19 September 2014

Greetings from Tyler,

It seems that our lives are destined to be punctuated with the antics of religious butchers for the foreseeable future. You’ve heard of the plot foiled (hopefully) in Australia where 800 Police descended on the premises of suspects in communication with ISIS leaders, planning to behead a random citizen for the shock value and for notoriety. After all that, and after detaining seventeen, they’ve let all but one out on bail. Let’s hope they know what they’re doing.

This week a convenience store owner (wouldn’t you know it) was arrested in Rochester, NY for trying to recruit for ISIS. And they’ve been holding hearings this week on Capitol Hill, trying in vain to figure out whether there’s any hope that the president’s vague and contradictory “strategy” can actually defeat the gathering threat.

Every single former and current high-ranking military officer is disappointed and concerned that the goal of destroying ISIS cannot be achieved by the Iraqi army, the Peshmerga, Sunni tribesmen or Syrian rebels. Both the House and Senate approved funds to arm and train some 5,000 Syrians at a base in Saudi Arabia over the next year. Maybe ISIS will sit quietly and wait a year? Will 5,000 go up against thirty or forty thousand? And just who are these Syrian “rebels”? Is there any assurance that another load of advanced U.S. weaponry won’t end up in the hands of the terrorists? All the respected military men seem near despair, because here are no good answers to any of these questions. Further, the administration has routinely rejected the advice of the generals, which is why ISIS was able to invade Iraq in the first place.

Now that ISIS controls an area bigger than Jordan, having melted in with the civilian populations of every town and village north of Baghdad, it’s mighty complicated. It is beyond obvious that the president is not committed to the destruction of the terrorist threat. He’s already told them they don’t have to worry about any Americans confronting them in combat. Maybe his message was intended for Code Pink and his leftist political base, but the terrorists are paying more attention than the feminists or tree-huggers.

Some of this week’s hearings were held to try to find out what the security agencies know about potential threats to the homeland. The Secretary of Homeland Security was asked specifically if he knew of any attempts by Middle Eastern terrorists to sneak into the U.S. by way of the southern border. He said, “Nothing comes to mind.” Breitbart published a report today claiming that 474 illegal aliens from terrorist-linked countries have already been apprehended this year alone. Nobody seems to know what happens once these people are turned over to the feds. Are they deported, or released into society with a notice to appear in court in a couple of years?

Our “leadership” is obviously more interested in cramming socialist redistribution and queer matrimony down our throats than defending our freedom. So we can expect to be treated to the atrocities of ISIS, al Nusra, al Qaeda and a dozen or two other wild Muslim factions indefinitely.

The good news this week is that the referendum in Scotland failed to break up the U.K. That exercise however has highlighted a very impressive list of inventions and discoveries that have contributed enormously to modern life. If you want to have a look at that, it is linked here.

The secession movements that we’ll be watching for will be the ones that will come out of Europe as EU member nations conclude that they cannot survive, let alone prosper under the constraints of the euro and German management. Given geographic proximity and the significant Middle Eastern populations already in their midst, the nations of Europe also face a very significant threat of terrorism.

A new edition of Twentieth Century WATCH is laid out and almost ready to be printed. It is the biggest, most comprehensive issue to date. We can also report that response to recent monthly letters has been gratifying, with quite a few becoming active and requesting additional material. Excitement is building as the Feast of Tabernacles is now just a few weeks away. I hope to see you all, whichever site you plan to attend. Have a great Sabbath.

Mark Armstrong