Several D.C. Democrats have refused to condemn the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel—that left over 1,400 dead— as they spew their support for Palestine.
This week, Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) and fellow Republicans introduced legislation banning the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from providing green cards, visas, refugee status, and parole to Palestinians coming to the United States.
It would also revoke visas for Palestinians already in the U.S., making it easier for them to be deported.
However, the plan didn’t go over so well with anti-Israel Democrats, who have repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Democrat Reps. Andre Carson (D-IN), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) called the GOP’s legislation “xenophobic, punitive, and [an] unconstitutional measure.”
In a joint statement, they said:
As the three Muslim Members of Congress, we are horrified by Rep. Ryan Zinke’s recently introduced bill to pause all visas, refugee status, and granting of asylum for individuals holding a passport issued by the Palestinian Authority indefinitely — and to revoke others. Using the full power of the state to target and persecute a particular ethnic group or nationality is fascism and pure bigotry. This legislation—by a former cabinet official no less—directly violates the U.S. Constitution and would illegally destroy the lives of the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian immigrants who live in and contribute to American society. Though intended to target Muslims, this bill will also hurt Palestinian Christians, who will be targeted by these provisions. History will harshly judge this xenophobic, punitive, and unconstitutional measure. [Emphasis added] We call on the leadership of both parties to vocally and specifically condemn these comments and legislation, to make clear that anti-Muslim and anti-Arab hate has no place in our politics, and to name it when it happens.
The quickest way to teach what “peace” isn’t and “intolerance” is among conservatives is to minimize Veterans Day at our kids’ schools. That is what one elementary school in Washington State is finding out.
Benjamin Rush Elementary in Redmond decided to forgo the annual Veterans Day assembly, according to Jason Rantz of KTTH-AM in Seattle.
Instead, school officials thought they’d replace it with something more current and, by way of their actions, important.
The school noted the new event in the school newsletter on Oct. 29 and Nov. 5.
No one knew what it was, however, or that it would be replacing the expected Veterans Day assembly.
It was an unwelcome change for the community. The patriotic songs sung by the choir as well as praise for the heroes who served weren’t going to be heard this year.
One very annoyed and not-so-tolerant father of a Benjamin Rush student refused to take the attack on the holiday and all veterans lying down. He contacted “The Jason Rantz Show” to rant about the injustice.
He expressed his disappointment but said he wasn’t surprised. Maintaining his anonymity for fear of reprisal, the father said that “the school administration has moved strongly away from pride in our traditions and American history.”
The harm of this decision spans well beyond the veterans and widespread participation in the event by the community. The students will be robbed of learning the importance of honoring history, tradition and the lives of those who fought on their behalf for both.
Veterans once got an assembly and respect here. Now that pride is being redirected to a U.N. holiday.
The U.N. General Assembly proclaimed Nov. 16 as the “International Day for Tolerance” in 1996 following UNESCO’s adoption of a “Declaration of Principles on Tolerance” a year earlier.
“Among other things, the Declaration affirms that tolerance is neither indulgence nor indifference,” the organization’s website says. “It is respect and appreciation of the rich variety of our world’s cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human. Tolerance recognizes the universal human rights and fundamental freedoms of others. People are naturally diverse; only tolerance can ensure the survival of mixed communities in every region of the globe.”
What is really being taught in the school’s move speaks to the reason our nation is falling apart and will continue to do so. The school is replacing a real holiday pregnant with historical meaning and example with a mock holiday being forced down our throats, one that means nothing to any of us.
In this father’s own words, “We should be taking the time to show our children and our community that we have brave men and women who are willing to stand up and fight for our freedom and the peace that other places in the world can only dream of.”
According to KTTH, a district representative responded in defense of the elementary school, saying it will celebrate the U.N. holiday by having students watch videos and make cards that will be distributed to the Seattle VA Medical Center. The paltry justification fell flat on the father’s ears — and rightfully so.
It showed a lack of intelligence and ill-intention. Frankly, if school officials truly were all about honoring veterans and teaching peace, they could celebrate both holidays.
Ten other schools in the Washington Lakes district are celebrating Veterans Day. Benjamin Rush Elementary is not. Read between the lines, folks.
This school is making a name for itself and opening the door for the rest to follow suit. Its move is consistent with the agenda pushed by progressives, Democrats, and the radical left to remove history and tradition from children’s lives and replace it with fantasy, self-hatred, and hatred for everything American.
There is nothing embarrassing or hateful about being an American. We have much to be proud of despite our imperfect history. And hidden in that “imperfection” are lessons our children can learn from.
Honestly, “tolerance” in the United States has gone overboard. There is too much of it. This father sets a great example by putting his foot down.
We need more like him to do the same today. We need to stop redrawing history and playing pretend. And although I applaud his courage, we need to show our faces as we do. That’s how we save America and set an example for our children to follow.
