By Debbie Schlussel
So Yemenis blow up a car bomb at the U.S. Embassy in Sana’a. Then another car filled with men dressed in Yemeni police uniforms shoots at people trying to escape the embassy. Several are killed–at the time I write this, the death toll is at 14, and though most are Yemeni, the target is America and Americans. That’s the way it is in Yemen–a/k/a Al-Qaeda Central #3–and the rest of the world.
Do you think our policy of appeasing Muslims throughout the world AND on American soil has really helped prevent these attacks? Or has it encouraged them?
I vote the latter. Muslims don’t respect or fear appeasement. They respect brutal attacks and crackdowns. We are at war with them, not playing Malibu Muslim Barbie and Dreamhouse Mosque:

Entrance to U.S. Embassy in Yemen

A car bomb targeting the U.S. Embassy hit the front gate of the compound in Yemen’s capital on Wednesday, causing unspecified casualties, a U.S. spokesman said.
Ryan Gliha, the embassy spokesman, told The Associated Press by telephone that there was a second explosion that followed the initial one, but did not know what caused it.
A Yemeni security official said the embassy was hit by two car bombs and that heavy gunfire lasting around 10 minutes followed the blasts.
Several nearby homes were badly damaged by the blasts, he said, but had no information on whether the heavily guarded embassy sustained damage too. He said three of the embassy’s guards were wounded, but he did not know their nationalities. . . .
Explosions and heavy gunfire were heard near the embassy in the eastern section of San’a and police swiftly cordoned off the area, according to a government security official and an AP reporter at the scene.
The AP reporter said ambulance cars rushed to the area after the blasts and that hundreds of heavily armed security forces were deployed around the compound. Police kept reporters well away from the immediate area of the embassy, he said.
Regional TV news networks Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya showed shaky footage of the embassy’s area following the blasts, with a heavy cloud of black smoke rising from a spot just beyond concrete blocks painted yellow.
The embassy is ringed by two layers of these blocks, according to San’a residents familiar with the area.
The networks also reported a fire broke out in one of the embassy’s buildings. The AP reporter said a fire truck was seen headed to the scene, but Gliha, the embassy spokesman, denied the report.
The networks also reported that gunmen in police uniforms arrived at the scene soon after the first blast and immediately fired at the embassy guards.

But wait, but wait–I thought this was supposed to be the “Religion of Peace”. I guess the attackers were from that large contingent of Yemeni Wiccans. Yeah, that’s the ticket.

By Debbie Schlussel
Yesterday was the 100th birthday of General Motors, a big deal here in the Motor City, but not as big a deal as it would have been 20 or even 10 years ago.
A local newspaper asked four auto industry experts and economists what kinds of innovations and new products are in store for GM in the next century. I laughed because it’s beyond foolish optimism to believe that GM will actually have another century.
But I didn’t laugh with glee. I live in Detroit and am sad that our once-great industry is crumbling, and much of Michigan is going with it. My fortunes and that of my father and other family members were very closely tied to the automotive industry–many of my Dad’s patients were autoworkers. When they lost, he lost, and so did we. Many were good people with class Reagan Democrat values and a good work ethic, despite the many stories we’d read about UAW shenanigans.

I’m sad we’ve lost so many manufacturing jobs. But Michigan was fifty times more dependent on this one industry than any other state in the Union is on any other industry. Never smart to put all your eggs in one basket. The Golden Goose eventually dies or retires.
Right now, the top three American auto industry execs are asking Congress for a $25 billion bailout, while they and their top minions continue to collect gazillions for poor performance. The auto industry is failing, and I really don’t believe any of the big three will be around–in their current configurations–fifty years from now.
It’s hard to imagine Americans continuing to subsidize $1,500 per car in bloated healthcare plans that pay for Viagra and Cialis ($17 million in GM auto sales pays for Viagra). Although the salad days of the automotive America are gone, the salad days’ benefits are still livin’ large for autoworker retirees.
And although GM and the other big auto companies are selling growing numbers of cars elsewhere (China, India, etc.), their market share will continue to decline here as gas prices go up and the economy continues its tailspin. People are going to hold onto their cars longer, too.
Fifty years from now, we might have electric cars like Tesla Motors’ product at a more economical price, complete battery power cars, or some other way of getting around that we don’t even dream of now. The guy who changes my oil believes there will be 11 smaller companies selling a few models each and none of the big three will still be around. He may be right.
What do you think? What is in store for our automotive future? Will any of the (formerly) Big Three be around?
***
Read my related piece: Is it Patriotic to Buy American?

By Debbie Schlussel
Remember when I told you about the many young dummies across America who adopted the middle name Hussein in solidarity with Barack Hussein Obama? Then, there’s the “I am Sarah Palin” women, too–almost as annoying. The “I am . . .” stuff is old, real old, past the expiration date.
And now, our Finnish friend Kenneth Sikorski of Tundra Tabloids (a great site on the Islamic threat in Europe and throughout the globe), notes that Brazil has its share of similar Obamaniac stupidity, with six men who’ve taken the legal steps so that they can now say “Yo Soy Barack Obama“.
Que Pasa with all this stupidity? Given the plastic surgery trend in that country, a vapid name change is no big deal, right?:

