In the three years that I have been keeping this blog, I have had the misfortune to hear some of the most unfortunate, insane, and utterly stupid things ever said. Most of the dumb comments have come out of Hollywood where uneducated actors and actresses - the very people who are paid to pretend they are someone they aren't - often open their mouths, only to prove that they know less about the real world than most farm animals.

However, in what may be the most narcissistic comment ever spoken by a professional sports personality, Tom Coughlin, the beleaguered coach of the New York football Giants, was asked what it was like to withstand constant criticism last year as the Giants barely made the playoffs in what was supposed to be (in the fan's minds) a Super Bowl finish. His response:

"I hear some of it and I see it. You know (VP of communications Pat) Hanlon tells me about it, what's going on."

Then, he added, "Hitler and then me, in that order. Unfortunate, but it is."

That's right. He compared the way he is treated with the loathing only formerly reserved for arguably the greatest evil villain known in the history of mankind.

If I'm a season ticket holder, or really, just an ordinary supporter of the Giants (which I'm not), I would be both livid and sad. I'd be very upset that this idiot feels so self-absorbed that he could even contemplate the comparison. I'd be sad that the Head Coach of my team is a bitter, unstable man who clearly is in need of medical treatment and is a huge embarrassment to an otherwise storied franchise.

Personally, I'd hate for Coughlin to be fired. He is, after all, perhaps the biggest reason the Giants aren't as successful as they probably should be. It was clear last year that even though they were riddled with injuries and torn up over Tiki Barber's retirement (one that had Coughlin not been the coach, may not have been made mid-season, but after the season ended), he had completely lost the faith of his players and management.

I was surprised that the Giants decided to retain him this off-season. However, if I were a betting man, I wouldn't be surprised if there is a new Head Coach on the Giants' sideline when they open their season September 9th at Texas Stadium.

"Hitler and then me, in that order."

What an idiot.

Here is a fascinating, if not sad and frightening, essay written but Holocaust survivor Solly Ganor. A survivor of the Dachau concentration camp and author of a number of books, Ganor lives in Herzelia Pituach, Israel.

This article appears in the March 15, 2007 issue of FrontPageMagazine.com.

The Coming War with Islam

Five years ago, I had a conversation with a young Palestinian student who in short precise terms explained how Islam will defeat the West. The conversation opened my eyes to a much larger picture in which Israel plays only a minor role in the Islamic game of conquest. Since then I tried to speak to some Arabs who come to pray at the Mosque, but they were not as outspoken as the student.

Last week, I had another conversation with an Israeli Arab construction boss by the unlikely name of Francis who was in charge of building a villa near our house in Herzelia. He told me that his family was Christian, and his name was given to him in honor of the Franciscan monks. Our conversation was as interesting as the first conversation I had with the Arab student five years ago and I would like to share it with you. Francis frequently parked his car near our house and we would exchange polite greetings.

About a week ago, the water was shut off for repairs in the house he was building, and Francis asked me if I could give him some hot water for his coffee. He was a tall man of about forty, with reddish hair and blue eyes. He spoke a perfect Hebrew, and I naturally became curious about him. I felt that he may the right person to exchange some views with. By his looks, I assumed that he was either a Druze or from the Syrian region. He looked more like a teacher than a construction worker and, as I later found out, he was actually a teacher by profession. Since my conversation with the student five years ago, I was always curious to hear their side of the story; therefore, I decided to invite him for a cup of coffee to our house. I saw him hesitate for a moment; then he smiled and thanked me for my hospitality.

While we drank our coffee, he told me that he was from a small village in the Galilee called Jish, near the present Kibbutz Sassa. I remembered the village very well as I was one of the soldiers who captured the village while serving in the 7th Armored brigade during the War of Independence in 1948. I decided not to tell him about it because at the time we encountered some stiff resistance at that village and quite a few of the inhabitants were killed.

He went on to tell me a little about himself. “For a while I was a teacher and I loved teaching, but I couldn’t make a living at it and I decided to join my father in law who is in the construction business.” Judging by the large Honda he was driving, I figured that he didn’t do too badly changing his profession.

