Tag Archives: fringe

Audrina Patridge Gets To Play ‘Dress-Up’ On ‘Dancing With The Stars’

Posted on September 20, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

‘I’m definitely involved in the design, the colors, textures, cuts,’ former ‘Hills’ star tells MTV News. By Kara Warner Tony Dovolani and Audrina Patridge Photo: ABC If her enthusiastic Twitter feed is any indication, Audrina Patridge and partner Tony Dovolani (also an avid tweeter ) are ready to wow their fans on the “Dancing With the Stars” season premiere Monday night (September 20). When we caught up with the former “Hills” star recently, she told us that, aside from all her sore muscles, she was having a blast getting to know her partner and all his dance techniques. “He is amazing,” she said. “He’s such a great teacher. He’s very professional, and we have a lot of fun together. It’s really fun. I look forward to going to rehearsal every day.” Regarding the challenges she’s faced in learning so many new steps and routines, we wondered whether having to dance in high heels adds to the difficulty. “It’s not that bad, because I’m used to wearing 5- or 6-inch heels,” the stiletto-sporting Patridge said. “The ballroom heels are actually 2 or 2 and a half inches [high]. I had to get to that height, because I’m used to really high heels, so it’s not bad at all.” In addition to Patridge’s fancy footwork, one more thing to pay attention to when you tune into the show’s premiere are her flashy costumes, which she had a hand in designing. “All the costume designers are really good,” Patridge said. “I’m giving them tear sheets and different ideas that I like to inspire each costume, but it really depends on your body and what looks good on each person. I’m definitely involved in the design, the colors, textures, cuts and this and that, so it’s really fun.” When asked if she had a favorite costume yet, complete with the famously flashy ballroom dance accessories — i.e., feathers, sequins and ruffles — Patridge hadn’t decided. “I don’t know yet, because each dance is so different, so it requires a different costume,” she said. “Whether ruffles or fringe, I can’t say, but I love everything. It’s like playing dress-up.” Will you watch Audrina and Tony on “Dancing With the Stars”? Have you picked a favorite couple yet? Let us know in the comments!

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Audrina Patridge Gets To Play ‘Dress-Up’ On ‘Dancing With The Stars’

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Which GOP Senate Candidate Gets the Worst Media Treatment?

Posted on September 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

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Which GOP Senate Candidate Gets the Worst Media Treatment?

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Harsh Attacks Against Christine O’Donnell Continue on ABC: Carville Slams ‘Deadbeat’ Nominee

Posted on September 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

For the second day in a row, Good Morning America featured degrading descriptions of Delaware senatorial candidate Christine O’Donnell. Democratic strategist James Carville appeared on Thursday’s show and fumed about the Republican’s past financial problems: ” Christine O’Donnell doesn’t believe in spending, particularly her own money, because, she’s a deadbeat. She doesn’t pay her loans back .” Wednesday’s GMA included host George Stephanopoulos reading quotes against the “mentally unhinged” “liar.” The show on Thursday showcased an extended conversation on masturbation and remarks O’Donnell made about the subject in 1996. Stephanopoulos played a clip and then Carville joked, “And she equated masturbation to adultery. And, boy, if that’s the case, the Iranians would be stoning a lot of people in this country.” In fairness, after playing the snippet of O’Donnell’s 14-year-old comment, the ABC host wondered, “But, I think a lot of people might watch [the clip] and say, what’s wrong with she said?” The segment also featured conservative radio host and Tea Party activist Dana Loesch who chided, “She’s talking about masturbation. It’s not like she’s wearing black socks and getting caught in hotel rooms with call girls and stuff. If we want to point fingers on bedroom antics, we can do that.” Stephanopoulos did bring up the gloom hanging over the Democrats in the midterm, but he turned to the subject of whether the “extreme views” of Tea Partiers will “cost Republican seats that they otherwise would have won.” A transcript of the September 16 segment, which aired at 7:05am EDT, follows: GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Let’s get into the debate now. We’re joined now from St. Louis, Missouri, by radio talk show host and tea party activist, Dana Loesch. And from Washington, Democratic strategist James Carville. And, Dana, let me begin with you. You saw Joe Biden out there last night. There’s the White House message. Moderates need not apply to the Republican Party. DAN LOESCH: Well, I’ve seen several elections where moderates in the Democrat Party have been run out on a rail, like Elijah Lovejoy. What we’re seeing with the Republican Party in the particular case of Mike Castle, I think calling him a moderate is especially generous. This guy’s record was indistinguishable from the Democrat to which he wanted to run against in the general election. And what we saw- This was the people of Delaware that spoke. This wasn’t a group of Republicans. They tried to nominate Mike Castle. But, the primaries are all about getting the people’s voice out there. That’s what we saw in this primary with Christine O’Donnell. And the people made their voices heard that they were unhappy with Mike Castle’s record. STEPHANOPOULOS: And, James, there is some evidence out there that Tea Party is not just on the fringes right now. Want to show you the numbers from our latest Washington Post/ABC News poll. It shows that Tea Party supporters now make up 44 percent of the primary electorate. Those who really, strongly support the Tea Party, almost a quarter of the electorate. And these guys overwhelmingly are focused on Democrats. 92 percent Of them believe that Democrats don’t deserve re-election. That is a warning sign for the Democrats in November. JAMES CARVILLE: Well, certainly. And congratulations. The Tea Party- This comports with the research we did at the Democracy Corps. The Tea Party is more powerful to the Republican Party than African-Americans and organized labor combined are in the Democratic Party. And you’re exactly right, George. People like Christine O’Donnell are part of the mainstream Republican Party right now. If you look at what happened in New York State. Elijah Lovejoy? What about Robert Bennett? What about Murkowski in Alaska? What about Mike Castle? I mean, been these people have been going on about Elijah Lovejoy, but I know what’s happening over there. And the Tea Party is the Republican Party. This is not a fringe element of the Republican Party. This woman, O’Donnell, is right in the middle of it. And it’s exactly right. They are a very, very powerful force. And they’re running that party right now. STEPHANOPOULOS: And, Dana, the Democrats are hoping that candidates supported by the Tea Party, candidates like Sharron Angle in Nevada, like Rand Paul, like Christine O’Donnell, because they lack experience or have what some would consider extreme views, will cost Republican seats that they otherwise would have won. LOESCH: I don’t know if they have extreme views. I don’t think the Tea Party movement is mainstream- I think it’s mainstream America, period. We’ve seen so much data coming up from the past year, that the majority of Americans, they believe that the Democrat congressional agenda is too extreme. They identify with the individual liberty and smaller government that the grassroots movement espouses. And candidates like Sharron Angle and Rand Paul, these are people- it’s not beltway experience or abstain that they don’t have. It’s the fact they’re standing up for principles that the majority of Americans want. I want the government out of my pocketbook and my bedroom, and everything else. And hat’s what the majority of Americans want. That’s the platform that these candidates stand upon. STEPHANOPOULOS: As someone wrote in the Wall Street Journal this morning, James, it’s the spending, stupid. CARVILLE: Well, clearly, Christine O’Donnell doesn’t believe in spending, particularly her own money, because, she’s a deadbeat. She doesn’t pay her loans back. There’s a lien on her house. We could really classify her as anti-spending . In terms of getting in the bedroom this, woman has run against masturbation. I don’t- That seems to be a lot of government intrusion, to be honest with you. It’s right in the New York Times this morning. I’m sorry. She’s really against spending. She’s not going to spend any of her own money. But again this, is the Republican Party. It’s anti-spending. It’s promoting a bunch of deadbeats. STEPHANOPOULOS: I think we have the clip that James may be referring to. So, why don’t I show that and get you to respond? Here it was, I think, in 1996 on MTV O’DONNELL: The reason that you don’t tell them that masturbation is the answer to AIDS and all these other problems that come with sex outside of marriage is because, again, it is not addressing the issue. You’re going to be pleasing each other. And if he already knows what pleases him and he can please himself, then why am I in the picture? STEPHANOPOULOS: James brought it up. But, I think a lot of people might watch it and say, what’s wrong with she said? LOESCH: Yeah. She’s talking about masturbation. It’s not like she’s wearing black socks and getting caught in hotel rooms with call girls and stuff. If we want to point fingers on bedroom antics, we can do that. I mean, this is- She didn’t say anything- some of the stuff she said in her past, I don’t think anybody, if you look back at the history of everything Mr. Carville has said and, George, you and myself, not everyone is going to be perfect. Perfection, if it were required for public office, nobody would be fit to run. But, I don’t like the class warfare, sort of, angle that Karl Rove seemed to have taken when he was speaking about her. That’s something that bugged me a little bit. STEPHANOPOULOS: James, you get ten seconds to end this. CARVILLE: Well, look, again, like I said, she’s a very fiscal conservative. She doesn’t believe in paying her bills. And she equated masturbation to adultery. And, boy, if that’s the case, the Iranians would be stoning a lot of people in this country. I’ll tell you that.

