Miss Kelly

Dutch Parliamentarian Geert Wilders to Speak in Stoughton MA

Geert Wilders, Dutch Parliamentarian and outspoken critic of radical Islam, is coming to the U.S. this week.  He's speaking at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on Friday, and luckily for us eastern Massachusetts folks, he's speaking in Stoughton this Wednesday and showing the film Fitna.  Details:

Ahavath Torah Congregation
1179 Central St
Stoughton, MA 02072

February 25, 2009
6:30pm-7:30pm

More on the presentation here.   Jill at The Business of Life wrote about Wilders being "banned in Britain" last week.  He was denied entry to England where he had been invited to a showing of Fitna at the House of Lords. She's got beaucoup links to other commentators on Wilders and Engand's pathetic treatment of the Dutch Parliamentarian. 

A Beautiful Deathbed Story

Death can be beautiful, they say.  Here's a quite moving story by British expat writer Michael Wright, who stayed with a frail widow friend for her last few hours on earth, in a hospital room, holding her hand, talking and singing hymns.  Excerpts:

Fat Tuesday Followed by Ash Wednesday

Today is Fat Tuesday, which nowadays means much revelry and partying, but in the olden days, it referred to using up the dairy and fats in your house before fasting for Lent.   Lent can be a pwoerul wonderful season.  Luckily, marketers haven't figured out a way to capitalize on abstinence, almsgiving, confession and such.  So we're free to dwell on our mortality and salvation, devote ourselves to prayer, and reconcile ourselves with God without annoying music blaring in stores or a barrage of advertising.  A blessing, it is, having this religious season be ignored by the market.

So what's it gonna be for you this Lent?  Giving up on sweets, alcohol, smoking, gossip?  Devoting time every day to prayer, the rosary, Eucharistic Adoration or reading the Bible?  What will you give up so you can spend that money on a terrific charity?  (Speaking about the rosary, The Anchoress has a nice "weird" blogpost on that here.) Many opportunities in Lent, get ready!   And it's not just a Catholic thing either.

Still Life Inspires "O Magnum Mysterium"

More of an Advent article than a Lenten one....Composer Morten Lauridsen explains how a 17th century still life inspired his musical composition of O Magnum Mysterium, in the Wall Street Journal of all places!

 

Excerpts:

"Francisco de Zurbarán's 'Still Life With Lemons, Oranges and a Rose' normally hangs on a back wall of one of the smaller rooms in the Norton Simon Museum of Art in Pasadena. Like a large black magnet, it draws its viewers from the entry into its space and deep into its mystical world.... The painting projects an aura of mystery, powerful in its unadorned simplicity, its mystical quality creating an atmosphere of deep contemplation. Its effect is immediate, transcendent and overpowering. Before it one tends to speak in hushed tones, if at all."

"...But it is much more than a still life."

Aafia Siddiqi NOT Unfit for Trial

Interesting reversal this morning of a previous finding of Aafia Siddiqui's mental state and her ability to stand trial, from the NY Times:

"A federal prosecutor said Monday that two psychiatrists who have examined Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist charged with trying to kill an American soldier and F.B.I. agents while in custody in Afghanistan, said she was not suffering from psychological illness that would render her unfit for trial. That assessment was in contrast to a previous evaluation of Ms. Siddiqui’s fitness."

Court Hearing for Aafia Siddiqui Today in NYC

How timely....

COURT DATE FOR DR. AAFIA SIDDIQUI

Monday, February 23th, 2009

United States District Court
500 Pearl St.
Manhattan, New York
@ 9:00am

Aafia's Ex-Husband Speaks Out - 2) Most Press Reports are False

Continuation of post below.  The ex-husband of captured terrorist supporter Affia Siddiqui spoke out recently about his ex-wife and children, in an interview in The International News: . 

"KARACHI: After six years of silence, Dr Muhammad Amjad Khan, ex-husband of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, has finally spoken up and says that most of the press reports that relate to his former wife as well as his children are false. In an exclusive talk with The News, he said that most claims are being propagated to garner public support and sympathy for Dr Aafia but are one-sided and in most instances untrue."

