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The soldiers expressed their gratitude over and over to the NFL coaches who made the trip to Iraq. "They kept thanking us," said the Tennessee Titans' Jeff Fisher. "We kept thanking them." Fisher, the New York Giants' Tom Coughlin, the Baltimore Ravens' John Harbaugh, former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden are taking part in the first NFL-USO coaches tour over the Fourth of July weekend. A world they knew only through the distant glimpses of news reports turned very real for the coaches as they met with hundreds of soldiers in three...

Click the link for audio segment on Youtube. On his program of April 30, shortly after 9:35 AM EST, Glenn Beck slandered the heroic Catholic victim of 1930s Communism and the FDR smear machine, Fr. Charles E. Coughlin, as an "anti-semite," "Jew-baiter," "race-baiter," "a kook," etc., and as "okay with the extermination of Jews," and as believing "the ovens aren't that bad." Beck then went on to make other less-shocking, though equally baseless, characterizations of Coughlin's concept of "social justice."

Islamic subversion alleged by speaker Tuesday, February 17, 2009 By Brian Mosely John Guandolo (T-G Photo by Brian Mosely) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo] A former FBI special agent told law enforcement and Homeland Security personnel that a network of Islamic organizations are working to incrementally implement Islamic law in the United States. During a presentation at the Bedford County Emergency Management Agency, former FBI agent John Guandolo briefed members about groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood, which he claims is working with other Islamic groups to slowly implement Shariah, also known as Islamic law, which encompasses all areas...

On Sunday, Democratic delegates convening in Denver were prayed over by representatives of various faiths. One stood out: Ingrid Mattson, president of the Islamic Society of North America. With this choice, Barak Obama's campaign has committed a strategic error of the first order. After all, the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) has been identified by the Department of Justice not only as a front for the Muslim Brotherhood – a global Islamist movement with the stated mission in America of "destroying Western civilization from within." Worse yet, it has also been named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the United...

This report from Pajamas Media titled "Strategic Collapse at the Army War College" is just plain frightening. A faculty member publicly defends Hamas while students are not allowed to read texts on militant Islam. (snip) Two recent blog posts by Washington Post military correspondent Tom Ricks related to policies and publications by the U.S. Army War College give evidence to this strategic collapse in the War on Terror. Two weeks ago, Ricks reported on a new publication by Army War College research professor Sherifa Zuhur on Hamas and Israel that informs readers that Hamas has been misunderstood due to the...

CAMDEN, New Jersey-A man who admitted letting a group of accused terror-plotters shoot his guns at a firing range was sentenced to 20 months in prison on Monday. Judge Robert Kugler said Agron Abdullahu, who is originally from Kosovo, deserved more than the 10 to 16 months that sentencing guidelines call for because he knew the men who were talking about violence against Americans. "I am convinced that he is not as innocent as he'd like us to believe," Kugler said before handing down his sentence. "This is not a common, ordinary, technical violation of the law." However, the sentence...

But were the Action steps recommended here undertaken? It appears that they were not. An update on the Stephen Couglin imbroglio: "Islam cleared," from Bill Gertz's Inside the Ring in the Washington Times (thanks to all who sent this in):Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England cleared his special assistant of any wrongdoing related to a run-in with former Joint Staff analyst Stephen Coughlin, and amid questions about the Muslim aide's background. "The deputy secretary's office has thoroughly reviewed the issues of concern raised by a few members of Congress and the media and has concluded there is no reason to question...

This is the last in a series four excerpts from this report. GOING DEEP ON JIHAD: THE ROLE OF SUBMISSION Beyond Kinetics The requirements of jihad neither begin nor end with the kinetic aspects of warfare. Flowing from the law of jihad is the Islamic concept of submission and the division of the world into the dar al-Islam and dar al-harb. While Qur’an Verse 9:29 allows “People of the Book” 318 to “submit and feel themselves subdued,” rather than be executed if choosing not to convert, the option of servitude is not automatic: It is not fitting for a Prophet...

