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US Military: You May Be a Terrorist if You Use Facebook, Are Young, and Don’t Like “Mainstream Ideologies”

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You’ve recently changed your “choices in entertainment.” You have “peculiar discussions.” You “complain about bias,” you’re “socially withdrawn” and you’re frustrated with “mainstream ideologies.” Your “Risk Factors for Radicalization” include “Social Networks” and “Youth.”

These are some other signs that one of your co-workers has become a terrorist, according to the U.S. military. He “shows a sudden shift from radical to ‘normal’ behavior to conceal radical behavior.” He “inquires about weapons of mass effects.” He “stores or collects mass weapons or hazardous materials.”

That was the assessment of a terrorism advisory organization inside the U.S. Army called the Asymmetric Warfare Group in 2011, acquired by Danger Room. Its concern about the warning signs of internal radicalization reflects how urgent the Army considers that threat after Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan shot and killed 13 people at Ford Hood in 2009. But its “indicators” of radicalization are vague enough to include both benign behaviors that lots of people safely exhibit and, on the other end of the spectrum, signs that someone is so obviously a terrorist they shouldn’t need to be pointed out. It’s hard to tell if the group is being politically correct or euphemistic.

Around the same time, the Asymmetric Warfare Group tried to understand a related problem that now threatens to undermine the U.S. war in Afghanistan: “insider threats” from Afghan troops who kill their U.S. mentors. In another chart, also acquired by Danger Room, an Afghan soldier or policeman ready to snap could be someone who “appears frustrated with partnered nations”; reads “questionable reading materials”; or who has “strange habits.” Admittedly, the U.S. military command isn’t sure what’s causing the insider attacks, but it’ll be difficult for an American soldier who doesn’t speak Pashto or Dari to identify “strange habits” among people from an unfamiliar culture.

Read more from this story HERE.

Al-Qaeda blamed for Europe-wide forest fires

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Al-Qaeda has been blamed for a recent series of forest fires across Europe, as the head of Russia’s Federal Security Service claimed they were set by arsonists as part of the group’s low-cost attack strategy.

Deadly fires have swept through forest land in EU countries such as Portugal and Spain.

“One should note that setting fires to forests in the countries of the European Union is a new tendency in al-Qaeda’s strategy of a ‘thousand cuts’,” Alexander Bortnikov said, according to state news agency RIA Novosti, at a meeting of heads of security agencies.

“This method allows (al-Qaeda) to inflict significant economic and moral damage without serious preliminary preparations, technical equipment or significant expenses.”

In linking al-Qaeda to the deadly wildfires, Mr Bortnikov pointed to calls to launch a “forest jihad” by various extremist websites which he said also publish detailed instructions about how and where to best carry out arson.

Read more from this story HERE.

Video: Ron Paul says 3,000 9/11 Victims Would Still Be Alive If He Had Been President

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Ron Paul addresses a crowd of supporters at the University of South Florida and suggests that if he had been President, Osama bin Laden would be alive and “so would the 3000 people from 9/11”:

Glenn Beck interview with FRC shooting eyewitness General Boykin

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Glenn Beck interviewed retired General Boykin, who was at the Family Research Council at the time of the shooting this past week, about what he saw. Although there is a practical media black out on this, it’s fairly clear that the shooter intended a mass murder. Each of the 15 Chick-fil-A bags were apparently intended to be dropped next to each victim:

GLENN BECK: I think — we think that that’s only relevant because they think that’s his plan — that’s where he learned what he was going to do with GM, but that’s another story. We have a friend that works at the Family Research Council, Lieutenant general Jerry Boykin. He is on the phone. There was a tragedy this week, as you may know. A gunman came in, shot a security guard, and, of course, the press hasn’t stopped talking about it. Oh, no. Wait. They did. This one is — this one is significant because the shooter was a volunteer. This is a leftist — this is a political terrorist strike. General Jerry Boykin with us. General, how are you, sir?

GENERAL BOYKIN: I’m good, Glenn. It’s good to be with you. I’m not quite sure why you played that clip from the President in this segment that I’m on.

