Monthly Archives: June 2015

June 29, 2015 SnyderTalk: US Supreme Court’s landmark ruling legalizes gay marriage nationwide

1--Intro Covering Israel and ME

“And it will come about in the last days that the mountain of the house of Yahweh will be established as the chief of the mountains. It will be raised above the hills, and the peoples will stream to it. Many nations will come and say, ‘Come and let us go up to the mountain of Yahweh and to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us about His ways and that we may walk in His paths.’ For from Zion will go forth the law, even the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem.” Micah 4: 1-2

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2--SnyderTalk Lead Headline for use

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Lawrence Hurley—US Supreme Court’s landmark ruling legalizes gay marriage nationwide:

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the U.S. Constitution provides same-sex couples the right to marry, handing a historic triumph to the American gay rights movement.

The court ruled 5-4 that the Constitution’s guarantees of due process and equal protection under the law mean that states cannot ban same-sex marriages. With the landmark ruling, gay marriage becomes legal in all 50 states.

Immediately after the decision, same-sex couples in many of states where gay marriage had been banned headed to county clerks’ offices for marriage licenses as state officials issued statements saying they would respect the ruling.

President Barack Obama, appearing in the White House Rose Garden, hailed the ruling as a milestone in American justice that arrived “like a thunderbolt.”

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SnyderTalk Comment: There is such a thing as the last straw.  There is a line that you do not cross.  There is a tipping point.  Have we found it?

I don’t know, but it wouldn’t surprise me.  If this isn’t it, I think you can see it from here.

There will come a time when those who are jubilating now will be jumping, but it won’t be for joy.

Obama can’t hide his evil side.  Rejoicing in evil is evil.  Contributing to the development of evil is evil, too.

It’s interesting that Obama described the Supreme Court ruling as a “thunderbolt”.  Yahweh works in mysterious ways.  Obama has a lot to answer for, so a thunderbolt isn’t out of the question.

I’m reminded of something that Antiochus Epiphanes said as he was about to die.  It’s in 1 Maccabees chapter 6:

(1) As King Antiochus passed through the eastern provinces, he heard that in Persia there was a city, Elam, famous for its wealth in silver and gold, (2) and that its temple was very rich, containing gold helmets, breastplates, and weapons left there by the first king of the Greeks, Alexander, son of Philip, king of Macedon.

(3) He went therefore and tried to capture and loot the city. But he could not do so, because his plan became known to the people of the city (4) who rose up in battle against him. So he fled and in great dismay withdrew from there to return to Babylon. (5) While he was in Persia, a messenger brought him news that the armies that had gone into the land of Judah had been routed; (6) that Lysias had gone at first with a strong army and been driven back; that the people of Judah had grown strong by reason of the arms, wealth, and abundant spoils taken from the armies they had cut down; (7) that they had pulled down the abomination which he had built upon the altar in Jerusalem; and that they had surrounded with high walls both the sanctuary, as it had been before, and his city of Beth-zur.

(8) When the king heard this news, he was astonished and very much shaken. Sick with grief because his designs had failed, he took to his bed. (9) There he remained many days, assailed by waves of grief, for he thought he was going to die.

(10) So he called in all his Friends and said to them: “Sleep has departed from my eyes, and my heart sinks from anxiety. (11) I said to myself: ‘Into what tribulation have I come, and in what floods of sorrow am I now! Yet I was kindly and beloved in my rule.’ (12) But I now recall the evils I did in Jerusalem, when I carried away all the vessels of silver and gold that were in it, and for no cause gave orders that the inhabitants of Judah be destroyed. (13) I know that this is why these evils have overtaken me; and now I am dying, in bitter grief, in a foreign land.”

At the end of his life, Antiochus realized that Yahweh was the cause of his torment.  He didn’t say it that way exactly, but that’s what he meant whether he understood it or not.

Antiochus said that he was “kindly and beloved in his rule”.  Sounds like Obama, doesn’t he?  It wasn’t true.  It was one of Antiochus’ many delusions, but his assessment of the cause of the punishment that he was undergoing was correct.

No one can hide from Yahweh.  It’s simply not possible.  Just like Antiochus, Obama will find that out soon enough.  So will members of the Supreme Court.  All of us will.

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13--Perspectives 2

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Jonathan Tobin: Religious Freedom Can’t Depend on a Whim— The U.S. Supreme Court may hand down a ruling as early as today on whether state bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional. If, as expected, the court rules that there is a right to same-sex marriage, then this event will be rightly seen as a benchmark in the country’s legal and cultural history. The result will mark society’s full acceptance of gays rather than seeing them as a minority to be tolerated. Indeed, the culture has changed so much on this point that it is likely that a same-sex marriage decision will be seen as the court merely catching up with the times rather than it being a pacesetter. But the possible implications of such a decision reach beyond the question of allowing gay and lesbian couples to be married by the state. As the Court discussed during oral arguments in this case, a religious institution or school that was doctrinally opposed to same-sex marriage and forbade such living arrangements for their students and faculty, it might lose their tax-exempt status because of what would be seen as morally equivalent to racist codes.

SnyderTalk Comment: If you are a person of faith who realizes that homosexuality is wrong, get ready for personal attacks.  You will be castigated and mocked and ridiculed.

