Army Soldier to Receive Medal of Honor

From Army Times:

On Dec. 4, 2006, [Spc Ross] McGinnis was manning the turret in the last Humvee of a six-vehicle patrol in Adhamiyah in northeast Baghdad when an insurgent threw a grenade from the roof of a nearby building.

“Grenade!” yelled McGinnis, who was manning the vehicle’s M2 .50-caliber machine gun.

McGinnis, facing backwards because he was in the rear vehicle, tried to deflect the grenade but it fell into the Humvee and lodged between the radios.

As he stood up to get ready to jump out of the vehicle, as he had been trained to do, McGinnis realized the other four soldiers in the Humvee did not know where the grenade had landed and did not have enough time to escape.

McGinnis, a native of Knox, Pa., threw his back against the radio mount, where the grenade was lodged, and smothered the explosive with his body.

The grenade exploded, hitting McGinnis on his sides and lower back, under his vest. He was killed instantly. The other four men survived.

From Blackfive, a message from one of the men saved that day by Ross’ selfless action:

SPC McGinnis was a great soldier and I am alive due to his sacrifice. I was the driver of the vehicle the day we lost Ross to a cowardly enemy. I thank God everyday for blessing me with the opportunity to serve with such a brave man. For those of you that think the award process is moving to slow just know that it is seen and evaluated by many people in our chain of command. I as well would like to see it ASAP. The award requires alot of diagrams, witness statements from all who were there, and those that approve and later send to congress need to see what happened in detail otherwise they would be giving awards based on word of mouth.

I agree with SSG Troy Smith, it is carefully looked over so that no fraudelant cases arise. I have no doubt in my mind that he will receive the nation’s highest honor for his heroism. God bless his family and parents for raising such a wonderful person, soldier, friend, and brother!
Rest in Peace Ross. Gone, but never forgotten!

I love you little brother. Thank you for my continued life here on earth and I look forward to seeing you in heaven.

These young, brave faces with their open smiles and warrior hearts. God bless them so much. May they come home soon–but in victory. Only in victory.

Fun With Wacked Out Idiots

If you haven’t seen this yet, you need to. It’s hands-down one of the best video clips you’ll see all year.

A FOX News anchor named Julie Banderas, who hosts FOX’s The Big Story, went toe-to-toe with Shirley Phelps-Roper, attorney and member of the Westboro Baptist Church. WBC is, as you know, a bunch of complete and utter fools that do anything BUT adhere to the Bible’s teachings.

Banderas was like no media anchor I’ve ever seen. It was fantastic. I keep watching it, and it’s still entertaining.

Michelle Malkin has the video, and Misha has blessings for Julie.

A commenter on Misha’s site says:

Now -that- my friends is a woman.

Sod all that quiet-housewife-kitchen-baby stuff, we want blood!

I must have watched that three or four times, grinning like a jackal the whole time.

What They Don’t Want You To Hear

In light of the Senate’s flipping the bird to the American people, we are left wondering who in the hell represents us in our own government?! Independent Conservative has an interesting post about how the media has deliberately overlooked the political representatives who ARE speaking up on behalf of Americans. But they can’t get airtime to save their lives, while we are saturated with the images, sound-bytes, and rhetoric of the opposition, like Ted Kennedy and John McCain.

It seems the media loves to highlight politicians that are advocates of amnesty and easy entry for illegal immigrants. Texas Republican Congressman Ted Poe has been saying exactly what Americans have been hoping to hear. But he does not get airtime in the MSM. A Google News search of [ted poe immigration] yields 5 results, but a search on [john mccain immigration] yields 1,850 results. This is not some kind of accident. The voices speaking on behalf of the majority of polled Americans who want the borders secured are being intentionally suppressed.

There are several audio clips you need to hear at Independent Conservative.

The War Against The Taliban Rages On

Surprise! In spite of Karzai’s appeasement strategy (wooing and ‘forgiving’ Mullah Omar and inviting the Taliban to participate in the elections)…today comes a release from Kabul, Afghanistan All Headlines News.

Once again, Coalition forces are fighting the Taliban, in operation “Mountain Lion”, which was launched targeting terrorists in the Kunar province, where both the Taliban and al Qaeda are believed to have strongholds.