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Harsh Attacks Against Christine O’Donnell Continue on ABC: Carville Slams ‘Deadbeat’ Nominee

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Atlantic Editor: Bush, Gingrich Among Worst Political Baby-Boomers

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Appearing on MSNBC to present his magazine’s feature piece critical of the “Baby Boomer” generation, James Bennet of The Atlantic named George W. Bush, Newt Gingrich, and Bill Clinton as the three worst “baby boomers” who did the most harm to the country’s political culture and its economy. “It’d be hard not to point to George W. Bush as having done a lot of damage,” Bennet asserted.  Bush, he added, “created a lot of programs that costed us a huge amount of money, without a lot of regard for what the effects are going to be on the folks that are going to have to pay for those for many years.” Bennet also blamed President Clinton and Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich for failed policies. However, Bennet was quick to reference the “surpluses as far as the eye could see” at the end of the Clinton administration, as a counterweight to Clinton’s damage while in office. He bafflingly lauded President George H.W. Bush’s tax hike as “politically brave” and which helped create the prosperity of the Clinton years. The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief made these arguments on the September 14 “Morning Joe” during the 8 a.m. hour. Bennet asserted that his piece focuses on the fiscal irresponsibility of the Boomer generation. “The ultimate point it makes is… that these guys are about to pass on a legacy of debt to their own children and grandchildren that, I mean, that they basically bankrupted the country.” Bennet labeled the Baby-Boomers as “self-absorbed” and “self-loathing.” Bennet also praised the Boomers for their liberal social achievements, namely helping end the Vietnam War, and introducing environmentalism, gay rights, and feminism to the national debate. “They really changed the ethos, the political ethos, for the country in a good way, in addition to doing all the harm you were talking about,” Bennet told show co-host Joe Scarborough. “Something that needs to be said for the Boomers… is that the other generational labels really haven’t stuck,” Bennet argued. “You know, the Boomers, it should be said for them, at least have a kind of definition as a generation.”

