13 Hours, as most of you know, is the true story of a handful of individuals who showed uncommon bravery in the face of a colossal security clusterflock*, at a US diplomatic outpost, after the fall of Qaddafi in Libya. The movie doesn’t go into the politics, most of which consisted in the (almost?) criminal refusal on behalf of the State Department to provide adequate security to, as the opening credits note, one of the twelve most dangerous spots on the planet.
If you listen closely, you can hear the faint voice of Barack Obama blathering about the wonderful opportunities for the Libyan people now that Qaddafi had been overthrown. Mercifully, I did not see any pictures of Hillary or hear the dreaded cackle, which, now that I think of it, might have sent their attackers fleeing in fear at the sound of it.
The story starts with the arrival of Jack Silva, played by The Office’s John Krasinski**. A tense and potentially deadly situation arises on the streets of Benghazi before they can even reach the compound. Welcome to Benghazi! Jack is not an FNG***, as he has worked with some of the team in years past.
The CIA station chief “Bob”, is portrayed as a snot nosed, condescending, officious prick who treats his security detail, mostly former Navy SEALS, as rent-a-cops. Not surprisingly, the former CIA station chief for Benghazi has said this is all ‘baloney’, but then, if even a fraction of it were true, I would vehemently deny it, too. Whose word are you going to trust? His, or the three men who risked their lives to save his bacon? Me, too.
The movie shows the very human side of these operators: interactions with their wives and kids, albeit long distance, the boredom, the bureaucracy, and when the balloon goes up, their professionalism and willingness to die for their friends and even some complete strangers, because that’s what they signed up for.
The movie is well paced and suspenseful, and at times, like “24”, gives the sense of taking place in real time. The suspense is heightened in that the bad guys do not wear any uniform or insignia and therefore look like anyone else. These men know all too well the consequences of shooting a “friendly”, therefore you literally cannot tell friend from foe until they start shooting at you.
The battle scenes are intense and the down time in between them are very revealing of these men’s character.The requests for help that go unanswered, surprising in the face of the number of people actually ready to respond, may cause one to pause.
I highly recommend this movie. The movie is accurate, according to (most of) those who were there. Director Michael Bay does the script, the story, and the heroes behind them justice. One caveat, you may not be able to leave the theater with a dry eye. Two ladies who saw the movie before I did, Tweeted: There was only one word when we left the theater: Speechless.
Five out of five stars.
*Hey! We are still PG-13 here! But if that kind of language offends you, wait until 13 Hours comes out on network TV, and read the book while you wait. The language is not excessive, but realistic.
**Don’t let that concern you. I was never a fan of The Office, but his acting is first rate here. He gives a very credible performance, showing wide range.
***F’ing New Guy, for the uninitiated.
Update by Grunt: Sean Smith’s mother could not review this movie because she was too emotional about it. To see her comments about Hillary Clinton after attempting to sit through the movie, watch this video: (Hat tip: Common Cents.)
Watching the eleven-hour debacle that was the Benghazi hearings yesterday, those of us who believe that those who commit felonies should be called to account, the frustration seems like having your estranged wife show up at your house with police officers and a court order signed by a judge, who happens to be her father, and you’re forced to watch as she and her new boyfriend take every stick of furniture, every pot and pan, and even the toothbrush holder from you, and smirk because they know there’s nothing you can do about it. That analogy came to me this morning. If it makes no sense, things are about normal.
In full disclosure, I only watched snippets of the show yesterday. I had the unfortunate circumstance of tuning in just as phony Mexican Loretta Sanchez (Illegal-Ca) was bemoaning the fact the investigations has cost the taxpayers (you know, those people who DON’T vote democrat) about 4 1/2 million dollars. It’s the only time, save defense spending, that liberals give two hoots and a holler about spending.
It was absolutely nauseating the way the lying bitch smirked and blithely lied all the way through, with the dems as her apologists and defenders. The friction between her and the republicans gave the media something to talk about so they could ignore the seriousness of the crimes she committed.
I have never claimed to have the organizational or creative skills of the others who post here. I’m just a pissed-off senior citizen taking the opportunity to vent. There is no rhyme or reason to the articles I’m posting here, and some of the you tubes (there are plenty) and some may contain some of the same footage. I love you folks, but not enough to watch all of them in their entirety. I’m not really masochistic.