Our conversation soon turned to the present situation in the Middle East, about Hamas winning the elections, the situation of the Israeli Arabs, and the last Lebanese war against Hezbollah. “As Christians we are in a difficult situation here in Israel. Unfortunately, the Moslems and especially the extreme Islamist section, are giving the tone here. My family who lived in Bethlehem probably since the Crusaders, had to flee for their life. The Moslems have been forcing us out, by threats and even murder. Bethlehem that was once predominantly Christian is now predominantly Moslem. Very little is written about it even in the Israeli press.”

He sipped his coffee and gave me a long look. He seemed like someone who wasn’t quite sure whether to say what he was about to say. I gave him an encouraging nod.

“I have to tell you something which very few of you seem to comprehend.” He continued, “Your bungling war against a few thousand Hezbollah fighters which you should have crushed no matter what, considering the importance of the outcome, has created a completely new situation, not only for this area, but globally. Your inept leadership totally misunderstood the importance of winning this war."

“As a matter of fact, the whole Moslem world, not only the Arabs, simply couldn’t believe that the mighty Israeli Army that defeated the combined Arab forces in six days in 1967, and almost captured Cairo and Damascus in 1973, couldn’t defeat a small army of Hezbollah men. As usual the Moslems see things the way they want to see things. Most think that the present generation of Israelis have gone soft and can be defeated."

“The American bungling of the war in Iraq only added to their conviction that victory not only over Israel but also over the West is not only possible, but certain. The ramifications of these two bungling wars may bring an Islamic bloody Tsunami all over the West, not only in Israel. The sharks smell blood and these two wars gave them the green light to attack sooner than they had in mind. Your problem is that you are on the defensive and they have the option to choose the time and the places when and where to attack and there is nothing much you can do about it. When will you Westerners realize that half measures don’t work with people who are willing to die by the thousands for Allah to achieve their goal? In their eyes the Western World is simply an abomination on earth that has to be wiped out.”

He spoke quietly and I could just picture him in the school giving his students a lecture. I poured him another cup of coffee and encouraged him to continue.

“The Americans, the Europeans, and even you Israelis really don’t know what it is all about, do you? During the last generation hundreds of thousands of children have been taught all over the Moslem world in Madrass schools to become martyrs for Allah in order to kill the infidels. These youngsters not only are ready to do it, but are actually in the process of doing it. Bombs are going off all over the world killing and maiming thousands of people, not only on 9/11 in the US, in London Madrid and Bali, but in Africa, India, Bangladesh, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and many other places. The first signs of the Islamic Tsunami is already here, but the West doesn’t understand, or doesn’t want to understand what is coming."

“The Americans, instead of realizing that this is as bad as World War Two, or even worse, are going to pull out of Iraq, handing it over to Iran on a silver platter. Next may come the Saudis and the rest of the Gulf states. When dirty bombs go off all over Western towns, who is going to stop the Iranians?"

“Now is the time to stop them, not only because they are developing nuclear bombs, but because Iran has become the base for all Islamic terrorist. They supply, money, men, and weapons to Islamic terrorist around the world, quite often through their diplomatic mail. Billions of petro-dollars that are pouring into Iran are being funneled into terrorist organizations world-wide. They believe, and perhaps rightly so, that the West will do nothing to stop them in achieving their goals. Is history repeating itself? Are the Iranians making the same mistake that Hitler made when he attacked Poland? Is the situation similar?"

“As a history teacher who studied the subject thoroughly I can tell you that Western victory in World War Two was not all certain. Hitler could have won the war if he would have gone ahead with the atomic bomb development before the Americans. The Germans began working on it in the thirties, and it was Hitler’s decision to prefer building more conventional arms, as he considered atomic weapons sheer fantasy. Hitler made the wrong decision, but had he made the right decision the world would have been a different type of world today, wouldn’t it? The West won the war against Hitler by sheer chance. Very few people seem to realize that.”

