About Those Christmas Cards For The ACLU

Crossposted from Stop The ACLU

Its that time of the year again. The time when the intolerant grinches like the ACLU start trying to fill their stockings with your tax dollars in their attempts to secularize Christmas. The ACLU try their best to deny their attacks on Christmas. They call those defending Christmas the well organized extremists out to make a buck in the guise of defending Christmas. This is of course false. The Alliance Defense Fund, just like last year, are offering their services to defend Christmas completely FREE! However, the lies continue again this year as the ACLU denies their attacks on Christmas. However, their actions speak louder than their words. Already the ACLU have began their attacks. They have already been successful in bullying the Berkley City Council into moving their Christmas nativity scene off public property. This, despite the fact that the display also included other religious and secular elements including a Star of David, Christmas trees, a Santa Claus figure, a Santa’s Mailbox, and a “Seasons Greetings” sign. In their latest attempt to censor Christmas they have sued the Wilson County School System outside of Nashville, TN. because their Christmas program includes "Christian themes and songs."

The plaintiffs and the ACLU allege that several kindergarten students role-played a nativity scene of the birth of Jesus—and had the audacity to sing “Away in the Manger” and “Joy to the World.” According to the ACLU, these songs are exclusively Christian in nature because they celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ and are, therefore, inappropriate.

The ACLJ is defending the school in this case. The ADF has a long list of attacks on Christmas from the ACLU and its allies dating back from 2002 to the present. Yes, its that time of the year again. The season that I get bombarded with emails encouraging people to waste their money on a stamp for a Christmas card wishing the ACLU a merry Christmas. Don't get me wrong. I understand the sentitment behind the whole thing. I was all on board last year. If you really want them to have a Merry Christmas, or just feel like throwing your money away I won't discourage it. It will be about as effective as barking at the moon. Your Christmas cheer will be tossed in the mail room shredder and never reach any those you intended to send a message to. I propose that your money could be spent in a much more efficient manner. Save the money you would throw away on the stamp for a message destined to fall on deaf ears. There are many organizations out there fighting to protect Christmas and the expression of its true meaning. Why not take the money you would be throwing away on a noble yet ineffective gesture, and put it to real use as a gift to the organization of your choice that is out there fighting the ACLU? Sign the ACLJ's Petition here. Contribute Here. See the Alliance Defense Fund's educational on your rights here. Contribute Here. See the Liberty Counsel's free legal memorandum here (pdf). Contribute Here. Contribute to Thomas More Law Center here. Buy from the Bulldoze the ACLU store for great Christmas gifts.

This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 200 blogs already on-board.

2996 Project: My Tribute to James M. Gartenberg

James M. Gartenberg was one of many who worked in the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001 and was murdered. But rather then focus on the act, I want to focus on the man and the life that he lived.

Jim Gartenberg was a husband to Jill, a father to Nicole, a resident of Manhattan, an alumnus of the University of Michigan who loved to travel to the Big House in Ann Arbor to cheer on his beloved Wolverines.

Gartenberg was a commercial real estate broker with Julien J. Studley Inc. He worked on the 86th floor of the north tower.

A Manhattan native, Gartenberg graduated from Michigan in 1987 with a degree in economics. For 12 years, he served as chapter president of a local alumni club. Jim’s two passions were the University of Michigan and his daughter of 2, Nicole. He had taught Nicole to yell “Go Blue” whenever the Wolverines were on television.

Jim spent his last moments calmly describing the scene to ABC-TV from the 86^th floor. Jim leaves behind his wife Jill, his daughter Nicole and another child who was born after his death. I can not summarize the man and his life any better then his friends and family. I have included some of their words below.

“Some of my most vivid and wonderful memories of my childhood include time spent with Jimmy, whether at each other's houses, in the neighborhood or at school ... Rest in peace, Jimmy. Thank you for bringing so much happiness to my life. “ Allison Horn, childhood friend

"When I first met him, he was running the University of Michigan Alumni Club meeting. He was president of the New York City chapter. I was impressed with his leadership skills, how well he was organized, his intelligence, his presence, his ability to negotiate in difficult situations when there was conflict. I said to myself, 'I want to marry him.' " Jill Gartenberg

The University of Michigan has established the James M. Gartenberg Memorial Scholarship Fund in Jim’s name and has a golf outing each year to raise money for the scholarship fund. The website is http://www.jamesgartenberg.com/.

9/11: My Remberance by Todd D. Miller

The day we know as 9/11 started as just another pleasant fall day in Chicago where I was living at the time. My wife and I had been blessed by the arrival of our son in February and life was generally very good. I was working for a small software integrator and since I had a 10am installation meeting in nearby Skokie I had chosen to go directly from our house on the north side near Wrigley Field rather then fight rush-hour traffic from Hillside.

At about 8:00 CST my service tech called me to let me know that he might be late for our meeting at 10am. I told him that traffic could not possibly be that bad this morning and I was sure he would make the meeting on time. He said to me, “You’re kidding right? Have you seen the news?” I quickly replied that I had not since he had woken me from a dead sleep. He told me that a plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center towers and the building was on fire. I turned on the television and flipped to CNN just in time to witness the second plane hit the south tower live. I told him I would call him back but we should plan to keep the meeting unless the client canceled or the office called with different instructions.

I hung up my cell phone and dropped to my knees as I watched flame and smoke pour from the towers as if someone had opened the gates of Hell. I sat on the floor in front of the television for about ten minutes struggling to comprehend what I had just witnessed. In retrospect, I can only imagine that my initial reaction was similar to that of the civilian populace that witnessed the attacks on Pearl Harbor at the onset of World War II. I went to awake my wife and she stared at me dumbfounded as I told her that two planes had hit the WTC Towers and that the news was already reporting it as an act of terrorism. She turned on the television in the bedroom and we silently sat and watched for a few minutes. I remember thinking that this must be a dream, we were Americans damn it and this does not happen on our soil. My feelings flowed from anger to disbelief to betrayal back to anger.