According to the governor of Kandahar province, Assadullah Khalid, “In yesterday’s battle in Zare Dasht district, forty-one Taliban were killed.”

“The Afghan National Police lost six men, including the police chief of Zare Dasht. Nine Taliban were also wounded, and thirteen captured by government forces.”

Reportedly, these strikes are to secure Taliban strongholds 25 miles southwest of Kandahar. Some of the Taliban managed to escape after a humiliating defeat and police and soldiers are looking for them. Special Forces in Afghanistan indicate that any time the media reports a number like ‘41′, you could probably add a zero to that number and it would be more realistic.

The U.S.-led Coalition is fighting back against a spring offensive by the Taliban. The Taliban is trying desperately to destabilize the government in Kabul.

Iraq: “Christian Peacemakers Are Dupes For Jihadism And Fascism”

The three rescued Christian Peacemakers have refused to cooperate with military intelligence concerning the 118 days of their captivity with the Swords of Righteousness Brigade, claiming that cooperating would contradict their “christian” values. The former hostages have also claimed that they were treated quite well by their captors and really only had one teensy problem during captivity: boredom. (Did I call it, or what?)

Spokeswoman Nash said the men struggled to communicate with their captors. Only Fox spoke a small amount of Arabic, so they used hand signals.

The men also said they had not been physically abused: They were given food and kept somewhat warm during the long winter. The main problem they encountered during 118 days of captivity, Nash said, was boredom.

“If you’re sitting there day after day with nothing to do, that must be a pretty boring thing,” Nash said. “There were certainly times when they were fearful, mostly because of the unknown — for example, when Tom Fox was taken and not returned.”

They were apparently blissfully unaware that their colleague, Tom Fox, was shot to death and left in the streets - and instead thought him the lucky one to have been released by their friendly captors. The spokeswoman denied that Fox was tortured, citing two anonymous sources.

The fact that the CPTers have publicly blamed the multi-national intervention in Iraq as the reason for their kidnapping and their refusal to be debriefed has infuriated Iraqi government officials.

Iraq’s embassy to Canada lashed out at the Christian Peacemaker Teams Friday, calling them “phoney pacifists” and “dupes” after the antiwar group responded to the rescue of three of its kidnapped activists by condemning the U.S.-led military intervention in Iraq.

The Iraqi embassy called CPT “willfully ignorant” and “outrageous,” and accused the Chicago-based group of being on the side of anti-democratic forces in Iraq.

“The Christian Peacemaker Teams practises the kind of politics that automatically nominate them as dupes for jihadism and fascism,” the embassy’s statement said.

No mealy-mouthed mincing of words there! There is no doubt that the Iraqi government doesn’t take too kindly to ignorant foreigners aiding and protecting the enemies of their freedom and democracy, and have no qualms about saying so. Kudos to the Iraqis!

Previous coverage of the CPT idiots:

Peacemakers Diss Troops For The Rescue
UPDATE: Peacemakers Say “Thanks, But Not Really”

Heroes, Sixty Years Later

I know I already linked to a Blackfive story today, but hey - Matt’s not #1 two years in a row for nothing.

Read this story about Holocaust survivors who were able to meet the soldiers who saved their lives…sixty years later.

It’s a long story, but if you can read it without crying, you’re better than I.

Bad News for Joshua Sparling

To me, the thought of losing a limb is a really big deal. If I lost my arms, for example, I would lose the ability to play piano and violin, to write, and to cook - my three favorite things. I would like to think that I’d be courageous and hopeful, but you never know unless you’re in it.

However, PFC Joshua Sparling knows how he’d react. After months in the hospital, and after being told that his leg could be saved, he will end up having it amputated below the knee after all. His reaction? He wants to “get back to [Fort Bragg] and “jump right back in his unit (the 82nd Airborne).” Michelle Malkin in right: We ARE fortunate to have men like him.

Sparling was interviewed by Sean Hannity two days ago. You can hear the audio here, where Michelle’s uploaded it.

Landry’s Life has photos of her recent visit with Josh. I’ve spoken with Josh by phone a few times, and he is, quite, simply, a great guy.

