A regional court in Iran has banned a Jewish couple from obtaining German citizenship since Tehran doesn’t recognize the Holocaust. Pretty outrageous?

Actually, as crazy as Iran is such a court decision is unlikely to take place there. But a similar, even more absurd ruling has been made in the United States. According to the Ninth Circuit Court’s circus decision, since the US Administration doesn’t formally recognize the Armenian genocide California cannot have a law allowing Armenian-Americans sue insurance companies to claim their killed ancestors’ policies.

The Examiner puts it well:

[…]

But, how is fine analysis different from Catholic Church’s decision to excommunicate Galileo or Josef Stalin’s decision to promote the fraudulent biological theories of Trofim Lysenko? Both the Church and Stalin also made their factual determinations based on policy.

In Movsesian, the court elevates policy over fact. Instead of undertaking an investigation into whether there was an Armenian genocide, the court resolved the factual question by a policy analysis, which is always a superior way to determine facts.

I am not exactly an expert on the Armenian genocide, but I have read the dispatches from US ambassador Henry Morgenthau. But, I guess his reports cannot be factually correct because they too are contrary to President Obama’s foreign policy and therefore are preempted.

Next week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeal will issue its long awaited decision on whether our foreign policy requires college professors to teach that the moon is made out of cheese and that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction.

Turkey has been bullying the United States against recognizing the Armenian genocide by threatening all kinds of sanctions. But Russia, who has recognized the Armenian genocide, is Turkey’s biggest single trading partner.

There is no G-factor, thus, in Turkish-Russian relations.

If you vote in an international music competition for Armenia, apparently you are threatening neighboring Azerbaijan’s national security. And no – this is not a Borat joke.

Radio Liberty reports that “Rovshan Nasirli, a young Eurovision fan living in the Azerbaijani capital Baku, says he was summoned this week to the country’s National Security Ministry — to explain why he had voted for Armenia during this year’s competition in May.”

Only 43 people in Azerbaijan – a country of over 8 million – voted for Armenia during Eurovision 2009. It was said that Azerbaijan had turned off the broadcast when the information on how to vote for Armenia came up.

Forty three is apparently too many. Why is Azerbaijan shooting at its foot with such a huge shotgun though? The government there has destroyed every trace of the indigenous Armenian culture there. What would a vote for Armenia change?

The full story is available at RFERL website.

Threatening to cut diplomatic ties and kick out US bases has been one of Turkey’s predicted means of pressure against America when it comes to the formal recognition of Ottoman Turkey’s 1915 genocide against indigenous Armenians. How about threatening with a sex tape?

Bribing the former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert, who now works for the Turkish lobby, is one thing. Making another member to drop support for Armenian genocide resolution by threatening to reveal her private sex secrets – is another story.

The sex story just broke, years after former FBI translator Sibel Edmunds – a whistleblower of Turkish decent, shared her allegations of corruption in the federal government.

The Brad Blog reports:

[…]

[After she left the testimony] I asked [Edmunds] if she specified whether the sitting bi-sexual, married Congresswoman who had been taped sleeping with a woman, without knowing, and then bribed by Turkish interests with the tape, to vote against the Armenian Genocide resolution had been a Democrat or a Republican. She said she is a Democrat, and that she testified to that during her deposition.

[…]

It is unclear whether Sibel Edmunds mentioned the person by name, but one website (most likely very wrongly) claims it is an Illinois congresswoman.

Ironically, Sibel Edmunds might not have testified on this issue without the Turkish lobby which is seeking legal action against Armenian-American politician David Krikorian. As the Armenian Weekly summarizes:

[…]

David Krikorian is the Democratic candidate in the 2010 elections for Ohio’s 2nd Congressional district. The seat is now held by Republican Jean Schmidt, who was the largest recipient of money from the Turkish lobby in the 2008 elections. Schmidt also fought the Armenian Genocide Resolution.

When her challenger, David Krikorian, pointed out that she was receiving blood money from Turks for helping deny the Armenian Genocide, Schmidt complained to the Ohio Elections Commission. Representing Schmidt and the Turkish American Defense Fund at the deposition on Aug. 8 was none other than the attorney and longtime voice of the Turkish lobby, Bruce Fein.

[…]

Things get bad when people deny genocide.

I hope this is an acceptable icebreaker to our long silence, but I just came across to reliable information on ArmenianAncestry.com on how to get free Armenian TV stations (and other international stations).

The administrator of the website, who is also a pen pal, details the ABCs of getting the equipment (he says it will all cost under $200) to have free (without subscription) international TV broadcasting, including several Armenian channels.