GLENN BECK: I really think it’s — I really think it’s because — it’s his plan for the economy, but help me out on — you were — you were actually there when the shooter came?

GENERAL BOYKIN: I was. It was about 10:46 on Wednesday morning. He walked in the lobby, set a backpack down in front of the guard desk and then reached in his backpack. Fortunately this guard who was actually the building manager but kind of dual roles as a guard, realized something was up and got out of his chair and approached the man and just as the man pulled a pistol, pointed it at his head, this gentle giant of a guard reached up and grabbed the gun and he shot him — the gunman shot our man Leo Johnson in the wrist but with one arm, Leo wrestled this man to the ground and took his gun away from him and what a hero this guy was. He saved a lot of people and there’s no question, Glenn, this guy’s intent based on the fact that he had about 50 rounds of ammunition and 15 Chick-fil-A bags was this was going to be a mass murder on our — a large scale.

GLENN BECK: You actually talked to the gunman?

GENERAL BOYKIN: I listened as the gunman lay on the floor talking to police and he said, I don’t like the policies here and, you know, he — in fact, he stated that to the guard, as well. So, yeah, it was — there was no question what his motive was. He tied us to Chick-fil-A and I think the scenario is — it doesn’t take much imagination, Glenn. He was going to go through and kill as many people as he could and drop Chick-fil-A bags at every dead body to send a signal that he was reacting to the — our stance on traditional marriage, that being between a man and a woman.

Read more at Page 2 HERE.

Prime Minister Netanyahu “determined to attack Iran before the US elections”

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Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “is determined to attack Iran before the US elections,” Israel’s Channel 10 News claimed last night, and Israel is now “closer than ever” to a strike designed to thwart Iran’s nuclear drive.

The TV station’s military reporter Alon Ben-David, who earlier this year was given extensive access to the Israel Air Force as it trained for a possible attack, reported that, since upgraded sanctions against Iran have failed to force a suspension of the Iranian nuclear program in the past two months, “from the prime minister’s point of view, the time for action is getting ever closer.”

Asked by the news anchor in the Hebrew-language TV report how close Israel now was to “a decision and perhaps an attack,” Ben-David said: “It appears that we are closer than ever.”

He said it seemed that Netanyahu was not waiting for a much-discussed possible meeting with US President Barack Obama, after the UN General Assembly gathering in New York late next month — indeed, “it’s not clear that there’ll be a meeting.” In any case, said Ben-David, “I doubt Obama could say anything that would convince Netanyahu to delay a possible attack.”

The report added that Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak believe Obama would have no choice but to give backing for an Israeli attack before the US presidential elections in November.

Read more from this story HERE.

Glenn Beck interview with FRC shooting eyewitness General Boykin-Page 3

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GLENN BECK: Well, General, you are one of my favorite people because you never mince words and you’ve taken a strong stand to your own peril for a very long time. You’re a personal hero. Lieutenant General Jerry Boykin. Our best to the Family Research Council and everybody. How is everybody doing there?

GENERAL BOYKIN: They are doing well. Leo is an extraordinary hero and he’s doing quite well. I was with him when he came out of surgery; and the people at FRC are tough warriors, Glenn. We are not going away. We’re not going to change our position. We’re going to stand firm because we do believe that we are speaking for the majority of Americans who still maintain very traditional values.

GLENN BECK: Thank you very much, General. I –

GENERAL BOYKIN: Thank you, Glenn. God bless you.

Glenn Beck interview with FRC shooting eyewitness General Boykin-Page 2

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GLENN BECK: Well, I think the way to make sure everybody understands your point is to be a mass murderer. The media is reacting to this in their stereotypical way. General, what is the way — how do we change this? They’re ignoring the Black Panthers who have come out and said, Throw bombs into nurseries, kill crackers, as they would say, and everybody is ignoring it. The press even makes us into conspiracy freaks for bringing is up. We bring up the left is the one that always has caused 90% of the shootings and the political statement, kind of bombings, et cetera, et cetera, the terror throughout American history it’s generally from either crazy people or the left and how do we get this message out? Who do we do, General?

