Chicago Friday evening news conference: Terrorism is a threat to every American, not just synagogues

Chicago Foreign policy expert Andy Martin says the threats directed at Jewish houses of worship are targeted at every American, and at civilization itself. Barack Obama is a failed leader in the foreign policy area. It is time for a change in policy and a change in approach at the White House. Martin suggests that Obama invite former President George Bush to a bipartisan meeting on the War Against Terror.

Foreign policy expert Andy Martin says that today’s terrorist provocations confirm that Barack Obama’s foreign policy is a failure

Andy has studied Middle East terrorism since the late 1960’s

ContrarianCommentary.com
“The Internet Powerhouse”
Andy Martin
Executive Editor

“Factually Correct, Not Politically Correct”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

ATTENTION DAYBOOK/ASSIGNMENT EDITORS

ANNOUNCEMENT OF FRIDAY EVENING NEWS CONFERENCE IN CHICAGO

Andy Martin says today’s terrorist incidents are an indictment of Barack Obama

Martin says the Obama administration’s pretense that terrorism does not exist is self-defeating

Martin says that all Americans must stand with the intended victims of today’s terrorist incidents

(CHICAGO)(October 29, 2010) Illinois foreign policy expert Andy Martin will hold a Friday evening news conference in Chicago to comment on the latest terrorist incidents directed at Chicago-area synagogues. Martin says that despite Barack Obama’s efforts to pretend that “terrorism does not exist,” America faces a genuine national security challenge.

Andy has over forty years of familiarity with Asia and the Middle East; he is regarded overseas as one of America’s most respected independent foreign policy, military and intelligence analysts. His analysis of the terrorist threat in Iran during the 1979-80 hostage crisis, and again in Iraq in 2003, were leading-edge predictions of what Americans faced in the future.

“We must stand with the Jewish community at this time,”Martin says. “Our friends and neighbors must know that we are united as a nation against our unseen enemies. An attack on any American is an attack on every American.

“The Constitution vests the presidency with primary responsibility for protecting this nation. Sadly, Barack Obama has failed his duty. He entered the White House claiming terrorism was a Bush-era fantasy and that his groveling to Islamic nations would improve our international standing. Mr. Obama was egregiously wrong. The people who protect us today are Bush holdovers; they are the people at the operational level who implement the security policies which were created years ago. Barack Obama is not pursuing terrorists vigorously enough, because he and Janet Napolitano do not believe they exist.

“Nevertheless, having criticized Obama and observed the inescapable, that Bush created our national security apparatus, I call on every American make an effort to work on a nonpartisan basis.

“The reality is that we are likely to live in the shadows of terrorism for decades, not years, not presidencies, not congresses. Decades. The ‘terrorist world’ is falling further and further behind civilization. The savages who mutilate women and oppress their own peoples are not likely to go away any time soon. Indeed, during the Obama era the enemies of civilization are becoming more, not less, popular because of Obama's ham-handed leadership. There is no ‘clash of civilizations’ as one scholar wrote. But there is a coming apart of civilization, as civilized nations advance into a bright future and backward nations continue to be held hostage to their internal terrorist mechanisms.

“We are not attacking terrorist nations, though we must remain vigilant to protect ourselves against the threat some of their citizens pose. Terrorist nations are attacking America, Israel and the entire civilized world.

“I send this message to Mr. Obama: wake up! We cannot be afraid to make peace, but we must be prepared to make war, and to guard every American and our borders with the utmost in technology and security. Maybe it’s time to invite George Bush to the White House for a bipartisan effort.

“After I survived the Vietnam era, I hoped peace would come. I was wrong. When I initially went to Iran and Afghanistan in 1979, I thought ‘maybe it will end after this.’ I was wrong. Living in Iraq in 2003 I hoped, again, that peace might come. It hasn’t. I am convinced we face a semi-permanent terrorist threat and we must be prepared to accept terrorism as a fact of life for ourselves and our children.