When Heidi and I go to Washington, DC in April for the Milblogging Conference, one of the top things to do on my list is to go to Walter Reed. I hope to tell Josh and his fellow wounded vets how thankful I am for them, in person. Their sacrifice was great, but their determination, clarity of purpose, and courage is greater. I am awed by their fortitude and endurance. God bless them, each and every one.

Movies Too Good For Oscar

I loved these four movies. Absolutely LOVED them.

If you’re not a “Brokeback” kinda guy, or a “Transamerica” kinda gal then check out these incredible films that Hollywood has shunned - you’ll be so glad you did.

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I Have A New Hero - Wafa Sultan

Move over, LTG Russell Honore, and make some room for a lady.

Honestly, sometimes it takes a woman to show men what balls look like (since they sometimes have a hard time finding their own). In this case, Wafa Sultan is an Arab-American woman (a Syrian expatriate) who is worth more than two or three dozen male Muslim men - probably way more. She is a psychologist here in America, and in this interview on al Jazeera on February 21st, she firmly states that there is on clash of civilizations but a clash between the mentality of the Middle Ages and that of the 21st century.

Watch the video at MEMRITV.org and read the transcript below.

Wafa Sultan: The clash we are witnessing around the world is not a clash of religions, or a clash of civilizations. It is a clash between two opposites, between two eras. It is a clash between a mentality that belongs to the Middle Ages and another mentality that belongs to the 21st century. It is a clash between civilization and backwardness, between the civilized and the primitive, between barbarity and rationality. It is a clash between freedom and oppression, between democracy and dictatorship. It is a clash between human rights, on the one hand, and the violation of these rights, on other hand. It is a clash between those who treat women like beasts, and those who treat them like human beings. What we see today is not a clash of civilizations. Civilizations do not clash, but compete.

[...]

Host: I understand from your words that what is happening today is a clash between the culture of the West, and the backwardness and ignorance of the Muslims?

Wafa Sultan: Yes, that is what I mean.

[...]

Host: Who came up with the concept of a clash of civilizations? Was it not Samuel Huntington? It was not Bin Laden. I would like to discuss this issue, if you don’t mind…

Wafa Sultan: The Muslims are the ones who began using this expression. The Muslims are the ones who began the clash of civilizations. The Prophet of Islam said: “I was ordered to fight the people until they believe in Allah and His Messenger.” When the Muslims divided the people into Muslims and non-Muslims, and called to fight the others until they believe in what they themselves believe, they started this clash, and began this war. In order to start this war, they must reexamine their Islamic books and curricula, which are full of calls for takfir and fighting the infidels.

My colleague has said that he never offends other people’s beliefs. What civilization on the face of this earth allows him to call other people by names that they did not choose for themselves? Once, he calls them Ahl Al-Dhimma, another time he calls them the “People of the Book,” and yet another time he compares them to apes and pigs, or he calls the Christians “those who incur Allah’s wrath.” Who told you that they are “People of the Book”? They are not the People of the Book, they are people of many books. All the useful scientific books that you have today are theirs, the fruit of their free and creative thinking. What gives you the right to call them “those who incur Allah’s wrath,” or “those who have gone astray,” and then come here and say that your religion commands you to refrain from offending the beliefs of others?

I am not a Christian, a Muslim, or a Jew. I am a secular human being. I do not believe in the supernatural, but I respect others’ right to believe in it.

Dr. Ibrahim Al-Khouli: Are you a heretic?

Wafa Sultan: You can say whatever you like. I am a secular human being who does not believe in the supernatural…

Dr. Ibrahim Al-Khouli: If you are a heretic, there is no point in rebuking you, since you have blasphemed against Islam, the Prophet, and the Koran…

Wafa Sultan: These are personal matters that do not concern you.

[...]

Wafa Sultan: Brother, you can believe in stones, as long as you don’t throw them at me. You are free to worship whoever you want, but other people’s beliefs are not your concern, whether they believe that the Messiah is God, son of Mary, or that Satan is God, son of Mary. Let people have their beliefs.

[...]