GENERAL BOYKIN: Well, Glenn, it’s even worse than that. It’s worse. I mean, not only are they ignoring this and don’t want to deal with it but CNN the morning after in an interview with Brian Brown from the National Organization For Marriage actually tried to justify the hate group label that was placed on the Family Research Council by this anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-sematic Marxist organization called the Southern Poverty Law Center which is a — just an evil group of people and so they actually tried to justify this hate crimes — I mean this hate group label that they gave. What do we do? Well, CNN’s ratings are already in the tank, as well as most of the mainstream media and what we do is continue to do what you are doing with both your radio program, as well as your broadcast, and other organizations like yours, we keep putting the truth out and it is starting to resonate and I think that’s the reason that the popularity of your program is growing is Americans are actually starting to look for truth. You know, Glenn, it’s important to remember that in a recent survey 80% of Americans surveyed supported Dan Cathy and his stance on traditional marriage but the mainstream media is never going to report that and the Southern Poverty Law Center is right in the middle of this culture war and I think what you’re doing and what others like you are doing, particularly with talk radio and with nontraditional means of communication is so critical to keeping the truth out for the American public today.

GLENN BECK: Okay. You made quite a statement about the Southern Poverty Law Center. Most people don’t even know who they are because — they’re quoted all the time by all of the news networks. They’re taking a look at all of the hate groups and monitoring all hate crimes. They have put the Black Panthers in the category of a right wing extremist group on the same list as FRC and the same list as David Barton. Can you — who is the Southern Poverty Law Center? Who are they?

GENERAL BOYKIN: Well, first of all, I’ve already given you my label for them and they are — in fact, they are very similar to the ACLU. They’re a group of lawyers, as well as Marxists who have, in fact, raised an awful lot of money which we understand is being kept offshore and they go after every liberal cause in America. They are — they — in fact, they just had a big meeting this week with the Muslim political action committee and that is a very anti-sematic organization and these people are dangerous, they are evil, and my question is, Glenn, who are they to have any authority to declare anybody a hate group? And, remember, they also called Hitler right wing, as well. I don’t mean SPLC but, you know, people today on the left refer to Hitler as right wing and compare conservatives to Hitler. Well, Hitler was anything but right wing. Remember, he was the nationalist socialist party.

GLENN BECK: Are you more optimistic, less optimistic, or about the same as you were a year ago for the health of the nation?

GENERAL BOYKIN: I am so concerned, Glenn. I must tell you, I’m angry. I’m really angry. I’m angry because people like you and the FRC and others are standing up and speaking for what I believe is the majority of Americans, while Americans, you know, sit at home and cheer you on but they’re doing very little to actually get involved in this culture war and I’m optimistic that people are starting to wake up and as tragic as this event was, Glenn, I think that it is just another way that people are being shaken and people are being brought to an awareness that we are losing our country and the average American that stands on traditional values, the average Christian that believes in a biblical world view have got to get involved and they’ve got to put their time, their effort, their money, and their speech behind what is happening here. So, thank you for what you’re doing.

Read more at the final Page 3 HERE.

European Union refuses to restrict Iranian-backed terrorist group, Hezbollah

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Photo credit: upyernoz

Washington and Jerusalem insist that Hezbollah is an Iranian-backed terrorist organization with bloody hands, and that it is working closely with Tehran to train, arm and finance the Syrian military’s lethal repression of the uprising there. Yet, the European Union continues to treat it foremost as a Lebanese political and social movement.

As Israel heightens fears of a pre-emptive strike on Iran’s nuclear sites, intelligence analysts warn that Iran and Hezbollah would respond with attacks of their own on targets abroad. Israeli and American officials have attributed the Bulgarian bus bombing last month that killed six people, including five Israeli tourists, to Hezbollah and Iran, saying it was part of a clandestine offensive that has included plots in Thailand, India, Cyprus and elsewhere.

While the group is believed to operate all over the Continent, Germany is a center of activity, with 950 members and supporters last year, up from 900 in 2010, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency said in its annual threat report. On Saturday, Hezbollah supporters and others will march here for the annual Jerusalem Day event, a protest against Israeli control of that city. Organizers told the Berlin police that the event would attract 1,000 marchers, and that two counterdemonstrations were also likely.