Ultimately, removing Veterans Day isn’t the answer to national peace. Removing these kinds of woke decision-makers from their jobs and our schools is.
IRS going after Conservative org that exposed them.
IRS Launches Audit Into Conservative Org – Timing Is Oddly Suspicious
The IRS is demanding ‘[c]orrespondence files, emails and information posted on a website that relates to current public elected officials’ — clearly a sign that they are targeting our research and education activities.
Who said this wasn’t Obama’s third term? Same tactics as before.
The IRS is investigating the tax-exempt status of the American Accountability Foundation following its reporting on President Joe Biden’s nominees, several of whom withdrew their nominations, according to a letter obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The IRS is requesting AAF submit internal financial data, as well as communications, including meeting notes, publications and newsletters, according to the letter from the IRS to AAF obtained by the DCNF. The conservative nonprofit organization, which the IRS approved for tax-exempt status in August 2021, alleges the investigation is in retaliation for the AAF reporting on several recent Biden nominees who later withdrew their nominations.
GIGI SOHN WITHDRAWS!!
AAF ran hundreds of thousands of dollars in billboards, newspaper ads, and digital advertise to educate the American people how wrong she was for the position. We are glad the message got through.https://t.co/thWArC9GUp
— American Accountability Foundation (@ExposingBiden) March 7, 2023
“This sudden request by the IRS is not random,” AAF President Tom Jones said. “The IRS is demanding ‘[c]orrespondence files, emails and information posted on a website that relates to current public elected officials’ — clearly a sign that they are targeting our research and education activities. It’s a deliberate attempt to punish and suppress AAF’s activities. It is surely no coincidence that AAF — the very organization that exposed the weaponization of the IRS — is now the target of it.”
AAF has actively criticized several Biden nominees, calling on them to withdraw.
For instance, Biden’s FCC chair nominee Gigi Sohn donated to several Senate Commerce Democrats, including $550 to Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia, $100 to Democratic Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, and $200 to Democratic Sen. Michael Bennett of Colorado, according to The Washington Examiner. AAF sent a letter to Bennett, Cortez, Masto, Fetterman and Warnock, calling on the lawmakers that received contributions to recuse themselves from voting on Sohn’s nomination and calling for Sohn to withdraw.
The organization also repeatedlycriticized Sohn over her assertion “that Fox News has had the most negative impact on our democracy” in 2020.
“It’s state-sponsored propaganda, with few if any opposing viewpoints,” Sohn added.
AAF spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on billboards and advertisements to persuade Americans that Sohn should not be FCC chair, the group said.
AAF also spent weeks in 2022 criticizing National Highway Traffic Safety Administration nominee Ann Carlson for her “radical” statements on energy and climate, including blaming Americans for loving “their cars and their cheap gas.” The White House withdrew her nomination after backlash.
The organization also takes credit for playing a role in the withdrawal of Biden’s Federal Aviation Administration nominee Phillip Washington, according to its website.
Democratic Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse attempted to influence the agency to open an investigation into conservative organization Turning Point USA, according to documents obtained by AAF in November 2022. This included calling for the IRS to look into revoking Turning Point USA’s tax-exempt status due to hosting a large event without masks and social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whitehouse also targeted AAF’s partner and supporter Conservative Partnership Institute’s tax-exempt status in letters to the IRS, according to his website.
The IRS audit is for the purpose of certifying that AAF “operates in accordance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code,” according to the letter.
“We demand that this abuse is put to an end at once,” Jones asserted. “The Biden administration is acting as the gangster arm of the Left. Our Constitution and Declaration of Independence guarantee our God-given right to speak the truth about the powerful without being punished and harassed. We will do everything in our power to keep America free.”
Under former President Barack Obama, IRS officials under Lois Lerner targeted conservative groups when reviewing tax-exempt status. IRS officials under Lerner participated in choosing groups with the words “tea party,” “patriot” or “9/12” in their names for audits.
“As the attorney for many conservative, tea party groups targeted and harassed by the Obama IRS a decade ago, this certainly smacks of the exact same tactics used by the IRS then … and apparently being used again now against AAF,” attorney Cleta Mitchell said in a statement.
According to some German leftists she isn't diverse and inclusive enough.
A German nursery said it wanted a name ‘without a political background’ but it comes amid growing concern at the rise in anti-Semitism.
The alteration was seen as particularly biting in light of rising antisemitism in Germany.
News of the plan to alter the name drew criticism and escalated media attention on Tangerhütte, a small town in northern Germany where the center has operated under that name since the 1970s, for fifty years.
The alteration was seen as particularly biting, in light of rising antisemitism in Germany, and against the backdrop of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, sparked by the terror group’s devastating October 7 atrocities in southern Israel.
