Flame virus can hijack PCs by spoofing Windows Update

Via Survival

Using rogue security certificates, the virus is able to exploit Microsoft's Windows Update service to infect unsuspecting computers.

The infamous Flame virus can infect even secure PCs by tricking them into believing its malicious payload is actually an update from Microsoft.

As we already know, Flame has gained traction by tapping into security certificates for Microsoft's Terminal Server. Though they appear to be digitally signed by Microsoft, the certificates are actually cooked up by the people behind Flame, thereby tricking PCs into accepting them as legitimate.

Microsoft and Symantec revealed yesterday that the virus can up the ante by using the fake certificates to spoof Microsoft's own Windows Update service. As such, Windows PCs could receive an update that claims to be from Microsoft but is in fact a launcher for the malware.

Symantec described the method behind Flame's madness: The virus, also known as Flamer, uses three applications to infect PCs -- Snack, Munch, and Gadget. Collectively, this trio can trick PCs into redirecting Internet traffic to an infected computer with a fake Web server,. Once infected, a PC thinks the file that loads Flame is actually a Windows Update from Microsoft.

And as Symantec explained in its blog, spoofing Windows Update is not a trivial matter.

More @ Cyberwarzone

Occupado (This is good)

Tarheel Ron Gragg, author of 26th NC & Confederate Goliath, on Morning Joe

Via Old Virginia Blog

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Rod Gragg: National History as Family History

My personal attraction to Civil War history occurred when I was a small boy. My grandfather on my mother’s side owned a home on a Civil War battlefield—Fort Fisher, in North Carolina—and I was lured into the inescapable landscape of Civil War history by an older brother and two older cousins who talked about the soldiers and commanders of that battle as if they were local neighbors. Prowling over the battlefield as a child exposed me to a few critters of minor importance—sand fleas and an occasional black snake—but mainly to a much more formidable critter: the Civil War bug—and its bite was irreversible. And even deeper, stronger tug of the heart came, however, from my grandparents on my father’s side. They lived deep in the mountains of western North Carolina—under the shadow of Grandfather Mountain—in a wonderful rural community that was known locally as The Globe.

His whole story @ Civil War 150

Issa: Holder contempt vote to move forward, for now

Sukhoi Pilot Shouted Just Moments before Accident

The pieces of the puzzle shrouding the Sukhoi Superjet 100 crash are finally emerging and it appears human error is to blame.

A Tempo Magazine report on the Sukhoi accident published Monday, June 18, included an interview between Tempo and a Russian investigator. The interview revealed that the pilot shouted something just moments before the plane hit the cliff.

A Russian investigator who has knowledge of the initial analysis results from the black box said that Yablontsev was about to conduct a maneuver after his request to descend was approved by the Cengkareng tower. “He wanted to fly between two mountain peaks,” said the investigator. Mt. Salak has three peaks with deep valleys.

Aleksandr Yablontsev, 57, was a senior pilot who had flown more than 221 types of aircraft and clocked 14,000 flight hours. The former fighter pilot had also been involved in the manufacturing of Sukhoi aircraft since 2004. With such skill and experience, the investigator added that Yablontsev wanted to show off the sophisticated technology of the Sukhoi superjet to the passengers.

Without knowledge of the contour of the flight path to Pelabuhan Ratu, the pilot was surprised when he turned the aircraft right and headed into a cliff on Mt. Salak. The black box recording, according to the Russian investigator, revealed that the pilot shouted something in Russian that meant, “Oh my God, what is this?” in English. The marks on the cliff left by the collision showed that Yablontsev tried to dive upwards but the distance and timing was insufficient to avoid the cliff.

More @ tempointeractive

Quick! Get the token black kid front and center!

Via A Trainwreck In Maxwell

Hilarious!

The Stainless Banner May 2012

May, 2012

Defense – Obstacles Part III: Placement And Man-Improved Obstacles

In the last entry we covered what natural obstacles were and why they work. In this entry we’re going to begin to address man-improved obstacles and their placement. Remember a man-improved obstacle is one that implies a natural obstacle has been improved or an obstacle created through human effort. In military doctrine these are normally referred to manmade however I want to draw a distinction between man-improved and manmade (an obstacle human placed that consumes resources like wire, posts, etc.). Normally man-improved obstacles take less effort than manmade ones and what I refer to as man-improved obstacles normally don’t require significant external resources.

