Patterico's Pontifications

6/6/2014

WWII Vet Goes AWOL From Nursing Home to Attend D-Day Celebrations in Normandy

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 9:20 pm



After posting a story showing the depravity humans can display, I think it’s only fitting to round out D-Day with an inspiring story about one of the veterans from that day.

An 89-year-old Second World War veteran told he could not attend today’s D-Day events in France went AWOL from his care home and was found 12 hours later in Normandy with comrades police have confirmed.

The unnamed veteran decided to disregard his carers’ orders, put on his medals under his raincoat and set off to join events on the beaches of Northern France for the 70th anniversary of the landings.

Good for him!

Bernard Jordan, 89, left the home in Hove unannounced at 10:30 BST on Thursday and was reported missing to Sussex Police that evening.

Staff later discovered he had joined other veterans in France.

The former Royal Navy officer said he hoped his trip would not land him in trouble.

On Friday evening, it was confirmed Mr Jordan was on an overnight ferry and had been given a cabin, meals and a transfer back to his nursing home.

Prior to embarking, Mr Jordan told ITV News: “I have been here last year and I have been here obviously this time… but if I am still about I shall try next year’s as well.”

Asked if he would be in trouble when he returned home, he added: “I might be, but I hope not.”

Courtesy of the BBC comes this excellent photo of the guy on the ferry:

Screen Shot 2014-06-06 at 9.17.59 PM

I love this story more than words can say.

UPDATE: Courtesy of Allahpundit at Hot Air comes this video of President Reagan’s remarks at Pointe du Hoc on June 6, 1984:

Wonderful stuff.

Screen Shot 2014-06-06 at 9.32.47 PM
Above: These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc

L.A. Times Reports That Losing Judicial Candidate Won

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 9:11 pm



A couple of days ago, I noted that all three candidates I endorsed in local judicial races were elected — and in every case, the L.A. Times had endorsed the opponent.

Looks like they were so upset about the results, they decided to just flip around the results of one race, to show their preferred candidate as having won — even though she lost:

FOR THE RECORD

Election results: In the June 5 LATExtra section, the election results for Los Angeles County Superior Court judge reversed the totals for Office No. 54. Shannon L. Knight won the seat with 294,598 votes over Debra L. Losnick, with 192,975 votes. Also, for Office No. 107, winner Joan M. Chrostek was misidentified as John.

You can imagine Shannon’s surprise, having awakened to a solid victory according to elections officials, when she read in the Los Angeles Times that she had lost.

If anyone has yesterday’s paper, please save it for me. I want to ask Shannon to pose with the article, a la “Dewey Defeats Truman!”

Screen Shot 2014-06-06 at 9.08.30 PM

UPDATE: I’ll settle for a good Photoshop. Here is Shannon’s official campaign photo:

Screen Shot 2014-06-06 at 9.15.08 PM

If any of you can drop her face into that Truman photo, and alter the headline, that would be perfect.

YouTube Restores Patterico Video Showing Songhai “Sunny” Armstead’s Appeal for Votes Based on Race

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 8:42 pm



Just in time for . . . three days after the election!

I received this email a couple of hours ago:

Hello,

In accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, we’ve completed processing your counter-notification regarding these video(s):


This content has been restored unless you have deleted the video(s). Your account will not be penalized.

Regards,

The YouTube Copyright Team

Didn’t work, “Sunny.” I just hosted it here on my blog. Still, it’s worth noting how people can manipulate the DMCA in an attempt to hide embarrassing video material from voters — however fruitless that attempt may have turned out to be in this particular case.

Obama Chews Gum at D-Day Memorial Ceremony

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 6:48 pm



I can’t take this guy any more.

Your Feelgood Story of the Day: Cretins Loot Groceries from Vehicle in Fatal Crash

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 5:18 pm



The kicker: mom died in the crash, and the looters took the groceries while the kids were still in the car:

A Houston mother with her two young children in a vehicle was fatally wounded after being involved in a car crash Wednesday afternoon, but it’s what happened after that stunned onlookers.

Eyewitnesses told police that people were spotted stealing groceries out of the front seat of the dead woman’s Toyota 4-Runner, KTRK-TV reported.

“You see the person dead. How do you feel taking the person’s groceries?” onlooker Sheila Katoo told the local ABC affiliate.

Some thefts are worse than others. The people who committed this particular theft are animals; depraved people who have no place in society.