Most people can’t take what’s heading their way.  They will accept the unacceptable because they can’t stand the thought of being the target of abuse.

Yahweh doesn’t give anyone a free pass because he was going with the flow.  As the old cliché says, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

People of faith are about to suffer, so get ready.

By the way, 501 (C) (3) organizations are about to learn why SnyderTalk is not one of them.  They may shut me down, but it won’t be because I’m violating the tax code.

501 (C) (3) organizations will be targeted first because they are saying what must be said.  In some ways, that’s good news.

Lots of “Christian” organizations are simply fundraising machines with a “Christian” veneer.  Their purpose is to make the leader/minister rich.  They need to be shut down anyway.  Maybe this will help to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Michael Curtis: Somebody Stole My Shoe—Conspiracy theories never stop. We have been told the earth is flat, that World War II was staged, that secret societies control the world, that Michael Jackson was killed by Iran, that the CIA created the HIV virus, that George H.W. Bush was a Nazi agent intent on destroying the United States, that the U.S. moon landings never happened, and that Denver Airport is the headquarters of the New World Order. Obviously, Mossad, Israel’s Intelligence Agency, has been the organization most responsible for outrageous deeds. We know Mossad put sharks in the Red Sea in order to destroy Egypt’s tourist trade, that it used a vulture wearing a bracelet Tel-Aviv University to spy on Saudi Arabia, that it used Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, to plot against and destabilize Iran, and that it arranged for the Nigerian underwear bomber Umar Abdulmutallab to try to detonate plastic explosives hidden under his underwear when on Northwest Airlines Flight on Christmas Day 2009.

Susan Warner: The Scorpion, The Frog and The Pope— Pope Francis recently declared Palestine to be a state. Thus, he writes a new chapter in the divisive history between Catholics and Jews. The history of the Catholic Church is a two-thousand year old story of anti-Judaism, conspicuous by frequent massacres, murders, forced conversions, torture, pogroms, expulsions, demonization and other unspeakable acts of violence and offense. The fable of the Scorpion and the Frog illustrates the notion that certain acts are not merely random chance but are as predictable as a “DNA” profile. A scorpion and a frog meet on the bank of a stream and the scorpion asks the frog to carry him across on its back. The frog asks, “How do I know you won’t sting me?” The scorpion says, “Because if I do, I will die too.” So they set out, but in midstream, the scorpion stings the frog. The frog has just enough time to gasp “Why?” The scorpion replies: “Because it is my nature; it is what I do….”

SnyderTalk Comment: It will be interesting to hear what the pope has to say about the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that legalizes homosexual marriages in all 50 states.  It would be hypocritical of him to say nothing.  Anyone in his position who has expressed his opinion about climate change and the creation of a Palestinian state publicly will have a hard time defending silence on this issue.

This is my advice for the pope: it’s time to man up.

Rachael Hanna: Al Jazeera Reporter Endorses Terrorists— Why is Ahmad Zaidan, Al Jazeera’s Islamabad bureau chief, tacitly endorsing a terrorist organization? In an op-ed for Al Jazeera’s English website on June 2, entitled “Nusra Front’s quest for a united Syria,” Zaidan writes that the Islamist militant rebel group in Syria is distancing itself from Al-Qaeda and “positioning itself as the natural heir of jihadi ideology.” The Al Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda’s offshoot in Syria, is one of the largest, most powerful and best-organized rebel groups fighting the Assad regime, and in December 2012 it landed on the U.S. State Department List of Terrorist Organizations. Officially designated as an alias of Al-Qaeda, Al Nusra was branded for the more than 600 attacks it had claimed responsibility for since November 2011, many of which had taken the lives of innocent Syrian civilians. Recent victories as part of a rebel coalition against the Assad regime in the northwest province of Idlib have further bolstered Al Nusra and strengthened the group’s leadership position among Syria’s anti-government forces.

Nahum Barnea: What War Crimes Did Israel Commit in Gaza?—I beg the forgiveness of the distinguished members of the human rights community, but the talk about war crimes in regards to the fighting in Gaza is hollow talk at best, and false talk at worst. War crimes compared to who? Compared to what? Compared to what Russia is doing in Ukraine? Compared to what the United States did in Iraq? In Afghanistan? Compared to what China is doing in Tibet? I won’t be revealing any exciting news to my readers if I say that the international community’s investigation procedures are selective. World powers are exempted from investigation, exempted from punishment: Tyrant regimes, which destroy nations, in Africa and in the Middle East, are reprimanded from time to time, but don’t give a damn. Israel is stuck in a bad place in the middle. In light of this reality, Judge McGowan Davis’ report spares Israel. Yes, there was an excessive use of ammunition in many cases, disproportional damage to residential buildings, unnecessary killing of children and civilians, and in two cases a fire frenzy in order to prevent a soldier’s abduction. But every decision maker in the international community knows that there is no practical way of waging military operations while keeping sterile, with zero flaws.

