Tag Archives: country

CBS’s Erica Hill to Ann Coulter: Will Mosque Issue ‘Go Away’ Before November Elections?

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Speaking to conservative commentator Ann Coulter on Thursday’s CBS Early Show, fill-in co-host Erica Hill seemed to hope the Ground Zero mosque controversy had run its course: “Does it go away or does this continue through November?” Hill’s question to Coulter followed fellow guest, Democratic strategist Tanya Acker, ranting: “…the notion that in the United States of America we would deny people the right to have a religious edifice is simply – like, that’s just not – it’s unconscionable….I think that smart Republicans, fair Republicans, fair people of all political persuasions need to look – are looking at this really as a constitutional issue and really as a freedom issue. It should not be this political question that it’s become.” Picking up on Acker’s argument, Hill turned to Coulter: “So, it shouldn’t be a political issue. Though is it going to continue to be one as we head to November?” In her response, Coulter fired back at Acker: “I will say Tanya’s absolutely giving the Democratic position. America, you want a mosque at Ground Zero, you vote for the Democrats.” Acker angrily replied: “No. No, I’m giving – I’m giving the American position, Ann. I’m giving the American position because my constitution says that-” Hill then interrupted, notifying both guests that they were out of time. At the top of the segment, Hill asked both Coulter and Acker for their reactions to the pullout of major U.S. combat forces from Iraq. Beginning with Coulter, Hill wondered: “…this is happening two weeks ahead of President Obama’s schedule, Ann. Is this, perhaps, a step forward for the administration, some more positive news coming out?” Coulter replied: “Well, Iraq isn’t really his war. That is George Bush’s and it’s gone very well.” Hill interjected: “This was his deadline, though.” Here is a full transcript of the August 19 segment: 7:00AM TEASE HARRY SMITH: No regrets. President Obama insists Muslims have the right to build a community center and mosque near Ground Zero. Though a growing number of Democrats say it’s the wrong place, and a majority of Americans agree. 7:07AM SEGMENT: ERICA HILL: Joining us now with their take on the political impact of all this are conservative commentator Ann Coulter and Democratic Party strategist Tanya Acker. Good to have both of you with us this morning. So the last large U.S. combat brigade leaving Iraq. Obviously there are still troops there, as we heard from the General [Steven Lanza], talking about that as well. But this is happening two weeks ahead of President Obama’s schedule, Ann. Is this, perhaps, a step forward for the administration, some more positive news coming out? [ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Heading Towards The Midterms; Political Impact of Iraq Pullout] ANN COULTER: Well, Iraq isn’t really his war. That is George Bush’s and it’s gone very well. HILL: This was his deadline, though. COULTER: Afghanistan is his war and that’s not going so well. HILL: So you’re not seeing any positive- COULTER: No. I think he’s been a disaster on foreign policy. I mean, there was a reason to concentrate on Iraq. Iraq is good for regime change. The people are fairly educated. That is exactly the opposite in Afghanistan. You’re dealing with peasants who are stoning a couple who elope. Turning that country into a democracy, I think, is a pipe dream, which is why with Bush he went in, he knocked out the Taliban, left a few troops behind. But then turned the major war on terrorism into Iraq, a country that’s good military, that is sitting on a lot of oil, that’s in the middle of a crucial region of the world. What do we want to be in Afghanistan for? And instead, this president, purely out of political correctness, because he wanted to respond to MoveOn.org crowd about ‘oh, Iraq, it’s a war of convenience, whereas Afghanistan it’s a war of necessity.’ No, no, no, no, no. Bush cared about national security. This guy about – Obama cares about political correctness. And it’s a big mistake. HILL: Tanya, I hear you – I can hear you in the background there. I know you want to jump in, go ahead. TANYA ACKER: Well, it’s so funny because Ann’s perspective is so completely ahistorical, and also, it seems – she seems to not have a very good grasp of American political science. Barack Obama’s the President of the United States right now, which means that Iraq is his war. It also means Afghanistan, too, is his war, as it was George Bush’s war when he first directed that operation. I’d also remind Ann that Afghanistan is –  borders this country called Pakistan. And that’s – there’s a reason that we need to keep that country and that region of the world stable. But all that aside, and you know, putting some of that nonsense, bracketing that for a moment, I think the General [Steven Lanza] made a really good point. It is time now that we let the Iraqi people govern themselves. They need to rule themselves. And that – that military really needs to take responsibility for its own country’s security. We’re not gone. We’re going to provide a very important, valuable training mechanism. But I definitely think this is a step in the right direction. HILL: There’s been so much talk. It seems every day something new comes out about plans for a mosque and Islamic center near Ground Zero. Tanya, I’ll let you kick this one off. We’re hearing again from the President on this, saying he doesn’t regret those comments. Is this the kind of thing that’s going to go away or is this starting to shape, in fact, the road to November elections? ACKER: Well, you know, look, I think there are a lot of partisans who are going to try to turn this into an even nastier issue than it’s become. But I think that we would all be wise to follow Ted Olsen’s lead, George Bush’s former solicitor general who lost his wife on 9/11, who said that the notion that in the United States of America we would deny people the right to have a religious edifice is simply – like, that’s just not – it’s unconscionable. And I think the President’s doing the right thing. I think that smart Republicans, fair Republicans, fair people of all political persuasions need to look – are looking at this really as a constitutional issue and really as a freedom issue. It should not be this political question that it’s become. HILL: So, it shouldn’t be a political issue. Though is it going to continue to be one as we head to November? COULTER: Well, one person made it not only a political issue but a national political issue and that is President Obama. Who wanted a standing ovation from a Muslim audience at a Ramadan dinner at the White House. So he comes out in favor of the mosque. And then as soon as he’s not in front of a crowd that’s going to give him a standing ovation for that, he’s taken it back. I don’t know what his position is now that he claims he’s standing by. HILL: Does it go – does it go away though? Does it go away or does this continue through November, before I let you go? COULTER: Not until we know what’s going to happen to that mosque at Ground Zero. And I will say Tanya’s absolutely giving the Democratic position. America, you want a mosque at Ground Zero, you vote for the Democrats. ACKER: No. No, I’m giving – I’m giving the American position, Ann. I’m giving the American position because my constitution says that- HILL: Ladies, we have to leave it there. But there is much more to talk about in the months ahead. Don’t worry. Tanya Acker, Ann Coulter, good to have both of you with us this morning. ACKER: Thank you.

