COMMENTARY:
A Glimmer of Hope for Vietnam
Saturday, July 7, 2006
Recent changes in the government of Communist Vietnam may hold some possibility of moving the country in the direction of a more free, open and democratic society. By Rand Green READ THE FULL STORY

Joining the Club: More Hyannisport Hypocrisy
July 7, 2005
SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY, in a written document, demanded that judicial nominee Jerome A. Holmes explain why he did not resign sooner from a dining club whose membership is restricted to males. Kennedy, of course, can in good conscience hold Holmes accountable for so vile an act as belonging to an all-male club. Kennedy’s hands are clean. He’d washed them a month before Holmes washed his. By Rand Green READ THE FULL STORY

Liberal invective is all about Bush? I don't think so
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
The liberal-elites in the Democratic party – and that includes virtually everyone currently in party leadership – often seem driven more by hatred than by anything else. Many in the liberal media seem possessed by a similar vitriol. Some conservatives have convinced themselves that this liberal ill will is directed principally, if not solely, at George W. Bush and the Bush Administration. It would be nice if it were that simple. By Rand Green READ THE FULL STORY

America and the United Nations
"AT ONE LEVEL, the United Nations is merely the latest variant on the Congress of Vienna held almost two centuries ago—a venue where the great powers sit down to resolve the problems of the world to their mutual satisfaction. Unfortunately ... the UN has become the repository of all the West’s sappiest illusions of one-worldism."  By Mark Steyn. From a Dec. 5, 2005 speech. READ THE TRANSCRIPT

Ah! Chihuahua! You can't name your baby that!
You think you can name your baby anything you want? Not if you live in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, you can’t. The state government, there, has strict rules on what parents can name their babies and even how the names must be spelled, reported El Paso’s KVIA Television on June 28. By Rand Green READ THE FULL STORY

American Leadership and the Blessings of Freedom
Friday, June 14, 2006
"America can and must be a force for good in the world. The President and I believe that the United States must remain engaged as a leader in events beyond our borders. We believe this because we are guided by the same enduring principle that gave birth to our own nation: Human dignity is not a government's grant to its citizens nor mankind's gift to one another; it is God's endowment to all humanity."  By Condoleezza Rice. READ THE TRANSCRIPT

Cooperation among free nations to combat threats to global freedom
SINGAPORE - Sat., June 3, 2006
"Today we face a situation in the Pacific, and indeed globally, where, paradoxically, more nations are freer then ever before, yet freedom is increasingly under assault -- by the designs of violent extremists and rogue regimes. In the present security environment, cooperation among free nations is not simply desirable, it’s critical." By Donald Rumsfeld. READ THE TRANSCRIPT

Know the Enemy
Extracted from an address delivered to the graduating class of the U.S. Navel Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on May 26, 2006
To prevail in [the global war on terror], we must understand the nature of the enemy that threatens America and the civilized world. It is as brutal and heartless as any we have ever faced. By Vice President Richard Cheney. READ MORE

COMMENTARY:
Saddam Had 'Em: Iraq's WMD threat was real
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
What President Bush said, leading up to the war, was never a lie. Saddam did have WMD, and he had active WMD programs, right up to the eve of the U.S. invasion in March 2003. The final report of the CIA’s Iraqi Survey Group (sometimes referred to as the Duelfer Report) confirms that fact, even though selective extracts from that very report are often cited by Bush critics as proof to the contrary. By Rand Green. READ THE COMPLETE COMMENTARY

SPECIAL REPORT:
Embroiled in Oil:
How American Dependence on Foreign Crude Is Bankrolling America’s Enemies
Sunday, May 7, 2006
The high price of oil is indeed a concern – not because American consumers are getting soaked at pump, not because U.S. oil companies are making “windfall” profits, but because countries such as Iran, whose Islamo-fascist rulers have vowed our destruction, are raking in staggering sums of money which they are investing in weapons, nuclear and other, with which they hope to annihilate us. By Rand Green. READ THE FULL REPORT

COMMENTARY:
Just what part of the  word 'temporary' don't
politicians understand?
Tuesday, April 10, 2006
President Bush has said that he is "firmly opposed" to amnesty for illegal immigrants but favors a guest worker program that allows them to "apply for legal status on a temporary basis." The Senate has come dangerously close to passing a disastrous bill that would basically allow millions of illegal immigrants to buy permanent status and eventual citizenship for a couple of grand.  That is de facto amnesty, and if such a law comes to the president's desk, he should veto it. No illegal immigrant should be allowed to apply for guest worker status without having first showed contrition and done something to reasonably and justly pay for having violated the law: not just a fine but something more, such as several hundred hours of meaningful public service. By Rand Green. READ THE FULL COMMENTARY

Air war strategy preserved Iraqi infrastructure and lives
WASHINGTON - Mon., April 10, 2006 (AFPS)
Under international rules of war, civilians near legitimate military targets might regretfully become casualties during an attack. But U.S. and coalition officials "took a much more restrictive interpretation" of the law of war during the planning of military air strikes in Iraq, said Maj. Michael Norton, a South Carolina Air National Guard F-16 pilot who was part of the Coalitian's aerial vanguard in Iraq. As a result, the number of Iraqi civilian casualties caused by U.S. and coalition aerial attacks 'was very low'" during Operation Iraqi Freedom, he said. By Jim Garamone. READ THE FULL STORY

EXCLUSIVE SPECIAL REPORT:
The Iranian Threat: Finishing the Job in the Middle East
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Iran's leaders have declared their intent to destroy Israel and America. They are aiding terrorist groups, and they are vigorously pursuing nuclear weapons.  The United States faces no greater threat. Dealing firmly with Iran is imperative. But Newt Gingrich put it well when he said in recent testimony before a Senate subcommittee: "There is an extraordinary opportunity for every peace loving and civilized country in the world, led by the United States, to support a democracy movement within Iran to achieve regime change short of armed conflict. Indeed, the most significant allies in a U.S. policy of regime change in Iran are likely to be the Iranian people themselves." By Rand Green. READ THE COMPLETE REPORT

President Bush discusses freedom and democracy in Iraq
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
In a speech delivered at Freedom House, President Bush discussed what is at state in Iraq, America's "efforts to help the Iraqi people overcome past divisions and form a lasting democracy, and why it is vital to the security of the American people that we help them succeed." If the United States leaves Iraq "before the job is done," he said, "the terrorists will move in and fill the vacuum, and they will use that failed state to bring murder and destruction to freedom-loving nations." MORE

EXCLUSIVE SPECIAL REPORT:
Borderline Schizophrenia
An in-depth look at U.S. Border Security and Immigration Policy
plus some clear-headed proposals for dealing with this complex and highly emotional issue.
Posted Tues., Mar. 28, 2006
(Originally published in Perspicacity Press, February 2006 print edition)
It is imperative for the security and territorial integrity of the United States that we control who comes across our borders, and particularly those who come with the intent to stay. If they wish to become loyal, law-abiding Americans, we should welcome them. If they mean to do us harm, if they have criminal intent, or if they think that the states from California to Texas are rightly theirs, they have no business coming here. By Rand Green. READ THE COMPLETE REPORT.

SPECIAL REPORT:
State Department releases Country Reports
on Human Rights Practices
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
"The United States and other free nations have a duty to defend human rights and help spread democracy’s blessings," wrote U.S. Secretary of  State Condoleeza Rice in the preface to the Country Reports on Human Rights Abuses for 2005, released today. "We must help countries develop the democratic institutions that will ensure human rights are respected over the long term. We must help fragile democracies deliver a better life for their citizens. We must call countries to account when they retreat from their international human rights commitments. And we must always stand in solidarity with the courageous men and women across the globe that live in fear yet dream of freedom.
   "Defending and advancing human rights and democratic principles keeps faith with our country’s most cherished values and lays the foundation for lasting world peace." MORE

COMMENTARY:
Student group's plans to display Mohammed cartoons
are 'drawing condemnation'
Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2005
“Plans by a Republican student group at [the University of California, Irvine] to showcase the controversial cartoons of the prophet Muhammad that led to violent protests around the world are drawing condemnation from Muslim groups and university officials.” So stated a recent article by Daniel Yi in the Los Angeles Times.
   It is understandable that Muslims would be offended by the cartoons, first published in September in a Danish newspaper. But when someone does something to offend you, there are more appropriate ways to deal with the insult than arson and mayhem. There are things like – well, like holding a panel discussion and airing your views in a civil manner. That is what the Campus Republicans at UC Irvine are doing. They are not choosing to display the Danish cartoons because they wish to offend but because they have been deeply offended by the way murderous mobs blamed the entire Western world for the works of a few cartoonists published by a handful of newspapers. They have a right to take offense. But they have not chosen to respond by burning down the local mosque or pelting rocks at any Muslim they see. They would never consider such a response. Let us hope the Muslims on campus at UC Irvine will take a page from that book and join them in a civilized dialog rather than resort to violence. By Rand Green. READ THE FULL COMMENTARY

Rumsfeld: U.S. must outdo terrorists in public opinion battle
WASHINGTON – Sat., Feb. 18 (AFPS)
The war on terror is unlike any conflict the U.S. has ever faced, and some of the most important battles are fought not on the ground, but in newsrooms around the world, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said. By Sgt. Sara Wood. READ THE COMPLETE STORY

ANALYSIS
Hamas: See what 'democracy' hath wrought!
How should the world respond when terrorists prevail in free elections?
Monday, Jan. 30, 2006
THE PALESTINIAN TERRORIST organization Hamas, whose core objective is the obliteration of Israel, won a landslide victory in Palestinian parliamentary elections on Thursday, Jan. 26. But that election did not create a democratic Palestinian government, nor even a legitimate government. It put a terrorist organization in control of the Palestinian parliament, nothing more. No government, no ruling political party or potentate has any right to pursue acts of terror, targeted mass murder of innocents, and genocide against any other nation, group or people, or against its own people, no matter by what means it has come into power. Being elected by the people does not confer that right. By Rand Green. MORE

Info as important as ammo in 'Long War'
WASHINGTON - Tues., Jan. 24, 2006 (AFPS)
In the so-called "Long War"[against radical Islamo-fascist terrorism], information will be as important as ammunition, a senior military officer said. "It is clear ... in a global perspective how important information is and its ability to influence people and their ideas," said Army Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "Once we are successful in Iraq and Afghanistan, the extremists will be looking for another place to continue their mission - and it could be anyplace in the world. We have to interdict and stay ahead of them," he said. By Jim Garamone. READ THE FULL STORY

Violence will not derail democracy in Iraq
Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2006
The people of Iraq have chosen democracy and have exercised the right to elect their own leaders. According to U.S. Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., Multinational Force-Iraq Commanding General, that decision is one that will not "be undone by those who only offer murder, violence and a return to the old ways." By Rand Green READ THE FULL STORY

President Bush defends terrorist surveillance
Extracted from a speech  delivered at Kansas State University
Monday, Jan. 23, 2006 READ THE PRESIDENT'S REMARKS

General predicts fewer Sunni ties to terrorists
WASHINGTON – Fri., Jan. 20, 2005 (AFPS)
 Iraqi Sunnis who may have partnered with foreign terrorist groups in the past will abandon that practice because it's against their interests, the U.S. officer in charge of operations in northern Iraq predicted today. By Gerry J. Gilmore. READ THE FULL STORY

Steady Progress in War on Terror
Thursday, Jan. 19, 2006
"The United States is a good and a generous land. We're a nation that believes in ideals, that upholds them in our own country, and that acts on them throughout the world," said Vice President Richard Cheney in a speech today. "From providing more global food aid, by far, than any other nation, to supporting life-saving treatments for hundreds of thousands of Sub-Saharan Africans living with HIV/AIDS, to standing with freedom-loving peoples in the struggle against tyranny and terror, we do great good in this world. And in 2006 and beyond, we will do even more as we serve humanity and justice, the dignity of the individual, the rights of mankind, and the cause of liberty." READ MORE

Americans for Tax Reform releases lists of enemies and friends of the taxpayer
Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2006

Both lists are reproduced here, along with the reasons each individual or group of individuals made the list, as well as a few apropos editorial comments by Perspicacity Press.
VIEW THE COMPLETE LIST

Uzbek court suspends NGO human rights programs
TASHKENT, Uzbekistan - Jan. 13, 2006

Iranian Kurds form front to demand rights
Thursday, Jan. 3, 2005 (RFE/RL)
A group of Iranian Kurds has created a movement aimed at "peacefully" promoting democracy and demanding rights that they say have been neglected. By Golnaz Esfandiari. READ THE FULL REPORT