Pop Culture Saturday: The Truth Behind Kwanzaa

With the Christmas holidays over and the New Year still in its infancy, we are starting once again to hear about the ethnic celebration known as Kwanzaa. Launched in 1966, Kwanzaa is celebrated for seven days, beginning December 26 and ending January 2. The weeklong festival was introduced by Ron Karenga, a black author and Marxist devotee. Karenga has a very dubious history - at best. The problem is that very few people know the truth about this celebration.

THE STORY: In 1969, Karenga led a student group on the UCLA campus known as the United Slaves Organization. The on-campus rival group was the equally-radical Black Panthers. Both of these groups attended classes with loaded weapons. Noted author David Horowitz (in his book Radical Son) provides evidence that Black Panther members John Higgins and Al Carter were murdered by the USO. There were also female members of the USO who reported being tortured by Karenga and other USO leaders.

Karenga was convicted of felonious assault and false imprisonment in 1971 and sent to prison. The psychiatrist who testified at the trial reported his findings about Karenga: “This man now represents a picture which can be considered both paranoid and schizophrenic with hallucinations and delusions, inappropriate affect, disorganization, and impaired contact with the environment.” You might think the story ends there, but it doesn't.

When he was released from prison, Mr. Karenga had earned his doctorate degree and soon was appointed to the Black Studies Department at California State University. That alone speaks volumes about the state of our educational system - particularly on the Left Coast. In several interviews, Karenga himself has denied that the celebration had anything to do with African heritage. "People think it's African..." he said in 1978, "but it's not!" People who know the truth describe Kwanzaa as a bogus festival invented by a radical, racist criminal.

Summary of Enemy Weapons in Iraq - Part 2

Who are the bad guys? Most of the carnage is caused by the Zarqawi-led al Qaeda group. They operate mostly in Anbar Province (Fallujah and Ramadi). They are mostly non-Iraqi Jihadists from all over the Muslim world. Most enter Iraq through Syria, and then travel down the "rat line" which is a trail of towns along the Euphrates River. Most of these are hardcore terrorists from al Qaeda, Hezbollah, and Hamas. Here's a list of the weapons being used by these groups:

AK47 - Most common weapon found throughout Iraq. Works better in the desert than the M16, and the .308 Russian round kills reliably - but the enemy can't shoot worth beans, relying mostly on the undisciplined "spray and pray" method. Unfortunately, there has recently been an increase in precision weapons shipped in from Iran. We need to shutdown the border in order to win the war.

Fun Fact: Captured enemies have marveled at the marksmanship of our guys and how hard we fight. They are apparently taught in Jihad school that Americans rely solely on technology and can be easily beaten in close quarters combat. Let's just say the enemy knows better now.

Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) - This is the weapon most feared by our soldiers. It is simple to operate, reliable in aim and destruction, and very common in the streets. The enemy responded to our armored Humvees by aiming at the windshields - often at point blank range. they've accumulated many kills with this weapon.

Improvised Explosive Device (IED) - This is the biggest killer of all the enemy weapons. And an IED can be anything from old Soviet anti-armor mines to jury-rigged artillery shells. Many found in Jordan were left in abandoned cars. The enemy would take a couple 155mm artillery shells and wire them together, then detonate them by cell phone. the explosions are enormous. Even an M1 tank is not safe against an IED. The Iranian extremists are supplying more sophisticated charges designed to penetrate armor.

Fun Fact: We find about 40% of the IEDs before they detonate, and the bomb disposal guys are the unsung heroes of this war.

Mortars and Rockets - These weapons are very prevalent in Iraq. The Soviet era 122mm rockets (with an 18km range) are becoming more prevalent. It is more of a psychological weapon than anything else. The enemy mortar teams would drive up, jump out of the vehicles, fire a few rounds, and then speed off in a matter of seconds.

Despite these weapons, morale among our guys is very high. We not only believe we are winning, but we are winning decisively. We are stunned and dismayed by what we see in the American press. The embedded reporters are despised and distrusted. We are inflicting casualties at a rate of 20-1 and then see crap like "America is losing in Iraq!" on the television and in the print media. Bottom line - all the guys believe there are not enough soldiers there to drive the final stake through the heart of the insurgency. We need more troops to shut down the borders with Iran and Syria. The Iranians and the Syrians just can't stand the thought of Iraq being an American ally. They are fighting hard to keep that from happening!

Summary of Weapons Deployed to Iraq - Part 1

The following information about specific weapons being used in Iraq gave me some fantastic insight into the feel of the battlefield. It was supplied by a Marine (Semper Fi) stationed on the front lines. Unfortunately, the Liberal media here in the States will never publish descriptions like this.