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Rick Sanchez: Some ‘Far-Right’ Tea Partiers Wouldn’t Vote for Reagan, Too Liberal

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

CNN’s Rick Sanchez thinks that Ronald Reagan wouldn’t even be conservative enough for certain members of the Tea Party. In lieu of tomorrow’s Republican Senate Primary in Delaware, Sanchez gave his take on the prospect of the state’s Tea Party voters ousting another moderate Republican establishment candidate in favor of a more conservative choice. “But you know what’s interesting about this,” Sanchez remarked, “I mean if you put this in perspective, Ronald Reagan would be taken out of the mix by some of these more far-Right Tea Party folks. Richard Nixon would never have become the President of the United States.” “I mean, there’s really a move that comes not even right-of-center, really far Right, pushing out the guys that are closer to the middle,” Sanchez stated. He asked if it wouldn’t be harder for Republicans to win an election with a fringe candidate rather than with an establishment candidate. Meanwhile, CNN correspondent Jessica Yellin disagreed with him over his assessment of Tea Party voters and Reagan. “One, I suspect many Tea Party activists would disagree with you on Ronald Reagan, because Reagan is a hero to many of them,” Yellin responded. But Sanchez wouldn’t budge. “We would quibble back with immigration, for example. Ronald Reagan would say – Ronald Reagan would be called by anyone in the Tea Party today a “pro-amnesty Republican. That’s what he would be called.” “Well, everybody reads history the way they want,” Yellin answered. Sanchez described the establishment candidate in the primary, Congressman Mike Castle, as “respectable” and “conservative enough” for the region. Castle has a lifetime ACU rating of 52. A transcript of the segment, which aired on September 13, at 3:21 p.m. EDT, is as follows: RICK SANCHEZ, CNN anchor: Not finding Congressman Mike Castle, Republican, conservative enough, the Tea Party is now pushing candidate Christine O’Donnell in the Republican primary. And Jessica Yellin’s all over this primary for us. I mean, this is interesting. Because, you know, once again, you got a guy like Mike Castle, most people think Mike is a, you know, respectable, Republican, conservative enough, especially considered for his region. I mean, we’re talking about a Republican from the Northeast, we’re not talking about an Arizona Republican for example. And yet, they want to crush this guy. What’s going on? JESSICA YELLIN: Well he’s a middle-of-the-road Republican in a state that’s pretty middle-of-the-road, and he’s very well-known and popular statewide, Rick. But he – but tomorrow when the primary is held, only Republicans can vote. Democrats and Independents cannot vote in it. So it’s a close primary, and this year you know what has happened to moderate, middle-of-the-road Republicans. They’ve largely been targeted by these Tea Party candidates, and the latest development is that Sarah Palin has now recorded a robo-call for Castle’s opponent, Christine O’Donnell, which she’s broadcasting on the radio here. And it essentially accuses “establishment Republicans” of being desperate in trying to smear O’Donnell with “vicious” personal attacks. So it’s become very personal, very mean, in a state that really is not used to this kind of harsh campaigning. It’s very new to Delaware voters. SANCHEZ: But you know what’s interesting about this, I mean if you put this in perspective, Ronald Reagan would be taken out of the mix by some of these more far-Right Tea Party folks. Richard Nixon would never have become the President of the United States. I mean, there’s really a move that comes not even right-of-center, really far Right, pushing out the guys that are closer to the middle, which means when they do have a general election, they probably will get the support; or I imagine they’re thinking about this, and I don’t know if we’ve done any reporting on this – would it be harder for them to win some of these elections, in Delaware, for example, if you’ve got somebody who’s on the far right as opposed to the middle or even right-of-center?” YELLIN: Two points. One, I suspect many Tea Party activists would disagree with you on Ronald Reagan, because Reagan is a hero to many of them. And you can quibble about whether his policies actually square with what they say now, which is – SANCHEZ: Well, you can start – well, you could, you could – I mean, we would quibble back with immigration, for example. Ronald Reagan would say – Ronald Reagan would be called by anyone in the Tea Party today a “pro-amnesty Republican.” That’s what he would be called. YELLIN: And I’m sure they’d be – I’m sure they’d be happy to quibble with you over it, Rick. But – SANCHEZ: Well they couldn’t, it’s the policy! He’s the guy who – I mean they couldn’t. He’s the guy who actually did that – YELLIN: Well, everybody reads history the way they want. SANCHEZ: Alright, go on. YELLIN: Um, the, uh – the point that you’re making, which is that are some of these candidates unelectable – is actually a point that some Tea Party groups are concerned with. You know Dick Armey who runs FreedomWorks, that very active national umbrella group that supported a lot of Tea Party candidates, his group says no, they’re staying out of this race and they’re not going to back Christine O’Donnell, this Tea Party candidate because they don’t think she’s electable. There’s just too much, and too many reasons why they don’t think she’ll win. So that’s an unusual wrinkle this election season. And there are a lot of Democrats that are excited about the prospect of O’Donnell winning, because they actually think that means Democrats would hold the seat statewide. Democrats agree she is not electable statewide. So she’s a risky gamble for the Republican Party.

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Rick Sanchez: Some ‘Far-Right’ Tea Partiers Wouldn’t Vote for Reagan, Too Liberal

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Dan Rather Smacks Down Entire Matthews Panel Over Media Hyping Koran Burning

