The Conservative Newsletter

Dr. David Marlett, Editor

19 September 2001

Vol II, No. 72

"Freedom prospers when religion is vibrant and the rule of law under God is acknowledged." --Ronald Reagan

** Will conventional weapons be enough?
** GOA Urges Congress to Pass Bill Arming Pilots
** The Militiaman's View of September 11th
** Who is Embarrassed Now?
** Cutting Off US Funding
** Anti-flag Zealots Back Off
** Jennings Still Calls Clinton 'President'
** Deaths from U.S. Wars and Battles
** Statistics on Terrorism
** Politically Correct

Will conventional weapons be enough?

Ten years ago, foreign enemies watched, slack-jawed, as U.S. armed forces put on a high-tech show in the Persian Gulf. They previously had no idea what U.S. military capabilities were, especially in the areas of night vision, sensors and weapons technology. And everyone from China to Iran to Syria were shocked at the ease with which the U.S. smashed Saddam Hussein's vaunted army. "They said, 'Gee, we didn't know we could get our clocks cleaned like that,'" said Dave Klimaj, a former Defense Department engineer who worked on night-vision and sensors technology. "So they spent the next 10 years stealing our technology -- that is, when [former President] Clinton wasn't handing it to them on a silver platter." "During the Clinton years," he said, "military-defense technologies were shipped overseas in a giant fire sale." Peter Leitner, a Pentagon export-control officer, agrees that the previous administration's relaxation of controls on dual-use exports has given U.S. enemies -- namely China and the anti-American terrorist states it re-exports U.S. military-related technology to -- an unnecessary leg-up in conventional warfare. "Clinton effectively dismantled the military-related export controls regime," said Leitner, who reviews dual-use export license applications for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. "And now, that technology is gone," said Klimaj, who retired from the Pentagon last year. "You can't pull it back. It's overseas." In the new war against terrorism, expected to start any day now, Klimaj predicts that American forces will "see our technologies being shot back at us." He also suspects the ruling Taliban militia of Afghanistan, with whom China has unusually close ties, may use American sensors and other technology to track and target American forces. "We'll use that to shoot at them, but you don't think they'll be so stupid that they won't see us coming with our technology?" he said. "The cat's out of the bag."

"That's the worst thing," he added. "When we go to war, we're fighting our own technology now, because it's all gone. And they're all laughing at us."

Klimaj doubts missile strikes or carpet-bombing will do the job in Afghanistan, where the terrain is so rugged, and soldiers so dug in, that the invading Soviet army eventually gave up and retreated. In 1998, U.S. forces pumped some 60 Tomahawk cruise missiles into Osama bin Laden's terrorist training camps in Khost, Afghanistan, and they didn't touch bin Laden. Enter the "n"-word. Klimaj thinks, regrettably, that the U.S. may have to resort to using low-grade tactical nuclear weapons this time. "I don't think the conventional weapons will work," he said. "I think we may have to use little nukes." "Nobody likes to see that word [nuke], but you can't carpet-bomb Afghanistan," Klimaj argued. "It didn't do any good in Vietnam. It really didn't work that well in the Gulf. And it's not going to do anything now."
[ WorldNetDaily.com ]

GOA Urges Congress to Pass Bill Arming Pilots

In the wake of last week's terrible tragedy, Gun Owners of America mourns with all Americans over the lives that were lost in the horrific attack.

"We grieve for the families of these victims," said GOA Executive Director Larry Pratt, "and hope that Congress will implement policies that will save lives in the future.

"It seems clear that billions of dollars for metal detectors and ID checks have proven ineffective in stopping terrorism. Villains always manage to get weapons and always seem to get them through security checkpoints. Despite this obvious fact, many voices are now calling for Americans to give up more of their freedoms. What we really need is to instigate procedures that will serve as a deterrent to terrorists."

For example, Gun Owners of America is calling upon Congress to immediately adopt self-defense legislation that was introduced on Friday by Republican Representative Ron Paul of Texas.

Paul's bill (H.R. 2896) will overturn existing laws and regulations that prevent pilots from carrying sidearms onto planes. Rep. Paul believes that armed pilots could save the lives of thousands of individuals.

"It would be a mistake," Paul told Gun Owners of America, "to respond to last week's terrorist attacks by punishing the American people with more infringements on their liberties.

"We don't need more intrusive government. We need freedom. Freedom saves lives, and my bill is a modest step towards letting pilots defend their lives and the lives of their passengers -- not to mention the lives of thousands of innocent people who may be working in office buildings."

It is imperative that gun owners let their Congressman and Senators know that they support this common-sense legislation.