During this entry I’ll be using the phrase “cut a/the trail” This implies actually severing a trail and not creating one like we would normally use the term. Why would you cut a trail? If you have multiple routes in your AO or on your land you may want to eliminate some of them to vehicle traffic (remember a guy on foot is going to be damn hard to stop) which could decrease the numbers of avenues of approach the threat could take while mounted (in a vehicle). And with cutting a trail the old adage applies – “Any obstacle that’s going to make it hard for the threat to get in is going to make it hard for you to get out“. Use these examples only by weighing that along with all of the pros and cons that putting them in brings.

One of the basic tenants of obstacles I presented in the introduction was the fact that it’s much easier to halt or delay a vehicle than a person on foot with an obstacle. We’re going to focus on delaying vehicles in this entry because it’s a given that a determined threat on foot is going to find a way in. So for our purposes we’ll look at trails on flat land, uphill/downhill, and side slopes. IMHO these types of vehicular obstacles are best placed a good distance away from your homestead. Why? It they do stop a vehicle completely and the threat dismounts to continue on it’s going to cost him time and energy humping it. Once he gets to your homestead he still has to assault. And in the middle of summer with a 100 degrees outside he’s probably going to already be beat. Since we’re looking at vehicles let’s take another look at the performance stats I presented in the natural vehicle entry.

More @ The Lizard Farmer

"I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK"

Via Conservative Heritage Times

"Mr. Copens kindly sent us this video. It’s good stuff. I assume, although I don’t know for sure, that Mr. Copens is a Ron Paul supporter."

Don't miss this: Aerial Chivalry -The Story of Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler

Roundabout via Bill

Charlie Brown was a B-17 Flying Fortress pilot with the 379th Bomber Group at Kimbolton, England. His B-17 was called 'Ye Old Pub' and was in a terrible state, having been hit by flak and fighters. The compass was damaged and they were flying deeper over enemy territory instead of heading home to Kimbolton.

After flying over an enemy airfield, a pilot named Franz Stigler was ordered to take off and shoot down the B-17. When he got near the B-17, he could not believe his eyes. In his words, he 'had never seen a plane in such a bad state'. The tail and rear section was severely damaged, and the tail gunner wounded. The top gunner was all over the top of the fuselage. The nose was smashed and there were holes everywhere.

Despite having ammunition, Franz flew to the side of the B-17 and looked at Charlie Brown, the pilot. Brown was scared and struggling to control his damaged and blood-stained plane.

Aware that they had no idea where they were going, Franz waved at Charlie to turn 180 degrees. Franz escorted and guided the stricken plane to and slightly over the North Sea towards England. He then saluted Charlie Brown and turned away, back to Europe.

When Franz landed he told the CO that the plane had been shot down over the sea, and never told the truth to anybody. Charlie Brown and the remains of his crew told all at their briefing, but were ordered never to talk about it.
More than 40 years later, Charlie Brown wanted to find the Luftwaffe pilot who saved the crew. After years of research, Franz was found. He had never talked about the incident, not even at post-war reunions.

They met in the USA at a 379th Bomber Group reunion, together with 25 people who are alive now - all because Franz never fired his guns that day.

Links:
Article: http://www.robertswindholz.com/docs/charleybrown.pdf

Charlie Brown's Obituary:
http://tinyurl.com/ycrcpgy

Franz Stigler's Obituary:
http://tinyurl.com/ybsvlv3

To Contact Robert Windholz:
http://www.robertswindholz.com
email: rswindholz@lawyerserve.com

REDUCED FEES for US military veterans. (678) 990-1584

Apodaca tells GRNC member that HB111 is a dead issue and will not see a vote

Now he pulls procedural trick to prevent a vote

Senate Rules Chair Tom Apodaca’s disturbing conversation with a GRNC member will be detailed shortly, but first things first, here is what he has just pulled to prevent Restaurant Carry…

Senator Doug Berger (D, GRNC ****) attempted a discharge petition to force HB 111 out of the Finance Committee for a vote on the floor of the NC Senate. Bravo! But, wait! Senator Apodaca (delivering on his angry words to a member) will have none of that and has pulled a procedural trick to block this. By re-referring it to the Commerce Committee, Apodaca resets the clock on HB 111 and it cannot be brought out via a discharge petition for at least 10 days. This move essentially assures that the clock will run out on HB 111, effectively thumbing his nose at your wishes.

