[2/27/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Cinema Sweepings: Amazing Grace by Lloyd Billingsley - William Wilberforce (1759-1833), is not exactly a household name in
America, and the cannons of political correctness would dismiss him as just another dead white male, so the somewhat clumsy exposition in the early going of Amazing Grace is justified. Viewers will learn that Wilberforce is generous, kind to animals, and not the composer of the famous title song. That honor belongs to former slave-ship captain John Newton, who in the midst of a tempest converted to Christianity. Inspired by Newton’s story, Wilberforce teams with other religious reformers, against great odds, to take down the slave trade in the British Empire. [more at Front Page Magazine]

[2/26/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Cinema Sweepings: Lost Boys Find America God Grew Tired of Us tells the story of four from Sudan. by Thomas Hibbs - “God grew tired of us. He tired of bad deeds and wanted to finish us.” These apocalyptic words of a refugee from the brutal civil war in Sudan provide the title for a new documentary, directed by Christopher Dillon Quinn and narrated by Nicole Kidman. God Grew Tired of Us chronicles the resettlement of three refugees (John, Daniel, and Panther) from Sudan, as they move first to Kenya and then to the United States. The result of Quinn’s work, which follows a different group of refugees from and for a longer period of time than the 2003 film The Lost Boys of Sudan, is a crisply edited and unadorned film, consisting mostly of interviews with the boys both before they leave for America and over a four-year period after they reach the U.S. [more at National Review]

[2/23/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Cinema Sweepings: Traitor Profiling by Lloyd Billingsley "Breach" dispenses with the customary title sequence and dives right in with news footage of  Attorney General John Ashcroft announcing the arrest of FBI traitor Robert Hanssen. The film itself shows how they bagged the bad guy, who was one of the most devastatingly successful spies in U.S. history.  It is an engaging tale, although the full story is more interesting and even more dramatic. [more at FrontPageMagazine.com]

[2/22/07]

[Mediacrity] 12:01 am [permalink]
The Media Misses on Lebanon Bombing The New York Times - last week - had a pretty good article, by Times standards, on the bombing of a bus in Lebanon. You can read it here. Pretty good except for a big elephant in the room that the Times didn't notice: the fact that the victims were Christian and the perpetrators were obviously from Hezbollah.

The rest of the media also pussyfooted over this rather obvious fact. The Chicago Tribune made the point clearer. The AP said that the bombing took place in the "Christian heartland."

But why not just say what happened, which was that Muslims killed Christians? What is wrong with the MSM that it cannot get its teeth around that obvious fact?

This is part of a pattern of coverage that downplays Islamic terrorism aimed at the shrinking Christian communities of the Middle East. [go to Mediacrity blog]

[2/20/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Sweepings: Days of Glory The heroes France forgot. By Louis Wittig - It’s hard to take a war movie seriously when:

a) The gentle private reassures his sergeant / father figure, without a trace of irony, “You’re not going to die, sarge.” (Care to guess who dies?)

b) It is a stirring tale of French victory.

Two strikes for the French-language Days of Glory then. Competing for this year’s Best Foreign Language Oscar under its original title, Indigénes, the film relates the story of France’s Buffalo soldiers: the Muslim North African volunteers who fought to liberate the fatherland in World War II. An awkward pastiche of genre clichés, its heart is all it has going for it. And that’s just enough. [more at National Review]

[2/19/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Sweepings: Ann Coulter Conquers Hollywood? by Jed Babbin - Okay. Confess. Even though Stephen Colbert is really funny and Jon Stewart may make you cringe, you want more. You want a conservative satire on the news, and haven’t seen one since, well, since time began. Why?

We all know that conservatives have a better sense of humor than liberals. That's why Rush, Laura and Sean are conquering all and why Minnesota senatorial candidate Al Franken needs a job. [more at Human Events]

[2/14/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Sweepings: Anna Nicole 1967 - 2007 by Larry Miller - WE'RE ALL PART of the pop culture world. Whether you think you are or not, whether you want to be or not, no matter how aloof and superior you feel, even if the Atlantic and Foreign Affairs are the only things you keep in your bathroom, you're as much a part of the celebrity culture as the booker on The View. Deal with it. As Gregory Peck said to David Niven in The Guns of Navarone, "You're in it now . . . up to your neck."