4 Dead Americans? Just Lint To ‘Brush Off’ On Hillary’s Shoulder…
Hillary smirked throughout the whole testimony before Congress but even worse, did this little move:
Many on the Left on social media shared this as a gif, laughing at ‘how cool she was’ and how she ‘won’ against Republicans, rather than seeing this for the true evil that it is.
The families of the dead? Just people to ‘brush off’:
ANALYSIS: Benghazi Committee Gives Hillary Clinton Presidential Platform
THIS IS THE MEDIA SPIN THIS MORNING
The “get Hillary” committee did not get Hillary.
The House Benghazi committee — dubbed a “get Hillary” effort by Democrats who opposed its creation — brought out precious little new information and no major political missteps by the former secretary of state, who happens to be running for president.
Hillary Clinton Opening Statement Benghazi Committee Hearing 10/22/2015
THIS IS KILLARY’S OPENING STATEMENT; PLAY A GAME WHERE YOU TAKE A SHOT EVERY TIME THE BITCH LIES…. YOU’LL BE ON THE FLOOR IN ABOUT TWO MINUTES
Hillary Clinton Doesn’t Know What Marines Do At U.S. Embassies
“Certainly it was useful for our security professionals and our diplomats to be partnered in that way with the Defense Department. You know, historically the only presence at some of our facilities has been Marines. And as you know well, Marines were there not for the purpose of personnel protection; they were there to destroy classified material and equipment,” Clinton said.
REP. Jim Jordan To Hillary: ‘U told The American People A Lie And Your Family The Truth!’
IF YOU ONLY HAVE A FEW MINUTES, WATCH THIS ONE
CHAOS EMERGES as Trey Gowdy OWNS Democrat Cummings at Benghazi Hearings
THIS IS WHAT THE MEDIA GLEEFULLY REPORTED ON
At the end of the first round of questioning Rep. Cummings and Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy battled over emails Sid Blumenthal sent to Secretary of State Clinton.
THIS EXCHANGE BETWEEN GOWDY AND THE PENISHEAD IS UNDER THREE MINUTES
Gowdy to Clinton: We Didn’t Sign Up to Investigate Your Emails Madam Secretary, We’re Here For The Truth
“Madame Secretary, I understand some people – frankly in both parties – have suggested this investigation is about you. Let me assure you it is not. And let me assure you why it is not. This work is about something much more important than any single person. It is about four U.S. government workers, including our Ambassador, murdered by terrorists on foreign soil. It is about what happened before, during, and after the attacks that killed these four men. It is about what this country owes those who risk their lives to serve it.” http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2015/10/22/gowdy-to-clinton-we-arent-here-to-investigate-you-madam-secretary-were-here-for-the-truth-n2069599
Hillary Clinton Finally Admits Benghazi Massacre Was Organized Attack … Not a Protest
Before the body of Ambassador Chris Stevens was recovered the Obama administration was scheming to deceive the American public about the Benghazi attacks.
New: Memo Shows Hillary Told Egyptian PM Benghazi Attack Was Terrorist Attack On 9/12, Yet She Still Blamed Video Publicly
REMEMBER THIS???
THERE WAS AN ELECTION SIX WEEKS AWAY. NOTHING, BUT NOTHING WOULD BE ALLOWED TO GET IN THEIR WAY
Hillary Clinton Admits She Broke U.S. Law in Benghazi
I HALF-EXPECTED HER TO STAND ON HER CHAIR AND SCREAM, “F*CK YOU, RIGHT WINGERS! DO YOU KNOW WHO THE F*CK I AM? I’M HILLARY F*CKING CLINTON. I’M GONNA BE THE F*CKING PRESIDENT AND THERE’S NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO F*CKING STOP ME!”
IF YOU THINK THAT LANGUAGE IS A BIT EXTREME, READ ‘UNLIMITED ACCESS’ BY GARY ALDRICH. HE KNOWS WHAT A FILTHY MOUTH SHE HAS.
Hillary Clinton admitted to the House Select Committee on Benghazi on Thursday evening that she broke the law in handling security for the U.S. consulate there.
Hillary’s Coughing Fit During Benghazi Testimony
THERE WERE A LOT OF COMMENTS ON THIS AT FREE REPUBLIC BUT NO ONE CAME UP WITH MINE… DID ANYBODY SMELL HUMA ON HER BREATH? MAYBE SHE HAD A HAIR STUCK IN HER THROAT
SURE SOUNDS CONCERNED, DOESN’T SHE?
