By Debbie Schlussel
****UPDATE: Printed Minstrel Mag, “XXL,” is not just stoopid, it’s anti-Semitic. Features column: “Diamonds Are a Jew’s Best Friend; Gruesomely Dismembered Africans? Not So Much.” ****
Since it’s my vocation and avocation to keep up with all segments of pop culture, I found myself “reading” (if you can call it that) the December issue of “XXL” magazine, which bills itself as “Hip-Hop on a Higher Level.” More like Hip-Hop on a slightly less low nadir.
I couldn’t help but notice that the spine of this latest issue read, “We’re So Evolved.” Just what is evolved about the glorified dope-smoking, coke-snorting, whore-pimping, eastside-westside, east coast-west coast, diamond grill-wearing, segment of society? Hard to tell. Even though hip-hop has its White fans, as I “read” through XXL I had to ask myself if this is what Martin Luther King, Jr. meant when he said “I Have a Dream.” Methinks this is his worst nightmare.

The magazine is like watching a glossy, printed voluntary minstrel show. Sick, sad, and a depressing statement on not where our society is headed, but where it already is. Reading the “Letters to the Editor” was amusing. No, more than that. I laughed my ass off. That these could be called “letters” or that there might be an “editor” were both dubious. The words used would make Michael Richards blush. (Surprise, surprise, some of the letter writers–XXL’s “readers”–are in prison, FYI.)
Here’s a sampling, in which I’ve inserted dashes where the full words are used:
[DS: Plenty of letters on whether or not thug rapper Tupac Shakur died or whether it’s a conspiracy theory/evil plot by us Crackers; incredible]

At first I was very, very, very upset that you put Tupac’s autopsy picture in the issue commemorating the 10th anniversary of his passing. I have the feeling I wasn’t the only one who would be pissed off. So I sat back and stared at the poster I have of him giving the Westsidehand sign [DS: gang symbol] mounted and framed in glass. I feel that you should explain to your readers that, since he was considered our generation’s Black Jesus, his autopsy is our generation’s crucifixion.
immre_kovacs@hotmail.com
***
Chingy is wack! HE sounds like a bitch getting f–ked on the mic. Luda [DS: rapper Ludacris] and DTP was the biggest thing on the first album. God made you! You didn’t do shit. Luda helped you make the name for yourself. You would’ve never sold three million without Luda. The song, “Right Thurr” [DS translation in real English: “Right There”] remixed with JD and Trina, helped your buble gum-stealing ass. You need to retire and leave rapping to somebody who can rap.
canthang342003@yahoo.com
***

[on VH1’s reality show about former Public Enemy rapper Flavor Flav picking a woman, one of whom was named “Hoopz”:]

Now, what the f–k is that? Y’all f–ked that Eye Candy up this month. The broad Hoopz looks like a sho’nuff gump. I don’t know if it’s the make up or that short just looks like a n-gga from the nexk up. XXL, I expect much better because y’all Eye Candy history speaks for itself. Don’t get like Lloyd Banks and Snoop Dogg and start giving me bulls–t. I need that Buffie, Aundrea and Malia-type s–t.
Rosedale
West Baltimore, MD
***
What’s up with y’all and Hoopz? I so tired of seeing this flat-booty, big-headed, too-much-make-up-wearing-ass bitch. I’m locked up, and she don’t float a n-gga’s boat. This bitch look like a spoof of Stacy Dash [DS: the Black woman in the movie “Clueless”]. Quit putting her ass–or should I say, “no ass”–in the magazine. Please!!!
Killaman D-Loe
Northside, OK
***
Ya’ll n-ggas at XXL must be on some f–kin’ crack. How the f–k you gonna give Method Man’s album “4:21 . . . The Day After” an L, but that big fat Bam Bam Bigelow muthaf-cka Rick Ross gets a f–kin’ XL? Mef should got an XL, at least That “4:21 . . .” album is just as good as “Tical 2000: Judgement Day.” [DS: Judgment is spelled with only one “e” in the English–as opposed to the hip-hop–dictionary.] Y’all n-ggas are going along with these radio n-ggas.
Mike Calibur
Fall River, MA
***

And one “letter” I sorta liked because at least it recognizes the downward deviance of hip-hop:

Rick muthaf-ckin’ Ross. This dude is all right, but he’s not real. He’s just another South hustler/rapper trying to get on by Jigga co-signing him. I think the album should’ve gotten an L, because this guy talks about the same s–t. Either he’s pushing coke or he’s riding in Chevies. Alert to all Southern rappers: Get creative! Rick Ross is an example of how you could tell hip-hop is dead. I can’t front–his album is all right because of the beats, but lyrically he’s garbage. Why does XXL hype these lame, fake rappers? The truth is, Rick Ross ain’t s–t. Upgrade those lyrics and stop telling the youth to hustle drugs, because that ain’t right. Another Jeezy. East Coast, please come back ASAP!
jdubthegreat@tmail.com

Yup, I could feel my IQ sinking and brain cells dying as I read through this magazine. America’s death via hip-hop.

By Debbie Schlussel
This morning, I posted about the latest episode in the continuing Islamist whining toward–and dhimmification of–Fitness USA a/k/a “Allah’s Gym.” The story in The Detroit Newsistan was that a Muslim woman was trying to pray at the gym and got angry when a) someone interrupted her prayer and b) the gym’s manager told her that others did not need to respect “your god.” Over this, there is a whole “investigation” by both the dhimmified gym and Islamist groups.
Well, as with everything involving Islamist troublemakers, there is far more to the story. Here’s what I received from the Islamist ADC (American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee) in the Detroit area (headed by “former” Islamic terrorist Imad Hamad). You have to read between the lines, but it sounds like Wardeh Sultan, the Palestinian Muslim chick, got in the way in the women’s locker room and picked a fight with the women trying to get around her.

“Former” Terrorist Imad Hamad, Muslim Chicks Whine about Fitness USA
(Hamadafat courtesy of Preston Taylor Holmes/Six Meat Buffet)
It appears that Sultan objected to other gym members’ exercise of free speech. It also appears that the whiny Muslim chick refused to identify herself to gym management and was being so disruptive, she was asked to leave and the police were called. The police arrived and questioned Sultan, and she was forced to leave.
And it looks like from the language used (“claimant”) that lawyers are already involved and a lawsuit is already being prepared:

ADC Michigan Concerned with Allegations Against Fitness USA
ADC Michigan is seriously concerned with a number of complaints that have been filed at its office, against Dearborn Fitness USA. Most recently, two female Muslim members were harassed by patrons and Fitness staff as they attempted to pray in the locker room. According to the information that ADC has received from the claimants and witnesses, the women were praying near the lockers when another patron began to make remarks and proceeded to push them. One of the claimants reported the incident. However, according to the claimant, the desk manager, rather than address the matter professionally, told the claimant that “she does NOT HAVE to respect your God, but you HAVE to respect her.” She then proceeded to ask the claimant for her card.
The claimant told the manager that she has done nothing wrong and refused to give her the card in fear of what she may do with it. The manager subsequently called the police and stated the claimant was “creating a disturbance and was asked to leave.” The claimant explained that she had not yelled, threatened, touched, or caused a disturbance, but rather brought the matter to the attention of the manager to explain what had happened to her. After being questioned by the police, the claimant left feeling fearful, humiliated and discriminated against. ADC Michigan is concerned with the inappropriate and unprofessional manner that this matter was handled and has requested that this matter is immediately addressed.

Welcome to the Islamist litigation explosion. As I asked right after 9/11, “Will Radical Islam Sue You?”
Contact Fitness USA and tell the gym not to bow to Islamic extremism.

By Debbie Schlussel
If you don’t want to finance the thuggish Hugo Chavez “democratically” “elected” “leader” of Venezuela, don’t buy gas from VALERO gas stations.
You may have noticed Valero stations popping up all over America. They are really CITGO stations. Because of the deserved stigma attached to the Chavez-controlled gas stations, many Americans are not buying gas at CITGO, and the stations are losing money . . . big-time.
So, with the smoke and mirrors of a name-change, many CITGO stations are quietly changing from CITGO signs and emblems to Valero. The excuse is that Valero, a San Antonio-based oil refiner, is merely “branding” CITGO stations. Whatever. New Venezuela-affiliated stations are opening up at Valero, as well. Yes, Valero and CITGO are separate companies, but they benefit the same parties when the name Valero is on a gas station: Venezuela and Chavez.