See original here:
CBS’s Erica Hill to Ann Coulter: Will Mosque Issue ‘Go Away’ Before November Elections?

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sarah Palin Supports Dr. Laura’s Use of the N-Word

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Sarah Palin has a new cause: defending Dr. Laura. The former vice-presidential nominee and ex-Alaska governor tweeted her support for Dr. Laura Schlessinger, who said she'd quit her radio show after coming under fire for repeatedly using the N-word while on-air with a caller. “Dr.Laura:don't retreat…reload! (Steps aside bc her 1st Amend.rights ceased 2exist thx 2activists trying 2silence”isn't American,not fair”),” Palin tweeted on Wednesday. Palin then said, “Dr.Laura=even more powerful & effective w/out the shackles, so watch out Constitutional obstructionists. And b thankful 4 her voice, America!” Schlessinger, 63, used the N-word 11 times in 5 minutes while trying to make a point about racism on her Aug. 10 show. She said on “Larry King Live” on Tuesday night she wouldn't return when her contract is up at the end of the year. While Schlessinger told King she was still “regretful” over the incident, she said her freedom of speech rights “have been usurped by angry, hateful groups who don't want to debate – they want to eliminate.” Palin faced a freedom-of-speech quandary of her own in July after Facebook unintentionally removed one of her posts where she vehemently disapproved a plan to build a mosque near Ground Zero. And this isn't the first time Palin has used the now-infamous “don't retreat, reload” slogan. In March, she said the phrase after the passage of the health care reform. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/08/19/2010-08-19_sarah_palin_suppo… added by: EmperorThan