My cell phone rang again and it was my supervisor calling. She had been told that the company was going to try to operate as normally as possible but that the client had canceled my meeting at 10am so I should just come into the office to “do whatever” as she bluntly put it. I got dressed quickly and told my wife that once things settled down that it might not be a bad idea to head to her Mom’s house in the west suburbs. She disagreed but agreed to keep me up to date since I did not have a television or radio at my desk, the internet was going to have to be my only information source once I got to the office.

As I drove to the office, I scanned the news talk stations for more information. The first building collapsed as I pulled into the parking lot of our building and I just felt an overwhelming sense of sadness. The original estimates called for almost 10,000 dead and it was clear that morning that no one had a handle on what kind of damage had been inflicted. The President had closed American airspace and the sky became eerily empty of contrails from the many planes coming and going from Chicago. That action was even more apparent for us in the office as we were only a few miles from O’Hare airport and sat directly beneath one of the landing patterns. We sat there in our cubes just numb from the early morning’s events as we desperately tried to get the latest information off various internet news sites.

The news of a plane striking the Pentagon came as a swift kick to the gut. Again, I could not help but wonder how this could be happening to our country. At the time, I was only involved in politics and world events on the same scale as most of America. I paid attention to state and local news and only paid attention to politics when it was time to choose a president. You could say that I was blissfully ignorant of the threats that had been gathering against the United States. As I traded phone calls with my wife and exchanged information, there was a radio or television report that another plane was missing and possibly headed for Chicago. An immediate chill ran down my spine as I was flooded by a feeling of helplessness. I told my wife that she should at least go downstairs to her Grandmother’s apartment if she would not drive to her Mother’s house.

As the day progressed, the rumors gave way to truth and a small sense of security returned to those of us in the Chicago area even as rescue and recovery efforts began in earnest on the east coast. The entire day was surreal as we tried to busy ourselves with work that no longer seemed important or necessary. That evening I spent every moment I could glued to the television for the latest news. In the short span of hours everything we had known changed and I for one was left wondering what was next.

Over the next few days as we learned more about the attacks and why they happen, I kept coming back to a feeling of overwhelming sadness. Not sadness because we were attacked nor sadness at the fact that it appeared our government could not protect us. My sadness was for the innocent civilians that had been murdered, the heroic police and firefighters that had unselfishly charged to the rescue, and most of all for the families and friends that were left behind to question why. It still to this day brings me to the verge of tears when I ponder the enormous loss of potential that all of the victims held. Could there have been a Nobel Prize winner among the dead, a future president, perhaps the doctor or scientist that could have cured cancer or aids, we will never know.

I think the saddest part for me personally is the fact that so many children will not grow up with the love and guidance of a parent due to the selfish act of 19 misguided men who were led astray by a little-minded man hell-bent on creating glory for himself while perverting a religion of the world. There was a recent poll that said about 70% of Americans think about 9/11 at least once a week. I think about it everyday and maybe for me it has turned into an inspiration to lead a better life and follow the American dream as a personal tribute to our most honored dead. I fear that over time this day of national remembrance will fade as many such days in our history have. I challenge each and every American to hold the memories of these slain close to your heart and remember their sacrifice and heed the wake-up call we have been served. We are locked in a battle of epic proportions between good and evil and the day will come when those who in their hearts are riding the fence will have to make a choice.

I hope that the sadness I feel associated with this date and its events will fade over time but I fear that if we are to learn anything from the brutal attacks we will have to carry that pain of loss awhile longer. Remember this could have been prevented. Let us work together as the people of this nation did after Pearl Harbor to make sure it never happens again.

Double Dose From Stop The ACLU

A double dose from Stop The ACLU!

First on the agenda....do your part and encourage your senators to pass legislation to put an end to taxpayer funding of the ACLU's anti-Christian agenda!

Second: Celebrate! The Senate just passed legislation to transfer the Mt. Soledad Cross land to the Federal government! A victory sure to be challenged, yet still a huge step in toward victory for freedom!

ACLU Takes U.S. To U.N.

Crossposted from Stop the ACLU

ACLU Website:

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND -- A United Nations human rights body expressed grave concerns today about the record of human rights in the United States. The American Civil Liberties Union with a delegation of 10 and working with a broad coalition of other groups is in Geneva to monitor the examination of the United States the U.N. Human Rights Committee (HRC).


In a two-day session that concluded today, the committee members pressured the United States for answers on the following issues:


The sentencing of children to life without parole and the disproportionate incarceration of minorities;
The militarization of the border;
The failure to prevent human rights violations and respond in a non discriminatory manner to Hurricane Katrina;
The failure to end racial profiling practices, specifically the profiling of South Asian convenience store employees in Georgia;
Warrantless spying on ordinary Americans;
The abuse of women in prison; and
The indefinite detention, rendition and torture of non-citizens.

“The U.S. should be ashamed of itself,” said Ann Beeson, Director of the ACLU’s Human Rights Program. “The review by the Human Rights Committee was a stark and all too accurate condemnation of the state of rights in America.”

No, the ACLU should be ashamed of itself. The review by the Human Rights Committee which includes member states Cuba, Saudi Arabia and China ,and ensures that violaters are included, is a joke and nowhere near accurate.

Jim Hoft has covered this well.

Religious persecutors, Womens Rights violators, Communist Regimes, and illegal organ harvesters will make up the new UN Human Rights Council.

