Tag Archives: foreign policy

I Think the Man Overstates His Case

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In a Fox News op-ed this week, pollster Doug Schoen decried President Barack Obama’s offensive refusal to present himself in Paris to stand beside French President François Hollande and with dozens of other world leaders who stood with Hollande as all of them called out Islamic terrorists’ despicable murders in Charlie Hebdo‘s* publication offices, of a French cop, and of four innocents in a Jewish bakery, all of which occurred in the French capital, Paris.ParisMarch2

Wrote Schoen [emphasis in the original]:

To speak about the most serious terrorist attack on Western soil since 9/11 in between speeches about his free community college plan demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding for the gravity of the situation in Paris and, indeed, the world.

To this end, it is not surprising that President Obama is the only Western leader who has refused to call this attack Islamic terrorism, even though President Hollande has declared that France is it at war with radical Islam.

But then Schoen went, I think, too far.

And to not even send Vice President Joe Biden or Secretary of State John Kerry in his place shows a level of disrespect that makes me ashamed of our nation.

I disagree. I remain very much proud of my nation and the steps America is taking, or attempting to take, to fight Evil in this world.

I am embarrassed and shamed by President Barack Obama and his failure here.

 

*If you follow the link to Charlie Hebdo‘s Web site, you’ll be greeted, also, by a pop-up. The French caption, translated, reads

Freedom of expression is a right

Weekly Charlie [Charlie Hebdo] needs you to survive

Support by making a donation!

Feel free to support them, in the name of freedom. Give ’til it hurts. Charlie Hebdo already has.

It’s Not Confirmed

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However.

Aides to Secretary of State John Kerry rejected speculation that America’s top diplomat had been cut out of the loop when the Obama administration negotiated last month’s historic policy shift on Cuba.

State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki offered this:

This was a process the Secretary was comfortable with[.]

Umm, that’s not a denial, Ma’am.

Fox News also quoted Psaki as saying that “the White House kept Kerry informed at every stage of the secret negotiations.” That’s also not a denial that Kerry was kept out of the negotiations, only an assertion that he was allowed to follow along at home.

Hmm….

Free Speech and Imagery

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French film industry body ARP, made up of writers, directors and producers in France, reacted to the tragedy by praising the publication’s “historical courage” and declaring that threats will not “interfere with freedom of expression and freedom of creation.”

How many images of Mohammed are you printing today, guys?  AP?  New York Times?  Anyone?  At least the National Journal has the courage.  Such things are going up on social media; why are you guys not participating? What is it you fear so badly? Your responsibility? Or your loss of comfort?

Here are a couple, courtesy of Charlie Hebdo. Because, as Charlie says

Parce que le crayon sera toujours au dessus de la barbarie…

Parce que la liberté est un droit universel…

Or,

Because the pen is always above barbarism…

Because freedom is a universal right…

And because they now call themselves “le journal des survivants,” or “the newspaper of survivors.”Mohammed_1Mohammed_2

Maybe

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Maybe it’s a start. Regarding the terrorist attack on the satirical publication Charlie Hebdo in Paris that was carried out by Islamic terrorists, President Barack Obama issued this statement:

I strongly condemn the horrific shooting at the offices of Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris that has reportedly killed 12 people. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this terrorist attack and the people of France at this difficult time. France is America’s oldest ally, and has stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States in the fight against terrorists who threaten our shared security and the world. Time and again, the French people have stood up for the universal values that generations of our people have defended. France, and the great city of Paris where this outrageous attack took place, offer the world a timeless example that will endure well beyond the hateful vision of these killers. We are in touch with French officials and I have directed my Administration to provide any assistance needed to help bring these terrorists to justice.

Missing from this, though, is any reference to the terrorists as being Muslims or any oblique reference to that by noting that among the things those Islamic terrorists shouted during their rampage, was “We’ve avenged the honor of the prophet!” and the usual Islamic terrorist shout of “Allahu Akbar!”

Still, also missing from the statement is Obama’s usual moral equivalence temporizing by suggesting that Charlie Hebdo shouldn’t have provoked the Muslims in the first place.

Hey, it’s a new year. Maybe Obama is…changing. Condemn me for an optimist.

Separately,CharlieHebdo

Terrorists in the Courtroom

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UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said late Tuesday that the state of Palestine will join the International Criminal Court on April 1, a high-stakes move that will enable the Palestinians to pursue war-crimes charges against Israel.

That’s what the AP is reporting (I’ll elide the AP’s cynicism in referring to this organization as a “state”).

Keep in mind, which Ban seems to have chosen not to do, that the terrorist gang based in Gaza, Hamas, merged with the Palestinian Authority into a Unity Government to “govern” both Gaza and areas of the West Bank under the PA flag. Shortly after that merger, the PA last summer launched its 50-day terror war against Israel.

Now, courtesy of Ban and the UN, we’ll have terrorists in the ICC, not as the defendants they should be, but as parties whose opinions actually are taken seriously.

It’s one more reason not to take the International Court seriously.