Hugo Chavez Outed!!

This is an interesting article from www.redstate.com to send to your friends who are enamored by Che or Chavez and think that Cuba may be a "bad country" but at least they have universal health coverage and follows this previous article here. To read more about Hugo Chavez's vision of Latin America click here. And if you want to forward this to the Secretary of State of the United States, Hillary Clinton, click here.


The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights outs Hugo Chavez
Has Secretary Clinton read this report?
Monday, March 1st at 10:18AM
From the give credit where credit is due file: The Washington Post editorializes today on the damning Inter-American Commission on Human Rights report on Venezuela that was issued last week. The evisceration of Venezuela’s democracy is laid out in dispassionate detail–the judicial and media crackdowns, the elimination of the private sector and the targeted use of violence against any and all opposition. Our tendency has been to dismiss Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez as a minor annoyance–a buffoon who bumbled his way into power and would bumble out again at some point, or, worse, to embrace him as a modern day Che Guevara who channels low-cost heating oil through the kindly auspices of Joe Kennedy and Bill Delahunt to underprivileged Americans. But this report paints a very different and ugly picture of a canny, ruthless manipulator who has over the last decade effectively consolidated power the power of this once-vibrant democracy into his despotic hands.
The response so far has been a resounding so what? Why should we care, and even if we could summon the energy to care, what can we do about it? Unfortunately, the answers to these questions are now we should care very much and there is precious little we can do–although if Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would read this report it would be a start.
From a purely self-interested viewpoint, we should care because Venezuela is a large, potentially productive, resource-rich country that would be a valuable friend if it were not headed in the direction of being a deadly foe. Hugo Chavez can see the attention commanded by his nuclear allies Iran and North Korea. He has been arming up–can there be any doubt that he has nuclear ambitions as well? And if we are so concerned about the damage that could potentially be done by North Korean or Iranian missiles, how much more concerned should we be about the potential placement of such weapons much closer to our own borders? Chavez has demonstrated that he’s not squeamish about using violence on a small scale, and if history be our guide that generally translates into a reliance on larger-scale violence as an acceptable way to settle disputes. Chavez is also familiar with the tactical use of terrorism as he is quite cozy with the Colombian FARC and may well be harboring terrorist camps on his own soil. So by ignoring his activities we are enabling the rise of a trigger-happy thug with small regard for collateral damage in our own backyard. I think this merits our attention.
Now to the second point–what is to be done? Unfortunately, by delaying action for so long we have left ourselves few options. Chavez has made hating the Yanquis into an article of patriotic faith, so attempts to domesticate him are probably a fool’s errand. We have squandered the opportunities to support the opposition, and Chavez has taken advantage of our inaction to hector and intimidate these groups into ineffective submission. It has become fashionable to express solidarity with pro-democracy dissidents in Iran, which is of course a good thing, but it would be encouraging if we could rally similar support for those enduring the sickening grind of repression in our own hemisphere. But somehow Chavez, not those he oppresses, has emerged as the romantic hero of this story.
The much criticized U.S. intervention in the 2002 coup attempt against Chavez was another wasted opportunity. The episode has been held up as evidence of cynical American support for anti-democratic forces, but as Honduras has demonstrated there are coups–and then there are coups. It looks now as if that was the last chance to oust Chavez without substantial upheaval in the region and he has turned it into a public relations bonanza.
That upheaval now appears increasingly unavoidable. The sort of repression documented in the Inter-American Commission Report is not generally the recipe for a contented and prosperous state that co-exists peaceably with its neighbors. Chavez responded, predictably, by calling his critics names and threatening the body that issued the report. But words can only take him so far. Given his disastrous economic policies, Chavez is going to face increasing unrest from his once-docile population, and one of his options is provoking conflict with the American imperialists he has so successfully demonized in his country. By lashing out at us with more than fiery rhetoric Chavez could rally support that would encourage him to ever greater aggression in the region and beyond.

