as Forest was the first Grand Wizard of the KKK from 1867-69.</p><p>Pearson, 28, also a freshman representative, represents District 86 which includes parts of Memphis and Shelby County. The Memphis Native attended Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. Pearson won a Democratic primary held following the posthumous reelection of Barbara Cooper. With 52 percent of the vote, Pearson won the special election defeating nine other Democrats. No other party’s representatives filed for candidacy. Pearson co-founded a grassroots organization called Memphis Community Against the Pipeline and succeeded in stopping a crude oil pipeline that would have been laid throughout backyards in South Memphis.</p><p>Both Jones and Pearson could have productive futures within the Tennessee body politic. Clearly they are spirited young men eager to represent their constituencies, but they need to remain in the legislature to do so. That means they must learn and adhere to the rules of the Tennessee House of Representatives. Getting expelled will get them nowhere. Loose cannons rarely last long.</p><p>Johnson, 60, is in her fourth non-consecutive term, representing District 90 which includes parts of Knoxville and Knox County. The Denver native attended the University of Tennessee and is a retired school teacher. In 2022 Johnson won an unopposed Democratic primary followed by a general election win over her Republican opponent 57.9 percent to 42.1 percent. Johnson attributed her not being expelled from the House because she is white and her colleagues, Jones and Pearson are black</p><p>But this isn’t so much about these three Tennessee legislators - they are anti-gun props for this administration. This is more about the continuing tone deafness of the Biden-Harris administration as they once again lack decency and humanity.</p><p>The meeting at the White House focused on “the need to have more gun violence prevention,” said Pearson. </p><p>“If you stand up for kids, you’re standing up [for] our communities and democratic values,” said Biden.</p><p>No one stood up more for children than the three adults who were murdered at Covenant School. Or the policemen who, in doing their jobs, protected a couple hundred children on that fateful day.</p><p>Yet, instead of inviting any family members of the Nashville slain six to the White House, or the heroic police officers, Biden invited three malcontent legislators who behaved like reprobates and were appropriately brought to task. Jones and Pearson were expelled for cause. Biden has yet to visit any of the families in Nashville either.</p><p>Making matters worse, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre spoke of the school slaughter in such benign words as to suggest the shooter, a transgender individual, was more the victim than the perpetrator. Jean-Pierre went so far as to offer a warning to the trans community of Nashville and suggested they arm themselves. So, the administration seeking to discard the Second Amendment, now encourages a select segment of the population to take up arms. She also did not refer to the school as a Christian school.</p><p>Adding insult to injury, Kamala Harris did, in fact, go to Nashville. On April 7 at Fisk Memorial Chapel, Harris spoke vociferously about gun control, not about the slaughter of six people at a Christian school. She also met privately with Johnson, Jones, and Pearson. At no time during her brief visit to Nashville did Harris speak with anyone connected with the Covenant School or any of the families of the six victims.</p><p>Had the murders of three children and three adults taken place at a charter or public school in the South Bronx or East St. Louis, Biden and Harris would both have been there - attending funerals and posing for photos with the family members of the murdered children. As he has done all throughout his term in office, Biden plays favorites, demonstrates bias against people of faith, sides against small business owners, shows favor for illegal aliens - witness the end of Title 42, takes the immoral stance more often than not - abortion rights, destroying Title IX in favor of biological males, siding against parental rights and notification, and supporting his administration spying on its citizens. Nashville is but a microcosm of where this country is and, sadly, where it continues to be headed - a downward trajectory toward continued lawlessness and G-dlessness. We the people can turn this ship of state around before it runs aground like the S.S. Minnow.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-8791058220998951272023-03-30T16:41:00.003-07:002023-04-27T13:34:33.898-07:00Trans Slaughter of Christians Sends Frightening Message<div style="text-align: left;">Trans Slaughter of Christians Sends Frightening Message<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />March 30, 2023</div><p>While the unhinged transgender community has announced its “Trans Day of Vengeance,” after one of its own massacred six innocent Christians - three children and three adults - at Covenant School in Nashville, there is no call from the Christian community to slaughter anyone from the transgender community.</p><p>This event, slated for April 1, is no April Fool’s joke. Those who do not take this seriously would be the fools. Their flier/poster/advertisement says “We need more than visibility,” and “Stop trans genocide.” Where is this alleged trans genocide supposed to have been committed? When? Committed by whom? How could this even be possible when the trans community is one of the most protected groups of people in these United States. </p><p>This isn’t China, Iran, Russia, or Saudi Arabia where transgenders, homosexuals, Christians, Jews, Uyghurs, and even foreign journalists live in genuine fear for their mere existence every single day. Yet, right here at home in the United States of America, it is Christians and Jews who are being targeted. (Anti-Semitism is at a disturbingly high level, but that’s a story for another day.)