N I Thought Only Malays Run Amok

Anti-Muslim Blogoshpere Runs Amuck: Forced to Eat Crow

Posted on 07 August 2009 by Garibaldi
gaza_wedding

Islamophobes purposefully mistook these girls as child brides

The Loon world was whipped into a frenzy based on, as usual, the reinforcing winds of ignorance and hate. In what was meant to be an unremarkable story, Tim Marshall a reporter for Sky News blogged on a mass wedding celebration in the Gaza Strip officiated by Hamas. Marshall reports in his excellent blog Islamophobia. Ignorance or Propaganda?,

The party is for 450 grooms, the brides are elsewhere, some among the 5,000 or so guests. It’s the way things are done here, Personally I’m for the mixing of the sexes, but I’m not about to argue, I’m outnumbered.

Up on the stage there’s music and dancing. Everyone’s having a good time, even me, although the Hamas robocops are making me a little nervous. Sure Hamas have cold blooded killers among them, sure they support the murder of children in Israel, sure they are cracking down on women’s rights, but many of their supporters are just ordinary people. And they need a break…Then the fireworks explode, the cheering begins, and in march the Hamas scouts, bashing drums, looking every inch the future Hamas fighters many will be. Then the grooms, aged about 18 to about 28. They are holding hands with their young nieces and cousins, little girls aged from about 3 to 8, made up to the nines, wearing white wedding dresses.

So what has gotten the Loon world completely riled up? Well it seems that many of the anti-Muslims misconstrued the occasion and thought the grooms were actually marrying the little girls who were their nieces or cousins! Tim Marshall explains,

Our report on this put it into context saying that it took place just a mile from the Israeli border and was a message from Hamas about its strength confidence and future fighters. Oh and that the brides were elsewhere. Pretty straightforward.

It never struck me for a moment that the little girls might later be described in the bloggersphere as the brides! How naive I am.

Dozens, and I mean dozens, of websites took the video of the event and wrote lurid stories about Hamas mass paedophilia with headlines about ‘450 child brides’, and endless copy about how disgusting this was, how it showed how depraved Islam is, et al, ad infinitum. Site after site jumped on the story, linking from one totally wrong load of rubbish to the next. I’ll give credit to Tundra Tabloids who at least took down the video, but most sites just ploughed on regardless.

So which sites are these, and what have the various reactions been? Bartholomew gives us a hint,

The many websites that picked this up have responded in various ways: some issuing corrections, some quickly deleting their postings, and some insisting that it’s all true and that Marshall is trying to cover up the fact: “Why”, demands one site “would Tim Marshall defend the Gaza pedophiles?” One of the sites that decided to scrub was Robert Spencer’s Jihad Watch, which is worth noting as Spencer claims some sort of academic expertise on Islam.

Where does this collective hallucination and fixation on fiction originate from? The simple, straight forward answer is that it comes from the collective hysterical hatred shared by those who despise Islam and Muslims. It is a manifestation of Islamophobia, “ie. an irrational fear of Islam.” It springs from the idea that Islam is evil, inherently backwards, oppressive to women. The talking point goes, “Muhammad was a pedophile who married 9 year old A’isha and these vile Mooslims must be doing it now on this massive scale!” George Readings puts this into some context in a recent post on The Spitoons (via Bartholemew),

The “argument” goes that Muslims believe Muhammad to be a perfect model for behaviour and therefore the fact of Muhammad’s marriage to A’isha somehow proves Islam to be a depraved religion…This attempt to aggressively apply a modern British definition of paedophilia to seventh century Arabia strikes me as a sign of severe anthropological illiteracy…

…Marriage to a pre-pubescant child with whom consummation occurs upon reaching puberty is not a model most people would be happy with in the modern world (although Bolivia sets the age of consent at puberty).

Which is probably why nearly all Muslim countries have reformed these rules beyond recognition. The age of consent in Algeria and Malaysia is 16, in Indonesia it is 19 for males and 16 for females. In Egypt it’s 18 for both and Tunisia 20. Reform has not, however, come to Saudi Arabia. Back in April the world followed the case of a mother trying to obtain a divorce for her eight-year-old daughter who had been married off by her father to a friend he owed a debt. In the end she succeeded and now there is even talk of Saudi Arabia preventing marriage before the age of 18.

Poor Tim Marshall scoured the net in an attempt to let the Islamophobes know that they had gotten it wrong but what was the result?

I spent a few hours visiting websites and leaving comments where I could. To little avail. Instead I received a steady stream of vitriol. The best response was on a site run by a Debbie Schlussel . The guy who posted it said he wasn’t interested in the detail. The detail being the fact that the girls weren’t the brides.