One of Brazil’s Six New Barack Obamas on the Ballot

Walk into a polling station in Belford Roxo, an impoverished city on the fringes of Rio de Janiero, on October 5 and you will be faced with an historic choice. You could vote for Alcides Rolim, the Workers’ Party mayoral candidate promising a “city for all” or Elizeu Pitorra, a local communist who believes it is “time for a change”. Most voters, however, will probably opt for Barack Obama, a 39-year-old Brazilian who, until recently, was known as Claudio Henrique dos Anjos.
Welcome to Obama-mania, Brazil-style. Few countries have embraced the idea of the US’s first black president as enthusiastically as Brazil, a country with one of the largest Afro-descendant populations on Earth yet where black faces remain a minority in politics. . . .
Now even Brazil’s politicians are lining up for their piece of the pie. Due to a quirk of Brazilian law, candidates are allowed to run under the name of their choice. As a result, at least six Brazilian politicians have officially renamed themselves “Barack Obama” in a bid to get an edge over their rivals in October’s municipal elections.

Oy.

By Debbie Schlussel
The story of Zahid Alam and his now-closed Premium Gas Station in Manchester, New Hampshire is a common story, but one rarely covered in the mainstream media: Muslim mortgage fraud involving gas stations. Sometimes it’s used as a way to fund terrorism.
Mr. Alam is nowhere to be found, though he is believed to have fled to Pakistan along with his brother and father who were involved in his schemes. All three are believed to have transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets to Pakistan. They leave behind a string of creditors, many of whom are now, themselves, down on their luck:

The now-closed Premium Gas station at 1883 Elm St. was well known in the city for having rock bottom gas prices.
Less well known, though, were matters surrounding the station’s owner, Zahid Alam, and his company, Premium Gas LLC. Creditors claim Alam and his firm owe them hundreds of thousands of dollars for unpaid gasoline bills. A federal judge called Alam’s business practices “unethical and unscrupulous” in a breach of contract case against Alam and his company. And the state is suing Alam and his company for thousands in allegedly unpaid gas-transport and environmental fees, court records show.
“I think they were able to have the cheapest gas in town because they weren’t paying the road tolls,” said Jason Reimers, an attorney with the state Attorney General’s Office.
What’s more, no one seems to know where Alam is. . . .
The 2380 Elm St. residence that once was home to Muneer Alam, the father of Zahid Alam, was scheduled to be sold at foreclosure Aug. 29, according to public notices. . . .
[Creditors] have attached the assets of Muneer Alam [Alam’s father] and Sajid Alam, Zahid Alam’s brother, who also was involved with the station’s operations.
The present whereabouts of all three Alams are unknown. In a July court filing, Jack White, an attorney with the Nashua firm of Welts, White and Fontaine, P.C., representing Muneer Alam, wrote that his client “has been out of the country for a couple of months, but is expected to return shortly.”
According to court records, all three Alams once lived at 2380 Elm St., a stately Victorian house with seven bedrooms, an expansive front porch and more than 4,000 square feet of living space. City tax records list Muneer Alam as owner of the house, which he bought from Notre Dame College in 2002 for $291,000.
But public notices in August indicated the house was due to be foreclosed upon and sold at auction.
Muneer Alam had also owned the service station property at 1883 Elm St. He is also listed in city tax records as the owner of 381 Paquette Ave., a Tudor-style house in the city’s North End. . . .
According to the Hillsborough County Registry of Deeds, Muneer Alam took out a mortgage on the 1883 Elm St. property worth $825,000 on March 7. Massachusetts-based River Bank NA was listed as the mortgage holder.
Creditors have charged in court papers that Zahid and Muneer Alam engaged in a series of financial transactions involving various limited liability companies to protect their assets. In a court filing in April, [creditors] charged one of those LLCs had been used to transfer money out of the country.
“Sargodha LLC is an entity created by Muneer Alam to gather assets from the Alam family and transfer those assets back to their hometown of Sargodha, Pakistan,” charged attorney Craig Donais of Bostock, Rogers and Donais, P.C., in Exeter. “Additionally, Sargodha LLC has made large cash distributions to Zahid’s personal account, apparently in furtherance of the defendants’ schemes.”
In the filing, Donais went on to charge that Muneer and Zahid Alam had made several trips to Pakistan since his clients won their judgment, had taken large sums of money to Pakistan, and had asked people in the United States to help them transfer money there. He also charged that family members had traded in “several” expensive cars for cheaper ones in cash transactions, a move Donais charged was done to shield assets.
In an April court filing, New England Petroleum’s counsel, Devine, Millmet and Branch, P.A., charged that Muneer Alam had transferred cash in excess of $600,000 to accounts outside the United States — a fact the firm’s counsel said it learned through a confidential informant. . . .
Although the Alams’ whereabouts are unknown, those who have known them and those close to the case believe they are in south Asia.
“As far as we know, he’s in Pakistan,” said Ahmed, a fellow Pakistani. Sargodha — the Alams’ reported hometown — has at least half a million people. It is in northeast Pakistan, closer to the Northwest Frontier Province than to Lahore, the region’s main city.

Two of the people the Alams ripped off were Isaac and Lisa Mwangi. Good luck to them in getting any kind of redress.
So where did hundreds of thousands of dollars the Alams ripped off go and what is it funding?
We’ll never know until it’s too late.
Thanks to Sabra/Stilettos in the Sand for the tip.