  "To Our Great Detriment" CSP Featured Paper | Mar 24, 2008 by Maj. Steven Coughlin In comments made at the National Defense University on 1 December 2005, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace explained to his audience the importance of "understand[ing] the nature of the enemy" if we hope to defeat jihadi extremists.  Comparing our situation today, with that faced by an earlier generation who had to deal with the reality of the Nazi threat, General Pace suggested a simple solution to complying with his injunction: "read what our enemies have said.  Remember Hitler...He said in writing exactly...

WASHINGTON, March 19, 2008 – Americans must be as committed to defeating the terrorist enemy as that enemy is to defeating the United States and all that for which the nation stands, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England said today at the Navy League’s Sea, Air, Space Expo here. The deputy secretary spoke before an overflow crowd at the Expo on the fifth anniversary of the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He said the war on terror will be a long war more analogous to the Cold War than a war with a definite beginning and end. He cited similarities between...

The Coughlin Affair By Frank J. Gaffney, Jr. Monday, February 25, 2008 Imagine trying to fight a war without a clue as to what motivates your enemy or governs his strategy for your destruction. Actually, you don’t have to work too hard to get your head around such an insane idea; it is the current practice of the United States government. This is not, of course, the way it is supposed to be. According, for example, to the Pentagon’s own guidelines as reflected in the Army’s Field Manual 34-130 dealing with Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield (IPB), one of the...

Islam probed: Heshem that is February 1, 2008comment by Jerry Gordon What is that careworn expression: "oh what a tangled web we weave, when we first begin to deceive". That is what eventuated after the journalistic endeavors of former Wall Street journalist and now resident sleuth at the Foundation for the Defense of democracy in Washington, Claudia Rosset pressed the Pentagon on inconsistencies in Defense Muslim outreach aide, Heshem Islam's resume. As we posted on this rapidly developing story, the DoD puff piece on Heshem Islam, the Muslim outreach aide to Deputy Defense Secretary England, who accused Pentagon Islamic...

CAMDEN, NC — Even as fellow Republican John McCain closes in on his party's presidential nomination, U.S. Rep. Walter Jones is still not convinced the Arizona senator is the GOP's best choice to take on the Democrats' choice for president in the fall. Jones, R-N.C., is still supporting fellow Congressman Ron Paul for the GOP presidential nomination, even though the Texas Republican had only collected 14 delegates to McCain's 908. McCain was poised to pick up 56 more Tuesday night in the GOP primaries in Wisconsin and Washington. Interviewed following a ribbon-cutting event in Camden County Tuesday, Jones acknowledged that...

"As for the official spin that Mr. Coughlin was not fired but simply finishing his contract, one official said, "He did not intend to cancel his contract. He was making great headway within the JCS and was excited about it, even though he had to start over every time personnel rotated out." The official said the Joint Staff section leader who fired Mr. Coughlin indicated that he did not support the decision and that "England's office was involved" in the firing."

Okay, first a little background for Freepers who haven't been following all of these stories. STORY #1: Coughlin & Islam at the Pentagon Stephen Coughlin was a Pentagon analyst [in fact the ONLY Pentagon analyst] with a specialization in Koranic & Hadithic formulations of Jihad. At the urging of one Hasham Islam [also known as "Hesham H Islam"], in the office of Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England, Coughlin was fired in early January of 2008 [or late December of 2007]. After an enormous uproar in the intelligence community, and with the help of Congresswoman Sue Myrick [R-NC], Coughlin was finally...

Embattled Muslim aide to leave Pentagon job Hesham Islam's 'resume didn't add up,' official says WorldNetDaily February 11, 2008In a stunning turn of events, a high-level Muslim military aide blamed for costing an intelligence contractor his job will step down from his own Pentagon post, WND has learned. Meanwhile, his rival, Maj. Stephen Coughlin, a leading authority on Islamic war doctrine, may stay in the Pentagon, moving from the office of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the office of the secretary of defense. However, sources say a former U.S. ambassador to Turkey is trying to block...