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Celebrities, Hot Stuff

Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

OUTRAGE OVER PLANS TO BUILD LIBRARY NEXT TO SARAH PALIN

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

PLANS to build a state-of-the-art library next to Republican catastrophe Sarah Palin are causing outrage across mainstream America. Campaigners have described the project as insensitive and a deliberate act of provocation by people with brains. The issue is forming a dividing line in advance of November's mid-term congressional elections with candidates being forced to declare whether they have ever been to a library or spoken to someone who has books in their home. Meanwhile President Obama has caused unease within his own Democratic party by endorsing the library and claiming that not everyone who reads books is responsible for calling Mrs Palin a fuckwit nutjob nightmare of a human being. But Bill McKay, a leading member of the right-wing Teapot movement, said: “Sarah Palin is a hallowed place for Americans who can't read. “How is she going to feel knowing that every day there are people going inside a building to find things out for themselves and have thoughts, right in the very shadow of her amazing nipples.” He added: “Our founding fathers intended for every building in this country to be a church containing one book, written by Jesus, that would be read out in a strange voice by an orange man in a shiny suit who would also tell you who you were allowed to kill. “Building a library next to Mrs Palin is like Pearl Harbour. Or 9/11.” And Wayne Hayes, a pig masseur from Coontree, Virginia, said: “I is so angry right now. “It's like something is on fire right in the middle of my head. Like I've eaten a real hot chilli, but it's gone up my nose tubes rather than down my ass tubes.” He added: “Would these library lovers allow me to set up a stall next to the Smithsonian Museum and start selling DVDs of bible cartoons as long as it was in accordance with local regulations? “Oh they would? I see. So is that why they're better than me?” Almost 40% of Americans still support the idea of books. added by: toyotabedzrock

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Celebrities, Hot Stuff

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

AP Orders Staff: ‘Stop Using the Phrase “Ground Zero Mosque”’

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

In an unusual move, the Associated Press has publicly released an advisory memo to its reporters on how to cover of the Ground Zero mosque story – and the first rule is that journalists must immediately stop calling it the “Ground Zero mosque” story. “We should continue to avoid the phrase ‘Ground zero mosque’ or ‘mosque at ground zero’ on all platforms,” reads the advisory, which was issued by the AP’s Standards Center. Instead of the “Ground Zero mosque,” AP recommends that reporters use the terms “mosque 2 blocks from WTC site,” “Muslim (or Islamic) center near WTC site,” “mosque near ground zero,” or “mosque near WTC site.” The AP suggests that it might “useful in some stories to note that Muslim prayer services have been held since 2009 in the building that the new project will replace.” In addition, the news service offers a “succinct summary of President Obama’s position” on the mosque, but doesn’t include the positions of any other politicians. Also included in the advisory is a “Fact Check” to provide “additional background” for reporters. “A New York imam and his proposed mosque near ground zero are being demonized by political candidates – mostly Republicans – despite the fact that Islam is already very much a part of the World Trade Center neighborhood,” reads the first paragraph of the Fact Check. “And that Muslims pray inside the Pentagon, too, less than 80 feet from where terrorists attacked. And that the imam who’s being branded an extremist has been valued by both Republican and Democratic administrations as a moderate face of the faith.” One of the “facts” that the AP feels the need to “clarify” is that Ground Zero mosque organizer Feisal Abdul Rauf is a moderate Muslim. “Rauf counts former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright from the Clinton administration as a friend and appeared at events overseas or meetings in Washington with former President George W. Bush’s secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, and Bush adviser Karen Hughes,” says the article, though it does also mention briefly Rauf’s comments about America being an “accessory” to the Sept. 11 attacks. The advisory also “fact checks” pure opinion statements made by conservatives, like former House Speaker Newt Gringrich’s assertion that “America is experiencing an Islamist cultural-political offensive designed to undermine and destroy our civilization.” “Such opinions are shared by some Americans, while others are more reluctant to paint the religion with a broad brush and more welcoming of the faith in this country,” reads the Fact Check. “Bush, himself, while criticized at the time for stirring suspicions about American Muslims, traveled to a Washington mosque less than a week after the attacks to declare that terrorism is ‘not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace.'” AP is arguable the most influential news organization in the country, and many media outlets adhere to its guidelines in their reporting.