It is an unsavory circumstance, but the Inter-American Commission Report may provide something of an opportunity. With all eyes focused on Latin America in the aftermath of the Chilean earthquake, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is embarking on a six-nation trip through the region today. Rather than engaging in one of the Obama administration’s favored “listening tours,” it might be that this is Secretary Clinton’s opportunity to speak. With the report in hand she can demonstrate the fallacy of the Chavez-as-Robin-Hood myth, and point out to Venezuela’s neighbors the likely consequences of consorting with this violent and repressive regime. Clinton might recommend robust, coordinated action by the OAS, which is, after all, supposed to defend democracy in the region–action that could isolate and contain Venezuela. Clinton is ostensibly travelling to Latin America to consolidate Brazilian support for sanctions against Iran–while she’s at it, she might want to consider enlarging the issue to include Venezuela as well. With the evidence now before us, she could make a persuasive case if she finds her voice

John Murtha: Requiem for a Corruptocrat

This is an interesting post from Michelle Malkin of http://www.vdare.com/ about a congressman that died earlier this week. It talks about the dangers that fighting a Middle East dictatorship can have, which is a follow up to this post here about a more current problem. For more posts like this click here



John Murtha: Requiem for a Corruptocrat

By Michelle Malkin
We are not supposed to speak ill of the dead. But those whom the deceased viciously smeared and humiliated deserve to be defended. Entrenched Democratic Rep. John Murtha passed away on Feb. 8 after a botched gallbladder surgery. He has been hailed as a "military advocate" (Associated Press) and "one of the greatest patriots ever to serve in Congress" (former Democratic Rep. Harold Ford Jr.). These obsequious obituaries leave out inconvenient truths:
John "Jack" Murtha was an unrepentant smear merchant and corruptocrat to the bitter end.
In May 2006, during an MSNBC TV show appearance that Marines and their families will never forget or forgive, Murtha accused U.S. troops of wantonly killing some two dozen civilians, including children, in the terrorist stronghold of Haditha, Iraq. Bellowed Murtha: "Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them, and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood." Murtha publicly indicted the Marines before military investigations had been completed. His remarks opened military-bashing floodgates around the world.
In the wake of Murtha's reckless blabbing, MSNBC executioner Keith Olbermann accused the Haditha Marines of "willful targeted brutality." The Nation magazine claimed that "members of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment perpetrated a massacre." The New York Times dubbed Haditha the "defining atrocity" of the Iraq war. International papers piled on with Vietnam-era "My Lai" allusions. Murtha cold-bloodedly sat back and enjoyed the ride while the Marines were left twisting in the wind.
By 2008, seven of the Marines charged in the incident had been exonerated or had charges against them dropped. Lt. Andrew Grayson was acquitted. Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum, Capt. Lucas McConnell, Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt, Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz and Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani all had their cases dismissed. Sgt. Frank Wuterich, the last of the Marines facing charges, awaits a long, dragged-out trial this year.
Murtha, the so-called "military advocate," went to his deathbed refusing to apologize or retract the attacks on the Haditha Marines (several of whom unsuccessfully sued him for libel to restore their honor). Decent people would call this intransigent treachery. Murtha's friends apparently consider it great patriotism.
The ego-bloated, big-mouthed lawmaker treated his own constituents with trademark contempt. During his last congressional campaign, he mocked voters in his district as bigots. "There's no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area," he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Responding to mounting criticism on both sides of the aisle about his logrolling orgies on the Hill, he sniffed: "If I'm corrupt, it's because I take care of my district."
First, foremost and forever, Jack Murtha took care of Jack Murtha. The glowing encomiums from his liberal colleagues have glossed over the 19-term Democrat's defining moment of political self-service. In 1980, Murtha was an unindicted co-conspirator in a massive bribery probe—in which undercover FBI agents videotaped Murtha entertaining a $50,000 bribe from agents posing as emissaries for Arab sheiks trying to enter our country illegally. From transcripts of those conversations published by the late newspaper columnist Jack Anderson, Murtha's true colors shined:
"I want to deal with you guys awhile before I make any transactions at all, period. … After we've done some business, well, then I might change my mind. …"

"I'm going to tell you this. If anybody can do it—I'm not B.S.-ing you fellows—I can get it done my way," he boasted. "There's no question about it."[Murtha and Abscam: A Sad Spectacle, August 6, 1980]
Murtha worried not about his integrity or how his constituents might be harmed, but about getting ratted out:
"All at once," he said, "some dumb (expletive deleted) would go start talking eight years from now about this whole thing and say (expletive deleted), this happened. Then in order to get immunity so he doesn't go to jail, he starts talking and fingering people. So the (S.O.B.) falls apart."