Hesham Islam's 'resume didn't add up,' official says In a stunning turn of events, a high-level Muslim military aide blamed for costing an intelligence contractor his job will step down from his own Pentagon post, WND has learned. Meanwhile, his rival, Maj. Stephen Coughlin, a leading authority on Islamic war doctrine, may stay in the Pentagon, moving from the office of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the office of the secretary of defense. However, sources say a former U.S. ambassador to Turkey is trying to block his new contract. The top Pentagon aide, Egyptian-born Hesham H....

"At the urging of a subordinate, Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England scheduled at least two meetings with foreign emissaries in direct contradiction of U.S. policy at the time. The meetings date back to 2005. They involved a Lebanese ambassador considered a proxy for the Syrian government and a leading member of Syria's Muslim Brotherhood."

Published: February 6, 2008 Pentagon Aide's Invitations Contradicted U.S. PolicySteven EmersonAt the urging of a subordinate, Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England scheduled at least two meetings with foreign emissaries in direct contradiction of U.S. policy at the time. The meetings date back to 2005. They involved a Lebanese ambassador considered a proxy for the Syrian government and a leading member of Syria's Muslim Brotherhood.U.S. policy at the time was not to engage in talks with either man, because they represent groups with whom the United States was not to communicate. The meetings were organized by England's special assistant for...

Is the U.S. Failing in Afghanistan? It was malice in wonderland at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday as Bush Administration envoys insisted things are getting better in Afghanistan, while angry lawmakers from both parties cited facts and figures showing just the opposite. Even the senior Republican on the panel, Senator Richard Lugar, found the Administration's claims wanting. "I'm not sure that we have a plan for Afghanistan," he said. Long seen as the "forgotten war" eclipsed by Iraq in U.S. priorities, Afghanistan is in the Washington spotlight this week with the release of three independent reports concluding...

Islamist 'Trojan horse' in Pentagon, says FBI and Steve Emerson February 2, 2008 comment by Jerry Gordon l'affaire Coughlin, as we keep saying gets 'curioser and curioser'. Yesterday it was the bafflegab explanation by minions at DoD about why they dropped Heshem Islam 'puff piece' and resume from a website. Islam, appropriate name, is the Muslim outreach aide to Deputy Defense Secretary England. Further, we found that Islam had peculiar views on Israel - Arab conflict. His security clearance should be yanked as a result of this patent embroidery of his 'c.v.'. He should be sacked, and not our...

So, I think that Belichick is the greatest coach in history, Brady the best quarterback, and the Patriots the best team in the history of the sport. My prediction, Patriots win 42-19. You??? ;-/

Federal authorities say a high-level Muslim Pentagon aide, who led a campaign to silence a Pentagon intelligence analyst for taking a hard line against Islam, is running an "influence operation" on behalf of U.S. Muslim groups fronting for the radical Muslim Brotherhood. Hesham H. Islam, a special assistant to deputy Defense secretary Gordon England, recently criticized Maj. Stephen Coughlin, one of the military's leading authorities on Islamic war doctrine, for making the connection between the religion of Islam and terrorism. After Islam lodged complaints, Coughlin's contract with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon was not...

Federal authorities say a high-level Muslim Pentagon aide, who led a campaign to silence a Pentagon intelligence analyst for taking a hard line against Islam, is running an "influence operation" on behalf of U.S. Muslim groups fronting for the radical Muslim Brotherhood. Hesham H. Islam (left), Muslim aide to the deputy secretary of defense, with Muslim military chaplain Abuhena M. Saifulislam (right) Hesham H. Islam, a special assistant to deputy Defense secretary Gordon England, recently criticized Maj. Stephen Coughlin, one of the military's leading authorities on Islamic war doctrine, for making the connection between the religion of Islam and terrorism....

Miss Rosett tried — and failed — to get straight answers from Mr. Wensing about why Mr. Islam claimed that when he was 7 his family was bombed by Israeli jets at his home in Cairo, when there is no evidence the Israelis bombed the Egyptian capital during the 1967 war. Also, Mr. Wensing could not explain why Mr. Islam said in his biography that he was on a freighter sunk by an Iranian torpedo in the Persian Gulf when there is no record of the ship being sunk. According to his 1992 master's thesis at the Naval Postgraduate School,...