Read the details of a conversation with a GRNC member yesterday and you will see the depth of his resolve to prevent you from protecting yourself from Restaurant Homicide. Apodaca had some choice words for gun owners in North Carolina, GRNC President Paul Valone, and GRNC in general. In addition to his berating of GRNC and gun owners, his main message was this: HB 111 is a dead issue now and will NOT see a vote on the Senate floor!

Quoting directly from the conversation, Senator Apodaca reveals just where he stands:

“He answered the phone himself. I asked if there was still time for HB 111 to come to a vote. His voice got rather loud, said "no! Its too late and it will not come to a vote". Said he did not like the way he was being treated by GRNC in general, and you (P. Valone) by name and that I should get my money back from GRNC because you (P. Valone), again by name, were doing the gun owners of NC no service. With that, he hung up the phone.”


The Blame Game Begins

While Senator Apodaca’s memory is questionable concerning the history of HB 111, we feel it is necessary to remind gun owners in North Carolina that it was HIS actions, along with the actions of other Republican Senate leaders that caused this. All they had to do was bring it out for a vote and they had the perfect chance in the Senate Judiciary II Committee. Now Senator Apodaca plans to run the clock on your safety. Are you going to let him get away with this?

Immediate Action Required

• Email ALL Republican Senators (Listed below)
  

• CALL YOUR STATE SENATOR, whom you can find by going to: http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/representation/WhoRepresentsMe.html
• (Note: You will need your 9-digit zip, which can be found on your driver's license.)
• Ask them what kind of trick Apodaca is pulling and demand a vote for HB 111.
• HELP GRNC RUN RADIO SPOTS: At $350 per spot, bringing the public into the fight isn’t cheap. Moreover, GRNC needs money for numerous runoff elections, and for the General Election in November – in a battleground state, no less. Please help us accomplish the objective and defend your rights by joining or contributing at: https://ssl4.westserver.net/grnc.org/join.html!

Contact Info

Austin.Allran@ncleg.net, Tom.Apodaca@ncleg.net, Phil.Berger@ncleg.net, Stan.Bingham@ncleg.net, Harris.Blake@ncleg.net, Andrew.Brock@ncleg.net, Harry.Brown@ncleg.net, Peter.Brunstetter@ncleg.net, Chris.Carney@ncleg.net, Warren.Daniel@ncleg.net, Jim.Davis@ncleg.net, Don.East@ncleg.net, Thom.Goolsby@ncleg.net, Rick.Gunn@ncleg.net, Kathy.Harrington@ncleg.net, Fletcher.Hartsell@ncleg.net, Ralph.Hise@ncleg.net, Neal.Hunt@ncleg.net, Brent.Jackson@ncleg.net, Wesley.Meredith@ncleg.net, Buck.Newton@ncleg.net, Louis.Pate@ncleg.net, Jean.Preston@ncleg.net, Bill.Rabon@ncleg.net, David.Rouzer@ncleg.net, Bob.Rucho@ncleg.net, Dan.Soucek@ncleg.net, Richard.Stevens@ncleg.net, Jerry.Tillman@ncleg.net, Tommy.Tucker@ncleg.net, Wes.Westmoreland@ncleg.net

NOTE: SOME EMAIL PROGRAMS AUTOMATICALLY HYPERLINK EMAIL ADDRESSES. FOR A PLAIN TEXT VERSION OF THE ADDRESSES ABOVE, CLICK HERE.

Deliver This Message

(Suggested subject line: “No tricks on HB 111!”)

Dear Senators:

I am highly disappointed in the refusal of Senate Rules Committee Chair Tom Apodaca to allow HB 111, the Restaurant Carry bill, to the Senate floor for a vote. His behavior on this matter troubles me greatly and I urge you to use all your power and influence to reverse his actions of referring it to the Commerce Committee where it is destined to die.

Remember, it was largely thanks to the gun owner vote that you all came to power in this last election. The dance is on, remember who brought you.

I will be watching this via Grass Roots North Carolina’s alerts and I will Remember in November.