Ron Ben-Yishai: UN Report on Gaza Ignores Who Started the War—The UN report on the 2014 Gaza war fails to mention that Hamas is the one which opened fire and initiated the fighting, and it gives no weight to the fact that Israel did everything in its power to reach a ceasefire before moving on to a full-scale counterattack. The report also does not emphasize sufficiently that Hamas intentionally opened fire on Israeli civilians, while the IDF did everything in its power to minimize civilian casualties. This fact makes all the difference between Hamas and Israel. If the report’s wording indicates that there are two sides here with the same combat ethics and the same operational procedures, the report no longer reflects reality. Hamas – which began bombarding Beersheba and Tel Aviv – brought a disaster on itself. The report’s conclusions serve as a warning against what might happen to Israel in the international arena if a war breaks out in the north with Hizbullah, which has placed a considerable part of its heavy rockets and missiles inside houses.

Richard Kemp: The UN’s Gaza Report Is Flawed and Dangerous—The UN Human Rights Council report on last summer’s conflict in Gaza sympathizes with the geographical challenges Hamas faced in launching rockets at Israeli civilians: “Gaza’s small size and its population density make it particularly difficult for armed groups always to comply” with the requirement not to launch attacks from civilian areas. The report suggests more should have been done to minimize civilian casualties. Yet it offers no opinion about what additional measures Israel could have taken. No other country uses “roof-knocks,” using harmless explosive devices as a final warning to evacuate targeted buildings, which were developed by Israel as part of a series of IDF warning procedures, including text messages, phone calls and leaflet drops, that are known to have saved many Palestinian lives. The report suggests that the IDF’s use of air, tank and artillery fire in populated areas may constitute a war crime. Yet these same systems were used extensively by American and British forces in similar circumstances in Iraq and Afghanistan. They are often vital in saving the lives of our own soldiers, and their curtailment would jeopardize military effectiveness while handing an advantage to our enemies. The reason so many civilians died in Gaza last summer was not Israeli tactics or policy. It was Hamas’ strategy. Hamas deliberately positioned its fighters and munitions in civilian areas, knowing that Israel would have no choice but to attack them and that civilian casualties would result. Hamas sought to cause large numbers of casualties among its own people in order to bring international condemnation and unbearable diplomatic pressure against Israel.

Benjamin Wittes and Yishai Schwartz: Will the UN Report on Gaza Constrain Future U.S. Military Action?—Israel is, as always, the canary in the international humanitarian law (IHL) coal mine. Approaches that begin as a way of constraining Israeli military action quickly migrate to constraining U.S. military action. It is always tempting to look at large numbers of dead civilians and assume that the fact of the bodies implicates a targeting decision. But that’s rarely right without knowing who the target was, what calculations as to civilian deaths commanders made, and what the expected military advantage of the strike was. The commission of inquiry gives the benefit of the doubt to armed groups that made no secret about their intentional targeting of civilians, describing Hamas’ military wing as focused chiefly on attacking military targets. “Security experts have noted that while the Al Qassam Brigades may have targeted civilians in the past as part of its military strategy, in 2014 its declared official policy was ‘to focus on military or semi-military targets and to avoid other targets, especially civilians.'” Yet the commission cites Israeli government statistics that 4,500 rockets and mortars were aimed at Israeli cities, towns and communities.

Irit Kohn: Even When Faced with Criminal Tactics, Israel Abided by the Laws of Armed Conflict—As the former head of the International Department at the Israeli Justice Ministry for 10 years, I participated in many deliberations regarding the exercise of Israel’s right to self-defense in accordance with international law. During its conflict with Hamas in 2014, Israel was forced – again – to engage an enemy who fought, literally, underground, within populated civilian areas. As the recent Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs report noted, Hamas “actively encouraged, and even coerced, civilians to remain in areas of hostilities in order to impede IDF attacks and shield military activities.” These human shield practices by Hamas constitute war crimes, as do the 4,000 rockets launched by Hamas towards Israel’s civilians. Israel, faced with such criminal tactics, continued to abide strictly by the laws of armed conflict. In fact, the IDF’s efforts to mitigate civilian casualties went beyond the legal requirements, as attested to by two separate reports of high-ranking military experts from democratic countries around the globe. It is important to illuminate the disparity between the reality and what is often reported. The constant, biased treatment of Israel at the UN serves only to embolden Hamas and other terrorist groups to intensify their unlawful methods.

Steve Huntley: No Deaths Would Have Occurred in Gaza Had Hamas Not Chosen War—Another day, another UN Human Rights Council report condemning Israel. It is notable that the Obama administration couldn’t gloss over this latest bit of Israelphobia from a UN agency infamous for jihad against the Jewish state. A spokesman for the State Department cited “bias against Israel” as the reason that the U.S. wouldn’t support any further action on the report. The New York Times described the UN document as “taking pains to be evenhanded.” What nonsense. This war was started by Hamas, and that bloody terrorist organization bears full and sole responsibility for the innocent deaths that occurred during the conflict. No deaths or injuries would have occurred had Hamas not chosen war. The UN report criticized Israel for the measures it took to warn Palestinian civilians of impending attacks. What warnings do the Russian “separatists” issue before their attacks in Ukraine? Do warning leaflets fall on towns in Yemen where Saudi Arabia is conducting air strikes against Iranian-linked rebels?

Melanie Phillips: Time to Call Out Those Aiding the Pogrom Against Israel—We know by now that the UN Human Rights Council is a sick joke, with its membership including murderous regimes which deny human rights to their own people. We know that the UN, with its great bloc of despotisms and terrorist states, is institutionally programmed to attack Israel – the sole country in the Middle East which safeguards human rights and where Muslims are safe. We know that the NGOs that the UN inquiry relied on are the instruments of a psychological warfare campaign to bend the collective Western mind with systematic falsehoods and blood libels about Israel. What we haven’t done is hold to account those who have enabled these institutions and groups to do these wicked things, and who have given them traction. Israel and its defenders should be publicly calling out those Western governments which fund these NGOs, and demand that they stop.