These Gas Stations = These Gas Stations
If you don’t want to support this America-hating, Hezbollah/Iran-supporting despotic dictator, DON’T BUY GAS AT VALERO stations. It’s the same as buying at CITGO.

By Debbie Schlussel
**** UPDATE: There’s more to the story. Check it out here. ****
Back in April, we told you about Fitness USA, the Michigan-based national gym chain. We dubbed it “Weakness USA,” because the gym built a divider (between men and women) in its Lincoln Park, Michigan (not a largely Muslim area . . . yet) location to bow to Muslim women’s demand to wear skimpy clothing and not have men see them.
The women, Arrwa Mogalli and Ammerah Saidi, got their wish over this private gym by whining to the media and Islamic “civil rights” groups. We warned, then, that this was the slippery slope. And we were right. Now, Wardeh Sultan–a Palestinian Muslim woman from Dearbornistan–is whining because someone interrupted her PRAYER at her location of the gym (the city isn’t given in the report by Detroit Newsistan resident pro-Islamist and fabricator, Gregg Krupa). (And she’s mad that the gym manager allegedly told her that the rest of us don’t have to respect Allah. The crime.)
That’s right, her PRAYER. Not her workout. Not her 5-mile run on the treadmill. Not her weightlifting or session in the steam room. No, her Islamic PRAYER.

Does This Look Like a Mosque to You?:
Maybe This Isn’t the Place for Devout Muslims
Question: When you hear of an establishment called “Fitness USA,” do you think it’s a place to work out? Or a place to pray to Allah? A place to exercise your body or a place to exercise your religion?
Detroit area Muslims who are imposing their will anywhere and everywhere now say they have the right to pray in your gym unfettered. So you’re trying to lift weights? So, what? Please adjust your workout so Wardeh and Ahmed can kneel toward Mecca. And please don’t drip your sweat on her hijab or step on her prayer mat. “Allah Hu Akbar.”
Sultan is angry because someone had the gall to interrupt her prayer session . . . AT THE GYM! And she’s mad that the manager told her,

“The manager told me, ‘You have to respect her (the patron), but she does not have to respect your God,'” said Wardeh Sultan of Dearborn. “I’ve had my membership for seven or eight years, and I’ve never had a problem with praying there.
“I told that manager, ‘I can’t believe you said that'” Sultan said. “Honestly, I feel humiliated and I feel ashamed, right now, to go back to Fitness USA.”

If you feel humiliated praying at a gym, you should be. It’s a place to work out. It ain’t a mosque (or a house of prayer).
Predictably, as the gym did with the divider for Muslim women, it is kowtowing yet again. Welcome to the Dhimmified Gym, which is now “investigating” this absurd claim:

“We will, as we will with any complaint involving our staff and a member, be doing a full and thorough investigation of the matter and take any appropriate action we need to take,” said Jodi Berry, executive director of Fitness USA. “We want every member to get a good exercise experience every time they come to the club.”

Somehow this is a “violation” of the First Amendment right of freedom of religion, according to The Detroit Newsistan’s pro-Islamist reporter, who apparently never heard of the right for private businesses to decide to be gyms instead of mosques, or the fact that Islamic prayer in the middle of a cramped gym might be a safety and litigation hazard:

The allegations are among a series of recent complaints by Muslims who say they are free to practice their religion in the United States, until someone tells them they cannot. Recently, the same Fitness USA facility enacted a new dress code to allow Muslim women to wear more modest clothing, in compliance with some Islamic practices.

Correction: As we noted, in the Lincoln Park Fitness USA, the rules were changed the other way. A divider was built so Muslim women could remove modest clothing, wear skimpy outfits, and not be seen by men.
They want it a million different ways–all in the name of Infidels kowtowing to extremist Islamic whims. What every happened to “the melting pot”? Apparently, that dynamic has changed. Now, we’re supposed to melt into some sort of Islamic souffle.
The Detroit Newsistan “reporter” goes further and invokes the Flying Imams who were apparently doing a dry run for a hijacking or terrorist attack. And apparently, this woman was testing the system to see what she could get away with at her mosque, er . . . gym. And since her gym is Weakness USA, she can get away with a lot. Just watch for Fitness USA to establish a prayer room, and fire a few people over this.
This story has everything, too . . . including my “friend,” FBI Award Revokee and “former” Islamic terrorist Imad Hamad (a close buddy of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Michigan Chief Brian Moskowitz a/k/a “Abu Moskowitz”):