Sincerely,

A Concerned North Carolina VOTER

Pastor John Weaver on The Death of Sam Davis

Just heard this sermon at The Sam Davis Youth Camp. He's a big Glock fan. If you go to his church on Sunday, the bumper stickers on the cars make you think that you are at a patriot's convention.:)

The Death of Sam Davis

Pastor John Weaver's Confederate related sermons

Anecdotal Islam

Via Gates Of Vienna

by Egghead

Anecdotal Islam is the bane of my existence as a committed counter-jihadist. Almost every time I try to warn a fellow Westerner about the clear and present danger of allowing Islam inroads into the West, said person responds with a quaint little story about a ‘nice’ Muslim that he or she knows:

• A lady ‘journalist’ friend made a point to tell me that she had visited a local mosque during a press-related open house. She was anxious to tell me, “These are the good Muslims.” I asked her if she had inquired if their goal was to implement Sharia Law. She got angry with me and said she would. Years later, no word on that mystery.
• 
  
• A male atheist friend publicly evaluated a speech in which I properly defined the Islamic terms of hypocrisy, blasphemy, and apostasy. He announced to the group that perhaps I needed to perform more research because he did not believe that those terms meant what I said, and I should consider how a Muslim would feel if a Muslim should happen to be in the audience. He mentioned to me after my speech that one of our very nice mutual friends used to be a Muslim, and therefore he cannot believe that Muslims can believe what I explained. He omitted making the connection as to why our very nice mutual friend is now an atheist instead of a Muslim. Rather, he assigned our very nice used-to-be-Muslim friend the unwitting status of Western Muslim representative.

• A male relative traded emails with me for a while about the nature of Islam. He felt that his youthful travel to Morocco informed his opinions of Islam and Muslims more than any current or historical evidence of its violent nature and goal of world conquest. He sincerely believed that the Moroccan Muslims were really great people. I told him that the Moroccan Muslims were only nice to him because he self-censored his Western opinions and behavior around them. I asked him to explain how the Moroccan Muslims would have reacted if he had openly worn a cross or carried a Bible in Morocco. Still waiting for that answer.
• 
  
• A female relative gleefully mentioned to me that another relative had borne two children by a Muslim man who did not believe in Islam like his parents. Of course, years later, despite now three children and a long term relationship, the ‘moderate’ Muslim man still neglects to marry our relative because his parents disapprove that she is not a Muslim. Even so, our relative permits her three young children to spend every Saturday with his parents who are bound to influence her Western children with their traditional Muslim beliefs.

I am of the firm belief that anecdotal Islam is the greatest threat to Western freedom. Almost every Westerner seems to know a ‘nice’ Muslim who precludes the possibility that Muslims practicing Islam fully intend to forcibly convert and/or murder all non-Muslims in the world.

Healthcare charges: Cash v. insurance

The Los Angeles Times recently published the price based on payment type for a CT scan at eight hospitals in Southern California. As you can see, cash prices ranged from 6 to 68 percent of the average charge; and insurance prices were 48 to 84 percent of the average charge.

More @ The Goldwater Institute

A Culturally Enriched Cop-Killer in France

Gates Of Vienna
VERBATIM POST

The report about the French cop-killer was all over the news this morning, but none of the English-language bulletins mentioned his ethnicity or gave his name. It was necessary to open the French news sites to find the name “Abdallah Boumezar”.

There were also Spanish-language reports that included the culturally enriched aspects of the case. Our Spanish correspondent Hermes sends this summary from Alerta Digital:

The killer of the two French policewomen was, of course, a man from the Maghreb — freshly released from prison.

Abdallah Boumezar, the man suspected of having murdered the two policewomen in the village of Collobrieres, has confessed that he was the one who shot and killed Alicia Champion and Audrey Berthaut, the two French police officers. This 30-year-old man from the Maghreb was released from prison last September after having served a sentence of six years.

Last week he was sentenced to liberty under probation for having attacked his mother. The two policewomen had gone to the scene because of an alleged case of burglary. The confessed assassin shot Audrey Berthaut twice, and afterwards began to run after Alicia Champion, shooting at her six times at point-blank range.

Here’s more about the case in French.

Videos may be found here.

Border Patrol group calls for Holder’s resignation

The National Border Patrol Council, which represents all 17,000 of the agency's non-supervisory agents, called for the resignation Monday of Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. for his role in the botched "Fast and Furious" gunrunning operation that resulted in the death of a U.S. Border Patrol agent.

Council President George E. McCubbin III, a 25-year Border Patrol veteran himself, described Mr. Holder's actions in the case as "a slap in the face to all Border Patrol agents who serve this country," adding that the attorney general has shown "an utter failure of leadership at the highest levels of government."

