Larry King interviews the ex-wives, Carol and Mildred and a son, Lynn, of John Muhammad. The women say some rather surprising things.
Thanks to Gainesville Resident for the video.
Was the Attack at Fort Hood Terrorism?
Days have passed since the massacre at Fort Hood where 13 people lost their lives and 30 others were wounded. The Army has issued warnings about jumping to conclusions and has advised all to back off and allow them to do their own investigation. However, typically, politicians were beginning to weigh in on the topic over the weekend.
Senator Joe Lieberman, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, was perhaps the most direct and vocal. He flat out called the attack terrorism. He is quoted in the NY Daily News:
Sen. Joe Lieberman called the Fort Hood massacre an act of “Islamist extremism” – even as top Army brass warned Sunday against guessing at a motive, fearing backlash against Muslim soldiers.
“There are very, very strong warning signs here that Dr. Hasan had become an Islamist extremist and, therefore, that this was a terrorist act,” Lieberman (I-Conn) told Fox News on Sunday.
“If the reports that we’re receiving of various statements he made, acts he took are valid, he had turned to Islamist extremism.”
Experts in law enforcement and in the mental health field sift through the clues left after the massacre. They seem less willing to commit to definitive answers. People have begun to compare this rampage to the horrible massacre of students at Virginia Tech in spring of 2007.
Many people are beginning to form their own conclusions. What constitutes terrorism? Do we need government permission to call an act terrorism? Certainly when a gunman attacks people who are just sitting ducks, that is terrorism, regardless of motivation. Who dropped the ball? Didn’t the Army have strong warnings that this killer was unstable, was a bad apple, or whatever we want to call it. Why wasn’t he removed from where he could harm others? Should he have been discharged? Does that not send a bad message to others about fulfilling commitment? After all, much was invested in Major Hasan’s medical training.
Americans will be grappling with these and many other questions as more and more clues are uncovered from this horrible massacre.
Westboro Baptist Targets the Obama Children
How low can they go? Westboro Baptist ‘Church’ tries for a new low as they now are demonstrating outside Sidwell Friends, the Obama children’s school. Westboro Baptist is run by Fred Phelps and family and is well know for attending the funerals of our fallen military troops while screaming vitriol and hate at the family and friends.
Their website refers to the Obama children as ‘Satanic Spawn of a murderious bastard.’ This church is also protesting outside the White House, the World War II Memorial, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission field office. They recently have demonstrated outside of Jewish Temples and other Washington area schools. Tomorrow they plan to target Sasha’s school in Bethesda.
In a related topic, Perry Jefferies posts the following:
Protesting Military Funerals: This Is Not Free Speech
Staff Sergeant Mike Wenrick, who has been blogging from Iraq has started a letter writing campaign to help deter the emotional damage inflicted by these trecherous people. He wants national legislation that keeps Westboro Baptist and other demonstrators 500 feet away and also keeps the from the scene and hour before and an hour afterwards. Works for me.
Until I found out about Westboro Baptist Church, I never quite understood the expression ‘lower than a snakes’s belly.’ Now I do.
[Editor’s Note: Apologies for the consistent use of the wrong church name. In each case it should have read WestBORO Baptist Church.]
White House Contradicts CBS News on Troops
From CBS News:
Tonight the following was released from the White House:
Editor’s note, 9:57 p.m. EDT: The White House has issued the following response to this story, attributed to White House National Security Advisor James Jones:
“Reports that President Obama has made a decision about Afghanistan are absolutely false. He has not received final options for his consideration, he has not reviewed those options with his national security team, and he has not made any decisions about resources. Any reports to the contrary are completely untrue and come from uninformed sources.”
And back to CBS News:
Tonight, after months of conferences with top advisors, President Obama has settled on a new strategy for Afghanistan. CBS News correspondent David Martin reports that the president will send a lot more troops and plans to keep a large force there, long term.
The president still has more meetings scheduled on Afghanistan, but informed sources tell CBS News he intends to give Gen. Stanley McChrystal most, if not all, the additional troops he is asking for.
It sounds like someone stumbled out of the gate, we just aren’t sure who.
Should President Obama send additional troops into Afghanistan?
Execution of Beltway Sniper on Schedule
The execution of Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad is on schedule.
