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Title: The Patriot Post Digest 12-23-2015 Post by: nChrist on December 23, 2015, 03:51:11 PM ________________________________________ The Patriot Post Digest 12-23-2015 From The Federalist Patriot Free Email Subscription (http://patriotpost.us/subscription/new) ________________________________________ Daily Digest Dec. 23, 2015 THE FOUNDATION “I never consider a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.” —Thomas Jefferson, 1800 MERRY CHRISTMAS! At the end of each year, I ask my editors and staff to take leave between Christmas and New Year’s Day in order to be with their families. Moreover, I want each of our team members to step back from the rigors of relentless daily deadlines so that they can begin January with fresh perspective on the most important news, policy and opinion. As always, I will remain on the wall with our Managing Editor, Nate, keeping watch for any mischief by adversaries of Liberty. And our News Editor, Jordan, will be updating our Top Headlines1 section and Columnist/Opinion2 pages every day. Our regular editions will return on Jan. 4. In keeping with this blessed Christmas season, I invite you to visit our Patriot Christmas page3, which provides some insight on the history and current context for the celebration of Christmas. On behalf of your Patriot Post team4 and our National Advisory Board5, may this Christmas season and the coming New Year be filled with God’s blessings upon you, your family and our nation. Pro Deo et Constitutione — Libertas aut Mors Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis Mark Alexander, Publisher The Patriot Post TOP RIGHT HOOKS Virginia Shoots Itself in the Foot6 Virginia currently has concealed carry reciprocity agreements with 30 states, but beginning Feb. 1, 2016, only five of those agreements will be honored. A new crackdown was announced by Attorney General Mark R. Herring, who, in the words of The Washington Post, claimed “severing the out-of-state agreements can prevent people who may be dangerous or irresponsible from carrying a concealed handgun.” Only five states deemed by the attorney general not to have substandard firearm regulations made the cut — West Virginia, Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah. However, “The move also means several states will no longer recognize Virginia’s concealed carry permits because they require mutual recognition of permits. Those include Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Wyoming.” If the stench you smell reeks of Barack Obama-style unilateral circumvention, that’s because it is. The Post notes, “The move is part of a broader effort by gun control advocates to tighten restrictions without going through GOP-controlled legislatures.” In essence: When you can’t win through the electorate, what’s a little diktat by fiat? Virginia House Speaker William J. Howell observed, “Unfortunately, I have little doubt as to his true motivations. Mark Herring consistently seeks to interpret and apply the law of the commonwealth through the lens of his own personal, political opinions. He is damaging the integrity of the office he holds.” We’ve seen plenty of that from Gov. Terry McAuliffe. And as the saying goes, birds of a feather… In the end, however, Herring’s ill-advised decision is going to hurt Virginians more than it hurts visitors. Once states begin voiding their reciprocity agreements with Virginia (it’s called reciprocity for a reason), the only thing the AG will be saying is: I’ve made a huge mistake. As for what to do about it, University of Tennessee professor Glenn Reynolds suggests, “This is why we need national carry legislation.” Bergdahl’s Desertion Charge Embarrasses Obama7 In a Tuesday appearance before a military judge, Bowe Bergdahl was arraigned8 on charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, charges if proved in the court of law could land the man a life sentence. Oh, how the U.S. government’s tone has changed about the soldier. When the Obama administration first announced9 trading five prisoners from Guantanamo Bay for the lone private — a move that proved both illegal and put enemy leaders back into the fight10 — National Security Advisor Susan Rice said Bergdahl “served the United States with honor and distinction.” Typical. Bergdahl was held prisoner by the Taliban for five years after he walked away from his post in Afghanistan in 2009. Barack Obama’s dream soldier is one whose head was so filled with grandeur on becoming a whistleblower that he thought the rules didn’t apply to him. Commentator Charles Krauthammer said11 the incident illustrates just how inept Obama is when it comes to leadership. “I think the loss is the fact that Obama actually thought that he deserved a victory lap when he announced the release and stood up in the Rose Garden with the parents of this man who could turn out to be a traitor. It just tells you what Obama is thinking. … It’s simply