See the original post:
AP Orders Staff: ‘Stop Using the Phrase “Ground Zero Mosque”’

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Newsweek ‘Thought Experiment’: Why Not Cut Alaska Loose From the Union?

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Back in September 2008, MSNBC’s Chris Matthews floated a specious allegation that then-Governor Sarah Palin had ties to an advocate of Alaskan secession named Joe Vogler. Although the charge was roundly discredited, it was one of the many early attempts to smear Palin as a wacky extremist. Two years later, it appears at least one writer for a liberal magazine thinks Alaskan secession would be a fun little topic to bat around the Web. ” Thought Experiment: Should Alaska Secede From the U.S.? ” asked the headline for Daniel Stone’s August 18 The Gaggle blog post at Newsweek.com: August is slow around Washington, so we figured it’d be high time to toss around the idea of kicking Alaska out of the union—or the state leaving on its own accord. The reason? Those darn Alaskans are too conservative, too critical of federal government intrusion, yet they are net recipients of federal aid from Washington spending: A New York Times report from today points to the reason why: Alaskan politicians love to slam Washington for its over-the-top taxes, spending, and regulation of the state’s hefty reserves of natural resources. But when it comes to Washington giving back, Alaska is happy to take more money per capita than any other state. As of May, the Last Frontier, as it’s called, accepted $3,145 of stimulus funding per resident—money, mind you, that one of its senators and its sole member of Congress voted against. That’s not to say all Alaska lawmakers turn up their noses at D.C., but with one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country—7.9 percent, which is still high, but not as high as, say, Michigan at 13.1 percent—there’s an implicit question of how much Alaska needs Uncle Sam, and how much Uncle Sam needs Alaska. If the 49th state were to leave the union, the impact would be, at first, economically devastating, according to Gov. Sean Parnell. But over time, could Alaska, by taking control of its own regulation over oil and gas, open the state for new business, perhaps allowing it to boom in a way that, until now, Washington has apparently stifled? Let’s hear what you think. Open forum below.  This sudden academic interest in secession wouldn’t have anything to do with Palin Derangement Syndrome on the part of the media, would it?

Originally posted here:
Newsweek ‘Thought Experiment’: Why Not Cut Alaska Loose From the Union?

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

‘True-ish Grit?’ Hollywood Libs Attempt Remaking a Classic

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Hollywood westerns don’t sell very well anymore. Remakes of westerns don’t sell and they tend to remind those who do see them of the superiority of the originals. So remaking the iconic 1969 western, “True Grit,” for which John Wayne received his only Best Actor Oscar, seems an odd choice for the Coen brothers. But the extremely successful directors of “Fargo,” “Oh Brother Where Art Thou?” and “No Country for Old Men,” are indeed remaking “True Grit.” They stress that their effort is based more on the 1968 novel by Charles Portis than the original movie. Still, The Duke’s portrayal of hard-drinking, one-eyed Marshall Rooster Cogburn has been a TV staple for decades. Portis’ novel – not so much. The Coens’ quirky, often dark and sometimes absurd portraits of America couldn’t be much more different from any flick in John Wayne’s legendary career. And maybe that’s the point. After all, any movie with America-bashing lefty Matt Damon in an important supporting role is bound to be at odds with traditional takes on the American frontier. All the more-so because Damon admitted, “I’ve never even seen the original John Wayne movie.” The Coens cast 2010 Best Actor Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges as Cogburn. Bridges will have to be a heck of an actor to do the character justice, because in real life, he couldn’t be more different than Wayne, a traditional conservative. Bridges is an admitted pot-smoker and marijuana legalization advocate. On his website , Bridges has a page dedicated to the End Hunger Network, a charity he helped establish. While Bridges work with this charity is admirable, he downplays the role of charities on the page, and advocates for massive government intervention. We can never end hunger through the wonderful work of local charities – like other western democracies, we must end hunger through governmental leadership. Charity is nice for some things, but not as a way to feed a nation. We don’t protect our national security through charities and we shouldn’t protect our families that way either.  Included in the cast are Josh Brolin, son of James Brolin and stepson of actress and liberal activist Barbara Streisand. Brolin and Damon, who play’s Glenn Campbell’s old role as LeBeuf, have collaborated before. They participated (along with Hugo Chavez pal Danny Glover) in a History Channel Miniseries based around the 1980 anti-American revisionist book, “A People’s History of the United States,” written by communist historian Howard Zinn . And of course, there’s Damon, fresh from his failed anti-American agit-prop thriller, “The Green Zone.” So maybe the Coens know what they’re doing, and we can all look forward to “A People’s History of True Grit.”