More @ The Washington Times

Ron Paul's Floor Speech on Syria June 19 2012

Obama’s a domestic enemy of the U.S. Constitution

“Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation — I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.*

“* Unless, you know, 224 years from now, whoever happens to president simply decides he really doesn’t want to do that.”

— Article II, Section 1, Clause 8 of Barack Obama’s U.S. Constitution

The Founders set the course in a simple, concise, 35-word affirmation — the president’s top job is to “preserve, protect and defend” the Constitution. The chief executive does, of course, have other responsibilities, but his guardianship of the document they had just written was deemed by the Founders to be of such great import that they made him swear it — aloud, in front of witnesses.

In 1884, Congress, having no set oath of office, wrote its own: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same …”

Little did they know then that 128 years later, America would face just that: a domestic threat to the U.S. Constitution.

More @ The Washington Times

Former TSA agent arrested for pat down of TSA agent

Via CofCC

Syrian Nun discloses Lies by Free Syrian Army and Media on Homs and Houla

Via The Excavator

Jefferson Davis on Black Soldiers in Grey

Like many Southern leaders Jefferson Davis believed that the African should not be used for cannon-fodder in a war that they were not trained for, and that their agricultural work was far more important to keep the Southern field armies fed. Davis made it clear though, that should it come to subjugation by the enemy, he heartily endorsed the armed African in the ranks to help defend the homes of both races in the South.

Bernhard Thuersam, Chairman
North Carolina War Between the States Sesquicentennial Commission
www.ncwbts150.com
"The Official Website of the North Carolina WBTS Sesquicentennial"


Jefferson Davis on Black Soldiers in Grey:

“The act of February 17, 1864….which authorized the employment of slaves….brought forward….the question of employment of the negroes as soldiers in the army, which was warmly advocated by some as ardently opposed by others. My own views upon it were expressed freely and frequently in intercourse with members of Congress, and emphatically in my message of November 7, 1864…:

“The slave, however, bears another relation to the state – that of a person. Should he be retained in servitude, or should his emancipation be held out to him as a reward for past faithful service, or should it be granted at once on the promise of such service….The policy of engaging to liberate the negro on his discharge after service faithfully rendered seems to me preferable to that of granting immediate manumission, or that of retaining his servitude.

A broad moral distinction exists between the use of slaves as soldiers in defense of their homes and the incitement of the same persons to insurrection against their masters. The one is justifiable, if necessary, the other is iniquitous and unworthy of civilized people; and such is the judgment of all writers on public law, as well as that expressed and insisted on by our enemies in all wars prior to that now waged against us. [In 1776]….the climax of atrocity was deemed to be reached only when the English monarch was denounced as having “excited domestic insurrection among us.”

[I]…must dissent from those who advise a general levy and arming of the slaves for the duty of soldiers. Until our white population shall prove insufficient for the armies we require and can afford to keep in the field, to employ the slave as a soldier the negro, who has merely been trained to labor, and, as a laborer, the white man accustomed from his youth to the use of arms, would scarcely be deemed wise or advantageous by any; and this is the question now before us.

But should the alternative ever be presented of subjugation, or the employment of the slave as a soldier, there seems no reason to doubt what should then be our decision. Whether our view embraces what would, in so extreme a case, be the sum of misery entailed by the dominion of the enemy, or be restricted solely to the effect upon the welfare and happiness of the negro population themselves, the result would be the same.

[Our task has been]….that of Christianizing and improving the condition of the Africans who have by the will of Providence been placed in our charge. If the recommendation above, made for the training of forty thousand negroes for the service indicated, shall meet [the approval of the Confederate Congress], it5 is certain that even this limited number, by their preparatory training in intermediate duties, would form a valuable reserve force in case of urgency than threefold their number suddenly called from field-labor, while a fresh levy could to a certain extent supply their places in the special service for which they are now employed.”

Subsequent events advanced my views form a prospective to a present need for the enrollment of negroes to take their place in the ranks. To a member of the Senate…..I stated, as I had done to many others, the fact of having led [armed] negroes against a lawless body of armed white men, and the assurance which the experiment gave me that the might, under proper conditions, be relied on in battle, and finally used to him the expression which I believe I can repeat exactly: “If the Confederacy fails, there should be written on its tombstone, “Died of a theory.”