"You give us the banks where you want the money deposited," offered one of the bagmen.

"All right," agreed Murtha. "How much money we talking about?"

"Well, you tell me."
By the time of his death, Murtha had been caught intervening on behalf of a law-breaking Pennsylvania company convicted of selling military equipment parts illegally overseas; had steered unprecedented billions in federal earmarks to friends, family and donors; had earned multiple "most corrupt in Congress" designations from both the left-leaning Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and the right-leaning Judicial Watch; and had remained intimately tied to PMA Group, a former lobbying firm under federal investigation, and Kuchera Industries, a defense contractor also under federal investigation.
From his character assassination of innocents to his insatiable appetite for pork and power, Jack Murtha embodied everything that is wrong with Washington. If only the culture of corruption he serviced could be buried six feet under with him.

Michelle Malkin [email her] is the author of Invasion: How America Still Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals, and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores. Click here for Peter Brimelow’s review. Click here for Michelle Malkin's website. Michelle Malkin is also author of Unhinged: Exposing Liberals Gone Wild and the just-released Culture of Corruption: Obama and his Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks & Cronies.

A Movie about Iran you should see!!

This is an interesting movie review from http://www.debbieschlussel.com/ about a movie that you can watch to help understand and show solidarity with what is going on in Iran. There are similar events happening in Venezuela. and the case could be made that the whole Tea Party movement in the United States is a means of preventing any of this from happening here. You can get this movie from your library or from Amazon or from your video store and for more Posts like this click here

* “Persepolis“:

When I screened this with other Detroit-area movie critics, most of them didn’t get it and were quite ignorant. One said to me, “See, Debbie, not all Arabs are bad.” But, in fact, this movie is not about “Arabs.” It’s about Iran, where they are non-Arab Muslims. And it’s definitely about Islam, and what happens when believers in this religion take over. It’s also about what happens to secular Muslims when that happens–they are crushed like bugs and their human rights are taken away.
“Religion of Peace”: No, These Are Not NunsAnother critic, Jeff Meyers of “The Metro Times,” suggested that the Detroit Film Institute, part of the Detroit Institute of Art–which is, sadly and ironically, showing this movie along with the “Man From Plains” fake-umentary glorifying Jimmy Carter–have a joint showing with the National Arab American Museum of Dearbornistan. But that museum features hijab and burqa fashion sohws and stands for the promotion of Islamicization of the world, where as this movie, “Persepolis,” shows the deadly results of that movement. Myers–quite ignorant of the ongoing activities of the falsely-named museum, which stands for Islam and not Arabs–took great offense when I doubted his suggestion. He clearly hasn’t visited the building.“Persepolis” should be viewed by all Americans–make that, all Westerners–who believe that faux “reformers” can do anything to change the Islamo-fascist world. Where now, the Bush Administration has engineered the near overthrow of a pro-Western dictator of Pakistan and incited (with its insistence that Musharraf allow the late Benazir Bhutto back into the country) the worst violent and instability in Pakistan in decades, our country did the same when Jimmy Carter ushered the Shah of Iran out of office in favor of “free,” “democratic” elections, which brought almost three decades and counting of crushing Islamist rule.Animated and in black and white, this movie by graphic novelist Marjane Satrapi–an Iranian refugee living in France–illustrates what happened after intellectuals and revolutionaries, including her own parents, overthrew the Shah. At first, they thought they’d bought their golden ticket to freedom, democracy, and paradise. But they soon realized that life under the Shah–which they so actively protested and succeeded in ending–was far more desirable than what their “revolution” wrought.Not for kids, the movie shows how Iranians lived then (and now) in eternal fear and persecution. Kidnappings, tortures, murders–all sponsored by the Islamist Khomeini government–became a way of life in response to the most benign of comments and actions by average Iranian citizens. We are told how Iranian kids were forced to run through minefields, to explode the remaining mines. We’re also told how–because it is against Islam to kill a virgin–guards in Iranian prisons married and raped girls, so they could then be executed.The movie is autobiographical, as we watch Marji (the young Marjane Satrapi) grow up in the stiltifying aftermath of the Islamic revolution in Iran. Though Islam is never mentioned by name, it’s quite clear who is the cause of this extremism. Women in hijabs and religious police take over every institution and school. Marji is almost beaten for wearing “radical” Chuck Taylor basketball shoes and a “Punk is Not Ded [sic]” T-shirt, along with her Muslim headcovering. The headcovering is the symbol of the oppression that has set in, the rights that have been taken away, the persecution that becomes a way of life.We see how Islamism and religious intolerance invades–and ruins–nearly every aspect of Marji’s life and that of her family. Eventually she escapes to Europe, never to return, but being forced to leave her family in that hellhole. (In French with English subtitles.)