Read the original:
‘True-ish Grit?’ Hollywood Libs Attempt Remaking a Classic

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Al Gore calls for climate movement, and we must answer

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

http://blog.algore.com/2010/08/the_movement_we_need.html In a post on his blog yesterday, Al Gore called for climate protests in America in response to the betrayal by our Congress in doing its moral duty to address the climate crisis. This is no small news, (though it will be treated as such in our media) this is a clarion call to begin a social movement to reclaim our soul as a nation and our moral conscience as a species make no mistake about that. Yet already the naysayers are attacking his words saying it is impossible, insane, and won't happen, especially in a bad recession. Funny how these same people don't seem to be complaining about unnecessary wars on two fronts causing trillions in deficits during a bad recession. But I digress. But allow me to answer their claims. Firstly, this will be an arduous task. That is a given especially here in America where on the whole people do not yet equate climate justice with jobs. We need to change that. People in America on the whole also do not yet equate something happening across the world with the potential to affect their lives. We need to explain that it indeed does and show them how it is affecting them now. People due to the already overabundance of partisan political spin also think this is solely a political issue. We definitely need to debunk that. In other words, this movement must not only be about protest, but accountability, education, enlightenment, moral conscience and solutions. Though as arduous a task as that may be it is definitely not impossible. It is no more impossible than the Civil Rights Movement or the Women's Suffrage Movement which dealt with many more obstacles regarding apparatus and getting the word out. In this technological age there should be little problem in organizing such a sustained movement. All we need is the will to do it, and we must. Secondly, I truly do question those who would call standing up for our only home insane. I personally believe it is insanity to continue to plunder and destroy the biodiversity of this planet. And that is exactly what we are doing. Our species, our oceans, plantlife, crops, all suffering from the overabundance of pollutants and toxins in our water and atmosphere and the effects of a warming world. Crops worldwide ruined by floods, droughts, and wildlfires which bring soil degradation, erosion to beaches causing sea level rise, and hunger from lack of food as well as a decline in potable water sources. Glaciers worldwide melting at a rapacious pace due to warming temperatures caused by the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, burning of carbon sinks, wasteful land management practices, black carbon(soot)and political impasse. The cost of such catastrophes if we remain on the road we are on will far exceed any such accountability placed on those causing this devastation. And the cost will not only be monetary, but it has been and will be in lives and in the quality of life. Therefore, standing up for our planet to reverse these destructive behaviors is the least insane thing we could do now as a species as we see our world hurtling towards the abyss. And lastly, it won't happen. This sounds more like wishful thinking for some than an actual fact to me, because even though there are many who fall in the above categories there are also millions in this country who do see the threat this crisis places on our ability to sustain our species in years to come. Only, they have been silent, or silenced. Silenced by big oil and coal lobbies. Silenced by a complicit media pumping out talking points and misinformation 24/7 in a desperate attempt to stay awash in profits. Silenced by a political system stained by oil and fear of change. And that is exactly why a nationwide climate justice movement is so desperately needed now. Strength in numbers, in purpose, in focus. I have lived my life from the time I was a very young girl of 12 always cognizant of my actions and how they would affect the present and the future. Always cognizant of the world I wanted my child to live in. A world of peace, prosperity, equality, and with an environment that reflected the true beauty and balance of humans. I'm not about to give up on that now. So I applaud Mr. Gore's throwing down the gauntlet and hope to see it and will participate in it. Because as arduous a task as it may be fraught with intimidation and even fears, there are some things more important than fear and this is one of them. Looking into the future taking into account the present world we live in and the world we will make if we do this as opposed to not doing it, there is no choice. And contrary to what some are saying, it wouldn't be a movement to call just for a carbon tax. This is about having a social movement that defines what we are as a species. This is about working to preserve this planet for future generations because as it stands now we are failing miserably on that score. This is about calling on politicians of all parties to do what is morally right. This is about us standing up with our collective conscience to a threat to our survival. This is about seeing the big picture. I have no illusions regarding the road ahead. However, it is a moment in history that will be shaped by what we choose to do and the future will judge us on it. I choose to stand on the side of truth and on the side of moral conscience. We cannot desert our Earth now for to do so would be a grave offense as well to those we love. This isn't just about carbon taxes or dividends; or solar panels; or green jobs; this is about who you see when you look in the mirror, and who looks up to you. Thank you Mr. Gore. I surely hope we are up to this generational challenge. added by: JanforGore