David Ignatius: The U.S. Must Not Accede to Iran’s “Red Lines”— Iran enters the endgame of the nuclear talks with what amount to two negotiating positions — the parameters reportedly endorsed in April in Lausanne, Switzerland, by Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, and another set of “red lines” drawn this week by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The two positions are significantly different. The first version offers a workable basis for agreement. The second is fatally flawed. It’s not the first time that a country has sent two messages, public and private, on a sensitive issue. That’s how President John F. Kennedy resolved the Cuban missile crisis. But it’s discomforting less than a week before the deadline. Secretary of State John Kerry travels to the final round of talks in Vienna assuming that the decisive final version will be what’s agreed to by Zarif at the bargaining table, not what’s said in an inflammatory speech by Khamenei. Past negotiating experience with Iran gives some reason for such hope: The Iranians have indeed made concessions they initially said were unthinkable; the very fact they’re negotiating with the one-time “Great Satan” shows that Khamenei is pliable. “We and Iran both know what’s needed for a deal,” a senior administration official said Thursday. “We have to get the Lausanne parameters or we will not have a deal. We all understand that; all parties understand that.”

Robert M. Morgenthau: Obama Ignores the Tehran-Terror Connection—The nuclear agreement with Iran doesn’t address the Islamic Republic’s continuing support of terrorism. Any deal that fails to hold Iran accountable for its criminal and terrorist conduct, past and present, will fail to curtail such conduct in the future. The sanctions on Iran were designed not only to curtail Iran’s efforts to develop nuclear weapons, but also to curtail its support of terrorist organizations, human-rights abuses and the development of ballistic missiles. Iran is the primary source of funding for Hizbullah, Hamas and other terrorist organizations. During the war in Iraq, Tehran provided IEDs to insurgents to kill American troops. Today the Islamic Republic supports the Taliban as the U.S. attempts to withdraw from Afghanistan. Tehran also has growing influence in several South American countries, including Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador and Bolivia. Any deal that fails to address or curtail Iran’s role as a state sponsor of terrorism – and that actually undercuts our ability to confront that threat – is a deal that we must not make.

SnyderTalk Comment: In fairness to Obama, connecting the dots requires a level of intelligence that he doesn’t possess.  The blame for Obama rests squarely on the shoulders of U.S. voters.

Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Five Key Issues in Nuclear Negotiations with Iran1. Transparency. Iran must ease access to sites immediately as required by the Additional Protocol agreed in Lausanne and implement Code 3.1 of the 1974 Safeguard Agreements. And the history of their covert military activity cannot any longer be covert. 2. Stockpile. Iran had agreed to export enriched uranium to Russia so that for 15 years at least it would never have more than 300 kilograms. The IAEA recently reported Iran’s stocks had risen by 20%. Iranian negotiator Abbas Araqchi now says there’s no question of shipping the fuel abroad. What’s going on? 3. Arak. Secure a timetable for shutting down the heavy water reactor at Arak, having its redesign approved by the IAEA and the U.S. and its spent fuel sent to another country. 4. Fordow. The Fordow plant, which was deliberately built underground to protect it from bombing, is to be converted to a scientific laboratory. The Israelis want it shut entirely so it can’t be reused as a safe haven for nuclear development. 5. Sanctions. Iran demands that sanctions cease as soon as there’s a final agreement. No way. It should happen only when the IAEA is satisfied with big initial steps on transparency and access to any suspicious area, with the plans for conversion of Fordow and Arak, and with an assured ceiling for Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium. In short, the sanctions shouldn’t be lifted until roadblocks to a bomb are in place.

Brig.-Gen. (res.) Michael Herzog: Red Lines and Pitfalls for the Iran Deal—The choice posited by the Americans between a war and a deal is false. There are specific elements that could still be improved with strong U.S. deterrence, including a credible military option, and international unity. While the U.S. argues that this deal may empower moderates, most Israeli analysts believe it is more likely to empower hardliners and Iranian destabilizing policies in the region. Israel, major European actors and the U.S. should also hold a close dialogue on how to deter Iran from pursuing its hegemonic regional agenda from a strengthened economic and political position after a deal is signed and sanctions are lifted. They should also consider how to prevent a regional race for nuclear capability. Contrary to the views of some in the West, there is little room for strategic partnership with Iran, given their contrasting vision of the Middle East with respect to sectarianism, inclusion, human rights, democracy, and the use of violence.

Ilan Berman: Why Iran’s Past Nuclear Actions Matter—The collapse of the American position in the nuclear talks with Iran in recent days has been nothing short of breathtaking, as the White House began walking back on the “possible military dimensions” (PMD) of Iran’s nuclear effort that have been carried out so far. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has identified nearly a dozen potential PMD activities – ranging from bomb designs to the development of nuclear detonators – that Iran needs to explain fully. Just this spring, Secretary of State John Kerry was still insisting that Iran’s disclosure of its past military-related atomic activities was an ironclad requirement for any sort of agreement with Tehran. The question of Iran’s previous – and possibly current – military-related nuclear work goes to the heart of Western concerns over the intent of Iran’s effort: namely, that it represents a path to the “bomb.” Knowing as much as we can about how far Iran’s work in this arena has progressed, and which processes are still underway (or could be restarted in short order), is essential to truly understanding the distance Iran still has to travel in order to attain nuclear status.