M-16 Rifle - I have to give this weapon a thumbs down because of its chronic jamming problems in the sand. The M-4 carbine version of this rifle is more popular because it is lighter and shorter... but it has jamming problems, too. Most Marines like the ability to mount the various optical gun sights and weapons lights on the rifle, but the weapon itself is not great in a desert environment.

M-243 Squad Assault Weapon (SAW) - This is a very unpopular .223 cal. drum-fed light machine gun. I have to give this a huge thumbs down. It is universally considered a piece of crap by any soldier on the battlefield... Army and Marines. Not only does the M-243 experience chronic jamming problems, but when it does you have to disassemble the weapon in order to unjam it. Nobody wants to do that in the middle of a firefight.

M-9 Beretta 9mm Pistol - You never know what you're going to get with this weapon. It's a good gun that performs well in the desert, but everyone hates the small 9mm cartridge. Although the use of handguns is fairly common for close quarters self-defense, you can hit a bad guy multiple times and the 9mm rounds will have very little effect.

Mossberg 12 Gauge Shotgun - This weapon actually works very well in the desert. It's a military version of the standard 12 Gauge. We use it frequently for clearing houses.

M-240 Machine Gun - This is the NATO weapon used as a standard .308 cal. belt-fed machine gun. The weapon was developed to replace the old M-60 (a truly beautiful weapon). I give the M-240 a thumbs up for its accuracy and reliability. The .308 round puts the bad guys down. Originally developed as a vehicle mounted weapon, more and more are being dismounted and taken into the field by infantry.

M-2 Heavy Machine Gun - This is a heavy .50 cal. weapon that is still worth her weight in gold. It's the ultimate fight-stopper that stops the bad guys dead in their tracks every time. This is easily the most coveted weapon on the battlefield.

.45 Caliber Pistol - I give this standard issue weapon a big thumbs up. It's still the best pistol out there, and everybody authorized to carry a sidearm is trying to get their hands on one. With few exceptions, the .45 can reliably stop a bad guy with a torso hit. The Special Ops guys (who are doing most of the pistol work) use the HK military model.

M-14 - I give this weapon a huge thumbs up. They are being re-issued in large volumes, mostly in a modified version to the Special Ops guys. These modifications include lightweight Kevlar stocks and low-power red dot or ACOG sights. The weapons are reliable in the sandy environment, and 7.62 rounds are very effective.

Barrett .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle - I give these sniper rifles a huge thumbs up. They have spectacular range and accuracy, and the .50 cal. round hits like a freight train. The rifles are used frequently to take out suicide bombers in vehicles and barricaded enemy.

M-24 Sniper Rifle - Another big thumbs up. Great performance with the .308 rounds. Snipers have been used heavily to great effect. Rumor has it that a Marine sniper using this rifle on his third tour has actually exceeded Carlos Hathcock's record for confirmed kills with OVER 100.

Liberals Backoff from Troop Reduction Demands

Less than a month after gaining a majority in both the U.S. House and Senate (by exploiting anti-war sentiment), the Liberal Democrats are backing off from demands to pull out of Iraq. The New York Times (and I use this source because it is blatantly Liberal) reported it this way: "...despite a Democratic election victory this month that was strongly based on anti-war sentiment, the idea of a major and rapid withdrawal seems to be fading as a viable option." How do you Liberal Democrats feel about having the wool pulled over your eyes?

What is most hilarious in this Liberal comedy is the obvious hypocrisy of the Iraq Commission Report. After painting a grim portrait of the War on Terrorism in an almost laughable fashion, the Report says that if we faithfully follow its recommendations, “terrorism will be dealt a blow, stability will be enhanced in an important part of the world, and America's credibility, interests and values will be protected.” Then the report presents the principal recommendation: Pull out all forces from the combat zone by early 2008, and turn the war over to the Iraqi army and police.

Are we to believe that a rag-tag Iraqi army is going to win a war the finest army on earth has all but lost? Is this what the Liberal idiots call “realism” in the War on Terrorism? Iraqi army units lack leadership... they lack equipment... they lack personnel... they lack logistics and support. The report also states: “The state of the Iraqi police is substantially worse than that of the Iraqi army...” Yet these are the folks (according to the Liberal wackos) who are going to win the war we could not win, after we depart? Is this not an insult to common sense?

Throughout the report there several inherent contradictions. The situation is “grave and deteriorating” but will get better if we pull our finest fighting forces out. Do the goons on the Commission think we are ALL stupid? Iraq is “vital to regional and global stability” and is even “critical” to interests, but if Maliki shirks his responsibility, we should pull the rug out from under him. The Commission is nothing more than a political stunt - a stunt that backfired on the Liberal cut-n-runners. But the biggest giveaway of Liberal hypocrisy is this: “An Iraqi army trained by Americans can win a war that Americans could not.”