And this is the organization that the ACLU want to hold the U.S. accountable to? The ACLU, and the U.N. are the two most dangerous organizations in the world. They are both seeking to destroy America’s credibility and soverignty. The U.N. are a corrupt joke when it comes to human rights, and they have absolutely zero credibility to make any judgement on America in that area.

The ACLU, who provided the list called "Dimming the Beacon of Freedom", to this corrupt organization that can't even clean up its own human rights violations are an embarrassement to this great nation. It is shameful that their list included our efforts to spy on the enemy, protect our borders, and several other accusations without evidence. I also wonder if their accusation to "abuse" of women in prison would be not providing them with abortions at the expense of taxpayers.

Besides the issues within our own judicial system and its decay, the ACLU is also turning to international sources to undermine our nation's sovereignty and national security.

For instance, the ACLU filed a formal complaint with the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention against the United States, stating that the United States violated international law when it detained 765 Arab Americans and Muslims for security reasons after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack on our nation. Eventually, 478 were deported. ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said, "With today's action, we are sending a strong message of solidarity to advocates in other countries who have decried the impact of U.S. policies on the human rights of their citizens. We are filing this complaint before the United Nations to ensure that U.S. policies and practices reflect not just domestic constitutional standards, but accepted international human rights principles regarding liberty and its deprivations." Source

Romero, of course, makes the United States sound like some rogue nation with no regard for human rights, not the beacon of liberty that so many have come to escaping from tyranny and the bonds of oppression.


All of this should concern you. You may think that it doesn't directly affect you in your everyday life, but it will eventually. The ACLU's embrace of international law seeks to hypocritically do the opposite of what the ACLU claim to protect, and the Constitution forbids; prohibit the free exercise of religion.

In spring 2003, a group from the United Nations Human Rights Commission, of which former ACLU officials Paul Hoffman and John Shattuck are a part, met and discussed a resolution to add "sexual orientation" to the UNHRC's discrimination list. Homosexual activists at the meeting called for a "showdown with religion," clearly intending to use international law to silence religious speech that does not affirm homosexual behavior. Source

The ACLU's actions are a direct threat to our very freedom of speech, religious exercise, security, and soverignity. In some countries, laws are being pushed, and in some cases, enacted that essentially criminalize forms of religious speech and activity that does not affirm homosexual behavior.

If we are going to turn the interpretation of our laws to international jurisprudence, and decisions of foreign courts, judges, and legislatures, the question begs...why did we fight a war of independence? If the ACLU are successful in their agenda for international law, the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution will eventually become irrelevant documents. More and more of America's freedoms, and our very soverignty will be sacrificed for international law. Our freedoms will vanish. The ACLU's vision of freedom that includes the public sale of child pornography, the silencing of churchs and ministries, and unlimited abortion and euthanasia will replace them. To many Americans, these sound more like human rights violations than anything on the ACLU's list.

On October 27, 1787, Alexander Hamilton predicted that a “dangerous ambition” would one day tyrannize the gangling young American Republic, all the while lurking “behind the specious mask of zeal for the rights of the people.” It could almost be said that Hamilton had a prophecy of the ACLU.

This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay or Gribbit. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 200 blogs already on-board.

Zarqawi Bites The Dust

Crossposted from: Stop The ACLU

Iraqi Prime Minister Al Maliki and General Casey have announced that it is official that Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi has been killed in a US Air raid. He has been positively identified by finger prints. Also killed in the raid were 7 of his henchmen.

FoxNews reports:

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Al Qaeda-linked militant who led a bloody campaign of suicide bombings, kidnappings and hostage beheadings in Iraq, has been killed in a U.S. air raid north of Baghdad, Iraq's prime minister said Thursday.



Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said al-Zarqawi was killed along with seven aides Wednesday evening in a house 30 miles northeast of Baghdad in the volatile province of Diyala.

"Today, al-Zarqawi was eliminated," al-Maliki told a news conference, drawing loud applause from reporters as he was flanked by U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad and U.S. Gen. George Casey, the top U.S. commander in Iraq.

Al-Maliki said the air strike was the result of intelligence reports provided to Iraqi security forces by residents in the area, and U.S. forces acted on the information.

"Those who disrupt the course of life, like Al-Zarqawi, will have a tragic end," he said.

Khalilzad added "the death of Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi is a huge success for Iraq and the international war on terror."

The Jordanian-born militant, who is believed to have personally beheaded at least two American hostages, became Iraq's most wanted militant, as notorious as Usama bin Laden, to whom he swore allegiance in 2004. The United States put a $25 million bounty on his head, the same as bin Laden.

Iraqi Police were first on the scene after the airstrike. And it has been reported that Jordanian officials were invoved in pinpointing his location based on some recent video tape.

Reports out of Baghdad state that information to Zarqawi's location came from local residents tipping off the Iraqi Police and Security forces. One report even says that it was a member of Zarqawi's inner circle that gave the key information.

Zarqawi was holding a meeting inside a "safe-house" about 30 miles north of Baghdad.

It is ironic that Zarqawi has been killed less than 20 miles from where Saddam Hussain was found hiding in that spider hole.

It is hoped that with the death of Zarqawi that the insurgency will start to fall apart and the differing sides in Iraq will finally come together and solve their problems.

Fox is reporting that long standing ovations and cheering at the announcement of Zarqawi's death. Even the press corps!

There is speculation that also killed in the attack was Zarqawi's #2 Sheikh Abdul Rahman. Rahman you may remember was the center of the initial insurgency.

The airstrike took place at about 1815 (6:15 pm) 7 June Baghdad time. Official announcement of Zarqawi's death didn't come until 0900 (9am) 8 June Baghdad time suggesting that there was no rush to judgement on the identification of Zarqawi's body.