Imad Hamad, regional director of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, which lodged a formal complaint with Fitness USA on behalf of Sultan, said the recent spate of conflicts results from a growing intolerance of Islam and a growing restiveness among Muslims that their rights to speak freely and worship are increasingly at risk.
“They (Muslims) are resenting that they are to be suppressed from expressing themselves freely, like others,” Hamad said.
“It’s OK for a Christian fellow or a Jewish fellow to pray, and it would be regarded highly and respected. When it comes to a person of Muslim faith, especially if a woman is wearing the head cover or a man with a typical clergy outfit, yeah, it is becoming like something that is offensive to people and making them nervous.”

“Former” Terrorist Imad Hamad, Muslim Chicks Whine about Fitness USA
(Hamadafat courtesy of Preston Taylor Holmes/Six Meat Buffet)
Hello . . .? If someone is praying at my gym, it will make me nervous. It should make you nervous. It should make us all nervous. And by the way, I’ve NEVER seen any Christians or Jews, including myself (a religious Jew), pray at the gym. We know what the place is for and why we’re there. You want to pray? Go to your mosque, Wardeh Habibti.

Sultan said that, like all pious Muslims, she prays five times daily. She also wears a veil and a long dress, in observance of her faith.
Born in Jordan, of Palestinian descent, Sultan arrived in Detroit 17 years ago, before moving to Dearborn. She is an American citizen.

Remind us again why we let her–a woman who wants to impose her religion on a gym!–in and gave her citizenship. This is the stuff I’ve been arguing that the new citizenship test does nothing to test.

Sultan said she came to the United States to secure her freedom and to avoid intolerance.
“We’re here in the great United States and for this happening, it truly breaks my heart,” she said. “You know, things are starting to change backwards, instead of frontward. We need to keep this United States, our country, up on our shoulders. We don’t want it to go down.”

We’ve given her and her fellow co-religionists tolerance ad absurdum in this country, far more than a Christian or Jew or any other non-Muslim would have in her country of origin. And that’s the problem. Islam dominates all life in extremist Jordan, where 88% of the country believes in homicide bombings and that Bin Laden is a great leader (according to Pew polls of Jordan).
And this woman and her extremist community want to dominate all aspects of American life, including the gym.
Unfortunately, Islamic America has found gyms like Fitness USA that are all too willing to bend over for them. Physical fitness aside, it’s yet another sign that there is little moral Fitness in the USA.
**** UPDATE: There’s more to the story. Check it out here. ****

By Debbie Schlussel
Why is Wal-Mart still selling Nazi Death’s Head Battalion T-Shirts?
In November, Rick of liberal website Bent Corner reported that he saw Nazi Death’s Head Battalion T-Shirts on sale at his local Wal-Mart. I wrote about it. Later that day, I got an e-mail from Marshall Manson, one of Wal-Mart’s paid PR flacks, claiming that the retail giant would “immediately” remove all Nazi Death’s Head T-shirts from all Wal-Mart stores, but that it “might take a day or two.”
Well, almost a full month later, guess what? Wal-Mart is still selling the T-shirts. Reader Rob reports:

Subject: Nazi SS Death’s Head Battalion skull T shirt
The local Wal Mart in Clarksville Indiana is still selling these and has a decent supply of them too!

Nazi Death’s Head Battalion Emblem; Wal-Mart Skull T-Shirt

Not so sure how great they are doing with this so called recall?
Wal-Mart Supercenter Store #1476
1351 Veterans Parkway
Clarksville, IN 47129
(812) 284-9926