</p><p>Six innocent Christians - three children - babies at age nine - Evelyn Dieckhaus, William Kinney, and Hallie Scruggs - slaughtered in their elementary school on Monday March 28, which should be one of the safest places for them to assemble. The three adults, Mike Hill, 61, Katherine Koonce, 60, and Cynthia Peak, 61, should also have been in a safe haven - each an employee at that school. May their memories forever be for a Blessing.</p><p>Located in the idyllic Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville, Covenant School, a private Christian school founded in 2001 educates just over 200 students from prekindergarten to sixth grade has about 50 staff members as well. It’s not just the dead who will be mourned, but the entire school community who have suffered a trauma unlikely to ever be forgotten, that may very well alter the trajectory of their young lives, most certainly their mental state. </p><p>But the deranged murderer knew all that as this individual, age 28, whose name will not appear here, was an alumnus of Covenant School. Heavily armed with three supposedly legally acquired firearms upon entering the school, maps of the building were found at the murderer’s home. Additionally, the murderer wrote a manifesto, yet neither the Nashville police nor United States Attorney General Merrick Garland have indicated there is knowledge of the murderer’s motive for this massacre, although they have seen the document.</p><p>“They are hiding the facts because it is devastating to their narrative and is devastating to the delusional demonic wing of people in their party,” said Sean Davis, a Nashville resident as well as founder and CEO of The Federalist. “They do not want anyone to know that this murder, this massacre of children, was done by someone because of the evil transgender ideology. And you see it with Twitter, you see it with the police, with the D.O.J., with Biden - they know what went down and they want to make sure that you don’t,” continued Davis, appearing on Tucker Carlson Tonight on Wednesday on Fox News. </p><p>“This is a battle not about politics, it’s not about policy, about Republicans versus Democrats. It’s about good versus evil and truth versus lies. And if we don’t stand up for it, who will,” queried Davis.</p><p>Davis, along with Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green (R-GA), and journalist Andy Ngo have been banned by Twitter for merely mentioning the upcoming Trans Day of Vengeance. For exercising their First Amendment right of free speech and expression, these three are no longer welcome on the social media platform that, after being procured by Elon Musk, was said to welcome back all its exiles. This at a time when a House committee is exploring the censorship by, and weaponization of, social media platforms as well as the complicity in such censorship by the Biden administration.</p><p>As the aforementioned three banned from Twitter were being silenced on that platform, NBC News ran this headline: “Fear pervades Tennessee’s trans community amid focus on Nashville shooter’s gender identity.” It was the shooter who “outed” him/herself as a member of the trans community.</p><p>No headlines expressing concern or outrage over the slaughter of six Christians, including three children, could be found. This crime should be treated as a crime specifically against Christians - not some randomly selected school, or some randomly selected act of violence - the murderer, as noted earlier, attended Covenant School some years prior.</p><p>And with all the concern for the trans community, and not condemning their upcoming day of vengeance, there was yet another attack against non-trans people - this time in print, and it cost someone her job. Josselyn Berry (@joss_berry), now the former press secretary to Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs (D), resigned after an outrageous posting to Twitter depicting a woman holding a gun in each hand with the caption reading “Us when we see transphobes.” Clearly this is meant to be a threat, yet was Berry banned from Twitter? No.</p><p>Postings like Berry’s are egregious and could incite to violence, yet went unchallenged by Twitter. On the other hand, the heinous massacre in Nashville of six innocent Christians affiliated with Covenant School comes on the heels of the state of Tennessee’s wise decision to ban the medical transitioning of minors. The state of Tennessee clearly has the best interest of its children at heart by protecting them from themselves at such young and vulnerable ages.</p><p>Simultaneously, there is the juxtaposition of NPR encouraging the trans community to arm themselves, while the federal government continues its quest to strip American citizens of its Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.</p><p>Gun violence will not end by confiscating firearms from honest, law abiding citizens. Criminals will always get their miscreant hands on guns - they’re criminals, after all. Schools should be better armed and protected, not less - even places like Covenant School are susceptible. When the government - members of Congress, the president - seek to disarm its citizenry - run - run fast - to your nearest gun shop. The Second Amendment is designed to protect we the people from the tyranny of the government. After all, how did gun confiscation work out for the Jewish people in 1930s Germany under Hitler?