“Sadly, the White House is not a place for on-the-job training. Barack Obama and his minions were unrealistic two years ago. Maybe now reality will set in. Maybe. Obama apparently does not like to attend Church. I do suggest he attend a synagogue service this weekend to affirm that our Jewish neighbors can count on a united America to stand up for their right to live in peace and security here at home, even as we press the Israeli government to adopt a practical approach to peace with their own Palestinian neighbors.

“Politically, a terrorist threat the weekend before the election does not help Obama. Chris Cilizza of the Washington post is wrong. But this latest attempt to intimidate Jewish houses of worship should be seen as a threat to every American. I take it as a threat to my own church. We must react accordingly.”

Andy Martin is the author of the [2000] Andy Martin Peace Plan for the Middle East. The ideas he espoused a decade ago have increasingly become the core proposals for peace on all sides. Andy Martin has been associated with the study and analysis of terrorism and revolutionary war since the 1960’s when he became involved with Professor Bernard Fall. Martin is the executive director of the Revolutionary War Research Center which studies terrorism and asymmetrical warfare.

October 29th news conference details:

WHO:

Internet Powerhouse and foreign policy expert Andy Martin

WHERE:

Sidewalk news conference, SE corner of Huron and Wabash,
Chicago (weather permitting)

WHEN: Friday, October 29th 8:00 P.M.

WHAT:

Andy Martin says that Obama’s foreign policy initiatives have failed to discourage terrorists

MEDIA CONTACT:(866) 706-2639; Cell (917) 664-9329

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ABOUT ANDY: Chicago Public Radio calls Andy Martin a “boisterous Internet activist.” Andy is the legendary New York and Chicago-based muckraker, author, Internet columnist, radio talk show host, broadcaster and media critic. He has over forty years of background in radio and television and is the dean of Illinois media and communications. He promotes his best-selling book, “Obama: The Man Behind The Mask” and his Internet movie "Obama: The Hawai'i years." Martin has been a leading corruption fighter in Illinois for over forty years. He is currently sponsoring www.AmericaisReadyforReform.com
Andy is the Executive Editor and publisher of the “Internet Powerhouse,” http://www.contrariancommentary.com/. He comments on regional, national and world events with more than four decades of investigative and analytical experience. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois College of Law and is a former adjunct professor of law at the City University of New York (LaGuardia CC, Bronx CC).

UPDATES: www.twitter.com/AndyMartinUSAwww.facebook.com/AndyMartin Andy's columns are also posted at ContrarianCommentary.blogspot.com; contrariancommentary.wordpress.com.
contrariancommentary.typepad.com[NOTE: We try to correct any typographical errors in this story on our blogs; find our latest edition there.]

MEDIA CONTACT: (866) 706-2639 or CELL (917) 664-9329E-MAIL: AndyMart20@aol.com © Copyright by Andy Martin 2010

ANDY MARTIN: You must see the new Palestinian film “Salt of This Sea”

Middle East expert Andy Martin says the Palestinian-American production “Salt of the Sea” is a vivid portrayal of the complexities and contradicitons of modern Israel and Palestine. He recommends the movie as an amalgam of “Bonnie and Clyde,” “Easy Rider” and the “Three Amigos” all mixed into one. Martin, who has lived and worked in the Middle East for over forty years, says the film presents Israel and occupied Palestine as they really are on a day-to-day basis.

Internet powerhouse Andy Martin says “You must see ‘Salt of This Sea’”

Andy comments on a dramatic and entertaining new Palestinian film

ContrarianCommentary.com
“The Internet Powerhouse”
Andy Martin
Executive Editor

“Factually Correct, Not Politically Correct”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Andy Martin says if you want to know what modern Israel and Palestine are like, see this film

(NEW YORK)(August 14, 2010) Friday afternoon I received a desperate email from a woman who was promoting a new film just opening in Greenwich Village. I went. The movie, “Salt of this Sea,” is a Palestinian-oriented production filmed on location.

You must see “Salt”. I enjoyed it immensely. I love the Middle East and so I have a special affection for the setting. The film is both a sad and loveable tale of a region that is left increasingly barren by the legacy of historical errors orchestrated at the end of World War II.

