Founding National Myths: Fabricating Palestinian History

Palestinian Arabs, as opposed to Arabic-speaking residents, have not been in the area west of the Jordan River from the Islamic occupation, from the Ottoman Empire, or even from British rule since 1917. No Palestinian state has ever existed, and so, no Palestinian people has ever been robbed of its land. There is no language or dialect known as Palestinian; there is no Palestinian culture distinct from that of surrounding Arab ones; and there has never been a land known as Palestine governed by Palestinians at any time in history. For these reasons, Palestinians have been driven to fabricate a past by denying and expropriating that of Jews and Israel.

Only after the Palestinian leadership comes to terms with Israel's legitimacy and recognizes it as a Jewish state can one begin discussing the emergence of a Palestinian state that lives in peace beside the State of Israel.

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"Everyone wants to live at the expense of the state. They forget that the state lives at the expense of everyone" -- Frederic Bastiat.

Fourteen Signposts to Slavery

Historian Dr. Warren Carroll and Mike Djordjevich, a refugee from communist Yugoslavia, together compiled a list of what they described as “Fourteen Signposts to Slavery,” warning signs that our government might be slipping into totalitarianism.

Author Gary Allen included the list in his landmark 1971 book “None Dare Call It Conspiracy ”. He noted that none of the items listed were in effect at the time the list was compiled, but some had been put into place as of the writing of the book, and the alarms that are set off are even more relevant today than they were in the early seventies.

Allen wrote “The imposition of any one of these new restrictions on liberty would be a clear warning that the totalitarian state is very near; and once a significant number of them – perhaps five has been imposed, we can rationally conclude that the remainder would not be far behind and that the fight for freedom and the preservation of the Republic has been lost to this country.”

We can hope that actual nature of the reality is less grim than his evaluation as by my count, we have exceeded that total already.

The fourteen signposts are in no particular order as to relevance and are as follows.

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10 WAYS TO SCREW UP WHEN PICKING LIFE INSURANCE BENEFICIARIES

10 ways to screw up when picking life insurance beneficiaries

Naming who should get the life insurance money after you die sounds simple, but designating beneficiaries can get tricky.

Mistakes are common, financial advisers say — and they can be heartbreaking and expensive.

When mistakes are made "you're not creating problems for you," says Keith Friedman, principal of FBO Strategies, an estate planning and insurance firm in Stamford, Conn. "You're creating problems for the people you leave behind."

Here are 10 life insurance beneficiary mistakes to avoid.

1. Naming a minor child

Life insurance companies won't pay the proceeds directly to minors. If you haven't created a trust or made any legal arrangements for someone to manage the money, the court will appoint a guardian — a costly process — to handle the proceeds until the child reaches 18 or 21, depending on the state.

Instead, you can leave the money for the child's benefit to a reliable adult; set up a trust to benefit the child and name the trust as the beneficiary of the policy; or name an adult custodian for the life insurance proceeds under the Uniform Transfers to Minor Act. Consult an estate attorney to decide the best course.

2. Making a dependent ineligible for government benefits

Naming a lifelong dependent, such as a child with special needs, as beneficiary puts the loved one at risk for losing eligibility for government assistance. Anyone who receives a gift or inheritance of more than $2,000 is disqualified for Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid, under federal law.

Work with an attorney to set up a special needs trust, and name the trust as beneficiary. A trustee you appoint will manage the money for the dependent's benefit.

3. Overlooking your spouse in a community-property state

Generally you can name anyone with whom you have a relationship as beneficiary, even a secret lover.

"Life insurance is not a judge of someone's morals," Friedman says.

However, in community-property states, your spouse typically would have to sign a form waiving rights to the money if you designate anyone else as beneficiary. Community-property states are:

• Arizona
• California
• Idaho
• Louisiana
• Nevada
• New Mexico
• Texas
• Washington
• Wisconsin.