That doesn't mean you can't be out of the loop. And truth be told, you can't be much farther out of the loop than I am. I've never seen Survivor, or American Idol, or the dancing show. My wife, on the other hand, who's the most brilliant person I know watches all of them. She's watching one now, and it's just loud enough for me to hear the roiling host introducing a high-stakes, high-tension, someone-will-get-thrown-out-of-here-but-not-me segment urged on by edgy, needy music. I can't hear his actual words, but you know that's what he's doing. The whole thing probably wouldn't annoy me as much if I thought they hired real violinists. [more at Weekly Standard]

[2/13/07]

[Streetsweeper] 12:05 am [permalink]
Streetsweeper's Sweepings See the Sin Eater - by Paul Chesser - So you're a Christian (Catholic, Protestant, whatever -- you love Jesus). And like just about everyone else, you love movies.

But for the most part every time you check your local theater show times you get that "blah" feeling. Sure, you might see the occasional family-acceptable film (except you have to put up with the barnyard, zoo, or wilderness flatulence in a lot of the animated fare), but finding something that validates and encourages your religious beliefs is nigh non-existent.

Except for today. That's because one of the first movie house offerings from the months-old FoxFaith (yes, Rupert Murdoch's Fox) film division debuts -- The Last Sin Eater. Despite its awkward title and grim but true-to-life premise, the story is an uplifting dandy with superb performances, stunning vistas, and compelling drama. [full article at American Spectator]

[2/12/07]

[Joel Rosenberg - novelist] 12:15 am [permalink]
"We Need Jack Bauer, Now More Than Ever" My wife Lynn and I are huge fans of "24." Last year when we were living in the Middle East writing Epicenter, we ordered an entire season on DVD from Amazon and had it shipped to us to watch in Cairo. Perhaps that wasn't the best idea. The show is terrifying enough without living around the corner from a radical Islamic university and hearing the Muslim call to prayer punctuate Jack Bauer's interrogation sequences. This season is the best yet, but it's not simply because of the great writing and acting (though that certainly helps). It's because the threat of nuclear attacks by Islamic jihadists here in our homeland is all too real and millions of Americans want to believe there are people in our government doing everything humanly possible to save us from an atomic holocaust.

That said, there's been a lot of hue and cry from the Muslim community -- particularly from the Council on American Islamic Relations -- that "24" makes it appear as if all Muslims are terrorists. Well, they aren't, and "24" doesn't. And this morning in the Wall Street Journal, an Arab-American novelist defends the hit show. God bless him.

"I am an Arab-American as well as a fan of '24," writes Emilio Karim Dabul. "The two things are not mutually exclusive, despite what the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and other such groups have to say about this season's opening episodes possibly increasing anti-Muslim and anti-Arab prejudice in American society. Most of the terrorists represented in '24' through the years have been Arab Muslims. Why? Well, probably because most terrorists today are, in fact, Arab Muslims. As a descendant of Syrian Muslims, I am very well aware that the majority of Muslims world-wide are peaceful, hard working, and law abiding. That still does not change the fact that the greatest terrorist threat to the U.S. today comes not from the ETA, the IRA, etc., but from one group: Islamic terrorists. And this is what makes '24' a compelling drama every week. Instead of pretending Islamic terrorists don't exist, the show presents frighteningly real worst-case scenarios perpetrated by Osama bin Laden's followers. So CAIR thinks it's over the top for the terrorists in '24' to blow up Los Angeles with a nuke? Please, if bin Laden and his crew had nukes, most of us would be way too dead to argue over such points."

To read the rest, please click here.