Published: January 30, 2008 Maj. Steve Coughlin for BeginnersJeffrey Breinholt Maj. Steve Coughlin has been in the news lately. Little of the attention has focused on his ideas – rather, it’s the intrigue surrounding the non-renewal of his contact as a briefer for the Joint Chiefs of Staffs that has been the focus, supposedly because he violated the sensibilities of the current climate. Meanwhile, his 300-page master's thesis is posted on the website of the International Strategy and Assessment Center, where Maj. Coughlin and I are fellows. What does his thesis say? My goal here is to summarize Coughlin’s main...

-snip- By implication the struggle between Hesher Islam and Coughlin is symptomatic of a far larger and unresolved debate, which might be summarized as being over whether or not "Islam is a religion of peace", an assumption which has undergirded the War On Terror From September 11 onwards. -snip- One of the implicit strategies of the War on Terror has been to fight Islamic terrorism in conjunction with the populations of Muslim countries. In Iraq, for example, the alliances between Coalition Forces and local groups have formed the basis for attacking and eventually destroying al-Qaeda. -snip- This strategy has many...

Mazar-i-Sharif. Ring a bell? In 2001, a 32-year-old Marine captain and CIA officer named John Michael Spann was killed there in a prison riot, thus becoming the first American combat death in Afghanistan. Not incidentally, Spann, before violence broke out, had interrogated an uncooperative John Walker Lindh, the American Taliban. This all took place before the U.S. military completely toppled Afghanistan's Taliban oppressors. Nearly seven years later, American-liberated Mazar-i-Sharif has again made headlines — well, one or two — as the site of the prison where a 23-year-old Afghan journalist has been detained for three months (and counting) on blasphemy...

Still in Control Pervez Musharraf was calm, confident and—despite a flurry of rumors—not about to announce his resignation. Instead, the Pakistani president's "concession" to his troubled nation was an announcement that he would allow Britain's Scotland Yard to help local law enforcement agencies with their investigation into last week's assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. Speaking in a nationally televised address two hours after Pakistan's election commission announced the postponement of the ballot to Feb. 18, six weeks later than had been scheduled, Musharraf was notably deferential in his remarks about Bhutto, often invoking her "martyrdom" and extolling...

"...what’s emerging at the Pentagon is a landscape in which Stephen Coughlin’s insistence on crafting doctrine based not on politically correct assumptions, but on facts, is apparently deemed a bridge too far."

Validating Major Coughlin   By Andrew G. Bostom FrontPageMagazine.com | Thursday, January 24, 2008 The very courageous and forthright Dr. Tawfik Hamid has written a must read analysis in the Jerusalem Post, entitled “The development of a jihadist’s mind.” Although Dr. Hamid—a former member of the jihadist organization, al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya (Jamaah Islamiyah)—faces overwhelming obstacles, not the least of which will be the flimsy basis for his own, albeit desperately needed, re-interpretations of core Islamic theology/jurisprudence vis a vis the jihad, and its corollary institution, dhimmitude, he is possessed of unusual candor, and insight. Dr. Hamid even voices concerns about...

Major Stephen Coughlin, the U.S. Department of Defense’s top authority on Islamic war doctrine, was ousted from his job as an intelligence analyst for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, for mentioning the connection between Islam and terror. Hesham Islam, an aide to Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England, was deemed instrumental in Coughlin’s dismissal. Coughlin had prepared briefings warning that major U.S. Muslim groups were fronting for Muslim terrorist groups. Hersham Islam is involved with one of these groups--the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)--which has been named in a major terror funding case. In a 333-page report, Coughlin warned that...

Maj. Stephen Coughlin, the military's top authority on Islamic war doctrine, was pushed out of the Pentagon, where he worked as an intelligence analyst for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, after a high-level Muslim official protested his making a connection between Islamic law and terror. Hesham Islam, a personal aide to deputy Defense secretary Gordon England, criticized Coughlin for telling a hard truth that could save soldiers lives and help us win the war against jihadists. But what really set him off, according to Washington Times Pentagon correspondent Bill Gertz, were briefings Coughlin recently prepared for the U.S. military warning...