Michael Oren: Why Obama is wrong about Iran being ‘rational’ on nukes— The fact that you are anti-Semitic, or racist, doesn’t preclude you from being interested in survival,” President Obama said last month in an interview with Jeffrey Goldberg in the Atlantic. “The fact that the supreme leader is anti-Semitic doesn’t mean that this overrides all of his other considerations.” The question of whether Iran, run by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his ayatollahs, is a rational state goes to the very heart of the debate over its nuclear program and the negotiations, now nearing a June 30 deadline, to curb it. Simply put: Those in the “rational” camp see a regime that wants to remain in power and achieve regional hegemony and will therefore cooperate, rather than languish under international sanctions that threaten to deny it both. The other side cannot accept that religious fanatics who deny the Holocaust, blame all evil on the Jews and pledge to annihilate the 6 million of them in Israel can be trusted with a nuclear program capable of producing the world’s most destructive weapon in a single year. The rational/irrational dispute was ever-present in the intimate discussions between the United States and Israel on the Iranian nuclear issue during my term as Israel’s ambassador to Washington, from 2009 to the end of 2013. I took part in those talks and was impressed by their candor. Experts assessed the progress in Iran’s program: the growing number of centrifuges in its expanding underground facilities, the rising stockpile of enriched uranium that could be used in not one but several bombs, and the time that would be required for Iran to “break out” or “sneak out” from international inspectors and become a nuclear power.

SnyderTalk Comment: Michael Oren is a smart man, so I suspect he knows this.  What Obama says publicly and what he believes are not always the same thing.

Despite what Obama said about Iran being a rational state, he knows that that is not true.  He’s simply trying to win support in Congress for the Iran deal by applying political pressure on members of Congress.

Obama may not be able to connect the dots, but he can tell the difference between an Islamist fanatic and a normal person.  He doesn’t believe that Islamists are Muslims, but he admits that they are fanatics.

I think Obama is showing signs of “legacy fear”.  It’s easy to understand why.  He believes that he needs a big win, and Iran is his last, best hope.  That means getting the Iran deal finalized and approved has moved to the top of his agenda.  It trumps everything.

Will he get what he wants?

We’ll know soon enough.

Bernard-Henri Levy: A Yellow Star for the Jewish State?—All of the recent episodes to delegitimize Israel can be traced to the global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, established in 2005 by Palestinian nongovernmental organizations. BDS is supposedly a worldwide civil-society movement embodying respect for law, democracy, and human rights. If that is true, why target the only country in the region that was founded on those values, and that has continued – despite a nearly 70-year state of war – to be broadly faithful to them? Foundations in Qatar (together with Saudi think tanks) provide most of the financing for the BDS movement. In that country, 95% of the labor force consists of Asian non-citizens working in slave-like conditions under the kafala system, which is a close cousin to apartheid. The truth is that the BDS movement is a campaign whose instigators have no aim other than to discriminate against, delegitimize, and vilify an Israel that in their mind never stopped wearing its yellow star. To activists of good faith who may have been taken in by duplicitous representations of the movement, I would say only that there are too many noble causes in need of assistance to allow oneself to be enlisted in a dubious one.

Martin Raffel: BDS: How Big a Threat?—The core mission of the BDS movement, sometimes made explicit but often hidden, is to delegitimize Israel and to isolate it economically and diplomatically. It completely ignores legitimate Israeli security concerns, and is not really in the business of advancing the cause of Palestinian statehood. In the end, its zero-sum politics directed at hurting Israel does nothing to help Palestinians. In fact, successfully confronting and containing the one-sided BDS agenda will promote an atmosphere more conducive to peacemaking between Palestinians and Israelis.

Philip Mendes and Nick Dyrenfurth: BDS: The Antithesis of Progressive Politics—The BDS campaign is regressive and corrosive of civil society. To teach that Zionism – the Jewish people’s aspiration for national self-determination in their historic homeland – is the first enemy of progress is the antithesis of progressive politics. Indeed, local BDS campaigns have led to numerous manifestations of outright anti-Semitism. Only those who are anti-BDS can lead the way toward a just and peaceful resolution of the conflict through a two-state plan that fosters dialogue and urges mutual compromise and concessions from both sides. This genuinely progressive view, based on support for Israel’s existence, is increasingly being excluded from local and international debates.

Ian O’Doherty: Boycott of Tel Aviv Gaelic Arts and Culture Festival Shows the Face of Real Bigotry—All cultures, we are told, are equal. But some are less equal than others. Thus, it is positively de rigeur to libel Israel as a genocidal, Nazi, apartheid state that is a “cancer” in the Middle East. The ongoing BDS movement has been loud and shrill in their calls for a complete boycott of individual Israelis, regardless of their own political affiliation. The latest example of this racist profiling comes with the news that Israel’s first Irish dancing festival is now the latest target of the BDS bullies. An Irish dancing school, the Carey Academy, was hoping to hold a festival in Tel Aviv in August, but it was instantly trolled by the usual worthies who were quick to accuse them of “being on the wrong side of history.” Let’s be clear, Israel is the only beacon of 21st-century civilization in a region where medieval savagery holds sway. And yet, bafflingly, that is the country we choose to demonize.