ACTION: Urge your Representative to cosponsor H.R. 2896, which allows pilots to defend the lives of their passengers. Please use the prewritten text below to help direct your comments to your Representative. You can call your Congressman at 202-225-3121. To identify your Representative, as well as to send a message via e-mail, see the Legislative Action Center at http://www.gunowners.org/activism.htm on the GOA website.

I strongly urge you to cosponsor common-sense legislation introduced by Rep. Ron Paul last week. H.R. 2896 would allow airplane pilots to use firearms to defend the lives of their passengers against crazed terrorists.

Reports by the media indicate the pilots in last Tuesday's tragedy were overpowered by attackers armed only with knives. The thousands of deaths from this tragedy were made possible because those capable of defending against such an attack (the pilots and crew) were disarmed by our current laws and security policies.

Had the pilots of those doomed aircraft had access to firearms, these attacks could have been thwarted and thousands of American lives saved.

I truly believe that freedom will save lives. I keep hearing government officials say that Americans must give up their freedoms so that law enforcement can stop terrorists. The problem is that we have ALREADY given up too much freedom. The fact that pilots -- many of whom have prior military training -- do not have the freedom to defend the lives of their passengers on board is absurd.

Gun control once again has contributed to the loss of innocent lives. Haven't we learned the lessons that allowing good people to carry guns will deter criminals (and terrorists) from perpetrating their evil deeds? Whenever a state or county allows good people to carry guns, crime rates go down. Wherever guns are banned - like in Washington, D.C. and in England -- crime rates go up.

So I urge you in the strongest way, to cosponsor the Paul legislation which will save American lives (H.R. 2896). And I also urge you to vote against any legislation that would further restrict the liberties of all Americans.

As Senator Phil Gramm said last week, "We are hearing a lot of talk today about what we can do to be safer. I want to be safe. But let me make it clear: I don't want to change our way of life. I want to change their way of life. If we start infringing on our own freedom, if we start limiting our own freedom to move about our country and engage in our business and live our lives, then we are giving up what this war is about. We want to change their lives...."

The Militiaman's View of September 11th

The Japanese did not bomb pearl harbor with explosives, they did not sink ships with torpedoes, nor did hundreds die from strafing machine gun fire.

This is exactly the kind of attitude that is leading us down the road of disarmament in this country. A bunch of whiney, scared sissies who want to be protected.

Nobody on that plane could have stood up and wacked one of those idiots with a laptop?

I venture to guess that on a plane from Boston to LA there were numerous laptop computers. Could not ONE MAN have stood up and threw laptops at these idiots like a angry wife throwing dishes?

No, because this plane was loaded with the same people who think that Americans don't need guns, the second amendment needs to be repealed in order to make society safe. Self defense isn't part of their vocabulary. They are scared shivering little people who want the cops and the military to take care of them.

Did anyone notice that NOT ONE of those flights originated from Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma or any state where a good old boy would have slapped them down faster than they could mutter an unintelligible word?

The problem isn't with our intelligence departments, it is with our own bravery. We lack it.

I am ASHAMED to be part of a country where people with pocket knives can kill thousands of my friends, neighbors and countrymen.
[ The Federal Observer ]

TCN Comment: He's ashamed, but he is still ready to fight and die for your freedom.

Who is Embarrassed Now?

It was just a couple of years ago when this author alerted his radio audience that Communist Chinese military officers were scheduled to visit the military installation at Pensacola Naval Air Station. After informing the community of this event, over 150 people (including many veterans) showed up at the Pensacola Regional Airport to protest the visit of these communists to our base. Certain officials at Pensacola Naval Air Station called this protest "an embarrassment" to the city of Pensacola and to the U.S. Navy. I would like to ask these officials, in light of the terrorist attack on our nation, "Who is embarrassed now?"

Since the attack on September 11, we have learned that it is very possible that the terrorists actually trained right here at the Pensacola Naval Air Station. Imagine that. The United States government might have provided the training that allowed our enemies to perpetrate the worst-ever terrorist attack against our country.

In fact, a Pensacola News Journal report dated September 17 stated, "Pensacola NAS and Whiting Field train many of the more than 6,000 foreign military students who receive flight training each year at U.S. military institutions." The report also said, "Fifteen percent of aviation students on any given day are foreign nationals."

It is inconceivable that the United States has made a practice of providing military training to foreign military personnel, including those from Communist China and Muslim states; but that is exactly what has been taking place.

Many of us have been trying to warn the American people for years that this policy of military-to-military exchanges with nations that hate us is the height of idiocy and would eventually lead to American casualties. We now know how foolish it was to ignore this warning!

It appears, however, that our nation's leaders still fail to recognize the threat that foreign nationals pose to our country's national security. Even after the attack on Washington, D.C., and New York City last week, tens of thousands of Middle Eastern Islamists (and other foreigners) continue to occupy sensitive posts within our military and civilian communities. How many of these remain loyal to foreign governments cannot accurately be determined. In spite of this, we continue military-to-military exchanges with governments that sponsored and/or supplied last week's attack against the United States.