War On Terror: If there are any doubts that political correctness is hamstringing the Pentagon in its fight against radical Islam, look no further than the case of Maj. Stephen Coughlin.Coughlin, the military's top authority on Islamic war doctrine, was pushed out of the Pentagon, where he worked as an intelligence analyst for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, after a high-level Muslim official protested his making a connection between Islamic law and terror. Hesham Islam, a personal aide to deputy Defense secretary Gordon England, criticized Coughlin for telling a hard truth that could save soldiers lives and help us win...

"...outside the Beltway and on the front lines of this struggle, his [Coughlin's]understanding of the relationship between Islamic law and Islamist jihad doctrine is invaluable."

(CNSNews.com) - Members of Congress are seeking more information regarding the firing of a top terrorism expert at the Pentagon following reports that he was dismissed for being too critical of Islamic law. Earlier this month, the Pentagon Joint Staff told Stephen Coughlin, a specialist on Islamic law at the Pentagon, that his contract would not be renewed in March. The firing apparently resulted from pressure by pro-Muslim officials working in the Department of Defense, according to numerous news reports. Meanwhile, members of Congress have not had much success in getting answers from the Pentagon either, said Rep. Sue Myrick...

As noted in Cliff's post yesterday (relying on a Bill Gertz report in the Washington Times), the Pentagon has sacked an authentic, influential scholar of Islam, Stephen Coughlin, who evidently refused to lie about — er, I mean, "soften his views on" — Islamic extremism (which, like it or not, is rooted in Islamic scripture) at the insistence of one Hasham Islam, Army Chief Gordon England's Islamophilic factotum (one of countless such creatures now pervading the federal government). For more on this, check out this post on the new website of Andrew Bostom, another scholar of Islam. Andy knows Coughlin...

Stephen Coughlin Update. Here is an excellent summary piece on Coughlin's firing, its implications, and what must be done next. Objective: The objective of this paper is to clarify the incidents surrounding the firing of Mr. Coughlin, and enumerate the implications of this event to U.S. National Security and the GWOT (Global War on Terror). Background: Mr. Stephen Coughlin works as a contractor on the Joint Staff, J-2 (Intelligence) for the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon. The Joint Staff specifically requested him because of his knowledge of Islamic Doctrine as it applies to “Jihad” and the Strategic...

It is the conclusion of this thesis that Islamic law forms the doctrinal basis for the jihadi threat that can only be understood through an unconstrained review of the Islamic law of jihad. Answering the three research questions, it turns out that: • When the Chairman said that we have yet to read what our enemy’s have said, he confirmed that we have failed to do a doctrine-based threat assessment of the enemy; • Had the IC done so, it would have quickly found that the doctrinal basis of the jihadi threat is the law of jihad in Islamic law...

I was surfing through the Washington Times Website and came across an article by Bill Gertz, about the sacking of Stephen Coughlin, the “Pentagon specialist on Islamic Law and Islamist extremism.” The article gave me chills....chills of fear. I think that I could more deal with the "in your face" attacks of 9/11, rather than with the insidious fungus/mold that is spreading throughout all levels of our society. Ask the folks who experience mold in their homes. It silently and amorphously spreads, inch by inch, until the homeowner flees. By the time the mold of “Islamist extremism,” finishes the process,...

This appears to be Coughlin's paper that has caused the ruckus and got him fired by England's special assistant. (as discussed in numerous previous threads) Careful, it's long (333 pages) and a undoubtedly scholarly tome.

"...lifting that PC curtain on Islam and its jihadist tenets is precisely the effect of Stephen Coughlin's Pentagon brief. It goes against what political correctness tells us; it also goes against what Islamic advocacy groups tell us."