Why is it so important that Wal-Mart stop selling these T-shirts? The Nazi SS division, Death’s Head Battalion (“Totenkopf”), which included such evil men as Johann Leprich, murdered millions of Jews and non-Jews, many of them after pro-longed torture and rape. The Death’s Head Battalion skull and bones is now frequently worn by Neo-Nazis.
WHY is Wal-Mart still selling Nazi T-shirts when they’ve had almost a month notice and promised to “immediately” remove them from the shelves? Maybe it’s the same reason that after Wal-Mart got caught by ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) forcing janitorial contractors to hire illegal aliens, they got caught again with illegal alien contractors building a store in Pennsylvania.
Wal-Mart feels it can get away with it. And apparently it has. We wonder if there were KKK T-shirts–no, make that anti-Islam T-shirts–if they’d still be selling at Wal-Mart.
Don’t count on it. Wal-Mart may have put the “Merry Christmas” back in their stores. But the retailer still hasn’t removed the Nazi Ts.
Remember as you do your holiday shopping that Wal-Mart is now the official outfitter of neo-Nazis, who’ve been flocking to the stores to buy the T-Shirts.
Shame on you, Wal-Mart.

By Debbie Schlussel
The pan-Arabist world–particularly the Islamist segment of it–is abuzz with the news that Leonardo Da Vinci’s mother may have been an Arab.
To which I say, a big: SO, WHAT?!
Apparently, fingerprints of his–taken from papers he handled–show a possibility that his mother was of Arab descent, according to AP.
Since I don’t know much about fingerprints (and haven’t researched this further), I’m not sure why fingerprints show his mother’s origin and not his father’s (but maybe some readers in the know can enlighten us).

Leonardo Da Vinci & His “Arabic” Fingerprint
Regardless, I find the story hilarious. First of all, we don’t even know for sure his mother was an Arab. It’s just a possibility. Second, we don’t know that she was a Muslim. And even if she were, he sure was not. Otherwise, how do you explain his famous painting of Jesus’ “The Last Supper” (not something any believing Muslim would depict)? Attention, Dar Al-Islam: Da Vinci renounced you.
It’s like every other story we hear about how great Arabs and Muslims once were and all the things they supposedly gave to society. “Look at us. Da Vinci was ours, one of us.” (Maybe that’s the reason Mona Lisa isn’t exactly “smiling.”) But, even if it’s true, so what if Da Vinci was possibly half Arab? That was then. This is now.
And the only thing that particular society is giving us now is death and destruction. Beheadings, honor-killings, and murdered nuns. Intolerance and bigotry. And the forcing of their religion and cultural norms on the rest of us. (And even back then, they gave us their fair share of “contributions” like the word and concept of “assassins” or “hashishin” (from the hashish the Arab Muslim Shia martyrs used to take before they murdered others).
What Arab and Muslim culture does now is what’s important–their so-called ancient contributions to culture be damned.

Leonardo Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper”
More on this irrelevant “Arab Like Us” story:

ROME — Anthropologists said they have pieced together Leonardo da Vinci’s left index fingerprint — a discovery that could help provide information on such matters as the food the artist ate and whether his mother was of Arab origin.
The reconstruction of the fingerprint was the result of three years of research and could help attribute disputed paintings or manuscripts, said Luigi Capasso, an anthropologist and director of the Anthropology Research Institute at Chieti University in Italy.
The research was based on a first core of photographs of about 200 fingerprints — most of them partial– taken from about 52 papers handled by da Vinci in his life.
The artist often ate while working, and Capasso and other experts said his fingerprints could include traces of saliva, blood or food. It is information that could help clear up questions about his origins.
Certain distinctive features are more common in the fingerprints of some ethnic populations, experts say.
“The one we found in this fingertip applies to 60% of the Arabic population, which suggests the possibility that his mother was of Middle Eastern origin,” Capasso said.

Maybe she was one of those who ascended from the forcibly converted (to Islam) to Christianity. Sorry, Islam. But Da Vinci ain’t yours.