The city of Tangerhutte issued a press release on Monday clarifying the decision to rename the daycare center which is currently named after Anne Frank, a German Jewish girl who had kept a diary while hiding in Amsterdam from Adolf Hitler and the Nazis. Officials said the topic had been brought up months prior to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
After Frank’s death of Typhus at the age of 15 in a concentration camp in 1945, her father found her diary, and it was published.
“As early as July 2023, the daycare center and the board of trustees presented the new concept and the changes to the local council as the first responsible body in a daycare inspection,” the city wrote in its press release. “On this occasion, the topic of name changes also came up. These discussions are still ongoing without a decision being made at the moment.”
Linda Schichor, the daycare director reportedly explained that a more child-friendly name had been chosen as the story of Anne Frank is difficult to understand, and added that parents with a migrant background don’t relate to the name, according to n-tv.
Tangerhutte Mayor Andreas Brohm added city council had “received many constructive suggestions and proposals,” noting that they were “very grateful.”
City officials said several parents and employees from the daycare had brought up the idea of the name change, according to the outlet.
“We wanted something without political background,” Schichor said, the German media outlet Volksstimme first reported.
The renaming of the daycare was met with criticism. Sven Schulze, the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Germany wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the CDU members in the city council of Tangerhutte would “not agree” to renaming the daycare.
NWA has been locked out for four days and counting. This is due in large part to Site123 (the host) making it nearly impossible to transfer ownership of the site from MC to me. This actually started a YEAR ago. Now they want money for hosting, but our admin accounts only take us to the opening screen that wants us to start a NEW website rather than our dashboard. Going to the regular website produces the Featured image above and freezes there as well.
Almost like the way the old Disqus channels were run, isn’t it?
One of the suspects was shot multiple times in the head and upper body. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The second suspect fled from the pizza shop on foot.
Nothing was taken from the store, and no one besides the robbers were injured.
The identity of the robber who was killed has not been made public.
“What I saw was a guy lying down on the ground. Blood. The owner’s son said he had to shoot him because the guy was shooting at him. Said he had to shoot back self-defense,” Bill Hackett from Frankford, who witnessed the aftermath, told the station.
Police are currently going through the security footage to try and identify the suspect who fled.
Nearly two years before coronavirus became a household word, a National Institute of Health lab in Montana was conducting experiments with bats that focused on the spread of the virus.
The 2018 research was funded by the “Intramural Research Program of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and a research grant from NIH AID,” according to a report on the study available through the National Library of Medicine.
At the time, Dr. Anthony Fauci was the director of NIAID, a post he held from 1984 until his retirement in 2022.
The research was conducted at the Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Montana, which NIAID calls a “premier NIH facility for biomedical research.”
The experiment sought to determine whether the WIV1-coronavirus could infect and replicate in a group of 12 Egyptian fruit bats.
“They performed exams on the animals daily and measured things like body weight and temperature,” the Daily Mail reported. “Scientists also took samples from the bats’ noses and throats.
“On days three, seven and 28, four of the bats were euthanized and their heart, liver, kidney, spleen, bladder, reproductive organs, eyes and brain were collected for analysis. Scientists also analyzed white blood cell count and antibodies.”
The report on the experiment said that the virus was “unable to cause a robust infection” in the bats, later concluding that the spread of the virus could be specific to some bat species but not others.
Why isn’t Fauci in Jail?
The report also noted that existing research “suggests that a substantial portion of the SARS-like viruses circulating in bats cannot infect humans directly.”
COVID-19 was first reported in China in late 2019. Extensive debate has since raged whether the virus spread to humans through some as-yet-undiscovered animal pathway or was leaked from the Institute of Virology in Wuhan, China, where the outbreak was first noticed.
Fauci has scoffed at the lab-leak theory. He has also insisted that no “gain of function” research was approved on his watch. Such research is designed to increase the power of a virus to do harm to its host.
The bats for the 2018 project were obtained from the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo in Thurmont, Maryland, the report said. The zoo is not far from the presidential retreat at Camp David.
The activist group White Coat Waste said the site has a history of animal care violations and called it a “crummy roadside zoo.”
Anthony Bellotti, the president and founder of White Coat Waste, denounced the project in a statement.
“Our investigation has uncovered the real-life horror story of how a shady roadside zoo whose curator was an NIH animal experimenter shipped off bats to a deadly government virus lab overseen by Dr. Fauci to be infected with a coronavirus obtained directly from the Wuhan lab that experts believe caused Covid,” he said, according to the Post Millennial.
By Joe Saunders October 31, 2023 at 7:43 am for The Western Journal
Maybe now she’ll see how her citizens feel.