</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4560465072711180606.post-28798741536295291972023-02-23T19:53:00.000-08:002023-02-23T19:53:22.050-08:00Biden, Buttigieg Fiddle While East Palestine Burns<div style="text-align: left;">Biden, Buttigieg Fiddle While East Palestine Burns<br />Commentary by Sanford D. Horn<br />February 23, 2023</div><p>Should the residents of East Palestine, Ohio trust their government - state or federal? This question most certainly isn’t new, as it currently pertains to government response, or lack thereof, to the Norfolk Southern train derailment on Friday, February 3 near the East Ohio-West Pennsylvania border.</p><p>During an August 12, 1986 press conference President Ronald Reagan said, “the nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.’” No truer are those words today than ever before.</p><p>While the remnants of a mushroom-cloud plume of smoke hovered over the residents and their homes in East Palestine, Michael Regan Environmental Protection Agency administrator, as well as Ohio Governor Mike DeWine (R) attempted to assuage the fears of the village of 4,761 (as per the 2020 census) that the air is safe to breathe and the water safe to drink. But skeptical residents believe quite the contrary as evidenced by the spate of headaches, nausea, rashes, people coughing/spitting up blood, lingering odors from chemicals, oil-like slicks on ponds and creeks, dead fish and animals.</p><p>Hundreds of concerned and angry residents packed the gymnasium at East Palestine High School on Wednesday, February 15 demanding answers to questions, as well as demanding to know where allegedly important people were to answer those questions. They left with more questions than answers.</p><p>“I just want answers for the future,” said longtime resident Luke Glavan. “I played football right here. Is it going to be another ghost town, or what? What have we got to look forward to?” continued Glavan, asking what just about everybody was thinking.</p><p>“We have to find some answers. There has to be answers somewhere,” said East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway. “I started working with our congressional representatives and some senators to try and hopefully get some answers. I’m just [at a] loss for words. I don’t have the answers and I’m trying to get them,” continued a clearly beleaguered Conaway, really through no fault of his own.</p><p>Frustrated residents kept hearing all is well from the EPA administrator. This is reminiscent of the scene in Animal House where Kevin Bacon’s character, clad in his ROTC uniform, screeching in a high-pitched voice, “remain calm, all is well!” as the homecoming parade was under siege.</p><p>The Norfolk Southern train stretched 1.9 miles, contained 158 rail cars, of which 38 cars derailed, and 11 contained hazardous materials, such as benzene and butyl acrylates, both flammable liquids. One of the derailed cars carried the butyl acrylates, all of which was lost. The crux of this disaster came from five derailed cars of vinyl chloride - an extremely flammable, colorless, and toxic gas, as well as hydrogen chloride. One must wonder why frozen vegetables and wheat were included with the flammable, toxic cargo. The crew conducted a “controlled release” of these materials in an effort to avoid an explosion. The resulting chemical fire did not do the residents of the Village of East Palestine any favors either. According to the American Chemistry Council, nearly a billion tons of hazardous materials are shipped by rail each year.</p><p>Vinyl chloride is a compound known about for at least 100 years. Ever since the mid 1970s people have contracted a rare form of liver cancer called hepatic angiosarcoma, after years and years of exposure, according to Dr. Kelly Johnson-Arbor, a medical toxicology physician. Even short term exposure to vinyl chloride can be dangerous, she noted. Symptoms, according to the CDC include burning and irritation of the skin, shortness of breath, dizziness and drowsiness, as well as headaches and vomiting. Residents should look out for liver damage and cancer.</p><p>Yet, Johnson-Arbor reported that vinyl chloride, while a very volatile chemical, will vaporize and evaporate into the atmosphere within days. After about a week or so, the chemical is gone from the air. It can also vaporize from the water into the air, but that doesn’t happen right away, she said, adding people may see a “chemical sheen on the water.” One of the biggest problems with vinyl chloride is its ability to seep “into the soil and affect the groundwater and so that’s what we need to worry about now. We need to test the water and make sure that’s safe and so people who have wells can continue to bathe and drink the water without having fear of being poisoned,” said Johnson-Arbor.</p><p>East Palestine resident Chelsea Simpson said it’s important to “make sure we are taken care of. There’s gonna be a lot of families displaced from this. I don’t feel comfortable going back. That has to be in our soil. In a few years from now, that could come up in our water. How is he [Biden] going to help the people who do not feel comfortable or safe because of all the unknowns in the future,” asked Simpson.</p><p>“We need help. We do. We need President Biden,” said East Palestine resident Kristina Ferguson. “People are getting sick. We should not have been let back into town until all this was done,” added Ferguson.</p><p>So where has Joe Biden been? The residents of East Palestine have heard nothing but crickets from the White House and the Biden administration. During his State of the Union address on February 7, Biden referenced the forgotten men and women of the United States, yet failed to utter a single syllable about the distraught residents of East Palestine. </p><p>The very next day, Vice President Kamala Harris gave a speech on environmental issues, and again, not a word about East Palestine or Norfolk Southern. A week later, on February 15, Biden spoke about rail, but still, no mention of the disaster in East Palestine. And, adding insult to injury, Biden spent President’s Day half a world away, kissing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s tuchus and handing him another $500 million dollars while America’s infrastructure continues to crumble beneath our bicycles, automobiles, trucks, and trains.