The movie resonated on many levels. As I watched the opening sequences I thought, yes, the Israelis really are that abusive when you visit Israel. I have stories to tell.

When “Soraya” crosses from the “West Bank” into Israel, the clanking of the bars at the Qalandia Checkpoint is frighteningly real. People are treated worse than cattle. I was there. The film is so real I felt I was back in the West Bank. And in Jerusalem.

Some of my newer readers associate me more with local issues. But for parts of the past five decades I have been focused on Asia and the Middle East.

How to describe the film? It is a Palestinian version of “Bonnie and Clyde,” “Easy Rider” and the “Three Amigos” all rolled into one. Although the movie is deadly serious and very dramatic, you can’t help but laugh at the Erich von Stroheim accents of the Israelis who have created a miniature replica of the Third Reich on the Mediterranean. “Vhy are you here?” “Vere are you staying?” “Vere is your second passport?” They really talk that way.

People who support Israel should see the film to get a true view of the nightmare that Israelis have created for Palestinians; Israelis have also given birth to a self-defeating, self-destructive nightmare for themselves as well.

The movie is dedicated to the memory of an Israeli massacre at al-Dawayima.

Ironically, while the United States supports “two nations” for “two peoples,” and that is the popular mantra, the Israelis have gone us one better and created “three prisons (including Gaza) for two peoples.” The Palestinian prisons are more degrading and dehumanizing. But Palestinians have a spirit of survival that will ultimately triumph.

The Israelis, on the other hand, have also imprisoned and dehumanized themselves in the process of degrading their neighbors. The Israeli historical narrative is gradually dissolving as World War II becomes a distant memory.

Soraya is an American-born Palestinian who wants to reclaim her family roots in Jaffa. Her family was pushed out by the 1948 Israeli invasion of Palestine. She visits Israel to see a friend in the West Bank and finds that the Israelis have completely rigged the system against local residents. Palestinians live under a brutal occupation. [Full disclosure: when the Israelis “liberated” the West Bank in 1967, they really were greeted as liberators; so it wasn’t always this way. The Israelis worked hard to make enemies of their Palestinian friends, and with typical Israeli efficiency they succeeded.]

In a “Bonnie and Clyde” escapade, Soraya, her chaste new “guy” and a third friend decide to stage a bank robbery to reclaim the money her family left on deposit in 1948. From there we transition into “Easy Rider” as the three amigos pretend to be Israelis, dress like Israelis, steal Israeli license plates for their van and head for Jerusalem and Jaffa. Good Morning Jerusalem!

At the premier on Friday star Suheir Hammad, who portrays Soraya, was there to describe how the film was produced. The “Israelis” were all genuine Israeli actors. And yes, they do talk with that faux Germanic accent over there. The abuses Israelis inflict on visitors I have personally witnessed. The film is as real as real can be.

Parts of the film are so real they were recorded as they actually happened. When helpless Palestinians were climbing a fence to cross another barrier between Jerusalem and the West Bank, right in the middle of a shooting sequence, the cameraman captured the indignity as it was actually unfolding. That is why I say if you have not seen Jerusalem and Israel today, see this film.

Israelis themselves have freedom of movement, and a much more open society (which is why gay Arabs covet a pass to Israel). But no one can ultimately live free in a police state, and Israel is becoming the ultimate police state, controlled through political propaganda, military force and bogus “democracy.”

I have never seen a more vivid snapshot of the sadistic reality of modern Israel. “Your papers, please. For your own security, of course” could be the Israeli national motto. But the film also portrays Israel’s freedom and prosperity, for some of the inhabitants. Even if their Israeli government is evil, most Israelis are not. It is a great tragedy that Israelis and Palestinians have dissipated their energy and creativity in perpetual war. There is no winner.

Israelis will retort that as a result of the Arab backlash to the expulsion of the Palestinians in 1948, hundreds of thousands of Jews who had lived peacefully for centuries in Arab lands also experienced the same expulsion and displacement as the Palestinians. One of my former girlfriends was Jewish, born in Alexandria, Egypt, forced to become a refugee.