Pamela Price, the progressive prosecutor in Alameda County, California, got a look at crime, up close and personal, when her office laptop was stolen from an SUV after her bodyguard parked the vehicle Friday afternoon, according to KGO-TV in Oakland.
The incident took place during working hours when Price was at the Alameda County Family Justice Center about 3:30 p.m., KGO reporter Dan Noyes wrote in a social media post.
When she returned to the vehicle, she found a window broken and several items stolen, including the laptop.
ALCO DA Pamela Price got bipped. Her bodyguard parked $90k county Tahoe SUV outside a domestic violence event at Family Justice Center, and returned to see the window broken and her work laptop gone. OPD source says she waited an hour for police to arrive, gave up, and made…
Now, no decent human being wishes ill fortune to another, and being the victim of a vehicle burglary definitely comes under the heading of “ill fortune.”
But the Pamela Price case might lead to at least a justifiable feeling of schadenfreude.
According to a San Francisco Chronicle report from May 2018, Price first ran for D.A. as a civil rights attorney who had no experience prosecuting criminal defendants.
But what she did have was the financial backing of billionaire George Soros, a man who has devoted his huge fortune to leftist causes, such as undermining criminal justice in the United States by funding the campaigns of district attorneys who have precious little interest in actually enforcing the law.
Price lost in 2018, but ran again in 2022 and won on a platform of “aggressive steps to restore public trust in our criminal justice system, ensure public safety, end mass incarceration and root out racial, socioeconomic and gender disparities within Alameda County’s criminal justice system.”
To a cynical ear, the idea of a D.A. devoted to ending “mass incarceration” and occupying herself with “racial, socioeconomic and gender disparities” instead of simple law enforcement and protecting victims might sound like a recipe for introducing anarchy into a criminal justice system.
But in staunchly Democratic Alameda County, it got Price elected — and voters have been paying the price since.
According to a July report in National Review about citizen unhappiness with their D.A., violent crime in Oakland was up 15 percent compared to 2022, when Price was not the D.A. Property crime was up by 28 percent.
And on Friday, it went up just a little bit more, thanks to the break-in of a vehicle used by Price herself. Making the situation worse, according to KGO, Price waited for an hour for police to show up.
When they didn’t, she reported the crime online. (That’s just what every victim of crime wants to do.)
And plenty of social media users saw the irony. Or maybe the word is “justice.”
“Priceless,” one wrote.
“She forgot to put a sticker on her car that says ‘I’m the one who keeps you out of jail,’” wrote another.
“She got some of her own medicine,” the user wrote. “Now she knows what regular citizens feel like when they are victims of crime.”
Actually, she doesn’t know exactly how regular citizens feel. Regular citizens aren’t riding around in $90,000 Tahoe SUVs driven by taxpayer-funded bodyguards, for instance.
And the property regular citizens are losing to crime won’t be paid for by the county government.
But Pamela Price might have just gotten a glimpse of what life is really like under the progressive policies of the prosecutors George Soros has funded to destroy criminal justice in the name of what leftists call “social justice.”
Price is currently the target of a recall effort, according to KNTV, a Bay Area NBC affiliate.
Chesa Boudin, the former progressive district attorney across the bay in San Francisco, learned in 2022 that those recall elections can kick out prosecutors who aren’t enforcing the law.
If that happens to Price and she’s a victim of a crime again, she might really see what everyday citizens are dealing with under her watch.
Like Christians, Muslims pick and choose which verses they like. Sometimes even picking only half a verse because the rest of it invalidates what they want it to say. (See a refutation of current propaganda: Response to Apologists) Thanks to thereligionofpeace.com for both articles.
Quran (2:216) – “Fighting is prescribed for you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not.” Not only does this verse establish that violence can be virtuous, but it also contradicts the myth that fighting is intended only in self-defense since the audience was obviously not under attack at the time. From the Hadith, we know that this verse was narrated at a time when Muhammad was actually trying to motivate his people into raiding merchant caravans for loot.
Quran (3:56) – “As to those who reject faith, I will punish them with terrible agony in this world and in the Hereafter, nor will they have anyone to help.”
Quran (3:151) – “Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers, for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no authority”. This speaks directly of polytheists, yet it also includes Christians since they believe in the Trinity (ie. what Muhammad incorrectly believed to be ‘joining companions to Allah’).
Quran (4:74) – “Let those fight in the way of Allah who sell the life of this world for the other. Whoso fighteth in the way of Allah, be he slain or be he victorious, on him We shall bestow a vast reward.”The martyrs of Islam are unlike the early Christians, who were led meekly to the slaughter. These Muslims are killed in battle as they attempt to inflict death and destruction for the cause of Allah. This is the theological basis for today’s suicide bombers.
Quran (4:76) – “Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah, and those who disbelieve, fight in the cause of Taghut (Satan, etc.). So fight you against the friends of Shaitan (Satan)” The Arabic for the word “fight” is from qital, meaning physical combat.
