Posted on 09/09/2006 6:40:07 AM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
by Mark Finkelstein
September 9, 2006 - 09:07
America, you ignorant Islamophobes! Alright, maybe it's not all your fault. Your anti-Muslim attitudes have been "stoked" by "inflammatory rhetoric" from . . . President Bush. That was the basic message of a segment narrated by Ron Claiborne this morning entitled "9/11 Remembered: Islamophobia" on ABC's Good Morning America.
ABC made a weak case for the existence of widespread 'Islamophobia' in America. Let's imagine, for example, that 19 Jews had flown planes into iconic buildings in, say, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan - or France, for that matter. What do you think would befall any Jews daring to remain in any of those countries, as a matter of official policy and/or public reaction?
In contrast, what evidence did GMA adduce in support of its America-the-Islamophobic theory? A couple poll results showing negative attitudes toward Muslims amongst a significant minority of Americans. A few man-in-the-street anecdotal interviews including one of the young man with a blond crewcut pictured here wondering what guys in turbans are trying to prove.
But when it came to translating attitudes into action, ABC offered - not much: the editor of an Arab-American newspaper saying that on the night of 9/11 itself, three men were arrested near his offices with knives. He alleged they were coming to kill him. ABC also catalogued as evidence of alleged Islamophobia additional airport checks and "suspicious or fearful looks" encountered by Muslims in the US. ABC alleged "acts of violence" but didn't offer even one specific example.
GMA highlighted a case in which two young Arab-American men, found in possession of a lot of cash and cell phones, were arrested in Ohio and held for a week [not the Mackinac bridge case]. ABC reporter Ron Claiborne 'helpfully' prompted them:
"Bottom line: why do you think this happened?"
He got the answer he was looking for: "racial profiling."
Even so, the men were eventually freed, although they do face charges of lying to police. Not exactly a pogrom.
Claiborne continued his leading line of questioning while interviewing an off-screen presence who was presumably the same editor of the Arab-American newspaper seen earlier in the segment:
Editor: "We are law-abding citizens and we are patriots." ' Claiborne, prompting: "And yet what?"
"And yet we continue to be harrassed for no reason."
If there was any nasty name-calling, it was aimed at non-Muslim Americans, and it came from Claiborne and his chosen sources.
Claiborne: "Those who have studied American attitudes toward Muslims say at the root of prejudice is ignorance."
And then: "Some Arab-Americans say President Bush has further stoked anti-Muslim attitudes with inflammatory rhetoric in denouncing Islamic extremists." Let's get this straight. Claiborne thinks it's wrong for the president of the United States to vigorously denounce what Claiborne himself describes as "extremists", the kind of people behind 9/11?
James Zogby of the Arab-American Institute then turned up to reinforce the notion that we aren't mean-spirited - just dumb: "I think that more generally speaking, America is not Islamophobic, it really just doesn't understand the religion at all."
The segment was part of ABC's special 5th-anniversary coverage: "9/11 - Where Things Stand." Judging by today's episode, it could be a long week.
BTTT
ABC-GMA/NewsBusters ignorant-Islamophobic-America ping to Today show list.
Can you imagine the modern MSM being around during WWII, decrying the widespread "Japaphobia" in the country at the time?
You know, buddy, I have Islamophobia. No antidote needed. All it takes is news, every day, for the clarity needed to feed it. I personally believe it will save my life.
Thats funny, I blame Islam.
All I need to know about Islam I learned on 9/11.
Islamophobia doesn't exist.
I don't understand about Pentecostals, either, but I don't worry about them killing me for no reason. Funny, isn't it?
Yep..........
Hey Ron Claiborne get back to me when 19 Amish men hijack and fly planes into buildings, killing 3,000 innocent people.
Trust me, we stupid Americans are learning.
Problem is, the more we learn , the LESS we like raghead cameljockey dirtkissers.
In otherwords, "to know them is to despise them".
Lock and load, boys and girls--it's gonna get nasty and LOCAL.
On the contrary. We understand Islam all too well. We got a crash course on Islam, with a special emphasis on its most dangerous features, on 9/11.
"I don't understand about Pentecostals, either, but I don't worry about them killing me for no reason."
Yes, that's the thing, isn't it?
But there is a type of dementia evident Mr. Claiborne... the PC sickness that prohibits calling fundamentalist Islam for what it really is... a perverted, bloodthirsty death-cult!
Heaven forbid, isalmophobia couldn't possibly be the result of the utter insanity of it's fanatical followers.
That's right. Any fear or concern about Islam is factual, rational, and real.
It was ABC in 1972 which was in position to cover the murder of the Israelis at the Munich Olympics. Sportscaster Jim McManus (McKay) was thrust into the news business.
It was ABC which noticed that Palestinians were the culprits. ABC fingered the Arabs first. Why can't they stop blaming others for the current levels of Islamophobia that ABC itself fostered?
I didn't make myself clear.
Islamophobia=fear of islam
I don't fear it.
I just want to irradicate it from the U.S.
America learned all it needs to know about Islam when we went to visit the shores of Tripoli.
LOL
ABC, check out my tag line.Hey flintlock, keep yer powder dry partner.