[2/9/07]

[Joel Rosenberg - novelist] 12:15 am [permalink]
56% of Brits want Blair to step down: All but rules out military strike against Iran. Tony Blair is under seige amidst a crippling corruption scandal that threatens to bring his government down. A devastating new poll finds 56% of Brits want the PM to quit now. Only 37% want him to stay on. Perhaps it should be no surprise, then, that Blair is all but ruling out military strikes to stop Iran from going nuclear, though he concedes Iran is pursuing a strategy of making "maximum trouble" in the Middle East that could have terrible consequences. Blair's remarks come just days after President Bush ruled out an invasion of Iran and U.S. Defense Secretary Bob Gates effectively ruled out a war with Iran over the nuclear issue. Are they bluffing, or are they conceding the obvious -- virtually no political support here at home or abroad for taking decisive action against Ahmadinejad? The region is abuzz with rumors that Bush is planning to strike soon, but the truth is no one knows what to believe.

[2/7/07]

[Joel Rosenberg - novelist] 12:15 am [permalink]
Iraqi Forces Kill Cult Leader Who Claimed To Be The Islamic Messiah Iraqi military forces -- backed up by U.S. and British forces and helicopters -- scored a big victory in Najaf over the past several days. "The final toll in the military operations north of holy Najaf totalled 263 [terrorists] killed, and 502 [terrorists] arrested including 210 injured," Iraqi spokesman Mohammed al-Askari said Tuesday. Askiri said Iraqi forces had seized "500 weapons and 11 mortar tubes along with numerous pick-up trucks mounted with machine guns and very important documents."

The impressively executed operation was a testament to the steadily improving combat capabilities and discipline of the Iraqi forces, especially since these were mostly Shiite soldiers fighting against Shiite insurgents. President Bush has promised Americans that the U.S. will stand down when the Iraqi forces are ready to stand up. The past few days are evidence that Iraqi forces are getting closer to being ready to assume full command of their country, despite the carping of the critics in Washington.

Perhaps most interesting was that Iraqi forces killed the commander of a Shiite militia, a cult leader who actually claimed to be the Islamic Messiah (or Mahdi). The armed cult known the "Soldiers of Heaven" was plotting to assasinate top Shiite religious leaders in Najaf as part of an effort to bring about the end of the world.

"He claimed to be the Mahdi," Shirwan al-Waeli, Iraq's National Security Minister, said of the cult's leader, adding that the cult leader had used the full name "Mahdi bin Ali bin Ali bin Abi Taleb," claiming descent from the Prophet Mohammad. "One of the signs of the coming of the Mahdi was to be the killing of the Ulema (hierarchy) in Najaf," Waeli told Reuters. "This was a perverse claim. No sane person could believe it." Waeli said that when police first approached the militia camp, the cult leader answered: "I am the Mahdi and I want you to join me." Iraqi officials says they have arrested other Shiites claiming to be messengers of the Mahdi, further evidence that an apocalyptic fervor -- largely inspired by Iran -- is spreading through the Shiite world.

[2/6/07]

[Julia Gorin pundit/comedian] 12:05 am [permalink]
Giuliani Announces Candidacy This joke is probably more for New Yorkers than anyone else, but here goes: We’re looking at a replay of 2000: Rudy vs. Hillary. All I have to say is that his ass had better not get cancer again. Literally, his ass better not get cancer again. That’s all I need — for him to pull out at the last minute again, so they can bring in Rick Lazio again! [Gorin Glob]

[2/5/07]

[Daniel Pipes - author, activist, activist] 12:01am [permalink]
My Talk at the University of California-Irvine My talk Thursday night at the University of California-Irvine, on the topic of "The Threat to Israel's Existence," was disrupted just over 15 minutes into my lecture by what appear to be goons of an Islamist persuasion. Three videos on the internet document my remarks, then their response:

• http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7799137429880565337 (anonymous) covers all 53:29 minutes of my talk, from beginning to end. The disruption begins at 15:09 with the calling out of my name. I resume speaking at 17:25.
• http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5158780407631950723&hl=en (posted by Reut Cohen) offers 5:42 minutes of me, then the disruption, and follows the disrupters outside as they chant "anti-Israel" in conjunction with other slogans, such as "anti-oppression," "anti-racism," and "anti-hate." At one point, at 12:00, the leader predicts that "it's just a matter of time before the State of Israel will be wiped off the face of the map," in response to which the crowd, self-exiled, standing in the dark and the cold, yelled out "Takbir" and "Allahu Akbar." In response, those who remained in the auditorium chanted "Am Yisrael Chai."