Wafa Sultan: The Jews have come from the tragedy (of the Holocaust), and forced the world to respect them, with their knowledge, not with their terror, with their work, not their crying and yelling. Humanity owes most of the discoveries and science of the 19th and 20th centuries to Jewish scientists. 15 million people, scattered throughout the world, united and won their rights through work and knowledge. We have not seen a single Jew blow himself up in a German restaurant. We have not seen a single Jew destroy a church. We have not seen a single Jew protest by killing people. The Muslims have turned three Buddha statues into rubble. We have not seen a single Buddhist burn down a Mosque, kill a Muslim, or burn down an embassy. Only the Muslims defend their beliefs by burning down churches, killing people, and destroying embassies. This path will not yield any results. The Muslims must ask themselves what they can do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them.

What an incredibly courageous and fearless woman! I sincerely hope this lady has some hefty security, because Muslims cannot allow her to live - she speaks the truth.

A huge hat tip to Kender for bringing this to our attention so quickly. I’ve also rounded up some other bloggers’ reactions:

Ms. Underestimated: “What she says should be carried across the continents. She is a speaker of truth, and will therefore be ignored by the mainstream media.”

Die Welt Blogs: “This is urgent material - here we see one of those amazing women breaking out of the chains of tradition. Let’s applaud her; let’s encourage her; let’s support her! She shows us the future!”

All Things Beautiful: “I love this woman, she is brilliant. There have not been any Muslim men thus far who have matched her explanation of the differences between our cultures in such a succinct way…In fact I find in my experience it has been the women of Islam that have been the most vocal in this entire saga.”

Right Truth and In The Bullpen: “Watch it all. This woman is amazing!”

Jody Wheeler: “That this aired last week on Al Jazeera and not CNN or FOX, shows both how powerful the application of Free Expression is in even the darkest of places and how feeble our news channels are in fostering its expression in the most progressive of lands…You gotta see her for yourself though to feel the passion and conviction searing with her voice. Post her words wherever you can.”

Dean’s World: “I’d vote for a Sultan … as long as she’s Wafa Sultan. Sultan has a unique ability to stand up for the ideals of democracy and free speech while decimating Islamist arguments. This ability is completely lacking in American politics today. We don’t have it and we need it, badly.”

Flopping Aces: “There need to be MANY more of these type of Muslims. Until more Wafa Sultans stand up and take on these fanatics this war will continue.”

Justify This!: “If only there were more people like this brave woman who are willing to speak out against the backwards mentality of the middle east and rest of the Islamic world that seems so hell bent on sending us all back to the dark ages. I’ll also add that it is only through the voices of people who do not fear upsetting the Ummah in order to make the truth prevail that this conflict of civilisations will truly be ended, or at least acknowledged by the majority [because we can't rely on "cartoon riots" to open everyones eyes to the global Jihad]“

Spartacus: “Ms. Sultan lives in Los Angeles and is one of the contributors to the reform-oriented Arab web site Annaqed (the Critic in Arabic). She is a brave, tough woman who is willing to say what many think but are too afraid or politically correct to admit in public.

I had to do more research on my new hero, and I found these sources of additional information about Wafa Sultan:

LA psychologist clashes with Algerian jihadist over Islamic teachings and terrorism (July 30, 2005)

MEMRITV video link and transcript

Syrian Expatriate Asks: Who Are The Muslim Brotherhood Trying to Fool? (June 5, 2005)

***************Here’s another strong Muslim woman who needs more kudos for kicking male Muslim ass: Ghada Jamshir*****************

Gitmo Detainee: “Prisoners here are in paradise!”

Bad news for the liberals. A Gitmo detainee has, for once, told the truth about his sojourn at Gitmo. The AP slipped out a deceptively mundane headline that would most likely fizzle out on a quiet Saturday afternoon - probably hoping no one would notice. But…no such luck. We noticed.

Abdul Hakim Bukhary was once ready to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan. But the former holy warrior has told his American captors he now loves democracy Abdul Hakim Bukhary was once ready to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan. But the former holy warrior has told his American captors he now loves democracy — and that hardline Taliban fighters prompted his conversion.

Bukhary traveled from his native Saudi Arabia to Afghanistan in 2001 after the Taliban, who ruled Afghanistan using a strict interpretation of the Quran, called for a jihad against American soldiers. The U.S. troops were set to invade in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.