(The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, Volume I, Jefferson Davis, D. Appleton and Company, 1881, pp. 515-518)

Jefferson Davis on Black Soldiers in Grey

Racial Double Standards

Via SHNV

Back in 2009, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said we were "a nation of cowards" on matters of race. Permit me to be brave and run a few assertions by you just to see whether we're on the same page. There should be two standards for civilized conduct: one for whites, which is higher, and another for blacks, which is lower. In other words, in the name of justice and fair play, blacks should not be held accountable to the same standards that whites are and should not be criticized for conduct that we'd deem disgusting and racist if said or done by whites.

You say, "Williams, what in the world are you talking about?" Mitt Romney hasn't revealed all of his fall campaign strategy yet, but what if he launched a "White Americans for Romney" movement in an effort to get out the white vote? If the Romney campaign did that, there'd be a media-led outcry across the land, with charges ranging from racial insensitivity to outright racism. When President Barack Obama announced his 2012 launch of "African Americans for Obama", the silence was deafening. Should the same standards be applied to Obama as would be applied to Romney? The answer turns out to be no, because Obama is not held to the same standards as Romney.

Liberals won't actually come out and say that criticism of Obama is in and of itself racist, but they come pretty close. Former President Jimmy Carter said that criticism of Obama shows that there is an "inherent feeling" in America that a black man should not be president. Chris Matthews, host of MSNBC's "Hardball," said that critics of Obama are crackers. Morgan Freeman said that the campaign to see that Obama serves one term is a "racist thing." Former Obama czar Van Jones said that Romney's campaign sign "Obama Isn't Working" implies Obama is a "lazy, incompetent affirmative action baby."

More @ LRC

More Killed in Chicago this Year than Afghanistan

As many as 200 Chicago police officers were assigned to provide extra security for the wedding of White House adviser Valerie Jarrett’s daughter, despite the fact that this year Windy City residents have been slain in greater numbers than U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.

The Daily reports:

While 144 Americans have died in Afghanistan in 2012, a whopping 228 Chicago residents have been killed, and the murder rate is up a staggering 35 percent from last year. That’s a rash of homicides quadruple the rate of New York City’s, and police and crime experts fear it may only get worse.

More @ The Washington Free Beacon

'The Two Men Barely Looked at Each Other'

CBS reports that when Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin met with the press after their long private discussion, "The two men barely looked at each other. You could just feel, sort of, the tension between them. And the body language really represented how far apart the two leaders remain on the issue of Syria."

"It is clear that President Obama did not get an agreement from Russian president Putin [on Syria]," CBS reports.

"And interestingly," CBS adds, "Apparently President Obama got a bit of a lecture from Putin about some other failed transitions that are going on around the world."

More with video @ The Weekly Standard

Ron Paul wins Iowa! Does that matter?

Ron Paul won Iowa! At the Iowa GOP convention over the weekend, supporters of the Texas libertarian walked away with 23 of the state’s 28 national convention delegates. Under state Republican rules, those delegates are unbound, meaning they can vote for Congressman Paul in August in Tampa, Fla., if they please. It’s another example of how Paul’s strategy of getting his people organized at the grass-roots level has (somewhat) paid off in the end.

But does this Hawkeye State victory come too late to really much matter in the larger scheme of GOP politics?

We’d say yes, no, and no. But before we explain that, let’s stop for a moment to consider Iowa’s multiple 2012 Republican caucus results.

More @ CS Monitor

Presence of a Mysterious Force

There existed three Klans in American history: the first of the late 1860s which had no flag to wave; the second of the Great War-era which was a Stars & Stripes waving, anti-immigration and anti-Catholic (a sensitivity perhaps best represented by the earlier Free Soil Party of the North) group which included a Supreme Court Justice; and the 1960s variation which quickly became more heavily-populated with government informants than actual members.

Bernhard Thuersam, Director
Cape Fear Historical Institute

Presence of a Mysterious Force:

“The Ku Klux disturbance touched me but lightly. The newspapers were full of it, but my mind felt only the reverberations. Our neighborhood was disturbed only once by the night riders. It didn’t appear that the moral sense of the community was at all outraged by this violence. The only feeling seemed to be one of awe in the presence of a mysterious force: no one knew who they were or where they came from or where they went; they were only visitants from another world; nobody could guess where the lightening would strike next.