Posted on September 12, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Dan Rather this weekend smacked down the entire panel of the syndicated “Chris Matthews Show” over the press hyping Pastor Terry Jones’s threats to burn Korans on the ninth anniversary of 9/11. “Media in general bear some responsibility here by running so hard with this story so early and putting such comments as you just said not only on the air, but high on the air, giving it play,” Rather said. When everyone on the set – including Matthews, Katty Kay of the BBC, Andrea Mitchell of NBC, and David Ignatius of the Washington Post – disagreed with him, Rather pushed back, “We do have a responsibility, however you want to describe us, as gatekeepers.” He continued, “We could do a better job of putting it in perspective, putting it into context” (video follows with transcript and commentary):  DAN RATHER, HDNET: That’s a very important point. And let’s not forget here that the press, and it–media in general bear some responsibility here by running so hard with this story so early and putting such comments as you just said not only on the air, but high on the air, giving it play. We have a lot to answer for on this, as well, and I think we’ve all learned something out of this. You know, the message that–if we consider–if we allow it–the air to get out that we think all Muslims are enemies, then we’re going to have them all as enemies. We have to be very careful about that, and particularly this happening in the roll up to 9/11 when we should be in remembrance, in reverence and in resolve, to get caught up in this small thing, we’ve all got a lot to answer for. After some largely irrelevant discussion, Mitchell chose to disagree with Rather’s view:  ANDREA MITCHELL (NBC Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent): I was going to say that in this current atmosphere, the viral nature of this, the blogosphere, there’s almost no way to contain this kind of conflagration, even if it is one minor… CHRIS MATTHEWS, HOST: If the big networks… Ms. MITCHELL: …ridiculous…(unintelligible). MATTHEWS: …even if the big networks conspired together, which they don’t do, and you got together a meeting of four or five top people in the news organizations… Mr. RATHER: (Unintelligible) MATTHEWS: …that wouldn’t keep the kid with the cell phone from going down… KATTY KAY (BBC Washington Correspondent): They are hearing it out in Afghanistan. Ms. MITCHELL: We have to also remember… Ms. KAY: They are hearing it in Afghanistan and responding. Ms. MITCHELL: …the way it is perceived because overseas, there is no sense that well, there’s freedom of press, there’s a First Amendment, the president of the United States can’t order this man off the stage. MATTHEWS: What did you make of Maliki saying to the president of the United States, `You have to put out this fire’? Doesn’t he get it? Ms. MITCHELL: No. If he got it, we would have a government in Iraq six, seven months later. MATTHEWS: David, don’t they get the fact that the president of the United States, despite all the talk in this country about socialist dictatorship and all this, there’s an awful lot of freedom in this country. DAVID IGNATIUS (Columnist The Washington Post): That’s precisely what they don’t get. I mean, if President Mubarak was angry about somebody saying something… Ms. MITCHELL: Yeah. Mr. IGNATIUS: …that person would be in prison… Ms. KAY: Right. Mr. IGNATIUS: …the next–the next hour. Ms. KAY: And President Mubarak would never come out and say something. Mr. IGNATIUS: So, you know, people–I think that’s what–because around the world, if a president is unhappy about something, it stops. MATTHEWS: OK. Mr. IGNATIUS: And I think they had to show that that was the case here. You know, the point that–to the point that Dan was making, our ability to act as a gatekeeper, you know, in the big media networks, newspapers… Ms. MITCHELL: It’s over, right? Mr. IGNATIUS: …it’s over. Ms. MITCHELL: Right. Mr. IGNATIUS: I mean, this is a viral world. MITCHELL: Right. Mr. IGNATIUS: This got around not because the, you know, the big press churned it, but because it went out on the Internet. Ms. KAY: This, Chris, it does… Mr. RATHER: I agree with that, David, however, we do have a responsibility, however you want to describe us, as gatekeepers. We could do a better job of putting it in perspective, putting it into context. MATTHEWS: Yeah. Mr. RATHER: Raising questions of OK, there’s a lot of talk of what’s patriotism and what is not patriotism. Is this an anti-patriotic act? That can be a role that we can perform better. I quite agree, once it goes viral, nobody can even conspire to say let’s keep this thing down. Ms. KAY: And in a sense… MATTHEWS: First question to you… Mr. RATHER: But we can put it in context and perspective. Context and perspective indeed. For instance, how about reporting the rarity  of hate crimes against Muslims in this country. In the midst of this media campaign to summarily accuse Americans of being Islamophobic, how many so-called journalists referred to FBI statistics dispelling this notion? And how about making it clear that not only was Jones a fringe religious player in Florida, likely the overwhelming majority of Americans didn’t support what he was doing and wanted him not  to carry out his deplorable, attention-getting stunt? This certainly would have added some context and perspective if media would have done so with every report on this subject. Unfortunately, as Rather pointed out despite the protests from everyone else on the set, this wasn’t what happened last week. Not by a long shot.

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Newt Gingrich Slammed For Saying Obama May Hold ‘Kenyan, Anti-Colonial’ Worldview

Posted on September 12, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Fueling the myth mongering that Barack Obama is not a natural-born U.S. citizen, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said in a recent interview that the president may follow a “Kenyan, anti-colonial” worldview. Speaking to the National Review, Gingrich pointed to a recent Forbes article by conservative writer Dinesh D'Souza which attempted to trace the origins of Obama's personal and political philosophies. “What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together [his actions]?” Gingrich asked. “That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior.” “This is a person who is fundamentally out of touch with how the world works, who happened to have played a wonderful con, as a result of which he is now president,” Gingrich added. “I think he worked very hard at being a person who is normal, reasonable, moderate, bipartisan, transparent, accommodating — none of which was true,” Gingrich continues. “In the Alinksy tradition, he was being the person he needed to be in order to achieve the position he needed to achieve. … He was authentically dishonest.” Considering D'Souza's and Gingrich's prominence within conservative intellectual circles, it stands to reason that their article and interview respectively, will be much discussed in the week ahead. Certainly, it appears, Democrats aren't shying away from pointing to the content as evidence that the GOP is top-heavy with extreme rhetoric and elements. “This crushes the hopes of those who thought Gingrich could bring ideas instead of smears to what the GOP was offering,” said DNC Press Secretary Hari Sevugan. “He's not a reasonable man that some thought he could be. He's proven he's just like the rest of them. With a worldview shaped by the most radical and fringe elements of the Republican Party, which are more dominant with each passing day.” added by: TimALoftis

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Slate Affiliate Equates Newt Gingrich With Koran Burner Jones