Michael Curtis: Israel Not Getting Boycotted Where It Counts—It is always a moment of amusement to read the latest fulmination of the venerable archbishop emeritus Desmond Tutu.  On June 17, 2015, he beguiled us again with his message to his dear sisters and brothers in the United Church of Christ, which is holding its general synod in Cleveland June 26-30, 2015.  He assured the congregation of his support for its divestment resolution targeting the “Israeli occupation.”  He fully endorsed the proposal to use the powerful nonviolent tools of economic leverage against the State of Israel. Tutu is following in the footsteps of individuals and groups, all well-known and respected for their intimate knowledge and understanding of Middle East affairs, and very familiar with all the alleged misdeeds and violations of international law by the State of Israel and the diabolical enemies of peace in the Hebrew University and the Hadassah medical facilities.  The experts are too numerous to mention, but among the most knowledgeable are the executive board of the American Studies Society, most of whom specialize in gender studies; the Irish Students Union, which apparently does not have a map of Israel; the U.K. National Union of Students; Alice Walker, who views Israel as black, not the color purple; and the rock singer Roger Water, whose mission in life is apparently to call on fellow entertainers not to rock in Israel since, unlike Mick Jagger, he gets no satisfaction from this.

Ronen Bergman: Book Review: Behind the Top-Secret Curtain—Yossi Alpher, a former military intelligence officer, is a long-serving Mossad official who went on to head the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University. In his new book,Periphery: Israel’s Search for Middle East Allies, Alpher divides the periphery into three categories. Included in the first were the non-Arab and/or non-Muslim states that bordered on the Arab conflict states – Iran, Ethiopia, Turkey, Eritrea, and Kenya and Uganda at the rear. The second comprised non-Arab and non-Muslim ethnic groups and peoples living in the Arab conflict states – the Christians in southern Sudan and in Lebanon, and the Kurds in Iraq. The third category was made up of Arab countries on the margins of the Middle East that felt that militant Arab nationalism was a threat to them or wanted ties with Israel in light of local or regional circumstances – Morocco, some of the Gulf States, and, for a short time, Yemen. The highpoint of the “Periphery doctrine” was the tripartite intelligence pact involving Israel, Turkey and Iran. The Turkish-Israeli part of the pact was sealed during a secret agreement in Ankara on August 20, 1958, between David Ben-Gurion and the Turkish prime minister, Adnan Menderes, directed against Nasser’s influence and the influence of the Soviets.

Josh Rogin and Eli Lake: FBI Rounding Up Islamic State Suspects—The FBI has been rounding up potential “lone wolf” terrorists in response to the perception of a mounting threat of domestic attacks inspired by the Islamic State. Since the thwarted attack on a “Draw Muhammad” conference in Garland, Texas, on May 3, the Justice Department has announced the arrests of 10 individuals it says were inspired by and supporting the Islamic State. Lawmakers say there have been more arrests that have not yet been announced. The FBI has shifted its approach toward arrests rather than keeping suspects under surveillance. The recent arrests are “an indication that the increased number of threads of threats…is at the highest level that most of us have seen since 9/11,” Chairman Richard Burr of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence told us in an interview.

SnyderTalk Comment: For those of you who are happy that the FBI is arresting people that they suspect have ISIS “lone wolf” potential, keep in mind that the logic they are using is a double-edged sword.  It can be used to arrest anyone that the feds believe is a potential threat for just about any reason.

A word to the wise: legal protections are there for a reason.

Arresting people who break the law is a good thing.  Arresting them because they might break the law is not.

That raises these questions in my mind:

  1. Why have the feds not arrested the people at the State Department who withheld Hillary’s subpoenaed emails relating to Benghazi?
  2. Why have the feds not arrested the people at the IRS who targeted conservative groups?
  3. Why have the feds not arrested the people at the Justice Department who were complicit in voter fraud?

I could go on, but this is my point: selective enforcement of the law by the feds makes the word “justice” meaningless.  Actually, it’s worse than that.  It makes the word “justice” a joke.

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SnyderTalk Comment: Despite the many wars that Israel has had to fight since its re-founding in 1948, many Israelis still won’t accept reality.  They still think that peace is possible with Hamas, the PA, the PLO, and other groups with menacing names.  They are wrong.

You can’t make peace with groups whose only reason for being is to kill you.  Hamas, the PA, the PLO, and other groups with menacing names are not nations.  They are groups of various sorts with one thing in common.  All of them are committed to Israel’s destruction.