Costa Rica Elects Right-Wing Woman Prez

This is an interesting article from www.sweetness-light.com about a conservative woman being elected in Latin America. This follows this post about problems in Left-Wing Venezuela. To get more stories like this, click here


Costa Rica Elects Right-Wing Woman Prez
From (a surely outraged) Associated Press:
Costa Rica elects 1st woman president in landslide
By Marianela Jimenez,
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica – Costa Ricans have elected their first woman president as the ruling party candidate won in a landslide after campaigning to continue free market policies in Central America’s most stable nation.
With most of the votes from Sunday’s election counted, Laura Chinchilla held a 22-point lead over her closest rival. Her 47 percent share of the vote was well beyond the 40 percent needed to avoid a run-off.
The 50-year-old protege of the current president, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oscar Arias, promised to pursue the same economic policies that recently brought the country into a trade pact with the U.S. and opened commerce with China.
"Today we are making history," said Chinchilla, who will be the fifth Latin American woman to serve as president when she takes office in May. "The Costa Rican people have given me their confidence, and I will not betray it." ..
Arias’ economic policies helped insulate Costa Rica from the world economic crisis as he kept a high profile on the world stage as a negotiator in Honduras’ political crisis after a coup deposed President Manuel Zelaya in June.
Critics of the Arias government, in which Chinchilla served as vice president, contended its policies catered to big developers to boost the economy at the cost of the nation’s fragile ecosystems.
But most Costa Ricans were reluctant to shake up the status quo in a country with relatively high salaries, the longest life expectancy in Latin America, a thriving ecotourism industry and near-universal literacy.
Chinchilla, the mother of a teenage son, is a social conservative who opposes abortion and gay marriage. She appealed both to Costa Ricans seeking a fresh face and those reluctant to risk the unknown…
This is wrong in so many ways. At least according to our establishment media.
A pro-capitalist candidate wins in South America — in a landslide. And she’s ‘anti-Green’? And she’s a woman?
(We thought all right-wingers were all chauvinist pigs.)
You can bet we will hear as little about this as possible from our media masters.
After all, she’s no Hillary Clinton.

Rage Against the Marxist Machine

This is an interesting article from Humberto Fontova of http://www.townhall.com/ to send to your friends who are enamored by Che or Chavez and think that Cuba may be a "bad country" but at least they have universal health coverage. To read more about Hugo Chavez's vision of Latin America click here.

Rage Against the Marxist Machine

Hugo Chavez’ inspirational debt to Ernesto “Che” Guevara is such that he titled his regime's socio-economic model, "Mision Che Guevara." Don't look for much of this in the MSM--but as I write Venezuela's youth are hitting the streets in the tens of thousands and with raised fists--AGAINST Castro/Che brand- socialism (having gotten a taste.)
In response, Chavez' police and brownshirt goon-squads (some mimicking their national leader by wearing Che T-shirts) bludgeon, tear gas, shoot and arrest hundreds of rebellious Venezuelan youth.