It is a mistake to suppose the Ku-Klux Klan was the Confederate army under a new uniform; it was not. There was no thrust against the Union. There were plenty of old Confederate soldiers in the ranks of the Ku Klux, but as a matter of fact they didn’t at that time care a rap about the Union one way or another.

Their intent was to bring order out of chaos….If any of my readers remember Griffith’s photoplay, The Birth of a Nation, and remember the look on the face of the Little Colonel when he unhooded, they will see what I saw on men’s faces in those days. I couldn’t have put it into words, but I felt it: it meant courage, resolution to endure, solidarity of thought and feeling. This combination was hard to stop; it couldn’t be reached by Federal courts or Federal bayonets.

(Son of Carolina, Augustus White Long, Duke University Press, 1939, pp. 35-36)

Presence of a Mysterious Force

'Fast and Furious' whistleblower says he's 'disappointed' one year later

THE CONQUERED BANNER & A REPLY TO THE CONQUERED BANNER

I recited these poems many a time as a boy, heartfelt and loved.

THE CONQUERED BANNER
by Abram Joseph Ryan (1838-1886)

Furl that Banner, for 'tis weary; Round its staff 'tis drooping dreary; Furl it, fold it, it is best; For there's not a man to wave it, And there's not a sword to save it, And there's no one left to lave it In the blood that heroes gave it; And its foes now scorn and brave it; Furl it, hide it--let it rest!

Take that banner down! 'tis tattered; Broken is its shaft and shattered; And the valiant hosts are scattered Over whom it floated high. Oh! 'tis hard for us to fold it; Hard to think there's none to hold it; Hard that those who once unrolled it Now must furl it with a sigh.

Furl that banner! furl it sadly! Once ten thousands hailed it gladly. And ten thousands wildly, madly, Swore it should forever wave; Swore that foeman's sword should never Hearts like theirs entwined dissever, Till that flag should float forever O'er their freedom or their grave!

Furl it! for the hands that grasped it, And the hearts that fondly clasped it, Cold and dead are lying low; And that Banner--it is trailing! While around it sounds the wailing Of its people in their woe. For, though conquered, they adore it! Love the cold, dead hands that bore it! Weep for those who fell before it! Pardon those who trailed and tore it!

But, oh! wildly they deplored it! Now who furl and fold it so. Furl that Banner! True, 'tis gory, Yet 'tis wreathed around with glory, And 'twill live in song and story, Though its folds are in the dust; For its fame on brightest pages, Penned by poets and by sages, Shall go sounding down the ages-- Furl its folds though now we must. Furl that banner, softly, slowly! Treat it gently--it is holy-- For it droops above the dead. Touch it not--unfold it never, Let it droop there, furled forever, For its people's hopes are dead!

A REPLY TO THE CONQUERED BANNER
by Sir Henry Houghton, Bart. (1809-1885)

Gallant nation, foiled by numbers! Say not that your hopes are fled; Keep that glorious flag which slumbers, One day to avenge your dead.

Keep it, widowed, sonless mothers! Keep it, sisters, mourning brothers! Furl it now, but keep it still--

Think not that its work is done. Keep it till your children take it, Once again to hall and make it, All their sires have bled and fought for; All their noble hearts have sought for-- Bled and fought for all alone! All alone! ay, shame the story!

Millions here deplore the stain; Shame, alas! for England's glory, Freedom called, and called in vain!

Furl that banner, sadly, slowly, Treat it gently, for 'tis holy; Till that day--yes, furl it sadly; Then once more unfurl it gladly-- Conquered banner! keep it still!

“Doctor I don’t want any pay, but I must have constant occupation or I will [lose] my mind.”

North Carolina War Between the States Sesquicentennial
www.ncwbts150.com
"The Official Website of the North Carolina WBTS Sesquicentennial Commission"

North Carolina Patriots of ’61 -- Incidents of Hospital Life

“My husband was wounded on the 6th of May, 1864, at the battle of the Wilderness, and was captured on the 20th. After he was captured he wrote me a letter, giving it to a man at Port Royal, Va., to mail, which he did not do until the latter part of July. Just imagine my terrible anxiety, not hearing from him in all that time.

In October I started home, leaving my little daughter with my sister, who expected to follow me the next month. I took my little ones and my niece, who was a young lady, with me. My sister was taken ill and I did not see my little girl until the following July. My husband, being still a prisoner, was carried with the [600 Confederate] officers to Morris Island, and was under the fire there for forty-two days, and from there he was taken to Fort Pulaski.