In order to find an explanation for this lunacy, look no further than our political leaders' infatuation with political correctness. It seems that the worst sin a politician can make today is violating the left's sacrosanct doctrine of multiculturalism. Even national security interests take a back seat to the ubiquitous call for "diversity." Without any doubt, America's love affair with multiculturalism set the stage for last week's attack. If our leaders truly want to make the United States a safer and more secure place in which to live, they will abolish multiculturalism as a political philosophy and cultural ambition; however, do not hold your breath waiting.
[ http://www.chuckbaldwinlive.com/ ]

CUTTING OFF U.S. FUNDING

Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman announced today that the non-profit public interest law firm will pursue Osama Bin Laden and his and other related terrorist networks through every legal channel available in the United States and internationally. The first step will be to follow the money, "some of which comes from U.S. sources."

According to Klayman, "All terrorist organizations have to have money, large sums of money, to operate. In the United States, terrorist organizations frequently create phony tax exempt organizations to raise money to finance their criminal activities." Today, one of the great ironies of the horrific terrorist attack on the World Trade Center is that it may have been financed by 'tax exempt' contributions. The IRS should investigate, audit and shut down these terrorist front organizations. The IRS should no longer turn a blind eye to terrorist money laundering."

Today, Judicial Watch will file complaints with the IRS seeking to shut down these "tax exempt" front organizations.

Judicial Watch will also immediately undertake a thorough investigation of any financial holdings in the United States that are linked to the Bin Laden financial empire. Klayman said he will utilize the top investigators of Judicial Watch, and informants who have and will come forward.

Of course, Judicial Watch also stands ready to legally assist the terrorists' victims and the victims' families concerning last week's terrorist activities. We intend to bring Bin Laden to justice.

Russell Verney, Judicial Watch national advisor and head of its Southwestern Regional Headquarters added: "The government is not the only means to hunt down and hold Bin Laden and his terrorist comrades accountable. Judicial Watch represents the American people, and we will legally act on their behalf, no holds barred. We are joining this war."
[ Judicial Watch ]

Anti-flag Zealots Back Off

The one good thing about national tragedy is that it draws Americans together. This time, even the politically correct fringe is relenting on its absurd ways - with a little help, of course.

First the intolerant, left-wing Taxachusetts college town of Amherst stopped trying to censor the American flag. Then that company in Florida - in Boca Raton, of all places, ground zero for the pro-Gore condo commandos who claimed to be too stupid to vote on the Democrat-designed ballot - stopped banning employees from displaying the flag.

Today, Fox News Channel reported that two schools have stopped their attempts at flag censorship.

At Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, a campus bureaucrat had told a bus driver to remove a flag from his vehicle because it might make foreign students "uncomfortable." (Can you imagine any foreign country banning its flag to keep visiting Americans from feeling "uncomfortable"!?)

Just imagine the outrage vented at Lehigh Vice Provost for Student Affairs John Smeaton. And watch him backpedal and spin. "In a momentary lapse of judgment, which I deeply regret, I suggested the flag be removed from inside the bus," he said. He quickly changed his mind.

And a principal at a government school in Pasadena, Texas, gave in after forcing a second grader - whose father is a veteran and in the Army Reserves - to remove an American flag from a shirt. You bet she changed her mind - or others changed it for her.

The flag issue "just blew out of hand," huffed McMasters Elementary Principal Mable Pratt.
[ NewsMax ]

Jennings Still Calls Clinton 'President'

Peter Jennings just can't hide his disdain and sneering of President Bush -- even in the middle of one of the worst catastrophes ever to befall America.

We note that during the National Prayer Service, Jennings referred to Clinton as "President Clinton." When he observed President Bush's father, Gerald Ford, and Jimmy Carter, he referred to them correctly as "former presidents."

"When will they learn that this nation's rightfully elected leader is President George W. Bush?! I think Peter Jennings needs to find a new job where his left wing views are needed. How about Afghanistan?"
[ NewsMax ]

Deaths from U.S. Wars and Battles

Statistics on Terrorism

Politically Correct

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American Revolution	(April 19, 1775-Oct. 18, 1781):	4,435
Antietam	(Sept. 16-18, 1862):	3,654
Pearl Harbor	(Dec. 6, 1941):	2,388
D-Day	(June 6, 1944):	4,900
Iwo Jima	(Feb. 19-March 25, 1945):	6,503
Inchon Landing	(Sept. 15-22, 1950):	670
Tet Offensive	(Jan. 27-June 1, 1968):	7,040
Twin Towers	(Sept 11, 2001):	still counting.