Posted on September 11, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Imagine for a moment you were the editor of a magazine owned by the Washington Post and Newsweek. Would you a day before the ninth anniversary of 9/11 publish an article with the following headline: The Talibanization of America Viewed from Pakistan, the rise of U.S. Islamophobia looks depressingly familiar.  Seems rather inflammatory hours before such a solemn day in America, don’t you think? Yet, such was published Friday by Foreign Policy magazine, an affiliate of the Slate Group.  Sadly, the contents  – which in paragraph three equated former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with prospective Koran burner Terry Jones – will likely be even more offensive to the vast majority of Americans  especially  on September 11: In Pakistan, “Talibanization” is a label used to describe regressive and parochial conservatism, not just the political ascendancy of Mullah Omar and his extremist disciples. When we use the label “mullah,” it is not the same thing as honoring someone by calling him “Father” or “Reverend.” Instead, we’re most likely referring to a person’s narrow-mindedness, bigotry, and possible racism. So when we try to explain to fellow Pakistanis how the United States is much grander than the pettiness of Quran-burning circuses or mosque-defying extremists, we don’t use the same labels that Americans would. Describing the ideological kith and kin of opponents of the Park51 project — including the fringe element of folks like Terry Jones and his flock at the Dove World Outreach Center — with terms like the moral majority, far-right evangelicals, or even neocons is useless. Instead, when we try to explain what is happening in America, we simply say that a great country is going through a kind of Talibanization — led by mullahs like Newt Gingrich, Pamela Geller, and the occasional Terry Jones. Isn’t that special? So, as far as this author is concerned, the highly-esteemed former Speaker of the House is the same as a nutty Pastor in Florida that up until a few weeks ago almost nobody in America ever heard of. But that was just the beginning of the nonsense on display at this Slate affiliate: What if we didn’t present the Quran-burners and mosque-attackers as part of a fringe movement of ideologically driven extremists? Then of course, the only other possibility is for us to accept that International Quran Burning Day and the controversy over the Park51 community center both in different ways signify mainstream America’s growing discomfort with Islam. Simply put, if the Islamophobia of an American fringe is in fact not on the fringes, but in the mainstream, then the United States has an Islamophobia problem. But therein lies the problem, for this whole idea of Islamophobia is a fiction created by America’s press that’s been negligently presented as a mainstream fear rather than a fringe sentiment in a dishonest attempt to change the public’s view of the Ground Zero mosque. If the media had done a better job of describing what this issue was really about when the Islamic center was first proposed rather than taking sides and presenting a distortion that impugned the overwhelmingly large percentage against the project, this wouldn’t have resulted in as significant a controversy here or abroad. That our press, as they have been doing at almost every turn lately, championed the minority view against the very citizens they serve is at the heart of this so-called Islamophobia. As it pertains to Jones, had these same media outlets completely ignored his attention-getting stunt, this too wouldn’t have represented a problem either here or throughout the Arab world. Unfortunately, that’s not the way this FP op-ed contributor saw things: In the places where the 9/11 attacks were planned, financed, and conceived, meanwhile, the warm and fuzzy Islam of America’s suburbs is a nonexistent fantasy. On the Muslim Main Street, in Saudi Arabia, in Afghanistan, and in flood-ravaged Pakistan, Muslims can’t see past the Talibanized narrative of the U.S. mid-term election. Just as the mainstream news media in America cannot be held responsible for transforming Terry Jones from a walking punch line into an international celebrity, mainstream media in a country like Pakistan can hardly be blamed for reporting Jones’s shenanigans to 180 million — mostly Muslim — Pakistanis. On Sept. 10, as Afghans celebrated Eid, many decided to protest against the Islamophobic events planned in Florida. During the protests, NATO troops, surrounded by angry protesters, opened fire, killing at least one person in Badakshan province. It is easy to become partisan in assigning blame for this death. Many will blame Terry Jones. Others will blame the media. Many others will blame the mullahs who stoked Afghan anger. No doubt, some pundit at Fox News will blame the protester himself, and most people in Afghanistan will blame NATO. It barely matters anymore who pulled the trigger in Badakhshan. The point is that progressive thought is being lost in the places where it would matter the most. In the nine years since 9/11, there has not been a single domestic Muslim reawakening in any of the Organization of the Islamic Conference’s almost 60 Muslim-majority countries. In countries like Pakistan, mosque leaders still make the same anti-American references. They still exhibit the same resistance to change. They still get treated with kid gloves by governments that are run by culturally dislocated Muslims. Is this America’s fault? The United States today is a nation deeply divided along political lines. It’s currently impossible to generate a consensus view on how to stimulate our economy, how to bring down healthcare costs, or how to solve the looming crises involving the unfunded liabilities associated with Social Security and Medicare. In fact, we can’t even create a consensus as to whether or not Social Security and Medicare are looming crises. But we should be held responsible for what foreigners think when we can’t even get our own people to agree on simple matters facing our own country? This seems especially absurd when one considers the number of things many Americans are deeply confused about. As Newsweek humorously noted  a few weeks ago:  21 percent of Americans believe in witches 20 percent believe the sun revolves around the earth 41 percent don’t know Judaism is older than Christianity Less than 25 percent can name two members of the Supreme Court 63 percent of young Americans can’t find Iraq on a map; 90 percent can’t find Afghanistan 60 percent can’t identify the three branches of our government With all of our money, media, and education, we can’t properly inform our own people. Yet we should be responsible for controlling the thought processes of foreigners thousands of miles away with governments employing their own methods of propaganda to reach their own goals? Preposterous!  With this in mind, maybe this FP op-ed contributor should look at himself for answers, for he is more a part of the problem than the solution. After all, nowhere in his article did he mention the facts concerning the canard that is American Islamophobia. Maybe if he informed his readers that FBI statistics show hate crimes against Muslims in this country are a rarity compared to those against blacks, Jews, and gays, they’d realize that this really isn’t the problem the media are making it out to be. And maybe if he ignored Terry Jones, rather than mentioning him six times in this piece, the exploits of this fringe Pastor wouldn’t be a propaganda tool in the Arab world. At the very least he and his ilk should go to great lengths telling their readers that a tremendously small percentage of Americans support Koran burning as a protest against Islam. What this FP op-ed contributor and virtually all our liberal media don’t seem to understand is that America’s enemies abroad are looking to conflate anything that happens here or involves us internationally to foment anti-American hatred in their countries. This has been going on for decades and didn’t start after 9/11.  As such, if this FP op-ed contributor and all liberal press members would more accurately report events here rather than sensationalize everything in order to paint the most negative picture of the average American citizen, our enemies would have less fuel to add to their propagandist fires. I would say this was pretty darned obvious if not for that Newsweek presentation previously mentioned. 