And in case you didn’t know, Baghdad was once the greatest center of Jewish life in the world.

Bottom line. I love all of ‘em. I do not hate the Israelis (although I condemn their government) and I love the Palestinians (although I am deeply concerned by the increasing fundamentalism that has crept into their society).

One of the most racist, Nazi-like propaganda statements ever uttered was Israeli Prime Minister Golda (“who was born in Milwaukee”) Meir's claim that Palestine was a “land without a people, for a people without a land.” The movie dramatizes how Palestinians retain the memory of their homes in what is now Israel. Many of these residences have survived since 1948 and are still there. Joseph Goebbels could not have created a bigger lie and a grosser historical injustice than Israeli Prime Minister Meir’s false claim that Palestine was “uninhabited” when she arrived.

I’m not Jewish, of course. But I grew up in a very philo-Semitic home where the Holocaust was a topic of regular discussion. My father helped train the Jewish Brigade in the British Army. A London newspaper editor once described the Middle East conflict as one between “two wronged peoples.” But historical truth always triumphs in the end. Palestine was not a “land without a people.” You see the descendents of the people who actually lived in Palestine in 1948 portrayed in “Salt of this Sea.”

Where is the Israeli Gorbachev to make peace with the world? Israelis are mired in their own lies, a nation living on borrowed time. The hourglass is getting closer to empty.

Only when Israelis admit the injustices they inflicted in stealing their homeland from the indigenous population can they begin the process of reconciliation and permanent peace. That is what Soraya demands and what she does not receive.

The current householder of Soraya’s ancestral home is a sympathetic pro-peace Israeli. In a twist, when Soraya can’t stand the frustration of confronting the present, she leaves. But one of her copains stays behind with the Israeli girl, proving love knows no checkpoints and no ideologies. Or was it sex? Who knows?

Before departing Soraya vehemently demands that the Israeli occupant of her family home “admit” to the injustices of 1948 as the price of remaining in possession. But the Israeli is not mired in the surreal past. She has erased her history to avoid the painful reality of how her country was founded.

Still, the Israeli girl gets the Palestinian boy in the movie. That’s probably closer to the truth than either side wants to admit.

Don’t go to see “Salt of this Sea” to get angry or be hateful. Laugh a little, or even a lot. Remember that for one couple in the movie love triumphs over all. Reflect on the likelihood that if Israelis persist with their racist policies they will ultimately fail to establish permanent roots for their Reich-in-the-Desert. Palestinians may ultimately prevail, after enduring decade-after-decade of unspeakable and unnecessary abuses and injustices. All subsidized by your American tax dollars.

Time is not on Israel’s side.

This is a great little film. It conveys the sad truths of Palestine with a light touch and an occasional smile. Think Bonne and Clyde, Easy Rider and the Three Amigos all mixed into one.

[If you see the movie, whichever “side” you believe in, send me your comments and we’ll do a follow-up.]

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ABOUT ANDY: Andy Martin is the legendary New York and Chicago-based muckraker, author, Internet columnist, radio talk show host, broadcaster and media critic. He has over forty years of background in radio and television and is the dean of Illinois media and communications. He promotes his best-selling book, “Obama: The Man Behind The Mask” and his Internet movie "Obama: The Hawai'i years." Martin has been a leading corruption fighter in Illinois for over forty years. He is currently sponsoring www.AmericaisReadyforReform.com
Andy is the Executive Editor and publisher of the “Internet Powerhouse,” http://www.contrariancommentary.com/. He comments on regional, national and world events with more than four decades of investigative and overseas experience. He has over forty years of familiarity with Asia and the Middle East; internationally he is regarded as one of America’s most respected independent foreign policy, military and intelligence analysts. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois College of Law and is a former adjunct professor of law at the City University of New York (LaGuardia CC, Bronx CC).

UPDATES: www.twitter.com/AndyMartinUSAwww.facebook.com/AndyMartin Andy's columns are also posted at ContrarianCommentary.blogspot.com; contrariancommentary.wordpress.com.
contrariancommentary.typepad.com[NOTE: We try to correct any typographical errors in this story on our blogs; find our latest edition there.]