4. Falling into a tax trap

Life insurance death benefits are generally tax-free — except when three different people play the roles of policy owner, the insured and the beneficiary. In that case, the death benefit could count as a taxable gift to the beneficiary, says Amy Rose Herrick, a Chartered Financial Consultant and life insurance agent with offices in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Tecumseh, Kan.

Say, for instance, a wife owns a life insurance policy on her husband's life and names their adult daughter as beneficiary. The wife effectively is creating a gift of the policy proceeds to her daughter, Herrick says. The person who makes the gift — the wife — is the one who would be subject to the tax, if the amount of the gift exceeds federal limits.

The problem could be avoided in most cases by having the husband own the policy, insuring himself. However the situation can get tricky in community-property states. Consult a financial adviser to decide the best way to structure the policy.

5. Assuming a will trumps the policy

A life insurance policy is a contract. Regardless of what your will says, the life insurance money will be paid to the beneficiary listed on the policy. That's why it's important to contact your insurer to change your beneficiary if needed.

6. Forgetting to update

"Designating beneficiaries are not 'set it and forget it' events," says Tara Reynolds, vice president at MassMutual. You should review your policy every three years and after major life events, such as marriage, having children or divorce. Change the beneficiaries when circumstances change.

Unfortunately, many people forget to do so.

"Half of my practice is second or third marriages," says Peter Blatt, a tax attorney and financial adviser in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. "It's not uncommon to find the ex-spouse still listed as beneficiary on the life insurance policy" when reviewing a client's portfolio.

7. Neglecting details

Be specific when you name beneficiaries. Instead of "my children," list their names, Social Security numbers and addresses, says Ed Graves, a professor of insurance at The American College in Bryn Mawr, Pa.

Otherwise, "the insurance company has to launch a search and that can take a lot of time," Graves says.

When naming multiple beneficiaries, decide whether you want the money divided "per stirpes," which means by branch of the family, or "per capita," which means by head. 

8. Staying mum

"The most important thing is to tell someone so they know you have a life insurance policy, where it is and how to find it," says Joshua Hazelwood, vice president at MassMutual.

Open communication with beneficiaries now can save a family from chaos later — or even worse, never claiming the benefit.

9. Giving money with no strings attached

Naming your young-adult children as beneficiaries without setting any conditions for how the money is dispersed can be a setup for financial failure. How many 18- or 21-year-olds can handle a huge influx of cash? One way is to set up a trust with specifics for how the money can be released and what it can be used for until the young adult reaches a certain age.

"It allows me as a parent to instill what I feel is valued in my absence," Friedman says. "I don't want to leave my children with millions of dollars when they're 18 with unfettered access."

Insurers are beginning to introduce policies that let you arrange for the death benefit to be paid out in installments. Minnesota Life Insurance Co.'s new indexed universal life product, Omega Builder IUL, includes that option, calling it an "income protection agreement."

10. Naming only a primary beneficiary

"Most people just think they're going to make their spouse beneficiary, but don't take into account the spouse might predecease them," Friedman says. "It's conceivable that something would happen to you and your spouse together."

Blatt says he even sees cases where people fail to name any beneficiaries. When there is no living beneficiary, the life insurance benefit typically goes into the estate and is subject to probate. That leads to two complications. One, heirs might face a long wait to get the money. Two, the life insurance proceeds, which normally would be protected from creditors, can now be open to creditors' claims.

Advisers recommend naming secondary and final beneficiaries. If the primary beneficiary dies before you do, then the money passes to the secondary beneficiary. If the secondary beneficiary has passed away when you die, then the death benefit goes to the final beneficiary.

Will the Fed repeat the ‘Mistake of 1937’?

...suggests Team Yellen is trying to avoid what economist Mike Darda calls “the historical precedent of premature exits from near zero short rates” and other monetary tightenings such as Europe in 2011 and Japan in 2000 and 2006. Fingers crossed.

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Which film contains the most famous striptease in the history of the movies?