Hezbollah has maintained a low profile in Europe since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, quietly holding meetings and raising money that goes to Lebanon, where officials use it for an array of activities — building schools and clinics, delivering social services and, Western intelligence agencies say, carrying out terrorist attacks.

European security services keep tabs on the group’s political supporters, but experts say they are ineffective when it comes to tracking the sleeper cells that pose the most danger. “They have real, trained operatives in Europe that have not been used in a long time, but if they wanted them to become active, they could,” said Alexander Ritzmann, a policy adviser at the European Foundation for Democracy in Brussels, who has testified before Congress on Hezbollah.

Read more from this story HERE.

DC shooting spurs debate: do pro-marriage organizations deserve the “hate group” label?

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By Jordy Yager. The shooting of a security guard Wednesday at the Family Research Council (FRC) has spurred a torrent of heated accusations from both sides of the gay-rights debate about claims that the conservative organization is a “hate group.”

The National Organization for Marriage (NOM), one of the nation’s leading opponents of same-sex marriage, told The Hill the shooting was a direct result of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s decision in 2010 to place the FRC on its list of hate groups for its rhetoric on gays.

Brian Brown, the president of NOM, pointed to a recent blog post by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), one of the largest gay-rights groups in the country. The post, “Paul Ryan Speaking at Hate Group’s Annual Conference,” called attention to the vice presidential candidate’s scheduled appearance at the FRC’s national summit next month.

“Today’s attack is the clearest sign we’ve seen that labeling pro-marriage groups as ‘hateful’ must end,” Brown said in a statement issued following the shooting.

“For too long national gay-rights groups have intentionally marginalized and ostracized pro-marriage groups and individuals by labeling them as ‘hateful’ and ‘bigoted.’” Read more from this story HERE.

Despite the DC shooting and ensuing debate, Obama remains silent

By Penny Starr. As of mid-morning Thursday, President Barack Obama had not yet commented publicly or released an official statement reacting to Wednesday’s shooting of a security guard at the Family Research Council’s Washington, D.C., office.

The only response from the Obama administration came from White House spokesman Jay Carney, as relayed to the public through the White House correspondents’ pool report:

The pool report noted that President Obama, traveling in Iowa, was informed of the 10:45 a.m. shooting several hours later.

Carney said the president expressed his concern for the individual as well as the belief that “this type of violence has no place in our society.”

It is unclear from the pool report whether Carney was directly quoting the president or if the words were Carney’s own.  Read more from this story HERE.

FRC: Southern Poverty Law Center fostered climate leading to DC shooting (+video)

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Photo credit: Gage Skidmore

By Mackenzie Weinger. Family Research Council president Tony Perkins on Thursday said the shooting at the conservative Christian organization’s Washington, D.C., headquarters was an act of terrorism and he accused the Southern Poverty Law Center of fostering the climate that allowed the crime to occur.

Fox News’s Megyn Kelly asked Perkins whether he thought the Wednesday shooting of an unarmed security guard for the group “was an act of domestic terrorism.”

“Terrorism is designed to intimidate and to drive people back and make them feel fearful. Well, that I believe would describe what they tried to do here yesterday at the Family Research Council and by extension to traditional value supporters, Christians across the nation,” Perkins said. “But I want to tell you it’s not going to work. We’re not going anywhere. We’re more committed today than we were yesterday to defending and advancing faith, family and freedom here in our nation’s capital.”

The gunman suspected of shooting the guard and shouting a political statement was charged with assault with intent to kill on Thursday, according to reports. Floyd Lee Corkins II, 28, of Virginia told the building manager, Leo Johnson, “I don’t like your politics,” and then shot him in the arm on Wednesday morning, The Associated Press reported. Johnson then unarmed Corkins and the suspected shooter was taken into custody.

In Corkins’s backpack, investigators found ammunition and 15 Chick-fil-A sandwiches, the AP said.  Read more from this story HERE.

Tony Perkins addresses the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “reckless rhetoric” that gave “a license to shoot an unarmed man” in this video: