There is at Least One Moderate Muslim in Iran, But He's Going to Jail.

Pastor Youcef’s Attorney to be Jailed for Representing the Persecuted

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Jordan SekulowFiled in:
IRAN4:40 PMMay. 3, 2012

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Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani’s Iranian attorney has been convicted for his work defending human rights and is expected to have to begin serving his nine-year sentence in the near future.

As we have previously reported, Pastor Youcef’s attorney, Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, was sentenced to nine years in prison and banned from practicing law or teaching for ten years by the Iranian government, essentially for representing individuals like Pastor Youcef.

Dadkhah recently stated, “I was in a court in Tehran defending one of my clients, Davoud Arjangi, a jailed political activist on death row when the judge told me that my own sentence has been approved and I will be shortly summoned to jail to serve the nine-year sentence.” He continued, “I have been convicted of acting against the national security, spreading propaganda against the regime and keeping banned books at home.”

The ACLJ has learned that the Judge who informed Dadkhah his appeal had been denied is Iranian Judge Abolghasem Salavat, also known as the “Judge of Death.” He is infamous for the harsh imprisonment of those accused of political and religious “crimes.”

This news is disturbing for another reason: Dadkhah’s imprisonment leaves Pastor Youcef without legal representation. Dadkhah has previously communicated to us that if the sentence against him were carried out, no attorney would be willing to represent Pastor Youcef for fear of being imprisoned or disbarred for representing the persecuted pastor.

Iran has recently begun to crack down on attorneys who represent clients, like Pastor Youcef, who Iran dubs as enemies of the state for their beliefs. Dadkhah, a world-renowned Muslim human rights attorney in Iran, has defended numerous political and religious prisoners, including recently 12 Christians who were tried on Easter Sunday for their faith, in the same Iranian provincial court that sentenced Pastor Youcef to execution. Because he provides his legal services free of charge, the Iranian regime has asserted that he is “aiding and abetting” in the alleged crimes of his clients.

The news that this incredibly brave human rights attorney has been sentenced to prison by Iranian officials is very troubling to say the least. This development reinforces that Iran has no regard for basic human rights. It also raises further concern about the fate of Pastor Youcef. With his attorney facing nine years in prison, and no other lawyer likely to take the case, Pastor Youcef has no legal advocate, placing him at greater risk.

Though we can confirm that Pastor Youcef was still alive as of yesterday, the imprisonment of his attorney places him in grave danger of execution without any further appeal. We are dedicated to continuing our efforts internationally to secure Pastor Youcef’s release. We urge Iran to overturn both Pastor Youcef’s and his attorney’s convictions, and at the very least postpone Dadkhah’s imprisonment pending further appeal.

The ACLJ will continue to use all available means to fight for their freedom, including the Tweet for Youcef campaign, which is now reaching more than 2 million Twitter accounts each day. We also continue to call on the Senate to pass a pending resolution calling for Pastor Youcef’s release.

Please continue to pray and Tweet for Youcef, as we fight for his freedom and that of his attorney.

This Man has Integrity

And one of the signs of a failing nation is that those with such integrity are no longer in the race.

Santorum suspends campaign

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  • FILE – In this April 3, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum gets a hug from his wife Karen in Cranberry, Pa. Santorum is suspending his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination, clearing a path for Mitt Romney to become the nominee. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Tuesday he is suspending his campaign.

He made the announcement at the Gettysburg Hotel in Gettysburg, Pa., talking about his young daughter’s illness and reflecting on the campaign.

His 3-year-old daughter Bella was taken to a Virginia hospital Friday with pneumonia. Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, left the campaign trail until this afternoon. The child has a life-threatening genetic disorder known as Trisomy 18.

“She’s a fighter,” said Santorum, standing beside his wife and children. “She’s doing exceptionally well.”

Santorum also faces an uphill battle against front-runner Mitt Romney in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Five states, including Santorum’s home state of Pennsylvania, hold primaries April 24.

Romney is spending $2.9 million in TV ads in Pennsylvania. Romney is far ahead of Santorum in the race for delegates to the Republican National Convention and is the party’s likely nominee.

Romney said after Santorum concluded his speech at about 2:45 p.m: “Sen. Santorum is an able and worthy competitor, and I congratulate him on the campaign he ran. He has proven himself to be an important voice in our party and in the nation. We both recognize that what is most important is putting the failures of the last three years behind us and setting America back on the path to prosperity.”

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who is still in the GOP race with Texas Rep. Ron Paul, also praised Santorum for his campaign.

“Rick has waged a remarkable campaign,” he said. ‘His success is a testament to his tenacity and the power of conservative principles.”

Gingrich also reiterated he is commitment to stay in the race to the party’s nominating convention in August in Tampa.

“I humbly ask Sen. Santorum’s supporters to visit Newt.org to review my conservative record and join us as we bring these values to Tampa,” he added. “We know well that only a conservative can protect life, defend the Constitution, restore jobs and growth and return to a balanced budget.”

Paul campaign spokesman Jesse Benton said: “Congratulations to Sen. Santorum on running such a spirited campaign. Dr. Paul is now the last – and real – conservative alternative to Mitt Romney. We plan to continue running hard, secure delegates, and press the fight for limited, constitutional government in Tampa.”

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/04/10/santorum/#ixzz1rfSSKnx8

I Can't Tolerate Your Intolerance!

Original post and video here:

“‘Celebrate diversity’ — the great bumper sticker — actually means ‘celebrate stultifying homogeneity,’” Canadian best-selling author and columnist Mark Steyn told The Daily Caller.

In an exclusive interview this week with TheDC’s Ginni Thomas, Steyn railed against liberal “diversity”-speak and the lack of tolerance for traditional values.

“As you know, if you go to the average American newsroom you can have diversity of race, diversity of gender, diversity of orientation — everything except the only diversity that matters, which is diversity of thought,” he said. “And the left does not want to celebrate diversity of thought. They rage against so-called intolerance, yet they themselves are stupefyingly intolerant.”

“They are conformity enforcers,” he explained,” but they’ve co-opted all the light, fluffy, happy, smiley-faced buzzwords.”

“That’s the classic trick taught to us by Orwell explicitly in ’1984.’ People of a conservative disposition read that book and think he’s warning of a dystopian future. People of the left read it and use it as a manual.”

The rest of Mark Steyn’s interview will be online Monday morning, only at The Daily Caller.

Follow David on Twitter

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2012/04/08/mark-steyn-liberals-conformity-enforcers-stupefyingly-intolerant-video/#ixzz1rYTKwNgn