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Celebrities, Hot Stuff

Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Lauer to Giuliani: Some Say Mosque Protestors Were Ones That Added ‘Vitriol’ to the Debate

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

NBC’s Matt Lauer invited on Rudy Giuliani to discuss the controversy over the Ground Zero mosque with the former New York City mayor diplomatically addressing most of the religious freedom concerns while still recommending that the site be moved, but Lauer furthered the notion that the imam fronting the project was not at fault for the “vitriol” in the debate, as he questioned the former mayor: “Some would say he didn’t create the vicious, angry battle. That it’s the people who decided to weigh in on it who add, added the vitriol to the battle.” To which Giuliani responded that “they’re wrong…if you are a healer, you do not go forward with this project.” The following is the full interview with Giuliani as it was aired on the August 19 Today show: MATT LAUER: Now the debate raging over those plans to build a mosque near Ground Zero. The current mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, has been one of the most vocal proponents of that mosque. But former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has a different opinion. Mr. Mayor, good morning. It’s nice to see you. RUDY GIULIANI: Good morning. LAUER: What’s your problem with it? I mean most people say, look, it’s, it’s legal, it’s within the Constitution. We protect religious freedom in this country. Why don’t you think it should be built there? GIULIANI: I agree with all that. And beyond that it’s an as of right project, as far as I can tell under New York law. They never even had to go through all those reviews they went through. The question here is a question of sensitivity, people’s feelings. And, are you really what you pretend to be? As I understand this, this Cordoba House, the idea of it is to healing. To show that Muslims care about the same things as Christians and Jews do. That we’re one people. That we should be one. Well, if you’re going to, if you’re going to so horribly offend the people that were most directly offended by this, most directly affected by this, the families of the September 11 victims — who I happen to know and have gotten to know, you know, really well — then how are you healing? I mean all this is doing is creating more division, more anger, more hatred, and I mean, there are, there are- LAUER: Are you worried about the imam behind this project? In terms of his politics, his religious beliefs, do you find him to be anything but the moderate that he’s described as by the current administration, and by the way, the Bush administration before that? GIULIANI: I’m confused by the imam. I see all the things that you’re saying. But I also see a man who said that America was an accessory to September 11. That, those are the very words that required me to give $10 million back to an Arab chic or prince. He gave us $10 million for the 9/11 fund. LAUER: Let me just clarify so people understand what you’re saying. Shortly after 9/11 on 60 minutes he said, quote, “I wouldn’t say the United States deserved what happened, but United States policies were an accessory to the crime that happened on 9/11, because we have been accessory to a lot of innocent lives dying in the world.” GIULIANI: Well, that, that’s exactly what the, what the Arab prince said when he gave me $10 million. That America was an accessory to September 11 because of its foreign policy. America was not an accessory to September 11. All you gotta do is read about jihad. And the second thing, the second thing he said was, he refused to condemn Hamas, with whom he is alleged to have had some ties, as a terrorist group. It’s recognized by everyone as a terrorist group. And he said America should apologize. So, okay, that’s one part of him. The other part of him is he has had a history of appearing to be a healer, appearing to be someone that wants to talk about a moderate Islam. Appearing- LAUER: Yeah he’s made appearances with Condoleezza Rice and Karen Hughes. GIULIANI: -appearing, appearing to recognize there are two ways you can interpret the Koran. The, the better way, which is the peaceful way, or the warrior way, which is the way in which you get into trouble with jihad. But those quotes trouble me. But here’s what troubled me more. If he’s truly about healing, he will not go forward with this project, because this project is not healing. LAUER: Let, let me- GIULIANI: This project is divisive. This project is creating tremendous pain to people who have