This Is Our Reality
ISIS has attacked New York City. An Uzbek immigrant rented a Home Depot Truck and entered the West Side Highway bike path at 3:05pm yesterday afternoon. He drove for seventeen blocks mowing down everything in his path. After it was all over, eight people are dead and 15 are seriously wounded. The attack might have been worse had he not crashed into a school bus, ending his terror drive. Two children were hurt in that final crash, one critically.
The terrorist jumped out of his truck upon crashing, brandishing a BB gun and a paintball gun. The words “Allahu Akbar” could be heard coming from the terrorist’s mouth. Suicide by cop is probably what he wanted, but as of this morning he’s out of surgery and alive. A police search of the truck revealed an ISIS flag and a note pledging his allegiance to the group.
This is our reality. A reality our kids have had to grow up in for OVER A DECADE AND A HALF. They don’t know anything different. A world where if they go to a concert, attend a public gathering, or even ride a bike they have to pause and ask themselves, “What do I do if a terrorist shows up?” Can you imagine growing up like that? I can’t even fathom that, but to our kids it’s the new norm.
These attacks will get more frequent and continue to come out of nowhere. That might be the scariest part of this new era in Islamic terrorism. The terrorists are adapting to our security measures. They’re staying away from items that might get them caught. Things like explosives, guns and anything else that might draw attention. The new era terrorists are completely invisible. They’re ghosts. This Uzbek was a LEGAL immigrant, a business owner with two trucking companies, an Uber driver in good standing, and had NO digital footprint. ZERO social media accounts have been found so far. There’s absolutely NO way this attack could have been prevented.
Actually, there is one way. We need to significantly modify our immigration policy. Enough is enough. How can we begin to fix this when one judge has the power to override national security policy? Something has got to be done and the partisan politics need to be checked at the door. I’m looking at you, 9th circuit.
Lost at Sea
Five months.
That’s how long two women say they were lost at sea.
Jennifer and Tasha were found last week, drifting 900 miles southeast of Japan.
They had visions of a tranquil journey from Hawaii to Tahiti, but everything that could go wrong, went wrong.
Fierce storms, shark attacks, and the destruction of their engine, mast, and communication devices threw a major wrench into their sailing plans.
After almost half a year at sea, surviving on packaged dry goods and water purifiers, a Taiwanese fishing boat spotted them and contacted the US Coast Guard in Guam.
The girls were ecstatic to be found.
But this is where the story gets a little strange.
Even though their boat was heavily damaged, one piece of equipment was found in good condition.
The emergency beacon.
It begs the question, why didn’t the women use the emergency beacon, I don’t know, about five months ago?
Jennifer responded to the question stating that emergency beacon calls, “are for people who are in an immediate life-threatening scenario. It would be shameful to call when not in imminent peril and allow someone else to perish because of it. Our hull was solid, we were floating, we had food, we had water, and we had limited maneuverable capacity. All those things did not say we are going to die.”
I think dangerous storms and shark attacks are a really good excuse to use an emergency beacon…but I guess that’s just me.
And about that storm, the women ran into on their first day at sea…the National Weather Service says it never happened. There were, I quote, "no organized storm systems near the Hawaiian Islands on the dates of May 3, 2017 or the few days afterward."
Something just doesn’t add up here. The truth about this incident will come out with time. I have a feeling this is a secret that the sea can’t keep.
Can We Be Adults?
Well, that didn’t take long.
The politicization of yesterday’s terrorist attack in New York City is in full swing.
President Trump immediately took to Twitter to blame senator Chuck Schumer for attacker Sayfullo Saipov being in this country in the first place.
Trump tweeted that the murderer, “came into our country through what is called the ‘Diversity Visa Lottery Program,’ a Chuck Schumer beauty.”
He went on to write, “We are fighting hard for Merit-Based immigration, no more Democrat Lottery Systems. We must get MUCH tougher (and smarter).”
Schumer fired back with the tweet, "I guess it's not too soon to politicize a tragedy.”
First of all, Chuck Schumer is the king of politicizing tragedies. So, stop your grandstanding, Chuck.
Second, can we be adults? Let’s stop the absurd levels of immaturity.
Instead of typing snarky comments to each other, Trump and Schumer should be using their platforms to talk about Ryan Nash.
Police officer Ryan Nash was on a routine call when he was faced with an unimaginable situation yesterday. He suddenly came face to face with Saipov. The 28-year-old officer knew what he had to do. To stop the killing spree, he shot Saipov in the stomach.
Who knows what other atrocities would have occurred if Nash had not stopped the attacker. He is a true hero.
Let’s be adults and stop the mindless tweeting and focus on what matters most today.
