Donut Whole: Sauce for the Gander

Proposed language for bill that goes the Israel Anti-Boycott Act (S.720) one better:
The Anti Israel-Zionist Boycott Act
Satire by Brian R. Wright

A lot of talk in the media and on Capitol Hill these days in support of the so-called “Don’t Mess with Israel” bill, which would abrogate the United States Constitution in no uncertain terms and apply draconian penalties for standing on one’s First Principle rights when it comes to disrespecting our ally-supremo, the model-benevolent state of Israel. To my way of thinking, this Senate bill S.720, formally ‘Israel Anti-Boycott Act,’ doesn’t go far enough. In fact, using the same template as S.720, l have formulated a more thorough gutting of the Bill of Rights via an S.720 countermeasure, and suggested it to my august federal legislators…

The modifiable Libre Office document lies here. And below lies the html version for your consideration and, I hope, wide circulation:

The Anti Israel Zionism Boycott Act

[Congressional Bills <TBD> Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[<#TBD_Anti_Israel-Zionist_Boycott_Act> Introduced in either house]

<TBD> CONGRESS
<#TBD_Anti_Israel-Zionist_Boycott_Act>

To prohibit any support or expression of support for the state of Israel or the political philosophy/movement of Zionism by any individual or group within the United States and by any public official of the United States. Continue reading

Brian’s Column: Dis Israel, Lose $250K… or Worse!

Oath-breaking federal legislators cave into Israeli foe against our First Principles

That’s right. Immediately before our eyes. Please read, at least, the following first two paragraphs of this recent article from The Intercept: http://bit.ly/2tzyWiW_Israel_Anti-Boycott_Act:

The criminalization of political speech and activism against Israel has become one of the gravest threats to free speech in the West. In France, activists have been arrested and prosecuted for wearing T-shirts advocating a boycott of Israel. The U.K. has enacted a series of measures designed to outlaw such activism. In the U.S., governors compete with one another over who can implement the most extreme regulations to bar businesses from participating in any boycotts aimed even at Israeli settlements, which the world regards as illegal. On U.S. campuses, punishment of pro-Palestinian students for expressing criticisms of Israel is so commonplace that the Center for Constitutional Rights refers to it as “the Palestine Exception” to free speech.

But now, a group of 43 senators — 29 Republicans and 14 Democrats — wants to implement a law that would make it a felony for Americans to support the international boycott against Israel, which was launched in protest of that country’s decades-old occupation of Palestine. The two primary sponsors of the bill are Democrat Ben Cardin of Maryland and Republican Rob Portman of Ohio. Perhaps the most shocking aspect is the punishment: Anyone guilty of violating the prohibitions will face a minimum civil penalty of $250,000 and a maximum criminal penalty of $1 million and 20 years in prison.

In essence, a Senate bill, S. 720, has been endorsed by dozens of senators and Congressmen that would criminalize any individual’s support for boycott of the state of Israel (e.g. the BDS sanctions). Such support includes speaking in favor of a/the boycott, putting a bumper sticker on one’s car, telling a friend that you don’t like what Israel is doing to its Palestinian prisoners, seeking to bring Israel before the International Criminal Court for apartheid or for the USS Liberty attacks… anything that can be construed by a sadistic government as ‘supporting a boycott’ of Israel. Continue reading

Movie Review: The Giant Mechanical Man (2012)

Detroit/Royal Oak Location Gem__9/10

Fittingly, I picked up this DVD via the Novi Library, Novi being a 2d-tier suburb of Detroit. Reading the jacket, the movie had some known actors and just looked like a literate, intelligent love story, which immediately brought to mind 500 Days of Summer. As I popped it in the player and looked at the cityscapes, I said, “Wait a minute, I’ve seen these buildings, these streets,” many of them in a state of decline. “Is this movie set in downtown Detroit?” Sure enough. Which the writer/director doesn’t explicitly tell you, but you slowly figure it out. And the zoo settings are, indeed, the Detroit Zoo, which is actually in nearby Royal Oak north of the city.

The movie begins with a man walking into what looks like a loft apartment or office in a city, then slowly putting his face on with paint, then his costume, a threadbare-looking silver suit and derby hat, long exaggerated bell-bottom slacks, concealing stilts that make him slightly taller than an NBA center. Tim (Chris Messina) is the Giant Mechanical Man, whose daily mission it is to walk about the streets, then stand still for long periods of time at the People Mover, Grand Circus Park, the Fox Theater, and other Detroit landmarks… where a (very) few people stop put money in his tip briefcase, for which responds with a sort of robotic expressionless motion sequence with hands, arms, and torso. Continue reading

Guest Column: Run with Runestad

There is none higher in Michigan politics, running for Michigan Senate
Fundraiser Tuesday 18 July 2017, Billy’s Tip ‘n’ Inn, White Lake, MI