By Debbie Schlussel
Reader Paul S. and several others sent us this letter written by Pauline Klemmer, a passenger on U.S. Airways Flight 300, on which the Six “Flying Imams” caused problems and over which Islamic America is now in hysterics.
As you’ll note, she details how they were actually doing a dry run and perhaps planning an attack or something of that nature. Also note, her letter is dated more than a week ago. Yet no media interviewed her or reported her story. We’ve removed her address and phone number from the letter, the second half of which is a must read (we’ve put the important parts in bold):

November 21, 2006
US Airways Airline
To all news stations concerned:
In reference to the removal of the six Muslim gentlemen from flight 300 at the Minneapolis -St. Paul airport last light, prior to the planes departure:
I was a passenger on that flight, sitting in seat 5-E originally and later temporarily sitting in the front row of first class, while waiting for everyone to disembark the plane for a safety check. Having been on the plane, witnessed what transpired first hand and talked at great length with the first class steward regarding other facts, I am “ENRAGED” at the national AND local news reports I have seen this morning.
The facts reported are incomplete and inaccurate. This event was immediately jumped on by their attorney, who told the American people on CNBC they need to get over 911, stop being paranoid about Muslims and he even threatened a huge law suit against US Airways for the discriminating and humiliating treatment of his clients. I am convinced this entire thing may have been done to intimidate not only US Airways, but all airlines and airports in order to get them to back off on their security efforts. This is only part of the real story.
In defense of US Airways: They did a splendid job of handling the situation. No panic was created we felt protected at all times. They did not make a knee jerk reaction as a result of one passenger passing them as note as reported by the media.
Most importantly, the public needs to be told that there was a series of” many suspicious events”, which were observed by the crew and several passengers. The captain made his decision based on all of these events and not just one note.
Their attorney is trying to turn this into a “right to pray in a public place issue” and it is not that at all. He is claiming they were removed from the plane for praying in public. And inferring it is wrong to discriminate against them for this. Claiming that we Americans don’t understand their religion and their need to pray everyday at specific times, he stated that WE need to be more tolerant of their religious beliefs. He made a statement trying to draw an analogy of the right to carry a bible or a rosary on a plane. This is nothing more than a smoke screen to make this a human rights issue and intimidate the airline industry. They were already claiming discrimination to Fox TV news when I got home from the airport. Something does not smell right here.
This has all of the earmarks of a preplanned “set up” with their attorney all ready to go. I am sure their attorney has made a point of contacting all of you immediately, even last night, in order to get their slanted side of the story out first. Do not be fooled by this propaganda. You in the media have a moral responsibility to investigate all of the facts, not just statements you are fed by them.
I would encourage you to interview the plane’s captain, the first class steward and the gate ticket taker to confirm the following facts.
These are the correct facts:
The airline employee taking tickets reported to the crew that she felt very uncomfortable with the men and so she engaged one of them in a conversation to feel him out. I assume he spoke English to her in their conversation. She stated she felt uncomfortable with them and she felt they were extreme fundamentalists. She needs to be interviewed by the news media for her side of the story.
Several passengers observed the men praying and chanting near the gate prior to boarding. They were sitting apart from everyone else, behind the wall which stands behind the ticket counter at the gate. I was eating dinner while they were praying and chanting and did not observe this part, but spoke with a passenger, after we disembarked who has observed this.
I seem to remember hearing something on the news after 911 about the terrorists praying at the airport prior to departing on 911. If this is true then there is a legitimate cause for concern and doing so created an inflammatory situation. If it is their custom to pray at a certain time each day at sunset, they know this in advance and easily could have taken the 7pm flight, two hours later, doing their prayers prior to arriving at the airport. One question is: were they intentionally trying to create fear in the passengers by praying loudly in public, hoping to get removed from the plane?
I took a seat next to the men about 20 minutes prior to boarding. (I had been having dinner earlier and did not observe their prayers.) They spoke no English while seated next to me only Arabic, or what ever language they speak. One of the gentlemen acted very intense and nervous. He was on one phone call the entire time talking very fast while he passed back and forth in front of me. I said nothing to anyone about this, but was later told by first class passengers that this same conversation continued for at least another hour from his front row seat in first class. A man in the third row of first class told me he had a very uncomfortable feeling about this man.
Their seating arrangement was very unusual and it raised a red flag to the crew. Only one of the 6 sat in first class, with the telephone, although they were all together. The rest sat in coach. The second one sat in the first row of coach in front of me; I think another mid way back in the plane and the rest in the very rear of the plane. They were there early enough to get seats together but chose to spread out.