</p><p>And where was Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg? In addition to telling a reporter he was “taking some personal time,” both he and Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw were no-shows at the high school on February 15. They both claimed to fear for their personal safety. Ever hear of Zoom, you guys? Buttigieg surrendered an incredible opportunity to be the face of empathy and compassion of the administration simply by showing up and giving a damn. He thinks he wants to be president one day? He will forever be reminded of this, and his many other failures while Transportation Secretary. This should not be a partisan issue, but because this is a town not fitting Buttigieg’s narrative, he has been non-responsive. The Village of East Palestine is a middle class community of modest financial means with a median household income of $44,498 as of 2021. Nestled 20 miles south of Youngsgtown, Ohio and 40 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, East Palestine’s population is 89 percent white. Twenty days after this disaster occurred, Buttigieg, either under public pressure or that former President Donald Trump announced his own visit, will finally make a cameo appearance in East Palestine. He visited East Palestine on Thursday, February 23 20 days after the derailment. Perhaps if this derailment took place in East St. Louis, Illinois, Biden and Buttigieg would have had boots on the ground and brought FEMA with them. </p><p>Trump visited East Palestine on February 22 bringing palettes of water and cleaning supplies. He also bought dinner for a group of firefighters and clean up crews. “Somebody has to do something for those people, I said. When I announced that I was coming, they [Biden administration] changed their tune. It was an amazing phenomena,” said Trump from East Palestine.</p><p>According to the DeWine administration, “FEMA continues to tell Governor DeWine that Ohio is not eligible for assistance at this time.” On February 17 DeWine himself said “Although FEMA is synonymous with disaster support, most typically involved in disasters where there is tremendous home or property damage - tornadoes, flooding, hurricanes - that’s why we do not expect that FEMA will come to East Palestine.” FEMA or no FEMA, there are other jurisdictions that have doubts. Cincinnati is closing its Ohio River intake as a precaution - about 300 miles from East Palestine. The Kentucky Water District is also closing its Ohio River intake.</p><p>The impact to the air, water, and soil for the long term are, at present, indeterminable. And that is more than just a bit worrisome. Ohio freshman Senator J.D. Vance (R) wants Norfolk Southern to pay, but he also wants his constituents to be able to live freely and safely in their town. “If the EPA administrator wants to stand here and tell people the tap water is safe, by all means they should be willing to drink it,” said a skeptical Vance. “People say that the air is clean. I would like to believe that that is true. I have also been here for almost three hours and it doesn’t smell great to me. I can’t imagine being a member of this community seeing dead fish, dead birds, dead crawdads in the community where you live; and children play in that [Leslie Run] creek. I took a stick and stuck it in the bed of the creek and pulled it along, and chemicals bubbled out of the ground,” said Vance, adding that he would not drink the water.</p><p>Norfolk Southern has offered $1,000 payments to any individual in East Palestine who wanted one, and has doled out more than $2.2 million for that and other expenses, thus far - clearly an admission of guilt. It’s inconceivable to consider anyone would either want to stay in the village or move there. A class action lawsuit is already underway, but instead of making lawyers rich, here’s a solution to cut out the middleman. Norfolk Southern should buy any house, home, farm, or property any East Palestine resident wishes to sell. Norfolk Southern should pay fair market value, from before the derailment, plus 20 percent, as well as moving expenses. Norfolk Southern should also pay lodging expenses in the interim for those who do not wish to stay in their homes while researching a new place to live. Granted, it is not easy to uproot a family - some living there for generations, some with children in the midst of their school year, as well as jobs not easily transferable. </p><p>Over the last day or two Governor DeWine said tests show “the municipal water system in East Palestine is free from contaminants from the wreck, but that the EPA will test the water every week out of an abundance of caution. The EPA said the air quality has been tested in some 560 homes and they also show that they are free of contaminants from the wreck.”</p><p>The EPA said…, the government said…, Buttigieg said…, DeWine said…. Coming full circle, should the residents of East Palestine trust their government? To once again quote President Ronald Reagan, with perhaps his three most famous words, “TRUST BUT VERIFY.” The residents can hear what the government is telling them, but they should verify with independent tests conducted by neither Norfolk Southern nor the government - federal or state, but paid for by Norfolk Southern. The residents of East Palestine deserve much more than what the government is giving to millions of illegals who continue to invade the United States of America at will.</p><p><i>Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.</i></p>Sanford D. Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06881858730000397187noreply@blogger.com0