Today should be the last day on earth for John Allen Muhammad if all goes as planned. He is set to die by lethal injection on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009 at 9 pm. John Muhammad masterminded a killing spree that lasted in the D.C area from October 3 to October 23, 2002 when he and his young accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo were caught sleeping at a rest stop in Maryland.
Things might have all gone differently had then Attorney General John Ashcroft not decided to hand Mohammd over to Virginia rather than Maryland where most of the killings took place. Maryland had its death penalty on hold. Virginia was known for taking care of the death penalty quickly.
Commonwealth Attorney Paul Ebert had a good track record when it came to trying death penalty cases. And once again he did not let us down.
If there was ever a poster child for the death penalty, it is John Allen Muhammad.
UPDATE: 11/9/09 The US Supreme Court has denied Mohammad a stay of execution. Unless Governor Kaine grants him one, the execution is scheduled to take place on Tuesday at 9 pm.
Fall of the Berlin Wall 20 years ago Nov. 8, 1989.
Perhaps nothing symbolized the Iron Curtain more than the Berlin Wall. The Berlin Wall was a concrete barrier that completely surrounded West Germany and separated it from East Germany. Prior to the Berlin Wall’s erection in 1961, many, perhaps millions of East Germans had immigrated to West Germany and thus to freedom. The wall seriously halted immigration and many East Germans lost their life attempting to escape communism for nearly a quarter of a century.
In 1962, one of the top 40 songs on the hit parade dealt with Berlin Wall. Hardly a dance song. The visuals are excellent, even though you might want to turn your sound down:
In 1987, President Ronald Reagan stood in front of the Brandenburg Gate, along the Berlin Wall and declared:
General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!
While Reagan said those words, and is generally thought of as the impetus behind the wall coming down, it actually happened during the presidency of George Herbert Walker Bush.
On Novemeber 9, 1989, After a series of internal revolutionary movements swept through the eatern block, East Germany announced it would tear down the wall. Citizens from both cities came out in force and tore down the wall with great joy while armed guards watched.
House Passes Health Care Reform 11/7/09
The House of Representatives passed health care reform by a vote of 220-215 around 11 pm. The bill contains language that prohibits federal funds for abortion services in the public option and in the so-called insurance “exchange” the bill would create. Details to follow.
Open thread on health care reform legislation.
Was Congressman Connolly Set Up?
The internet seems filled with stories about Virginia Congressman Gerald Connolly and his staff bullying some tea party woman. Much is being made of the woman being small and not likely to inflict harm.
A little background from the Washington Post:
Protesters targeted Rep. Gerald E. Connolly (D-Va.), a first-term congressman whose Fairfax County district voted for Republican Robert F. McDonnell in this week’s gubernatorial election. Connolly, up for reelection next year, said that he has not decided whether to vote for health-care reform but that the tea-party activists will not influence his vote.
“You try to hear them out respectfully,” Connolly said. “The problem is they’re not here on a mission of dialogue. They’re here on a mission to persuade and discourage.”
No Sex with Demons?
Now I have your attention: Tell me it isn’t so. Goblin infused M & Ms? The devil lurking inside my KitKat? A demonic trinity praying over unsuspecting Halloween revelers? Vampire gummy bears? Witches drinking blood and howling at the moon (I BEG your pardon!)? Curses sent to the innocents through tricks and treats? Orange and brown are color codes for demons? Released time curses? I must have missed all the action last weekend.
We missed the warning from CBN. Barry Lynn made a rare appearance on TV to warn us of some evangelical rantings about buying Halloween candy because it had spells cast over it. Christians were also warned about having sex with demons around Halloween. Now that was a week ago. Is it safe yet? 🙄
The Reverend Barry Lynn is one of my favorite people. He is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ and has been the executive director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. AU has been a leader since 1947 for preserving and protecting religious freedom.
Their mission statement:
Americans United (AU) is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to preserving the constitutional principle of church-state separation as the only way to ensure religious freedom for all Americans.
Barry Lynn makes rare appearances. I can’t imagine that this warning related to Pat Robertson was just coincidental timing. Perhaps it was a warning about what comes out of Pat Robertson’s garrisons.
People are free to believe what they wish. However, we need to be very careful their their beliefs don’t become policy and laws that we all have to live under.
