Valentine's Day banned!!

TEHRAN (BNO NEWS) -- Iran on Sunday announced that it has banned all items relating to Valentine's Day as the annual commemoration of love and affection has become increasingly popular in the Islamic country, state-run media reported.
The Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA) said all forms of promoting Valentine's Day had been banned, citing a memo from a union. It said the ban included items relating to the day such as posters, brochures, advertising cards, boxes with heart symbols and red roses.
"Information concerning any activities on this day was banned," ILNA said, adding that authorities would take legal action against outlets which ignore the ban.
Valentine's Day is extremely popular in Western countries and the day's popularity has been growing in Iran, frustrating Iranian authorities who seek to prevent any and all Western influence.

'Don't ask, don't tell' is no more

WASHINGTON — A president who has said he benefited from the civil rights movement added to it Wednesday by giving gay men and lesbians the right to fight for their country without hiding their sexual orientation.

Describing it as "a moment more than two centuries in the making," President Obama signed into law a repeal of the 17-year-old "don't ask, don't tell" policy that required servicemembers who are gay to keep it a secret. When fully implemented in a matter of months, he said, the action will make the nation's armed forces stronger.

"There will never be a full accounting of the heroism demonstrated by gay Americans in service to this country. Their service has been obscured in history," the nation's first African-American president said. "But at every turn, every crossroads in our past, we know gay Americans fought just as hard, gave just as much to protect this nation and the ideals for which it stands."

It was a poignant culmination of a battle Obama launched during his presidential campaign but has struggled to win amid the harsh realities of governing. Describing himself as "overwhelmed," the customarily reserved president elated hundreds of gay rights activists who have been disappointed at times by his mixed record on their behalf.  Obama signs historic bill

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., the nation's most prominent gay lawmaker, called it the biggest piece of civil rights legislation since the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Yet Frank, like others in the audience, said it marked only a step toward full equality that one day should include the right to marry. "We're at the halfway point," he said.

At a news conference later to mark the end of his second year in office, Obama equivocated on the subject of gay marriage — something he has opposed in the past while favoring civil unions, which would give gays and lesbians new legal rights.

"My feelings about this are constantly evolving," Obama said. "I struggle with this."

The boisterous crowd that heralded the bill signing cheered as a history they helped to create was made. They savored the moment with standing ovations and cries of "Yes We Can" and "U-S-A."

"It's history, and very few people get to experience history in a way that they benefit from," said Dan Choi, an Iraq war veteran and former Army first lieutenant who came out on television last year and was discharged as a result in June. "When you fight for something you believe in, sometimes you have to break the rules."

President Clinton agreed to the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in 1993 as a compromise to replace a Pentagon policy that homosexuality was incompatible with military service. More than 17,000 gay men and lesbians were discharged under the initial policy, as well as 14,000 more since 1993.

The fight to repeal the law was uphill even after Obama won the White House. It took until last weekend for the Senate, in a "lame duck" session, to vote 65-31 for repeal; opponents such as Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., warned it could weaken military readiness. Republicans' gains at the polls last month likely would have made repeal more difficult next year.

"It's a great day in America," said Darrel Choat, a Marine Corps major who attended the bill-signing ceremony. "It would have been way worse for the next couple of years."

Choat came to shake hands with the president, for whom he had worked as a White House social aide. When the two met in the front of the Interior Department auditorium after the event, Choat said Obama told him: "See, I told you we'd get it done."

It's not quite done. The law gives the Pentagon time to implement the policy, which Obama has said could take months. He said he spoke to his service commanders Tuesday — including Gen. James Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps, who previously opposed the repeal.

"I have spoken to every one of the service chiefs, and they are all committed to implementing this change swiftly and efficiently," Obama said. "We are not going to be dragging our feet to get this done."

In the meantime, gay rights advocates are warning active-duty personnel against declaring their sexual orientation too soon. "The sooner the law is implemented, the sooner our gay and lesbian servicemembers can begin serving their country with honesty and dignity," said Laura Murphy of the American Civil Liberties Union.

The president was joined on stage by some of the gay and lesbian heroes of the repeal effort: Marine Staff Sgt. Eric Alva, who lost a leg as the first American wounded in Iraq, and retired Navy commander Zoe Dunning, who served openly as a lesbian after more than two years of legal battles in the 1990s.

The loudest ovation of the day was reserved for Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Obama quoted Mullen as having said, "Our people sacrifice a lot for their country, including their lives. None of them should have to sacrifice their integrity as well."

Speaking directly to gays and lesbians at the end of his remarks, Obama urged them to serve with honor, and he welcomed new recruits:

"I say to all Americans, gay or straight, who want nothing more than to defend this country in uniform: Your country needs you, your country wants you, and we will be honored to welcome you into the ranks of the finest military the world has ever known."

What Christmas Means to Me: A Sailor's Story

Alot of people think of Christmas and its different for each and every one of them. Christmas for me means I time with my family, time with the people I love most. I always took for granted spending Christmas and the holidays with my family. Now, I am older and currently serving in the United States Navy, I realize how important this time really is.