Quran (4:89) – “They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks.”
Islam is intended to dominate all other people and faiths.
Quran (4:95) – “Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home), except those who are disabled (by injury or are blind or lame, etc.), and those who strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allah with their wealth and their lives. Allah has preferred in grades those who strive hard and fight with their wealth and their lives above those who sit (at home).Unto each, Allah has promised good (Paradise), but Allah has preferred those who strive hard and fight, above those who sit (at home) by a huge reward “ This passage criticizes “peaceful” Muslims who do not join in the violence, letting them know that they are less worthy in Allah’s eyes. It also demolishes the modern myth that “Jihad” doesn’t mean holy war in the Quran, but rather a spiritual struggle. Not only is this Arabic word (mujahiduna) used in this passage, but it is clearly not referring to anything spiritual, since the physically disabled are given exemption. (The Hadith reveals the context of the passage to be in response to a blind man’s protest that he is unable to engage in Jihad, which would not make sense if it meant an internal struggle).
Quran (4:101) – “And when you (Muslims) travel in the land, there is no sin on you if you shorten your Salat (prayer) if you fear that the disbelievers may attack you, verily,the disbelievers are ever unto you open enemies.“ Mere disbelief makes one an “open” enemy of Muslims.
Quran (4:104) – “And be not weak hearted in pursuit of the enemy; if you suffer pain, then surely they (too) suffer pain as you suffer pain…”Is pursuing an injured and retreating enemy really an act of self-defense?
Quran (5:33) – “The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement”
Quran (8:12) – “(Remember) when your Lord inspired the angels… “I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them”No reasonable person would interpret this to mean a spiritual struggle, given that it both followed and preceded confrontations in which non-Muslims were killed by Muslims. The targets of violence are “those who disbelieve” – further defined in the next verse (13) as those who “defy and disobey Allah.” Nothing is said about self-defense. In fact, the verses in sura 8 were narrated shortly after a battle provoked by Muhammad, who had been trying to attack a lightly-armed caravan to steal goods belonging to other people.
Quran (8:15) – “O ye who believe! When ye meet those who disbelieve in battle, turn not your backs to them. (16)Whoso on that day turneth his back to them, unless maneuvering for battle or intent to join a company, he truly hath incurred wrath from Allah, and his habitation will be hell, a hapless journey’s end.”
Quran (8:39) – “And fight with them until there is no more fitna (disorder, unbelief) and religion is all for Allah” Some translations interpret “fitna” as “persecution”, but the traditional understanding of this word is not supported by the historical context (See notes for 2:193). The Meccans were simply refusing Muhammad access to their city during the pilgrimage. Other Muslims were allowed to travel there – but not as an armed group since Muhammad had declared war on Mecca prior to his eviction. The Meccans were also acting in defense of their religion, as it was Muhammad’s intention to destroy their idols and establish Islam by force (which he later did). Hence the critical part of this verse is to fight until “religion is only for Allah”, meaning that the true justification of violence was the unbelief of the opposition. According to the Sira (Ibn Ishaq/Hisham 324) Muhammad further explains that “Allah must have no rivals.”
Quran (8:57) – “If thou comest on them in the war, deal with them so as to strike fear in those who are behind them, that haply they may remember.”
Quran (8:67) – “It is not for a Prophet that he should have prisoners of war until he had made a great slaughter in the land…”
Quran (8:59-60) – “And let not those who disbelieve suppose that they can outstrip (Allah’s Purpose). Lo! they cannot escape. Make ready for them all thou canst of (armed) force and of horses tethered, that thereby ye may dismay the enemy of Allah and your enemy.” As Ibn Kathir puts it in his tafsir on this passage, “Allah commands Muslims to prepare for war against disbelievers, as much as possible, according to affordability and availability.”
Quran (8:65) – “O Prophet, exhort the believers to fight…”
Quran (9:5) – “So when the sacred months have passed away, then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captive and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, leave their way free to them.” According to this verse, the best way of staying safe from Muslim violence at the time of Muhammad was to convert to Islam: prayer (salat) and the poor tax (zakat) are among the religion’s Five Pillars. The popular claim that the Quran only inspires violence within the context of self-defense is seriously challenged by this passage as well since the Muslims to whom it was written were obviously not under attack. Had they been, then there would have been no waiting period (earlier verses make it a duty for Muslims to fight in self-defense, even during the sacred months). The historical context is Mecca after the idolaters were subjugated by Muhammad and posed no threat. Once the Muslims had power, they violently evicted those unbelievers who would not convert.
