Showing posts with label CNN. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CNN. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

An Idiot's Guide to Covering Terrorism Against Israelis - Noah Beck Charisma News

The media tends to ignore attitudes like this while terrorism has taken hold in Israel.

The media tends to ignore attitudes like this while terrorism and anti-Semitism have taken hold in Israel. (Reuters file photo )


An Idiot's Guide to Covering Terrorism Against Israelis


This instructive video shows what news reports would look like if they applied their outrageous Israel-reporting techniques to terrorist attacks in the rest of the world.
In the hope of lessening the egregious anti-Israel bias, here are some pointers to members of the media:
1. Your job is to report facts, not reinforce a narrative. Really. The facts matter—they form the basis for judgments. So here are some facts for you, meticulously documented and updated (with details and graphs worthy of a data scientist) in a shared Google spreadsheet by Nehemia Gershuni-Aylho. According to his data, in the fifty days from September 11 through October 31, there have been 1,315 Arab Muslim attacks on Jews, including stabbings, bombings, rock-throwing, etc. That's about 26 attacks per day resulting in the murder of 11 innocent Jews. Adjusted for the U.S. population, that's over 1,000 knife, bomb and other attacks per day that kill 440 people during fifty days of terror. How would the U.S. react to that?
2. Remember that the weaker party can be wrong. Actually, when a Palestinian man stabs a 70-year old woman, he's not even the weaker party. Sometimes Palestinians do indefensible things. Sometimes Israel is guilty of only trying to protect its citizens from insanely hateful violence. And as an honest reporter, you should try to show this.
3. Properly identify the terrorist and the victim when reporting on casualties, and describe the main causal sequence of events with relevant context. That's how you avoid headlines like "Jewish man uses his neck to attack the blade of Palestinian's knife." The BBC's distortions were actually not far from that when they effectively turned terrorists into victims. The BBC's bias is so egregious that even their former chief complained.
4. Do your homework on this region. Learn its basic history so that you don't moronically suggest (as the NY Times did) that Jews have no historical connection to the Temple Mount. Otherwise it looks like you're trying to support Palestinian revisionism against basic facts and endless archaeological evidence (including what a 10-year old recently discovered).
5. Learn the history of this conflict enough to know that Pallywood has been actively deceiving journalists for at least 15 years now, in an effort to delegitimize Israel. Before publishing "information" fed to you by fixers and "eyewitnesses," realize that even Amnesty International has admitted the unreliability of "eyewitnesses" in this conflict. The most galling Pallywood example from this latest round of Arab terrorism is the inflammatory lie – by "moderate" Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas—that Israeli forces had "executed" a 13-year old. The truth: he was treated in the same Israeli hospital caring for the boy he tried to murder.
Such lies can kill. Because when it comes to this conflict, Arab leaders know that violence replaces reason at the slightest provocation—like hooligans at a football game incited to attack the opponents of their beloved team. So inciting lies are very much a weapon. The media should know this and expose the falsehoods, rather than blindly proliferate them. Journalists should know that "reporting" inflammatory claims can produce mob violence, and should therefore be doubly careful about checking facts, unless of course their goal is to trigger riots (which do produce more sensational news stories).
7. Stop trying to use the latest of those shifting excuses to justify the unjustifiable (here too, the BBC is an offender). No alleged grievance warrants randomly stabbing people in the street. The average Syrian is infinitely worse off than anyone in Gaza or the West Bank, but Syrian teens aren't randomly stabbing civilians. Countless refugees from Syria, Iraq, and elsewhere have risked their lives for the hope of a better future in Europe. And yet there are virtually no Palestinians from the West Bank or Gaza among the millions desperate to reach Europe. So random stabbings don't reflect some miserably unfair existence – they are the product of raw hatred and incitement.
8. Take note of nuances. Some 92 Israeli Arab Muslims have committed terrorist attacks. They are not under occupation (and have better freedoms and living standards than most of the Arab world has). So clearly these attacks are not about any political dispute; they are driven by the same hateful incitement that rejects any state for the Jews.