In fact, nothing could be more fitting. In a famous speech in 1961 Che Guevara denounced the very “spirit of rebellion" as "reprehensible." "Youth must refrain from ungrateful questioning of governmental mandates" commanded Guevara. "Instead they must dedicate themselves to study, work and military service."
Youth, wrote Guevara, “should learn to think and act as a mass." Those who “chose their own path" (as in growing long hair and listening to Yankee-Imperialist Rock & Roll) were denounced as "delinquents." In his famous speech Che Guevara even vowed, "to make individualism disappear from Cuba! It is criminal to think of individuals!" he raved.
As luck would have it, this very month GQ magazine modestly crowned itself the crowner of the “25 Most Stylish Men in the World.” Based on their cover, the top contender for the top spot seems like cheeky free-spirit Johnny Depp, who appears shirtless--all the better to display his Che Guevara pendant.
On top of jailing political prisoners at a higher rate than Stalin’s and murdering more people in its first three years than Hitler’s in its first six, here’s an (abbreviated) list of the things prohibited under penalty of jail and/or forced labor by the regime co-founded by the gentleman cheeky free-spirit Johnny Depp flaunts on his t-shirts, kerchiefs and pendants:
1. To say "Down with Fidel!" or “Che Sucks!” Cuba’s constitution” mandates 18 months in prison for anyone overheard cracking a joke against Castro or Che. If the neighborhood CDR (Committee for the Defense of the Revolution, imported to Cuba by the East German STASI, who grandfathered it from Hitler’s Gestapo) overhears any such deviation from “ideological purity” the regime “will want a word with you.”
2. Travel abroad without permission from the government. (which is granted mostly to regime toadies and hacks.
3. Switch jobs without regime permission.
4. Switch homes without regime permission...
5. Publish anything without regime permission.
6. Own a personal computer, a fax machine or a satellite antenna.
7. Access the Internet. Cuba’s Internet is under constant regime “surveillance.” By the secret police. Only 1.7% of the population has access to the web, a lower percentage than in Papua New Guinea. This is a nation that pre-Castro/Che had more telephones and TV’s per-capita than most European countries
8. Send your children to a private or religious school. All schools belong to the Communist party.
9. Tune in to any free radio or television station. In Cuba all media is property of the Stalinist regime.
12. Read books, magazines, or newspapers, not approved by the regime. All books, magazines, and newspapers in Cuba are published by the Stalinist regime.
13. Receive publications from abroad or from visitors. This is punishable by jail pursuant to Law 88.
14. Openly communicate with foreign journalists.
15. Visit or stay in hotels, restaurants, beaches or resorts for tourists. (regime permission is granted to a tiny number of regime hacks and toadies)
16. Accept gifts or donations from foreign visitors.
17. Seek employment with foreign companies allowed to do business in Cuba. (regime permission is required for employment with these accomplices with Stalinism.)
18. Own your own home or business.
19. Earn more than the wages established by the regime for all employees: $7-12 monthly for most jobs, $15-20 monthly for professionals, such as doctors and government officials.
20. Sell any personal belongings, services, homemade foods or crafts without regime permission...
21. Fish along the coastline or board a boat without regime permission.
22. Belong to any independent trade union. The regime controls all unions and no individual or collective bargaining is permitted; neither are strikes or protests.
23. Organize any artistic performance without regime permission. (Don’t look for this announced at the Sundance Film Festival but before Robert Redford released the Motorcycle Diaries he was mandated to travel to Cuba and give a special screening for approval to one of the film’s co/producers: Fidel Castro. So in effect, this Castroite provision can actually extend beyond Cuba’s borders.)
24. Select a doctor or hospital. The regime assigns them all.
25. Seek medical help outside of Cuba.
26. Hire an attorney. All are assigned by the regime.
28. Refuse to participate in an event or mass demonstration organized by the Communist Party. (Turn down such an “offer” and watch your food rations shrink and employment status crumble.)
29. Refuse to participate in "voluntary" work for adults and children. (see above)
30. Refuse to vote in a single party election featuring only Stalinist candidates nominated by the Stalinist regime.
31. Transport any food products for either personal or family consumption between provinces.
32. Slaughter a cow. This "felony" is sanctioned by five years imprisonment.
33. Purchase or sell real estate or land.
34. Select a career. In the selection process for universities (all of which belong to the Stalinist regime), regime apparatchiks select it for you, closely reviewing your record of “ideological purity,” as reported to them by regime snitches.
35. Invite a foreigner to spend the night at your home.
36. Buy milk in a regime outlet for any child older than seven years. Only Cuban children up to seven years of age have the right to pay a quota for milk. After that, parents can only obtain milk in the black market—if caught and their “ideological purity” (as reported by regime snitches) is in question, jail time is usually in the offing for the hapless Castro subject.
Today the world’s largest Che Guevara image adorns Cuba’s headquarters and torture chambers for its KGB and STASI-trained secret police. And cheeky free-spirit Johnny Depp seems delighted to flaunt this emblem from his pendants, shirts and kerchiefs. In a Vibe Magazine interview a few years back, Johnny Depp boasted of “digging” Che Guevara.
On the other hand, Venezuela’s youth see what’s coming with “Mission Che Guevara.” And as we saw in harrowing detail above—want no part of it.
“I bet you were expecting a Hollywood putz," boasted Depp to his obsequious Vibe magazine interviewer who seemed dazzled by Depp's penetrating sagacity. "Bet you expected some f**cking commodity without a brain in his head!"
Nothing of the sort, Mr Depp. In such as Hollywood and Cannes, you tower as an exceptional intellectual commodity.