It showed how much some people want to believe nonsense like this, as it re-inforces their prejudices, always a comfortably fun thing to do. But Hamas, and the jihadists do enough terrible things without having to make things up about them. Most of the stuff I read was outright, unthinking, gleeful, Islamophobia from people who clearly knew nothing about Arab popular culture. It’s as is they really beleive that because there are examples of child brides, it means all weddings are with child brides.

Debbie Schlussel is not new to LoonWatch readers, her doozy looniness is par for the course, so Tim shouldn’t worry, but he hit the nail on the head when he wrote, “It showed how much some people want to believe nonsense like this, as it re-inforces their prejudices, always a comfortably fun thing to do.” This is exactly the case — loaded with a bagful of prejudice and preconceived notions the Islamophobes took the wedding to be an affirmation of their pre-set conjectures.

When they were presented with the fact that they had stupendously erred some corrected themselves while others went into denial. It almost reminds you of some Biblical literalists who believe the world is 6,000 years old, you can present them with all the overwhelming evidence that point to the fact that the world is many millions of times older but they will stubbornly hold on to their literal interpretation of the Bible. This is not much different, and serves as a sweeping manifestation of the kind of irrationality that ignorance coupled with hate can produce.

Taken from http://www.loonwatch.com/2009/08/anti-muslim-blogoshpere-runs-amuck-forced-to-eat-crow/

EDL

Every breath you take
Every move you make
Every bond you break, every step you take
I'll be watching you

Every single day
Every word you say
Every game you play, every night you stay
I'll be watching you

-Every Breath You'll take -The Police

Anti-fascists run EDL out of town

Far-right thugs planning an anti-Islamic demonstration in Manchester were forced back on Saturday following a mass counter-protest by anti-fascists. The English Defence League (EDL) was outnumbered by more than three to one by people of all races determined to defend Britain's diverse cultural mix.

Unite Against Fascism (UAF) said that the 700 EDL activists had been "run out of town" by 2,500 counter-protesters who occupied most of Piccadilly Gardens, destroying the organisers' plan to hold a rally and sing the national anthem on the spot.

Greater Manchester UAF spokesman Mike Gilligan hailed it as a "very successful day for the anti-racist movement" against a far-right march on a scale unseen in the city for decades.

"The number of counter-protesters was inspiring, representing a multicultural Manchester," said Mr Gilligan. "Our protesters reflected the energy, particularly of young people, who showed their disgust at the racists trying to group together in Manchester city centre," he added.

Members of EDL, which is closely affiliated with hooligan outfits such as Casuals United and neofascist groups around the country, made nazi salutes and traded insults over a line of riot police which separated the two groups of protesters. They waved banners declaring "Make Britain Safe" and "Extreme Islamists Out."

Five hundred police officers attended the scene and police made 48 arrests, around 32 from the EDL ranks. Grounds for arrest included suspicion of public order offences, affray, possession of an offensive weapon and racially aggravated public order offences.

UAF described the police as "heavy-handed," with at least three anti-fascists bitten by police dogs. Fellow activists charged the police with "protecting fascists." One protester was allegedly pushed into a van where a crisp packet had been shoved into the ventilation and the heating turned on full blast.

Links between the EDL and groups such as Casuals United and militant white supremacists Racial Force have sparked calls from some anti-fascist activists for increased activity in the struggle to suppress these groups. Thousands of anti-fascists are currently organising to neutralise planned far-right rallies in coming weeks by the English, Welsh and Scottish Defence leagues in Swansea, Newport, Leeds and Glasgow. Anti-fascists are also planning to hold a national demonstration to allow the British public to express its opposition to the far right.

Morning Star, 12 October 2009
Posted on Monday, October 12, 2009 by Registered Commenter
Martin Sullivan in Far Right Racists, Resisting Islamophobia, UK

Copyright notice: This site copyright Islamophobia Watch collective. All material remains copyright of original author and publisher, as cited in documents. Copyright material is posted on this website for the purposes of criticism or review. 'Islamophobia Watch' is a non profit making venture documenting material already in the public domain.

Richard Bartholomew: New Anti-Islam Group, Same Old Faces

Posted on September 27, 2009 by Richard Bartholomew

Apparently there are not enough organisations of right-wing pundits dedicated to revealing the awful truth about Islam and Muslims in America; step forward “Stop Islamization of America”:

WASHINGTON – Stop Islamization of America (SIOA) will hold an organizational launch and press conference with speakers and panel discussion on September 25th, to coincide with Islam on Capitol Hill Day and the 220th anniversary of the passage of the Bill of Rights.

SIOA is an educational and human rights organization with two foundational principles: Love and Compassion.

SIOA’s mission is to educate the American people about the political doctrine of Islam, its history, Sharia (Islamic Law), and Jihad. SIOA believes that Sharia Law is incompatible with our Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Seven experts are scheduled to speak on the subjects of Islam, terrorism and civic responsibility.