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9--Jerusalem Post

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Senior Israeli Druze Officer: The IDF Should Not Intervene in Syria’s Civil War

Palestinian Terrorist Opens Fire on IDF Soldiers at West Bank Checkpoint

Nearly Half of Israelis See Iran Deal as Existential Threat

Security and defense: Under cover of darkness

Israel and ICC on a collision course

Enemy on the inside: Terrorists plan attack for American Independence Day

Ministers descending on Vienna with hopes for a final Iran deal

Activists take to Tel Aviv streets to protest gas compromise

‘ISIS atrocities based on Talmudic rituals,’ says Syrian expert

Lapid slams ‘despicable’ Gaza flotilla as ‘gang of terror supporters’

Moderate Syrian rebels claim ‘Islamist’ militant killed by Druse mob was their man

Southern Israel feels effects of 5.1-magnitude earthquake that hit Sinai

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10--Arutz Sheva

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Terrorists Open Fire on Ambulance North of Jerusalem

PLO Holds Unity Government Talks With Hamas, Islamic Jihad

Islamic Jihad Threatens to End Gaza Ceasefire

Turkey Summons Diplomat After Turks Refused Entry

‘The State Funds Its Enemies, Not Its Defenders’

Tactless Comforters Anger Bereaved Mother

Terrorist Killed in Gun Battle with IDF Soldiers

Gun Thieves Were Smart; Police Were Smarter

ISIS in Jerusalem Threatens Christians

SnyderTalk Comment: This is a quote from the article: A flier published by in the name of the brutal Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist organization was put up around eastern Jerusalem on Thursday, in what is thought to be the first such announcement in the Israeli capital. The flier threatens Christians in the area with “revenge,” and is signed by the organization “ISIS Palestine,” reports Channel 10. ISIS does not have an operational presence in Israel, but support for the group among Islamists is on the rise, with dozens of Arab citizens leaving for Syria and Iraq to fight for the jihadist organization after ISIS member stook part in Hamas’s terror war against Israel last summer.

PA: Next Step is an ICC Investigation of Israel

Kurds End ISIS Murder Spree in Kobane

Erdogan Vows Turkey Will Never Allow Kurdish State

Kerry Arrives in Vienna as Deadline Approaches

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SnyderTalk Comment: The U.N. is more unreliable now than it has ever been.

I’ll never forget when Ted Turner gave the U.N. $1 billion.  What a waste of money.

Turner has made a lot of money, but that doesn’t mean he’s smart or that he’s saved.

If he doesn’t change his ways, Turner will be shocked when he meets Yahweh.  Everyone is going to meet Yahweh one day whether they want to or not.  He’s not impressed by money.  Besides, no one will have any money when they meet Him.

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11--THE TIMES OF ISRAEL

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Tunisia gunman ‘laughed’ as he shot victims

Cameron: UK must prepare for ‘many’ dead in Tunisia

UK beefs up security after report of IS bomb plot

French PM warns further attacks are coming

French beheading suspect was allegedly involved in 2012 attack on Jewish teen

‘Come home!’ Israeli minister urges French Jews amid terror wave

Kuwait questions suspects in bombing that killed 27

IS and al-Qaeda seek ongoing summer wave of terror, TV report says

PBS special explores germination of strife in today’s Middle East

UN Gaza Report Won’t Provide Ammunition Against IDF at International Criminal Court 

Gaza-Bound Flotilla Sets Sail from Crete

Iranian FM: West must stop ‘excessive demands’

The Iran deal: A look at what it does and problems remaining

US official: Many concerns about Iran deal based on ‘myth’

SnyderTalk Comment: The myth is that Obama knows what he’s doing.

At Magdala by the Kinneret, discoveries that resonate with Jews and Christians

SnyderTalk Comment: Kinneret is the Sea of Galilee.  See the quote below:

“However, the most amazing discovery to date is the altar stone found in the synagogue wreckage, says archaeologist Arfan Najjar. Born in the Galilee village of Daboriya, Najjar has been excavating Magdala for the past five years. Najjar and other experts believe the altar stone to be a model of the Jerusalem Temple – created by a contemporary artist who saw it first-hand. Engraved on the table’s top and sides are carvings of the Temple’s parallel arcades, columns, beams, and arches. Clearly visible are vessels, tools and brushes that would have been used for sacrifices, and for cleaning up after they took place. And – the jewel in the crown – carved on the face of the table is a menorah, just like the one that stood in the Temple.”

So much for the Palestinian claim that there is no ancient connection between the Jewish people and the Land of Israel.  Truth be told, there is no ancient connection between “Palestinians” and the Land of Israel.  They are usurpers.

Yahweh, please do something about this soon.  They don’t belong there, yet they are trying to drive Your people out.  Remember Your promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob/Israel and settle the matter once and for all.

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12a--Other News

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IDF Soldiers React to War Crime Accusations

Former IDF Lawyer: UN Gaza Report Cannot Be Used as Evidence at ICC

Kurds Find ISIS Tunnel near Turkish Border

U.S. Opposes Bringing UN Gaza Report to Security Council

Palestinian Move at ICC May Trigger Suspension of U.S. Aid

State Department: Aid to PA to Continue

U.S.: Palestinian Moves Against Israel at ICC “Counterproductive”

New York State Assembly Passes Anti-BDS Resolution

Pennsylvania Lawmakers Vote to Condemn BDS Movement

The UN Report on the 2014 Gaza Conflict: The Distorting Effect of Flawed Foundations 

Greek PM Tsipras issues defiant call to reject bailout in referendum

SnyderTalk Comment: These three articles are very interesting.

This isn’t a localized problem, though.  It’s not a Middle East problem.  It’s not an Israel problem.  It’s not a U.S. problem.  Islamist terrorism is a global problem that demands a global solution.