The 70th Anniversary of D-Day

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 7:39 am



Today is June 6, 2014, the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landing, which occurred on June 6, 1944. My family was fortunate enough to visit the area of the Normandy landings last year, and I’d like to share some of the pictures with you, starting with the Normandy American Cemetery:

Screen Shot 2013-08-25 at 7.34.21 PM

I’m going to put the rest of the pictures beneath the fold for bandwidth purposes. Just click on “more.”

(more…)

That’s No Reassurance

Filed under: General — Dana @ 5:47 am



[guest post by Dana]

Earlier this week, I posted about safety concerns regarding the five released Taliban members who are being monitored in Qatar.

And while President Obama and his national security Cabinet may have publicly expressed confidence in the agreement with Qatar and their charge to monitor the five, not everyone is on board. Some U.S. military and intelligence officials are questioning the wisdom of the decision.

U.S. officials have had long-standing concerns that Qatar has often turned a blind eye to terrorist financing inside its borders and failed to keep track of a former Guantanamo inmate who was transferred to the emirate at the end of the Bush administration. “We know that many wealthy individuals in Qatar are raising money for jihadists in Syria every day,” a senior U.S. intelligence official told The Daily Beast. “We also know that we have sent detainees to them before, and their security services have magically lost track of them.”

In other words, Qatar is simply not reliable.

In 2008, when the Bush administration transferred Jaralla al-Marri, a Qatari citizen who spent six years in U.S. captivity, from Guantanamo to Qatar, Doha provided similar assurances to the ones it has provided about the Gitmo 5.

But less than six months after the July 2008 transfer, al-Marri traveled to the United Kingdom ostensibly to go on a speaking tour with other former Guantanamo detainees. In a February 26, 2009, cable from the U.S. Embassy in Doha, the State Department complained that Qatar was not living up to its promises.

“Al-Marri was returned to Qatar from Guantanamo Bay in July 2008, with the explicit understanding (made via exchange of diplomatic notes) that he would be subject to a travel ban, and that the GOQ would notify the USG if al-Marri sought to travel,” said the cable, first disclosed by WikiLeaks. “Reftel gave post’s assessment, now clearly wrong, that the GOQ would honor these assurances.” GOQ refers to Government of Qatar.

The U.S. government had serious suspicions about al-Marri but couldn’t prove much. His 2007 Pentagon dossier—first disclosed by WikiLeaks—says al-Marri was evasive when asked about money transfers to his brother, who was suspected of being a sleeper agent inside the United States. The dossier, however, only asserts that al-Marri traveled to al Qaeda training camps and guest houses, and concludes he is a “medium risk” to harm U.S. allies.

But now, we are faced with those who would easily be considered high risk. Asking the obvious, what on earth is there to prevent them from returning to the fold, hence their hostilities toward America and its interests?

Yet another reason for concern is Qatar’s fertile fundraising ground for various terrorist groups.

Late last year, the Treasury Department placed sanctions on Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi, a Qatari history professor and human rights activist, for raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for al Qaeda’s affiliates in Iraq, Somalia, and Yemen.

In March, David Cohen, the undersecretary of the treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a speech to the Center for a New American Security that while Qatar is a longtime U.S. ally, it also has “for many years openly financed Hamas, a group that continues to undermine regional stability.” Cohen also referenced press reports that indicated Qatar’s support for extremists in Syria.

The State Department’s latest report on counterterrorism says that while Qatar has cooperated with the United States in some important areas of counterterrorism, its efforts to stop fundraising for terrorist groups have been inconsistent. “Qatari-based terrorist fundraisers, whether acting as individuals or as representatives of other groups, were a significant terrorist financing risk and may have supported terrorist groups in countries such as Syria,” the report said.

As a reminder, President Obama in the Rose Garden last weekend:

We’ve worked for several years to achieve this goal, and earlier this week, I was able to personally thank the Amir of Qatar for his leadership in helping us get it done. As part of this effort, the United States is transferring five detainees from the prison in Guantanamo Bay to Qatar. The Qatari government has given us assurances that it will put in place measures to protect our national security.

Respectfully, President Obama, I am not remotely reassured by your confidence in the Qatari government’s assurances of protection.

P.S. According U.S. intelligence officials, the deal made with Qatar permits the U.S government to participate in the monitoring of the five released detainees, however, the exact terms and conditions of any monitoring would first have to be approved by Qatari government.

–Dana


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