Rabbi Jon Hausman – Conservative political moderator
Rebecca Bynum – Publisher, Senior Managing Editor – New English Review
Dave Gaubatz – Veteran counter-terrorism investigator, author
Catherine Martin – Veteran grass roots activist, Northern Virginia
John Cosgrove – Counter-terrorism consultant
Martin Mawyer – Founder, Christian Action Network
Jerry Gordon – Senior Editor – New English Review

Attendees will be asked to speak with their Congressmen about Sharia Law, two acts before Congress (the Free Speech Protection Act and the Act to Protect First Responders Fighting Terrorism) and the effort to help protect those who leave Islam from reprisals.

The founder is a slightly mysterious “DL Adams”, but some of the other names are familiar; it looks to me that these outfits simply shuffle the pack of usual characters and get some publicity by announcing a launch. Dave Gaubatz is responsible for a risibly-conceived ”Mapping Shari’a in America” project, which I discussed here; Mawyer was best-known for virulent anti-gay rhetoric in the 1990s before he jumped on the anti-Islam bandwagon, and just recently – as I blogged here – he was in the UK interviewing balaclava-clad English Defence League activists. Hausman is a Rabbi in the Conservative tradition, and Geert Wilders has addressed his synagogue; according to a profile in the New English Review, on the day Wilders came,

That afternoon, Rabbi Jon Hausman spiritual leader of Ahavath Torah, was feted, called a ‘hero’ and given an ovation at a Republican Jewish Coalition New England Chapter luncheon. Many anti-Jihad activists were in the audience, among them, Charles Jacobs, founder of the David Project, Andrew Bostom, author of The Legacy of Jihad and The Legacy of Islamic Antisemitism, and Professor Dennis Hale of Boston College.

Martin, meanwhile, is with Brigitte Gabriel’s “ACT for America”. Bynam, writing in the New English Review, has authoritarian perspective, believing that Islam should be banned as “seditious” and that American Muslims who are convicted of criminal activity “that is prompted by or connected specifically to beliefs that are part of their mental makeup and cannot be shed as long as they are loyal to Islam” should be deported. Like the group I noted yesterday, she also commends the views of a certain Bill Warner, a private detective from Florida who purports to be an expert on “Political Islam” (he has a PhD and is a ”Consultant to the FBI and ICE on smuggling of vehicles from the USA to Dubai and into Iraq in support of terrorism”). Bynum also dabbles in theology.

Cosgrove is with Jesse Petrilla’s “United America Committee” (which in turn is linked to the “United British Alliance”), and he was one of yesterday’s protestors in Washington; according to Fox:

…John Cosgrove, who identified himself as a counterterrorism consultant, called on “American males” to “stand shoulder to shoulder” in the battle to save America from the imposition of Sharia on American law. Sharia is a body of Islamic law used, with varying degrees of severity and harshness toward women, in many Muslim societies. At one point, Cosgrove brandished a book called The Quranic Concept of War to demonstrate the supposedly aggressive and confrontational nature of ancient and modern Islam.

Noting the arguments of some that Thomas Jefferson possessed a copy of the Koran, Cosgrove conceded this was true and added: “He had it so that he could know his enemy, so he could confront them, know them, kill them, and vanquish the Islamic pirates, the scourge of the seas and spreading tyranny abroad. After reading the Koran, founding the Marines and expanding the Navy to go kill them, I think he laid the Koran down thinking perhaps he was done. Sadly, it was not the case.”

Cosgrove has probably got this from Christian Right pseudo-historian David Barton - in fact, Jefferson acquired his Koran in 1765, twenty years before he confronted the pirates (1). It’s a small point, but symptomatic of a sloppy and opportunistic attitude. What exactly his qualifications are for being a “counter-terrorism consultant” remain obscure.

Back in February, a number of these persons came to together to promote a documentary by Mawyer. Jeffrey Imm of the wonderfully-named “Anti-Jihad League of America” explained in Family Security Matters that:

The Washington D.C. audience was invited to attend the premiere screening by the Christian Action Network through e-mails, promotion of the event by anti-jihad web sites and organizations, and local radio promotion by Washington D.C. area’s WAVA-FM radio host Don Kroah. Local activist groups also promoted the anti-jihad event, with attendance by DC area activist leaders Catherine Martin (ACT!For America – Northern Virginia & DC Metro Chapter), John Cosgrove (United American Committee, Virginia Chapter), and Jeffrey Imm (Anti-Jihad League of America), among others.