I must say that his last words shook me up quite a bit. Had Hitler made a different decision, I would have died in Dachau, there wouldn’t have been a Jewish state called Israel, and most likely there wouldn’t have been any Jews left in the world. The idea that the Western democracies in general and the fate of the Jewish people in particular could have hinged on Hitler’s one decision, is a scenario of the worst nightmare.

He notices that his last words had an effect on me, and he smiled. “I see that my words are not wasted on you,” he said dryly. I nodded, and he continued with his lecture. “Coming back to our time, the Iranians rely on the West doing nothing about their development of nuclear bombs. They also rely on their secret weapon: an inexhaustible supply of Islamic suicide bombers, some of them who are already planted all over the Western World. Besides the Islamic countries that supply these suicide bombers, a second front has been opened, and that is the Internet with more than five thousand Islamic web sites, brain washing and urging young Moslems to become martyrs for Allah. They especially target young Moslems who live in Europe and the West in general. The Western intelligence authorities consider these web sites a bigger threat than the Iranian atomic bomb. Al-Qaeda recently issued a television broadcast that promised a devastating attack against its enemies this spring. As we all know, Al-Qaeda doesn’t make empty threats."

“Actually, I don’t understand why the Iranians bother to develop atomic bombs and bring the whole world down on them. Every suicide bomber is a potential atomic bomb, or a biological, chemical or dirty bomb that can be no less devastating than an atom bomb. The Americans and Europeans have no defense against this type of war."

“What can we do against this type warfare?” I asked him. “Well, you Israelis, should better prepare yourself for another round against Hezbollah. It will not be long in coming. It depends on the Iranians to give the word. This time you will have to destroy Hezbollah no matter what the cost may be."

“Of course, your next round against Hezbollah may involve the Syrians and the Iranians against you. The Iranians declared that they will not allow Hezbollah to be defeated no matter what and may launch their missiles against you. So will the Syrians. What will Israel do? It is unlikely that Israel will accept its destruction and may use their nuclear arsenal if the West will not come to their help. Perhaps our book of Revelation is not so wrong in describing that the end of the world would start at Armageddon, which we know as Har-Megiddo in Israel. The book of Revelations describe the last battle would be fought at Armageddon between the “Forces of good and the forces of evil.”

“And who would you call the forces of good ‘Israel or Islam?’ I asked looking him straight in the eyes. He gave me a startled look. “If I were a Moslem, I would have no problem to name the forces of good and it wouldn’t be Israel. As a Christian, I would probably name Israel, but as a Christian Arab I would prefer not to answer.”

We looked at each other. His answer made it clear where the Israeli Arabs stood, whether they were Moslems or Christians. And why should I be surprised? After all the Israeli Arabs call the establishment of the State of Israel their nakbah (disaster).

Is there a way to avoid the “Armageddon”?

“I think there are two ways to avoid it. One can be a major war which the West can win. As in World War Two, had the West attacked the Germans in 1936 the war would have lasted not more than a month with very few casualties. Their procrastination resulted in World War II with all its consequences. Eventually, the West will have to tackle the Iranians, it is better that they do it now to avert a world catastrophe later. With Iran defeated the Islamic onslaught will lose its base, and it may be the turning point in history to defeat the menace of extreme Islam. The majority of the Moslems don’t want this confrontation anyway.”

“You are painting a rather dark picture. When do you think we will have the next round against Hezbollah?” I asked. “I think they will attack again as soon as they are fully re-equipped and I think it will be during the summer, while Israel is still in a military and political turmoil.”

For a while, we sat in silence. He finished his second cup of coffee and got up. “I know what I am going to do. I am going to Canada to join my brother. This country is becoming much too dangerous for Christians as well,” he said. He thanked me for the coffee and we shook hands.

“You said there are two ways to avoid Armageddon?” I remembered to ask him.

“Sure, all the West has to do is follow Putin’s ways. He assassinates his enemies without blinking an eye. Assassinate the four or five Mullahs who run the show, Ahmadinejad, and a few more Iranian fanatics, and the War can be avoided. It may be difficult to do, but not impossible. With today’s hi- tech technology I am sure that new weapons against individuals are being prepared right now. I think it would be a better way of handling the matter than an all out war against Islam.”

