Lee, Fleming Laud Passage of Religious Liberties Protections for Service Members

From the Office of Senator Mike Lee

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, June 17, 2013

WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Mike Lee praised the passage of strong religious liberty protections for members of the armed services in the Senate Armed Services Committee-passed version of the National Defense Authorization Act. The amendment clarifies that expressions of belief that do not have an adverse impact on military readiness, good order, and discipline are to be accommodated by the Armed Services. It was adopted on a bipartisan vote as part of the National Defense Authorization Act “mark up” late last week and was cosponsored by Senators Ted Cruz and David Vitter. Representative John Fleming of Louisiana offered a similar amendment in the House Armed Services Committee that was adopted earlier in June.

“For many of our men and women in uniform, their faith and religious beliefs are what sustain them through the enormous pressures and stresses of the battlefield,” said Lee. “If an environment is created where those service members feel that expressing their religion could be found in violation of military policy and grounds for reprimand, it will have an unsettlingly negative effect on our military. Our servicemen and women put their lives on the line everyday in order to protect our constitutionally guaranteed rights, including the expression of our beliefs. Congress must ensure that we are protecting them as well. “

"The First Amendment rights of our military members must be protected, and I am delighted that Republicans and Democrats on the Armed Services Committees of both the House and Senate have voted to ensure those protections," said Fleming. "These bipartisan votes strongly reaffirm the vision of our Founding Fathers that free speech, including that which expresses one's religious beliefs, must not be compromised. Even when there is conflict in ideas, more speech is always preferable to limitation of speech."

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Finding Balance in a World Gone Crazy

It’s not often I find myself wide awake at 2:00 a.m. But this morning the worries of life just reached out and slapped me awake. My husband’s health (he’s awaiting a kidney transplant), making it in today’s economy, selling my mother’s farm and moving her in with us, worrying about my sister and her family, and let us never forget the condition America is in. Life is just difficult sometimes and there’s no getting around that.

I was having a conversation with my 14-year old niece yesterday who was quite put out that she was going to have to babysit her brothers and sister while her oldest brother and mother attended multiple football camps this week. I explained to her about older siblings and babysitting and it being the natural order of things. She wasn’t buying it.

But what it all boils down to for all of us is there is a world’s fair and a state’s fair, but there is no life’s fair; never has been, and there never will be. So how do we find balance in a life that has gone topsy turvy and worries are keeping us awake at night? The answer is in a little thing I call “filling the well within.“

There’s little we can do to stop life from happening. But we can control how we respond to it. We do that by making sure we’re finding balance in our lives. We can’t live a life completely taken over by politics or we become just like the people in Washington, D.C., heaven forbid. We can’t live a life abdicating all responsibility without paying the price consequences dictate.We can’t work all the time, nor can we play all the time without both of those things come back to bite us on the butt. So here’ s a little prescription to find balance:

1) Begin and end each day with prayer.

2) Know your work hours and don’t work more than those business hours if it can at all be helped.

3) Sit down and write down all the fun things you used to do, and decide to do at least one of them a week.

 4) Organize your home life so that everything is taken care of in the home by noon on Saturday. Then head out, away from your home, and get in the sun and fresh air and have some fun!

5) Plant a garden. The hard work will be good for your body, plus it alleviates a great amount of stress, not to mention you get fresh fruit and vegetables out of the deal.

6) Go hiking, boating, camping, or fishing, but never go alone. That’s a recipe for disaster because accidents do happen. Find a pick-up basketball or football game and join in. Read a good book, or write one. Play with your kids, because the laughter of children can wipe away your worries for awhile.

7) Find a local shelter, or Habitat for Humanity, or a neighbor in need, and serve others at least once a week. You’ll be astonished at the strength that comes your way.

8) And never, ever, forget to count the blessings in your life. When we do that, we often find they far outweigh the problems.

But when it comes down to the nitty gritty of life, you have to deal with the problems at hand. Addressing your problems can be done in a variety of ways. But I like to sit down with some paper, write out the problem and then possible solutions. Once I’ve chosen the solution, I like to consider all the obstacles between Point A and Point B, then start knocking those suckers out of the way. When the time comes there is nothing more that can be done, all you can do is pray and hope for the best. Sometimes, there’s just nothing more you can do than trust it will all work out.

In equaling your “brain work” with “physical work” you’ll find you’ll be in much better shape. Now excuse me while I go take my own advice. Good luck!

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Candace Salima is a an author, columnist, and public speaker and makes her home in the Rocky Mountains. Learn more about her at www.CandaceSalima.com. Follow her on Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn or Facebook.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Movie Corner: Man of Steel

by Candace Salima, US Daily Review Senior Contributor

Movie: Man of Steel
Director: Zack Snyder
Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Michael Shannon
Rating/Runtime: PG-13, 143 Minutes

Over the last two or three days I've seen nothing but bad reviews about ​Man of Steel​, the latest in a long string of Superman movies. However, on Facebook, the average man on the street was absolutely loving it. So Alvin and I went to see ​Man of Steel​ yesterday morning, not quite sure what to expect. We weren't but minutes into the movie when I realized what was going on. References to God, patriotism, America...oh yeah, that's why liberals were hating this movie. Alvin and I? We loved it.

Alvin's cousin took his little daughter to see it last night, all dressed up in her Supergirl outfit. As soon as the movie was over, she asked her daddy if they could watch it again. They did, and she loved it just as much the second time. ​Man of Steel​ appeals to all ages, just as a good movie should.