Contributed by David Lonier

All Michigan liberty people, please attend, and if you can’t, please contribute to Repre-sentative Runestad’s campaign. Even though the pressures of political success can undermine anyone’s commitment to the principles of liberty, Mr. Runestad has already shown resistance to such attacks as a representative. I won’t be able to attend this fundraiser, but I shall be sending him $50. I’ve met him, looked him in the eye, and anyone can just know that Jim is the real deal. He’ll be a strong voice for freedom in our state for years to come.—BW Continue reading

Guest Column: Bozeman Red Pill 9/11

AE911Truth a Hit at the Red Pill Expo in Montana
By Michael Atkinson for 9/11 Truth… + more

Nearly 600 eager truth seekers from all over the US gathered at the Red Pill Expo in Bozeman, MT, this past weekend. The highly anticipated event featured at least a dozen internationally-known speakers including AE911Truth’s Richard Gage, AIA. According to reports from dozens of attendees, Gage delivered a stunning, inform-ation-packed presentation on the explosive WTC evidence.

The audience proved to be well-informed and open-minded. Of the nearly 600 attendees, just eight of them came in believing the official narra tive that jet planes and fires brought down the Twin Towers, while 16 were unsure. By the end of the presentation, no one believed the official narrative and only eight were unsure. We sent the crowd home with hundreds of brochures, DVDs, t-shirts, and hats with which to prompt discussion and inform their family, friends, and co-workers.

Held in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, this unique gathering was wildly successful by any measure — thanks to the deft vision and hard work of G. Edward Griffin, author of The Creature from Jekyll Island. Click link to sign up for free replays:
https://redpillexpo.org/ Continue reading

Brian’s Column: Brian Wright’s Days of Golden Memories, 1

8: Even as Baby Boomer children, we grew up so fast…
Brian R. Wright

[Link to Episode 7]

Note: These columns are a series, I will make into a volume of my memoirs. You may follow the links at top and bottom of page to go to preceding or succeeding episodes. The series starts here. {If the [Link to Episode <next>] at the  bottom of the column does not show an active hyperlink, then the <next> column has yet to be written.}

The ages 6 to 11, corresponding to 1st grade to 6th grade, respectively, are a blur in retrospect. You can see from the way I framed the first sentence that the mandatory school environment became a defining part of my ‘Wonder Bread’ years. It doesn’t take very long, even for the more independent minded, to succumb to the standardized BIG worldview we were all being injected with… and expected to conform to. As director Christof says about Truman Burbank in the movie The Truman Show (1998):

“We accept the reality with which we’re presented.”

More about the Conformity Legacy as we go. I do remember my first grade teacher’s name, Miss Wood. I considered her quite pretty, slim, etc., but she was more insistent than my kindergarten teacher on the rules and sticking to them. In kindergarten and first grade, we had sleep ‘rugs’ for class-all-in-one napping—I disdained all such naps. We were also instructed on occasion to sleep at our desks with our heads down. One day, I demurred. Miss Wood came over to my desk and tried to force my head down, none too gently either. I hauled off and hit her on the arm. She then slapped me a good one on my cute little face; I complied. Next day during the floor nap I looked up her dress. 🙂

Thankfully, my life was rich outside of the forced-school setting. The photo above-right shows my brother Forrest (~6 years old) and me (~7) with a large box kite that Dad had helped us to make, and then fly into the bright Kansas skies. I tell you it was quite an operation for that sail area, requiring a steady eye and a firm grip on the custom-made spool, with sturdy twine. Continue reading

Book Review: Attack on the Liberty (2009)

The untold story of the Israel’s deadly 1967 assault on a US spy ship
By James Scott, Reviewed by Brian R. Wright

From the Amazon product description:

“Notorious incident: In 1967 the spy ship USS Liberty was attacked by Israeli fighter jets and torpedo boats in international waters during the Six-Day War. Thirty-four sailors were killed and more than 170 wounded, many critically. Israel claimed mistaken identity, which a U.S. naval court of inquiry confirmed, but that explanation is contradicted by the facts of the case.

“Based on new revelations: James Scott has interviewed Liberty survivors, senior U.S. political and intelligence officials, and examined newly declassified documents in Israel and the United States to write this comprehensive, dramatic account. He reveals that officers in Israel’s chain of command were aware of the Liberty’ s identity and shows how events in Vietnam prompted the American government to deemphasize the attack despite widespread disbelief of Israel’s story.

“The son of an attack survivor: Scott’s father, John, was an officer and engineer aboard the Liberty who was awarded the Silver Star for helping to save the ship from sinking.”

Review

I very much appreciate Scott’s book, and though I haven’t yet read all of the key books about the USS Liberty (Liberty), it is certainly among the best written, Scott’s journalism credentials show—Journalist of the Year per South Carolina Press Association in 2003. His descriptive prose on the attacks themselves shines: Continue reading