Aafia's Ex-Husband Speaks Out - 1) Siddiqui Family is Not Truthful

I've been meaning to post an update on the Aafia Siddiqui story, which seems to have grown a bit cold in the U.S.  Not so in Pakistan, where there are continuing calls for the release and return of Siddiqui.  Her ex-husband, Dr Muhammad Amjad Khan, recently spoke out about his ex-wife and their children.  Aafia and Khan lived for several years in Boston, while she attended MIT and her huband was an anesthesiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital.  Dr. Khan wrote a letter to the editor to Dawn magazine last December (2008), making a number of statements about the case, including these:

• After their divorce, Aafia would not let him see their three children.
• Khan was concerned that Aafia's political ambitions would be detrimental to the children's welfare.
• Aafia's mother lied in a sworn deposition (August 2003), stating that the FBI told the family that Aafia and the children were safe with them (FBI).  Khan said the FBI told the family that they were looking for Aafia and didn't know where the children were.
• Aafia's uncle, S. H. Faruqi, published an article saying that he met Aafia in January 2008, her face was altered by plastic surgery and that she had a national ID card under a fictitious name.
• Aafia's sister Fauzia was given custody of 12-year old son Ahmad.  Khan wants to know why he wasn't given custody of his own child.  The family hasn't let Khan see his own son.

Excerpts from this wrenching letter:

Geert Wilders Coming to Boston Next Week

Wow!  Geert Wilders is coming to Boston next week.  A must-see! Details from Solomonia:

Geert Wilders to speak at

Ahavath Torah Congregation
1179 Central St
Stoughton, MA 02072

February 25, 2009
6:30pm-7:30pm

Controversial Dutch lawmaker and filmmaker Geert Wilders, banned last week from setting foot on British soil, will appear at Ahavath Torah Congregation on February 25th, 2009 from 6:30-7:30pm.

Mr. Wilders, a current member of the Dutch Parliament, is currently facing prosecution in his homeland for his outspoken criticism of radical Islam. For anyone who is interested in discussing the defense of Western Civilization, freedom of speech and the free exchange of ideas and liberty, Mr. Wilders' case should provoke serious thought and attention.

Now There's Some Cool Tote Bags

Hah, Archie McPhee has a great selection of tote bags to show your feelings about the eco-zealots. Several amusing sayings available.  Only $6.95, well worth it.  As the description says:

"Sick and tired of this whole 'green' movement? Take one of these bags into your local grocery store to let people know how you really feel. Each 16-1/2" x 13" x 5-3/4" faux canvas bag is sure to ruffle the feathers of do-gooders with hybrid cars." 

Underwater Valentines (and Cupid) in Manila

Perhaps the oddest photo in this gallery of Valentine's Day as celebrated around the world, this from Manila's Ocean Park:

While this holiday has been largely divorced from its religious roots, it's caught on around the world (except for Wahabi Saudis, of course, and Sheikh Qaradawi's followers).   Express a little love to your loved ones!  Happy Valentine's Day!

Head of Bridges TV Beheads His Wife in Buffalo NY

From the Buffalo News:

"Orchard Park police are investigating a particularly gruesome killing, the beheading of a woman, after her husband — an influential member of the local Muslim community — reported her death to police Thursday."

"Muzzammil Hassan is the founder and chief executive officer of Bridges TV, which he launched in 2004, amid hopes that it would help portray Muslims in a more positive light."

Aasiya Hassan had recently filed for divorce.  (Photo of Muzzammil Hassan and his wife Aasiya from Buffalo News.)

Wow.  As Robert Spencer says, "...now that he has beheaded his wife, I'm afraid this prominent moderate Muslim will only be feeding those negative perceptions."  Daniel Pipes followed NY-based Bridges after its launch and has a listing of articles about it here.   A New York Sun article from 2006 wrote about the Bridges network programming, noting that the station presented a variety of Muslim community leaders and scholars. 

Johann Hari Defends Freedom of Speech...

...which includes the freedom to offend.  From British writer Johann Hari, avowed secularist:

"Last week, I wrote an article defending free speech for everyone – and in response there have been riots, death threats, and the arrest of an editor who published the article."

American Values - from Sully to Suley?

Peggy Noonan sees the question of whether American survives to be more about values than economics.  The contrast of heroic Chesley B. Sullenberger versus the subsidized, deluded Nadya Suleman:

"A major reason people are blue about the future is not the stores, not the Treasury secretary, not everyone digging in. It is those things, but it's more than that, and deeper.."