How I lived through that winter I cannot tell. After Christmas I applied to Dr. Essington for a situation as assistant matron to the lower hospital. They were bringing the wounded from Fort Fisher, Wilmington, and other points. We already had one hospital and were establishing another. I shall never forget the doctor’s look of amazement when I applied for the situation. My reply was: “Doctor I don’t want any pay, but I must have constant occupation or I will [lose] my mind.”

I went every morning at nine o’clock and staid until one, and I always went late in the afternoon to see that the wants of the patients were attended to during the night. I always dressed all the wounds every morning, and I soon found that my grief and sorrow were forgotten in administering to the wants of the sick. Such patience and fortitude I have never seen. Not one murmur did I ever hear escape their lips. My prayer book was my constant companion. I carried it in my pocket, and many a poor soldier have I soothed and comforted with holy prayers.

One day as I entered the hospital I noticed a new face. I made my way to him, as I was struck by his gray hair, and said: “You are too old to be here.” He smiled and his answer was quite a rebuke. “One never gets too old to fight for one’s home and fireside. I had no sons, so I came myself.” He proved to be a Mr. Johnson from Georgia. I made him my especial care, but to no avail. He died on the 8th of March [1865].

Now I will speak of another soldier who died the same day. His name was Sanford, and he was just in the prime of life. It was really pathetic the way he spoke of his wife and home. The surgeon promised him a furlough, and when I went and told him we had written for his wife to come and take him home I shall never forget his expression as he exclaimed: “am I to see my wife and home.” Alas! the poor fellow did not live to see his wife again.

On the 10th of March [General William] Hardee’s men commenced to pass through Fayetteville. It was a day of humiliation and prayer. When I left the hospital I told them they would have to do without me the next day as I wanted to do what I could towards feeding some of our hungry soldiers, as we had nothing but bread and meat to give them.

My uncle, Dr. Kyle, went with me, and we stood in the store door on Hay street. We soon attracted the attention of a soldier and told him what we wished to do. My uncle, myself and two servants were kept busy the whole day. Three of my neighbors and myself prepared the bread and meat. It was enough to make anybody’s heart ache to see the ragged men.

One came forward. He looked like a boy of eighteen or nineteen. He had a little iron pot and I said: “Child, you look so [tired], why do you carry that iron pot?” and he answered: “I keep it to cook with.” I offered him a twenty-dollar Confederate note for it, with which he bought twenty loaves of bread and divided it among his comrades. When night came on I closed the door with a heavy heart. They were still coming.” Read more at: http://www.ncwbts150.com/AtWarBattlegroundsHomefront.php

(Incidents of Hospital Life, Mrs. Anne K. Kyle, War Days in Fayetteville, Reminiscences of 1861 to 1865, JEB Stuart Chapter, UDC, May 1910, pp. 39-42)

North Carolina Patriots of ’61 -- Incidents of Hospital Life

Rheinmetall Defense outfits Volkswagen Amarok for world conquest

Via Survival

What good is a truck if it can't be used to invade your neighbors? Not much good. Not much good at all, say the armament experts at Rheinmetall Defense.

At the recent Eurosatory defense expo in Paris – consider it the Geneva Motor Show of military hardware – Rheinmetall unveiled its conversion options for the Volkswagen Amarok, transforming the four-door short-bed civilian pickup truck into a Light Multi-Purpose Vehicle for military applications.

The options list includes a reinforced suspension, advanced communications systems and an automated, motorized turret for a machine gun or grenade launcher. (The actual firearms are another, matter, of course.) Military and paramilitary buyers can order theirs with a variety of engines ranging up to 177 horsepower, with either six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmissions.

More @ Auto Blog

'Web Page Censored' Code Proposed

Via Survival

A high-profile Google developer has proposed that the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) that it endorse a new HTTP Status Code to warn readers the page they're looking for has been censored by authorities, according to TheVerge.

Tim Bray, who co-invented XML and works as Android Developer Advocate at Google, is submitting a proposal that pages censored by someone other than the owner of the site or of the user's local network display the error code "451 Unavailable for Legal Reasons."

The number in the code is a reference to Ray Bradbury's "Farenheit 451," which describes a dystopian future in which book burnings and the censorship of unacceptable material is routine. Google already highlights search terms that may return censored results, in some countries.

More @ PCWorld