By Debbie Schlussel
[TO MY READERS: I originally wrote the column below in February. But I sat on it and didn’t publish it because I feel bad about exposing even this fraud and creep, Walid Shoebat, despite the fact that he’s plagiarized from me and harassed me under a fake name using his own e-mail address, and despite the fact that his equally shady manager, Keith Davies, fits a similar bill and has–along with Shoebat–taken to trashing me.
But now that The Jerusalem Post has also exposed the fraudulence and fakery of Mr. Shoebat, I’ve decided I cannot remain silent on who he really is and his behavior, any longer. After harassing me, he tried to appear with me at a 9/11 event in Dearborn, and I realized I can no longer hold back. I’ve thought long and hard about it, but it must be done. The record must be set straight.]
Years ago, when I first heard of Walid Shoebat–the man who claims to have been a Palestinian Islamic terrorist–I liked his story. Since then, I praised him in more than one entry on this site. That was a mistake.

Walid Shoebat: Serial Harasser, Plagiarist, Fake Terrorist
In the back of my mind, I always doubted his story. It’s not that I don’t believe Muslim terrorists can convert to Christianity and see the error of their ways. I personally know of a scant few who have, indeed, done that. And there are several former Muslims–Ayan Hirsi Ali (never a terrorist) comes to mind–and enlightened Arabs who are great orators with an important message so many more need to hear.
It’s that I simply didn’t find Shoebat credible. And his behavior toward me is that of an unstable, insecure man who is upset that his shaky claims are being doubted. It’s a case of trusting my instincts, and my instincts told me this man oozing arrogance, bravado, swagger, and not much else was a fraud–that this was a business for him, showmanship. And he never provided a shred of proof that he did what he said he did in his former life.
Still, I kept my doubts to myself, lest I be accused of enabling the Islamists, and because I had no beef with his message, a good one. My inclination was to ignore him and not waste my time or effort on this man. Sadly, though, that’s not the way he sees things. For some reason, Walid Shoebat won’t stop harassing me, despite my requests. He’s annoying me and wasting my time. And he won’t go away. So I can no longer look the other way.
Mr. Shoebat took it upon himself–despite my praise of him on this site–to engage in a pattern of behavior that spanned plagiarism and obscene verbal abuse to the non-stop barrage of harassing messages he sent me over the last two days under a fake name, “Sandra Medina.” That’s what I get for being nice and charitable to a snake. I got bitten.
All along, I figured the e-mails I got yesterday were coming from Shoebat or one of his blind believers. And, sadly, I was right. It’s those instincts–when you trust them, you are right; When you don’t, you regret it.
Shoebat made the mistake of e-mailing me using an e-mail he and his son had used to e-mail me before with their real names. While some real terrorists are stupid and inept (like Richard Reid, “The Shoe Bomber), most aren’t–not that stupid.
And after I asked Shoebat not to e-mail me again, he did anyway–three times, so far–including a fake letter to himself, his equally unhinged chief of staff, and his friend–who else but another phony?–Sean Hannity. Shoebat and Hannity have a lot in common, including that, in addition to not selfishly plagiarizing others’ words for personal gain, neither were ever Islamic terrorists.
In all of his e-mail exchanges with me as “Sandra Medina,” Mr. Shoebat never once provided any proof of his “terrorist” story, which I now believe with certainty is carefully crafted fiction. His position as “Sandra” is that since there is no proof that he isn’t a terrorist, he can get away with it.
And he might have, had he not stolen a column of mine, told me, “F-ck You, Bitch” (isn’t he supposed to be a born-again Christian?), and–now–sent me this series of whacked-out e-mails, because he’s upset over a comment I made on my site to one of my readers about Shoebat’s behavior toward me. He’s like a jilted lover who can’t take no for an answer and move on.
It all started a couple of years ago, when Shoebat was scheduled to speak at my alma mater, The University of Michigan. He was attacked by “former” Islamic terrorist and current ADC-Midwest chief Imad Hamad in a newspaper article, in which Hamad doubted Walid’s claim to having been a terrorist. Interesting couple: Hamad–a “former” Islamic terrorist who claims he never was one. Shoebat–who claims to be a “former” Islamic terrorist, but apparently never was. Each is using these charades for their own self-aggrandizement (though Hamad is also an extremist ideologue, too), and each has many dupes.
In response to Hamad’s claims, Shoebat put out a press release, which plagiarized–word for word–my column on Hamad. I contacted Shoebat’s PR person, Maria Sliwa (interestingly, she’s also plagiarist Aaron Klein‘s publicist and helped him rip me off), asking why my work was ripped off. Sliwa told me that Walid Shoebat insisted my name be removed because he didn’t want to be associated with “the Zionists.” She agreed to change the press release and give me credit, but did not, after several phone calls. The next day, after complaining to her again, I got a call from Shoebat, after I told Sliwa I was going to write about this and Shoebat on this site.
Shoebat told me a million different stories. First, he told me he was a fan of my work and that he’s upset that Ms. Sliwa took my name out of the press release and ripped off my work–that it was her decision. Then, he admitted he lied about that and that he, himself, made the decision to steal my work because “I don’t want to be associated with the Right” (Hello . . . ? “The Right” is his entire audience of blind supporters). He agreed to correct the press release, but never did. Then, his chief of staff, a shady character named Keith Davies (who claims to be an Irish Jew), called to tell me that since they have been ripped off by others, it’s okay to rip me off. Later in the day, Shoebat called me back and told me, “You know, I called a lawyer. And you can’t sue me [DS: I never said I would], so I don’t have to give you credit for your work. I can take it and use it however I want. Fuck You, Bitch!” Then, he hung up. (A tiny correction mentioning that it was my work was finally issued and appeared elsewhere, where no-one would see it. They refused to correct the actual press release.)
I thought that was the end of the abuse at the hands of this con man, Shoebat. But I was wrong. He’s not only a fake terrorist and a con artist, he’s nuts. Here is the e-mail exchange this egomaniac engaged me in, yesterday, pretending to be a woman named, “Sandra Medina.” Mr. Shoebat, er . . . “Sandra Medina” asked me to sue him (her?) and to post these. I can’t oblige the first, but since I’m tired of this–I just got another e-mail from him/her/it–I’ll happily oblige the second request. Does this sound like a real “former terrorist” to you?:

From: Aga Tangola aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 18, 2008 7:20 PM
Subject: Walid Shoebat
To: writedebbie@gmail.com
Debbie,
Below, are you saying that Walid Shoebat is a “fraud”? Are all his claims false? He was never a terrorist? This whole time we trusted this man as he spoke in our church and he was lying to us? . . .
Can you please clarify this issue?
Sandra Medina
“AS FOR SHOEBAT, HE IS A COMPLETE CREEP AND AN APPARENT FRAUD, WHO IS IN THIS FOR THE BUSINESS ASPECT OF IT FOR HIMSELF. IN MY OWN PERSONAL ENCOUNTERS WITH HIM, HE COMPLETELY REPULSED ME AND ENTIRELY CHANGED MY VIEW ON HIM (I HAD PRAISED HIM, PREVIOUSLY, ON THIS SITE). HE STOLE A COLUMN I WROTE–WORD FOR WORD–ON IMAD HAMAD AND USED IT IN A PRESS RELEASE. WHEN I CAUGHT HIM AND PINNED HIM DOWN, HE ADMITTED TO IT, BUT STATED HE DOES NOT WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH CONSERVATIVES (WHO MAKE UP HIS WHOLE BASE) AND THAT’S WHY IT WAS OKAY TO STEAL FROM ME UNATTRIBUTED. HE PROMISED TO CORRECT, BUT WHEN HE DID NOT AND I CALLED HIM. HE SAID, “F-CK YOU, BITCH,” AND HUNG UP.”

***

From: Aga Tangola
Date: Feb 19, 2008 1:16 AM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: Debbie Schlussel
WOW,
I so much appreciate you responding so quickly. You are prompt.
I need to talk to my pastor about this. One more clarification if you can help me with. Daniel Pipes seem to have vouched for this “creep”:

Daniel Pipes replies:
May 18, 2006 response: Walid Shoebat took the time to visit me in my office today and to show me proofs that his life story is a true one. I accept that it is.

Much appreciated for your help. Why would FOX news put this guy on their program? You need to let them know NOT to hire him any longer as an expert. You should be on yourself. Walid has 188 hits on Youtube and 108,000 hits on Google. I can’t believe why he is getting all this attention. We need to stop this guy.
By the way, I was watching you on YOUTUBE and you are GREAT.
Great to hear from you.
Sandra

***

From: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 1:01 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: aga_tangola@yahoo.com
I can’t answer for Daniel Pipes’ statement. He is his own person. Walid Shoebat is a fraud.
DS

***

From: Aga Tangola aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 1:54 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
Debbie,
I see what you are saying, but there must be evidence that this man is a fraud. He seems to have provided evidence to Daniel Pipes.
What is the evidence? Is there any? Just because you say he is a fraud is not enough to accuse him. I need evidence.
Sandra

***

From: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 2:10 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Um, where is the evidence that he was a former terrorist. Did you tell him, “I need evidence”? Did you ask Pipes what evidence he showed him? It is not my task to prove that he isn’t something he never proved that he was.

***

From: Aga Tangola aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 2:46 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
Debbie,
That’s fine. So there is no evidence that he WAS a terrorist and there is no evidence that he WAS NOT (although Pipes examined some evidence), so then this does not substantiate that he is a fraud. One can simply state that he “claims” to have been a terrorist.
Here is the summary:
No evidence that he is
No evidence that he is not.
That in itself does not constitute fraud. Does it?
You stated that he is a “fraud” and you know best since yourself are an attorney.
Is that your position?
Sandra Medina

***

From: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 3:05 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: aga_tangola@yahoo.com
He lied to me several times. He is a fraud. It appears to me that you are probably working for him and sending me these e-mails on his behalf. He is a fraud, and Pipes has provided you no evidence of anything, only that the believes the guy. It is Shoebat’s responsibility to provide proof, and in the many media stories and appearances, he has never once provided any because he cannot. The end. I really don’t have time to engage in this with you any more. Bye.
DS

***

From: Aga Tangola aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 6:01 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
You must be a few french fries short of a happy meal.