From Sam Kashner’s Vanity Fair interview with Sophia Loren, 3/2012:

Their incredible electricity is perhaps most charged in the wonderful 1963 film, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow —De Sica, again, who had a genius for bringing out his actors’ comedic gifts. “My mother, Marcello, and De Sica were all from the South,” Edoardo explains. “In Italy, Sophia Loren was known as a comic actress; before Two Women, there were many comedies. De Sica saw that and brought it out of her. Let’s not forget my mother is Neapolitan, and Neapolitans have comedy in their blood. The taxi drivers of Naples are comic geniuses! They are amazing, the way they perceive the world.”

The film contains the most famous striptease in the history of the movies, and the sweetest.

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Surprising origins of 100-year-old "Danny Boy" - UPDATE

CBS NEWS: December 31, 2013, 12:55 PM:

This year marks a century since the song "Danny Boy" first weaved its way into Irish folklore. Its melody could be heard at President Kennedy’s funeral and it also played at the farewell to Elvis Presley.

The ballad that has proved irresistible to some of the biggest names in music is a song of love and loss - a lament for those missing home and each other.

“Danny Boy” arrived a century ago and never left. But arrived from where? Most people assume it’s from Ireland, but it’s not. It was written by an Englishman.

That Englishman was Fred Weatherly, a prolific songwriter - and later successful lawyer - who published 1,500 songs.

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I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU (DEAR READERS) IF YOU DON'T TAKE A FEW MINUTES TO LISTEN TO THIS VERSION OF "DANNY BOY" PERFORMED BY MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE PIANIST, BILL EVANS:
Bill Evans, piano solo, recorded April 4, 1962

UPDATE:
OK, YES, YOU REALLY HAVE TO HEAR A GREAT VOCAL VERSION TOO AND THIS IS IT!

RONALD REAGAN'S FAVORITE IRISH JOKE

Courtesy of TO THE POINT NEWS

An Irishman was walking along a beach in County Cork one day and noticed an encrusted bottle washed up on the sand.  Wondering what might be inside he broke it off at the neck and out popped an Irish Genie.

"Oh, me man, I hah been in tha bottle for a hundred years, and you be settin' me free!" he exclaimed.  "For that, I'll be givin' you two wishes!"

"Two wishes?  Anything I want?" the man asked incredulously.

"Anythin' - just name it," the genie replied.

"Well, what I'll be wantin'," said the man, "is a glass of good Irish ale - but a very special glass, so that no matter how much I drink it will always be full of good Irish ale."

Poof!  There it was in his hand.  The Irishman drank and drank and drank, and twenty minutes later, he hadn't made a dent.  The glass was still overflowing with wonderful Irish ale.

But by now the genie was getting impatient.

"Listen me man" he announced.  "I'm grateful for you settin' me free, but I was in that bottle for a long time and I've things to do.  So you'll be makin' your second wish now."

The Irishman thought for a moment, looked at the glass in his hand, and declared, "You know, I think I'll have another one of these!"

Hillary is still the only First Lady in American history to be fingerprinted by the FBI

Accuracy In Media:

Another problem she faces is the OF-109 form, which every State Department employee is required to sign upon departure from their job, certifying that they have turned over all work-related documents and communications, including email. So did she sign it, and hold on to the work material for nearly two more years, or did she get a pass on signing it? Either way, this would apparently be a violation of a law, or at least a State Department policy. So far, Hillary is refusing to answer that one, as is the State Department.

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BREAKING: SPAM FILTERING SERVICE HAD ACCESS TO CLINTON CLASSIFIED EMAILS

What this means is – employees at MxLogic, now owned by McAfee – had full access to all her classified state department email in unencrypted form.

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Hillary Clinton--A Prophetic Babylonian Connection

Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server for State Department business raises many more important questions for the presidential wannabe to answer. WorldNetDaily reported on March 3 that Clinton's emails were hacked and published in Russia Today, revealing that "wealthy Sunni Islamists in Saudi Arabia" funded the September 11, 2012 attack on the US mission in Benghazi. The New York Times reported on March 8 that the "Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation has accepted tens of millions of dollars in donations from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Algeria and Brunei." Some gave while she was Secretary of State. But wait, there's more...