Every winter since I have been in the Navy, I have taken a Greyhound bus from Norfolk, Virginia to Williamsport, Pennsylvania. It was a long trip, but one that I looked forward to each year. It meant that I could be with my family for a week or two. I could only see them about 3 weeks a year.

I come home in my dress blues and everyone is so happy to see me and they tell me how proud that they are. It's a feeling I can not describe. It makes me feel all warm inside just thinking about it. I remember sitting around the Christmas table answering all sorts of questions that my family through at me. Where are you stationed at? What do you do in the Navy now? What countries have you visited? I am bombarded with questions. It does get overwhelming sometimes answering so many questions but I know they do not mean any harm and just want to learn more about what I do. After all, I get to attack them with questions when they are done with me. So I know what happened since last time I have been home.

I can not talk about Christmas without talking about presents. After all, it is the season of giving right? There is no better feeling then seeing the people you care about most in the world smiling because of you. I try my best to buy my family the best gifts I can afford. They took care of me when I was growing up, so I try and take care of them. I usually do not ask for anything. Seeing them is more than enough for me. But it seems that they can not resist giving me things.

Things are better now though. I am stationed in Avoca, Pennsylvania only an hour and half from where I grew up. I go home about 3 weeks a month. I can't believe it. It is like heaven. I don't get to see everyone

 when I come home. I do try my best to see as many people as I can though. I also have a girlfriend now. So I get to meet her side of the family and I still get bombarded with questions. Whenever I do, I can't help but think back to those days around Gram's Christmas table.

My First Christmas In Heaven

I see countless Christmas trees around the world below
With tiny lights, like Heaven's stars, reflecting in the snow
The sight is so spectacular, please wipe away the tear
For I am spending Christmas with Jesus Christ this year.
I hear the many Christmas songs that people hold so dear
But the sounds of music can't compare with the Christmas choir up here
I have no words to tell you, the joy their voices bring
For it is beyond description to hear the angels sing.
I know how much you miss me, I see the pain inside your heart
But I am not so far away, we really aren't apart
So be happy for me, dear ones, you know I hold you dear
And be glad I'm spending Christmas with Jesus Christ this year.
I sent you each a special gift, from my heavenly home above
I sent you each a memory of my undying love
After all, love is a gift more precious than pure gold
It was always most important in the stories Jesus told.
Please love and keep each other, as my Father said to do
For I can't count the blessing or love he has for each of you
So have a Merry Christmas and wipe away the tear
Remember I am spending Christmas with Jesus Christ this year.
-----Written by Ben, age 13, who on Dec 14, 1997 died after a 4 yr. battle with a brain tumor. He wrote this and gave it to his mom before he died.

A SAILOR’S CHRISTMAS

Twas the night before Christmas, the ship was out steaming, Sailors stood watch while others were dreaming. They lived in a crowd with racks tight and small, In a 80-man berthing, cramped one and all. I had come down the stack with presents to give, And to see inside just who might perhaps live. I looked all about, a strange sight did I see, No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree. No stockings were hung, shined boots closed at hand, On the bulkhead hung pictures of a far distant land. They had medals and badges and awards of all kind, And a sober thought came into mind. For this place was different, so dark and so dreary, I had found the house of a Sailor, once I saw clearly. A Sailor lay sleeping, silent and alone, Curled up in a rack and dreaming of home. The face was so gentle, the room squared away, This was the United States Sailor today. This was the hero I saw on TV, Defending our country so we could be free. I realized the families I would visit this night, Owed their lives to these Sailors willing to fight. Soon round the world, the children would play, And grown-ups would celebrate on Christmas Day. They all enjoyed freedom each day of the year, Because of the Sailor, like the one lying here. I couldn’t help wonder how many lay alone, On a cold Christmas Eve on a sea, far from home. The very thought brought a tear to my eye, I dropped to my knees and started to cry. The Sailor awakened and I heard a calm voice, “Santa, don’t cry, this life is my choice.” “Defending the seas all days of the year, So others may live and be free with no fear.” I thought for a moment, what a difficult road, To live a life guided by honor and code. After all it’s Christmas Eve and the ship’s underway! But freedom isn’t free and it’s Sailors who pay. The Sailor says to country “be free and sleep tight, No harm will come, not on my watch and not on this night.” The Sailor rolled over and drifted to sleep, I couldn’t control it, I continued to weep. I kept watch for hours, so silent so still, I watched as the Sailor shivered from the night’s cold chill. I didn’t want to leave on that cold dark night, This guardian of honor so willing to fight. The Sailor rolled over and with a voice strong and sure, Commanded, “Carry on Santa, it’s Christmas and all is secure!”

HONOR, COURAGE AND COMMITMENT

~~ author unknown

Navy - Night Before Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas, compartments were still, The sailors were sleeping, as most sailors will.

The ditty bags hung by the lockers with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.

The men were all peacefully dreaming in bed As visions of liberty danced in each head.

The Chief in his skivvies, hopped into his rack, Having just came from town and a quick midnight snack.