Hillary’s Pathetic Attempt at Humor in Benghazi Hearings
This testimony is playing out like a trial where a republican asked questions and the a democrat cross-examines and defends her against all the previous questions. The strange thing about this, to me at least, is that the democrats don’t really do this in the form of questions but instead just kinda present evidence and ask somewhat rhetorical questions. Her replies to democrats, when not yes or no , seem very rehearsed.
Jeffrey Toobin Blames Chris Stevens for Going to Benghazi and Putting Himself in Danger
THEY ACTUALLY WENT THERE
Benghazi Victims’ Family Members BLAST Clinton After Hearing
CAPTION THIS:
DON’T WORRY, BARRY. THE PRESS WILL PROTECT US AND THERE’S NOTHING ANYBODY CAN DO TO STOP US. IT’S ALL GOOD.
Try to imagine the rage/frustration felt by the victims’ families as they watched her smirk and joke her way through the hearing because their loved ones’ lives meant nothing.
In an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, Kate Quigley, the sister of CIA contractor Glen Doherty, recalled a meeting she and her family had with Clinton at Andrews Air Force Base three days after the terrorist attack in which the then-secretary of state said that the onslaught started as a spontaneous protest.
“She spoke to my family about how sad we should feel for the Libyan people because they’re uneducated, and that breeds fear which breeds violence and leads to a protest,” Quigley recalled.
But as was made clear in Thursday’s hearing, Clinton knew even before the attacks were finished that terrorists with links to al-Qaeda were involved.
THIS MAY BE THE ULTIMATE SLAP IN THE FACE TO THE VICTIMS’ FAMILIES
Hillary Clinton at Benghazi Terror Attack Hearing: ‘Are you going to come to my Katy Perry concert
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s happy deportment at Thursday’s House Select Benghazi Committee hearing brought criticism from MSNBC host Joe Scarborough, who, commenting on photos of an exuberant Clinton on Twitter, said:
“The expressions of Secretary Clinton today are fascinating. One would not know the hearings involved 4 U.S. deaths.”
Hillary Clinton Plugs Book In Answer About Youtube Video
Clinton said that she has an entire chapter in her book “Hard Choices” about the administration’s failed response to the Benghazi attack, after a congressman asked her why she blamed the Benghazi attack on spontaneous reaction to a YouTube video called “Innocence of Muslims” instead of terrorism. Clinton’s book plug was followed by an attempt to explain her reliance on the video.
Hillary comes out swinging on Benghazi as she fends off hostile Republicans in marathon congressional quiz – but takes blows over her shadowy aide Sid
Clinton defended her stewardship of the State Department before and after the 2012 terror attacks in Libya
Republicans sharply attacked Clinton’s handling of the crisis and her responsiveness to security concerns at US mission in Benghazi
Clinton says she provided effective leadership and that evaluating security risks is ‘a balancing act’
Eleven-hour ‘interrogation’ included shouting match between Republican chairman and top Democrat
THIS IS HOW THE U.K. TELEGRAPH SPINS IT
A Democratic presidential front-runner. A panel of Republicans waiting with sharpened knives. A deadly terrorist attack three years ago on a foreign shore.
At the end of the hearing – 11 hours to the minute, or about eight-and-a-half hours without a handful of breaks – a poised and defiant Clinton was still standing after repeated, often-sharp questioning from Republicans who have been criticized by members of both parties for simply trying to damage Clinton’s presidential prospects.
‘I have thought more about what happened than all of you put together,’ Clinton told the committee at one point. ‘I have lost more sleep than all of you put together… I have been wracking my brain thinking about what more could have been done or should have been done.’
Pic Of The Day: Even Hillary’s Ass Gets Special Treatment…
Via the Washington Post’s official Hillary Clinton reporter rump swabber, Abby Phillip:
THE ORIGINAL PLAN WAS TO MAKE THIS THE DAILY THREAD WHERE I POST DIFFERENT ITEMS. THERE ARE OTHER THINGS GOING ON, BUT TRUTH BE TOLD, I’VE FALLEN INTO THE BACK OF A LOADED MANURE SPREADER AND NOT FELT AS DIRTY AS I DO RIGHT NOW. I’M GOING TO DO A DIFFERENT POST AND TRY TO GET THIS CRAPPY TASTE OUT OF MY MOUTH.