"It's Sully and Suleman, the pilot and 'Octomom,' the two great stories that are twinned with the era. Sully, the airline captain who saved 155 lives by landing that plane just right—level wings, nose up, tail down, plant that baby, get everyone out, get them counted, and then, at night, wonder what you could have done better. You know the reaction of the people of our country to Chesley B. Sullenberger III: They shake their heads, and tears come to their eyes. He is cool, modest, competent, tough in the good way. He's the only one who doesn't applaud Sully. He was just doing his job."

Reagan vs Obama - Spooky!

Great video, hat tip The Anchoress:

Reagan quoted Norman Thomas, Socialist, who said this:

"The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism, but under the name of liberalism they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program until one day America will be a socialist nation without ever knowing how it happened."

"You can't end a war, you either win it or lose it."

From BlackFive, a message to our President, who keeps saying he'll "end the war in Iraq."

"My biggest fear about a President Obama was that he has a totally flawed view of what to do about our two ongoing wars. He was spectacularly clueless about what to do in Iraq and had we followed his bad advice we would have lost there. His continual demand that we 'end' that war is symptomatic of his misunderstanding of the gravity of having US troops on a battlefield."

"It is just this simple Mr. Wannabe Commander in Chief, and I say wannabe because while you hold the title you haven't earned it or the trust of the troops yet...."

"You can't end a war, you either win it or lose it."

Read (or watch) the whole thing.

AP Reporter Disputes Dear Leader's Claims

This is surprising and good to see.  Calvin Woodward, an AP reporter, covered President Obama's press conference tonight and actually challenged Obama's statements.  Good sign, journalists doing their job again instead of shamelessly promoting this unaccomplished, socialist president. 

"President Barack Obama had it both ways Monday when he promoted his stimulus plan in Indiana. He bragged about getting Congress to produce a package with no pork, yet boasted it will do good things for a Hoosier highway and a downtown overpass, just the kind of local projects lawmakers lard into big spending bills."

Socialized Medicine Tucked Away in Stimulus Bill

This isn't much talked about, but there are health provisions in the Obama/Redi/Pelosi "Stimulus" Bill that are clearly a jump-start to socialized medicine in the United States.  These provision have got Tom Daschle's fingerprints all over them.  It's bad enough we are heading towards socialized medicine (so famously unsuccessful in Canada and England), but tell me again what on earth this stuff is doing in a so-called economic stimulus bill?? From Betsy McCaughey at Bloomberg Press:

"Republican Senators are questioning whether President Barack Obama’s stimulus bill contains the right mix of tax breaks and cash infusions to jump-start the economy."

"Tragically, no one from either party is objecting to the health provisions slipped in without discussion. These provisions reflect the handiwork of Tom Daschle, until recently the nominee to head the Health and Human Services Department."

Stimulus Bill "Worst Bill Since 1930's", Will Lead to "Unmitigated Disaster"

Keep calling your congressmen, this horrible "Stimulus Bill" has to go down in flames, or we will.  Time for resistance! 

Peter Schiff, president of Euro Pacific Capital, predicted the housing bubble and recession back in 2006.  He thinks the stimulus bill is a really bad idea:

"The fiscal stimulus bill being debated in Congress not only won't help the economy, it will make the recession much worse, says Peter Schiff, president of Euro Pacific Capital"

"Schiff scoffs at the notion the economic decline is starting to level off and concedes no government action means a "terrible" recession. But the path of increased government intervention will lead to 'unmitigated disaster,' says Schiff, who gained notoriety in 2007-08 for his prescient calls on the housing bubble and U.S. stocks."

Culture of Death - Aborted But Living Baby is Killed

More precisely, the baby was wrapped in a plastic bag and dumped in a dumpster.  While Islamists have their culture of death (suicide bombers, sacrificing their own children), here in the West we have our own  culture of death:

"A Florida abortion practitioner could lose his license in a case that has drawn national attention for the amazing gruesomeness of what occurred. The July 2006 incident involves baby Shanice Denise Osbourne, who saw abortion facility staff hide her body from officials after a botched abortion."