9. Show cause and effect (ideally one before the other), and not just effect.When you show only Israeli responses to attacks, it makes Israelis look as if they wake up every morning asking how they can hurt Arabs. Israelis actually have better things to do with their mornings, Like try to cure cancer. But when people are trying to kill them, they understandably get a bit distracted. If the world could keep Israelis safer, a cure might be discovered quicker.
10. Articles should contain a logical subject and verb, preferably in a way that indicates who did what. According to CNN, Joseph's Tomb spontaneously "catches fire." CNN would rather change the laws of physics than blame Muslims for trying to burn a Jewish holy site. But there is a long list of non-Muslim sites that have been desecrated or destroyed by Muslims—from the Buddhas of Bamiyan razed by the Taliban to the countless monuments and churches destroyed by the Islamic State. History is also littered with Islamic conquests that converted non-Muslim holy sites into mosques.
11. Israeli lives matter. Getting both sides of the story means including photos and profiles of Israeli victims of Arab terrorism at least as often as you include photos and profiles of Arab attackers who were killed while trying to murder innocent Israelis. In case you're not sure what it's actually like to survive a stabbing attack, Kay Wilson's TED Talk is a must-watch for some valuable context (and a reminder of what a life-affirming culture looks like, as opposed to the death cult trying to stamp it out).
12. Don't be afraid to present Gazans as they present themselves (brandishing butcher knives and calling for Jewish blood). Show this Palestinian mother who celebrates that her child was killed trying to murder Israelis and who hopes that she and her other children all die for the same "cause." Showing the Palestinian death cult of Jew-hatred that runs from crib to coffin might help observers understand why there's still no peace.
Just for some context, when was the last time that you saw a video of a Jewish mother hoping that she and her children can all die for the sake of murdering some Germans to avenge the German Nazi murder of six million Jews (which seems a bit worse than praying on a contested holy site)?
13. If you want to falsify information to sanitize Palestinian terror, as NBC correspondent Ayman Mohyeldin did, try not to do so on live TV, because you'll look really biased (and stupid).
14. It's better to research whether the maps you display on your "news" broadcast were produced by anti-Israel propagandists BEFORE you broadcast them, because otherwise you'll look as biased (and stupid) as NBC/MSNBC did.
15. To ensure that your reporting is fair and consistent, consider how a similar event was covered in other countries/contexts. For a strikingly convenient example, contrast how differently NBC News (again!) reports on airstrikes taking place in two neighboring Mideast conflicts, within just eight days of each other:
On October 3, NBC News used this headline to report that 60 Russian airstrikes in Syria killed 39 civilians: "Russia Launches New Wave of Airstrikes in Syria." On October 11, NBC News used a much more personalized headline—with victim profiles—when reporting on one Israeli air strike that killed two civilians: "Israeli Strike in Gaza Kills Palestinian Woman, Child as Violence Continues." So are two Gazan civilians more worthy of attention and sympathy than 39 Syrian civilians?
Ironically, despite your endless bias in favor of Palestinian terrorists, they thank you by posing as journalists in order to stab Israelis – a deceit that only undermines the trust that combatants have in the label "PRESS" and potentially endangers true war correspondents.
Each small instance of bias may seem like a mere "journalistic microagression" against Israel, but its cumulative effect is toxic and sometimes deadly. At best, the persistent anti-Israel bias poisons many millions—from voters to policy-makers—against Israel. Even worse, it can lead to anti-Semitic violence, by mobs and/or individuals thugs, as is so often the case in Europe.
You journalists are key to a fair and civilized world. Start acting like it.
Noah Beck is the author of The Last Israelis, an apocalyptic novel about Iranian nukes and other geopolitical issues in the Middle East.
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Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Is Barack Obama Actually Trying to Start World War III? - Michael Snyder

The Obama administration claims that it has been bombing ISIS positions in Syria for over a year.  So why in the world do these targets still exist?
The Obama administration claims that it has been bombing ISIS positions in Syria for over a year. So why in the world do these targets still exist? (Reuters)

Is Barack Obama Actually Trying to Start World War III?