Bush Congratulates the troops.

President Bush said Thursday that the death of al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is "a severe blow" to the al-Qaida terrorist network and a decisive victory in the U.S.-led war against terorrism.

"Now Zarqawi has met his end," Bush said in the White House Rose Garden. "And this violent man will never murder again."

Bush listed some of the most visible terror operations that Zarqawi led or masterminded including the bombing of the U.N. headquarters in Iraq, the beheading of American hostages and the assassinatio of a U.S. diplomat in Jordan.

Bush praised the work of the U.S. military and Iraqi allies in killing Zarqawi, but was careful to point out that this singular development will not end terror attacks in Iraq.

But not everyone is celebrating. Nick Berg's father is saddened.

ACLU To Board Members, STFU!

Crossposted from: Stop The ACLU

This is the kind of hypocrisy that Conservatives and most reasonable liberals can agree that the ACLU needs to some house cleaning on. Via NY Times….

The American Civil Liberties Union is weighing new standards that would discourage its board members from publicly criticizing the organization’s policies and internal administration.

“Where an individual director disagrees with a board position on matters of civil liberties policy, the director should refrain from publicly highlighting the fact of such disagreement,” the committee that compiled the standards wrote in its proposals.

“Directors should remember that there is always a material prospect that public airing of the disagreement will affect the A.C.L.U. adversely in terms of public support and fund-raising,” the proposals state.

Given the organization’s longtime commitment to defending free speech, some former board members were shocked by the proposals.

Read the whole story at Stop The ACLU

Enough Already, The Criminal Immigrants Need To Go

When did we become a nation of law-breakers? If it is ok for those who seek a better life to break the law without consequences where does it stop? I am all for people seeking a better life for themselves and their families but what does it say to that family about their future in the greatest nation on God’s Earth when they start a new life by becoming criminals? I refuse to call anyone who breaks the law to come to America an illegal immigrant any longer; they are simply criminals regardless of where they come from, who they are and why they are here. In this country we for the most part put criminals in jail but unfortunately it is just not that simple. There are many reasons why criminal immigration is tearing this country apart and I will discuss a few as well as my thoughts on how we can right this ship. I am sure along the way I will be called a racist and a xenophobe but I only know what is right and what is wrong, and breaking the law is wrong.

Immigration reform is not only necessary but long overdue. There are many reasons but let us start with the first one that should come to mind for any American taxpayer, the staggering cost of the unrelenting wave of criminal immigrants that flow in to this country every single day. I have documented the 16.5 billion dollars that Arizona, California and Texas spent each year paying for the detention of these criminals, the education of these criminals, as well as the feeding and sheltering of these criminals. Those states along the southern US border represent the flood gate that supporters of criminal immigration would keep open and unsecure. The taxpayers in Arizona, California, and Texas each pay an additional $700, $1,183, and $725 in taxes respectively to support the criminals who come to our country. You can read more about the costs that this country incurs from these criminals here, for we are just a fat sow that is being sucked dry.

Let us now turn to the most troubling aspect of criminal immigration, the insecurity of the southern United States border. It is bad enough that every day we have drug dealers, gun runners and other assorted “regular” criminals crossing our border everyday but now we have groups such as MEChA and La Raza calling for open invasion from Mexico so that their dream of “Reconquista” or the reconquest of the American Southwest can become reality. It is now so bad that the Mayor of Los Angles who is an open member of MEChA has issued an order to LA police that they may not make immigration related arrests even if they can prove the suspect is in the United States illegally. Read more about their open racism here. In case you’re local news has not made mention of this next tidbit, pay attention because you sure as Hell would not have seen this story on any national news. The Mexican army regularly invades the United States and has even traded weapons fire with the United States border patrol, read for yourself here as there are many examples of the blatant disregard by Mexico for the sovereignty of the America’s southern border. In case anyone is not familiar with that term, look it up here. The truth is that the borders are unsecure and we have no idea who is coming to this country each and every day. It could be your common drug mule or gun runner or coyote smuggling another group of criminal immigrants or in the worst case, a group of terrorists looking to murder innocent Americans.

The problem of criminal immigration is spreading across this country faster than a Brittney Spears hit song among the 12-16 years that populate your local shopping mall. The problem that was once limited to the southwest and a few other locations such as Chicago, New York, Boston, Detroit and Miami to name a few, has now spread to every corner of this country. One might be surprised to know that cities such as Cleveland, Charlotte, St. Louis, Northern Virginia and Danbury, CT now deal with the effects of criminal immigration just as any city in the southwest has for decades. In fact the folks in Danbury now “enjoy” a criminal immigrant population of 10,000 to 15,000 in a town of 77,000. That means that 12% to 19% of their population are criminal immigrants, who if allowed to vote illegally could influence the local political scene. Imagine that for a moment, a group of non-citizens who are breaking the law by their very presence in this country continuing their criminal ways and dictating the future of America citizens. You can read more about the plight of Danbury here.

The last component to this overwhelming criminal activity is the traitorous companies that continue to break the law and provide jobs for criminal immigrants while suppressing American wages and denying jobs to those who want to work. You can find just one of many lists of companies that hire criminal immigrants here. This is the only part of Congress’s ongoing debate on criminal immigration that I can agree with. Until we make it so unprofitable to hire criminal immigrants; employers will continue to provide an overwhelming reason for these people to break the law and come to this country. If it was not easy to enter this country illegally and it was easier to come here legally then maybe we would have the needed balance of workers for those companies who feel the need to hire non-citizens but currently that balance is a pipe dream. The fact is that for anyone seeking a better life coming to America is the “easy” way out. Take the country of Mexico, who incidentally supplies the United States with far more criminal immigrants than any other country, Mexico has a history of government corruption that makes Eastern Europe and Russia pale in comparison. If it was harder to come to the United States illegally then maybe these people would stay in Mexico and reform their own country instead of taking the easier path and come to the United States. Now I am not unsympathetic in regards to the many that die in the southwest’s deserts nor the terrible treatment they endure from the human smugglers. I simply point out that many who died trying to enter the United States illegally would still be alive if they had just stayed home. The UN likes to pat itself on the back for helping out around the world in regard to terrible human tragedies but they are strangely silent on the conditions in Mexico. Perhaps if they looked to our neighbor to the south then some real good could come of their actions.