Yup. Walid Shoebat: “Former terrorist” AND psychiatrist. Multi-talented.
***

From: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 6:23 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Walid:
You really need to look in the mirror. I just figured out that this is you. A real “former terrorist” would be smarter than this. Please do not e-mail me again.
DS

***

From: Aga Tangola aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 8:44 PM
Subject: Re: Walid Shoebat
To: Debbie Schlussel writedebbie@gmail.com
>Walid:
>You really need to look in the mirror. I just figured out that this is you.
So anyone who writes you is “Walid”? You really must be having a nightmare.
>Please do not e-mail me again.
>DS
I did, and I can’t wait till you sue. Please sue sue sue sue sue sue sue sue me.
Oh, on second thought, please publish this email so people can see just how stupid your reasoning is. Or better then that, send me some legal action.
Would you like my name and address to serve me?
Sandra

***
Next, Walid Shoebat writes an e-mail to himself as “Sandra Medina.” It’s like a bad Adam Sandler movie (sorry, Adam):

From: Aga Tangola aga_tangola@yahoo.com
Date: Feb 19, 2008 9:41 PM
Subject: Debbie does smear
To: Walid@shoebat.com
To the Shoebat Foundation
Searching Walid Shoebat on the web yielded this Debbie Schlussel who posted smear were she has accused you of being a fraud. See below if you care to respond. I wrote her. Probing into her evidence I came out empty handed with nothing but circular reasoning. She not only smeared you but Sean Hannity and an array of others who wanted nothing better then to get rid of her. Maybe you would enjoy posting or circulating this around for a laugh at her logic. I will send this to Sean as well. See below.
Sandra Medina

After that, Shoebat forwarded me his nutty chief of staff’s response (trashing me, of course) to his boss, Shoebat, posing as “Sandra” about me. It doesn’t bear repeating here. But you get the point. The guy is harassing me and needs to get a life.
So how do I know that “Sandra Medina” a/k/a “Aga Tangola” is Walid Shoebat? Well, he and his son sent me e-mails, under their real names when they wanted me to post a well-written letter the son wrote, using the exact obscure screen name and an almost identical e-mail address three years ago. I feel bad about involving his son, who seems genuine and like a good kid (so I am redacting his first name), but enough is enough:

—–Original Message—–
From: Aga Tangola mailto:agatangola@yahoo.com
Sent: Sunday, May 28, 2006 12:50 PM
To: Rachel Neuwirth; debbieschlussel@worldnet.att.net
Subject: Re: Fw: Fw: My son’s email
Debbie,
I am 15 years old. I am not Muslim, I am Christian.
Also use [REDACTED] for my first name instead of [REDACTED].
If you also can take out my teacher’s name and instead say “Dear teacher”.
Also change “Yet it wasn’t the students response that hurt” and add “hurt the most”, so the statement will say “Yet it wasn’t the students response that hurt the most”.
Thank you for publishing my letter.
Wow, my first article
[REDACTED] Shoebat
Rachel Neuwirth wrote:
Walid, can you answer the following questions by Debbie. thanks,
Rachel
—– Original Message —–
From: Debbie Schlussel
To: Rachel Neuwirth
Sent: Sunday, May 28, 2006 7:43 AM
Subject: Re: Fw: My son’s email
Also, how old is he and in what grade?
So his name is [REDACTED] Shoebat? Is he Muslim also? I am curious.
—– Original Message —–
From: Rachel Neuwirth
To: Debbie Schlussel
Sent: Sunday, May 28, 2006 2:27 AM
Subject: Fw: Fw: My son’s email
Debbie, See below. Also, go to Walid’s web site http://www.shoebat.com/ you may want to refer to his site as well. thx
Rachel
—– Original Message —–
From: Aga Tangola AgaTangola@yahoo.com
To: Rachel Neuwirth
Sent: Saturday, May 27, 2006 10:53 PM
Subject: Re: Fw: My son’s email
Rachel,
Sure, you can put his name and last name as well.
This will encourrage him greatly.
Thanks Rachel
Walid

Recently, Shoebat spoke at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Supposedly, they did a background check on him. But what they should have done was a psychiatric evaluation. Vouching for him was Steven Emerson, who is another similar story and a phony, sad to say (but that’s a topic for another day). Birds of a feather.
Again, before all of this, my only connection with Walid Shoebat was to write a positive post about him. I didn’t ask him to rip off my work, to then lie to me about it and tell a million different stories, to call me and say, “F-ck You, Bitch!” or to harass me via e-mail for the last two days posing as a woman named “Sandra.”
If he had not done these things, I would likely have remained an ally and not looked further into his claims or voice my concerns.
If only this unhinged alleged “former terrorist” had left me alone.
But unlike a real terrorist, he’s simply not wise enough to do so.
Enough, Walid Shoebat. ENOUGH!

By Debbie Schlussel
. . . Reminds us again why it’s called “The Third World”:

KINSHASA, Congo–Thirteen people are dead after a stadium riot was apparently sparked by accusations that a soccer player used witchcraft during a match in Congo, a UN-funded radio station reported Monday.
Most of the dead ranged in age from 11 to 16 and were suffocated in the fracas Sunday in Butembo, in eastern Congo’s North Kivu province, Radio Olapi said.
The Nyuki System soccer club was losing to rivals Socozaki when Nyuki’s goalkeeper reportedly ran up the pitch chanting “fetishist” spells in an attempt to change the course of the match, Radio Olapi said. The station provided no more details.
Fighting soon broke out between the opposing teams. When a police officer tried to intervene, spectators pelted him with rocks, wounding him on the head, the radio station said.
Police then retaliated by firing tear gas into the crowd, where 13 are believed to have died in the ensuing rush for the exits.
Many Congolese use charms and other objects to practise witchcraft as part of their traditional animist beliefs, Reuters news agency reported.
Dozens of teenagers marched through Butembo’s dirt streets Monday in protest

Oh, no, they put a curse on us. Let’s riot. Quick, where’s my VooDoo doll and pastel-colored pins?
So close to civilization. And yet, so far.
More U.S. funding and “debt forgiveness” just won’t change certain, um, “regional habits.”
***
Here’s some appropropriate musical video accompaniment:

By Debbie Schlussel
There are a few conservative talk show hosts, like Rush Limbaugh, who actually know something. And then there are plenty of others who are virtual colleagues of Paris Hilton.
Here’s a pop quiz for airhead “conservative” radio talk show hosts who lecture us on economic policy and pretend to know what they’re talking about:
Who is John Maynard Keynes?
If you answered, “The Father of Modern Economics”, or “The economist well known for pushing government intervention in the economy as policy”, then you got it right AND Your Name is NOT Frank Beckmann. (And you, perhaps, at least know how to use Google.)