Why has Barack Obama airdropped 50 tons of ammunition into areas that "moderate rebels" in Syria supposedly control? This is essentially the equivalent of poking the Russians directly in the eyes.
Much of this ammunition will end up in the hands of those whom the Russians are attempting to bomb into oblivion, and so to Russia it appears that we are attempting to make their job much harder. Of course, the truth is that there aren't really any "moderate rebels" in Syria at all. Nearly all of the groups that are fighting are made up primarily of radical jihadis or hired mercenaries. Personally, I don't see anyone over there that you could call "the good guys."
At the end of the day, the U.S. supports just about anyone who wants to get rid of the Assad regime, and the Russians are working very hard to keep Bashar al-Assad in power. Just like the civil war in Ukraine, the conflict in Syria is in great danger of being transformed into a proxy war between the United States and Russia, and many fear that these conflicts could eventually be setting the stage for World War III.
The ferocity of Russian airstrikes in Syria has surprised observers all over the planet, and over the past couple of days these airstrikes have been extended to include some new areas:
Russian Air Forces have extended the range of their airstrikes on Islamic State positions in Syria to four provinces, focusing primarily on demolishing fortified installations and eliminating supply bases and the terrorists' infrastructure.
Over the last 24 hours Russian aircraft have attacked terrorist positions in the Hama, Idlib, Latakia and Raqqa provinces of Syria. In total, 64 sorties targeted 63 Islamic State installations, among them 53 fortified zones, seven arms depots, four training camps and a command post.
When I read reports like this, I am deeply troubled. The Obama administration claims that it has been bombing ISIS positions in Syria for over a year. So why in the world do these targets still exist?
Was the U.S. military incapable of finding these installations?
That doesn't seem likely.
So why weren't they destroyed long ago?
Did the Obama administration not want them destroyed for some reason?
What seems abundantly clear is that the Russians are doing what the Obama administration was either unwilling or unable to do. There is now mass panic among ISIS fighters, and thousands of them are fleeing the country:
An estimated 3,000 Islamic State fighters as well as militants from other extremist groups have fled Syria for Jordan, fearing a renewed offensive by the Syrian army in addition to Russian airstrikes, a military official has told RIA news agency.
"At least 3,000 militants from Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), al-Nusra and Jaish al-Yarmouk have fled to Jordan. They are afraid of the Syrian army having stepped up activities on all fronts and of Russian airstrikes," the RIA source said.
The mainstream media in the United States is not talking much about this, are they?
But the U.S. media is reporting on this latest airdrop of ammunition to rebel groups in Syria. For example, the following comes from CNN:
U.S. military cargo planes gave 50 tons of ammunition to rebel groups overnight in northern Syria, using an air drop of 112 pallets as the first step in the Obama administration's urgent effort to find new ways to support those groups.
Details of the air mission over Syria were confirmed by a U.S. official not authorized to speak publicly because the details have not yet been formally announced.
C-17s, accompanied by fighter escort aircraft, dropped small arms ammunition and other items (such as) hand grenades in Hasakah province in northern Syria to a coalition of rebels groups vetted by the US, known as the Syrian Arab Coalition.
If you were the Russians, how would you feel about this?
I know how I would feel.
And just as Joe Biden has previously admitted, the "moderate middle" in Syria simply does not exist. The following is an extended excerpt from a piece that was originally written by investigative journalist Nafeez Ahmed:
The first Russian airstrikes hit the rebel-held town of Talbisah north of Homs City, home to (al-Qaida's) official Syrian arm, Jabhat al-Nusra, and the (pro-al-Qaida) Ahrar al-Sham, among other local rebel groups. Both al-Nusra and the Islamic State have claimed responsibility for vehicle-borne IEDs (VBIEDs) in Homs City, which is 12 kilometers south of Talbisah.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports that as part of "U.S. and Turkish efforts to establish an ISIS 'free zone' in the northern Aleppo countryside," al-Nusra "withdrew from the border and reportedly reinforced positions in this rebel-held pocket north of Homs city."
In other words, the U.S. and Turkey are actively sponsoring "moderate" Syrian rebels in the form of (al-Qaida), which Washington, D.C.-based risk analysis firm Valen Globals forecasts will be "a bigger threat to global security" than IS in coming years.
Last October, Vice President Joe Biden conceded that there is "no moderate middle" among the Syrian opposition. Turkey and the Gulf powers armed and funded "anyone who would fight against Assad," including "al-Nusra," "(al-Qaida) in Iraq (AQI)," and the "extremist elements of jihadis who were coming from other parts of the world."
In other words, the CIA-backed rebels targeted by Russia are not moderates. They represent the same melting pot of (al-Qaida-affiliated) networks that spawned the Islamic State in the first place.

It has been well-documented that many of these so-called moderate rebel groups in Syria have fought alongside ISIS and have sold weapons to them. So this false dichotomy that Barack Obama keeps trying to sell us on is just a giant fraud. The following comes from a recent Infowars report:
In September 2014, a commander with the FSA admitted cooperating with ISIS and the al-Nusra Front.
"We are collaborating with the Islamic State and the Nusra Front by attacking the Syrian Army's gatherings in: Qalamoun," Bassel Idriss said. "Let's face it: The Nusra Front is the biggest power present right now in Qalamoun, and we as FSA would collaborate on any mission they launch as long as it coincides with our values."
In July 2014, a report in Stars and Stripes documented how the 1,000-strong Dawud Brigade, which had previously fought alongside the FSA against al-Assad, had defected in its entirety to join ISIS.
The same month factions within the FSA—including Ahl Al Athar and Ibin al-Qa'im—pledged services to the Islamic State.
Members of the Islamic State claim to cooperate with the FSA and buy weapons provided by the U.S.
"We are buying weapons from the FSA. We bought 200 anti-aircraft missiles and Koncourse anti-tank weapons," ISIS member Abu Atheer told al-Jazeera. "We have good relations with our brothers in the FSA. For us, the infidels are those who cooperate with the West to fight Islam."
U.S. anti-tank weapons are playing a critical role in the Syrian conflict. As reported by the Washington Post, U.S.-made anti-tank missiles are being used by the rebels to destroy lots of Russian-made tanks that are being used by the Syrian army:
So successful have they been in driving rebel gains in northwestern Syria that rebels call the missile the "Assad Tamer," a play on the word Assad, which means lion. And in recent days they have been used with great success to slow the Russian-backed offensive aimed at recapturing ground from the rebels.
Since Wednesday, when Syrian troops launched their first offensive backed by the might of Russia's military, dozens of videos have been posted on YouTube showing rebels firing the U.S.-made missiles at Russian-made tanks and armored vehicles belonging to the Syrian army. Appearing as twirling balls of light, they zigzag across the Syrian countryside until they find and blast their target in a ball of flame.
Like I said earlier, this is looking more and more like a proxy war between the United States and Russia.
Could that be what Obama actually wants?
Obama is poking China in the eyes lately too. CNN is reporting that U.S. warships may soon be sailing into territorial waters around the Spratly Islands. These are islands that the Chinese government claims ownership over, but the U.S. government disputes that claim, and Obama seems determined to flex his muscles in the area:
The United States (U.S.) may soon deploy war ships near China's artificial islands in the South China Sea.
It wants to send a message that it does not recognize China's territorial claims over the area.
This is according to a Financial Times report quoting a senior U.S. official who said its ships will sail within 12-nautical-mile zones that China claims as its territory around the Spratly Islands within the next two weeks.
If Obama sends warships into that area, there is a very real chance that they could get shot at. According to Newsweek, the Chinese are saying that they will not permit U.S. ships to violate those territorial waters under any circumstances:
"We will never allow any country to violate China's territorial waters and airspace in the Spratly Islands in the name of protecting freedom of navigation and overflight," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in response to a question about possible U.S. patrols. "We urge the related parties not to take any provocative actions, and genuinely take a responsible stance on regional peace and stability."
Such exchanges appear to be moving China and the U.S. toward a much feared, yet long expected, military confrontation. Just as unsettling, both sides seem confident they can prevail.
Over the past couple of years, our relations with China have really gone downhill very rapidly, and if the trading relationship between the two largest economies on the planet breaks down, that would have massive implications for the entire global economy.
In addition to everything above, the civil war in Ukraine continues to rage on. The United States funded, equipped, trained and organized the forces that violently overthrew the democratically elected government in Ukraine, and then once those thugs (which actually included some neo-Nazis) took power, the Obama administration immediately recognized them as the legitimate government of Ukraine.
The Russians were absolutely infuriated by this, and they have been providing soldiers, equipment and supplies to the rebel groups that are fighting back against this new government. Of course the Russians deny that they are doing this, but it is exceedingly obvious that they are.
The rebel groups that the Russians have been backing have been doing very well and have been steadily taking ground, and this is not how the power brokers in D.C. envisioned things playing out in Ukraine. So in a desperate attempt to shift the momentum of the conflict, a bill is going through Congress that would provide "lethal military aid" to the government in Kiev. Initially the bill would have provided 200 million dollars in lethal aid, but now it has been upped to 300 million dollars. There are some that believe that the final figure will be significantly higher.
Once this bill gets passed, it will be an extremely important event. For the Russians, it will mean crossing a red line that never should have been crossed. You see, the truth is that Ukraine is Russia's most important neighbor. Just imagine how we would feel if the Russians helped overthrow Canada's government and then start feeding weapons to the new pro-Russian government that they helped install. That is exactly how the Russians view our meddling in Ukraine.
Earlier this year, I wrote an article in which I discussed an opinion poll that showed that 81 percent of all Russians now view the United States negatively, and only 13 percent of Russians have a positive view of this nation. Not even during the height of the Cold War were the numbers that bad.
The stage is being set for World War III, but most Americans are completely and totally oblivious to all of this because they are so wrapped up in their own little worlds.
Most Americans still seem to assume that the Russians and the Chinese are our "friends" and that any type of conflict between major global powers is impossible.
Well, the truth is that conflict has already begun in Ukraine and Syria, and tensions are rising with each passing day.
It won't happen next week or next month, but we are on the road to World War III.
So what will the end result be?