The conversation with Francis was not more encouraging than the one I had with the Palestinian student five years ago. It was becoming clear that Israel may be on the forefront for the coming war of the West against Islam, unless we follow Francis’ suggestion to assassinate the heads of the snake, rather than going to war with Islam.

Tip of the hat -- my friend, Ary Weil

I came across three excellent articles today that I want ts share with you. The first one, written by the remarkable Thomas Sowell, titled "Dangerous Demagoguery," discusses the quandary that the Democratic party is facing regarding the war in Iraq.

One of the points Sowell makes is in regard to the apparent crowing by the Speaker of the House after pushing through her "cut and run" resolution:

It has been painfully clear that Speaker Pelosi was serious only about scoring political points. Her big grin when she won a narrow vote for a non-binding resolution was grotesque against the background of a life-and-death issue.

You don't grin over a political ploy that you have pulled when men's lives are at stake.

Furthermore, he criticizes the mainstream media for ignoring the positives in Iraq while running with stories that aren't true, but are sensational and dangerous.

The second story is by Caroline Glick , titled "An embrace of Jihadist 'peace' ." In her article, she examines the history of the Jihadist movement and the failures of both the American and Israeli leaders to stem the tide. In remarking about the American failure, Glick noted:

Rice is laboring to empower Teheran's terrorist allies in Hamas, the Islamic Jihad and Fatah. This she does by promoting the so-called Arab peace plan, which demands that Israel agree to dangerous and strategically catastrophic concessions to the Palestinian terrorist government.

In behaving thus, Rice is walking in the well-worn footsteps of her predecessors. Indeed, it seems almost axiomatic that when the going gets tough for US administrations, administration officials get tough on Israel.

Glick also mentions the incident that supposedly led to the war last year between Israel and Hezbullah. After all, if Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was right about his "winning the war", where are the kidnapped soldiers he fought to have released?

The third article was written by editorialist and talk-show host Dennis Prager, titled "New form of evil is why America has not won Iraq war."

Prager, a traditional religious Jew, often writes of topics of morality and Judeo-Christian values and is one of the most respected and sought-after speakers in the country. In his article today, he writes about the latest Jihadi ploy of using innocent children in attacks on civilians.

From his, as well as my own and I'm certain many other other's perspectives, nothing compared to the cruelty of the Nazi regime in their use of torture regarding children. However, as we begin this new millennium, we are faced with something almost - if not horribly similar - in the Muslim/Jihadist world.

By using innocent children as a means to destroy not only the child's life, but that of scores of innocent people, the Islamofacists have gone completely evil with no hope of redemption. In my opinion - again as well as many others - these are no longer human beings capable of rational thought or deed. As far as I'm concerned, any people/organization/religion (or at least those who bastardize it) that embraces such acts as necessary, praiseworthy or even acceptable, should no longer have any right to continue to live amongst other human beings. They are monsters who must be destroyed.

It is not for me to play G-d. However, if we are to have a thriving society in this world, we must not allow ourselves to be sucked into any debate with animals who worship death. If they wish death as a target and a means of redemption, they should be allowed to kill themselves and leave the rest of us alone.

But clearly, what the Jihadists have always done - from Arafat to Assad to Saddam Hussein to the mad Mullahs today - is to hide behind women and children and sacrifice them in their own cowardice.

If for no other reason than that, we should be thankful that our military is doing it's job and we shouldn't rest until it's completed - no matter how long it takes. As far as the Democrats timetable for pullout is concerned, it's simply shameful that we would sit back and allow our leaders to fail in their mission to not only make us safe, but to make the same mistakes over and over again in keeping us that way.

So let me get this straight. Informing the people/animals we are at war with exactly when we are cutting and running is a good thing???

Apparently, not only are we ignoring even the most basic lessons of the past, we're supposed to be happy about it, too?

It just seems so idiotic that Nancy Pelosi could be beaming over this utterly ridiculous bill that clearly makes no sense and will inevitably be vetoed anyway. I don't know if she's just so full of herself, or if she truly has no idea what's best for this country. People like her are very dangerous because they have no idea how much damage they can do.