When out on the deck there arose such a roar, I ran to the porthole to find out the score.

I stuck out my head and started to shout, "Just what in the world is this noise all about?"

A moon made for boondocking showed with a glow, It was downright cold out, 'bout seven below.

What I saw out there looked like those Mardi Gras floats, 'Twas a Captain's gig drawn by four white Navy goats.

In the boat was a man who seemed quiet and moody, I knew in an instant St. Nick had the duty.

As quickly as Monday his billy goats came, He whistled and shouted and called them by name.

"Now Perry, now Farragut, Dewey and Jones, What's the matter John Paul, got lead in your bones?

A little to Starb'rd, now hold it up short, No fluffing off now, or you'll go on report!"

He was wearing dress "Reds" that fit like a charm, His hash marks they covered the length of his arm.

The gifts to be issued were all in his pack, The gedunk was ready to leave on each rack.

His eyes they were watering, his nose caked with ice, He wiped it with canvass, then sneezed once or twice.

He opened his mouth and started to yawn, It looked like the Sun coming up with the dawn.

The stump of a pipe, he held tight in his teeth, And took a small nip from a bottle beneath.

He wasn't so big, but he must have been strong, I figured he'd been in SEALs early and long.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old Tar, Who said "Evenin' Matey, here - have a cigar."

He filled every seabag with presents galore, And left us all leave papers, right by the door.

With "Anchors Aweigh" he climbed back into place, A broad smile was creeping all over his face.

One look at his watch and he started to frown, "This mid watch is certainly getting me down."

Then out to the breakwater and into the night, The gig started fading, the landscape was bright.

"Merry Christmas" he said, as he drove on his way, "Now I'll finish my rounds and sack in for the day." 

 Navy - Night Before Christmas - Author Unknown

Man arrested in Maryland terror plot

A 21-year-old Baltimore construction worker, who allegedly "dreamed" of waging jihad against the U.S., was charged by federal authorities with attempted murder and the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction Wednesday in connection with a plot to bomb a suburban Maryland military recruiting station.

Antonio Martinez was arrested Wednesday after allegedly attempting to detonate what he thought was a sport-utility vehicle laden with explosives parked near the Armed Forces recruiting station in Catonsville, Md., prosecutors and the FBI say in court documents.

Baltimore U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein said the device represented "no actual danger" to the public because it had been assembled with the help of undercover federal agents who rendered it inert.

The arrest marked the second time in three weeks that federal investigators announced an arrest linked to an elaborate sting operation in which undercover investigators worked with suspects to assemble and deliver a dummy device to an actual target.

RECENT SHOOTINGS: Gunman may have grievance against Marines

Last month, a 19-year-old Somali-born U.S. citizen was arrested in Portland, Ore., after federal prosecutors alleged he plotted a similar car bomb attack at the site of a Nov. 26 Christmas tree lighting ceremony that had attracted thousands of spectators to the city's popular Pioneer Square.

Court documents allege the Portland arrest of Mohamed Osman Mohamud briefly spooked Martinez, who called an FBI informant on Nov. 27 in "an agitated state" after learning that the Portland plot was a "set-up."

"I'm not falling for no b.s.," Martinez allegedly told the unidentified informant, according to a transcript of the telephone conversation. Despite the scare, the documents allege, Martinez called the same informant the next day and reaffirmed his commitment to the plot.

"I'm just ready to move forward," the suspect allegedly said.

Joseph Balter, Martinez's attorney, declined to comment on the allegations. But he cautioned that the arrest and charges marked only the very beginning of the case.

"I would hope everybody would not engage in a rush to judgment here," Balter said.

An FBI affidavit outlining the operation portrayed Martinez as so eager to lash out against the U.S. that he unsuccessfully attempted to recruit three unidentified accomplices.

"All three of them declined, one of whom expressly attempted to dissuade Martinez from committing jihad," the documents say.

After the failed recruitment effort, the plot proceeded when the FBI informant introduced Martinez to an undercover FBI agent, whom Martinez referred to as "the Afghani brother."

Rosenstein said in an interview there was no evidence that Martinez was aided by others in the alleged scheme that began taking shape in September. At that time, the documents say, the FBI informant noticed a series of threatening postings on Martinez's Facebook account.

Attorney Jim Lavine, a former prosecutor, said the government's tactics raise "important questions of whether the person targeted actually has the capacity to commit the crime."

"When you push these cases to the point of creating such an elaborate ruse, you wonder whether they (government) are going too far," he said.

Richard McFeely, head of the FBI's Baltimore Division, said Martinez was "absolutely committed to carrying out an attack which would have cost lives."

Rosenstein said federal investigators tried to measure that commitment by deploying undercover agents in the detailed sting operation.

"The goal is to determine whether the defendant truly wants to go forward with the scheme," he said.

White House spokesman Nick Shapiro said President Obama was briefed on the operation prior to the arrest.

"This arrest underscores the necessity of remaining vigilant against terrorism here and abroad and why we have been focusing on addressing the challenge posed by domestic radicalization," he said.