Terrorism = poverty and injustice?

Moral Relativists and their leftist symphathizers have long rationalized the use of terrorism by concluding that injustice, poverty, and disempowerment are the root causes rather than a belief in a deeply-held, Islamist ideology (although wealthy terror czar Osama bin Laden and the educated British-born Muslims behind the 7/7 bombings already debunked that theory). If only they were free of their corrupt governments and had adequate housing and employment, there would be no terrorism. The recent Glasgow plot contradicts that line of thinking. British investigators have implicated physicians in the plot and are searching for four other Muslim doctors believed to be involved in the planned attacks (see Forbes article).

When will the elites wake up and realize that this ideology supercedes race, sex, and socio-economic status. Are poor, young uneducated men more susceptible? Definitely, but the common denominator here is the embrace of radical Islam, rapidly in recent years by men and women of all backgrounds and cultures. Fundamentalist Islam is the root of the problem, not poverty, and until we recognize that and demand moderate Muslims to speak up and take back control of their religion, we can expect larger and more deadly attacks to come. Unfortunately, western leaders continue to bask in sunlight of blissful ignorance and self-destructive political correctness.

The Lieberman Factor

Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman is hinting once again that his vote cannot be taken for granted.
Says Lieberman: "I'm not going to make my selection of who to support for president in '08 based on party. I'm going to choose to support whichever of the candidates I think will be the best president of the United States to protect our security against the threat of Islamist terrorism and to rebuild America's economy, health care system, environment and education system."

Lieberman made the comments on ABC’s This Week while praising McCain and Giuliani. Lieberman also said that Hillary, Obama, and Edwards are opposing the war due to the power and pull of “vested interest groups within the left.”

Lieberman has remarked that he remains open to endorsing the Republican candidate for president in ’08 and is even candid on rumors that he may join the Republican party and switch control of the Senate over to the Republicans.

"But the big issue of differentiation is on security," he says. "I want to stress that I don't have any desire or intention to leave the Democratic caucus and go to the Republican caucus. On the other hand, it's not impossible. And if it would happen, it would be around questions related to Iraq and the war on terrorism."

Look for Lieberman to be an influential factor in the ’08 race—his endorsement may help make or break the Dems in key battleground states like NH, MO, MN, WI, IA, MI, NJ, and PA.

When I was working in the Senate for Brownback, Lieberman once joked how most of his interns were Republicans (and this was before his party abandoned him). Lieberman’s principled leadership, independence, and refusal to tow the party line (Lieberman was one of the few Dems to vote for Clinton’s impeachment) demonstrated the far-left shift of the Democratic party, their inability to tolerate any dissent in their ranks, and the power wielded by a statesman who is courted by both sides.

Carter: Average American basher or terrorist enabler?

Jimmy Carter, who had one of the most disasterous presidencies in recent years, is spewing vitrole again. Apparently, his innacurate, libelous, anti-Semitic work Palestine: Peace, not Apartheid is not the last we we hear from him.

In a speech in Dublin Ireland, Carter criticized the U.S. and EU for marginalizing the Hamas-led goverment in the Palestinian territories, going so far as call the Bush administration's refusal to accept the '06 Hamas victory a "criminal" action. Carter even goes on to praise Hamas as "shrewd," and having "superior skills and discipline." Carter continues to blast U.S. policy completely, stating that the U.S. and EU is seeking to divide Palestinians.

There was once a time when a former U.S. president would have thought twice before blasting his country's policies when speaking before a foreign audience. Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of Jimmy Carter's opposition to the administration and U.S. foreign policy is his unconditional support for the Palestinians, and more specifically for the Hamas goverment, and his refusal to acknowledge that they are part of the problem. When a former American president seeks to legitimize a ruthless terrorist organization that clings to a fascist-like ideology and has no respect for life--a clear line has been crossed.

Carter's failed presidency resulted from his appeasement and capitulation of the Islamic terrorists who who stormed our embassy in Tehran, and his overall adversion to military force in defense of the United States. Now, we see that he is not only an appeaser, but an emphathizer and enabler of our enemies.

It's truly disgraceful and disgusting, and in one passage, Carter seems to condone suicide bombings for the time being, stating that they should end when Israel accepts the goals of the road map to peace with Palestinians (Carter has already instructed his publisher to remove this outrageous statement from future editions of the book).

The actual statement: “It is imperative that the general Arab community and all significant Palestinian groups make it clear that they will end the suicide bombings and other acts of terrorism when international laws and the ultimate goals of the Roadmap for Peace are accepted by Israel” (p. 213).

As long as Carter continues to act despicably and outrageously, the Democrats will struggle to distance themselves from the loony former president and member of their party.

The Race is On!

Johnson County will have it's most competitive race for District Attorney in years with political opportunist and Republican-turned-Democrat Rick Guinn (D) running against Steve Howe (R) in a blockbuster matchup. Both are former prosecutors from within the DA's office and both have a wealth of experience.

When Guinn campaigned for the job to the GOP precinct committee members back in January, in his letter he said that he and his wife "were loyal Republicans" and "had every intention of remaining so." Yeah, and as soon as he loses, he goes to bat for the opposing team.