Another strange thing the crew noticed was the way they boarded. When they made the call for first class passengers the other 5 boarded as well.
The one in first class, which had been on the telephone, did not stay seated in his first class seat, but walked back to the rear of the plane twice to talk to his friends, during the delay.
One of the passengers sitting close to them in the rear of the plane overheard their conversation and became very nervous. I believe he may have been the one who sent the note up to the crew and captain. I was told later that there was mention of Ala. [DS: Allah] and the word terrorists in their conversation.
A woman passenger, who understood their language, indicated they were making slanderous remarks about the American people, thinking no one would know what they were saying. This raised concern also.
The most suspicious thing, which has not yet been mentioned on the news, and needs to come out publicly, is the fact that the man in the first class front row asked for and was given a seat belt extender as did one of the men in the rear of the plane. This can be confirmed by the male steward serving first class on the flight. The strange and totally unexplainable thing about this request by them was the fact that neither of these men was fat enough to even need an extender strap for their seatbelt in the first place and the crew noticed that they not even put it on but placed them on the floor by their feet. Why ask for them and not use them, especially if you don’t even need one?
I was a witness to the seat belt extender on the floor in first class, as the steward asked me to hand him so he could show it to the FBI and the Police. It was a totally detachable strap about 18 in length that could easily be used as a noose around a flight attendant or passenger’s neck to create a hostage situation on the plane. With one in the back of the plane and another in the front and their people positioned in between they were perfectly positioned to take control of the entire plane with out any weapons. The captain, crew, police and FBI all obviously also felt this was a real possibility when combined with the note passed to them by an obviously shaken man who had heard some of their conversation. Put all of this together along with the fact that the ticket agent at the gate was not comfortable and a couple of other passenger observations it added up to a situation of possible danger.
Should the Airline, crew and captain be blamed for deciding to protect the safely of several hundred passengers after their lengthy deliberation of the facts?
No, it was not just a note from a paranoid passenger as reported on television, but many things that just added up to a very uncomfortable feeling. The airline, police and FBI acted responsibly, professionally and in the interest of the majority of passengers. Any potential law suits from these people are totally unfounded and ludicrous.
Doesn’t the fact that these men already had an attorney lined up to immediately alert the media seem like a “pre-set up deal” to get the airlines and security to back off and ease up on the high alert issue?
Did they even tell their own attorney about the seat belt extenders sitting on the floor? Probably not.
With all of their accusations on CNBC’s morning news about passenger paranoia put aside there is still no answer to a very simple question. What were they going to do with the seat belt extenders?
Why did they have one in the front and one in the back of the plane and why were they sitting on the floor by their feet and not in use?
I can only determine two possible scenarios:
Either they were planning to use the seat belt extenders to subdue hostages and take over the plane and were caught by their suspicious activities.
Or, it was done intentionally to induce suspicion and make a big public fuss to intimidate security at the airports.
They claim we have discriminated against them and they were humiliated. They fail to accept the fact that what happened to them on flight 300 was a direct result of their own people’s hateful behavior on 911, while once more trying to put the blame for everything on the Americans.
What about the human rights of the several hundred people sitting on flight 300? Most of the passengers were going home for the thanksgiving holiday. Don’t we have the right to get home safely for thanksgiving? Any psychologist will tell you they were simply trying to project the blame for this unfortunate event back at the airline in order to avoid any personal responsibility for their actions, or the actions of the 911 terrorists.
Upon watching the 5 o’clock news tonight I heard more about this incident. Now they are reporting the men to be clerics. Last night at 1 pm they were calling themselves scholars who were attending a conference. It would be interesting what kind of a conference they had been attending. I question, from my close personal observations of them prior to boarding that they are either. I would also like to see this investigated also. I believe there is a real story here that the American public deserves. US Airlines has been caught off guard by these accusations and is being painted as the bad guy, stating they will make their own internal investigation. Why, all of a sudden now, are they made to look guilty by the media? Only the media can clear the air on the truth here. They need your help and support in this matter.
Let’s not sweep this under the rug as yesterday’s news. I challenge the news media to investigate the real facts of these backgrounds, what had they been attending in Minneapolis as well as interview the crew and people involved bringing the real truth to the American public. They deserve the truth, for the future of their own safely. Please do not just let this mater drop. Thank you!
Pauline Klemmer