MEDIA CONTACT: (866) 706-2639 or CELL (917) 664-9329E-MAIL: AndyMart20@aol.com © Copyright by Andy Martin 2010

Is Barack Obama getting ready to "crush" the Israel lobby?

Obama sends Israelis a message: do they get it? Foreign policy/Obama expert Andy Martin suggests Barack Obama may assert his authority in foreign policy by imposing a peace plan on the Netanyahu regime.

Internet Powerhouse Andy Martin says Barack Obama could be planning to deliver a body slam to the Israeli military regime in Tel Aviv

The "Israel lobby" may become a targeted, endangered species

US intelligence archives on 9/11 may be a ticking time bomb for the Israelis

ANDY MARTIN
Executive Editor
ContrarianCommentary.com

“Factually Correct, Not
Politically Correct”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Was Barack Obama's "Annapolis" warning a "telegraphed punch" to the new Israeli regime?

Andy Martin, who broke into foreign policy as a "China Watcher," is back watching; this time he's watching the White House

Middle East expert Martin says Obama may hold all the cards, and Israel may hold none, in the coming shootout over US policy in the Middle East

(NEW YORK)(April 9, 2009) Are we about to witness the death knell of the Israel lobby? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Here are some admittedly provocative thoughts.

Five years ago I stumbled across Barack Obama. He has come to dominate my writing. But my original background is in foreign policy analysis, both in the Middle East (40 years ago) and Asia (42 years ago).

During the Cold War, it was difficult to penetrate the secretive societies of Russia and China. The bulk of US intelligence was forced to operate from the sidelines. Hong Kong was a center of "China watching." Likewise, "Kremlin Watchers" were a regular feature of U.S.-based and European analysis.

Welcome back to those days of yesteryear. Only this time we are watch the White House for subtle hints of policy shifts and priorities. 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue: the New Kremlin.

One of the oldest aspects of intelligence and counter-intelligence is scrutinizing published or public information for slips. The United Kingdom has just lost a counter-terror chief because he sloppily carried an operational plan out in the open where it could be photocopied.

Was President Barack Obama's speech in Ankara a tip on where his ME policy is headed? Maybe. We'll be watching.

First, a warning or limitation: this column is not an attack on Israel. Despite Obama's misguided efforts to smear me as an "anti-Semite," I am not remotely so. I just call'em as I see'em. I am not pro or anti-Israel. I am only pro-American. Period. Ironically, many people who agree with my criticisms of Obama vehemently disagree with my views on the Middle East.

Second, I am not suggesting below that Israelis were to blame for 9/11. I am only stating the obvious: Israelis knew more about preparations for the attacks on 9/11 than George Bush was willing to admit to the American people. Those hidden truths about 9/11 are now under the absolute control of Barry O.

Finally, during the 2008 campaign Israeli intelligence was behind some of the most absurd and exaggerated attacks on BHO's personal life and family history. Obama has a quiet motive for pay back.

Now consider several basic facts: (1) Obama does not like the daily grind of governing. He sees himself as an emperor, a Sun God, not as an administrator. He has never administered anything. (2) Turning around US economy is slow and laborious; that kind of drawn out process is not Barry O's thing. Finally, (3) a president can still crack the whip in foreign policy. And nowhere is that more true than in the Middle East.

Obama may be about to crack the whip.

As an added incentive to crush the new Israeli regime, Obama has been widely criticized and characterized as "caving in" to the demands of European leaders on his recent visit there. What better way to flaunt his authority than to do a "Rick Wagoner" on foreign policy and squash the Israeli termites that want to undermine his foreign policy?

Avigdor Lieberman is the Moldovan thug and racist who is widely regarded in Israel as an oppressor of the Palestinian people and lives on the occupied West Bank. Could there be a more glaring symbol of Israeli arrogance than elevating a gangster like Lieberman to high government office while he lives on land stolen from the Palestinians?