I sometimes get irritated comments from people (particularly a certain “June” of late) who think my blog entries on this kind of thing mean that I must be wishing to minimise or ignore the threat of Islamic extremism. That’s not actually the case, and for a every right-wing demagogue who wants to whip up anti-Islamic feeling, it should be remembered there are Muslim extremists who are perhaps even more effective in causing people to fear the religion (and I have written about those, too). But as with the 1950s “Red Scare” (and other situations), the existence of a real security threat does not mean that one should uncritically embrace anyone who comes along with some posturing rhetoric and self-proclaimed expertise offering easy answers.

(Incidentally, there is no indication of any link between SIOA to Stephen Gash’s “Stop Islamization of Europe”.)

(1) See Douglas A. Hicks, With God on All Sides: Leadership in a Devout and Diverse America, Oxford University Press, pp. 111-112. This blog has further details:

We do not know for certain why he purchased it…The only substantial scholarly treatment of this specific topic that I’m aware of is Kevin Hayes’ 2004 article in Early American Literature, “How Thomas Jefferson Read the Qur’an.” Hayes suggests that Jefferson’s primary motivation in purchasing the Qur’an was his interest in it as a legal text. This seems highly plausible to me. What does not seem plausible is that, 21 years before he encountered a representative of an Islamic country in a professional capacity, he 1) decided that he considered Muslims his “enemy” and 2) conceived of a need to study their main religious text so as to be better equipped for conflict with them.

3 Responses

1.
mrs grimble, on September 27th, 2009 at 11:43 am Said:

I’m waiting for somebody to rewrite the Protocols to make it appear that they were originally written by Muslims. Then I’ll know that these anti-Islamic loons ignore history.
Reply
2.
Greg Bacon, on September 27th, 2009 at 1:35 pm Said:

History, what’s that? The only history I need is what FOX News tells me. :)

Looks like the Muslims are too late in getting that Sharia law. The USA has already been put under the rule of Judeofascists, some of whom are tricking the gullible into fighting endless wars for Israel.

The U.S. Congress officially recognized the Noahide Laws in legislation which was passed by both houses. Congress and the President of the United States, George Bush, indicated in Public Law 102-14, 102nd Congress, that the United States of America was founded upon the Seven Universal Laws of Noah, and that these Laws have been the bedrock of society from the dawn of civilization. They also acknowledged that the Seven Laws of Noah are the foundation upon which civilization stands and that recent weakening of these principles threaten the fabric of civilized society, and that justified preoccupation in educating the Citizens of the United States of America and future generations is needed. For this purpose, this Public Law designated March 26, 1991 as Education Day, U.S.A.

http://www.auburn.edu/~allenkc/7laws.html

Have we already forgotten the horrible lessons of Europe’s Religious Wars?

Lucky for them, they didn’t have nukes or the human race wouldn’t be here today.
Reply
3.
Greg Bacon, on September 27th, 2009 at 3:39 pm Said:

If you haven’t read “Top Ten Ways to Convince the Muslims We’re On a Crusade” at Alternet, it’s well worth the time. Here’s parts:

7. Paint crosses and Christian messages on military vehicles and drive them through Iraq.

The title of Jeff Sharlet’s May 2009 Harper’s magazine cover story, “Jesus Killed Mohammed: The Crusade for a Christian military,” actually comes from one such vehicular message. “Jesus killed Mohammed” was painted in large red Arabic lettering on a Bradley Fighting Vehicle, drawing fire from nearly every doorway as it was driven through Samarra.

Other vehicles have sported everything from the Islamic crescent overlaid with the internationally recognized red circle and slash “No” sign to crosses hanging from gun barrels. The photo of the tank named “New Testament” was actually released by a military public relations office.

6. Make sure that our Christian soldiers and chaplains see the war as a way to fulfill the ‘great commission.’

5. Post on the Internet photos of U.S. soldiers with their rifles and Bibles.

The indoctrination of basic trainees at Fort Jackson, the Army’s largest basic-training installation, is a program called “God’s Basic Training,” in which the recruits are taught that “The Military = ‘God’s Ministers’ ” and that one of their responsibilities is “To punish those who do evil” as “God’s servant, an angel of wrath.”

2. Make sure Bibles and evangelizing materials sent to Muslim lands have official U.S. military emblems on them.

1. Send lots of Bibles in Arabic, Dari and Pashtu languages to convert the Muslims.

http://www.alternet.org/world/142839/10_ways_the_u.s._military_has_shoved_christianity_down_muslims‘_throats_/?comments=view&cID=1329604#c1329604

That the immoral and illegal invasion of Iraq was based on a pack of lies, told by con men, thieves and murderers was bad enough.

To send American combat troops into Iraq and Afghanistan, with an M-16 in one hand and the bible in the other doesn’t bode well for sanity or humanity.

These Christian extremists, mostly Evangelical and Pentecostal types, are infiltrating the US Armed Forces, mostly the Army and Air Force and turning our kids into “Killers for Christ.”

Taken from http://barthsnotes.wordpress.com