2012-2013: I thought it might be interesting to interleave key points in these two story lines.
SYRIA July 23, 2012: Syria admits to possessing a stockpile of chemical weapons.
SYRIA July 23, 2012: Obama says that the Assad regime will be “held accountable” if it uses chemical weapons.
SYRIA Aug. 11, 2012: SecState Clinton says the use of chemical weapons is “a red line for the world.”
SYRIA Aug. 20, 2012: Obama says the use or movement of chemical weapons by the Assad regime would be “a red line.”
LIBYA Sept. 11, 2011: Obama refuses military rescue to Benghazi, Libya, embassy; 4 Americans among those murdered.
LIBYA Sept. 12 ff, 2011: Obama et al. insist Benghazi was not a “terrorist attack” but a “spontaneous demonstration” against an offensive-to-Muslims YouTube video that “got out of hand.”
LIBYA Sept. 20, 2012: Obama repeats video line on the same day his own PR guy says it was obviously a terrorist attack.
SYRIA Dec. 3, 2012: Obama says if Assad uses CWs, “There will be consequences, and you will be held accountable.” SecState Clinton says the U.S. is “planning to take action” if Assad’s regime uses CWs.
LIBYA Dec. 18, 2012: Benghazi report by independent panel blames “systemic” failures in leadership that led to “grossly” inadequate security at Benghazi.
LIBYA Dec. 20, 2012: The State Department “disciplines” four officials in the department by giving them all extended paid vacations.
LIBYA Jan. 23, 2013: Congress questions SecState Clinton about Benghazi. Clinton shrieks, “What difference does it make?”
SYRIA March 19, 2013: Reports out of Syria say CWs killed more than two dozen in a town near Aleppo. Assad says the rebels did it; the rebels say Assad did it.
SYRIA March 20, 2013: Obama says they’ll look into it, but he’s sure it was Assad’s fault.
SYRIA April 25, 2013: The White House says that the intelligence community assesses “with varying degrees of confidence” that Assad did it. Obama tells Congress he wants money to arm Syrian rebels.
LIBYA May 2013: Testimony and evidence emerge showing the Benghazi consulate reported at the beginning that they were under assault by terrorists and that they had repeatedly asked for and not only been denied extra security, but had security removed in the weeks prior to the attack. The memos were signed by SecState Clinton.
LIBYA July 31, 2013: The White House says the controversy over Benghazi is a “phony” scandal.
LIBYA Aug. 2013: Evidence emerges that the CIA had a facility in Benghazi from which it was illegally arming militants, that hundreds of SAMs were stolen by terrorists during the attack and that the CIA had been threatening its own people ever since to keep it all quiet.
LIBYA Aug. 20, 2013: SecState Kerry clears and reinstates four State Dept officials who had been on “administrative leave” (read: paid vacation) for nine months.
SYRIA Aug. 21, 2013: Reports come out of Syria that a chemical attack took place, killing as many 1,400 people. Assad says the rebels did it; the rebels say Assad did it.
SYRIA Aug. 31, 2013: Obama backs off from his announced intention to unilaterally order a military strike against Assad, says he’ll ask Congress for permission, even though he is really sure he doesn’t need it.
LIBYA Sept. 10, 2013: SecState Kerry tells Congress he will not make Benghazi survivors available for questioning.
LIBYA: Sept. 11, 2013: WH observes one minute of silence for 9/11/01 victims. WH does not mention previous 525,949 minutes of lies and evasion re 9/11/12 victims.
SYRIA Sept 12, 2013
Assad accepts a Russian proposal to give up all its chemical weapons.
Assad and Putin reiterate the CW attacks were done by rebels to give Obama an excuse to give them military support.
Obama asks Congress to delay votes on authorizing military strikes against Assad.
Syrian rebels claim Assad used CWs again. They post a video of three guys coughing as “proof.”
Oct 27, 2012: Associated Press reporters filed a report from Libya that completely smashes the White House’s lame excuses about a protest gone bad.
The AP reporters say they interviewed five witnesses: one of the embassy guards, several people living next door to the consulate compound who were present when the militants first moved in and a lawyer who passed by the scene as he was headed to his nearby home.
According to these witnesses:
The attack on our Benghazi consulate began around nightfall with around 150 bearded gunmen sealing off the streets leading to the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi.