The story begins on Krypton with Superman's (Kal-El) birth. The first, and last, natural birth in centuries on the doomed world. We see General Zod and his troops try to implement a coup, but failing. Zod killing Jor-El, Superman's father, and the complete destruction of his world.

We next see Superman, now Clark Kent, as an adult saving men trapped on a burning oil platform in the ocean. Then we flashback to a childhood memory of Clark saving a bus full of children. Basically, Clark is trying to come to terms with who he is and what he can and cannot do. In the process, he triggers a homing beacon which brings Zod and his lunatics to Earth. 

The story was excellent, well directed and well acted. The understory was equally compelling. I challenged you to watch the movie a catch every nuance, if you can. Actually, I find ​Man of Steel​ to be the best Superman movie to date, bar none. If I had any complaints, it would be the out of order flashbacks and the end battle between Superman and the Krytonians being drawn out WAY too long. Other than that, I'd watch the movie again.

​Man of Steel​ scores 4.5 out 5 stars from this reviewer. See the full list of the cast and crew here.

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Candace Salima is a radio talk show host, author, columnist, and makes her home in the Rocky Mountains. Learn more about her at www.CandaceSalima.com. Follow her on Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn or Facebook.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Benghazi, IRS, and DOJ, Oh My!

by Candace Salima

Posted on US Daily Review on 9 June 2013, 6:00 a.m.

Last week I had a procedure done. It wasn't the funnest day of my life, but in no way the worst. Of course, you have to do the, uh, cleanse, the entire day before and day of, and it's not difficult, you just have to plan accordingly.

So I'm in the procedure room and the doctor who has saved Alvin's life multiple times walked into the room. "Candace," he exclaimed, and we started talking. We were laughing and catching up as all the prep work was getting done. He mentioned that some people tell him that the "cleansing" part is the worst day of their lives. We both stopped talking, looked at each other, shook our heads and then he said, "They sure must live charmed lives."

And that's the point of this story, some things in life aren't pleasant. They certainly can be painful, and some take you all the way to miserable. But how we approach these difficult times show the true measure of our character. It shows whether we melted in the Refiner's Fire or emerged brighter, shinier and stronger than ever. It shows whether we stand...or fall. We always want to be the one who stands.

There is no question America is going through some tough times right now. Just to tick off a few of the scandals:

• Nearly $17 trillion in National Debt
• Fast & Furious which resulted in the deaths of lawmen Brian Terry, Jamie Zapata and over ten thousand Mexican citizens.
• Benghazi, Libya which resulted in the destruction of the U.S. Consulate and the brutal murders of Ambassador Chris Stevens, Captain Sean Smith (Ret. AF), U.S. Navy SEALs Tyrone Woods (Ret.) and Glen Doherty (Ret.)
• Obama's Drone Program, insisting he has the right to target any American.
• IRS gross abuse of power in targeting Conservative groups.
• DOJ gross abuse of power in the trampling on the 1st Amendment rights of the American press.
• Kathleen Sebelius going hat-in-hand to those she regulates demanding donations in order to fully implement Obamacare.
• Environmental Protection Agency targeting Conservative organizations.
• The Obama Administration combing through the records of all cellphone users, as well as all social media, trampling on the 4th Amendment rights of American citizens.

And that's just to name a few. We've been told by reliable sources all through the Beltway that the scandals that remain covered will blow this Administration and key members of Congress, both Democrat and Republic, out of the water.

Needless to say, America has been through multiple Refiner's Fires and we are in one now. Will you, as her citizens, emerge brighter, shinier and new? Or, will you melt with the dross and be washed away?

I believe in your strength America, we can and will survive these unrelenting attacks and the Republic will emerge stronger than ever. But it will require you taking a stand. Will you take that stand? Will Congress stand? Will the Supreme Court of the United States say "threats be damned" and stand with the strict interpretation of the U.S. Constitution rather than being swayed by political winds?

Only time will tell if we collect with the dross or stand as that last bastion of freedom in the world.

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Candace Salima is a radio talk show host, author, columnist, and makes her home in the Rocky Mountains. Learn more about her at www.CandaceSalima.com. Follow her on Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn or Facebook.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Shocking! It's About to Get Ugly

I rarely do this anymore, but this article is shocking. Sadly, it isn't surprising. The writing has been on the wall. Here's part of the article and then you can click through to the rest. 

DHS insider: It’s about to get very ugly

By Doug Hagmann

Posted on Canada Free Press on 9 June 2013

WASHINGTON D.C.—Something quite unexpected happened just hours ago, in the dark of night, during a two-day layover in Washington, DC. My son and I are scheduled to take part in a seminar outside of Raleigh, North Carolina this weekend, so we combined our travels to include a side-trip to DC for a business meeting we had previously arranged. It was during this layover that something seemingly ripped from the pages of a spy novel took place.

While I was in the middle of a perfectly good and well needed sleep in the very early hours of this morning, I received a message. I cannot disclose how I received this message, at least not now. The discerning reader will understand why, which, by the way, would make a very interesting story alone. The message was extremely clear and precise. I was to meet my high level DHS insider at a very specific location in Washington, DC, at a time when most ‘normal’ people, except third-shift workers are still asleep. And, I was to come alone and make certain that I was not being followed, and I was to leave any cell phone or electronic device behind.