[Note: The verse says to fight unbelievers “wherever you find them“. Even if the context is a time of battle (which it was not) the reading appears to sanction attacks against those “unbelievers” who are not on the battlefield. In 2016, the Islamic State referred to this verse in urging the faithful to commit terror attacks: Allah did not only command the ‘fighting’ of disbelievers, as if to say He only wants us to conduct frontline operations against them. Rather, He has also ordered that they be slain wherever they may be – on or off the battlefield. (source)]
Quran (9:14) – “Fight against them so that Allah will punish them by your hands and disgrace them and give you victory over them and heal the breasts of a believing people.” Humiliating and hurting non-believers not only has the blessing of Allah, but it is ordered as a means of carrying out his punishment and even “heals” the hearts of Muslims.
Quran (9:20) – “Those who believe, and have left their homes and striven with their wealth and their lives in Allah’s way are of much greater worth in Allah’s sight. These are they who are triumphant.” The Arabic word interpreted as “striving” in this verse is the same root as “Jihad”. The context is obviously holy war.
Quran (9:29) – “Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.” “People of the Book” refers to Christians and Jews. According to this verse, they are to be violently subjugated, with the sole justification being their religious status. Verse 9:33 tells Muslims that Allah has instructed them to make Islam “superior over all religions.” This chapter was one of the final “revelations” from Allah and it set in motion the tenacious military expansion, in which Muhammad’s companions managed to conquer two-thirds of the Christian world in the next 100 years. Islam is intended to dominate all other people and faiths.
Quran (9:30) – “And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!”
Quran (9:38-39) – “O ye who believe! what is the matter with you, that, when ye are asked to go forth in the cause of Allah, ye cling heavily to the earth? Do ye prefer the life of this world to the Hereafter? But little is the comfort of this life, as compared with the Hereafter. Unless ye go forth, He will punish you with a grievous penalty, and put others in your place.” This is a warning to those who refuse to fight, that they will be punished with Hell. The verse also links physical fighting to the “cause of Allah” (or “way of Allah”).
Quran (9:41) – “Go forth, light or heavy (some translations read “armed”) and strive with your wealth and your lives in the way of Allah! That is best for you if ye but knew.” See also the verse that follows (9:42) – “If there had been immediate gain (in sight), and the journey easy, they would (all) without doubt have followed thee, but the distance was long, (and weighed) on them” This contradicts the myth that Muslims are to fight only in self-defense, since the wording implies that battle will be waged a long distance from home (in another country and – in this case – on Christian soil, according to the historians).
Quran (9:73) – “O Prophet! strive hard against the unbelievers and the hypocrites and be unyielding to them; and their abode is hell, and evil is the destination.” Dehumanizing those who reject Islam, by reminding Muslims that unbelievers are merely firewood for Hell, makes it easier to justify slaughter. It explains why today’s devout Muslims generally have little regard for those outside the faith. The inclusion of “hypocrites” (non-practicing) within the verse also contradicts the apologist’s defense that the targets of hate and hostility are wartime foes since there was never an opposing army made up of non-religious Muslims in Muhammad’s time. (See also Games Muslims Play: Terrorists Can’t Be Muslim Because They Kill Muslims for the role this verse plays in Islam’s perpetual internal conflicts).
Quran (9:88) – “But the Messenger, and those who believe with him, strive and fight with their wealth and their persons: for them are (all) good things: and it is they who will prosper.”
Quran (9:111) – “Allah hath purchased of the believers their persons and their goods; for theirs (in return) is the garden (of Paradise): they fight in His cause, and slay and are slain: a promise binding on Him in truth, through the Law, the Gospel, and the Quran: and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah? then rejoice in the bargain which ye have concluded: that is the achievement supreme.” How does the Quran define a true believer?
Quran (9:123) – “O you who believe! fight those of the unbelievers who are near to you and let them find in you hardness.”
Quran (17:16) – “And when We wish to destroy a town, We send Our commandment to the people of it who lead easy lives, but they transgress therein; thus the word proves true against it, so We destroy it with utter destruction.” Note that the crime is moral transgression, and the punishment is “utter destruction.” (Before ordering the 9/11 attacks, Osama bin Laden first issued Americans an invitation to Islam).
Quran (18:65-81) – This parable lays the theological groundwork for honor killings, in which a family member is murdered because they brought shame to the family, either through apostasy or perceived moral indiscretion. The story (which is not found in any Jewish or Christian source) tells of Moses encountering a man with “special knowledge” who does things which don’t seem to make sense on the surface, but are then justified according to later explanation. One such action is to murder a youth for no apparent reason (v.74). However, the wise man later explains that it was feared that the boy would “grieve” his parents by “disobedience and ingratitude.” He was killed so that Allah could provide them a ‘better’ son. [Note: This parable along with verse 58:22 is a major reason that honor killing is sanctioned by Sharia. Reliance of the Traveler (Umdat al-Saliq) says that punishment for murder is not applicable when a parent or grandparent kills their offspring (o.1.12).]