Now that I have laid out what I see as the major components to the criminal immigration problem let me offer a few suggestions towards a better future for both America and the millions of criminal immigrants who are already here.

1) Close the border using the National Guard and Border Patrol as well as specially trained civilian patrols for a period of no less than 18 months. All traffic, civilian and commercial must be searched and cleared of drugs, contraband, and of course criminal immigrants. Put in place a comprehension system of technology and human assets so that after the mandatory 18 months the National Guard can stand down. The only way that any reforms will work is to secure the border and if it means sealing the border to non-essential traffic for a year and a half then so be it. Every public opinion poll in the last two years has the public putting border security at the top, far above other reforms proposed.

2) Require all illegals to immediately register with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and those who do not within 3 months are summarily deported to their country of origin and not eligible for entry to the United States for a period of not less than 15 years. That may sound cruel to many but unless the policy has consequences it will not be followed. Once the registration period has closed, conduct comprehensive background checks of all criminal immigrants who registered and if contact is lost with them during the review process then they forfeit any chance at citizenship for a period of 10 years. If the criminal immigrant passes the background check and can provide proof of an employable skill then they will be considered for citizenship but their application will be placed at the bottom of the list. We must give preference to those who want to come to this the country the right way, the legal way.

3) Reduce the amount of foreign aid to countries in a direct relation to their cooperation on the issue of criminal immigration. We currently give Mexico over 10 billion dollars in foreign aid. The sad but true part of that tale is that Mexico’s economy survives on the money that they receive from criminal immigrants which last year topped 15 billion dollars and was not only greater than our foreign aid contribution but also Mexico income earned through the sale of crude oil and its associated products. If Mexico is truly an ally then now it the time for them to step up and control their side of the border and if they cannot, they our foreign aid must be curtailed. The Mexican drug cartels have long grown fat off of American dollars from the drug trade and now they are earning a living exploiting the weakness of the United States southern border. If we cannot count on the Mexican government to stop these gangs of murders, human smugglers and hard core criminals then we must send at the very least some Special Forces operators to hone their wet work skills south of the border.

4) We must reform the process of coming to America with an eye towards allowing those who truly wish to be citizens and contribute an easier but secure path to the American dream. There are an overwhelming number of criminal immigrants who wish to simply make a better life for their families and contribute to the United States as citizens. These are the ones who we must help come here legally and safely. We are one of the most technologically advanced nations on this planet and yet the process to obtain a green card and ultimately citizenship is horribly outdated. For those who already have legal family and a waiting job we must clear a path for them to contribute and achieve, those are ones who came from all over the world to build this country and they are our greatest strength.

If this great country is to survive to see its 300^th birthday then we must meet this challenge of criminal immigration head on and not be dissuaded by those who would wrongly accuse us of racism or bigotry or worst yet, those would seek to place personal agendas and politics above the safety of all Americans, future and current. We simply must succeed to ensure that America continues to be a country that the whole world envies, that is worth coming to and raising a family. We must push ahead with common sense and a commitment to do what is right for the country no matter how painful or hard it might seem. I for one hope that we do succeed and we reach that balance of legal immigrants contributing while keeping out those who wish us harm. Until that day, I will pray that we do not head down the path of Europe as highlighted by the riots in France by illegal and legal immigrants just a few months ago. We must hope for the best and prepare for the worst while remembering what every Boy Scout knows: Be Prepared. Have a great Monday everyone and God Bless America.

The ACLU's Hypocrisy Legacy

Crossposted from Stop The ACLU

Convincing liberals that the ACLU is leading us down a dangerous path is about as productive as talking to a rock. Perhaps this is because I mostly deal with far left liberals who share the same insane views and have the same radical agenda as the ACLU. Anyone who believes that the ACLU is there to purely defend the Constitution is naive at best. Surely there are some moderate liberals out there that can concede that the organization is in need of reform.

A balanced society can not survive resting in the fringe. A Nation only concerned with security will drift toward a police state, and one that follows the absolutist views of liberty like the ACLU will drift toward anarchy.

The ACLU proudly display a banner that states, Keep America Safe and Free, but any honest person will admit that the ACLU have done nothing for the safety of America. As a matter of fact, all evidence leads to quite the opposite. The ACLU are always ready to put the security of America at risk in the pursuit of its absolutist views of liberty.

Many of the ACLU's former leaders have noticed the irresponsible shifting of the ACLU away from true civil liberty protection into a much more dangerous agenda. For example take the words of this former Executive Director of the ACLU

The right to express unpopular opinions, advocate despised ideas and display graphic images is something the ACLU has steadfastly defended for all of its nearly 80-year history.

But the ACLU, a group for which I proudly worked as executive director of the Florida and Utah affiliates for more than 10 years, has developed a blind spot when it comes to defending anti-abortion protesters. The organization that once defended the right of a neo-Nazi group to demonstrate in heavily Jewish Skokie, Ill., now cheers a Portland, Ore., jury that charged a group of anti-abortion activists with $107 million in damages for expressing their views. Gushed the ACLU's press release: "We view the jury's verdict as a clarion call to remove violence and the threat of violence from the political debate over abortion."

