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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
May 27, 2009
/ 4 Sivan 5769
Rare Sighting: Reason in the Senate
By
Paul Greenberg
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Will miracles never cease? Reason raised its seldom-seen head last week in of all places, the United States Senate.
In an extraordinary show of near-unanimity, not to mention an extraordinary show of common sense, the senators voted 90 to 6 against funds to close the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay.
It was a prudent decision. Gitmo is now home to hundreds of (a) the most dangerous characters on Earth, (b) the most fanatical America-haters on Earth, and (c) both. The prison camp, now Red Cross-approved, provides medical attention, room and board, due process, recreation facilities, prayer calls and a strictly halal diet, and many another amenity for our guests. Indeed, Guantanamo has become a kind of model of its kind. Why close it without a clear alternative, or close it at all?
That's the question confronting Barack Obama, who has vowed to shut down the place essentially for Public Relations reasons. Our enemies don't like it. And they've made Guantanamo an effective theme of their all too convincing rhetoric, just as Barack Obama did during his presidential campaign.
And yet, once in office and given the kind of information he should have taken seriously even before he was sworn in, our president has rethought some of his glib pronouncements during the campaign. Especially about threats to the national security.
For instance, Mr. Obama now recognizes that the military commissions he used to denounce as a "legal black hole" have a long and honorable history, and have proven the best way to handle some of these bad actors. (They're not officially "illegal combatants" any more. Just as, according to the administration's newspeak, the war on terror the president is pursuing may no longer be referred to by that name.)
Mr. Obama also has changed his mind about releasing photos of prisoners being abused in Iraq and Afghanistan, having come to understand what a field day our enemies would have with them even if the abuse they depict has already been the subject, quite properly, of military justice. Good for him. Nobody ever mistook Barack Obama for a slow learner. He's not scared by that hobgoblin of little minds, a foolish consistency.
But the president and commander-in-chief has yet to reverse his decision to close Gitmo. He's still for shutting the place down without specifying what he'll do with its occupants.
But this time the usually passive Democratic Congress refused to go along. And rightly so. Before leaving one location for another, it is best to know where you're going. Which is all Congress is really asking. It's a fair question, but the president was so unnerved by this rare sighting of reason in the Congress of the United States that he promptly did what he always does when in a fix: Give a speech.
It doesn't matter what Barack Obama says in a speech so long as he gives one. Among the things he didn't say this time was just where he'd put the dangerous fanatics now locked up at Guantanamo. A minor detail. The only thing that seems to count with American public opinion is that he's given a speech, not its substance, if any.
Indeed, from a purely political perspective, it's better that he say nothing. That way, there's nothing to criticize. See the glowing reception accorded his saying nothing much about abortion at Notre Dame. There would be much to commend this president's value-free style of politics if the sole aim of politics were to sound good. And he sounds brilliant.
That's the empty essence of his Mr. Cool style; few are those who can hope to get away with it. This president has mastered it. It's his gift. And it explains why he's in the best of positions for a politician. To quote one observer, this president gets good press just for getting good press.
Who were the six senators who were ready to shut down Guantanamo without knowing where its occupants would go? Dick Durbin of Illinois, Tim Harkin of Iowa, Pat Leahy of Vermont, Carl Levin of Michigan, and Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse of little Rhode Island. So can we count on them to volunteer their states to house our all-too-distinguished guests at Gitmo? You know the answer to that one.
Even some of those senators who voted against shutting down Guantanamo say the place should be shuttered eventually. Why? To quote Dianne Feinstein, the senator from California: "Guantanamo is used by al-Qaida as a symbol of American abuse of Muslims and is fanning the flames of anti-Americanism around the world."
Can she believe that, if there were no Guantanamo, our enemies wouldn't find another propaganda theme to rally America-haters around the world?
So how about if we just tell al-Qaida to go to Hell? And add that Gitmo will remain open and ready for business if those who kill innocents in the name of Allah are lucky enough, or cooperative enough, to make it there alive.
At least for the moment, the president is sticking with his vow to shut down Guantanamo, even if he's reversed himself on one campaign stand after another. It is not his changes of course in this war on terror that disturb. On the contrary, they're commendable. They show a realistic recognition of the kind of world in which we live. There's nothing wrong with his having second and better thoughts; it's just that he hasn't had quite enough of them yet.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Paul Greenberg, editorial page editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, has won the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing. Send your comments by clicking here.
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