Eaton Agonistes, Redux? By Andrew G. Bostom January 10, 2008 Bill Gertz, Washington Times national security columnist, reported that the Pentagon has fired Stephen Coughlin, its most knowledgeable specialist on Islamic Law, and jihad terrorism. As Gertz observed aptly, the Pentagon thus ended the career of its most effective analyst attempting to prepare the military to wage ideological war against jihadism. This past September, 2007, I lectured with Mr. Coughlin, a US Army Reserves Major, at The Naval War College, and witnessed his brilliant, tour de force presentation which elucidated the reliance of contemporary jihadism on Islamic Law. Coughlin demonstrated...

DOD's Complicity in the Islamization of America by Reginald Firehammer Perhaps it should not be shocking that a highly respected U.S. military specialists on Islamist law should be fired from the Department of Defense (DOD) at the behest of a Muslim. Paul Sperry's 2005 book, Infiltration: How Muslim Spies and Subversives have Penetrated Washington, alreaady documents the extent of Islamist influence and infiltration in US prisons, the military, universities, and key government agencies such as the FBI, the Pentagon, the State Department, and even the White House. We already knew that, but there is something much more frightening about this...

According to reporting by Bill Gertz, The Washington Times' intrepid national security correspondent, Stephen Coughlin, a major in the U.S. Army Reserves who has served as a civilian lawyer to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, fell "afoul of a key aide to [Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon] England, Hasham Islam." If allowed to stand, the effect of Maj. Coughlin's dismissal would be a surgical strike on a man who is arguably one of the most knowledgeable opponents of Shariah — not only in the Defense Department, but inside the entire U.S. government.

Pentagon specialist on Islamic law and Islamist extremism, Major (USAR) Stephen Coughlin was to my knowledge the only Islamic Law scholar on the military Joint Staff. He is a lawyer by training and a reserve Military Intelligence Officer. His first interface with Islamic Law began in Pakistan where he was investigating and prosecuting an intellectual property rights case about 10 years ago. Reviewing Pakistani property rights law, he kept seeing footnoted references to the Quran and Sharia law. I have long argued and wondered why our military, from senior leaders down to tactical level, are so unread and unstudied on...

LTC Joseph C. Myers, Army Advisor to the Air Command and Staff College, speaks out about the firing of Stephen Coughlin: Stephen Coughlin is to my knowledge the only Islamic Law scholar on the Joint Staff...He is a lawyer by training and a reserve Military Intelligence Officer. His first interface with Islamic Law began in Pakistan where he was investigating and prosecuting an intellectual property rights case about 10 years ago. Reviewing Pakistani property rights law, he kept seeing footnoted references to the Quran and sharia law... I have long argued and wondered why our military from senior leaders down...

Scott noted ( here) Bill Gertz's report on the conflict inside the Defense Department between between Stephen Coughlin, a leading student of Islamic extremism, and Hasham Islam, an aide to Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon R. England who conducts Muslim outreach on behalf of DOD. Coughlin had pointed out, based in part on information that came to light in the Holy Land Foundation trial in Texas, that several of the groups participating in Mr. Islam's outreach program are front organizations for the pro-jihad Muslim Brotherhood. Gertz now (reports) that Islam won the bureaucratic battle: Coughlin has been fired from the U.S....

Stephen Coughlin, the Pentagon specialist on Islamic law and Islamist extremism, has been fired from his position on the military's Joint Staff. The action followed a report in this space last week revealing opposition to his work for the military by pro-Muslim officials within the office of Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England. Mr. Coughlin was notified this week that his contract with the Joint Staff will end in March, effectively halting the career of one of the U.S. government's most important figures in analyzing the nature of extremism and ultimately preparing to wage ideological war against it. He had run...

Father Coughlin first took to the airwaves in 1926, broadcasting weekly sermons over the radio. By the early 1930s the content of his broadcasts had shifted from theology to economics and politics. Just as the rest of the nation was obsessed by matters economic and political in the aftermath of the Depression, so too was Father Coughlin. Coughlin had a well-developed theory of what he termed "social justice," predicated on monetary "reforms." He began as an early Roosevelt supporter, coining a famous expression, that the nation's choice was between "Roosevelt or ruin." Later in the 1930s he turned against FDR...