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Slate Affiliate Equates Newt Gingrich With Koran Burner Jones

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CBS: U.S. Muslims ‘Feel Like Strangers in Their Own Country’

Posted on September 10, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Filling in for anchor Katie Couric on Thursday’s CBS Evening News, Early Show co-host Harry Smith introduced a report on opposition to building mosques in some areas of the country: “…they feel like strangers in their own country, Muslims shocked by the growing opposition to new mosques ….building a mosque has suddenly become a hot-button issue in many communities.” Smith expounded on the cause of the protests: “The furor over plans to burn the Koran and the building of the proposed Islamic center near Ground Zero has had ripple effects all across America.” Correspondent Seth Doane followed by focusing on opposition to a proposed mosque in Tennessee: “About 250 Muslim families live here in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. For decades, they’ve lived in peace and have prayed at a small local mosque. But then trouble started brewing over this site, where they want to expand and build a bigger Islamic center.” Doane described the feelings of one Muslim resident: “[Saleh Sbenaty] says even after September 11th, he didn’t see hatred like this.” Doane added: “Nationwide, more than half a dozen proposed Islamic centers have run into roadblocks, from Temecula, California, to Sheboygan, Wisconsin, to the high-profile one near Ground Zero.” He did not explain what those “roadblocks” were. Doane turned to the Sbenaty’s daughter: “Is this really about a building or is it about something bigger?” Dima Sbenaty replied: “It’s about the growing hatred, you know, against Muslims.” Doane warned: “Dima says for the first time she’s scared.” Near the end of the report, Doane cited more evidence of anti-Muslim sentiment in the form of grade school name-calling: “10-year-old Zaid Abuzahra probably had more on his mind than just school. Last week at recess, some bullies learned that he was Muslim.” Abuzahra explained: “This group comes, and starts calling me terrorist, ‘I hear you’re a Muslim. This is America.'” The report included only two brief sound bites of mosque opponents, with Doane portraying them as a radical fringe: “In June, residents packed meetings in protest….And what some call a vocal minority, got louder….A few weeks ago, construction equipment at the site was set on fire, and with that, the arsonists set nerves on edge, too.” Meanwhile, on Thursday’s NBC Nightly News, correspondent Ron Mott also reported on the building of a new mosque in Tennessee, but took a slightly different approach: Last night’s call to prayer outside Memphis was answered by the Muslim faithful as usual: shoes removed, rugs laid, all bowed east toward Mecca, singing Allah’s praises. But what makes this year’s Ramadan different is where they’re worshiping, a Christian church called Heartsong, a sort of ‘welcome to the neighborhood’ gift while a new mosque is built nearby….Neighbors ever since the Memphis Islamic Center bought 31 acres in the heart of the Bible Belt. Unlike other parts of the country, there have been no signs of protests. Doane left out any mention of that story of religious cooperation elsewhere in the state. Here is a full transcript of Doane’s September 9 report: 6:40PM ET TEASE: HARRY SMITH: Up next, they say they feel like strangers in their own country, Muslims shocked by the growing opposition to new mosques. 6:42PM ET SEGMENT:      SMITH: The furor over plans to burn the Koran and the building of the proposed Islamic center near Ground Zero has had ripple effects all across America. There are 2.5 million Muslims in this country, and about 1900 mosques, but building a mosque has suddenly become a hot-button issue in many communities. As Seth Doane reports, that’s just what happened in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. SETH DOANE: Like most 13-year-olds, he’s proud of his school, his soccer trophies, and his country. SALIM SBENATY [MURFREESBORO, TN. RESIDENT]: I’m as American as you get. I’m as patriotic as you get. I mean, I’m America all the way. DOANE: He’s also proud of his religion. Salim Sbenaty is Muslim, and nowadays, this Tennessee town that’s been his family’s home for nearly 20 years, doesn’t feel the same. SBENATY: I’m always afraid for my mom, because there are always a few stupid people out there. You never know what they’re going to do, and my mom wearing that scarf is a symbol saying, ‘hey, I’m Muslim.’ DOANE: About 250 Muslim families live here in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. For decades, they’ve lived in peace and have prayed at a small local mosque. But then trouble started brewing over this site, where they want to expand and build a bigger Islamic center. In June, residents packed meetings in protest. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If construction does begin, I would also encourage contractors to boycott it. DOANE: And what some call a vocal minority, got louder. LARRY ANDERSON [MUFREESBORO, TN. RESIDENT]: They want to make this instead of one nation under God, America, they want to make this one nation under Islam. DOANE: A few weeks ago, construction equipment at the site was set on fire, and with that, the arsonists set nerves on edge, too. Salim’s dad says even after September 11th, he didn’t see hatred like this. SALEH SBENATY: It’s very hard for me to forget what I’ve heard directed toward me from people who don’t know me. DOANE: Nationwide, more than half a dozen proposed Islamic centers have run into roadblocks, from Temecula, California, to Sheboygan, Wisconsin, to the high-profile one near Ground Zero. Is this really about a building or is it about something bigger? DIMA SBENATY [SISTER OF SALIM SBENATY]: It’s about the growing hatred, you know, against Muslims. DOANE: Salim’s 20-year-old sister Dima says for the first time she’s scared. SBENATY: It’s very disappointing. It really is, because this country was founded upon freedom of religion. DOANE: Across town this morning, 10-year-old Zaid Abuzahra probably had more on his mind than just school. Last week at recess, some bullies learned that he was Muslim. ZAID ABUZAHRA: This group comes, and starts calling me terrorist, ‘I hear you’re a Muslim. This is America.’ DOANE: How did it make you feel? ABUZAHRA: Awkward, sad, like, surprising. DOANE: A surprise to many here who watch the news and wonder. SBENATY: First Amendment, ever since I was little and had to memorize it, freedom of religion, it says it. DOANE: In that First Amendment, another right – freedom of speech, for some just harder to hear. Seth Doane, CBS News, Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