Don’t Know Much About History:
Frank Beckmann Knows a Lot About Kermit The Frog,
Not Much About John Maynard KEEENZZZ, Economics, or Jihad
Beckmann is the faux-conservative talk show host, ignoramus, and frequent Islamo-panderer on Detroit’s Rush Limbaugh-Sean Hannity affiliate, WJR-AM 760. I try not to mention this aging airhead and blog talking points regurgitator’s name on this site because 1) it elevates him and increases the few listeners he has under age 70; and 2) I’m not in his Depends demographic and in no hurry to get there.
I never listen to his inane show, but was called on Thursday by a friend who was laughing at Beckmann’s ignorance. I turned on the radio farce to get a laugh, too. Beckmann had as a guest a liberal economist and author who supported government intervention in the mortgage crisis.
Beckmann discussed the author’s book and said,

You refer to a man named John Maynard KEEEENZZZ. I’m not familiar with him. What does KEEENZZZ say?

The clueless Beckmann continued to ask about “KEEENZZZ” throughout the interview. It was hilarious, Beckmann’s ignorance stunning, especially since he was too ill-informed to argue with the author’s liberal, interventionist positions.
I waited until today to write about this, in the hope that Beckmann would post the audio of this stunningly ignorant interview on the net. But apparently he got a whiff of his ignorance and wisely–not the usual adverb in his case–chose not to expose himself further for being the complete ignoramus he is.
For the record, it’s pronounced “KAYNZ”. I don’t expect the average American Gen-Y member to know who Keynes is. Most “gradyooated” from today’s “publick skoolzz.”
But this guy, Beckmann–who is obsessed with me, likes to use his show as a forum to attack me, and is too wimpy to actually face me on his show (he took the day off when I was brought on to respond to one of his attacks)–should know. He’s about 60 (though he sounds like 80), and if you’re going to pretend to be a know-it-all and have a talk show focused on politics, repeatedly lecturing us on the economy, you should actually know who John Maynard Keynes is. I bet–pre-McCain tutoring week–six-colleges-in-six-years journalism grad Sarah Palin didn’t know who KEEENZZZ was either (and she should know, too).
Keynes was one of the first and foremost liberal, statist economists. His interventionist policy–known as Keynesian [“KAYNZEE-EN”] economics–would support bail-outs of mortgages, the auto industry (Detroit . . .Frank Beckmann . . . Hello . . .?), etc. I learned about Keynes–who supported rampant government spending, even deficit-spending–in a seventh grade economics class in private school, in public high school, and again, in college.
Beckmann–a sportscaster recently dumped by the Detroit Lions from its pre-season football TV announcing team–frequently trolls this site for show prep. His even more airheaded producer Shelly Dyrda told me so in writing, and he frequently discusses news broken on this site before anyone else reports on it, including the Muslim foot baths at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
But this is one of those many instances in which ripping off others just doesn’t provide cover for lack of basic knowledge.
In case you were wondering, Beckmann thinks that supporting Hezbollah–a terrorist group that murdered over 300 U.S. Marines and civilians and continues to train terrorists to blow up our troops in Iraq–is not such a big deal. And he frequently gushes over Hezbollah and HAMAS agents and supporters as guests on his show–like Osama Siblani (whose brother works for Hezbo TV a/k/a Al Manar) and “former” Islamic terrorist, FBI award and marriage fraud perpetrator Imad Hamad.
When I got the John McCain campaign to dump open Hezbollah supporter, key U.S. Hezbollah agent, and federally-convicted insurance defrauder Ali Jawad, Frank Beckmann gave Jawad a half-hour of gushing and pandering to do “clean up” and rehabilitation. Beckmann sat by as Jawad denied that Hezbollah was the group that murdered over 300 U.S. Marines and civilians in Beirut–something which even Hezbollah acknowledges.
Then, Beckmann said about Jawad’s insurance fraud, “That’s very common in the Arabic community isn’t it?”–as if that makes it okay. The interview was ridiculous, but it was done as a favor (perhaps a paid favor) to Jawad’s hired PR agent, the shameless John Truscott. It’s just another of the many issues on which this faux-conservative is jaw-droppingly ignorant, and in that case, it’s dangerous. Sadly, he was played like a violin by Islamist propagandists on a major radio station in a major market.
When the Dubai Ports deal–for a government-owned entity of Dubai to control our major U.S. ports–was canceled, Beckmann whined that we shouldn’t treat Dubai this way because it’s the “sister city of Detroit.” Yeah, that’s a valid argument–because the corrupt (and now deposed) Mayor of Detroit, Kwame Kilpatrick, and his crazy Third World Republic City Council accepted free trips by Arabs to be whined and dined in the Gulf States, then made Dubai their “sister city” in a BS proclamation, we should give up security and control of our major ports.
Many people believe Frank Beckmann is on the take from Muslim and Arab groups in the Detroit area and their foreign benefactors. And I’m among them.
Two groups, though, that he certainly is not on the take from are rocket scientists and brain surgeons.
And probably not the “KEEENZZZZIAN Economists,” either.
Again, I don’t expect the average American to know who Keynes is. But it’s a basic for a political and news talk show host. Not to know, in that profession, is to be an ignoramus.
Keep Frank Beckmann’s ignorance on economics in mind when he talks about everything else. The guy doesn’t know much (except how to read a paper and rip-off and parrot websites like mine). There’s not much there.
Frank Beckmann isn’t the only uninformed and ridiculously ignorant faux-conservative talk show host. As you’ll remember, I recently told you about this bozo, Kevin James, who made a total fool of himself because he claimed to know about Neville Chamberlain and didn’t know what he was talking about.
With James, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Vannity, and now, Beckmann, we have enough hot air parading as conservatism to field a team for Miss Teen South Carolina.
“U.S. Americans, The Iraq . . . Such as.” Hezbollah, The John Maynard KEEENZZ, Such as.
I hear President Camacho is looking for someone to fix the economy.
Quick, Frank: Google “John Kenneth Galbraith.”
***
For the record, today, I ran into another WJR talk show host and asked him who Keynes is. He hadn’t heard of him either. The host was NOT liberal Mitch Albom, who does know who Keynes is. Even Mitch’s producer, Rosey, knew about Keynes.
***
Here’s a very appropriate music video accompaniment:

By Debbie Schlussel
**** SCROLL DOWN FOR UPDATE ****
If ever there was an over-rated thriller writer, it’s John Le Carre, whose real name is David Cornwell. (On the American side, Richard North Patterson and David Baldacci vie for that for the crown. Both want us to “understand” and sympathize with Islamic terrorists.)
The reason book reviewers and the literary and publishing establishment love Le Carre is that he’s left-wing. Far left-wing. I’ve written about him before.
Now, Le Carre admits that he wanted to defect to the Soviet Union and spy for them as a double agent when he worked for Britain’s intelligence agency, MI6.
Figures.

John Le Carre/David Cornwell Considered Spying for Soviets;
His Writing Long Ago Defected to Communism
The guy writes like he, indeed, defected decades ago. And the propaganda he spreads in his books did more work for the then-Soviet Union than his spying ever could. His admission explains a lot. And, based on his writing, I think in his mind he did, indeed, defect. His enemies are Israel, White people, Americans, Jews, Christians, corporations, businessmen. His heroes are Palestinians, Islamic terrorists, Muslims, Black people, Africans, third world natives and countries, Oxfam International and other left-wing “humanitarian groups,” etc.
There is little difference–actually, no difference–between the views expressed in his thriller novels and the views of the Communists who ran the Soviet Union. His fictional heroes were their real-life heroes. His villains were their villains.
Le Carre/Cornwell claims that he was very “tempted” but “I wasn’t tempted ideologically.” Well, of course not. He already adopted their ideology.
(At the time, another British agent, Kim Philby, famously did this, which led to the murder of dozens of British undercover agents within the Iron Curtain. Philby apparently is the cause of Le Carre’s MI6 career.)
Le Carre’s “The Constant Gardener” (read my review)–made into a major motion picture which bombed–had a giant murder plot by a drug company to kill Black Africans. Yup, he’s got the formula down pat: Evil corporation run by Evil, Rich White Men–check; mass murder of native peoples and minorities with brown skin–check; and Bingo!–you’ve got a critically-acclaimed novel on your hands.
Then, there’s “The Little Drummer Girl,” in which Israel is–of course!–evil. In that one, Le Carre makes the Israel the villain, a la the White man and drug companies in “Constant Gardener”, and Palestinians the innocent victims, like the innocent Black African natives in “Gardener.”
Yes, everything Le Carre writes is predictable left-wing novelist formula.
That he wanted to spy for the totalitarian Soviet Union isn’t a shocker. But, like I said, even after the fall of the Soviet Union, he continues to do yeoman’s work for Communists in his every written word.
All hail Comrade John Le Carre/David Cornwell.
If you’re bored at the airport and looking for a good thriller, best to skip anything with his name on it.
**** UPDATE: One reader writes:

In contrast to the novels of John Le Carre, I have just read one of the greatest fiction books. It is by Andrew Klavan and is called “Empire of Lies.”
It is very politically incorrect and has a devout Christian hero. He becomes embroiled in a plot that involves Muslim terrorists. There is not one myth that the author does not demolish. There is even a character that is clearly Angelina Jolie.

That’s good news, though I must say I was taken aback when Klavan recently wrote an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal saying President Bush is like superhero Batman, especially on the War on Terror and extremist Islam.
I’d say that on those issues Bush is more like Harvey Two-Face (a Batman villain).

By Debbie Schlussel
**** UPDATE: Reader Ripper reminds me that I previously pointed out that Paul McCartney’s daughter supports Palestinian Terrorism ****
I’ve never been a fan of The Beatles or of Paul McCartney, who did a lot of drugs and then got caught up in the pet left-wing causes of both his past wives (the PETA veganism of the late Linda Epstein/”Eastman” McCartney and the anti-land mines and anti-everything else of ex-Heather Mills).
But now I’ll have to re-adjust my view, as McCartney’s shown he really is a man of uncommon courage and principle amidst a gaggle of celebrity cowards and left-wing Israel-haters (like George Clooney and Alan Rickman).