Talk is cheap.  We’ve had enough of that already and far much from President Obama.  It’s time to call the enemy by its name and solve the problem.

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SnyderTalk Comment: Good shooting advice​:

  • 3 shots center mass fired very fast is the key.
  • Forget dead center. It takes too much time.  If your shots are dead center, you’re shooting too slowly.
  • Don’t even think about the center of the target. It just slows you up.
  • Point and shoot. Don’t aim.
  • In a self-defense situation, you don’t have time to aim. Speed is the key.  The threat should be eliminated in a fraction of a second.
  • After 3 shots, pause. 3 more shots if the threat remains.
  • 3 shots will be enough almost 100% of the time with any caliber pistol. 9mm is plenty.  .40 is better if you can keep it center mass, but again, speed is the key.  It’s far more important than caliber.
  • Again, very fast.

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12b--TRIC

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Turkey will ‘never allow’ Kurdish state in Syria warns Erdogan

SnyderTalk Comment: But he’s all for a Palestinian state in Israel.  Go figure.

Erdogan is an idiot, but he’s not the only one.  His friend in the White House is one, too.  There are others.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Seems to Pull Back on Nuclear Talks

I Have “No Differences” with Netanyahu over Iran, Says Israel’s Opposition Leader

Verifying a Final Nuclear Deal with Iran

Necessary Safeguards for a Final Deal with Iran

China Buys Controlling Stake in Israel’s Fourth-Largest Insurance Provider

Sunsets and Snapbacks: The Asymmetry Between an Expanding Iranian Nuclear Program and Diminishing Western Leverage

Iran Developing ICBMs to Carry Nuclear Warheads

Plan B for Iran

Obama Already Told Us There Is No Plan B on Iran

Iranian Oil Tankers Keep Syria’s War Machine Alive

State Department Report Criticizes Iran for Human Rights Abuses 

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Email Distribution List:

I have created an email distribution list that I use to notify people when I post a new SnyderTalk.  If you would like to be on that list, send your email address to nhsny@yahoo.com, and put “add me to your distribution list” in the subject line.  If you know others who are interested in SnyderTalk content, tell them to send me their email address, and I’ll put them on the list.

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4--Scripture of the Day Yahweh

Exodus 13

11 “Now when Yahweh brings you to the land of the Canaanite, as He swore to you and to your fathers, and gives it to you, 12 you shall devote to Yahweh the first offspring of every womb, and the first offspring of every beast that you own; the males belong to Yahweh. 13 But every first offspring of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck; and every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 And it shall be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is this?’ then you shall say to him, ‘With a powerful hand Yahweh brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15 It came about, when Pharaoh was stubborn about letting us go, that Yahweh killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore, I sacrifice to Yahweh the males, the first offspring of every womb, but every firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 16 So it shall serve as a sign on your hand and as phylacteries on your forehead, for with a powerful hand Yahweh brought us out of Egypt.”

SnyderTalk Comment: Read His Name is Yahweh.

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5--HNIY Print form

His Name is Yahweh explains why the Name of God, Yahweh, is so important.  It’s available in eBook format and in paperback.  It’s also available for free in PDF format.

  • God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This [Yahweh] is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” (Exodus 3: 15)
  • “Therefore behold, I am going to make them know—this time I will make them know My power and My might; and they shall know that My name is Yahweh.” (Jeremiah 16: 21)
  • “Behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, ‘Yahweh our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23: 5-6)
  • Yeshua said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” (John 8: 58)

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6--His Name is Yahweh Audio Presentation 5

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Pronouncing  the Name Yahweh—Andrew Gabriel Roth

Click here to download the entire audio presentation for free and with no strings attached.  Share it as often as you want.

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14--Blessings from Revelation 2

Blessings in the Book of Revelation is a book that you need to read, especially now.  There are blessings throughout the Scriptures but Revelation is the only book in the Bible actually containing a specific blessing for reading it. It’s repeated twice, once at the beginning and again at the end. This is the reason that I believe Revelation should be the first step toward studying biblical prophecy. Though not easy to do, Revelation can be broken down and understood by anyone, not just the academic elite. So, Revelation’s blessings are for everyone.  Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.

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Other Books by Neil Snyder

  • Stand! is a suspense novel that exposes the lies, corruption, and greed underlying the theory that man-made CO2 emissions are responsible for global warming. Professor Wes Carlyle and Karen Sterling, his research collaborator, carefully scan the audience for their would-be attacker—a member of the enviro-gestapo who has been following them for days.  Wes spots his man in the back of the room leaning against the wall.  Suddenly, another man in the audience steps forward and moves toward Karen at a menacing pace.  With a vicious stroke, he swings a billy club at her head.  Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.
  • What Will You Do with the Rest of Your Life? deals with a question that every Christian has to consider: what should I do with my life? Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.
  • Falsely Accused is a true story about a young woman who was accused of committing a double homicide. It’s about a travesty of justice, and it reveals Yahweh intervening in the life of a believer to rescue her from danger in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.  Everyone will enjoy the book, but young people in particular need to read it because the mistakes made that led to the problem could have been avoided.  They were the kinds of mistakes that young people are prone to make.  As they say, forewarned is forearmed.  Click here to order the eBook.  Click here to order the paperback.

15--Concentric Circles 5

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