Howe, meanwhile, lost, and despite being fired by Phill Kline, has acted graciously and has worked to build up support among all factions of the party.

Despite this blockbuster election being more than a year and a half away, both candidates already have their campaign websites up and running:

Steve Howe: http://www.stevehowe2008.com/

Rick Guinn: http://www.jocoda.com/

Jordan leaves open possibility of congressional run

Last week, the Konnection had the opportunity to meet with state Senator Nick Jordan (R-Shawnee) and discuss area politics, issues facing Kansas, and the 2008 elections.

Jordan commented on his success in passing $140 million for early childhood education through the Kauffman Foundation, and the funding for a new science and math initiative to make Kansas competitively nationally and internationally.

Jordan has also been a leader in helping to build the bio-science indursty in Kansas. He says that more conservatives need to realize that embryonic stem cell research accounts for only 1% of the innovative research taking place in the biotech industry, and that they need to be out front in their support of growing that sector, despite being morally opposed to embryonic stem cells, because most of the development and research taking place in KS is unrelated to stem cells and not morally questionable.

Jordan confirmed that he has no intention of leaving the state senate to take a job in the state tourism industry, but he did leave open the possibility he would step down to run for congress against Dennis Moore. Although he called this scenario "unlikely at this time," in his later conversation, he frequently uttered the statement "If I would run..." in describing what he would do on the federal level. He was also candid in what he thought were the mistakes of Phill Kline, Adam Taff, Kris Kobach, and Chuck Ahner in their attempts to take Moore down, and Jordan was remarkably specific in his analysis of how he would raise money, recruit volunteers, and stay on message.

So to recap: Jordan will definitely either stay in the senate or run for congress...the rumors about retirement or a job in the tourism sector have no basis in fact. And Jordan is strategically leaving the door to a congressional run open, while downplaying the likelihood of a bid.

Sounds like someone has been approached numerous times and has really thought about this.
The Konnection has to wonder if Jordan is waiting to see the caliber of the other GOP contenders vying for the nomination, and based on that, will make a final decision.
The Konnection believes he could be one of the most formidable candidates we could put up against Moore in '08, due to his support among both moderates and conservatives in Johnson County. We hope Jordan seriously considers a bid.

City GOP organizations form in JoCo

Your correspondent is back from Europe, ready to report on the news (and catch up on everything he's missed in the U.S.)!

First, I want to say that Rome was beautiful, and I'm thinking about posting a link to some of my photos. I have learned a lot though and I have much to say about Europe's problematic population trends (the continent's inability to integrate immigrants, esp. the large Muslim population, which is growing at exponential rates) and the lack of shared cultural values with the U.S., but I'll save this personal insight for a post later this week.

I've been in discussions with Scott Schwab on re-forming the now defunct Shawnee Republican party. Forming city party organizations for every major city in the county remains a priority of our county GOP leadership, and Shawnee, which once had a vibrant party apparatus, should be at the center of these efforts. Those of you who are Shawnee committee members: watch for flyers in the mail on the upcoming convention to nominate officers. As chair of the Shawnee GOP, I hope to revitalize our grassroots ahead of the '08 election, defend out sitting incumbents (esp. targets such as Reps. Judy Morrison, Owen Donohoe, and Sen. Nick Jordan) and re-claim the 18th district, lost by Mary Pilcher Cook to Cindy Neighbor. We have a lot of hard work ahead, but having city parties will enable close coordination with the county and state parties to provide a much larger and more-integrated network of activists, volunteers, and forums for elected officials and candidates.

And from our own JoCo GOP chair Scott Schwab, a list of the current city GOP clubs being formed (volunteers have approached Scott about heading up organizations in these cities) :

• Shawnee


• Lenexa


• Overland Park


• Prairie Village


• Leawood


• Mission


• Mission Hills
  

It's worth mentioning that Olathe is the only JoCo city that has had an active and vibrant Republican party organization for many years now. Our party has struggled to remain as developed and prepared as the minority county Dems, but this is one major step towards bridging that gap.

Last item: Rep. Pat Colloton of Leawood is considering a run for congress against Dennis Moore. What are your thoughts? I have my own thoughts on her chances, but what do you think?

The mood in Rome

Your faithful correspondent here at the Konnection is completing a study abroad course in Rome, Italy and will not be returning to the states until June 4th, so this will probably be the only posting until then (so don't fear liberal bloggers--this blog has not died, and will be up and running regularly again in a few weeks). This is my first experience in a foreign country, but despite the strong anti-war tide here in Rome (I've alreay seen numerous anti-war messages scrawled acrosss walls and witnessed an anti-war march near the Colosseum), unlike other parts of Europe, the Italians don't seem to hold any hostility towards Americans. All of our group's encounters have been extremely cordial. A street vendor asked if I was Australian, and I replied ''No, sono Americano,'' to which he replied, ''Oh, Americano! Amo Americani (I love Americans). And then in English, ''God Bless You.'' Having read out the immigration problems, I have noticed the large immigrant (mainly West African and Middle Eastern) populations are segregated in their own neighborhoods and shops here in Rome. Integration does not seem to be occuring--at least not like we are accostomed to in the U.S. I'll report more when I return.