Seriously? I thought, as I was still trying to make sense of it all. Is all this really necessary? Is this really happening? I considered waking my son to accompany me, but opted to follow the instructions to the letter. Besides, I thought, he’s not the most affable middle-of-the-night person. I left a hastily written but detailed note in my hotel room before my departure in the event something happened. I looked at the digital clock on my rental car (my personal car would never survive our long distance trip). It was 3:20 a.m. 

Read More about the early morning meeting, and what was revealed, on Canada Free Press.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

If We Uphold the Rule of Law

by Candace Salima, Senior Contributor on US Daily Review
Posted on US Daily Review: 3 June 2013 

You know, if America will adhere to and uphold its rule of law, which is the U.S. Constitution, then Communists, Socialists and Islam's Sharia Law would hold no sway over our beloved nation. It is a protection against a rogue government, despots, and radical religions who would rob us of our most precious eternal gift, the freedom to choose. Remember, very little of the world lives under the principles of liberty and freedom, we should not so willingly turn loose of them here. Men and women are dying in far away lands in defense of our freedom and liberty. Do not forsake their sacrifice, but stand up and be worthy of it. 

And how does one become worthy of that great sacrifice, that last full measure of devotion as given by Specialist Cody Towse of Elk Ridge, Utah? Cody was promoted from Private First Class to Specialist after he lost his life administering first aid to others in an Afghan war zone. Towse was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Medical Badge, and his family was given the Gold Star. As Utah mourns the loss of one of her sons, I cannot help but think that our nation is losing its worthiness to be represented by such great men and women.


A friend wrote on Facebook this morning:

"Yesterday was the funeral of PFC Cody Towse, who gave the ultimate sacrifice on May 14th, while rendering aid to fellow soldiers. On that day, Cody became America's son. He represents what is exceptional about America, and what sets us apart. It is much more than the R or the D behind your name, it's about love of country, about understanding freedom and where our liberties come from, that we are endowed by our Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that America is the standard to aspire to, of truth, of sacrifice, of goodness. Cody belongs to all of us now. I pledge to honor his sacrifice by taking a stand in support of this great republic, the land of the free, our beloved America." Julie Blaney

People like Cody and Julie, and millions like them, are what is right about America. However, so many Americans prefer to go about their lives paying no attention to what is going on in their own country. Politics, if they pay attention at all, are nothing more than a sport, never do they understand that it is about the life's blood our nation. Far too many are more concerned with the goodies the government can by them, rather than realizing the true price tag of those goodies. We the People are the ultimate arbiters of the law, and if we leave the law unattended it becomes unwieldy, and slowly robs the American people of our freedom and unalienable rights granted us by God, not government. If we don't hold our government to the standard established by the U.S. Constitution then we become nothing more than a nation of the world who has lost it's uniqueness and most precious gift, freedom.

We must become involved. Yes, if you are actively promoting freedom on social media, you are playing a critical part. But there are many other ways you can become actively engaged in being an American citizen:

•  Attend City Council meetings
• Visit Capitol Hill several times during your state's legislative sessions
• Remain in contact* with your legislators, both state and federal
• Participate in Grassroots movements like STAND4UT
• Inform yourself through trustworthy media and books**
• Actively attend School Board meetings
• Become actively involved in your children's schooling
• Actively teach your children the value of freedom***

Yes, freedom requires us to be involved, it always has and it always will. As our men and women fight in foreign lands to keep us free, it is our sacred duty to hold the line here at home. 

NOTES:

*Contact your Senators
*Contact your Congressman
**Trusted Newsites: US Daily Review, FoxNews, Daily Caller, Townhall, National Review, Breitbart, The Blaze, The Hill
***Books:  Seven Miracles That Saved America,
Seven Tipping Points That Saved the World,
The Making of America: The Substance and Meaning of the Constitution,
The Making of America: The History of the United States from 1492 to the Present,
Glenn Beck's Common Sense, The Case Against an Out-of-Control Government, Inspired by Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine Collection

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You may follow Candace Salima on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ or Pinterest.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Mitch McConnell's Hard-hitting Ad on the IRS Scandal

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

A Perfect Storm of Scandals?

Posted on 20 May 2013 

By Candace Salima, US Daily Review, Senior Contributor

A perfect storm of scandals is what Barack Obama faces. Democrats decry the scandals, saying that Republicans are merely politicizing them because Barack Obama is, as Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi gushes to the press, “such a good president.” But let’s face facts, unless you are highly delusional, what America is facing now is unprecedented in our nation’s history.

In Barack Obama’s first term he faced a lot of controversy, the biggest of which was the now defunct Fast & Furious gunrunning scam. Obama decided the program that George W. Bush shut down could be run properly under his administration. So he blithely ordered guns to be run into Mexico to the drug cartels, and in his feverish delight, Obama felt they would be able to bring the cartels to their knees. In reality, by the time Fast & Furious had run its course two members of America’s law enforcement community were dead. The Border Patrol’s Brian Terry and ICE Agent Jamie Zapata were both killed by bullets fired from Fast & Furious guns.

Though proven, according to my sources, to go all the way to the Oval Office, those responsible for Fast & Furious have never been brought to justice, and likely never will. But now Barack Obama faces three massive scandals simultaneously:

Read More >>

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Sideshow, Mr. President?

Yesterday, Barack Obama begged the American people to stop listening to Congress and those of us who have been calling for the investigation in events leading up to, the attack on, the murders of four Americans in Benghazi, Libya on 11 September 2013, and the subsequent cover up. Obama stated there was nothing wrong and that Republicans were simply politicizing the whole situation, calling it a sideshow. Let me make myself perfectly clear, Barack Obama, Leon Panetta, and Hillary Clinton:

YOU and HILLARY CLINTON chose to cut security at Consulates and Embassies around the world, despite repeated requests for more Security.

YOU and HILLARY CLINTON chose to house the U.S. Ambassador and his staff in sub-standard facilities that did not meet the necessary security levels.

YOU allowed the U.S. Ambassador, Chris Stevens, to be kidnapped, brutally tortured and murdered.

YOU allowed the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi to go on for eight hours.

YOU issued the "Stand Down" order three times.

YOU consigned 30+ Americans to certain death when you cut off all paths of rescue.

DESPITE YOU, Tyrone Woods and two other C.I.A. agents disobeyed orders and went to the Consulate and recovered Captain Sean Smith's (AF) body and rescued 30+ remaining Consulate staff.

BECAUSE OF YOU, they took fire the entire time, to and back from the Consulate, as they raced toward the C.I.A. Annex.

DESPITE YOU, Glen Doherty left Signella Air Force Base in Italy as soon as the multiple calls for help went out, and arrived before midnight, Benghazi time.

DESPITE YOU, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty went back to find the U.S. Ambassador.

DESPITE YOU, they recovered the brutalized, battered, and bloody body of Ambassador Chris Stevens.

DESPITE YOU, they raced back to the C.I.A. Annex, again taking heavy fire, with the body of the Ambassador.

DESPITE YOU, Doherty and Woods raced to the roof of the Annex and began firing back at those lobbing unrelenting mortar rounds at the Annex.

DESPITE YOUR INEXPLICABLE COWARDICE, Doherty and Woods gave their last full measure of devotion to their country.

DESPITE YOUR INEXPLICABLE COWARDICE, the Embassy's First Response Team finally arrived.

DESPITE YOUR INEXPLICABLE COWARDICE, two of them climbed to the roof of the Annex and carried the bodies of American heroes Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty back down and took their bodies with them when they left Libya.

YOU chose not to respond to the attack on Benghazi and the brutal murders of four Americans. 

YOU chose to fly off to Las Vegas to party with your good buddies, Jay Z and Beyonce'.

YOU chose to call the Libyan President a liar when he clearly stated the attack on Benghazi was a terrorist attack. YOU chose to blame the attack on a hapless movie director and his silly little video that had only 8 hits until YOU brought it up.

YOU and HILLARY CLINTON chose to lie to the loved ones of the four Americans as their flag draped coffins stood nearby.

YOU chose to have the Talking Points edited 12 to 14 times until the points were nothing but a pack of lies, and all threats to your presidency were removed.

YOU chose to lie to the American people.

HILLARY CLINTON chose to lie to the American people.

LEON PANETTA chose to lie to the American people.

YOU set U.N. Ambassador Suzanne Rice up, and ordered her to take those Talking Point lies and to repeat them to the American press on five different shows the following Sunday morning.

YOU then began one of the biggest Cover Ups of U.S. History, for nothing in our past comes to the magnitude of what occurred since you became president.

Since 11 September 2012, YOU have misled the American people consistently so that you would not lose the election.

YOU didn't want to take the chance you might lose. YOU chose, since that time, to simply threaten, bribe and extort all the witnesses to keep them quiet.

YOU continue to exercise a complete and overall abuse of power, and it rises to the level of high crimes and misdemeanors.

The only politics I see here, Mr. President, are your cancerous own.

Most U.S. Presidencies have at least one big scandal, but not Barack Obama's. Oh no, he has four colossal scandals, each of which rise to the levels of high crimes and misdemeanors.

• Fast & Furious governmental gunrunning into Mexico
• Attack on Benghazi, Libya
• IRS maliciously targeting Conservatives of all stripes
• Violating the 1st Amendment rights of the Associated Press

What next, Mr. President? What next Speaker John Boehner? What next Senator Mitch McConnell? What next America? How much more before you shake off your willful ignorance and begin to fight back? And to every single American: Can you hear me now?

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Movie Corner: Ironman 3

Movie: Iron Man 3 
Director: Shane Black
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce
Runtime/Rating: 130 Minutes / PG-13

There is no use in me not admitting that I'm a huge fan of Marvel comics superhero, specifically any part of The Avengers. Alvin and I anxiously awaited the release of Iron Man 3. We were blessed to win four tickets to a special preview last night, hosted by John Stevens of ENG Lending. Our 18th wedding anniversary is tomorrow, so it was perfect timing.

We showed up to the Larry Miller Megaplex theater at Thanksgiving Point and anxiously settled in our seats with our popcorn, pop and 500+ of our closets friends...or John's clients. The movie started and it lived up to every expectation.

Iron Man a.k.a. Tony Stark is having anxiety attacks triggered by the battle for earth in the last Avengers movie. He's created 42 different Iron Man suits in the wee hours of the night when we can't sleep. And boy howdy, does he need those later in the movie! Warmachine has been renamed to Iron Patriot. And Tony's past comes back to haunt him a BIG way.

The terrorist, Mandarin, played by Ben Kingsley, has been killing and blowing up people and places all around the world and he's counting down to the American president.

Stark challenges and threatens Mandarin with death and then gives him his address...on national television. Needless to say Mandarin takes him up on it and blows the hell out of Stark's home and lab. Thus begins the battle between Mandarin and Tony Stark as he tries to become Iron Man again when everything he has known has been destroyed.

Funny, touching, and fantastic action scenes, I really liked Iron Man 3. The Avenger series has proven over and over and over that a blockbuster movie can be made without profanity, and graphic violence. Yes, there are explosions, and yes, there are spectacular fights, but you don't see the end result in all Hollywood's usual bloody detail. And best of all, the hero wins in the end, just as it should be in every good movie. If you want to see the good guy die, just turn on the news. But Iron Man 3 is a wonderful escape from the world.

I think Iron Man 3 is likely too intense for children under 13, but for everyone else they'll definitely enjoy it. Even as tired as my sister and I were, as well as our husbands, we were wide awake beginning to end and enjoying every minute of it.

I give Iron Man 3 four out of five stars. They were docked for not having a second ending confronting the bully. And once you see the movie you'll know what I mean. The second ending they had was cute, and funny. But still...it could have ended so much better.

Check out the movie trailer for yourself:

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Hold High the Light of Liberty

"I dedicate this library with unshakable faith in the future of our country...a country as brave and as noble as the United States. Whatever troubles comes, I will always believe our best days are ahead." President George W. Bush 

President Bush went on to say, "Elected officials must serve a cause greater than themselves." The United States of America must strive to expand the reach of freedom. I believe that freedom is a gift from God and the hope of the human heart."

Like President Bush, I also believe America's best days are ahead. But it will require the American people shaking off the bonds of debt and apathy and arising from the ashes, as it were. We are a people descended of the greatest citizens from around the earth; but more importantly we are Americans. We are the hope of the earth. If America falls, tell me who will rise to the occasion with such grace, dignity and courage? Tell me who will fight for freedom for nations across the world? Tell me who will stand with the weak and oppressed? We, as her citizens, carry a great responsibility to stand up, be counted, and to hold the light of liberty high for all to see. Arise to the occasion, and let us leave a better America for the generation to come, in honor of America's greatest generation and what they left for us.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

America and Britain, Allies

When America welcomes you onto her shores, you must come to contribute and to become a part of a whole that serves the people and greatness of the American Experiment. America was founded on the hopes and dreams of patriots who conceived a greater opportunity for the family of humanity. They foresaw a nation that would rise from the Americas, that if well nurtured, with the dreams and hard work of her people who would remain dedicated to the Republic that made it all possible.

We are a nation of immigrants, we welcome those who came to this great land through legal and proper channels. We welcome those who come here on the wings of dreams, and who know that this is the place to reach past the boundaries in their own nations to find that scientific experience that reaches to the stars. There is nothing that cannot be accomplished in America if you are willing to sweat that blood and cry those tears. Most of all, if you are willing to never give up, then America is the nation for you.

Embrace the heart of the nation that you want to call your home, or that heart will turn on you and it won't be pretty. You poke at the sleeping tiger and the heart of the lion, which is not a wise move. While we may have divided over two hundred years ago, despite the idiocy of the current American president, we stand as allies and friends. We will defend them, and they will defend us, of this I have no question.

I speak of Britain, the nation of my ancestors. My people left Britain in the mid 1500's, but I look at Britain as our brother in arms. The 25,000 Muslims, marching in the streets, who are demanding British voices be silenced should promptly be deported and banned from ever returning to that island nation. They come at the behest of their imams to take over the host nation by sheer numbers, and eventually turn it into a Muslim nation. 

The last time Islam tried to take Europe they got their butts whipped in the final battle, on September 11th oddly enough, and driven back to the Middle East where you've stayed for centuries. Europe is awakening to the danger within and is starting to fight back. It is my prayer that America awakens as well, very soon.

But back to my original point. If you don't come to make our nations stronger, then it is my suggestion you get out of America and Britain promptly, because when we start coming down hard on the enemies within, it is not going to go well for you no matter your nationality or religion, we will take you down. 

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Was Martial Law Implemented in Boston?

It has been a tough week for America, tougher yet for the citizens of Boston and the runners and viewers of the Boston Marathon. On Monday, two bombs ripped through the crowd and runners at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. One hundred eighty people were maimed and injured. Two women and an 8-year old boy were murdered by these homemade anti-personnel bombs, the design of which was often used in Afghanistan. The nation was in shock, but Boston was prepared for this type of thing and first responders, and your everyday citizen, jumped into action. Story after story emerged of heroes who stepped into the fray, ran toward the blasts, who carried people, carried out first aid, and even comforted those who had been injured. The story of a drummer in a night club who sat on the floor, cradling an injured woman gently brushing her hair with his hand, brought others to tears. The story of Carlos, whose son was lost in Iraq years ago, tying tourniquets on a runner whose legs had been blown off, and racing with him to the ambulance.

There are so many stories of valiant behavior that I cannot attribute them all. I can only say that it did the heart good to see so many people emerging as heroes that day. Conversely, it broke my heart to see the suffering, but not my American spirit.

Within hours, news of a 20-year old Saudi national, here on a student visa, was broadcast. He was a person of interest and under heavy guard at an unnamed hospital. Later that day, his residence was searched and bags and boxes were removed. Then news reached the American people that Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry had met with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal to discuss this college student, Abdul Rahman Ali Alharbi.

The following day, Ali Alharbi was cleared. News quickly followed that he was being deported due to national security concerns. Within a day, WND and Glenn Beck both stated they'd received ICE reports saying that those concerns were tied to terroristic activity. These reports also stated that 80% of Ali Alharbi's family belonged to Al Qaeda. 

There's no way to know, at this point, what is true and what is not. However, having both Barack Obama and John Kerry meet with the Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister makes anything they say highly suspect. My last report said that Ali Alharbi would be leaving America on Tuesday, April 23rd. Glenn Beck is threatening to release further information on Ali Alharbi if the White House doesn't come clean by tomorrow, Monday, April 22nd.

In the meantime, the FBI in concert with Homeland Security and the Boston Police worked together to try and identify the perpetrators. Within 24 to 48 hours the call went out to all who attended the marathon to look through their own videos and pictures and submit any suspicious ones to a specific website or to call 1-800-CALL-FBI. Twenty-four hours later, pictures and a video were released by the FBI asking for help in identify two specific subjects, now labeled suspects. Within hours, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev were identified as the bombing suspects and the search tightened.

The Tsarnaevs carjacked a car and took the owner hostage for thirty minutes. They made the hostage drive them around and get money from ATMs, according to some reports. That is one point I'm still fuzzy on. However, they bragged to their hostage that they were the Boston Marathon bombers. After thirty minutes they released him at a 7/11. He ran inside in a total panic. When police arrived and he told them what had happened the noose tightened on the Tsarnaevs. At some point, they assassinated Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) police officer, Sean Collier, 26, and left him dead in his patrol car. Between the hour of midnight Thursday and 1:00 a.m. (EDT) a firefight ensued between the Tsarnaevs and the police. A FoxNews reporter detailed this firefight as more violent than anything he'd seen embedded in Iraq and Afghanistan.

During this firefight, the Tsarnaevs and police exchanged gunfire. Tamerlan was later found to have a suicide vest on, I don't know if he detonated it or they removed it from him, but I know his body contained shrapnel. At some point, the Tsarnaevs began lobbing bombs and grenades (both homemade) at the police. Another office was critically wounded. He took a bullet to the thigh that severed three arteries, including the femoral artery. (Today, the officer was able to open his eyes, move his hands and feet and squeeze his wife's hand.) Tamerlan was fatally wounded, either through the firefight or being wounded by his own explosives, and according to some reports, was alive enough still to be arrested, until his brother ran over him with the car in his getaway. The police reported that Dzhokhar (hereinafter called Johar) stated that he was going to kill as many people as possible.

So let's tally Tamerlan and Johar's crimes: 

• Bombing which killed three people (one was a child), and maimed/wounded nearly 180 people at the marathon.
• Assassination of Officer Collier
• Extremely violent firefight where he critical wounds another police offer
• Threat to kill as many people as possible

By Friday morning a "Shelter in Place" request had gone out to the citizens of Boston and neighboring cities. They asked businesses to shut down, and sports events were cancelled; cab companies, subways, bus systems and airports were shut down, and Boston became a ghost town, as it were. The reasons for this were to limit the numbers of potential victims available to Johar, as well as to cut off all escape paths.

A massive manhut was underway, conducted by the Boston Police Department. House to house they went, searching for Johar Tsarnaev. Now comes the crux of the question, could this be defined as Martial Law? The simple answer is no, it was not. Let me explain why. 

When the police searched the Tsarnaev residence they found even more ordinance which convinced them Johar would undertake a second bombing if he could manage it.

Due to the events which occurred over the week, the police had exigent circumstances which allowed them to search the homes within the perimeter without a search warrant. Yes, the NDAA and the Patriot Act both allow that, and I do not agree with either of those laws violating the constitutional rights of American citizens. However, that was not the case in Boston. No one was forced to stay in their homes or shut their businesses. No home was searched without permission from the homeowner. What America saw was a partnership between the BPD and the citizens of Boston and surrounding suburbs and cities to work together to bring a terrorist to justice. A terrorist who had threatened additional harm.

I stand firm that Martial Law was not implemented in Boston. The definition of Martial Law is as follows:

Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis. Martial law is usually imposed on a temporary basis when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively (e.g., maintain order and security, or provide essential services), when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law becomes widespread.

Under no definition of the law was this Martial Law, no matter how you twist it. Now, there are those who disagree with me and show pictures and videos of people being arrested. Did you truly believe that in a home to home search of Watertown that not one criminal would be found? That all Watertown citizens were law abiding and not a criminal could be found among them? I am convinced these are the people we saw being arrested.

By 7:00 p.m. EDT the "Shelter in Place" was lifted. A citizen went into his backyard and found blood on the shed door and a strap torn on the tarp over his winterized boat. Some reports say that he lifted the tarp, saw Johar and went in and called police. That began the standoff that resulted in the arrest of Johar Tsarnaev, who is now, unable to be interrogated at this time, in ICU at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston.

Now that authorities have captured Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the 19-year-old believed to be the second suspect in the bombings at the Boston Marathon on Monday, federal law enforcement officials are invoking the public safety exception regarding his Miranda rights, a senior Justice Department official told ABC News. The exception, according to the FBI‘s website, “permits law enforcement to engage in a limited and focused unwarned interrogation and allows the government to introduce the statement as direct evidence.” (ABCNews)

 It is my opinion Johar should be labeled an enemy combatant and treated as such. However, Senator Diane Feinstein objects to that, so here's my suggestion: Call Johar an enemy of the state, charge him with treason and try him in a federal court with the death penalty on the table. If convicted he should be put death in a far more humane fashion than he allowed little Martin Richard.

We are at war with radical Islam, and have been for years. It's time to stop pussyfootin' around and let the Military do its job without congressional interference. Oversight yes, but no opportunity to order generals around. And it's time Barack Obama's actions be investigated by Congress. No POTUS should ever insert himself in a criminal investigation, even one involving terrorism. The justice needs to do its job, law enforcement needs to be able to a full investigation without congressional or executive interference. Any immigration reform being considered by Congress should address the national security issues immigration is bringing to America now.

One thing is certain, the American spirit is resilient and as Bostonians put it, "We are not terrified, we're wicked pissed."

Source Articles:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/boston-bombers-fbi-hunting-12-strong-1844844#.UXM54Yqm6hA.twitter

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/more/news/20130420/doctor-dead-bomb-suspect-had-wounds-head-to-toe.ap/?sct=obinsite

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2013/04/why-we-havent-heard-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-yet/64419/

http://dailycaller.com/2013/04/20/the-last-days-of-dzhokhar-tsarnaev/

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2013/04/20/boston_bombing_suspect_dzhokar_tsarnaev_may_have_killed_his_brother.html

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

Don't Make Yourself the Perfect Victim

First: I'll issue the warning I've issued before. If you must drink alcohol, don't drink yourself into oblivion and make yourself the perfect victim. It is the height of stupidity and the consequences can be beyond devastating. Point in case: Audrie Potts.

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Awakening in a friend's bedroom after drinking too much at a sleepover, 15-year-old Audrie Pott looked down and realized she had been sexually assaulted and her attackers had written and drawn on intimate parts of her body, her family's attorney said Monday. 

Over the next week, she pieced together one horrifying detail after another. She went online and tried to confront the three boys she had known since junior high who she believed had done it. 

At school, she saw a group of students huddled around a cellphone and realized that at least one humiliating photo of her was circulating. (Read the rest of the Article)

Second: These three boys committed a heinous crime. I find it to be disingenuous and equally criminal for any cop, prosecutor or judge to say that it is less of a crime because Audrie was unconscious.

1) They took someone unable to fight back and raped her multiple times.

2) They defiled her body with markings and revolting claims.

3) They took pictures of their crime and shared them.

They should not only be tried as adults, the magnitude of the crime and sentence should be immense. The principal and teachers who knew this young girl was being bullied in such a manner as to precipitate this type of crime should be promptly fired and never allowed to teach again.

Tell me why it is a hate crime if the color of the victim's skin is anything but white, yet when a young girl is brutalized, taunted, bullied and is so humiliated and mortified over the abuse and what happened that she kills herself...it's not a hate crime, nor is it apparently a crime of any magnitude in California.

Tell me why Barack and Michelle Obama will cry to the world: "Treyvon could have been my son" "Hidaya could have been me." But remain silent to two crimes EXACTLY as I've described happening in America and one in Nova Scotia, Canada?

Tell me why NOW isn't screaming at the top of their lungs in defense of these young girls and the equal victimizing of them by the educational and judicial systems.

Tell me why the ACLU isn't screaming about the civil rights of these girls to have control of their own bodies, conscious or unconscious, and their subsequent suicides not being treated as murders?

Once is horrific, twice is horrific and a growing problem. Are we going to wait for a third girl to be victimized and to take her life because the animals who go to her school decide she's the perfect victim? There must be laws commensurate with the heinous nature of these multiple crimes.

Audrie Potts could not handle what happened to her and the continued bullying and hate which happened after the event at the school. At the tender age of fifteen she committed suicide. Her life cut short because of a poor decision, and the capitalizing on that poor decision by the animals masquerading as teenage boys.

I see a systemic problem in this entire situation, and it has spread across our nation.

1) Audrie attended a sleepover, presumably at a friend's house. This is where she drank herself into oblivion.

2) Three teenager boys decided it would be a fine idea to rape her multiple times, mark her body up, and never had a twinge of conscience.

3) These teenage boys took pictures of their crimes on their cellphones and then shared with friends and schoolmates. 

4) Where were the parents? Where were the other girls? How was these crimes possible in a house full of people?

Here's the systemic problem, tell me why these three boys were not confronted by other students at the school? Tell me why the coach didn't tear them up once side and down the other, kick them off the team permanently, demand they be expelled from the school, and call the police? Tell me why the principal didn't do the same and expel them? Tell me why their teammates didn't beat them to a bloody pulp for such monstrous behavior? Tell me why the girls at the school didn't rally around Audrie and make those boys pay?

Do you see the problem that has become American society? This MUST be corrected and it must begin in the four walls of your own homes. The family unit is disintegrating right before our eyes and we are seeing consequences of this destruction play out in the news.

Parents I realize you can only do so much, but are you doing the four simple things that could bind your family together? Are you speaking regularly to your children to help them understand stories like this and what should have played out instead of what did? I'm sorry, life is cruel and innocence is lost far too soon. But these things must be discussed.

As a family, please make sure you having Family Home Evening every week. Choose an evening, one evening, during the week and make that family night. Make it the same night every week. During that time, teach your children of God, of goodness, of responsibility, of courage and of actions vs. consequence. Also spend some of those night playing games, going to plays, movies, or concerts. Create a garden, and work with your children to tend the vegetables and fruits, and teach them that in so doing there will be food on the table later.

There are four things you can do to strengthen your family and help your children to grow into responsible, caring adults.

1) Work together. As a family, take time to work in the home together. Parents working alongside their children will teach them how to work properly, how to work well, and instill in them a strong work ethic.

2) Learn goodness together. In abdicating this critical lesson to others we find America in the mess we are in now. Parents must teach each their children what is right and what is wrong. Help them to grow and learn that there really are rules we must abide by in society, but also help them to understand why.

3) Read good books together. A literate society is very difficult to destroy. Such a society can learn to see through the lies and find the truth for themselves. Books help the reader to reach beyond the restrictions of their lives and soar into stories that take them far away. Well-written books teach, inform, inspire, and entertain. In reading together every evening, you are broadening the horizons of your children and opening up a world of possibility.

and,

4) Pray together as a family. In so doing you help your children to understand their role in God's kingdom as a precious child of God. You teach them to petition Him in times of trouble, sorrow and joy. You help them to recognize the gentle whisperings of the Holy Spirit and help them realize they are never alone in this world. Praying as a family, morning and night, provides protections from the world that would otherwise not be in place.

These four things, if faithfully done by parents, will heal society within a generation or two. This I believe with my whole heart and know that instances such as the one that began this post must never happen again. This can only happen if we strengthen the family unit.

America, we are a nation founded on bright ideals and fundamental truths found in Judeo-Christian teachings. We were taught to reach beyond the boundaries the world has put on us, and to reach for the sky. We were taught that God had granted us unalienable of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness (which was initially property); and that no government should ever take those away. We have been a part of astounding discoveries in medicine, industry and technology. We have produced amazing authors, artists, musicians and actors. We are America because we believe in the greatness of what began us.

If we forget this; if we cease believing in our greatness, then we descend to the depths that produce the crime written of above. America, shake it off. Remember who you are. Remember we have a loving God who watches over us, but allows us to make mistakes. The healing balm of Gilead is available to all who pray to our Heavenly Father.

Remember who you are, America. Remember.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.

The Values by which I Stand

The Republican Principles are these: Low Taxes - we know that the government must have some taxes. We also know that the 16th Amendment should be repealed so that we are no longer double taxed. Since that is not going to happen, we have to make the federal government understand they do not have to stick their nose into the middle of everything. In so doing, they won't spend as much and they won't have to tax us so much.

This leads us to Smaller Government. The USA was set up as a republic with a smaller federal government and the larger power resting within the states, and the largest power with the American people. This allow for prosperity, growth, reaching and surpassing heretofore unimagined heights, and for an extremely strong nation.

And that leads us to Encouraging Business Growth. We are a pro-business people. We strongly encourage small business, big business, entrepreneurs reaching for and fighting to make dreams come true, fostering the artist, the author, the dancer, the musician...fostering and nurturing the unbelievable growth of the human spirit. If business fails in America...so too will America. A strong middle class keeps balance in America, if the dwindling class does not resurge, we will see the strengthening of an elite class and the remainder of America in the poverty stricken class.

Sanctity of Human Life has been a core principle of the Republican Party for a very long time, but it is a core human value by which the very foundation of this world began; with a man and a woman and their desire to have children. Adam and Eve began the human race, and yet, since the upholding of Roe v. Wade over 54 million infants have been murdered in America's abortion clinics. Consider the progeny that may have been: the doctors, lawyers, architects, scientists, artists, authors, musicians, dancers, teachers, mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters that may have been if not for the single selfish act, and the doctor so willing to commit murder.

Protecting Traditional Marriage is founded on the very foundations of nature. In order to procreate, there must be man and there must be woman. This is an irrefutable biological truth. Homosexuality flies in the faces of nature, biology and God, who has declared the acting on it an eternal sin. We stand for the family unit in our party: father, mother and children.

Our constitutional right to Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental right guaranteed by our Founding Fathers to stay a rogue government, to defend ourselves and our loved ones certainly; but largely to retain the balance of power between the people and the government.

America was founded on Judeo-Christian principles and the freedom of religion as one of our very basic rights. It didn't require separation of church and state; but restricted the "state" from ever establishing a national religion, or infringing on the religious rights of any American or the churches residing in America.

And Freedom of Speech, which is sorely under attack these days, is another of the Republican Party's core principles. It is necessary for a free society and a free society is what America has always been; indeed, a beacon of light to the world.

These are the basic values and principles of the Republican Party and they are under attack, more than they ever have been, by the Democrats and liberals in America. They are determined to convince those unwilling to study it out for themselves that we are the enemy. And yet, it is our principles and values which have built this nation into the world superpower that it was, because our people were so strong.

This is what I fight for every day. These "traditional values" which will insure the continuation of the United States of America as the last bastion of freedom and liberty in the world. Hold that flame high, for this is a battle we must not lose.

The likes of Bill Maher, Jon Stewart, Chris Matthews, Rachel Maddow, and others will do their best to convince you that you are wrong. But you are not. We are in the "good will be bad and bad will be good" phase of the world's history. Things are worse now than they were in Sodom and Gomorrah. We must stand up for what is right, it is vital to the salvation of religious freedom, of freedom of speech, of America.

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Copyright 2013. All rights reserved by Candace E. Salima.