About The Author
Humberto Fontova is the author of four books including Exposing the Real Che Guevara and the Useful Idiots Who idolize Him and Fidel; Hollywood's Favorite Tyrant. Visit http://www.hfontova.com/

Culture Challenge: Communism’s Forgotten Victims

An interesting article from Rebecca Hagelin about the MANY victims of Communism throughout the world over the years! Click the links near the bottom!

Culture Challenge: Communism’s Forgotten Victims
It's not often that I will write about issues of national security or national freedom in this e-newsletter. I normally like to focus on offering help for every day problems you might be facing in your family. However, given that this generation of children has no personal memory of a momentous historic event that affects all of our lives, and millions upon millions around the world, I thought it is important to address the anniversary of this great event: The fall of the Soviet Union.I hope you will make time to discuss the topic with your own kids so they can understand just how blessed they are to live in a free society. Perhaps you can use my Culture Challenge of the Week as a discussion guide, and visit one or more of the Web sites below with your child.
Culture Challenge of the Week: Communism’s Forgotten Victims
Three summers ago, I witnessed the dancing eyes and exuberant smiles of fellow humans who were tasting freedom for the very first time. I was on a Florida barrier island when some three-dozen very lucky Cubans escaped their captors, beat the odds in dangerous seas, and finally stepped into freedom on America’s shore. It seemed that they came from another time--almost like characters from an old black-and-white movie about war and oppression. As I processed what I was witnessing, I began to realize that they were flesh-and-blood representatives of millions like them who have suffered in the clutches of communist regimes. From the Soviet gulags, to China’s Tiananmen Square, to North Korea, to the tiny island of Cuba and other places in-between, 100 million men, women and children around the world have been victimized by communist thugs. Just 90 miles from our own border a third generation of Cuban people remains captive to the same brutal regime that terrorized their grandparents. Americans are often oblivious to the tragic reality that people in our own backyard, and around the world still suffer and die under brutal communist oppression.
The news media is all but silent about the bloody history while propagandists like Michael Moore get rich from extolling a radical socialist agenda and portraying the oppressive communist systems as benevolent.
Our children’s textbooks are strangely void of even a mention of the 14 million political prisoners, who either barely clung to life or died in inhumane Soviet gulags. Meanwhile, every year, thousands of Cubans are still imprisoned and severely punished in dank jails. Thousands of others leave their loved ones in the dark of night, slip into home-made rafts, and brave the deadly Florida Straits in search of freedom. Most Americans don’t realize that we are one month away from the 20th anniversary of the collapse of the Soviet Union. I will always remember how stunning it was to see the wall come tumbling down. But, I am just as stunned when teenagers and young adults have no idea just how significant that day was -- or just how wrong it is that 20 years later communism still has a strangle hold on many of our fellow humans. Ignorance may be bliss, but it can also be deadly. If we do not pass on the truth about communism’s bloody history, and if our culture continues to ignore the lingering infection and festering of communist ideology and brutality on mankind, we are in grave danger of falling victim to either it or one of its numerous insidiously evil ideological cousins.
The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation is dedicated to preserving the stories of real people who suffered, and continue to suffer, under communism's fist. Dr. Lee Edwards, chairman of the foundation -- and a powerful voice for the oppressed, a noted historian, and a perfect gentleman if ever there was one -- seeks to save future generations from oppression by honoring those who have stood in the face of it. Dr. Edward’s latest effort to share the horrible truth about communism includes a display of deeply disturbing paintings of human misery by 14-year gulag survivor, artist Nikolai Getman. The forlorn faces and eyes in these paintings are haunting and vacant -- a stark contrast to the joyful eyes of those I met on the beach that day. The Gulag Collection is on display through November 9 at The Heritage Foundation in Washington DC, and is free and open to the public.