Michael T. Snyder is the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog and author of The Beginning of the End.
For a limited time, we are extending our celebration of the 40th anniversary of Charisma. As a special offer, you can get 40 issues of Charisma magazine for only $40!
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Monday, August 31, 2015

The Truth Behind That Viral IDF Soldier Photo

The Truth Behind That Viral IDF Soldier Photo

Monday, August 31, 2015 |  Ryan Jones  ISRAEL TODAY
Over the weekend a photo of an armed IDF soldier holding a young Palestinian boy in a headlock went viral on the Internet and was the lead story on major media websites like CNN.
The problem, as is often the case, is that the likes of CNN left a LOT out of the story, and in so doing used the photo to paint a picture of the situation and of Israeli soldiers in general that bore very little resemblance to reality.
One of the few facts CNN and others go right is that the incident occurred in a place called Nabi Saleh. What you weren’t told is that the residents of Nabi Saleh hold a weekly violent demonstration against the nearby Jewish community of Halamish.
Every week for the past several years at least, IDF soldiers show up to make sure the Nabi Saleh rioters don’t get too close to to Halamish.
That’s right, this has been happening every Friday for years, but you never hear about it, because typically nothing of note happens.
But that doesn’t stop photographers from the international media pitching up week after week in hopes of catching the next juicy shot of perceived Israeli abuses. And the residents of Nabi Saleh are only too happy to do their best in helping achieve that goal.
In fact, some of the residents of Nabi Saleh are already well known, and have adoring fans abroad. They are proper actors on the “Pallywood” stage.
Take for instance Ahed Tamimi, seen in the most recent photos taking a bite out of the IDF soldier in question. Tamimi and her parents, Bassem and Nariman, are habitual rioters.
In 2012, Tamimi gained notoriety when she was filmed trying to provoke a violent response from IDF soldiers. Soon after, she was invited to Istanbul to be given the Handala Award for Courage by Turkish President Erdoğan.
For years, the Tamimi family and their co-rioters were experiencing something of a dry spell. But they struck gold on Friday when an IDF soldier sent to play peacekeeper at the weekly demonstration got separated from his unit.
Immediately, the young boy in the photos began incessantly stoning the soldier, who responded by grabbing him. The Tamimis and others pounced and delivered a severe and humiliating beating to the soldier, all as the media photographers eagerly snapped as many shots as they could.
Another important fact left out of the stories at CNN and elsewhere is that not once during the entire ordeal did the soldier in question threaten to use his weapon against the assailants.
Ironically, it was Arab readers who had seen the article and photos on the website of Al Jazeera that first and most notably picked up on this.
“Note how although he had a weapon, and although he is a soldier of the Zionist entity, he did not shoot him in the head. Imagine the same thing [happening] in Arab countries, how our people would have acted,” wrote a commenter named Osama, as translated into Hebrew by Israeli Facebook user Shay Ket.
Another named Tita pointed out that “if it had happened in Egypt, they would have shot that boy with live ammunition instead of being so considerate.”
In short, these photos that our august media gatekeepers thought so important as to make international headline news were ultimately “much ado about nothing.”
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Wednesday, May 20, 2015