Israel was not responsible for the 9/11 attacks on the USA. Be clear about that. But Israel was complicit in concealing information about the preparations. Israeli intelligence was breaking US laws by spying in the United States on the Islamic terrorists who were planning the World Trade Center attacks. Israeli intelligence allowed the attacks to go forward because Israelis could not warn the CIA and FBI without blowing their cover. (Parenthetically, that is why American-Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard will never be paroled; Israelis continue to break the rules; US intelligence experts know that.)

Who in 2001 would have thought that extreme anti-war elements would gain control of the US government and, through the Obama White House, control of US intelligence history about what Israelis knew and when they knew it concerning 9/11? The election of an Obamaesque president in 2001 seemed very remote indeed.

If I were in the Mossad or Shin Bet today, I would have a real reason to fear BHO's control of historical information about Israel's anti-American intelligence operations on US soil.

With his control of the still-secret information concerning Israel's role in concealing plans for 9/11, Obama has the hip-pocket potential to whip up a virulent anti-Israel firestorm virtually at the snap of a finger.

With these underlying conditions, we examine Obama's remarks in Turkey that he is committed to the "Annapolis" process for Middle East Peace. Just a few days earlier Lieberman had categorically erased Annapolis. Who Da Boss? Avigdor Lieberman or Barry O? Take your pick. Lieberman has made himself prime real estate to be flattened by Obama's bulldozer. Avigdor Lieberman, call Rick Wagoner.

Israelis have always been fearful they could not trust Obama, which is why they acted clandestinely to undermine him during the 2008 campaign. Obama knows that unless he crushes the Israelis he will never be the master of US foreign policy. I have been a skeptic on Mr. Obama's bona fides for Middle East peace. I may have to revise that view.

Israel lobby: the signs are out there to be seen. Your days could be numbered. With Obama, you're never sure. Could be. Not will be.

Today's "observations" in the New York Times could be the "telegraphed punch" that warns Israel what is coming if Lieberman is permitted to keep disrespecting the USA:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/09/us/
politics/09web-cooper.html

It is obvious that the United States cannot allow a crooked pipsqueak like Avigdor Lieberman to thumb his nose at US foreign policy. Benjamin Netanyahu, who prides himself on knowing America from his years living here, should know better. Netanyahu may have created a "government" that is programmed to self-destruct. Zipi Livni is waiting in the wings.

As I said, the "Kremlin Watching" and "China watching" style of American intelligence and counter-intelligence is back in style. Only this time we are watching the White House for signs of policy change. It's enough to make you feel young again. Barry O, we hardly know ye.

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Readers of Obama: The Man Behind The Mask, say the book is still the only gold standard and practical handbook on Barack Obama's unfitness for the presidency. Buy it.
Book orders: Amazon.com or http://OrangeStatePress.com. Immediate shipment from Amazon.com or signed copies (delayed for signing) from the publisher are available.
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Please give generously. Our ability to fight and defeat Barack Obama's political agenda is directly dependent on the generosity of every American.
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Andy Martin is a legendary Chicago muckraker, author, Internet columnist, radio talk show host, broadcaster and media critic. He has over forty years of broadcasting background in radio and television and is the dean of Illinois media and communications. He is currently promoting his best-selling book, Obama: The Man Behind The Mask. Andy is the Executive Editor and publisher of www.ContrarianCommentary.com.

Martin comments on regional, national and world events with more than four decades of experience. He is regarded overseas as America’s most respected independent foreign policy, military and intelligence analyst on Asia and the Middle East. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois College of Law and is a former adjunct professor of law at the City University of New York. He is an announced candidate for Barack Obama’s former U. S. Senate seat.

UPDATES: www.twitter.com/AndyMartinUSA

His columns are also posted at ContrarianCommentary.blogspot.com; contrariancommentary.wordpress.com.
[NOTE: We frequently correct typographical errors and additions/subtractions on our blogs, where you can find the latest edition of this release.]

MEDIA CONTACT: (866) 706-2639 or CELL (917) 664-9329 (not always on)
E-MAIL: AndyMart20@aol.com
© Copyright by Andy Martin 2009.