State Dept. Cable Describes Saudi Halloween Party Sponsored By U.S. Firm: Hookers, Black-Market Booze, And Wealthy Muslim Hypocrites

Saudi Hypocrites Exposed In U.S. Cable

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Wikileaks made the November 11, 2009 confidential U.S. State Department cable public and The Daily Bellwether is publishing the full-text.  It exposes rampant hypocrisy in the desert kingdom.  So far, the cable has escaped wide notice and hasn't made the big newspapers like The New York Times.  The cable describes a wild party in Jeddah that had Saudis and their guests partying in Halloween costumes -- "the full range of worldly temptations and vices are available'' -- and reveling in sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.  The consul general's office had an invitation and a U.S. diplomat attended.  The party was co-sponored by a Saudi prince and and unnamed American corporation that also put up cash, a U.S. firm that makes energy drinks.  All this took place in a Muslim nation that represses women and embraces a conservative theology that includes stoning and beheading. The cable calls the religious conservatism a facade among the Saudi elite.  The complete text of the cable about about Filipino bartenders, rockin' DJs, and "working girls" hired to supply sex is after the jump:

Quran Tearing Planned For Cincinnati's Fountain Square: Islam-Bashers Say They'll Show Up Oct. 7



Is Tearing Less Worse Than Burning?



CINCINNATI (TDB) -- The local protest will coincide with the date the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, although nobody seems to have noticed the connection.  Randall Terry, the anti-abortion protester who founded Operation Rescue, says his followers plan to read and destroy passages from the Quran this week in at least seven U.S. cities,  including Cincinnati.  Terry calls the protest "Hear Muhammad Speak,"  and it is scheduled to start at the proposed mosque near Ground Zero on Wednesday.  A day later the protest is supposed to show up on Fountain Square at the noon hour.  Nobody is sure what will happen, if anything.  Terry's website lists this information about the local organizer:

"Contact: David Smith
Email: david_smith@milacron.com
Thursday, October 7, 2010
12PM -1PM
Meet at: Fountain Square
Fountain Square
W 5th St
Cincinnati, OH 45202"

Terry has an instructional video on YouTUBE that shows how to print-out and crumple up passages from the Quran. Organizing materials say that the the quotations are words "in which Muhammad calls for the murder, beheading, torture, execution and more of Christians, Jews, and Muslim 'apostates' who leave Islam."  Terry has turned into a fringe player on the far out Christian Right.  He seems to be trying to jump back into the headlines by piggybacking off the Florida preacher's threat to burn the Quran.  Some would say he's looking for a second act.  Terry says:  "One of our goals is to urge Americans to study the words and deed of Muhammad.  Americans are rightly concerned about Sharia law; we must connect the dots between the Quran, Muhammad's actions, and Sharia law."  Additional details are at http://www.terrycast.com/; you have to click on the headline Hear Muhammad Speak.

Terry says October 7 is an important date in Christian history because on that date in 1571 the naval battle of Lepanto took place.  He also says October 7 is the Catholic Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.  In the battle  of Lepanto, a fleet from the Holy League -- an alliance of Mediterranean nations that included Spain, Venice and the Papacy -- defeated the Turks, who were bidding to occupy Italy and Rome.  Wikipedia has an entry about the battle, which apparently was the last big naval engagement involving fighting ships powered by rows of oarsmen.  Terry doesn't mention that Oct. 7 is also the day the United States invaded Afghanistan in 2001, starting the longest war in American history, an event meant as reprisal for Al Qaeda's attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.  Since the fighting started, at  least 1,239 Americans have lost their lives in that war.

Ohio School Achievement Tests: Practice ???'s Are Here

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- Parents who want to get a heads up on Ohio's mandatory school achievement tests might sneak a peek at this state education department Website, where online versions for advance practice are available. The Ohio Department of Education now has the questions and answers publicly posted in a spot that probably is meant for classroom teachers.

Before downloading material to coach little Johnny and Judy, take a glance at the following multiple-choice 8th grade social studies test queries. They seem pretty topical.

Q. Which belief do Jews and Muslims share?

A. Mecca is a holy city.
B. There is only one God.
C. Jesus is the son of God.
D. There are many paths to truth.

Q. In the past, the United States manufactured most of the products used by Americans. Now, many of these products are imported from other countries. What is one reason for this change?

A. The United States government encourages Americans to buy foreign goods.
B. Foreign workers manufacture products that Americans can no longer make.
C. The United States economy has grown smaller in recent decades.
D. Foreign producers can make goods for less money than American producers.

Q. According to Article 1 of the United States Constitution, after Congress passes a bill, how does that bill usually become a law?

A. The states ratify it.
B. The courts uphold it.
C. The president signs it.
D. The cabinet approves it.

The Education Department is also having to quell a rumor that Ohio's high school National Honor Society members can serve as test administrators this year. Not so. The people administering this test have to be licensed teachers employed by the school.

"The statement regarding the National Honor Society student was given at a workshop conducted by a private consultant. Please use caution when considering information about Ohio testing procedures from staff other than the ODE Office of Assessment. Please be very careful when a statement is made by a non-ODE, non-Office of Assessment person,'' the Education Department warning says. "Question all statements and verify through the Office of Assessment the statements made by private consultants."

Now, about Mecca. Is there a problem with that test question? The city on the Red Sea is the birthplace of Muhammad. It certainly could be argued that large numbers of Jews, as well as Christians, would consider Mecca a "holy" city because of its sacred significance to Islam. In other words, the city is deeply associated with religion. But that is too smart for the test -- and you'd be marked wrong. The state says the correct answer is: "There is only one God."