It is a well known fact that Hillary Clinton's top aide of nearly 20 years, Huma Abedin, has close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. In July, 2013, former federal prosecutor Andrew C. McCarthy wrote in the National Review that Abedin " worked for many years at a journal that promotes Islamic supremacist ideology that was founded by a top al-Qaida financier, Abdullah Omar Naseef." During that time frame (1996-2003), Abedin also worked for Hillary Clinton. Nationally syndicated columnist Diana West in July, 2013 added: "It was edited first by Huma's father, Syed Abedin, and now by her mother, Saleha Abedin. Saleha is a member of the Muslim Sisterhood."

West revealed that "Mother Abedin also directs an organization (the International Islamic Committee for Woman and Child) that comes under the umbrella of the Union for Good, another US-designated terrorist organization. As McCarthy reminds us, "the Union for Good is led by Sheikh Yusef al-Qaradawi, the notorious Muslim Brotherhood jurist who has issued fatwas calling for the killing of American military and support personnel in Iraq as well as suicide bombings in Israel." The MB creed is as follows: "Allah is our objective. The Prophet is our leader. The Qur'an is our law. Jihad is our way. Dying in the way of Allah is our highest hope."

The MB's detailed plan to take over North America was revealed in the 2009 Holy Land Foundation trial for money laundering to terrorists. It called for a "grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and "sabotaging" its miserable house..." Clinton's relationships pose a great danger to all of us, akin to King Hezekiah revealing all things of his nation to the emissaries of Babylon (2 Kings 20:13). The result was prophesied by Isaiah in 2 Kings 20:17, "Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the Lord." It's not about just a few emails.

Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!
Bill Wilson
www.dailyjot.com

HILLARY'S WATERGATE

Lesson: The cover up is worse than the crime.

Jeffrey Scott Shapiro is a former Washington, D.C. prosecutor who now writes for The Washington Times.

Obama The First

President Barack Obama's Complete List of Historic Firsts [Updated]

January 20, 2017

Is this you?

Why the approach advocated by Obama and the European Union is bound to fail

Daniel Greenfield:

The West can only defeat Islamic terrorism by treating it as a foreign element; an outside force that must be destroyed, rather than accommodated. Unlike Islamic countries, we cannot accommodate it without destroying what we are. And we cannot make use of it without destroying ourselves.

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"The first time I saw Barack Obama and Hassan Chandoo together, I thought they were a wealthy gay couple."

Former Breitbart Reporter: Why Did Obama Join “The Gay Club” at Occidental College?

Laughing matter

Join AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE on March 2 for the AEI event “The path ahead for US Internet policy: A conversation with Representative Greg Walden.”

AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE:
What to expect next on net neutrality

EXCERPTS:

Daniel Lyons:

If the president and the FCC believe we must implement net neutrality as quickly as possible, they should work with Congress rather than undertaking the longer and riskier path of freelancing at the edge of the agency’s statutory authority.

Gus Hurwitz:

The Commission’s approach is a massive expansion of the Commission’s power into an area of vast economic and political significance. It is anything but mere “statutory interpretation” – and for this reason it is quite likely to face a rough road as it heads to court.

Richard Bennett:

[T]he US has arrived at a turning point in the development of the web. The present direction of Internet regulation threatens the ability of networks to advance. …. The Internet as we know it today is a distillation of ideas developed around the world by both public and private sector researchers supported by investments from both public and private sources. Most of the magic comes from the profit-driven private sector. As amazing as the Internet is today, it still falls short of its potential. It’s a certainty that the rules imposed on Wheeler will slow the Internet’s rate of progress and lock in current applications. Congress can take steps to undo the damage about to be inflicted — and it should.

If you’d like to learn more, join us on March 2 for the AEI event “The path ahead for US Internet policy: A conversation with Representative Greg Walden.”  Rep Walden, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, will discuss the implications of the FCC’s net neutrality vote.

R.I.P. U.S.A.