For more information on how to view the collection visit www.Heritage.org.

You and your children can learn about those who stood up to communism, how to pay tribute to them, and how to help those who continue to suffer by visiting www.VictimsOfCommunism.org and the Global Museum on Communism at www.GlobalMuseumOnCommunism.org.

If you care to read more about the day I witnessed those Cuban refugees enjoy their first hours of freedom, visit my Web site where you can access my column archives. I was actually the only journalist on-site when they arrived, and had the incredible honor of filing the first news story about their successful landing. It was truly a life-changing experience for them -- and for me!

Hollywood's Bombs aka Movies

In another of what Michael Medved called "Hollywood versus America", Newsbusters has given an interesting article of current movies!

Hollywood to Produce Yet Another Leftwing Box Office Bomb
By P.J. Gladnick (Bio Archive)February 3, 2009

Tell me if this movie doesn't have "bomb" written all over it. First of all it is being written by Aaron Sorkin. Secondly it is being produced by George Clooney. Finally, the movie theme has BDS (Bush Derangement Syndrome) at its center. Is this not the perfect formula for yet another leftwing movie that is destined to die at the box office? How long before Hollywood finally figures out that such movies are always doomed to fail bigtime?

The most recent such box office failure of a leftwing film is "Che" which so far has grossed a grand total of only a million bucks. Perhaps the producers knew in advance that this flick would be a bomb which is why it is already available on Pay-Per-View.

Remember Oliver Stone's "W?" If you have forgotten it even existed, that is because it died a quick death at the box office immediately upon release last October.

Both of these movies suffered exactly the same fate as all the other leftwing movies produced in the past few years by Hollywood.
"Redacted?" DEAD!
"Rendition?" DEAD!
"Syriana?" DEAD!
"Stop Loss?" DEAD!
And on and on and on it goes. So do you think Hollywood has finally learned its lesson? According to Variety, the answer is no:

Warner Bros. has set Aaron Sorkin to write "The Challenge," a courtroom drama for George Clooney's Smoke House shingle.
Clooney is producing with Smoke House partner Grant Heslov. Clooney may direct and hopes to play Navy lawyer Charles Swift in the drama about the effort by Swift and Georgetown U. law professor Neal Katyal to ensure a fair trial for Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdan, who'd been held at Guantanamo Bay for five years.
WB and Smoke House got started on the project over the summer by optioning Jonathan Mahler book "The Challenge: Hamdan v. Rumsfeld and the Fight Over Presidential Power"
The courtroom drama wouldn't debate Hamdan's guilt or innocence but chart the dogged efforts of the two lawyers who sue the president because they feel the U.S. government has broken the law and violated the Constitution.
Captured in 2001 in Afghanistan while transporting two missiles in a car, Hamdan was ultimately convicted and sentenced to 5½ years by a military commission for providing material support to Al-Qaeda. He was cleared of the terrorism conspiracy charges that would have drawn a much longer sentence.
It sounds like the perfect formula for box office failure. And yet Hollywood will probably not learn the lesson even after "The Challenge" flops bigtime as it inevitably will. There is sure to be a scene in some Hollywood producer's office. An earnest promoter will be pitching a project called, say, "Gitmo," about the the supposed abuse and torture of the prisoners in Guantanamo by air conditioning and overfeeding. As a kicker the promoter will proclaim, "Hey, the script was written by Aaron Sorkin with George Clooney producing. Plus the camp commandant will be played by Matt Damon. It can't fail!"
But it will.
—P.J. Gladnick is a freelance writer and creator of the DUmmie FUnnies blog.