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warrprayer

(4,734 posts)
Tue Jan 7, 2014, 03:48 PM Jan 2014

Terrorbucks for Rethugs and DINO's Oh My!

Last edited Tue Jan 7, 2014, 04:38 PM - Edit history (1)

It began last Sunday, when I attended Mass for the first time in quite a while. The spirit of Pope Francis made me feel I could at least do that much.
Somehow I forgot that the American Catholic clergy, by and large, has not got the memo from the new Pope.

I was treated to a sermon in which the various good acts and miracles of St. Thomas Ridge of homeland were brought to my attention.
No, not making this up. Mr. Ridge is from my home town of Erie. Apparently he once gave some money to a handicapped person.
While the Pope is washing and kissing the feet of prisoners, my local clergy has a slightly different approach - they kiss the backsides of wealthy republicans. But, that is not what this op is about.

When I got home, I was so pissed I gave Tom ridges Wiki entry a cursory look. I was a bit surprised to see this...

<snip>
Support for the listed "terrorist" group People's Mujahedin of Iran[edit]

"Former Pennsylvania governor Edward Rendell included Ridge among a group of former U.S. officials who have been lobbying and building support for the "de-listing" of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK, also PMOI, MKO) from the U.S. State Department's list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.[24] MEK has been accused of successful and unsuccessful attempts to kidnap or murder U.S. officials in the 1970s. They joined Saddam Hussein's military to fight against Iran in the U.S.-backed 8 year war between Iraq and Iran that produced 1.5 million casualties. They have also been accused of partnering with Israel's Mossad in the assassination of several of Iran's nuclear scientists.[25] Ridge has been among those investigated for receiving tens of thousands of dollars for their lobbying efforts for the organization.[24]"
<snip>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Ridge#Support_for_the_listed_.22terrorist.22_group_People.27s_Mujahedin_of_Iran

Good for Ed Rendell! (I thought.) Exposing Tom Ridge, Mr. "Homeland Security" himself, accepting money from listed terrorists!

But it turns out Ed was taking money from them too.

<snip>
'WASHINGTON -- Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell acknowledged this week that the Treasury Department is investigating payments he accepted to speak in support of an Iranian exile group on the U.S. government's list of foreign terrorist organizations.

Groups in the U.S. related to Iran's Mujahideen-e Khalq (MEK) have spent millions on highly paid American speakers, including Rendell, as part of a lobbying campaign to remove the group from the foreign terrorist organizations list. It's illegal for U.S. citizens to accept payment from foreign terrorist organizations.

Rendell, a Democrat, defended his acceptance of payments from MEK-related groups, even after the Washington Times reported that federal agents subpeonaed financial records last month from his agent, William Morris Endeavor."
<snip>
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/12/ed-rendell-investigated-mujahideen-e-khalq_n_1340566.html

In fact, half of the politicians in D.C. were taking money from this group of murderous thugs....

<snip>
''Money has also been paid to journalists such as The Washington Post's Carl Bernstein and the Chicago Tribune's Clarence Page. Townsend is a CNN contributor and Rendell is an MSNBC contributor, yet those MEK payments are rarely, if ever, disclosed by those media outlets when featuring those contributors (indeed, Townsend can go on CNN to opine on Iran, even urging that its alleged conduct be viewed as "an act for war", with no disclosure whatsoever during the segment of her MEK payments). Quoting a State Department official, CSM detailed how the scheme works:


"'Your speech agent calls, and says you get $20,000 to speak for 20 minutes. They will send a private jet, you get $25,000 more when you are done, and they will send a team to brief you on what to say.' . . . The contracts can range up to $100,000 and include several appearances."
<snip>
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/sep/23/iran-usa

So a group that has murdered U.S. officials and has been described as a "cult"...
<snip>
"The MEK has also been described as a "cult" by a leading US thinktank for practices such as forcing members to give up their children in order to dedicate more time to the cause. But it has won backing on Capitol Hill by projecting itself as a democratic alternative to the present Iranian government."
<snip>
... gets the full support of the former leader of the DLC, Ed Rendell???!
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/may/22/iranian-terror-group-lobbies-capitol-hill

Of course, the final outcome was they were delisted from the State list of terrorist groups.

<snip>
"Among those who joined the group's gravy train are former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell, Rudy Giuliani, Alan Dershowitz, and former FBI director Louis Freeh. Many of them profess to have little interest in the money they have collected. Instead, they claim they are sincerely moved by the group's suffering in Iraq and wish to correct an injustice. I'm sure the money doesn't hurt.

Analysts writing about the MEK and alienated members reject the group's claim that it has renounced terror. Seymour Hersh recently published an expose reporting that as late as 2007, US special forces had offered Iranians training at a secret Nevada facility in covert operations. It provided them arms and communications equipment and black ops training for their anti-regime terror activities inside Iran."
<snip>

<snip>
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/sep/22/barack-obama-terrorism

The MEK has been delisted as a terrorist group.

Money talks, bullshit walks.

Oh, by the way, there is another message here.

If any republican or Hillary gets in the White House in 2016, WE WILL GO TO WAR WITH IRAN.

THAT IS, IF THE WAR PIGS CAN MAKE THEMSELVES WAIT THAT LONG FOR APPEARANCES SAKE.

I know this story is probably old news for most D.U.ers.
It blew my mind just seeing this tip of the iceberg.

On edit - a question comes to mind.
Who is giving this group the millions it spent to get delisted???
Are terrorists independently wealthy???





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