There was a lot of hoopla last week over John Edwards announcement that although his wife's cancer has returned, he will continue to run for President.

I have no idea if this is a smart move or a dumb one. But if his wife is okay with it, there should be no discussion. However, what strikes me as somewhat odd is why make any announcement at all? Sure, I understand it if he decided to end his campaign to focus his time on his wife. That makes lot of sense.

But since nothing has changed in that aspect, it comes across to me as if he's using his wife's illness to secure the "pity" vote.

Please understand I am mot belittling her cancer - not at all. But it just appears that his motive to make such an announcement - at least in a hastily called press conference - was political. But then, what should we expect from a politician?

After researching both sides of the issue, I can find no serious fault in the firings made by Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez. I admit it is possible he bent the truth in order to make the issue just go away. But the heart of the problem was not his explanations. It was whether or not a sitting President has the right to dismiss U.S. attorneys. Clearly, as precedent goes, he does. End of story.

Like the Valery Plume kerfuffle, any possible issue that could somehow, someway stick to President Bush to make him look bad will be seized upon by the mainstream media. It isn't even the least bit amusing anymore. I think the MSM should go back to doing what they do best - dedicate all of their time and energy to Brittany Spears and Paris Hilton.

Does Great Britain have the stomach to fight? As our biggest ally that isn't Israel, Tony Blair has been steadfast in his support of the U.S. war effort. But the sheen had worn off many Brits and they have since shown to be more aligned with their brethren in the E.U.

Now here come Iran, flexing what little muscle they have. What does Blair do? I suppose he could be another Chamberlain and do nothing. Or, he could become another Churchill and fight back. London's reaction to this crisis will be a very telling story when we look back ta the demise of Europe. For England's sake, let's hope Blair is up to the task.

BTW, why are "peace activists" so not-peaceful? I believe it's time for the "peace movement" to find a new name. How about "the surrender movement"? I have a hard time considering someone to be peaceful when he/she burns an effigy of an American soldier. It would be like someone telling he that if you don't believe he's a pacifist, he'll kill you.

There are a lot of terms than no longer mean what they used to. But that's for another day...

In today's Chicago Sun-Times, readers were offered different sides to a differing debate. On one side was Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. On the other side was Sun-Times columnist Mary Laney.

Mr. Romero's article, Congress must stop administration's abuses, is largely a partisan piece admonishing the Bush administration for so-called abuses of the Patriot Act. In his article, he sites examples that while may be considered suspect, is nothing that an overwhelming majority of Americans have considered necessary to keep this nation safe from terrorists here and abroad.

Again, I'm not disputing the facts that Mr. Romero has eloquently expressed. However, as we continue to fight Islamofacism, many of us have grown weary of the ACLU and it's perceived anti-American bias. Of course, the ACLU has stood for many good things. But this article is just another in a clear campaign to distort who exactly we are fighting.

The other article, All the fuss about fired U.S. attorneys is just a partisan ploy, sounds as if it's also a partisan piece. However, upon closer inspection, it's actually not only fair, but it's topical. In this, the sixth year following 9/11, most Americans care far more about keeping our families safe than the political points won by the liberals over George W. Bush.

It's a shame that both sides have had to turn to attacks to win the day. Unfortunately, we have learned the hard way that taking the high road is impossible when there are skeletons in the closet. The media seems so fixated on destroying society, that we can no longer utilize intelligent debate, or critical thought. If it doesn't have a good sound bite, it doesn't make the 11:00 news.

Mr. Romero's article plays well for the soundbite crowd. Unfortunately, it's just more of the same old mantras that we've heard ad nauseam.

On the other hand, Ms. Laney's article doesn't sit back and blame everything on the left. However, she simply states that the left is making a lot of noise about something that is not only an issue in which our elected officials were elected to deal with, but she is also critical over the fact that these so-called "abuses" were even more rampant during the preceding administration. Of course, when William Jefferson Clinton was President, no one from the ACLU made a peep.