There was no sign of a spontaneous protest against an American-made movie denigrating Islam’s Prophet Muhammad, but the militants did gather around 20 youths in the area to chant against the film.
An hour or so later, the heavily armed militants blasted their way into the compound.
The trucks the attackers used to block off streets were marked with the logo of Ansar al-Shariah.
Ansar al-Sharia is one of the many powerful, heavily armed militias that operate freely in Libya. The group has an ideology similar to that of al-Qaeda, but it is not clear whether al-Qaeda’s branch in North Africa (AQIM) was involved in the assault.
Reporting international news is AP’s bailiwick.
On September 11, an American consulate in a red-hot Muslim region of the world is invaded by heavily armed men.
For the first time in 30 years, an American ambassador is murdered.
Our diplomatic compounds are U.S. soil, which makes this a direct, murderous assault on the United States of America.
The attack occurs on the anniversary of 9/11, the biggest attack on America by Muslim extremists.
AP filed this eyes-on-the-ground report October 27, forty-six days after the event. It says,
“The past week, the AP has gathered accounts from five witnesses.”
In other words, the Associated Press did NOT get around to interviewing eye witnesses of this world-class news event for SIX FULL WEEKS after it happened.
SIX weeks?
Six WEEKS!!
If you go and read the article itself (URL below), you’ll also see a lot of whining about how confusing it all was and where AP reports got some of it right and blahdiblah about those terrible Republicans who politicize stuff during an election year.
Whine. Whine. Cripes, they sound like Democrats. Oh wait. They are Democrats … Democrats who have seen not Chris Stevens’ blood on the wall, but their own.
Don’t expect to see me weeping big ol’ crocodile tears about these undeclared Obama PACs going DOWN. They so deserve it, the scumbags.
I mentioned this idea to Dearest … that the reduced security at our embassies could have been a perverse Democrat plot to produce a winning October Surprise for Obama … and he was amazed that anyone could even think such a thing.
I defended myself by citing this November 4, 2010, interview on MSNBC:
Mark Penn tells Chris Matthews Obama Needs Another Oklahoma City Bombing [:26]
Now … if you only look at approval numbers, Penn’s statement makes some sense. But you’d have to be a really twisted excuse for humanity to see approval numbers instead of dead bodies.
As much as I hate to believe my fellow Americans could be so warped, I have to admit these are the same people who lionized Ted Kennedy, the only man with a confirmed kill in the war on women.
Kevin DuJan at Hillbuzz blogged about this “October surprise” idea as if it was a lot more than a horrible possibility:
“Folks, more people are going to eventually go to jail for what happened at Benghazi than went to prison for Watergate. This is a coverup that goes directly to Barack Obama himself. I have friends who lived through Watergate and who repeatedly tell me they had no idea in the initial days after a ‘break-in was reported in Democrat offices’ that it would eventually topple Nixon and bring down so many powerful people. I love the woman on a personal level, but if Hillary Clinton knew about any of this and didn’t stop this scheme for a ‘hostage-taking October Surprise’ then she belongs in prison too…along with Barack Obama, Susan Rice, Valerie Jarrett, and a host of other women and effeminate men who thought lowering security at consulates so ‘something would happen that we could use in October’ was a good idea.”
I hadn’t considered the hostage situation scenario. But when I looked at Carter’s post-Iranian hostage bump, I could see his point. In the long run, Carter made a total hash of that situation. But in the short run, he got enough of a boost that, if Obama had been able to score the same so close to Election Day, he’d have walked away with a second term in his pocket.
Obama has said his goal is to bring to justice those involved in this:
If that’s true, Obama may have to bring himself to justice. According to the news report below, his own people did not merely refuse requests from our Libyan embassy to send additional security; they actually ordered security that was already there to LEAVE … right before the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks!
August 2012: Obama State Dept. Withdrew 16 Member Security Team From Libya Before Attack
IN OTHER NEWS:
October 12, 2012: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and ranking member Susan Collins (R-Maine) announced the committee will investigate the events surrounding the death of four Americans in Libya, including the U.S. ambassador, Chris Stevens.
October 13, 2012: The President of the United States phoned in to the Michael Yo Show where he and Yo discussed the Big Issue, what Yo called “the elephant in the room” … could Barack Hussein Obama do ANYTHING to heal the rift between Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey?
I am so sickened by all this, my stomach hurts and I want to weep.
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