already paid the ultimate sacrifice. LAUER: There are a lot of, a lot of issues are divisive, and yet they have to be, tough choices have to be made. GIULIANI: But Matt- LAUER: Let me just play you- GIULIANI: But, but, but Matt, Matt. But Matt, there, there, that’s true. A lot of issues are divisive but if you want to claim to be the healer, then you’re not on the side of the person who is pushing those divisive issues. LAUER: Let me just play you something you said on, on our program, Meet the Press back on December 22nd of 2002. So about 14 months after 9/11. GIULIANI: Right. LAUER: Take a look. (Begin clip) GIULIANI: If you think about the, the attacks on September 11, I think everyone would acknowledge that part of the core of that attack was the fact that we have freedom of religion in America. That, that it’s part of why America was founded. It’s part of what we’re all about. It’s one of the most prominent things about us. That you can be a Catholic, a Protestant, a Jew, a Muslim, or no religion at all, and no one’s going to interfere with you. (End clip) LAUER: “And no one’s going to interfere with you.” By, by, by saying that these people shouldn’t build their mosque where they plan to build it, isn’t that interfering with them? GIULIANI: Well, of course not. First of all, they have freedom of religion. They can build it. They have every right to build it. The question is, should they build it? In, are they displaying the sensitivity they claim by building it? For example, the Pope asked the nuns to take a convent back from right in front of, I forgot if it was Auschwitz or one of the- LAUER: Auschwitz, it was Auschwitz. GIULIANI: -one of the concentration camps. They had a perfect right to be there. They had their freedom of religion there. The nuns were sensitive enough to the concerns of Jews that they pulled it back. Now here’s a man who is selling sensitivity. He’s got $180,000 in the bank, he wants to raise $100 million. Ask me how he’s going to do it, I don’t know. You don’t do it by creating this kind of vicious, sort of angry battle that’s going on. The people who are speaking about it- LAUER: Well some, some would say he didn’t create the vicious, angry battle. That it’s the people who decided to weigh in on it who add, added the vitriol to the battle. GIULIANI: And they’re wrong, and they’re all wrong. I was the first person on September 11 to step forward in the heat of battle, that afternoon, my third press conference and say, no group blame. Do not blame Arabs. We have to, we have to understand this is a small group, and we have to focus on them. But, the reality is, that right now, if you are a healer, you do not go forward with this project. LAUER: A couple of real quick things before- GIULIANI: If you’re a warrior, you do, but not a healer. LAUER: Before I let you go, a couple of quick things. Do you think union workers in this city- GIULIANI: I don’t know. LAUER: -plumbers, electricians, carpenters, will build on that site? GIULIANI: I told you, I told you before I returned to New York last night on an airplane, and I was walking and there were a couple of construction workers there and they told me, in their typical New York accent. “We ain’t working on that project. Let ’em see if they can go find somebody to work on that project.” My answer is, I know New York well enough, you’re going to probably find somebody to work on it. I question whether they can raise the money. Every indication from the attorney general’s reports of their charities are they have about $180,000. $100 million project. And then where is the money coming from? LAUER: In your gut do you think if we sit down a year from right now this project will be under construction at this site- GIULIANI: No. LAUER: -or a different site? GIULIANI: No. I think Governor Paterson had the best approach here. Nice compromise, find another place, have a beautiful mosque there. Don’t have it there. Don’t offend easily 80, 90 percent of the families are seriously offended. I know some people that are crying over this who have lost, who have lost loved ones. You, you or I might not even agree. We, we might say, “Okay, put the mosque there. What’s the, you know?” But maybe we haven’t lost that, that son, that father, person who if you’re watching their child today and you still remember every day that person is gone. It was an attack in the name of Islam. It was a perverted type of Islam. But a kind of prevalent view that goes on in a lot of parts of the world. So we gotta be sensitive to everybody here. LAUER: Rudy Giuliani, good to have you here. GIULIANI: Thank you, good to see you Matt. LAUER: Good to see you.