• http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4939925831604188462&hl=en (anonymous) starts with the disruption, then jumps several minutes my replies to questions. For the wonderful standing ovation that followed on my conclusion, go to the 32:48 minute mark.

Michael A. Baker provides an account of the evening at "Daniel Pipes – in The Arena at UC Irvine." For reactions to the videos, see those at LittleGreenFootballs.com and JihadWatch.org.

[2/2/07]

[Julia Gorin pundit/comedian] 12:05 am [permalink]
But What About the Serbs? As I’ve made clear both in the original article and in subsequent posts about the reaction to it, my point in writing about Croatian denial and the world’s simplistic and unjust blaming of a single side for the Balkan wars was to bring a microscopic trace of balance to the history that’s being recorded about that region’s recent conflicts. So sure enough, as soon as a single soul, a lone voice in the wind ventures to draw attention for once to the role of non-Serbs — after hearing for 16 years about nothing but the evil of the Serbs, Serbs, Srebrenica, Serbs, Mladic, Serbs, Karadzic, Serbs, Serbs, Vukovar, Serbs, Serbs, Serbs, Serbs — the resulting howl is, “But what about the Serbs?!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Observe the title of Tuesday’s letter in Canada’s National Post: “What about the Serbs?” Harry V. Herman, Toronto, 30 January 2007

The public hears much of Srebrenica, and the only two Balkan war criminal names it’s heard of are Mladic and Karadzic. It does not know the words Jasenovac, Operation Storm, Medak Pocket, or Naser Oric and his role and actions in Srebrenica. Nor is it aware of the terrorist activities of the KLA then and now, or that the Hague was finalizing indictments against Croatian president Franjo Tudjman and Bosnian president Alija Izetbegovic. My job is to expose the untold, unheard, suppressed story of the Balkans. If you have a problem with that, you are that creature which you think I am accusing you of being.

On a side note, the National Post also published a letter by Croatian ambassador to Canada Mrden Korac, which basically says, “How can our countries be friends if you call attention to our shortcomings?” [Gorin Glob]

[2/1/07]

[Laura Mansfield - author, Strategic Translations] 12:01 am [permalink]
New As Sahab Tape: Al Libi blames US, UK, and Libyan Governments for HIV Infected Children in Libya A rather atypical video message from Al Qaeda was announced today by As Sahab, the video production wing of the global terror group.

The 17 minute 7 second video features Abu Yahya al Libi discussing the plight of Libyan children infected with the HIV virus.

Five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian physician have been accused, found guilty, and sentenced to death on charge that they deliberately infecting nearly 400 Libyan children with the HIV virus in 1998.

Al Libi, AK-47 at his side, implies that the incident is an attack by "Crusader Infidels" against Muslim children, and seems to vacillate between heaping blame for the incident on the US, the UK, and the Libyan regime.

The video includes English subtitles, which indicate this was directed at an English speaking audience - either US or UK. There are specific references to both the US and UK within the message.

Abu Yahya al Libi is one four captured Al Qaeda fighters who escaped US custody while imprisoned in Bagram in July 2005 in Afghanistan

During the last year, al Libi has released 6 videos, which is more messages in the past year than Bin Laden. The only Al Qaeda figure to have released more videos is Zawahiri. In a video originally released last July, and re-released in October, al Libi called for attacks on the White House

Al Libi's animosity towards Qadaffi is not surprising since Al Libi "The Libyan" is originally from Libya. In all of the 2006 messages by Bin Laden and Zawahiri, only one (Letter to the Palestinians by Zawahiri in June 2006) included mention of Libya at all.

A more in-depth analysis is in progress. [go to Mediacrity blog]