http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/olivernorth/ en-us Sat, 26 Jul 2008 01:58:19 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2051529/posts Georgetown, S.C — "What’s this guy running for, ‘Emperor of the world?’” asked the sunburned fellow at the next table where we stopped for lunch. Mr. Sunburn was holding a copy of The Charleston Post and Courier and pointing to a headline, “Obama pledges to work for peace.” The inquiry, addressed to those sitting beside him elicited only shrugs, so he answered his own question: “Just doesn’t make any sense to me.” The Obama machine’s, “Hope & Change World Tour” has left more than a few people perplexed. Some – like the gentleman beside us at the restaurant – are... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2051529/posts#comment Sat, 26 Jul 2008 01:58:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2050887/posts Georgetown, S.C — "What’s this guy running for, ‘Emperor of the world?’” asked the sunburned fellow at the next table where we stopped for lunch. Mr. Sunburn was holding a copy of The Charleston Post and Courier and pointing to a headline, “Obama pledges to work for peace.” The inquiry, addressed to those sitting beside him elicited only shrugs, so he answered his own question: “Just doesn’t make any sense to me.” The Obama machine’s, “Hope & Change World Tour” has left more than a few people perplexed. Some – like the gentleman beside us at the restaurant – are... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2050887/posts#comment Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:21:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2050371/posts American pop culture has skewed the public’s view of what makes a hero in today’s world and what types of behavior make a person worthy of our attention and accolades. Those who contribute to the greatness of our country are largely ignored by the media who worship the cult of celebrity. Most Americans are familiar with the latest celebrity scandal; they can recite the particulars of the latest Hollywood divorce and Rattle off a list of “American Idol” winners. They know who set the new home run record or led his team to a Super Bowl victory. But if asked... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2050371/posts#comment Thu, 24 Jul 2008 04:37:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2047291/posts New York, NY — Pawleys Island, S.C. – Here in the Carolina “Low Country,” there is considerable consternation about this week’s meeting in Switzerland between U.S. and Iranian diplomats. Such confusion is understandable given the longstanding Bush administration policy against such meetings, recent events in that part of the world – and the way in which the State Department and White House announced the July 19 get together. In short, what has been happening in that part of the world and what Washington is now saying just doesn’t match. That’s a very dangerous combination. Last summer, the government of Israel... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2047291/posts#comment Fri, 18 Jul 2008 03:03:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2043940/posts WASHINGTON -- Twenty-five years ago this week, an intelligence report crossed my desk warning that Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon's Bekka Valley were preparing a major attack. Two months prior -- April 18, 1983 -- a Hezbollah truck bomb had exploded in front of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, killing 63 and wounding another 120. With this grim event in mind, we launched an "all-source" effort to determine the nature of the planned attack, the timing and the target. We failed. At 6:22 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 23, 1983, the killers carried out their assault. A single terrorist in a Mercedes truck... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2043940/posts#comment Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:34:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040454/posts New York, NY — The potentates who run the taxpayer-subsidized Corporation for Public Broadcasting have an exquisite sense of timing. To honor America's 232nd birthday, PBS is bracketing our nation's anniversary with a three-part documentary on the horrors of warfare in the 20th Century. Regrettably, nearly two-thirds of the series is a dubious assessment of American motives and methods during and after World War II. Given that we are at war against brutal adversaries who despise our belief in being endowed by our "Creator with certain unalienable rights" — as in "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" — the... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040454/posts#comment Thu, 3 Jul 2008 22:14:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036994/posts Austin, TX — Our FOX News "War Stories" team came here to the capital of the Lone Star State to work on a documentary about America's 36th president to coincide with the 100th anniversary of his birth on August 27. Full disclosure here: Lyndon Baines Johnson was the commander-in-chief who sent me and one of my brothers to war in Vietnam. Because of the way he handled the war in Vietnam, LBJ has never been at the top of my list of favorite presidents. Apparently I'm not alone. Despite his sweeping civil rights reforms and far-reaching "Great Society" domestic programs,... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036994/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 22:56:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034210/posts WASHINGTON -- Last Sunday, Sen. John McCain met in Washington with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari. After their closed-door session, the two men took questions from waiting reporters. The following day, Sen. Barack Obama told reporters that he, too, had found time for a conversation with Zebari. The way in which the two events apparently took place and how they were reported reflect the profound differences between McCain and Obama. The McCain-Zebari Father's Day meeting at the candidate's presidential campaign headquarters in Virginia showed that the two men know and respect each other, share a common perspective on success in... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034210/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 04:28:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2030269/posts Washington, DC — Just about everyone in America knows that Sunday, June 15, is Father's Day. The "Day for Dads" has been celebrated on the third Sunday of June since 1966, when President Lyndon Johnson decreed it to be so. Those who make and sell power tools and greeting cards have been grateful ever since. Somehow, it just isn't the same for June 14th — Flag Day — and by no coincidence, the U.S. Army's anniversary. Father's Day is traditionally memorialized with gifts, cards and calls for dear old dad. Flag Day is all but forgotten. But this year, with... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2030269/posts#comment Thu, 12 Jun 2008 23:57:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2026889/posts WASHINGTON -- Sixty-four years ago this week, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt came on the radio and implored Americans to "devote themselves in a continuance of prayer invoking thy help to our efforts." The "effort" of which he spoke was Operation Overlord, the D-Day landing of 150,000 American and Allied troops at Normandy. The risks were so great that Winston Churchill told the people of Britain: "The invasion has been launched. The result is with God." FDR described it as "a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our republic, our religion and our civilization, and to set free a suffering humanity."... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2026889/posts#comment Fri, 6 Jun 2008 04:08:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2023344/posts Washington, DC — When the so-called mainstream media doesn’t want you to know something they simply spike the story – meaning they just don’t cover it. That’s what’s happened to the good news from Iraq. American Heroes in flak jackets and helmets and their Iraqi counterparts are asserting rule of law for millions of grateful Iraqi civilians once tyrannized by Al Qaeda terrorists and Shiite militias. In short, we are winning. That’s the good news that isn’t news. Then there is the bad news that isn’t news. This includes stories about the United Nations interfering in U.S. domestic politics; Iranian... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2023344/posts#comment Fri, 30 May 2008 02:52:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2019940/posts "Now hear this." Aboard ship, every announcement from the bridge is preceded by that phrase. Here in the Big Apple it's "Fleet Week." Set to coincide with Memorial Day Weekend, an opportunity for the citizens of America's most-populous metropolitan area to see and touch the hardware the U.S. Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps use to defend this land. More importantly, it is a chance for our countrymen to meet and actually talk with a serving member of the U.S. Armed Forces. Notably, nearly all of the Marines and sailors aboard the USS Kearsarge (LHD-3) and a good number of... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2019940/posts#comment Thu, 22 May 2008 23:19:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2018090/posts *American Heroes: In the Fight Against Radical Islam (War Stories) In the interests of full disclosure let me say that I have admired Oliver North (Lt.Col., USMC, Ret.) since that day just over 19 years ago when he was indicted on 16 felony counts in the Iran-Contra non-scandal. When a reporter asked him about the possibility of a plea bargain North famously replied, “This Marine pleads guilty to nothing!” Lawrence Walsh used the shotgun technique favored by incompetent and overzealous prosecutors on North and others -- fire enough buckshot and you’re bound to hit something. North was convicted on three... Human Events http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2018090/posts#comment Mon, 19 May 2008 15:15:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2017510/posts Louisville, KY -- The term “politically correct,” is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary thus: “Of, relating to, or supporting broad social, political, and educational change, especially to redress historical injustices in matters such as race, class, gender, and sexual orientation.” Add to that litany of “historical injustices” the title of my New York Times bestseller: “American Heroes in the Fight Against Radical Islam.” In recent weeks, the vocabulary police opened a new front in the war on terror by issuing a list of “do’s” and “don’ts” for terrorism terminology. In an effort to fight a “kinder, gentler” war on... humanevents.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2017510/posts#comment Sun, 18 May 2008 00:44:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2016683/posts Louisville, KY — The term “politically correct,” is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary thus: “Of, relating to, or supporting broad social, political, and educational change, especially to redress historical injustices in matters such as race, class, gender, and sexual orientation.” Add to that litany of “historical injustices” the title of my New York Times bestseller: “American Heroes in the Fight Against Radical Islam.”In recent weeks, the vocabulary police opened a new front in the War on Terror by issuing a list of “do’s” and “don’ts” for terrorism terminology. In an effort to fight a “kinder, gentler” war on Islamic... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2016683/posts#comment Fri, 16 May 2008 03:21:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2013327/posts Fort Benning, GA – Here at the U.S. Army’s biggest base on the east coast, soldiers and their dependents are eagerly awaiting the arrival of their "economic stimulus payments." It’s a good thing because, like most of us, these American heroes are going to need the extra money just to purchase their next tank of gas. This week, the IRS begins mailing rebate checks to budget crunching taxpayers. Bush Administration officials hope the checks will be used for a citizen shopping spree to resuscitate the U.S. economy. But instead of getting that new patio grill, consumers are more likely to... FoxNews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2013327/posts#comment Thu, 8 May 2008 23:48:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2009896/posts Washington, D.C. — Fresno, CA – In the U.S. military there is a wonderful little expression: “A good plan never survives the first contact with the enemy.” The corollary to this rule is “Expect the unexpected.” Then of course, there is the expanded version of the Boy Scout motto: “Be Prepared – For Anything.” This week has served to remind me how apt these quaint little expressions really are.My plan for this week was very simple: conduct a series of quiet interviews for print and broadcast media and a few low-key appearances in preparation for the release of my new... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2009896/posts#comment Thu, 1 May 2008 20:42:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2006582/posts "The number you have called cannot be connected."Ever heard a recording like this on your telephone? On Sept. 11, 2001 messages like that were commonplace in New York and Washington and incredibly frustrating for first responders trying to coordinate rescue operations and families attempting to contact loved ones. Now think about that kind of message being heard by virtually every cell phone subscriber in an entire country. That may be about to happen in Iraq. If it does, it could well derail progress made in recent months and have long-term adverse consequences for U.S. interests in the region. In December... FOX News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2006582/posts#comment Thu, 24 Apr 2008 23:12:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2003294/posts "Your strength can compensate for my weakness, and your wisdom can help to minimize my mistakes." -- Jimmy Carter, inaugural address, Jan. 20, 1977 WASHINGTON -- More than 31 years after he uttered those words, America still is trying to compensate for and minimize Jimmy Carter's mistakes and weaknesses, the greatest of which appears to be hubris. This week, our much-traveled 39th president ventured as a "private citizen" to the Middle East on a self-described mission "exploring possibilities for peace." Regrettably, what citizen Carter has succeeded in doing is encouraging our nation's adversaries, lending credibility to terrorists who have killed... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2003294/posts#comment Fri, 18 Apr 2008 04:04:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1999743/posts Five years ago this week, American soldiers and Marines liberated Baghdad from Saddam Hussein’s Republican Guards and the foreign "fedayeen" who had flooded into the despot’s capital. For those of us who were there, it was an unforgettable event. But, as Ambassador Ryan Crocker so cogently noted this week while he and General David Petraeus were testifying before Congress, "the euphoria of that moment evaporated long ago." The assembled lawmakers, perched on their raised daises, barely noted the anniversary, while subjecting the warrior and the diplomat to a 16-hour-long spectacle. For the general and the ambassador, it had to be... Fox News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1999743/posts#comment Thu, 10 Apr 2008 22:23:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1996504/posts WASHINGTON -- In the midst of last week's meaningless Arab League summit in Damascus, Syria, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki boldly launched his government's first major offensive against renegade Shiite militias. Ranging from Baghdad's suburbs south to Basra -- the country's oil port and second-most populous city -- Saulat al-Fursan (Charge of the Knights) is the largest and most complex operation undertaken by the Iraqi military since 2003. The effectiveness of Iraq's soldiers, police and special operations forces in this bloody fight will be an important factor for Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker during Tuesday's congressional appearances. As... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1996504/posts#comment Fri, 4 Apr 2008 04:05:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1992925/posts MIAMI -- I made a major mistake in a hotel room this week. Not the Eliot Spitzer kind of mistake -- but with a television remote. While changing for a late dinner, I tried to tune in to Fox News Channel, but the electronic device took me instead to MTV and some kind of "reality show." For a few minutes as I dressed, I was treated to several attractive young American women discussing their relationships. The most oft repeated sound in this conversation was "Duh!" -- a word that does not appear in my dictionary. But now I know what... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1992925/posts#comment Fri, 28 Mar 2008 04:07:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1989074/posts Washington, D.C. – Five years ago this week 170,000 American and coalition soldiers, sailors, airmen, Guardsmen and Marines launched Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). When they commenced their attack they were outnumbered nearly three to one by Saddam Hussein's military, yet it took U.S. troops just three weeks to liberate Baghdad. No military force in history has ever gone further, faster or with fewer casualties.Despite a lightning-fast victory over the dictator's Army, Republican Guards and Fedayeen, the challenge of leaving Iraq better than we found it proved to be daunting and dangerous. Unfortunately, few Americans know what their countrymen in uniform... FoxNews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1989074/posts#comment Thu, 20 Mar 2008 22:51:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1986246/posts The Smithsonian Institution, beleaguered by questions over how much it pays its executives and how they spend the organization's money, said Saturday it has picked Georgia Tech President G. Wayne Clough as its new leader. Clough will become the 12th secretary of the world's largest museum and research complex on July 1, assuming control of an institution that has been in turmoil in the past year. Clough will usher in a new era, "bringing a unique combination of academic achievement, talent, leadership skills and experience in public service, science, management and development," Smithsonian board Chairman Roger Sant said in a... SF Chronicle http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1986246/posts#comment Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:31:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1985444/posts AIKEN, S.C. -- The salacious details of New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer's hypocritical, extramarital love life have captivated the media all week. Had the Empire State's chief executive picked a different day to get caught with his pants down and quit his job, some other prominent resignations might have received more coverage. Apparently, there just aren't enough journalists to stake out the Spitzer's Manhattan apartment, track down his hookers and cover these other premature exits. Tales of the tainted governor took up so much ink and airtime that the potentates of the press didn't even notice the sex scandal that... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1985444/posts#comment Fri, 14 Mar 2008 04:09:43 GMT