Isn't it about time the country stops attacking itself and starts fighting the real bad guys? You know, the ones who weren't elected by anyone but their guns and Imams.

I turn on the tube and what do I see
A whole lotta people cryin' "Don't blame me"
They point their crooked little fingers ar everybody else
Spend all their time feelin' sorry for themselves
Victim of this, victim of that
Your momma's too thin; your daddy's too fat

Get over it
Get over it
All this whinin' and cryin' and pitchin' a fit
Get over it, get over it

You say you haven't been the same since you had your little crash
But you might feel better if I gave you some cash
The more I think about it, Old Billy was right
Let's kill all the lawyers, kill 'em tonight
You don't want to work, you want to live like a king
But the big, bad world doesn't owe you a thing

Get over it
Get over it
If you don't want to play, then you might as well split
Get over it, Get over it

It's like going to confession every time I hear you speak
You're makin' the most of your losin' streak
Some call it sick, but I call it weak

You drag it around like a ball and chain
You wallow in the guilt; you wallow in the pain
You wave it like a flag, you wear it like a crown
Got your mind in the gutter, bringin' everybody down
Complain about the present and blame it on the past
I'd like to find your inner child and kick its little ass

Get over it
Get over it
All this bitchin' and moanin' and pitchin' a fit
Get over it, get over it

Get over it
Get over it
It's gotta stop sometime, so why don't you quit
Get over it, get over it

Hitting the Nail on the Head

As if they needed any more problems, the Democrats surely have a huge one now.

When I was visiting recently with my sister recently, my nieces and I got into a political discussion. What was surprising to me was that the two of them (I actually have 6 nieces and 3 nephews from that family) that I spoke with - and one of my nephews as well - considered themselves liberal Democrats.

Oh, I know that most Jews consider themselves Democrats, but with the orthodox movement moving towards the right, it still surprised me.

What didn't shock me, however, was the fact that these two young adults (both in their 20's), as well as my nephew and my sister, are fully supporting Rudy Giuliani in his quest for the Presidency.

Now, it should not be overlooked that my sister's family lives in the New York area and as such were very affected by the happenings on September 11th. One of my nieces actually had a job interview scheduled for a little later that morning in one of the towers.

Still, while it's understandable to have a great deal of affection for the former Mayor, it's another thing to support his candidacy as a Republican nominee for President of the United States.

So, in my own enticing and non-aggressive way, I asked them, "How the heck can you want Giuliani for President when you're FREAKING LIBERALS???"

Okay, so I wasn't so non-aggressive.

Anyway, the answer they all gave me was one word. "Israel."

To them, when it comes to matters of the heart, Israel stands front and center.

When I asked them who they would vote for should Giuliani not win the nomination, they all agreed that it would be the Republican nominee. Not Hillary Clinton, New York's Senator and certainly not (their words, not mine) Barack Obama.

So it occurred to me that surely there must be more people who feel the way they do. And of course, I was right. Over the last few weeks, I've spoken to a lot of different people with political leanings all over the board - from a very liberal housewife in New Jersey to a right-wing (some would call a nut) guy in Texas.

All in all, more than three quarters of the people I spoke to - all of them Jewish - informed me of the same thing. The Republicans will get their votes because of the Democrat's stand on Israel.

I was actually pretty set on what I was going to write and when I was going to publish this. I figured I would finish it up sometime this week and maybe post it Thursday. But after the two stories I saw on the Drudge Report, I decided that I shouldn't waste a minute more.

The first story is from The Politico, a rather new, but influential online source of news and commentary based out of Washington, D.C. In a piece called Obama's Jewish Problem, writer Ben Smith comments on the struggle Senator Barack Obama has endured since making his controversial remarks to the Des Moines Register, where he was quoted as saying, "nobody is suffering more than the Palestinians."

While there have been many Jews who have come forward with support for the Senator, there is no question that this comment was ill-advised at best, While I have little doubt that many Arabs in region are suffering, there are two questions that come to mind. Number one, is he equating the plight of those Arabs who for all intents and purposes, live in an area that is controlled completely by the Palestinian Authority, with that of the many victims of the genocide in Darfur?