An Islamic militant leader warned that former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney could be the target of a suicide bombing unless he canceled his first concert in Israel, Britain’s Sunday Express reported yesterday.

Former Beatle Paul McCartney Says Yes to Israel, No to Muslim Threats

The celebrated rock star plans to arrive in Israel as part of a world tour and give a single concert at Tel Aviv’s Yarkon Park on September 25.
Omar Bakri, an Islamic preacher, said McCartney’s decision to perform as part of Israel’s 60th anniversary celebrations has turned him into the enemy of Muslims worldwide.
“If he values his life, Mr. McCartney must not come to Israel,” Bakri was quoted as saying. “He will not be safe there. The sacrifice operatives will be waiting for him.” . . .
McCartney has also been pressured by pro-Palestinian groups to cancel the show, but has resisted.
“I was approached by different groups and political bodies who asked me not to come here. I refused. I do what I think, and I have many friends who support Israel,” McCartney said in an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth.

Good for Sir Paul. If only more in the entertainment industry had his independence and bravery. I hope more celebrities and entertainers will emulate him and his thinking.
But I’m not holding my breath.
Israeli promoters aren’t either–even in the case of McCartney. Fearing that McCartney might cancel at the last minute like other well-known performers (including Michael Jackson), they won’t pay McCartney for the concert until a half-hour before he takes the stage.

By Debbie Schlussel
**** UPDATE: “Burn After Reading” Review Added ****
* “Burn After Reading“: This is the best movie out, this weekend. Hilarious, entertaining, funny, and different, I think this is my favorite Ethan & Joel Coen movie yet. And the best part about it is that it’s a great comedic presentation of how inane and inept the CIA is. Also a great commentary about how stupid and shallow some Americans are, willing to sell out their country for some cosmetic surgery.
The talented John Malkovich plays a CIA analyst who quits when he’s demoted. He decides to write his memoirs of life in the CIA and puts it on his computer. Malkovich’s wife, who is having an affair with creepy, philandering Federal Marshal George Clooney (as if), decides to divorce Malkovich. And soon, it ends up in the hands of two dimwitted gym employees (Frances McDormand and Brad Pitt), one of whom is trying to get money for plastic surgery and both of whom are attempting to blackmail Malkovich.

Could have done without a weird sex chair built by Clooney’s character, but other than that the movie is tight and well done. If anything, it could have used much more Malkovich.
This movie is NOT for kids, and every other word is a four-letter one. There is some graphic violence and blood, but it’s part of the story. A lot of fun. And unlike a lot of movies, it ends at just the right point.
THREE REAGANS

* “Righteous Kill“: This movie is being marketed as only the second one in which Robert De Niro and Al Pacino have extensive time onscreen together (the other was “Heat” and they were not onscreen together in “The Godfather II).
Although mildly entertaining, it’s a rip-off. I can’t give away why it’s a rip-off or it will make the movie pointless. And frankly, it’s pointless anyway. The movie begins with and repeatedly features extensive video of Robert De Niro as a cop, making a video recording about all of his kills (and one frame-up job) as a veteran on the police force. He is corrupt and lawless. Think “Training Day” or “The Shield” or “Dexter.” All the victims were bad guys who got away with it via legal technicalities.
De Niro’s partner is veteran cop Pacino. While it appears they’re trying to hide who is doing the serial murders of criminals, Pacino is loyal to his partner. Meanwhile, two other cops, John Leguizamo and Mark Wahlberg, are hot on the trail of the killer, De Niro.
But there’s that twist, which is just totally off-base. We never really know what is going on and why until the end. And then, when we do, we realize we just wasted almost two hours. Like I said, the movie is mildly entertaining. But the most righteous thing about the movie is when it finally ends (after about three false-alarm endings).
There are some funny lines in the movie, but a lot of it is confusing and a mess. And it’s very crude. De Niro and Pacino were once great actors. But their presence on screen is an exercise in aging-actors-need-another-paycheck co-dependence.
HALF REAGAN


* “The Women“: Sometimes things from 1939 actually are far better and more sophisticated than things from 2008. This movie, a remake of the 69-year-old flick, is one of them.
I never thought it was possible to make “Sex & The City” look like Shakespeare. But this absolutely horrid chick flick does the trick. This is the even more dumbed-down version of the “Sex” chicks ten years later.
Almost two hours of completely stupid dialogue, cackling, overwrought faux-drama, and crying, this wasn’t a guilty pleasure like, say, “Desperate Housewives.” It is just a damn shame . . . and waste of celluloid.
The “plot” (if you can call it that): Meg Ryan plays a rich woman who finds out her husband is cheating on her with the much younger Eva Mendes. Together, she and her mother (Candice Bergen) and her cackling, annoying friends (Annette Benning, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Debra Messing) figure out how to waste two hours of my time in a movie screening room.
Avoid this movie at all cost. Dumb beyond imagination. An embarrassment to even chick flicks. Ugh to the Nth. Pure torture.
What’s that rustling sound I hear? Oh, it’s Clare Boothe Luce, who wrote the original play, turning over in her grave.
FOUR MARXES