9500 Liberty St. Francis Screening MOVED TO NEXT Sunday, Nov. 15
Sunday, November 15, 2009
3:00 PM
Screening with Spanish subtitles
Q&A with the filmmakers
St. Francis of Assisi
18825 Fuller Heights Road
Triangle, VA 22172
The screening is still free, but it is NOT tomorrow. It’s next Sunday. We apologize to anyone who made plans to attend. It was a miscommunication.
First Ever Manassas Veterans Day Parade November 7, 2009
Saturday Manassas will hold its first ever Veterans Day Parade. The Parade begins at 11:00 am and will commence along the same route as the Christmas Parade.
There is quite a parade line up which you can view at the following website: Line UP
From Emma:
I just wanted to remind everyone that Manassas will have its Veteran’s Day parade tomorrow at 11 am. The parade committee located over 100 WWII Vets living in Manassas Area. The First Cavalry Honor Guard from Fort Hood Texas is supposed to present colors.
I think it’s going to have a lot more meaning than anyone anticipated, and I would encourage everyone to get out there and cheer on our vets and honor our active-duty soldiers.
Additionally, she added:
[I] Forgot to add that the parade will feature a Blackhawk flyover, a moment of silence and the national anthem right after the WWII veterans arrive at the reviewing stage.
It definitely sounds like a fun event full of honor and regalia for our veterans. A big thank you to Emma for the selling points.
Muslim Organizations Express Outrage Over Fort Hood Massacre
After 9-11 many Americans voiced a concern that the Muslim community had ever condemned those who who killed over 3000 Americans. I don’t know that they did or didn’t. How is that measured or documented? Let the documentation now begin. All Americans are shocked and disturbed by yesterday’s tragic events:
Senator Chris Dodd Blasts Bankers for Hoarding H1N1 Vaccine
Senator Chris Dodd has blasted Goldman Sachs for bogarting H1N1 vaccine. He is demanding to know from federal officials why the vaccine was sent to bankers at Goldman Sachs rather than so pregnant women and school children, the most vulnerable for serious cases of swine flu.
Dodd also sent a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius demanding she review her policies and make corrections to ensure that the vaccine, which is temporarily in short supply goes to those who are most vulnerable.
Senator Dodd is quoted in Politico:
“It is hard to believe that at a time when even the most vulnerable in our society are unable to obtain H1N1 vaccinations, the government is sending doses to private firms on Wall Street,” Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said in a statement. “People are frustrated by the government’s response to this crisis, and with news like this, who can blame them? “
“Vaccines should go to people who need them most, not people who happen to work on Wall Street,” said Dodd, who’s also readying financial reform legislation that Wall Street won’t like
Dodd has also insisted that Goldman Sachs return the vaccine they are hording.
Mor coverage: Washington Post
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Multiple Shootings at Fort Hood
Anti-bvbl has a special connection with Fort Hood. Our very own Gainesville Resident often goes there for business. We will rely on him for details.
12 are dead and a minimum of 31 are wounded. The primary shooter is dead. 2 other shooters are in custody. Details are very sketchy. The primary shooter used 2 hand guns. The entire post is under lockdown. One of the dead is a police officer not associated with the military.
Hopefully Gainesville Resident will be our eyes and ears on this thread. Calling on Gainesville. Where are you? Come out come out wherever you are!
From the Associated Press:
The shooting began around 1:30 p.m., Lt. Gen. Bob Cone said at a news conference. He said all the casualties took place at the base’s Soldier Readiness Center, where soldiers who are about to be deployed or who are returning undergo medical screening.
“It’s a terrible tragedy. It’s stunning,” Cone said.
Little was known about the three soldiers suspected of taking part in the attack. The soldier used two handguns, Cone said. It was not clear if the gunman had stopped to reload.
A graduation ceremony for soldiers who finished college courses while deployed was going on in an auditorium at the Readiness Center at the time of the shooting, said Sgt. Rebekah Lampam, a Fort Hood spokeswoman.
Greg Schanepp, U.S. Rep. John Carter’s regional director in Texas, was representing Carter at the graduation, said John Stone, a spokesman for Carter, whose district includes the Army post.
Schanepp was at the ceremony when a soldier who had been shot in the back came running toward him and alerted him of the shooting, Stone said. The soldier told Schanepp not to go in the direction of the shooter, he said. Stone said he believes Schanepp was in the theater.
The base was locked down after the shootings. The wounded were dispersed among hospitals in central Texas, Cone said.