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CBS: U.S. Muslims ‘Feel Like Strangers in Their Own Country’

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Chris Matthews Accuses Sarah Palin of Aiding and Abetting Koran-burning Pastor

Posted on September 10, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Chris Matthews on Thursday accused Sarah Palin of aiding and abetting Pastor Terry Jones, the man threatening to burn Korans on Saturday’s ninth anniversary of 9/11. For days, Matthews and his colleagues on MSNBC have been calling upon Republicans to speak out against Jones. On Wednesday, the former Alaska governor did exactly that at her Facebook page and at Twitter .  But this wasn’t enough for Matthews who repeatedly on the 5PM installment of “Hardball” attacked Palin for being too “soft” in her admonishment of Jones, and actually accused her of giving the Pastor the linkage between burning Korans and the controversy surrounding the Ground Zero mosque. Matthews also included House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Oh.) in his pathetic plot (video follows with transcript and commentary): CHRIS MATTHEWS, HOST: Democratic strategist Steve McMahon joins us now, along with Republican strategist Leslie Sanchez. You know, this is one of those moments where, OK, I`m going to take you on, Leslie, here. Ready? LESLIE SANCHEZ, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: All right. MATTHEWS: I think that people like Boehner and Sarah Palin are the first people in the news cycle to put out the word there`s some linkage between burning the Koran on national — international television and the mosque a couple blocks away from the World Trade Centers. Honestly, was Matthews being intentionally naive or lying? The whole reason media have given Jones all this attention is because of the Ground Zero mosque. Any suggestion to the contrary is absurd:  MATTHEWS: And now these people down there, this minister, discovered, hey, this is handy. I will trade one for the other. It turns out the trade wasn`t real, but at least he`s pretending. Your thoughts about accomplices before — accessories before and after the fact here. SANCHEZ: I think that`s a stretch. (CROSSTALK) MATTHEWS: Why is that a stretch? SANCHEZ: Because — MATTHEWS: Have you ever heard these ministers talk about a link with the mosque before Mr. Boehner or Sarah Palin mentioned it? SANCHEZ: Well, I don`t read everything with the mosque. But let`s look at the realities. You have got 50 people in a garage that say these crazy things and, all of a sudden, we have all the networks, the president, and everybody responding to them. Look at it for what it really is. (CROSSTALK) MATTHEWS: So, is Sarah Palin one of the 50 crazy people in the mosque, or what? How disgraceful!  SANCHEZ: I think what is interesting is that Sarah Palin is brought up again. She puts a tweet out there. She starts talking about it, and everybody wants to say she has directed and shaped this debate. MATTHEWS: “People have a constitutional right to burn a Koran if they want to, but doing so is insensitive” — I would say it`s more than insensitive — “and an unnecessary provocation.” That`s pretty soft language compared to the way she talked about the mosque. Actually, why don’t we look at Palin’s entire posting at Facebook: Book burning is antithetical to American ideals. People have a constitutional right to burn a Koran if they want to, but doing so is insensitive and an unnecessary provocation – much like building a mosque at Ground Zero. I would hope that Pastor Terry Jones and his supporters will consider the ramifications of their planned book-burning event. It will feed the fire of caustic rhetoric and appear as nothing more than mean-spirited religious intolerance. Don’t feed that fire. If your ultimate point is to prove that the Christian teachings of mercy, justice, freedom, and equality provide the foundation on which our country stands, then your tactic to prove this point is totally counter-productive.  Our nation was founded in part by those fleeing religious persecution. Freedom of religion is integral to our charters of liberty. We don’t need to agree with each other on theological matters, but tolerating each other without unnecessarily provoking strife is how we ensure a civil society. In this as in all things, we should remember the Golden Rule. Isn’t that what the Ground Zero mosque debate has been about?  That seems like a pretty strong condemnation of Jones’s plan, doesn’t it? Yet Matthews never once read the entire thing to his viewers. Instead, he continued with his pathetic plot:  SANCHEZ: They`re — not judging her, it`s the fact — MATTHEWS: It`s insensitive? We have a travel alert. (CROSSTALK) SANCHEZ: But why pick out Sarah Palin? I guess that`s my point. MATTHEWS: Because I`m looking at the news that came in this morning. And, all of a sudden, she`s getting her fingers into this thing. Your thoughts, Steve. I think it`s incredible that she would be so soft — taking such a soft line on this guy burning the Koran, because you never attack to the right when you`re on the right. That`s what I think is going on here. Excuse me! Matthews and his network have been criticizing Republicans for not speaking out against this guy. Now that some have, he accuses them of aiding and abetting the Pastor! How pathetic:  SANCHEZ: But for what political purpose? That`s what I`m saying. (CROSSTALK) MATTHEWS: — with as far out, with as far out with the fringe as she can, because that`s her base. (CROSSTALK) STEVE MCMAHON, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: That`s right. It`s not just her base. It`s the people that are taking over the party. It`s the Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh — MATTHEWS: You can`t hurt by being friendly with the right. MCMAHON: –. base of the Republican Party. Exactly. You cannot be too far right, because especially if you`re thinking about running for president or if you want to have a controversial talk show on FOX, you need to do these things. And they generate headlines. They get people like us talking. And it works for Sarah Palin, who wants to be an entertainer