Were the anti-abortion activists on trial accused of violence? No. Did they threaten violence? Not as the ACLU or Supreme Court usually defines it, when in the context of a call for social change.

The activists posted a Web site dripping with animated blood and titled "The Nuremberg Files," after the German city where the Nazis were tried for their crimes. Comparing abortion to Nazi atrocities, the site collected dossiers on abortion doctors, whom they called "baby butchers." ...

This is ugly, scary stuff. But it is no worse than neo-Nazi calls for the annihilation of the Jewish people, or a college student posting his rape fantasies about a fellow coed on the Web, both of which the ACLU has defended in the past.

None of the anti-abortion group's intimidating writings explicitly threatened violence. Still, the ACLU of Oregon refused to support the defendants' First Amendment claims. Instead, it submitted a friend-of-the-court brief taking no one's side but arguing that speech constitutes a physical threat only when the speaker intends his statement to be taken as one.

...Before anti-abortion zealots started getting sued, the ACLU had much more tolerance for menacing speech. Few of the 20th century's great social movements were entirely peaceable. The labor, civil-rights, antiwar, environmental and black-power movements were an amalgam of violence, civil disobedience and highly charged rhetoric. But to gag fiery speakers who call for harm to the establishment because others in the movement pursue their political goals with fists, guns or bombs would do terrible damage to strong, emotive pleas tot social change. It is something neither the ACLU nor, thankfully, the courts have countenanced in the past.

That's why in 1969 the ACLU helped defend a Ku Klux Klan member who had called for violence against the president, Congress and the Supreme Court. At the ACLU's urging, the Supreme Court ruled that speech advocating violence was constitutionally protected unless it incited imminent lawless action and was likely to produce such action. This case was later used to defend the speech of black militants.

The ACLU also applauded a 1982 Supreme Court decision that found that speeches promising violent reprisals were protected by the First Amendment. During the civil-rights movement, a leader of the NAACP called for "breaking the necks" of blacks who violated a boycott of white-owned businesses in Mississippi, and published a list of those who did. Some of the boycott violators were beaten. The court ruled that despite the atmosphere of fear, all the speeches and lists were part of a debate on a public issue that needed to be "uninhibited, robust, and wide-open."

I would argue that the Constitution doesn't protect all of these extreme positions of the ACLU, but that isn't the point he is trying to make. The issue is the ACLU's curious commitment to "uninhibited, robust, and wide-open" free speech when it involves things such as virtual child pornography, but not when it involves a something like a boss making racially offensive statements.

Unfortunately, there are some people who are so hypnotized by the ACLU's absolutist views and of the ACLU's campaign for pedophilia and child pornography that they are prepared to defend an organization that has become a shadow of its former self--a group that lets its idealistic and skewed understanding of the establishment clause trump freedom of religion and freedom of speech.

Stop the ACLU had the opportunity last year of interviewing a former ACLU lawyer. He was concerned with much of the same things.

The ACLU played a helpful role in the civil rights movement defending these people, and I can’t turn my back on that. I have to give credit where credit is due.” “But….that being said, what they have done in the past is completely eviscerated by what they do in the present. The ACLU has become a fanatical anti-faith Taliban of American religious secularism.”

“The ACLU is involved in the secular cleansing of our history. This is not just a fight about free exercise, but about the protection of our American history. The ACLU want to deny America the knowledge of their Christian heritage.”

It seems that the many of the ACLU's greatest critics came from their very ranks. The division within the ACLU will continue as long as the ACLU continues on the irresponsible, hypocritical path it is on. America needs a civil liberties union, sadly the ACLU isn't doing that job. If the ACLU succeeds in the dangerous direction it is steering America, they will ironically be putting in jeapordy the very liberty they claim to protect.

This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 115 blogs already on-board.

Guard The Borders? Why Bother? We Can Hire the Mexican Military to Do It For Us!!!!

Why not? They are already getting familiar with the terrain on our side of the border anyway. But you can read about that in a bit.

First I wish to point out a little known front in the battle against illegal immigration. It is linked in the title, and tells the story of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or CNMI.

Go read that for the history of the CNMI, and to understand the ramifications of my next statement.

Anyone that is under the impression that an "amnesty", or a "work visa program" or any program under any name that gives the criminal aliens a pass for the crimes they have already committed by breaking into the US and working illegally should consider carefully the current status of life in the CNMI.

Never mind the fact that the original inhabitants of the CNMI, or "the natives" seem to have taken to heart the socialist ideals of the democratic party, to the point of creating a system that actually caused this to happen;

The corrosive effect on the work ethic and morals of the American citizens is so bad that, in 1995, the government actually had to issue a directive prohibiting welfare recipients from hiring foreign maids.

As the article said "Free-market success," indeed.

With that said, here is today's officially sanctioned, posted all over the web Guard The Borders BlogBurst:

Last week, those of us who keep an eye on border issues noticed that several mainstream media sources had featured articles about the regular Mexican military incursions over our borders and into our country. This is nothing new, as the Border Patrol has documented hundreds of such illegal incursions by an armed Mexican military over the past decade, and our government has done nothing to curb these incursions. In fact, it seems our government has looked the other way. While I'm relieved that this information is getting out into the mainstream, I have little confidence that our governement will actually do its job and secure our borders.

Some confrontations between the Mexican military troops and our own Border Patrol agents have become violent as Mexican soldiers have fired their weapons at the Border Patrol. It's a mystery why our government refuses to acknowledge these hostile invasions. They surely know about it, and the Mexican Embassy in Washington D.C. has gone so far as to publicly deny that the Mexican soldiers are hostile, but rather there to "patrol for illegal border jumpers". Contrary to that public statement, however, most of the Mexican military troops on the border are moonlighting as security escorts for drug smuggling gangs the coyotes who are running large groups of illegals across the border.