staggering. And if you’re a soldier serving under this commander in chief you have to wonder about what kind of command he’s exercising.” Another Study Exposes NOAA Temperature Fraud12 What happens when devious politicians team up with complicit scientists? You get man-made global warming. Literally. Just ask the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. We’ve documented how the agency artificially increases13 the temperature trend so it appears steeper than it actually is. And NOAA’s not the only one. Likewise, both Australia and Switzerland14 have fraudulently adjusted temperature data. A new analysis15 from a research group looks deeper into one of the myriad ways NOAA accomplishes this. James Delingpole provides this concise summary16: While satellite records have shown no global warming for at least 18 years, the land based data sets like the ones maintained by NOAA for the US Historical Climate Network (USHCN) continue to show a warming trend. One reason for this discrepancy, the study suggests, is that NOAA has been cherry-picking its raw data. That is, it has ignored the evidence from those weather stations showing little or no late Twentieth century warming and instead placed undue emphasis on the ones that do show warming. But the ones that do show warming also happen to be the least trustworthy. These are the ones, the study shows, which have been most corrupted by the Urban Heat Island effect — and other environmental factors.“ As we wrote17 in October, the ClimateGate fraud is bigger and more malicious than anyone realizes. So it’s little wonder why NOAA refuses to turn internal communications17 over to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology: Because it’s quite possible those communications provide concrete evidence of the very fraud exposed above. FEATURED RIGHT ANALYSIS Who’s Really Doing the Islamic State Recruiting?18 By Lewis Morris Hillary Clinton is attempting to push the perception that she has the national security chops to protect America from the Islamic State. The first prong in that strategy: Attack … Donald Trump. During Saturday’s Democrat debate19, Clinton claimed that Trump was the prime recruiting tool for the Islamic terrorist "caliphate” because he called for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the country. Clinton’s assertion is ridiculous, even in the relatively logic-free environment of a presidential campaign. Of all the reasons that radical Muslims have for declaring war on America — our Liberty, our liberal society, American strength in the world, we’re “infidels” — the off-the-cuff remarks of a presidential candidate hardly rank at the top of the list. Title: The Patriot Post Digest 12-23-2015 Post by: nChrist on December 23, 2015, 03:55:07 PM ________________________________________ The Patriot Post Digest 12-23-2015 From The Federalist Patriot Free Email Subscription (http://patriotpost.us/subscription/new) ________________________________________ Terrorism experts have not found20 any instances of Trump actually being used in Islamic State propaganda, and Clinton’s campaign refused to back up her claims with any real evidence. Hillary’s supporters long ago accepted her words as gospel; it is true because she says so. Trump, who has done more than his fair share of mudslinging this year, demanded Clinton apologize. Predictably, Clinton’s camp resolutely refused, and she doubled down on the rhetoric. This isn’t about what effect Trump is or is not having on ISIL recruitment quotas. What is at issue is Clinton’s fundamental lack of understanding or honesty about the threat facing the U.S., coupled with her apparent disregard for troubling facts that could trip up her coronation as the next president. Clinton would have us believe that Islamic anger can be stirred by YouTube videos and colorful Trump-isms. These make for convenient sound bites that distract from the fact that the foreign policy malfeasance of Clinton and her former boss Barack Obama are the main reason for the rise and growing threat of the Islamic State21. Clinton, like Obama, refuses to accept the connection that Islam has to the terrorist threat. She maintains22 that Islam is the Religion of Peace™, and she pushes a view of “showing respect, even for one’s enemies.” Well, at least if those enemies are foreign and not domestic political opponents. This is reminiscent of other dangerously naďve Clinton moments such as the Russian “reset” button and the aforementioned Benghazi disaster. These sweet words are usually accompanied by attacks on Republicans for fear mongering. Her so-called plan23 for defeating ISIL is likewise filled with intellectual immaturity that should be unsettling to any voter with national security on their mind. For instance, the multi-pronged approach includes “crushing [ISIL] on its own turf” and “[doing] more to keep us safe.” Not very deep thinking. Clinton also calls for doing a better job of sharing intelligence, even