and a provocateur. I`m not sure it works very well if she wants to be the president of the United States. MATTHEWS: Do you think that`s a statement you could live with, Leslie, people have a constitutional right to burn a Koran if they want to? Do you like the phraseology there? People have a constitutional right to burn a Koran if they want to? Do you like that — The hypocrisy on display here was astonishing. For weeks, folks like Matthews have been telling the American people that the backers of the Ground Zero mosque have a Constitutional right to build it there, and this supersedes the public’s overwhelming opposition. By contrast, the conservative position has been to recognize the Constitutionality in play while questioning the wisdom of doing something that would offend so many Americans. As such, Palin – and Boehner as you’ll see in a bit – were making the exact same argument concerning Jones: he has the right to burn these Korans, but they wish he wouldn’t. Not only didn’t Matthews see the consistency in these positions, he was the one being inconsistent by now claiming Jones’s Constitutional rights were irrelevant and represented a “soft” position on Palin’s part. The net result is that the Constitution in Matthews’ mind must only protect those involved with the Ground Zero mosque but not Pastor Jones:  (CROSSTALK) SANCHEZ: First off, I`m not going to put Sarah Palin`s words in my mouth. Let`s put it that way. MATTHEWS: OK. Good. SANCHEZ: I can speak for myself. But I will say this much. I think you play too much into this game that Sarah Palin wants you to do, which is — talking from a conservative Republican perspective, I think we were very clear, both bipartisanly, from a bipartisan perspective, of how people felt about how ludicrous his statements were and his actions to be. MATTHEWS: Whose were? SANCHEZ: The reverend in this case. MATTHEWS: Sure. SANCHEZ: And I think why can`t we talk in solidarity about that? It`s all this — this ruse that it`s Sarah Palin pulling the strings – – (CROSSTALK) MATTHEWS: I just want to know — I will go back to my question — why did she throw him the life jacket and say, put this on, tie it to the mosque? Why did she do that? Why did Boehner do that? Nobody else was doing it in the media. I wasn`t drawing the connection. Then you’re either an idiot or a liar, Mr. Matthews, for there not only is a connection here, but also people like you and the rest of the media would have totally ignored Jones if the Ground Zero mosque wasn’t currently an issue:  SANCHEZ: She — MATTHEWS: These characters were sitting, were on the show right here, talking to me, both these pastors, Sapp and Jones — neither one of them mentioned the mosque. Both long interviews. I said, is there anyone who could appeal to, we could appeal to you to stop this? Or any — nobody mentioned the mosque until today, after these stories moved by your — people on the far right. Not on the right. People like Boehner, just a Republican golfer. (LAUGHTER) SANCHEZ: Well, the tan is important. But to be fair to that point, I think a lot of people were talking about it. If you want to see that`s a lifeline, I think you`re going to see it regardless of anything that I have to say. MCMAHON: It`s interesting — it`s interesting here, though, if people continue to draw a connection between the actions and the words of John Boehner and Sarah Palin and suggest that somehow the leaders of the Republican Party and the woman who is the frontrunner for the Republican nomination for president — I mean, that`s why this makes so much news — if there`s some suggestion that the Republican Party is sort of behind this guy, and manipulating this guy, I think it further alienates the Republican Party — SANCHEZ: Further. MCMAHON: — from the majority of Americans who feel differently about this. (CROSSTALK) MATTHEWS: There`s a big difference between the difficult question of building a mosque a couple blocks from the World Trade Center, which I`ve always said on this program is a difficult question. I`ve admired Michael Bloomberg for the courageous position he`s taken given the fact of his job up there. But I think there`s two sides of that argument. Can we agree there`s no two sides to the argument about burning religious books on world television? Can we agree on it? No, we certainly can’t agree for they both involve folks exercising their Constitutional rights in a fashion that the majority of citizens find offensive. They are indeed the exact same issue, and any suggestion to the contrary demonstrates ignorance, willful dishonesty, or both:  MCMAHON: Yes. Yes, we can agree. MATTHEWS: OK. We just got the word that Gates — Secretary Gates did make a call to the reverend to try to smooth this thing out or end this thing. Maybe that was influential. Here`s John Boehner making the point I was trying to relate to here, conflating — there`s a word I don`t like, but it`s big these days on the right — conflating Koran-burning with the Islamic center near Ground Zero. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), MINORITY LEADER: To Pastor Jones and those who want to build the mosque, just because you have a right to do something in America, does not mean it is the right thing to do. (END VIDEO CLIP) Exactly. And this is the same position the Right has taken concerning the Ground Zero mosque. Not surprisingly, Matthews was having none of it:  MATTHEWS: That was healthy. We call that in the NBA, an assist. (LAUGHTER) MATTHEWS: That`s called an assist. SANCHEZ: No, I mean — MATTHEWS: Or an alley-hoop actually. SANCHEZ: Wow. MATTHEWS: Get it near the top of the rim so the other guy can put it in.  I ask you: do you need a better example of liberal media bias? Matthews and his colleagues complain for days that Republicans aren’t doing anything to stop Jones from burning Korans on Saturday. Two top GOP figures do, and they’re accused of helping the Pastor. Makes you want to throw your television set out the window, doesn’t it? 

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Chris Matthews Accuses Sarah Palin of Aiding and Abetting Koran-burning Pastor

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