T.J. Bonner, a 27-year Border Patrol veteran who heads the National Border Patrol Council [said], "Intrusions by the Mexican military to protect drug loads happen all the time and represent a significant threat to the agents. "Why else would they be in the area, firing at federal agents in the United States? There is no other explanation," said Mr. Bonner, whose organization represents all 10,000 of the nonsupervisory Border Patrol agents.

He also challenged reports that Mexican military units had crossed mistakenly into the United States, saying, "Every country's military has a [global positioning system] nowadays, including the Mexicans. "If the border is so poorly marked, why don't the thousands of Border Patrol agents working 24/7 along it ever seem to get lost, and none of us have been issued a GPS," he said.
[...]
Attacks on Border Patrol agents in the past few years have been attributed to current or former Mexican military personnel. U.S. law-enforcement officials have long thought that current and former Mexican soldiers are being paid to protect drug shipments bound for the United States.

Several agents said the attacks have escalated in the past two years as U.S. security efforts on the border have increased -- including the July shooting of two agents in an ambush near Nogales, Ariz., by assailants in black commando-type clothing, who fired more than 50 rounds. Authorities said the gunmen used military-style cover-and-concealment tactics to escape back into Mexico. No one has been arrested.

Without any federal commitment to secure our borders, the Minutemen, a volunteer citizen's group, has performed an invaluable civic service in patrolling our borders to document and verify the location of illegal border crossers. They, too, have encountered Mexican soldiers on the WRONG side of the border. The video clip below comes directly from the Arizona Minutemen who told the Mexican soldiers, when confronted, they were there as "media" to document the border situation. It is incredibly important to note that there is no reason why American citizens should EVER be required to justify their lawful activities on American soil to a FOREIGN military presence. That is anathema to our rights as American citizens!

(SCOTTSDALE, AZ) January 20, 2006 – The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps ("MCDC") announced the release today of video footage of an incursion by a unit of the Mexican army across the U.S. border in Arizona.

Chris Simcox and a group of Civil Defense Corps volunteers encountered a squad of approximately eight armed Mexican soldiers about 500 yards inside American territory. The Mexican soldiers started running back through the brush to Mexico when they realized they had been spotted.

The video shows a uniformed Mexican soldier climbing through a barbed wire fence on American soil to return to the Mexican side of the border as he races to catch up with the other Mexican soldiers who had also climbed back through the fence as they retreated back into their country.

A group of armed Mexican soldiers then returned to the barbed wire fence (on American soil) and confronted Simcox and the volunteers. A discussion in Spanish ensued, with the agitated soldier 'in charge' saying the Americans had no business being there.

Simcox and the volunteers did not budge. The Mexican soldiers left and drove off. Judging from earlier activity observed at the ranch that morning, Simcox is of the belief that a trafficking operation had been disrupted by the volunteers.

The footage, filmed in 2004, was sent to then Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge. His office did not respond. The video has remained in the Minuteman video archive and is being released in response to recent news reports that over 200 cross-border incursions by the Mexican army have been documented since 1996.

__________________________

This has been a production of the Guard the Borders Blogburst. It was started by Euphoric Reality, and serves to keep immigration issues in the forefront of our minds as we're going about our daily lives and continuing to fight the war on terror. If you are concerned with the trend of illegal immigration facing our country, join our blogburst! Just send an email with your blog name and url to euphoricrealitynet at gmail dot com.

Blogs already on board:

Euphoric Reality
A Lady's Ruminations
TMH's Bacon Bits
Part-Time Pundit
The Right Track
Cao's Blog
Ogre's Politics and Views
In The Bullpen
Stuck on Stupid
NIF
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Watchman's Words
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Curley's Corner

Counselman Says No To ACLU Prayer Censorship

Crossposted from Stop The ACLU

It is happening all across the nation. The ACLU sue city counsel after city counsel over praying in Jesus name. They don't sue to stop all prayer, but in every case the target has been Christian prayer. They even fought for the right of a Wiccan to pray at a counsel meeting. Many times it doesn't even take a lawsuit. They just type up a threatening letter and that does the trick. This was the case in Fredericksburg. But one man isn't taking things lying down.

Fredericksburg City Councilman Hashmel Turner has filed suit against his fellow council members, saying the council’s newly adopted prayer policy violates his constitutional rights.

Turner is being represented by the Rutherford Institute, a nonprofit group that advocates for free expression issues.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Richmond, asks the court to rule that the city’s prayer policy is unconstitutional, and to order that Turner be allowed back into the council’s prayer rotation.

The council voted 5-1 in November to adopt a policy of offering non-denominational prayers devoid of any Christian or other specific religious references.

Turner abstained from that vote, and Councilman Matt Kelly voted against the policy.

The vote came after Turner had been excluded from the council prayer rotation for more than a year. The council got a letter from the American Civil Liberties Union in July 2004 saying that the civil liberties group would file suit if Turner continued to invoke the name of Jesus Christ in his prayers.

Turner, who is pastor at First Baptist Church of Love in Fredericksburg, had always closed his prayers before council meetings by invoking the name of Jesus Christ before the ACLU complaint.

On the same night of the November vote for the nondenominational prayer policy, Turner asked to be put back into the prayer rotation, and to give the opening prayer before the Nov. 22 council meeting.

Mayor Tom Tomzak said today he asked Councilwoman Debby Girvan to give the prayer at that meeting instead of Turner, because, “I did not want to unleash a 1,000-pound gorilla-the ACLU-on the City Council.”

However, Tomzak said he does believe Turner’s rights are being violated, and the suit filed today is “a lawsuit that I probably agree with.”