Well that would be hard to imagine, since Jews or any other religious society don't do such inane and stupid things
America learned all it needs to know about Islam when we felt we HAD to visit the shores of Tripoli.
Maybe it is due to the fact that ALL terorrists who have attached us are Mooslems males between the age of 18 and 45. If the feds are unwilling to protect us from these nut jobs, then it will be out responsibility to arm ourselves and deal with this problem. It is becoming obvious that the 1st revolution will need to be repeated.
Claiborne's great grandfather was the last voice heard from the Titanic before it sunk beneath the waves,shouting " don't jump to any rash conclusions, a little water never hurt anybody" !!!
Don't you know??? it's only acceptable to hate conservatives!!!
I grew up with antisemitism and the demeaning of blacks, but I have matured and changed my attitudes.
However, islam (which has never been part of my social environment) and its followers have taught me to hate, fear, and despise them based solely on their actions and words.
islam represents oppression, slavery and death.
My Mommy taught me to fear anything with the potential to kill me. Especially when killing me is its sole reason for being.
Click the picture ( but be warned, it's brutal ):
I've been trying to wake people up to this menace for many years:
( Notice anything familiar about this salute? )
Islam, a Religion of Peace®? ( links, blogs, quips, quotes, aggravating pictures ) is located here- click the Picture, and scroll backwards:
Better look up your local mosque
...and the barbarians are already inside our gates. ...and at our neighbour's gates, as well:
Terror Strike Toronto ( Aborted! )-- Click the picture:
well said ..........
The PC sickness controls what we are allowed to learn and what we are allowed to say. The PC sickness is going to be the death of this country, if it is not confronted and stopped.
We understand the religion quite well, just as we do Judaism and Christianity and Shintoism.
We just don't happen to believe that Islamo-fascists, Kahane-Kach, Kansas Kook Preacher and the Red-Brigade are acceptable spokesmen for a religion they have chosen to degrade.
Barry Goldwater was a decent man, but extremism is never the solution.
"Islamophobia doesn't exist...Fear or concern about Islam is factual, rational, and real."
BINGO! TAG LINE OF THE 21ST CENTURY!!!
Propaganda guilt messages, trying to weaken Americans.
???????
Tell you what, Zogby, Americans understand your 7th Century Cult of Death far better than you think we do!
Anyone have contact info on this Ron Claiborne assh*le ? Time for yet another email .
Of course, I'm smart enough to figure out that the monsters who crashed those planes on 09-11-01 were not Catholics, Baptists, Mormons, Amish or Jews. The Catholics, Baptists, Mormons, Amish or Jews were not dancing in the streets while the towers collapsed, the Pentagon burned and 3000 Americans died going through a living hell on Earth. Maybe when Claiborne grows up and matures, he'll somehow figure it out.
Agreed. I have been commenting on the Second American Revolution recently.
The pressure has been building for some time.
Another Islamic attack on this country may be the tipping point.
The current government approved censorship of "Path to 9/11" is not helping.
Sooner or later it's gonna get outta hand. I pray the bloodshed will be minimal and restricted to the "other side."
Reminder to self; buy more ammo.
The third woman in the bottom picture isn't covering her face.Find her and cut her head off !!!
Great point.
They make it sound like people are afraid of Muslims SIMPLY because they are different and just don't understand them.
As you put it so well, there are many peoples, groups and nationalities we completly do not understand, yet we do not have a smidgen of fear towards them.
Must be that building exploding, airliner crashing, head sawing, pizza parlor bombing, mob-driven corpse dismembering, hostage taking stuff that does it.
Other than that, people don't seem to have any issue at all with Islam.
Liberals are the greatest danger to the well being of our country, even more so than Islamofascists. With Islamofascists, at least you can attempt to defend yourself. With liberals, they attempt to deny you not ony the tools to defend yourself, but the very RIGHT and the WILL to defend yourself.
And then they try to make you hate yourself for wanting to engage in what is an intelligent rational activity, that is, Self Defense.
islamophobia = caring for my family
I just love the "Let's imagine..." deals. They never understand that not only did Jews not do that, but Jews aren't going around bombing innocent civiians, tossing rockets into civiliand neighborhoods, forcing others to become Jews at the point of a gun, cutting off the heads of "infidels", etc....
Actually, I understand the religion quite well. The thing I don't understand is how anyone can believe that the insane rantings of Mohammad were inspired by 'Allah'.
Good God. Did that idiot really say that?
It is almost like explaining away fear and loathing of John Wayne Gacy by saying "Let's imagine, for example, that 19 Kindergarten Teachers dressed in clown costumes lured young boys and girls to their houses, captured, dismembered and ate them..."
Comments from idiots like this in the MSM are the main reason why I do not watch television, I do not watch the news and I do not read the newspapers.
And it is also why I feel safer when I hear the NYT or Boston Globe are laying off workers, or that network viewership continues to drop.
Oh yes it does.
You want Islamophobia? Make them all leave the country, ban them from all airline flights, then get back to me.
If you want to learn about phobia, listen to the rhetoric coming from the Islamo-fascists and their Muslim leaders. Somebody at ABC had better get real!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.