Expanding Islam
Quran (21:44) – “…See they not that We gradually reduce the land (in their control) from its outlying borders? Is it then they who will win?”
Quran (25:52) – “Therefore listen not to the Unbelievers, but strive against them with the utmost strenuousness with it.” – The root for Jihad is used twice in this verse – although it may not have been referring to Holy War when narrated, since it was prior to the hijra at Mecca. The “it” at the end is thought to mean the Quran. Thus the verse may have originally meant a non-violent resistance to the ‘unbelievers.’ Obviously, this changed with the hijra. ‘Jihad’ after this is almost exclusively within a violent context. The enemy is always defined as people, rather than ideas.
Quran (33:60-62) – “If the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is a disease (evil desire for adultery, etc.), and those who spread false news among the people in Al-Madinah, cease not, We shall certainly let you overpower them, then they will not be able to stay in it as your neighbors but a little while Accursed, wherever found, they shall be seized and killed with a (terrible) slaughter.” This passage sanctions slaughter (rendered as “merciless” and “horrible murder” in other translations) against three groups: hypocrites (Muslims who refuse to “fight in the way of Allah” (3:167) and hence don’t act as Muslims should), those with “diseased hearts” (which include Jews and Christians 5:51-52), and “alarmists” or “agitators – those who speak out against Islam. It is worth noting that the victims are to be sought out, which is what today’s terrorists do.
Quran (47:3-4) – “Those who disbelieve follow falsehood, while those who believe follow the truth from their Lord… So, when you meet (fighting Jihad in Allah’s Cause), those who disbelieve smite at their necks till when you have killed and wounded many of them, then bind a bond firmly (on them, i.e. take them as captives)… If it had been Allah’s Will, He Himself could certainly have punished them (without you). But (He lets you fight), in order to test you, some with others. But those who are killed in the Way of Allah, He will never let their deeds be lost.” Holy war is to be pursued against those who reject Allah. The unbelievers are to be killed and wounded. Survivors are to be held captive for ransom. The only reason Allah doesn’t do the dirty work himself is to to test the faithfulness of Muslims. Those who kill pass the test. (See also: 47:4 for more context)
Quran (47:35) – “Be not weary and faint-hearted, crying for peace, when ye should be uppermost (Shakir: “have the upper hand”) for Allah is with you,”
Quran (48:17) – “There is no blame for the blind, nor is there blame for the lame, nor is there blame for the sick (that they go not forth to war). And whoso obeyeth Allah and His messenger, He will make him enter Gardens underneath which rivers flow; and whoso turneth back, him will He punish with a painful doom.”Contemporary apologists sometimes claim that Jihad means ‘spiritual struggle.’ If so, then why are the blind, lame and sick exempted? This verse also says that those who do not fight will suffer torment in hell.
Quran (48:29) – “Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. And those with him are hard (ruthless) against the disbelievers and merciful among themselves” Islam is not about treating everyone equally. This verse tells Muslims that two very distinct standards are applied based on religious status. Also the word used for ‘hard’ or ‘ruthless’ in this verse shares the same root as the word translated as ‘painful’ or severe’ to describe Hell in over 25 other verses including 65:10, 40:46 and 50:26..
Quran (61:4) – “Surely Allah loves those who fight in His cause” Religion of Peace, indeed! The verse explicitly refers to “rows” or “battle array,” meaning that it is speaking of physical conflict. This is followed by (61:9), which defines the “cause”: “He it is who has sent His Messenger (Mohammed) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam) to make it victorious over all religions even though the infidels may resist.” (See next verse, below). Infidels who resist Islamic rule are to be fought.
Quran (61:10-12) – “O You who believe! Shall I guide you to a commerce that will save you from a painful torment. That you believe in Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad), and that you strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allah with your wealth and your lives, that will be better for you, if you but know! (If you do so) He will forgive you your sins, and admit you into Gardens under which rivers flow, and pleasant dwelling in Gardens of’Adn- Eternity [‘Adn(Edn) Paradise], that is indeed the great success.” This verse refers to physical battle waged to make Islam victorious over other religions (see verse 9). It uses the Arabic root for the word Jihad.Quran (66:9) – “O Prophet! Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be stern with them. Hell will be their home, a hapless journey’s end.” The root word of “Jihad” is used again here. The context is clearly holy war, and the scope of violence is broadened to include “hypocrites” – those who call themselves Muslims but do not act as such.