Secondly, has he completely forgotten that the entire blame for problem is totally and completely at the feet of the leaders of their people?

In stating that nobody is suffering more than the Palestinians, I fear that the good Senator gave off the strong impression of the feelings of not only Obama, but of that of the entire Democratic Party.

Are the Palestinians suffering? Of course they are. But by ignoring the cause, which has proven in the past to inflame hatred of the Jews, he is actually showing a preference of one side to the other.

Of course they are suffering, Senator. But why stop there? Why leave that hanging so it can be interpreted to mean blame on Israel. Seriously, after the slew of anti-Semitic rantings that have come out of the mouths of Democrats over the last few years, why shouldn't I, as an American Jew, be insulted by this?

The second story was from The Hill. In this publication, the headline, Pelosi hears boos at AIPAC, covers the news that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was derided by members of the audience during a speech she gave for the Pro-Israel political action committee, when she said that the Iraq war has been a failure on several levels.

According to the article:

The boos, mixed with some polite applause, stood in stark contrast to the
reception House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) received minutes earlier.
Most of the crowd of 5,000 to 6,000 stood and loudly applauded Boehner when he
said the U.S. had no choice but to win in Iraq.

And therein lies the Democrat's problem. By selling themselves as anti-Iraq war, they are showing the Jewish community that toppling Saddam Hussein, perhaps the most powerful enemy to Israel, was a mistake and a failure.

As was the case in the late 60's and early 70's, the Democrats - whether fair or not - are coming across as the weaker party in American politics. There is no question that the failure of the Vietnam War was the unrelenting pressure to pull-out. Leftist propaganda that started on the college campuses fed the drive to contain the communists, instead of defeating them.

Now, I will not argue that mistakes were made. But the clear victor in that war were the Vietcong, who knew the way to victory was through American leftist pressure.

It appears we are exactly where we were 33 years ago without any lessons learned. But this time, it's not about southeast Asia, it's about the Middle East.

Ever since the founding of the State of Israel, American Jews have spent millions and millions of dollars to benefit and grow this tiny sliver of land. Perhaps to the members of the Democratic Party, for whom the Bible holds no appeal, it's just that - a tiny sliver of land. But to the millions of Jews who vote in every election, Israel is so much more and her safety is not only a huge priority, it is the main priority. And that isn't just because of it's standing as a Jewish state.

It's a huge priority because American Jews are fully aware of the horrible society and astonishingly bad reputation of the enemy. Because of their close, personal ties to the State of Israel, many of them know someone who lost someone in one of the hundreds of terrorist attacks perpetrated by the Arabs.

It is a huge priority because what happens to Israel - the only true democracy in the Middle East (not counting the new Iraq) - is what can happen here in America.

The Republican Party seems to get that. But apparently, the Democrats lost there memo. Why else would self-proclaimed liberal Democrats want Rudy Giuliani, or any other Republican to be President?

Hillary, once again, calls it a "vast right-wing conspiracy".

I call it understanding the issues.

You know, if they're not careful, someone may start to think these guys are good:

Mavs embarrass Lakers, 108-72

Your subtleties
They strangle me
I can't explain myself at all.
And all the wants
And all the needs
All I don't want to need at all.

The walls start breathing
My mind's unweaving
Maybe it's best you leave me alone.
A weight is lifted
On this evening
I give the final blow.

When darkness turns to light,
It ends tonight
It ends tonight.

A falling star
Least I fall alone.
I can't explain what you can't explain.
You're finding things that you didn't know
I look at you with such disdain

The walls start breathing
My mind's unweaving
Maybe it's best you leave me alone.
A weight is lifted
On this evening
I give the final blow.

When darkness turns to light
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight.
Just a little insight won't make this right
It's too late to fight
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight.

Now I'm on my own side
It's better than being on your side
It's my fault when you're blind
It's better that I see it through your eyes

All these thoughts locked inside
Now you're the first to know

When darkness turns to light
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight.
Just a little insight won't make this right
It's too late to fight
It ends tonight,
It ends

When darkness turns to light
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight.
Just a little insight won't make this right
It's too late to fight
It ends tonight,
It ends tonight.