"This Land Shall Become Yours" ✡ Hebrew Lesson of the Day

You shall inherit the Land, each tribe equal to his brother, about which I raised My hand to give it to your forefathers; this Land shall become yours as aninheritance.

EZEKIEL (47:14)

וּנְחַלְתֶּם אוֹתָהּ אִישׁ כְּאָחִיו אֲשֶׁר נָשָׂאתִי אֶת יָדִי לְתִתָּהּ לַאֲבֹתֵיכֶם וְנָפְלָה הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת לָכֶם בְּנַחֲלָה

יחזקאל מ’’ז:י’’ד

u-n'-khal-tem o-ta eesh k'-a-kheev a-sher na-sa-tee et ya-dee l'-tee-ta la-a-vo-tay-khem v'-naf-la ha-a-retz ha-zot la-khem b'-na-kha-la

Jerusalem Inspiration

In Hebrew, the word for ‘inherit’ is נַחֲלָה / na-kha-la. The word also has another meaning, “a flowing stream” as in Deuteronomy (8:7), “A land of streams of waters.” What is the connection between inheritance and a stream? Just like a stream of water flows, so too the inheritance of a precious legacy flows and passes through one generation to the next. Learn more about Biblical Hebrew with a Hebrew word a day eMail.

Finally from CNN: Good News on Israel

CNN reports on how one Syrian boy owes his life to Israel. Features the Israeli phenomenom of granting compassionate medical care to all who come to her border for treatment!

No Short of a Miracle

Two days ago, Israel celebrated Jerusalem day, marking the reunification of Jerusalem. In 1967, Israeli paratroopers liberated the eastern half of the city, making their way to the Kotel at the base of the Temple Mount.  The success of Israeli forces during the Six Day War can only be attributed to the help of God.

Hebrew English Dictionary

Love learning Hebrew? This wonderful bilingual English-Hebrew pocket book is suitable for English speakers in any stage of their Hebrew learning process. Its compact size and great selection of entries make this dictionary the perfect thing to have around in your school/work bag or on your office desk. Just crack it open for a quick consultation.

Jerusalem Photo Trivia

Safi Allman's gorgeous vantage point of a breathtaking view of one of the Holy Land's most politically controversial city. Politics aside, there is no true contest over the rights of this ancient city that just celebrated its day of reunification. Have you guessed it yet? Send me your answer or post it on Facebook.

Thank You

Today's Jerusalem Scenes and Inspiration is sponsored by Hector Camara from Katy, Texas . Toda Raba!

“Always Endeavor to Learn Hebrew in You Emails

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Shalom, I enjoy receiving your emails.  I always endeavor to learn the Hebrew in your emails. I am from Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Shira
Blessing from Jerusalem,
Rabbi Tuly Weisz
RabbiTuly@Israel365.com

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