Quran (2:191-193) – “And kill them wherever you find them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out. And Al-Fitnah [disbelief or unrest] is worse than killing… but if they desist, then lo! Allah is forgiving and merciful. And fight them until there is no more Fitnah [disbelief and worshipping of others along with Allah] and worship is for Allah alone. But if they cease, let there be no transgression except against Az-Zalimun(the polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc.)” (Translation is from the Noble Quran) The verse prior to this (190) refers to “fighting for the cause of Allah those who fight you” leading some to claim that the entire passage refers to a defensive war in which Muslims are defending their homes and families. The historical context of this passage is not defensive warfare, however, since Muhammad and his Muslims had just relocated to Medina and were not under attack by their Meccan adversaries. In fact, the verses urge offensive warfare, in that Muslims are to drive Meccans out of their own city (which they later did). Verse 190 thus means to fight those who offer resistance to Allah’s rule (ie. Muslim conquest). The use of the word “persecution” by some Muslim translators is disingenuous – the actual Arabic words for persecution (idtihad) – and oppression are not used instead of fitna. Fitna can mean disbelief, or the disorder that results from unbelief or temptation. A strict translation is ‘sedition,’ meaning rebellion against authority (the authority being Allah). This is certainly what is meant in this context since the violence is explicitly commissioned “until religion is for Allah” – ie. unbelievers desist in their unbelief. [Original editor’s note: these notes have been modified slightly after a critic misinterpreted our language. Verse 193 plainly says that ‘fighting’ is sanctioned even if the fitna ‘ceases’. This is about religious order, not real persecution.]
There you have it. The “logic” of terrorist attacks and why other Muslims remain quiet — because they would be killed, too. That is a valid fear, as is amply demonstrated in the internecine warfare of Muslim factions and the horrendous practice of “Honor” killing. — TPR
YEAH! More free stuff! Illegal climbing fence into the US.
This order can soooo easily be misused.
By Tom Ozimek for The Epoch Times
Government overreach.
The Biden administration has warned U.S. banks and other financial institutions that they can’t reject illegal immigrants’ credit applications based solely or predominantly on their immigration status.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) said in a recent statement that rejecting illegal immigrants for credit cards and various types of loans just because they are noncitizens is unlawful.
The two agencies stated that they were issuing the warning “because consumers have reported being rejected for credit cards as well as for auto, student, personal and equipment loans because of their immigration status, even when they have strong credit histories and ties to the United States and are otherwise qualified to receive the loans.”
(How can an illegal have a “strong credit history?” Be the very nature of their entry into this country, they can HAVE no credit history. — TPR)
Specifically, the agencies cited the provisions of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), which protects credit applicants from discrimination based on such characteristics as race, religion, sexual orientation, and national origin.
The agencies argue that protections afforded by ECOA and other laws extend to alienage, so banks that have blanket policies to deny loans to illegal immigrants may be breaking the law.
“Lenders should not deny people the opportunity to take out a loan to buy a home, build their businesses or otherwise pursue their financial goals because of unlawful bias and without regard to their actual ability to repay,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement.
Bud Cummins, a former U.S. attorney, objected to the agencies’ warning to banks and other financial institutions.
“DOJ and CFPB tell banks it might be illegal to refuse to loan money to people [who] broke federal law to reach the bank. You gotta be kidding me. The invasion of illegal immigrants is intentional and must be stopped,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
According to the Center for Immigration Studies, roughly 11.35 million illegal immigrants were residing in the United States as of January 2022.
More Details
The agencies said that ECOA protections extend to alienage, although in a joint statement, they acknowledged some gray area, namely that the act “does not expressly prohibit consideration of immigration status.”
Some financial institutions have maintained blanket policies denying people credit based on their immigration status, without regard for their ability to repay, interpreting ECOA in a way that they believe shields them from liability, according to the agencies, which added that this is incorrect.
“A creditor may consider an applicant’s immigration status when necessary to ascertain the creditor’s rights regarding repayment,” the agencies said, explaining that Regulation B, a rule that implements ECOA, expressly states that the only conditions under which immigration status may be considered is only to determine creditors’ “rights and remedies regarding repayment” of a loan.
If financial institutions consider immigration status for any other reason, the agencies said they’re probably breaking the law.
“Creditors should be aware that unnecessary or overbroad reliance on immigration status in the credit decisioning process, including when that reliance is based on bias, may run afoul of ECOA’s antidiscrimination provisions and could also violate other laws,” the agencies said.
The “other laws” mentioned could refer to the 1866 Civil Rights Act, also known as Section 1981, which the agencies said in their joint statement “has long been construed to prohibit discrimination based on alienage.”
They said that courts have found that “ECOA’s prohibition of national origin discrimination and Section 1981’s prohibitions complement one another and that discrimination that arises from overbroad restrictions on lending to noncitizens may violate either or both statutes.”
It’s unclear whether any banks or financial institutions intend to challenge the DOJ and CFPB’s interpretation of the law regarding the provision of loans to illegal immigrants.