“He’s a very passionate man, a man of faith and a man of principle, and he believes his rights have been violated,” Tomzak said of Turner.

Neither City Council members nor City Attorney Kathleen Dooley had seen copies of the lawsuit earlier today.

The suit calls the new prayer policy “an unlawful attempt by the City Council to prescribe the content of prayers given at City Council meetings by Turner and other members of City Council.”

John Whitehead, president of the Rutherford Institute, said Turner approached his organization last fall, saying he believed his rights were being violated. “All he wants is to say Jesus Christ at the end of the prayer,” Whitehead said. “He’s not asking for any money. ... It’s a very simple suit.”

One would think that it would be simple, yet the ACLU don't seem to get that. Religious expression in America is under attack. It is a shame that an organization that claims to protect our rights are the number one censor of Christian religious expression. If they were trying to get rid of all prayer at counsel meetings, we would have a different argument, but they are targeting Christian prayers and individual expression. It is good to see this man is standing up for his rights. More people should do so.

Currently there is legislation, introduced by Representative Hostettler that could put a stop to these ridiculous lawsuits. Hostettler’s proposal would amend the Civil Rights Attorney’s Fees Act of 1976, 42 U.S.C. Section 1988, to prohibit prevailing parties from being awarded attorney’s fee in religious establishment cases, but not in other civil rights filings. This would prevent local governments from having to use taxpayer funds to pay the ACLU or similar organization when a case is lost, and also would protect elected officials from having to pay fees from their own pockets.

SIGN THE PETITION TO STOP TAXPAYER FUNDING OF THE ACLU

This was a production of Stop The ACLU Blogburst. If you would like to join us, please email Jay at Jay@stoptheaclu.com or Gribbit at GribbitR@gmail.com. You will be added to our mailing list and blogroll. Over 115 blogs already on-board.

No Post Today

Today is my Birthday so yeah to me and thus I will eat, drink and be merry for I am half way to my dirt nap.
Seriously though, I am jet-lagged and tired so no post. I may post tomorrow about the poker/party tonight so enjoy your day for it's the weekend and we live in America.

The Unsung Heroes

I have been lax in my postings as of late, mainly due to the requirements of my new job and family. But rest assured that all changes today. I was without Internet for most of the day due to traveling but I did hear about the Abramoff case and I will comment on it shortly. Today I want to talk about the unsung heroes of our military and how they do their job without expectation of glory or riches. They just do their job and make something of their lives like countless of others before them have done.

In my new job I will have an opportunity to travel across this great national and meet all kinds of people. Every time I travel and cross paths with a member of our military, I do a couple of things. I ask them where they are headed and spent a few minutes talking to them about their service and most importantly, I thank them for their service to this nation. I thank them on behalf of my family and friends, and I thank them on behalf of the freedoms that we all enjoy. Hell, I even thank them on behalf of each and every person who seeks to trivialize the sacrifice that they and their family make every day.

Can I tell you that without exception every single service member that I have spoke to over the last 60 days simply tells me that they are just doing their job and it’s not a big deal. Not a big deal? I humbly beg to differ. It is an enormous deal to leave family and friends and serve your country in the defense of the ideals that it was founded upon. Of course our thoughts turn to service members that are directly in harm’s way in Iraq and Afghanistan, but every member of the military from the Marines guarding the United States embassy in France to Air Force Technicians in Alaska keeping an eye on the North Koreans deserve our thanks in equal measure as their brothers and sisters who serve in combat zones.

You might ask what brought on this glowing praise of the military; well I am going to tell you faithful reader. Two reasons spurred me to place fingers to keyboard this evening, the reaction of fellow travelers when I stop and thank members of the military for their service and the cowardice of one Jack Murtha as chronicled here. Most people either through their own shame or just not wanting to interact with their fellow Americans turn away or display looks of confusion when I thank service members and spend a few minutes speaking with them. That reaction literally breaks my heart because I know that most people are grateful for the service of our brave men and women in uniform but lack either the courage or moral conviction to act upon their innermost feelings. We used to be a nation of people who stuck to our beliefs but that seems to be passing as the Dodo bird passed from the Earth. We timidly accept the erosion of this countries core beliefs and look the other way as those who seek our destruction run rampant. Folks I have to say that enough is enough. Stand up and do what is right regardless of the consequences.

If you think we should honor and thank our military for their service then let them know when you come across them in your daily travels. If you think that the military is overrated and the war in Iraq and Afghanistan is wrong then speak your mind but do not ever forget where that right came from. Our right to free speech did not come from a journalist who broke a story or an ACLU lawyer who bullied a local, state, or federal government branch with a trivial lawsuit. That right is paid for in the blood, sweat, and tears of our brave men and women in uniform and it continues to be paid by the young and old of today’s service members. So if Jack Murtha wishes to express his self shame about a life of government service that includes honorable service in the United States Marine Corp then he should do so. He illustrates the freedoms that the military strives to protect and ensure for all Americans. So if Jack Murtha no longer has the moral courage to suggest military service then we need to know that since he serves at the pleasure of the folks from the great state of Pennsylvania. I will predict that Murtha will not run for another term but will instead retire before his constituents can vote him on his ass. I would also say that since Mr. Murtha does not feel that military service is no longer honorable in his opinion then perhaps he should just retire now and save everyone the trouble of having to like to his incessant whining. But he is more then entitled to his opinion and while he has lost his moral courage, I still thank him for his service to this country as a Marine and as a Congressman. I do think I am quite a bit more generous then his fellow Marines.

Folks, do this country a favor and thank someone for your freedom. Here’s a hint, the people to thank are the ones in uniform who quietly go about their business and do not seek publicity. Have a great day everyone and God Bless our men and women in uniform and this great country.