Tonight
Insight
When darkness turns to light,
It ends tonight.

Why does it always seem that the time my children wake up in the morning is counter-proportionate to how much I have to do each day. For instance, one of my twin boys woke up around 3 this morning and is up for the day. Being that my wife works full-time, I felt it unfair to wake her so I could go back to sleep. Yet, I have a lot on my plate today and I know that by the time they all get off for school, I'm going to be a zombie. This is not what I call great timing.

I love it when a politician invokes G-d's name, or any other Deity as if he is capable of knowing what said Deity thinks. In this instance, wonder-boy John Edwards claims to know that Jesus "would be appalled" by how the United States has ignored the plight of the suffering.

This comment brings two thoughts to mind. Firstly, what does Edwards think Jesus would say about the rest of the world, and secondly, what does Jesus think about his own career at earning millions of dollars for himself at the expense of his clients?

This is what I truly despise about certain politicians (especially those on the left). No matter how much better - and there is really a vast difference in most cases - the United States is in charity, human and civil rights and freedom for all, these guys can not help but blame America first for all that ails the world.

I'm not going to say we haven't got earned our share of the blame, but to say that Jesus, or anyone else would be appalled while the rest of the world spins out of control is just plain dumb. It's one thing for some crackpot in Iran or North Korea to make such an asinine comment. But for a Presidential hopeful to be so blatantly ignorant is just sad. Dangerously sad.

I didn't vote for the Kerry/Edwards ticket because I couldn't fathom the though of a John Kerry presidency. While I still feel very satisfied in my voting choice, I'm beginning to wonder which idiot I voted against. Does Edwards really believe people will take him seriously now?

Religion is always a touchy subject in politics. But these comments by Edwards show a lack of class and maturity. In general, it appears to me that many politicians seem to "find G-d" when they're running for office. Back in 1992, while working at a synagogue, I remember that a certain local politician began to attend services after not being seen around there for a few years. When I asked someone who he was, I was told it was a local congressman and that he always attends services when he's up for re-election. Let me tell you, he wasn't praying for votes. He was only there to show his "faith" to his constituents (who were mostly Jewish) and once the election passed, was never seen from again - at least until his seat was up for re-election again.

To me, this is the ultimate in hypocrisy. Why is it that politicians worry so much about the "G-d" vote? Obviously, religion is a very important issue to most of this country and, outside the liberal corners of the country, it is the easiest way to get votes. Show them that you have a "special relationship" to G-d and they'll consider you "good folks."

Unfortunately, their faith is as transparent as their ideals. This tactic may have worked in the days before TV or radio, certainly the Internet. But today, most voters are far more informed and instead of being held up as "good folks", they are exposed as the con artists they really are.

A true person of faith doesn't need to invoke Jesus, or G-d, or Moses or Mohammad. It is never the words that come out of his mouth that prove a candidate has faith. It's the action of his deeds.

John Edwards obviously doesn't get it and probably never will. But that certainly doesn't surprise me. Nor should it surprise anyone else.

Well, I heard some people talkin' just the other day
And they said you were gonna put me on a shelf
Well, let me tell ya, I got some news for you
And you'll soon find out it's true
And then you'll have to eat your lunch all by yourself

'Cuz I'm already gone
And I'm feelin' strong
I will sing this victory song
Woo-ooh-ooh

The letter that you wrote me
Made me stop and wonder why
But I guess you felt like you had to set things right
Just remember this, my girl
When you look up in the sky
You can see the stars and still not see the light
That's right

And I'm already gone
And I'm feelin' strong
I will sing this victory song
Woo-ooh-ooh

Well I know it wasn't you who held me down
Heaven knows it wasn't you who set me free
So often times it happens
That we live our lives in chains
And we never even know we have the key

But me, I'm already gone
And I'm feelin' strong
I will sing this victory song
'Cuz I'm already gone

I wish you all a happy Purim. May your shaloach manos be filled with your favorite foods and may we all be safe this holiday!!!

And go MAVERICKS!!!