Bukhary told his tribunal at Guantanamo Bay that he had been in Afghanistan earlier — in the 1980s to fight Soviet troops. His tale appeared in transcripts of hearings at the U.S. Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in eastern Cuba, where Bukhary was detained along with hundreds of other prisoners.

Bukhary said that as he waited in a guest house in Afghanistan for the U.S. invasion to begin, he told his Taliban hosts that he admired Ahmed Shah Massood, a veteran of the war against the Soviet occupation and a rebel commander revered by many Afghans.

But Massood was an enemy of the Taliban who was killed days before the Sept. 11 attacks by a Taliban assassination squad posing as journalists. The Taliban disapproved of Bukhary’s idle comment.

“For saying that, they punished me. They bothered me. They beat me. They hit me very badly,” Bukhary said at his hearing, according to the transcripts, released to The Associated Press late Friday.

The Taliban accused Bukhary of being a spy and threw him into prison in Kandahar, along with 1,600 other prisoners.

“There was no food in prison,” Bukhary said. “In the prison we would receive one piece of bread in 24 hours. … if anyone talked too loud, they would kill him.”

“It was a terrible time,” he recalled. “Horrible.”

Bukhary told the U.S. military tribunal that he was transferred from jail to jail before falling into custody of U.S. ground forces.

He said Guantanamo was better than the prison in Kandahar. He could eat. He could talk.

“Prisoners here are in paradise,” he exclaimed. “American people are very good. Really. They give us three meals. Fruit juice and everything!”

Bukhary told the tribunal that, unlike the Taliban, the U.S. guards did not care if he talked.

“I like to talk because I found that nobody bothers me. Nobody beats me. Nobody hits me,” he said, adding: “About democracy. It is really good.”

The transcripts did not indicate whether Bukhary’s testimony swayed the tribunal. It was unknown if he remained in custody.

Missouri Responsible For Lefty Tantrums

Missouri has decided to pass a common-sense resolution acknowledging the presence of Christianity in the founding of our country and stating that voluntary prayer in schools and public religious displays are not a problem. Of course, liberals everywhere are two seconds away from burning things like their “radical” brethren. Never mind the fact that “separation of church and state” is nowhere to be found in the Constitution, or that the First Amendment was written to keep the government from mandating a church, not the church from having a role in government.

Here’s the resolution (that’s not a bill, people…do you know the difference?):

Whereas, our forefathers of this great nation of the United States recognized a Christian God and used the principles afforded to us by Him as the founding principles of our nation; and

Whereas, as citizens of this great nation, we the majority also wish to exercise our constitutional right to acknowledge our Creator and give thanks for the many gifts provided by Him; and

Whereas, as elected officials we should protect the majority’s right to express their religious beliefs while showing respect for those who object; and

Whereas, we wish to continue the wisdom imparted in the Constitution of the United States of America by the founding fathers; and

Whereas, we as elected officials recognize that a Greater Power exists above and beyond the institutions of mankind:

Now, therefore, be it resolved by the members of the House of Representatives of the Ninety-third General Assembly, Second Regular Session, the Senate concurring therein, that we stand with the majority of our constituents and exercise the common sense that voluntary prayer in public schools and religious displays on public property are not a coalition of church and state, but rather the justified recognition of the positive role that Christianity has played in this great nation of ours, the United States of America.

Whether you like it or not, America was founded by godly, Christian men. Missouri (God bless them!) simply has the balls to stand up to those who would like to see all traces of our heritage removed from society. If the Left had their way, in a few years we’d be having church in our homes.

Funny how they want us to shut up and go away, but freaks like this are encouraged to be ‘out’ and open and loud about their freakishness.

#137: Never Bring Nunchuks To A Gunfight

More rules to live by…

I love when guns help to save the day. Kudos to this gentleman in San Francisco (where they’re trying to outlaw guns) who blew away a ninja-style attacker:

An armed man wearing a black, ninja-style mask was shot to death by a Healdsburg man this morning after he attacked the man’s wife outside their home and chased her inside, police said.

The shooting happened about 7:30 a.m. at the end of Sunset Drive, a semi-rural street on the east side of town.

The woman was about to take the couple’s two Wheaton terrier dogs for a walk when the masked man jumped her outside her garage, police said. The woman struggled, broke away and ran screaming into the house, with the attacker in pursuit.