though she is on record as opposing greater information sharing between government and the private sector. Maybe Clinton isn’t putting too much thought into her ISIL strategy because she truly believes her own words about the campaign against the Islamic State: “We now finally are where we need to be.” This was a major slip of the tongue, indicating either that Clinton is deluded into thinking the current campaign against ISIL is actually going well, or she’s lying for political gain. Gee, which one? Clinton’s campaign claims that her words are being deliberately misconstrued, but how else can you take a statement like that? There really is only one way: Clinton is concerned about ISIL only to the extent that it can make or break her candidacy. Outside of that, Islamic terrorism, like every other issue facing the country, is a means to an end, and that end is putting Hillary Clinton in the White House. MORE ORIGINAL PERSPECTIVE ANALYSIS: Obama Welcomes Terrorists, Shuns Allies24 Girls Push Back Against Boy in Locker Room25 KY Governor’s Solution to the Same-Sex Marriage Issue26 Study: Gov’t Subsidies to Blame for Skyrocketing Tuition27 How Reagan Marked Christmas 198128 Afghanistan Chaos Grows as Six Americans Killed29 Louisiana Gov. Walks Back Welfare Reform30 BEST OF RIGHT OPINION Walter Williams: Immorality and Contempt for Liberty31 Tom Fitton: Email Records Show Clinton Ignored Concerns About Security of Internet Devices32 Rich Lowry: Washington Irving’s Christmas33 For more, visit Right Opinion2. TOP HEADLINES Fewest Deportations Since 200634 Washington Post Cartoonist Mocks Cruz Daughters35 Iran Successfully Hacked Controls to a New York Dam36 For more, visit Patriot Headline Report37 OPINION IN BRIEF Walter Williams: “If one American can use government to force another to serve his purpose, what is the basis for denying another American the right to do the same thing? For example, if farmers are able to use Congress to give them cash for crop subsidies, why should toymakers be denied the right for Congress to give them cash subsidies when their sales slump? Congress has completely succumbed to the pressure to use one American to serve the purposes of another. As a result, spending grows. Today’s federal budget is about $3.8 trillion. At least two-thirds of it can be described as Congress taking the earnings of one American to give to another. I personally believe in helping one’s fellow man in need. Doing so by reaching into one’s own pockets is laudable and praiseworthy. Doing so by reaching into another’s pockets is evil and worthy of condemnation.” SHORT CUTS Insight: “The evils of tyranny are rarely seen but by him who resists it.” —John Hay (1838-1905) Non Compos Mentis: “It’s the fear of getting killed that is getting a lot of us killed. But it’s also other fears that are winding us up and making a few of us go crazy enough to take off on a shooting rampage. … We know that there’s no safety net for us here in the USA. … Most of us find a way to cope with all of this. … But then there are the few that can’t. And with easy access to any kind of gun — and as much ammo as they want — they find a way to act out their frustration and aggression.” —Michael Moore Village Idiots: “I don’t believe it’s possible to imagine a Jesus who would not welcome refugees with open arms, who would not fight hatred with love, who would not understand that the ‘war on terror’ — whether it flashes from the throne of Herod the Great or Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — is fundamentally a war of ideas.” —professor Jay Parini in a CNN article titled, “At Christmas, remember that Jesus was a refugee” Yes, your highness: “I respect anyone who is supporting one of my Democratic opponents, but I would just ask, once this nomination is wrapped up, that they come and join with us to make sure that we don’t turn the White House back over to the Republicans. … I don’t have any sympathy for people who decide they are going to pass … because whoever the alternative is … not ‘pure enough.’” —Hillary Clinton Braying Jenny: “This school district, and these schools throughout Iowa, are doing a better than average job. Now, I wouldn’t keep any school open that wasn’t doing a better than average job. If a school’s not doing a good job, then, you know, that may not be good for the kids.” —Hillary Clinton (How many schools are below average?) The BIG Lie: “We now finally are where we need to be. We have a strategy and a commitment to go after ISIS.” —Hillary Clinton And last… “To disprove the rumor that the DNC hopes no one sees the Dem debates, Debbie Wasserman Schultz immediately scheduled another for Dec. 32.” —Twitter satirist @weknowwhatsbest Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis! Managing Editor Nate Jackson Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform — Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen — standing in harm’s way in defense of Liberty, and for their families. |