Visit link:
Lauer to Giuliani: Some Say Mosque Protestors Were Ones That Added ‘Vitriol’ to the Debate

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , ,

Time’s Sullivan Defends Obama’s Christianity, Attacks Conservatives for Perception by Some He’s Muslim

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

The number of Americans from all kinds of demographics who are unsure that President Obama is a Christian have grown since he’s been in office. For instance, “fewer than half of Democrats (46%) know Obama is a Christian, down from 55% in March 2009. Barely four-in-ten African-Americans say he’s a Christian, down from 56% last year,” an exasperated Amy Sullivan noted in an August 19 Swampland blog post at Time.com. So who’s fault is that? Conservatives, of course, the religion reporter insisted: It would also be foolish and naive to pretend that conservatives who call Obama a Muslim are doing it in a neutral way and that their intention is anything other than to raise questions about his “otherness.” Sullivan failed to name which prominent conservatives in particular she felt were responsible for moving public opinion on the president’s religious loyalties. But in her zeal to vigorously defend Obama as a follower of Christ, Sullivan concluded by asserting that the White House has to take care to “offset those perceptions [that Obama is secretly a Muslim] with a little more openness about the president’s real Christian faith.”   Perhaps Sullivan was being extremely charitable and wished to avoid rank cynicism, but not once did it occur to her that President Obama might be an agnostic who, like many Americans, nominally associates with the Christian faith because it’s a proper thing to do.   Prior to his presidency, might President Obama have attended — albeit infrequently — Trinity United Church of Christ out of a mix of a vague sense of social and familial obligation and political calculus? Sullivan leaves that possibility unexplored.   To her mind, Obama is unquestionably a Christian and that story must be put out there by the White House PR shop in order to bolster Obama’s connection with the electorate (emphasis mine): I suppose you could call the White House’s complete lack of concern about Obama’s religious image admirable. It wouldn’t be hard to imagine a crafty political adviser marching into the Oval Office and insisting: “Mr. President, I’m sorry, but we have to have you walking into a church every Sunday morning, preferably with a big Bible under your arm.” And i n a perfect world, nobody would give a hoot whether the president went to church or said grace before meals or ever uttered one word publicly about his religious beliefs. But these Pew results suggest that nearly two years after Americans elected Obama, they know less about him than they did when he was a presidential candidate still making his way onto their radar. Forget the question of what that means for 2012– it’s already a problem for a leader who wants to connect with the country. One last note on another finding I found fascinating: Of those Americans who think Obama is a Muslim, nearly one-quarter (24%) told Pew pollsters they think he talks about his faith too much. Which is impossible, of course, because Obama is not a Muslim, so he’s spent exactly zero minutes talking about being one. What the result really illustrates is how thoroughly those who oppose Obama are willing to read everything he says and does through a filter of distrust. Sixty percent of those who think Obama is a Muslim say they got that idea from the media. But interestingly, one-in-ten say they got it from Obama’s own behavior or words. They hear the Cairo speech or see the outreach to Muslim countries and assume, well of course, it’s because he’s Muslim. That doesn’t mean he shouldn’t engage in the outreach–far from it. But it does make it even more important for the White House to offset those perceptions with a little more openness about the president’s real Christian faith.

View post:
Time’s Sullivan Defends Obama’s Christianity, Attacks Conservatives for Perception by Some He’s Muslim

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Have You Attended/Will You Attend a Town Hall Meeting During the Recess?

Posted on August 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

See more here:
Have You Attended/Will You Attend a Town Hall Meeting During the Recess?

→ Leave a comment

Posted in Hollywood, Hot Stuff, News

Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,