Her screams awoke her husband. The man, whom police identified only as a man in his 60s, “grabbed their handgun, probably a .357 … and fired more than one shot,” Police Chief Susan Jones said.

The attacker died at the scene.

*Sniffle*

I love a happy ending…

Muslim Babe - Deeyah

I’m just wondering how long before the Muslims riot and murder over this one???

Deeyah - called the Muslim Madonna (how’s that for an oxymoron?), doesn’t just talk about freeing herself - she does in the sexiest, most volatile way possible. Her video, What Will It Be? (Quicktime link), deals with Muslim women’s rights and female empowerment, and also features Muslim women who have fought for freedom of expression. I mean, even by Western standards this video is HOT!

The singer, who was born in Norway but moved to the UK after her act alienated her from the Muslim community, has been forced to cancel performances and hire a team of bodyguards after inciting anger from British Muslims as well.

“I can’t walk around without bodyguards. I would be lying if I said abuse from religious fanatics did not upset or scare me,” the 28-year-old, dubbed as the ‘Muslim Madonna’ was quoted by Contactmusic, as saying.

Asian music TV network B4U TV dropped the video after receiving complaints.

“We played the video a couple of times and then did not play it again. We had threats which we were forced to take very seriously. These things are sensitive issues,” an employee said.

Now, seriously, this babe has got to have some serious fatwahs coming her way. She’s got more courage in her pinky than ALL of Europe’s and America’s editors, with their faux “horror” over those lame cartoons, put together. They should be ashamed of themselves.

In the video, some of the lyrics are directed to religious zealots and it asks “What are you doing watching this video?” Good point. How many self-righteous Muslim men will covertly watch this thing over and over, ostensibly to curse her sin, but in reality because they can only DREAM. They’ll hate her for making them want her.

Watch Deeyah’s provacative video.

H/T: Malkin

A Western Manifesto

In response to the cultural jihad of Islam, Colonel Bunny at the Intergalactic Source of Truth has written a Western Manifesto. I am reproducing it here (with permission), because I want it to gain widespread attention. Also, since I agree one hundred percent with all 20 points of this Manifesto, I’d like for it to have a permanent home on our website. If you also agree with this Manifesto, please visit IGST and leave a comment for Colonel Bunny saying as much.

Colonel Bunny’s explantion for the Manifesto echoes much of what I have stated and re-stated this past week to our muslim commenters, who claim that Islam is moderate:

I’d like to be more conciliatory toward the much sought after but rarely encountered “moderate” Muslims. Undoubtedly they are there but they are for all intents and purposes hors de combat [disablement due to physical or mental injury] and of no use whatsoever in the battle with Islamic terror and aggression.

When moderates are more in evidence, then they will be entitled to greater respect. For now, they should not expect Westerners to fall over themselves wondering if they are there or not, or whether they will be hurt by having the tamer more worthy concepts of Islam lumped in with the objectionable ones.

My version, as spoken to a Muslim, is this:

… the day that peace-loving and tolerant Muslims have more influence over their people than the war-hungry imams…and when the tolerant Muslims perform more good deeds in the world than the destruction of the jihadists…and when peaceful Muslims loudly, publicly, and vigorously denounce Hamas, Palestinian violence, Iran, Syria, al Qaeda, and terrorism…and when they CUT OFF the financial support of terrorism and throw the radical imams and mullahs out of the mosques…and when you foreswear your bloody koran-commanded war against the Jews…and when you strenuously deny that islam is NOT meant to dominate the world at the point of a sword… and when no more innocent people die in the name of allah…THEN I’ll believe [Islam is "moderate"]. Sound fair?

It is not up to the rest of the world to accept islam in SPITE of the fact that insane muslims are tearing the planet apart. It is not up to us to police you people. Nor is it up to us to moderate you. That is YOUR culture, YOUR religion, and YOUR responsibility. Until those rare peace-loving Muslims gain control - then no one has to believe that you are peaceful. Until islam does MORE GOOD than harm on the planet, then we don’t have to accept it or like it.

So, as you can see, the Colonel and I have quite a bit in common. Without further ado…

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