By Debbie Schlussel
The only new release, this week, that I screened is a low-budget, indie film, “10 Items or Less,” starring Morgan Freeman.
It was okay, but mostly dull. It did not pass the Schlussel sleep test. Viewing it, I fell asleep . . . twice. I really have nothing against the film. It’s just that it’s boring, and there really was no point in making it. Watching it will not enhance your life. I normally like Freeman. He’s a very talented actor, but that doesn’t make much difference in a pointless ennui-pinata of a film, as this one is.

It’s the story of a has-been movie star (Freeman) who is doing research at a supermarket in a run down L.A. neighborhood for a possible film. He meets a Hispanic check-out girl (who “mans” the “10 Items or Less” lane) and befriends her. Freeman’s character, whose last action movie is marked down at every store they go to, tells her that everything is in “the staging” and that he’ll help her get the job for which she’s about to interview.
They go around L.A. to her trailer to get her car, to Target to get her some clothes, to the car wash to spiff up her car, etc.–all in pursuit of a job interview for her for a better job. They become friends. So what? No reason to care about these people (she is apparently an illegal alien) or care about their jaunts to dull places to do errands we all do on a daily basis. Simply not interesting.
Hum. Drum. zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

By Debbie Schlussel
In Montana, a school district (which includes Dick Cheney’s high school alma mater) is giving kids $28,000 Chevy trucks to go to school, AP reports.
Is that what it has come down to–Bribery to get kids to do basic things? Incredible.
If that’s the motivation, they’ll be at school, but they won’t necessarily learn. What’s next–Porsches for washing your hands after going to the bathroom?
While the Casper, Wyoming school district has a 29% dropout rate apparently due to the booming gas-and-old industry (kids can make $15-$17 an hour), other school districts around the country are giving vehicles away for attendance, too: Hartford, Connecticut; Pueblo, Colorado; South Lake Tahoe, California; and Wickenburg and Yuma, Arizona.

Chevy Colorado Truck: The New Truancy Officer?
Shame on them. Material carrots shouldn’t be part of the approach to get kids to want to learn. The desire not to be a dummy and the promise of future opportunities should be the motivator.
No wonder we are turning out so many dummies from the American public school system and falling way behind in the sciences and math. The only math these kids seem to be concerned with is their chances of winning a Chevrolet Colorado crew cab in read, with an MP3 player.

By Debbie Schlussel
Something I never thought I’d see: Saudi Arabia’s official English language daily, Arab News, cites me with approval, in today’s edition. (The paper also says it’s “The Middle East’s Leading English Daily.”)
Arab News Senior Editor and columnist Rasheed Abou-Alsamh actually agrees with my column on the absurdity of Colorado Attorney General John Suthers’ recent trip to Saudi Arabia and the egregiousness of Saudi Arabia’s continued insistence that convicted slaveholder/rapist (among other things) Homaidan Al-Turki is somehow a “victim” of the American justice system.
His column, “No Tears for Homaidan Al-Turki” is excellent in its own right, but especially when you consider that it’s a Saudi state-sanctioned publication that regularly spouts extremism. Here’s the quote:

American commentators in newspapers and on blogs were outraged that an American official had to fly to Saudi Arabia to explain why Al-Turki had been found guilty and sentenced to jail time. . . .

“In an utter display of American weakness and shame, Colorado Attorney General John Suthers traveled to Saudi Arabia to apologize. Apologize for the American justice system and virtually everything else that America stands for,” fumed conservative blogger Debbie Schlussel.
“Suthers said that, under Saudi law, four eyewitnesses are needed to prove a rape case. Memo to Suthers: You are the Attorney General of Colorado, not Saudi Arabia. The four witnesses is taken from Islamic law, since Saudi Arabia is a theocracy. We are not. And that should be the end of the story.”

I’ve been a frequent critic of Arab News’ extremist positions and “reporting,” but Abou-Alsamh’s column on this particular issue is a breath of fresh air. Upon doing further research on him, it turns out he is also a reporter for the excellent Washington Times (but he also reports for the extremist Egyptian state-sanctioned Al-Ahram and the hate-America Christian Science Monitor). Abou-Alsamh is a Saudi-American raised in Europe and South America.
Shukran (Thank you), Rasheed. Mabrouk (Congrats) on your brave position on this issue. Moumtez (Excellent). But we must all be careful to note that this is an aberration, not a trend, in the Saudi media.